Farming with Entries: From Lord to Emperor-Chapter 577 - 289: Territory Development (2)

"I believe it won’t be long before you can taste the fresh and delicious honey."

"I hope so."

Luo De didn’t pay too much attention to it.

If he wants sustainable development, more honey must be left in the beehives in the first year so that the bees can survive the winter well.

Unless Luo De can create an exceptionally warm environment for the bee farm without disturbing the bees’ hibernation.

After Tyr finished reporting, Otto reported on the farming matters.

Once Tyr finished his report, Otto, who was in charge of agriculture, stood up to report on the state of farming.

"Lord, the weather has been quite good this year, with ample rainfall."

Otto’s voice carried a tone of joy,

"The work in the fields is not too busy at the moment, so I’ve arranged for some farmers to go up the mountains to gather various mushrooms and wild fruits."

"Additionally, as per your previous instructions, some people are cultivating seedlings in the forests."

He continued to report in detail.

"The remaining farmers are mainly responsible for clearing weeds and pest control in the fields, as well as replanting after some vegetable harvesting tasks."

"Hmm."

Luo De responded softly.

The farming work in this season is somewhat lighter, calling for more attentive focus and patrols.

It’s worth mentioning that Luo De had previously imparted many traditional agricultural techniques and pest control methods to Otto.

For instance, using lime powder and straw ash in the fields to control pests, or creating special grass piles to attract and concentrate pests, among others.

These aren’t difficult matters; if Otto couldn’t arrange them well, Luo De would have to whip him.

After Otto also completed his report, all basic daily affairs were resolved.

Some remaining detailed issues and specific data would be organized into comprehensive reports by three Fox Girl assistants for Luo De to review at leisure.

With each department’s reports concluded, everyone in the meeting hall bowed and left.

Durant and Lawrence stayed behind.

The two of them were respectively in charge of the military and finance, the two most sensitive and important fields, involving many secrets that required in-depth discussions separately.

"Following your instructions before departure, we’ve captured a total of 583 prisoners from Eagle Ridge."

Durant, with a serious expression, picked up a detailed roster from the table,

"These people have all been assigned to various mines for excavation work, but..."

Durant glanced at Lawrence and continued,

"But after discussing with Lawrence, it turns out that not so much labor is currently required across the various mines, so I would like to ask for your instructions on how to arrange these surplus personnel?"

"Draw out the well-performing young ones from the various lumber mills, stone quarries, and mines, and integrate them into the army reserves."

Luo De seemed to have anticipated this situation, and he answered without hesitation.

"Tell them I am very satisfied with their work performance during this time."

"Therefore, I have decided to pardon their previous offenses and give them a chance to charge forward for me, to achieve merit and success."

Luo De paused and added,

"But note that not everyone can be pardoned at once; you have to carefully select those who have been slaves for more than half a year and have consistently performed well."

"Once they start training, they need continued observation."

"And their vacated positions will be filled by these newly captured prisoners."

"Understood, my lord!"

Durant’s eyes instantly lit up with excitement on his face.

As the Commander of the territory’s military, expanding the army was naturally his top concern.

More troops mean more formidable combat power, which signifies a stronger territory.

"My lord, how large will our army expand to this time?"

Durant couldn’t help asking again, with a tone full of anticipation.

"This time..."

Luo De paused before speaking,

"Excluding the elite Frost Winter Knights, the regular army must reach at least a thousand men."

The territory’s population has now exceeded eight thousand and continues to grow.

The territory is vast enough, with ample wildlife resources available for hunting in the wild.

The eastern coastline is also continuously expanding, with great potential for future development and no shortage of food resources.

Apart from lacking deep family foundations, Luo De felt his hard power was no worse than that of a typical Count.

Now the most important thing is to continue developing all kinds of resources in the territory and then transform these resources into population.

Little by little, snowballing to make the entire territory stronger. 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

And the army is the most important foundation to ensure all of this proceeds steadily.

Especially with the Hawk Clan and Cold Blade Clan eyeing them covetously.

"That’s great! An army of a thousand!"

Durant almost jumped out of his chair with excitement, but sensing the impropriety, he immediately composed himself.

"A thousand? So many?"

Lawrence exclaimed in surprise upon hearing this number.

He swallowed hard as if he saw a large number of Gold Coins flying out of the money bag.

The Lord’s orders, of course, couldn’t be defied, and he could only sigh helplessly and mutter under his breath,

"It seems each month in the future will cost us an arm and a leg."

As for the other people present, while also surprised by this number, they weren’t too shocked.

The Fox Girl assistant responsible for recording Luo De’s orders only paused briefly before continuing to write diligently.

Luo De ignored Lawrence’s complaints and continued,

"Additionally, the stone quarries, lumber mills, and brick factories, these basic facilities, all need to be substantially expanded."