When the Saintess Arrives, No King Exist-Chapter 650 - 610: The Movements of Joan of Arc Castle

The cold autumn rain strikes the roof haphazardly, dripping from the eaves of the small chapel, creating ripples on the foundation.

Yet in this vast, stormy woodland, Ansel can still hear a faint "squeak squeak."

That is the sound of hand-operated spinning wheels spinning, or rather the sound produced when dozens of spinning wheels shrouded in autumn rain mist are set in motion.

Amid this orderly squeaking, Ansel wears a content, relaxed smile, reading the newly arrived brief while sharpening quills.

For the scribes of this era, sharpening quills is an inevitable task.

According to "The Monk's Handbook," edited by Horn and Catherine, new assistant monks must spend their first year sharpening quills and binding annual reports.

The so-called annual report is Horn's requirement for paper-based operations, where at the end of each year, departments or monasteries copy and bind the reports of that year, forming the annual report.

By reading, binding, and copying annual reports, one gradually understands the department's style, authority, and tasks.

Next to learn is how to execute tasks.

Even Ansel, as a cohort three Child Soldiers, spent half a year sharpening quills in the Hundred Households District of Langsande County before formally participating in work.

On his desk, besides the latest brief, lies the newest Joan paper.

On the paper, a two-dimensional table records the roster of the Scythe Brotherhood.

According to the brief, the first batch of Joan paper had already entered the market in mid-August, priced at 90 Dinars per ream.

This price and quality quickly became popular in Langsande County, and with the "voluntary" contribution of a large number of relief printing plates from the Church and Monasteries, book prices plummeted dramatically.

Ansel is currently considering whether to apply to his superiors for a literacy reader and have Bryson bring in some students in winter.

This kind of literacy reader is also recently published by Truth Court, printed by Crab Roe Castle Publishing House, a general knowledge reader.

It's said that there is one for each Hundred Households District, His Majesty Saint Sun forcibly compelled major monasteries to send monks to the countryside with these literacy textbooks to eradicate illiteracy.

It is not required to write, as long as one can read and master addition and subtraction under twenty.

Thus even Public Register Farmers can understand announcements and are not afraid of being deceived by merchants or tax collectors with numerical tricks.

As for cities, various middle and primary schools have been established successively, with teachers being low-ranked monks from monasteries and laid-off priests.

The priests who were downsized by the Efficiency Exorcism Order at least have a job and do not become "knowledgeable yet idle social individuals."

Internally, the Salvation Army even established a heaven-defying twelve-year system Saint Danji Academy affiliated middle school "Loyal Successor Middle School," stretching from four-year-old kindergarten to sixteen-year-old high school graduation.

At sixteen, they just reach the minimum age for the Salvation Army to recruit war monks and directly join the army.

However, in Ansel's view, although he was from the Child Soldiers, basically the same system as the Salvation Army, he still sees it as inappropriate.

Because these military schools have tuition reductions for war monk children and use an application system.

Several middle and primary schools were set up in Joan of Arc Castle, ry Court Barracks, and Rapids City but did not implement compulsory education.

In reality, most of those attending school are children of small citizens, war monk children, and villagers who got rich from the war.

Thus, this twelve-year military middle school would likely be entirely filled with war monk children.

If it continues this way, the military or rather officers may become a semi-hereditary profession.

But this is something His Majesty Saint Sun should be considering, not Ansel.

He is concerned only with one thing, the members and number of the Scythe Brotherhood.

A month ago, when he and Bryson came to Adrian Manor, not to mention the Brotherhood, there wasn't even anyone willing to speak to them.

Seven days ago, his Scythe Brotherhood still had 22 member households.

A day later, when it was announced that wool processing would begin, only 15 households came to the village church.

Four days ago, only 13 households came to pay for the spun yarn.

That is to say, 9 households were persuaded by Henderson, and 2 households were only tempted by half a pound of cheap wool.

However, these 13 households spent 50 pounds of wool to spin 45 bundles of yarn, earning a total of 27 Dinars, roughly averaging to 2 Dinars per household.

Don't be misled by Horn over there earning tens of thousands, even hundreds of thousands of gold pounds, a mountain dweller's annual income is just about 1-2 gold pounds.

In other words, averaged over a month per person, they only have an income of 10-12 Dinars.

2 Dinars account for one-sixth of a month's revenue, achieved in just 3 days.

If it were over a month, it would be 20 Dinars, a considerable amount that can leave all villagers breathless.

This isn't ordinary money; this is survival money, even the richest Public Register Farmers wouldn't dare say they never starved people every year.

Thus, Brother Ansel's golden wool became the hottest topic in Adrian Manor.

The fervor is visible even from the number of broken plates and table chairs by a certain manor head.

Even Knight Adrian came directly inquiring if he could buy shares, and privately asked Ansel where he got low-priced wool from.

By yesterday's second wool salary handout, the Scythe Brotherhood's roster already had 21 households, distributing a total of 42 Dinars as salary.

When the gleaming silver coins clinked into the Brotherhood members' pockets, the remaining villagers could no longer remain still.

In the past few days, inquiries and applications to join the Brotherhood have skyrocketed.

From yesterday afternoon to this evening, in just a day and a half, more than 30 households have been registered in the Scythe Brotherhood.

Currently, there are still 5 households inquiring, but they have yet to make a final decision to join.

Bryson even devised an invitation system, meaning one cannot simply join; an internal member must invite them in.

He claims it can prevent Henderson from inserting spies, but Ansel doesn't see the necessity.

However, to avoid dampening the energetic priest's work enthusiasm, he agreed to his plan.

Next, as long as this wool operation system continues rolling, all Public Register Farmers in Adrian Manor will join in.

With the number exceeding two-thirds of the entire manor, the Scythe Brotherhood would effectively form a Hundred Households District. 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

Under the circumstances where the Mountain Knight himself holds no management authority, the biggest resistance left would be the manor head and other Armed Farmers.

Based on time period research, Ansel can identify the operational core of this manor.

In a whole mountain manor, it's divided into three parts: Knights, Armed Farmers, and Public Register Farmers.

As long as any two sides unite, they can suppress and isolate the third side. Adrian Manor, for example, has Armed Farmers uniting with Public Register Farmers to isolate the knight himself.

That means although he enjoys the greatest benefits, he has no actual power to manage the manor, which already is a form of autonomy in a sense.

From another perspective, as long as he can sever the unity between Armed Farmers and Public Register Farmers, Ansel can completely control the entire manor.

Unless Manor Head Henderson can offer greater benefits to win over the villagers, internal fracturing is just a matter of time.

But when Ansel prepares to write "expected to complete perpetual lease rights and Hundred Households District reform by early October" on the report, he finds himself distracted again.

It was not until the ink from the pen dropped onto the paper that he hurriedly wiped the ink spots with a handkerchief.

Bryson, having just greeted a family inquiring about wool, saw Ansel in a daze and couldn't help but curiously ask, "What are you thinking about?"

Putting down the quill, Ansel sighed, "I received an order from the superior Monastery increasing my wool quota by 1 quintal."

"Isn't that good? Adrian Manor has too many people, and the original amount of wool was already insufficient," Bryson remarked.

Ansel shook his head with furrowed brows, "Given the smugglers' capacity from Shattered Stone Plain, shipping 1500 quintals of wool per month is at best.

Each area's wool quota is limited; an uncalled increase for me implies one area doesn't need its wool this month."

"What do you mean?" Bryson was startled.

"Although the brief doesn't mention it, I suspect the trouble has spread from the neighboring Cosland Manor or, say, Mason Small District," Ansel replied.