AWDC Chapter 63

Chapter 63: The King’s Desert Inspection

The next day, His Majesty boarded the rail carriage in high spirits.

We prepared a specially-made carriage pulled by two horses. To allow him to view the outside scenery, we installed glass windows and placed a bench seat along the window side, with a sofa in the back for His Majesty to sit on.

“This is an excellent ride! How is it done?”

“The rails are level, allowing the wheels to turn smoothly, and we’ve used leaf springs to cushion the impact.”

In this world, there were no springs or similar shock-absorbing devices. Carriage seats were simply padded with straw, so the impact from the ground was directly transmitted to the tailbone. Any modern Japanese person riding in a carriage of this era would undoubtedly complain after just thirty minutes. However, the rails were not yet capable of supporting heavy loads, and their durability was incomparable to those in my former world.

“This will make travel much easier,” the King said, recalling a time when his carriage broke down and he was late for a garden party hosted by the previous king.

“If only I had this back then.”

I didn’t know what the King was thinking at that moment.

As he was boarding the carriage, the King suddenly announced that he wanted to go deep into the desert. After all, in this world, the King’s despotism was tolerated.

“Um, if we go deep into the desert, we’ll have to camp overnight.”

“That’s fine. I came here to subjugate Charles. Camping during wartime is only natural. Don’t worry about it,” the King said, clearly serious about inspecting the desert.

Even though he said, “Don’t worry about it,” as the ones welcoming him, we couldn’t possibly allow the King to be inconvenienced. I hurriedly explained that we weren’t prepared with tents and other camping equipment.

“You were at war until recently, weren’t you? Camping should be easy,” the King casually decided on a desert campout. His schedule was practically non-existent, depending on his mood.

Even if it was just camping, it would be a disgrace to the Robertson family if we could only provide the King and his entourage with meager meals and accommodations.

I immediately contacted the village leaders.

“We’ll have to have them camp at the desert midway station. We can prepare tents and sheets there,” I said, explaining the situation.

“Can we prepare something for His Majesty to eat in the desert?” Even the lord, who usually left the meal arrangements to others, seemed concerned.

“Jim Keene will prepare the campsite, but it won’t be like a hotel,” Roy Keene said, clearly flustered, never expecting the King to suggest camping.

“Quickly, gather some male goat kids.”

Through my agricultural guidance in the village, we were practicing crop rotation with wheat, beans, and potatoes to avoid continuous cropping problems. We were also making compost from the manure of cows, pigs, and goats to cultivate the barren land. Previously, livestock numbers had to be thinned out due to food shortages in the winter, but by using winter-growing turnips as feed, the number of livestock had greatly increased. Among them, goats were the most numerous in the desert reclamation area because they ate weeds without complaint and required little feed.

Female goats were used for breeding and milking, so the male goats were used for meat. Usually, farmers would raise the kids until autumn to fatten them up before selling them at the market, but that would make the goat meat tough. That’s why I obtained young goat kids born in the spring, when their meat was still tender, from nearby farmers.

When it came time to board the rail carriage to the desert, I was once again ordered to be the explainer.

The King kept asking questions about everything he saw.

“Why did you plant trees along the waterway?”

“How many families live in this settlement?”

Even after we got off at the desert station, the King’s questions didn’t stop.

“Is there enough water in the waterway?”

“How large is this field?”

“How is the wheat crop doing?”

I was getting more and more nervous. It wasn’t because the questions were difficult. It was clear that the King was interested in the cultivated area of the desert and the crop yields.

It was safe to assume that he was calculating the harvest volume of the reclaimed land.

“This facility is for accepting new settlers. It’s not easy to reclaim the desert, even if you come from somewhere else. They will work here for a year, learning the process of drawing water to the desert and turning it into farmland.”

I was showing him the model farm. This was given to a farmer who was the second son of a Toriholi Village resident, with the lord’s support. He had been receiving my agricultural guidance for a long time, rotated crops to avoid continuous cropping problems, was skilled in making compost, and was successfully reclaiming the land. The newcomers were learning farming techniques suitable for the desert here for a year.

“So you’re trying to determine if the residents are worthy of being accepted.”

The villagers weren’t always good people. Some were unscrupulous and caused trouble. That’s why those who wanted to become farmers were made to work at the model farm. Only those who worked diligently and seemed capable of living in the desert were accepted as residents. Those who were ill-behaved or lazy were driven out. The King easily saw through the role of this facility.

The lodging was located right below the reservoir, which could be called the innermost part of the desert. Situated in a position overlooking the reservoir’s embankment, the embankment appeared to be over 50 meters high and 120 meters wide when viewed from a lower angle.

“That Jim Keene, he deliberately chose this location to show off the size of the embankment.”

He must have wanted to show off this huge embankment and brag about it.

But the King wanted to see the desert area that would be cultivated in the future. And if he understood the approximate scale of the reclamation, there was a risk that he would make even greater demands on the village.

I understood Jim Keene’s desire to show off, but I became depressed thinking about whether the King would make unnecessary demands.

“This is quite something,” the King said, carefully inspecting the size of the reservoir and the tunnel facilities.

A large amount of water flowed out of the tunnel’s exit, filling the reservoir.

“At this rate, it won’t take long to turn the desert into a green land.”

I couldn’t honestly listen to the King’s satisfied mutterings.

The King was seeing the future of the desert.

That night, we served roasted goat kid. Fortunately, it was tender and easy to eat, and it was well-received here as well. However, I was still stuck as the King’s explainer.

After being by His Majesty’s side for nearly two days, I had come to understand his personality.

Prince Charles had stayed in Milona for two years, but had never come to Toriholi Village.

In comparison, the King was trying to assess how much of an impact the desert development would have in the future.

“This is quite a person. He won’t leave the village without saying something,” I couldn’t help but stay on guard.

“Toma, I understand that 10,000 bags of wheat will be produced in this village this year,”

The King spoke to me at the hotel after returning from the desert.

“But you see, that will double next year, and in ten years, it will be produced up to 200,000 bags. Isn’t it?”

“I can’t answer for things so far in the future.”

He had his retainers thoroughly investigate the desert’s development situation. The prediction of 200,000 bags was probably derived from that investigation. It wasn’t far off from my own prediction either.

“You said the amount of wheat was quite small. Can’t you increase the tribute more next year?”

This is why important people are troublesome. He’s already trying to count on the increased revenue for next year.

“I can predict this year’s crop yield, but I can’t answer for next year.”

“Hmph, alright, then build that rail carriage in the capital. That should be easy enough.”

“We can build it, but it’s not easy for our village.”

While wondering why the King was so attached to the rail carriage, I felt that I shouldn’t accept it so easily.

“Our village has been selling wheat and buying necessary goods from outside for many years. To build a rail carriage, we have to buy a lot of goods from other places. If that happens, we have to sell even more wheat. The reality is that the farmers of Toriholi Village can’t even afford to put bread in their own mouths.

Your Majesty makes excessive demands on Toriholi Village, but please also grant rewards for our farmers.”

“You’re quite impudent to say things that are difficult to say. Understood. I will give the Robertson family two villages across the river.”

The villages across the river were probably the villages owned by Viscount Samarkand, across from Toriholi Village. In this war, the southern lords sided with Prince Charles and were defeated, suffering great losses. Although not all of the punishments had been handed down yet, it was certain that the main lords who sided with the Prince would have their territories reduced. I assumed that Viscount Samarkand’s territory would also be reduced.

If we could receive two villages as compensation for gifting 10,000 bags of wheat and building a rail carriage in the capital, it would be excellent.

“While you’re at it, please also grant us the development rights for the Mulan River area upstream from Toriholi Village.”

Upstream from Toriholi Village, the current became rapid and ships couldn’t travel upstream. On top of that, the mountains were close, and there were few flat areas or riverbeds, so it was almost untouched. The reason I requested the upstream development rights was because I didn’t want Viscount Samarkand to set his sights on the upper reaches of the river in the future and cause conflict.

“Well, you say things so brazenly. Alright, understood. I will give you the Mulan River upstream development rights. In return, I order you to provide 10,000 bags of wheat and install a rail carriage in the capital.”

Hearing the King’s words, I inwardly thought, “Got him!”