Chapter 208: Unexpected Injury

Since January, the entire Ubei Domain had begun preparing for spring plowing.

By early April, after months of frantic labor, of the one hundred thousand mu of land cleared in Ubei, over thirty thousand mu had been planted with vegetables, flax, and other crops—while the remaining seventy thousand mu were sown entirely with barley and wheat.

Once sowing was complete, the season should have entered a relatively quiet period.

But Luo Ning had long planned ahead—his people would not be idle.

Chief Administrator Wilson organized reclamation teams by village, launching vigorous new land-clearing operations in Shannlin Town, Marsh Town, Black Soil Village, and beyond.

Now, every village was equipped not only with curved-plow harrows and iron farming tools, but Luo Ning had also dispatched a significant number of black-water oxen from Marsh Town into the hands of village heads.

With these resources, the difficulty of clearing new farmland had decreased compared to previous years—and the pace of work had naturally accelerated.

On this foundation, Luo Ning instituted a system of rewards and punishments:

By early July, the top three villages in terms of newly reclaimed land would receive rewards for every household, while the village heads and team leaders would receive even greater bonuses.

These rewards included allocation of land, grain subsidies, permission to expand dwellings, monetary incentives for particularly capable individuals, and even the extraordinary emancipation of slaves who performed exceptionally well.

There were penalties, too.

For the village ranked last—and falling more than three thousand mu behind the others—the village head and team leader must resign in disgrace, and household taxes would be raised accordingly.

One hand offered honeyed dates, the other wielded the club. With these dual incentives, every village plunged headlong into the feverish work of reclamation, even sending out “spies” to secretly observe each other’s progress—competition had taken root.

Such heavy labor inevitably consumed more grain.

But Luo Ning was not alarmed. He still held three thousand gold coins—enough to purchase two more loads of three hundred thousand jin of grain without strain.

Every soul in Ubei Domain, from lord to slave, was busy—but the external world remained eerily peaceful.

No unusual incidents occurred within the domain; the borders of Wushan Domain were unusually quiet. Had the Polante Raiders and the Black Gold Brotherhood also been occupied with spring plowing, and thus refrained from trouble?

In two months, Luo Ning’s mage cultivation had surpassed one thousand points. In just three more weeks, he would become a Silver Knight and Chief Mage.

Thankfully, he possessed this attribute panel that granted him levels—otherwise, he would have spent every waking hour in training, leaving no energy to shuttle between his scattered domains.

He had merged Qingzhu Village, Zigu Village, and Huitu Village into “Sanfang Town.”

Black Soil Village, already home to over a thousand subjects, had received six hundred additional slaves—nearly two thousand souls—and Luo Ning renamed it Black Soil Town.

“Lord, this plot has been entirely planted with mulberry seedlings.”

In Zigu Village’s mulberry field, Hoen accompanied Luo Ning on an inspection.

Luo Ning sighed. He had originally planned only ten mu for mulberry trees—now, it seemed woefully insufficient.

But what could he do? Back then, how could he have foreseen he would seize Marsh Town and become Lord of Ubei so swiftly?

“What is the survival rate?”

Luo Ning crouched before a ridge, studying the young seedlings. Though still mere twenty-centimeter cuttings, their three leaves pulsed with vitality—clearly, this one had taken root.

“I inspected them all. Though many failed, we followed your methods of layering and cutting, prepared thoroughly, removed every dead sapling, and replaced them with new ones. Now, nearly all the seedlings in these ten mu have survived.”

Hoen marveled. Propagating mulberries via cuttings and layering was far simpler than using mulberry seeds.

“Excellent!”

Luo Ning smiled. “Now, focus on watering these young plants. Apply fertilizer again after thirty days.”

“Rest assured, Lord. I’ve already ordered composting according to Chahar’s method. If we need more, I’ll fetch additional fertilizer from Marsh Town.”

As one of Ubei’s only three Intermediate Knights, Hoen’s combat prowess ranked below Krami and Babulin.

Yet he seemed far more inclined to devote himself to animal husbandry than to strengthening his martial abilities.

“This is our first year raising silkworms. Though primarily experimental, it is vital. Choose those with delicate minds, obedient temperaments, and patience.”

Luo Ning cautioned: “I’ll send Liya and her apprentices to settle here. The loom workshop will also relocate to Zigu Village. Prepare housing for them.”

Zigu Village would become the future mulberry-and-silk hub—consolidating textile production and loom manufacturing here would eliminate the need to transport cocoons back and forth.

Spinning, reeling, and weaving, of course, would fall to Lady Liya. After all, she possessed experience—and had even woven a silk scarf that Luo Ning gifted to Rulans.

As long as cocoons were produced, even if Daen the Artisan’s looms remained idle, Liya could still weave silk—albeit slowly, laboriously, and coarsely.

After inspecting the mulberry field, Luo Ning and Hoen turned back.

Along the way, he continued imparting silkworm-rearing wisdom:

Controlling indoor temperature and light; shredding mulberry leaves for first- and second-instar larvae; wiping moisture from leaves; regularly checking for diseased worms; cleaning the rearing chambers of frass.

He had done this himself—so he spoke with unshakable confidence, with meticulous detail.

Over these two months, Luo Ning had begun exploring papermaking.

The tree bark fibers soaking in Shannlin Town were surely softened by now. Upon returning, he could proceed to pulping and stirring—surely, producing paper would pose little difficulty.

Once he had ample paper, he could compile a manual on sericulture, preserving his knowledge.

Even if he later departed Ubei, Hoen and others could learn from it.

Following the country path, they returned to the village.

Luo Ning prepared to mount his Tachun steed and ride back to Shannlin Town while daylight still lingered—when urgent hoofbeats rang from beyond the village.

He and Hoen turned sharply.

“It’s Tom, who accompanied Commander.”

Tom showed great potential. Having long served under Macken or Ridal, he had learned much.

After the Marsh Town affair concluded, Ridal had recruited him into his cleansing squad, where he now roamed daily through the forests.

Luo Ning frowned. Tom looked disheveled, breathless, terrified.

“Lord!”

Tom yanked his reins to a halt, leapt from his horse, and knelt before Luo Ning. “Lord—the Commander is wounded!”

Luo Ning’s heart lurched. His face paled. Beside him, Hoen stared, disbelief etched across his features.

In Shannlin Town today, Silver Knight Ridal stood as the pinnacle of combat strength.

He was merely conducting a sweep—how had he been injured?

Had he encountered a powerful beast?

Luo Ning thought only of this possibility—yet it felt illogical.

Ridal patrolled the northern forests, not the western Wushan Beast Mountains where Macken’s squad operated.

Macken’s team stood far more likely to encounter formidable beasts.

“What happened?” Luo Ning demanded, voice low and sharp. (End of chapter)