Chapter 55

The next morning, while having breakfast, Tina kept her head deeply bowed, feeling she had no face to meet the lord anymore.

She was extremely anxious.

What if the lord got angry?

What if the lord no longer wanted her?

She had finally managed to get such a job, and if she lost it because of a moment's impulse, then...

Tina regretted it deeply.

She had indeed been too impulsive yesterday.

Knowing that Tang En had gone to the mine and might not return, she felt compelled to clean his room in the evening. Unable to control herself, she ended up lying on Tang En's bed.

The scent on the quilt made her flustered, and she fell asleep without realizing it, even dreaming a very embarrassing dream.

But she never expected the lord to return in the middle of the night and catch her red-handed...

Oh no, this was too shameful!

How could she face the lord from now on!

Tina was almost in tears.

If it really couldn't be helped, she would have to apologize and beg for mercy from the lord!

The lord was a very, very good person; he wouldn't mind... right?

After breakfast, as soon as Tang En returned to his room, Tina followed him in.

"Tina?"

"Y-Yes, I'm sorry!"

Tina knelt in front of Tang En, her voice trembling with tears. "Lord, it was my fault, please forgive me!"

"Huh? What's wrong?"

Tang En was completely confused.

"It's about yesterday, yesterday I..."

"Oh!"

Tang En suddenly understood and smiled. "I was negligent, not giving you a day off. You must have been very tired from cleaning yesterday. Well, today you can have the day off, rest well."

Tang En only saw the cleaning tools in the room when he got up in the morning, and then he understood why Tina was in his room.

Tina bit her lower lip. "B-But I fell asleep on your bed..."

Tang En laughed heartily. "It's fine, in fact, you warmed the bed for me, making it more comfortable. The quilt smelled of mint, did you use mint soap to wash the quilt?"

Huh, huh!? He's not angry!?

Tina's heart skipped a beat, feeling a glimmer of hope.

Tina said a bit awkwardly, "Actually, I used mint soap to take a bath yesterday..."

"Ah, I see!"

"Lord, do you like it?"

Tina's face turned red, a bit shy. "If you like it, I can warm your bed again in the future..."

"No need."

Tang En waved his hand and smiled. "I'm a grown man, it wouldn't be right to have a young girl warm my bed every day."

"Is that so..."

Tina was very disappointed.

"Alright, I have things to do. You go rest, don't forget you have the day off. Do whatever you want."

Tang En patted his head and took out a few gold coins. "Look at me, I forgot about this. Here's some pocket money for you. If you need more, just let me know."

Tina was startled by the handful of gold coins and waved her hands. "No, no! Lady Fiona gave me gold coins, and I haven't used them yet!"

Tang En smiled. "What she gave is what she gave, what I give is what I give. They're different. Consider it payment for warming the bed last night."

"Warming the bed... payment?"

Tina froze. "So... in the lord's eyes, I'm that kind of woman?"

Tang En was stunned. "Huh?"

"So... it's like that..."

Tina's eyes welled up with tears. "So, Lord, you think Tina is that kind of woman who acts casually?"

"That's not what I meant..."

"I, I understand!"

Tina wiped her tears and bowed deeply. "Lord, please excuse me."

Tina left, leaving Tang En with a blank expression.

What did I say wrong...

"Women are really mysterious creatures..."

Tang En muttered.

"It's not that women are mysterious, it's that you said something too much."

Fiona walked over and rolled her eyes. "Any girl would be upset if you said that."

Tang En was puzzled. "Huh?"

"I don't have the patience to explain more... By the way, you said you had something to tell me?"

"Right!"

Tang En perked up, instantly forgetting about Tina, and smiled. "I issued a few new rules yesterday..."

After listening to Tang En, Fiona was dumbfounded.

"You actually... you actually... pay the conscripted miners!?"

Fiona clutched her head, looking distressed. "My lord, how much are you going to waste?"

"They work for me, so I pay them. Isn't that normal?"

"But they are conscripts!"

Fiona was furious. "Residents have the obligation to serve the lord after adulthood! It's an obligation! An unpaid obligation!"

"Is that so?"

"Of course! Residents live on the lord's land, pay taxes to the lord, and serve or even risk their lives for the lord. In return, the lord provides protection for them and their families. This is only right! But you pay them, I, I'm going to be so angry!"

Fiona stomped her foot. "And you made this decision without consulting me! Do you know how difficult it makes things for me!"

After spending some time with Tang En, Fiona knew his character, so she dared to speak to him like this.

If it were another lord, Fiona wouldn't dare to act so freely.

"I don't think it's a big deal... It's just a few thousand gold coins, but their work enthusiasm has increased a lot, which is good."

"It's good, but what about the future? You plan to rebuild Ellington, are you going to pay the workers for reconstruction too!?"

Tang En looked matter-of-factly. "Isn't that normal?"

"It's not normal at all!"

Fiona was exasperated. "When the lord redevelops the town, everyone works together to build it. This is the duty of every resident! You pay them, what does that mean? Building the entire territory with the lord's money? Not to mention Ellington's financial situation, even the lords of larger towns struggle to build a city, let alone a territory!"

"Oh, oh... then we just need to earn more money..."

"Earn money... it's not as simple as you think... sigh!"

Fiona sighed. "Now that you've promised, you'll have to find a way to make it work. You really give me a lot of work... But next time, you must consult me first!"

"Alright, alright, I'll listen to you!"

Tang En smiled. "But don't worry about earning money, there will be more coming in soon."

Fiona perked up at the mention of money. "How so?"

"Follow me."

Tang En led the way outside. "Yesterday, we captured over a hundred soldiers at the mine, they are Baron Duvay's men from Caspamir Castle. Now I plan to have Baron Duvay pay to redeem them and also demand compensation for the illegal mining."

"This... I understand the first part, but the second part is too optimistic."

Fiona shook her head. "He might redeem the soldiers, but he will never compensate for the income from selling the ore. I know the nobles of the empire better than you."

"Is that so? I'll ask, and he'll have to pay."

Tang En said casually. "No one can take advantage of Ellington."

That's it!

Fiona looked at Tang En's side profile, her heart pounding. She loved seeing this expression on Tang En, as if no one in the world could stand against him. His casual disdain for everything was simply too captivating!

Now Fiona understood Tina's feelings. If she had been on the receiving end of such a harsh comment from Tang En, she would have cried and run away too.

I hope I never have to face that day...

The two arrived at the prison and had the guard open the door.

"Lord, there are too many soldiers, and feeding over a hundred people is a huge burden for us."

The guard complained to Tang En. Many lords refused to accept prisoners of war for this reason. Prisoners of war couldn't be trusted, couldn't be used, and just wasted food, making them less useful than livestock.

"The expenses will be reported to me. I need detailed records of each person's meals and the prices of various ingredients."

"Alright! Please be careful, my lords, it's a bit dark and damp here—"

"Ah!—"

Before the guard could finish, Fiona slipped and fell down the stairs!

"Be careful!"

Tang En caught her around the waist, and Fiona pressed tightly against him, her face immediately turning red.

The feeling of being cared for was so blissful...

Unfortunately, once they reached the bottom, Tang En let her go.

This guy!

Fiona stomped her foot in anger. Was she so unattractive that he didn't want to hold her longer!?

Most men wouldn't let go of a beautiful woman so easily, but he didn't seem to care at all!

Did this guy not understand the charm of women!?

Fiona stared at Tang En suspiciously, but he didn't notice, only looking at the prisoners in the dungeon with interest.

These guys seemed completely unconcerned about their situation. Although they looked a bit dejected, they were all obediently staying in the dungeon, and a few were even playing Gwent.

"I need a messenger."

Tang En said suddenly. "Go to Duvay and tell him to pay to redeem you. Who wants to volunteer?"

The prisoners looked at each other, and one of them even waved at him. "Hey! Don't worry about the messenger, Lord of Ellington, why don't we play a game of Gwent! No one has ever beaten me!"

Tang En said lightly, "Not interested."

"Uh..."

The man was unsettled, muttering, "Something feels off. Even the wizard couldn't resist the charm of Gwent, playing three hundred rounds with me. Why isn't this lord interested..."