As the North Wind howled over the Northern Border, Northern Border Governor Lind finally arrived at his loyal Graythorn Territory.
Needless to say, Lind’s power base was indeed quite loyal, and some nobles who were dragging their feet, slow to move, and reluctant to change their residences began to converge toward Graythorn Territory upon hearing the good news.
The old era of the Northern Border had passed; these nobles could no longer take advantage of the muddied waters as they did during Duke Lars’s time. In the current Northern Border, there were no lords, only a governor, and there were no complex vassal relationships among the nobles anymore. Everyone swore loyalty to the Lord Governor.
This obviously went against the principles of the Kingdom, but no one had any objections. It was clear to everyone that the Northern Border had practically achieved independence; wielding Cape’s sword to seek authority over the Northern Border was already impossible.
Lind didn’t intentionally keep a low profile; the most he did was to instruct Sean to tone down the welcoming ceremony. What was more important was maintaining order at the station and correctly guiding the crowd present.
As they got off the train, the scene was indeed a sea of people. The wind and snow did not deter the enthusiastic crowd; everyone was shouting the names of the governor and the governor’s lady. Sean took Lind’s instructions to heart, avoiding any loud fanfare, merely having the guards create a safe distance.
But this did not dampen the people’s enthusiasm. After all, the Northern Border had finally unified and defeated the seemingly invincible Demon Clan.
It wasn’t that Lind wanted to show off, but it was necessary. It was not only to boost people’s confidence but also to firmly convey to all nobles in the Northern Border that their time had passed. The only option now was to obediently accept all of Lind’s terms.
After all, the Northern Border was vast, and aside from the areas controlled by Lind and Doug, there were still many scattered small nobles and lords. Most of these small nobles and lords held onto a gamble mentality, thinking that Lind wouldn’t have the time and energy to deal with each of them one by one.
If Lind really came knocking in the future, these lords would likely claim ignorance and immediately submit.
Did they really not know? They simply wanted to take the opportunity to amass more wealth during this window of time.
Lind indeed had a pile of affairs to attend to and currently lacked the time to concern himself with these nobles. However, with the future expansion of the Northern Border’s railway system, these nobles who thought they could outsmart others would eventually be drawn into the system Lind was establishing.
Those nobles who genuinely wanted to stand out had already taken the initiative to submit, seeking to join the new system Lind was forming as soon as possible. Only those who were truly crafty continued to drag their feet, unaware that in doing so, they were ceding their positions to other nobles who submitted earlier. Latercomers might even find it difficult to compete with commoners in some regions.
Thus, for those lords still trying to exert their influence over their territories, Lind temporarily had no energy to manage them and was too lazy to care.
The main reason was that the Northern Border had just unified, and there was an actual shortage of officials. There truly weren’t enough hands to spare dealing with those guys.
Lind’s strong stance was meant to inform those still playing tricks not to think that the governor, having just completed a war and being somewhat weakened, would harbor any ill intentions.
Inside the train car, Lind held Lena’s hand tightly. This time, Lena was very careful and did not crush Lind’s hand, but he could still feel it tremble.
Lena thought she had experienced many scenes already, having fought in battles, so this kind of minor affair should be a piece of cake, right?
Yet, the spontaneous welcoming from the people was different from battle; Lena, who had hardly ever encountered such a display from a young age, was still somewhat nervous.
Lind was merely trying to maintain composure. Looking at the heartfelt respect from the crowd, he couldn’t help but question whether he truly deserved it. The more fervent the support was, the more Lind reflected on himself. After all, for Lind, he was essentially reversing history.
However, in this world, Lind had already appeared somewhat ahead of its time.
Seeing Lena seeking encouragement from him, Lind strengthened his resolve. Whether right or wrong would be judged by future generations; all he could do was to do his best. Moreover, regardless of anything, Lena was always there supporting him. At least for Lena, he was undoubtedly a hero.
“Let’s go.”
Lind adjusted his emotions, transforming back into the composed and confident Northern Border Governor, standing up with Lena.
As Lena saw Lind’s determined gaze, her own emotions gradually calmed.
The couple, surrounded by the guards, stepped off the train.
After his journey to the front line, Lind’s posture appeared even more upright, and his expression was harder to read, holding a sense of unspoken authority.
Although Lena was still somewhat nervous, she gradually adapted to the atmosphere and continually responded to the crowd.
With Lind waving in greeting, fervent cheers erupted inside and outside the station.
“Long live the Governor! Long live the Lady!”
It was unclear who started, but similar cheers continuously rang out.
Lind responded with a fist, “Long live the Northern Border!”
Once these words were spoken, even many nobles watching were influenced and continuously pledged their loyalty to Lind on the spot.
An old noble standing at a distance murmured, “It’s just like the revival of the first Duke.”
Pierre, standing next to the old noble, asked, “Is it really just the revival of the first Duke?”
Thanks to the early surrender of the Laurent Family among the Northern Border nobles, they had successfully transformed. The younger generation was either figuring out how to join the military or advancing their studies in Graywhite Territory’s school.
Although competing with the new generation of commoners in Graywhite Territory’s school wasn’t necessarily a bad thing, if the educated nobles couldn’t even compete with the latecomer commoner children, they might as well find a leisurely position in the family’s business.
Moreover, those students in the school were likely to become the main force in the future development of the Northern Border, possibly forming a new class. Pierre had long-term plans; although his two sons were indeed unremarkable, they were not ill-natured and lacked the disdainful arrogance of the old nobility, and they were young enough to mingle easily with the students in the school.
Additionally, Pierre was willing to spend money on his two sons, who, while foolish in other respects, showed distinct talent in spending. Whenever a classmate encountered difficulties, even before the teachers reacted, Pierre’s sons would already arrive with gifts, allowing them to become quite the social butterflies in school.
Although the prospects for his two sons were dim due to their lack of ability, as long as they didn’t make any major mistakes, they wouldn’t face problems. Plus, there was a sister in the military, and the Laurent Family was gradually finding its place in the new era.
Hearing Pierre’s rebuttal, the old noble nodded with a smile and replied, “Indeed, there’s no need to consider too many taboos now; if we’re going to boast, we might as well go big.”
Pierre laughed heartily but said, “I think the governor might not act so quickly, and he might not even inherit the title of Duke.”
“Oh? Why? I think it would be completely unproblematic for the governor to establish a kingdom and stand on equal footing with Cape.”
The old noble looked at the people in front of him who were genuinely shouting “Long live the Governor.” Given the governor’s current stature, proclaiming himself a king would be entirely feasible, and he even estimated that many would encourage the governor to do so.
Pierre followed the old noble’s gaze at the crowd, saying, “The Governor has grand ambitions; how could he limit himself to just the Northern Border?”
