Before Claire could react, a noble from the Old Party immediately jumped up and said, “Your Majesty, our family’s territory is closer to the Northern Border. For the peace of the Kingdom and for the warriors at the border, I am willing to contribute the population from my territory!”
Marcel looked at the noble who jumped out with shock, his eyes seeming to blame him for acting without permission, but in the face of enormous benefits, it no longer mattered. Marcel even personally stepped forward, saying, “Your Majesty, my family’s territory has a large population, and I believe we can shoulder this great responsibility.”
Marcel was originally a conservative within the Old Party, believing that building a good relationship with the Northern Border to resist the Demon Clan was the right approach. This trade certificate represented not just enormous benefits to Marcel, but also a direct connection to the Northern Border Governor, which was the most important thing. It had to be secured at all costs!
At that moment, even Monroe jumped out and said, “Your Majesty, our Eastern Border is also quite close to the Northern Border. Moreover, I have heard that the primary loss in the Northern Border this time is the population from the River Valley. We in the Eastern Border can send people directly there.”
Monroe was also tempted; after all, it was about making money!
Scott pondered for a moment and then said, “Your Majesty, I believe Sir Marcel is right. This is the weapon our Southwestern Border needs, and it should come from our Southwestern Border. Although the distance is far, I will not disappoint the trust placed in me!”
People did not necessarily have to come from the Western Border; first, they needed to secure the trade certificate. The maneuvering space of this trade certificate was too large. Scott could completely take the trade certificate and later distribute the benefits to the central nobles, letting those central nobles send people, since the Northern Border Governor had stated that it did not matter where the people came from.
Marcel glanced disdainfully at Scott, but Scott remained unflustered, even seeming to blame Judith for not discussing such an important matter with him beforehand.
“Your Majesty! I can also contribute the population from my territory.”
“Your Majesty, my territory is even closer to the Northern Border!”
“Your Majesty…”
“Your Majesty!”
The meeting quickly devolved into chaos, with Nora desperately trying to maintain order. However, the nobles were unrelenting, and more and more of them were realizing just how exaggerated the profits that this trade certificate could bring. To this end, these nobles were even willing to sacrifice their image, taking risks and climbing onto tables just to make sure Lilith heard them speak.
Lilith sat majestically on the throne, watching the nobles make fools of themselves, her mouth curling up like a dragon king returning.
This was just the prelude; the cache of cards provided by Brother was yet to be revealed.
Claire was sweating coldly as she watched the situation spiral out of control. What on earth had happened with Lilith’s Northern Border?
At that moment, a member of the Augustine family gently nudged Claire’s back.
“Your Highness, theoretically, the area around the Royal Capital is also our fief. Can we not move some people out…?”
In an instant, Claire felt like the veins on her forehead were about to pop, but after calming down, she said, “I will ask the Majesty myself; there is no need to worry.”
Upon hearing Claire say this, the Augustines all put their minds at ease.
Once nearly everyone at the meeting had expressed their stance, Lilith finally satisfiedly tapped her staff on the ground, and the meeting space fell silent.
Looking at the nobles, Lilith spoke, “I believe that each of you is a loyal minister of this kingdom and that you all have the kingdom’s best interests at heart. However, your eagerness to contribute has made it difficult for me to choose. I believe that with all of you here, the kingdom will soon become great again.”
No matter how you put it, giving these nobles a compliment first was essential. Sure enough, when the queen praised them, both the new and old parties revealed somewhat proud expressions.
“So I have decided that these quotas will be issued sparingly for now. The remaining quotas will be given to those who truly wish to contribute to the kingdom.”
Lilith then named a few nobles, and their faces instantly lit up with ecstatic expressions, indicating that they would arrange for population relocation as soon as they left the palace. They would definitely not disappoint the expectation of the Majesty.
Marcel looked at these nobles and began to understand Lilith’s thoughts. Although there were members from both the old and new parties among these nobles, they all shared one common point: they were closer to the Northern Border. At least they were not nobles who were eager to reclaim the Northern Border or to balance out the Northern Border with other forces.
In fact, because of this, the number of quotas among the old party was even slightly more than that of the new party. After all, the conservatives in the Old Party initially hoped to join forces with the Northern Border to resist the Demon Clan.
Thus, it became clear what the queen’s policy was: it was unlikely that the Northern Border could be reclaimed in substance, but more cooperation could be developed with the Northern Border.
As for the remaining quotas, it was to encourage the nobles to work in this direction. Thinking of this, Marcel felt reassured. He would eventually obtain his quota; after all, he was the leader of the Old Party and also a conservative. Although he hadn’t been in the spotlight before, that was because Marcel needed to balance the internal forces of the Old Party, but now that was unnecessary.
Marcel scanned the surrounding nobles, and sure enough, the conservative nobles were all smiling with joy, exchanging knowing glances with each other.
Claire, on the other hand, looked at the treaty in Nora’s hands with gritted teeth.
Not to mention anything else, just this clause in Nora’s hand was enough to help Lilith control most of the nobles.
After all, regardless of the new or old party, most of the nobles were driven by profit, and now Lilith had enough benefits in her hands.
There was no longer a need for balance. As long as Lilith held these benefits, she could control most of the nobles.
Most nobles did not possess any loyalty; they were only greedy for profit. Now, that had become an advantage for Lilith.
But as Claire processed this, she could still somewhat understand the governor’s thoughts. Supplementing the population and opening up trade were actually normal operations. It was just that the governor chose a more queen-friendly approach.
It didn’t matter. This policy was only aimed at the nobles and still primarily at the great nobles. This would not only not improve the kingdom’s economy but would further lead to more population flowing into the Northern Border.
This barely solved the problem on the Southwestern side, far from the desired effectiveness of the policy. The Royal Capital and Her Majesty the Queen were still impoverished.
Claire speculated that Lilith would definitely pull some dark strings, using trade certificates to rake in money. But with only one dark hand, how could she possibly gain more than those nobles? To address the unending reforms of the Royal Capital, this income was still insufficient and couldn’t possibly restore the glory of the Royal Capital. In the long run, this could even lead some nobles to become too wealthy and powerful, upsetting the situation in the Royal Capital.
This might even cause those nobles to lean toward the Northern Border. Perhaps this was the true intention of the Northern Border Governor.
Claire repeatedly comforted herself, and after adjusting her mentality, she looked at Chancellor Nora, who was flipping a page of the treaty and preparing to read the next page.
Could this Northern Border Governor dare to be even more overreaching?
