Some of the measures taken regarding grain storage caused many people to harbor ominous suspicions.
It wasn’t just the sharp-witted politicians; even the clever merchants were wondering if a war was imminent. No one wanted to be caught in the fires of war, and as a result, the market experienced a small wave of turmoil.
Some merchants even began dumping their stock at estimated prices. Grain, especially in large transactions, saw a sharp drop in value.
Aililan waved her hand grandly. “Whatever amount the grain merchants sell, the Finance Department will collect it all. It just so happens that the new granaries in Yuanzhong were recently completed. We must ensure the stability of grain prices. If the prices crash and burn, I will have the heads of those in the Finance Department.”
The price of grain had to be stabilized.
If the price of grain was too low, it would certainly allow the city’s residents to live better lives, but that wasn’t necessarily a good thing. If the price dropped too low, grain merchants would stop coming altogether.
With the Finance Department’s heavy intervention, the grain prices stabilized quickly after a few days of fluctuations.
As for taking advantage of the situation to fleece the grain merchants? Aililan felt there was absolutely no need to use such underhanded tactics.
First, it was a matter of a ruler’s reputation. The Saintess’s public credibility was meant to earn the people’s trust. This included people from all levels of society, including those merchants. She wouldn’t trade her own reputation for a few measly scraps.
Second, the grain merchants who conducted legitimate business weren’t some atrocious criminals. Why harbor so much hatred and resentment toward them just to mess with them?
Third, if she wantonly manipulated grain prices, she knew the ones who would ultimately suffer would be the old farmers in the countryside.
The wool comes from the sheep. If Aililan bought up large quantities of cheap grain, it might seem like she was taking advantage of the merchants, but in reality, she would be taking advantage of the poor farmers at the bottom.
If she couldn’t see through this relationship, then she would be a failure as a Goddess Lady.
As Atester’s economy gradually stabilized, it showed a scene of burgeoning vitality.
Aililan began to focus on another matter.
At the headquarters of the Fourth Feather Legion, she personally handed a list found by Yarandale to Gareyas. She said solemnly, “The current situation is tense. None of us know when the people from the north will attack. Moreover, we are still sending troops to the Demon Lands for rotational combat. I do not wish for any accidents to occur.”
That list, of course, contained the names of the parasites within the army discovered through the investigation of the soldiers’ winter clothing. Now that she had been in Atester for some time, Aililan had the money and the food.
She felt the timing was ripe to begin working on the restructuring of the military.
The Church’s legions—or more accurately, the armies of most kingdoms in this world—shared a specific characteristic.
That was the internal combat effectiveness of the army.
It was a situation of extreme polarization.
The army was generally composed of noble forces and Church forces. One could guess with their toes that the nobles would certainly invest all their resources into their own personal guards.
This resulted in a situation where the noble’s private soldiers were the elites, while the regular troops directly under the Church were the small fry.
But this couldn’t be dismissed entirely with a single stroke. The bulk of the expenses for the noble’s private soldiers was paid by the nobles themselves.
It was essentially them paying out of their own pockets to work for her. What more could she ask for?
This had its pros and cons.
The benefit was that it reduced the pressure on the Church’s expenditures.
The downside was the lack of command over the army. Loyalty was determined entirely by the depth of an individual’s faith.
Gareyas looked over the list and promised, “Saintess, please rest assured. I will handle this properly and will certainly give you a satisfactory answer.”
Aililan suddenly smiled and waved her hand. “Legion Commander Gareyas, you don’t need to be worried. I am not here to assign blame. I have a few things I’d like to discuss with you. I wonder if you have the time?”
Gareyas tucked the list away and nodded repeatedly. “Of course, I have time.”
The two of them walked toward the outskirts of the camp.
Gareyas stayed half a step behind Aililan. Dozens of meters behind them, the elite Chaste Knights who protected the Saintess were strictly monitoring their surroundings.
After walking for a while, Aililan gradually got to the point. “Chief Gareyas, what do you think of the combat strength of the Fourth Wing Army? Can it handle the Gnoll-kin if they march south?”
Gareyas patted his chest and promised, “As long as you give the word, Saintess Aililan, the Fourth Feather Legion will surely fight for you.”
“You haven’t answered my question. Can it handle the pace of the Gnoll-kin’s southern advance?”
“It… it should. Perhaps? As long as we prepare our armaments and reinforce the city walls, I guarantee that Atester will not fall under the iron hooves of the Gnoll-kin.”
“I have done so much—opening the Market Policy, supporting War Pig and Huyaqi to become one of our city’s commanders, having the Sewing Workshop mass-produce leather armor, and having the Blacksmith Workshop forge weapons—and yet all we can achieve is simply not falling under their iron hooves?”
Cold sweat broke out on Gareyas’s forehead. He truly couldn’t grasp Aililan’s intentions.
To think that when the Goddess Lady first arrived in Atester, she clearly seemed like an innocent and naive girl. Now, every move she made was profound and unpredictable.
As a Legion Commander, he was forced to try and guess the Saintess’s thoughts.
“Saintess, what do you mean?”
“Haha.” Aililan suddenly laughed, speaking in a relaxed tone. “Don’t think too much. I’m just reflecting on the current situation. Why don’t we talk about something else? I’ve been in Atester for so long, yet I haven’t taken a good look at the Fourth Feather Legion.”
Gareyas chuckled and said, “I won’t say our Fourth Feather Legion is the best under heaven, but we are definitely elites.”
Aililan fell silent for a moment before continuing, “If I remember correctly, the Fourth Feather Legion has 13,267 people. There are 127 first-tier commanders, eleven second-tier commanders, and three third-tier commanders at the deputy general level. There is one Deputy Legion Commander and one Legion Commander. Is that correct?”
Gareyas was shocked, feeling even more cold sweat on his brow.
It turned out the Saintess wasn’t ignoring the army; she had already investigated it to the bottom.
“That’s… that’s correct, Saintess. You…”
“Legion Commander Gareyas, please allow me to finish, all right?”
“My apologies. I was being impolite.”
“It’s fine. Let’s continue talking about the Fourth Feather Legion. Of these thirteen thousand people, if I’m not mistaken, those who can truly form an effective combat force seem to be less than half—roughly five thousand people? And those are basically the personal guards of the various commanders, right?”
Gareyas’s legs trembled.
He almost knelt before the Goddess Lady.
He was truly afraid that Aililan would purge the internal ranks of the army just as she had purged the Parliament.
“Saintess… Goddess Lady…”
“Look at you, getting anxious again.”
Aililan maintained her smile and patted Gareyas’s shoulder. “The officers currently serving in the Fourth Feather Legion are the people who supported me back then. They are the foundation of my administration in the army. I certainly won’t do something as foolish as digging my own grave.”
“So, you don’t need to be anxious.”
“The reason I’ve said so much to you…”
“Is to send you some warmth… well, that is to say, to give you some benefits.”
Gareyas blinked. “Huh?”
Aililan continued, “I’m sure you know that after the Sewing Workshop was reorganized, it can now produce several hundred sets of leather armor every month. The Blacksmith Workshop will also have a large output of weapons. These things need a place to go.”
Gareyas probed cautiously. “Are you saying you want the noble commanders in the army to buy them?” If that was the case, the Saintess was being a bit unfair.
Aililan tilted her head, wearing a faint smile that wasn’t quite a smile. “You guessed wrong. I’m not asking the commanders to buy them. To express my reward for the commanders’ hard work, I will release all products from the two workshops for free. They will be distributed in the form of military merit rewards.”
Gareyas was stunned. “What? For free?”
Aililan nodded solemnly. “That’s right. For free. A gift. As long as they achieve something in the rotational combat in the Demon Lands, they can exchange their military merits with me for them.”
“But I will also say this upfront.”
“The Fourth Feather Legion still has more than half of its soldiers who are distinct from the noble private soldiers, and they make up a higher proportion of the total. Therefore, I will set aside at least half of the equipment for them. What do you think?”
Gareyas nodded repeatedly. “Of course, there’s no problem with that.” He was still immersed in the shock of Aililan giving equipment to the noble’s private soldiers for free.
But he didn’t know.
Free was the most expensive.