Chapter 328 - 238: Joint Enforcement, Part 2
A beautiful thing, wasn’t it?
The members of the Militia Team, for their part, were responsible for blockading the streets. Though they lacked professional equipment, each man had brought his own weapon.
The Militia was mostly composed of "sons of good families." In other words, if they were literate, they could have become Civil Servants just like Little Tom.
These men were mostly healthy and strong, with some family savings and living parents. Those who became squad leaders were all married, and the platoon leaders were married with children.
Only men like this could be promoted and have a chance to advance further. If you were some drifter with nothing to your name, your superiors wouldn’t dare promote you even if they wanted to.
The various Militia squads had received Philip’s orders early that morning. They assembled immediately, not daring to ask questions, and set up roadblocks at both ends of the street to prevent any targets from escaping.
At the same time, they were also responsible for dispersing the crowds to ensure the operation proceeded smoothly.
In a certain tavern, a small group of gang members had rented a private room, just as they always did, and were plotting something.
They had no money, no jobs, and no permanent homes. They could only band together in small groups, pool their money, and struggle to survive day by day.
They were wondering if they should recruit more people into their group and start collecting protection money from some of the shops.
If that worked out, they would finally have a way to make a living and get by.
They ground their teeth in frustration at the shop owners who hired Mercenaries and Warriors. ’Wouldn’t it be better to give that money to us as protection fees?’
Once those shopkeepers hired these armed forces and registered them with the Civil Affairs Department, the gang would be powerless to collect protection money.
Deep down, they also envied those Warriors and Mercenaries. If they had that kind of strength, weapons, and armor, they wouldn’t want to be gang members, despised by everyone.
How great would it be to live an honest, open life?
Sigh... ’Real work is too tiring, and we can’t compete to be bodyguards. All we can do is collect a little protection money, stoop a bit, and get by that way.’
They had no idea that members of the Inspection Department had already quietly surrounded the place.
The noise from the tavern’s main hall grew quieter and quieter, eventually falling silent. But inside their private room, they knew nothing, completely lacking any sense of crisis or alarm.
This was to be expected.
The gang members in the Westwood Laine region had no predecessors to pass down any experience; they were basically wiped out batch by batch. Every time a new gang sprouted up, they had to start from scratch, with no experience to speak of.
Suddenly, the door to the private room was thrown open, and members of the Inspection Department burst in.
They quickly subdued the gang members, hauling them away one by one.
The men were slammed onto the tables, completely baffled, their faces ground against the wood. Anyone who tried to resist was naturally thrown to the floor, surrounded, and beaten with fists and feet.
’This job is awesome. We get to fight on orders, no need to hold back, and it’s a total stomp.’
After all, people always have various frustrations and dark sides hidden in their hearts. No matter how good the lives of the Inspection Department members were, they still had some ugliness inside.
At a time like this, these human punching bags fulfilled their greatest purpose: letting these men properly blow off some steam.
"Why are you arresting us? We didn’t..."
SLAP!
A one-handed member of the Inspection Department slapped the man viciously, the force of the blow knocking him unconscious.
’Who has time for your whining? If we’re here to arrest you, it’s because we have plenty of proof.’
After they finished here, they had to rush to the next location.
This time, three departments were cooperating. At least, that was the official line, but everyone saw it as a competition. Departments competed internally, and the three departments also competed with each other externally.
Everyone wanted to make Henry believe that their department was the most useful.
Meanwhile, in a hidden warehouse on the outskirts of the city, soldiers from the garrison patrol discovered a group of spies and scouts in the middle of a transaction.
They planned to exchange the intelligence they had gathered in Westwood Laine. This way, they could effectively get two reports’ worth of information for the time, effort, and money of one.
This would also entice their employers and patrons to increase their funding.
Unfortunately, their wonderful plan was shattered. The garrison patrol quickly surrounded the warehouse and captured them all.
During the arrest, the soldiers displayed their courage and decisiveness, causing the spies and scouts, who were only armed with small daggers for self-defense, to surrender without a fight.
’Dude, really? You’re using the army to catch us? Was that necessary?’
Meanwhile, the members of the Militia Team were on patrol. Unlike the Inspection Department and the garrison patrol, they didn’t have specific targets, so they could only patrol and search various suspicious areas.
Logically, Philip should have asked the Inspection Department and the garrison patrol for intelligence and a list of targets, but he didn’t.
’Why be so serious and work so hard when this mission is just a drill for the Militia Team?’ This line of thinking, however, was a bitter pill for the militiamen who were eager to distinguish themselves.
Fortunately, fortune favors the persistent. They discovered a group of suspicious people. Seeing the lockdown, it was normal to want to go home immediately, but something was off about this group. They seemed to be looking for a chance to escape.
The members of the Militia Team quickly moved forward and blocked their path.
When they saw the group’s nervous expressions and heard them stammering evasively, the militiamen’s eyes lit up, their mouths splitting into grins that nearly reached their ears.
’Finally! After more than half a year, our chance to earn some real merit is here!’
After a "cordial and friendly" interrogation, they discovered these people were indeed members of a roving gang.
Lacking the guts to run a protection racket, they could only use their numbers to take advantage of the chaos and steal construction materials from work sites, selling them off in batches. Or they would pickpocket people on the streets to cover their expenses.
The militiamen’s faces flushed with excitement. ’Holy cow,’ they thought, ’a criminal gang, and habitual thieves and pickpockets at that! This is a huge score!’
They hurriedly escorted them to the central square to await further processing, then returned to the streets to continue their patrol.
They refused to believe it. A full hundred men, split into two groups, roaming the streets—how could they not catch more criminals?
In the past, these guys were hard to find. But today’s massive operation was like dropping a boulder into a lake. All the little fish and shrimp had nowhere to hide. It was prime for the catching.
Under Henry’s overall command, and with orders from Claude and Philip, all targets were successfully captured, along with many unexpected bonuses.
Neither Claude nor Philip had expected the Militia Team to show such incredible enthusiasm. It was truly unbelievable.
These small, roving gangs and the spies and scouts from other nobles were all caught in one fell swoop. It was obvious that the territory’s public security would be greatly improved for some time to come.
After the operation concluded, Henry commended everyone who participated that same evening.
Those who were due money received money, and those due grain received grain. Everyone was delighted.
As for the criminals, those from whom value could be squeezed were beaten. Those who might have information were subjected to the Great Memory Recovery Technique. And those with no value whatsoever were sent directly to the mines.
These people were truly kind. To this day, Henry hadn’t hired a single worker; the mines were filled exclusively with these criminals and prisoners.
"My Lord, Westwood Laine’s current citizen population is about to break five thousand. A Militia of one hundred men is a bit too small.
This place isn’t like Ximira Castle. Ximira Castle is a military fortress by nature, but Westwood Laine is meant to develop into a city. The population will only grow, so the size of the Militia should be increased."
Henry nodded. Claude had a point. He turned and asked, "By the way, what is the population of the affiliated and subordinate villages now? What is the maximum population they can support in Westwood Laine?"
Claude’s mind raced before he answered, "Excluding the one hundred thousand serfs granted by the emperor, the population is around seventy thousand, mostly serfs and shepherd slaves. The rural areas of Westwood Laine can’t accommodate any more people.
Based on the extent of land cultivation and planting, we can support a population of at least around eleven thousand in Westwood Laine. You can rest assured on that point, my lord."