Chapter 306 - 227: Who on Earth Is the Real Son
After all, Henry was far too restless, constantly stirring up trouble and giving him a headache.
Such an arrangement would give Henry enough resources and room to develop his own power, while also ensuring the empire’s stability and security by making him its stalwart shield.
It was a perfect arrangement. He hadn’t wronged Henry in the slightest; if anything, he was "spoiling" him.
But now, the public outcry and Henry’s formidable combat prowess were making him second-guess his decision.
It wasn’t that he feared Henry’s ambition growing to the point of plotting for the throne. He knew Henry was a man of great ideals and aspirations, one who wouldn’t let power and status go to his head so easily.
Besides, he was the master of the empire. No one but him truly knew the full extent of its might.
As far as he was concerned, Henry was still no match for him.
What he was more worried about was whether letting Henry focus on developing his fief would be a waste of his talents.
’The lands beyond the empire’s borders are far from peaceful, surrounded by threats. Henry is such a capable fighter, and he was my student. I trust him completely. It makes no sense for him not to help me, his former headmaster, shoulder these burdens.’
The Emperor pondered, his mind filled with images of Henry fighting heroically on the battlefield and studying diligently at the academy.
He recalled his time as headmaster of the Knight Academy, the lessons he taught Henry and the expectations he held for him, as well as the respect and trust Henry had shown in return.
He knew full well that Henry was a man of immense potential and value, and his talents could not be wasted.
Finally, the Emperor made his decision. He would have Henry skip a rank and make him a Count.
Viscount was a bit too low, and Marquis a bit too high. Count was just right.
He picked up his quill, wrote an edict on the parchment, and ennobled Henry as a Count, granting him more Dinars and serfs, as well as support in the form of weapons, armor, and other materials.
At the same time, he designated the entire southeastern grasslands as land for development and granted it all to Henry.
Whatever minerals or other resources it contained, the Emperor would lay no claim to them, and no other noble would be permitted to interfere.
Though the undeveloped lands might seem barren, the number of Dinars and serfs the Emperor granted was far beyond what any other noble could imagine.
Two million Dinars! How extravagant! One hundred thousand serfs! How impressive! Armor and weapons to equip half an Imperial Legion! How utterly dominant!
Henry: Extravagant! Impressive! Dominant!
This was enough to build a fledgling Earl’s Domain from scratch, let alone for someone like Henry who was already so formidable.
The Emperor believed that in Henry’s hands, these assets would rapidly become the foundation and nourishment he needed to grow into a towering tree.
The Emperor greatly approved of Henry’s methods for training soldiers. He wasn’t afraid of the empire’s nobles having ambition; he was afraid of them having ambition with no strength to back it up!
’If everyone from top to bottom is rotten, how can the empire ever prosper?’
In this way, the Emperor gave Henry a stable space to grow, with enough resources and land to develop his own power, while also allowing him to fully utilize his military talents to serve the empire and solve its problems.
The Emperor was inwardly pleased with himself, thinking that as both a headmaster and a Lord, he was truly a once-in-a-millennium talent.
He gently blew the ink dry and rolled up the scroll, silently hoping, ’Henry Bro, do not disappoint me.’
The Emperor’s decisions and appointments had to be transcribed and recorded by multiple departments. This was for archival purposes, making it easy to reference should any issues arise later, and also served the function of the "Historian," so to speak.
Currently, historical records within the empire still primarily consisted of imperial annals, sagas of emperors or kings, family chronicles, city records, noble epics, Knight diaries, and the like.
The concept of compiling a formal history was an idea first proposed in his grandfather’s time. However, it remained just an idea, as the task was fraught with difficulties, time-consuming, and laborious—it was far easier said than done.
The Emperor shared this ambition. He deeply admired his grandfather; the empire’s current structure and development were almost entirely a continuation of his grandfather’s plans.
Thus, the scroll had not even left the palace before it caused a considerable commotion.
One group after another came for an audience with the Emperor, hoping to persuade him to retract or alter Henry’s rewards and promotion.
Damn it all! The rewards were too generous! It made onlookers burn with envy.
They believed that if the Emperor had divided such wealth among them, their families would have been grateful for three generations!
Why give it all to Henry?
For his merit? Nobles and Legion Commanders had achieved similar results before. Why was Henry the only one to receive such exceptional treatment?
Moreover, if Henry was made a Count at such a young age, how could he be rewarded in the future? Would there be no titles left to grant him?
In short, for reasons both public and private, appealing to both emotion and logic, these people frantically tried to dissuade him.
Faced with these requests and complaints, the Emperor let it all go in one ear and out the other, dismissing wave after wave of them with noncommittal grunts and nods.
He was indeed known for his hardline stance and iron fist, but he couldn’t be unyielding all the time.
After all, these subordinates hadn’t done anything wrong; they were, in a way, just "following procedure." If he couldn’t even be bothered to go through the motions, it would be too disheartening for them.
Besides, many of the people who came today were officials in the imperial capital and court nobles who had been bribed by provincial lords.
The Emperor smiled faintly, understanding everything perfectly.
He was never afraid of the provincial nobles keeping tabs on the latest developments in the imperial capital. On the contrary, if the day came when most nobles no longer cared what was happening in the capital, that’s when he would truly start to worry.
’What? You don’t care about the empire’s center of power? Is it because you look down on the Emperor, or is it because you want to be the Emperor yourself?’
Taking a sip of tea, the Emperor toyed with his scepter. Those provincial nobles all had one thing in common: their fiefs were, it seemed, not far from Henry’s new lands.
The funds, population, and armaments provided by the Emperor would drastically shorten the time Henry needed to quietly build up his strength. As Henry’s pace of development quickened, the pressure on them would arrive that much sooner.
This terrified them, as if Henry’s shadow was already looming silently over their heads.
It had to be said, Henry’s way of doing things was indeed a headache for many. Faced with the nobles’ anxiety, the Emperor had his own calculations.
Overall, Henry’s rise was a good thing for the empire.
’I want my name recorded in the grand annals of history for great achievements. How can that happen if the nobility is full of useless gluttons?’
’One by one, they’ve all been corrupted by rapid economic growth, losing their noble honor, their mettle, and their martial virtue. This will not do.’
’Let Henry be the whip that spurs you all on.’
After dealing with wave after wave of petitioners, the Emperor settled back onto his throne.
Meanwhile, news of the petitioners’ failure spread throughout the imperial capital. Yiduo and Daimon immediately wrote letters, detailing all the intelligence they had gathered. Two copies were made: one sent to Westwood Laine, the other to Tiyaer.
Time flew by as information was relayed. At the border encampment, the first to receive the news of the Emperor’s reward and promotion for Henry was the Crown Prince.
When the news arrived, he was gazing out at the distant grasslands, a secret letter from Lukaron in his hand. He could not conceal the shock on his face.
The Crown Prince completely lost it. ’Who’s the real son here?! Am I human? AM I EVEN HUMAN?!’
He had thought he understood Henry well enough, but the Emperor’s decision made him realize he might have underestimated both Henry’s potential and the importance the Emperor placed on him.
He began to reflect on his interactions with Henry, wondering if he had misstepped, and recalled Ratifa’s attitude toward Henry. A sliver of doubt began to form in his mind.
’Could Ratifa and Henry be in this together? Why else would she keep insisting I have Henry transferred over here?’
The Crown Prince had a "sudden realization." ’This Henry’s plots and schemes are terrifying!’
Soon after, Ratifa also received the news.
She was in her tent, organizing documents and maps as she prepared to plan the next military operation.
She needed to return to Tiyaer to select new members to replenish her Personal Guard and to recruit new soldiers.