Chapter 18 - A Generous Deal

Felix offered to sell Wei Wei land at the standard market price—six gold coins per acre. However, this was an incredibly generous deal because he was including the serfs who worked the land. Along with them came the associated tax revenues and annual labor obligations, all of which would now belong to her.

Felix was genuinely being very generous toward Wei Wei. She had found no available land for sale in Dingle, yet here he was, willing to sell her a hundred acres. Though this was just a tiny portion of his estate, what made it remarkable was that he wasn't selling her Williams family land—he was selling land that personally belonged to him.

As a knight honored by the king, Felix had his fief. During his years competing in the royal capital's arena, he had won valuable prizes from other knights, including armor, horses, gold, and even land. Over time, he had exchanged these assets for land adjacent to his fief, expanding his holdings from the original 700 acres to 1,000 acres.

Since his knighthood was granted by the king, his fief was naturally within the king's domain. However, when Felix returned to inherit his title, he could no longer serve the king directly. His sense of honor compelled him to voluntarily return 700 acres of his fief—a decision that only made the king appreciate him even more—leaving him with 300 acres.

Felix then exchanged those 300 acres with another knight from Sardinson County, who had inherited land from his merchant father.

Compared to Sardinson land, property near the capital—being part of the royal domain—was far more valuable. But Felix willingly traded for an equal area of land in Sardinson, a deal that the other knight was, of course, more than happy to accept.

Now, Felix intended to sell part of that 300-acre land to Wei Wei.

Wei Wei hadn't expected him to offer such a large amount. She had only planned on purchasing around ten acres.

Over the past few days, while gathering information, she had also been refining her plans. In her calculations, ten acres would be more than sufficient for what she wanted to do.

At this time, agricultural yields were extremely low. By Chinese measurements, a single mu of land produced less than 200 jin of grain. Converted to acres, this meant each acre yielded about 1,200 pounds of produce.

Moreover, the prevalent three-field system in Europe required each plot to rest for a year after being cultivated for two, meaning at any given time, at least one-third of the land lay fallow. Additionally, serfs working the land would claim at least half of the harvest for themselves, leaving Wei Wei with even less.

But none of that mattered to her. With the seeds, skills, and knowledge from the system's encyclopedia, she would consider herself incompetent if she couldn't at least double the yield.

Of course, since Felix was offering her even more land, there was no reason to refuse—opportunities like this didn't come often.

Felix, on the other hand, was worried whether she had enough money to afford such a large purchase. Even at a discounted rate, 100 acres would cost 600 gold coins. When they first met, Wei Wei hadn't seemed to carry many valuable belongings, so he wasn't sure if she could come up with that much money.

He even considered allowing her to pay in installments if she couldn't afford it outright.

Felix's special treatment toward Wei Wei was so blatant that even if she wanted to feign ignorance, it was impossible.

In the end, however, she rejected his kindness with a smile.

"I believe I can afford it."

Since she said so, Felix refrained from pressing further and instead asked if she had any specific requirements for the land.

Although he had offered to sell her land from his 300-acre estate, if she was unsatisfied, he could exchange it for any equivalent area within the Williams family domain.

After all, the land was all his—its exact location didn't make much of a difference.

Wei Wei was straightforward with her request: "I'd prefer land that is either unused or currently lying fallow."

She had a large supply of seeds stored in the system. As long as they remained inside, their viability was preserved. But once taken out, they would begin to degrade. The sooner they were planted, the better—otherwise, their loss of vitality over time would make them useless.

She wasn't sure if all the plants she had could survive in this region, but she had to try.

This request was easy to fulfill, and Felix readily agreed.

Although it was already spring and much of the land was being cultivated, there were still areas awaiting their turn. Given the relatively small area she wanted, her request posed no difficulty at all.

"In that case, I'll take you out this afternoon to inspect the land. You can choose whichever area you like."

Felix's invitation was, in his mind, a veiled date.

Wei Wei, of course, happily agreed.

Since they were going out to inspect the land, a carriage was impractical. Wei Wei changed into suitable riding attire, donned a headscarf and veil, and mounted Jade Lion, her well-cared-for mare, before riding out with Felix.

They brought no attendants. Felix didn't want anyone intruding on their time together, nor did he think he needed help protecting Wei Wei.

The first place he took her was his 300-acre estate, the land he had acquired through his earlier trade.

This land had originally belonged to a merchant. Hoping to elevate his family to nobility, the merchant had sent his son to train as a knight. Once the son achieved knighthood, he left for the capital to make a name for himself. When he heard Felix was looking to exchange land, he readily swapped his inherited property for Felix's holdings near the capital.

As a result, this land was somewhat distant from the Williams estate, located near a small village.

It took nearly an hour on horseback to reach it, and that alone made Wei Wei feel it wasn't the best choice.

The problem wasn't the quality of the land but its inconvenient location.

Having agreed to be Dolores' tutor, she would be spending most of her time at the castle. Owning land so far away would mean constant travel—without modern communication tools, managing it would be a nightmare.

Moreover, as an outsider and a woman, gaining the loyalty of the serfs here wouldn't be easy.

Wei Wei wasn't one to assume the best of people. In times of desperation, survival came first—loyalty was a luxury.

She also wanted to build a house near her land, but with only a sparsely populated village nearby, security would be a major concern.

Therefore, she preferred land within Felix's estate. That way, she could use his presence as a form of protection—intimidating the serfs into taking her seriously.

Wei Wei was upfront about this, not bothering to hide her intentions from Felix.

Rather than being offended, Felix was delighted.

He beamed as if he had just won a battle and exaggeratedly performed a gentleman's bow. "To be your protector is my greatest honor."

Wei Wei burst into laughter.

With a playful smile, she teased, "Then, honorable sir, would you be so kind as to help me find a more suitable piece of land?"

"Of course, it would be my pleasure."

They turned their horses around—one black, one white—trotting back the way they came.

Wei Wei's Jade Lion was a stunningly beautiful mare. In the game, she had chosen it for its looks (since mares could produce foals with inherited traits), only later considering its performance.

Now, in reality, the mare's beauty caught the attention of Felix's black stallion, which kept attempting to move closer. Naturally, this led to their riders frequently being drawn near each other.

Wei Wei paid no mind, but Felix was secretly delighted, quietly praising his horse for its excellent instincts.

To the farmers working in the fields, the sight of their lord and the foreign noblewoman riding side by side, their horses moving as one, seemed like undeniable proof of their closeness.

Thus, before long, a rumor spread through the estate—one claiming that their lord, Count Felix, and the exotic noble lady had fallen in love and would soon marry. Sardinson County was about to welcome its new lady.

At first, this gossip circulated only among the serfs, then reached the estate's stewards, and finally made its way into the castle. Eventually, even the timid Dolores—who rarely interacted with the outside world—heard about it.

The result? Dolores became even more attached to Wei Wei, eager to spend more time learning from her.

But that was a matter for later.

For now, the two of them were still in the estate, searching for the right land.

Eventually, Wei Wei selected a plot on the edge of the estate's pasturelands, near Sardinson Castle's back entrance—only a ten-minute ride away.

Best of all, a clean, unpolluted river flowed nearby, sourced from the forest and feeding into the castle's moat. The air was fresh, untouched by the stench of crowded settlements—perfectly suited to Wei Wei's standards for a living environment.

Though the river had never been known to flood, Wei Wei still chose to build her home slightly away from the water. The system confirmed that there was an underground water source, making it an ideal spot for digging a well in the future.