Chapter 581: Ryan's Dinner

That evening, under the summer night sky, Ryan and Alfred sat on the castle balcony, enjoying a lavish dinner.

Time had passed, and now both of their statuses were different. Ryan hosted Alfred with the finest Britannian cuisine, with the entire banquet process strictly monitored to ensure that Ryan, as the host, would not be disrespectful.

The first course was a chilled appetizer platter, consisting of caviar, salmon salad, and foie gras.

The second course was soup, a Britannian onion soup.

The third course was a hot appetizer, Mousilon's famous cheese-baked snails, which were well-received.

After the first three courses were served, Ryan could speak with Alfred. The Duke of Mousilon skillfully used his knife and fork to taste the baked snails, looked at his childhood playmate, and smiled without saying anything.

In contrast, Alfred had a lot he wanted to say to Ryan. He didn't know where to start. In his thirties, Alfred had grown a short beard, and fine crow's feet had appeared at the corners of his eyes, signs of a man maturing.

Despite the signs of aging, Alfred's spirit remained vigorous. His energy was good, showing the resilience of someone who, despite facing setbacks, maintained an optimistic and positive outlook. Since being appointed by Ryan as the head of the Freya Cathedral district, Alfred encountered many difficulties in rebuilding and restoring the entire church district.

In fact, since Ryan returned to his ducal castle a few weeks ago, the wars in Mousilon had never ceased.

The first to start a war was Baron Lucien of Spire Palace. Leading two infantry battalions supported by Ryan, he launched the Battle of the Swamp. In this battle, Lucien made full use of the strong combat power of the serf infantry battalions. Facing terrain unfavorable for knight charges, he used livestock to attract the undead and beastmen roaming the swamp, then ordered the knights to dismount and mix with the serf infantry. Using a pocket formation and the crossfire of longbowmen, along with the swamp's slow movement speed, they surrounded and annihilated the remnants of the undead army and beastmen tribe near Spire Palace.

Ryan also learned that his father-in-law, François, had secretly provided Lucien with a low-interest loan, seemingly at a 3% annual interest rate. With this money and Ryan's help, Lucien successfully overcame his difficulties.

Baron Olivier launched the Richard Purge War, eliminating an undead stronghold near his castle.

Baron Juan of Biocari initiated the Battle of Orphan Hill. He somehow persuaded the wood elves to join him. In this war, they defeated the Skaven lurking near Orphan Hill. The Skaven warlord was slain by the wood elf hero Aralos the Brave. Juan temporarily drove the Skaven in Mousilon underground.

This proved that under Ryan's continuous victories, a group of capable and war-savvy knight nobles had emerged.

What about Alfred?

The Templar seemed to have found inspiration in a previous explosion. He made full use of the power of gunpowder, using many dwarven-made grenades to defeat the wandering undead during a beastmen gathering, winning the cathedral district's defense battle.

"In short, it's much more troublesome than I imagined." Alfred had a thousand things to say but didn't know where to start. He finally sighed, "The continuous battles are bearable, but the real trouble is that everything has to start from scratch. I have no tax officers, no sheriffs, just a few Templar knights and penitents. Those penitents only know how to whip themselves all day. The Templars are not good at management; they make a mess of everything. I'm forced to make all the decisions myself. Good friend, you understand, I'm not you. You can always come up with solutions and ingenious ideas, even bypassing chivalry and laws, but I can't."

"But you still managed well. I've heard you've resolved quite a few troubles." Ryan watched Alfred with interest.

The fourth course was brought by the dark elves: the famous white wine cream salmon.

"Thank you... That's because I've learned a lot from you, my friend." Alfred bowed his head to taste the white wine cream salmon. The fish cooked by the Wynford palace chef brought by Sulia would be greasy, but the light cream sauce mitigated that, making the dish an earthly delight.

"Learned new things?" Ryan was interested. "What have you learned, Alfred?"

"Like you, I suddenly realized the power of authority, my friend." Alfred looked embarrassed, scratching his golden hair. "I found out I became a hero. People worship me, fear me. My words seem to become truth, law. Despite some problems in handling affairs and being clumsy in personnel arrangements, no one questions me. Instead, all my orders are strictly executed. So, I understood, I learned to use personal prestige to handle things. Although temporary, it is effective. Sometimes, I even feel like the center of the universe in that ancient cathedral district."

"It's normal. Power confuses and inflates people." Ryan nodded. "Alfred, remember, personal prestige will eventually run out. Temporarily suppressing issues doesn't mean solving them."

"I understand, my friend. I've been observing your governance policies over the years." Alfred felt embarrassed, as he indeed became somewhat inflated with the power concentrated in his hands. But seeing Ryan's magnificent new ducal castle calmed him down. "But I'm not like you. I still don't understand how you, like magic, created today's glory and the harmonious coexistence of knights and serfs."

"It's a complicated issue." Ryan nodded, clasping his hands on the table, causing the silver plates to slightly tremble, making a pleasant sound. "But you've made significant progress. You didn't avoid problems or try to eliminate those who raised them. Instead, you faced them head-on, temporarily resolving them with your prestige, which is a positive approach."

"But it's not solving the problem." Alfred sighed. "You know, my friend, before that, I wrote several letters to the Church of Justice, requesting enough personnel to help me, but all I got was evasion and delay. My superiors always said they needed to consider and study further."

"But after this Mousilon campaign, my name spread throughout the Old World. When I wrote again to the Church of Justice, Archbishop Vikmar sent over six hundred troops with just one word. With the help of Empire bureaucrats, everything in the cathedral district became orderly." Alfred sighed. "But I don't like that style."

"What style? Big meetings for minor issues, small meetings for major issues? Constantly expanding the bureaucracy and creating new departments?" Ryan laughed. "Haven't we seen enough of that?"

"Indeed." Alfred shook his head with a wry smile. "A lot. I'll spare you the details. I don't like those people. They always act condescendingly, treating the locals with disdain while being very flattering to me. They despise the locals but are obsequious to me because their authority comes from you, the one who has the right to govern and own the Freya Cathedral district."

"That's natural." Ryan looked at Alfred across the table. "Isn't it normal? How do you think those Empire officials view themselves? They certainly don't see themselves as serfs, so they naturally feel superior to the serfs. And where does their power come from? From you, who owns the entire Freya Cathedral district. They have to flatter you because they are merely agents. That's bureaucracy."

The fifth course, brought by the dark elves and other maids, was the main course: sirloin steak with black truffle and wine-pepper sauce, garnished with a few roasted cauliflower florets, served on an iron plate.

Sirloin steak's name derives from the ancient Britannian term "sur loin," meaning the meat above the tenderloin, i.e., the outer spine. It has a strong texture, firm meat, chewy, juicy, and tender.

A well-cooked sirloin steak emits a faint fragrance. The vinegar sauce poured around the steak creates a unique dark golden color. When cut, the steak reveals a beautiful pink inside, full of juices.

Ryan tossed a small piece of steak into his mouth, clearly feeling the juices spread with each chew, the roasted meat's aroma well transmitted to every taste bud in his mouth, swirling and lingering, fully showcasing the beef's original flavor.

"So, I've heard that you advocate and favor the feudal system and somewhat disdain the bureaucratic system? I used to think this was wrong, but now I feel you have your reasons." Alfred laughed. "You see, after enfeoffing, you can put everything aside and rush back here, while we have to start everything from scratch there."

"No, no, no!" Ryan quickly said. "I've never advocated for the feudal system or said it's superior. Don't misquote me!"

"But you..." Alfred hesitated.

Ryan sighed and looked up at the starry summer night sky. "Alfred, enfeoffing is a last resort. It's complicated. I'll simplify it. If I appointed castellans, would Olivier, Lucien, and Juan work as hard as they do now, given the current situation in Mousilon?"

Castellans in Britannia are somewhat like wardens, appointed by nobles to guard a castle, but the castle's ownership remains with the original noble.

Alfred shook his head with a wry smile. He understood.

It's precisely because the land became their own that they worked so hard.

"So, the feudal system is actually a clever trick." Seeing Alfred's understanding, Ryan smiled. "It means I can throw the entire mess to Juan and the others, and they'll do their utmost to restore production and rebuild the territory. I don't have to worry about it. But the downside of the feudal system is very low military recruitment and even lower tax revenue."

"But your control

 over the territory is unparalleled. I dare say, with just one word, all the knight nobles will immediately lead their armies to follow you." Alfred was still hung up on this.

"Heh, heh~ I said, I'm just taking advantage." Ryan nodded. "Yes, with one word, Juan and the others will respond, but not because I'm the Duke of Mousilon, but because I'm Ryan. I'm Ryan Malcador. It's because of my personal prestige and prowess, not my title."

"I get it. You're enjoying the benefits of the feudal system and the cohesion brought by high personal prestige! You sly guy! I understand. You don't truly advocate the feudal system; you're just enjoying its convenience!"

The sixth course was a hot dish, the standard Britannian southern dish, coq au vin.

The seventh course was a cold dish, consisting of Bordeleaux octopus, salmon, Arctic clam, tuna, crab, and shrimp.

"So, Alfred, you must remember not to be swayed by rumors. You need to make your own judgments. Do you understand? If you repeat these baseless rumors, you share the responsibility, right?" Ryan said with a smile, then his expression slowly turned serious. "I've never said the feudal system is superior to the bureaucratic system. In fact, the Empire's bureaucratic system, despite its problems and annoying aspects, is far more advanced and necessary."

The eighth course was ice cream. Mango sorbet wonderfully cleansed their palates of the seafood taste.

The ninth course was salad, a fruit salad.

"So, you will eventually lead the entire kingdom to evolve towards the Empire's system, right?" Alfred mused.

"Correct." Ryan nodded. "But remember, reforms must be gradual. Taking too big a step can backfire. Given Britannia's current low literacy rate and cultural level, we can't achieve a complete transformation all at once. Now is the best time because I've attained the highest power, but the foundation isn't there. We need to understand what to do at each stage. Right now, we don't have the conditions to fully implement changes. It's better to decentralize power. These knight nobles are fully loyal to me, so I don't have to worry about the low military recruitment brought by the feudal system. The current core issue is to restore Mousilon to its former glory. Other matters can wait."

"Indeed." Alfred nodded in agreement. "My friend, you've convinced me."

The final course, the tenth, was dessert, today's being Black Forest cake from the Empire.

After finishing the Black Forest cake, the dinner ended.

"Let's go, Alfred, let's soak in the hot springs." Ryan stood up.

"Sure~"

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