Pero Hermont sat at his desk, subconsciously fiddling with a fine parchment in his hand, which was a program sent by the long opera house every weekend afternoon, and if in normal times, he would choose the play he liked, let the housekeeper pay the deposit, and then give the invitation to Shirley.

He didn’t look into a word now.

Today is the seventh day of the expedition, and if it is all right, my father should have returned with the duke yesterday.Perhaps it was delayed on the road, or it was that people were tired and rested for one more day in the border town?He comforted himself, but his inner uneasiness slowly widened.

Four Princes Roland Wimbledon impressed him too much, and Pero even felt inconceivable why such an outstanding prince had a terrible evaluation in the king.Bad character, obsessiveness, incompetence, unlearned... any evaluation is different from the prince he knows.

That is how his anxiety is so strong.

He was afraid the duke would lose him.

"Master Pero," cried the butler outside the door, "there is a letter from the fortress."

The fortress?Pero stood still, “Get in.”

Uncovering the cover, the first sentence on the letter sheet will make Peiro stunned.

This is a letter from the four princes!

The Duke of Osmond Lane attacked the king's territory by force, trying to do so.The duke himself had been on the battlefield, and now the long song fortress had been returned to the king's hand.

The Duke failed?His heart sank, and then he looked down.

Duke Lane's confederate party, with the exception of a few diehards, had mostly surrendered to plead guilty.The rebellious clan should have been put to death, but the king was merciful and only insulted to the wicked and the incorrigible, and the rest of the participants could redeem the captives with money according to the customs of the past.The exchange takes place at the Long Song Fortress Lords Castle, which is the list below.

This official statement is extremely awkward, not the common language of diplomacy, but the meaning of the words to be expressed is understood that the Duke failed to act, wants to take prisoners, and takes money in exchange.

Perot’s line of sight moved a little, and his father’s name appeared in the first row.

“Hedice!”He shouted the name of the housekeeper, “Get your car, I’m going to the fortress castle!”

...

The Countess of Honeysuckle was east of the fortress, and when Pero arrived in the castle, it was half an hour later.The castle was full of "militia" whom he had never seen before, without a lint armor, nor a mantle or ribbon, and held a strangely shaped short stick in his hand, with a sharp stinging gun at the top.Just standing in two rows, holding his head high, it made him feel forced to force people.

Upon notification of his identity, Perot was admitted to the garden, which was then taken by a guard to the castle hall.

He has been to this place many times, but today, he is like stepping into a completely unfamiliar field, the guard standing guard in the aisle is never seen before, no one nods to him smile, but looks at him expressionless.At the door of the hall, a knight came up.

“Your name?”

"Beiro Hermon," replied Perot, with a slight uneasiness, disliked such an inquisitorial dialogue, and thus emphasized it all over again, "Sir Hermon."

"Oh," he said, looking disapproving, turning over the list, "the Count of Serafi Hermon is yours..."

“Father.”

"Being disrespectful," said the knight, without a trace of apology, "I am Carter Lannis, chief knight of the four princes."Please come to the side room first, we need to check if you are carrying a weapon."

After a search, Pero's divine stone of punishment was also taken down by the guards.

“It’s not a weapon,” Perot reminded.

"Certainly not," said the knight, "we will give it back to you after the meeting, and rest assured."

He opened his mouth and finally stopped.Returned?The stone of divine punishment is worth at least 50 golden dragons, and it is impossible to change into the next hand.It was, he thought, as part of the ransom.

When he entered the hall, the four princes were sitting in the Lord’s office and wrote something.When he looked up to Perot, he stuttered, then smiled, “We meet again, Mr. Ambassador.”

Or familiar faces and intonations, Perot also relaxed a little, and walked politely, "Say hello to you, Your Highness."

"Sit down," Roland raised his hand, motioning him into his seat, "you must already know what happened."Your father was not hurt, he was the first to surrender.”

“Thanks to His Highness for his kindness,” said Pero hastily, “I don’t know how much ransom my Highness wants, and as long as honeysuckle can be obtained, I will send the money at once.”

"I don't need money," Roland shook his finger, "I want livestock and people."

It is normal to have livestock, and even fifty years ago, conflicts between lords ended with losers in the end to the end of cattle and sheep, as Perot has seen more than once in the book.But... what does it mean to ask someone?"Your Highness, there are many cattle, sheep, horses, and honeysuckle lands, as for the people you say..."

"It is very simple, masons, carpenters, farmers, serfs, I want," the prince handed over a roll of paper, "you can convert the above value, as long as the total number is three thousand."He smiled, "By the way, the count is the highest, since the count is the largest in the captivity."

Perot spread the paper rolls at the table.

It was filled with occupational categories and livestock species, followed by a number, such as cattle 3, sheep 2, and stonemasons, and so on, he immediately understood what the other means.

A value of three thousand means a thousand heads of cattle, or three hundred masons, to redeem their father.Of course, his territory does not have so many cattle and stonemasons, and there are many choices in the arrangement of items on paper alone, and as an aristocrat who deals with trade every day, Pero realized instantly that there is a lot to do here.Just give him a few days, he can figure out the optimal solution, with the smallest cost to meet the requirements of three thousand points.

“Your Highness, can I...”

"One day, I can only give you one day," Roland said with a finger, "this refers only to the time you make a choice, after all, want to gather so many supplies and people, there is no three or four days can not be done."And I won't stay here all the time, and in a week at most I'll be out of here."

“But one day it is...” Perot suddenly froze, looking wide-eyed at the prince, “Wait, you just said... you want to leave?”What does it mean?If the letter is not written wrong, the duke has died on the battlefield, the long song fortress belongs to the hands of His Royal Highness, he actually said to leave, is it not better than that small and broken border town?No, that's not the point at all!The point is, if His Highness is gone, who will run this magnificent city?His heart was full of horrors, inherited by the Duke’s children.Think about it, knowing that this is impossible, waiting for them to re-assemble the army to avenge their father?In addition to the Lane family, or other noble families?

"Yes," Roland nodded, "I'll take the ransom and go back to the border town."

Suddenly a thought arose in his mind, and once this thought appeared, he could no longer be suppressed.

"Your Highness," said Perot, spiting, and asked in a low voice, "...do you have a value for redeeming the long song fortress?"(Not finished.If you like this work, you are welcome to start the project, and your support is my biggest motivation.