In addition to the glow of the fireplace, there is a mahogany lampholder at Barov's table, the top of which is divided into four branches, the middle branch being the highest, and the other three branches are surrounded in a triangular shape. A candle burns on each branch, and the light that blooms quietly resembles a shining mountain.

The room was filled with the scent of pine oil, like the sweet and damp smell of rotten wood, which made people drowsy. But in the border town, he couldn't ask for more, sophistication and elegance had nothing to do with this poor place, it would be nice to have a house that could shelter from the wind and rain, not to mention that he now had a large group of houses.

His office was in a compound not far from the castle, where the town hall had been built by the previous lord, and of course, the lord had taken all the manpower with him when he left, and it was now the territory of the minister's assistant.

The rustling of writing in the room and the cold wind howling outside the window make up two different worlds. At a wooden table piled high with books and old scrolls, Barov was scribbling. On either side of him are long low wooden tables, which are usually used by no one for books and manuscripts. When the need arises, he would summon his disciples and sit down at a low table to organize materials or write the first draft of his paperwork.

The candles on the lampholder had already been changed three times, and apart from getting up to replace them, Barov did not stop for a moment the speeding pen in his hand. Time is a precious thing to him. He still had a stack of paperwork to dispose of, and the financial expenditures proposed by His Highness also needed to be carefully reviewed.

Now Barov works an average of five hours a day, but he doesn't feel tired at all, on the contrary, here he can let go and use his body to use endless energy. That's what it's like to be right, he thought, no longer cowering behind the guru's ass, all the apprentices are at their disposal, and no one dares to drag their feet or stumble. As long as the orders of His Royal Highness the Prince are completed, the specific governance process can be controlled by oneself.

It would have been perfect if the prince's order had been a little more normal, Barov smacked his lips with a little regret. For example, the document in front of him with Roland's personal seal said that it required to send people to Willow Town to recruit managers and buy a brig. The second article is followed by a special note that the captain, helmsman and sailor may not be required for the sake of price.

After reading it, he couldn't help but laugh, who would drive the ship back with you without these people? Will they let them walk back by themselves after buying it? Moreover, what will the ship be used for? This is the most important point, the trade between the border town and the willow leaf town is very stable, even if the ore trade is to be expanded after the end of winter, it is only necessary to notify the other side to increase the number of ships. It's not cost-effective to buy your own boat, not to mention that the town's dock is only for docking, without dock maintenance and no sailors to take care of it, and it won't be long before it will be abandoned. Probably His Highness's whimsical whims have flare up again, right?

As for the first one, he could understand it.

At present, the city hall is not idle from top to bottom, and the dozen or so people brought by Barov are responsible for supervising commerce and trade, making statistical reports and settling income and expenditure. He took over the administrative and legal work - this is obviously unconscionable. If His Highness wanted to separate these departments, he had to expand the size of the city hall. For normal reasons, the assistant minister didn't want to let go so soon. The satisfaction of putting all the power in the hands of one person was too fulfilling, and he thought that even his own teacher, the Minister of Finance of the Kingdom, was only in charge of the money bag of the Grey Castle, but he was the hand of the king.

Ahem, well, only in Frontier Town, he added in his mind. Although His Royal Highness Roland has promised so, there is still a long way to go to ascend to the throne. Barov found that he had somehow re-integrated the fourth prince into the ranks of contenders for the king. In the past, he would not have thought that this bad character and uneducated gentleman could be crowned king.

Since coming to the border town, my surprise has not stopped. So far, the border town is still under the guard of the militia, standing in the west, and it looks like it will hold out for a long time, which alone deserves a lot of praise. In addition, not to mention the strange things he tinkered with, even in terms of grasping people's hearts, he is not at all like the fourth prince of Gray Castle, but like a devil who knows everything.

At this moment, there was a knock outside the door, and Barov reluctantly stopped what he was doing and raised his voice, "Come in." ”

Pushing the door in was one of his proud disciples, "Pen" Yarrow.

"Teacher, another rat has been caught. ”

"Oh, did you ask anything?"

He said that it was sent by the second prince, and that he had found a wrapped cement powder, some coins, and a letter from him. Yarrow stepped forward and handed Barov a cowhide-wrapped envelope, "Other information is still being interrogated. Teacher, how did you deal with him......"

"As before, after the questioning, all the information was compiled into a book. Then pronounce the guilty and hang it. Barov understated.

"Yes," Arro saluted, bending down, "then the disciple is gone." ”

The door was closed again, and instead of immediately continuing his work, Barov returned to his desk, cut open the letter seal with a letter opener, and took out the stationery.

The fourth...... He thought to himself.

Long before the arrival of the Demon Moon, Roland Wimbledon summoned him to discuss the issue.

His Royal Highness believes that when cement, new snow powder and witches are revealed one by one, the eyeliner planted by the brothers and sisters will definitely be unbearable and will be revealed from the lurking, and this is the best time to sweep away the rats. And Barov agreed with the first half of the prince's sentence, but did not agree with the second half. In his opinion, there are more than 2,000 people in the border town, and it is impossible for everyone to keep an eye on them. They don't have the manpower, and they don't have the time to guard against these stealers.

As a result, His Highness said disapprehantly, "How can there be no one? Every lord in the border town is our eyes. ”

At that time, Barov only thought that the other party was completely whimsical, and let these ignorant and stupid civilians spy on possible rats?

And the truth is, I was wrong.

When the first census was conducted after the winter, Roland made a special statement to make it clear to all the aborigines who had been here for more than five years: Although the plot to burn grain in the Changge Fortress was bankrupt, it was still not dead, and the enemy had been sent to lurk around everyone. Most of them disguise themselves as relatives of the townspeople or merchants who have not had time to evacuate, and are always looking for an opportunity to harm everyone. If anyone sees anything suspicious, report it to the town hall immediately. Once verified, they will be rewarded with twenty-five silver wolves.

It turned out to be surprisingly effective.

Although some false positives were received at first, it was not long before the first mouse was caught.

At that time, Barov remembered that Roland said something that sounded awkward.

What is it? He thought for a moment, and yes...... "Let the enemy be plunged into the vast sea of people's war. 」

What a strange word formation and syntax, the assistant minister shook his head and spread out the letter paper in his hand.

In his letters, the man known as "Groundhog" repeatedly stressed that the fourth prince, Roland Wimbledon, had been replaced by the devil, and Barov could even read his fear between the lines. Thinking of His Royal Highness the Prince's use of people's hearts, the assistant minister couldn't help but have a sense of recognition. He took a deep breath and moved the paper to the candle flame, which was soon engulfed in flames and turned into ashes.

Even so, it's a devil who doesn't fear the stone of punishment and can give him rights, isn't it?