Felix's servants, sent to the neighboring county to sell pasta, completed their mission. Not only did they exchange the pasta for an equivalent amount of wheat, but they also brought back many repeat customers to Sardinson County. Among these customers were some nobles, but more were merchants who had heard about the opportunity. They brought many goods that were scarce in Sardinson, giving the locals, who now had a bit of money to spend, a place to spend it.
These merchants gathered in Dingle Town, the closest and most prosperous town to Sardinson Castle. The other two pasta factories in the county transported their dried pasta to Dingle for sale alongside the local produce. However, not long ago, Claude had taken away most of the pasta, and the subsequent production couldn't meet the demand of the latecomers. Merchants who arrived late, unwilling to leave empty-handed, had no choice but to wait in town.
While waiting, the merchants discovered that Sardinson County had many unique and valuable products. For example, the recently introduced meat sauce and lemon sauce were also very popular, though their production was even smaller than that of the pasta.
These merchants staying in Dingle naturally needed food and lodging. The town's only tavern couldn't accommodate all the guests, so the townspeople's homes became their second choice. The lower prices compared to the tavern were very attractive, and if a household had a skilled cook, it was even easier to attract lodgers.
After Nissen and his deputy Peter arrived in Dingle, they didn't immediately head to the castle. Instead, they rented a spare room from a local family for half a month, including one meal a day, for one silver coin. This price wouldn't have been possible in the past, but due to the recent influx of outsiders and the resulting housing shortage, everyone had raised their prices. Otherwise, they could have rented a room for a full month for the same price.
Still, this price was very low and affordable compared to other regions, especially since it included food.
After spending a day in Dingle and familiarizing themselves with the small town, they prepared to head to Sardinson Castle.
The homeowner told them, "If you're going to the castle, you can hitch a ride with the coachmen at the town entrance. They make several trips back and forth every day, and you only need to pay a small fare."
Nissen and Peter followed the homeowner's advice and found the coachmen at the town entrance.
These coachmen were hired by Felix to transport goods, mainly delivering meat sauce and lemon sauce produced at the castle to the town for sale to the visiting merchants, and then bringing back ordered items like glass jars.
They often gave rides to one or two people heading to the castle, as long as there was space in the carriage. So when Nissen and Peter asked, the coachman readily agreed.
Sitting in the spare seats of the carriage, Peter said to Nissen with a sigh, "Sardinson County doesn't seem poor at all. I'm starting to believe that the Count here really plans to build a cement road."
Nissen shared the same thought. Although Sardinson County didn't look like much, the merchants' enthusiasm for the local products suggested that Count Williams was quite wealthy.
When they arrived at the castle, they found it even livelier than Dingle Town.
Wagons loaded with goods were constantly coming and going through the castle gates. Inside the courtyard, hundreds of women were busy working, creating a bustling scene unlike anything they had seen in other noble castles.
After explaining their purpose to the castle guards, they waited at the gate for a while before being led inside by a servant.
Once inside, they noticed something else unusual.
"It's so clean here," Peter whispered to Nissen as they followed the servant, looking around in amazement. "Do you smell that? There's even a faint fragrance."
As members of a construction team, they had visited many castles. Apart from newly built ones, older castles always had a musty, unpleasant smell due to poor ventilation and lighting, as well as clogged drainage systems and unclean living habits.
But this castle was completely different. The air inside was slightly damp, but there was no musty or foul smell. Instead, there was a faint, pleasant fragrance. The exposed walls were covered with tapestries, and thick carpets lined the floors, making the corridors spotless. The servants working in the castle also looked clean and presentable, making the two visitors feel out of place.
The servant leading the way overheard Peter's comment and proudly explained, "Our Count's fiancée, Miss Wei Wei, loves cleanliness, so the main paths in the castle must be kept spotless, with no dirt or mess allowed. As for the smell, we use special methods to eliminate mustiness and odors."
The "special methods" involved placing quicklime in various corners to absorb moisture and keep the interior dry. The fragrance came from oranges—halved, with the flesh removed and replaced with salt, then placed in corners to fill the space with a faint citrus scent.
The servant led them to the reception room.
"The Count is currently taking a walk with Miss Wei Wei. Please wait here for a while."
Another servant brought them herbal tea and pastries, then politely left with the first servant.
After the servants left, Peter let out a deep breath and relaxed. "That was so nerve-wracking. Boss, the servants here are so polite, completely different from what we've seen before."
Nissen felt the same way. In the past, nobles and their servants always looked down on people like them. They had never encountered such polite treatment, let alone being served tea.
Meanwhile, Felix, who was walking with Wei Wei, had a smile as bright as the sun. It was clear that he was in an excellent mood.
And why wouldn't he be? Just yesterday, our Count had finally proposed to his beloved and received the answer he had hoped for.
Felix had mentioned before that he had been preparing for the proposal but hadn't acted yet because he had commissioned a famous jeweler in the royal capital to create an engagement ring. The jeweler was very popular, with many nobles seeking his services, so Felix had to wait in line for a long time. Including the time it took to make the ring and transport it, the whole process had taken nearly half a year.
Felix had ordered the ring shortly after he and Wei Wei had started their relationship. If it hadn't taken so long, the proposal wouldn't have been delayed until yesterday.
Once the ring was ready, Felix knelt in the flower-filled garden and proposed to Wei Wei.
Dolores and the maids secretly watched the scene from the sidelines.
So, after Wei Wei accepted Felix's proposal, the news quickly spread throughout the castle, and everyone was delighted for their master.
There was no engagement ceremony because such ceremonies weren't customary at the time. Noble marriages were usually arranged by the parents, with the groom's family proposing to the bride's family. Once the bride's family agreed, the couple was considered engaged, and this relationship was binding unless extraordinary circumstances—such as the death of one party or a sudden feud between the families—intervened.
Thus, in the eyes of others, an engagement was essentially equivalent to marriage.
Since Felix and Wei Wei had no parents, the formalities were naturally skipped. Once Wei Wei put on the ring bearing the Williams family crest and the character "Wei" that she had once shown Felix, their relationship was officially established.
Butler Barton was even eager to start preparing for their wedding immediately, as Wei Wei was already sixteen. While this age might seem young by modern standards, in this era, the church set the legal marriage age for women at twelve. At sixteen, Wei Wei was considered a bit old. Even Dolores, despite her young age, would have already been engaged or even married if not for the late Count's negligence.
So the butler believed that starting wedding preparations immediately was necessary.
Felix, of course, also wanted to marry as soon as possible, but he remembered Wei Wei mentioning that in her homeland, people usually married after the age of eighteen. Out of respect for her, Felix decided to discuss the matter with Wei Wei before making any decisions.
Today's walk was the time Felix had set aside to talk to Wei Wei about this issue. The servants naturally wouldn't disturb them, which was why the two guests received such exceptional treatment—Butler Barton hadn't even informed Felix of their arrival.
When Felix asked for her opinion on the wedding, Wei Wei felt a bit guilty because the marriage age she had mentioned was a lie. By the standards of this era, Felix was no longer young. If he hadn't been focused on becoming a knight, his children might already be as old as Dolores.
This was why the castle servants were so concerned about Felix's marriage. With Felix being the only male heir left in the Williams family, not having an heir soon would be very dangerous for the family.
Everyone wished Felix would propose today, marry tomorrow, and have a child the day after.
Wei Wei hadn't felt this urgency before, as the servants had only speculated in private about when they would get engaged. But until Felix made a clear move, no one dared to say anything to the parties involved, lest they go against their master's wishes.
Now, however, things were different. Felix had proposed, and Wei Wei had accepted. The excited servants, besides congratulating them, began subtly inquiring about when they planned to hold the wedding.
In just one day, Wei Wei had already been questioned by Butler Barton, Madame Nancy, two maids, and Dolores about the wedding.
And now, even Felix was asking for her opinion on the matter.
Feeling increasingly guilty under everyone's scrutiny, Wei Wei could only say, "In my homeland, we calculate age differently. We consider a person to be one year old at birth and then add a year every New Year. So our 'virtual age' is one or two years older than our actual age."
Felix pondered this calculation method and quickly grasped the key point, his eyes lighting up. "So you're saying that your current age can be considered eighteen?"
"Seventeen," Wei Wei replied, feeling that if she said she was eighteen now, she might be marched straight to the altar. So she decisively subtracted a year. "I'll be eighteen next spring."
Although her explanation seemed a bit contradictory, Felix didn't dwell on it. Instead, he immediately seized the opportunity. "Then can we set the wedding for January 1st next year?"
Although the decision seemed a bit hasty, since she had already accepted the proposal, Wei Wei was prepared. So whenever the wedding was held, she could accept it... probably.
"Okay."
Although she didn't show it, she was actually the same age as Felix—twenty-four. While not old, it was indeed the age when most people would consider marriage.
—Hearing everyone say that Felix was no longer young and should marry soon, she felt immense pressure.
Seeing her nod, Felix's joy was evident. He suddenly picked Wei Wei up, spun her around several times to her surprise, and then kissed her several times before setting her down, leaving her a bit dazed from the sudden action.
"I'll go tell the butler to start preparing!"
Making the wedding dress, sending out invitations, and preparing the ceremony would all take time. He wasn't sure if less than three months would be enough to get everything done!
"Of course it will be! Please rest assured, Master Felix."
Butler Barton, thrilled that the castle was about to host a wedding, assured Felix that everything would be arranged perfectly.
In his excitement, Butler Barton also reminded Felix, who had just completed a major life event, "You have visitors. They're the leaders of the construction team invited by Architect Pierre."
Felix was surprised. "They're already here? When?"
"Not long ago. Since you were occupied with important matters, I didn't inform you."
"Alright, I'll go see them now."
Since Wei Wei was now teaching Dolores, and he couldn't distract her, he might as well get back to work.
Thus, after finishing their pastries and a pot of herbal tea, Nissen and Peter finally met the Count they had been waiting for.
"Pierre must have told you that I plan to rebuild Sardinson's roads," Felix said straightforwardly. "The first one to be repaired is this one."
He took out a newly drawn map of Sardinson County. Although still quite simple, the roads and villages were marked.
Nissen and Peter looked at the map. Before this, they had guessed that the Count would want to repair the road from the castle to Dingle—the one they had taken today—or perhaps the main road in and out of Sardinson County, or even both, as these were likely the most important routes in the county.
But Felix pointed to neither of those. Instead, he indicated a road leading to the pastures. From the map, this road didn't lead to any significant location, not even a serf village, just ordinary farmland.
Felix, who was eager for everyone to know about his engagement, couldn't hide his pride. "This road is one my fiancée wants to repair. It will be entirely paved with cement, and the sooner it's done, the better. Of course, the quality must be impeccable."
"Also, if you have enough manpower to take on both this road and these two at the same time, that would be even better." This time, Felix pointed to the two roads Nissen and Peter had initially thought of.
Seizing the opportunity, Nissen asked, "Count, I heard from Pierre that you seem to be planning to repair all the roads in Sardinson County?"
Felix stroked his chin thoughtfully. "Not all of them, just the main roads connecting the various areas. The exact routes haven't been finalized yet, so we'll start with the most important ones first."
Felix not only wanted to repair the roads but also to build a city—a prosperous city that met Wei Wei's expectations.
However, this wasn't something that could be done overnight, so for now, Felix had only marked a location on the map as the future city's foundation. He hadn't started construction yet, as he first needed to earn enough money.
But with Sardinson County's current commercial income, he estimated that in two or three years, he could begin construction.
Nissen swallowed hard and asked for confirmation, "All the roads will be paved with cement?"
Felix nodded. "If we're going to repair them, we'll do it properly."
This was truly a massive project!!!
Judging from both the map and their experience, Sardinson County was quite large. If they could secure this project, not just next year, but for several years to come, their construction team would have no shortage of work.
Felix got down to business. "So, what's your quote?"
If Nissen had initially thought of inflating the price to earn more, now, for the sake of future cooperation, he couldn't use the originally intended price.
"Yes, our construction team charges based on the length of the road. If we're responsible for everything, the material and transportation costs would be... If we only provide labor without materials..."
Nissen quoted a price that was fair and standard for the market, though still a bit above his bottom line, leaving room for negotiation.
Felix, who had done his research, quickly responded, "The labor cost is acceptable, but the material cost is a bit high. If you can lower the price a bit more, the project is yours."
Nissen cautiously asked, "What price would satisfy you, Count?"
Felix offered a price significantly lower than Nissen's quote but still within his acceptable range. Since the labor cost wasn't reduced, the construction team's profits wouldn't be significantly affected—they just wouldn't make as much.
Felix added, "If you can accept this price and guarantee both quality and speed, then once you gather the manpower and materials, we can start the road repairs. Of course, the details and the deposit will be handled by my people."
He rang a bell, and a servant waiting outside entered.
"Call Ward here."
Ward was Butler Barton's nephew. Originally, Felix had planned to put him in charge of the essential oil factory, but since the factory hadn't been built yet and the castle was short on manpower, capable individuals naturally had to take on more work.
Ward was quickly summoned. Having already received Felix's instructions, he knew he would be responsible for the road repairs for the foreseeable future and had prepared accordingly, understanding the results Felix desired.
—Besides getting the best price, attracting more freemen to settle in Sardinson County was also a top priority.
Now called in by Felix, Ward quickly got into the role and took over the detailed discussions with Nissen.
Felix only needed to sign the contract and prepare the deposit once they reached an agreement.
Leaving the reception room to them, Felix stepped out to continue his work. Recently, more and more merchants wanted to buy essential oils. With the increase in sales, Felix didn't mind selling some to other merchants, as he had with Claude, but only lemon and orange peel oils, and only if they agreed not to sell them in the royal capital.
Of course, compared to Claude, these merchants would receive far fewer benefits.
Additionally, other business matters required his attention, making Felix increasingly aware of the lack of capable, independent talent around him.
But where could he find such people?
On his way to the study, Felix's mind was filled with this question.
"Count, there's a letter here. It seems to be from the king!"
A servant hurried over and handed Felix a letter.
From the king?
He took the letter, which indeed bore the royal seal. Felix returned to his study to read it carefully.
The letter was indeed from the king, written in his hand. It praised Felix for his contributions to the empire—his sale of essential oils had brought the king substantial commercial tax revenue—before finally revealing the purpose of the letter.
"His Majesty the King has invited you to attend the Queen's birthday banquet?"
At the dining table, Wei Wei and the others heard the news.
"Yes," Felix nodded. "The Queen's birthday is at the end of November. To make it, we should leave before November, so we don't have much time."
Butler Barton looked worried. "Will this affect the wedding?" He wanted to suggest that Felix not go, but since the invitation came from the king and it was for such an important event as the Queen's birthday, declining was out of the question.
Felix's expression was also grave. "Continue the preparations as planned. We'll try to return before the wedding. If that's not possible, we'll have to postpone it."
Fortunately, the invitations hadn't been sent out yet, so changing the date wouldn't be too troublesome, though it was still disappointing.
"We?" Wei Wei noticed his wording. "Am I going too?"
"Of course," Felix nodded. "Not just you, but Dolores as well. It's about time she entered the social scene."
Dolores, suddenly mentioned, was stunned.