Herald of Steel

Alexander accepted the old man's praise with modest smiles, lightly nodding,

"It is indeed understandable that the farmers will be at first weary. This is human nature. Whenever they are presented with something new, even if it promises to better their yields, the first thing they will ask is what are the risks."

"Because while getting more food is always welcomed, a far greater worry is a bad harvest. There are few who will dare hedge such a bet."

"There is no need to force the farmers. Just make sure all the villagers know what these 'new' farmers are doing. They can judge the results afterward for themselves." Alexander declared, thinking once the farmers had a few years to show off their new technique and prove to his peers that it was not a one time fluke, he could move onto the next stage- launching a large scale propaganda campaign, and if he had political the capital, make the practice into law.

Everyone then would have to use this method or find their taxes too high to meet.

But for now, he was just relieved to see his food security was guaranteed for the year, with an extra two years of rations stored in the grannies meant for Zanzan city itself.

…

After Menicus, Alexander turned to Cambyses, asking her about his workshops, and more importantly, tasking her to arrange for the newly brought blacksmiths.

"You will need to have new workshops built as soon as possible. Each day they linger, each day we lose more money. Have them get building those shovels as soon as possible. This is the picture!"

Alexander immediately scrawled a drawing on a piece of paper, and then quickly handed it over to Cambyses to continue,

"Many of their families will also be joining them. So make sure you have enough houses built for them."

"And also choose a few promising apprentices to tutor under these men. We must make sure they learn all these men have to teach. I also want you to increase soap and glass…."

Cambyses felt a slight headache coming her way as Alexander piled on the tasks one after the other, to the point, she had to start writing some of it down.

Being Alexander's main wife had its perks, but it was certainly not without its responsibilities.

…..

These were mainly all that Alexander thought he had to talk about, and he was just about to end the meeting when his army general Melodias suddenly interjected at the last moment,

"My lord, many of the people in the city feel it is getting too crowded. It was already designed to house only 100,000 and now we are almost reaching double that. And even with just all those families of the blacksmiths joining soon, the number is sure to exceed that."

"While in the meantime, we are also building all types of newer and bigger buildings. The library and the stadium are one aspect. Then as Diaogosis said, new apartment buildings are on the rise. A new workshop is built almost every day and even the number of various temples is increasing,"

"You have also already ordered the construction of a brand new giant amphitheater, and my son cannot stop talking about this giant bathhouse he visited in Caira with you. I presume you will also have one built here in Zanzan?"

Yes, one of the bodyguards following Alexander in the bathhouse had been one of Melodias's sons.

And after being around Alexander for so long, it did not take long for Melodias to guess one of Alexander's intentions.

So he then finished by saying, "So I propose moving the eastern army garrison out of the city. They really have nothing to do inside the city anyway."

"Hmmm… indeed, the city is getting quite crowded,"

Alexander did not get to make a comment as he was quickly interjected by none other than Cambyses, who quickly picked up on the overcrowding topic and added with a slight frown.

"The city guards…um police are already up to their necks trying to maintain order. Thefts, robberies, tavern brawls, and even outright murders are happening left, right, and center with no end in sight."

"Just last week, we had a string of jewel robberies and three small fires. If not for the men responding quickly, even the library might have been burnt. *Sigh*, Bartholomew is constantly asking me for more men."

Hearing this, Alexander quickly joined with a frown,

"Has the order in the city gone so bad? Why didn't you tell me earlier? Give him two hundred men from the army today!"

"Ahh…" It was Cambyses's turn to turn a bit awkward.

In reality, she had been exaggerating a lot of things, turning one incident into multiple repeated occurrences.

As for the reason…well she was about to reveal it a bit later.

Thus given she had already made the claim, Cambyses felt it would be too shameful to backtrack in front of so many lords, and so doubled down,

"Thank you. They will be put to good use. But the fact is there are too many different people in the city. Merchants from abroad, free men from Tibias, slaves from Thesos, and even villagers from small settlements hidden in the Cisran hills."

"All of them dress, talk, and act differently. This leads to all types of misunderstandings and incidents. The city is a melting cesspool of abundant mess. *Sigh*!"

The way Cambyses shook her head seemed all too real.n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

And this sentiment was quickly shared by none other than the most senior of the council lord - Lord Menicus, who added in that familiar gruff voice,

"Indeed, my lord should consider getting rid of some of these outsiders. Especially the Tibian…they are nothing but trouble makers."

There was a very clear tinge of anger and discrimination as he made this comment.

And this small, almost innocuous note greatly riled up Alexander.

Because he clearly saw what this sentence truly represented.

A great, hidden sickness.

Thus in a very loud, hardened voice, he fiercely countered Menicus,

"I would like to remind Lord Menicus that he too is an outsider here. That the surrounding lords, even those that are only neutral do not at all like us…they see us are mere commoners from Thesos, invaders unjustly occupying their lands."

"Let us forget the lords who serve Amenheraft… they only see us as slaves masquerading as lords. And should they ever get the chance they will not hesitate to once more put shackles on us all. So given his own precarious position…." Alexander trailed off with a heave.

Then clenching his fist, announced with a fiery glint in his eyes,

"I will say it once and only once- Tibias has been conquered by me. From that day on, its lands and the people living in those lands are all under my protection. In the eyes of the laws, there is no distinction between a Tibian citizen, a Zanzan citizen, and in some cases even a free man."

"So you too best follow my example. There will be no place for racism under my rule."

Alexander very rarely spoke in the harsh tone he had just used. Certainly, this was a first for the likes of Lady Parthia.

And perhaps that's why it had such a strong impact, with even the prestigious old man suddenly becoming pale,

"I.. I did not mean it like my lord. I … I would never. I just…I simply wanted to support Lady Cambyses, I…"

Because of Alexander's pleasant manners and reasonable attitude very few lords ever got to see his angry side.

And because of the same things, few also wanted to see it.

Those who served him very well understood how foolish it was to antagonize him.

Alexander had almost complete control of the army here in Zanzan, extreme loyalty of the people, and most of all, control of all the exotic goods which he shared with the others.

And being a smart man, Menicus understood all this very well.

His only miscalculation was that he did not think such a throwaway line for flattery would get such an intense reaction.

But it did, causing Cambyses of all people to quickly come to the rescue.

She quickly backed up the faltering noble with a flash of her pearly whites,

"I am sure Lord Menicus was just talking from experience, dear. Don't they say that Tibians tilt half the day and whistle the other half? Hahaha," This was a type of stereotypical slang used by the Zanzanites.

It alluded to the fact the southern Tibias were so fertile that they could work the fields with minimum effort and still produce an abundant harvest. While the hardy Zanzanties had to toil day and night just not to starve, forget filling the belly.

Thus it made the former seem lazy and the latter hardworking.

Cambyses's interjection finally cooled Alexander off and understanding Menicus meant no malice, excused the man with a wave.

He then declared, "Crimes are committed by all walks of life irrespective of color, creed, culture or religion. They will be treated the same by the guards."

"As for the matter of crowding, this is indeed a matter of concern. The army can be considered to be moved. But let me talk with the parliament lords first. This will also need their approval.

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