Under the guidance of Lin and others, Lei Xiao quickly arrived at the celebration banquet in Kongqing Town.
Since this battle in Kongqing Town was a great success, Lei Xiao's guests at this celebration banquet were not only all the soldiers and mercenaries who participated in the battle.
It also includes tens of thousands of civilians, businessmen, and even surrendered soldiers who have not yet returned home in Kongqing Town and all surrounding affiliated villages.
Therefore, the main venue for the banquet was the large square set up in the open air in front of the main gate of Kongqing Town. There were also several branch venues located throughout the city.
In other words, Lei Xiao directly hosted a banquet for everyone in Kongqing Town.
Although the momentum was extremely large, according to Lei Xiao's instructions, the ingredients selected for the banquet met the standards of the nobility, and the chef team reached nearly a thousand people, so everything was done with ease.
Of course, millions of gold dragons were spent on this, but for Lei Xiao now, it was no different than sprinkling water.
Under the bright white moonlight, Lei Xiao came to the main square and noticed.
Around the square, a large number of magic light balls for lighting are suspended, making the huge square brightly lit.
As far as the eye can see, there are rectangular dining tables neatly arranged. Each dining table is filled with various kinds of wine and delicacies, which looks extremely rich.
Around the dining table, there were soldiers and civilians, so densely packed that it was almost impossible to see the end.
In one corner of the square, rows of ovens and stoves were set up, emitting rich smoke. The other corner was filled with oak barrels, as if several wine cellars had been moved out.
generally.
"Lord, the guests of the banquet in this main venue include all the soldiers, mercenaries and families of the fallen soldiers in Kongqing Town."
Lin, who was leading the way, stepped forward, stroked her chest and saluted Lei Xiao: "The banquet has not started yet, everyone is looking forward to your arrival."
"It just so happens that I also want to say a few words to everyone."
Lei Xiao nodded slightly and said to Lin: "Go and make arrangements."
"As you command, Lord."
Lin bowed and saluted, then called a few Kongqing Town officials who were standing by to work together.
Not long after, Lei Xiao, surrounded by Lin and other major city officials, appeared on the high platform that had been built earlier.
Just as Lei Xiao stood still under the magic light ball, the celebration banquet hall with a capacity of ten thousand people fell silent for an instant.
Pairs of awed eyes focused on Lei Xiao, either showing excitement or admiration.
At this moment, the person standing in front of them is none other than the absolute master of this city, and it is also the person they swear allegiance to, the respected Lord of the City!
No, it's much more than that.
Under the leadership of the Lord of the City, they not only succeeded in surviving the terrifying dark barrier, but also defeated the army of new nobles who besieged the city!
What is even more unbelievable is that under the powerful attack of the Lord of the City, he not only wiped out all the enemies in the entire area, but also took control of the entire area together with Her Royal Highness the Princess!
In other words, what stood in front of them was not just the lord of their city, but the powerful and absolute controller of the entire area!
It was this tall and tall man in front of him who was not afraid of the blood and fire and defeated the arrogant fallen nobles.
It was he who, regardless of his own safety, stepped forward at the critical moment, turned into light and shattered the darkness, and saved Kong Qingzhen from the fire and water!
Thinking of this in their hearts, uncontrollable tears began to flow from the eyes of people in the audience.
And this man who successfully created a new legend, worthy of being included in the epic, is the city lord of each of them!
Feeling the reverent gazes from the audience, the smiling Lei Xiao's eyes were gentle, and his voice immediately resounded throughout the square through the amplification array.
"Good evening to all citizens of Kongqing Town. The reason why I am standing here today is only for one thing, and that is to celebrate everyone present!"
"Without your bloody battle, there would not be today's numerous achievements. If it were not for your resignation, my battle flag would not be allowed to fly in every corner of this cold flame eastern region."
Lei Xiao looked at the garrison soldiers in the front row, who were almost all decorated and covered with bandages, with blazing eyes.
"In the face of the menacing siege army, your blades are still sharp and you have no choice to retreat. In the face of the boundless darkness, your will is as strong as a rock and you have not been swallowed by the darkness. Your courage will coexist with heaven and earth.
, forever engraved under this bright starry sky!"
"As your city lord, I am deeply gratified. You are worthy of being the bravest warrior of our Kongqing Town, and you are worthy of being the eternal pride of our Kongqing Town!"
At this point, Lei Xiao's voice became a little louder, and he said loudly to the tens of thousands of people present: "So I decided to award all the soldiers who belong to Kongqing Town the title of "Knight", and each one will be given a knight."
The manor is used as a fief to reward your unparalleled courage!"
As soon as Lei Xiao said this, there was a violent commotion in the audience.
I saw that every soldier looked in disbelief and began to look at each other, unable to believe their ears!
After a while, a touch of uncontrollable ecstasy emerged from the soldiers' dull faces.
In the Kingdom of Cold Flame, although knight is the lowest title, it already belongs to the category of quasi-nobility.
Being awarded the title of "Knight" undoubtedly means that they have jumped from humble commoners to the aristocratic class of the kingdom, and even have a fiefdom of their own. What an honor it is! Even Guangzong Yaozu has been a few years old.
No words can explain the excitement in their hearts!
"Long live the City Lord! Long live the City Lord!"
In addition to being extremely happy, all the soldiers couldn't help but prostrate themselves on the ground, even kissing the ground crazily with tears streaming down their faces, to express their uncontrollable gratitude to Lei Xiao.
On the high platform, Lei Xiao saw this scene and nodded slightly.
As the lord of Kongqing Town who has been recognized by the royal family, Lei Xiao naturally has the right to award local knights.
At that time, although this royal recognition was just a temporary measure brought about by Ariel's mission, the rights conferred were real.
And now, as the princess's guest on the surface and the princess' ruler secretly, Lei Xiao controls the entire eastern region, and his power is naturally even greater.
Although before sending Ariel to the throne, Lei Xiao could not legitimately consecrate other high-level nobles.
But it is enough to establish a knight class that is completely loyal to itself in any city under the jurisdiction of the eastern region of this cold flame.
As for Lei Xiao himself, he is not interested in these lofty noble titles at all.
After all, even Princess Leng Yan, who had the right to inherit the throne, was his subordinate and swore allegiance to him. Lei Xiao really couldn't think of any other title of nobility that could match his status.
Having said that, Lei Xiao had already discussed this decision with Ariel and others.
There are three main reasons why Lei Xiao did this.
First, it is naturally to reward the brave and fearless soldiers under his command to the maximum extent, and there is no reward that is more perfect than granting noble titles and fiefs.
Before this, Lei Xiao had already conducted detailed investigations.
Although the noble city lords of other cities also have the power to confer knights.
However, there are very few people who have actually exercised this power. Even for subordinates who have achieved major military exploits, at most they are only material rewards.
After all, this is a world that attaches great importance to bloodline. Both the traditional nobles and the new nobles regard the common people in the fief as tools.
Naturally, he would not easily allow these inferior tools to have the same title of nobility as himself, even the lowest ones.
It can be seen from this that at this time when even conferring one or two knights is an extreme grace, Lei Xiao canonizing thousands of knights at once will have a huge impact on everyone's hearts.
As for the second reason for Lei Xiao's canonization on such a large scale, it was mentioned just now, in order to further consolidate his rule in this area.
After becoming a knight, you will get a medium-sized manor and a corresponding number of free farmers, but you still need to pay food and taxes regularly.
This means that he suddenly has thousands more managers who are devoted to him, and they can be dispersed over such a wide area to fill the gap in the management class.
With the cooperation of these new knights and the work of local managers, coupled with his own series of measures, he will undoubtedly be able to completely stabilize the entire area in the shortest possible time.
The third point is to recruit troops and talents more quickly.
Lei Xiao clearly understands that becoming a member of the aristocratic class with glorious ancestors is the ultimate dream of every commoner.
And he only went through one battle and was able to confer thousands of knights. As long as the news spreads, I am afraid that recruiting offices everywhere will be overwhelmed immediately. This is undoubtedly the only way for these commoners to become nobles!
At the same time, some strong men from the civilian class will inevitably come after hearing the news. In this way, he will assemble an extremely large force in the shortest possible time.
The most important thing is that he currently only occupies a quarter of the Cold Flame Kingdom, and he has enough fiefs to reward these soldiers who are flocking here.
Of course, it's just not possible to be as exaggerated as this time.
Looking at the increasingly heated atmosphere in the audience, Lei Xiao's eyes became a little solemn, and he continued to speak loudly: "In addition to all the soldiers present, those soldiers who died in battle will also be awarded the title of knight, and according to the standards of royal knights,
Give generous pensions.”
After a pause, Lei Xiao added: "The heirs of these fallen soldiers will inherit their father's knighthood, and they will also be able to get a manor. If there are no heirs, they will be inherited by their elders, brothers or father... In short, I will never
Let the blood of any Kongqing Town soldier be shed in vain!"
"Long live the City Lord!"
After Lei Xiao finished speaking, the family members of the fallen soldiers in the audience had already burst into tears. They all knelt on the ground and were unwilling to get up for a long time.
With the supreme grace of the Lord of the City, what's the point of letting them stain the battlefield with blood again?!
"In addition to the soldiers of Kongqing Town, the mercenaries stationed in Kongqing Town, the Princess Guards, the Trade Fair Guard Squadron, and the squadron directly under me also contributed greatly to this battle."
Lei Xiao looked at the soldiers seated slightly behind him and continued loudly: "These soldiers who also fought bloody battles for Kongqing Town will receive the title of Honorary Knight of Kongqing Town. Kongqing Town will never forget you."
Your achievements and dedication!”
"As an honorary knight of Kongqing Town, as long as you live in Kongqing Town for one day, you not only do not need to pay any taxes, but you will also receive a monthly subsidy of 100 golden dragons. As for the soldiers who died in battle, their heirs or fathers and brothers will inherit the title and power until
Until death."
As soon as Lei Xiao finished speaking, both the mercenaries with mixed equipment and the members of the Princess Guards and the Trade Fair Squadron were also stunned on the spot.
They did not expect that as outsiders who did not belong to Kongqing Town and only participated in a battle, they could receive such grace from Lord Keqing!
The title of honorary knight is just like the literal meaning, but it symbolizes the highest honor that a city can give!
And the accompanying tax exemptions and subsidies mean that they will be supported and respected by the whole city. What an honor this is!
Especially those ordinary mercenaries whose strength was only at the first level, their faces were full of disbelief.
You know, they worked hard for a month to complete the task, and even if they risked their lives, they could only earn a dozen gold dragons, but the guest has to subsidize 100 gold dragons every month. This is simply a supreme gift.
!
With such kindness, it is not an exaggeration to describe Mr. Keqing as a reborn parent. How can they, the mercenaries, not do their best?
"Long live your guest!"
In the midst of ecstasy, the mercenaries and soldiers who had just been canonized as the honorary knights of Kongqing Town fell to their knees one after another and also lowered their heads to Lei Xiao.
For a time, the scene of ten thousand people kneeling down and worshiping at the same time was quite shocking.
"Everyone, get up. Today is a celebration for everyone. The protagonist is not me."
On the high platform, Lei Xiao calmly raised his hand and smiled lightly.
For an ordinary city, the sudden addition of more than a thousand honorary knights can indeed make the city owner go bankrupt in a short period of time.
But for Lei Xiao, this is nothing at all. On the contrary, it can further increase his reputation.
After all, Randall is building a large-scale mercenary army, and the positive effects that can be achieved are self-evident.
At Lei Xiao's signal, when everyone present sat down again, Lei Xiao took the goblet that Lin respectfully handed over, raised it high and said: "Then, cheers to this great victory!
"
"Cheers! To your lord!"
Thousands of people in the audience raised their glasses at the same time and spoke respectfully to Lei Xiao.