When Julian was secretly planning an assassination and sending people to report to Lange, in the town of Dusseldorf on the other side, a tired and unshaven messenger was riding a thin travel horse, widening his blood-filled eyes, shouting loudly to the townspeople who were traveling on the street, and entering the Duke of Cologne's castle unimpeded.

After two years of rest and recuperation, the town of Düsseldorf regained its pre-war vitality.

The merchants who had fled because of war had fallen into panic and picked up their shops again. The townsmen, who were originally hungry and pale due to the siege, made their cheeks reappeared with rosy through their hard-working hands.

Because Count Berg won the title of Duke of Cologne, some skilled craftsmen and free people looking for job opportunities came to the capital of the Principality. Now Dusseldorf is more prosperous than before the war.

"What's up?"

In front of the castle gate, a stern guard stretched out his hand with a short spear, blocked the door, and blocked the messenger's way.

"It's me, Tommy," the messenger took off his wide hood and revealed his scaly head. "Don't you remember me, I often come to deliver letters to Count Lange!"

"It's you," guard Tommy scratched his head. He had seen many people. In his memory, there was indeed a messenger with scalyptus on his head who brought letters from Earl Lange to the Duke. "I know you, but I'm sorry, you can't go in today. Lord Duke is feeling uncomfortable. Please give me the letter and I'll hand it over to Lord Duke."

The messenger's face became a little unfavorable. He had never encountered such treatment before. In the past, even if the Duke was sick, he had never turned him out like this: "Believe me, Tommy, this letter is very important. I must hand it over to the Duke himself."

Guard Tommy narrowed his eyes and his tone became cold: "No, even if the letter contains ten gold coins, I can't put you in."

The messenger's face turned blue and white. He looked at the guard Tommy meaningfully, then put the parchment-sealed letter sealed by fire in his armpit and freed up his hand to his purse at his waist. However, the crackling sound of silver coins had just sounded, and Tommy cut off his intention.

"Don't think about bribing me, it's futile. Oh, forget it, seeing you so persistent, I'd better tell you the truth. Don't tell others with your big tongue," guard Tommy looked around and lowered his voice and said to the messenger of silly heads. "The Duke has recently received the exact news that someone has been planning to ill-treat him recently, so he will not see any outsiders now."

"What," the messenger seemed a little shocked, his suspicious eyes rolled a little, and then handed the letter to Tommy, "Well, don't forget to send Lord Lange's greetings to the Duke of Cologne."

"Of course." Guard Tommy nodded, took the letter, and a silver Denell coin on the back of the letter.

In the past few days, he had stopped many messengers of the vassals and the low-level nobles who came to petition. Some were carrying weapons, some looked harmless. As the Duke's personal bodyguard, Tommy dared not have any thoughts of relaxing his guard.

Because once something happens, the Duke family will never let them go.

Since it was impossible to determine who was the assassin, the Duke of Cologne thought that the best way was to say that he was sick and then turn all the strangers away.

Although doing so makes one look timid and easily makes vassals and leaders talk, it is better than being assassinated by then.

Obviously, the Duke of Cologne has become even more jealous of his life just now after just tasted the taste of power.

The guard Tommy actually deliberately revealed the news just now, which was what the Duke himself meant. This would make the rats in the dark realize that the target they were going to murder had become more vigilant, and it would be very difficult for them to succeed. At this time, most of the assassins had to retreat and return in vain.

Tommy, who "inadvertently" revealed the news, could get the benefit of a Denell silver coin, and he was also willing to help the duke spread the news quietly.

"Langer and Wolf's daughter are getting married..."

At this time, the Duke of Cologne was lying on the backrest chair covered with soft wolf fur in a very comfortable position, reading the letter while combing through the interests behind it in his mind.

If he guessed correctly, Lange was still coveting the two rich territories of his younger brother Simon.

However, Simon is an extremely thrust hedgehog. His private soldiers have an amazing combat power and a considerable armor rate. I am afraid that relying solely on the private soldiers and recruitment of Lange's own territory, Simon will be unable to surrender. Instead, he will suffer all his own suffering and lose face.

Thinking of this, the Duke of Cologne couldn't help but be glad that he made the right decision. Fortunately, he helped Simon get rid of Lange's head's restraint and let them all become the first heirs of each other's territory, allowing them to compete with each other. Otherwise, the Dorsten family would now have the most powerful power in the entire Duke's territory.

However, judging by this trend, the ambitious Lange is working in secret to make this happen slowly. After Lange and Baron Wolf formed an in-law alliance, the relatively stable situation in the past two years will be broken.

The Duke was a man who was content with the status quo, and he was not happy to see families in the public that had the strength to challenge his authority.

Even though he knew that Lange and Wolf would never betray him unless he performed tyranny, who could guarantee that their heirs would have any extraordinary and unreasonable thoughts?

"Maybe I can pass Gao Junquan's law..." The Duke of Cologne rubbed his temples, picked up the hot beer on the table and sipped.

The limited monarchy law is now implemented in the Duke of Cologne. Compared with the autonomy of vassals, the current law has only increased the feudal taxes and recruitment ratios of vassals.

If the law of Gaojun Power was passed, in addition to higher feudal taxes and military recruitment obligations, the most important point is that without the permission of the monarch, private wars are not allowed among the vassals.

However, this is obviously a treatment of symptoms but not root causes and is not worth the loss.

What the Duke of Cologne needs to do now is to improve his reputation, restore his strength, and stabilize the situation in the public, rather than implementing the law of high monarchy by consuming his reputation and reducing the favorable feelings of most nobles towards him.

"It's really a headache." The Duke of Cologne shook his head.

Perhaps, it was a complete mistake to enthrone Lange as Earl at the beginning. Before enthronement, this guy never showed any ambition. During that time, in order to gain power, he was as obedient as a kitten. Although he was like a piece of ice, he did not look threatening.

Now, after he became the Count, he began to make a secret arrangement. If he let himself go, God knows whether he would join forces with Earl Wolf to point his sharp spearhead at the other barons until he is strong enough to show up with him.

Therefore, the lord never likes ambitious vassals, especially those who are good at disguising and cunning like Lange.

But even so, the Duke of Cologne could conclude with great confidence that the assassin who wanted to plot against him recently was not sent by Lange.

Lange had no reason to kill him because he not only had to bear the huge risk of the matter being exposed, but also did not get even a little benefit.

The Duke of Cologne thought that these assassins were most likely hired by the remnants of the Count Luowen family.

He never gave up his pursuit of the remnants of the Count Luowen family. In the same way, the nobles who fled to foreign countries never gave up their assassination of their enemy Duke Cologne.

"Mr. Duke, I brought his greetings to Baron Winter, and brought his letters."

A man who buried most of his face in a gray hood walked in directly at the door. If Lange's messenger was still here, he would be shocked, because no one came out to stop the mysterious messenger, either the guard Tommy or the other guards.

"Good, you have to be careful and don't let others notice you." The Duke of Cologne said to the gray hooded messenger, and shook his eyes at a hunchback servant next to him, who knew how to take the letter from the messenger and gave him a reward of Denell's silver coin.

"Ahh, this Simon is so smart," the Duke of Cologne couldn't help but praise, "It seems that he has captured Lange's attempts more keenly than I do."

It turns out that Baron Winter, who is directly under the Duke of Cologne, is the Duke's new spy chief. Since he was canonized, he has been secretly monitoring the dynamic events of the entire principality for the Duke.

Although his work is done most of his time in the dark, he likes to decorate his cloak and cloak with white swan feathers. Therefore, he has a nice nickname called "White Feather".

Just as Simon gave him a letter of kindness and gift, he sent someone to tell the Duke of Cologne about it.

"Tell White Feather Winter to help other baron vassals directly under Simon's United Duke," said the Duke of Cologne took off a special silver ring from his fingers full of rings and handed it to the messenger, "This is my token."

The messenger lowered his head, respectfully took the silver ring from the Duke, bowed to him, and hurriedly left.

"It didn't get worse, but it started to get more and more interesting." The Duke of Cologne breathed a sigh of relief, feeling much more refreshing than before.
Chapter completed!