Gospel of Blood

Chapter 388: Rearing Nobles

Not just for housing the royal family?

Charlotte’s heart skipped a beat.

Following Louis V’s gaze, she looked at the Kingdom’s fief map on the wall.

Scanning the crests symbolizing various noble families, Charlotte had a peculiar thought.

“Your Majesty, do you mean to invite the Kingdom’s nobles to reside here as well?”

She asked calmly.

Louis V smiled faintly, with an approving look.

“Countess Castell, you are correct. Building this palace, I indeed plan to invite the nobles to live here.”

Saying this, Louis V stood up, looked out at the Royal Plaza, and sighed.

“In recent years, the kingdom has developed rapidly. The population of Lutecia has doubled several times over the past few decades. Land and housing within the city are quite scarce, with many poor people even having no homes, resorting to setting up simple tents around the city walls…”

“Nobles face similar issues. Especially when the Central Council convenes, it is nearly impossible to find a room in the inner city. I suppose… Countess, you have also felt this.”

“Moreover, each time the Central Council is held, the influx of numerous nobles greatly pressures public order. Their competitive buying of city mansions has driven up Lutecia’s real estate prices to an unattainable level for ordinary people.”

“Under such high prices, forced sales and purchases are commonplace, bankrupting more and more citizens while arrogant nobles and wastrels increase.”

“Although the capital is prosperous, beneath this prosperity lies increasingly sharp social contradictions…”

As he spoke, Louis V turned around and paused slightly before calmly saying,

“Therefore, I built this Crescent Palace…”

“Crescent Palace is the largest palace in Myria’s history. The main palace alone can accommodate at least eight thousand people in daily life. Including the surrounding auxiliary buildings, it can comfortably house twelve thousand people.”

“Furthermore, crescent Palace offers the kingdom’s most luxurious and comfortable environment, with extraordinary facilities far surpassing those of other countries in Yunette, fully meeting the daily needs of nobles.”

“In addition, Crescent Palace possesses the most advanced magical inscriptions in the entire Yunette region. Its activated magical array can even isolate Legendary’s probes, maximizing the residents’ privacy…”

“Therefore, I plan to gradually revoke the nobles’ residences in the capital. All nobles in Lutecia must move into Crescent Palace in the future.”

“This Crescent Palace is not just the royal palace, but also the residence for nobles in the capital.”

Listening to Louis V’s words, Charlotte felt an even stronger sense of déjà vu.

Looking at this most assertive king in Crescent’s history, she continued calmly.

“Your Majesty, when you say revoke residences, does this include vassal’s residences from various regions?”

Louis V smiled faintly.

“Of course.”

“Residences of regional vassals in the capital occupy over two-thirds of Lutecia’s inner city. Most of this area is vacant most of the time.”

“This is a tremendous waste and must be addressed.”

“After this Central Council meeting, I will issue a royal decree limiting regional nobles’ property in Lutecia to no more than 200 square meters. Each family can hold one to three properties based on their rank.”

“Any property exceeding the specifications must be revoked, and I will exchange it for the right to reside in Crescent Palace.”

Charlotte: …

She felt an even stronger sense of déjà vu.

“Your Majesty, is this the deal you plan to make with the nobles?”

She asked.

Louis V glanced at her and said flatly.

“No, this will be the king’s order.”

Charlotte felt unsurprised by this answer.

She understood Louis V’s intention. He planned to make Crescent Palace the residence for nobles’ activities in the capital.

Nobles live lavishly, and a mere 200 square meters might not even accommodate the attendants of major nobles.

If Louis V enforced this policy, most nobles would likely move into Crescent Palace during the Central Council…

“And what about the daily maintenance of the palace? Running such a large and luxurious palace will require substantial daily expenses. Is Your Majesty planning to have the nobles pay for it themselves?”

Charlotte asked.

Louis V smiled slightly.

“Of course, I only provide the residence. As for daily expenses, the nobles must cover them.”

“However, living in Crescent Palace may be cheaper for the nobles than maintaining their large estates.”

Not necessarily.

Nobles are often extravagant and love to show off, always competing.

If they all lived together, Charlotte could foresee what might happen.

For instance, if Louis V set different standards of living conditions with outrageous prices for the highest tier, many nobles might go to great lengths to maintain their status.

It’s like playing a video game.

When playing alone, everyone does their own thing. But once connected, comparisons begin.

In the past, rich players would spend extravagantly for top ranks in trivial mobile games, let alone Myria nobles.

However, this is not the most crucial part.

The most important part is how long Louis V plans for the nobles to stay in Crescent Palace.

“Your Majesty, what about outside of the Central Council? After the council, the nobles will return to their fiefs. How will Crescent Palace be maintained then? What about the servants in the palace?”

Charlotte asked tentatively.

Louis V looked at her and said matter-of-factly.

“Outside of the Central Council, the Crescent Palace will still operate normally. Nobles will naturally still need to pay for the daily maintenance of the palace, and this will be deducted from their contract taxes.”

“As for the servants…aside from necessary personal attendants that can be brought into the palace, the rest of the general servants will be provided by the royal family.”

Charlotte’s heart skipped a beat.

“You mean the Crescent Palace will always have a sufficient supply of servants? Even outside of the Central Council?”

Louis V nodded slightly.

“Of course, nobles can still reside in the Crescent Palace at any time outside of the Central Council.”

Hearing Louis V’s words, Charlotte fell into deep thought.

She had discerned Louis V’s intentions.

This wasn’t just about providing nobles with a unified residence during the Central Council, but about encouraging them to reside in the Crescent Palace long-term.

If Louis V intended for nobles to only stay during the Central Council, he would likely only provide temporary accommodations and reduce operational costs outside of council periods.

But Louis V’s intention was to keep the Crescent Palace running continuously, regardless of whether nobles resided there.

Louis V was an ambitious and assertive ruler with a vision. Spending a fortune to build such a colossal palace was not just about providing temporary lodging for nobles or easing Lutecia’s housing pressure.

The answer was clear.

It was all about centralization.

It was obvious that Louis V aimed to have all the Kingdom’s lords reside in the Crescent Palace in the future.

Perhaps now, it’s only during the Central Council that nobles move in, but once they all move in during the council, it sets a precedent.

The first step is always the hardest.

Once the first step is taken, it becomes easier to continue subtly.

Whether through strong measures, coercion and inducement, or other means, getting nobles to live in the Crescent Palace long-term becomes a possibility.

Charlotte believed that as long as nobles moved into the Crescent Palace even once, Louis V would find a way to go further.

Initially, nobles might fiercely resist, but as the royal family’s power grew, this resistance would weaken.

Once nobles got used to life in the Crescent Palace, they would gradually detach from their fiefs, possibly never returning, effectively becoming “domesticated” in the Crescent Palace.

This was highly likely.

Not all noble territories were as wealthy as Castell, and Louis V’s palace was indeed luxurious.

Once Louis V managed to keep nobles away from their fiefs and local power centers through various means, their connection to their lands would weaken, and the royal family could better control and influence their activities, even managing and monitoring them through the Crescent Palace.

Thus, the influence of nobles would diminish, while the King’s authority and control would strengthen.

When all the kingdom’s nobles were concentrated in the Crescent Palace, quantitative changes could even lead to qualitative changes.

At that point, the Crescent Palace would become a hub of social and cultural life for nobles.

Then, Louis V’s centralization efforts would become easier.

For instance, he could establish strict court etiquette and regulations, demanding nobles comply to reinforce his authority and limit their freedom. He could also hold political gatherings and meetings in the Crescent Palace to monitor and control noble activities.

This transformation could become reciprocal.

The Crescent Palace would also serve as a platform for nobles to interact, compete, showcase their wealth and status, and directly express opinions and requests to the king, significantly diminishing the importance of the Central Council.

Even those nobles unwilling to reside long-term in the Crescent Palace would have to frequently travel between their fiefs and the palace, weakening their local influence.

Over time, the connection between nobles and their fiefs would grow increasingly tenuous.

Meanwhile, the royal family would gain opportunities to intervene in local affairs, gradually infiltrating and controlling them, even managing local finances through contract taxes.

Ultimately, nobles could become titular landholders with no actual control over their territories.

This was highly likely, and Charlotte was almost certain this was Louis V’s future plan.

Otherwise, why spend a fortune building such a “marvel” as the Crescent Palace?

As for why Charlotte thought of so much, it was because history had shown similar scenarios, with a king known as the “Sun King” Louis XIV, who built Versailles in France.

The difference was that by Louis XIV’s time, the feudal nobility in France was already in decline, whereas local feudal forces in the Crescent Kingdom were still strong.

But Louis V had his advantages.

This was a world of extraordinary powers, and the Crescent Royal Family was the most powerful extraordinary force in the kingdom, with Louis V being the most powerful secular extraordinary being.

The authority and prestige he accumulated through war and saving the country were far beyond those of Louis XIV.

Thinking of this, Charlotte couldn’t help but look again at this king known as “the Great.”

The King summoning her was not just to chat.

Charlotte had past-life memories, allowing her to connect many dots.

Even without past-life memories, her political instincts honed over the past two years would sense Louis V’s unspoken plans.

Such detailed explanations of the Crescent Palace and the reasoning behind it were clearly indicative…

“Your Majesty, you…don’t just want to talk about the future of the Crescent Palace, do you?”

Charlotte looked up, meeting Louis V’s deep black eyes, and asked calmly.

Louis V looked at her with appreciation.

“Countess Castell, I know of your deeds in the North. In my view, although you are young, you have the vision and skill far beyond other nobles.”

“Like your parents, you are an excellent noble. If your father were still alive, I would have likely granted him a higher title and made him a direct vassal of the kingdom, joining my cabinet…”

“You are the same. I see many virtues in you. I greatly admire the policies you implemented in the North, especially your suppression of dissidents. To have complete control over your territory and defeat the combined forces of two duchies within six months is truly remarkable.”

“I’m sorry about Philip. This matter is not over, and I will offer you compensation as a token of the royal family’s apology to the Castell family…”

Hearing Louis V’s words, Charlotte was quite surprised.

She hadn’t expected such high praise and sincere attitude from him.

She smiled slightly, maintaining her composure as she asked.

“Your Majesty, may I be so bold as to ask, are you trying to win me over?”

Louis V glanced at her.

“You could say that.”

“Of course, I am also expressing the Royal Family’s stance. And… I believe you have already understood my intentions.”

As he spoke, Louis V looked directly into Charlotte’s eyes, his demeanor becoming imposing in an instant.

“Castell, no one can change my determination to strengthen the central authority, not the nobles, and not the church.”

“Since the end of the Star-Moon War, the number of dukes with real power and ecclesiastical territories in the kingdom will only decrease, never increase.”