Louis stood on a slightly elevated hill, overlooking this desolate land.
The place he was looking at was the initial settlement he had chosen for the Red Tide Territory, the future central town of the territory.
This location was near a geothermal vent, meaning higher temperatures, enough to prevent people from freezing to death at night;
The hill blocked the bitter cold wind, just enough to provide some shelter for these newly arrived residents.
"Lord, is it time to start building the castle?" Mike, standing beside him, asked.
Mike was the most experienced among the craftsmen Louis acquired from Duke Edmund.
Louis appointed him as the building officer of the Red Tide Territory.
"No rush for the castle." Louis shook his head, "First, let's build the residential area."
"Where will you live then?"
"Just live with everyone else for now."
"You want to live with us?" The old craftsman was taken aback.
"What, are you worried I can't get used to it?" Louis shrugged indifferently, "We're in the Northern Territory, what does it matter?"
The old craftsman suddenly saw the young lord in a new light.
So, after discussing with Louis, they decided on a type of semi-pit collective dwelling as the initial housing for the Red Tide Territory.
It was a combination of typical Northern Territory dwellings of this world and Viking Longhouses Louis had seen in books from his previous life.
This house was dug to one-third below the ground surface, lower than the terrain, effectively insulating.
The walls were supported with a wooden framework, woven with willow twigs on the outside, and finally plastered with grass mud for reinforcement, both windproof and moisture-resistant.
Most importantly, the construction speed was extremely fast!
A brief exchange with Louis filled Mike with admiration.
This young lord had, in such a short time, designed such a building perfectly suited for the Northern Territory, a true architectural genius.
After the design was completed, construction immediately commenced.
Teams of twenty, led by two soldiers and consisting of eighteen slaves or refugees, advanced efficiently with clear division of labor.
......
As the cold wind howled, the slaves hunched their shoulders, gripping their rough iron spades tightly, and struck the permafrost hard.
"Thud!" The spade shook their wrists numb, but finally, the soil loosened a bit.
"Don't just stand there, keep going!" the soldier urged.
As they sweated profusely, a figure walked into the pit.
It was Louis; he rolled up his sleeves, picked up a shovel himself, and dug for a while.
"The lord also wants to work personally?" Everyone was surprised.
"Hmm... this work is really not easy. You all have worked hard; dinner time is soon. You can take a break." Louis dug for over ten minutes, remarking with a thoughtful sigh.
Then he turned to the next construction site, continuing his tour of working alongside the people.
Initially, some soldiers were dissatisfied, feeling they were clearly a combat unit, yet were sent to build houses, doing the work of laborers.
But now that even the lord was personally getting hands-on, what more could they complain about?
The slaves felt even more so; many of them had issues sustaining themselves. Now not only did they have food, but also a fixed place to live, which was already an enormous blessing.
Between building houses, Louis would occasionally "pass by" a construction site, casually lend a hand a few times, leave some encouraging words, then dust off his hands and move on.
"This framework is set nicely; you can sleep well tonight."
"Plaster the mud a little thicker, don't slack off, otherwise you'll freeze."
"Is this side almost done? I'll send over some hot soup, once you finish this batch, you can rest."
Wherever Louis went, the motivation there increased several folds.
With the addition of sufficient food supplies, the soldiers no longer complained.
The slaves worked as if their lives depended on it, their morale boosted to the max, and the entire territory's construction speed was astonishingly quick.
In just a few days, the first batch of semi-pit collective dwellings emerged from the ground.
Like mounds rising from the earth, thick grass mud covering the roofs, blending with the snowfield.
The houses were mostly buried underground, with sturdy and heavy frameworks supported by logs, the outer walls woven with willow twigs and solidified with rammed earth, saving timber while insulating against cold.
Moreover, the entire residential area was built around the geothermal vent, capable of dissipating most of the cold air.
Though they appeared simple, they could be considered one of the best living environments in the Northern Territory.
With the completion of the first batch of semi-pit dwellings, the Red Tide Territory finally established a real foundation in this cold Northern Territory.
Of course, mere houses were not enough; the human heart was the most crucial.
To motivate the people of the territory and further establish his "benevolent and wise" lord image, Louis decided to host a grand celebration.
He wanted to make it clear to everyone that following him, Louis, they wouldn't suffer any losses!
As night fell, a giant bonfire was lit on the open ground in front of the Red Tide Territory, dispelling the cold of the Northern Territory.
This piece of open ground, once barren permafrost, had now become lively for the first time due to the arrival of the celebration.
Nearly a thousand residents gathered under the firelight.
They had different identities, from slaves bought from slave traders, to indigenous people of the Northern Territory, refugees taken in along the way, and soldiers and knights who had followed Louis.
But at this moment, they shared one commonality: they were all citizens of the Red Tide Territory.
The crowd's gaze instinctively turned to the high stone before the bonfire.
Standing there was their lord—Louis Calvin.
The young Baron of Expansion wore a black long cloak, his face flickering in the firelight, no one knowing what he was going to do.
When everyone had gathered, Louis finally spoke: "Today, is the first celebration in the Red Tide Territory! To celebrate the completion of the first batch of houses in the Red Tide Territory.
With houses, this land will become your home, and you will become the true masters of the Red Tide Territory!"
However, there was no reaction from the crowd below.
They just looked at each other, even a bit bewildered.
What does it mean to become a master?
These slaves, refugees, and laborers had never thought they could become "masters" of any land.
They only knew work, they only knew obedience.
Even the courage to resist had been worn away in their long suffering.
Initially, they thought this celebration was some kind of oath by the new lord, or some kind of intimidation.
Louis had anticipated this reaction long ago, but it didn't matter; he would show them what hope was through practical actions.
"Next," Louis glanced over the crowd, "I want to reward those who are most diligent and loyal."
He raised a hand, and the steward Hillco behind him immediately unfolded the parchment in his hands and began reading a long list of names.
"Huck, Morgan, Sharna..."
The slaves whose names were called all flinched, showing fearful expressions.
In their past understanding, being named by the lord usually meant punishment, or even death.
Some had already started trembling, some lowered their heads, and some even wanted to kneel down and beg for mercy.
They had no idea how their fate was about to change.