Earl Stamfort wants to give me land to govern after I married Celes. Well, I would not refuse his offer because maybe I can get something useful from the land he'll give me later. Whether to make rice cultivation area or business area or maybe trading center in the Southern region, that possible.
"Thanks for the offer, Uncle Edward….But our marriage still takes time to formalized, and I also don't have the idea of what kind of land you'll give to me later. Can I choose the place or I just accept what you gave to me"
"I'll give you land that belongs to Stamfort family and not managed by any vassals. Come visit your fiancé once a while Henry, I'll show you the area in the southern region which under Stamfort family. If you find something interesting in a certain area which still belongs to Stamfort family, you can choose it and ask that area to be yours"
"Thanks again for the offer, Uncle Edward, I'll visit your castle someday later"
"That's a promise young man, and you should keep that promise"
"Hahaha…of course I will keep my promise, Uncle Edward. Anyway, can I ask something from you, uncle Edward?"
"Hooo, sure…what is it Henry?"
"For tomorrow security during the banquet, I feel we still need more people to secure the banquet. I don't want something like what occurred during lunch to happen again, so I want to borrow your guard to secure the place. It's not that I doubt our soldier capability, but they lack experience in securing important event like this. The guards that Uncle Edward brings here seem experienced soldier and not just average guards. They must but the elites among your soldier, right? I hope they can help us with their experience and expertise. I'm sorry if I'm asking too much, but considering what happened with brother Anthony which makes him lost his fiancé before, I don't want this kind of event to relapse again"
"Hmm…You got good eyes there, Henry. That's true the guard who I bring here are all elites, they personally trained by your brother Anthony. About your request, I think that's not exaggerating request, in the matter of fact, it's a reasonable request with consideration for our safety. Sure, I bring them here to protect me, of course, they should work as they should be. Henry, you can use my guards at your disposal. Where do you plan to deploy them?"
"They will place in the inner part of the castle on the important places, like the hall where the banquet will hold, the front door and some in the gate. After banquet over, I will prepare a feast for them together with our soldier to rewarding their hard work"
"Hoho…that's great. They surely will appreciate that, Henry"
"Will they also come along when Uncle Edward visit our salt site?"
"I left some here for Celes' protection and take 20 men with me"
"I will add some more to make it safer"
"Good. I'm expecting an exciting journey with you, Henry"
"Me too, Uncle. Father, is there anything you want to talk to me?"
"Ahh…after hearing your discussion I also forget what I want to ask from you, Henry. Maybe later"
"Alright, if there's nothing more discuss, I will excuse myself, Uncle Edward. I still have to go to the kitchen and arrange tomorrow breakfast as well"
"Oh alright, you may leave…but tell me, what we will have for breakfast tomorrow?"
"Since we will have a lavish banquet at noon, I'm afraid tomorrow's breakfast will be only simple dishes like soup and breads, uncle Edward"
"Hmm…that's alright. The soup and bread from Harvard castle is good enough for breakfast"
"Thanks for the praise, Uncle Edward. Although only soup and bread, it would tasty enough and give energy for daily activities"
After saying good night and bade farewell, I leave my father's office and heading to the kitchen. It seems they will play the board game until late night or until they feel sleepy enough to stop playing.
I go to the kitchen to ask Mrs. Martina to prepare the breakfast menu tomorrow. When I arrived there, Mrs. Martina already greet me first
"Young master Henry…good evening. You come here must be to discuss regarding breakfast menu for tomorrow, right?"
"Good evening Mrs. Martina…you're really have sharp intuition. Indeed, I come here to arrange the breakfast menu for tomorrow"
"And what we should prepare for tomorrow breakfast, young master Henry?"
"Ah, there's nothing much to prepare…since we will have a banquet at noon, I only prepare simple dishes for breakfast. Meat bun, pancakes, birds nest soup, and tea will be enough. You can use the time available for preparing ingredients for the banquet. We probably have over a hundred guests coming for the banquet"
"I understand, young master. And what's the menu for the banquet?"
"I'm still thinking about the menu arrangement, Mrs. Martina…I'll tell you first time in the morning tomorrow"
"Alright…is there anything else, young master?"
"Yeah, more potato chips and meringue for my fiancé and my sister. Please deliver to their room as snacks to eat when they already hungry, while mealtime still long to arrive"
"No problem young master"
"Tomorrow will be a very busy day, so please ask the cooks to rest early after they finish their work in the kitchen and preserve their strength for tomorrow banquet. I don't want them to collapse during the banquet or after banquet because over exhausted"
"I'll order them to do so, young master. Thanks for your concern"
"That would be all, Mrs. Martina. Good night"
"Good night, young master Henry"
With that, my business in the kitchen is done and I can back to my room to rest. It's really a busy day for me, I hope I can rest and have some good sleep later.