"What? Haps died in the latrine?"
"Yes, according to the servant from the trading post, it seems that Haps was so heavy that he caused the latrine to collapse," Sashen replied with a calm expression.
"Really?" Mike Bai looked at Sashen, his expression skeptical.
Sashen nodded without changing her face.
Mike Bai looked puzzled, muttering, "Well, I guess overeating can be harmful to one's health."
Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, Mike Bai quickly moved on. "Enough of this. Demore, how's the matter of taking possession of the estate going?"
Demore stood up and responded, "My lord, aside from gifting several shops and some weavers to the Guild Master, Haps also owned an estate outside the city, not far from here. The estate has an existing textile workshop and about 200 slaves."
He continued, "Additionally, through this collaboration, our relationship with the Weaving Guild has deepened, and our wool orders have more than doubled."
"Good. Uncle Patrick, contact the previous artisans and have them build 10 more windmills at the new estate."
"Uncle William, recruit 50 more strong lads, train them like we did before, and then rotate with Captain Hammo to guard the two estates."
"Sashen, pick 30 skilled craftsmen from your people and send them to the new estate to train the workers. The new employees will receive 80% of the benefits of the old ones."
Everyone rose to acknowledge the orders. Despite the fact that the person giving them orders was only 9 years old, they had already fully recognized Mike Bai's uncanny ability to generate wealth.
As they dispersed to carry out their tasks, the hall fell silent again.
"Mike Bai!" Anna stood at the door, gazing at him eagerly.
"What is it, Anna?"
Anna jogged up to him. "Everyone else is busy, but I want to help Mike Bai too."
"Uh, it's hard work, you know."
"I don't care! I want to help Mike Bai!" Anna's big eyes looked at him with a pleading expression.
"Alright, Anna, can you write in Frankish?"
"Yes!" Anna nodded enthusiastically.
"Great, then you're my secretary!" Mike Bai patted her head.
"Secretary? What's my first task?"
"Gather all the children aged 6-12 from the estate and bring them to the warehouse in the east in the afternoon."
"Understood!" Anna curtsied in a comically formal manner before happily running off to complete her task.
As Mike Bai watched her, he was reminded that there were nearly 400 people living on his estate now, and about 40 of them were children. Ignoring them was not an option.
"Education must start with the children!" he muttered.
In the afternoon, a group of children who had been working in the workshop, wearing ragged clothes but with rosy cheeks, gathered under Anna's direction. They were nervous and uncertain, though they followed Anna's instructions. They had no idea why the Baron had called them together, but they complied nonetheless.
Mike Bai stood on a small wooden barrel, looking down at the anxious faces of the children. As the saying goes, "Poor children grow up quickly." These kids had probably been working in the workshop for some time.
Mike Bai surveyed the crowd and then shouted, "From now on, you are my servants!"
"From Monday to Friday, you'll train with Sir William in the morning, and in the afternoon, you'll study language, arithmetic, and science with Anna, the secretary. You can go home in the evenings."
"You are still young, so I will make sure you have three meals a day. The five children with the best performance each week will even get an extra chicken leg!"
Sashen translated the announcement, and the children's initial unease faded, replaced by eager excitement.
"Now, Anna, the secretary, will give you your first lesson."
Anna walked to a specially designed wooden board with a charcoal stick and began teaching them the alphabet.
"Repeat after me..."
During the break, Sashen approached Mike Bai, who was drowsing in a corner. She looked at her strange young master with a puzzled expression.
"What's the matter, Sashen?" Mike Bai mumbled sleepily.
"May the True God reward your kindness and generosity." Sashen knelt and placed her right hand on her chest in a grand gesture of respect.
"Huh?" Mike Bai hurriedly helped her up. "What are you doing all of a sudden?"
"You have not only provided us with protection but also shared valuable knowledge with us," Sashen remained kneeling, "We have no way to repay you except by swearing loyalty with our lives."
"Get up." Mike Bai pulled her up with a little force. "Knowledge should be used to benefit the majority, not become a tool for the few to control others."
"Your radiance humbles us," Sashen bowed her head once again.
"You're getting good at flattering people," Mike Bai chuckled lightly, then added, "By the way, choose a few children to teach them some basic self-defense against assassination."
"Understood, my lord." Sashen thought to herself that she would train the best assassins and counter-assassins for her master.
After a brief chat, Mike Bai headed back to the "classroom" and called out, "Class is in session!"
The children, who had been whispering among themselves, immediately straightened up.
Mike Bai wrote 10 Arabic numbers on the board. "See these 10 numbers? Let me teach you some math."
Despite their best efforts, teaching arithmetic to these children was no easy task. Mike Bai quickly realized how exhausting it could be, much like being a kindergarten teacher in his past life.
After finally getting through simple addition (1+1=2), it was time for subtraction, and the answers were as varied as the children. Though Mike Bai felt like stuffing the book into their little heads, he patiently explained each concept.
By the end of the lesson, some of the children had mastered addition and subtraction within 10.
"Sigh, being a primary school teacher is tough," Mike Bai muttered as he watched the children leave for the day, feeling a sense of exhaustion.
But what troubled Mike Bai more was what came next.
"Mike Bai!"
The following morning, William stormed into Mike Bai's room, fuming with anger. "What kind of nonsense is this? You asked me to supervise a bunch of kids?"
"Well, they need some basic training, too."
"I'm a knight, not a babysitter!" William crossed his arms, clearly exasperated.
"Uncle William, you trained so many soldiers before, right? Just pick two good ones to look after the kids."
"Well... they probably won't want to."
Seeing William hesitate, Mike Bai upped the offer. "The instructors will get an extra two copper pennies per day."
"Alright, then!" William's mood lightened. "I'll pick two good lads to take care of them."
William left to announce the news, and immediately, the soldiers who had previously dismissed the task raised their hands, eager for the extra pay.
In the end, two young men were selected to be the children's instructors. They immediately reverted to the most basic and harsh methods of teaching—using a cane to punish wrongdoers.
From a distance, Mike Bai could see children being hit when they made mistakes. He wanted to cry out in protest but held himself back.
"Tell Demore to prepare some wound salve," he instructed, feeling pity for the children.
By noon, the training was over. The exhausted children collapsed on the ground, some with fresh marks from the canes, tears welling in their eyes as they checked each other's wounds.
Mike Bai walked over, carrying two small clay pots.
"Good day, my children." The children, who had been resting, immediately stood up and greeted him.
Mike Bai waved them off casually. "I brought some ointment for your wounds. It'll make you feel better."
He scanned the children and pointed to a boy covered in cuts. "You, come here."
The boy, surprised, hesitated before nervously jogging over.
"Turn around," Mike Bai said. After a brief pause, the boy complied and revealed the injuries on his back.
Mike Bai inspected the wounds. It seemed the soldiers had been careful, as the injuries were superficial.
"What's your name?"
"Sir, I'm Dogo." The boy, still astonished, quickly responded.
Mike Bai began applying the ointment to the boy's wounds. "Don't move, I'll finish quickly."
"Lord, this..." Dogo and the other children were all stunned. Their parents had always told them to respect their lord, as he could kill them at any moment. They never imagined their lord would personally tend to their wounds.
"All done!" Mike Bai removed his hand and noticed the curious stares from the other children.
"Why are you just standing there? Help each other out!"
The children immediately paired up to apply the ointment to each other's wounds.
Mike Bai patted Dogo on the shoulder. "Study well and keep improving."
"Yes, my lord!" Dogo stood straighter, his eyes gleaming with determination.
In the afternoon, Mike Bai once again took to the "stage," watching the children, who now appeared much more alert.
"Today, we're going to do an experiment. The Church says all things come from the earth."
"So today, we're going to test that theory. Here are two pieces of meat from the same pig, from the same area." Mike Bai held up two clay pots, each containing a piece of meat.
"We'll sprinkle some dust on them. One pot will be left uncovered, while the other will be covered with a black cloth to prevent anything from getting inside. Then, we'll place them in a cool, shaded spot."
"Let's wait for a while, and in the meantime, we'll continue with the rest of the lessons."
When the sun began to dip below the horizon, the children finally finished their day's lessons.
"Look!" One sharp-eyed child pointed at the open pot, where white maggots were wriggling inside, while the other pot remained still and untouched.
Mike Bai held up the two pots. "Can anyone tell me why one of them is different from the other?"
The children looked confused, trying to remember if they had missed something.
"Think carefully—what's different between the two pots?" Mike Bai prompted.
After a long pause, a hand shakily rose.
"Dogo, share your thoughts," Mike Bai encouraged.
"Is it... the flies?" Dogo ventured hesitantly.
"Exactly! Dogo, you get a bonus!" Mike Bai smiled and explained further, "The maggots came from eggs laid by flies, not from the dust. Life doesn't spring from dirt, as the Church claims."
"Go home and think about it. See if you can find other examples in life, and we'll discuss them tomorrow." After assigning homework, Mike Bai declared the class dismissed. The children gave a unified salute and filed out.
William, standing nearby, walked over, clearly puzzled. "Did the Church really get it wrong?"
"Of course they did." Mike Bai said with confidence. "The world is vast, and we can only understand the will of the Lord by continually learning the laws of nature."
But deep down, Mike Bai thought to himself, Let me plant the seeds of science and enlightenment in this dark age.