This year's Border Town was very different from the previous years.
In previous years, after the end of the Months of the Demons, they had to stay in the slums of Longsong Stronghold for another month, waiting for the snow to completely melt before they could embark on their journey home. But when they returned to the town, they saw that it was mostly a mess. The houses that had not been taken care of for several months were dilapidated, some of the less sturdy wooden houses had long been crushed by the heavy snow, and some of the townspeople were even hiding from the demonic beasts. Cabinets and tables were bitten to pieces, and they even dragged rags of grass to fill the corners, apparently using this place as a shelter from the wind and snow as their own nest. They often spent a week repairing the houses and replacing the soaked and moldy furniture. As for the lingering smell of decay, the residents here were already used to it.
But this year, Border Town could be said to be brand new, the snow was quickly swept away, and the Prince's colorful paper flags were hung in front of the houses. Looking from afar, the monotonous and dilapidated town had become a riot of colors, all kinds of flags mixed together, like a sea of flowers. Everyone rushed to spread the news that on the first day after the end of the Months of the Demons, His Highness would hold a grand celebration ball in the square! Anyone could go, not only did they not need to pay money, but they also heard that there would be free food!
What was a ball? It was a social occasion that only the upper nobles could attend. Everyone had only heard about it from the well-informed merchants in the big cities, but even they could not participate in it.According to the merchants, it was not an event that could be invited just because you had money. His Highness actually allowed everyone to attend?
"Your Highness, isn't it not good for you to do this?" Chief Knight dissuaded, "There is neither a band nor a lead dancer here, who will control the rhythm of the ball? Besides, in such a remote place, even the nobles might not necessarily know how to dance. Your subjects will only ruin everything. "
Carter had only been to one ball in King's City, which was held by a Marquis to celebrate his daughter's birthday. Elegant string music and impassioned drumbeats intertwined. The ladies danced to the melodious music, while the men showed their fast and powerful dance steps after the drumbeats sounded. They either spun or kicked, combining their movements with the drumbeats. During the break, the attendants shuttled through the crowd with drinks and snacks. The men were all looking for the women they liked, and when the last piece of music was played, they summoned their courage and went up to invite her. After the ball was over, the winner would have a romantic night.
Carter sighed. Although he didn't manage to date the girl he liked when he was young, the elegant and romantic atmosphere still made him reminisce. Replacing the distinguished nobles with this bunch of villagers who deal with rocks and beasts every day? God, he could not imagine such a scene.
"Lead dancer? Yes. "Roland ordered the militia to remove all the stone sculptures and gallows in the square." Iron Axe and the militia are the ones. "
"That Sand Nation?" Carter was stunned.As the captain of the Flintlock Team, Iron Axe's performance during the Months of the Demons had finally won the recognition of the Chief Knight, and he no longer mentioned the title of "alien". But in the end, he was still a Mojin, how could he know the etiquette of the mainland Kingdom!
Roland smiled mysteriously: "Because I'm not going to hold a normal ball, you'll know when the time comes."
There wasn't much preparation work to be done. The main thing was to remove the obstacles in the square and build a pile of firewood in the center. Next to the pile of firewood was a brick table for barbecuing.That's right, this was the celebratory ball that Roland had thought of – a combination of a bonfire party and a barbecue in the wild.
How to increase the people's sense of identity with their place of residence had always been a problem that the Prince had seriously considered. Nationalism and nationalism were too profound for these uneducated villagers who had worked for the Lord all their lives. Only their wealth and loved ones were worth caring about. The more backward a civilization was, the more short-sighted it would be. This was the law of civilization development. "Civilization will eventually become as big as its thoughts," Roland deeply believed in this.
But this didn't mean that spiritual construction could be ignored. The victory celebration was one of the methods he had figured out. In fact, it was difficult to understand why the world didn't have any celebration after the Months of the Demons. The once-a-year invasion of the demonic beasts was like a natural disaster. Defeating such evil spirits was naturally worthy of being written in a book.
So he decided to name the first day after the end of the Months of the Demons as Victory Day. All the territories that belonged to him would not only have a public holiday, but also hold a variety of celebration activities. As long as it lasted for three or four years, it would become a tradition that would be passed down in the territory. And the people would gradually feel that they were different from the people under the rule of other Lords.
Before noon, the square was crowded with people. The militia members formed a circle, blocking everyone outside the pile of firewood.
It seemed that the free food was quite attractive, at least half of the town's people had come, Roland thought. The only drawback was that the square was a little small, except for the open space around the pile of firewood, more than a thousand people were almost shoulder to shoulder, it was difficult to have a space to move. He also saw that some children had climbed onto the nearest roof and were looking at the middle of the square.
It was the first celebration, it was inevitable that there would be some shortcomings.Roland estimated that it was almost time, so he went on stage to give a speech.
This was the second time he gave a public speech in the square, so he was much calmer than the last time.
"My people, good noon. I am the 4th Prince of Graycastle Kingdom, Roland Wimbledon. " He still chose the same opening as last time, but this time the effect was completely different. The voice had not yet fallen, the crowd had already burst into enthusiastic cheers, "Long live His Royal Highness!" "Long live His Royal Highness!"
Roland suddenly felt his chest heat up, this time he did not arrange anyone to support him. Seeing the spontaneous cheers of the militia and the crowd, a sense of achievement and satisfaction filled his heart.
When the cheers subsided, he pressed down his hand, "The Months of the Demons is over, under the heroic efforts of the militia, the demonic beasts have never been able to cross the wall. Border Town defeated the terrible enemy with a very small price, which proves that as long as everyone is united, even if we do not rely on the charity of Longsong Stronghold, we can still stand firm here! They wanted to threaten the town with food, they wanted to force us to surrender with hunger and cold, but today's victory told them that all of this is futile! "
"That's right, I never want to go back to that place!"
"Following His Royal Highness, there will not be a day of hunger in winter!"
"Finally, we don't have to be blackmailed by them, His Royal Highness is merciful!"
Taking advantage of the rising mood of the crowd, Roland continued to say loudly, "Let us celebrate this glorious victory, this is a day worth remembering! I declare, from now on, the first day after the end of the Months of the Demons will be called 'Victory Day'! The celebration party is precisely for this! My people, enjoy this day to the fullest! Now, the party begins! "