Iron Harvest: When Farming Becomes Conquest

"Military camp," Roman declared offhandedly.

"When will you take me to see it?" Tashina asked.

But Roman ignored her and continued to review the newly added legal regulations in the Origin Code,

such as how to convict a farmer who stole two farming tools, how much to fine someone for insulting his neighbor, how much compensation one farmer should pay for accidentally injuring another, what punishment should be meted out for brawlers and disruptors of production regulations, and the divisions of divorces, inheritances, and so on.

At first, Roman’s Origin Code had only a handful of articles and was merely posted on the wall as a notice, but now it had grown to a full two hundred pages, becoming a veritable tome.

Roman disdained the manorial courts, which were designed to protect the interests of the Nobles and offered some degree of protection to peasants but with the interpretation of the private laws left to those same Nobles, what chance did commoners have against the lords?

"They charge tax on the use of a mill! I find that utterly insane!" Roman would say.

In comparison, Black Iron law—the law of the Conquerors—was somewhat acceptable, certainly better than the Nobles’ private laws.

But Black Iron law demanded that "everyone must abide by the law," otherwise they would be given severe sanctions according to the law, and this applied to slaves as well. To consolidate the masters’ supremacy, the code specifically emphasized that slaves must obey their masters’ orders without any resistance...

"I’d like to give you a punch for such a thought!"