Chapter 42 Kingdom Crisis 1
After visiting the shipyard, Paul and Queller took a walk to the beach to enjoy the scenery. The weather was good today, and the slightly fishy sea breeze blew slowly, making people feel relaxed and happy.
Quiller suddenly asked curiously: "What are you going to sell?"
"Some novelties, new types of paper, cheap and plentiful, not as expensive as parchment paper . There is also a beautiful vessel that you will definitely fall in love with.”
Paul said with a hint of pride, thinking of the Europeans’ enthusiasm for porcelain, he was confident that he would definitely make a fortune.
He took out a piece of paper and handed it to Queller and said: "This is the paper I want to sell. I will go back to Lake Town in a few days. Do you want to follow me to see that kind of utensil? It is really better than what we use." The pottery looks much better."
"Okay, I will definitely go." Queller took the paper and praised: "You mean this kind of paper can be produced in large quantities?"
China's economy is developed, and a large amount of paper is used in daily business activities. Contracts, accounting, letters and other activities consume countless amounts of paper every day. Economic development has brought about cultural prosperity, and the cultural industry is another Big paper consumer. If there is a new type of paper that can be fully supplied and the price is cheap enough, there will be no need to worry about finding sales.
“Yes, in my workshop, with the same manpower and time, I can increase the output to dozens of times that of parchment.” In fact, Paul made this up casually, and he didn’t know what it was. How many times higher can it be? However, considering that there are sufficient raw materials and insufficient manpower, he can recruit more. He thinks that it should be no problem if it is thirty or forty times higher.
He suddenly thought of another idea and slapped his forehead: "Ah! By the way, I heard that your southern culture is developed and you have countless great writers and dramatists?"
The young master put his left hand on his hips and smoothed his hair with his right hand, showing a proud expression: "Thank you for your praise! Although we in the south are not as good as you in the north in terms of military force, we really can't be too humble when it comes to literature and art. Haha!" That expression! It's as if he himself is a literary and artistic master.
Paul immediately put on an expression full of expectations: "Brother, I have admired this for a long time. When you go back, can you send me some popular literary works, such as novels, poems and so on."
Quiller was filled with pride: "Easy to say, easy to say! Hahahahaha——"
"But why do you want to transport it by sea? The west coast of the Kingdom of Aldo is still a port where supplies can be docked. Quite few, right? What if we encounter extreme weather or the ship breaks down?"
Paul said helplessly: "There is no way, you have been imprisoned by pirates for several months, you probably don't know our country? Is there a war going on in the south? To be disrespectful to His Majesty the King, I don't know when this war will end. I don't want my caravan to pass through a chaotic place, what if it is robbed? There are many checkpoints along the way, and you have to peel off several layers of skin just to pay taxes.”
Queller put on an understanding expression: "I just heard, it's Giles the Greedy Wolf, right? That's a dangerous guy, he's 'famous' even in our place. But he is a lord better than other places in your country I don’t know how high it is. By lowering tariffs and giving preferential treatment to merchants, they controlled the trade between Aldo and Horn Bay and made a lot of money.”
Quiller suddenly remembered something. He paused, looked around, and whispered in Paul's ear: "I'll tell you a secret secretly, but don't tell anyone else."
Seeing how mysterious he was, Paul was seduced. Curious, he nodded and agreed: "Don't worry, I will keep it secret."
I only heard Quick whisper: "I guess the royal family of your country is in trouble this time. There is a big force behind Giles." Supporting."
"What did you say?" Paul looked surprised as if he had heard some terrible news. "I mean your Aldo Kingdom is very likely to change its dynasty!" Seeing that his friend was stunned by the secret he told, Queller felt a little satisfied.
Paul looked in disbelief: "Don't lie to me, Giles launched a rebellion after you fell into the pirate den. How did you know there was someone behind him? And he was powerful enough to overthrow the royal family. ?”
“You didn’t think that Giles had the idea of rebellion as soon as he slapped his forehead a few months ago? Ming. But there was someone behind him, and I only found out by accident not long before he left home. It was probably the support of this force that made him decide to rebel again."
" How did you find out 'accidentally'?"
"Have you forgotten that my father is a member of the Council? I secretly looked at some documents in his study. It seems that some chambers of commerce in the Corner Bay Alliance are working on that. The forces behind the scenes are transporting supplies, a large amount of ordnance, food, etc. to Giles' territory by sea. The amount is staggering, so I say that your Majesty the King is in a bit of trouble this time."
"Well -" Paul frowned. If this was the case, as a lord of one party, he would have to carefully consider the issue of his side. The Gleiman family was kicked to the Northwest Gulf because they were in the wrong team before.
Quiller seemed to see what Paul was thinking, put his hand on his shoulder and said: "If you don't have the strength to protect yourself, just be a walleye for a while, and then speak out when the situation becomes clear." Stand. If everything is irreversible, come to me in Jiaowan. If you save my life, I will protect you for the rest of your life."
"Being a wallflower also requires some strength. "Paul thought secretly, but Queller's words were very touching.
He raised his head and looked into Kueller's sincere eyes: "Thank you, Kueller." Then he asked curiously: "Which side does your Corner Bay Alliance support?"
Queller was about to He replied: "The Corner Bay Alliance has adhered to the diplomatic principle of 'armed neutrality' since its establishment. We just want to do business quietly and will not get too involved in the internal disputes of other countries. If we make a mistake, we may No business can be done. “
"Uh..." He changed the subject: "At least that's the official attitude. As for what's going on behind the scenes, I'm not interested in politics and know very little about it. After all, whether a country can survive to this day may not be as simple as it appears on the surface. "
He continued: "Third-party businesses such as transporting supplies are not prohibited by the laws of Cape Bay. If your king also places an order, our Chamber of Commerce will accept it. "< br>
“Then do you know who is behind Giles?”
“As long as it does not harm the alliance’s own interests, the Council has no right to investigate commercial secrets. The document does not indicate that it is Who. But the scope for speculation is not large. Aldo is not a small country. How many forces are capable of interfering with you? Moreover, I remember that those merchants are running business in the east of Jiaojiao Bay."
What a good idea. Shipping by sea is easy to hide from others, and the shipping volume is huge. Since it is a large amount of arms and food, it is probably a national level action.
East of Corner Bay? Isn't that the Tria Sea? The only ones close to the Tria Sea and capable of supporting Giles are the Holy See and the Gabela Empire.
(End of this chapter)