Chapter 109 Catherine’s Road
“Baixi Avenue was destroyed again.”
“These damn nobles!” A young man as strong as a bear smashed him hard. Desktop, "Don't let me see it, let me see it, let them see what it means to charge, knock them flying!"
Stretching her bumpy figure, Catherine checked her hands with an expressionless face Ledger: "Karl, stay calm when things happen."
"President, is this not the first time for them? They just fought with us last time, and the scars have healed and they have forgotten the pain."
"Look, he's in a hurry." Mitnich smiled and held his shoulders, asking the powerful knight of the order to sit down, then went to the side and slowly poured a cup of black tea.
"Can I have black tea?"
Without answering, Karl took the cup of black tea and drank it in one gulp.
Katherine closed the account book and made two entries before picking up the briefing sheet from the mahogany desk.
Pushing up her crystal glasses, Catherine silently read the news from the construction site.
Their location is the headquarters of the Megdi Chamber of Commerce.
This watchtower located in Rapid City is made of red bricks and covers an area of about two acres.
The orange-red walls are covered with gray-green ivy, and the tallest turret is even higher than the local church.
But no priest had any objections.
After all, Rapid City is one of the only imperial free cities in the entire Thousand River Valley. The priests can only hold grudges first in order to counterattack.
"It's a big move this time. Dozens of our guards were killed or injured." Catherine tucked her brown-red hair behind her ears.
"Who would believe that it was bandits who did it?" Carl was still aggrieved. He finally built some roads, but they were destroyed again.
“After the Bay Creek Avenue is repaired, cheap grains from the coast will continue to flow into the Thousand River Valley. Isn’t this just poking the lungs of the nobles in the Thousand River Valley?” Mitny said with a smile, “ Not to mention that this is the decision of the Imperial Council, even if the Pope himself says it, they will violate it. "
As long as Beixi Avenue is built, everything will be fine.
Catherine sighed helplessly.
It happened that the flood came at this time, and the entire Qianhe River Valley fell into chaos, which gave those nobles a chance.
You must know that cities rely on secondary and tertiary industries such as metal processing, handicrafts, and banking to make profits.
The majority of the assets of the feudal lords were natural resources in the primary industry such as agriculture, forestry, mining, and animal husbandry.
After the Hundred Years War ended, low-priced food, wood, medicinal materials and ores from the Flesh Royal Court entered the imperial market, and the situation changed.
Due to the almost non-existent low-end labor costs of the Flesh Royal Court, whether they are mining, farming or logging, it is almost a costless business - it is all done by skeletons and zombies!
Skeletons and zombies do not need to eat or drink, have no mind, and have no opinions. In addition to being unable to perform complicated labor and handicrafts, they are simply chosen animals.
How could the old farmers of the empire resist such powerful cattle and horses?
As a result, in the imperial market, especially in the coastal areas, the knight lords were killed by the price war of the vampire archdukes, forcing the empire to hastily promulgate the "Corn Law".
But the Corn Laws were of no use, and many nobles and businessmen even accused the nobles of the Imperial Parliament of seeking profits for themselves.
Because after the promulgation of the Corn Laws, the most violent smugglers were the big nobles who had legislated it.
I have made laws, can I still be violated by them?
The "Corn Law" turned the empire's previously free imported grain market into a monopoly market for the great nobles.
However, the greatest impact was on the feudal lords along the coast.
In inland areas like Qianhe River Valley, due to road problems and private tax cards and robber knights, the price of Western grain shipped inland is almost the same as the local price.
Baixi Avenue is a stepping stone for the royal family of Leia and several imperial free cities along the coast to try to open up the inland market.
With this avenue, the winding paths and small tax cards along the way can be shortened, leading directly to the hinterland of the empire.
The construction project of the Thousand River Valley section of Beixi Avenue was contracted by the Megdi Chamber of Commerce in Zongheng Kaimu.
Once the highway is built, high-quality wool and cheap grains from the western continent and gravel plains can be imported into the Thousand River Valley. Coupled with the prosperous local dye industry, according to Catherine's plan, the integration of weaving, printing and dyeing can begin.
By then, free cities will have sprung up from the land of Thousand Valleys.
When the refugees from Qianhe River Valley enter the free city and become workers, the originally tense conflict between man and land will be alleviated.
With the existence of the free market, lords who are afraid of peasants escaping will not dare to be too harsh, and the lives of ordinary peasants will become better.
As for the inevitable war with the knight lords, Catherine was already prepared.
Behind her stood two powerful Dukes-Duke Dane of Kush and Duke Meliati of Herma Stone.
The Duke of Kush's ancestors were deprived of their crowns by the Leians, and many members of the family lost their titles. They have endured for hundreds of years, and have been planning an uprising since his grandfather's generation.
He was Catherine's first choice for cooperation because he had a softer personality and was more amiable, and he could take advantage of the distribution of interests after the war.
The problem is that with his womanly kindness and foresight, he may not be able to win in the small civil war in Qianhe River Valley.
Although Duchess Meliati of Herma Stone is Catherine's best friend and can take a bath together, she is still a little worried about asking Catherine to hand over Qianhe Valley to her.
Because she knows this best friend too well.
This old girl has always been ruthless and greedy for power. She has a bunch of poor, crazy and hungry knights under her command. She is a type of iron-blooded monarch.
It is naturally very simple for her to go and fight the little Karami in Qianhe River Valley.
But the distribution of interests after the war is a difficult problem. People like Catherine can only become subordinates or leave, there is no second choice.
“Can you ask the Imperial Council or the royal family to put pressure on those nobles?” Karl asked Catherine irritably.
"This time it was just a pretense and a secret. It is already the result of pressure. Now that the Leia royal family is fighting for the throne, how can they care about us?" Catherine finished returning all the documents. He stretched in relief.
“Go to the Duke of Kush to borrow some people and guard it tightly. If the roads and bridges that have been built are not destroyed, it will be considered a success.”
"The shareholders of our chamber of commerce, especially the bankers in the south, have never been satisfied with our current situation. They have written to us more than once."
"Hold on, there is ink. Liyati is here, even if they have a hundred courages, they won't dare to touch me," Catherine waved her hand domineeringly.
"Speaking of which, the Duchess of Herma Stone seems to have done little action recently? According to the original plan, she should have gone to put pressure on Archbishop Constance."
Shrugging, Catherine asked He leaned back in the chair and rubbed his swollen temples.
This man has always gone his own way, who knows where she went.
Maybe when she saw something was wrong with the situation, she might just send troops to rob the law field.
Mitny took out a piece of paper from the pile of documents: "On the matter of the Joan Dam, the two people from the church have reconciled. After all, the Qianhe Valley has been causing a lot of trouble recently."
“How to reconcile?”
“His Majesty Johnny VIII appointed a neutral Frenchman as a cardinal.”
“Johnny VIII Will the world just shrink back like this?" Catherine took off her glasses, her long eyelashes fluttering lazily, she picked up the handkerchief and began to wipe the glasses.
Mitnich immediately laughed: "How is it possible? We have inquired about it. He is planning to appoint a Johnny cardinal, and the news has already spread."
Clean the crystal glasses to perfection. Now, Catherine put it on again: "Continue to inquire from the Holy See. It doesn't matter how much it costs. Feiliu Castle has to be arranged.
Let's get ready. We will go there by boat soon. The teacher is so stubborn. I’m still worried about my temper.”
p.s. It’s too late, brothers. I’m working overtime today and have something to do at school. I’m sorry that I’ll make up the chapter twice as much on the weekend.
(End of this chapter)