As the core castle of the York family, Black Castle integrates military, political and economic functions, where countless attendants shuttle back and forth with various documents, transmitting the will of the York family to all corners of the territory.

Walter walked down the long corridor behind Scrivener Max, and couldn't help but feel envious when he saw the well-trained attendants working in an intense and orderly manner.

"Lord Walter, Lord Earl's time is precious, you only have the time of an hourglass, and now you can go in. Max pushed open a thick oak door and said politely.

Walter smiled at the clerk, straightened his collar, took a deep breath and walked into the room.

Walter saw the Earl in his room, the white and chubby Earl of York sitting behind a huge desk and writing a book. Whenever beads of sweat broke out on his forehead, a beautiful maid would immediately wipe it clean for the Earl with a white sweat towel.

Fat people always have a special affinity, and they always make people feel relaxed or despised when they get along with people. Walter would never despise the Earl of York, and as a vassal of the Marquis de Leopold, he was well aware of the gap between his family and the House of York.

Although the Leopold family was a marquisate family, they were born into the nobility of the court, and the family's territory was pitiful, the size of a viscount. The Marquis of Leopold was a loyal supporter of Archduke Williams, and he always hoped to use the power of the Grand Duke to become the top merchant nobleman in the Kingdom of Gambis.

Walter was the head of the family caravan. Therefore, Walter knew that the fat man in front of him, who was not amazing, was the decision-maker of the York family's foreign trade, and he had always managed the York family's business in an orderly manner.

The Earl of York wrote his hand in Chinese, looked up and asked Walter arrogantly: "Say, you want to see me, is there anything wrong?"

As soon as the words fell, the maid next to her placed a delicate crystal hourglass on the table, and the fine white sand continued to slide downward.

Walter did not express any displeasure in the face of this contemptuous attitude, he bowed respectfully to the Earl of York, gently placed a black wooden box on the table, and said modestly: "Good day, Lord Earl." I bring greetings from the Marquis de Leopold, a gift from the Marquis. ”

The wooden box is very inconspicuous in black, but the fiery red spar inside is eye-catching, the spar is smooth and clear on the outside, and the inside is a flawless pure red. The Earl of York touched the surface of the hedron with his fingers, and felt a distinct burst of warmth.

The Earl of York asked in surprise, "Flame Crystal?"

"Yes, my lord, this is the Flame Crystal. Walter said respectfully, with a hint of smugness in his eyes.

The Flame Crystal is a very rare elemental crystal. In addition to its beauty, the most important characteristic of this elemental crystal is the gathering of elements, which is an important material for creating top-level knight equipment. Mithril equipment allows Transcendent Knights to unleash their elemental powers, and Mithril equipment inlaid with elemental crystals amplifies this power.

However, for the knight, the stronger the strength, the better, the knight pays more attention to the balance of the elemental circulation, and the power that goes out of control will only become a burden. Therefore, only the Silver Knight and the Golden Knight at the pinnacle have the ability to harness the Elemental Crystal. It is for this reason that elemental crystals cannot become an important strategic material like Mithril, after all, top-level knights are even rarer than elemental crystals. Gradually, elemental crystals became gifts to nobles.

In terms of value, the elemental crystals of the earth and water systems are the most valuable, and most knights are earth-water affinity, followed by wind element crystals, and finally fire element crystals, because knights with fire element affinity are rare. Even so, the flame crystal is also irreplaceable for a knight who is in harmony.

Facing this piece of flame crystal of extremely high quality, the Earl of York's small eyes smiled into a slit, and while he took the hourglass without a trace, he said to Walter cordially: "The Marquis de Leopold is so gracious! ”

Walter: "。。。。。。。。 ”

"My lord, I have heard that there is a purple cane wine in your territory, which is said to be comparable to gin, and I hope to buy some from you. Walter pleaded earnestly.

The Earl of York, blinking, spread his hands, and said innocently, "Purple cane wine, why haven't I heard of it?"

Walter didn't care about the Earl of York's attitude, he wouldn't be naïve enough to think that a piece of flame crystal could make the Earl of York sell the purple cane wine, but as long as it was a business, it could be discussed.

"Your Excellency, I am willing to buy you this purple cane wine at a price of 45 copper ropes per liter. Walter made a high price.

The Earl of York shook his head with a smile, although the family has taken control of the purple cane wine, but this material is more and more valuable, and it is not yet time to sell it to the outside world.

"55 copper ropes a liter. ”

Seeing that the Earl of York was unmoved, Walter considered it for a moment and quoted a higher price. He had not forgotten the order of the Marquis, and the Purple Cane Wine Family was determined to win.

The Earl of York put away his smile, his expression became serious, and his little eyes flashed with light, but he still did not say a word.

"My lord, as allies, this is already the most sincere price, please see 。。。。。。 ”

Walter was a little anxious when he saw that the Earl of York was noncommittal, and he had just opened his mouth but was stopped by York raising his hand.

"30 copper soles a liter. York said with a smile.

The Earl of York took the initiative to reduce the price, Walter didn't have any sense of joy, his heart sank,

"Let me guess, which trade route did you open up? Dodor, for his part, had always had a close relationship with Marquis Sophia. The Kingdom of Neville also has a deep connection with the Marquis of Sophia, and it is said that she has a secret trade route that leads directly to the Sassan Empire, and a large amount of grain is brought back from the north every year, and it is Naville. Well, is it still Neville?" said the Earl of York, smiling kindly.

"Yes, it's Neville! Neville has a close relationship with the Kingdom of Eyre, and our Archduke Williams happens to have a close personal relationship with several cardinal archbishops, so the Grand Duke has opened the joint for you. The Earl of York stood up, patted his fat hand and laughed.

York walked up to Walter's side, patted him on the shoulder, and said earnestly: "Walter, our two families are allies, how can I make your money?

"You don't know what price we have to pay for this trade route!" said Walter, angrily rejecting the Earl of York's offer.

"It is indeed not easy to open up trade routes, and it is also appropriate for caravans to take the lion's share. The Earl of York nodded in approval, and as soon as his voice changed, he added: "Then what will your caravan sell when it arrives at Neville? or what will you have to impress the Neville people? wool, flax, livestock, grain, these goods, only the Ephissos family can wrestle with the Wimbletons, and you can't do it! The Marquis can make you lose all your money as long as she keeps the price down. ”

"By the way, gin is a cargo that Sophia hasn't gotten her hands on yet. However, I heard that Sophia and Andre of the Borui Kingdom are in a hot fight. Maybe she'll soon get the right to run the gin. If you don't move quickly, even if there is a trade route, you won't be able to change the current situation. ”

Walter shook his head palely, and he said, "My lord, this is impossible! Since you guessed that this was the thread drawn by His Royal Highness the Grand Duke, you should understand that your proposal is against the will of the Grand Duke." ”

The Yorks were feared military aristocrats, and it was almost impossible for them to open up trade routes on their own, and it was hard to imagine that the crocodiles would allow another giant crocodile to crawl around them, and only harmless families could achieve business in the same way that a toothpick bird and a crocodile do. The Earl of York offered half of the share, which was actually no different from his own caravan, and Archduke Williams would not allow this to happen.

"Then I will keep the purple cane wine for 30 years, and we have no loss. The Earl of York spread his hands and said indifferently.

There was silence in the room, and both sides were thinking about how to break the deadlock, and after a while, Walter said to the Earl of York: "My lord, it is impossible to get a fifty percent share of ironware! 40 copper ropes for a liter of purple cane wine, and we will sell you thirty percent of the ironware, but the price is eighty percent of the price of the royal capital." ”

"Deal!" the Earl of York did not bargain, and immediately agreed.

The Earl's resoluteness made Walter a little stunned, he didn't know if he had fallen for the fat man's calculations, but he had no choice, as the Earl of York said, it was in vain to have a road without goods.

Now that the matter has been settled, Walter got up and took his leave: "My lord, then I will retire first." ”

"Wait! You've got a tax you still have to pay. ”

The Earl of York called out to Walter, and as he spoke, he took out a parchment from under the table and handed it over.

Walter was astonished by the contents of the paperwork, and he said, "My lord, has your tax collector miscalculated? We have only collected 20 pounds of gold for this kind of goods called 'coffee', and we have to pay 100 gold soles in tax?"

"Coffee is only taxed at 50 gold soles, and the other 50 gold soles are taxes on sugar. The Earl of York said with a smile.

"But the cane sugar was delivered!" Walter argued.

"Walter, I know very well that it is customary for caravans to lower prices together, but I also know very well that coffee can be sold for at least 50 gold soles a pound when it arrives in the royal capital. A total of 100 gold soles in tax is not expensive at all! If there is no cane sugar, the value of coffee is greatly reduced. Anyway, coffee with honey doesn't taste very good. York smacked his lips, he had already tried coffee with honey.

"As you wish, my lord. ”

Walter didn't bother, but happily made up the taxes, but he was secretly proud in his heart: "I shipped the coffee to the royal capital, and it can be sold for at least 100 gold soles per pound." ”

As Walter was leaving, the Earl of York said to him, "Remember to tell you your Marquis, coffee, sugar, and purple cane wine are the work of Baron Victor Wimbledon." But Baron Victor did not leave the goods to his wife. ”

Walter held back the surprise in his heart and hurried away.

"My lord, are we really going to sell the purple cane wine to the Leopold family now?"

Max looked at the Earl of York with some concern, cellaring purple cane wine is the consensus of the family, and everyone believes that the best time to sell purple cane wine is ten years later. The terms negotiated between the Earl of York and Walter were not very generous.

"Of course! purple cane wine is a good thing. But good things also need to be known. You say, if the Neville people get used to drinking purple cane wine, and I cut off the goods again, will they open up a trade route themselves?"

"Your Excellency is wise!"

Max was convinced of the Earl's keen business instincts. It was very difficult for the York family to open a trade route, but now that the family has purple cane wine, it is equivalent to many free trade routes, and these caravans will come with all kinds of supplies needed by the family, and the family can make a lot of money as long as they collect taxes. The premise is that everyone must know the reputation of purple cane wine.

"By the way, did the Victors really destroy all the sugar?" asked York to his henchmen.

"It's true. Our people saw with their own eyes that they poured all the sugar into the stinking gutter. Max nodded.

"Give, don't sell! Destroy all the good cane sugar! This kid is such a wayward loser!" said Yorke lamentingly.

Fat York was particularly fond of sugar, and now he had to wait for the next Victor convoy, except for a few samples from Walter's hand.

——————————————

In the temporary residence of the Victor Territory, several children devoured roast pork chops, although they were all thin, but their eyes were fierce and vigilant, like little wolf cubs.

"My lord, this is an orphan brought back according to your request, the oldest is 11 years old, the youngest is 8 years old, 5 boys and 3 girls, no disabilities. Nelson introduced Victor.

"When they are full, ask someone to take them to a bath, give them four huts, and in a few days I will arrange for someone to pick them up. Victor nodded.

"My lord, are these orphans of any use to us?" asked Nelson curiously, as he thought there was no need for the family to take in the orphans.

"Education starts with the baby. Victor teased, but unfortunately Nelson didn't understand this meme.

In fact, Victor is going to set up a training camp to train spies who are loyal to him, and the instructor is Baror. Family training agents is harsh, but it's better than these kids dying in the gutter.

Nelson didn't care about having a few more orphans in the camp for nothing, and he had more doubts and wanted to ask Victor for confirmation.

"My lord, this time we only sold 40 silver soles for our coffee, and all the cane sugar was destroyed according to your orders, so I did not buy any equipment, but the cows and horses were already available. ”

"Are you wondering why I destroyed all that cane sugar?" said Victor with a warm smile.

"Yes. My lord, even if these caravans keep down their prices, we can form our own caravans, and there is no need to destroy such good things. Nelson said with some distress.

When the sparkling cane sugar was poured into the stinking gutter, countless onlookers exclaimed, and the boss of Wage stomped his feet.

"We can't form a caravan for the time being, but we can get the caravan to come to us. Victor shook his head and continued, "I ordered the destruction of cane sugar in order to sell it for a higher price. ”

In the past ten days, through the descriptions of secret agents, mercenaries, lords, and mountain people, Victor has basically understood the reason why the sugar and coffee are cold.

Victor had always thought that he would have a monopoly by mastering the unique purple cane resources and sucrose technology, but this was not the case, and only caravans had a monopoly here. This is not surprising, in the Middle Ages, the black pepper of the East passed through the hands of Arab merchants to the West, and it was immediately exchanged for equal weight of gold, so Arab merchants were the monopolies.

Victor thought about it carefully, and Sylvia gave up coffee, probably because coffee, although good, was not a necessity, and the same was true for cane sugar, so they would be depressed by the caravan. But why is honey so expensive?

Victor believes that honey here is like a luxury, used to show status. If the nobles do not eat honey, they are broken nobles and will be despised by other nobles. In order to make sugar a luxury, Victor needs a little more time to get the nobility to recognize the noble status of sugar.

Victor asks Nelson to destroy sucrose in Blackcastle to show people that sucrose is rather destroyed than eaten by ordinary people. Through coffee, these cane sugars will also be circulated in aristocratic circles. Then, Victor only sold jaggery to ordinary people, and the nobles slowly recognized the nobility of cane sugar. When the nobles want to buy cane sugar, I'm sorry, don't sell it! And Victor will gradually reduce the proportion of cane sugar given away for coffee, and those caravans will naturally take the initiative to come to the door. By that time, Victor had regained his monopoly.

When Victor explained his strategy to Nelson in detail, Nelson was dumbfounded.

"My lord, will those caravans unite to resist us?"

Nelson admired and worried, he found more than one caravan in Blackcastle, and none of them were willing to pay a high price.

"Nelson, can you hold the air?" asked Victor rhetorically.

Nelson clenched his fist violently, and the huge force immediately caused a pop in the air in his hand, and then he shook his head and said, "Can't hold it!"

What a pervert! Victor secretly complained, and was extremely envious.

"Good things are like air, they can't be stopped, they just take a little time. Victor said lightly.