"What do I need to mine obsidian here?" Egger approached the cave wall with a torch, illuminating a large expanse of swarthy volcanic rock.

"That's what obsidian mines look like...... What's the use of the night watchman coming?" muttered to the old mine head, handed the torch to his younger son, took out a small hammer from his waist bag, knocked it on the cave wall, studied it for a while, straightened up, and shook his head: "The mine is ready-made, the structure is stable and above sea level, and the air circulates naturally - there is no need to worry about collapse, water seepage and poisoning; ...... Tsk, if there is anything to pay attention to, it is to build a shelf to pave the board to prevent falling rocks from hurting people during mining. ”

Iger nodded, in the field he was not good at, he did not hesitate to ask the experts of this world with a respectful attitude: "Can you determine what you need, when can you mine it at the earliest, and how much money will it cost?"

"We need something, we can't say here, we have to make a list, if you want to mine, the conditions of this mine are so good, if the money and tools are in place, it is not impossible to start construction tonight." "As for the cost, it depends on whether your need for obsidian is urgent, how much you need, and what your ore requirements are." ”

"What do you mean by ore requirements?"

"For example, if you want to carve obsidian into the shape of the two dragon heads we just saw on both sides of the castle gate, you're going to need a large piece of rough stone, which would be very difficult to mine. But if you just want to make some beads and string them into bracelets to sell for money, then let the workers directly smash them, and the difficulty and cost of mining will be greatly reduced. ”

So that's what happened, Egg touched his chin and thought about it. After all, obsidian is only glass, and it is impossible to make a huge weapon like a long sword, and the dragon crystal dagger and arrow used by the children of the forest thousands of years ago have been the most feasible solutions that have been tested in practice, which means that as long as the mined ore can be carved and polished into a dagger, no matter how big it is, it is a waste. In the face of intelligent magical creatures like the Aliens, it is difficult to replicate the success stories of killing them in hand-to-hand combat, and the most reliable solution is to rely on a huge number of dragon crystal arrows - using an overwhelming array of long-range weapons to outweigh quality in quantity.

"The ore doesn't have to be too big, just follow the fate. ”

"Hmm. The old mine head nodded: "What you need, I will make a list for you when I go back, in this regard, you can hand over the required quantity to me after you have seen it, and I will find someone to buy it, which is definitely much cheaper than finding a way by myself." In addition, mining needs a person in charge, to manage and guard, to arrange work, and to prevent workers from grinding or stealing tools and selling them for money, my youngest son grew up in a mine on the edge of Kaiyan City, and although he is not as good as me, he definitely knows a lot more than a layman......"

......

Egger smiled, although he had never been a leader before he crossed over, his ancestors had already summed up the truth very concisely: the profit can be many but not alone, and the plan can be few. That is to say, when planning major events, we must select the most critical and most assertive small group of people to discuss, and we must never be "democratic"; when doing things, we must let the participants get benefits, and we must not do everything ourselves, for fear of letting others share the slightest bit of oil and water.

When the water is clear, there are no fish, and Stanis Baratheon just doesn't understand this truth, so he is hated by almost all the nobles of Westeros. Egg admires his justice, but doesn't want to learn from him to be a loner and discuss big things - just talk to Tyrion alone, and the old mine boss comes to help him look at the obsidian mines, and then wants to find a way out for his son, and even wants to get a little oil and water from the purchase of tools, which is understandable.

"Okay, since the connoisseur speaks, I naturally trust you. Then appoint your youngest son as the person in charge of this Longjing mine, and be fully responsible for all matters related to mining, salary, how about a month according to one hundred silver deer, and then reward for a good job. Egger nodded: "But there is one point, tool procurement, personnel employment, travel expenses, in short, all expenses must be clearly accounted for, and I will use them to reimburse my superiors...... The Night's Watch doesn't have a lot of money, it's too outrageous. ”

"Thank you, sir. "The monthly salary of a hundred silver deer itself is not low, not to mention that the person in charge has an easy job and can still have other oil and water to fish?" The old mine head patted his younger son, and the latter hurriedly acted according to his words.

Ho, even the title has changed, Egger shook his head: "I'm not an adult, you just call me by my name, the work here must be carried out as soon as possible, the starting capital is controlled within one hundred golden dragons, and the first ship of obsidian will be transported to Donghaiwang within a month, how much is it...... Let's aim to fill the boat we came to Dragonstone. ”

"That's not much, it seems that it is enough to recruit a dozen or so workers directly from that small village on Dragonstone Island. ”

"Well, the details are all discussed by your father and son, Tyrion introduced you to me, and I trust you. ”

"Master Xie. ”

"I wasn't...... Alas, forget it. Iger shrugged, "Let's go, let's go back to the village before it's dark, and I've promised you a big meal." ”

＊＊＊

Iger soon encountered a super embarrassing thing, and his promise to invite the three people who accompanied him to see the mine today had a big meal, which was a bit difficult to fulfill.

It's not that the people of the fishing village have opened their mouths to rip off customers, and with Stannis's temper, if this happens in their own fiefdoms, the people who steal customers will be thrown into the sea in minutes. The problem that Iger is encountering now is that he can't spend the money: if he wants to order pigs, beef and mutton, no, if he wants to order chickens, ducks and geese, no, the only thing that Dragonstone Island can provide is fish, and this thing, the young man who led the way has lived here for a long time, must be tired of eating.

"Is that the same in the castle?" asked Egger, a little puzzled, "What does the chef do if Lord Stennis wants something other than fish?"

"Every ten days and half a month, a ship will dock here, and how many ships there will be will determine how much food will be served in the castle until the next ship docks. The young man who led the way replied helplessly: "It's okay, what to eat, fish soup and grilled fish, as long as you are willing to add seasonings, they are also good." ”

"In the future, we need to transport a boatload of obsidian out here every month, and when they come, they don't have to go empty, and bring some chickens, ducks, cows, mutton, etc., which will be counted in the food fee, and half of them will be given to Lord Stennis. Running a mine on his island, he didn't talk about collecting taxes, and the night watchman couldn't take it for granted. ”

Haven't you ever eaten pork and never seen a pig run, Iger rarely dealt with these trivial things before he crossed over, but how to do things decently and beautifully made people have nothing to say, he still knows - and there is some truth, which can be used in all times and places.

The old mine boss said that the obsidian mine only needed a dozen people to operate, and that it wouldn't cost much to eat for such a small number of people, and if Tyrion agreed to join his fundraising plan, the money would soon become a small amount of money that was not even worth the interest in the capital chain. Not to mention, the food expenses of the obsidian miners were theoretically reimbursed by the night watchman.

......

In the end, Iger still forced his promise - he made the villagers kill an egg-laying hen as the main dish at three times the market price, and served it with a few side dishes made of various fish burns, and rewarded the young man who took him to the ancient obsidian cave, watching him gobble up the chicken legs, apparently not eating chicken for two months.

＊＊＊

Having eaten and drunk, the four of them drank ale and continued to discuss the various things related to the mining industry. The drunken old mine boss has become the main character, and he gushes the story of his young years managing the gold mines for the Lannisters, and he is in high spirits...... With his experience, he is indeed qualified to brag in front of three young people.

Now, he tells the story of Duke Tywin, who returned from King's Landing to Castle Rock after the death of his father, Tytos Lannister, and ordered his father's mistress to be stripped of his father's desire to gain power in Castle Rock, and was talking about the woman's white flowery body...... Suddenly, the door of the house opened.

A woman walked into the house.

"The first time there was a night watchman on Dragonstone, you didn't even notify me?"

Before Egger could look back at the comer, the young man who had been sent by Stannis to lead the way had already put down his glass and stood up in fear: "Lady Melisandre, why are you here?"

——