The twilight was dreary, the clouds were thousands of miles, and outside the city of Kislev, there was a depression.

The golden sunlight pierced the clouds, forming several pillars of light that illuminated the black earth. Riding on a warhorse, Rhodes and his daughter Dennis arrived at an abandoned manor. Originally, a large area of wheat and various crops and fruits were cultivated here. Nowadays, there is no one to pick and plant, the land is deserted, overgrown with weeds, and the abandoned villas are like haunted houses, lying quietly in the sunset, allowing the years to corrode little by little.

"The home of the late aristocrat Ivanoka. ”

Dennis dismounted, looked at the cluttered lawn, and said sadly.

She had worked with the nobleman at cabinet meetings, and now, in the midst of the civil strife in Kislev, Ivanoka died in a mutiny, and the entire family was slaughtered. The mansion in Kislev became a temporary armory. The villas and manors in the suburbs have been abandoned in time and almost forgotten. It became a temporary refuge for a small number of beggars and homeless people.

"It's a pity that he is an upright person, relying on the integrity of his ancestral business, and he did not participate in too many disputes in politics, but because of his wealth, he was targeted and killed. ”

Dennis sighed and pushed open the door of the villa. Inside the manor are a few starving dogs, dusty furniture lying scattered in the hall, recording the former glory of this wealthy family. Now, it can only become an insignificant stroke in history.

"There are still many nobles who died in civil strife like this......"

Dennis continued. There was sadness in his eyes.

And the tall and majestic father behind her looked indifferent.

"Natural selection, survival of the fittest. The world is so cruel. ”

Rhodes said. He looked at his daughter, and although she had become a queen, there was still a long way to go for her to become a real king. Of course, he will always be behind her, silently supporting her. This time, he will not indulge her again and let her take on such a heavy responsibility by herself.

"Yes, I just pity these people who have nothing to do with the world, and they all die miserably in the end. ”

Dennis sighed—

"In the territory of Kislev, there are many abandoned and semi-abandoned manors and farms like this. ”

"So, what are you going to do with them?"

Rod stared at his daughter's face and asked seriously.

"Auction it off, and the proceeds will go to the treasury. Other than that, I can't really think of what to do with this stuff. ”

Dennis replied calmly. Obviously, she didn't think much about it on this issue.

This is the norm, and besides, these lands and estates are abandoned, no one cultivates them, and no one manages them, so they are of little value. Like ruins.

"My advice, don't auction it. ”

Rod said coldly-

"Some land, although it has been abandoned, still has heirs, and this part of the land and assets should be returned to the heirs. The will of the people remains the foundation of our reign in this kingdom. The king also could not plunder the lands of the lords and nobles in the realm at will. This is the law, and it is a prerequisite for the nobles and lords to support us. There are also some lands and estates, like the one we see today, which have no owners, so my advice is not to sell them cheaply, but to take them under the central management. ”

"We don't have the extra manpower to manage the lands and estates, and besides, we don't have the energy to keep an eye on them. ”

Dennis tilted his head back.

"There is no need for the central government to allocate manpower, and it is enough to directly hire the original owner's men to run the business. ”

Rhodes stepped forward and looked at the crystal chandelier on the ceiling of the hall, as well as the circular corridor that was still intact. Obviously, it's a nice country house.

"Most of the people who died in this civil strife were wealthy merchants and nobles, but not all of their men were slaughtered, in fact, these people had no wealth, but escaped the catastrophe. Let these people go back to running these lands and estates, and the income will go back to the treasury. We'll pay them. These people are very familiar with the places where they worked, and if they return to their jobs, they will soon be able to put these 'ruins' back into operation. ”

Rod thought for a moment, then said-

"This is an opportunity, my daughter, and we have to take advantage of it. In Kislev, there are still many abandoned and semi-abandoned territories like this, some are mines, some are farms, and some are factories and business sites, and no one has to run them, which is very wasteful. It is better to sell them cheaply, but it is better to take them under the central government and manage them in a unified manner. Just like when you set up the office of a close minister, you have a special functional department to control these assets – state-owned assets, which I call state-owned enterprises. ”

"State-owned enterprises?"

Dennis blinked.

"Yes, factories, farms, estates, and mines run by the state are all owned by state-owned enterprises. All revenues go to the state treasury. Unified distribution, unified arrangement. We have numerical superiority, we can create economies of scale, and by peaceful means, we can monopolize certain industries. ”

Rod said confidently. Dennis quickly reacted to the fact that she had heard her father talk about economies of scale, that is, the concentration of certain industries can greatly reduce the cost of production. The result is a strong competitive advantage. Indeed, the concentration of all these resources would exceed the assets of any lord in the territory of Kislev. With the support of the central government, the state treasury directly allocates funds and turns waste into treasure, which is not a shortcut.

"We're going to have to expand the department, daughter. ”

Rod said with a smile.

"So, do these managers, who are directly employed by the royal family, give them any names? at least a knight?"

Dennis asked rhetorically.

"No, it's not necessary. ”

Rod shook his head, remembering some sad past.

"Knighthoods and honors must be earned on their own. This kind of taking over the inheritance, managing it on its behalf, does not deserve the name and power of a knight. They are only the employed, but the employer is the center, and we are the same. Don't give them any privileges, on the contrary, put pressure on them. Hire them on a contract basis. If the operation is not good and the target is not reached, the personnel can be removed and replaced at any time in accordance with the contract. ”

Rod said firmly. In fact, this series of ideas had already been formed in my mind a few days ago, and the reason why I brought my daughter to the countryside today was to tell her about it. At some point in the future, these estates, which are directly subordinate to the central government and the royal family, will become so large that no one in the country can compete with them. At that time, corruption will flourish, and if the managers have the privilege, the income flowing into the national treasury will be greatly reduced in the future. This is absolutely intolerable to Rhodes.