However, just before the middle-aged man wanted to get excited, William lowered the temperature for him again. Pen, fun, pavilion www. biquge。 info

"But of course, so far, I haven't found a way to deal with them. William showed a helpless expression again: "They are by far the most perfect modern country that the old world has evolved. Compared to Briton, which is lined with factories, railways in all directions, and shipyards and docks all over the archipelago. The nations of the continent are like the countryside - I don't want any unpleasantness with the Britons at this time. ”

William's words calmed down the middle-aged man again. He found that during this time, he was like a marionette, surrounded by William's words. William makes him happy when he is happy, William makes him angry when he is angry, William can arouse his desires, William can also make him disappointed and discouraged. He was almost defenseless in front of William. This made this middle-aged man who thought highly of himself very surprised, and at the same time very scared. Or even fear.

"So, what do you mean......" the middle-aged man asked tentatively. His tone was as humble as possible. Behaved like William's subordinates.

"I'll work with you. The grain and other supplies that Mystia exports will also be exported to you. But it's a secret deal. I will not sign any agreement. And all trade in goods must be paid for in cash. Is that okay?"

If it is an ordinary transaction, William's conditions can be said to be extremely harsh - it must be paid in cash, which will cause huge problems in the other party's capital turnover. Without an agreement, there is a huge instability in the transaction. If the other party is just a businessman who wants to make money, most of them will turn away without hesitation after hearing these conditions.

But this middle-aged man is no ordinary businessman.

"Very well - it's not a problem. The middle-aged man almost did not hesitate and couldn't wait to agree to William's conditions.

"And then there's the so-called 'aid' you spoke of – I just want academics who are dedicated to their studies. I also want moderate clergy who don't have any need for politics or power. I'll send someone to watch the people you send. If it doesn't match my demands, I'll not hesitate to drive him away - that's a condition you'll accept, right?"

"Of course, I assure you that nothing so unpleasant will happen with our cooperation. The middle-aged man looked excited.

In this way, the next negotiation will be left to the people below. A professional businessman is also a professional negotiator. William's men were many, and the middle-aged man's men were even more numerous—and although the contracts could not be signed like normal deals, they remained on paper, but the merchant negotiators were unaffected and still quarreled.

Thanks to this, William also knew about the "partners" of some alchemists standing behind the middle-aged man.

They were distributed within the territory of the Gothic Empire, and partly within the territory of the Visigothic Kingdom. Some are very well-known large business organizations. Others are the emerging capitalist aristocracy. Glassmaking, metallurgy, gunpowder weapons, steam engines, and railroads have it all.

Although these companies, enterprises, and business organizations will definitely be crushed by the Britons individually. Even if they are all tied together, I am afraid that there will be no wins or losses against the Briton Company. But their power should not be underestimated. Even William was very emotional: "I never thought that there would be so many well-known companies, factories, brands, business organizations, families and even nobles, all with the background of alchemists. ”

"So, this wasn't 200 years ago. Dear Earl, Our strength has been greatly enhanced. Especially in the northern regions of the empire. The rate at which the new denomination is spreading is quite alarming. Many people - both nobles and commoners. They are all tired of the clergy of the rotten and depraved Roman factions. Our business is thriving. Our enemies are shrinking day by day. Someday, we will succeed. Because our cause is the right one. ”

The middle-aged man's speech made William feel very ...... Accidentally. Or some surprises. Especially the last sentence. At first, William thought he should be saying "justice", but it wasn't.

He said "right".

"Are all alchemists as sane as you?" asked William.

"Reason and fanaticism are relative. Earl. The other party replied.

"Indeed...... I think we can have a further discussion on the issue of the Bretons. William then said, "Can you tell me about it? Why does Briton, which can be called the model of the alchemist, the ideal country that the alchemist dreams of, eventually part ways with you?

"You are perceptive, Count. The middle-aged man replied, "It is true that Briton is not included." In other words, Briton never saw himself purely as a member of the nations of the Old World. Or not all. They are alone. Their thinking is a little different from ours. At the same time, they consider them 'special'.

We helped them build everything we wanted. But after that, they took it all for themselves. The University of Briton, the Royal Academy of Sciences in Briton, the factories of Briton, the shipyards of Briton, the House of Commons in Briton...... None of this is our share. They swallowed everything. Then look at the whole Old World with the eyes of colonies, markets, dumping sites.

They never wanted to make the Old World like Briton. In fact, Britton's strategy was to keep all the countries of the Old World as they were, divided, ignorant, and backward.

They want to be like leeches, sucking our blood by virtue of the advantage of rising decades before us. You should know one of Britton's famous sayings: The New World and its frontiers are our grain fields, Vinland and Polotsk are our timber producers, Australia and New Zealand graze our flocks, La Plata supplies us with silver, gold flows from the Andes to London, and Indy and the Land of the Dragon grow tea for us......

Yes, they see the whole world as their meal. They want to grab everything in the world, all the resources in the world. They are separate, sinful, and alone. Those Bretons, they betrayed us!"

That's it, the middle-aged man looks very angry. It's like I'm going to blow up. What he said also made William feel relatable...... But at the same time, he only believes in this remark...... At most, only half of it is believed.

The Britons are bad, but I'm afraid not as bad as the middle-aged people say. The middle-aged man and the alchemist alliance he represented were probably not as noble and pure as he said. The relationship between the two is probably not just a disagreement of ideas, and the betrayal of the alliance by the Britons. The deep-seated reasons are economic, political. I'm afraid it's not just one.

William felt that if a historian wanted to study the subject, he would probably need to assemble a team of 120 people. With the financial support of more than 150,000 imperial gold coins, it took years, decades, or even decades. It even took quite a few lives to really figure it out.

They need to write a report of at least 1.5 million words. It is as thick as an encyclopedia to explain it clearly......

But of course, as a nobleman and a ruler, William didn't need to understand the cause, process, development process or anything about it. William just needs to know the outcome of this matter-

Obviously, the outcome of this matter was in his favor - if the Alchemist's alliance was a powerful group spread across the nations, tightly organized, and with strict hierarchical relationships, William would certainly not have said a word, joined in, and fought his way up. There will be no half-heartedness to draw into him wholeheartedly - of course, William will definitely lose a lot in the process. and even lost his Mystia. And in the process of climbing up, there will definitely be a lot of difficulties.

Luckily, it's not.

These selfish and narrow-minded guys are just a loose alliance. This makes it convenient for William to be able to go up and down, left and right. It's like this.

At the same time, William also knew that such a loose organization was absolutely unreliable. With such a loose organization, I am afraid that it will not be too reliable to do things.

It can only be used as a helper, not as a decisive factor. Even, whether he can keep it a secret is a question...... William had a lot of reservations when talking to middle-aged people about the kingdom of Briton.

He did not speak out about his fear of the kingdom of Briton and his ambition to "take his place". He only complained about the arrogance of the Britons, and the aggressiveness of the Britons. It gives a sense of being in a mood.

This made the middle-aged man feel a little disappointed - what he wanted to see was a strong aristocrat who took a firm stance against Briton. A man who can be an ally in the Alliance. But it's clear that William doesn't look like that. The two sides talked perfunctorily like this. The key issues, the key issues, are not addressed at all. In the end, the agreement reached between the two parties only has a commercial effect. That's all.