Volume 7: Doing Business with the World Chapter 203 Lords from the same school
An adult Snow Wolf would be six or seven meters long, not counting the length of its tail, and only counting its head and body. It would be no problem for ten people to sit on its back. For a half-grown cub like Xiao Yun, the length from head to tail would be about four or five meters, slightly larger than big cats like Qingyan and Yugu.
Ruhua is still young (……), and has only started to eat the food of a three-year-old this year. In wolf form, it is about the size of an adult cat like a manul. In the eyes of Isaac and others who are used to seeing adult wolves, she is indeed a baby…
Of course, even a baby is a very dangerous baby. If he doesn't know how to control his strength and bumps into someone's arms while being coquettish, he will definitely get a fracture...
When Ruhua ran towards Isaac with her tongue hanging out and looking happy, Isaac did not dare to be careless at all. He immediately spread his legs slightly wider than his shoulders, lowered his center of gravity, and crossed his arms in a cross shape to block in front of him.
The family knight's face changed, and he drew out his shield and stood in front of Laura as if facing a formidable enemy.
"Isaac~~"
Ruhua, who rushed over like a wolf, let out a joyful cry and lowered her big furry head to push Isaac's arms. With a dull "bang", Isaac, who was in a defensive posture, was pushed back half a meter by Ruhua...
The family knight Khan has come down...
"Sit down, Ruhua." Isaac, who was used to being pushed, did not change his expression. He opened his numb arms and hugged Ruhua's furry head and stroked it. "Why are you so irritable? Harris is only keeping an eye on you because he's afraid you'll be washed away by the waves. The seaside is not safe, you know? What if there are bad guys?"
The family knight glared with dead fish eyes, and even Laura's face twitched a little. Knight Robbins, are you serious?
"Oh, oh, oh~~~~~" The big white wolf squatted down obediently, tilted its head to rub against Isaac, and its big emerald eyes floated back, "Harris is not good."
Harris, who followed, spread his hands.
"So we won't play with Harris anymore?" Isaac coaxed with a smile, "Let's go back to the grassland and ignore Harris?"
"Hehe——" Ruhua smiled shyly, and licked Isaac flatteringly with her tongue, "Snacks, Isaac, snacks are also available, Harris."
"Good boy~~" Isaac smiled and stroked the wolf's head vigorously, winking at Harris.
Harris walked up to her and without saying anything, Ruhua turned her head to rub against him.
So Harris lost his temper... He just rubbed the wolf's head a few times and the matter was over.
"Come on, Ruhua, let me introduce you to a sister." Isaac pinched Ruhua's cheek hair and pulled it, pulling the wolf head towards Laura, "This is Ayun's third disciple, my senior sister, you have to call Laura sister."
Ruhua wanted to get up and get closer to Laura, but Isaac and Harris held her down. She just sat there and stuck out her tongue at Laura, grinning with her eyes wide open, and making a sweet voice that was seriously inconsistent with her huge body: "Hello, Sister Laura, I'm Ruhua~Ruhua who is like a flower."
"...Hello." Laura walked out from behind the family knight. She was a little afraid of Ruhua's destructive power, but she couldn't help but envy Isaac Harris who could stroke the fluffy wolf's fur at will.
"Qingcao's daughter Ruhua." Isaac was also afraid that Laura would come forward rashly, so he held Ruhua's neck tightly with his hands and said tactfully, "Teacher Ayun and the other snow wolves know how to control their strength. Ruhua is still young and doesn't know how much strength she has. You have to be very careful when playing with her."
"That's right." Laura couldn't help but take two steps forward, but could only stop with regret when she heard that... Ruhua was really well taken care of by Harris, and her hair was combed soft and fluffy. Even if you are not a fur lover, you will want to pet her when you see her.
Ruhua was completely heartless. She looked at Lola and then turned to look at Isaac, wondering why he didn't let her get close to her sister Lola.
Isaac was very considerate. He gave Laura a soothing look that could only be understood, brought Ruhua into the house, and took out a lot of snacks such as beef jerky, fish floss, fried potato chips, and canned food from the cupboard to feed Ruhua. When Ruhua's belly was round and she lay lazily on the straw mat that Isaac had laid out for her to take a nap, Isaac called Laura over and stroked Ruhua's fluffy neck hair and soft belly...
Harris, the snake walker, professionally showed off his palm-wide ox-bone hair comb and squatted on the other side to comb Ruhua's hair that had shed during the changing seasons...
"She is so cute~~" Laura said from the bottom of her heart.
"Yeah, very cute." Isaac showed off his daughter with a proud look on his face. "She is not picky about food and eats everything. She has a good personality and is happy to eat anything. BALABALABALA..."
"Isaac, did you feed Ruhua raw meat last time?" Harris suddenly spoke.
"That's sashimi, the way we eat it in our hometown," Isaac corrected.
Harris shook his head in disagreement. "Don't feed Ruhua raw meat next time. Don't feed her anything too spicy or salty. And be more restrained with sweets. Let her eat at least three pounds of vegetables every day to ensure her stomach is healthy. BALBALABALA..."
Laura: "..." It was as if I saw two old fathers arguing about how to educate their children...
"I think Harris is right, Isaac. My grandfather also said that children shouldn't eat too many snacks. It's better for them to eat more meals and vegetables and fruits." Laura couldn't help but interrupt as she listened.
Harris, who was not close to the Terrans, immediately cast his friendly gaze.
"Ruhua is not yet at the age where she needs to be strictly disciplined. She is still young. Just let her have some freedom."
"No, no, no, my grandfather said that a child's upbringing should be started at least at the age of three. It will be too late if it is too late. For Ruhua's sake, we should BALABALABALA..."
Well, Ruhua, who snores unconsciously, now has another old mother.
The family knight silently watched Miss Lola go from half-crouching beside the beast like a lady, to lifting her skirt and sitting on the straw mat, to hugging the beast's paw and rubbing her face with its back in an unruly manner, and the corners of his mouth twitched.
When it was getting dark and Miss Laura was about to return to the city, the silent snake walker took out a bracelet woven from wolf hair and gave it to Miss Laura, claiming that it could repel mosquitoes. Miss Laura was very happy to accept it, and she became even more intimate with Harris during the conversation - if the family knight had not known that orcs and humans could not intermarry, he might have drawn his sword and challenged Harris to a duel on the spot.
The next day, when Laura came to Isaac's Knight Territory again, she brought subordinates such as Colbert and Dominic. After asking about Ruhua's meal today, she seriously talked about the establishment of the maritime trade department of Bolton Territory... Laura still knew the importance of business.
The wealthy Fire Tribe spent a large sum of money to buy a fleet from the Transportation Department of the Adventurer's Association at the beginning of this spring - yes, a fleet, not a single ship, and the full payment was made in cash.
Such a generous style deeply touched Margaret, an official of the Ministry of Transport. Without even asking the Ministry of Fire to ask, she took the initiative to lend skilled workers to build a private dock for Isaac's Knight Territory.
The ships of the Transport Department are not big, and the largest main ship purchased by the Fire Department has a displacement of only about 1,000 tons and a maximum load of about 500 tons. A fleet of eight ships has a total carrying capacity of barely 3,000 tons, and the one-way transportation volume does not exceed 6 million kilograms, which can be said to be a bit embarrassing... But at least they have their own fleet that can cross the inland sea, which is better than renting other people's ships every time before.
With their own fleet, they naturally have to convert transportation capacity into benefits. Since the opening of the sea, the Fire Department's fleet has made four trips back and forth, transporting tens of thousands of tons of supplies to be stored in Isaac's Knight Territory - that's right, the amusement park that will open in the Knight Territory in the future will also become the Fire Department's exhibition venue.
At present, the construction of the amusement park is only half completed. Only the signature Robbins Theater and the hotel facilities that can accommodate thousands of guests have been built. The exhibition has not yet been set up. Naturally, the only guests who come to the park are two relatives of Isaac - Viscount Pope, whom Isaac has taken refuge with, and Lord Bolton, Isaac's senior.
Viscount Pope is still busy recovering the funds, and now the only guests Isaac has to entertain are Lola's family.
At the negotiation table, Laura and Isaac sat opposite each other. Their demeanor and aura were extremely similar. They counted the accounts very quickly. They could reach a consensus on the rules and regulations after a few words. When they had to argue, they would force the other party to back down with an uncompromising attitude - after all, they were from the same school, and it was hard for their thinking patterns and behavior styles not to be influenced by Xiao Yun.
Colbert thought that today's negotiations would allow him to show his talents, but he didn't expect that Miss Lola only intended to use him as a human stamp and errand boy. He looked a little disappointed; Dominic, on the other hand, looked very excited, as if the more capable Miss Lola was, the happier he would be.
After talking for two hours and finally reaching an agreement and signing the contract, the senior and junior students went hand in hand to look at Ruhua who was taking a nap. There was no sign of the irreconcilable and tense atmosphere at the negotiation table before... The two disciples also learned to distinguish between public and private affairs very well.
"...Miss Lola has a good relationship with Knight Robins?" Dominic couldn't stand Isaac holding Lola's hand and walking away, so he quietly asked Lola's family knight.
"..." The family knight had a complicated expression and seemed to be hesitant to speak.
Colbert was full of frustration and said sourly, "I heard that Knight Robbins also has a good family background, but if he is a candidate for the son-in-law of the Philip family, it is not decent for him to have the experience of an adventurer."
"Corbett, do you and I have the right to comment on Miss Laura's husband?" Dominic was not happy. He admired old Earl Philip very much and could not accept others being disrespectful to Miss Laura.
"You two, please be careful with your words and actions." The family knight glanced at Colbert indifferently.
No wonder the young lady seemed to have entrusted him with an important task, but only let this guy be a human stamp. How could such an impatient person be in charge of big things?
"I'm sorry." Colbert lowered his head and hid his dissatisfaction.
"Come here. The young lady has done what she should do. Now it is our responsibility to do the work." The family knight did not complain about Colbert's attitude. He took the two out of Knight Robbins' Mansion and went to the office area of the Maritime Trade Department that Isaac rented to Philip's family.
The office, rented for thirty gold coins per year, is a courtyard shaped like a small villa, with walls, courtyards, gardens and two two-story buildings, as well as accompanying stables and servants' rooms. Both the overall design and details are more elaborate than the large bungalow in Knight Isaac's mansion... When it comes to serious matters such as making money, Xiao Yun's disciples are all serious.
Without waiting for the two leaders and deputy leaders of the Ministry of Maritime Trade to appreciate their future residence, the family knight opened the filing cabinet, took out two piles of file bags that were so heavy that they could kill people, and placed them on the table with a "clang".
Corbett & Dominic: “???”
"Miss Laura believes that everything from territory management to department operations can be summed up as a series of detailed mathematical problems," the family knight said expressionlessly. "The operation of the Maritime Trade Department is closely related to the fiscal revenue of Bolton County. The purchase price of various materials, internal consumption pricing, export pricing, transportation loss, the number of personnel required, and salary levels at various levels, etc. Please read the relevant documents carefully and come up with a detailed classification list and project plans for the sales and operation of various materials."
Patting the thick document bag with his hand, the family knight showed a not-so-kind smile: "You two are both talents that Miss Lola values. I believe you can understand Miss Lola's painstaking efforts. Please come in."
Corbett & Dominic: "..."
Xiao Yun's strict training and harsh rules for management are ultimately due to enough lessons learned in his previous life. Not only civil servants, but anyone who has worked at the grassroots level in a company must have suffered from leaders who sit in air-conditioned offices and act like demons all day long! (Local leaders in our country have to show that they particularly like to go to the grassroots for research, whether they are serious about their work or just putting on a show, cough cough cough cough!! This is the reason.)
They make suggestions on the spur of the moment, make promises without thinking, and when problems arise, they just walk away and put all the blame on their temporary subordinates. There won't be many such rats, and if there is one, it will definitely make the whole system want to die...
But people are still needed. After all, there are few Zhu Yuanzhangs in this world who can handle both big and small matters. So the unique skill that Xiao Yun taught his disciples was to use the accountability system to tie up the management with ropes, and then use various detailed management math problems to make these guys deeply understand that the bigger the bowl, the more mental and brainpower it takes... Those who work with their minds can control others, and the degree of their mental work must be equal to that of those who work with their hands!
Laura and Carlisle, the two "correspondence" students, have no less questions to answer than Evelyn~!
After locking the two leaders of the Ministry of Maritime Trade in their offices for study and reform, the family knights walked out of the courtyard and felt that the sky in the knight territory had become a little bluer...
"Knight Robbins's background and manners are not very respectable, but Miss Lola's teacher is quite reliable... Forget it, nothing in this world is perfect." The loyal family knight sighed and went to find Miss Lola with brisk steps.
In the eyes of the family knights, Isaac's father was only the Viscount of Osmond, a small country in the Federation (Viscount Pope's uncle was a Grand Duke, which was different from ordinary Viscounts), and he had been an adventurer. Such an identity was completely unqualified to be Miss Lola's apprentice... But for the sake of that wise teacher, it was not impossible to tolerate it - of course, becoming Miss Lola's husband was still not allowed! If Isaac dared to propose to Lola, the family knights would definitely kill him!
Isaac, the old father who was happily stroking his daughter, suddenly felt a chill on his back.
"Isaac, who is the actress who plays Cinderella?" Laura was clueless and asked excitedly while touching Ruhua's head.
"It was a woman that Harris discovered in the lower city of Valentine." Isaac said with a smile, "The specific process was quite dramatic. You can ask Harris."
"Hmm? Is there anything interesting here?" Laura looked at Harris, who was combing Ruhua's hair attentively, with shining eyes.
Harris didn't like dealing with unfamiliar humans, but Laura's genuine love for Ruhua had "proven" that she was qualified to be Harris' friend. Hearing this, she said with nostalgia: "In fact, the first actor we found who was barely suitable for this play was a resold actor by a nobleman, but the actor's age and appearance were somewhat different from Cinderella in the play, so he was not satisfactory..."
It was difficult for ordinary travelers to have enough understanding of the art form of drama... But Harris was a member of the Bards Association! In that gathering place of real literary youths, it was difficult for someone who had only martial arts but knew nothing about art to be recognized by the high-level elves of the association!
This is also the reason why Harris was able to quickly develop a deep friendship with Isaac. Isaac, who was born into an aristocratic family and was educated as a dandy since childhood, is essentially an artistic youth... If he wasn't forced by life, this guy wouldn't have come to lead a team of adventurers by coincidence.
It was not particularly shameless for Isaac to claim that he was the author of the play "Cinderella", because Xiao Yun only provided the framework, and the details, lines, chants, etc. were all added by Isaac himself. After all, he had enjoyed the life of a young master comfortably for twenty years and had the leisure to understand and ponder this aristocratic hobby.
If Xiao Yun were really asked to write a drama script, he wouldn't be able to write well...
Harris, who is a literary youth at heart, vividly described to Laura how he accidentally found a qualified actor - the process was indeed quite dramatic. While Valentine was running around to buy actors, the snake tribe found a scarred and dying young woman by the gutter in the lower city. After taking her back to the inn and asking a doctor for treatment, the waking woman recognized Harris as the man who used to "look after" the grassland tribe's butcher shop, and she begged Harris to send her to work on the grassland.
Harris naturally would not agree to this woman of unknown origin. He gave the hotel owner some money and asked them to settle the human woman before leaving. However, this woman was very brave and was not afraid of Harris's snake appearance. She followed them stubbornly and even made up multiple versions of her tragic life stories on the spot with tears in her eyes, trying to impress these kind orcs.
At this time, the slave traders traveling with the snake tribe recognized that this woman had been taken to a brothel in the central city by her parents and sold at a high price. Because they could not reach an agreement on the price, her parents took her back. Her family owned a tavern and dozens of acres of farmland in the town. They were not a poor family that could not afford food...
The human woman who was accused of lying made Harris' eyes light up. He immediately took the woman who was kicked out of the house to see the purchased actor. After a simple instruction, he found that the woman was a natural actor...
"(o言o)..." Laura covered her mouth in disbelief, "This is too much, how can it be so excessive? Her family is not forced to make a living, but they still want to sell her out?"
"That's how it is in the Lower City. After I recruited female workers here, many people came here and planned to sell their daughters to us." Isaac shook his head and said, "Some families raise their daughters just to get back the cost after raising them."
Harris also nodded and said, "At least half of the prostitutes in the central and lower city areas are sold by their families. When their sons grow up, they worry that they can't find wives. Sometimes I wonder why humans treat their females like this."
Laura was silent for a while, then sighed softly: "Last year, according to the population statistics of Bolton Territory, the number of young women was 20% less than that of young men. I have always been worried about where these thousands of young men are going to find wives and start families. Now it seems that in order to ensure the stability of the territory, we must first ensure that the women are not sold by their families."
"That's true," Isaac said. "I discussed the issue of human territory governance with my teacher. Teacher Ayun said very bluntly that if there are more women and fewer men in a human country or city, even if there are some economic difficulties, they can still survive the difficulties. At least overall stability can be guaranteed. If there are fewer women and more men, then problems will be more likely to occur."
"Yes, last year in St. Bridge, Chief Caogen and Chief Ali conducted statistics on the public security cases handled by the St. Bridge Royal City Police and the City Defense Team in three years. The number of male criminals was more than nine times that of female criminals." Harris said.
"It turns out to be like this... I have never paid attention to this aspect." Laura frowned and said, "Isaac, has Teacher Ayun ever suggested a solution?"
"Yes." Isaac said with a strange look, "The first way is to learn from the kings and lords of our human race. When there are too many men at the bottom, we should start a war and consume the excess male population on the battlefield. If we win, we can earn war dividends."
Laura: "..." Such indecent words, like the whispers of a devil, are indeed what Teacher Ayun could say...
Harris: "..." Just, I feel a little hairy on my back...
"The second solution is to fundamentally solve the problem of female population loss and premature consumption." Isaac said this with a more conflicted look on his face. "Close all brothels, ban all sex trade, and crack down on human trafficking. The human race itself is physically weak. If human women become prostitutes, at least 70% of them will not live past the age of 30. If they are infected with a disease, they may die of the disease in their early twenties. Eliminating this part of the improper consumption of the female population can greatly alleviate the problem of female population decline."
Isaac added, "The teacher said there is a third method, which is to use religion to appease and paralyze the lower classes, but this method has more serious risks, so it is not considered. It is recommended that we choose from the first two methods."
Harris: “…”
Laura took back her hand from Ruhua's belly, clasped her hands on her knees, and after thinking seriously for a while, she shook her head and said, "The second method... is difficult. The nobles in Bolton Territory have migrated seriously, but there are still many small nobles left in the local area, and the local flesh trade is mostly supported by noble backgrounds. Not to mention the slave traders who come in and out of Bolton Territory, there are more or less shadows of great nobles behind them."
"Yes, compared to my Knight Territory, your Earl Territory is much more difficult to regulate." Isaac understood very well, "My place is originally a deserted wasteland. As long as I don't give in, there will be no flesh trade here. I just need to control the pace of development and slowly absorb the right population. As for Bolton Territory... it's not hard to imagine that if you regulate it severely, it might cause unrest in the territory that has just stabilized."
After a pause, Isaac sighed and said, "The pornography industry and human trafficking are the oldest highly profitable industries, but at the same time, these industries are extremely harmful to the development and long-term stability of the territory. How can a mother who lives in danger every day reproduce and educate the next generation? The teacher spared no effort to impart these cognitions to us, but even Prince Carlisle did not dare to touch the pornography industry in Saint Bridge at this time."
These words made the seniors and juniors sigh together, and Laura's sigh was particularly heavy... It's not only men who have a competitive spirit. As the lord of Bolton, Laura actually also regards Prince Carlisle as a target of competition.
The sense of accomplishment would be self-evident if I could do what Carlisle couldn't, but the difficulty is indeed there and cannot be ignored.
Harris endured the strong sense of disobedience and said, "Well... can't the method taught by Ayun be used?"
Isaac spread his hands. "It's not something you can implement just by knowing the solution, Harris. You've seen it before. It was quite difficult for me to stop Viscount Pope's butler from driving a high-end club to our amusement park."
"Even if I wanted to consume the male population, I couldn't." Since there were no outsiders present, Laura simply said bluntly, "The war launched by the Federation against the southern countries was to defend honor, but in fact it was a good opportunity for the Council of Nobles to make a fortune from the war. Only the great nobles of the Council are qualified to mobilize troops to participate in the war, and they have the final say on the equipment and supplies consumed in the war. Last year, I tried to ask Grand Duke Pope whether Lord Bolton would provide part of the military rations, and Grand Duke Pope rejected me without hesitation... There are several nobles who share the profits from the purchase of military rations alone, and it is not my turn."
Harris: “…”
Isaac would be fine, but Laura, this cute little girl, said such cold words, which made Harris feel uneasy...
"Yes, they deliberately attacked St. Bridget by sea in order to consume the old ships of the Lamia Chamber of Commerce. The 'damage' of those antiques is three times the price of new ships." Isaac shrugged. "Grand Duke Pope's shipyard did not get this wave of 'bonus', and the Viscount complained privately about this."
Laura seemed to have thought of something, and she uttered a light "eh". She straightened her casual sitting posture and looked at Isaac with sharp eyes: "Wait, maybe this is an opportunity. Not only our Kroning Noble Council , but also all the noble families in the Federation are taking advantage of the war with the Southern Kingdom to make money. No one wants the war to be prolonged more than them, right?"
Isaac blinked and understood Laura's idea: "You mean, take advantage of this opportunity when the great nobles are focusing on the southern battlefield to reorganize Bolton County?"
"Yes!" Laura nodded heavily, her eyes shining. "Those slave traders who come to Bolton Territory to purchase people only pay a tiny transaction tax, but Bolton Territory pays the price of population loss, which is too unprofitable for the Philip family. I don't need to do anything extreme. I just need to drive away foreign slave traders and crack down on human traffickers in Bolton Territory. As long as the Noble Council does not put pressure on me, I can suppress the chaos in Bolton Territory!"
Isaac didn't expect that this young senior girl could make up her mind so quickly, and he opened his mouth in surprise.
Laura looked at Isaac with a sharp gaze and said, "Junior, I have only had time to stabilize Bolton County in the past two years. The family army given by Grand Duke Pope has not had time to be reorganized. You have to support me."
"My knights are also in need of manpower, senior sister!" Isaac didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "Hey, don't pull me. Okay, although I can't lend you anyone, I can still think of a way for you. Look at this Harris, he is so tall and big..."
Harris: “???”
Outside the door, the family knight had a complicated expression, not knowing whether to be relieved or heartbroken... Even though he was so close to her, he didn't even know his own young lady well enough!
