Politics was a complicated game.
New.
In Waterdeep City, no one was the master of this city. Even the nobles who ruled here had to compromise and compromise when facing the evil forces of the underground world. No one could do things without worry, unless they wanted to be everyone's enemy.
Conflict and compromise were the essence of this game!
When the Bloodhand Gang's special tobacco rapidly spread in this port city, these big shots had acutely smelled the scent of profit and blood. This cheap and practical magic material had absorbed a large number of Gold Derahls in a very short period of time. It could be said to be a shocking amount of wealth. More than 500 pounds of goods were digested without a trace in the market.
If it was any other place, it might not be so smooth, but Waterdeep City was different.
It was the shipping hub of the entire South. Every day, a huge amount of goods came from all directions. Merchant ships from all walks of life transshipped their goods and replenished their supplies here.
Every merchant was eager to fill their cabins and return to their hometowns with riches.
Faerun had hallucinogenic plants. Blue Magic Powder was a popular casting material for mages. Not only could it bring a sense of euphoria and hallucinations, but it could also temporarily increase intelligence and charm. Even the side effects were extremely mild. The only downside was that it was expensive!
Damn expensive, damn expensive!
Items that inherited the arcane magic did not have the most expensive ones, only the more expensive ones. This kind of rare magic material, its price could make a low-level mage go bankrupt, and if one became addicted to blue magic, it could make a king want to sell his own crown.
Other than that, there were also hallucinogenic potions such as Pain Water and Mordin Tea. However, none of them were as cheap as the special tobacco. The price was simply unbelievably low. One Gold Derahl could buy a pound of it and smoke it to one's heart's content. This plant did not have any special environmental requirements or strict cultivation conditions.
A low-ranked Druid could plant a large area of it.
It was simply an important economic crop for a strong country and its people! It didn't even need 20 years. On every piece of land on the Faerun Continent, anyone with a little bit of money could lie on their own bed and smoke. They could enjoy this cheap happiness.
It could create countless economic benefits. It would become the most important spice for sea routes. Yes, this cheap and 'harmless' tobacco was seen by many as a spice gifted by the gods. Even the priests of the Order God who were most hostile to hallucinogenic items had to admit. The harm that this kind of tobacco did to the body was not worth mentioning.
Compared to the other dangers on the Faerun Continent, this was just a little bit of addiction. Quitting eight to ten times a day would suffice. It was as gentle as the comfort of the gods.
Many priests of the Chaos Gods had already used this spice in their rituals, like the Lady of Joy, and its effects were widely praised. Some of the Good Gods of Chaos even encouraged their believers to accept these things in order to strengthen the spiritual connection between the believers and the God.
In fact, they were the first to order this special tobacco. Most of them were from the major shrines. They would use these things in their gatherings and prayer ceremonies. Some priests would even use them in their private prayers in order to become one with God and feel the way of God.
Chen Ang expressed his admiration for these masters of psychology who were proficient in self-hypnosis and hypnosis. With this special perfume, the efficiency of their self-hypnosis was effectively improved. One could not help but sigh with emotion: Since ancient times, drugs were paired with charlatans! He quickly launched a special version of the special spices, using more complicated and cumbersome formulas and more gorgeous packaging to ruthlessly slaughter this group of fat sheep.
For the past few days. Every morning, Deep Water City would wake up in the clouds. In the noble district, the extravagant nobles had already started to burn these spices in their mansions. It made them feel like they were in a dream, intoxicated and floating. Such a flourishing scene amazed every merchant who came to Deep Water City.
"It really is a city of dreams!" Those who knew the situation exclaimed.
"It really is a city of sin!" Chen Ang said expressionlessly as he looked at the city shrouded in smoke.
Not everything in this world was within his expectations, just like how he would never have thought that the Faerun Continent would praise this special medicine. Druids were happy for it, mages treated it like a treasure, even the Gods blessed it! Dwarves loved it and mixed it with tobacco in the mines. Elves loved it and emptied their illusions in meditation.
When Chen Ang saw the streets and alleys where the special tobacco was being openly traded, his underlings ran around like merchants, bargaining for the price. He saw the people in the slums smiling happily, sweeping away their previous numbness and decadence. They planted tobacco on every piece of land that could be planted, and hung it in front of and behind their houses.
He saw the children in the slums using coarse wooden boxes to store dried tobacco leaves, scurrying around the streets and alleys, avoiding the tax officials, and selling tobacco to the whole city. He saw the youths in the slums scrambling to join the Bloody Hand Gang that they were originally afraid of. In order to protect their own tobacco leaves, they fought against the rival gangs with all their might.
Chen Ang had to admit that he had greatly underestimated the evil and depravity of Faerun.
Although the process was a little strange and twisted, Chen Ang finally achieved his goal. The villains of the Bloody Hand Gang still walked in the streets and alleys with daggers and poisons, but they no longer hid in the shadows and did sneaky things. Instead, they openly went in and out of the commercial places in Deep Water City, and confronted the merchants with obscure languages.
The new force led by Lek dressed like a gentleman, and behaved like a noble. They imitated the feeling that Chen Ang brought them. The new force in the slums also received the most rigorous training in the harsh environment. They would be familiar with their daggers like they were with their lovers.
A big controllable net spread out from the slums little by little, and the end of this big net was held in Chen Ang's hand, bringing him power and threat.
"The whole city is watching and waiting, like wolves peeping at lambs. They are hostile to each other and wary of each other, reaching a fragile and temporary balance. Soon, these predators will pounce on us, who have great benefits!" Lek looked serious. He held the warnings he had received from different sources in his hands.
"Then they will find out who the wolves are!" Chen Ang smiled, and he turned the ring on his right index finger, which symbolized power and token.
"Many people are waiting for our response! Your Excellency! " Lek couldn't help saying, "It's not that no one is on our side. The enemies of the Thieves' Guild, and some other organizations hope to reach a certain range of cooperation with us."
"What are they expecting?" Chen Ang asked with a smile, "This world is complicated, and there are mutual checks and balances. Every giant has enough constraints around it, because the world is balanced, and there must be an equal weight on the other side of the chip. Every existence has its own elements of checks and balances."
"That's politics! Through this game, we can take advantage of this balance. Like a goblin stepping between two giants, we keep balance and stability, sell most of the benefits, and protect the part that we can eat. Then, you will struggle in the coming storm and waves. You will use all your skills and pay any price to survive. "
"Then the organization will be stable and strong!" Chen Ang spread out his hands and looked into Lek's eyes.
"Yes, Your Excellency! This is the price we must endure and pay! "Lek summoned up his courage, bit his lower lip, and said.
Chen Ang showed a playful smile, and looked at him quietly with eyes that Lek couldn't figure out. There was only the sound of Chen Ang knocking on the walnut table, which was very obvious in the quiet room.
In this suffocating silence, Lek's mind was blank, and he had to focus on his pulse, feeling the strong beat again and again.
Once, twice, three times …
A long sigh came to his ears, like a bottomless tearing sound. The fear in Lek's heart controlled him uncontrollably, and he almost collapsed to the ground.
After the sigh, it was Chen Ang's calm voice, "Lek! Lek! What makes you think that I am a person who needs to endure? Is it my usual tolerance and low-key style, or my too kind style? Or is it those provocations, and those rumors that affect your judgment? "
A steady and powerful hand rested on his shoulder. Chen Ang gently pushed open the back door of the secret chamber, and took Lek along the long passage. Soon, a blazing red river appeared in front of Lek.
Above the river of lava, a muscular ogre raised a large hammer and struck the steel plate in his hand. A circular axe that was the size of a human head was starting to take shape. In the lava river, goblins and kobolds pushed the ore into the blazing fire, and the molten steel was collected along the conduit into a huge blast furnace.
Lek watched as a furnace of pure molten steel was poured out. Huge steel ingots were crushed by a hydraulic press hundreds of feet high like dough. The steel plate was rolled out by a heavy hammer, and the huge machine drove hundreds of thousands of pounds of casting head to hit the steel plate.
Hard plate armor was cast as a whole, and sophisticated weapons were piled up in the corner as if they were free.
Tens of thousands of Gnomes injected unknown black potions into their bodies under the urging of Gnomes who were spewing blue smoke. Armor with burrs and matte edges were strapped on their bodies. In the distance, a mixed army of Ogres and Houndhead Men raised all sorts of pure steel weapons, and a brutal aura wreaked havoc in the Smelting Factory.
Lek held his breath. He stared nervously at the orderly but crazy evil army in the field. He even forgot that he came in aboveboard, and instinctively hid in a corner that brought him a sense of security.
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