"Do you specialize in saltpeter in King's City?" Roland cut to the chase.
"No, Your Royal Highness," Margaery no longer had a formal smile at the moment, and her tone was a bit more intimate, "I manage a lot of things, from gems to cloth, from hotels to pubs. In fact, a month ago, I didn't sell saltpeter. It's just that the original owner of the saltpeter field lost everything in my casino, so he had to mortgage the entire field to me. "
Not only does she sell all kinds of goods, but she also runs a service business … What is this merchant's background? You should know that opening a casino in King's City isn't something that can be done with money alone. He knocked on the table, but Nightingale pinched the middle – this meant that the other side was carrying a God's Stone of Retaliation, so she couldn't tell whether she was lying or not.
Wait … Since she couldn't tell, why did she pinch her right side so hard before?
Roland coughed twice, resisting the urge to turn around and ask.
He had heard that after some merchants from the Fjords settled in the Four Kingdoms, their businesses would grow bigger and bigger, and the wealth they accumulated would be unimaginable. After all, the people of the sea were born merchants, with a very adventurous spirit and a keen sense of smell, they were good at capturing business opportunities. Many of them, after becoming rich, were sheared like sheep, and some of them succeeded in establishing a foothold, bribing the local relations, and forming a relatively stable alliance of interests. Could it be that Margaery is also one of the rich?
That being the case, Roland decided to go straight to the point, "I need a lot of saltpeter, the more the better."
"But the Western Region of the Kingdom isn't a hot place, especially the town near the Impassable Mountain Range. Your Royal Highness, do you really need so much saltpeter? " She curiously asked, "In the outskirts of King's City, I have three saltpeter fields, enough to supply a medium-sized city's aristocracy with ice."
Three saltpeter fields! Roland was suddenly overjoyed, but the expression on his face didn't change, "I intend to build a cold storage in the castle basement, to store some perishable food. If you give me the right price, I want all of these saltpeter. "
"Since you said so," she nodded, "I can ship all of the saltpeter to Border Town, and only charge you 90% of the market price. But … "
"But what?"
"I don't really want the Golden Dragon. They're filling up my warehouse. I heard that you have some very special products here. If possible, could you use these to replace the Golden Dragon? I will be happy to come to an agreement with you. "
"A special product?" Roland was stunned. This was the first time he had heard of someone not wanting the Golden Dragon.
"Yes, for example, a self-operating black iron creation," Margaery leaned forward slightly, "Your servant said that this thing only needs to be lit to boil water, and it will have amazing power. In fact, it was because of this that I decided to personally come to Border Town. Otherwise, selling the saltpeter directly to the nobles of King's City would be more in line with my interests – the further the transportation distance, the greater the loss I have to bear. "
What a pleasant surprise, Roland thought. Although he didn't know how Barov's apprentice came to know about the steam engine, it was obvious that this merchant from the King's City was very interested in it.
He was very clear how amazing the profits of industrial products were, especially this kind of mechanical product that could only be made by himself. He was originally worried that after Border Town stopped selling ore, the money he had moved from the Duke's Mansion would one day be used up. He didn't expect that now an excellent opportunity would be placed in front of him.
"So that's how it is," the Prince smiled, "the thing you mentioned is called a steam engine. It can turn the steam produced by boiling water into power. The principle is very simple, but only Border Town can produce it."
"Does this thing really exist?"
"Of course," Roland said, "but it is very complicated to make, and quite expensive. If you are interested, you can come with me to see the real thing. "
"I would be happy to," she said excitedly, getting up.
…
In the North Slope Mine, Margaery's eyes almost fell out of their sockets when she saw the ear-piercing roar of the steel monster as it pulled the cart full of stones out of the mine.
"Your Highness, this, this … is incredible." She said in a trembling voice, "I thought that your messenger was exaggerating, but I didn't expect him to say that it was far less than … I'm afraid that even dozens of people together can't compare to this … steam engine."
The female merchant wanted to take a step closer to see it, but was stopped by Roland, "The working steam engine is very dangerous, don't get too close to it. Do you see the white gas that comes out? As long as it touches you, it will burn your skin. "
"Do you only use it to transport ore?" Because of the noise, she had to raise her head and ask loudly.
"There are a total of two in the mine, the first engine is responsible for pulling the cart, and the second engine is responsible for pumping water from the mine." Roland replied, "In fact, since the success of the development until today, Border Town has only produced three steam engines, so I have to use them where they are most needed. But it actually has a very wide range of uses. In addition to what you see, it can also replace the windmill and the water wheel to grind wheat, and it is not affected by the river or the wind. Any place that needs a lot of manpower or animal power, it can come in handy. It can even be installed on a sailboat to drive the oars, so that ships can sail fast without sails! "
He knew how important it was for the people of the Fjords to have a ship that could ignore the wind and direction. Sure enough, Margaery looked at Roland, her eyes almost shining, "You name a price, I want to buy it!"
"This one can't do, the mine depends on it to maintain production. You can first order a few new steam engines, and when the saltpeter arrives, we can settle the account. "
"How much is it …?"
Roland took her to a place far away from the entrance of the mine, where the noise of the machine was no longer so harsh. "Five hundred Golden Dragon," he said. This price was a bit exaggerated, almost equivalent to the annual income of a Knight's territory. The cost of the ore for the steam engine was about 20 Golden Dragon, plus the smelting, labor, and installation costs, it was only 50 Golden Dragon. But when it came to business, it was always a matter of bargaining.
"Then it's a deal! I want to buy ten steam engines! "
"…" Roland was startled, ten of them was five thousand gold coins! It was almost equivalent to the savings of the Duke Of Ryan for five or six years. They didn't even bargain, is this how rich people do business? He cleared his throat, "Are you sure? This is not a small cost. Moreover, the machine can't be used forever after you buy it, you have to constantly invest money to maintain it. "
"I know, just like the ship, every year we have to go to the shipyard to clean the keel parasites and algae, replace the sails and cables, and so on," Margaery said indifferently, "What needs to be replaced, I can buy it from you. If it doesn't work, you can also name a price, and sell the maintenance and operation of the machine to me. "
Roland closed his mouth, there was only one thought in his mind, it was good to be rich.
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
