Autumn set its foot on the land of the Western Continent. The hot and dry summer was finally over. It was as if the weather had turned cold overnight.
Dawn had just broken, and the sun had yet to shine. The remaining chill of the night still enveloped the streets and alleys of Oldenheim. A refreshing wind blew along the street, rolling up a few fallen leaves and scraps of paper. The wind swirled between the buildings and blew the bell hanging by the window, making tinkling sounds.
Sam looked up at the ringing bell and glanced at the sky which was still not bright. He then lowered his head and continued to swallow his breakfast which was not delicious at all. It was a small bowl of sticky vegetable soup with some coarse bread soaked in it.
Soaking the bread in the soup could effectively speed up the eating process, and at the same time provide a rather effective sense of satiety. It could also reduce the gastrointestinal discomfort caused by eating too fast. This was the wisdom and experience of the commoners accumulated in their lives.
His daughter sat opposite him, wolfing down her breakfast. His wife had left the house 15 minutes ago. The boss of the textile factory had once again brought forward the working time. Now, the female workers had to enter the factory half an hour before sunrise.
After swallowing the last mouthful of vegetable soup, Sam smacked his lips and yawned deeply.
He was very sleepy, and his waist and arms were hurting badly. He felt that he needed to lie down and sleep for a day or two. However, he knew that it was unrealistic.
There were mountains of boxes and barrels at the docks that needed to be moved every day. He did not have a holiday.
His daughter had also finished her meal. The girl with flaxen curly hair stood up and quickly cleaned up the table. Her wrist was a little too thin and weak, so much so that when she picked up the largest plate, people were worried that her wrist would break.
Sam could not help but look at his daughter. "Next Monday … we should be able to eat bacon."
The flaxen haired girl looked up. After a moment of shock, she was pleasantly surprised. She flipped her hair, and her eyes widened. "Really? Dad? "
"The station is being built in the south of the city. Every day, a lot of things are transported to the nearby docks and then loaded onto trucks to the construction site. I should be able to earn more."
His daughter smiled, and there were some light yellow lines under her eyes and inside her lips.
Sam noticed these lines, but he didn't say anything. When they first appeared a few months ago, both he and his wife were nervous. But now, a few months had passed, and his daughter didn't feel any discomfort, so it was probably not a big deal.
Time was tight, and the father and daughter did not have much time to talk after the meal. They quickly packed up their things and left the small rented house.
Another gust of wind blew from the street and rolled up Sam's collar. He tightened his coat, which would soon become thin in this season, and nodded to his daughter, who was about to walk in another direction. "Be careful. Go straight home after work at night. Don't stay on the street."
His daughter nodded, pressed the bonnet on her head, and quickly walked in the other direction of the street. At the end of that direction, a towering chimney loomed in the depths of Oldenheim's iconic mist. Billowing smoke and dust constantly rose in the mist and drifted into the sky.
She worked in the pyroclastic acid chemical plant. As a child, her job was not to operate the furnace or push the material truck. Instead, she was responsible for cleaning the cooling air ducts and recovering pyroclastic fragments from the waste residue that could be processed again. The air ducts were too narrow for adults to enter, so this kind of work was done by children. The wages were very low, but it required neither physical strength nor skills.
Sam watched his daughter until she turned a corner in the distance. Then he turned back and walked quickly in the direction of the docks.
When the cool breeze blew, he couldn't help but recall some things.
He used to own a piece of land just outside the city. Although it wasn't big and wasn't very fertile, it could at least sustain his family. There was watered milk and a little sugar for breakfast, and he could definitely eat bacon every week. But since when did his life become like this?
Sam walked in the wind. The smell of autumn reminded the farmer of the harvest, but the "harvest" had nothing to do with him. That piece of land had become part of Master Dürer's cotton plantation, and there were hundreds of serfs working there. Serfs were, of course, better than free people.
Now Sam could only miss his land, but there was nothing he could do. Master Dürer bought the land from him with thirty-seven silver coins, not by force. The original contract was clear, and there was a judge and two councilors in the city as witnesses. It was fair and proper.
Sam just did not expect that the thirty-seven silver coins would be spent so quickly. The houses in the city were so expensive, and the clothes and food were much more expensive than he thought. He wanted to start a small business, but found that the money was not enough to get a license. He thought that he had exchanged his land for a huge sum of money, but he never thought that the "huge sum of money" in his eyes was nothing in the world outside the town.
Many people dressed like him came out of their houses. These figures walked in the dim light of the early morning, walked in the mist of Oldenheim, and walked in the direction of the factories, docks, and construction sites.
Sam walked forward, slowly blending into the crowd, and became one of these people.
A discarded newspaper was rolled up by the wind, flew over Sam's head, and finally was blown by the wind to a nearby fence. The newspaper stretched out, and the bold letters on it were eye-catching and beautiful:
Salute to this era of harvest.
…
"Salute to this era of harvest, to our far-sighted Emperor, to the diligent Parliament, and to the wise scholars; the accumulation of the empire over the past ten years is like a long period of cultivation, and now it has finally borne fruit. What a wonderful sentence, don't you think? Master Daniel? "
Viscount Hermil sat on his favorite brownish-red chair, waved the newspaper in his hand, and looked at the Master Magician opposite him with a smile, the most famous scholar in the imperial city.
The refreshing smell of incense lingered in the luxurious and private reception room. Soft and soothing palace music was playing from a crystal device in the corner of the room. The window not far away was open, but a layer of shimmering shield on the window filtered out the unpleasant smell of smoke in the air, and only fresh and cool morning breeze blew into the room.
Daniel sat in the chair opposite Viscount Hermil in a relaxed posture. The artificial nerve cord poked its head out from the hem of his clothes and stayed there obediently. "Habiya? Mr. Reston is an excellent grammarian, and also a famous poet. Even during the years when I was living in seclusion, I occasionally heard his poems. It is undoubtedly a wise move for His Majesty to choose this master as the editor-in-chief of the Empire Newspaper. "
"Salute to His Majesty." Viscount Hermil smiled happily. He took the black tea on the small round table, raised it slightly to replace the wine, and then frowned. "The newspaper is indeed a good thing. It is said that the Kingdom of Ansu's Cecil was the first to think of this. Unfortunately, when I first heard of the concept, I did not realize its effect. So, a businessman with no taste and background like Pohlberg became the first investor of the Empire Newspaper. So many members of the Parliament of Nobles now have to pay the businessman to promote their products. How much money is that?"
"Money has no limits, Mr. Viscount," Daniel said faintly. "Exploring new things is more valuable than that."
"Ah, you're right." Viscount Hermil quickly put away the complaint in his eyes as if he was afraid that this' secular action 'would make the wise old man in front of him feel disgusted. "I've always been keen on exploring new things. For example, the recently built magic train. I'm considering investing in it …"
"The train … is a technology from Ansu, but it is indeed worth investing in." Daniel frowned slightly, as if he was a little unhappy when talking about some new technology that even he could not master. But he still nodded. "If you want to invest, you'd better do it quickly."
Viscount Hermil understood the meaning behind Hao Ren's words. "Are there others competing for it?"
Daniel nodded slightly. "I have some news. Don't spread it. I heard that the nobles in the south are determined to get the right to participate in the two railways under construction. They have even gathered together to raise funds and borrowed a large sum of money from Duke Severn. It is a sum of money that can move His Majesty. "
Viscount Hermil was stunned for a moment, and then suddenly became angry. "Those vulgar southerners! They want to have a hand in everything! "
"It can't be helped, my friend," Daniel said calmly. He was like a real scholar, calmly analyzing the huge flow of profits, but his heart was not moved by profits. "The nobles in the south have already suffered a great loss because of cotton. There are new plantations everywhere in the north, and the cotton they planted last year has not been sold this year. Now the Cecil people are coming to build the railway. If the nobles in the south don't seize this opportunity, they really won't be able to make a comeback."
"Railway … railway … railway can't fall into the hands of those southerners!" Viscount Hermil was a very smart man, and because he was keen to explore new things, he had always been very knowledgeable about the cutting-edge new things. Naturally, he knew their respective value. "If they really control the north-south railway, even if they only get a certain priority within the scope of His Majesty's permission, they will have the final say in the transportation of this line! His Majesty will not favor the north in this kind of thing! "
"Yes, then they will solve the transportation problem, which was the biggest reason why the southern cotton lost the competition last year," Daniel helped to analyze the situation. "After the transportation problem is solved or reduced, you know, Mr. Viscount, because of the climate and soil, the quality and output of cotton in the south are indeed better than in the north. The northern plantations can't compete with them at all."
"In the name of the God of Commerce! I have just invested a lot of money in Earl Dulles's plantation! I have also asked several friends to help me! " Viscount Hermil could not help but raise his voice, almost breaking his noble demeanor. "God, how can Duke Severn lend money to those southerners?"
"Duke Severn runs a bank. A bank can't refuse a legitimate loan," Daniel could not help but remind him. "What's more, you know, Duke Severn's wife was born in the south. He doesn't dare to offend that powerful lady."
"That's why I don't want to get married. It will destroy a man's dignity!" Viscount Hermil stood up and paced back and forth anxiously. Then he suddenly stopped in front of Daniel. "I'm sorry, master. It seems that I have to end this meeting early. This matter can't be delayed. My personal loss is nothing, but I don't want to bear the wrath of my partner. "
"I can understand how you feel." Daniel stood up, and the artificial nerve cord behind him wriggled and contracted. "And I should leave. My apprentice is still waiting outside. Also, before you leave, I suggest that you discuss this with Count Dulles. His connections in the Senate can produce better results. "
"Thank you for your reminder. You are really a good teacher and friend." Viscount Hermil stepped forward and shook Daniel's hand. "If it weren't for you, I don't know how many detours I would have to take!"
Daniel smiled and accepted the gratitude of the noble of the reformists. Then, he waved his hands at the clothes rack next to him, and the staff and the robe flew into his hands automatically. He put them on himself and left the viscount's residence.
He came to the roadside and got into the waiting carriage. The female apprentice, Mary, was sitting in the carriage. It seemed that she had never left.
After a while, a carriage with the emblem of Viscount Hermil's mansion drove out of the front door and hurried into the distance.
Although Typhon's magic car technology had made a breakthrough, and practical vehicles had entered the eyes of the upper nobles, they were still not popularized among the middle and lower nobles because they were mainly used for military and industrial construction. The carriage was still the choice of most nobles.
Daniel looked at the situation on the street through the gap of the window with a smile on his face.
Mary noticed the smile and could not help but ask, "Teacher, you seem to be very happy?"
"Because I did a favor for His Majesty Augustus."
"A favor for His Majesty?" Mary looked a little confused.
"Yes," Daniel said softly. "I helped him take some detours."
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