The so-called nobility, of course, is relative to the common people.
On Earth, obvious class divisions have been eliminated long ago, but in a world like the continent of Sainz, which is still in the stage of semi-feudal and semi-slave society, there are still extremely clear and obvious class divisions with huge differences. .
At the top are the nobility.
Regardless of the fact that slaves have no human rights and can even be killed at will, compared to ordinary civilians, nobles not only enjoy respect on the surface and are at a higher level, but more specifically, they can enjoy many privilege.
For example, nobles can serve as officials, nobles can reduce part of the business tax, nobles can own private carriages, nobles do not have to kneel when they see His Majesty the King, nobles can...
In short, there are a lot of privileges that only the nobles can enjoy, which clearly distinguish the nobles from the common people, so that having the status of a noble is inherently higher than the common people, and there is no fault in their status. - .. all looking down at the civilian population.
Although there is a stricter hierarchy within the nobility, compared to civilians, it is almost a matter of another world. Therefore, no matter who they are, once they obtain aristocratic status, they will do everything possible to improve their aristocratic status. Last but not least, you must try your best to keep your aristocratic status, so that you can maintain the privileges you enjoy as a noble. In the history of Sainz Continent, only nobles have been forcibly deprived of their noble status because they violated certain taboos, but there has never been a single noble who took the initiative to give up his noble status.
Probably only in those fantasy romances that girls like to watch most, the male protagonists who are nobles will fall in love with the commoner women they fall in love with. Would rather give up his nobility status. against the family's wishes. Also be with commoner women.
In reality, if any nobleman did this, even the girls who usually love watching this kind of thing would definitely accuse the nobleman of being an idiot.
Even being a lover for a nobleman is the dream of almost all civilian women, but if the nobleman loses his noble status, what is the meaning of this dream
So, no matter from which angle you look at it. It is absolutely impossible for any nobleman to voluntarily give up the hard-earned noble status, because this means that he gives up a lot of privileges and benefits that the noble status brings.
Unless the guy is an idiot.
But... is Xu Yi an idiot
As the president of the Xinfei Chamber of Commerce, he single-handedly founded the Xinfei Chamber of Commerce and developed it into a first-class chamber of commerce in the Lampali Kingdom in less than four years, and single-handedly promoted the creation of the magic industry system. and perfection, thus affecting the entire Bangta City, making Bangta City, which was only a remote town before, now the economic center of the kingdom. Who dares to call a person with such ability an idiot? But Xu Yi did something that everyone thought was idiotic.
He actually took the initiative to propose it to the Kingdom's Noble Council. Voluntarily give up your noble status!
The news came through Bangta Daily and was confirmed by Lampali Weekly. Everyone was stunned.
No one would think Xu Yi was an idiot, but no one could understand his move to voluntarily give up his aristocratic status, so... why
Why did he do this
"I have said it a long time ago. I have never cared much about this noble status. If you give up, just give up. It's no big deal." Xu Yi answered with a smile on his face.
Sevini stared at Xu Yi for a long time, his expression full of confusion.
"I know that you don't value noble status, but Xu Yi, you have to admit that this noble status has brought a lot of convenience to you and the Xinfei Chamber of Commerce, right? At the very least, it is precisely because of your status as a viscount that you Only by owning such a large territory can we put most of the Xinfei Chamber of Commerce's factory facilities on the territory, thus saving a lot of costs for the Xinfei Chamber of Commerce. Isn't this what you told me before?"
"Well, that's true." Xu Yi nodded lightly and immediately changed the topic. "But Sevigny, have you ever thought about where my noble status, this territory, and the various benefits that the territory brings to the Chamber of Commerce actually come from?"
"Do you even need to ask? Of course it's because of you..." Sevini suddenly paused.
She suddenly thought that the reason why Xu Yi became an extremely rare nobleman who was promoted from a commoner after the establishment of the Lampali Kingdom was entirely because of the appreciation of him by King Lampali Thirteen.
Later, Xu Yi was promoted from baron to viscount, and he was even granted a territory that was far beyond the ordinary standards. At the same time, he was allowed to retain his status as a merchant. This was all because Lampali XIII gave him the gift out of appreciation. His special treatment.
There was certainly no problem with this when Rampalli XIII was alive.
However, the problem is that Rampalli XIII is no longer here.
"But you don't have to give up voluntarily, right? It's a lot of words." After thinking about it for a while, Sevini was still confused. "Among other things, if you lose your noble status, Falling Rain Valley can no longer be regarded as your private territory. Then because you will not be able to enjoy the various conveniences and privileges brought by private territory, your New Flying Chamber of Commerce will It will be directly included in the management of Bangta City, which may be very problematic. "
Seeing Sevini's worried face, Xu Yi laughed.
"Well, in order not to worry you blindly, I will tell you the truth. In fact, this is an agreement reached between me and His Majesty King Eric through the Lord of Kamadu City. Well... it can be regarded as a deal."
"Deal?" Sevini frowned slightly. "But I don't see what benefits you or Xinfeishang will get from this transaction."
"As for the benefits...if I say that our chamber of commerce now has real free trade rights, what would you think?"
"Real right to free trade? Specifically?" Sevigny asked in confusion.
"To be specific, our Xinfei Chamber of Commerce can completely control trade with other countries and regions without having to report to the Kingdom Parliament and the Department of Commerce for approval every time. In the future, when our Chamber of Commerce conducts foreign trade , it will be much more convenient.”
Sevini frowned: "Isn't this a disguised support for your smuggling?"
Xu Yi immediately stared: "Hey, Your Highness, you can eat randomly, but you can't talk nonsense. Although there is no need to report for approval every time, in fact, our Chamber of Commerce still has to report to the Commerce Department every once in a while. It’s a report, and the customs duties are not less than a gold coin, so how can this be considered smuggling?”
Sevini rolled her eyes at Xu Yi: "I don't believe that you can really be so honest after putting so much effort into obtaining this condition."
Xu Yi chuckled: "I don't think His Majesty King Eric would believe it, but he still agreed to my condition. Why do you think it is?"
"Of course it's because the conditions you promised him are so good." Sevini sighed deeply. "Xu Yi, I don't know what you are thinking about specifically, but I must warn you that if you lose your noble status, you will lose the best way to protect you and the Xinfei Chamber of Commerce in the kingdom. If... I mean If Brother Eric wants to do something to you or the Xinfei Commercial Association, it will be much easier than before. "
Xu Yi shrugged: "Do you think he will really care if he has a noble status? Don't forget that when His Majesty the King was still there, the noble council could do something to directly deprive me of my noble status. Now let them Then again, I don’t think they have any mental barriers.”
Sevini was silent for a moment, and then asked: "I'm afraid the deal between you is not that simple. I think... neither you nor Eric will be willing to accept it, right? A lot of words"...
Xu Yi smiled and nodded: "Of course. If it is just for our Xinfei Chamber of Commerce to obtain free trade rights, then this transaction actually means nothing to me. So in addition to voluntarily giving up the status of aristocrats and returning the territory to the aristocratic council, In addition to incorporating the Xinfei Chamber of Commerce into the management system of Bangta City, I have also reached other agreements with His Majesty King Eric."
Sevini glanced at Xu Yi, pondered for a moment, and asked: "From what you said, this part of the agreement should be related to the overall magic industrial system of Bangta City?"
"Yes. My request to King Eric is to cancel the special business tax on magic machinery and treat the chambers of commerce that produce magic machinery the same as other chambers of commerce in the kingdom. I also ask the Kingdom Council to continue to introduce policies to promote the magic industry. For the development of Bangta City, it is best to continue to maintain the previous preferential policies and special care for Bangta City.”
"He agreed?" Sevini was a little surprised.
"Why don't you agree?" Xu Yi smiled. "I have made it very clear through Lord Kamadu. It is understandable that the kingdom's finances need money, but squeezing the magic industry in this way is not a long-term approach. Only by continuing to promote the healthy development of the magic industry can the kingdom get the maximum benefit from it. King Eric is not an idiot, how could he not understand such a simple truth.”
"It's not that he doesn't understand, it's just that he can't do it." Sevini sighed. "Those people behind him are forcing him too hard. Xu Yi, you must have paid a very high price to get them to agree to this condition, right? Many people just put the Xinfei Chamber of Commerce into the management of Bangta City, which is far from the not enough."
"Of course it's not enough." Xu Yi smiled and nodded. "Those greedy guys only care about profits, so I will give them the greatest benefits. I have reached an agreement with His Majesty King Eric and will cooperate in depth with the Kingdom's Magic Industry Management Agency and provide the services designated by the Management Bureau. The ten chambers of commerce will fully transfer a series of magic machinery-related technologies mastered by our Xinfei Chamber of Commerce.”
Sevini looked at Xu Yi in shock: "Are you crazy?"
.
,