"Do you sell saltpeter in the capital?" Roland cut to the chase.
"No, Your Majesty," Margery said now, no longer in a formal smile, but with a touch of kindness in her words, "I run a lot of things, from gems to cloth, from inns to taverns. In fact, I I don’t do saltpeter business yet. It’s just that the original owner of the saltpeter field lost his trouser pockets in my casino, so he had to mortgage all the fields to me.”
Not only selling all kinds of goods, but also doing services... What is the origin of this businessman? You must know that opening a casino in Wangdu is not only possible with money. He knocked on the table, but Nightingale pinched in the middle—it meant that the other party was carrying the God's Stone of Retribution, so he couldn't tell whether he was lying.
Wait... Since it is impossible to observe, 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 business became bigger and bigger, and the wealth accumulated in the end was unimaginable. After all, Haimin is a natural businessman. He is very adventurous and has a keen sense of smell, and is good at capturing business opportunities. Many people were sheared as wool after they made their fortunes, and some of them succeeded in gaining a foothold, bribing local relationships and forming a relatively stable alliance of interests. Could it be that Margery is also one of the big dog owners
In this case, Roland decided to make a straightforward request, "I need a lot of saltpeter, the more the better."
"But the western border of the kingdom is not a hot place, especially a small town near the desperate mountains. Your Highness, do you really need that much saltpeter?" she asked curiously, "I own three nitrate making plants on the outskirts of the capital. It is enough to supply ice for the nobles of a medium-sized city."
Three tannery farms! Roland was overjoyed immediately, but his expression did not change. "I plan to build a cold storage in the basement of the castle to store some perishable food. If the price you give is right, I will have all the saltpeter."
"Since you said so," she nodded, "I can ship all the saltpeter to Border Town, and only charge 90% of your market price. But..."
"But what?"
"I don't really want golden dragons, they're almost filling up my warehouse. I heard you have some very exotic products here. Can you use these instead of golden dragons if you can? I'd be happy to make a deal with you. of."
"A peculiar product?" Roland was stunned. It was the first time he heard that someone didn't want a golden dragon.
"Yeah, such as a black iron creation that can run on its own," Margaery leaned forward slightly, "your servant said, this thing only needs to be ignited to boil water, and it has amazing power. In fact, I heard this I just decided to come to Border Town in person, otherwise, it would be more in my interest to sell saltpeter directly to the nobles of the royal capital—the longer the transportation distance, the greater the loss I would suffer."
What a surprise, Roland thought. Although I don't know how Barov's apprentices got on this line and how they talked about steam engines, it is clear that this royal capital merchant is very interested in it.
He knew very well how amazing the profits of industrialized products, especially such mechanical products that only he could make. He was originally worried that after Border Town no longer sells ore, the coins brought from the Duke's Mansion would run out one day.
"That's it," the prince smiled slightly. "The thing you're talking about is called a steam engine. It can convert the steam produced by boiling water into power. The principle is very simple, but only Border Town can produce it."
"This kind of thing really exists?"
"Of course," Roland said, spreading his hands, "but it is very complicated to manufacture, and the price is quite expensive. If you are interested, you can follow me to see the real thing."
"Very happy," she said excitedly, getting up.
…
In the North Slope Mine, Margery's eyes almost fell when she saw the steel monster with a piercing roar pulling the minecart full of stones out of the mine.
"His Royal Highness, this, this... is unbelievable." She trembled, "I thought your messenger was exaggerating, but I didn't expect what he said was far less than... I'm afraid dozens of people together can't compare. This... steam engine."
The businesswoman wanted to take a closer look, but was stopped by Roland, "The steam engine at work is very dangerous, don't get too close to it. Do you see the white gas that spews out? The skin is burnt."
"Do you only use it to transport mines?" She had to raise her head and ask loudly because of the noise.
"There are two mines in total. The first engine is responsible for pulling the mine car, and the second engine is responsible for pumping water in the mine." Roland replied, "In fact, from the successful development to today, only three steam engines have been produced in Border Town. I must Use them where you need them most. But it's actually very versatile, besides what you see, it can replace windmills and waterwheels to grind wheat, and is not affected by rivers and wind. Anything that requires a lot of human or animal power It can be used anywhere, and can even be fitted with a sailboat to drive the oars and sail fast without a sailboat!"
He knew how much a ship that ignored the wind and its direction meant to the people of the fjords. Sure enough, Margery looked at Roland, her eyes almost lit up, "Make a price, I want to buy it!"
"This one can't do it. The mine still has to rely on it to maintain production. You can order a few new steam engines first, and then settle the settlement when the saltpeter arrives."
"What's its price...?"
Roland took her to a location farther from the entrance of the mine, and the noise of the machine was finally not so harsh. "Five hundred golden dragons," he said. This price is a bit exaggerated, almost equivalent to the annual income of a knight's territory. The ore cost of a steam engine is about twenty gold dragons, plus the cost of smelting, labor, and installation, it is only fifty gold dragons. But buying and selling is always a bargain.
"Then it's settled! I'm going to buy ten steam engines!"
"..." Roland was stunned, ten units are five thousand gold coins! It is almost equivalent to the savings of Duke Ryan for five or six years. There is no even bargaining. Is this the way the big dog owners do business? He cleared his throat, "Are you sure? It's not a small fee. Besides, you can't buy a machine and use it forever, you have to keep investing money to maintain it."
"I know, just like the sea ships go to the dock every year to clean up the keel parasites and algae, replace the sails and cables, etc.," Margery said indifferently, "What needs to be replaced, I will pay from you. Just buy it. If it doesn’t work, you can sell me the craftsman who maintains and operates the machine at another price.”
Roland closed his mouth. There was only one thought in his mind. It's nice to have money.
...