King

During the following meeting, Hudson remained sullen and silent throughout the entire meeting, like a young man who had been wronged and had suppressed his anger.

It wasn't until he got on the carriage that a mocking smile appeared on his lips.

Deep down in his heart, Hudson couldn't help but sigh: Earl Pierce is such a good man!

Originally he was still worried. This time I became the leader and offended the interests of a group of established nobles. How will it end next?

At the critical moment, Earl Pierce came out to stab him in time and directly helped him overcome the difficulty.

Now everyone is busy gloating over his misfortune and watching his jokes. Even if the resentment in their hearts is not completely gone, there probably won't be much left.

By the way, he also betrayed the king. He fell into this situation because of doing things for the king.

If Hudson's previous performance had not been too active, which aroused the dissatisfaction of the established nobles, Earl Pierce's action would not have been so easy to succeed.

The only regret is that the emerging nobles are too timid. Even if Hudson takes the lead, others will not dare to follow.

Realizing this, Hudson, who originally wanted to establish himself in the kingdom as the spokesperson of the emerging aristocracy, gave up this idea in an instant.

It's good to be the boss, but it's better to save yourself from being the boss of such an unreliable group!

If you don't become the boss, it doesn't mean you have to break off these relationships. On the contrary, Hudson wanted to continue to deepen his relationship with the emerging aristocratic group.

Being cowardly now does not mean you will be cowardly in the future.

In essence, the political weakness of these people is caused by their own lack of strength.

Including Hudson himself, if the military strength in his hands was not weak, no matter how high Caesar III's bid was, he would not dare to wade into this muddy water.

Even if you have good strength in your hands, you still have to give in when faced with the general trend.

Of course, the most important thing is that the consequences seem serious, but the actual harm is not great.

The "repayment tax" seems to be a huge number, but the Alpha Kingdom has thirty-two provinces. Even if the newly recovered seven northern provinces are excluded, there are still twenty-five provinces to share.

No matter how heroic Earl Pierce is, he cannot take advantage of him and pay all the taxes to the Southeast Province.

According to traditional distribution, the tax share that the wealthy southeastern provinces need to bear is only ten to fifteen percent at most.

With so many nobles in the province sharing the tax, judging from various factors such as the area of ​​the fiefdom and economic development, the amount that ultimately falls on the Koslow family is nothing more than one-tenth to one-eighth of the provincial tax.

Before the carriage could leave the palace, it was stopped halfway.

"My Lord Earl, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince invites you to come over to discuss matters!"

The maid's clear voice interrupted Hudson's plan.

Perhaps Caesar III is really about to lose his hold. In recent days, the crown prince has been particularly active.

Today we have a banquet with this great nobleman, and tomorrow we will invite that great nobleman. He did not forget to win over even the middle-class nobles.

"Lead the way!"

Hudson said calmly.

…

After returning home, Earl Pierce suddenly stopped smiling. Obviously, he, the winner, was not as excited as the outside world imagined.

In order to interrupt the development of the Koslow family, the methods used today are not glorious. At least in the eyes of the nobles in the Southeast Province, he, the boss, was incompetent.

The war bonds in the taxes are easy to deal with, but the Dalton family will eat them all in one go. Just treat it as a financial investment. Anyway, this is a capital-guaranteed transaction.

It only costs a few hundred thousand gold coins. In order to win people's hearts, it is undoubtedly worth paying such a small price.

The trouble is the repayment tax. With him as the boss taking the initiative, it is certain that the share allocated to the southeastern provinces will not be low.

Of the fifteen counties in the province, only one, Wright County, was completely controlled by the Koslow family. This was the result of a large-scale replacement of fiefdoms.

There is quite a lot of newly reclaimed land, but unfortunately none of it is recorded in the kingdom's records. It is almost impossible to expect Hudson to cooperate with the investigation.

Even if Wright County is a large county, the share it needs to bear is very limited, and the remaining shares have to be borne by the nobles in the province.

The Dalton family naturally has to bear the largest share, but the younger brothers will inevitably lose money along with it. It is almost inevitable that everyone will have complaints in their hearts.

In the past, the Dalton family was the dominant family, so if something like this happened, everyone could only endure it.

The situation has changed slightly now. Although such a small thing is not enough to make everyone take the risk to support the Koslow family, some comfort is still necessary.

In particular, the neutral camp, which has the largest number of people, needs to pay more attention. It must not be won over by the Koslow family.

However, considering the financial resources of the Koslow family, Earl Pierce was instantly relieved.

The family's financial resources were already low and they were still building infrastructure. Now they have had their blood drawn again. You can imagine the pressure it has put on the Koslow family.

It’s difficult to take good care of yourself, so where can you find the energy to win over people’s hearts?

Even if the Koslow family suspends some projects and squeezes out a sum of money, they must first rescue the existing younger brothers instead of trying to win over the neutrals just to save face.

When everyone is short of financial resources, besides the Dalton family, who else in the entire Southeast Province has the spare capacity to provide help to a group of small nobles?

You must know that the "repayment tax" is not only levied for one year, but lasts for many years, and the amount levied is still more and more every year.

The southeastern province is indeed wealthy, but it cannot withstand successive hardships. The little nobles who have just breathed a sigh of relief after the war will most likely have a hard time in the future.

It is estimated that more than one-third of the small nobles in the province will have more or less financial problems. Either cut back on daily expenses or borrow money to survive.

"Master, but the plan was successful?"

The old butler Gadri asked with concern.

“The plan failed, but it also succeeded!

After all, Hudson was still too young. He lost himself after being praised for a few words, and he actually regarded himself as a spokesperson for the military.

The plan to cut military spending was shattered by his interference, and everyone including me was convinced.

However, he also paid a heavy price for this, and our backup proposal was successfully passed.

The Koslow family has little foundation and is basically unable to help financially. Next, let’s see how much benefit Hudson gained from the war.

Send people to keep an eye on the Koslow family. Once the finances are in trouble, Hudson is likely to risk handling some shady loot.

Collect the evidence first, and then find an opportunity to attack them after the Warcraft Legion plan is completed.

Of course, it may also be a bargaining chip in negotiations. As long as the Koslow family is willing to move their base camp out of the Southeast Province, everyone can still be friends! "

Earl Pierce said with confidence.

It is almost an open secret that combat troops divide the spoils they can take away. As the commander-in-chief of the army, taking the biggest piece of cake is also an unspoken rule.

However, this is limited to some ordinary trophies or unowned trophies. There are also some trophies that need to be returned.

Obviously returned to the owner, that's just the ideal situation. The various armies participating in the war were not so "honest" and were basically divided up in private.

This is what everyone does. As long as some items that have special meaning or can prove the identity of the original owner are not publicly sold, there is no problem.

This is why after the war, the Hudsons used large and small cars to haul loot home. It’s not that there is no way to sell, it’s that I don’t dare to sell.

If the news leaks out and the owner becomes suspicious and starts a fuss without hesitation, his noble reputation will be ruined.

The best option is to take it home and collect it first. After the storm is over, you can either look for opportunities to sell it in batches, or directly enrich your own inventory.

The rich wealth of the great nobles was accumulated slowly in this way. Just because items cannot see light now does not mean they will not be able to see light in the future.

Time can dilute everything. Even items with owners will become ownerless under the baptism of time.

Even if you make up a reason to resell the item to the original owner, it is not impossible.

"Sir, according to the intelligence we have collected, Earl Hudson made at least four million gold coins worth of loot in this war.

About a third of it was cash, and the other third was a large sum of war bonds.

Mainly the bonds of the Principality of Moxi, which are at least more than one million, and the kingdom's war bonds also amount to hundreds of thousands.

Judging from all aspects of the situation, Earl Hudson should have liquidated part of the war bonds privately, otherwise the cash in hand alone would not be able to support the current expenses of the Mountain Territory.

It is said that he has a good relationship with major chambers of commerce, and the remaining loot that cannot be realized in time is likely to be liquidated overseas through the channels of these people.

In the short term, the Mountain Territory's finances should be able to support it.

Due to the fact that the World of Warcraft breeding base is in the mountainous territory, many of our means of consuming his financial resources are not convenient to use.

Now we can only wait for the impact of the repayment tax to further ferment and consume the last financial resources of the Koslow family before we take further actions and continue to put pressure on them! "

After hearing the old butler's answer, Earl Pierce frowned.

Obviously, Gadri is opposed to a direct showdown with the Koslow family, but advocates boiling the frog in warm water and forcing this competitor away through economic means.

“Steward, although Hudson is a bit radical in territorial construction, he is still very frugal in life.

In normal times, I neither like to hold banquets nor am I obsessed with various activities.

The only thing that costs money is probably magic experiments, but as a magician, there is nothing to say about being keen on magic research.

What has gone before has taken effect, and the current Koslow family does not look like a nouveau riche. The living standards of most clan members are not much different from those of ordinary noble families.

If you want to further consume their financial resources, I'm afraid it won't be easy! "

Earl Pierce said with a headache.

If this intelligence hadn't been verified by many parties, Count Pierce wouldn't have believed that Hudson could make so much money.

It's not scary just to make money. The key is that he not only doesn't spend money randomly, but also restrains his tribe members to be frugal together.

Judging from the intelligence collected by the Dalton family, Mountain Territory does not have much cash, but the most expensive project has been completed.

Even if the budget is still in deficit in the future, relying on the dividends brought by the Warcraft breeding base, as long as the progress of various projects in the territory is slowed down, a balance can be achieved.

As for the repayment tax, it can be sustained for several years by selling loot.

With a few more years of buffering, the Koslow family has gained a firm foothold, and it will be difficult to get them out.

"Sir, no matter how frugal the Koslow family is, some necessary expenses are still indispensable.

You seem to have forgotten that their relatives are all over the province. With so many relatives, there are always some who can’t hold on.

They can ignore the neutral nobles, but they can't also ignore their relatives and friends who support them, right?

It is too risky to directly attack the Koslow family, but it is much easier to set up a trap against these small nobles. "

After saying that, the two looked at each other and smiled.

The ability of small nobles to resist risks is inherently low. If someone deliberately sets up a trap, it will be difficult to think of problems.

For these small characters, the Dalton family does not even need to take action personally. Just a hint, within the scope of the rules, can cause them heavy losses.

They haven't done this in the past. That's because they have enough advantages and there is no need to drop the bottom line like this.

In addition, there is also Caesar III watching from above. If you are not careful and the king grabs the handle, you will be unable to eat and go around.

The critically ill king's power to intimidate everyone has been greatly reduced, and some methods that he did not dare to use before can now be used.

…

"Your Highness the Crown Prince, I have suffered a huge loss from this transaction. You must sell several senior craftsmen to me as compensation!"

Even if it is known that the repayment tax cannot be avoided if Alpha Kingdom does not default, this does not affect Hudson's complaint.

In any case, the extra repayment tax this time was all caused by working for the royal family.

If there had not been this crisis and Earl Pierce had not taken the responsibility, the Southeast Province would not have had to bear the excess obligations.

Even if the repayment tax is still unavoidable, when it is apportioned to the Koslow family, they will be given less than 20,000 to 30,000 gold coins every year.

One or two years is enough. The key is that it is continuous until the debt is paid off.

"Don't worry, Your Excellency, the royal family's promise will definitely be fulfilled. We will not transfer any of the experienced craftsmen and shipwrights in the shipyard, and we will definitely satisfy you!"

Crown Prince Caesar said with a smile.

But the faint disdain between his eyebrows still revealed his inner contempt for Hudson.

Only a few craftsmen have to bring it up individually, and it's really hard for him to take notice of their strong family spirit.

With a shipyard and sailors, want to get involved in ocean trade?

This is pure dreaming!

In the view of Crown Prince Caesar, shipbuilding is very simple. The difficult thing is to carve a defensive magic circle for the ship.

Without these things, once you encounter a monster at sea, your ship will be destroyed and everyone will die in an instant.

The Koslow family's magician team obviously does not have the ability to carve advanced magic circles for ships, and they will have to turn to the Magic Association when the time comes.

It's nothing more than being ripped off. The guys in the Mage Association are very thieves. They won't create a high-level defensive magic circle without providing precious magic materials.

The scripts are all written.

Crown Prince Caesar was already prepared. After Hudson encountered obstacles everywhere, he turned back to the royal family for help and took the opportunity to accept a younger brother.

“Then thank you for taking care of me, Your Highness!

I just don’t know which shipyard is being sold by the royal family and what is the price? "

It's not that Hudson is impatient, it's actually a seller's market now. To be called a large shipyard, it must not only be able to build large commercial ships, but also must have the ability to produce warships.

Under normal circumstances, these are not for sale. As long as someone is willing to sell, even if there is a pit behind him, Hudson can only jump into it.

How could the mountain leader's boat-building technology be just a tiny bit ahead of that of canoes?

There is definitely no problem in making a three-plank boat, and if you work hard, you can also make a five-plank boat. As for ocean-going merchant ships and warships, we might be able to figure them out if we work hard for another hundred years.

"Ha ha……"

"Since Your Excellency the Earl is one of our own, I won't say anything. The shipyard that the royal family wants to sell is in the southeastern province, which is convenient for you to relocate.

As for the name, I guess you have heard of it. I was originally in charge of naval logistics, but you should know better than me what happened later.

The price of the shipyard was 800,000 gold coins, and the shipyard's 1,700 craftsmen and 300 sailors, together with their more than 6,800 family members, were directly regarded as bonuses. "

Hearing Prince Caesar's offer, Hudson wanted to say very much: Just a gift.

It's a pity that this is impossible. If you really do this, you will have no friends.

After hesitating for a while, he finally didn't open his mouth to bargain.

In Hudson's view, the price is very reasonable and can even be said to be generous. The shipyard that Crown Prince Caesar mentioned was the famous Berkshire Shipyard in the Southeastern Province.

At its peak, it was one of the three major shipyards in the kingdom. However, as the kingdom's strategy shifted to the mainland, the importance of coastal defense continued to decline. After the naval orders disappeared, it had to turn to the civilian market.

However, in recent decades, the Dalton family's maritime business has developed rapidly, gradually monopolizing most of the overseas trade in the southeastern province, and also established its own shipyard.

Berkshire Shipyard, which has lost a large number of orders, is getting worse day by day. If it weren't for the power of the royal family, it would have been squeezed into bankruptcy by the Dalton family.

It survives on sporadic orders, but the performance of Berkshire Shipyard is very touching.

From the peak profit of more than 100,000 gold coins a year, the profit has dropped sharply to the current 10,000 to 20,000 gold coins per year. In bad years, there will be losses.

If this situation continues, it is only a matter of time before Berkshire Shipyard goes bankrupt.

Choosing to sell to Hudson at this juncture, in addition to political transactions, there is also concern that during the replacement of the throne, the new king will not be able to scare the local nobles and dispose of risky assets in advance.

“Just do it according to His Highness’s price!

However, the amount of funds involved in this transaction is too large. I won't be able to come up with so much funds for a while. I wonder if the royal family can accept the in-kind offset? "

Since you have decided to act, you must do the whole thing. The first step was to send out a signal of lack of money, and the second step was to acquire shipyards in a big way. Everyone knew that there was a problem.

At this critical moment, Hudson didn't want to make any mistakes.

The Dalton family believes that there is a financial problem in the Mountain Territory, so they should continue to lead them to this to prevent them from doing things behind the scenes and ruining the deal.

"Don't worry, Your Excellency, the royal family is not unreasonable. We always take good care of our own people.

If you do have financial difficulties, you can naturally offset it in kind. However, the items taken out for offset must be what we need! "

…