King

As soon as the news of the opening of the smuggling trade was released, the aristocratic circle in the North was abuzz.

The largest bookmaker engaged in smuggling trade in the Alpha Kingdom is the Northland noble group headed by the five major families.

Smugglers and slave traders all depend on this group for their existence.

Since the outbreak of the Continental War, the smuggling trade has been completely cut off. In order to restore trade lines, the northern nobles traveled around the kingdom.

It's a pity that the five major families are not popular. The harder they lobby, the tighter the border blockade becomes.

In the past, the supplies of the nobles of Northern Xinjiang had to pass through the North, and they were inherently restricted by others, so they had no choice but to compromise.

However, the current border is the Near East, and with the convenience of port shipping, Hudson does not need to look at the eyes of the Northland nobles.

Under the leadership of Hudson, the kingdom's standing army frequently attacked the smuggling trade. The smugglers who dared to take the lead were basically dead.

No matter what the origin is, death is in vain. No one dared to claim the "crime of colluding with foreign races."

Seventy-eight times out of ten times of smuggling, there were accidents, so that in recent months, a number of nobles from the North had died suddenly in accidents.

No matter how profitable the business is, it cannot withstand such disaster. The Northland aristocratic group, which had suffered heavy losses, gritted its teeth with hatred, but was powerless to do anything.

After all, it is a business that cannot be put on the table. There is no problem in doing it secretly, but it cannot be said on the table.

Secondly, the loss of profitable business, and the political embarrassment made the Northland nobles even worse.

Not to mention looking for Hudson's bad luck, their political power in the court is now finding it difficult to protect themselves. Many officials from the North were imprisoned by Caesar IV. Their life and death are now uncertain.

At one time, these five major families all wanted to develop a navy and open up trade routes to the Orc Empire from the sea.

Unfortunately, the idea is beautiful, but the reality is very skinny. It’s true that Northland has a port, but they don’t have a shipyard!

The port was opened during the era of Caesar III and had only been put into operation for a few years. It had not yet had time to accumulate naval heritage.

In this regard, they were even worse than Hudson. At least Hudson was able to spend money to buy the shipyard from the royal family through political transactions.

The current situation of the five major families in Northland is: even if they have money, they cannot spend it. What's more, they don't have much money in their hands, so they can't use money to knock the seller out.

No one would risk falling out with the royal family to help someone who had a problem with their own family.

Being forced into a vicious cycle of militarism and self-depletion, the five great dukes saw it in their eyes and were anxious in their hearts.

No one is sure whether the king wants to attack them or is deliberately playing psychological tactics.

Now Caesar IV's actions against them are all naked conspiracy.

If we disband our troops now, the king may one day take evidence of their crimes and mobilize the standing army to clean up the rebellion.

As long as the procedures are legal and the benefits are in place, the great nobles in the kingdom will not mind removing these eyesores from the chessboard.

"The news has been confirmed. Hudson does intend to liberalize the smuggling trade, but he will impose heavy taxes and restrict trade goods.

It can be initially judged that there is something wrong with Xueyue Ling's finances.

During the Continental War, although Hudson swept across all directions, due to the inconvenience of carrying, he actually did not harvest much loot.

It is already very difficult to maintain a huge armament just by relying on the income from the Mountain Territory and magic potions, let alone the expenditure for the development of the Xueyue Territory.

It just so happens that Hudson also likes to gain fame and reputation. He doesn't even collect the transit tax delivered to his door, and he has no choice but to open smuggling channels.

It shouldn't be a conspiracy against us! "

Duke Rodriguez analyzed rationally.

Times are hard and people are so scared that they now see everyone as a threat.

No matter what happens, first analyze whether it is a conspiracy against yourself.

This over-cautious temperament allows them to avoid many risks, but the price is that they start to lose their hair at a young age.

“It’s not a conspiracy against us, but that doesn’t mean we can profit from it.

Now that Hudson has great power, it is too easy to target us. "

While speaking, Duke Angel also glanced at Duke Torsten.

I don’t know if there will be any accidents in other people’s business. The Rocknard family’s business will definitely not be able to continue in the Near East.

If they weren't worried about the political influence and fear of triggering a chain reaction, they would all want Duke Torsten to return the ancestral land of the Koslow family to others.

These are all grievances from a hundred years ago. All the original direct descendants of the Koslow family are dead, and Hudson is just a side branch of the rise. It is nonsense to say how unforgettable the hatred is.

The two sides have been stubbornly fighting each other, mostly because of the nobles' face.

The more new aristocrats are, the more they pay attention to the family's face. The lost ancestral heritage is a shame for all members of the Koslow family.

Unfortunately, there is no way to retreat from this step. The worse the situation is, the stronger you have to be.

If they show timidity to the outside world and make the outside world mistakenly think that they are in decline, it will easily trigger a group attack.

"The situation is not that bad. As a new nobleman, Hudson cherishes feathers very much and will not risk his reputation.

Hudson's ability to hold high positions all the way depends not only on his ability to fight, but also on his reputation of being able to distinguish between public and private matters and to be principled.

After all these years of fighting in the north and south, have you ever heard of him deliberately cheating people and avenging private revenge?

Everyone in the kingdom believed that he could handle problems objectively and fairly, which was why all parties ignored his background and promoted him to the throne.

Therefore, business can still be done, but within the scope of the rules he has set, the profits may not be as high as before.

Another detail is that Hudson likes orc slaves. It can be seen from the decrees he enacted that he encourages everyone to trade slaves from the Orc Empire.

If there were enough slaves, the taxes could even be offset and the most advanced weapons could be purchased.

With such a clause, it is estimated that all smugglers will work part-time as slave traders.

We still have an advantage in this regard. It is not a problem at all to find those big tribes to cooperate and get tens of thousands of slaves a year.

If the interests are right, we may even become the best partner for Hudson. "

Duke Rodriguez said with a smile.

As a core member of the Northland nobility, who has not participated in the slave trade during the smuggling process?

These are all transactions in the old business. Relying on the personal connections accumulated from long-term engagement in the smuggling trade, they have an inherent advantage over those who come after them.

"Why does Hudson need so many orc slaves? Is it really what he said to the outside world, to weaken the orc empire as much as possible?"

Duke Hero said slightly suspiciously.

To weaken the orc empire, just purchase slaves from powerful races. Not to mention the low combat effectiveness of ordinary orcs, they also reproduce very quickly.

“Maybe it’s just a lack of people!

Xueyue Territory is so large that there is not enough population to fill it up.

Especially the early defense line construction requires more labor. If you don't have enough manpower, you can use orcs to make up the number.

Just doing hard work, these orcs can still make do. What's more, he used a large number of orc slaves in the early days of his career, and he must have accumulated a lot of experience.

But he ignored that the Near East was different from the Mountain Territory. There are probably not many orc tribes that can stand the stimulation of using orc slaves indiscriminately under the eyes of the orcs.

Just wait and see the good show, maybe we can see a big show of orcs rioting and cooperating inside and outside.

Of course, it is also possible that our Marshal Hudson was prepared and deliberately set a trap for the orcs.

When it comes to using troops to fight, our Marshal Hudson is still very reassuring. "

Duke Rodriguez replied with a half-smile.

No matter what other companies choose, he has a hand in this deal anyway.

No matter how great the risk is, it is better than going bankrupt where you are.

In order to raise funds, they have squeezed the territory to the limit.

Not only were the serfs having a hard time, but the passing caravans were also squeezed out of a layer of oil and had long been miserable.

Today, those simple grassroots businessmen have almost disappeared from the Northland. Those who are still persisting basically have aristocratic backgrounds.

Not only did he offend the people outside, but the younger brother below also complained endlessly. Forced to follow the expansion of the army, it was impossible to stop and take a breather.

As a knowledgeable nobleman, Rodriguez knew very well that this situation could not continue, otherwise it would inevitably collapse.

However, the cruel reality forced him to grit his teeth and persist.

Time is what they need most. The king can't keep his eyes on them. Just wait for the situation to change and everything will be different.

The counterattack has begun, and the royal family's new large territory is the source of trouble.

But in order to hide themselves, they could only wait for the incident to unfold slowly, and did not dare to jump out and challenge the royal family directly.

…

The arrival of a large number of smugglers brought prosperity to Xueyue Territory.

The most direct beneficiaries are the hotels and pubs in the city. Many shops are displaying fully booked signs for the first time.

Affected by this, some far-sighted businessmen have taken the lead in developing characteristic tertiary industries.

As long as you pay enough, all shops can be sublet.

Mr. Hudson made a bunch of deals mainly to attract traffic, but he was not prepared to deal with all industries.

Rather than risking business, it is more convenient to collect rent and taxes directly.

Crescent Port, which has a high population flow, needs economic vitality, and the planned economy obviously cannot meet the demand.

Just a bunch of store clerks who rush to sell goods on the shelves can only mechanically listen to orders and sell goods. How can they compete with merchants?

Hudson also accepted losing money in a short period of time, but he was not prepared to persist in a long-term losing business.

The number of shops operating at a loss continues to decrease, and rental income continues to increase. It is only a matter of time before the company turns losses into profits.

Especially with the emergence of bulk commodity procurement, Hudson finally received the first "smuggling tax", which changed the embarrassing situation of the territory being only able to go out but not in.

Everything is moving in the right direction, but trouble has also come to the door.

It's just a matter of catching slaves from the orc empire. Although it does not comply with the mainstream moral standards, there is no law prohibiting it in the kingdom.

Even if there is a Holy Mother, they can only say a few words in secret at most, and no one will sympathize with the orcs on the surface.

The trouble is the smuggling trade. In the past, the Wan Kingdoms had tacitly allowed it to exist, but in the end it was not visible to the light.

Smuggling supplies to the Orc Empire on the surface is a serious crime of confiscating homes and exterminating families. Once caught and evidence is put on the table, it will be fatal.

Trade lines had just opened and Hudson was feeling the pressure. The important ministers in the kingdom who opposed the smuggling trade directly raised objections in the court.

Some nobles who disliked Hudson also added fuel to the fire.

How the Northland nobles handled these matters back then, Hudson didn't know. Anyway, he knew that this matter was very difficult to handle.

"Baron José, reply to His Majesty the King for me.

Tell your majesty that we are conducting training, which allowed the smugglers to take advantage of the loophole.

After the training of the army is completed, the smugglers will be arrested as soon as possible, and these kingdom worms will never be let go! "

It is impossible to admit. As the highest military commander in the Near East, how could he be related to smugglers?

It was all because the smugglers were too cunning and took advantage of the army's training.

Anyway, in order to ensure the combat effectiveness of the frontline troops, training cannot be stopped. The issue of combating smuggling can only be dealt with after the busy work is over.

Playing it safe won't solve the problem, but Hudson has no choice.

Under the guidance of political correctness, it is impossible for him to defend the smugglers.

Even if we are investigating the intelligence of the Orc Empire, it is impossible to say that all smugglers are there with a mission.

"Your Majesty, this explanation may not fool you. Due to pressure from all parties, the kingdom is likely to send an investigation team or even directly form an anti-smuggling team.

There is precedent for this. When the Northland nobles were at their most rampant, they would dare to sell anything to the Orc Empire. In order to combat the smuggling trade, the kingdom established an anti-smuggling team, which temporarily interrupted the smuggling trade.

Later, due to financial pressure and the operation of the northern nobles, the kingdom acquiesced to the existence of smuggling trade, but its behavior was restricted.

The smuggling trade in the Near East has just begun. Among the goods we sell, there are no weapons and equipment. In principle, it is within the tolerance of the kingdom.

However, many powerful people in the kingdom benefited from the smuggling trade back then. We have just begun and have not yet had time to build a community of interests.

so……"

After listening to Jose's analysis, Hudson instantly understood what was going on. No wonder people are targeting it, this is touching other people’s cheese!

It was right at once. Under normal circumstances, with his popularity in the kingdom, even if he was hated by others, it would not cause such a big disturbance.

Except for the Northland aristocratic group, among the other major powerful groups in the kingdom, there were not many descendants promoted by Mr. Hudson.

Maybe these people don't have the right to speak, but there is always a certain amount of love. If there was no conflict of interest, there would never be so many people raising objections.

Thinking about it carefully, everyone still showed mercy. All impeachments were only against the smuggling trade and did not involve Hudson himself.

It is easy to figure out the problem, but difficult to solve it. The cake is not something that Hudson can just share if he wants to.

Every major distribution of interests requires a long period of game play and a new balance is reached before a community of interests can be formed.

"Send the letter first and delay it for a while. Even if the kingdom wants to form an anti-smuggling team, the decision cannot be made in a day or two.

Let them know secretly, if you want to participate, just come! Anyway, the area bordering the orcs is not just our Xueyue Territory. If they want to join, it is not convenient to stop them.

After that, we let them fight. Who gets more and who gets less? In the end, it all comes down to strength! "

Hudson said impatiently.

Benefit distribution is always the most troublesome. He couldn't even hide from this kind of thing, let alone actively participate in it.

In the past, when trade lines were blocked due to wars, everyone went hungry together, and no one had any objections. Now when I see someone eating meat, I immediately feel unbalanced.

Don't worry about scarcity but inequality.

The orc empire today is definitely not as fat as it was back then. Even if the smuggling trade is liberalized, the benefits will not be as good as before.

The Alpha Kingdom can import a series of daily necessities to the Orc Empire: tea, cloth, salt, pots and pans, spices, etc.

The only products the Orc Empire could produce were slaves and furs.

Livestock is not easy to sell. A large number of livestock were transported, and the movement was too great. What we are doing is smuggling and there is no way to cross the street.

Any noble officer who caught the matter and investigated it could kill the smuggler.

It doesn't matter if there is a backstage. Once it is placed on the table, the king's face will not be able to cover the lid.

Similar things have happened frequently in the past years. Even if an agreement is reached and the existence of smuggling trade is acquiesced, the laws of the kingdom cannot be ignored.

Once you meet an aristocratic officer with a personal grudge, it is too common for this kind of thing to happen.

Even if the big bosses retaliate afterwards, the parties involved will not be able to see it. It is difficult not to die without being accused of colluding with foreign races.

Smart smugglers keep a low profile as much as possible. Especially when transporting goods whose origins cannot be explained, care must be taken, and it is best not to alert the nearby garrison.

If there are few goods that can be sold, we can only make up for it with hard currency. The Orc Empire does not have many magic crystal mines or gold and silver mines, and the rich mines are monopolized by several royal families. Most of the Orc tribes are very poor.

In addition to raising livestock, they can only hunt some wild beasts, or go deep into the Ural Mountains to hunt monsters and collect magic materials.

These trades are definitely not equitable. No matter how valuable it is in the human world, it just cannot be sold at a high price on the orc prairie.

Many small and medium-sized tribes cannot encounter caravans once a year and have no bargaining capital at all.

If you are being squeezed hard, look for opportunities to engage in a wave of business without capital. But there are risks. Merchants who can open up trade lines are not soft persimmons.

Within the Orc Empire, there are also protective umbrellas for these guys. Compared with the restraint of the dignitaries of the Alpha Kingdom, the behavior within the Orc Empire is more naked.

Who protects which caravan is made public. If a problem occurs, I dare to come out to the platform as soon as possible.

…

The turmoil in the Near East has not caused any waves in the world. The most everyone can say with emotion is: Alpha Kingdom is making a difference!

Now everyone's eyes are focused on the Frankish Kingdom. Just five days ago, under the auspices of the Frankish Church, representatives of churches from various countries launched crazy accusations against the Holy See.

The Morning Holy See was directly charged with ten major crimes:

1. Forging oracles;

2. Impure beliefs;

3. Blasphemy;

4. Collusion with heretics;

5. Regicide;

6. Corruption is common;

7. Insatiable greed;

8. The Holy Mountain of Fornication;

9. Hereditary priesthood;

10. Persecution of nobles.

Any one of them could bring the Holy See down from the altar. Ten of them were collected at once, and evidence was found for all of them. Everyone knew that the Franks were serious this time.

As a sacred and inviolable Holy See, it should be a flawless existence. Everyone's requirements for them are very high, and no stain is allowed at all.

The behavior of clergy is also under a magnifying glass.

What was originally a matter of covering the lid was suddenly exposed to the sun, and the impact caused can be imagined.

However, the governments of various countries were still behind the scenes and spreading the evidence to the entire continent. Almost overnight, everyone knew about the crimes of the Holy See.

The mentality of countless fanatical believers has collapsed. It is really difficult to accept that the Holy See in their minds is such a thing.

Pius VII was very embarrassed. Just as he clamored to excommunicate Charles III, the Frankish Church turned around and gave the title of saint to Charles III.

And this behavior has been recognized by church representatives from many countries. The reason is: Charles III exposed the dark inside story of the Holy See and laid the foundation for purging the Holy See.

All of a sudden, he became a villain, and the countries that originally supported the Holy See actually pretended to be deaf and dumb, as if they were waiting to see a joke.

Everyone knows that all parties want to weaken the influence of the Holy See in the country. Since the Frankish Kingdom takes the lead, let them do it.

What makes the believers most speechless is that such a big thing happened, but the great Lord of the Morning did not show up.

Sending "divine punishment" to eliminate heretics in the Holy See has become a beautiful dream in the minds of countless believers.

The Holy See is equally disappointed. The storm has affected their faith, and the gods have not yet come out to stand, which makes them very passive.

The gods did not express anything, and in the eyes of many people, that was acquiescence. There are even some arcanists openly shouting: The gods are dead!

The two camps were busy fighting among themselves, and no one paid any attention to their blatantly blasphemous remarks, which made Hudson very upset.

There was no way that the blasphemous remarks were coming from the Arcane Academy where he was the honorary principal. No one would believe it if they said it had nothing to do with it!