Steel, Explosives, and Spellcasters-Chapter 994 - 51 Trade Embargo

Chapter 994 -51 Trade Embargo

Although Hornfort is the capital of the Monta Republic, Solingen is the most prosperous and thriving city in this mountain nation.

Benefiting from its rich mineral resources and the settlement of skilled craftsmen, Solingen has long been a famous town of ironworkers in the Monta imperial domain—albeit only within Monta.

Constrained by the mountains, the high-quality ironware of Solingen could not be transported out.

Even if it could be transported, the lords and autonomous cities outside preferred to protect the local iron products that contributed taxes.

Until thirty years ago, two major events happened.

The first event: The completion of the Wooper Canal, which connected the waterways between Rose River and Ashen Stream River.

To excavate this short canal, the Solingen Ironsmiths’ Guild took forty years just to raise funds.

By the time the first Gold Coin buried was brought back to the light of day, the leader who had inititated this project had long passed away, and the young man at the time who watched ignorantly had already turned gray.

After that, it took another fifteen years to construct the canal, a total of fifty-five years, the span of three generations.

The second event: The Duke of Arlion led his troops into the Mountain Front Territory, and the sovereignty war broke out.

War, like a hungry monster gone mad, demanded more steel and blood at all times.

The iron-producing areas in the Mountain Front Territory were burnt to cinders by the brutal tug-of-war, while Solingen, far from the troubles of war, made a fortune.

Two sovereignty wars lasted for eight years of conflict. By the time the Mad King Richard retreated, Solingen had already jumped to become the largest center of iron manufacturing between the two mountains.

After the war ended, the business of weapons was no longer booming.

But Solingen didn’t decline; on the contrary, it developed more freely by shaking off the shackles of the Empire.

The Federated Provinces, in need of reconstruction, had an endless demand for iron products. The Solingen smiths no longer churned out swords but sold iron bars instead.

With the reduction of internal tariffs in the Alliance, the iron bars produced by Solingen were no longer trapped by the mountains. They were loaded onto ships, flowed downstream, and were sold far away to the Various Republics, the Empire, and overseas.

The decade of the sovereignty wars was a miserable one for many ordinary people, but for Solingen, it was a golden decade.

Even the twenty years following the end of the war were years of rapid development for Solingen.

Solingen not only developed from a small but famous town of ironworkers to a steel capital renowned across the Alliance, but it also grew from a remote valley by the Rose Lake into today’s bustling traffic hub where numerous trade routes converge.

Therefore, foreign businesses looking to trade in the Monta Republic focused their major efforts on Solingen rather than the capital, Hornfort.

For most trade houses in Solingen, the person in charge is practically their chief representative in the Monta Republic—this is the case with Navarre Commerce.

…

The Navarre family’s agent in Solingen is an old gentleman with a Vineta-style beard, named Carlo Aide.

Vineta-style beard, that is, no beard at all.

Mr. Ed is tall and thin, with a serious demeanor, and if not for his bald chin and upper lip, many would mistake him for a clergyman based on his dress and temperament alone.

When Anna returned to camp dripping with dew from her sketching, Mr. Ed was discussing the issue of Gold exchange with Winters.

“…Although Solingen wouldn’t choke on half a ton of Gold, converting it to Ducats all at once would surely result in being forced into a lower price,” Mr. Ed said as he dipped his fingertip in water and wrote a number on the table: “The goldsmiths in Solingen are backed by guilds, and if they catch wind of our actual situation and join forces to drive down the price, the exchange rate will be even lower.”

Winters gently fiddled with his bone whistle, nodding thoughtfully. Two well-behaved hounds lay beside Winters’ boots, sneakily glancing at him with anticipation.

Sitting alongside at the small table was Father Kaman, who wore an expressionless face.

Compared to Elder Aide and Father Kaman, whose beards and hair were neatly groomed, Winters was somewhat unkempt.

Although Winters’ clothes were still neat—thanks to Anna—his beard and hair were not so fortunate—also thanks to Anna.

Seeing Anna Navarre return to camp, Mr. Ed stood up to greet her: “I’m delighted to see you, my lady. Compared to two years ago in Sea Blue, you appear healthier and more vibrant now.”

“Mr. Ed, I’m even happier to see you looking well,” Anna replied with a smile, setting down her sketchpad: “However, ‘more vibrant’ and ‘healthier’ are not attributes that should be used to describe a lady.”

“For someone my age, nothing is more important than health.”

“Mr. Ed is right,” Winters affirmed earnestly: “Health is beauty!”

Those who spend all their days together often fail to notice the changes in each other. Winters couldn’t quite pinpoint how Anna had changed, but it seemed she had changed everywhere: her nose tip and cheeks were prettier; her waistline, more enchanting; her thighs, firmer; her vigor, more sparkling…

If Lady Navarre, when she first arrived in Iron Peak County, still had a touch of pampered baby fat,

Then after a long journey, the delicacy on Anna’s body had disappeared entirely, replaced by a robust vitality, as if the idealized realistic statues of ancient goddesses had come to life among mortals.

This vibrant beauty overwhelmed Winters, so now whenever Anna used “superlatives,” Winters would sing praises without hesitation.

Except for skin issues—that was a forbidden zone within forbidden zones, who mentions it perishes.

Anna returned from sketching, entered the tent, unbuckled her sword, scooped up handfuls of clear water to wash her face, and wiped it dry. Then she stepped out of the tent and sat down at the table with ease.

There were now four people at the table: Winters, Father Kaman, Mr. Ed, and Anna.

Elder Aide glanced at Winters, then at Anna, noticing that both of them appeared natural with no abnormalities or affectation.

“What’s the matter, Mr. Ed?” Winters asked softly, “I’m still waiting for you to continue.”

“Nothing much.” A slight smile formed on Elder Aide’s serious face: “I think, perhaps only a formidable woman could match a great man.”

After a pause, Elder Aide continued talking about the exchange of gold bars for Gold Coins.

…

…

Half a month ago, after recasting the sacrificial golden figure into four carts of gold bars, the Iron Peak County Delegation split into two groups.

One group was escorted by Colonel Moritz, carrying three-quarters of the gold directly back to Iron Peak County. The Iron Peak County Government urgently required this hard currency to alleviate the financial crisis.

The other, led by Winters himself, went secretly north to enter the Monta Republic.

However, upon returning to the “civilized world”, Winters faced the dilemma of being wealthy but unable to spend: the gold bars couldn’t be used directly, and even if someone was willing to take them, it would be too conspicuous. They had to be exchanged for common Gold Coins.

Fortunately, Navarre Commerce also did business in the mountainous nation, ensuring that Winters was not entirely without options.

First, Winters found a branch of Navarre Commerce in the border city of Lucerne in the Monta Republic, exchanged a small portion of the gold bars, and sent an urgent letter through the channels of Navarre Commerce to the head office at Steel Fortress.

Then, he headed to Steel Fortress with the remaining gold bars without a moment’s delay.

And then, he met Mr. Ed in a small village on the outskirts of Steel Fortress.

“In summary,” Elder Aide returned to his terse demeanor, “exchanging all your gold at once for Ducats, Federated Provinces’ Shields, or Montan Gold Coins would be an unwise business practice.”

This content is taken from fгee𝑤ebɳoveɭ.cøm.

“What would you suggest?” Winters asked.

“My suggestion is—mortgage. Use the gold as collateral for Gold Coins first, then slowly liquidate them to maintain a stable exchange ratio. Of course, the best course would be to bring the gold back to Vineta and recast it into Ducats; that’s the most cost-effective way.”

Winters, confused: “Mortgage gold for gold?”

“Yes. But not to a goldsmith, to other merchant houses,” Elder Aide elaborated: “Divide the gold bars into several portions, mortgage them to different merchant houses, this way you can bypass the Steel Fortress goldsmiths. Moreover, the collateral can’t be remelted during the mortgage term, so it won’t impact the market exchange rate between gold and Gold Coins.”

Winters saw Anna give him a subtle nod and stood up with peace of mind to thank the elder gentleman: “I trust everything to you, Mr. Ed.”

“It’s an honor to be of help,” Elder Aide nodded: “His Excellency Montaigne.”

After confirming how to exchange the gold bars for Gold Coins, a series of even more pressing problems awaited urgent solutions.

Mr. Ed took out the urgent letter in Anna’s handwriting from his bosom: “In your letter, you mentioned wanting to be introduced to the decision-makers of Steel Fortress. That won’t be difficult. Mr. Borso da Este from the Este family is in Steel Fortress. He’s a close friend of Mayor Wooper. I can introduce you to Mr. Borso da Este, and then he can introduce you to Mayor Paulo Wooper.”

In the ears of any well-informed Venetian, the name da Este carries immense distinction.

Although Winters did not know who “Borso da Este” was, if a “White Eagle” was willing to offer help, meeting the Mayor of Steel Fortress should not be difficult.

[Note: The symbol of the Este family is the white eagle]

“Regarding your other request—to acquire weapons,” Mr. Ed frowned slightly: “That may be somewhat difficult.”

“How so?” Winters did not seem surprised, jokingly said: “Steel Fortress smiths rejecting money?”

Elder Aide once again took out a folded piece of rough paper from his bosom: “Montan’s way of doing things is indeed different from ours. Life is harsh in the mountainous country, so Montans are more united, more loyal. Once a decision is made through consensus, they never renounce it or violate it.”

Winters unfurled the rough paper and the fresh print ink still exuded a faint odor.

There was a large seal at the bottom of the paper, and the heading read: “Monta’s Sole Ruler and Free People’s Beloved Senior Representative of Solingen unanimously pass the following consensus…”

Elder Aide gravely said: “The Steel Fortress City Council has just passed an administrative order. It prohibits any individual or guild from selling weapons, ammunition, or any resources that can be used for war to the Republic of Palatu. However, this order is just an administrative decree. It still needs to be taken to the General Assembly for debate and voting before it becomes formal law.”

Having skimmed through the bulletin, Winters then handed the rough paper to Anna.

“Steel Fortress is about to impose a trade embargo on the Republic of Palatu.” Elder Aide looked severe: “And this may be just the beginning.”