262 – Driving a Pile into the Enemy Country (3)
When we entered the banquet room, influential figures from cities in the western coastal region were sitting there talking.
Perhaps the topic of conversation was because they recognized me and the Reich Empire soldiers, but not a single one of them revealed their true feelings.
They only talked about various things, such as how pretty the prostitute of the Changgwan was, or how the tea tasted good when the tea leaves were brewed like this, or how they should have a glass of wine.
When innocent children or new officers see this scene, they may think that all these people are close friends.
“Oh my, Mr. Milton. Maria, who works at Butterfly Night in our city, is pretty. Why don’t you come visit Grasspro sometime? “I will treat you to a full course meal.”
“President Dosvjesky, it’s been a year since I last saw you at your grandson’s wedding. What do you think after the meeting? “Let’s have a drink.”
“It’s an honor. By the way, how about beer and sausage? “Isn’t this the best combination?”
However, if you think about it even a little seriously, the people who could be said to be the mainstay of the West Coast region were competitors fighting over interests with each other rather than being in a relationship of cooperation.
Even 10-year-olds know that you can’t have a sincere relationship with someone who is competing over your interests.
If I am deceived by only looking at fragments, I am an idiot.
As I entered the banquet hall, local influential people who were not even nobles, let alone titles, bowed deeply in front of me to show respect.
“You can sit comfortably with your head up.”
They carefully returned to their chairs in response to my words and sat with their backs straight as if they were doing an interview.
When I saw them return to their seats, I asked them in a very arrogant and overbearing voice, as if I were the captain and earl of the imperial army.
“So, do you know why I called you here?”
When I asked my question, people in their neighborhood turned their heads to look at the people sitting to their left and right, or rolled their eyes and started thinking about an answer.
No one took the initiative to answer the professor’s question, like a college student who didn’t want to give a presentation.
As time went on, I pointed to any of the influential people sitting in the front row and asked again.
“Do you understand why I called you?”
“Now that you have taken over the port and castle on the western coast, do you want us to cooperate with you to govern this place smoothly?”
“That’s right. “Even if the Empire and the Grand Duchy of Warsaw are still at war, this land has already come under our rule, so wouldn’t it be better to establish a relationship that is mutually beneficial?”
“Thank you for your kind words, Captain.”
When I said something acknowledging their value, the faces of local influential people brightened.
If you look at their expressions, they look like they will give up anything if I just say something, but there is a reason why they are so active.
As the commander of the occupying force, I can kill some of the guys here without any hesitation just by using a ridiculous justification.
I guess they decided that if they were going to upset my feelings, it would be wiser to turn over on their stomachs and obey like a cute puppy.
You may be thinking this again, but you may be able to gain greater benefits by flattering me, like giving gum or a bone to an obedient puppy.
Not bad, he has a very good grasp of his subject and is much better than the Archduke, the owner of his own Grand Duchy.
“Tell me straight. To fully cooperate with what the empire is doing. In return, I will guarantee your interests.”
“If you are Lee Kwon, what specifically are you talking about…”
“This means that we will not touch anything you own, including real estate, merchants, products, assets, and money. “If you accept my offer, I swear to His Majesty the Emperor of the Reich Empire that I will not harm you carelessly.”
The men in their 40s sitting in front of me were not happy when I heard that they would guarantee all their rights.
It may seem strange that a person with power who can eat up his own business and property without any problems should not cheer when he hears an oath to protect people without receiving anything in return.
Conversely, if you think about it, not receiving any compensation is no different from saying that if I make a mistake, I will die without even making a sound even if they are just wiped out.
No, to put it bluntly, I said I would protect the profits, but if I had my officers collect it all and received a reasonable amount of compensation, I could clean it up without getting my hands dirty.
If you receive compensation for protection, you receive a protection tax, so no matter how much I am the commander of the occupying force, I cannot recklessly spend all my assets.
Perhaps that is why those in power who were well aware of this cruel reality opened their eyes wide and showed signs of even greater anxiety.
If you can’t trust me, Peter Yeager, in this rough world, who are you going to trust?
One of the local officials seemed to be unable to bear this uneasy feeling, and he suddenly came towards me, rubbing his hands.
“I am truly grateful, sir, for the grace of His Majesty, the Emperor of the Reich Empire. So, I, Rudnia Garievsky, would like to repay you 2,000 gold as a token of gratitude for your Majesty’s favor. Please allow it with a good heart.”
“hehehe, didn’t you say that your property will not be touched in the name of His Majesty? It’s okay, it’s okay. “I’ll just take your heart.”
“…… I understand.”
As the guy who was trying to pay me protection money walked away, worry filled the faces of those sitting in front of him.
But that is none of my concern.
“Now let me tell you what I want to ask you. It’s not that big of a deal, everyone knows that food is very scarce on the West Coast right now. “The reason is because His Majesty the Grand Duke of Warsaw took away all the troops and nobles stationed here and even deprived us of all food.”
After asking the divisional military police stationed in each city to find out, it was thanks to our damn Warsaw army that they had completely deprived us of food…
Each household in the coastal zone only has about a week’s worth of food left, enough to last for about 10 days if they save.
“Of course, His Majesty the Emperor of the Reich Empire took pity on the people, so he prepared a level of support so that no one in this western coastal region would have to starve. There will probably be a huge amount of food aid starting next month. However, if you take into account transportation, there will be about a month and a half of free time.”
The influential people who heard those words realized my intention and shook their heads.
They are truly wise friends to read their intention to commandeer grain before they have even finished speaking.
“I won’t say much. “As a citizen of the empire, give away all of the food you currently possess, such as wheat, barley, and oats, leaving only the bare minimum for your family’s consumption.”
“…… Some of these people here survive by selling grain. If you take all the food, you will starve to death. Please have mercy…”
“Aren’t you all subjects of the empire, from serfs in the countryside to powerful figures in a city? All of the purchased grain will be purchased by the imperial army. “I buy 850 kg of flour for 1 gold.”
The general trading price in the Empire is 1 gold per 850 kg of flour, so you are purchasing it at the exact cost price according to the Empire standard.
Those of us who are dealing with grains here must have taken out loans to purchase grains such as wheat, barley, and oats for the special purpose of the war.
Those guys may go bankrupt, but those who try to make money by taking advantage of their country’s crisis are usually the type of people who will be killed, so it’s okay to get beaten up a bit.
“Furthermore, it seems that there are many people in the city who are dissatisfied with our imperial army, so please deal with them. “If the rats living in the back alleys aren’t managed, I’ll be very disappointed.”
In this way, instead of preserving their property in the name of justification, they gave them work, and the influential people nodded and expressed their willingness to obey and do anything.
Now I guess I should at least give them some candy.
“Once the food arrives, you will assist in the administration of this city by working with or assisting the imperial officers. “If we achieve good results in this process, we will specifically hire them as mid-level officials in each city.”
Unlike modern society, on the Europa continent, unless the assets exceed 10 billion in modern times, the social status is lower than that of a middle-level official, which is equivalent to being treated as a 7th grade civil servant.
Furthermore, as long as you do not commit overt corruption while doing your job, you can also work as a merchant.
Maybe that’s why a little smile appeared on the faces of local officials for the first time.
“I’ll give the next instructions later. “Let’s go now.”
At the same time as those words were said, all the officials left the banquet room.
**
Then the next morning, I opened my eyes and woke up to find that a huge number of letters, jewelry made of precious metals, and bribes such as a bag filled with gold had arrived in front of me.
Perhaps because it is a place where close to 2 million people live, the amount seemed to be tens of thousands of gold just by looking at it.
Some of them even sent beautiful women to serve as maids in the hope of making their life abroad a little easier.
I wanted to send them all back or use them to stabilize the western coastal area, but…
From noble mtl dot com
If you send them back, there is a high chance that they will not be able to do their jobs properly due to unnecessary anxiety that our local officials have refused protection money again.
If you arbitrarily use the funds to stabilize the western coastal zone, there is a high probability that you will be subjected to harsh inspection by the Chief of Staff after the end of this war.
Because, there is ample room for the Chief of Staff to misunderstand that I stole part of this bribe while using it as a stabilization fund for the West Coast region.
So in the end, I wrote to the people who sent the maids that if they weren’t as pretty as the Charlotte she saw yesterday, she wouldn’t like them, and sent them all back.
Gold bags containing precious metals, jewelry, and a large amount of money were sealed after the military police were called in and an accurate list was made.
Regarding the valuables and cash received, His Majesty has sent a letter requesting that he be informed of the disposition policy since such items have been received.
“hehehe, I plundered these bastards’ village a while back. “I know how anxious you feel, so I’m really taking care of everything this time, but next time you send something like this, I’ll have to publicly behead you.”