Chess Mage of Faerûn

Chapter 538 Kindness and Opportunity

Even the wealthiest and most powerful business tycoons, after experiencing the unique feel of soap's delicate lather, wouldn't hesitate to add it to their daily shopping list.

On the other hand, for ordinary citizens with tight finances, it's not too difficult to grit their teeth and squeeze out a few silver coins to buy two bars of the cheapest, unscented soap. They can save money by skipping a few visits to the Red Romance pub and give their wives a fresh new look. Thinking about it that way, it's worth it!
As a result, the sales curve of soap rose slowly but irresistibly, like the rising tide. From a sales volume of over a thousand gold coins in the first month, it has now quadrupled. Last month, it brought in nearly three thousand gold coins, which is almost the total amount of the other two products.

Thanks to this, the White Tower Chamber of Commerce can still maintain a monthly net profit of five thousand gold coins, which is an astonishing ability to attract money for a chamber of commerce of similar size.

Behind the ever-expanding scale, the hard work of the sirens was indispensable, and it was perfectly reasonable for Syl, as the head of the management, to take the opportunity to claim credit and complain.

"Thanks a lot,"

Gently stroking the other's head, the monk comforted them in a warm voice:
"We didn't expect it to develop so quickly, but you're a bit short-handed."

"It just so happens that we need to expand our recruitment of apprentices. All the female apprentices this time will be sent to your service."

In a few words, the monk set the tone for the issue: external recruitment was out of the question; how could someone else be allowed to sleep soundly next to the hen that lays the golden eggs?

Turning to internal resources is a last resort; we can only lower our standards while increasing enrollment, allowing those less qualified students who are barely acceptable to enter our reserve pool.

It's hard to say how much we'll achieve, but at least we can recruit some trustworthy people with a good understanding of the situation, and incidentally boost the civilization index of our territory.

He's supposed to be a mage lord, but his subjects are all illiterate. It's not a good thing to say that way.

He usually does nothing, but in reality, the entire Gaoya is Zhang Yuan's personal fiefdom. He even held an internal meeting while having dinner with a group of veteran team members.

The second phase of the talent development program is quite different from the experimental nature of the first phase; its scale has increased several times over.

The expected recruitment is over a hundred people. The combined number of people from the two phases is nearly 15% of the total population of Gaoya. On the other hand, there is also an expansion of the categories.

In addition to basic education for children and vocational training for existing workers, training for financial and military personnel is also being considered.

The former's training was entirely entrusted to Golden Alfalfa, now known as the White Tower Merchant Guild. However, the snotty-nosed kids or illiterate youths in the territory were simply not good enough for them. They had to pick and choose before reluctantly accepting a few, and the main team was still composed of the guild's own juniors.

Sometimes we have to admit that a relatively privileged background and parents with certain qualities can obviously benefit the next generation. These small business owners' descendants may not have much potential to climb the ladder of power, but life is not just about fighting and killing.

Their mere ability to read and calculate is enough to make them stand out from the rest of the ignorant Gaoya. Master Zhang is determined to seize this promising group.

Zhang Yuan's methods were as simple and blatant as ever.

First, the Chamber of Commerce underwent restructuring, transforming from a franchise system to a more rigorous division of labor and integration. The prerequisite for joining was that one's family move to Gaoya!
You can refuse, but then you can only serve as an external appendage of the Chamber of Commerce, while those who obey form the core inner circle of the Chamber of Commerce.

The two groups have distinct treatment: the former is responsible for its own profits and losses, paying regular dividends as a listing fee, given the White Tower Merchant Guild's current reputation. The latter, on the other hand, possesses exclusive agency rights for various new products from High Cliff and the right to request military protection from the lord's domain when necessary. The price for this is a deep bond with the High Cliff territory.

It wasn't just about profit sharing; when the mage lord presented Darius with his conditions, the old guild master realized what they were facing and what kind of opportunity lay hidden behind these harsh conditions.

Is money useful?

Of course it's useful. Spending money can make you stronger, and this principle still applies in Forgotten Realms.

But what is the Goddess of Wealth's situation? Has she risen to the ranks of powerful deities, or does her mere word cause the entire city of Faerûn to tremble?
The strong can become even stronger by possessing wealth, while the weak, even if they possess mountains of gold, are probably nothing more than foolish children swaggering around in the bustling city with their gold.

Military force is a more reliable equivalent than gold coins.

Darius had seen through many things after the fate of the former Golden Clover. What would the White Tower Merchant Guild, now separated from the high cliff, have left?
Manpower? Store space? Business network?
Without a strong backing to protect you, you're just food for other crocodiles.

The fact that the White Tower Chamber of Commerce was able to grow to its current size in just six months is truly due to how capable and insightful these old-timers are.

Without groundbreaking new products and a protective network, Golden Alfalfa is, frankly, just a bunch of down-and-out people.

Now, an invitation representing the will of the mastermind behind all this is before him. Whether it's investing or merging, he knows that neither he nor the Chamber of Commerce will have any room to refuse.

The consequence of daring to refuse this kindness is losing everything you have now and going back to being an ordinary small businessman, or even worse.

Darius was not blinded by the seemingly idyllic situation. He knew very well what would happen to them once they lost the support and protection of the mage lord, and how many envious wolves were watching.

Since the cooperation wasn't equal before, why not go even further? Darius, a businessman by trade, knew that at times, they themselves were commodities, and they could take advantage of the opportunity to sell themselves for a good price.

Selling oneself into servitude sounds harsh, and making concessions on interests is even more painful. Because of this, he has had many disputes with some people in the Chamber of Commerce. They, with their short-sightedness like Fat, simply did not understand that the current good momentum was all illusory, and to entrust the future to this was tantamount to swimming naked in a turbulent river of unpredictable fate.

Only one thing is truly real:
Full authority to train finance personnel!

What does such a heavy responsibility mean?
Darius knew this, and most of the chamber of commerce members knew it too. Those who were unaware were tacitly kicked out of the inner circle during the restructuring and reform process, and sent to the outer perimeter to pursue what they thought was freedom.

When the tide goes out, these fools will realize they've been swimming naked. The old chairman can only wish them well and resolutely cut ties with them.

Within just two months, most of the White Tower Merchant Guild members, led by Darius, moved their families to High Cliff after deciding to accept the reforms, effectively becoming part of the Mage Lord's subordinate forces.

Thank you Alukard and xu1007 for your monthly pass support!

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(End of this chapter)