Chapter 914 Dividing the Lands (Part-4)
?In order to introduce his new farming techniques, Alexander planned on selecting a few thousand Tibian farmers and providing them with all the 'modern' tools.
He would then offer them a contract promising them a fixed salary for their work, as well as a portion of the harvest as a way to remove their uneasiness over the new technology,
In this way, Alexander hoped to showcase the effects of his innovations to all the nearby farmsteads and nobles, thus making them adopt the new way by themselves.
That was the plan for now, although Alexander kept it to himself, and quickly rejoined the conversation in a concluding tone,
"Is grain and other produce all that Tibias produces? Or are there some more local specialties I'm not aware of?"
"Of course, there are, my lord!" And Philips's quick response to Alexander made his voice sound almost a bit offended at the innuendo, as the Crown Prince then quickly went on to list,
"We also produce figs, wines, dyes, and various pottery."
"We also trade extensively with the other countries."
"Papyrus, linen, spices, perfumes, ointments, precious metals, gemstones, and slaves. You name it! We got it all, Lord Pasha."
Many of these named products were of course imported products- local specialties of Sybarsis, the nearby warring states, Thesos, and even Zanzan.
But their availability was still something to marvel at.
Because it had to be known many of the things you could get in Tibias, you could not get in many parts of Adhania, since the latter country was quite closed off to the rest of the world.
Thus Tibias came to manifest itself as a hub of major trade of commerce, with many of its port cities being quite rich, such as the city of Lilybee, which was the third largest city and second most prosperous city in the country, right after the capital.
It also helped that many of these port cities were situated right next to various tributaries of the Diannu, allowing small ships and boats to travel to and fro inland very easily and cheaply, being laden with slaves, intricate jewelry, pottery, metal tools, and textiles designed by skilled craftsmen, all to be sold and exchanged for bales of linen, sacks of grain, baskets of fruits, bags of exotic spices, jars of wine, and many more.
Even ignoring Tibias's own produce, just this extensive waterway trade network would have made Tibias a very rich and desirable country to conquer.
"My lord, Tibias is also a great producer of papyrus. Our scrolls are renowned throughout the world for their quality." But then right after Philips's answer, not willing to be left behind, Lord Theony also quickly chimed in this fact, claiming in a proud tone,
"The marshes and wetlands around the Diannu are ideal for growing the plant. So it's produced in our country by the droves."
"I myself possess several hundred hectares of papyrus fields, along with several thousands of workers who grow, harvest, and process it."
"And even then I cannot keep up with all the demand. Haha, it seems insatiable."
The large lord healthily chuckled at the thought of all the gold he made selling that.
Papyrus scrolls, the material chosen for their durability and flexibility, were in high demand throughout the surrounding counties, where it was used for recording various official and administrative documents, books and works of literature of the time, religious scripture, and even just for private use.
And since Tibias had a near monopoly on it, it allowed them to wield significant economic influence and profit from its trade.
15 to 20 million ropals per year in fact!
Tibias's large domestic supply of papyrus also meant lower prices for its citizens, which helped to spread various ideas and concepts more easily.
And this made him wonder what would become of this once thriving industry that employed so many people, and so many skilled artisans who expertly prepared those scrolls.
Sure many might switch to paper making.
But still, Alexander wondered if there would be enough vacancies.
And then there were the nobles who earned a lot of their income from this.
Such as yours truly- Lord Theony.
But all these were only momentary concerns for Alexander.
He was of course not going to stop the advance of his civilization just because of fear of unemployment.
Those people could either keep up or fall behind and be lost to the wheels of history.
Alexander would not wait for them.
And right now, for Alexander, the good thing was that most of the nobles had yet to wake up to the danger that paper posed towards them.
He felt that he could use this information to his advantage when dividing up the spoils among his nobles.
Thus keeping this realization to himself, Alexander responded positively to Lord Theony, chuckled,
"Hahaha, oh yes, how could have I forgotten? Zanzan also imports a lot of papyrus from Tibias. Yes, it's of very high quality. Perhaps I have even used your own papyrus, Lord Theony, haha."
This was a complete lie as Alexander's own paper supply was mostly sufficient to meet his personal demands, meaning there was no need for imports.
But the comment did manage to produce its intended effect- a grin from Lord Theony, "Hehe, I'm honored, my lord."
And it was with that that Alexander found these were all the specialties of Tibias, and thus decided to end the meeting there, clapping his hands and saying with a light smile,
"Okay, if there is nothing else, then I think that's all there is to it for today."
"Thank you Lord Theony and Prince Philips for all the hard work. It could not have been easy."
"Over the next few days, we can go through some of the land I want to gift my nobles and thus determine their value."
"I will send you the details soon."
"Of course, no problem, Lord Pasha."
"Anytime Lord Alexander."
As Alexander formally decided to end the meeting, the two men quickly replied with some courtesies, before excusing themselves with a bow.
Let us say no to piracy! Don't take part in a crime! Don't patronize thieves!
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