As for the merchant guilds arriving from the East Sea Alliance, Victor had also found signs that some East Sea nobles might be involved behind the scenes.
After all, many nobles had grown so used to doing business to enrich their families that they thought much like merchants. They did not care whether the people they traded with were enemies.
Of course, some might have known perfectly well that they were dealing with the enemy and approached anyway, with their own plans in mind.
Although the Pro-War Faction now dominated the East Sea Alliance's Noble Council, that did not mean its moderates and surrender advocates had ceased to exist.
Some of those nobles and their families might have vanished in the war. Others might be hiding among the Pro-War Faction.
Things soon began to change. As the merchant guilds moved in, commerce across the occupied territory slowly revived, and the desolation of before began to fade.
Victor welcomed the improvement. He instructed the relevant officials to grant those guilds and merchants tax rebates, much to the merchants' surprise.
They had heard about the Management Committee's Tax Rebate Policy from the start, but none of them had taken it seriously. They had come to the occupied territory to make money and had prepared to pay dearly for the opportunity.
Who would have thought the Management Committee would actually honor the Tax Rebate Policy? They were also pleased with the trading conditions in the territory occupied by the Vela Expeditionary Army. A caravan only had to pay a toll once to travel freely, making business easier and cheaper than on the East Sea Alliance's side.
The merchants had long heard that Vela's Marquis Golden Sunflower was a great noble with a head for business. Now that they had seen Victor at work,