The mayor of Franklin Harbor, Theodore, warmly entertained Quirk and his party at the City Hall. Apart from the crew members on the South, the most active people at the banquet were the businessmen.
"The buildings there are tall and big, and even the houses of common people are beautifully decorated."
"Businessmen are well respected there and can influence the government."
"People are well-dressed, live a prosperous life, and are willing to spend money to buy things."
The crowd gathered around the four representatives who had visited Cape Bay, and discussed their experiences in foreign countries eagerly and enthusiastically.
According to the descriptions of several representatives, Jiaowan has become a merchant's paradise filled with gold in everyone's mind. Many people regret that they were not born there.
"I stayed at the dock for a whole day, for no other reason than to count the number of merchant ships entering and exiting the port throughout the day. Guess what, there were fifty-five large merchant ships entering and exiting the port that day!"
"Oh, God, what kind of scene would that be?"
Hearing what one representative said, Mr. Bennett, who made his fortune in shipping, expressed emotion. In comparison, Franklin Harbor could not get a few merchant ships in a week in the past. However, recently, with Government Affairs Council vigorously supporting industry and commerce, the port has gradually gained vitality. He hopes that it can become as prosperous as Jiaowan.
"Niceburg's market brings together goods from all over the world. Except for specialties that are difficult to store, any goods you can imagine can be bought there."
A factory owner who built a porcelain factory asked doubtfully, "Do you even have porcelain? We haven't been producing porcelain here for a long time."
Another representative showed a resentful look. He put his hand on his mouth and whispered, "I'll tell you something."
Seeing how careful he was, everyone moved their heads towards him.
The representative whispered, "Porcelain has appeared in Jiaowan. Our lord has quietly started business with Jiaowan. The partner is Foster Family, who occupies a seat on the Horn Bay Alliance's council."
"What, it turns out that Lord Greiman has been online with that party for a long time? He didn't even tell us."
"I saw a unique caravan when I was in Lakeheart Town. Their clothes were completely foreign in style. They couldn't be those of the Foster Family."
"Then they should have come from overland. This is really far away. It would take more than two months to go back and forth. They also have to pass through the rebel territory in the south."
"With the Foster Family's status and power, all countries have to give Royal Family some face. Presumably Grand Duke Greedy Wolf will not make things difficult for the Foster Family's caravan, unless he doesn't want to do business with his southern neighbors."
The businessmen were talking a lot, and they were very surprised that Arda and Jiaowan already had trade links.
The representative continued, "However, I have only seen decorative porcelain in the headquarters of a chamber of commerce. I have never seen porcelain for sale on the market. It must be that the land transportation capacity is too small. It was sold out as soon as it was shipped to Jiaowan, and the supply exceeded demand. Besides, the output of Earl Greiman's porcelain factory is not very large."
The factory owner just now looked excited. "So if I can transport the goods to Jiaowan, I will definitely make a lot of money?"
"Of course, the wealth of the Jiaowan people is not comparable to that of the poor here. Northwest Region is so rich that even the nobles are dying. Oh! I mean the nobles except Lord Greiman."
The businessman representatives who had gone out for a walk and met the world were a little bit arrogant in their words, but these words aroused the endless reverie of many businessmen, and many people had the idea of investing in the porcelain industry.
"Where's the salt?"
Under the technical guidance of Government Affairs Council, salt merchant Godwin Toby visited several salt-drying factories. What he was most concerned about was whether his salt could be sold at a good price in Jiaowan.
"The prospects for table salt are also great. The salt there is boiled just like we did before, and it's extremely expensive."
"Okay! Great!"
Godwin's eyes were shining, as if countless gold coins were about to fall from the sky and hit him on the head.
After the businessmen eagerly discussed the good scenarios of the future, they all found that they had forgotten the most important issue-the issue of transportation capacity.
"How to transport the goods there?"
"Of course it's the kind of ship invented by Earl Greiman that is driven entirely by wind, just like the Hope and the South."
"Although Lord Greiman has stated that it will sell this kind of ship to the private sector, it seems that the shipyard's production capacity is not very sufficient."
The transportation of goods is really a headache. There is no need to think about the land route. They don't have the influence of the Foster Family. They will definitely be exhausted by the many checkpoints along the way.
So everyone came to the shipyard director Rubin and surrounded him.
"Director Rubin, what is the current production plan of the shipyard? When will it be able to accept private orders?"
Although he knew that the businessmen couldn't wait, Rubin had no choice. He said helplessly, "Oh, this is really difficult to handle. At present, we have to prioritize meeting the navy's warship needs."
Just when the businessmen were disappointed, a voice sounded.
"We can make use of a shipyard to build civilian ships."
Everyone looked back and saw that it was Navy Commander Austin.
The businessmen were all surprised. "Is it true, Lord Commander?"
"Of course it's true, but... cough!"
Austin coughed heavily.
"The Navy plans to establish a school to teach navigation knowledge in order to train a large number of qualified sailors. Of course, it is not just for the military. The trainees can also find jobs in the private sector."
"This is a good thing!" the businessmen praised.
"It's just about the school's space and expenses..."
"Leave it to us, Master Austin, it's on us, isn't it just a school?"
Immediately, some people patted their chests and asked Austin to solve the problem, and other people who were a little slower also agreed.
"You are all so kind-hearted. For the sake of your willingness, our navy has given up a dock specifically for the construction of merchant ships."
The businessmen smiled happily and toasted to Austin one after another.
The shipyard manager Rubin on the side took out his handkerchief to wipe his sweat. Earl Greiman had originally decided to allocate part of the shipyard's production capacity to build private commercial ships, but Mr. Commander asked him to sing a double act.
Austin was secretly happy while exchanging glasses with the merchants.
He proposed to Paul to establish a maritime school, but Government Affairs Council happened to not be able to allocate too much funds at that time, so the two came up with this idea.
He decided to see if he could strike while the iron was hot.
"Gentlemen, maybe you can raise funds to build a technical school to train shipbuilding craftsmen!"
What makes Austin happy is that his proposal once again won the approval of everyone.
Of course, the shipyard director Rubin was happier than him.