Sons' Answers

Nagaril is very poor.

Before addressing this question, there's another one: how poor is considered very poor? In Nagaril, at least 20 to 30 percent of the population never owns a single banknote from birth to death.

It's difficult to calculate how much an average person earns in a year because most of their income comes from bartering, which involves exchanging goods and necessities that are quickly consumed in their daily lives.

So much so that at the end of the year, their homes might only have some extra food, a couple more pieces of clothing, or a solid patch for the leaky roof. That's all, that's all.

However, the ruling class lived a life comparable to that of the Upper Class in some developed countries, a life of extravagance and debauchery. The fact that the Provincial Governor had a table with gold trim showed how wealthy he was.

Not only was he very rich, but the businessmen who served the ruling class were also very rich.

Aside from not having absolute power, they have actually become part of the Nagaril ruling class, and some of them are even more powerful than the lower-level rulers.

For example, the largest trading company in Nagaril, "Preton Merchant House," was owned by Mr. Preton, who had close personal relationships with most of the Provincial Governor.

Every year, the rulers here import various goods and industrial equipment from abroad through Mr. Preton's connections. The more people rely on him, the greater the influence he can derive from temporary power.

People can't live without him, but they also hate him. He's like a vampire, sucking blood like crazy. For example, a luxury car that costs less than 100,000 Federal Sol in the country of origin, he just has to ship it to Nagaril, and the ruling class has to pay at least 300,000 to 400,000 Federal Sol soles for it.

But people can't do without him, for a simple reason: there are many things that only Mr. Preton has access to, and he also has considerable influence at sea.

Even a hundred years from now, people will not be able to eradicate piracy, let alone now.

Many pirate groups of all kinds roam the vast ocean, some of which are said to have some connection with Mr. Preton. Apart from Mr. Preton's merchant ships and some other merchants' ships, it is difficult for ordinary merchants' ships to enter Nagaril.

This also means that if people want to import things from abroad, especially things with huge profits, they can't avoid these merchants.

Even if the rulers of Nagaril established their own channels, they could very well be robbed and sunk at sea.

Deploying troops to provide escort?

This is a good idea. Let's not discuss whether foreign ports and waters allow Nagaril's warships to approach and dock, or whether the cost of deploying warships is higher than the merchants' quotes, or even whether they are a match for pirates. The energy consumption alone is enough to give them a headache for a while.

Nagaril does indeed have abundant Mineral Deposit resources, but these resources have not been developed, including an oil field that they have actually discovered.

When the exploration team discovered an Oil Field hidden deep in the jungle, their first thought was to develop it across borders. The team Team Leader did not consider letting the local indigenous people develop it, but instead chose to contact the country and try to use political influence, whether by coercion or bribery, to obtain the right to exploit the Oil Field.

Before the plan was even finalized, it was leaked out. After an emergency consultation between the Central Government and the Provincial Governor of the Nagaril United Kingdom, a man-made accident was staged. The exploration team was unexpectedly attacked by a wild beast and ultimately perished in its belly.

To prove this, Nagaril officials also dispatched a search and rescue team and successfully captured the predators that attacked them, dissecting them to retrieve some remains that could prove their identity.

From this point onward, Nagaril refused entry Nagaril scientific exploration teams to conduct mineral exploration. They were unable to protect their underground Mineral Deposit, and these Mineral Deposit could even lead to the loss of power for the ruling class, so they simply refused to give others the opportunity.

If no one mines, there won't be any problems. Foreign countries have always been very confident that there may be rich Mineral Deposit resources here, but no one will take it seriously until something is actually discovered.

Given the lack of cooperation from the Nagaril Central Government, the capitalists will not incite their home countries to go to war with Nagaril, especially against a theocratic state, based on uncertainties.

One characteristic of theocratic states is that when people call upon the name of the gods, the timid and cowardly natives in the face of cannons instantly become incredibly brave and fearless.

Mineral Deposit resource development requires venturing deep into the jungle and occupying territory, which means that even if they manage to conquer some areas, the situation will eventually deteriorate.

The sheer number of suicide attacks people launch is enough to drive everyone crazy, unless they can wipe out all the believers.

No one would drag a country into a protracted war of occupation and defense for some uncertain resources.

The lack of its own Oil Field means that Nagaril's military equipment and energy are dependent on imports.

So even if Nagaril's not-so-powerful warships were to be deployed, they would first have to purchase some oil from Mr. Preton Mr. Preton reduce their dependence on him...

Okay, this is all nonsense. Instead of such a complicated process, it would be better to just satisfy their demands for benefits, which would save some trouble.

The ruling class both disliked and couldn't do without these merchants, which is why the second son of the Governor Degra wanted Lin Qi to fight against them.

If Lin Qi wins and Mr. Preton loses, then some of the existing rules will disappear with Mr. Preton's departure. Lin Qi has grown from a provincial merchant to a large national trading company in just a few years or even decades, which is a win for the local rulers.

If Lin Qi loses, there will be no loss for the rulers. They can directly "confiscate" Lin Qi's local assets, and Mr. Preton will also suffer losses in the struggle with Lin Qi, and his attitude will soften considerably.

From the perspective of the Provincial Governor's second son, this was the best choice; no matter what they chose, they would be the winners.

The Provincial Governor, sitting behind his desk with his eyes half-closed, was thinking rapidly. He hesitated, his reason telling him that this was not a good choice.

Over the years, he has seen through the true nature of those businessmen. They are no different from Spotted Wolf on the grasslands: greedy, treacherous, cunning, brutal, and cold-blooded. They are not interested in anything except profit.

Every few years, Wolf Pack will have an internal struggle. When a group of young wolves grow up, they will challenge the Wolf King. After the Wolf King fails, a new Wolf King will emerge, and the number of Wolf Pack and their territory will continue to expand accordingly until they encounter another group of Spotted Wolf.

Eventually, these Spotted Wolf will gather into a larger and more terrifying group, as will the merchants.

From their initial struggles for trade rights and even naval battles, they have now formed a close and cooperative relationship after eliminating destabilizing factors. They are no different from wolves.

Throwing Lin Qi into this Wolf Pack is not a good idea, because he is not an ordinary wolf, and he is likely to cause a series of unpredictable problems, just like this time when he was asked to express his opinion.

No one knew before that he would eventually throw the problem back at them, turning it into trouble for those who set the questions.

The Provincial Governor shook his head, then looked up at the third son, "And you?"

The second brother's smile froze instantly, while the eldest brother, whose expression had been rather unpleasant, suddenly smiled and even comforted his younger brother. In an instant, he changed his demeanor and became a good older brother.

The third brother is younger than the other two, and he has also studied abroad, so his understanding of developed countries far surpasses that of his two older brothers.

He calmly countered the Provincial Governor's question with a question, "Why don't we choose to cooperate with Lin Qi?" He then began to explain his thoughts in detail, "These businessmen and capitalists, their ultimate goal is nothing more than to make more money. We can give them benefits, but they also have to provide corresponding returns."

"He wants an exclusive license, fine, but our conditions can't be limited to how much money he has in the bank, but rather how much return he gives us."

"Father, with money, everything is easier. And once we reach a cooperation agreement with Lin Qi, Mr. Preton and his ilk will treat Lin Qi as an enemy, because if Lin Qi stands with us, they can't possibly be on our side!"

The Provincial Governor looked at his usually unassuming third son with some surprise. His words might not fully reflect the Provincial Governor's thoughts, but they were very close.

He nodded slightly, which made the eldest and second eldest brothers look at the third brother with hostility. The third brother, however, smiled shyly, as if trying to please his two older brothers.

The Provincial Governor then looked at his two remaining sons. There was nothing to say about them; the three men had already said everything that needed to be said, and it would have been better if they hadn't said anything at this point. The more they said, the more mistakes they would make, which would only make the Provincial Governor think they were extremely incompetent.

The Provincial Governor was well aware of the choice between his two sons, and he did not criticize them. Sometimes, in families like this, the order of birth is really important.

After pausing for a while, he sighed, "You caused this mess, so you should be the ones to put an end to it. I don't want to know how you did it; I just want to see the result!"

Ultimately, he decided to leave the choice of what to do to his sons.

It was precisely because of this attempt to let them handle these matters that he unexpectedly discovered that his third brother was more intelligent than his two older brothers. So he decided to let them do what they wanted, hoping for some unexpected surprises.

As for what if things fall apart, he can calmly step in and clean up the mess.

I forgot to mention the note in the previous chapter: Sedolas is a little Easter egg that probably not many people know. It's a place name in Dragon Raja, not the one in Jiangnan's book, but the one in Lee Young-do's Korean Dragon Raja. It's also the name of a map in the game Dragon Raja Online, and a memory that hasn't faded even after twenty years.

In the name of the red rose and the righteous Orem

In the name of Edbroe, the Cosmos and the Great Storm