Advice

When Derek saw Adrian arrive with a whole group of farmers, he was indeed quite surprised.

But of course, the more people, the better. In this world, population was also an important resource.

Even if some were disparagingly called two-legged livestock, they were still means of production, weren't they?

"Welcome, Adrian."

Derek quickly showed his trust in Adrian. After all, they were blood relatives. Under the rules of this era, relatives were not necessarily reliable, but they were impossible to avoid.

At the very least, this cousin of his was fairly dependable and had no messy rumors surrounding him.

Moreover, as the son of a village constable, he did not have many resources at his disposal.

He had at least received a basic education, even training in noble etiquette.

He was hardworking and resilient, with no unrealistic ambitions.

Adding a bit of blood relation to that, he really was an excellent helper.

Derek was confident he could keep a subordinate like Adrian under control.

He first gave him a new warhorse and a set of equipment.

Derek opened the panel, and sure enough, Adrian's portrait had appeared on it.

At least in terms of obedience, he was quicker than the other farmers, which showed that he had already prepared himself mentally.

"The place is rather crude, and the conditions are harsh, but we have the basic supplies.

"My business... needs some manpower. You came at just the right time."

Derek first trained the farmers together, then assigned them to the army and the Blacksmith Shop according to their personalities and obedience.

Together with the previous three squads, they formed a total of five squads.

Three squads of spearmen, one squad of swordsmen, and one squad of blade and shield soldiers.

Different types of soldiers actually had subtle differences in their uses.

The Blacksmith Shop was expanded to twenty people at once. Once they had developed their skills, its annual income would be at least a thousand gold coins.

However, the source of iron ore and the sales channels would gradually become new problems.

As for the rest, five men were selected from the previous soldiers to serve as new knight squires.

Including grooms, lower-level managers, and slaves, the small camp had already grown to around a hundred people.

A Mini Manor would not even have this many people.

The output here far surpassed that of a Mini Manor.

Even the Ferrera Family, though it possessed greater potential influence, made only about this much in pure profit.

Of course, after expenses were deducted, the profit would be greatly reduced.

Adrian quickly adapted to his new life. Though it was dull here, Derek paid well, and there was always room for advancement.

Besides, he was temporarily commanding Derek's cavalry. His status was now nothing like before.

He firmly believed that Derek's future would be far greater than that of the other brothers in his family.

As the operation continued to expand, daily weapon production increased, and so did consumption.

They needed three to five hundred jin of iron ore every day. This amount was already difficult to satisfy through scattered purchases.

Some of the small mines nearby only produced that much. Buying too much at once would attract a great deal of attention.

At the rate Derek's men were producing weapons, they could equip a force of a thousand men in a month.

That was already enough to cause market fluctuations. In any case, weapon prices in Watch City had recently dropped slightly.

Adrian also learned of Derek's troubles, and then he offered a very useful suggestion.

"We can't get involved in Watch City's business, but there is one commodity that absolutely no one would refuse."

Adrian pointed at the warhorses pacing back and forth.

"No noble would refuse a fine warhorse.

"In fact, no one would investigate the origins of any warhorses smuggled in.

"If we use them as an opening gift, we may be able to expand our business channels."

The Northern Province was actually one of the regions that produced warhorses. Many nobles and merchants kept a number of warhorses.

Even ordinary riding horses could fetch a good price.

A nag cost only three to five gold coins, while an ordinary riding horse often sold for more than ten gold coins. A Fine Horse capable of serving as a warhorse would cost twice that much.

As for a Superior Warhorse capable of carrying heavy armor, it cost more than sixty or seventy gold coins.

Most cavalrymen, and even knights, actually trained only on riding horses. Very few were truly equipped with warhorses.

And those prices were in the Northern Province. It was said that in the central regions and even the south, prices could double or triple.

Adrian did not know where Derek had obtained such good horses, but with them as an opening gift, they might be able to conduct some business.

After all, nobles and kingdom officials were people too. They inevitably had interests to exchange and favors to request.

Though Derek was familiar with this world's rules, he still ultimately carried the mindset of his previous life.

Although Adrian did not even possess a noble title, he had been exposed to this world's noble politics since childhood. The more he had seen, the more he naturally understood.

The power and political resources held by nobles and kingdom officials were not meant to sit unused. If you could bring them benefits, they would not mind making an exchange.

Derek had always been cautious, not daring to overstep even slightly, but in Adrian's eyes, there was actually plenty of room to maneuver.

"We can start by doing business with the family. If we have warhorses... Eldest Uncle will agree," Adrian suggested.

However, Derek quickly rejected the suggestion. He had a better trading partner in mind.

There was certainly nothing wrong with doing business with the family, but it would have to wait.

Besides, his predecessor had not spent three years in the Earldom for nothing.

He first did the calculations. Raising a low-quality nag to Fine Quality would take roughly nine months.

Labor and feed costs were very low, with feed costing ten copper coins a day. That came to just over one gold coin.

But a nag worth three gold coins could earn more than seventeen gold coins after nine months.

Profit was secondary. More importantly, it could be exchanged for certain resources.

Warhorses were also a scarce resource, so naturally they had value in exchange for other resources.

Looking at the warhorses he had on hand, because of the panel, he had deliberately chosen nags to reduce costs.

Derek had once realized that warhorses could make money, but he had only regarded them as an ordinary business.

He had even felt that the manpower they consumed could create greater value elsewhere.

Several grooms working hard for a year might not earn as much as a single blacksmith, and there were risks involved.

With the panel's cultivation, there was little difference between grooms and blacksmiths to Derek.

That was why he had mainly raised horses for his own use.

Aside from several fine-grade warhorses, he had more than a dozen of ordinary quality.

Fortunately, he could steadily raise three to five fine-grade warhorses each month.

"Sigh, I wasted far too much time. Send people to purchase a batch of riding horses, then assign a few slaves to the grooms."

Derek swiftly adjusted his arrangements. Once this batch of riding horses nearing advancement became fine-quality warhorses, he could make the trip.

That would not take long.