Visiting

Ferdinand did not stay long in the city of Vratsa, setting out on his journey again the very next day.

Koinare village in the Vratsa region was, at this time, nothing more than an ordinary, impoverished, and backward little mountain hamlet, bearing not a trace of its future reputation as the premier village of Bulgaria.

Ferdinand had concealed his identity, arriving quietly with a few guards in tow. It was already midday when he entered the village's only establishment, a place that served as a grocery store, a tavern, and a restaurant all in one.

Through casual conversation, Ferdinand learned that the owner was a man in his forties named Carter Dilov. It was clear that he was an optimist, despite the fact that business at his small shop was far from thriving.

Ferdinand instructed his guards to order their own meals, while he requested a serving of yogurt, a piece of bread, and a local salad made of onions, green peppers, celery, and spring bamboo shoots to serve as his lunch.

As for the taste, it was best left unsaid! Ferdinand could barely force it down; the only seasonings were salt and jam, and aside from the guarantee that everything was organic, he could not detect a single hint of culinary merit.

After managing a few bites to settle his stomach, Ferdinand could not help but ask, "Mr. Carter, is there nothing else available here?"

Upon hearing Ferdinand's inquiry, Carter Dilov hurriedly replied, "Oh, God! Respected guest, of course there is! Look, these snacks were all brought back from Vratsa by my son! What would you like? We have ham, sausages, canned goods, and even potato chips..."

Ferdinand asked with a puzzled expression, "Wait, Carter, if you have so much stock, why don't you put it out for sale? It would be simple enough to just write a few names on a wooden board!"

The proprietor immediately answered, "Oh, my apologies! Respected guest, you are clearly well-traveled and must know that not long ago, the entire country of Bulgaria launched a crackdown on food safety, and now the prices for these goods have all gone up!"

"Our village of Koinare is just a small place, and everyone here is a pauper. Even before, few could afford these things, and now, they can afford them even less."

"This batch of goods was ordered over three months ago. When I tried to explain the price hikes to them, they didn't believe me and accused me of lying. In a fit of anger, I just took them off the shelves!"

"Carter, you're lying again. How could prices double in one go? I went to Vratsa when I was a young man. There are poor folk in the city too, and their lives aren't much better than ours. At your prices, they'd all starve to death!" an old man of about sixty among the customers spoke up.

The old man was quite spirited, and though his clothes were slightly worn, they were clean, tidy, and free of patches. Ferdinand could tell that his standard of living was likely quite decent.

Proprietor Carter wore an expression of utter grievance as he said, "Mr. Frank, you know me! When have I, Carter, ever told a lie? The price really is that high. If you don't believe me, ask this gentleman here!"

The old man named Frank rolled his eyes and said, "I certainly know what you were like before, but things are different now! You've changed since you started doing business. How many merchants are there who don't lie?"

Seeing that Frank refused to believe him, Carter grew anxious and began hopping about. Ferdinand, having grasped the cause and effect, took a can of beef, checked the production date, and immediately understood.

Ferdinand smiled and said, "Mr. Frank, you have truly wronged Mr. Carter this time!"

Frank looked at Ferdinand with a blank expression; he was trying to help the man, so why was he being told he was the one in the wrong?

Ferdinand continued, "Judging by the production date on this, it was manufactured six months ago. If Mr. Carter bought it three months ago, it was worth that price. At the time, many substandard goods were being seized from the market, and there were shortages everywhere, which drove prices up."

Frank still asked with some doubt, "Sir, according to you, have the prices outside really risen that much?"

Ferdinand said calmly, "No! I am speaking of three months ago. The market has since returned to normal, and the overall price increase should not exceed ten percent!"

Proprietor Carter said excitedly, "Mr. Frank, you should believe me now! I really wasn't lying to you!"

Frank turned his head away and said dismissively, "Oh, God! Carter, you really are a fool! Didn't you hear the gentleman? That was the price three months ago; it has returned to normal now! The fact that you are still selling at that price only proves your own incompetence!"

Proprietor Carter said agitatedly, "But my wholesale cost was that high! If I lower the price, I'll lose money!"

Frank laughed and said, "That's your problem. Isn't it normal to lose money in business? By the way, you'd better find a way to sell them quickly, or just keep them to eat yourself, otherwise it will be a disaster if they expire!"

Watching the exchange between the two, Ferdinand realized that Frank had no real grudge against Carter; he simply disliked merchants in general. Even though his words were harsh, he was still reminding Carter to clear his stock.

Ferdinand smiled and asked, "Mr. Frank, how was your village's harvest last year?"

Frank laughed and said, "Guest, you're joking! It was the same as always, just enough to get by!"

Ferdinand asked with confusion, "Isn't there a push for new agricultural technology? Why hasn't there been an increase in production?"

Proprietor Carter interjected, "How could there not be an increase? It's just that some people find it troublesome and didn't bother to learn, so..."

Frank seemed to have had his sore spot touched. "Go on, Carter, this is none of your business!"

"Forgive me, guest. You know that agricultural reform doesn't happen overnight. I'm an old man with a timid heart, and the technicians sent from above didn't explain things clearly, so I decided to wait and see!"

Ferdinand smiled and said, "I understand. That is simply being cautious and prudent! By the way, I noticed you seem to lack irrigation channels here. How do you handle agricultural water needs?"

Upon hearing Ferdinand's question, Frank said with a helpless expression, "What else can we do? God be praised, we've had favorable weather for the last few years! The irrigation channels you speak of aren't so simple to build! Don't look at our current situation as decent; to solve the water problem, the sheer scale of the engineering is something we simply cannot afford!"

Ferdinand nodded solemnly and continued to ask, "If the government were to step in and organize it, would you be willing to participate?"

Frank smiled and said, "Guest, you're joking. If the government were willing to take the lead, how could we refuse? I don't know about other places, but in our village alone, if the agricultural water issue were solved, we could reclaim at least another third of our land!"

Ferdinand nodded with satisfaction. Since the public was willing to support it, the subsequent water conservancy project plan could be set in motion.

Frank's expression suddenly changed, and he asked in surprise, "Guest, are you a government official?"

"Why? Do I not look like one?" Ferdinand countered.

Frank hurriedly said, "You do! So, is it true? There are rumors that the government is going to organize water conservancy projects—is that true?"

Ferdinand nodded and said, "That plan does indeed exist!"

Frank asked with great joy, "God be praised, can it start from our side?"

"What's this, old man? I thought you were timid? Not going to 'wait and see' this time?" Ferdinand teased.

Frank exclaimed, "God, oh no! What risk is there in building water conservancy projects? We won't be the ones losing out, anyway!"

"Besides, our lives have been much better in the last year or two! His Highness the Grand Duke is doing a fine job; taxes are much lighter than before. When they were building the railway, we were forced to provide labor, but later that was actually canceled and turned into voluntary recruitment, which naturally eased the pressure on everyone!"

Ferdinand smiled, acknowledging the sentiment, though he felt quite pleased internally, thinking, I was the one who laid all that out, so of course I know! You think I didn't want to use free labor? It was only because there were water projects coming up later! Since labor is needed regardless, letting you participate voluntarily is better than forced conscription!

Ferdinand said jokingly, "However, Frank, you won't be able to run away this time. The principle for this water conservancy project is that the government provides the explosives and some of the machinery, but the remaining manual labor will have to be provided by you yourselves!"

Frank's expression stiffened, but then he laughed and said, "That's no problem. The labor required for water conservancy projects across all of Bulgaria is an astronomical figure. Aside from everyone pitching in together, I can't think of any other way!"

"Not bad. The Ministry of Agriculture estimates that completing the national water conservancy projects will require hundreds of millions of man-days. Even if every able-bodied person in the country were to join in, it would still take several years of labor. In this regard, aside from your own efforts, there is little the government can do!" Ferdinand said cautiously.

"That many?" Carter exclaimed.

Frank glared at Carter and said, "Don't make such a fuss! We have it relatively good here; if everything goes smoothly, I estimate it will take a year or two to finish. In places with worse conditions, it wouldn't be strange if it took eight or ten years!"

After the conversation ended, Ferdinand declined Frank's invitation and left directly.

To a certain extent, Bulgaria and the Chinese people are somewhat similar; both are rather home-oriented and place great importance on land.

Even in later generations, they would not leave their hometowns to work elsewhere unless forced by necessity.

After merchants made their fortunes, many loved to return home to buy fields and land. Frank was a microcosm of Bulgaria's small landowners and wealthy farmers.