The weather had turned chilly again. Talanji wrapped her coat tightly around herself and stood in the harbor tower, gazing out at the coast.
Forty-seven warships of the King's Fleet lined up in a row as imperial soldiers and civilians from the city carried supplies into their holds.
The Troll Lords refused to sell supplies to the army, so Talanji spent an entire month purchasing them directly from the people of Zuldazar.
During that process, Talanji established her own trading caravans, which gradually replaced the trading organizations belonging to the nation's Troll Lords.
The Troll Lords had never expected public sentiment to shift so quickly. The people not only refused to supply goods to the merchants' guilds, but also regarded their regional leaders with hostility.
The lords were overwhelmed, all complaining that this crop of suckers was no good.
When you worked for us before, weren't you serving the imperial royal family just the same?
Now Talanji throws you a few scraps, and you turn against us, saying we squeezed the labor out of commoners and skimmed off your earnings. How can you even say that?
The imperial commoners are utterly foolish. They actually believe the royal family's lies, never realizing that the Zandalar Royal Family is even more ruthless about bleeding people dry.
What a fine trick-using us, then tossing us aside once we're no longer needed.
Unfortunately, they had already lost the battle for public opinion. Nothing the Troll Lords said mattered now.
Besides, Princess Talanji's policies genuinely put the means of production into the commoners' hands.
Ordinary people had little education, but they could feel their lives slowly improving. As long as they were willing to work, they had something to look forward to.
At this point, the clever lords were already preparing to switch sides. They