Free Web NovelChapter 248: Negotiating with the Count
After taking a few deep breaths to try to settle his fraying nerves, Mathias began going over everything that had just been said in his office, and soon calmed down.
Count Carlson knew his grandmother was no fool; in fact, she was the one who taught him basically everything he knew about governance and ruling, things she was intimately familiar with having been the longest serving Count in their family’s history.
Suffice-it-to-say, there was no way Elizabeth Carlson, of all people, didn’t know what kind of deleterious effect the evacuation plan presented by this young boy named Lucas would have on both the Carlson Family and their territory as a whole.
Despite that being the case, the Supreme Elder had still decided to put her full weight behind this proposal, even ordering Mathias to cooperate, which could only mean that his grandmother had determined that the cost of refusal would be even higher.
Glancing over at his grandmother, Mathias received a nod from her, basically confirming his speculations.
Count Carlson fell back into his own thoughts, going over the information he had about the current situation while also weighing his own position and that of his family, looking for ways to minimize the anticipated expenses and damage they would soon be facing.
It was a couple minutes later when Mathias finally turned back to Lucas and declared, "The Carlson Family will do everything in its power to facilitate the Marquess’ strategy, but I would like to make a few... proposals, for you to consider."
"Please," Lucas, having expected this to a certain degree, motioned for the Count to continue.
"Firstly, the military units which will eventually be stationed in Iron Rock will exclusively purchase equipment from this city," Mathias stated his first condition, quickly adding, "Maintenance will also need to be performed by our smiths."
Pursing his lips, Lucas thought about it for a moment before stating his own demands, "Equipment for Spirit Realm Cultivators must be exempted, and your smiths will not be allowed to charge more than 10% above average market prices for their goods or services."
Frowning at this sharp counter-proposal, Mathias weighed the pros and cons before eventually nodding, "Agreed."
"Good, then on behalf of my Master and the Raging River Legion, I can agree to this condition," Lucas stated confidently before adding a caveat, "However, you will need to make separate arrangements with the other armies of the kingdom."
"Of course, of course," Count Carlson waved his hand calmly. He knew that this was the best he was going to be able to get without speaking to a representative from the Royal Council directly.
"Secondly," Mathias continued, "The Carlson County needs a written guarantee stating that all grain imports for the next 5 years will be at agreed upon fixed prices."
"The Balfour Family is willing to sign such an agreement and will strongly lobby for grain producers throughout the kingdom to do so as well," Lucas nodded this time without any hesitation, but then narrowed his eyes slightly, "But in exchange, we will require the Carlson Family to pledge to promote agricultural development in its own territory and exempt its farmers from all taxes for the same period of time."
Mathias was pleased hearing the Balfours were going to sell him cheap grain, and even happier when Lucas said they would pressure the other nobles to follow suit, but when the boy followed up with his own ask, the Count couldn’t stop his brow from twitching slightly.
I knew from the start that this brat wasn’t simple, but this... Mathias grumbled to himself but still nodded in the end.
He had already planned to vigorously promote the establishment of new farming villages given that he was about to lose the ones he already had, so that wasn’t an issue. Not being able to collect any taxes from the farmers for 5 years didn’t sit well with him, but it also wasn’t a deal-breaker as the majority of the county’s income came from mining and smithing.
"Is there anything else?" Lucas asked, pulling his negotiating partner out of his own musings.
Count Carlson indeed had a few other proposals to make, but upon seeing the smile of a seasoned merchant across the desk from him, an expression Mathias never dreamed would appear on the face of a boy even younger than his youngest son, he decided it would be better to hold off for now.
Right now, Lucas was an enigma to him, making it difficult for Mathias to know how to bargain with the boy for the best possible outcome. He needed more time to probe his opponent and look for potential weakness to exploit before resuming this negotiation.
Thinking so, the Count lightly shook his head, "Those two are the most important points."
Not forgetting to leave an opening for himself, Mathias quickly added, "However, there may be other, more minor issues we need to discuss in the future."
"I look forward to it," Lucas grinned confidently, all while thinking to himself, He’s indeed like Viscount Moore said, a merchant through and through. Always seeking to make the greatest profit, even in a time of crisis. ƒгeewёbnovel.com
As a matter of fact, there were several proposals Lucas also wanted to make here, some of them related to the evacuation, and some related to his own interests, but he also decided to hold off for the moment.
Not only did he need to get a better grasp of Count Carlson’s personality, he also needed to inspect the level of development in both the mines and forges of Iron Rock. Only after assessing how advanced the Carlson Family’s techniques were could Lucas sell them appropriate suggestions for improvements.
As for where these suggestions would come from, Lucas would be relying on his inherited memories.
Since breaking through to the Third Step Body Tempering and Sea Establishment Realms, Lucas’ inherited memories had become even clearer. It wasn’t to the point where he could instantly recall all the fine details about more complicated subjects, but it was still a significant improvement from a month ago when he was fumbling around in the dark regarding most things.
At this rate, Lucas figured that, at best, when he broke through to the Eighth Step Sea Establishment Realm, or at worst, the Low-Rank Soul Initiate Realm, he would be able to freely access all of the knowledge in his inherited memories like he was accessing a digital database.
That wouldn’t be for several years, though, and Lucas wasn’t going to just sit around waiting, so he needed to start conducting experiments using what he did know. The Carlson Family was the perfect partner in this regard when it came to some of the more industrial projects Lucas had been hoping to initiate.
Seeing the 2 men, or rather the boy and the man, in the office with them, trying to outwit each other, all while wearing such greasy smiles on their faces, the 2 women couldn’t help exchanging a glance and rolling their eyes in exasperation.
Unwilling to let this farce continue, especially when it was clear that the one losing the most face here was her grandson, Elizabeth Carlson loudly cleared her throat, "Ahem, if there is nothing else, we should get to work."
Snapping back to reality, both Lucas and Mathias nodded in agreement, the latter rising from his seat and declaring, "I will call an emergency meeting of the Elders for tonight, where we can finalize the details of the evacuation and distribute the necessary tasks."
"Good," Lucas also rose, "In the mean time, I would like to begin setting up the necessary Evacuation Centres and recruiting people to staff them."
"Certainly," Mathias picked up a bell from his desk and rang it.
A moment later, an old man who appeared to be a steward of some kind entered the office and bowed to the Count and Supreme Elder.
Acknowledging the newcomer, Mathias swiftly ordered, "Jarad, accompany Commander Crest and Young Master Lucas wherever they wish to go and assist them with whatever they need. Use my name if you run into any difficulties or objections." freewebnovёl.ƈom
"Yes, my Lord," the old man named Jarad agreed without question, before turning to Allina and Lucas and bowing, "I am at your service, my Lady, Young Master."
"En. We will be in your care," Lucas nodded before turning back to Mathias, "Until tonight then, Count Carlson."
"Indeed," Mathias flashed a friendly smile, "I will send someone to inform you once the Council has been assembled, Young Master Lucas."
And with that, Lucas and Allina followed Steward Jarad out of the office, leaving Elizabeth and Mathias alone to talk.
