Free Web NovelChapter 409: Chapter 406: Bundled Rental and Sale
The fields outside Kempson began to crawl with large, four-legged, iron-plated spiders. They were used to reclaim new land, equipped with shovel-like pincers on their fronts that could till the soil and uproot trees at the same time.
Viewed from the sky, it was a swarm of bizarre, four-legged insects devouring the land, turning the boundless verdant green of spring into dark brown soil, ready for sowing.
Even when it came to controlling these new agricultural machines, Rorschach ran into a cost problem. The Tower Spirit was currently in the Boundary Land, and for it to control these large machines, each cultivator needed a core to act as a terminal. On top of that, an additional computational unit was required to reduce the Tower Spirit’s burden.
That’s right, they also consumed computing power, especially now that the Tower Spirit was controlling armies in the factories and the fields.
In the end, it was Caroline who offered a solution: "The function of the so-called ’computing core’ has shifted from being a container for an Artificial Soul to a ’terminal’ for the Tower Spirit to manifest from the Boundary Land.
"Therefore, you don’t need to create a complete core for every receiver. Instead, you should approach it from the perspective of constructing Ritual Magic and design an abstract system to connect with the Tower Spirit."
Using symbols and simplified sigils to invoke the law of similarity was something the Order Church often did. Mages in the past would also borrow power this way, but after the great extinction event in the Symbolic Realm, this craft gradually fell out of favor.
Practical needs now forced Rorschach to reconsider this approach. Under Caroline’s guidance, and after communicating with Kano via telegraph, he developed a new "terminal." It was a schematic diagram of the computing core’s architecture, sketched out with circuits. A special wiring method was used to arrange them into a shape that, viewed as a whole, resembled a continuously branching tree.
The external computational units were still necessary, but costs could be further reduced by installing them only on a master unit, which would then control the other Mechanical Bodies around it.
These were all technical challenges. Getting these large machines on the ground to replace draft horses and plow oxen would require extensive promotion from Rorschach. Step one: a new company was officially established—the Zwillinger Agricultural and Commercial Society. Step two: parceling out the reclaimed land to the refugees.
Previously, most of the refugees had already been organized and put to work in factories. A small number became tenant farmers, but since they had arrived as winter was setting in, the only work they could do was manage the pastures for wealthy farm owners and Lords.
And now, another blessing was upon the refugees! Once the agricultural Mechanical Bodies finished reclaiming the land, all refugees could claim a plot. Why "claim"? Because no upfront payment was required. All costs, from reclamation and seeds to subsequent fertilizer, were charged to the Agricultural and Commercial Society’s account, to be paid off with grain at harvest time.
If the harvest was good and the grain debt was paid off, the land would belong to the person who claimed it, and the Special Zone’s Autonomous Committee would issue a property title recognized by the Kingdom. If these "debts" couldn’t be paid, no aggressive collection agencies would come knocking; Rorschach would simply repossess the land.
Such favorable terms were practically like getting land for free. It wasn’t just the refugees; even local residents were clamoring for the right to cultivate. Although the reclamation wasn’t finished and the specific plan had yet to be finalized, people everywhere were making inquiries, and even Manor Lords from other regions wanted to come and claim land.
A joint meeting was now being held in Kempson. Frei, the Half-Elf and first president of the Zwillinger Agricultural and Commercial Society, was in attendance, along with Andre from the Steel Factory, Gao Pei from the Refining Factory, and Horn of Basif.
"My Lord, the repayment quota you’ve set is too high. Based on harvests from previous years, I’m afraid it’s unattainable." Frei, who had farming experience, was stunned when he saw Rorschach’s draft proposal. By Rorschach’s standards, even if the farmers who took on the reclaimed land worked themselves to death, their entire harvest would be needed just to clear the debt. If they failed, it would all have been for nothing.
"If the small-scale farmers don’t want to do it, there are plenty of major players who will." Horn was familiar with the middle class of the Bayern Kingdom, and he spoke from experience. "For an ordinary farmer, it’s impossible to treat this new land as a place to settle down and build a life. But for the major players, it’s a worthwhile investment.
"We cover everything—from land reclamation and seeds to the cultivating Mechanical Bodies and artificial fertilizers. The major players only need one season’s harvest to purchase the title to the land. Where else could they find a deal that good?"
Gao Pei and Andre chimed in, "The farming equipment and fertilizer we’re providing now are already at a loss."
Rorschach was offering an all-inclusive service, from reclamation to follow-up support. It was foreseeable that for Manor Lords desperate for land, who only needed to provide the labor, they would gladly subsidize the difference with their own money and grain, even if the harvest didn’t meet Rorschach’s requirements, just to secure the new land.
Rorschach hadn’t fully considered these points when drafting the plan. If it were implemented as is, while there would seemingly be no barrier to entry for claiming land, it would quickly turn into a feeding frenzy of acquisitions by the major players.
"First, we need to introduce purchase limits, to at least let the refugees have priority in getting land. Second, we need to adjust the repayment plan, reducing the collection rate for the first year and offering three, five, or even ten-year contracts.
"However, our agreements with the Special Zone, the Royal Family, and the City Hall are still in effect, so the amount of grain we have to collect cannot be small. This means we can’t lower the rate too much. Moreover, we need to run a publicity campaign to make the small-scale farmers believe that:
"Toiling away on their own, their harvest won’t be enough to buy out the land. But by using our agricultural Mechanical Bodies, our artificial fertilizers, and accepting guidance from the Agricultural and Commercial Society, they can have a bountiful harvest and pay off the credit extended to them by the Society."
There was a cruel truth to it all. The "industrialization" Rorschach was creating could increase agricultural yields, but it would only take the farmers from being half-starved to mostly fed. The lion’s share of the increase had to be taken away to feed the ever-growing non-agricultural population.
He added, "For the local farmers, we also need to promote the new agricultural tools and artificial fertilizers. Spring planting is almost here. We can have them start by applying base fertilizer and planting on the land that was previously left fallow."
With chemical fertilizer, simply eliminating the practice of leaving land fallow could double the yield. As for issues like soil compaction, salinization, acidification, or the eutrophication of water bodies... if Rorschach didn’t mention them, no one here was advanced enough to realize them.
Andre frowned. "Right now, draft horses have been requisitioned by the army, and laborers have also enlisted. The resulting labor shortage should make the rollout of our Mechanical Bodies go smoothly, but the fertilizer... I don’t think everyone will accept it immediately. After all, it’s the first time they’ve seen it. Most people will have their doubts."
"Then we’ll run a good publicity campaign to eliminate those doubts." Rorschach’s inner profiteer was burning brightly. "Also, we’ll use bundled deals. If they want to rent a Mechanical Body to plow their fields, they must buy our fertilizer. The policy is the same—they can use their future harvest to pay off the debt."
After the meeting, Andre had one last question. "Teacher, why not just let the new Agricultural and Commercial Society take charge of everything? There’s no need to transfer property rights. The Society could just hire the refugees to do the farming."
"Heh," Rorschach chuckled. "If you do that, where does it leave His Majesty the King?" If Rorschach had been granted a fief, he could have done that, but for now, business had to be conducted as business. Besides, Rorschach didn’t particularly care about the land itself; it was more important to give the refugees a space to put down roots.
