Chapter 108: Project 666
Translator: Cinder Translations
...
TL Note: 666 is a Chinese internet slang for "Awesome" or "Amazing"
A crowd gathered on the beach to watch the maiden voyage of the new ship, including Bennett Todd and several of his merchant friends.
He asked his friends around him, "Did you all see that clearly? It seems that ship doesn't even have a single oar."
"You're not mistaken. Indeed, it has no oars at all; it relies entirely on wind power," confirmed the salt merchant Gedwyn.
"I wonder if Lord Grayman's summoning of us this time is related to this ship."
"What?"
"Lord Grayman previously mentioned establishing a deep-sea trading company, but at that time, there were no suitable ships for long voyages. It was shelved, and now such a ship has been built."
"But we still don't know its performance."
The merchants discussed fervently on the beach.
...
In the afternoon, the town hall once again convened merchants from Port Frand and its surrounding areas. Sure enough, Earl Grayman mentioned the deep-sea trade again.
"After the completion of the second ship, I will conduct a deep-sea trial voyage!" Paul announced to the merchants.
"The tentative destination will be Balmo Port within the kingdom's borders. If possible, we will continue south to Angle Bay."
Balmo Port is located at the mouth of the kingdom's largest river, the Senna River, from where one can sail upstream all the way to the capital, Crystal Glare.
Soon, someone asked, "Lord Grayman, will your ships be available for sale to us private merchants?"
"Of course, the more you buy, the happier I'll be. However, it must meet the needs of the military first. We must have a strong navy to ensure the safety of the routes. You wouldn't want to encounter pirates at sea, would you?"
"You can now place orders at the shipyard; first come, first served!"
"Hansel, the supervisor from the Ministry of Affairs, will soon depart for the capital. You can go on your own or send representatives with him to explore the market situation in the south."
Upon hearing this, the merchants were excited, eager to make their move.
Under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Affairs, Alden and Byerldine now have over a dozen private factories emerging with Paul's technological support. They operate either independently or in joint ventures, producing goods such as paper, porcelain, and canned goods. Several salt fields have also been established along the coast, causing local and neighboring territories' salt prices to decrease.
Certainly, these private entrepreneurs invested heavily, eagerly hoping to expand their market scope.
To Paul's surprise, when he "invented" canned goods, he followed the information in his memory which suggested using wide-mouth glass bottles. However, the private producers actually switched to ceramic jars, significantly reducing costs.
This was indeed a remarkable "innovation," demonstrating the terrifying profit motive of merchants.
To prevent his own canned goods factory from being eliminated, he ordered the use of ceramic jars for producing canned goods as well.
...
While Paul painted a rosy picture for the merchants, a military meeting was underway in the heavily guarded naval base.
Present were Chief of Staff Schroeder, Navy Commander Austin, Equipment Minister Kelly, Logistics Minister Ron, and recently arrived Army Company Commander Bryce in Port Frand.
"Chief of Staff, this is the development outline we've drafted."
Respectfully, Austin handed a stack of papers to Schroeder, who examined them carefully.
He furrowed his brow and passed the outline around for the others to review.
Bryce, the first to receive it, glanced over and said in a somewhat trembling voice, "Is the navy's appetite too large?"
"Expanding to 600 personnel within the next two years?"
"Sixty guns of various sizes?"
"At least equipping six wind-sail warships?"
Bryce slammed the table, quite displeased. "Austin, are you kidding me? Right now, the entire army has only eight functioning cannons."
Austin pointed out to him, "You need to look closely. Among these 60 guns, many are smaller pieces like swivel guns."
Bryce shook his head. "Even so, that's too many!"
"This is the result of careful consideration. It's already quite conservative. 600 personnel, 60 guns, 6 warships—summarized as the '666 Plan.'"
He explained to everyone, "Lord Grayman has ordered the navy to quickly open southern sea routes and ensure their security. With just a few oar-sail ships, armed with swords and a handful of muskets, how can we eliminate the various large and small pirates along the way?"
"The navy must ensure that at any given time, there are 4 ships on patrol, 1 ship undergoing training, and 1 ship under maintenance."
Bryce asked, "Training is understandable, but why do newly built ships need maintenance?"
"It's absolutely necessary!"
Austin patiently explained to the group of landlubbers, "Building a qualified warship takes a long time. However, to equip quickly, our first batch of warships will inevitably be rushed. For example, the Hope took just over a month to build, with many parts of the wood not properly seasoned. This leads to rapid corrosion of the hull, hence the need for frequent maintenance. Of course, even for those ships that meet standards, regular maintenance is necessary."
"And what about this 'land force' business? Don't we already have our army?"
"It's essential to have a contingent skilled in land combat. Pirates aren't foolish enough to float on the sea and let us bombard them with cannons. If they sense danger, they're likely to flee to land, either on islands or coastal bases. We must go ashore to eliminate them. Alerting the army later could delay action and miss opportunities."
One by one, reasons flowed from the Navy Commander's mouth, leaving everyone speechless. Finally, he added,
"I believe you all understand the urgent need for Alden in deep-sea trade now. Once trade begins, the Ministry of Affairs will collect more taxes, which can then allocate more military funding to us."
"Not just for the navy, but for the army too."
The last statement painted a very promising future.
After pondering for a while, Schroeder said to Austin, "In principle, I agree with this plan, but ultimately, it requires Lord Grayman's approval. The current resource allocation is already heavily biased towards the navy. The army, with over a thousand personnel, has only 8 cannons, while the navy, with only a few hundred, has 10 cannons. Many army officers have strong objections to this."
Austin glanced at the still disgruntled Bryce and thought to himself, "There's one right in front of me."
"Even facing the threat of Emden, this bias hasn't changed. Many soldiers in the newly expanded Third Battalion are equipped with nothing more than wooden sticks. Fortunately, for now, the Kent family has no immediate plans to act."
Schroeder stared at Austin, emphasizing each word, "Therefore, the navy must produce convincing results."
Austin stood up, saluted everyone present, and said firmly,
"Please rest assured, my Lord, Chief of Staff, and all present. We are already cooperating with the Intelligence Department to investigate and compile information on all pirate groups. Soon, we will take action. I promise that within a year, the Northwestern Bay will be under our exclusive armed control."
Schroeder stood up and patted Austin on the shoulder. "Very well. To support naval operations, the Equipment Ministry will establish a new arsenal in Port Frand to provide the necessary guns, ammunition, and various other weapons."
This was truly good news, and Austin exclaimed excitedly, "We will not disappoint Lord Grayman's high expectations."
(End of the Chapter)
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