Steel, Guns, and the Industrial Party in Another World

Chapter 398: Formation of the Alliance and the Establishment of the Statistics Committee

TL: Etude

When the directors of Northwest Industries, who were also the group of lords, learned that a business deal worth millions of silver coins was heading their way, they were practically ecstatic with joy.

When Paul had proposed the establishment of Northwest Industries, the lords had joined in with the mentality of making a quick buck on the side. None had anticipated that it would become a significant source of income for them.

They rushed from their respective domains to Lakeheart Town in their carriages, eager to get a glimpse of the generous and mysterious client.

It turned out that the client was from the Horn Bay Alliance and was none other than the eldest son of the Foster family, which was no small matter.

In recent years, led by Alda’s push for foreign trade, the originally closed-off Northwest Bay had gradually begun to engage with the outside world in various aspects, and the lords were well aware of the Foster family’s status within the Horn Bay Alliance.

They sycophantically buttered up, flattered, and the hospitable lords threw round after round of banquets to entertain the Foster brothers.

At a newly built residence in Lakeheart Town by Count Price Parker, a lively dinner party that left all the guests satisfied had just ended. After the guests dispersed, the mansion quieted down.

In the bridge room on the second floor, a few people were still gathered around a table, quietly conversing while playing cards.

These five people were also the five directors with the most influence in Northwest Industries.

Also present in the room was Count Heller’s son, Derrick Heller, who did not join the card table but stood by attending to his father, who had mobility issues.

Paul said while handling the poker cards in his hand, “Gentlemen, with the continuous increase in foreign trade, we can’t just leave the plan for a customs union on paper any longer… Ha ha, I seem to have quite the luck tonight.”

With that, he tossed out a string of consecutive cards.

“I think so too!” Malron quickly agreed, and of course, everyone knew he and Paul were in cahoots.

The others had varied expressions on their faces.

“Hehe! I agree too,” Duke Henry Ferdinand said with a beaming smile. “It’s about time we got that going.”

The Ferdinand family’s primary territory was Manda, known for its various agricultural products. Alda and Baylding’s domain strengths were in different types of manufacturing products, and there was no conflict of interests. The cheap salt and iron tools produced by Alda were in high demand by agricultural territories like Manda, which lacked access to the sea. Without paying tolls to various territories along the way, these goods could be sold at lower prices in Manda. Of course, if they mutually abolished tariffs, they wouldn’t be able to collect tolls within their own domains either, which was a painful thought, but there has to be give and take, and one should have a long-term vision.

Honestly, Henry’s current status within the noble circles of the Northwest Bay was somewhat awkward. According to tradition, the Ferdinand family should have been the leader of all lords of the Northwest Bay, but they had let their vassals control the situation and even lost the war of usurpation. The current head of the family only rose to the position of the duke with external support, which had considerably impacted the family’s prestige and dimmed the luster of the duke’s title.

In the past few years, the person whose status had risen the fastest was Paul Grayman, who had been previously unknown. Not to mention his display of military prowess during the war of the usurper, but also his leading role in establishing Northwest Industries post-war, which made all participants earn a fortune, contributing to his favorable reputation. Prestige was something that can’t be built merely with a stick but without a carrot.

Moreover, since Henry had relied mainly on the military power of Alda to rise to his position, he always felt a bit awkward around Paul. Thankfully, Paul showed a lot of respect for him, greeting him reverently every time they met, and included him in any profitable ventures. Henry was thus willing to utilize the remaining influence of his family to cooperate with Paul’s actions.

However, the expressions on the faces of Counts Parker and Heller were complicated as they exchanged glances.

The two had previously agreed to support the establishment of the customs union but had encountered significant resistance in practice.

Paul looked at them with an understanding expression.

“I know what you’re worried about. Come here and listen to me for a moment.”

The five men stood up and leaned over the small card table, forming a huddle with their heads close together.

“Ah, doing it this way? Will it work?”

“Why hesitate? If those bumpkins don’t know their place, let’s cut them out altogether.”

“I think we can give it a try.”

…

“Alright, let’s do it this way then. We will stick together in this.”

After the discussion, the five lords sat down again.

Parker hesitated before speaking, “That… Count Morley Malkan has never shown interest in our plan. Should we try persuading him again? Having more people can only be beneficial.” ŗＡ𐌽ọᛒЁṤ

Both Paul and Duke Henry Ferdinand looked displeased, but no words escaped their lips.

Count Morley Malkan was one of the key figures who opposed the Kent family at the time.

If one were to ask who contributed the most to the war of the usurper, opinions would vary, but it was undisputed that right after the war, no one celebrated more ostentatiously than Count Malkan.

What Paul found most intolerable was Count Malkan always adopting the tone of a senior… “advising” him in their interactions.

In short, to some who were unaware of the full context, it seemed as if Paul’s current achievements were thanks to the support of his elder, Malkan.

Moreover, Count Malkan showed evident disrespect toward Duke Henry Ferdinand of Northwest.@@novelbin@@

The others hadn’t yet spoken when Derrick, who had been quietly standing behind his father, voiced his objection, “Bringing that Malkan guy into this will definitely cause trouble. He’s a greedy and mean person.”

A shadow crossed Count Heller’s face as he scolded his son, “Shut up! It’s not your place to speak here, nor to speculate about others. Stand to the side.”

Derrick, unconvinced, retorted, “I’m not speculating. Ever since Malkan joined Northwest Industries and saw the prospects for profit, he has used all sorts of means to aggressively extort from the people. Now all the smithshops and mines in his domain bear the Malkan name.”

“Ah,” Count Parker sighed, well-aware of the complaints against Malkan.

For the time being, it would be best not to engage with Malkan, and the lords silently made this decision.

Next was the most critical issue: the distribution of external tariffs.

The customs union meant that within their alliance, members would exempt each other from tolls, but for goods entering and leaving the alliance, not a penny should be missed.

However, due to geographical locations, some territories, such as Alda with its seaports, could collect a vast amount of external tariffs, while others could not.

Therefore, on Paul’s suggestion, the money collected from external goods would be placed in a public treasury for the alliance, to be used for common affairs, such as paying staff salaries or supporting infrastructure development in underdeveloped transport regions. If there were surpluses, it would be distributed according to the population ratio of each member’s domain—the individual lords would then decide how to use it.

The population of each domain couldn’t just be made up on the spot.

Aside from Paul, who had roughly tallied the number of inhabitants within his jurisdiction, the lords of the era only had a vague estimate of their populace.

Thus, again at Paul’s initiative, the customs union needed to establish a Statistics Committee.

The function of the Statistics Committee, apart from tallying the population to provide data for the public treasury’s distribution, was to compile economic and trade data for the alliance, such as the quantity and value of import and export goods, among other data, to inform trade policy-making.

In the future, the committee might assume even more statistical responsibilities.

Who would be in charge of the Statistics Committee?

“I suggest that our young brother Malron take on the role of chairman of the committee,” Henry Ferdinand announced in a loud voice.

“This… let’s decide together,” Malron quickly demurred, looking embarrassed.

“Brother Malron is fair, meticulous, and dedicated to his work. I’m confident that the committee will be in good hands with him,” the duke insisted.

“I second the motion!” Paul stated as well.

Then Henry, Paul, and Malron all stared at the remaining two.

“I… I… I don’t object in principle,” Count Heller said hesitantly under his breath.

“Well, alright, I too trust Count Ganard,” finally Count Parker conceded.

At any rate, no matter who led the committee, each domain would place their people within it to ensure mutual supervision.

Thus, after much delay, the customs union was finally decided to be officially established.