Lord Harland

Although Odaye was promoted to a hereditary noble, he actually relied on his own abundant funds. He had no military exploits and no prestige among the soldiers under his command.

Due to the tradition of knighthood for military merit in the Kingdom of Harland, hereditary nobles like Odaye are actually discriminated against in the aristocratic class. Although he can be considered a veteran of the First Squadron, it is difficult to get the respect he deserves in the society of nobles.

At every large aristocratic banquet, he would encounter people who insulted and ridiculed him. This feeling of being discriminated against made Odaye suffer humiliation.

However, in order to preserve his family wealth, Odaye very much needed a noble status. The family he created had a frivolous foundation and he needed to maintain various relationships to sustain it.

Over the years of being knighted, the only people who could bring him comfort were Immorton, who was also a capitalist noble, and his old comrades in the First Squadron.

When Odaye encounters some difficulties, it is usually the people from the First Squadron who resolve the conflicts for him. With Jennings, Sula and others coming to protect him, he can not be bullied.

The 1st Squadron is the core of Haaland's infantry and has a very glorious combat history. There are six hereditary nobles who came out of this squadron: Martin, Jennings, Lost, Sulla, Levin, and Odaye.

Six hereditary nobles come from the same squadron, which shows the squadron's tyrannical record and long history.

The military is different from government units. It has special rules internally and is very protective of others. Especially with old comrades who have the same experience, the relationship is extremely deep.

For example, Odaye and Sulla are true life and death friends.

It was with the support of Sulla, Zhannings and others that Odaye's business grew bigger and bigger, and he became a big capitalist. He then used his strong financial resources to recruit mercenaries, fight the undead and obtain soul crystals. In the north of Pulilan, The knighthood was successful.

However, because Odaye did not personally participate in the front-line battle, he actually had little prestige among the mercenaries he recruited. The talented and ambitious mercenaries also left the mercenary group founded by Odaye. Willing to work hard for him, Odaye's subordinates are basically mediocre people.

After thirty years of development of the Harland family, it is naturally impossible for the vassals and nobles to unite as one. Because of their interests, origins, and place of origin, they divided into different small groups.

The most numerous person is Earl Luomen. The supporters of Earl Luomen are mainly the traditional nobles of Heihe Province. These people total more than 30 people.

Then there is Viscount Beleyny of the Province of Priland. Most of his nobles come from gangs and mercenaries on the east coast. Now, there are more than a dozen hereditary nobles who are closely related to Viscount Beleyny. .

The nobles who like to exclude and humiliate Odaye are mainly the two groups above.

The six nobles of the First Squadron are also a small group, and they are more closely united due to the relationship between comrades. Their relationship with the royal family is also deeper than that of the Black River nobles and the Pulilan nobles.

Odaye has such a background, and his development speed has surpassed that of his old friend Immorton.

Immorton's background is relatively simple. He was originally a famous businessman in Black River Castle and had some friendship with Mrs. Olla and Rand.

Immorton's biggest background is his uncle Kane, who once served as captain of the Northern Army. His status is similar to Richard's cheap uncle Rand, who is Kane's money bag.

When William was promoted to the hereditary nobility, Immorton once lent Richard a sum of money.

Because of business dealings, Immorton began to act as an agent for goods in the Harland Territory, and gradually made very generous profits. As the Northern Army was mobilized to the south, Immorton began to separate from his uncle and immigrate to the Harland Territory. In the following years, Imerton caught up with the opening of the industry and opened a flour mill with Odaye, making excess profits.

Although Immorton became a hereditary noble, he was severely squeezed by the upper class. Not only was the flour mill he opened unable to enter the territory of the hereditary nobles, but in the territory directly under the jurisdiction of the Harland royal family, officials with noble status were also not allowed. respect. Competing with Immorton for the market often costs more.

If the state-owned flour mills were not very slow and unable to compete with private capital, it would be difficult for Imerton's flour mills to be so moist.

With the establishment of the Harland Kingdom, the local flour manufacturing industry has become saturated, and the profits of flour processing plants have dropped to the 20% level.

For this reason, Odaye decided to enter the Rikers Province to inspect the market and see if it was possible to relocate a factory to the Rikers Province.

Unexpectedly, he met his old comrades on the steamer, which undoubtedly made Odaye very happy.

When people get old, they often miss the past and cherish the feelings of their youth.

Odaye and Behrens were not from the same batch of soldiers. Odaye joined the Harland Territory in the spring of 3253 in the Dawn Calendar and was the earliest batch of soldiers in the Harland Territory. He was a soldier of the same year as Sulla, Jennings, Perrin, and Darcy, and Martin was their first squadron leader. At that time, even Richard participated in training with Odaye and others, and sometimes lived in the same building. In the military tent.

Behrens joined the Harland Territory in the winter of 3254 in the Dawn Calendar, and was considered the third batch of soldiers from the Harland Territory. Although the two were in the same squadron at the time, they actually didn't have a deep friendship.

The intersection between them was when they participated in the Orc Invasion War in 3255. In that cruel war, both Odaye and Behrens were lucky to save their lives.

Over the next twenty years, the two had different experiences.

Odaye was not very talented and was seriously injured while practicing breathing techniques. He retired from active service and entered the army uniform factory to recuperate. Behrens stood out in the army and was promoted to the professional ranks and became an officer. In the following ten years, Behrens developed very well in the army. He was successfully promoted to a third-level professional, served as deputy captain, and came into Richard's sight.

If the experiences of the past ten years are used as a standard, Behrens is far more successful than Odaye.

Unfortunately, fate is unpredictable. Odaye met the noble person in his life when he was at his lowest. Sulla, an old comrade-in-arms, lent Odaye a huge sum of money to open a restaurant and hotel. As the economy of Fort William exploded and the population exploded, Odaye made the first pot of gold in his life.

After that, Odaye raised a huge amount of money and entered the flour processing industry. He soon raised his worth to 100,000 gold coins and became the leader of Haaland's capitalist class.

Behrens had very bad luck. He was seriously injured in the Orc War in the Dawn Calendar 3264. He retired from the military and returned to the countryside.

Behrens earned a salary of about three hundred gold coins after serving in the army for many years. He was considered a rare rich man in the countryside. After retiring, he also has a very generous pension and a special background like the First Squadron. Although he can be regarded as the middle-level leader of Haaland, there is no comparison with Odaye who made a fortune in business.

With the success of Odaye's knighthood, the status of the two people has fundamentally changed, and they are no longer in the same class.

Odaye grew his small business and became a successful businessman. His approachable personality and high affinity are also important reasons. When he met his old comrades, Odaye was very excited to talk. The two recalled the past and were extremely excited. Their thoughts seemed to go back to the terrible war they experienced as recruits twenty-seven years ago.

"Dear Baron, please forgive me, I am too excited." Behrens wiped his moist eyes, held Odaye's hands tightly and said, "My hometown is on the east coast. I was originally a free citizen. My father sold me to a slave trader more than thirty years ago because I could not repay the loan sharks. Since then, I have become a slave and lost my freedom.

At that time, my life was in a mess, life was hopeless, and I couldn't see a way out. It was the great King Richard who rescued me from the slave market, taught me breathing techniques, and helped me find the direction in life and have an ideal to fight for.

Now twenty-eight years have passed. I have long since retired from the army. My eldest son has inherited my career and serves as a squadron leader in the army. His career level has caught up with mine. Made up for my regret. The second son also went to school and became a skilled worker with a relatively high salary. The younger son is the smartest and has good grades in school. He has been admitted to the civil service. The only daughter is also married to the son of an old comrade. Life is very happy. The children have grown up and I no longer need to worry about them.

Now that I am old and my wife has passed away, I am ready to return to my hometown and retire on this land. I didn't expect to be able to see my old comrades on the ship. How happy it is. "

Odaye listened carefully to Behrens's chatter and comforted him: "We are only in our fifties and have twenty or thirty years left in our lives. We are not too old. Compared with the life we ​​had when we were young, we should be satisfied.

Behrens, you immigrated here and your children are all back home. If something happens, who can take care of you? "

"Actually, I still have many relatives from my hometown living in the Rex Province. For example, my brother is still alive, but his family is all indentured servants. My sister also married to Vidora, and their Life is very difficult. When I return to my hometown, it will be of great help to their lives."

After hearing this, Odaye nodded and said: "Behrens, it seems that you often communicate with your relatives here. How is the economic development here? If I open a flour mill here, will there be a market? Is it marketable?"

"The serfs here live in very poverty. Although His Majesty the King has promulgated the decree to emancipate the serfs, at least within five years, the vast majority of the population in this province will not have the purchasing power. Only a few people in the entire Rex Province have the purchasing power. One hundred thousand free people and a small number of nobles. If you want to open a flour mill, the market is far inferior to that in the mainland."

Now that Odaye has decided to move a flour mill to Rex Province, he has already done research.

Rex Province is a province with a large population. Even if it is just service industry nobles and free people, it still has a consumer population of hundreds of thousands. Moreover, the Harland Kingdom and the Sith Kingdom have signed a peace contract to do business with the Sith Kingdom. There is no shortage of markets and sales.

In a short period of time, the market in Rex Province and the Kingdom of Sith was enough to absorb a large amount of production capacity.

Being the first to open a factory in Rex Province will make it easier to take root in this land and capture the market. Opening the factory in the Rex Province is a critical step in the growth of Odaye Capital.

Once Odaye monopolizes this market, he will be able to steadily dominate Immorton in the market.

Although Odaye disagreed with what Behrens said in his heart, he nodded outwardly. Although he has become a hereditary noble, he is still a businessman. As a businessman, it is almost his instinct to be eloquent and well-rounded, and his aggressiveness is far inferior to that of the military nobles.

After meeting their old friend, Odaye and Behrens talked with great interest. It wasn't until they got off the boat that they reluctantly separated.

Odaye is preparing to open a flour processing factory in Berenberg.

Berenberg is a very important castle in the province of Rex. It is located on the north bank of the Maya River and has a total population of about 60,000.

Belem Castle was originally the capital of the Duke of Belem. Two legions of soldiers were stationed there all year round. There were more than 200,000 people near the castle. With the arrival of Haaland's army, the Berenberg garrison was disbanded. Without the garrison and their families, plus the loss of part of the population due to the flight of the Duke of Belen family, Belemburg now only has a population of 60,000.

With a population of 60,000, Berenberg is already the third largest city in the province of Rex. The reason why Odaye is planning to open the factory in Berenberg is that it is close to the main wheat-producing area in Rex Province. Of course, the densely populated Berenberg area and very low labor prices are also very important factors.

After arriving at Berenberg, Odaye directly found the local governor Idar.

The Harland territorial administrative system is divided into five levels: province, county, county, township, and village. The county guard is already a middle-to-high-level cadre.

There are only nine provinces and dozens of counties in the land of more than 1.5 million square kilometers. Being able to climb to the position of county guard has merits, both in terms of ability and background.

Idar also had a special relationship with Odaye and Behrens. His father was also an old comrade-in-arms of Odaye and others, but he was unlucky and died at the hands of the orcs in Dawn Era 3255.

Idar was less than ten years old at the time, Harland's economy had not yet developed, the amount of pensions was relatively small, and life was still very difficult.

Martin, the captain of the 1st Squadron, mobilized his comrades in the 1st Squadron to raise funds and used part of the money to help these orphans and widowed mothers.

After Odaye became successful, he maintained this relationship and donated a large amount of money every year to help take care of the orphans of those killed or disabled in the First Squadron. Although Odaye and Idar are not familiar with each other, they can still build a relationship by relying on the golden sign of the First Squadron.

Moreover, Odaye came to Belen County to invest, and both parties would get something out of it. The factory method was successful, Idar gained political achievements, and Odaye also received local support. He chose the factory near Belem Castle. Idar's background was also a key factor.

Before the investment, Odaye had had many conversations with Idar and roughly negotiated the terms.

Signing the contract this time is actually just a matter of fulfilling the procedures, and the process is very simple.