Chapter 123 Cooperative Labor

Chapter 123 Cooperative Labor

"It seems that you are popular among the people."

Gandalf said with a smile.

“Many times I don’t know how I can get such respect.”

Levi said pointedly: "Maybe it's luck, or something else?"

"If someone else comes, will it have the same ending?"

"No, Levi."

Gandalf rejected Levi's statement quite straightforwardly and decisively, and added: "The same thing can play different roles and have different outcomes in the hands of different people."

"It's like a magic ring that can make a person invisible. If it is placed in the hands of a person with bad behavior, it may only make the world have one more thief, burglar, or assassin, and become a weapon to hurt others."

"But in the hands of a hobbit, it can become a tool to help others and bring warmth to people."

"Something can make its user very strong... very strong, so strong that it is beyond the capacity of this world..."

"But destroying everything wouldn't be nice or fun, would it?"

Levi smiled.

"Okay, you're right, thank you."

"I hope you can figure it out."

Gandalf lit his pipe and walked out of the city wall with Levi, heading for the gate of Erebor set in the mountains.

In Middle-earth, wizards have the legal and formal right to join in the fun, and robed figures can always be seen in the king's halls.

The same is true today.

After hearing that Levi was coming, Thorin did not wait in the hall, but walked to the door and looked out to greet him.

"How have you been, Levi?"

Thorin smiled slightly and greeted him.

"Not bad, it went well, how about you?"

"Except for the shortage of supplies, everything is fine."

"The tribesmen who were forced to wander are returning. The mines are filled with sounds again, the furnaces are emitting flames, and the cable cars are playing their proper role. Everything is developing in a positive direction."

While talking about recent events, Thorin took Levi and Gandalf to a small table and poured them two cups of throat-soothing tea.

Obviously, at this moment he was receiving him as a friend, not a king.

"I heard you're having some difficulties here."

Levi spoke first:

“Is it a problem with the minerals?”

Levi did not forget that in order to defend the city, he had almost drained out all the mineral deposits in Lonely Mountain. It was normal that there was a shortage of minerals now.

"No."

Thorin shook his head.

"Minerals are plentiful in the mountains. We have the manpower, tools, and wealth to operate. It's not difficult to increase the stock."

"What bothers us most right now is food."

food?

Levi raised an eyebrow.

Shouldn't this thing be the most? Obviously seeing what Levi was thinking, Thorin said with a little embarrassment:

"You may not know this, but our food production is actually quite small."

"After all, we live in the mountains, where there is no sunlight, and most of our food sources rely on imports from other places."

"There are very few ways to get food on our own."

"Deep underground, there are small farms that use glowing gems to provide light, a few mushrooms in the tunnels, fish in the dark rivers, and some plant roots..."

"But these are not enough to feed all the dwarves. They can be used as an emergency food source, but they cannot be relied on forever."

"Isn't there River Valley City?"

Levi pointed outside and said, "The grain production in River Valley City is now abundant enough that the population can increase tenfold. You won't be short of food."

"That's exactly what I was saying."

Thorin said: "In fact, it is all thanks to the food trade with River Valley that we can survive this winter well."

"I want to establish long-term cooperation with Riverdale City."

Thorin finally stated the fundamental purpose of his conversation.

Levi looked a little confused.

"Of course you can do that. And you can just go to Bud directly. I have already handed over the management rights here to him."

"We have talked."

Thorin replied, "But he said that the final decision should be made by the Lord first, that is, you."

"He has every right to do so. I thought you had already discussed this... Never mind. I agree."

Levi was too lazy to continue arguing. He could see that Bud had not yet adapted to his identity as the "region's top manager."

“That’s great.”

Thorin breathed a sigh of relief and said, "We don't dare to ask for that kind of magic seeds, as long as we can carry out a stable food trade, I believe our friendship can last forever..."

"Why not?"

Li Wei shook his head and replied: "What is there to be afraid of? It's just some crop seeds. If something can make everyone's life better, why should we be afraid?"

"Just plant them if you need them. Oh, but those seeds can only be planted in my territory by anyone other than me."

"You can send people over to join the labor."

"ah?"

Thorin's head was buzzing as he listened to what Levi said.

Producing such a powerful magic seed just by asking? What's the price? Thorin instinctively asked: "Then, what do we need to do?"

"Labor, didn't I tell you that?"

Levi knocked on the table and said, "Even if it is a magic seed, it still needs to be planted. You don't think that if you put it on the table, it will turn into food by itself."

"Unless you have some tilled land on that table."

"No, of course I understand that the seeds need to be planted. What I mean is, just give me the seeds like this, and don't we need to do anything extra?"

"We have treasures, tools, and equipment here. If you don't have any, we can call on craftsmen to make them, or we can pay them some compensation every year..."

"No need." Levi waved his hand.

None of this stuff makes any sense.

But in a flash, Levi thought of something.

Due to their geographical proximity, Erebor and Dale have been closely cooperating with each other for hundreds of years.

The dwarves are the best in blacksmithing skills, and many people would spend a fortune to find a masterpiece.

The valley city has a sufficient population, affluent life, and a fairly developed agricultural and animal husbandry industry.

The dwarves have good craftsmanship, but they hardly produce any food. The humans have average craftsmanship, respect the dwarves' skills, and happen to have a lot of surplus food.

Both sides have things they need, and they also happen to have things that the other side needs, so a good cooperation model is formed. The humans provide food, while the dwarves act as blacksmiths, craftsmen, and provide various weapons, tools, and handicrafts. Through this exchange, the living standards of both sides have been significantly improved.

This cooperation model can continue today.

After all, if the residents want to find jobs, they still need to learn the corresponding skills, and many technologies in Lonely Mountain are worth learning. If the two sides can reach a deeper level of cooperation, many things in the future will be much more convenient.

“Just like before.”

Levi expressed what was in his mind and put forward his own opinions.

Thorin thought for a moment and nodded, "That makes sense. We will regularly send craftsmen to teach skills without reservation and help the people of River Valley find jobs in exchange for the right to use magic seeds."

"That's settled then."

A long-term cooperation was achieved in just a few words, without any disputes, bargaining or unpleasantness.

It's just a simple "You said it, I think it's good, let's do it."

This was a transaction without any twists and turns, and neither party even cared much about the benefits.

Or rather than a transaction, it is more like a "cooperative labor."

Exchange labor for labor, value for value, blend with each other and make progress together.

There is no monetary element involved. At this time, this kind of thing that serves as a transfer of value is redundant.

Some additional settings will not take up the length of the official chapters.

From Thorin's memories of his youth (about 200 years ago): 　　"When my grandfather became the king under the mountain again, the humans from the south respected him very much. They slowly migrated up along the Rushing River until they came to the valley near the mountain, where they built a happy little city called 'River Valley City'."

"Kings of all generations have come to us to hire craftsmen, and even those with the poorest skills will receive generous rewards."

"Many fathers would beg us to take their sons as apprentices and give us many things, especially food, so we never had to grow or collect it ourselves."

(End of this chapter)

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