Chapter 838 Rebecca Returns Home
Unexpected events may occur, but not now. Right now, the North only needs to develop.
In comparison, Alexei was more interested in product catalogs.
After surrendering, Grand Duke Alvarez voluntarily donated the vast majority of his wealth and enthusiastically participated in the reform of the North. His upright attitude was so admirable that even Hughes, who was ruthless in purging the nobles, could not find fault with him.
Moreover, this former duke was indeed astute; he quickly realized that the reconstruction of the North was fraught with business opportunities.
Castells did indeed build railways that transported large quantities of goods from the south and connected the major cities of the four northern territories.
However, going a step further, distributing the goods to various villages and towns became somewhat difficult.
First, Castells' population is not large, and even with Bloodharbor, it is barely enough. Second, the North is simply too vast.
Moreover, according to Hughes's vision, the future North should be centered around cities, with most villages gradually dying out and then being reborn as satellite cities as cities expand.
Grand Duke Alvarez seized this crucial period of development and formed caravans to travel across the vast northern border.
Alexei was initially happy, after all, these caravans helped him break through the isolation of the North and bring Castells' goods to the poorest people.
But he soon began to have a headache, mainly because his penetration of the North was far too low.
These caravans gradually became a bridge connecting Alexei with the lower classes, which certainly saved him trouble, but also put him on a pedestal.
In many places, people only recognize these frequent caravans, not the bureaucrats under his command.
"Your Excellency, this is the product catalog." A clerk handed over a booklet.
"Thank you, Oleg."
Alexei opened the booklet and began to read.
Castel's main products are light industrial goods. In fact, Castel's heavy industry is more developed, but neither the North nor Tith has the capacity to absorb those products.
For example, Hughes specially ordered a furnace of fine steel to forge a longsword for Galahad, and only one furnace was made.
As a result, these longswords were enough for him to use for at least several hundred years, and each one was a treasure.
Weapons produced through standardized industrial processes are a game-changer compared to those from small workshops and blacksmith shops where quality varies wildly. If this batch of swords were released to the market, it could completely destroy the entire market in Tess.
The North's demand for heavy industrial products was even less than Galahad's, so it was the light industrial products that had a market.
Various fabrics, salt, alcoholic beverages, soap, multi-purpose shampoo, tools, and other miscellaneous goods were very well received in the North.
“Your Excellency, we can use these goods to control those caravans. We control the source of all the goods, and if they want to distribute them, they have to listen to us,” the clerk suggested.
He also served as an advisor and was well aware of the caravan problems in the North.
"No, we don't need to use goods to block them. On the contrary, we will supply these goods without limit. As long as there is spare transportation capacity, we will sell them as much as they want."
"But..." The clerk was a little anxious. The North was known for its poverty. These goods looked dazzling, but with the governor's prices, they wouldn't make much money at all.
“Relax.” Alexei leaned back in his chair instinctively, his fingers clasped in front of him—a habit of Hughes's that Alexei himself hadn't even noticed, but he always unconsciously imitated Hughes. “These merchants aren't our enemies; on the contrary, we need their help.”
"But we don't have enough manpower to go deep into those settlements and towns!"
Before Alexei could answer, there was a knock on the door: "Your Excellency, the resistance's resettlement personnel have arrived."
Alexei grinned. "Let's go, we'll go to the station to meet them, the manpower has arrived."
The clerk next to him opened his mouth, but swallowed his rebuttal.
Most of these resistance fighters worked in Castells and Bloodport, including many refugees who had previously gone to Bloodport. Even though Alexei was the governor of the North, he couldn't force them to stay and work in the North.
But that wasn't Alexei's goal.
He led a group of people to the station to meet them, but did not try to keep them. Instead, he reimbursed their travel expenses home in the name of the Governor's Office.
Most of these people had homes in the North. With the political situation in Castel and Bloodharbor stabilized and the war at the front less intense, they finally had some free time to go home.
Alexei was waiting for this group of people.
"My lord, can they really bring about change in the North?" the clerk asked, somewhat puzzled.
Alexei didn't answer; he just stared intently at the people. Suddenly, he raised his hand, smiled, and greeted them.
"Rebecca? It's been a long time. Your whole family is back."
The Vance family was unloading their luggage from the car, and Rebecca was dressed in thick clothes, almost like a ball.
"Uh, Your Excellency, hello."
Rebecca said timidly.
She had gone to Bloodharbor with her father, Old Vance, who had taken on some work from the construction crew there, while Rebecca went to Castells to help out.
They were lucky, as they were among the first to leave the North when Bloodharbor was recruiting.
Although Vance now has a house in Bloodharbor, he still went back to the North, where their relatives and friends live, and where their hometown is.
Alexei still remembers how they looked when they left. He had personally approved their trip to Blood Harbor. At that time, the Vance family were just carpenters in the city. They chose clothes with the fewest patches, but they still looked shabby.
Now Rebecca is even wearing a coyote fur coat.
They were all honest people, and they felt very uncomfortable standing next to Alexei, the governor of the North. After exchanging a few words, they left as if fleeing.
They need to transfer trains to get back to their hometown—that section of railway was built by old Vance himself.
The world may change, the sea may dry up, powerful evil gods may be stuffed into furnaces, and shampoo may be turned into fuel, but home is still home. Alexei, with this conviction, abandoned his life in Bloodharbor and Castell and came to the North.
He was originally from the North, and he knew all too well the impact these people returning from the big cities would have on the North.
Castells' guns were powerful, but Alexei knew that some things were more desirable—fairness, civilization, and hope within reach.
On the other side, Rebecca, carrying her luggage, looked at the familiar, dilapidated city walls before her, and the Vance family smiled.
(End of this chapter)
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