The Lord Of Blood Hill

Chapter 622: A Rival Is Needed

The rival Valentin speaks of is not military competition, but competition in industrial products.As Peace Haven develops, the people's lives grow more prosperous.

People grow lazy, especially when Peace Haven's goods can be dumped freely into foreign markets.

After Peace Haven's products take an overwhelming advantage in the markets of various countries, Peace Haven's industrial development slows.

The speed and efficiency of product renewal grow worse year by year.

This is especially true in the two years before the war breaks out.

Compared with previous years, Peace Haven's inventions and factory product upgrades have clearly dropped by an entire level.

From small daily tools to four-wheeled wagons, all kinds of products have seen no real breakthrough in recent years.

What remains is only minor repair and refinement, nothing that can move the entire industrial chain forward.

Peace Haven has long discovered this problem internally, but because its goods still hold a crushing advantage, everyone has only recognized the issue. No one has found a real solution.

Even Henwell has done little beyond increasing rewards for technological progress.

But the effect is not obvious at all.

What Valentin means is that Peace Haven's industry needs an opponent, a rival that can pose a threat.

Lumir was founded on commerce. They have long envied Peace Haven's industrial dumping.

Obilian may have difficulty pushing through reforms in other areas.

But if he wants to imitate Peace Haven and establish a more advanced production system, not many powerful nobles will truly oppose him. Many will even support him.

If Obilian directly marks out an industrial district, lets various merchant groups buy shares, and concentrates national-level power to develop it, Lumir's domestic productivity will definitely rise by a full grade.

Even if the quality of their products is far inferior to Peace Haven's at first, as long as the quantity is large enough, their costs will certainly be very low.

Then they can seize Peace Haven's lower-end market. Once that happens, the output value of Peace Haven's factories will be affected, and dividends from apprentices to engineers will clearly shrink.

Only then will every side within Peace Haven's industrial system realize that if they do not progress, they will soon lose their current good life.

People.

When their own interests are involved, they often become especially active.

After understanding Valentin's meaning, Victor frowns. "This will seriously damage Peace Haven's industrial system."

"Also, once Lumir begins industrial development, they will certainly start poaching our people."

"When our people see their income drop, they will not be able to resist Lumir's offers of high posts and generous pay."

Valentin sneers. "Then let them go. What is advanced about us is the entire system, not merely the industrial side."

"At first, they will certainly live very comfortably over there, but it will not take long."

"They will discover that Lumir has only copied our surface. Nothing inside has changed."

"In essence, they will still be in a feudal production system. Those who are lured away will slowly discover that the place is not as wonderful as they imagined."

"Crimes happen here too, but in Peace Haven, crime can never appear under the sun."

"What about Lumir?"

"Nobles still have the right of first night. Their laws are even more laughable. If a noble kills a serf in the street, compensating the owner with another serf is enough."

"If they kill a commoner, paying two cattle is enough to settle the matter, and that is already considered the noble lord's mercy."

"What about us? Killing someone? Even when we kill, we need legal grounds."

"The workers who leave us will slowly discover the problem. Perhaps they earn more money than they did in Peace Haven."

"But in the eyes of the noble lords, they are only tools, not human beings who can be treated as equals."

"They have already learned how to live as people in Peace Haven. They will not want to become tools again."

By now, Valentin pauses. "As for the effect on our industrial workers, it may indeed appear."

"But forgive my bluntness. Peace Haven needs a group of industrial workers who go bankrupt, or who at least hope for a better life."

"When we supported the expeditionary zone before, how many industrial workers volunteered?"

"In the end, we had to offer a large settling-in allowance before they agreed to go south and develop the new production zone."

"Some even required assigned quotas, and even then we still ended up short by one-fifth."

"Peace Haven's people have been protected too well by us. They need to face the cruelty of this world directly."

"Especially the new generation. They understand even less what kind of hell the world outside Peace Haven is for them."

Everyone responds with silence. Now that Peace Haven has grown prosperous, the people are naturally unwilling to go south to develop an unfamiliar place.

Leaving one's homeland is hard enough, so support in industrial personnel for the expeditionary zone failed to meet the target in the end.

Henwell looks at Victor. "What do you think?"

Victor sighs inwardly. He understands that Henwell has already made the decision and is only asking him to nod in agreement.

Once this decision is made, many Peace Haven citizens will go bankrupt in the future and be forced to head south for development.

Although Victor sympathizes with these people, as chief administrator, he knows clearly that this benefits Peace Haven's overall direction.

Sometimes that is simply how things are. Individual interests must obey collective interests.

After all, the roots of individual interest lie in the collective. Even if people suffer for a short time, there is no avoiding it.

If Peace Haven can no longer develop, they will fall from Peace Haven back into the hell outside.

Life being a little tight is better than becoming a serf.

Now, whether it is Peace Haven's southern region or the expeditionary zone, both need large numbers of highly skilled people from Peace Haven's core region.

Thus, with the joint signatures of many high officials, a plan to force one million people to migrate is formally launched.

Since this plan has been signed, it means Peace Haven will no longer interfere with Lumir's new regime.

However, to protect Peace Haven's industries, everyone still discusses another plan.

And this plan requires Henwell to personally negotiate with clients.

While Peace Haven is making urgent arrangements, an invitation reaches them from Holy Lake City.

The new king, Obilian, invites the lord of Blood Hill and his wife to attend his coronation ceremony during the Midsummer Festival two months later.

Henwell does not plan to take Melissa and their son. Melissa is pregnant and needs to rest at home.

As for his eldest son Pabos, Henwell originally wanted to take him, but there are too many uncertain things on this journey.

Also, the Midsummer Festival is a festival that belongs much to their own side. After thinking it over, Henwell decides not to bring his son out to see the world.

Before the Midsummer Festival, Henwell sets out with one Lord Iron Guards squadron. Traveling with them is also a convoy made up of dozens of four-wheeled wagons.

Only part of what the convoy carries is supplies for the road. The rest is gifts.

Some are gifts for the new king. Others are for clients, meant to open doors and build goodwill in advance.