Published at 28th of January 2021 02:07:46 PM
Chapter 389
While poking the pot for dinner, I’m thinking about how to deal with the money problem .
「If you want to spend a lot of money… . . large-scale construction . 」
Roads, buildings, dams, dike, breakwater .
「We have already started developing the area surrounding Village Five . Other than that, where can we construct those?」
Yuri asked me that while taking a slice of meat from the pot with a chopstick .
「How about the outskirts of Shashaato City?」
「Village chief, that won’t do . 」
「Eh?」
「Shashaato City is not the only place that has a governor . Other places have them too . 」
「Yeah, let’s just tell the governor that we’ll be investing there . 」
「Village chief, let’s me just confirm one thing, do you plan on invading the demon king’s kingdom?」
「Eh? Of course not . Why are you even asking that?」
「Well, how do I explain… to governors and lords, dumping some cash in front of them and telling them to construct things is impolite . 」
「Eh? They don’t want it?」
「Yes . The job of a governor or a lord is to collect taxes and use those taxes on the land they govern . 」
My idea is like directly confronting the governors and lords of the land .
In other words, it was like assassinating them in broad daylight .
It seems like if I do that, they’ll likely wage war .
「Please consider the territory as a home . Your suggestion is something like this “Hey, your house is a little crappy and has some damage, here’s some money for the repair . ” . Even if you say that in good faith, don’t you think only a few people will be happy to be told like that?」
「Certainly」
Some might say they’re lucky and will be happy about it but I think most will hate it .
「My bad . My idea is too shallow . 」
「No, I’ve also made similar mistakes . Please forgive me if I was a bit rude . 」
Yuri said so as she put more meat on the pot… . because the meat is all gone .
Eat vegetables too .
However, since a large-scale construction is a bad idea… . what should we do?
「Can I donate them?」
Frau’s the one who answered me this time .
「It is not a bad idea but you need to have a reason . 」
「Reason?」
「You can’t give me money without a reason . 」
「Is that so? 」
「It’s similar to Yuri-sama’s explanation . Also, you can only give a moderate amount of money . 」
「Moderate amount? 」
「Yes . If you give too much, it will be considered as an act of contempt for the financial power of the other party . 」
「Is that really the case? Won’t they be happy with being donated with? 」
「I’ll give village chief an example… . . you have an acquaintance that sends you a large amount of radishes and potatoes every year, how would you feel? 」
「I see . If I get more than the acceptable sharing amount, it is like saying that my own radishes and potatoes are not so good . 」
「That’s right . Money is important and it will be great if you have someone reliable to run to if you encounter trouble . However, donating more than necessary will disrupt existing social relationships especially the power balance . You should refrain from doing it before you get accustomed . 」
Frau concluded so as she adds mochi in the pot .
What’s with that amount of mochi?
I know that it’s delicious but it is not good to overeat .
Now, we can’t start large-scale construction or large amounts of donations .
「From what I hear from you, Yuri and Frau, it won’t be a good idea to start something on other places other than Big Tree Village and Village Five . 」
「That’s right . 」
One of the civil servant girls agrees .
「The root of the problem is Big Tree Village only sells good quality products while the amount purchased from the demon king’s kingdom is small . We’ll be in black if we continue to trade like this . 」
She seems to like mushrooms .
She put a large amount of mushrooms in the pot . When the soup stock turned black, the others stopped her .
Except for maitake . They didn’t stop her .
All right, let’s prepare a new pot for mushrooms .
By the way, slice the truffles thinly .
The thinner the better .
Put some vegetables too .
「Since it is a surplus trade… . how about reducing the price of the products from Big Tree Village? Won’t the situation slightly improve because of that?」
「It’s not a good idea to sell something of great value at a price of something of low value . It will confuse the demon king’s kingdom and crush the industry . 」
One of the civil servant girls objected while checking the thickness of the sliced truffles .
It seems like that the price had already been set to the lowest possible and any further price cut will bother farmers and craftsmen of the demon king’s kingdom .
Cutting price is not a good idea .
Got it .
And I think the truffle should be thinner .
「Then, what should we do? It is also a bad idea not to sell, right?」
Many people who buy our products say that they want us to increase the production more .
However, if we do the opposite, there will be riots .
「The prices of those products will explosively increase if we do that . If you want to plunge the demon king’s kingdom into chaos, that will be a great idea . 」
This time, it was Tier, who just came in, that answered my question .
She was late because she was breastfeeding Aurora .
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Ah, you feed Lupumirina too .
Thank you .
「So, is this a meeting about how to control the demon king’s kingdom?」
「No . There are a lot of people from the demon king’s kingdom here, don’t say strange things . Someone, bring a new plate and chopsticks for Tier . Also, add a new plate of vegetables . 」
「And a plate of meat please . 」
The latecomer Tier became the master of the pot at that moment .
「When it comes to spending money, it is best to invest in culture . 」
Tier said that while waiting for the newly added ingredients to be cooked .
「Culture?」
「Yes . For example, art desu . 」
「Ah, paintings . 」
「Not just paintings . There is a great variety of them like music, theater, poetry, writings, and sculpture . They would disappear without the protection of those in power . 」
「So that’s how it is . Cultural protection . Not a bad idea . 」
The problem is, I’m not a man with power so let’s put it aside .
All I have is money .
Though the idea is great .
Yuri, Frau, and the other civil servant girls nodded too .
「However, I think many of those leading men and objects of cultures are already being protected by men in power . 」
Tier was the one who said that .
And she’s convincing .
She’s certainly correct .
Even if I don’t do anything, men in power are already working to protect culture .
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「Then, let’s stop talking about asylum and go to the nurturing area . How about building a cultural school?」
「… . cultural school, is it?」
That sounds fun but… . that will be a lot of problems .
Who will teach and where will it be built?
Is it necessary to negotiate with the demon king’s kingdom?
「It is not an idea that can be implemented immediately . It will probably take a few years from now before we can start . At this stage……we can only spend money by buying paintings, crafts, books, and jewels to decorate the school . 」
Tier explained . The problem is we have too much stored cash so the problem will be solved if we are left with things other than cash .
Is that alright?
「I’m just worried that we’ll be ridiculed as people who swing their gold bag . 」
Tier said so while putting her chopsticks into the boiling pot .
After eating .
「Let’s just add sports in cultural protection . 」
When I consulted the demon king who just arrived, he told me that .
「The weak point of baseball is the cost of equipment . Currently, only some rich people can participate . However, if the price of equipment will be cheaper, the number of participants will increase . If you run a big baseball tournament, gold will disappear in no time . 」
Indeed .
That’s helpful .
As expected of the top of the demon king’s kingdom .
Digression .
A conversation between the demon king and Yuri .
「I was praised for saying something I want him to sponsor . 」
「Father, you’re cunning . 」