Chapter 6 Construction of Wharf

  When Dreya's "Cangyun" returned to Haidington again, three large merchant ships loaded with various substances followed.

  Ried fulfilled his promise, marking the formal establishment of trade relations between Haiding and Lowell.

  From now on, these three merchant ships will be responsible for purchasing goods from Haidinton and surrounding areas, as well as transporting the necessary items from Manas Island. For Haidinton, who makes a living by trade, it is extremely fortunate to have such a big backer at a time of decline.

  What's more, Javier, who came with the ship, will set up a branch of the trading house in Haddington to handle various affairs and expand trade.

  As the Lovell's trading range expanded, Haddington naturally got on the bandwagon and opened up his own business, benefiting both parties. Thus, compared to Raymond's group of "merchants" who had never done business outside before, they were much more welcome.

  The night the fleet arrived, Charlotte gave a dinner in honour of Javier, and Raymond was also invited.

  It's clear that, for this long-awaited "savior", the Haidinton side attaches great importance to it. Charlotte and the four committee members have almost all focused their attention on Javier, while Raymond, who had just saved Haidinton in a real sense not long ago, was left out in the cold.

  But Raymund didn't mind, unless there was a real need, he wouldn't care about such superficial things, just like how he never took Haken's provocations to heart.

  Moreover, a group of people were there talking about business, which was really boring. At this time, Raymond regretted not bringing Rickett with him, at least he could explain what those guys were saying.

  At this moment, Morier asked: "I wonder what Mr. Javert plans to do when he enters our Haddington?"

  Javier said, "I was entrusted by Lord Reed to set up a branch of our Chamber of Commerce in Haidingtown, and it is precisely for the purpose of expanding our trade on the continent of Veronika with this place as the center. I believe that our cooperation will bring great benefits to each other."

  Charlotte and others were overjoyed, hastily raising their glasses to toast with Javier. For Haidington, who was currently short of money, this was more practical than anything else.

  Then, Javier raised his glass to Raymond who was lost in thought and said: "Of course, this also goes to thank Mr. Raymond. Without you, there would be no safe environment for Haidington, and we wouldn't have dared to come either."

  "Haha, you're too polite." Raymond Province God hurriedly responded.

  Charlotte and the others understood this scene. Javert's move was clearly not intended to exclude Raymond, but rather a hint that their cooperation with Haidington would never abandon Raymond.

  Lambert and the other two exchanged a glance, but no one spoke. Since they had been fooled by Raymond last time, the three of them had been much more honest lately and hadn't found any excuses to pick on each other.

  Javier continued, "After settling down in Haydinton, apart from regular trade with you, I also plan to gradually expand my business to nearby towns. We're new here, so we'll need to ask Mayor Charlotte for help and introductions."

  "Of course, no problem. You've come at just the right time, I was planning to visit Auston and Farlake in two days. They are the two towns closest to Headington, we have always had a good relationship between us, but due to the thieves' guild, trade has been interrupted for a long time."

  "This time I went to see their mayor, hoping to restore our trade as soon as possible. If Mr. Javier is interested, he might as well come with me."

  Javier said happily: "That's great, I wonder what the situation is like in these two towns?"

  "Charlotte introduced: "Auston City is located on the west side of Headington, also a coastal town, but its main products are agricultural products. Due to the good terrain near Auston, they developed three large farms, mainly producing grains, livestock and vegetables."

  "In fact, while Haddington was cut off from the outside world by the robbers, our food supply had been provided by Auston. We used fishing boats to travel by sea to Auston, and secretly transported grain back into the city, so as not to starve for half a year."

  Javier listened and couldn't help but ask in surprise: "Since you can travel by sea, why don't you take advantage of this route to do business?"

  Moriny said, "It's not that easy. We don't have merchant ships for long-distance trade, only some old fishing boats that can sail in coastal areas and are difficult to navigate for a long time. Reaching Auston is almost the limit. So we can only transport food at intervals, nothing else."

  "Moreover, Auston and our Haddington differ; their harbour is of poor quality and not suitable for berthing large sea-going vessels."

  "Ah, yes, Mr. Derrick, the mayor of Auston, has been selling us grain at a very favorable price for half a year now, and can be said to be the benefactor of our entire Headington. This time I go, I must thank him properly."

  "It's admirable that you're willing to help us in this situation." Javier nodded and said, "What about the other town?"

  Charlotte said: "Farrak Castle is to the north of us, at the foot of the Mana Mountains. The town mainly produces crystals and also has a Fire Crystal mine."

  Javier exclaimed in surprise: "What, actually producing Fire Magic Crystals? Then this town must be extremely wealthy."

  Charlotte shook her head: "No, their fire magic crystal quality is very poor, the amount of magic contained is extremely low, and it's basically impossible to use. Moreover, the mine is located in a deep mountain, where there are many magical beasts, making extraction inconvenient, so sales have been almost non-existent, and production has long since stopped. However, their crystals are extremely pure and very popular."

  "This is the nearest town in the surrounding area to Seaton, and due to its proximity, our three towns have always had a good relationship. I believe they would be very willing to do business with your Chamber of Commerce."

  Javier said: "I'll leave it to you then."

  Perhaps it's just that old habits die hard, seeing Raymond not saying a word, Depero finally couldn't help but say: "Mr. Raymond is also the leader of a merchant group, but in Haidington for so long, yet I've never seen you make even one business move, what are your plans?"

  Actually, everyone knows that this so-called merchant team of Raymond's is quite inflated. Depero deliberately asked this question to make him lose face. Since it's impossible to challenge Raymond head-on, making him uncomfortable is also good.

  As expected, upon hearing this, Lambert and Vanning both stood by with a look of watching a good show.

  Charlotte looked at both of them worriedly, just about to speak, but then heard Raymond say slowly: "As for me? There's nothing much to say. However, before you start your cooperation, shouldn't you build a dock first? I don't think that sandy beach can be very efficient, what do the three of you think?"

  "Ah!" Charlotte couldn't help but exclaim softly.

  As Haiding was mainly engaged in land trade before, it had never developed sea transportation and only had some fishing boats. Therefore, no wharf was ever built, and the bay was simply used as a natural harbor with that piece of sandy beach serving as a makeshift dock.

  This point became apparent when Raymond and his party arrived, as the unloading of cargo from just one ship, the Cangyun, was already a great deal of trouble. In the future, with the cooperation between Haiton and Reed, the port will inevitably become increasingly busy, and if it still relies on that sandy beach, so-called trade will be nothing but a huge joke.

  But this time there have been too many things happening, and the establishment of trade with Reed has made them so happy that they are a bit confused, to the point where they even forgot such basic things.

  Now, ironically, it was Raymond, an outsider, who reminded them, causing the three Lamberts to feel so embarrassed that they wanted to find a hole in the ground to crawl into.

  After all, they were his companions, so Morini didn't want the three of them to be too embarrassed. He hastily said, "There's no way, what Haidington lacks most now is money. Even if we wanted to repair it, we have the heart but not the strength."

  "No problem, I'm willing to fund your construction of this dock." Little did he know that Raymond would say something unexpected.

  "What?" Several people were shocked.

  "You... are you serious?" Depero couldn't believe his ears that he would be so generous.

  "Of course, I also have a ship doing business with Harid. Naturally, I would like to have more convenient facilities. Now I have the money, you have the laborers, and we live in the same town. What reason is there not to cooperate?"

  Raymond did so, not out of a sudden burst of generosity or a change of heart. He was not good at business, but he had a long-term vision and thus keenly realized the importance of the dock in Haidington from now on.

  With Ryder's support, the status of maritime transport in Haiding will become more and more important, and the dock is naturally the most direct place to reflect this change. It can be said that whoever controls the dock has the most direct influence on maritime transport. Raymon is willing to invest in building a dock just for management rights there.

  Just as Freddy was able to recognize the benefits of investing in Haidington's various industries from a political perspective, Raymond also grasped the pros and cons behind building the dock with his own talent.

  Not having the slightest idea that Raymond had already turned over so many thoughts in his mind, Lambert and the others couldn't see the key to it. De Péro was about to respond when Charlotte suddenly said: "Wait a minute."

  He then turned to Javier and said, "After all, the dock is mainly used by us. It's not fair to let Mr. Raymond pay alone. Why don't we each contribute a part? What do you think, Mr. Javier?"

  Raymond couldn't help but secretly admire her, and unexpectedly Charlotte also understood his intention in an instant, and cleverly thought of pulling Javier in, with the three parties jointly investing to disperse control over the dock, which was naturally less risky than having one family in control.

  Charlotte was able to see through her intentions in a short time and think of a countermeasure, showing that the seemingly empty town mayor was actually much smarter than those three clowns.

  Javier also looked at Charlotte with some surprise, he was so astute that he had also seen through Raymond's intentions, and was equally surprised by Charlotte's quick wit.

  Javier smiled and said: "Of course, we are willing to invest. Let this dock be a witness to our cooperation."

  Although his intention was seen through, Raymond did not feel discouraged at all. He had never expected to monopolize the dock alone, and having three parties invest together was actually the best approach. Under the current circumstances, it was enough for Raymond to have a say in the matter.

  None of them knew that in the brief moment just now, there was a secret confrontation between the three parties. Lambert and others were still secretly lamenting what a pity it was, this kind of scapegoat should be left to Raymond, why did Charlotte and Javier also go to intervene.

  The banquet ended soon afterwards.

  After leaving the town hall, Raymond walked towards his residence. Suddenly, a voice came from behind: "Mr. Raymond, please wait."

  Raymond turned his head and it was Javier. This unassuming merchant hastily caught up from behind, walking shoulder to shoulder with Raymond.

  Knowing he must have something to say, Raymond remained silent and waited for the other's next words.

  "After a moment of silence, Javier finally spoke up: 'It's really a nice town, quiet, beautiful, although it's a bit poor, but sooner or later, everything will get better.'"

  "Yes, we can come here and thank Mr. Reed." Raymon responded casually, not knowing what he meant by his words.

  Javier chuckled and glanced at Raymond: "However, although this place is good, it's just the edge of the vast Veronica continent. If we venture deeper, I'm sure we'll discover even more beautiful scenery. Doesn't Mr. Raymond have any interest in that?"

  It seems that Javier was hinting at something, and Raymond calmly said: "We traveled across the ocean and finally settled down here with great difficulty. For now, we just want to rest well."

  "Is it? But I always thought Mr. Raymond wouldn't be someone who would live in a small place like this."

  Without waiting for Raymond's response, Javier continued: "Lord Reid asked me to inform you that he will fully support you. Please remember this."

  After finishing speaking, he turned around and left just like that.

  As Javier's back disappeared into the night, Raymond's eyes gradually narrowed.

  That's interesting, is it implying that I shouldn't be content with the status quo? It seems that Reed's introduction here wasn't as simple as "thanks" after all.

  But it's all right, let's just use each other then, and see who gets the most in the end, who gets what they really want.