Chapter 174: Persuasion

The humming of the horn still persists, reminding the people of Tana City from time to time that the War is still ongoing.

The people here do indeed walk very fast, as if everyone is being chased by something.

The Commercial Street is especially lively; a few months ago, the commoners here didn't really dare to come to the Commercial Street to spend money, but a few months later, it has already become the most important Commercial Street in Tana City.

Many merchants look for sources of goods here, and occasionally workers also look for jobs here; a player even opened a human resources company here, which can solve employment problems for hundreds of people for players every day.

Osman was shocked by the prosperity of the street before his eyes; even in the Royal Capital, there is no such environment where one can sell goods with such peace of mind.

People here even place their goods directly on the side of the road, just putting them on stalls, without having to worry at all about them being snatched or stolen.

The people of Tana City are unexpectedly much more well-mannered than the people of the Royal Capital.

This surprised Osman a little.

What he didn't understand was that the Commercial Street is the place with the best public security in the entire Tana City; even near the Government Building, one cannot find a safer place than here, because those guards have to come here to patrol from time to time.

Moreover, the merchants here are extremely close-knit; as long as one shop is stolen from, everyone on the entire street will run out to catch the thief.

Even among the customers, there will be quite a few people who, even at the risk of their lives, will prioritize dealing with those troublemakers first.

Even the thugs on Bar Street are afraid.

Therefore, no one dares to cause trouble on the Commercial Street, and the players' sales methods have become a bit bolder.

"Fresh pineapple juice, fresh pineapple juice!"

"The latest dress designed by the designer Fuling, come and take a look!"

"Fine Wine! 1 Sid per bottle!"

The hawking sounds mostly come from the merchants of Tana City, while the players are inside the shops; those merchants at the entrance need to pay stall fees to the shops, and many players can pay their weekly rent through these stall fees.

In other words, if you don't intend to open your shop, you can also directly rent out the stall at the entrance.

Of course, no player would waste an opportunity to make money; no matter what, there will be something to sell.

Osman discovered that there was absolutely no foul smell on this street; the ground here was very clean and tidy, without a trace of filth like excrement, and not only that, there were all kinds of fragrances in the air.

There is the smell of food, and also the smell of cake; it is truly nostalgic that such a small place would actually have cake.

Then again, even in the factory kitchen, there would be cake, and the taste was quite good.

Coming back to his senses, Osman had already arrived at the door of Ai Ai's studio.

Outside this studio, there were also two people waiting; Osman could see the family crests of great families on these two people, so they should be servants of nobles.

And inside the room, there was still a young lady, as well as her servants, who were admiring a Painting.

"Your technique is getting better and better; this is simply wonderful, it is the most satisfying Painting I have ever seen," Miss Amy Hilton praised continuously, "I think this Painting needs to be hung in my bedroom."

Miss Hilton wished she could chat with Ai Ai a few more times, "I would also like to trouble you for my wedding portrait later, you see..."

"I'm sorry, my Paintings are already booked up to three months later; I think your wedding portrait might need to be delayed for a period of time," Ai Ai said somewhat apologetically.

He didn't expect that this young lady's portrait would be in such high demand.

Standing outside the door, Osman saw those Paintings in Ai Ai's studio.

Each one was more detailed than the Painting in his hand; it was simply masterful craftsmanship.

And the colors were also softer.

He stood to the side, waiting for that young lady to finish talking with Ai Ai.

Miss Hilton seemed a bit dissatisfied, but thinking of Ai Ai's Paintings, she still gritted her teeth, "It doesn't matter, I can wait; after all, my wedding is four months away, but I hope it can be faster by then."

It takes Ai Ai an average of one week to paint a picture, and sometimes even longer.

Although the wedding is four months away, within the preceding half year, this young lady needs to prepare many things.

Including the portrait.

"I will try my best, but if you cannot accept it..."

"I accept, of course I accept," Miss Hilton said hurriedly, "As long as my portrait is painted by you."

"Then I am willing to reach a cooperation with you; this is the contract for the painting, please take a look first," Ai Ai was still so particular about doing things officially.

"Heavens, I thought you were a Believer of the Sun God Cult," Miss Hilton muttered.

Ai Ai gave a wry smile, "I only assisted Bishop Aikemengde in painting the dome; in reality, I am a Believer of the Wealth Church."

"That is truly incredible," Miss Hilton clicked her tongue slightly, then signed her name and left Ai Ai's studio happily, clutching that Painting.

The two servants waiting behind squeezed in immediately and began to inquire about the matter of having a Painting made.

"I am already painting; I have time to go to Lady Ruilatu's house the day after tomorrow, and please ask Lady Fei'ouna to come to me the afternoon of the day after that to have her Painting done. You know, I am not willing to go to Viscount Philip's house," Ai Ai had heard that Viscount Philip was not a good thing; he liked any woman he saw.

These women also did not want Ai Ai to go to Viscount Philip's place; after all, no one wants another woman to compete for favor with them.

The two servants obtained the information they wanted and left the studio.

"It looks like you are quite busy," Osman took out the Woodblock Print he had placed in his bag, "This is what you wanted."

"I didn't expect you to make it so quickly; I thought I would need to go to the factory to pick up the goods," Ai Ai brought out a plate of cookies from the room, plus a cup of cola homemade by the players, and handed it to the other person.

Osman looked at the cup containing the cola and was a bit puzzled.

Why use such a tall cup to drink black tea?

Then he subconsciously took a sip.

This taste...

He looked at the drink in his hand in a trance; that stimulating sensation made him feel very refreshed, and the heat of Tana City was also removed quite a bit.

"A new product on the Commercial Street recently; fortunately, I also have this kind of sparkling water here," Ai Ai liked the reactions of these NPCs; every time she brought out new things to treat them, they would show happy expressions.

"This is truly a good drink; even in the Royal Capital, it would become a best-seller," Osman praised.

"That is truly great; we already have friends planning to go to the Royal Capital to open a shop. Besides this kind of drink, they will also sell hamburgers and fries," Ai Ai said with a smile.

Osman pointed to the Woodblock Print and then said, "I thought you would recommend I drink this kind of Wine."

"Someone will also go to the Royal Capital to open a bar, but the shops in the Royal Capital are really too expensive; only after having money can one go over to open one," Ai Ai had a good impression of this NPC and took the opportunity to inquire, "I heard that the Craftsman Church and the Wisdom Church are now one?"

She knew someone would ask this question; although the people in the factory recently wouldn't ask, their curious gazes had already betrayed their thoughts.

For the sake of the beauty, Osman smiled bitterly and said, "We have been working under the Wisdom Church for over 100 years; we need their research results, and they need our technology."

"What if other churches also need your technology? For example, the War Church?" Ai Ai asked curiously.

"Our technology is all based on the results of the Wisdom Church, so in most cases, other churches will go directly to the Wisdom Church to place custom orders." Osman tried his best to keep his mood relaxed.

She hadn't expected it to be like this, "Then wouldn't the Craftsman Church be at a disadvantage?"

"It's alright, at least we aren't lacking in wages, and if we are willing to create, we can also apply for a Patent." It's just that it's very difficult to bypass the patent barriers of the Wisdom Church.

Because they have been cooperating for so long, most craftsmen only know how to produce by following the established steps; it is not easy to break through the patents.

Even if some breakthrough methods are discovered during the production process, they are quickly refuted by people from the Wisdom Church for various reasons.

In the end, most craftsmen turn to believe in the Wisdom Church, and those who remain find it hard to have any achievements in research and development, to the point where they can't even afford a workbench.

Fortunately, Tana City avoids this problem; at least the Wisdom Church here is not as strictly controlled as in the Royal Capital.

No wonder so many people are willing to come out to work; it turns out it was for the air of freedom.

Ai Ai nodded, "If we have parts in the future, or rather, if we want to build a new type of machine and need your help, would you help us?"

"You?" Osman had heard that Ai Ai was a Believer of Wealth.

Being able to help a Believer of Wealth is certainly not a bad thing; they wouldn't point fingers at their work, but would instead give sufficient monetary rewards.

Osman was more than willing to do this, so how could he possibly obstruct it?

"Yes, we want to build a Cement Ship. We can handle the manufacturing of the Steam Engine, but if you are willing to provide some help with the Magic Rune, perhaps the efficiency would be higher," Ai Ai said directly.

This was something people on the forum had discussed; they all saw that Osman had been making Ai Ai's Woodblock Print all afternoon today, without even resting.

Some meddlesome players saw Osman take the Woodblock Print directly to Store Street and posted it on the forum, hoping Ai Ai could help ask about it.

After all, those two craftsmen hid those Magic Runes too tightly; although players could record videos and take screenshots to see some content, they couldn't see exactly how it was done at all.

But if the runes were made directly on the ships built by the players, then learning them wouldn't seem like such a difficult thing.

"I have indeed heard about you building ships; is it actually a Steam Ship?" So far, the Steam Ship is one of the most remarkable inventions in the entire Federal; those Ironclad Ships also use this method to be driven. These ships don't need to use sails; they only need some coal to make them sail.

Moreover, for Believers of the Sea Monster and the Storm, this kind of ship also has a strong deterrent effect; it moves fast and can mount powerful cannons.

The disadvantage is that it cannot be salvaged after sinking, and if there is no fuel, it cannot move.

It's just that this kind of industrial product is the crystallization of wisdom from hundreds of craftsmen and thousands of people from the Wisdom Church to be able to produce.

Even the most basic Cement Ship is the result of decades of research...

If he remembered correctly, no one in Tana City had ever gone to the Royal Capital to study; how were they making it?

Could it be that they were just whimsically trying to build it?

"We can pay a price higher than that of the Royal Capital; of course, this requires you to talk to Mr. Andrew yourself."

Osman had truly never even thought about such a thing.

However, the orders from the Wisdom Church were indeed not that complicated; at least the things he and his colleagues made were all spare materials for the Defense Array.

If they really wanted to build a Cement Ship, and he was willing to provide some help...

Who knows, maybe after the war ends, he could stay in Tana City?

Although this place doesn't compare to the Royal Capital, the quality of life doesn't seem bad at all.

And the people here all look very good.

In Osman's eyes, these Xiahui People all look quite good.

He didn't know that these people's faces were all created by AI, and they could be said to perfectly match the golden ratio.

So he nodded, "If I can indeed be of help—after all, I don't know what progress your ship has made; I haven't even taken a good look at it."

She hadn't expected it to go so smoothly; Ai Ai even suspected that the AI calculations of her brother's company had made a mistake.

She, a painter, went to talk to a craftsman about ship construction, and the other party actually agreed.

Is this a bit ridiculous?

Chen Zhi had the same thought.

He had just been spying on Osman's studio, trying to find books on the production of Magic Runes inside.

But unfortunately, there were no books here; Osman, who had been making Magic Runes for a long time, had long since engraved those runes in his brain and didn't need to look up information at all.

He hadn't expected that just as he shifted his perspective to Ai Ai, he would see Osman agree to Ai Ai's request and express his intentions tactfully.

A good start is half the battle.

At least the person could definitely be kept, Chen Zhi was very confident.

After sending Osman away, Ai Ai took the Woodblock Print and went to Luolita's shop.

These two Woodblock Prints would be sent to the Royal Capital and then handed over to the publishing house for printing and advertisement production.

"So fast? We only placed the order yesterday!" Luolita looked at the Woodblock Print in surprise, "But then again, we effectively possess a complete 24-hour life; you can think in the real world."

"You're right, and I rested better, feeling energetic when thinking," Ai Ai said with a smile, "And I also arranged with that craftsman to take a look at the Steam Ship under construction tomorrow. Oh right, they call it a Cement Ship."

"You arranged it with him so quickly?" Luolita gave a thumbs up in admiration, "Well done. I have to notify You'eryuan immediately; he is quite interested in those runes. If it weren't for Zhongshan Laoren forbidding it, he might have snuck into the craftsman's office to flip through them."

(End of this chapter)