Chapter 1387: Trade War, Matters of Stance

"When it comes to understanding Elven society, I am not as knowledgeable as Patriarch Aoruipusi, so I still tend to agree with his judgment. However, regarding the purpose of that Tuofu's investigation, I feel there is no need to be overly conspiratorial."

"Regardless of what deep-seated motives the other party may have, as long as there are no mistakes in this matter of spice smuggling, which we can relatively control, it makes little difference to us."

Speaking of this, Xia Duo looked toward the north again, his gaze seemingly piercing through the walls to see the Elven Mage who was currently being arranged at Lady Patti's manor, and then continued:

"Since we have already done this smuggling, there is no point in worrying about the consequences. As long as the other party can bring tangible benefits, who cares what their motives are!"

With Xia Duo saying this, he had effectively stated his position. After hearing this, Lord Collins nodded incessantly; he had originally harbored thoughts of further expanding the smuggling, and Xia Duo's words had struck a chord with him.

Before coming, he had also tried to inquire about it; the Moon Crown Family had a great reputation in Cormanthor, and generally, no Elf would dare to impersonate them. Even if someone did, it would mean the other party's influence was no less than that of the Moon Crown Family.

What reason was there to refuse such a cooperative partner!

Collins had even thought that if Lord Xia Duo acted as an obstacle in this cooperation, he would simply cast the other party aside and cooperate with the new Elven partner alone.

In his view, the profits from high-end spices were no less than the friendship of a Senior Arcanist.

Of course, if Lord Xia Duo agreed, then he would not have to risk offending a Senior Arcanist to gamble on a currently uncertain benefit.

Inside the dining room temporarily set up in the Town Hall, two humans and one Elf quickly reached a consensus on the issue of further cooperation with the Moon Crown Family, and the contact with the Moon Crown Family would still be handled by the Silver Leaf Family.

Although the two humans, Collins and Xia Duo, were engaged in smuggling—especially Collins, as the source of the goods came from him—they still needed an Elven white glove to serve as another layer of insurance.

If the smuggling activities were ever exposed and discovered by the Cormanthor authorities, the Silver Leaf Family would be the best shield.

Of course, since the Silver Leaf Family had completely withdrawn from Cormanthor during the Drow War, even if this matter were discovered, it would not be a fatal blow; at most, it would just be difficult to appear publicly in Cormanthor in the future.

Perhaps with their Elven appearance, they might even be more suited for smuggling in the future!

Various thoughts flashed through Xia Duo's mind.

After lunch, Aoruipusi went to discuss the specific details of the high-end spice smuggling with the Elven Mage from the Moon Crown Family, while Xia Duo and Collins remained in the Town Hall, continuing to discuss the future prospects of international trade.

"The Northland Alliance has now been established. Although no changes are visible in the short term, changes will come sooner or later! Lord Collins, I presume Luodite must have told you about the various remarks made by the Cormanthor Crown King in Evereska after he returned?"

"Does Lord Xia Duo mean the 'Five Races Equality and Prosperity' of the Elves?"

"Yes, but it is not just that."

Xia Duo sighed at length and then explained: "This shift in attitude from the Cormanthor Crown King also means that Cormanthor's overall external stance is about to change. Netheril is very likely to welcome a relatively relaxed trade environment with Cormanthor."

"Isn't that a good thing?"

"It is a good thing, but it also harbors risks. Take spices as an example: if trade between the two countries normalizes and Cormanthor agrees to import spices from Netheril, how do you think the price will compare to those in their own country? Or take Magic Items: how much difference is there between the price of those exported by Cormanthor and those within Netheril?"

What Xia Duo actually wanted to talk about was the trade deficit; Cormanthor's import demand for Netherese goods was minimal and mostly concentrated in the resource sector.

This included, but was not limited to, various ores, metals, Gemstones, rare woods, and even special commodities like spices that could have been exported as luxury goods; the added value of these commodities was extremely low.

Correspondingly, the added value of goods exported by Cormanthor to Netheril was ridiculously high. Many Netherese Merchants even traveled to Konnifila City just to "wash" the origin of goods produced in Netheril to Cormanthor, thereby obtaining a higher selling premium.

Netherese Merchants could make a fortune just by transshipping, let alone goods that actually came from Cormanthor; a simple piece of Mithril jewelry, if claimed to be from the hands of a Master, could be sold for ten or even a hundred times the price of normal jewelry.

It was just that in the past, relations between the two countries were sensitive, trade could only be conducted on a small scale, and the variety of goods was very limited; even with smuggling, not much could actually be moved.

But once trade was normalized under the framework of the Northland Alliance, it would be like inviting a wolf into the house, handing over a massive amount of wealth to Cormanthor.

Under Xia Duo's explanation, Collins gradually realized that even normal trade could harbor crises, which suddenly gave him a sense of unfamiliarity with the world he had originally been familiar with.

"Then, Lord Xia Duo, what can we do to prevent this situation from happening?"

"It is very difficult, unless we develop substitutes for all the goods Cormanthor might export before they notice this special weapon called 'trade', but that is almost impossible to achieve."

In fact, Xia Duo could do it, but the problem was that he could not take on these burdens for others for no reason, let alone doing so would be tantamount to putting himself on Cormanthor's blacklist.

"There is another very fatal point: Elven culture has long been deeply rooted in the hearts of the people in Netheril. Even if there are substitutes, people are still largely willing to pay for Elven goods! For the Elves, not only can 'trade' be used as a weapon, but 'culture' can also be used as a weapon, and its lethality is even more astonishing!"

This was the first time Xia Duo had discussed the issue of Elven cultural invasion in front of someone other than Niya. It was not that he trusted Collins that much, but rather that such thoughts and worries were not uncommon in Netheril.

And based on his understanding of Collins, although the other party was not as vigilant against Elves as he was, he was definitely not some kind of "Elven-worshipper."

Otherwise, he would not have even brought this up.

Inside the Reception Room, Collins was silent, and Xia Duo did not urge him, just quietly pondering what methods he could have to deal with the current situation.

After a long while, Collins suddenly spoke up and asked Xia Duo a somewhat strange question: "Does Lord Xia Duo not like Elves and Elven culture?"

"No, quite the contrary. I like the Elven race very much, and I also like Elven culture, but this is a matter of stance. I will not relax my vigilance against them because of personal emotions."

Perhaps no one had ever talked about a "matter of stance" in front of him before; Lord Collins fell into silence again. Xia Duo still did not urge him, giving him time to think slowly.

For a future ally who could be won over, Xia Duo was very tolerant.