Chapter 300: Analyzing the Pros and Cons

The harbor Luoning wanted to build was naturally aimed at being a commercial port or transportation hub capable of docking a large number of ships, rather than a small ferry-style pier.

And to build such a harbor, the timber, stone, labor, and so on required would all be a very large number.

Although he was confident in completing the construction relying on the strength of Wubei Territory itself, the time span for this should be very long; a few years at the shortest, and ten or even several decades at the longest, were all possible.

Furthermore, after it was built, it would also require a large number of experienced port management personnel to operate and maintain it.

Previously, he only wanted to find experienced craftsmen to first find a suitable location for building a harbor in Wubei Territory.

Now, upon hearing of the plight of the Dennis Family, he immediately associated it with the idea that perhaps he could cooperate with the Dennis Family on the matter of building the harbor.

After all, the Dennis Family had been operating Jianjiao City for more than a year or two; at least three generations of them had been dealing with seaports.

If he could cooperate with the Dennis Family, who possessed a harbor, then the difficulty of building and operating the Wubei Territory harbor would be greatly reduced.

"I encountered an assassination incident on the way here."

Luoning shifted the topic away from the matter of Jianjiao City and the Earl of Screaming Island, "The targets of the assassination were Hamete's lover and his son."

"Oh?"

Weituolinuo did not understand why he was suddenly talking about this matter; he could only reveal a curious expression.

"What happened?"

Next, Luoning briefly recounted the experience of the incident.

Weituolinuo thought the other party was speaking up for Hamete, so he immediately promised that he would search the whole city for members of the Slaughter Wolf Mercenary Group later and put them on trial.

Luoning was naturally not doing this for that matter; if revenge was needed, Hamete would handle it himself.

"When I was passing through Thorn Valley, I once asked Baron Hamete to do me a favor."

He said: "I hoped he would help me recruit some craftsmen capable of building a harbor in Jianjiao City."

Weituolinuo nodded slowly; at first glance, this matter seemed to be of no great importance—recruiting workers was a very common thing.

However, he soon froze for a moment and asked in surprise: "Wubei Territory wants to build a harbor?"

Luoning spread his hands: "Why not?"

"Wubei Territory has a need for foreign trade. If I want to transport goods to be sold on both sides of the Screaming Sea, I need to take the land route around Wushan to get here; this road is too long."

"But if I have my own harbor, I can completely load the goods, set off from the seaport to the north, and then head south from the Screaming Sea. Not only can I quickly reach the Wangdu, but I can even extend all the way to your territory, Jianjiao City."

This was actually only a part of the shipping route.

Weituolinuo was secretly astonished and had to admit that the shipping route Luoning planned was very valuable.

Moreover, Wubei Territory had Wushan Castle at its back; if it had the support of the family, there was a high probability that this place could be developed.

If it also had its own seaport, the trade between Wubei Territory and the outside world would be even more convenient in the future.

But in this way, it would inevitably affect the business of Dennis Port.

Just imagine, currently, if Muma City, Cuican City, and many knight manors had sales to that land of the Wangdu, they all needed to pass through Jianjiao City.

But if Wubei Territory had its own harbor, not to mention other cities, Muma City would definitely use it to conduct trade.

In this way, the revenue of Dennis Port would decrease.

But Weituolinuo knew that if Luoning insisted on building a harbor, even if he secretly ordered the craftsmen in Jianjiao City not to provide any help or support, the Wubei Territory harbor could still be built.

If it really didn't work, he could just go find the Earl of Screaming Island; the other party was very keen on things like helping to build harbors.

Rather than that, it would be better to consider investing now and sharing some of the profits in the future.

"Is Earl Luoning trying to discuss cooperation with me?" Weituolinuo asked with a smile.

"Of course!"

Luoning gave a very affirmative tone: "Although Baron Hamete has lived in Jianjiao City for many years and is familiar with Dennis Port, he cannot be compared with the Dennis Family."

Weituolinuo nodded, but did not agree immediately.

"Nowadays, on this sea, besides the trade between the two sides of the Screaming Sea, there are also ships that bypass Wubei Territory, heading south from the north to reach the Vila Principality for trade. However, there is a lack of harbors for docking along the way. If the Wubei Territory seaport is built, it can be expected that it will be a bustling port."

He first affirmed the value of the Wubei Territory harbor, then changed the subject.

"But if the Wubei Territory harbor is built, then those cities north of Wushan Territory will definitely choose to set off from your harbor instead of passing through the Dennis Port of Jianjiao City to the other side as they do now. In this way, it will inevitably affect the interests of my Dennis Family."

Weituolinuo looked at Luoning, his face still wearing a smiling expression.

"You are asking me to risk damaging the interests of the Dennis Family to help you build a harbor; this matter is very difficult to handle, my dear Earl."

Luoning understood what the other party meant.

The harbor construction hadn't even finished yet, and the other party was already considering asking for a higher price.

"My dear Viscount, if you really think so, then I can only say that your vision is not far-sighted enough."

Luoning said seriously: "You hope that Wushan Castle can come forward to help Jianjiao City sign a peace agreement with the Earl of Screaming Island, so that he no longer obstructs the ships of Dennis Port."

"But this kind of paper agreement is, after all, not Along-term thing. Not only is its binding force weak, but Dennis Port will likely still need to pay the other party more fees."

Peace had a price; Luoning estimated that even if an agreement were signed, Dennis Port would still pay something like escort fees.

Weituolinuo was noncommittal.

For him, being able to let the merchant ships of Dennis Port head north without hindrance meant his business would increase, and paying some protection fees was acceptable.

Luoning, however, said: "To completely solve this problem and let Jianjiao City and the Earl of Screaming Island trade on equal terms, we must make him feel pressure on the sea."

Weituolinuo narrowed his eyes and frowned.

"The fleet of Screaming Island is powerful, and their presence is in many ports of the Kingdom. Even if your harbor is built, I am afraid it will be very difficult to pose a threat to him."

"I don't need to pose a threat to his fleet."

Luoning said: "Since he can blockade the ships of Dennis Port, I can also blockade his ships that bypass Wubei Territory to head south to the Vila Principality. If he intercepts you once, I will intercept him three times."

"Dennis Port has small trade, so it can still bear it if it loses once or twice. But his trade—you just said it yourself, his presence is in many ports. If it happens a few more times, whether he can afford the loss is one thing, but affecting his reputation and safety is another matter entirely."

Weituolinuo tapped his index finger on his thigh continuously; this was clearly a subconscious action when he was thinking about a problem.

If the Wubei Territory harbor were built and a fleet were created, it could completely set up a line of defense in the north, just like the island chain formed by the Earl of Screaming Island relying on the sea islands.

Of course, Luoning could not use an official fleet to intercept the ships of Screaming Island, but he could use the identity of pirates.

After all, there are pirates on the sea; this is a very normal thing.

As for where the pirates come from, who knows?

"Once passage through Dennis Port is unimpeded, even if cities in the north of Wushan Territory like Muma City do not use your port, many cities to the west and south of Jianjiao City will certainly reconsider choosing Dennis Port."

Luoning continued further: "To say nothing of anything else, just take my Chishan Town. Every year I transport iron ore from there to Wubei Territory; the capacity of horse-drawn carriages is limited, and the single-trip transport volume is not large. But if it could be transported by cargo ship from Dennis Port to Wubei Territory, you could earn money, and I could save effort and trouble."

This world does not have high-capacity transport tools like trucks.

Even if Magic Beasts are used to pull them, their transport capacity cannot compare to cargo ships, and they are also restricted by the geographical conditions along the route.

Maritime transport is different; it has large volume, low cost, and a wide coverage area. It can be said that as long as safety is ensured, this kind of transport is very advantageous for Luoning.

"Viscount Weituolinuo, do you still think that the port in Wubei Territory harms the interests of the Dennis Family?"

(End of this chapter)