April passed in a flash. After Manuel diligently oversaw the establishment of the Covert Department, the Inquisition, and the "Watchers" Force, the order and situation in Theodosia became much more stable. He also took the opportunity to eliminate many disloyal lords, both great and small, and acquired the information he so eagerly desired from the Covert Department.
"So, it's my brother's people who are secretly slandering me?" Manuel asked, incredulous, after reading the Covert Department's report.
"Yes, Your Highness. The relevant list is also in the report," Badars, who was in charge of this matter, replied with a bow.
Manuel nodded, a look of confusion on his face, and began to flip through the list section of the report. After finishing, he couldn't help but chuckle to himself: his brother seemed to be surrounded by many frustrated nobodies, except for Raus's Brother-in-law, though even he had been severely punished recently for a logistical mishap.
"It seems Isaac is a bit resentful," Manuel thought. "But it makes sense, Isaac is just a child, he's bound to be competitive. And come to think of it, he used to have quite a few unrealistic fantasies when he was little. Oh well, he's family after all. Once I ascend the throne, I'll just send him abroad or to a monastery."
"But my brother is surprisingly a man of action," Manuel said, a headache starting to form. "What great principles does a child understand? Forget it, let him be and indulge his delusions. As for those adults who clearly harbor ill intentions," at this thought, a ruthless glint flashed in Manuel's eyes, "a bunch of scoundrels, using others, and now using my brother, even trying to kick me off the throne. Do they really want to be completely removed from the stage of life? Fine, I'll grant their wish." Having thought this, he ordered Badars: "Have the Covert Department thoroughly investigate the illegal, immoral, and blasphemous acts of everyone on that list. If there's nothing on the surface, find a way to pin something on them. They need to learn what it means to provoke someone they can't afford to provoke."
"Yes, Your Highness. But Your Highness, is it truly alright to tolerate those jokes circulating among the common people?"
"There's no need to be overly sensitive, Badars. Public opinion is already being monitored by us. It would be too pitiful not to give them some outlet. Besides, the Covert Department," Manuel gave a warning look, "must be prepared to be scrutinized."
"Yes, Your Highness, loyalty!" Badars replied with a solemn expression, head and chest held high.
After dealing with this matter, Manuel first dismissed Badars and the others to carry out their tasks, while he picked up an economic report for Theodosia in April and began to read it in detail.
"I didn't expect the city's net income to increase so much after resuming the slave trade, a full 1,500 ducats. That's fantastic. This money should be enough for the expansion of the musketeer corps, mineral exploration, military reform, and the establishment of a rudimentary civil government," Manuel muttered to himself as he read, some of his thoughts even escaping his lips.
"Since there's money, it's time to prepare for this. If I remember correctly, the Kerch iron mine should be a shallow vein. And improving the military system also needs to be put on the agenda." He mumbled to himself as he pulled out a prediction report he had written earlier about the Panticapaeum minerals from a pile of archives. After reviewing it again, he set it aside and began to handwrite a reform plan.
A few mornings later, Manuel was sitting in the palace, handling official business and waiting for several key officials from relevant departments. Barbara also came to his side to help him with some tasks. Today, too, her face was inexplicably flushed, but it quickly faded. But when Manuel looked up at her, he suddenly noticed that her hands seemed to have just been wiped.
She must have just washed her hands, he thought, and paid no more attention. Just as these tasks were finished, Barbara glanced at the pile of archives and saw the report Manuel had personally written, the content of which seemed to be related to iron ore. Out of curiosity, after obtaining his permission, she took the document from the pile and read it carefully.
After reading, she looked at Manuel with a puzzled expression, "Manuel, you say there are rich iron ore deposits in the Panticapaeum area? Is that true?" Because, according to her knowledge, Panticapaeum had no famous industries. If anything, it was salt production and fishing, plus port shipping and shipbuilding, which had only recently started to pick up slightly due to Theodosia's slave trade.
Well, he couldn't very well tell her that he remembered this from his knowledge of his previous life, he began to consider how to reply.
After a moment, Manuel replied, "Barbara, I've read in ancient texts that the ancient Cimmerians and the Roman Empire before 1204 both had records of iron smelting on the peninsula. I wondered if there were enough self-sufficient mineral deposits on this peninsula. And after I came to Theodosia and perused local historical records, I saw a record about iron smelting in an old book. It mentioned that the iron smelted in the Panticapaeum area seemed to be more than in other regions. I then speculated whether the Panticapaeum area had relatively less barren ore veins."
"This month, it's time for me to verify my hypothesis. If this theoretical iron mine truly exists, then our ironware and armor can, to some extent, reduce our reliance on the outside world."
"Really? I don't believe it." Barbara looked at him skeptically.
"Absolutely true."
Seeing Manuel's firm expression and the well-founded nature of his hypothesis, Barbara decided to accept his explanation. However, she had an important matter she wanted to bring up, so she reminded him, "But Manuel, telling me this is useless, isn't it? You should discuss this with the key officials responsible for economic and mineral matters."
Ah, this is nonsense, of course I know that, Manuel muttered inwardly. However, he did not reply directly, but with a calm and composed look, he smiled and said, "By my calculations, they should be here soon."
"Who?"
Shortly after he finished speaking, someone knocked on the door of the room. Manuel, already prepared, simply sat quietly in his seat and softly said, "Enter."
The arrivals were Isaac Arno and other key officials from finance and mining, who had come precisely because of Manuel's iron ore prediction report. But to be honest, they didn't hold much hope, considering it merely the Crown Prince's wild fantasy, as they had never heard of any medium to large-scale mineral deposits during their time living in Theodosia.
Facing their doubts, Manuel repeated what he had just told Barbara as an explanation. The officials could only remain half-skeptical, deciding to perfunctorily address the matter and spend their money wisely.
But Manuel keenly sensed their intentions. At the end of the conversation, he specifically added, "I hope you all take this seriously. If there is indeed a discovery, I will not overlook your merits. Fiefs, bounties, and official titles will certainly be distributed fairly. But if I hear any rumors of people digging a few times and then coming to report, well, I remember that the convict laborers for road construction on the Kerch Isthmus seem to be a bit short lately, don't they?"
Facing such a warning from the Crown Prince, everyone instantly broke out in goosebumps and quickly bowed, saying, "Yes, Your Highness."
"Alright, alright, why so nervous? Come on, now let's discuss the survey costs."
Thus, to formulate a detailed plan, they spent several hours, discussing from morning until afternoon, finally concluding only at lunchtime.
But it was only the officials who concluded. When Manuel returned after lunch, news of major changes in Northern Crimea and the Eastern European Great Plains reached the Theodosia palace.
"What? Haji Giray achieved a great victory, and Ulugh Muhammad fled towards Volga Bulgaria?"
① Cimmerians: An ancient nomadic people, a branch of the Indo-Europeans, active along the Black Sea coast from approximately 1200 BC to 600 BC. At their peak, their footprint covered Anatolia, the Caucasus region, and the Eastern European Great Plains. The Bosporus Kingdom (with its capital Panticapaeum) was established by a Hellenized branch of them on the Crimean Peninsula around 480 BC.