One day later, the National Treasury of the Kingdom of Mason.
This was originally the most desolate place during the era of the Old King; even the mice would leave in tears after visiting. But now, it was heavily guarded by hundreds of Musketeers, and the air was filled with the scents of timber, grain, and metal.
Sophia, accompanied by Delilah and Irene, walked slowly into this treasure house that was now full to the brim.
She wore that black gothic long dress, and the bandage on her left arm had been replaced with a strip of light black silk. She walked at the very front, expressionless.
Delilah cradled her longsword, her gaze sharp as a falcon's, vigilant against any possible movement in the shadows. Following at Sophia's side, Irene was like a little hamster that had fallen into a rice jar; the moment she saw the stacked boxes, her eyes twinkled with the light of curiosity.
"Your Majesty, this is the final inventory list."
Victor stepped forward quickly, presenting a thick ledger with both hands.
Sophia stopped, her pale golden pupils sweeping over the mountains of piled supplies. To think that at a time when the National Treasury was so empty, the homes of these people held such wealth? This was far better than her life as a King.
Although her heart was overturning seas and rivers, Sophia's face remained a mask of extreme coldness. She casually flipped open a chest where currency was stacked neatly.
"Tell me, what do we have."
Victor straightened his back, his voice containing uncontrollable excitement:
"Answering Your Majesty. This house raid confiscated a total of five hundred gold coins, three thousand silver coins, and a total of nearly ten thousand copper coins and scrap silver. This is almost the sum of the Kingdom of Mason's fiscal revenue for the past three years!"
One hundred copper coins could be exchanged for one silver coin, and ten silver coins could be exchanged for one gold coin. Sophia expressionlessly grabbed a handful of heavy gold coins, letting them slide through her fingers to make crisp clinking sounds.
We struck it rich!
With this money, I can solve some of the immediate troubles, such as the expansion of Irene's laboratory, having more funds to build 'greenhouses' to grow food before winter arrives, getting better materials to manufacture muskets, and finding a way to purchase leather to make leather armor for the soldiers...
Delilah watched this scene from the side. Under the dancing firelight, Sophia's cold face and those glittering gold coins reflected each other.
She felt that Sophia's eyes at this moment were terrifyingly deep, as if this wealth was nothing more than fuel to drive some grand plan in her eyes. Facing such a huge sum of money, she didn't show even a shred of greed. Was she calculating how many muskets this money could buy, or calculating how much of a price she could make the neighboring countries pay?
"What about the supplies?"
Sophia continued walking forward, arriving at the second level of the storage area. Here, it was piled high with confiscated civilian resources. Wheat, barley, mixed grains, black beans, and buckwheat were too numerous to count. There were even a few crates of white flour and white rice, which were extremely rare in the barren Kingdom of Mason.
Fine spun wool, dyed silk, linen cloth, leather, wine, cured meat...
Irene pounced directly next to a pile of fabric, incoherent with excitement.
"Your Majesty! This cloth! I can use it to make higher efficiency filters! And those iron ingots, I can improve the bore of the muskets! I can even—I can even attempt more inventions!"
Sophia looked at Irene's excited appearance and nodded slightly.
"Irene."
Sophia's cold voice echoed inside the warehouse. "I will prioritize allocating these gold coins and materials to the West Tower. But I want to see results."
"No problem! Absolutely no problem!"
Irene vigorously patted her chest, then covered her chest with a flushed face after using too much force. Sophia helplessly looked away.
After patrolling the National Treasury, Sophia brought the two back to the study.
"Currently, the foundation of the Kingdom of Mason is still too thin."
Sophia sat behind the desk, her slender fingers gently tapping the tabletop.
"Relying on farming for self-sufficiency is too slow. We must take the initiative to reach out and empty the pockets of our neighboring countries."
She said it as casually as if she were emptying her own pocket. Delilah and Irene exchanged a glance, both feeling a sudden chill.
"How does Your Majesty intend to do this?" Delilah asked in a deep voice. She hadn't realized at all that she had already categorized herself, Sophia, and Sophia's Kingdom of Mason as the same faction.
Sophia looked toward Irene: "That shampoo and soap—has the cost been brought down?"
Irene immediately entered work mode:
"Your Majesty, with the large amount of grease confiscated this time—the oil those nobles originally used to light expensive candles—and some alkaline materials, I can research a mass-production plan for a regular version of the soap. Although the cleaning power will be slightly weaker, and without adding rosemary and expensive essential oils, the cost can be lowered significantly. But for ordinary people, it will definitely be a magical product they have never seen before."
"Very good." Sophia was satisfied. "We are going to market these things to the neighboring Kingdom of Leighton and the Kingdom of Orr."
"Your Majesty wants to exchange trade for supplies?" Delilah was puzzled. "But these things don't seem to directly help with war."
"Delilah, you are wrong. When the lords of the neighboring countries get used to bathing with the Kingdom of Mason's soap, and when their noble daughters cannot endure their hair without the Kingdom of Mason's shampoo, they will have already been captured by us."
Sophia spread out a simple map of the neighboring countries.
"First, in the name of a consolation visit, send a set of the Queen's Special Edition Premium Care Gift Box to the Queen of the Kingdom of Leighton. Tell her this is an ancient Secret Arts found within the ruins of the Kingdom of Mason."
"Then, open a small-scale trade port at the border. Do not directly accept gold coins; we only want grain, raw iron, and minerals. We will set the price of our soap slightly higher, but if they exchange using grain and materials, we will give them a discount."
"This is called 'premium harvesting'."
Sophia gave herself a thumbs-up in her heart.
Package these cheap detergents as Divine Miracles and exchange them for real strategic reserves. Incidentally, we can also plant our 'aesthetic hegemony' within the noble circles of the neighboring countries. By the time those nobles habitually use soap and shampoo, since their own countries cannot develop them, they can only continue to seek us out for purchases.
Delilah listened to this commercial logic she had never heard before, and her whole person fell into deep shock. To think it wasn't conquest by swords and blades, but using this soft knife named 'trade' to cut the flesh and bone of neighboring countries?
Delilah looked at Sophia, shocked in her heart. This method of dissolving another country's economy without batting an eyelid was a hundred times more insidious than any Tyrant.
Irene, standing to the side, obviously hadn't expected the Tyrant to have such ideas either. But it was indeed true; compared to money, the Kingdom of Mason currently lacked supplies—various supplies—the most. So, exchanging for supplies was primary, and money was secondary.
Selling soap and shampoo—Irene had wanted to do this for a long time!
"Go do it." Sophia waved her hand. "Irene, be quick with the first batch of the regular version. Victor, when the time comes, organize a capable merchant caravan, with thirty skilled soldiers personally selected by Delilah to escort them."
"Yes!"
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