Chapter 590 - 373: The Great Sage Rudy
Chapter 590: Chapter 373: The Great Sage Rudy
However, aside from the Lord, no one in the Debei Delegation was in the mood to go sightseeing. The conference would officially begin in three days, and it was hard to imagine how much endless arguing there would be, or how many compromises and dirty dealings would take place.
Just thinking about it was enough to make them too tense to sleep, so how could they have any mind for touring Feilengcui?
After the Minister of Foreign Affairs from the Holy Sith Kingdom left, Prince Luo Fu closed the door and cast a spell.
"I have cast a Sound Insulation Barrier to prevent any bugs from eavesdropping. For the discussion ahead, please feel free to speak your minds." Prince Luo Fu thus set the tone for the meeting.
Only then did he take a seat to the side at a leisurely pace, turning his gaze to Levi, who occupied the head of the table.
It was a small study, lined on both sides with bookshelves. In the center stood a long table draped in a pink cloth. The chairs along its sides were filled with the various Ministers from the Debei Delegation who would be attending the conference.
"Ahem. Our goal in this conference is to maximize Debei’s interests. I expect all of you to strive for that. And don’t worry if you run into trouble—His Majesty Harland and I are your most solid backing," Levi said at a measured pace, his legs crossed and his fingers drumming a steady rhythm on the table.
If anyone else had said this, it might have sounded like empty boasting. But coming from the Lord of High Cliff Castle, the Debei ministers burst into applause. Their faces flushed with excitement, they instantly felt an enormous boost in confidence for the conference ahead!
"Well then, let the internal meeting begin." With a shrug and a spread of his hands, Levi let the Ministers start their discussion. He listened quietly from the side, chiming in occasionally just to remind them he was there.
The Lord was self-aware. His father-in-law, His Majesty Harland, had appointed him as the head of the delegation, but his main purpose was to serve as a military deterrent. It wasn’t his place to get involved in the political wrangling.
’These Ministers, who had spent their entire lives engaging in verbal sparring, were far more skilled at it than he was.’
"Some of you may not know this," Prince Luo Fu began calmly, "but the weather in Debei has been quite poor for the past two years, causing severe reductions in grain yields in many areas. Our agricultural situation is not optimistic. It’s even reached the point where the proportion of grain in our trade with the Holy Sith Kingdom has risen to an unimaginable degree." He continued, "If the weather doesn’t improve, Debei will no longer be self-sufficient in food. We will have to rely on trade with other nations, which is an intolerable situation for a kingdom."
He stroked the Magic Ring on his hand and said gravely, "For the kingdom, and for every lord here, food is more important than your own spine."
Levi wasn’t too surprised by this. High Cliff Castle was located in the Wilderness and was more keenly aware of the harsh environment. The Old People from the Kas Mountain Range were so easily recruited by High Cliff Castle precisely because they were on the verge of starvation.
If not for the Soil Fertility Technique and the grain scrounged up from the Southern Territory, High Cliff Castle would have run out of food long ago.
"That’s right. War, in plain terms, is a battle of logistics. Without supplies, we might as well all just pack it in. What kind of damn war can you fight then?" Levi agreed with Luo Fu.
"Then how about we ask the Holy Sith Kingdom for some grain aid during the conference? Their climate is much better than ours; they surely don’t lack for food." The ministers began a heated discussion and offered what seemed like a good suggestion.
After all, the Three Kingdoms were currently united against the Persian Gulf Empire, so a little bit of grain aid should be nothing.
But Levi just rolled his eyes at this suggestion. ’These guys are all armchair strategists; they have no clue how to actually fight a war.’
’If they really let another nation handle their logistics, Debei might as well give up on the war entirely. They could just become a vassal state and do the dirty work. Maybe they’d even get to lick up some soup scraps afterward.’
"That’s not acceptable. If we really hand over our logistics to someone else, it’s like putting Debei’s neck in their hands." Fortunately, not everyone among the ministers was completely ignorant of military affairs, and someone immediately objected.
However, Luo Fu stopped their discussion, saying, "Everyone should know that the Persian Gulf Empire has a warmer, more humid climate, making their agriculture extremely developed. This is especially true for the Jin Suroo Great Plain along the Golden River, which has long been lauded as the ’Divine Womb.’ That region’s grain output accounts for a full third of the Persian Gulf Empire’s total. Every autumn harvest, the wagons transporting grain are said to be numerous enough to fill all of Gonda City."
"Our own food supply can just about sustain one war. So, if we can annex this breadbasket from the Persian Gulf Empire, Debei’s troubles will be easily solved."
Before everyone could rejoice, Luo Fu rubbed the bridge of his nose and said, "But the crux of the problem is that the Jin Suroo Great Plain is also filled with vast deposits of Magic Metal. It’s no exaggeration to say the place is paved with gold. None of the Three Kingdoms will just stand by and watch such a rich land fall into the hands of another."
The mission Prince Luo Fu laid out was a real headache. "Regardless, His Majesty’s intent is that Debei should be the one to attack and conquer this region. That way, when it comes time to wrangle over ownership, we’ll have a justified claim."
The meeting soon ended, and the delegates returned to their respective rooms to rest.
"Lord Levi, we meet again." On the way back, however, Muslim squeezed past several Long Halberd Guards, who could only watch with exasperated looks.
"You again?" Levi said with resignation. He waved a hand to dismiss the Guards and simply started strolling through the manor grounds with Muslim.