41. The Commercial Alliance

The representatives of the various factions, having listened to Mofei’s words, each pledged their allegiance to him before taking their leave. They were eager to bring this good news to their lords as quickly as possible.

Mofei’s words soon took effect. The guards originally tasked with escorting goods from the City of the Dead noticed that, at every stop, their cargo was swiftly bought up in full. Along the way, regardless of whom they encountered, anyone who saw the banner of the City of the Dead greeted them with goodwill; if help was needed, aid was offered without hesitation. Fortunately, the goods from the City of the Dead were rare elsewhere and sold at affordable prices. As everything was purchased immediately upon arrival, it became clear that local powers were assisting in distribution. In the end, Elder Orff decided to further reduce prices, taking only a minimal profit and granting the rest to these allies. With their support, goods from the City of the Dead sold even faster.

A steady stream of information also began to flow into the City of the Dead. Any tidbit deemed relevant—no matter how trivial—was sent straight to them. In the days that followed, Mofei dispatched several small cavalry units to help resist external attempts at annexation. Gradually, a commercial alliance centered around the City of the Dead emerged, though the city itself remained unaware. In this atmosphere of harmony, the powers in the region surrounding Mofei’s city began to cooperate, eventually forming a formal mercantile league. All commercial matters were henceforth handled by this alliance, with profits divided according to each party’s contribution. Thus, the days of business rivalry, territorial disputes, and suppression of competitors faded, replaced by a scene of unity where all factions found their share of benefit.

The crafts produced by the dwarves of the City of the Dead were truly exceptional. The mercantile league agreed that all goods shipped from the City of the Dead would be bought in full by representatives at each destination, then distributed for sale throughout the region. As prices fell, their share of profit grew. Now, throughout Mofei’s domain, every city—large or small—flew the banner of the City of the Dead. At every city gate, a handful of people and carts stood ready daily, waiting for each shipment to arrive. Goods from the City of the Dead were transferred to local vehicles at the gate; the dwarven leaders would state the price, the buyers would pay without haggling, and the goods were quickly taken away—no need for verification. The name “City of the Dead” had become a mark of unrivaled value. Over time, the number of escorts assigned to these shipments dwindled, until eventually none were needed at all.

A scene of prosperity unfolded across Mofei’s lands. According to imperial law, one-third of a domain’s taxes were to be paid to the empire, with the remaining two-thirds going to the local lord, who would then decide how much to allocate to each city. However, as the empire had promised Mofei a tax exemption for his territory, all collected taxes remained under his control.

For the first time, the taxes from each city were personally delivered to the City of the Dead by their respective mayors and chiefs of security. By tradition, when paying tax to the lord for the first time, the city's main officials were to meet the lord in person.

When Mofei saw cart after cart filled with gold coins, his eyes nearly popped out of his head. He didn’t even know how many cities or people were in his domain, but judging by the wealth before him, the total must have been no less than a billion. Unbeknownst to him, in past years of constant strife and competition, monthly tax revenue had been pitifully low. Now, under the influence of the City of the Dead, those days were gone; commerce flourished, and tax revenue soared.

“You have all worked hard,” Mofei said, unsure what else to say. He had never intended to keep all this gold for himself. “Take these coins back and use them for city development, or to improve the living conditions of the townspeople. Unless I give new orders, this is how tax collection should be handled in the future.”

The officials accompanying the convoy were stunned. They had never imagined Mofei would simply let them take all the money back without keeping a single coin.

“I want to share my thoughts with you,” Mofei continued. “Follow me, and you will not have to scrape by, but do not take what is not yours. These funds should be used in the cities to beautify the environment where we live. I will personally inspect my territory at any time, and if I hear or see things I do not like, it will not be just a matter of replacing you…” At this, Mofei swept the officials with a stern gaze.

“I do not care what you have done in the past, but if you have taken what you should not, or occupied what is not yours, it is best to return it. So long as it is not an unforgivable crime, I can overlook it; I will judge you by your future conduct. Let me tell you what I want to see in my cities.”

He paused, then said, “I want wide streets, lined with trees if possible. In the city center, there should be a beautiful plaza. The children of the city should receive training, and everyone should have work. The city should grow ever larger, but its walls must be high, and its guards responsible. At the very least, should we be attacked, the city must hold out until reinforcements arrive. Do you understand?”

“Yes, Lord,” they replied. After these words, they knew what was expected and said nothing more. The next day, they returned to their cities with the gold coins they had brought.

……

For now, Mofei entrusted all matters within the domain to Elder Wade, Kain’s father. City affairs were managed by Elder Orff of the dwarves, while Kain and Elder Warton oversaw military matters. The only major task remaining was the construction of the Elven King’s City. According to Irene, the outer city was already complete, and work was underway on the Queen’s palace. It seemed the city would be finished within the year. With everything nearly settled, Mofei finally had some peace.

“Are you going out alone, Lord?” Elder Orff asked. Mofei had summoned them to the keep to give a few instructions before resuming his unfinished journey.

“I’m not going alone—I’ll be taking Vivian and Irene with me,” Mofei replied with a smile. “Both Vivian and Irene are formidable, and I’m not worried about encountering danger. We’ll be fine on our travels.”

“I’ve rarely seen such an irresponsible lord,” grumbled Elder Orff. “He leaves everything to us and goes off gallivanting.”

“Oh, Elder Orff, you’re the grand steward of the City of the Dead now. With you in charge, there’s nothing to worry about. How could you shirk your duties?” Kain, ever considerate of Mofei, spoke up, though he wasn’t invited along this time.

“With only a few matters remaining at Elven King’s City, and everything else running smoothly, there shouldn’t be any problems. Aside from Kain continuing military training, nothing should trouble us in the City of the Dead. If the Lord wishes to travel, so be it—but please, be cautious and do not let your guard down,” Elder Orff said at last, seeing there was no convincing Mofei to take more guards.

“In that case, we’ll leave this afternoon. We should reach the next city by nightfall. I’ll leave things in your capable hands,” Mofei said, slipping away before they could object further.

“Elder, are we really going to let the Lord travel with only the two princesses?” Kain asked, worried.

“Of course not,” Elder Orff chuckled. “Have you forgotten the assassination squads we formed before? Each empire has them, and so does our lord’s domain. Notify them to protect the lord in secret.”

“Cunning old fox… No, a master strategist,” Kain muttered.

“At least you know your place,” Elder Orff shot back, half amused.

Mofei took only Vivian and Irene with him, leaving even Vivian’s knightly guards, Crow and Tucker, behind. The three of them rode out in a beast-drawn carriage, pulled by two Windchasers, through the city gates.

Inside the carriage, Vivian and Irene sat on either side, each holding one of Mofei’s arms, faces aglow with happiness. “Brother, where are we going first?” Irene couldn’t help but ask.

“We’ll explore our own territory first, then visit the neighboring cities!” Mofei replied, his plan already set.