Aililan had seen through everything long ago.
When the Goddess Lady and the sisters arrived, she had tucked away her personal schemes. Now that they were gone, her mind became active again, and she wished she could devour every opportunity.
Before long, the group arrived at Bitgel.
From a distance, Bitgel looked like a bustling market. The outermost layer was a massive wooden fence, with many houses built along both sides of the road.
Though they were only simple shops, they were worth their weight in gold to the merchants. A market was far too unpredictable, but once there were fixed shops, the merchants had a place to establish themselves.
Unfortunately, Aililan had no intention of selling.
She kept the shops to collect rent.
The monthly rent for a single shop ranged from two to five Gold Coins. If she sold them directly, they would only fetch ten to twenty Gold Coins, which was nowhere near as profitable as collecting rent.
Some people in the finance department had tried to stick their hands in the pot, but under Aililan’s instructions, Finance Chief Grace had already purged many of them.
What surprised Aililan the most was that on the higher ground of Bitgel, two military structures—called “Merchant Towers” but functioning as watchtowers—had already been erected. Below them sat a small fort.
Aililan spoke approvingly, “Not bad. In a while, we should replace the wooden fences of Bitgel with stone walls and expand the small fort into a small fortress.”
One must eat one bite at a time.
If she suddenly built a massive military stronghold, it would not only put immense pressure on Aililan’s finances but would also likely provoke the War Pig Tribe.
However, if she stretched out the timeline—building a watchtower today and a wall tomorrow—it would eventually become a major military town over time.
There were still many Orcs active in Bitgel, primarily from the War Pig Tribe, along with members of surrounding Orc tribes that had been conquered by them.
Herella, the official in charge of operations here, hurried over. “Saintess Aililan, you have finally arrived.”
Aililan nodded slightly and asked, “How is the situation in Bitgel now?”
“The situation is excellent, but…”
“But what?”
“More and more merchants are coming here. You should understand what I mean; blind following will make management difficult.”
This was indeed a problem.
After its initial development, Bitgel no longer needed so many merchants, especially since many commoners arrived with dreams of striking it rich.
One person selling apples makes money. Ten people selling apples only leads to vicious competition.
Aililan gave an order for the finance department to buy up as many surplus materials as possible.
However, this created a fatal issue. Because the quality varied, the merchants were shipping all sorts of junk here. Over time, this place risked becoming a literal collection station for trash.
After a moment of silence, Aililan said, “I will look into this matter. But Bitgel is still in its growth phase, and we should not dampen the enthusiasm of the merchants.”
“Herella, I am entrusting Bitgel to you. Please make sure to put more effort into it.”
Herella hurriedly bowed and said, “It is my honor to serve the Goddess Lady.”
Aililan was not too worried about this.
The market for the millions of Orcs was still there. Calculating by half the population of the Southern Plains, there were at least one or two million people. If they wanted to fully saturate that market, they were still a long way off.
Even if the market became saturated, it would be simple to handle. She could just issue administrative orders or Merchant Permits. Only those with a Merchant Permit would be allowed to trade here.
There were essentially two directions for development.
The first was to regulate the market from the very beginning. The second was to let it grow wild.
Aililan clearly leaned toward the latter. This was due to the instability and uncertainty of their relationship with the Orcs.
Just as the higher-ups in the Church were unwilling to invest heavily in the development of Atester City, they feared Atester might be destroyed by the fires of war tomorrow. Aililan also had to consider that her hard work in regulating the market and her various investments might vanish in an instant.
Therefore, letting it grow wild was naturally better. It might become difficult for Aililan to control, but war could always push everything over and start anew, couldn’t it?
‘Moreover, profit is the best way to unite people. I am tolerating the aristocrats from other cities sharing Bitgel—more accurately, sharing the “Orc Market cake”—so that they will be of one heart and mind with me in the future,’ Aililan thought with a helpless sigh.
Just as Ibisos and his people had once strongly opposed Aililan because they feared damaging their relationship with the Orcs, she could use the “cake of profit” to get the entire interest group of the Fifth Wing to support her endeavors.
It was just like the British Empire of old. To open the markets of other countries, everyone’s interests were aligned. From top to bottom, everyone supported it, not even fearing the initiation of a war.
What Aililan wanted to do now was to cultivate such a group of stakeholders.
Loyalty was valuable, but profit was worth even more.
If she started a war using the Church’s excuses, others might respond while gritting their teeth. But if it were for the sake of profit, they would surely contribute sincerely under the slogan of fighting for “Justice.”
The grassroots, the profit-seeking class, and the ruling class—Aililan could not imagine them as a single entity. Unless she could establish a completely new regime through a system similar to those in her previous world, each class would have its own interests and demands, making contradictions difficult to reconcile.
One could only say there were many things to consider.
To achieve all these goals, Aililan still needed a helping hand. Currently, things with the War Pigs were gradually getting on the right track.
But she had another backup plan. Her purpose in coming to Bitgel this time was not to enjoy the scenery or relax. Besides the dispute between the War Pigs and the Wasteland Sheep Tribe, Aililan also intended to use the Jackal Tribe.
‘The War Pigs cannot put my mind at ease. Allowing them to become the sole power does not serve my interests. It is best to have two hegemons on the Orc Southern Plains, ideally forming a situation where they can stand against the Orc Northern Royal Court, letting the three powers balance each other. It would be like the Three-Way Balance of another world.’
History proved that a triangular power structure was relatively stable.
In Aililan’s view, the Jackal Tribe was an existence more worthy of her trust. Now that their Chief had already declared his intention to join the Church, what was there to worry about?
It was said that the Jackal Tribe was very envious of the Bitgel market. They had been contacting Aililan, hoping to establish one in their territory as well.
Aililan needed to respond to them.
‘However, I still feel it’s not quite safe enough! That’s why I asked the Jackal Tribe Chief to bring all his descendants with him this time,’ Aililan thought, a faint smile appearing on her face.
What use was one man’s pledge of loyalty?
If they were going to join the Church, then naturally, the whole family should join.