Crusader Kings: Prisoners of War.

Chapter 238 Recruiting talents
Practical talents are strategic talents in any country and can enjoy various preferential policies. Not to mention the talents from royal families, not only are their abilities guaranteed, but they also have a strong bond with the people in power due to blood relations. In most countries, as long as the ruler is not a jealous villain, such people will be reused.

Although King Charles was often criticized for being too overbearing or tyrannical, he was not a jealous person. On the contrary, he could make use of talents. Astolfo's ability might be just mediocre among those with practical talents, but he was a family member after all. If he was willing to work for the king, even if he could not become an earl or a duke, he would have no problem becoming a powerful knight commander under the king.

Faced with such doubts, Astolfo still used a trick to reply: "Hey, I am used to being free and undisciplined. I can't stand the constraints of the army, so let me continue to be a free man. Anyway, my mother is supported by the royal family. I will go back to visit her every few years. This kind of life now is what I really like and yearn for."

This was not the first time Alfred had asked him this question, and the answer he got was similar every time. However, this time the young German nobleman was determined to get to the bottom of it. "If you really had no interest in politics, I wouldn't have been so tactless as to ask you repeatedly, but you have shown excessive concern for many issues. Why did you help the Romans appease the Celts, and why did you follow His Highness Orville to Rome? These things make me doubt your motives, my nephew."

Alfred is the youngest son of the former king. In fact, he is not much older than Astolfo, but that does not prevent Alfred from using his identity to put pressure on the other party.

Astolfo scratched his head and replied, "In short, I don't mean to harm you. I want to do these things myself. I am not coerced and I don't want to harm your interests. Is that okay? I really regard these things as part of my adventure. Please don't worry too much. I admit that I have ideas, but these ideas will not harm anyone. This is my principle."

After Astolfo said this, young Alfred had no choice but to stop asking questions, and at the same time he felt a little relieved.

He knew that although his nephew had many tricks and was always out of tune, he would not lie when he spoke so seriously. Since Astolfo did not want to engage in conspiracy, there was no need for him to make everything clear, just like Orville knew that something was wrong with the other party, but he never asked any questions.
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Recently, a new kind of paper has been circulating in the market of Rome. This paper is slightly gray and yellowish, but still fine and, most importantly, very cheap, only half or even one-third the price of parchment or papyrus.

Many people who like to try new things or are short of money have already purchased this kind of paper, and the feedback has been good. This is a kind of paper that can be used for normal writing. Perhaps the experience and sense of ritual are not as good as parchment or wax board, but as a carrier for writing text, this new paper is undoubtedly very qualified, because it is the cheapest, lightest and easiest to carry.

If people in this era want to write words, they can only use the following materials:

A wax board is a board that is made by applying a layer of wax on it and then writing on it. It is similar to the idea of ​​a bamboo tube.

Papyrus, although called paper, is actually more like a cloth woven from papyrus stalks.

Parchment is animal leather that has been processed in various ways and used as writing material.

There are some rarer ones, such as stone slabs or copper plates, which are generally used in government documents or monuments, and strive to preserve them as long as possible. The latter three are undoubtedly much more expensive than papermaking, and although the former is cheaper, it is really troublesome to carry and read. A longer poem needs to be packed in a box, which is only suitable for daily use such as writing letters.

So this new type of paper quickly spread, and before long, "The Chronicle of the War in Britain" written on this paper was circulated in the city. Later, books such as "The Aeneid" and "The Gallic War" also appeared in everyone's vision.

Most people were amazed and delighted by this cheap and usable new material, because reading was not a cheap hobby even among the upper class, and the price paid was quite high. The cost of buying books could not be calculated in dinars, but in the largest talent. Most people could only read in public libraries, so it was of course a great thing to reduce their reading costs.

Some businessmen also noticed the business opportunity and started looking for the person who first sold the papers. After tracing the source, they found that it was Prince Orville who tinkered with it. All those who tried to negotiate business were turned away and the answer they received was "Come back in three months". The businessmen did not dare to force them and could only leave in disappointment.

Orville was counting his income behind the scenes and was quite satisfied for now.

In fact, it was not that he didn't want to sell to these people, but he didn't have much inventory left. It was not enough for his own use. New goods were being shipped from Britain, but this would take time, so he could only reject the olive branch extended by the other party.

However, he had some paper left, and he posted a notice on the notice board of the bookmaking workshop - those who were confident in their work could submit it to Orville's staff for review. If they were qualified, the Flavian royal family would fund them to publish and copy books free of charge, and the outstanding ones could become imperial officials under the support and attention of the prince.

He did not reject people who recommended themselves. After all, his ability could tell whether a person was truly capable. Naturally, the more staff and officials he had, the better. He was in need of such talents right now, and Rome was where a large number of intellectuals gathered. It would be a pity not to absorb some of them for his own use.

Not everyone has the spare money to copy and print books, but most people want their works to be widely known and their names to be listed alongside Virgil, Homer and others. In addition, Orwell's name now has more or less higher value, so many people seek him out to be their advisor.

Orville handed the matter over to Ptolemy and several of his other civil servants, who would select truly useful works and talents from them. At least that was what he thought at first, but later he found that the situation seemed different from what he thought.

I just found out that the chapter number is wrong, but the chapter name cannot be changed. I will restore the correct number next time.

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(End of this chapter)