Industrial Revolution of the Mage Lords

Chapter 342 The show begins
Less than a month later, the Dragonstone Chamber of Commerce, which had signed a special contract with Harvey for the exclusive sale of special-effect potions, braved the harsh winter wind and snow to visit the Pioneer Territory again.

This time, the person standing side by side with Vice President Santos was a young man in Chinese clothes who looked unfamiliar.

"Your Lordship, please allow me to introduce to you the current president of the Dragonstone Chamber of Commerce, Mr. Felix Salas." Santos's chubby round face was full of smiles.

Oh? Sarath? A young man with the same last name as the First Chief of the Federation, quite interesting.

Harvey raised his eyebrows, nodded slightly from the head of the reception room, and said, "Welcome to the Northern Wasteland, President Sarath."

The young head of the Chamber of Commerce gracefully touched his chest and saluted, responding, "Your Excellency, please call me Felix."

Harvey waved his hand, signaling the guests to sit down and talk.

"Why are you visiting me again so soon? Remember when we signed the contract last time, we agreed to officially start supplying the special-effect potion after the spring... And you took away a lot of samples, right?"

Santos smiled and said, "Yes, we took the samples with us and tried to promote them in Orlando, where the church's influence is weak. The response was very positive... According to the previous agreement, the potion sold to civilians will be packaged in ordinary cloudy glass bottles, while the potion sold to wealthy merchants and nobles will be packaged in exquisitely carved silver and crystal bottles. Assuming the ingredients and effects are exactly the same, the price ranges from 5 silver coins to 1 gold pound."

Harvey nodded in understanding and said with a smile, "That's right. We absolutely won't adulterate or dilute the medicine. If we want to make more profit, all we have to do is work harder on the packaging."

He paused and continued, "Since the market response is positive, I'll immediately arrange the preliminary preparations for mass production. You just need to send someone to inform me about this matter. There's no need to brave this inclement weather and make a personal trip."

Santos was stunned for a moment, laughed awkwardly twice, and turned his gaze to the young president Felix.

Felix was very frank and straightforward in stating his purpose. "Your Excellency, we've come this time not only to inform you of the market response to our drug sales, but also to discuss an idea for deeper cooperation with you in person."

"After the special-effect potion is mass-produced in your pioneering territory, if you want to quickly transport it to the southern countries and sell it on a large scale, it would be uneconomical in terms of both time and transportation costs..."

Harvey curled his lips, probably knowing what they were up to, but he didn't interrupt them.

Felix paused and continued, "So we'd like to ask you to set up the potion production workshop in the Principality of Barclay in the central part of the continent. This way, whether it's transported overland to the eastern and western borders of the continent, or shipped south via Pharos by sea, we can ensure smooth sales of the potion and greatly save on transportation manpower and time."

This young president is obviously an excellent public speaker who is very good at business negotiations. He came in person this time with full confidence that he could impress Harvey, so he was quite confident in his words and deeds.

The only thing he had overlooked was probably that he had no idea that Harvey was in control of the Spellcaster Forum, a trump card for information exchange, and that in the underground laboratories and magic arsenals beneath his feet, there were dozens of magic network teleportation arrays that could efficiently and instantly transport bulk goods.

"That's indeed a very pertinent suggestion... Well, I'll consider it carefully." Harvey smiled noncommittally and immediately changed the subject. "Since you're already here, why not stay here for a few days? The Winter Festival is approaching, and I'd like to invite you all to watch a unique rugby game in the northern wilderness, as well as a unique theatrical performance..."

The premiere of the new play, which has been renamed "Northern Love," was scheduled for the weekend before the Winter Festival, just after the winter football league ended.

It was just noon when the residents of the territory had already packed the area around the sports field. After rugby became popular in the territory, any team that registered with the city hall could enter the field to play official matches against other teams. The league was divided into four rounds according to four different seasons. The winning team of each season would be personally commended by Harvey and receive a generous bonus.

Compared to the popularity of rugby, the drama performance that started promoting half a month in advance seemed a little neglected.

It's not the city hall's fault for not working hard to promote the troupe. The people in the pioneering territory are of lower class origin, and not many of them have ever been exposed to such an elegant art form as drama. In comparison, they prefer the street performances spontaneously performed by some people at festivals, fairs and garden parties, such as somersaults, magic tricks, and clowns.

Considering the public's lack of understanding of drama, Harvey and Ash discussed and decided to make the first performance free to watch. The performance venue was set up in a large sports field, and a temporary platform was set up around it with alchemical loudspeakers to ensure that the actors' lines could be clearly transmitted to the ears of the audience in the stands.

In addition, Harvey also issued specific indicators to various departments in the territory, requiring all theater tickets to be distributed to employees on duty to encourage them to stay and continue to enjoy the theater performance after watching the football game.

As the lord, Harvey naturally sat in the exclusive stands with the best viewing angle. Not only was he facing the direction of the temporary stage, but the stands were also surrounded on three sides with a tarpaulin roof and covered with thick carpets. Heated fire barrels were also placed under the soft and spacious leather seats to ensure that the frail lord would not catch a cold from the cold wind after watching the show outdoors.

The president and vice president of the Longshi Chamber of Commerce, who were personally invited by him to stay in the territory for a few days, had the honor of sitting next to him in the luxurious enclosed stands. The other officials of all ranks were also arranged to sit around him according to their ranks.

Although they were on their own territory, security and defense were not neglected at all. The exclusive stands were surrounded by lines of defense soldiers, and the inner circle of the stands was under the responsibility of the lord's personal guards led by Tommy.

At about 3 p.m., the passionate final match of the Winter Rugby League came to an end amid thunderous cheers from the crowd.

After the "Iron Shield Team" formed by the National Police Department was upset in the match against the "Harvest Team" formed by the Garrison Corps, this winter finals directly turned into an internal confrontation between the Northern Army's direct team and the Garrison Corps team. Although the outcome seemed to be a foregone conclusion, Harvey still watched the entire game with relish without being distracted. After all, this kind of military "derby" scene is still very rare.

After the award ceremony, the crowd still stayed in the stands and refused to leave. After all, for people in the territory who were seriously lacking in entertainment options, watching a drama performance for free was something new and worth wasting half of their holiday afternoon.

"My Lord, I wonder what kind of play your territory's theater troupe is going to rehearse? Could anything be more attractive than an exciting competition?" The young President Felix was completely absorbed in the game just now. Men are always interested in this kind of flesh-and-blood confrontation.

Harvey chuckled and said calmly, "Actually, I don't know either. From the script's release to the casting and rehearsals, I had absolutely no involvement. But, the unknown always brings more mystery and anticipation..."

Soon the temporary stage was set up, and amid the spontaneous applause of the people, the actors took the stage one by one.

(End of this chapter)