Knight Lord: Start with Daily Intelligence.

Chapter 271 Financial Review Meeting Ends
The equipment forged by the dwarves can be said to be the main support of the finances of the Hesse Territory.

Su Li had to pay attention to the scale of forging last year no matter what.

The dwarves had accurate statistics on this. Boros Dragonhammer immediately replied, "This year, we've crafted and repaired over 24500 pieces of farm tools."

"16800 pieces of superior-grade weapons, 2750 sets of superior-grade armor, and 120 sets of Vibranium Rune Armor."

Upon hearing this, Su Li did a simple calculation and found that the amount of fine gold and iron consumed by the fine-grade armor was as much as 330000 kilograms.

The most important feature of Dwarven Elite Armor is its heavy armor and strong defense. Designed for elite knights, this armor weighs over 120 jin (approximately 50 catties), nearly twice as much as the heavy plate armor worn by ordinary human soldiers. Consider that ordinary mortals wear heavy plate armor weighing 70 to jin (approximately catties).

The muscle density and endurance of elite knights are much stronger than those of ordinary soldiers. If we only consider the weight, heavy cans can be even heavier, and it is not impossible to exceed 200 imperial kilograms.

However, with the dwarves' exquisite metal processing art, the heavy plate armor is not only for protection, but also a manifestation of their craftsmanship. Therefore, many parts are exquisitely crafted, achieving a higher level of protection with a lower weight.

To supply so much armor, nearly one million kilograms of iron ore alone would be needed.

Fortunately, the two iron mines in Hesse are both huge and rich mines, with an average iron ore content of 57% in one and 63% in the other!

That is to say, from 10 kilograms of iron ore, the iron ingots smelted out can weigh up to 5 to 7 kilograms.

This extremely high-quality iron-rich ore is truly a gift from God. It is an extremely abundant resource, not to mention that it also contains a considerable amount of vibranium.

Of course, the scale the dwarf mentioned was not all newly made armor. It included vibranium rune armor, and many of them were maintained and repaired after the war.

After all, Hesse had fought so many wars, and in every war, the knights in fine plate armor had to withstand the swords and axes of the monsters.

At its peak, the war involved more than 5000 people, and the losses after each battle were an extremely large number.

Even so, after deducting losses, the Hesse Territory currently holds nearly 1000 sets of fine-grade armor. Most of the remaining armor has been sold to large-scale knight orders, church believers, adventurers, and free folk groups.

For example, the Knights of the Corona, the Fallen Wolf Mercenaries, and the Blue Heron Mercenaries are the three most important customers of Hessen Armor.

Even the Knights of the Corona bought as many as 14 sets of vibranium rune armor from the Hesse Territory.

Their purchases greatly alleviated the financial pressure on the Hesse Territory.

Boros Dragonhammer reported in detail, "This year, our average selling price for heavy plate armor was 45 gold crowns, an extremely high price. Thanks to the war between the greenskins in the southeastern province of Surland and the vampire legions in the southwestern province, the prices of weapons and armor in Maleburg have skyrocketed. At one point, the price of armor reached nearly 67 gold crowns, an unprecedented level. Therefore, our profit is around 35000 gold crowns."

Su Li had no idea about this number. He felt that 35000 gold crowns was indeed a huge fortune. It even accounted for one-third of the Green Dragon's compensation.

At this point, Oliver, the head of the Provincial Council, stood up and began summarizing the situation for everyone. He said, "This year's profits are relatively good because we're selling high-quality equipment at prices two to three times higher than in previous years, with the profit margin on a single piece of armor approaching 2%. However, with the Empire's counterattack, the wars in the southwest and southeast are gradually calming down, and armor prices will return to normal next year. If a piece of dwarven armor were to cost less than 3 gold crowns, our wealth would be unable to support the territory's current military forces and artisan guild."

"Based on the 800 dwarven craftsmen, their annual wages alone would be as high as 50000 gold crowns. This doesn't even include the miners who provide them with raw materials, the merchants who sell weapons, the caravan members, and so on."

"Of course, this year, most of the dwarfs' equipment was prioritized for replenishing our territory's army, which is also a major factor affecting their profits."

"So, if we want to reverse the fiscal deficit, we must address two issues next year. First, we must reduce the scale and intensity of warfare. A campaign involving 3000 men, calculated from the cost of food, horses, and equipment, would cost at least 30000 gold crowns. Therefore, reducing unnecessary military operations, optimizing strategic deployments, storing grain for training, strengthening the military, and improving combat effectiveness will be the key to saving costs."

"Secondly, we must reduce costs and increase efficiency. This will further improve the dwarves' production efficiency, facilitate the transportation of ore, and allow the dwarves to produce more equipment. This will create greater economic value for the territory."

After listening to Oliver's speech, the smiles on everyone's faces faded. Industry can indeed create wealth several times greater than agriculture.

But the problem is that the consumption of these professional workers who have left the farmland is also a major expense.

Not only do they consume a lot of food, but their wage expenses are also extremely huge.

According to conservative estimates, the industrial and commercial population of Hesse Territory totals 2000 people, more than half of whom are noble craftsmen directly employed by the Bauhinia Family, and their output directly belongs to Su Li.

If the military is added, the monthly financial expenditure will be an astronomical figure.

Under this tremendous pressure, the territory's finances were struggling, relying entirely on war reparations and attracting loans for support.

If another large-scale war breaks out, the already overwhelming financial pressure will lead to bankruptcy.

But fortunately, such huge pressure also means vigorous motivation.

With so much fiscal expenditure, except for the military part, the rest can be regarded as investment and production.

As long as the country is peaceful and stable without major setbacks, these investments will be transformed into a large amount of wealth and income, slowly leveling the current alarming fiscal deficit and even gradually achieving a fiscal surplus next year.

Even if the imperial assessment officials came to see this kind of financial statements, they would not be able to criticize it. This was the financial situation in the early stages of the frontier development. Without large-scale investment and construction, how could a remote and desolate thorny land be transformed into a wealthy territory with fertile land and prosperous cities?

Su Li asked with concern: "Then my minister, can you continue to talk about this year's financial expenditure?"

Oliver immediately bowed slightly and said, "The main income of our territory can be divided into several major parts: agricultural income, mining income, industrial income, trade income, war income and tax income!"

"Lord Fandral has already discussed agricultural revenue. Including exports and trade within the territory, our total revenue is 6800 gold crowns. Most of the agricultural output is prioritized to meet the needs of our own army, slaves, and retainers."

"Mining revenue includes our territory's ores, gems, timber, and more. As a border princely domain, occupying the resource-rich and fertile foothills of the Black Forest, our territory boasts a wealth of unique products unique to border princely domains, including precious gems, pearls, blood pine, silver, mithril, crystals, Uros cattle, wildebeest, and more. Our total revenue from this is 7000 gold crowns. Similar to agricultural revenue, most of this harvest actually goes to arming ourselves. However, if military expansion slows next year, this revenue will increase significantly, by at least 50%. If the population increases significantly, it's possible that the revenue will double."

"Industrial income is the main source of revenue for our territory. From equipment crafted by dwarves to potions produced by various monasteries, as well as dwarven jewelry, halfling agricultural machinery, religious icons from various churches, and leather, wool, and wood products, our revenue exceeded 50000 gold crowns last year."

"Taxes are the bulk of our territory's revenue. We've collected over 20000 gold crowns from various knights, farmers, autonomous regions, and large estate owners. This includes the proceeds from the sale of their farmland and estates. For example, His Excellency Uther, a bishop of the Church of the Blazing Sun Goddess, directly purchased the Green Manor east of Silver Spring Valley, gaining sovereignty and administrative power over it. This transaction alone netted a staggering 375 gold crowns!"

Su Li was familiar with the territory's tax revenue, and he personally paid close attention to it. Even though the territory had a small population, even if each citizen paid one gold crown in tax, that would still amount to over 1 gold crowns.

But in fact, the tax was far more than that. Although the farmers were poor, the large landowners, knights and priests who immigrated here were not poor at all.

For example, Bishop Uther, a high-ranking priest of the Church of the Sun Goddess, works in the Knights' Church in Silver Spring Valley, responsible for spreading the teachings of the Sun Goddess.

The manor he bought was located at the confluence of a river in the southeast of Silver Spring Valley, backed by a forest, and had a natural defensive advantage.

But don't think that his manor is just a small farm. In fact, the manor in this world is not only a place to live, but also a symbol of imperial power, wealth and culture.

The layout includes a main castle and surrounding artisan workshops, stables, warehouses, breweries, etc., all of which are distributed around the main castle.

Then there are farmlands and pastures outside to ensure self-sufficiency. And then there are forests and lakes outside, which serve as natural barriers and sources of resources.

In order to protect such a manor, the manor owner would build a wall with huge stones and then erect a towering spire tower for observation and defense.

If conditions permit (there are enough slaves), a wide water area surrounding the main castle will be built, with sharp stalagmites at the bottom, and a drawbridge will be used to connect the castle to the surrounding area. Arrow towers will then be distributed throughout the city walls for distant defense.

After this complete set of facilities is built, even if a herd of one or two hundred beastmen forming a roaring group raids the manor at night, they will not be able to break through the moat and enter the castle.

As the territory of a border prince, the manor can even raise giant eagles, wolfhounds and other guardian creatures to ensure safety and external communication.

The initial purchase cost of such a manor would require a farmer to work for 375 years without eating or drinking. In other words, a village of about 400 people could only afford to produce such a manor.

In order to maintain the rule and authority of the nobility, many nobles and high-ranking priests would buy villages and farms together.

Therefore, the economic development model of the Hessen Territory was truly ingenious. By selling land and supporting facilities to powerful manor owners, it not only generated substantial economic returns but also laid a solid foundation for the territory's rapid expansion. Each manor owner played a key role in the development of the Hessen Territory, acting as both an investor and a builder.

These estate owners often possessed substantial financial resources and a strong drive for enterprise. They would personally invest in large numbers of slave laborers, transforming stretches of barren land into vibrant estates. From cultivating farmland to building houses, from digging wells to paving roads, the estate owners diligently transformed desolate lands into prosperous strongholds. This development model not only accelerated the territorial expansion of the Hesse Territory but also brought a steady stream of tax revenue and labor resources.

If Su Li relied solely on his own strength, it would have been difficult to promote the development of Heisen Town, let alone establish new outposts in remote rural and suburban areas. Problems such as a lack of funds and human resources would severely hinder the territory's expansion. However, by attracting these pioneering estate owners, Heisen Territory has been able to establish new outposts in more than a dozen wilderness areas in a short period of time. These outposts not only boast vast farmland but also comprehensive infrastructure, becoming rising stars in Heisen Territory's territory.

The greatest advantage of this development model lies in its optimal allocation of resources. Manor owners, leveraging their financial resources and management skills, undertook the task of developing wasteland, while the Hesse government secured a stable revenue stream through land transfer fees and supporting infrastructure costs. Both sides benefited from this, and together they promoted the prosperity of the territory.

It was the active participation and investment of these manor owners that enabled the Hesse Territory to achieve rapid growth in a short period of time, with fiscal revenue and tax revenue growing rapidly, rivaling many baronies within the Empire. This was also the greatest appeal of the pioneer lords: they could attract large numbers of people to explore and achieve shared prosperity at a rate unmatched within the Empire. The baronies within the Empire simply could not afford to distribute such large amounts of land.

Then Su Li asked: "Then my minister, you can summarize and report on the population and financial situation of the territory."

"No problem, Lord. The total population of our territory is currently around 7650. The victory over the Green Dragon has made us famous and greatly increased the influx of population."

"The army consists of 2300 men, including two Chosen Knights, 2 Champion Knights, 17 Elite Knights, and nearly 810 knight officers and veterans (including some Dwarven Slayers and Druids). The monthly military expenditure is 1400 gold crowns. Military expenditure is structured in a spindle shape, with relatively small expenditures at the top and bottom ends, while the elite knights in the middle account for the vast majority of the total. The 6190 elite knights alone account for 810 gold crowns."

"In addition, we have 1500 dwarven craftsmen and technical bureaucrats, whose monthly expenses account for about two-thirds of military expenditures. Fortunately, the dwarven output can offset their wages."

"So, as of this month, with all investments and construction halted, the territory's monthly financial expenditure is around 7000 gold crowns. This includes expenses for Bauhinia Palace, maintenance of various manors, and the operation of hospitals and academies."

"If there are infrastructure projects, the territory's fiscal expenditure will soar to over 14622 gold crowns. And now, after borrowing, the remaining wealth in the Treasury District is only gold crowns."

10000 gold crowns/monthly financial expenditure. No wonder the Green Dragon’s war reparations of more than 50000 were quickly consumed.

At this rate of spending, as long as Su Li cannot reverse the fiscal deficit, no matter how much windfall he gets, it will not be enough to cover the expenses.

Fortunately, after today's meeting, Su Li is very confident about the output of the territory.

The monthly income from the three agricultural specialties alone is around 3000 gold crowns.

If things stabilize next year, industrial output and mining revenue will reach more than 5000 per month.

Oliver's various investments this year will gradually produce returns next year.

This means that as long as the Hesse Territory stabilizes, it will be able to quickly reverse its losses and even accumulate a small amount of wealth to launch a few wars.

So Su Li concluded excitedly, "My loyal ministers, as you can see, although the territory is currently under certain pressure, it also has a bright future full of vitality and flourishing. On this land, our farmland is thriving, our mines are continuously pouring out wealth, and our workshops are forging sophisticated equipment day and night. All of this tells us that the future of Hessen Territory will surely be even more glorious!"

"I firmly believe that each and every one of you here is Hessen Territory's most precious treasure! As long as we work together and forge ahead, I am certain that within the next year! In the not-too-distant future, we will witness Hessen Territory transform into a true paradise! A great territory of prosperity, abundance, and abundance!

As soon as he finished speaking, the whole audience erupted in deafening cheers. This is also the important significance of this meeting, which is to inspire people and make everyone more motivated.

Finally, Su Li waved his hand and said, "Everyone, cheer up and devote all your energy to the development of the territory. If there is nothing else, prepare to welcome the most important Spring Birth Ceremony!"

Just as everyone was about to stand up, Orstein raised his arm and said, "My Lord, I have something more important to tell you."

The military commander did not speak much in this meeting, but as his powerful voice rang out, everyone's attention was drawn to him.

Su Li also raised his eyebrows and asked, "My Lord Marshal, is the territory going to face the pressure of war again?"

Orstein nodded and said, "It is true that we may face war again, but you can rest assured!"

Before the others could feel their hearts sink, he smiled and said, "This war is not cruel at all. On the contrary, it will be a huge opportunity for our territory. It will bring a large population and wealth, and help our territory take off."

(End of this chapter)