The doctor suffers from amnesia, but not complete amnesia.

Qiao Yelan didn't have the ability to transform an army in a country still under serfdom into an invincible force after a battle between four emperors—that would definitely require some underhanded tactics.

Victoria's seasoned operations staff brought a new era of operational thinking to the stagnant Ursus generals.

Countless junior officers who had been tested by blood and fire instilled discipline and basic tactics into the minds of soldiers who were once despised as "gray animals".

The war behemoths, tested by both technology and the battlefield, were fed by skilled technicians using Ursus's vast resources, and swept across the battlefield in incredible numbers and with unimaginable power.

Unfortunately, these were originally the treasures that George Yelan had provided to Frederick III.

Now, all that's left for Frederick III is a rope around his son's neck.

If you cannot become the vehicle for Qiao Yelan's plan—

Then you'd better pray you don't become a sacrifice in Qiao Yelan's plan.

Chapter 115 As long as the money is in hand.

After calming down, Wellington became more composed and began to reconsider Qiao Yelan's words.

“Apart from the Grand Duke of Normandy, the Duchy of Wellington has no irreconcilable conflicts with other surrounding powers—I think you are also aware that, in order to have come to this point, in addition to the fact that others are wary of you, your own tough attitude has also led others to actively block the path of negotiation.”

This is true.

Wellington has always presented himself as a resolute and ruthless figure, and his terrifying military record has become his greatest source of intimidation. Therefore, the surrounding forces never even considered using negotiations to build good relations with Grand Duke Wellington.

As a commander rather than a politician, Wellington had always despised many unspoken rules and such, so he couldn't tell whether the other party's behavior was a sign of wariness or an offer of goodwill—therefore, in order to maintain his deterrent power, he chose to remain indifferent to everyone.

"You should try to take the lead, for example, by signing a non-aggression pact with one of your neighbors—that way you can let others know that you can also communicate through political means."

Qiao Yelan patiently guided him.

"Treaties are nothing but waste paper."

"But at least it's a good start, isn't it? With the issuance of Lungmen Dollars at this juncture, most of the other forces around you probably think that you've also got your eye on the lucrative international trade market, which is why you've taken this action. So, more people will be willing to talk to you in the future."

Wellington stroked his sword, somewhat swayed by Qiao Yelan's words.

Swords are naturally an indispensable part of establishing a nation, but if a nation is established solely by swords—then just look at how the Gallic Empire of Corsica I came to an end, and you'll know what kind of terrible backlash this will bring.

If the newly established Tara could be given a more harmonious environment, then its homeland would not have fallen into the hands of a major power again just a few decades after independence.

To get off to a good start...

The Grand Duchy of Normandy to the south is definitely out of the question. Emmanuel, that madman, will inevitably fight me, and this will be the war that will define Tara's founding.

Leitania to the east is also unsuitable, since the two sides have been fighting for too long. Whether the other side comes to them or they take the initiative to negotiate, it will have a great impact on the morale and military spirit of their respective territories.

Those Victorian political prisoners to the west... no, he felt a bit nauseous.

That leaves only—

"Grand Duke Windermere...not bad."

He said slowly.

Qiao Yelan pondered for a moment, then narrowed his eyes.

"Are you sure Windermere will be willing to negotiate with you? After all, five years ago, well, it's been six years now, you were a detached observer in that battle."

“I do have a deep divide with the royalists, but Windermere is, after all, a military noble like me. We’ve cooperated with Letania before, so we have some acquaintance. If I take the initiative to befriend them now, they shouldn’t refuse so forcefully.”

Wellington said thoughtfully.

"This time, the other party even sent an envoy to visit my territory with you, which means that Windermere is probably also trying to find new partners at this time - after all, his king is dead, and he can't possibly shake hands and make peace with those who hanged their king."

"It seems so... Do you need me to help you make the connection?"

The man tapped the armrest of the wheelchair thoughtfully with his fingers and asked.

“Very well, since Windermere’s envoy is in your delegation, you can subtly inquire about it for me.”

Wellington nodded.

“I’ll take care of this for you when I get back—now, shouldn’t we talk about our deal?”

The old man paused.

"What do you want to talk about?"

“Let’s talk about how much I can pay you for helping you sort out your relationships – I’m now the Minister of the Court of State Ceremonies of the Great Yan Dynasty, not your Minister of Foreign Affairs of Tara.”

Qiao Yelan calmly and methodically divided the matter into two parts.

"You asked me to help you find the price of the Gael King bloodline and to help you connect with various forces in the surrounding area. You can't expect me to work for free as your middleman, can you?"

"...What have you set your sights on this time?"

Wellington hesitated for a while, and finally could only ask the question dejectedly.

"I think your underground warship factory is pretty good. Let me touch it... cough cough, no, let me learn from it."

"How did you know!"

The old man was immediately shocked and furious.

"No, have you gone mad from being in the wind on the bridge all day, or have you been drinking too much? Do you really think I'm blind?"

Qiao Yelan pursed her lips.

"At least a quarter of the warships in your fleet are new models designed by Ursus in collaboration with your engineers back then—how come I didn't know Ursus still had surplus production capacity to turn these things into export goods?"

Nikolai himself didn't actually have much more new warships than Wellington did.

Meanwhile, the Grand Duke of Wellington's several operational shipyards are fully booked with work, from refurbishing domestic warships to placing orders with external companies. There is simply no time for Columbia to produce new warships.

Then, when Qiao Yelan took a closer look at the list of resources that the Duchy of Wellington had purchased from abroad, the answer was practically written on his face—so you really are the kind of person who can befriend Emmanuel, your methods are exactly the same.

"The exchange of warship technology with Ursus is not entirely an export from my side—Ursus also has its own industrial characteristics. For example, they value mass production speed the most, so the design and construction of this new warship also reflects this. Therefore, after my engineers returned, they further streamlined the construction process."

"The entire warship, apart from the keel, can be modularly produced and then assembled. So, we just need to produce the other parts first, then lay the keel in a large external dock, and then assemble and outfit them."

Seeing that his opponent had directly exposed his weakness, Wellington could only sigh and reveal his trick of switching the beams and pillars.

"The time required for assembling and outfitting after laying the keel is about the same as the time required for refurbishing a warship, right?"

"Yes."

The case is solved. "Refurbishment" refers to turning over a new warship after the cover is closed.

No wonder even Qiao Yelan didn't know where he got his hand of cards. Who would have thought that an old warship that was advertised as being refurbished would become a state-of-the-art warship after the refurbishment?

"What about your old warships?"

"Well, after removing the armor and turrets, replacing the boiler, slightly modifying the shape, and finally painting it, it can be delivered as a large commercial order."

Live together.

Qiao Yelan decided to take back what she had said earlier; the Duke of Wellington was simply a business genius.

Even the oldest warships are still designed to warship standards, making it incredibly easy to use them to fudge commercial orders—after all, they're just old-fashioned, not obsolete. The maintenance work done by a rigorously trained military is nothing like the childish, half-hearted work done on merchant ships.

So Wellington's trick of substituting one thing for another not only didn't get any bad reviews, but buyers also had to give it a thumbs up, saying that this thing was sturdy enough that even a natural disaster wouldn't knock off the screws.

No wonder this guy isn't interested in Lungmen Dollars; it turns out he's making a killing selling ships.

"drawing."

Qiao Yelan reached out his hand.

"Pay."

Wellington, quite nonchalantly, leaned on his sword and shoved it into the ground.

The two of them just stared at each other like that.

"Give me the blueprints, and I'll help you win over the surrounding forces."

"Don't even try. If I show even a hint of goodwill, everyone else will be scrambling to sign a contract with me. That's the mercy of a strong person—you'll have to pay more!"

How do you know that others won't think you're showing weakness or being cowardly?

"Then let them try to test me. I'll break their legs!"

The two continued to glare at each other.

"Hmph... After all these years of trading, you're becoming more and more like a businessman."

"Thanks to you, I have at least learned a great deal about pricing power."

Qiao Yelan dropped that posture and resumed her original expression.

"I can offer more money—but I need to find a suitable reason. Things are different now. I've been kicked out of Ursus, and my main base is in Kazimierz. I only have some connection with Letania, but not much. I need to find a way to secretly send this money in without anyone noticing."

This is indeed a problem.

The emperors that this man had served in Ursus and Letania have all passed away, and the countries have changed drastically. Many relationships and channels have long since been closed off and disappeared.

Wellington looked at Qiao Yelan, who was deep in thought.

Only this man seems to be stuck in the past. He was like this decades ago, and he is still like this decades later. Judging from his appearance and behavior, it seems that time has stood still for him.

Did his life transcend time—or had time already locked him in place?

“I have a solution—I can inject capital into your business in the name of the Duke of Windermere.”

Qiao Yelan's words interrupted Wellington's thoughts.