Chapter 372 Flooding the Market
Bang—
The sudden, loud noise of the office door being thrust open jolted Riz from his contemplative reverie.
Startled, he swivelled around in his ornate chair to see who had burst into his office without warning.
To his surprise, a striking beauty with fiery red hair and piercing light blue eyes entered the room with a grim expression etched across her features.
It was Charlotte.
In her hand, she held something, and her demeanour conveyed an urgency that required his attention.
"What's going on, Charlotte? Why are you so angry?" Riz inquired, his curiosity piqued by her uncharacteristic agitation.
Charlotte wasted no time and handed him the item she held. "Here! Take a look at this," she urged, her voice tense as she awaited his reaction.
Riz took the crumpled paper from her hand, his fingers delicately smoothing out the creases as his eyes began to scan the content.
The headline immediately caught his attention.
[Crownless King]
"They have crossed the line! Producing a defamatory article on the king is going too far," Charlotte seethed, her voice laced with anger and frustration.
Contrary to her visceral reaction, Riz's curiosity had been piqued, and he continued to read the article.
His eyes moved swiftly across the text.
His brow furrowed as he absorbed the words on the page.
His mind processed the implications of the article's contents.
The contents of the article delved into matters that questioned his legitimacy and authority, stirring up doubts that had the potential to undermine his rule.
"Where was this published?" Riz inquired, his tone measured despite the undercurrent of concern in his voice.
Charlotte's response was swift and to the point. "Cerdeauxia," she answered.
"I didn't know Cerdeauxia was obsessed with my family," he remarked dryly. His thoughts raced as he considered the motivations behind the publication of such a defamatory article.
It was a puzzling turn of events, one that warranted careful scrutiny.
"Me neither," Charlotte responded, her agreement punctuated by a hint of bewilderment. The sudden focus on his family's history and legitimacy by a neighbouring nation was indeed perplexing.
Riz wondered why such an article came up from there, out of all places.
Turning to Charlotte with a determined look in his eyes, he issued a directive. "Investigate the people who wrote this article. I want to know where they got the information that was strangely too detailed and seemed like inside knowledge."
Charlotte nodded in understanding, her resolve matching his own. "Consider it done, milord. I will find out who is behind this and what their true motives are."
....
At the port of Eikadir, a diverse array of vessels navigated the harbour's waters.
Some of these vessels were typical sail ships, their billowing canvas sails capturing the wind's power while others were modern steam-powered steamships, emitting plumes of white smoke from their towering funnels.
Among these ships were those belonging to merchants from countries in the east, while some were the ships that had fallen victim to pirate raids.
Nevertheless, despite their disparate origins and modes of propulsion, all of these ships shared a common cargo—grain.
The grain, in abundance, had been urgently purchased by Riz to address the pressing needs of the kingdom.
It was an emergency procurement, and he understood that the price paid might be higher than usual.
As the ships anchored in the harbour, the process of unloading the precious cargo commenced. The labourers, their hands calloused from years of toil, carefully lowered the crates and barrels of grain that were stacked high on the decks onto the bustling docks.
It was as if the sea itself had turned into a conveyor belt for this essential commodity, and the port buzzed with activity as the unloading process began.
Amid the rhythmic clatter of wooden crates being set down, one of the labourers called out, his voice gruff with authority, "Careful, lads! Don't spill it, or I'll cut your payment!"
A younger labourer, struggling with the weight of a particularly hefty crate, grunted in response. "Aye, no worries, boss. I won't let a single grain escape."
As the crate finally landed securely on the dock, the young man couldn't help but break into a broad, sweat-soaked smile.
Seeing all these grains before him filled him with a sense of hope.
It meant that the kingdom's supply of food would soon be replenished, and the relentless rise in prices that had plagued the populace might finally begin to abate.
The boss looked at the young labourer with a nod of approval. "Good," he replied, "Every single grain is valuable now."
There was no way to hide the arrival of such a vast quantity of grains.
The news of the influx spread like wildfire, carried on the lips of dockworkers, market vendors, and passersby.
As rumours and whispers crisscrossed the streets, anticipation built steadily.
Before long, the delivery carts, laden with crates and barrels of grain began to make their way through the city and beyond destined for not only various shops and warehouses within the city but also for other cities and regions.
Shortly after the shops and marketplaces received the deliveries, a frenzy of activity ensued.
People flocked from all corners of the city to haul sacks of grain after a long time of enduring the spectre of rising prices.
Families lined up outside shops, their empty baskets and carts waiting to be filled with the life-sustaining grain.
The scene has become so chaotic that the sellers behind the counters understand the need to maintain order.
With a raised voice, one of them called out, "Calm down, good people! There's enough for everyone, and there's more coming. Everyone will be able to buy a sufficient amount."
The reassurance rippled through the crowd, quelling some of the anxiety that had begun to brew.
However, for the sellers, they can no longer sell the grains at a higher price.
While they were undoubtedly pleased to receive a surge of customers, the increased supply of grain meant that they would have to lower their prices to remain competitive.
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