Chapter 175 I Just Want One Percent
In the carriage, Henry pondered with his eyes closed, recalling the information about Soro from Ellie's notebook. It mentioned that Soro was a local in Royal City, born into nobility but later fell from grace, turning to trade.
Soro had a keen eye and was not bound by tradition, always willing to try new things. In just twenty years, he had built a vast business empire from a once-declining noble family, amassing a fortune of a thousand gold coins.
Henry thought Soro was a successful businessman and a valuable partner. Forming a trading caravan was no easy task, and there were few in Eldoria who had been to Royal City, let alone possessed business acumen.
It wasn't the right time for Henry to explore new trade routes or visit Royal City. Eldoria needed him to stay put, especially with winter approaching.
Eldoria had not yet reached a stage where it required Henry to expand its trade routes. The best approach now was to find an existing caravan to collaborate with, the most efficient and suitable method.
Henry was about to test whether Soro was the right business partner. What he valued most was Soro's caravan's transportation capacity.
"My lord, we've arrived at the workshop."
Henry stepped out of the carriage and saw Soro curiously observing his surroundings and hearing the sound of 'clattering.'
"Henry, is this the workshop?" Soro asked, intrigued. He wondered what kind of workshop it was, especially seeing the patrols and guards stationed at the entrance.
"Yes, this is Eldoria's workshop district," Henry nodded. He had already planned the city's urban areas, and this place in the south of Eldoria would become an industrial zone, with all the large workshops located here.
Soro's eyes narrowed. There were many workshops here, and they were the core source of a city's income. Bringing him here meant something important was afoot.
"Ellie, take me to the linen warehouse," Henry turned to Ellie. He had been to Hyratos for the establishment of the workshop.
"Yes!" Ellie replied.
Ellie led the way, and they quickly arrived at the linen warehouse. The gatekeeper opened the door, and the group walked in.
As soon as Soro entered the warehouse, he took a sharp breath, his eyes trembling as he looked at the densely stacked linen on the shelves.
Henry's lips curled up, and he glanced at Soro's reaction, then turned to Ellie and asked, "Ellie, how many rolls of fabric are here?"
"Henry, there are two hundred rolls of lowest-grade linen, one hundred rolls of lower-grade linen, and two rolls of medium-grade linen," Ellie read her notebook.
"What is the daily production?" Henry asked calmly.
"We can produce forty rolls of lowest-grade linen and twenty rolls of lower-grade linen per day," Ellie quickly replied.
Soro was stunned. He wondered if he had misheard. A roll of fabric was 98 feet long, and they could produce sixty rolls a day. Was this a robbery?
In Royal City, a feet of linen was worth thirty copper coins. So, according to this calculation, the daily income would be fifty silver coins, and in two days, they would earn a gold coin. At this rate, it wouldn't take long to earn an amount equal to his assets.
After all, the production would only increase. This was truly unbelievable, as others would need several years to catch up with his twenty years of hard-earned income.
"The production is still too low. We need to produce more than a hundred rolls of lower-grade fabric per day," Henry said, dissatisfied.
"The workers we recruited today are currently being trained. It will take a few days for them to start working, and by then, the production should be able to reach more than a hundred rolls of fabric," Ellie said seriously.
Soro's body trembled. If they could produce over a hundred rolls of fabric a day, their daily income would be in gold coins. They could earn a thousand gold coins in just over a year. And this was just the income from the workshop, not the territory.
He was truly shocked. If this news spread, those nobles would act like bandits, and even the King of the Royal City would be tempted.
So, Soro was afraid of being silenced. Although he didn't know why the linen was produced so quickly, the linen in this warehouse was not fake.
"Soro, what do you think of the linen here?" Henry pulled out a piece of lower-grade linen from the shelf and brought it to Soro.
Soro touched the linen and was amazed to find that the quality was very good, almost top-notch. Some merchants and nobles wore this kind of fabric.
"Henry, are all the linen here of this quality?" Soro asked with a trembling voice.
"Of course not. This is lower-grade linen. There is even lowest-grade linen over there," Henry said, coming to another shelf and pulling out another piece of linen.
Soro breathed a sigh of relief. This piece of linen was the kind worn by commoners. If it had all been the so-called lower-grade linen, he feared that his estimated price would have doubled.
"Henry, I'm a little confused. Is the production volume you just mentioned real? Can you really produce hundreds of rolls of linen a day?" Soro asked, mustering the courage to voice his doubts.
"Yes," Henry nodded. He hadn't planned to reveal the spinning and weaving machines yet. He changed the subject and said, "Soro, what do you think if I entrust you with the sale of these fabrics?"
"What?" Soro's eyes widened in disbelief.
"I have the goods, but forming a caravan takes too much time, so I need a partner now," Henry said calmly.
"Could it be?" Soro's eyes almost popped out. This surprise came a bit too quickly. He pointed to his face and asked with a trembling voice, "Henry, do you want a partnership with me?"
"Yes, I'm interested in your transportation channel," Henry said straightforwardly.
"Understood," Soro nodded affirmatively. He had also thought of this. Otherwise, Henry wouldn't cooperate with him on a linen business that could earn at least a thousand gold coins in a year.
"Then let's talk about the distribution of profits!" Henry's mouth curved into a smile.
"No, Henry, I only need one percent of the profit," Soro immediately stated. Although one percent was still a profit, it wasn't much.
He was betting on the future. Soro didn't believe that Henry would be satisfied with the status quo. Moreover, if they cooperated, other goods could also be collaborated on, so one percent was actually quite a lot considering the large base.
"You have the courage. Believe me, you won't regret today's decision," Henry said confidently, not expecting Soro to be so decisive. He was prepared to offer three percent of the profit.
