The first month of the year passed without anyone noticing.
On the second day of February, the dragon raised its head!
After spending a large amount of money, Oliver Sheng finally saw the heavy cavalry he had longed for come to fruition.
The craftsman’s workshop had produced a thousand sets of heavy armor.
On the training ground, a thousand heavily armored cavalrymen, clad in armor and wielding spears, with battle knives at their waists, sat atop warhorses also covered in heavy armor. The sight was imposing and awe-inspiring.
The infantrymen on the sidelines felt an inexplicable sense of fear and trembling.
The overwhelming aura of killing intent struck their hearts, making them instinctively feel terrified.
Oliver led the thousand heavily armored cavalry in a charge. The sight of a thousand heavily armored cavalry charging was like a rolling tide of steel, overwhelming everything in its path.
“So powerful!”
Cameron Guo, Wesley Hu, Felix Wu, and Xiao Chuyi were all shocked and terrified by the sight of the thousand heavily armored cavalry.
If they were to lead their soldiers against such a terrifying force, they would likely be slaughtered.
The thunderous sound of the heavy cavalry’s hooves shook the ground.
“These heavily armored cavalry, when they charge, can crush everything in their path!”
“If we were to face the Barbarian and Huns cavalry now, heh, the General leading these thousand heavily armored cavalry could slaughter them completely.”
“With this force of heavy cavalry, if the Barbarian scum dare to invade again, we’ll beat them to death,” Felix Wu said.
“Such an impressive force of heavy cavalry, I wish my two thousand men could all be heavy cavalry too,” Wesley Hu said enviously.
Previously, they thought that creating heavy cavalry was a waste of money and that they couldn’t afford to maintain them.
But now, Oliver had truly created a force of heavy cavalry.
Seeing Oliver’s thousand heavily armored cavalry, Xiao Chuyi began to entertain the idea of forming his own heavy cavalry.
After training, the ordinary soldiers looked at the heavy cavalry with envy, wishing they could charge in such majestic armor too.
“General, can I also form a force of heavy cavalry?” Xiao Chuyi asked Oliver.
“You want to form heavy cavalry too?” Oliver glanced at Xiao Chuyi.
“Do you know how much it cost me to create these thousand heavy cavalry?”
“Seven hundred thousand taels of silver!”
“Do you understand what seven hundred thousand taels of silver means?” Oliver spat as he spoke, some of it landing on Xiao Chuyi’s face.
“The maintenance costs are astronomical. I don’t have the money to support your heavy cavalry. If you have the means, do it yourself.”
Oliver wouldn’t indulge him. Borrowing his money to form heavy cavalry was a pipe dream.
Aren’t you well-connected? Go figure it out yourself.
The heavy cavalry was formed, but the logistics were enormous. Each rider needed three horses: one to ride, one to carry equipment, and one for the heavy armor charge.
Three people were needed to support one heavy cavalryman, making the costs enormous.
Maintaining the warhorses was also a significant expense.
His thousand heavy cavalry could be claimed to be ten thousand to outsiders.
Xiao Chuyi snorted coldly and left, cursing Oliver as stingy in his heart.
“General, could you get us some heavy cavalry too? Not many, just three hundred,” Cameron Guo said with a smile, rubbing his hands.
“You can get lost too. Train your camp well; I have other plans and important tasks for you,” Oliver said irritably.
Want heavy cavalry?
Don’t even think about it!
Cameron Guo, scolded, didn’t dare to talk back, looking aggrieved like a wronged wife.
He only wanted three hundred heavy cavalry, not the stars and the moon.
Seeing Cameron Guo scolded, Wesley Hu quickly closed his open mouth.
With the heavy cavalry, Oliver began training them in formations and charges, recruiting soldiers to serve as support for the heavy cavalry.
His forces were already significantly over the limit, so he didn’t mind exceeding it a bit more. What was there to fear?
As long as no one above questioned it, there was no problem.
With the vast land and distant emperor, the bolder the people, the more land they could claim.
As February began, the weather started to warm, and the snowstorms lessened.
With the snowstorms easing, merchants from all over Great Wei flocked to River West County.
Their goal was to obtain Western Wind Blaze and Green Ant Wine to sell back home.
The prices of Western Wind Blaze and Green Ant Wine were being driven higher and higher.
Hu Yan and Hu Xue, two brothers, also returned to River West County. They had been the first to seize the opportunity, making a fortune and doubling their family wealth.
Upon returning, the two brothers had been seeking an audience with Oliver, but he had been too busy with the heavy cavalry to meet them.
This left the brothers anxious.
“Eldest Brother, do you think General Sheng doesn’t want to sell us the wine anymore? It’s been so many days, and he hasn’t seen us,” Hu Xue said anxiously.
“Sigh, I don’t know. Now that merchants from all over are coming to River West County, our competition is only getting tougher,” Hu Yan said worriedly.
Having tasted the huge profits from selling Western Wind Blaze and Green Ant Wine, the brothers were very reluctant to let others share the pie.
But they had no say in the matter.
Who Oliver sold the wine to and how he sold it was beyond their control.
A few days later, when most of the merchants from Great Wei had arrived, Oliver finally found time to meet them.
“Young Master, Young Master, General Sheng has sent a message. He wants to discuss the purchase of Western Wind Blaze and Green Ant Wine.”
“What? General Sheng wants to discuss the wine purchase?”
Upon hearing the message from their servant, Hu Yan and Hu Xue jumped up from their chairs in excitement.
“Let’s go, quickly, don’t keep General Sheng waiting.”
The two brothers hurried to the winery.
Outside the winery, four hundred and fifty armored soldiers guarded the place, making it impossible for outsiders to enter.
Those who had tried to scheme had long been dealt with, their graves now overgrown with grass.
The winemakers and their families lived inside the winery, making it impossible to bribe them.
When Hu Yan and Hu Xue arrived, they saw that the front hall of the winery was already filled with many merchants.
Their hearts sank, realizing that there were too many people vying for a piece of the pie.
Oliver sat at the head seat, dressed in a black robe with a scholarly yet iron-blooded aura, making the merchants present take him seriously.
After everyone had settled, Oliver began to speak.
“Thank you all for coming to my winery. It is an honor for me.”
“Not at all, not at all!”
The merchants all cupped their hands in respect. This was Oliver’s domain, and they had to curry favor with him.
“I understand that you are all here for Western Wind Blaze and Green Ant Wine.”
“My intention in brewing this wine is to let more people enjoy it. To achieve that, I need your help,” Oliver said with a smile.
“Exactly, the General is right. This fine wine should be enjoyed by more people,” the merchants echoed with smiles.
Those sent by the major trading houses to buy Western Wind Blaze and Green Ant Wine were all shrewd individuals, not a single fool among them.
They knew that now was the time to flatter Oliver to make him happy, ensuring they wouldn’t lose out on their share of the wine.
None of them would be foolish enough to demand that Oliver hand over the wine recipe or threaten him to sell exclusively to them.
With nearly ten thousand troops under Oliver’s command, even the aristocratic families had to think twice.
“However, my winery is small, and the amount of wine produced may not be as much as you expect,” Oliver continued.
The shrewd merchants immediately understood that Oliver was about to set conditions.
“General, please state your conditions. We’ll see if we can meet them,” said an old man with a goatee.
“Yes, General, please tell us your conditions,” others chimed in.
Seeing the merchants’ reactions, Oliver was very pleased.
He liked dealing with sensible people the most.
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