"If we're going to build roads, we'll need ore and stone."
"Mondstadt doesn't have that much."
Mondstadt had wind and near-eternal spring in abundance. Minerals? Truly scarce. The richest deposits were in the abandoned Stormterror's Lair—but that was Dvalin's roost after his awakening. No one dared set foot there.
Jean voiced the doubt, and Seamus couldn't help nodding. Roadwork inevitably meant stone and ore. Forget Mondstadt—even if the Fatui came, they couldn't dig up large quantities here. Roads take dirt, gravel, rock by the cartload. Outside the Geo-rich nation of Liyue, who else on Teyvat could cough up that much raw material?
Rowan sighed. These people were so rigid. If your country lacks it, borrow from next door—or buy it.
Mondstadt might scrape together some rock and ore each day, but Liyue had plenty. Whole stretches of unused mountains—knock one down and it could supply enough aggregate to pave every road in Mondstadt. Dirt and base rock were the cheapest things in Liyue—he meant ordinary ore, of course. Not anything on the level of Primal Obsidian or whatever would blow Mondstadt sky-high with a single piece.
"Seriously—are you stuck in a box?" Rowan said. "Why not borrow from Liyue? Buy from them? Partner with them?"
"Why insist on playing alone in your own sandbox?"
"If Liyue and Mondstadt are on good terms, strengthen that cooperation. Don't wait until you're at the breaking point to go begging."
"Or do you want a repeat performance of 'Mondstadt returns to Liyue'?"
"Haven't we embarrassed Barbatos enough already?"
That last bit wasn't Rowan making things up. Back in the Old Aristocracy days, Mondstadt's upper crust had once signed a humiliating treaty—selling all Mondstadt to neighboring Liyue—without Zhongli ever knowing. Why? Because the signature line had "Barbatos," forged by Venti. When Zhongli saw it, he was stunned. Of course it was Venti—who else would dare tease the God of Contracts like that?
Zhongli had been ready to hold his nose and accept the treaty… and Venti tore it up right in front of him.
Wasn't that spitting on the God of Contracts?
Which is why Venti often went to Dihua Marsh to help a nameless yaksha disperse karma—but didn't dare linger at Wangshu Inn. He was afraid Zhongli would finally lose patience and flatten him. You could even hear it in Venti's voice lines—he was genuinely wary of the old man. He'd even been polite in front of the Tsaritsa when speaking of Zhongli.
"..."
Jean fell silent. She truly hadn't considered asking Liyue for help. In her mind—and in the minds of most Mondstadt officials—Mondstadt's problems should be solved by Mondstadters. To rely on outsiders was shameful. That was why, no matter how harsh the Fatui's pressure became, she had never once proposed seeking aid from Liyue.
In truth, Teyvat as a whole operated like that. Aside from the Fatui, who waged cross-border invasions as a matter of course, the other six nations rarely thought of uniting. They knew a single nation couldn't handle Snezhnaya—but why not band together? Outside of commerce and trade, there seemed to be no appetite for cooperation.
It baffled Rowan. They could obviously grow stronger by partnering with other nations—just like Natlan. Natlan knew the Abyss wasn't just their problem; it touched other nations, too. If Natlan fell, the Abyss would punch a hole through there like it did five hundred years ago in Khaenri'ah. Yet Natlan refused to ask for help. Not that other nations wouldn't help—they simply didn't know how dire things were. If they knew, do you really think they'd sit on their hands?
To Rowan, every nation in Teyvat felt… not isolationist, exactly, but closed-lipped. They wouldn't talk, wouldn't collaborate, except through merchants and wandering bards. It drove him up the wall. The strategy of alliance and counter-alliance was treated like some bizarre idea here. Of course, that tied back to their faith in their own gods. In Jean's eyes, perhaps, even at the last moment, Barbatos would surely appear to save Mondstadt. That was the difference between a theocracy and a world without gods.
Rowan's homeland had no gods. He was used to relying on himself—not praying to some hazy divinity.
Mondstadt's trump card was the Anemo Archon. As long as Barbatos lived, Mondstadt could always rebuild.
Seamus asked, "Then, my king, how should we cooperate with Liyue?"
Rowan exhaled and spared them further scolding. "Simple. We sign a cooperation contract with Liyue. They provide soil and aggregate; we handle road construction. Whether we put up funds while they supply materials, or they put up materials while we supply labor—either way works."
"In fact, we can even get Liyue to supply materials willingly without spending a single mora."
Jean's curiosity sparked. "What's the method?"
"You're not suggesting," Seamus said, catching on fast, "that once we finish our roads, we do Liyue a matching set for free—as long as they cover lodging and materials for our workers?"
Rowan nodded, pleased. "Exactly."
"Once you see the roads I'm going to build, you'll understand where my confidence comes from. And when that happens, not just Liyue—the other nations will be tempted, too."
"And then we can license the cement formula to them for a fee."
"Make another pile, got it?"
(End of Chapter)
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