After breakfast on the third day, Old Clayton led the way to begin inspecting the lands belonging to the 'Sheffields'. The territory centered around the castle and spread outwards, consisting of arable land, woodlands, pastures, orchards, and more.
Through Old Clayton's introduction, Altair learned about the operation of these lands and the crops they produced.
Since most of these people had followed the 'Sheffields' or were their descendants, farmers wishing to rent land here only needed to pay between 4 to 8 solis a year. Yet even the cheapest barren land could yield a net profit of 3 to 5 pounds, while fertile land yielded 8 to 12 pounds.
Of course, they could use the land first and pay later, or use grain to offset the rent.
Barren land was primarily planted with 'rye'. Although this crop was cheap, it was still a source of food.
Fertile land was planted with 'spelt', a type of wheat that produces fine flour. It is highly nutritious and is the staple food for most of the middle class.
There were also barley, oats, and other products, some of which would be used for brewing alcohol.
Naturally, legumes and common vegetables like soybeans, peas, lentils, cabbage, and onions had also been consistently cultivated.
There were also higher-value cash crops, such as flax, tobacco, hops, and so on.
The pastures raised large numbers of cattle, sheep, and other animals.
Old Clayton's introduction revealed that nearly 90,000 acres of land near this fief alone belonged to the 'Sheffields'.
If sold and converted into 'gold pounds', it would be worth approximately 2.6 million pounds, and this was just one territory. The Sheffield family owned three other such land assets within the Kingdom of Loen.
However, no noble would sell their land, because if they cultivated it themselves, the annual value of the goods produced would exceed the value of the land itself.
Even if rented out, one could receive nearly a quarter of a million gold pounds, though no one could rent out all this land at once.
Of course, this was just land investment. There were other investments as well, such as real estate, which was currently a major project. For instance, in Tingen City, the 'Sheffields' owned two streets, several manors, and rows of townhouses.
Perhaps in the future, he really could just 'knock on' doors and collect rent.
In addition to these investments, the 'Sheffields' also held mineral assets, such as coal and iron mines, which were currently of high value.
Because the territory was adjacent to the 'Tussock River', they also had their own shipyard, primarily manufacturing dual-powered ships using'steam and sail'. They also invested in supporting industries such as steel manufacturing and large-scale steam engine production.
Of course, current'ships' were mostly not the 'large' ironclads forged entirely of steel. Although steel was used, the problem of 'power' remained unsolved, even with steam engines.
They were also involved in the military sector, including firearms manufacturing and weapon forging.
Their investments spanned the entire country, covering everything from civilian to military use. Altair had thought he had inherited the title of a mere Baron from a long-standing family, but he never imagined, even in his wildest dreams, that this family's assets were so vast.
Altogether, the assets were close to 23 million gold pounds. Converted into modern money, it was nearly 23 billion!
And this was only the net worth of ordinary assets, not including the inventory of Beyonder materials.
I remember that 'Miss Justice's' father, Earl Hall, only amassed his family's wealth after several keen investments. Based on the assets the family gave Audrey Hall after she came of age, her family's assets should be around 15 million gold pounds.
In summary, I am wealthier than her family, although my political influence is inferior.
While Altair was still savoring this joyful news and thinking about his future life, he heard—
"Count Altair, I've heard that in Backlund, some of the rising new nobles have proposed the repeal of the 'corn law'."
Hearing this news, Altair became somewhat uneasy. This event was indeed happening; people had been discussing it at the Memorial Service two days ago, though it had only just been brought up.
The essence of the 'corn law' was to restrict the import of low-priced foreign grain and stabilize domestic grain prices. It was true that this law protected nobles and large landowners, but he knew exactly who would truly suffer once it was repealed.
Altair sighed helplessly. "Old Clayton, it seems that even after you left Backlund, news from there has never stopped reaching you."
Old Clayton smiled faintly. "Count Altair, you're joking."
Combining the events in the book with reality, Altair gave Old Clayton the answer he needed. "This matter is indeed true, and the law will inevitably be repealed. But not now; it should take at least another two years, and it cannot be overturned."
"Those minor nobles are merely pawns thrown out by the people behind the scenes. The repeal of the 'corn law' is inevitable."
Altair asked the old butler, who had worked for nearly 40 years, with curiosity. After all, as the old saying goes, 'An elder in the house is a treasure at home'.
"Do you have any good solutions?"
Hearing Altair's words, Old Clayton thought for a moment and said truthfully, "I haven't thought of any good solution yet, if the 'corn law' are destined to be repealed."
"Then the best way is to sell when land prices are at their highest. This can recover a large amount of cash, and then we can buy it back when land prices are low. However, planning the specific operational process during this period will take time."
"If many commoners buy the land we sell during this time, and then the repeal of the 'corn law' causes grain prices to drop, a large number of commoners will go bankrupt and become unemployed. They will be forced to work in factories, which will also lead to a sharp decrease in workers' wages, which is detrimental to regional security."
"And the only benefit these people will get is the drop in grain prices."
"Count Altair, if I may be so bold, I truly cannot understand why His Majesty 'George III' and the House of Lords would agree to this proposal."
Of course you can't understand, because your King doesn't view people as human beings at all. I suspect he's already gone mad in his pursuit of becoming a 'God'.
Altair naturally wouldn't tell Old Clayton everything, only saying, "I don't know the reason for this either, and my granduncle didn't tell me. Don't speak of this to others; you should know the gravity of this matter."
Seeing Altair's serious gaze, Old Clayton replied, "I understand, My Lord Count."
Considering the great war that would break out later, Altair added, "Although the 'corn law' will be repealed and the King's low-priced grain will enter the country and affect prices, it won't last long. Don't think about selling all the grain now. If I go hungry in the future, I'll be coming for you!"
Old Clayton was speechless inwardly at Altair's joke. 'Under what circumstances would a noble be unable to afford food?'
Was this a questioning of his ability, or did it have another meaning?
Finally, they went to the underground vault of the manor, opened the Door of Sealing, and Old Clayton introduced the collection work regarding special materials over the past six months.
Although the 'Sheffield' family didn't have many recorded potion formulas themselves, the materials themselves possessed spirituality. Due to the control of the Churches of the Seven Gods, they could only be collected in secret.
Once purchased and sealed in the special vault, there would basically be no loss of spirituality.
As for why they collected so many materials, it was because the value of Beyonder materials themselves did not fluctuate on a large scale, making them excellent collectibles.
After discussing official business, they moved on to private matters. Old Clayton expressed his heartfelt gratitude for sending Rex to the army...