162 5.51 Shibata. So Far And Yet So Expensive! (1/2)
+-==Meanwhile Miroku and Kami==-+
After making 4 stops of one hour break every 3 hours of hard horseback riding, our horses and their bodies could really take a break especially when we were riding since 11 am. We had 2 breaks earlier and decided to set up camp when it was after dark and had found a great location near a raised river bank.
They fished and grilled it over an open fire and ate onigiri. Their horses were lead to the riverbank to drink and offered some corn for the 2 breaks. The had tied the horses near some overgrown grass that was not affected by the end of winter snow and let them grazed peacefully.
They would rest after and suggest taking a 2-hourly watch and break camp right on first light. The night passed without any forms of disturbances, and as soon as the break of dawn, they broke camp and continued their journey.
When the reached the town of Shibata, it was almost 9 am. They trotted inside and had a stable boy take care of the horses while they walked among the ground on foot. They first went in accordance to order and asked the same specific answers and wrote them down so they would present it to us to digest.
They went to the Treasury first, then to the business district and lastly to the property agent's office.
The practices for the treasury remains the same, and there was no need to actually apply for a business permit since our head office was in Kitakata, and the property here was most expensive and influential near the shoreline at the North Zone than the Central Trading District.
They noted of this, since most of the import trade that arrives with very strict control, is from the Sea of Japan. That's where the Northern Gate was the busiest place of all zones.
They saw some prime locales in the northern side and compared with the central district ones that had some vacant locales as well. The difference between the two locales that fit their needs was a total lease amount of 1080 gold for the Northern side while it costs 800 gold in the central trading district.
Northern Gate 65% down-payment 702 gold coins of 1080 gold coins
Balance 378 gold coins
Monthly 6 gold and 3 silvers
Central trading district 45% down-payment of 360 gold coins of 800 gold coins
Balance 440 gold coins
Monthly 7 gold and 3 silvers and 4 coppers
They decided to lock in these 2 locations and will confirm back with the property agent. They were hoping to land a whale today as they walked to a Blacksmith in the central district.
The ambassadors introduced themselves as part of Fasuto Japan KabushikiGaisha and wished to introduce the [Refined Iron] plate to them that was originated in Kitakata and the ambassadors wanted to discuss this with the Blacksmith alliance and gather the Blacksmiths so they could discuss this in one meeting.
The Blacksmith brought the ambassadors to the business district and showed where the Blacksmith alliance was. There were some messengers and it worked like a daisy chain when comes to news and vital information. The head of Blacksmith was there and he held the two pieces of [Refined Iron] which were of better quality than they had in their possession.
He had heard of this plate of [Refined Iron] before but the price was a tad too high. It was offered at 10 gold pieces each due to the distance of travel and transportation. He himself had bought 10 pieces to forge a breastplate and gauntlet and he was very satisfied with the quality and the hardness and durability.
He told the ambassadors that he will contact all the blacksmiths in town immediately to congregate here and they will a meeting. The head Blacksmith informed the ambassadors to make themselves at home. Soon messengers were dispatched all over town and within an hour, everyone gathered at the Blacksmith Alliance building and its been a long time since they had a congregation like this.
Soon, everyone managed to quieten down after some time and the head Blacksmith began the speech, ”Good day, fellow Blacksmithers. We have here today, ambassadors from the town of Kitakata that represented the Fasuto Japan KabushikiGaisha. They are here to present to you the [Refined Iron] pieces that had been forged by their Forge Master.”
”Here are the 2 pieces, please do evaluate and give me your assessment. They are here to beat the middle man trade thus providing us with one point of contact for their sole distribution of these [Refined Iron] plates.”
”Good day, my good men. Our names are Miroku and Kami and we are here to present to you the same products that you had bought from those who wanted to earn extra profit thus lowering your own profit margin and had to increase the price of your goods instead.”
”According to records, how many blacksmiths are there in this town with their own locales?”
The crowd murmured as the looked at the plates and was much better than they had purchased from other blacksmiths before. They saw a stamp of the corporation initials and the type of plate and its purity. The piece here was discovered of a finer material than the last one that they had.
”We have a total of 20 Blacksmith shops all around this town. And right before you dear ambassadors, are all the 20 blacksmiths from this town.”
”Thank you, our fine gentleman, for pointing it out. I heard that some you had paid 10 gold coins each for this and our head Blacksmith had bought 10 to forge himself a breastplate and gauntlet, is that right?”
”Yes, that's right. If I can get the price lower, even at 8 gold, I would definitely order 500 pieces for myself alone!”
The head Blacksmith roared.
The ambassadors saw a big whale is going to get beached on the shoreline of Sea of Japan.
”How if we offer you a lower price than 8 gold per piece, would you be able to absorb 1000 pieces?”
”Of course! How much are you offering?”
Miroku pointed eight fingers in the air, then Kami closed one and he heard a few people gasped. Then he closed another finger and more people were getting more excited and shouts of disbelief echoed and lastly Kamu closed the other finger and Miroku only held one hand with 5 fingers outstretched.!
”You must be kidding!”
”Just 5 gold pieces each? It's so heaven sent!”
”I'm going to get my hands on these, no matter what.!”
These are a few comments that I could think of right now. And it brought the situation to such a height that if one were to drop fon it, they won't know when they will hit the ground.
Miroku nudged the head Blacksmith and asked if he could contain the situation right now.
The Blacksmith took out a Thor's Hanmer and brought it down to an anvil that happened to be sitting in the middle of the alliance-building as a centrepiece.
A loud boom sound was heard and everyone suddenly lost their tongue and voice and found to be dumb. (or dumbfounded). Hahahaha
”Silence! Let the ambassadors speak!”
”I have here with me a sketchpad, all I want to know is your full name and the number of plates that you wanted to order based on cash upon delivery, assessment and verification.”
”Please make a proper line, and head Blacksmith-San, your order would be a 1000 pieces right? Kind sir, please confirm by writing your name here.”
Kami passed the sketchpad to the Head Blacksmith and he wrote his name as a confirmation order. Seeing their head Blacksmith had signed such a big order, no one dated to order less than 400 pieces.
At the end of the line, they had managed to collect 20 orders and had accumulated a total of 14,750 pieces of [Refined Iron] plates. Not only they had beached a whale on the shoreline of Sea Of Japan but they had fully made use of every single part of the whale to their advantage.
The ambassadors explained and seek their understanding of the big orders. They could only fulfil a minimum of 50 pieces for every one per delivery. One is that they came from afar, with at least 12 hours on horseback ride.
The Blacksmiths were satisfied with the 50 pieces per delivery because they accepted our sincerity and generous offers of not charging any additional charges in S&H.
The ambassadors checked their entries and confirmed that they had not made a mistake and bade to leave for other parts of town for their research.
They were unable to contain their excitement for receiving a HUGE order that they decided to move out in the morning and gave their horses rest in the stables while they head for a local bed and breakfast Inn.
They sent for a messenger and they saw a metal horse he was riding with two wheels. The asked how much to deliver a note to Kitakata Fasuto Japan KabushikiGaisha and he told them that it costs 5 silver. And said he could reach there on his metal horse under 8 hours to and fro.