“Only when the people grow strong and wealthy can this country truly become strong...” Duke Holmes softly repeated Law Freya's words. Then, dropping to one knee, he said solemnly, “Your subject is willing to take on this task!”
Law Freya said softly, “For the Kingdom of Tarapaca.”
Huke Holmes also repeated, “For the Kingdom of Tarapaca!”
After Duke Holmes left, Law Freya summoned the Minister of Finance and Duke Ashworth. The former was a thoroughly blindly loyal royalist noble. After all, managing the national treasury was such an important task that the previous King had naturally given it to his most trusted confidant. Once Law Freya ascended the throne, this Minister of Finance's loyalty was naturally transferred to her as well.
Duke Ashworth was one of Trig's earliest supporters and had previously sworn allegiance to Law Freya.
Law Freya said, “I need the two of you to work together to lay down railways in every corner of the kingdom.”
When Freya first transmigrated, the Kingdom of Tarapaca's first steam train had actually already officially entered service, and it had run without any issues.
However, as everyone knew, trains required tracks to run, and laying tracks was incredibly expensive. The previous King had been completely deterred by the exorbitant cost. But Law Freya was different; she deeply understood the importance of building infrastructure, so she was determined to build them no matter how much it cost.
Thus, the Minister of Finance was completely stunned. He said blankly, “Every corner?”
Law Freya said, “Yes. At the very least, all the major cities must be connected by tracks, passing through as many towns as possible with stations set up along the way.”
The Minister of Finance said, “Is... is Your Majesty serious? This will absolutely cost an astronomical sum! It might even completely empty the treasury!”
Law Freya replied, “Even so, we must build it. After all, money is meaningless if it just sits there. Only circulating money has value.”
What was the point of piling up hundreds of thousands or millions in the treasury? That money wouldn't multiply on its own. In fact, as long as the state's revenue minus its expenditures remained barely positive, or rather, as long as the country didn't go bankrupt, they could take out loans, borrow money, and build like crazy. Money only had meaning when it was spent!
But to the conservative traditional nobles, this theory was a bit too advanced. The Minister of Finance was stunned for a moment before saying, “Is... is... is that right?”
Law Freya continued, “Furthermore, when laying down the railways, you must abide by the Labor Law. Do not be too harsh on the workers.”
Railways might seem to be built of metal, but in Freya's previous life, far too many people had died building them. It wouldn't even be an exaggeration to say that railways were built on metal, flesh, and blood.
However, since the Labor Law had not yet been fully drafted, the Minister of Finance asked in confusion, “What is the Labor Law?”
Law Freya explained it briefly, and the Minister of Finance's eyes widened instantly. “If... if that is the case, then the treasury's funds might not even be enough to finish building the railways...”
Previously, the Minister of Finance had estimated the cost of building the railways based on exploitation and harsh conditions, and even that would have nearly drained the treasury. If they followed the Labor Law as Law Freya described, the money in the treasury wouldn't even cover it.
Law Freya said, “The money in the treasury won't be completely spent in an instant anyway. Use it first, and if it's not enough, I will find a way.”
Printing money, borrowing money, stealing money—weren't there plenty of ways?
Printing money was self-explanatory. Currency depreciation and rising prices were perfectly normal occurrences. As long as they maintained a stable pace and the inflation didn't get too ridiculous, it would be within acceptable limits.
As for borrowing money, the first thing Law Freya thought of was issuing government bonds for the commoners to buy, returning them two or three percent interest after a certain number of years. Government bonds were essentially selling the state's credit. If the previous King had tried this, probably very few people would have bought into it.
But it would be different in the future. Once the Labor Law was promulgated, the commoners' approval of Law Freya, their new monarch, would definitely skyrocket. Coupled with the massive number of jobs created by the large-scale railway construction, many people would become wealthier. When these previously impoverished people suddenly acquired so much money, their first instinct would definitely be to save it rather than spend it.
If she introduced government bonds at that exact moment, allowing them to earn more money while saving, there was no way they wouldn't buy them.
As for how to pay them back in the future? That brought them right back to the first method: printing money. For instance, ten years later, the interest on these bonds might be three percent, but if Law Freya printed ten percent more currency over those ten years, causing a ten percent depreciation, then the state wouldn't actually be paying any interest at all in terms of real value.
Besides, Law Freya didn't believe she wouldn't make a single penny over those ten years. Paying back the national debt wouldn't be difficult.
Finally, the third method: if they were truly desperate for money for an urgent matter, she would just have Trig go to those old nobles of the neutral faction and take it from their homes.
It was no exaggeration to say that in the current Kingdom of Tarapaca, the royal family held thirty percent of the wealth, the nobility held sixty percent, and all the remaining commoners split the last ten percent among themselves.
However, outright robbery was still a bit too uncivilized. Law Freya thought about it; perhaps she could start a brand to sell flashy but highly impractical, incredibly expensive luxury products. Didn't nobles love that kind of stuff? The rarer and more expensive it was, the more they could show off.
Furthermore, as the King, creating a luxury brand would actually be very simple. She herself was the best advertisement. For things like accessories, perfume, and clothing, all she had to do was wear them for a while and casually praise them in front of the nobles.
Then, she could have a merchant caravan open a small channel to quietly contact the nobles in private. With a bit of hype, Law Freya was sure they would buy in.
Bringing her thoughts back to the present, Law Freya looked at the two men in front of her and said, “In short, it doesn't matter how much money it costs. Build more railways. We must connect the entire kingdom. Are there any problems?”
The Minister of Finance and Duke Ashworth bowed their heads simultaneously and said, “We will ensure the task is completed, Your Majesty!”
After the two of them left, several more nobles arrived one after another. However, these people had not been summoned by Law Freya; rather, they had requested to see her on their own accord, and their conversations were mostly empty and meaningless.
By the time she finished dealing with all of them, the sky had gradually darkened. Having sat on the throne for who knew how many hours, Law Freya rubbed her sore bottom as she slowly and lazily stood up.
Then, she suddenly realized something. Wait a minute, hadn't she planned to slack off? Why had she worked the entire day?
...
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