Chapter 268 - 22: Hilde Chamber of Commerce (2)_2

Words : 1320 Updated : Sep 29th, 2025

Chapter 268: Chapter 22: Hilde Chamber of Commerce (2)_2 "Generally speaking?" "Hmm... there’s really no such thing as ’generally’ in this case." "Haven’t you traded gold ores before?" "No, I have. But gold ore can’t be generalized. After all, the price of gold ore can vary dozens of times, even hundreds of times. Do you have samples?" "I do, I’ve brought them!" Jones took out a small pouch filled with ores, and poured them onto the table. "One moment." Patia reached out, picked up a piece of ore, closed her eyes, and recited an incantation that Jones had never heard before. Soon, the ore emitted a faint glow. Opening her eyes again, Patia softly said, "Ore with a one-thousandth gold content, very good quality ore." "Really?" Jones’ face lit up, and he immediately began calculating: "One-thousandth gold content means one kilogram of gold per ton. That roughly equals... sixty-six Gold Coins? One ton can sell for sixty-six Gold Coins?" "Uh... impossible." Patia said awkwardly, "One ton of ore can indeed yield sixty-six Gold Coins’ worth of gold, maybe even more. But if you want to sell the ore itself, it would probably fetch only fifty Gold Coins per ton. After all, refining comes with costs, and they’re not insignificant." Fifty Gold Coins per ton... That means one hundred thousand Gold Coins would only need two thousand tons? Two thousand tons, how much can a dwarf dig per day? With this, Jones felt like he could soon pay off his debts. Not only could he clear his debt, but he could even become as wealthy as Adelle and Adolf! At that moment, Jones felt as if he were floating above the ground. "Oh, right, there’s also shipping costs. I need to arrange transportation." "Please provide your castle’s address." Patia handed her notebook to Jones. Jones picked up the pen, wrote down the coordinates of his castle in Patia’s notebook, and handed it back. Patia glanced at the notebook and froze: "Young Master Jones, are you sure you want to sell the ore?" "Why wouldn’t I?" "No, of course you can. However... transporting the ore from your castle to here would cost about forty-five Gold Coins per ton." "That much?" "Possibly forty-eight Gold Coins. In fact, your minimum cost per ton should be a few Gold Coins, so this would end up being a loss-making venture." Suddenly, Jones felt as though a bucket of cold water had been poured over him, from head to toe. He stared dumbfounded at Patia, mouth agape. Thank heaven, but isn’t the gap between Heaven and Hell just a little too narrow? "I can help you create a new, more suitable plan." "Go ahead." "I suggest you set up your own gold refinery. If refinement can be done onsite, then shipping burdens would decrease significantly. After all, reducing the weight by a thousandfold would slash transport costs by hundreds of times." "A...about how much would that cost? Just enough to get operations running, say a small refinery." Jones blinked his eyes as he asked. "Around two hundred thousand Gold Coins, that’s the bare minimum. After all, refining gold has high requirements." Patia smiled as she asked, "Would you like me to connect you with merchants who sell refining equipment?" "No need, thank you." Jones replied expressionlessly. The atmosphere stiffened suddenly—quiet enveloped the room. Patia softly asked, "Is there anything else I can help you with?" "Borrowing money, can you help me?" "Uh... Of course I can." "Really?" "Of course. You hold Young Master Adelle’s emblem, under his name, borrowing up to five million Gold Coins would certainly not be an issue." "Borrow under Adelle’s name?" "Yes." "Can’t I borrow under my own name?" "No, you’re not yet a member of the Chamber of Commerce." Jones fell completely silent, his brows furrowing tightly. A servant brought tea, placing cups before the three of them, offering a bow before retreating. Patia took a sip from her cup, quietly observing Jones. Jones remained steeped in silence. He had hoped to pay off his debts by operating the gold mine, but now the situation seemed to only dig him deeper. Were there other holes? How much more debt needed to be plugged? Besides, it wasn’t even certain whether he could borrow the money. Borrowing under Adelle’s name? That’s something Jones couldn’t bring himself to do. Borrow another two hundred thousand Gold Coins from Adelle? Jones couldn’t do that either. He began worrying about what would happen if he couldn’t repay the money. Just as Jones was pondering in silence, Adolf, who had been quiet all along, suddenly picked up one of the ores and began playing with it in his hand. "Young Master Jones, why don’t I fund a refinery at your site?" "You’ll fund it?" Jones quickly turned to look at Adolf. "Yes, I’ll fund it. But of course, the earnings will belong to me. We’re just business partners." Adolf said softly, "I’m also looking for new ventures, that’s exactly why I came here. As it happens, Young Master Jones, you have a promising project—it just lacks funding. Would you be willing to give me a chance to collaborate with you?" "You’re sure?" "Of course, though you’ll need to offer me a little benefit—say, slightly cheaper ore at forty-five Gold Coins per ton, how about that?" "Of course, that’s fine!" Jones exclaimed eagerly, his eyes widening. "I’m afraid not, sir." Patia interjected swiftly, calculating furiously. As she did, she commented, "If a refinery could be built locally, the transport cost for the ore would indeed shrink dramatically, and the shipping cost for gold would be virtually negligible. But refining materials also incur shipping costs. Your actual refining cost per ton should come to... twenty-six Gold Coins." "Then how about thirty-five Gold Coins per ton? Would that work? Leave me with a five-Gold-Coin margin." "That works!" Jones agreed without hesitation. Patia cast Adolf a meaningful look, placed her pen aside, and said nothing further. A five-Gold-Coin margin—this practically ensured that the investment could never be recouped. In reality, it was a loss-leading proposal. ... For Jones, this was probably his second happiest day in recent times. What was the first happiest day? Naturally, the day he took out the loan to buy the castle—though a few hours later, he wasn’t so happy anymore. Leaving the Chamber of Commerce, Jones practically floated on air. Was this resolution finally within reach? Mining, selling ore. If the refinery were his own, then there might be many, many more matters to attend to in the future—the profits or losses still hard to predict. But if the refinery weren’t his, then Jones’ duties seemed to end at selling ore. Once Adolf invested in building the refinery, it meant Jones wouldn’t need to fret over any future issues and could enjoy counting Gold Coins in peace! Once back at the castle, Jones embraced Dora tightly, so excited he was nearly in tears. "I’m so happy." "Lord Jones... Are you alright?" "I’m fine. Adolf is planning to invest in a refinery on our land, which means all the problems can be solved." "Adolf?" "Adelle’s friend, a very wealthy man." Dora blinked, looking at Jones. After pausing, Jones added, "What makes me happiest isn’t just the refinery—it’s Adolf showing up. It means we’ll no longer be defeated by money. All our problems will be solved!" Dora smiled warmly, "That’s truly wonderful." Jones declared solemnly, "I swear, until the gold mining operation is on track, I won’t touch any other business ventures. No other ventures—just wholeheartedly focus on the mine." As he spoke, Jones hugged Dora tightly once again in excitement. ... Meanwhile, at the Adelle family castle. The butler approached Adelle with measured steps, handing over a document. Softly, he said, "Young Master, Adolf’s identity has been investigated. At least half of his stated background is fabricated." Adelle paused mid-motion, his pen halting as he penned his letter.

Chapter 268 - 22: Hilde Chamber of Commerce (2)_2

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