After the first shareholders' meeting concluded, many nobles had already sent their servants home to fetch their money.
Lian left the meeting room, satisfied. The two Maids and Miss Witch were waiting for him at the door.
The Ice Witch, Sophie, remained as expressionless as ever. She was still wearing the flower wreath Lian had given her.
She didn't seem to have noticed that the flowers had already withered.
But even as a withered wreath, it possessed a kind of dilapidated beauty on her head.
She was holding a transparent flowerpot containing soil and an unsprouted seed.
This was her new friend, which she hadn't named yet.
Anna carried a document case containing various materials for Lian.
It was probably because Lian thought she was suited to be a secretary that he always entrusted these things to her.
Annie, who dreamed of nothing but becoming a top tailor, was very satisfied with Lian's attire today, as he was wearing a suit she had designed and tailored herself.
Although the trousers seemed a bit tight, making Lian walk with excessive caution.
He was afraid that taking too wide a step would lead to a socially disastrous scene.
"Annie, you have a real talent for design. Have you ever considered opening a clothing store, so everyone can wear clothes you've made? As for the money, don't worry. I can invest."
Lian had long felt that the Crinoline Skirt needed improvement. The large hoop skirts created many problems—not only were they easy to fall from the High Wall in, but they also made it difficult to escape fires, and one even had to be especially careful when boarding a carriage.
If they could create smaller, more delicate poofy skirts, eliminate the corsets and hoops, and free women from their constraints, it would surely become fashionable in Green Shade Territory very quickly.
Annie frowned. "Lord Lian, my sister made your suit, not me."
"Alright then, Anna. Do you have any interest in that?"
Lian looked at Anna.
Anna smiled but said nothing.
Annie answered, "My sister doesn't like making clothes for too many people. She just wants to be a top tailor."
"Of course. Anna would only be in charge of the design, while seamstresses would handle the production. That would still make Anna a top tailor,"
Lian said.
Annie thought for a moment, then nodded slightly. "I think my sister would agree, but she doesn't have any ideas for women's clothing at the moment."
"Why not start by improving the hoop skirt? A four-to-five-meter hoop is too small; it completely fails to express the elegance of a noble lady."
Lian knew that with a rebellious personality like Annie's, he had to use reverse psychology.
Annie nodded. "My sister will shrink the hoop to under a meter, or even get rid of it entirely."
Anna said, "The ladies will think it's not elegant enough."
"That depends on who's wearing it."
Lian looked at Miss Witch, Sophie.
If Sophie were the first to wear the new style of dress, the noble wives and young ladies of the territory, with their fickle tastes, would definitely rush to imitate her. This was the celebrity effect.
Annie had also discovered her own shortcomings in making men's clothing. She suspected it was because she wasn't familiar enough with the male physique. If Lian would let her take his measurements up close, she was certain she could make clothes that fit perfectly.
Unfortunately, she would never take Lian's measurements herself.
Because that would expose the truth: that she was the one who wanted to be a top tailor, not Anna.
"Sophie, your wreath needs changing. Perhaps we could take a trip to a flower shop."
Lian pointed to the wreath on Sophie's head.
Sophie shook her head, her expression stubborn.
"Er... next time, I'll just give you a preserved flower instead."
"What's a preserved flower?"
Annie asked curiously.
Sophie and Anna also looked at Lian.
"It's a flower that will never wither, that will never wilt,"
Lian explained.
"Never withers? Oh, an artificial flower. Made of fabric, glass, or metal. Devoid of beauty and life,"
Annie said.
Lian's mouth twitched. "It is an artificial flower, yes, but it's not that bad."
"Lord Lian holds Miss Sophie in high regard, doesn't he? A flower that never withers symbolizes unwavering love,"
Anna said with a smile, her eyes curving. It felt as if some unspoken emotion was hidden within her words.
'Unwavering love?'
Sophie thought, her cheeks gradually turning red.
She picked up the planter with the unsprouted seed and used it to hide her face.
"Even if I wanted to give you one, it would take time. Making a preserved flower takes time,"
Lian said.
"Maybe even a lifetime,"
Annie added.
'Spending a lifetime making a flower for me?'
Sophie pondered this, her cheeks turning red once more.
She lifted the planter with the unsprouted seed a little higher.
"It wouldn't take that long. The main problem is I don't know how to make one,"
Lian said.
Sophie lowered the planter, a little disappointed.
"So, I've decided to give Sophie a new flower wreath every day."
A faint light glimmered in Sophie's eyes again, and she hugged her flowerpot in satisfaction.
Once they were in the carriage, Lian began discussing serious matters with the Minister of Finance, Omari Hani.
"Don't be fooled by Green Shade Territory's three consecutive years of fiscal deficit. Our people live quite happily. They're poor compared to the nobles and wealthy merchants, but compared to people from other territories, they're already quite well-off. Otherwise, how could they afford to throw parties so often?"
The Minister of Finance, Omari Hani, suddenly said with pride, "The taxes in our Green Shade Territory are less than half of those in other territories. In fact, if Lord Moria had been willing to increase taxes, our financial situation would be much better."
"So you're saying our people might have savings."
'Looks like that old codger wasn't completely useless after all,' Lian thought. 'He at least knew how to raise the happiness index of his people.'
'Was this his escape plan? Increase taxes if he couldn't repay the bank loans?'
"Yes, that's one of the reasons I support your plan to open a bank. Our people are capable of having savings; it just depends on whether they're willing. Of course, not everyone has the ability, as you'll find lazy people and the unfortunate poor everywhere."
Omari Hani then proceeded to educate Lian on the various types of taxes in the major territories.
"Taxes across the land are numerous and varied, but they can be broadly divided into four main categories."
"First are taxes on transportation. This includes tolls for using roads, bridges, rivers, and fords, as well as vehicle taxes. The most common are the tolls, of which there are 21 types."
"Second are taxes on goods. These mainly target merchants, and there are 113 types in total."
"Third are market, sales, and license taxes. To do business in any Domain, you must pay a license tax..."
"Fourth, there are security taxes, window taxes, and so on, which apply to everyone..."
"All four categories combined add up to more than 160 different taxes."
"But here in Green Shade Territory, we only levy 10 types of taxes. It is precisely because of this that the population of Green Shade Territory has grown from a few tens of thousands to the two million it is today."
Speaking of Green Shade Territory's glorious past, all three ministers wore proud expressions.
"Unfortunately, even so, we still owe the Empire Bank a massive loan. If we were to forcibly add major new taxes, we would just scare the people away," Karel Dennis lamented with a sigh.
"Karel, hasn't Lord Lian already solved that problem? There's no need to sigh," Alex Pool said.
"Omari, I don't think you should be focusing on the commoners," Karel Dennis said. "How much money could they possibly have? The branch banks will be nothing more than decorations. The inner city bank is what matters. The deposits from the nobles are the key to solving our problems."
Omari Hani thought Karel Dennis had a point. The nobles' deposits were indeed the key. "You're right. Even the Empire Bank has a threshold. Our threshold can't be too low, either."
"The branch banks won't need a threshold. It is precisely because the Empire Bank only targets large clients—only dealing with nobles for both deposits and loans—that we will do things differently. We must differentiate ourselves from the Empire Bank," Lian interrupted the three men's conversation. "The branches will accept deposits from everyone, as long as they are willing to save. This will also be a form of security for them. But most importantly, we can open up lending services to commoners with good credit."
The three ministers looked at each other in disbelief. "Loans for commoners?"