King-Chapter 1109 - 166: 10 Sins (Request for Monthly Votes)

As soon as the news about the smuggling trade was released, the Nobles of the North were in an uproar.

The biggest player in the smuggling trade in the Alpha Kingdom was none other than the Northland Noble Group led by the five major families.

Smugglers and slave traders were dependent on this group for their existence.

Since the outbreak of the continental war, smuggling had come to a complete halt. In order to restore the trade routes, the Nobles of the North had been actively lobbying within the Kingdom.

Unfortunately, the five major families were not well-liked, and the harder they lobbied, the tighter the border controls became.

Previously, the Northern aristocracy’s supplies had to pass through the Northland, inherently constrained by others, leaving them no choice but to compromise.

But now the border was near the Near East, which boasted convenient harbor and sea transport; Hudson did not need to rely on the looks of the Nobles of the North.

Under Hudson’s direction, the Kingdom’s standing army regularly struck against smuggling trade. The smugglers who dared to show up were mostly dead.

No matter the background, dead meant dead. No one dared claim the crime of "colluding with Different Races."

Seven or eight out of ten smuggling attempts met with accidents, so much so that in recent months, there had been numerous sudden deaths among the Northern Nobles.

No matter how profitable the trade, it could not withstand such disasters. The financially devastated Northland Noble Group, bearing a grudge against Hudson, were powerless.

After all, it was a business that couldn’t be discussed openly; it could be conducted in secret but not talked about openly on the table.

Losing a money-making business was one thing, but the political embarrassment was adding insult to injury for the Nobles of the North.

Not to mention seeking Hudson out for revenge, they currently struggled even to protect themselves politically. Several officials of Northern origin had been imprisoned by Caesar IV and were now of uncertain fate.

At one point, these five major families considered building a navy to open trade routes to the Orc Empire by sea.

Sadly, though the intention was good, the reality was harsh. The North possessed harbors, indeed, but they lacked shipyards!

The harbors had been founded during the era of Caesar III and hadn’t been operational long enough to accumulate a naval foundation.

In this respect, they were even worse off than Hudson, who at least could buy shipyards from The Royal Family through political deals.

The current situation for the five major families in the North was such that even if they had money, they couldn’t spend it. Moreover, they didn’t have enough money to overwhelm sellers with cash.

No one would risk falling out with The Royal Family to help someone they had past conflicts with.

Driven to exhaust themselves in militaristic endeavors, the five Grand Dukes saw the vicious cycle and felt anxious.

It was uncertain whether the King wanted to strike at them or was merely playing psychological games.

The actions of Caesar IV against them were overt conspiracies now.

If they disbanded their troops now, who knew when the King, armed with proof of their crimes, might order the standing army to eliminate the rebels.

As long as the procedures were legal and the interests aligned, the Major Nobles in the Kingdom wouldn’t mind eliminating these bothersome individuals from the chessboard.

"The information is confirmed—Hudson indeed intends to open up smuggling trade but with heavy taxes and restricted trade goods.

We can preliminarily judge that there’s a financial problem in the Snow Moon Territory.

Although Hudson swept through many during the continental war, he didn’t acquire much spoils due to transportation issues.

Relying solely on the income from the Mountain Domain and the Magic Potions, maintaining such a large military is already difficult, let alone funding the development of the Snow Moon Territory.

Hudson also loves to fish for compliments; he even forgoes transit taxes that are offered to him. Opening the smuggling routes is a forced move.

It shouldn’t be a conspiracy targeted at us!" Duke Rodriguez analyzed rationally.

In these hard times, everyone was on edge, seeing threats everywhere.

Whatever the situation, they first analyzed whether it was a conspiracy against them.

This overly cautious nature helped them avoid many risks, at the cost of them beginning to lose hair at a young age.

"It’s not a conspiracy against us, but that doesn’t mean we can benefit from it."

Hudson, now wielding great power, could easily target us if he wished," he said, glancing at Duke Torsten.

Others’ businesses might survive unknown mishaps, but the Rocknard Family’s businesses in the Near East were definitely doomed.

If it were not for political considerations, fearing it might trigger a chain reaction, they would have liked Duke Torsten to return the ancestral home to the Koslow Family.

It was a century-old grudge, and the Rocknard Family’s biological line was long gone. Hudson was nothing but a rising collateral branch; the deep-seated hatred they spoke of was nonsense.

Their continued staunch opposition was more about Noble pride.

The newer Major Nobles placed great importance on family reputation. Losing ancestral land was a shame for all members of the Koslow Family.

Unfortunately, they could not back down. The worse the situation, the more aggressive they needed to be.

If they showed weakness to the outside world, it could easily lead to a collective attack.

"The situation isn’t that bad. As a newly established Major Noble, Hudson is very cautious about his reputation; he wouldn’t risk it with pointless schemes.

Hudson has maintained a high position not just by being good in battles, but also by being principled and keeping public and private affairs separate.

Throughout his campaigns north and south, have you ever heard of him purposefully setting someone up or seeking personal revenge?"

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