Chapter 1486 Lancaster's New Maxim: Rule the World Below the Belt?

As Catherine wielded the ultimate mystic art of the [Financial Holy Sword].

Byron, Violet, and the generals of the Lancaster Dynasty also followed her, looking across the strait through the law network.

At this time, outside Amsterdam Port of the Netherland Kingdom, a massive main fleet was quietly floating on the sea, neither docking nor journeying.

Among them were dozens of large battleships of Third Level and above, each with at least 74 onboard heavy cannons, and hundreds of cruisers below Fourth Level.

For the Netherland Kingdom, the “Sea Carriage Driver” with ownership of more than sixteen thousand various merchant ships and a total merchant ship tonnage of up to 580,000 tons, this fleet scale seemed not too large.

But on the entire East Coast, this could already be considered as one of the top five sea powers.

To produce a Third Level Ship, the most numerous in service on the Old Continent, balancing speed, firepower, and cost perfectly, just the lumber requires the felling of over 2000 high-quality oak trees planted a hundred years ago.

Moreover, these oaks must be grown in private estates, along rivers, or by roadsides as high-quality wood. The maturity rate of wild oak is extremely low, and transporting them out from deep mountains is a life-threatening task.

Only the oaks that fully enjoy rain and sunlight, slowly growing to over twenty meters tall after hundreds of years, can produce timber from the trunk segment to build warship ribs.

Excellent shipwrights then employ a series of complex procedures, taking a full six years to build successfully.

The construction cost alone for a Third Level Ship from its own shipyard reaches an astounding forty thousand Gold Pounds, while a bottom-line First Level Ship costs up to one hundred thousand Gold Pounds.

Without the Netherland’s developed inland water network, connecting many inland lumber sources, the shipbuilding industry would struggle to accumulate these assets.

Additionally, if the voyage is slightly longer or the waves slightly bigger, the lifespan of these sail battleships would sharply decline, requiring constant updating to maintain the fleet scale.

If using more robust and durable teakwood, lasting decades, the cost would multiply several times!

In peacetime, the sail fleet is a colossal gold-eating beast devouring national finances, once at war, their total number is finite; losing one means one less, with no short-term replenishment possible.

The Old Continent just recently emerged from the Dark Millennium; having a professional standing army is already quite remarkable; regardless, the Netherlands Navy is a strong force.

“The 80-20 rule applies in every world. 20% of the business personnel create 80% of the performance; 20% of customers contribute 80% of orders; 20% of countries hold 80% of wealth and military power. As long as this battle is won, there will be no resistance to my sea power throughout the Silver Continent.”

Byron recalls several facts from his past life that seriously defied common sense:

Globally, nations capable of producing their own bullets number fewer than 30, those capable of independently producing fertilizer number only 5, and those possessing a complete industrial chain are only 1; East University ranks ninth globally just in terms of coast guard ship tonnage among navies.

Big countries look at the surrounding small countries as younger brothers, but these small countries outside are collectively referred to as the “East Asia Monster Room,” any country once relocated on a map immediately becomes a regional overlord level existence.

The Netherland Kingdom shares this situation, the country is small, yet undoubtedly has the potential to become the “Sun Never Sets Third Empire.”

Of course, now it seems there may be no chance.

Bang! Bang! Bang!…

From time to time, gunshots rang out from these massive battleships like small mountains, accompanied by numerous cries of lamentation:

“Humans can never earn money beyond their understanding! Bang!”

“Friends, remember my words, do not borrow, do not borrow, do not borrow. Borrowing for a stable profit-making industry is acceptable, borrowing for consumption and desire is merely overdrawing one’s future, unable to resist any unexpected incident. Bang!”

“Farewell, tulip futures, and my desire to get rich quickly with fifty times leverage! Bang!”

“We are all Remit people, the usurers are also Remit people, why do we even scam our own kind? Not just usury but also contract fraud text traps. The risk is all mine, the profit is all yours. I also want the 2800 non-Remit slaves promised by the creator; once I ascend to Heaven, the creator will give them to me, won’t they? Bang!”

Without experiencing it firsthand, it’s impossible to truly comprehend how desperate they are now.

The worst part is, not every speculator walking down the road of despair still retains the most basic “reason.”

A small group of people did not shoot themselves; instead, they indiscriminately opened fire on their fellow mates aboard the same ship.

Having lost their future due to speculation in tulip futures, they also didn’t want other colleagues who controlled their greed and weren’t too deeply caught up to continue living well.

If they weren’t trapped on the ship and were onshore in the city, by now, they would’ve started indiscriminate random revenge on society.

Even just the weakest First Order Extraordinary with a dagger could cause enormous destruction.

It rings true to the saying: The brave, when furious, draw their blades against the stronger; the cowardly, when furious, draw their blades against the weaker.

Actually, when the tulip bubble first burst, [Protector of the Realm] Cromwell realized the situation was dire, decisively ordered the fleet to leave port.

Blocked the news of the domestic tulip market collapse, and temporarily cut off the law network using the [Protector of the Realm]’s permissions.