Two, Economic Crisis

  "Having too many supplies is also a big trouble!"

  A social system transforming from a loose and peaceful state to a compact and warlike state is like a computer's operating system upgrading from XP to Vista, it's a painful experience. Crashes, collapses, loss of information and other incompatible problems will come one after another. If you can get through it, a tight and efficient wartime system will make every social resource be reasonably used for the war, playing a huge role in winning the war. But if you can't get through it, there's a possibility that before the enemy attacks, you'll already be defeated by your own people.

  Due to the loose internal structure and the lack of strong external threats, the transition of New Jersey's thirteen states to a wartime system was delayed for a whole year. Nevertheless, compared with the vast majority of wartime leaders, the Chairman of the Continental Congress of New Jersey can still be said to be quite fortunate. Although more than half of the world had been shrouded in war for over a year, the inevitable shortage of supplies caused by the war was hardly reflected in the vast and remote New Jersey, but rather some were oversupplied.

  "Cotton fabrics are in surplus, pig iron is in surplus, copper ore is in surplus; beer, white sugar and edible oil are all severely overstocked; wheat, corn and rice are rotting away in warehouses; even the prices of gold and silver are plummeting; only magical items can't be bought even on the black market!"

  An official in charge of commerce and taxation reported to the public on the current economic situation of the colony in simple terms, as well as the social problems that have arisen from it - although there is no need to worry about famine due to war, many mines have been abandoned. Urban residents cannot find work due to shrinking business and have to rush back to the countryside to farm, while farmers are also on the verge of bankruptcy because they cannot sell various agricultural products.

  In view of this situation, all places have no choice but to exempt agricultural taxes, and other taxes have also been greatly reduced. Although there are still relatively abundant financial reserves this year, if the commercial roads cannot be opened by the end of the year, it is likely that a fiscal crisis and social unrest will occur simultaneously. This is simply a devastating disaster for the fragile administrative organs of New Eridoria.

  In the small conference room of the former Emon Port Governor's Office, now the headquarters of the Continental Congress. Chairman Zena, who has been in office for nearly two months, sat in the chair where Governor Sohn Nohm used to sit, frowning at the terrible situation in her jurisdiction. Her subordinates sat silently in their seats, unable to think of any actionable solutions.

  The thirteen states of New Thay have a mild climate, fertile land and rich mineral resources. Since the early days of colonial rule over 300 years ago, they have been famous for their grain, cotton and minerals. Industry, agriculture and mining are all very developed. However, the magical network here is not very stable, with many areas where magic is prohibited, which is not conducive to magical research. In addition, the biological system is much simpler than that of the Ferelden continent, where monsters roam everywhere, and it is difficult to find various magical creatures and herbs needed for alchemy. Therefore, orthodox mages and newly emerging alchemists generally do not want to move to the colonies, and the level of magic in New Thay has always been unable to be improved, with a considerable gap compared to the imperial mainland, which has the highest level of arcane magic in the world.

  In relatively peaceful times, the thirteen states of New Elyria can rely on their advanced ocean-going shipping capabilities to export large quantities of grain, textiles and minerals to both domestic and foreign markets, while importing luxury goods, magical items and rare medicinal herbs. At the same time as earning huge profits, they also use trade to make up for the shortfall in their own production capacity for magical items.

  However, with the start of the war against the Spirit Kingdom, the ocean routes became no longer safe. The powerful Spirit Navy almost blockaded the entire sea surface and destroyed any ship that dared to sail on the sea. Since the Spirit Kingdom was almost at war with the whole world, even the old trick of hanging a third country's flag on the ship did not work. The Spirit Navy received orders: intercept or destroy any foreign ships on the sea surface, regardless of which country they came from!

  In this case, the prosperous maritime trade of New Thirteenth State was almost completely suspended, and all goods were piled up in warehouses and could not be sold. Although there were still smuggling ships that ventured to pass through the blockade line of the elf fleet from time to time, coming to the colonies for transactions. However, this small sales volume compared to the huge amount of inventory backlog is simply negligible, and the problem of material backlog is becoming more and more serious.

  The massive export market vanished. The colonies were suddenly plunged into a severe economic crisis, and the small consumption of the northern war was not enough to use up many things. The Elven army's skirmishes in the poorest states could hardly destroy New Dazriel's production capacity. If at the beginning of the war there were still people who wanted to hoard goods and make a fortune, now it would be more cost-effective to let the goods rot in the warehouse than to sell them, because the selling price of most goods was not even enough to cover the transportation costs!

  At the same time that a large number of ordinary goods are severely backed up, the prices of all kinds of magical items have skyrocketed. Not only can't local magical items be transported in, but even the few alchemists in New Tarreir who were able to get their hands on some rare materials from the Ferelden continent had to stop work because they couldn't obtain many of the necessary ingredients. All sorts of magical items are now basically unaffordable, and even those shoddy goods made by Philistine can sell for a high price.

  "As local governments have provided free food relief to the unemployed, commodity stockpiling has not yet had severe consequences. However, the shortage of magical items has seriously affected war preparations and residents' daily lives. Currently, we are almost out of healing potions, dragon fire glue, and anti-magic bullets."

  "Model production of other magical items." Chairman Fazena, the official in charge of commerce, also introduced to everyone the current pathetic level of alchemy on the new continent and the arduous challenges it faces.

  "Even with these three items, our current production is very limited. After prioritizing military use, there's basically no surplus left for the civilian market. Moreover, due to the intensifying war on the Ferran continent, all countries have strengthened their control over magical item transactions, making it difficult for smugglers to obtain goods. What are your thoughts on this?" Zena Chairman looked at everyone with expectant eyes, but each attendee lowered their head in embarrassment, not daring to meet her gaze.

  Most of those who were able to discuss the current situation with Chairman Zena in this small conference room could be considered her confidants. Thanks to a close friend of Zena's, and now holding a high position, Phil was also included in the meeting. However, he wished at this time that he had not come to attend the meeting. Because as soon as the issue of magical items was raised, everyone involuntarily shifted their gaze to Phil's chest, where the silver badge representing his qualification as an intermediate alchemist shone brightly on his pink mage robe.

  "Colonel Taylor, you're the most knowledgeable about alchemy among us. Given the current shortage of magical items, do you have any good suggestions or countermeasures?" Following the crowd's intention, Chairman Zena also turned her spearhead towards Ferry.

  Who can give an answer to this unsolvable problem? Fili muttered to himself. But he couldn't not respond, "Chairman, this question is really hard to answer. Even if I and all the mages in the legion use every memory spell we have each day to make magic insecticides, magic lamps, and magic water purifiers that are currently out of stock, it would still be far from enough to save the city."

  He hesitated for a moment, then added, "Even if we want to increase production, but due to the blockade of shipping routes, many necessary raw materials cannot be obtained. Even with sufficient manpower, it is equally difficult to increase production. I think that instead of thinking about how to tap into production potential, it would be more realistic to consider ways to unblock the shipping routes."

  This remark successfully shifted the topic, and everyone's gaze was diverted from Feili to a dark-skinned young man wearing a naval school uniform. Several dozen pairs of eyes stared at him eagerly, making him feel extremely uncomfortable all over his body.

  "Open up the navigation route? With the Seventh Fleet's current incomplete strength?" The major from the Seventh Fleet sorted out his thoughts and quickly began to refute, "We only have twenty ships. And the Spirit Fleet alone has forty warships in the North Pole Port, and at least another three hundred on the southern islands! At present, the Seventh Fleet can barely defend against the enemy landing from the sea, how can we even talk about taking the initiative to attack?"

  "That is to say, on the issue of magical item supply. We can neither produce it ourselves nor obtain it through trade from outside." Chairman Zena concluded with great disappointment, "At the same time, we have no way to deal with the backlog of goods, no way to provide jobs for the rapidly increasing unemployed, and even less able to transport food and minerals to our homeland which is facing a food crisis due to war!" She threw up her hands. "What are we still discussing here? Dismissed!"

  Ferris let out a sigh of relief and was about to leave when an annoying voice made him sit back down.

  "Madam President. Actually, there is a way to open up the route to the Imperial mainland, but the prerequisite is to capture the North Pole Port." The naval lieutenant colonel suddenly added, "If we can take the northern route and sail along the edge of the Arctic ice cap, the Spirit Fleet will not be able to stop us. Because they have no other naval bases near the poles except for the North Pole Port, it's also impossible for them to send a fleet to intercept us." He glanced at Fili, then turned back to President Zena and said with great confidence, "As long as Colonel Taylor captures the North Pole Port, the Seventh Fleet can immediately head north to escort the merchant ships! At that time, the problem of cargo accumulation and magic item shortages will no longer exist."

  "What's the point of even talking about the Giant Bear Legion now?! Fili wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and began to explain his difficulties to Chairman Zena, "Chairman, the recruitment teams sent to the southern states have not all returned yet, and the Giant Bear Legion has less than 3,000 troops. Even if we add the 2,000 wounded soldiers that Ludwig brought back from the front lines, we'll only have a total of 5,000 men. Meanwhile, the Spirit Army in North Pole Port has at least 4,000 troops, and in times of crisis, they can mobilize over 20,000 civilians to join the fight. Our current military strength is really not advantageous, so I hope we can wait until the Giant Bear Legion is reorganized before launching an attack on North Pole Port."

  "In other words, as long as the personnel problem can be solved, the Giant Bear Legion can go into battle immediately?" Contrary to Phil's expectations, Chairman Zena did not acknowledge his statement or get angry, but instead asked with a smile, seemingly having come up with some new idea for recruitment.

  "This... will probably still require some time to integrate and train, after all, not many people are proficient in using weapons from the start. And it also takes some time for new recruits to have a sense of discipline." Phil hesitated for a moment, but still added a requirement, he really didn't want to rush into battle like this, after all, they were not prepared in any way.

  "You don't have to worry about that," Chairman Zena said with a mysterious smile. "The new recruits I've brought this time are all skilled in martial arts and have strict discipline, it's just up to you whether you can use them or not. Let's go take a look now, they're already waiting outside."