"Your Highness, forgive me for doubting you. Our coffers are filled. We now have three hundred silvers. With this money, we can continue our current development for another three years. Infact, with this money, we can make this place a proper town, or even a basic city in a few years."
"You are a good man, Sir Nicholas. But you lack ambition. The magic academy is an important investment for the kingdom because it produces important mages that make life in the capital much easier. But the problem is that the other kingdoms will also be able to poach the students of the academy. But if we get the students indebted to the kingdom early on when they are naive, they will be forced to stay with us. That is why we must develop Dilheim to a medium city at the earliest. Father has given me ten gold bars for this purpose, so you can see how invested he is in this venture."
Sir Nicholas looked at Liu Feng with shock. "Ten, ten Gold bars? That will be sufficient to make this a high-grade city in five years, Your Highness!"
"Once again, you misunderstand my intentions, Sir Nicholas. Time is of the essence. I wanted to hire labour immediately because I want to make this place a basic city in two months. It is not as rushed as you think, because we have the money, and there are not many people, so they will not be an inconvenience. This is the right time to lay the groundwork that will define Dilheim in the future. Why do you think I put in Capital grade sanitation systems and water systems installed on even the barren side of the town? You will see in time, how this will go. For now, is there any news on the rocks of the river bed?"
"Yes, Your Highness. I almost forgot. There is a white rock on the river bed, and it is just like the rock you described. I have a sample here."
Liu Feng grabbed the rock and carefully studied it. After a few tests that he had prepared beforehand he confirmed that it was indeed limestone.
"Order all the construction to be stopped. Anything that has been started can be finished, and the hotel can be continued, but all else should be stopped."
"Yes, Your highness, but why?"
"Do not question me Sir Nicholas. I have my plans, and your orders are to follow them. Ask all the freed up labour to excavate this white rock from the bedrock, and have the merchants send a few tonnes of hard rock for construction. Get a few people to bring clay from the far side of town. It is time we bring about the first big change in this rundown place."
Liu Feng went to a laboratory that he had built. There, a steel kiln was placed above a few coals. He already had clay and sand on one side. He took some of each and measured them. After confirming the quantities, he grinded the limestone and added all the powders to the kiln, and started a fire beneath the kiln.
After a while he stopped the fire and took out the grey powder that came out. It was cement. He added water to it, and then let it dry to the side. It hardened very quickly. The people next to him were shocked.
"What is this magical powder Your Highness? It hardened almost instantaneously, and it is harder than the clay we generally use for construction."
"It is called cement, and it will be what you will start using for any construction in the town. Start building these buildings on the right side of the town. I left it open for this very purpose.
"Yes your Highness.", The worker took the blueprints and took them to the rest of the workers