Establishing a large-scale glass factory in a medieval world was no simple task. Jason had spent considerable effort in his own world sourcing a batch of outdated, but still functional, production lines from the 1970s and 1980s. Powering them was another challenge entirely. To solve it, he had purchased a large number of solar panels and more than a dozen heavy-duty diesel generators. These would finally supply the electricity needed to run the machinery in the glassworks and the cannery.
To fuel the generators, Jason had tasked Oliver with purchasing several private gas stations in the modern world, ensuring a steady supply of diesel and gasoline for Starfire City. Electricity was simply indispensable; without it, progress would be impossible. Jason was even planning to introduce electric arc furnaces for his iron smelter. He could no longer tolerate the outrageous inefficiency of the northern smiths, who still relied on charcoal to produce small amounts of iron.
After the last of the refugees were settled, Jason had to personally supervise the new factories. He spent days instructing the workers at the glassworks and cannery on how to operate the modern equipment. The technology was simply too advanced for this world. Ninety-nine percent of his workers were illiterate; they couldn't read a single word. He wouldn't feel at ease letting them operate complex electrical machinery without direct oversight.
Fortunately, most of the equipment was designed for simple, foolproof operation. As long as the workers memorized the function of a few main buttons, they could, with some stumbling, get the production lines running.
Clank... Hiss...
Wearing protective gear, Jason and Maester Cobain stood at a safe distance, watching the mesmerizing process. Molten glass glowed in its container before flowing through the assembly line, where machines shaped and cooled it into an endless stream of identical glass jars. The sheer efficiency of the process left Cobain and the other supervisors speechless. Lord Jason, it seemed, had an endless supply of these wondrous devices.
Workers then packed the cooled jars into large wooden crates, 150 to a box. The crates were loaded onto wagons and transported to the cannery, which had been built on the nearby shore of the lake.
Due to the limited power supply, the cannery still relied heavily on manual labor. Thousands of workers were employed to clean and process the fish brought in by the fleet. The prepared fish was cooked in enormous pots before being packed by hand into the glass jars and sealed. This created a can of fish weighing about four pounds, which sold for fifty copper stars. Thanks to high-temperature sterilization and an airtight seal, a jar could be preserved for up to six months. While not as impressive as the multi-year shelf life of modern cans, it was a remarkable achievement for the level of technology in Starfire City.
A portion of the canned fish was sold locally, mostly to the workers themselves. With at least one person from nearly every refugee family employed in Jason's factories, a minimum monthly salary of ten silver deer was enough to feed a family. If a family had a son who was chosen to be a soldier in the Starfire army, their income was even higher. A soldier earned fifteen silver deer a month, and with food and clothing provided by the barracks, a frugal man could save most of his pay. Combined with the low price of grain and vegetables in the city, no one had to suffer from hunger anymore.
More popular than the fish, however, were the canned fruits Jason imported from the modern world. Of course, they were also more expensive, costing one silver deer per can—twice the price of the fish. Canned fruit was considered a luxury. Only families with multiple incomes, or those with a family member in the army, would splurge on a jar each month to taste its sweet happiness.
The majority of the canned goods, both fish and fruit, were sold to the wealthy. Merchants from all over Westeros and from the Free Cities across the Narrow Sea bought them in bulk. The nobility and the rich were, as always, the biggest consumers.
Jason had Kent open a freshly produced can of sea fish for him to taste. Kent, Bud, and Rubin each had a small piece, but having eaten fish almost every day, they were unimpressed. Maester Cobain declined, as he preferred his fish fresh and wasn't fond of the salty preserved taste. As the second-in-command of the city's administration, his salary was more than enough for him to afford the best.
Jason found the fish fresh, but very salty—a necessity to ensure its preservation. Most people from his world would find the taste overwhelming on its own. For the common folk of Westeros, however, who rarely had access to salt, the intensely savory fish was a delicacy. They would add a small amount to a large pot of oatmeal, infusing the entire meal with the flavor of fish and salt. It was a simple, delicious, and economical way to cook, saving them money on precious salt. Even though Jason sold high-quality salt at a price far cheaper than anywhere else, the new refugees, having arrived with nothing, saved every copper they could.
The progress was visible. The first group of refugees who had joined Jason two years ago were now far from poor. They wore clean clothes, ate fish daily, and could even afford pork or beef on occasion. Their lives were tenfold better than those of the newcomers from the Riverlands, and they had become Jason's most ardent supporters.
As Jason completed his tour of the factories, the main problem became clear: a severe lack of educated people. Organization and management were chaotic and inefficient. The illiteracy rate in Westeros was staggeringly high; only nobles had the privilege of learning to read and write. The commoners were treated like livestock, with no access to knowledge.
"We need to build more schools," Jason declared, his resolve hardening. "All children from five to fifteen, boys and girls, must attend. I need people I can actually use."
Maester Cobain was a strong supporter of this plan. He had no desire to see knowledge monopolized by a small elite. He knew that by educating the masses, Lord Jason was striking at the very foundation of the Citadel's power, shaking its unique and exalted status in Westeros. The thought of causing trouble for the hypocritical and stubborn old maesters in Oldtown brought a smile to Cobain's face.
He was happy to see it happen. But even with Lord Jason's wealth, educating over thirty thousand children at once presented a monumental challenge.
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