While the heads of the civil officials were complaining about the future of the war, Rostislav, the master of Moscow, accompanied by countless attendants, came to inspect the Blacksmiths' Guild, a vital source of wealth and armaments for Moscow.
The Blacksmiths' Guild was, of course, located in Moscow's Guild District, an area independent of the city that gathered all the guilds of Constantinople, and the Blacksmiths' Guild was naturally among them, occupying an important position.
Undoubtedly, with a series of privileges, the Guild District had become almost a state within a state; ordinary citizens were not allowed to enter this area without reason, and there was even a separate market within it. However, Rostislav never worried about the Guild District potentially getting out of control in the future.
Because, in essence, the leaders of each guild, that is, the Guild Masters, were all appointed by the Prince.
Yes, the guilds could elect their Masters, but the Masters they nominated had to be approved by the Moscow Prince before they could take office. If the Prince was dissatisfied, he could reject them and demand a re-election.
Some important guilds even had to submit their list of Master candidates to Rostislav Palace, requesting the Prince to make the selection.
With these reins, Rostislav kept the guilds tightly controlled, and the underlying power of the Moscow guilds came from the Moscow Prince, which represented the Moscow government's control over the guilds.
The difference in the underlying power was what distinguished Moscow's guilds from historical guilds. Don't underestimate this small difference; it could change many things and give the Prince a lot of power.
So, when Rostislav arrived, the gates of the Guild District immediately opened, and the Guild Masters humbly welcomed the Prince inside.
If the Guild District was a state within a state, then the Blacksmiths' Guild was a state within a state within a state. The Blacksmiths' Guild also stood out within the Guild District; tall walls enclosed a specialized area, and the black smoke and the sounds of metal from within indicated the identity of this area.
The symbol of the Blacksmiths' Guild was a hammer and an anvil, directly indicating their identity and making it easy to find their location when negotiating business with foreign merchants.
At the same time, there were also specialized guards here. These guards wore iron armor and were truly well-equipped mercenaries. Even outside, they could serve as knightly soldiers; they were hired by the guild.
After all, the items sold by the Blacksmiths' Guild were not cheap, and sometimes the crimes they faced could be quite serious.
And now, Rostislav was touring the workshops of the Blacksmiths' Guild under the guidance of Vanigo, the Guild Master of the Blacksmiths' Guild.
Vanigo was an old acquaintance of Rostislav. When Akad attacked, he had proactively led his Meria fellow countrymen to backstab the Bulgar army, which put him on Rostislav's radar.
However, Vanigo had actually moved to Moscow five years ago. He believed Moscow had a more promising future, as it became the largest city in Northeast Rus' upon its completion and was destined to become even more prosperous.
He believed he had fulfilled his responsibility to his Rostov compatriots, as the Moscow Prince had already revoked the privileges of Rostov New City, and the residents of the Old City could now freely pursue their interests.
Furthermore, his move to Moscow also had the intention of serving as a permanent representative of Rostov Old City. After all, if Moscow issued any orders unfavorable to the Old City, he could immediately use money and connections to mediate.
And not long after arriving in Moscow, he encountered the Guild Master election.
Vanigo himself was a highly skilled Blacksmith, so he joined in and eventually became a Master.
However, Vanigo, this Meria Blacksmith from Rostov, was largely able to become a Guild Master thanks to Rostislav's appointment.
Although Vanigo became a candidate for Moscow Guild Master based on his skills, there were still several other Masters of his caliber whose skills were almost identical.
Ultimately, if Rostislav had not chosen him, it would have been very difficult for him to become a Guild Master, as he was neither a Moscow native, lacking many local supporters, nor a Rus' person, making it hard to gain support from others.
Vanigo, of course, understood where his power came from, and thus he was now enthusiastically leading the Moscow Prince into the heart of the guild, their Blacksmiths' Guild's weapon and equipment production workshop.
The Blacksmith Master was currently shirtless, wearing a leather apron, clearly having just come from the frontline.
Generally speaking, when smithing, Blacksmiths rarely leave their work to do other things, but smithing was clearly not as important as greeting the Prince.
And what Rostislav saw was a scene that greatly satisfied him:
A nearby blast furnace was burning fiercely, and molten iron flowed through channels into different molds.
They were currently in the forging area for various weapons, including longswords, spearheads, arrowheads... Since production volume was directly linked to daily wages, the Blacksmiths were full of vigor, forging various weapons with the cooperation of their apprentices.
Under Moscow's current system, these goods always had a market, so the guild was always busy; whether it was the Master, ordinary craftsmen, or apprentices, everyone had to work non-stop.
Moreover, the guild also promoted the subjective initiative of the craftsmen by linking product output and quality to their treatment.
However, these Blacksmiths were originally gathered from various parts of Northeast Rus', and their skill level was above average.
As for the apprentices, they were originally just assistants; these people mostly forged farm tools, and no one cared if such things were a bit rough. On the contrary, farmers even needed them to be crude and durable.
In addition, many of the smelting tools here were introduced by Rostislav at great expense from the south, such as the blast furnace. Changes in production methods and production tools had to be grasped to see the effects of improvement as soon as possible.
And as of now, Rostislav's choice was extremely correct.
Looking at the rows of Blacksmiths performing final forging and their finished products, the Moscow Prince showed a satisfied smile. These weapons and equipment could arm his soldiers and bring him wealth.
However, as time progressed, if no one implemented reforms, such a system would inevitably encounter problems.
And from a later perspective, guilds were essentially feudal workshops; as time progressed, they would inevitably become increasingly closed off, thereby rejecting other developments and even causing vicious monopolies, hindering social development, and impeding productivity improvements.
But in this era, and even for several hundred years to come, it was completely sufficient, as before the Industrial Revolution, feudal workshops were already the highest form of production...
Anyway, by that time, Rostislav would be dust, and it would have nothing to do with him; it would not be his concern.
"Hmm..."
Rostislav took out a finished arrowhead from a box next to a craftsman's workbench and examined it in his hand.
He even pricked his finger with it, and his finger was immediately slightly pricked, which greatly pleased Rostislav.
The shirtless craftsman, busy at work, did not notice the Emperor's arrival and remained focused on his work.
His apprentice saw the Prince, but unfortunately, before he could warn his master, he was called back to work.
And the apprentice dared not disobey; in the master-apprentice relationship within the guild, the master held absolute power over the student, and beatings and scoldings were commonplace.
"Good."
Rostislav looked at the freshly made arrowhead, then placed it back in the small box, and then left, no longer disturbing the busy craftsman.
Next, Rostislav walked into the guild's main hall. Here, he took Vanigo's seat, and no one raised any objections; these were all the Prince's rights.
It was also here that Rostislav learned the quantities of various armaments.
The armaments purchased by the Moscow Prince were actually still stored at the Blacksmiths' Guild, after all, who was better at maintaining ironware than these Blacksmiths?
Vanigo's report greatly satisfied Rostislav. According to the currently stored weapons and armor, Rostislav could arm another five to six hundred armored soldiers, which was a significant number.
As for simple iron helmets and the like, there were even more; Rostislav could at least provide one for each of the three thousand men he could absolutely control.
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