In the study, the architect Tang Si enthusiastically presented his new castle plans to Ed and Klar.
"Centering on the King's Road outside Winterfell, we can build three castles. I've already named them: Spring City, Summer City, and Autumn City. Lord Ed, as long as I have enough manpower, timber, and stone, these castles will be as magnificent as Winterfell."
Ed smiled awkwardly. "Tang Si, Winterfell is perfectly sufficient for me and my family to live in, and it's also enough to host my vassals for banquets. I want to expand Winter Town, not build castles."
Tang Si said seriously, "Lord Ed, what is your Stark Family's motto? Winter is Coming! In other words, life is short. We should leave some wonders for future generations in our short lives. What's the use of building small wooden houses in Winter Town?"
The financial advisor, Klar, chuckled, "Do you know how much your plan will cost? Where does Duke Ed get so much money?"
Tang Si said, "I'm just an architect. I only want to leave behind magnificent castles and projects. The matter of money is not my concern."
Ed said, "You must consider it. If Brandon the Builder hadn't considered costs, he wouldn't have been able to leave behind wonders like The Wall and Winterfell. If costs weren't considered, the Arryn Family's Eyrie might have been abandoned halfway, and the Baratheon Family's Storm's End might only be half-built."
"Tang Si, I can see you're a talented young man with dreams. You have a wild imagination, but you lack a down-to-earth, practical spirit. The North is a harsh place. If you want to serve me, you must be practical. I won't engage in projects that waste resources. Do you have any projects that would benefit the economy?"
"Yes, my talent isn't limited to building castles."
Tang Si put away the castle blueprints and pulled another one from his sleeve. When he unfolded it, Ed saw a map of the Seven Kingdoms, with Tang Si having planned several roads in the North.
"Lord Ed, the North is vast but poor. Why? Because the North has too few roads, only the King's Road running north and south. Look, the Lannister Family in the Westerlands have the Golden Road, the Tyrell Family in the Reach have the Coastal Road and the Rose Road, and the Riverlands have the River Road, so their trade is smooth, and their economies are prosperous."
"If we build roads in the North, we can construct a Coastal Road on both the east and west coasts. The west coast road would start from Deepwood Motte, connect to Torrhen's Square, pass through Moat Cailin, and intersect with the King's Road at Barrowton. The east coast road would start from Karhold, pass through Dreadfort, Ramsgate, and Old Mountain, and arrive at White Harbor. White Harbor would then build a road connecting to Winterfell."
Klar scoffed, "Tang Si, you haven't seen the heavy snow in the North, have you? When winter comes and the land freezes, what use are roads then?"
Tang Si retorted coldly, "When the land is frozen, the farmland in the North is basically abandoned. Does that mean we don't farm at other times? Once my roads are built, they can connect Barrowton, White Harbor, and Winterfell, radiating throughout the entire North."
Ed noticed that although Tang Si's plan seemed too advanced and unrealistic, it might be feasible in the future.
"Tang Si, your idea for road construction is much better than a castle. What I need is this kind of project that makes money and enriches the people. Do you have any other ideas?"
Tang Si pointed at the long western coast of The North on the map. "Lord Ed, have you noticed? The North doesn't have any decent ports on the west coast, not a single one. How do Deepwood Motte, Bear Island, and Moat Cailin conduct trade with the south?"
Ed looked at the map. "Moat Cailin mostly uses the King's Road; the Ryswell family has plenty of horses. As for Deepwood Motte, its timber can only be transported to Winterfell and then to White Harbor for trade. Bear Island's hides and timber are shipped to Ice Bay, and then transshipped to White Harbor."
Tang Si said, "The North is overly reliant on White Harbor. Why not directly take the goods to sell in the south from Deepwood Motte or Moat Cailin? The Riverlands has towns with dense populations, Lannisport in The Westerlands has the gold of Casterly Rock and the wealth of the West, and Oldtown in The Reach is full of fruits, fine wines, and delicacies."
Ed sighed. "The North has tried to open sea routes along the west coast many times, but those damn Ironborn are in the way. They're natural-born pirates, and they often plunder the fishing villages of The North. Our fishing boats don't dare to go too far offshore to fish."
Some Ironborn longships come to Deepwood Motte and the fishing villages of the Stony Shore for trade, buying timber from The North; after all, the Iron Islands need a huge amount of wood for shipbuilding. But since there are no customs on the west coast, this trade is mostly smuggling. Ironborn captains give some money to the local lords to allow them to trade. Winterfell can't collect taxes.
Tang Si said, "There are pirates everywhere. The Ironborn at least nominally submit. The Stepstones, which lie across the Narrow Sea, are lawless. But the swan ships from the Summer Islands, the Ibbenese whale ships, Braavosi ships, ships from Oldtown, and ships from King's Landing still venture through them every day."
"Lord Ed, with all due respect, the people of The North are too afraid of the sea. You are descendants of the First Men. When the First Men arrived in Westeros, they traveled through the Arm of Dorne. Now the Arm of Dorne has long been torn apart by earthquakes, turning into the Broken Arm and the Stepstones, but the Northerners' fear of the sea seems unchanged."
"Because of a small group of Ironborn pirates, you're giving up on shipping along the west coast. It's like refusing to eat because you're afraid of choking. When I was in Gulltown and King's Landing, I often chatted with some captains and sailors. They told me that when they went to The Reach and The Westerlands for trade, they would go north at most to the Sea Dragon Point and Lordsport in the Iron Islands, then turn south, because there were no decent ports further north."
Tang Si looked at the map, his gaze fixed on Barrowton.
"I think it should be here, Barrowton. The Barrow River flows south from the mountainous tombs of Barrowton, emptying into Blazewater Bay. The upper reaches of the Barrow River lead to Barrowton, one of the most densely populated areas in the North. If we build a dockyard and shipyard at the mouth of the Barrow River, a winter town, the goods from Barrowton and even White Harbor could sail directly south through Blazewater Bay to trade with Lannisport and Oldtown."
"Of course, the First Men River in Moat Cailin also flows into Blazewater Bay. This river mouth also has the potential to develop into a port town. I haven't been there, but Lord Ed, look at the map. So many tributaries of the First Men River flow into it; the river's shipping value cannot be wrong."
Normally, the goods from the North, such as wool, animal hides, and timber, are transported to White Harbor via the White Knife. If a Northern ship wants to trade with Lannisport, it must sail out into the Bay of Ice, head south, pass through the stormy Shipbreaker Bay, and then bypass the thousands of miles of desolate desert coastline of Dorne, cross the Redwyne Strait, and pass by Oldtown before reaching Lannisport.
If Tang Si's planned port town were to develop, Northern ships could sail directly out of Blazewater Bay to trade with Lannisport, reducing the journey by ninety percent. Furthermore, Tang Si's plan would undoubtedly strengthen the naval defense.
The North has two major fortresses: The Wall in the north and Moat Cailin in the south. Moat Cailin has never been breached by enemies from the south in history.
However, the Hotwater River west of Moat Cailin flows into the sea. Once enemy ships use the narrow bay that extends deep into the North and sail up the Hotwater River, they can easily threaten Moat Cailin from the west.
Currently, both the mouth of the Barrow River and the mouth of the First Men River have Ed's Salt Town Arrow Towers. However, the population is small, with only a few fishing villages scattered along the coast. If these river mouths can develop, the economy of the North will be boosted, and its defense against foreign enemies will be greatly enhanced.
Tang Si rolled up the map. "Lord Ed, if I were you, I'd immediately discuss the development of the river's mouth with the vassals of Barrowton and Moat Cailin."
The lord of Barrowton was Lady Barbrey Dustin, a widow. The lord of Moat Cailin was her father, Lord Rodrik Ryswell. These two vassals had always been lukewarm to Winterfell's commands, and had even been flirting with Roose Bolton of the Dreadfort.
Fortunately, Ed had taken Dominic Bolton, the heir to the Dreadfort, as his foster son. Dominic was Barbrey's nephew and Lord Ryswell's grandson. In the future, Winterfell planned to build a port on the west coast, and Ed believed that Barbrey and Lord Ryswell would cooperate.
Ed looked at Tang Si with appreciation.
"Tang Si, many of your plans are costly and labor-intensive, and some may take many years to bear fruit. But you have strategic vision, and you deserve a place in Winterfell's think tank. From now on, you are the chief architect of Winterfell and the North! I have an important project for you to handle."
Tang Si's eyes lit up. "What task?"
"Build a warehouse next to the pigsty in Winter Town."
....
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