Chapter 14

"Knowledge is also a form of wealth, you say..."

"Yes."

"But, the value of doctors lies in their scarcity. If their numbers increase, wouldn't their value decrease?"

"What are you saying? There aren't enough even now."

The people in the town can see a doctor if they live in the city. However, since they are not well-educated, their effectiveness is questionable. In the remote areas, there are no town doctors, so people often have to rely on dubious curse practitioners.

"I'm not saying it should be a low-margin, high-volume business... but if everyone can visit a doctor, the guilds that handle medical equipment and medicines should profit. Moreover, if new drugs are developed by research institutions, that would be even more promising."

Looking at the head of the guild that deals with pharmaceuticals, he seemed restless. Yes, I hope I've piqued his interest a bit.

"The Administrative and Accounting Departments aim to cultivate talent to make our domain more prosperous in the future. ...Especially the Accounting Department, which will likely be relevant to all of you?"

"I can understand the Administrative Department, but why would the Accounting Department be relevant to us?"

"Please look at the third page of the materials."

"This is..."

"This is an excerpt from the ledger of the Azuta Guild."

"Is this a ledger!?"

Everyone examined it with surprise. In this world, they still don't have double-entry bookkeeping! It's hard to believe that such a convenient system doesn't exist, especially when it's considered one of the greatest inventions of human intellect. Even more unbelievable is that there is no standardization at all. Some guilds use single-entry bookkeeping, while others use different methods like journal entries or classified commodity accounts... It's a mess. For someone like me who wants to promote a capitalist system, this is unacceptable.

"This makes it easy to see both income and expenses. Additionally, this is called a balance sheet, which clearly shows current assets and liabilities. The income statement shows revenues and expenses. With this, you can quantitatively assess the guild."

While it's good to navigate by the instincts and experience of merchants, in the long run, standardization is necessary. Of course, part of my desire for clarity in accounting comes from my previous life's work.

"When applying for a loan from the bank, you will be required to submit this format. Moreover, after the tax reform, we will eliminate the head tax and instead require you to report your profits accurately using this ledger, and pay taxes accordingly. Of course, there are loopholes in the tax system, so those who are knowledgeable about taxes can reduce their tax burden through asset compression. I believe this will be a significant help to all of you."

"...You have the authority to reform taxes as well?"

"Yes. I am not just a temporary lord. As stated in this document, I have the same authority as the lord in running the domain until I step down."

"...If we enter the academy, we can learn the format of your guild's ledger, right?"

I thought that those who could see the value would recognize it... and indeed, the heads of the guilds seem to have recognized the value of the ledger.

"Yes, of course."

"Troublesome... the bigger the reward, the bigger the risk, often enough..."

"Yes. There are other benefits as well. For example, in the Agriculture Department, we can have research done on improving the varieties of vegetables and grains, and the rights to the results will be transferred to the guilds that invest in this project. How does that sound? Delicious, right?"

"Oh, that sounds delicious."

"From here on, I will only discuss with the guilds that invest. I can't take up the time of those who are not involved."

However, only two people left their seats. Oh, I thought about half would leave.

"Quite a few stayed... Is that a good thing?"

"Lady Iris, we pride ourselves on being 'first-class' merchants. We don't get caught up in short-term gains; we move to secure long-term, significant profits. With great profit comes great risk, of course. We weigh the risks and returns and make decisions. And when faced with such a significant opportunity for profit, we cannot afford to miss it."

"Oh... That's true."

"If you were just a noble lady, we would have dismissed it as a fairy tale. But you have already run your own guild and, in a short time, risen to our level... or even higher. We value your skills."

"...I am also proud of you. You, the best of the best, are the ones who will help my domain thrive."