Empire Rising: Spain

Carlo did not allow the newspapers to extensively promote the news of his order to release water, as excessive publicity is not always a good thing.

Just by mentioning it in notifications, there would naturally be a stream of people remembering Carlo’s kindness.

If it were over-publicized, it would inevitably lead some people to become tired or even resentful of this kind of publicity.

True gratitude must be awakened from within, not influenced by a few news articles. Carlo hopes for the Spaniards to genuinely appreciate his rule from their hearts, thus requiring a gradual influence over decades in this regard.

Currently, Carlo’s plan seems quite successful. Although some of Carlo’s actions are purposeful, for the Spanish citizens, they have indeed gained various benefits from it.

After all, to put it bluntly, being hypocritically benevolent for a lifetime can somewhat be considered as benevolence.

It is just that the intention behind it is not so pure, but for the Spanish people, a monarch that can increase their income and improve their quality of life, isn’t that considered a wise ruler?

What Carlo did not expect was that the lack of publicity turned out to be the best effect. The drought put a large number of farmers in a desperate situation, and just as they were about to lose hope for survival, the news came that Carlo ordered to spare no effort in ensuring water for farmers.

As the saying goes, it’s better to send charcoal in snowy weather than to add flowers on the brocade. Carlo’s action was no different from sending charcoal in snowy weather.

What surprised Carlo even more was that, while he didn’t plan on promoting his efforts in disaster relief, the saved farmers themselves stood up one by one, continuously proclaiming Carlo’s merits.

Under the word of mouth from these people, Carlo’s attitude of sparing no effort for disaster relief sparked admiration among the Spaniards, who hailed Carlo as a once-in-a-century benevolent monarch, a savior of chaotic Spain.

This situation was unexpected for Carlo, but he would certainly not waste such a good opportunity.

The next day, some severely affected regions had already strictly implemented the Cabinet Government’s order to release water.

Ultimately, the previously built water infrastructure proved useful. Although it could not completely offset the negative impact of the drought, it could save some farmers’ income.

In areas where the drought was not too severe, they could still rely on nearby water sources for a period, but in areas severely affected by the drought, if water was not released soon, there would soon be nothing left but barren land.

Of course, in severely affected areas, the farmers’ income was inevitably compromised.

For this reason, Carlo specially convened a Cabinet meeting to discuss various strategies related to coping with the drought.

Firstly, tax reductions in all drought-affected areas were implemented, with varying extents of tax waivers depending on the severity of the drought, with the highest being a 2-year tax exemption.

Secondly, efforts were made to salvage crops in drought-stricken areas, trying to minimize farmers’ losses.

Take Anthony as an example. He is purely a grape grower, with the grape harvest mainly occurring during this time.

As long as the water supply to the grape vines can be ensured within a month, Anthony’s income for the year can be fully secured.

Subsequently, the water supply to Anthony’s grape vines could be reduced, diverting resources to other crops in greater need of water.

Of course, this was only the water resource allocation for areas particularly severely affected by drought. In areas not as severely affected, local water sources and some water infrastructure could still meet the water needs.

For areas particularly severely affected by drought, after a Cabinet meeting discussion, a grant of 50 million Pesseta was dedicated as drought relief funds for significant disaster relief work for the severely impacted citizens.

In addition, Carlo plans to construct more water infrastructure in Spain’s inland areas, which are relatively arid, to prevent similar drought situations from occurring.

As one of the countries in Europe with the least rainfall, drought is very common in Spain. Drought affects farmers’ grain harvests and actual income; preventing drought not only avoids its occurrences but also adds a protective layer to Spain’s grain yield and agricultural products output.

Of course, this also provoked more discussion within the Cabinet Government regarding Spain’s domestic environment and the urgency to vigorously develop the West Africa Colony.

Compared to inland Spain, the colonies controlled by Spain in West Africa boast much better geographic environments.

Particularly the Gambia Colony, not only is it near the coast and favorable for transportation, but it is also in a tropical location where grain can have two or even three harvests a year.

More importantly, it’s an expansive plain with abundant rainfall, eliminating worries about drought.

Should Spain plant a large amount of grain here, there would be no concerns about natural disasters affecting the grain harvest.

Of course, earthquakes and tsunamis are unavoidable, but the West Africa Colony is not located on any major earthquake belts, so the primary concern would just be the rare chance of a tsunami.

Compared to the scarce rainfall in mainland Spain, the Gambia Colony can certainly be described as fertile land.

Besides discussing drought relief plans for affected areas, the Cabinet is also exploring the development of colonies such as Gambia.