Pioneer Lord: Starting From Daily Intelligence

Chapter 1163: Chapter 183: Bathed in Fire Rose and the ”Enlarged” Marian_3

Moreover, thanks to the Territory’s ample material support and the meticulous guidance of the Dawn Nuns, the newly opened vineyards are growing extremely well.

Marian continued introducing, ”Although most of them will need four to six years to reach their best fruit-bearing state, among them, the first one hundred acres where cuttings were planted earliest and the soil is best can already bear a small amount of fruit for the first time this year! The yield per acre is expected to be far inferior to the core area, but it can still reach about 1,500 jin. This greatly increases the overall production base of our Purple Crystal Grapes.”

”Very good!” Su Li praised, ”This is exactly what we want: the core area wins by quality, building the brand of top-tier Purple Crystal Gold Brandy; the outer areas win by volume, expanding the influence of the ’Purple Crystal’ series and meeting the needs of different social classes. With both approaches together, Hesse Territory’s Purple Crystal Brandy is sure to become famous far and wide.”

”How is the current production of Golden Purple Crystal Brandy?”

”For that, you’ll need to ask Analis. She’s in charge of the brewing.”

At Su Li’s signal, Analis was quickly brought over. She was still wearing her signature red hooded robe, and her over-the-knee white stockings were spotless. However, when she stopped in front of Su Li and slightly raised her face, everyone noticed a shocking transformation—the ferocious purple corrosion mark on her left eye had faded by nearly half!

Although there was still a faint purplish mark around her left eye and crystalline bones visible under the skin, the affected area was clearly much smaller. On the skin that had once been completely corroded, new, slightly pale flesh had grown along the edges. With part of its ferocity gone, that unique purple crystal eyeball instead gained a kind of shattered yet demonic beauty.

”Analis!” A hint of pleasant surprise flashed through Su Li’s eyes. ”Your face... It seems the Power of the Holy Purple Vine and your efforts have not been in vain.”

Analis’s expression still carried her usual detachment, but deep in her eyes, a trace of the faintest ripple seemed to appear. She nodded slightly, her voice calm: ”Lord. The life energy of the Purple Vine is indeed strong and gentle. It is slowly... ’purifying’ that stagnant ’resentment’ belonging to Reya. However, this takes time, and it also requires more essence from the grapes.”

She paused, her gaze sweeping past Marian and the two new Nuns. Her tone was still flat, but no longer held the intense hostility of last year; it now sounded more like a businesslike statement: ”The vines in the core area are growing very well, far beyond expectations. This means my workload has increased again.”

Marian hurriedly chimed in, ”Master Analis, if you need to carry spring water or other heavy loads, our Nuns can help. With Divine Magic blessings, their Power isn’t weak.”

Analis gave them a glance, did not refuse, merely uttered a faint ”Mm” as a tacit acceptance of this cooperation. This subtle change showed that after a year of working together for the Territory, these two Extraordinary groups that should have been mutually exclusive had built a fragile tacit understanding based on a shared goal.

Su Li keenly caught this and was secretly delighted. He asked, ”Analis, how is the progress on that perfect-grade ’Jade Dew’–type Purple Crystal Gold Brandy you mentioned last year? With this year’s core-area production doubled, is the pressure even greater?”

The corner of Analis’s mouth under the hood seemed to twitch ever so slightly: ”Pressure? I’m used to it. As for the ’Jade Dew’... it’s still being tuned. The ratio of Laurel-flower Gemstones, the timing for drawing spring water, and the subtle control of the distillation flame all affect the stability and intensity of the final effect. Last year’s small-batch test products had... very peculiar effects.” She seemed to recall something, a hint of playfulness entering her tone. ”However, this year I have a more stable assistant.”

As soon as she finished speaking, a girl in a clean linen dress with two braided pigtails timidly stepped out from behind Analis. She looked about sixteen or seventeen, her eyes clear, carrying the innocence of someone unversed in the world and a trace of nervousness.

”Her name is Sofia, a girl from the Ruihou Clan,” Analis introduced. ”Her mind is pure, her hands quick, and most importantly... she possesses the rare ’Pure Water Affinity’ constitution. The spring water she personally draws from the purest spring head in the Gem Pool has higher and more stable Magic Power activity. She only handles drawing and transporting the water and does not participate in the core brewing steps, but her presence has significantly increased the success rate of achieving the perfect ’Jade Dew’ trait.”

Sofia hastily gave Su Li an awkward but sincere bow.

Someone from the Ruihou Clan? That professional winemaking family?

Su Li nodded to her, then said, ”We’ve already seen the effects of Jade Dew on the battlefield. It allows our soldiers to Die Fighting without retreating. How many bottles of perfect-grade Jade Dew does the Territory still have now?”

”Roughly 60 to 70 bottles.”

”Take out half. On this trip to Marle Castle, I’ll bring them along to make a name for you.” Su Li thought for a moment, then asked, ”By the way, how is your Curse now? Can you make contact with men?”

The face of the eccentric brewmaster Analis rarely showed a flush of embarrassment, yet now a faint blush appeared—after all, there was no way the Bathed in Fire Rose’s effects hadn’t affected her.

And though she bore the title of master, she was actually still very young, only twenty-nine years old. Her beautiful, smooth thighs, paired with white stockings when she walked down the road, were extremely enticing.

Facing Su Li’s question, she forcibly suppressed the turbulence in her heart, maintaining a fa?ade of composure as she answered, ”Lord, please rest assured. I still can’t have too much contact with men. I’ve never been kissed, much less spread my legs. I will dedicate my entire life to the Territory’s winemaking endeavor.”

Su Li truly had no way to deal with such an odd personality.

But even someone as reclusive as she was, a woman who was physiologically unable to come into contact with men, had been strongly affected by the Bathed in Fire Rose.

Su Li felt that the effect of this perfect Jade Dew was already extremely powerful. If he could present a few bottles to Lady Bayonetta, perhaps the chance to taste her fragrant lips would not be far off.

It was just that this tactic was a bit too lowbrow, so for now Su Li had no plans to do so.

Su Li then forced himself to rein in his wild thoughts and asked Analis, ”So how many bottles of Purple Crystal Gold Brandy were produced in total last year?”

”All grades of Golden Bauhinia Brandy bearing the Purple Crystal name totaled over 1,700 bottles. If we also include ordinary Brandy labeled with the Purple Crystal brand, the overall volume may have reached around 8,000 bottles.”

Within the Empire, the price of a single bottle of high-grade wine can exceed the entire yearly harvest of one farmer!

Hesse Territory’s Brandy definitely can’t sell for 1 Golden Crown per bottle, but even at 50 Golden Crowns a bottle, that’s still an income of 4,000 Golden Crowns, which is extremely considerable.

This truly rivals half the fiscal revenue of a Kingdom Knight’s Territory. It would take three to four villages, two to three thousand commoners, to produce that much wealth.

No wonder all the Lords place such emphasis on their own wineries, even sending stewards to manage them. This is real money.

Su Li turned to Marian and asked, ”Do you have any expansion plans for this year?”

Marian immediately nodded excitedly, sending a violent aftershock across her chest that almost made Su Li dizzy.

”Yes, yes, Lord. We absolutely must expand the area of the Jade Garden, so the Bathed in Fire Rose only affects the central part of the Jade Garden. We estimate that once the area reaches 80 to 100 acres, the influence of the Bathed in Fire Rose will diminish. After all, it’s only a single rose; it can’t affect hundreds of acres of plantation.”

”And this also helps maintain the reputation of our Golden Purple Crystal Brandy. The effect of the Bathed in Fire Rose and the powerful ability of Jade Dew are very striking, but we can’t have every Purple Crystal Brandy produce exactly the same effect. That would actually harm our reputation. After all, mild and mellow qualities are what allow for wider sales and popularity. As for the effect of perfect-grade quality, it’s better to keep it as a limited edition. While people chase it, they won’t form a one-sided stereotype about the rest of the Golden Bauhinia Brandy.”

Su Li nodded slightly and said, ”What you say makes a lot of sense. If we want Golden Purple Crystal Brandy to have a broader market and sell in every Territory, we must ensure its pure effect—as simply a fine grape wine. Those Bathed in Fire Roses and Jade Dew can serve as high-end brands to build its reputation, but they can’t be widely applied to all Brandy.”

”It’s just... can a single Elite Level Nun really take care of 20 acres of vineyard?”

Previously, Marian alone could only manage 20 acres. If this year’s expansion brings the area to over a hundred acres, even an Elite Level Nun would be worked to death.

Marian spread her hands helplessly and said, ”Of course not. As for how to increase the number of Nuns, we’ll have to rely on you, Lord.”

This type of scarce talent, who also must maintain a pure body, is truly hard to find more of in the Territory.

It seems this trip to Marle Castle is absolutely necessary!