The Mad Tycoon of Rome

Chapter 30:  Major Renovation 

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When Marcus suddenly asked him to work together, Vitruvius looked at him with a bewildered expression and tilted his head.

“What kind of work are you talking about… Ah, do you mean you want to give me a job?”

“No, you misunderstood me. I don’t want to just give you one job, I want to take you with me.”

“Excuse me?”

“I will provide you with an environment where you can fully utilize your talent and skills. You can do whatever research you want as much as you want. The only condition is that you have to share the results of your research with me. And of course, you can’t leak the results of the work I requested to anyone else.”

Marcus’s proposal made Vitruvius start to ponder. 

He looked serious as he contemplated the offer, and Marcus added a few more words.

“This is a mutually beneficial deal for both of us. I get a capable technician, and you get to do your desired research without worrying about money for the rest of your life. Plus, I will pay you handsomely for your work. In other words, I want you to become my exclusive technician.”

Vitruvius was not a simple architect, but a very talented technician.

Most of the technicians in this era were proficient in various fields, and Vitruvius was no exception.

He was not only skilled in architecture, but also in military equipment, clocks, astronomy, civil engineering tools, and canals.

He was still incomplete as a genius, but if Marcus supported him, he would grow much faster than history.

Marcus secretly hoped that he would accept his offer.

‘If he refuses, I’ll have to spend more money to get him. Please say yes.’

Vitruvius hesitated for a while and then cautiously opened his mouth.

“It is the dream of every technician to be able to continue their research without worrying about money for the rest of their lives. But this seems too good to be true… Why are you making such an offer to someone like me? Can I ask you the reason?”

“It’s because I highly value your talent. Think of it as a kind of investment. Of course, there are many technicians who are better than you, but it would take much more money and time to capture them.”

“I see. That makes sense. But didn’t you see me for the first time today? How can you be so sure of my talent…”

“Tsk tsk, do you think I can only know that by seeing it myself? Of course, I did a thorough investigation before contacting you.”

Marcus’s confident persuasion made Vitruvius more and more tempted.

He also had a lot of pride in his talent.

He couldn’t help but feel moved by someone who recognized his talent and offered him such good terms.

“Are you really saying that I can do whatever research I want?”

“Of course. Just submit a report on the research you want to do and I’ll approve it right away. And by the way, it would be nice if you could also do some research that I ask for. Naturally, all of this will be written in a contract, so you can trust me.”

“Can you also get me the books that I want?”

“Of course. If you want a book, I’ll find it for you right away. If you want a person, I’ll bring them to you as well.”

Books were very expensive items at this time.

They were not like modern paper books, but mostly scrolls copied on costly papyrus.

They were not something that anyone could read if they wanted to unless they were wealthy nobles or knights.

Vitruvius was sure that this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and made up his mind.

He bowed his head politely and opened his mouth.

“I accept your offer, sir. I may be lacking, but I will do my best not to disappoint your expectations.”

“Good. You won’t regret it. First of all, I’ll prepare a space where you can do your research comfortably. This area is too crowded with people, so you won’t be able to relax here. I’ll send someone later, so get ready to move.”

“Yes, yes. Thank you very much.”

“Well, then let’s talk about the rest later… No, no, wait. I almost forgot the most important thing.”

Marcus made a face as if he had forgotten something and quickly continued.

“Can you recommend some skilled technicians that you know? It can be someone you want to work with, or someone who has talent and is young.”

“Don’t you have many craftsmen under you already?”

“There are plenty of craftsmen who can make things. But I’m not looking for someone who can just produce things with the existing skills, but someone who can advance those skills to the next level.”

Craftsmen and technicians usually had connections with other experts in different fields.

They naturally formed a symbiotic relationship because they had a lot of things in common.

The technicians who were associated with Vitruvius, a genius of his caliber, were bound to be good.

Marcus wanted to take all of Vitruvius’s connections under his wing.

“Is there any specific field of expertise that you want?”

“First of all, ironwork is the most urgent, but it doesn’t matter what field it is. And if possible, I’d also like you to introduce me to a technician who can develop products for women. Things like jewelry or cosmetics.”

“Ironwork has a very good technician named Cletus. Sergius makes excellent women’s jewelry.”

“Good. Can you introduce them all to me? The more skilled technicians there are, the better.”

Marcus nodded his head with satisfaction. 

Then he turned his head slightly to Danae behind him.

“Learn a lot from this Sergius guy when he comes. I told you before, but I’m planning to entrust this business to you later. Start developing your eye for high-end jewelry and cosmetics from now on.”

“Yes. I will do my best.”

Danae’s face looked determined as if she was betting her life on it.

Marcus smiled and patted her shoulder.

“Don’t overdo it, just work hard.”

Marcus had achieved all of his goals and left Subura in a good mood.

He ordered Septimus to create an environment where the technicians could work freely, and then left for his next destination with quick steps.

In order to bear fruit, the soil had to be firmly prepared first.

The major operation to establish the foundation of the business had just begun.

※※※※

The place where Marcus headed was none other than his mansion.

He returned home and immediately looked for Crassus.

Crassus, who was doing some work, stopped as soon as he heard that Marcus had arrived and greeted his son.

“Oh, what brings you here? You said you would be busy with work for a while.”

“Yes, I’m here for work purposes right now. I have something to ask you about the business.”

“If it’s a request, then of course I’ll listen. Well, what can I do for you?”

It was a response that assumed that he would accept the request already. 

Crassus was ready to listen to whatever absurd thing his son would say.

Marcus knew that too and spoke without hesitation.

“Please give me full authority to train and supervise the staff of the business.”

“Even though you’re already doing most of the work, do you need more authority than that?”

“Yes. I’m planning to change the basic structure of the business, and I think I need your clear permission to do that.”

“I don’t quite understand what you mean by changing the structure.”

“Simply put, I’m going to change everything from the number system we use to the way we record the accounting books. To a much more efficient and advanced method. It might be hard to learn at first, but once you get used to it, you’ll see its true value.”

Marcus was planning to introduce Arabic numerals and basic accounting knowledge to his business.

They were very common numbers in modern times, but in the past, these Arabic numerals were like a godsend that propelled mathematics forward.

It was a huge difference in convenience between doing simple arithmetic with Roman numerals and Arabic numerals.

But since it was too early to apply them to the whole of Rome, he decided to apply them only to his business for now.

The same was true for accounting knowledge.

Marcus had a double major in management and economics in his previous life, so he could teach college-level knowledge.

Anyway, it would be revolutionary enough to teach basic accounting principles at this time.

Double-entry bookkeeping with debits and credits was not used in Europe until the late 15th century.

He had no intention of introducing modern accounting standards or tax laws from the beginning.

He thought that just introducing Arabic numerals, basic accounting principles, and maybe cost accounting would increase efficiency by at least 10 times.

The problem was that Arabic numerals had not even started in India, their origin.

Marcus just lied that it was a technique used in the far east.

There was no way for Crassus to verify it anyway.

Instead, he explained how efficient these methods were.

Crassus listened to Marcus’s persuasion and made a decision faster than expected.

“Did you ever say anything wrong in what you’ve done so far? I think I can believe you even if you say you can make wheat out of air.”

Considering artificial nitrogen fertilizer, that wasn’t a wrong statement either, but Marcus just quietly bowed his head.

“Thank you. I’ll show you the results as soon as possible.”

“Good. Even though I trust you unconditionally, I can’t let you go without limits. So show me some results within three years. Then you won’t have to ask me for permission for anything you do.”

“Three years is too long, I’ll show you within one year.”

Crassus replied with a satisfied smile to Marcus’s confident answer.

In fact, when Crassus’s term as praetor began, he would hardly be able to pay attention to his business.

It was almost a foregone conclusion that Marcus would have to lead the business in practice.

If it had been before, he would have been anxious, but now Crassus felt only relieved.

Having gained practical control of the business one step ahead of time, Marcus immediately started training people.

Everyone was confused by the introduction of unfamiliar Arabic numerals, but they quickly adapted.

Those who had been dealing with numbers repeatedly soon realized how superior this notation was.

The basic method of writing accounting books was also easily accepted.

“I can’t believe there was such a method. Why didn’t we know about it until now?”

“I know, right? It’s so convenient that even if we write down the wrong numbers, we can verify them right away.”

“Where did sir get this knowledge from?”

“Well… He said it’s a recent method used somewhere in the far east.”

“Huh… The world is really wide. Even if our Rome is the best, there are always regions that are better in certain fields.”

“But isn’t that our greatest strength? To quickly absorb those advantages.”

The staff of the business were shocked by the knowledge of a fictional eastern country and shared their enthusiastic impressions.

Soon, as Marcus had boasted, the efficiency of the improved system was proven.

He also signed contracts with all the technicians that Vitruvius had introduced.

He provided them with a place to work and live, and assigned them each a research topic.

He gave a heavy task to Cletus, who claimed to have expertise in ironwork.

“I don’t care how much time and money it takes, just make a larger furnace and a new type of bellows that can blow strong air into it.”

Marcus roughly knew the principle, which was to use a spinning wheel to create a windstorm with the bellows.

In fact, the most important part of technological development was this kind of core idea.

If they had this, skilled technicians could find a way to improve it somehow.

Cletus, who was very excited, immediately went to the laboratory that Marcus had prepared for him and started making a prototype.

Having established a minimum system, Marcus also started to look for ways to make more money.

The profits from the scales and balances were huge, but considering the expenses that would continue in the future, he had to expand his business.

It was finally time to start improving the carts and wagons that he had been saving.

‘Just adding a basic suspension would improve the ride quality dramatically.’

He found out that there was already a technology using wooden boards as plate springs in Rome.

The problem was that they only applied this technology to siege weapons like ballistae.

It was a common situation anywhere in the world. 

They had enough technical capabilities, but they couldn’t apply them because they lacked the idea.

Marcus started working on making suspensions by miniaturizing the plate springs used for siege weapons.

Vitruvius, who was proficient in military equipment, gave him a positive answer that he would make a prototype within a month.

Everything was going smoothly as planned.

But that was only for Marcus.

The year 70 BC, when Pompey and Crassus began their terms, brought a huge shock to Rome from the beginning.

Pompey made a bombshell announcement on his first day of office as praetor by legislative form.

“We must restore the rights of the oppressed people. The rights of the people come from the law of the assembly. I will revive the Hortensian law that guarantees the legislative power of the assembly!”

Of course, the assembly and the senate were completely upset for different reasons.

The whirlwind of history twisted and hit with turbulence. 

The tumultuous year 70 BC began like that.