Empire of India: Rise of the Ruthless Prince

The cool winds blew through a workshop situated in Bidar. The day was bright, and the city was bustling with activity.

The metallic sounds of hammers echoed through the workshop as the smoke billowed through the chimneys. The heat was palpable as the workers poured melted metal into molds to create different goods for the merchants.

It was an ironsmith workshop known for their expertise in the field. It was led by a master blacksmith named Hemant. He was in his late forties with a long and thick beard. His muscles were built as he worked countless hours hammering iron.

He worked for the wealthy merchant named Mithun. The man had built his wealth during the civil war and helped Hemant a lot when he was struggling to even run his workshop. Hemant had gotten better at smithing and was fulfilling orders from Mithun periodically.

Hemant became the first workshop to become the exclusive craftsmen for Mithun, as the profits and apprentices in his workshop grew exponentially after Mithun had invested in him.

Everyone in the workshop respected Mithun as he fairly rewarded hard work, and they recently heard that he was selected for the New Emperor's Royal Council. The workshop celebrated the achievement of Mithun.

A servant entered their workshop. He was the regional leader of the Bidar base, Sanjay. He held a letter from Mithun and the newly built scale in his hands.

"Hey! I am here. Young'un"

Hemant waved at Sanjay, gesturing for him to come close.

Sanjay nodded and walked to Hemant to hand him the letter first.

"What is this?"

"It is a letter from Mithun."

"What does the young boy need?. I will make it right now."

"You should read the letter first."

Hemant unfurled the letter and began to read. He learned how to read by working with Mithun. He used to make someone else read for him before. Mithun told him to learn how to read for his job, as someone can take advantage if you don't know how to read or write.

He took the advice and learned to read.

"This is... going to be tough." He muttered.

"We have to do this. It is a direct order from the Emperor."

"Are you sure this is going to help us?"

"Should help. Did Mithun ever fail?"

Hemant knew the track record of Mithun. He had never failed in his business endeavors. He was one of the best merchants that Hemant had ever seen in his life. His skills were impeccable.

"And what is that?" Hemant inquired.

"This is the prototype scale that the Emperor invented."

"The Emperor invented this himself?" Hemant asked as he inspected the scale with curiosity.

"Yes. This is good. How does this work?" He added.

"It is all written in the letter on the next page. Under no circumstances should the information leak to others; keep it under wraps at all costs. This is classified information."

"Yes, and we should mass produce this?"

"This scale will be supplied to three other large merchant groups, and you must also adopt it as the standard in your workshop." Sanjay said.

"New measurement system. The transition is going to be a bit rough. We can manage if Mithun boy says." Hemant declared confidently.

He knew the transition was going to be rough, and he trusted Mithun enough to know he wouldn't jeopardize his business that easily. He wanted to take his chance by being one of the first workshops to adopt this new standard measurement system in the Empire.

"Yes. We must not disappoint the Emperor." Sanjay replied. "Good then. I need to inform the other workshops as well."

Sanjay left the workshop in a hurry.

Hemant read the rest of the letter to understand the measurement system. The letter summarized the symbols and standard for the scale excellently. It was on point as Hemant quickly grasped the content.

The Emperor wanted to introduce this to improve the efficiency of the industries and bring the cost down for making goods in the Empire.

Hemant initially was confused about how the standard measurements would drive down the cost of the goods. As he finished the letter, his mind lit up as gears turned in his head. He understood the reasoning.

If everyone uses the same measurement system, it would be easier to acquire labor for various things easily without having to train them in your own measurements.

Additionally, Hemant could also work with other suppliers for raw materials since the measurements were standard. He also could work with different merchants at once, easily acquiring and selling goods.

He was in awe at the revolutionary concept of the Emperor. He came to respect the intellect of the Emperor.

"The New Emperor will change the Empire for sure." Hemant muttered.

He began to inspect the design of the scales to see how he could make them larger. He inspects the weight given along with the scales and the length measurement tool as well.

He places a small scrap of iron on the other scale and places the cube on the other end of the scale. The scales began to balance out as he added more iron scraps. So this is how we measure it.

"But what if we wanted to do a small measure? Let's say just one-tenth of this cube." He muttered as he thought.

"So I guess I will have to balance this large cube with ten small cubes, and to make a bigger weight, I have to recreate the cubes more."

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His heart began to pound as he felt the challenge of his task. His eyes burned with fire as he wanted to prove his skills.

He scanned the workshop to see all his apprentices and partners working hard.

"Listen, you lot. We got a new interesting order to make from Mithun boy." He yelled, grabbing the attention of everyone in the workshop.

The sounds of Hammering Iron faded as they all looked at him in anticipation.

"Let's do our best to not disappoint Mithun boy."