Riches or ditches?

//Author's note: While the product's name, Chai, is intentionally alike tea in some languages, and while the situation might have some parallels to the trade imbalance between the British Empire and the Qing Empire, it is by no means a direct analogy (the details of the situation are entirely different and directly opposite in some parts). So no, the following part of the story is by no means a reflection of the IRL history, period. That's it for the rant//

"First, our treasury. I believe you might not be aware, but a third of the empire's total budget goes towards securing a critical amount of chai. And it's connected to the matter of our national pride, for Chai is sold in abundance only in Nerelian market. And ever since their invasion of the continent fifty years ago, they extended every effort possible to make our access to Chai as scarce as possible."

In just a few sentences, Etaria successfully threw everyone for a loop.