As soon as Demens mentioned the words "His Majesty the Emperor", Liu Chang's face became a little unhappy. He lowered his voice and said: "You are very well-informed, but you only need to know this matter yourself. You don't have to." It¡¯s publicized everywhere!¡±
"What does His Majesty mean by this?" Demons was startled at first, but soon realized that he had actually been deceived. Next year, the Yuan Dynasty will really be changed, and Liu Chang will officially proclaim himself emperor.
The rumor that Liu Chang proclaimed himself emperor has been circulating for more than a year. Every time the rumors come out, they can be said to be true. For example, the recent one said that Liu Chang will officially proclaim himself emperor during the Spring Festival next year, and at the same time, the year will be changed. It was said that the nickname of this year was Sadaharu, but such rumors came again and again. Demons didn't take it seriously at all, and he didn't expect that he would be fooled.
He doesn't care whether the year is Sadaharu or Joan of Arc, nor does he care how many people will know the news in advance. He only knows that he is one of the first people to get the news, and can even use the news to gain some benefits. .
Of course, since Liu Chang had warned him, he, Demons, was also a knowledgeable person, so he would naturally not make any public announcements and make His Majesty the Emperor feel any unpleasant emotions. He just looked at the two concubines following Liu Chang and lowered his voice. The voice said: "Congratulations to both ladies!"
Madam Ye was someone who already knew about it. She glared at Demons and asked, "What a well-informed foreigner. Your Highness, if you are unable to make a decision, why not ask Count Demons for advice?"
She and Demons were old friends, and this "asking for advice" made Demons float to the sky. Fortunately, he knew his own weight, so he immediately said respectfully: "Your Highness, please elaborate!"
Liu Chang has indeed had some problems recently. Although the intelligence department has reported them several times, these questions are still hanging in Liu Chang's heart, so he directly took Demons's hand and said: "Then I will tell you directly. , are you familiar with cotton prices?"
"I still know a thing or two!" Demons was already very proficient in Chinese: "Please give me your orders, Your Highness!"
Liu Chang also put forward his question straightforwardly: "In the past period, I have cooperated very happily with the British in Ningbo and Shanghai. Every month, a large amount of cotton and other military uniform supplies are imported. The monthly import volume, The minimum amount is **10,000 foreign dollars, and the maximum amount is three to four hundred thousand silver dollars. Everyone is very happy to cooperate!"
This is indeed the largest category of imported industrial products for the Hong Army, excluding arms. Not to mention anything else, the hundreds of thousands of people in the Hong Army alone need millions of military uniforms a year.
In this time and space, although military uniforms are not a necessity, they are a symbol of the combat effectiveness and morale of an army. Providing uniform military uniforms to officers and soldiers can be said to be a luxury. Many people within the Hong Army are heartbroken by Liu Chang's waste. It should be noted that every officer and soldier in the Hong Army must be issued at least one set of summer clothes and one set of winter clothes every year. Some units even need to be issued four sets of military uniforms. Although there is nothing to do There are differences between training uniforms, regular uniforms, and dress uniforms, but two sets of military uniforms a year makes most people feel like they are extremely wasteful.
The unified military uniform also gives the Hong Army its own symbol and soul. Even civil servants in the government like to wear a military uniform or a replica military uniform. As for the enemies of the Hong Army, as long as they see the grass-green military uniforms, they will know that the Hong Army is coming. First of all, I felt a sense of shock. Some time ago in Fujian, a group of militiamen who had just changed into military green uniforms even scared away hundreds of bandits.
All these military uniforms, except for a small number of supplies that are made locally, are made from imported British industrial products. In fact, the imported goods include not only cotton cloth shipped from the UK, but also belts, water bottles, and ammunition. Bags, etc., but everyone has to admit that cotton is the highlight.
The amount of cotton consumed by Hongjun was actually larger than what Liu Chang said. In the peak month, the Hong Army even imported 500,000 silver dollars of cotton cloth. However, as the army continued to expand, many government personnel also liked to wear imitation military uniforms. Everyone unanimously admitted that the scale of cotton cloth imports was likely to expand. .
Liu Chang is troubled by a huge problem: "Now British businessmen in Shanghai and Ningbo have told me that cotton prices are rising crazily throughout the world, and they, as downstream manufacturers, cannot withstand such huge pressure. Recently, They are planning to raise the price of British cotton by 30%, Count Demons, as my old friend, do you think I have to bear such a price increase?"
Liu Chang was still slightly dissatisfied in his heart. He had provided countless employment opportunities for the British textile industry, and these British people actually used such methods to deal with him, but Demons was in Shanghai and Ningbo with the British. The businessman had many contacts, and he said straightforwardly: "Your Highness, I know you don't want to hear my answer, but I must explain that if it were not for the purpose of opening up the market, perhaps the price of British cotton would not only increase by 30%!"
? ??Why? "Liu Chang also heard some news about rising cotton prices, but after all, he is not as knowledgeable about the entire world market as Demens: "I want to know the answer! "
"The most critical factor is that the Hong Kong Army is a great army. In the past two years, it has ordered almost two million sets of military uniforms from the world market, right? If outerwear, underwear, underwear, etc. are separated, maybe all There are more than 10 million pieces, and these clothes and pants are almost all made of British cotton, and the Hong Army will still have to replace its military uniforms with greater intensity!"
Liu Chang admitted that this was a fact, but he did not expect that such a purchase of military uniforms would actually affect the entire world cotton market: "However, if the cotton cloth I purchased is calculated in terms of tons, it is very limited. If calculated in terms of the number of ships, More limited!¡±
"But this has already caused the world cotton market price to increase by 37%, and it will continue to rise. In fact, the situation is much more serious than you think!" Demons told Liu Chang: "For example, Russian Poland , their emerging textile industry is almost in a state of collapse because they cannot find enough cotton, and thousands of workers are unemployed"
Liu Chang did not expect that a small butterfly like Hongjun could actually cause such an astonishing wave in the world market, and even destroy the Russian Polish textile industry. He already understood the orders and the skyrocketing prices of raw material markets throughout the world.
In fact, the entire eighteenth century can be said to be the golden age of cotton cultivation. The middle class around the world has become accustomed to wearing cotton clothes. Even conservative China has been affected by this, and the world's cotton production areas are very limited. , the most important thing is the southern part of the United States, but the export of cotton from the southern part of the United States cannot meet the astonishing demand of the entire world, and the cotton planting industry in emerging Egypt has not yet formed a large scale.
Therefore, Demons believes: "Although it has increased by 30%, this is the most restrained behavior of British businessmen in order to open up the Chinese market. I know that for you, this will cost hundreds of thousands or even millions of silver dollars, but this is nothing." As for the solution, I think you can try to get a loan from the British government!"
"I will fight for a loan from the British government!" Liu Chang accepted Demons' statement: "But there is one more thing, and I must ask for your opinion!"
"Your Highness, please speak!" Demons was particularly polite: "I will do my best to serve you!"
Liu Chang asked bluntly: "I know you are from the Netherlands, and now the Dutch government has a wrong view of our regime. I hope you can show up to dispel such wrong views and build a bridge of friendship!"
Demens had already put his position above that of the Hong Army. As soon as Liu Chang mentioned this matter, he immediately said: "Please rest assured that I will try my best to bring peace and friendship between the two countries." The transformation of relations to normalization is, in fact, related to some misunderstandings. Some Dutch officials believe that the Hong Kong Army is a threat"
Demons changed the subject: "But I think it is an excellent opportunity. I have already done this work in all aspects, and it should have good results in the short term!"
Compared with the colonies of other major powers, the Dutch colonies were not directly impacted by the powerful Chinese Empire. As the European with the most successful career in China, Demens also gained the favor of many Dutch people. Many Dutch people thought that he It's another Sinbad.
Therefore, the Dutch official may be hostile to the Hong Kong Army, but Demons has made a lot of efforts among the people in the past few months. Therefore, many Dutch people believe that there is no need for China and the Netherlands to enter a state of war, especially since the French have already Tell the whole world with a painful lesson that this rebel army is a powerful and terrifying enemy. With the national strength of the Netherlands, how can it be possible to fight a war involving tens of thousands of people in the East.
In fact, it is not so much that the Dutch official is hostile to the Hong Army, but rather that it was dragged down by an alliance of colonists: "Now there are correct news reports in the Netherlands, and the Dutch people believe that the war with China is a doomed war. A failed gamble, but we have to consider certain factors in our country, such as the Spaniards"
"Spanish?" Liu Chang smiled: "You are not allies, but mortal enemies!"
The Protestant Netherlands and Catholic Spain are indeed mortal enemies in a sense. You must know that the Netherlands was separated from the richest provinces of Spain, and the war between the two sides lasted for hundreds of years. Years ago, it was just that for Western colonists, they had a natural sense of terror towards the rise of a powerful and modern China.
And Liu Chang quickly put forward his most critical point: "I am also worried about the Spanish. Although their power is limited, under the realistic situation of the outbreak of the Sino-Russian war, I am unwilling to face more enemies. You are in Spain." Does it matter? I hope we have a relationship with the SpanishThere are channels of contact between us. "
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