Chapter 743

Following the outbreak of the Russo-Japanese war, the inconspicuous Xikou became lively again. Every day, there was an endless stream of caravans going in and out.

There was no need for a special organization. Profit was the best driving force. It gathered the caravans from all over the world.

Although the Russians opened their pockets to purchase food, livestock, coal, weapons and ammunition, there were always people who wanted to earn more. Conflicts arose.

Especially after the bureaucrats and local tyrants joined in, the situation became even more complicated. The weak caravans without any background were the first to be eliminated.

There were three paths in front of them. They could either be incorporated and follow behind the big caravans to pick up the leftovers, or they could take a gamble and defeat these guys.

Capital was the most realistic, and capitalists were the easiest to compromise. Rising to the top only existed in novels.

In real life, the big caravans were already deeply rooted and formed a large net.

There were too many big shots sharing the benefits in this chain of interests. They could not be interrupted.

To change this situation, the upper echelons had to change and redistribute power.

Large-scale reshuffling of power usually happened once every hundreds of years. Large-scale reshuffling usually happened once every few years or decades.

Therefore, the caravans were still the same caravans. Only the leaders were changed, and it was done internally.

There was nothing much to say. If they couldn't win, they could join. Picking up the leftovers was better than starving.

As for the third option, giving up on the lucrative Xikou trade route, that was absolutely unacceptable.

Just as the Theory of Capital said, "For a 50% profit, it would take the risk.

For a 100% profit, it would dare to trample on all human laws.

For more than 300% profit, it would dare to commit any crime, even at the risk of being hanged. "

Although the profit of the Xikou trade was less than 300%, it was still possible to get a 100% profit if they worked hard.

At the very least, there would be a 50% profit. If the profit was not high enough, people would not risk their lives to cross thousands of miles of grassland.

As the largest caravan in the north, the Jin merchants would naturally not miss out on such profitable business.

However, the atmosphere in the Jin merchants' headquarters was tense. Those familiar with the situation knew that it was time to make a decision.

In order to attack the enemy's transportation line and obtain supplies to meet their own logistical needs, the Jin merchants became the target of Japan and Russia.

In the beginning, Japan and Russia didn't push too hard, so everyone could still benefit from both sides and make a fortune from it.

However, as the war entered a state of stalemate, the two countries began to play more and more tricks, and the space for everyone to benefit from both sides became smaller and smaller.

Russia dragged Shinra with them, while Japan went to Britannia. the original game between Japan and Russia became a four-nation war.

An old man in a long gown sighed, "The imperial court continued to maintain neutrality and the situation became more and more difficult.

Now that Japan and Russia are closing in on us, and we have the support of England and Austria, I'm afraid it won't be easy to do business in the future. "

It was impossible to give up the Xikou trade route. Heads could be severed, blood could be shed, but business must not stop.

Not to mention the pressure from the Japanese, even if the Far East Empire government ordered a ban, the business still had to continue.

However, this was only the small and medium-sized merchants. The people sitting above were different. They were all owners of big businesses. Their businesses were not limited to just one place, nor would they be limited to just one industry.

Although the Xikou trade route was profitable, it was doomed to be unable to last long due to the special nature of the war.

Continuing to send supplies to Russia would undoubtedly offend Britain and Japan, especially the Japanese.

It would be fine if Japan was defeated, but according to the Russians' nature, they would definitely paralyze half of their bodies.

But the situation would be completely different if Japan won. Those who stood on the wrong side were bound to be punished in the future.

Of course, the people sitting here were not ordinary people. The Japanese couldn't do anything to them in their own home ground. But the business within Japan's sphere of influence would most likely be unable to continue.

After listening to the old man's words, a middle-aged man smoking a pipe slowly stood up and walked to the door. After puffing out a cloud of smoke, he fiercely said, "It's not easy, but it must be done.

If we don't do it, others will do it. Once we give up the market, it will be difficult to take it back.

Besides, the Siberian Railway is about to open. With the support of the Holy Roman Empire behind them, Russia's chances of winning are obviously higher. "

A fat man in his forties echoed, "Old Wang, what Brother Liu said is right. Don't look at the Japanese's clamor now, they are actually strong in appearance but weak in reality.

The Russians have invested at most one-fifth of their forces in the Far East, and even the Japanese can't withstand it. Once the Siberian Railway is opened, it's only a matter of time before the Japanese lose.

Once they are defeated, it's unknown whether they can keep their homeland, let alone have the ability to retaliate against us.

Don't look at them having the support of the British, but the situation in Europe is tense now, and the British can't even take care of themselves. How can they stand up for them? "

Just like in the original world, before the end of the war, no one could believe that the Russian Empire would lose to the Japanese.

Including the investors who supported the Government of Japan, they were prepared to lose their investment in advance. Everyone's highest expectation was to hit the Russians hard.

The one who really helped the Government of Japan win the war was not the British, nor was it the Americans, nor was it the Japanese Army and Navy. Instead, it was the seemingly unrelated Russian Revolutionary Party.

If it weren't for the civil strife, with the iron-headed nature of the Tsarist government, it would be a problem if they didn't delay the war for a few years.

Just look at the Russian-Turkish war. It was common for wars to last for eight to ten years.

If they had no money in their pockets, they would wait for the funds to be raised before continuing the war.

In any case, the Russian Far East was a blank space. No matter how much damage was done, the Tsarist government wouldn't feel bad.

Ice and snow were the greatest allies. If the Japanese Army dared to go deep, they wouldn't be able to escape unscathed.

Not to mention now, Franz's backup plan had not yet been launched. On the surface, the Government of Vienna was still strongly supporting the Tsarist government.

The power of the British and Japanese in Russia was limited. Even if they wanted to plan a revolution, they didn't have the ability to implement it.

The Russian Empire itself wasn't in chaos. Before the opening of the Siberian Railway, the Far East Battlefield was in a state of anxiety. Normal people were optimistic that the Tsarist government would win.

Elder Wang waved his hand and said, "Alright, I was just sighing. Look at how anxious you guys are. Young people just can't keep their cool.

Even if we want to go through the west, we have to first negotiate the conditions. Although it's profitable to carry supplies for the Russians, this isn't a long-term business.

The opening of the Siberian Railway is imminent. If we can reach an agreement with the Russians and open up a trade route to Europe, the benefits contained in it are much greater than transporting arms. "

The representative of the Zhang family on the left objected, "President Wang, the greater the benefits, the greater the risk.

The Russians aren't easy to meet. They don't have any credibility. Even if we reach an agreement, they will break it if they say so.

Even if we take the contract to court, we won't have the right to speak when we're in someone else's territory.

In the past, all of us sitting here have suffered quite a bit in this regard. "

What business is the most profitable?

Monopoly, of course.

The biggest reason why the Jin merchants could rise up in the barren north was that they had monopolized the trade with the outside world.

With the arrival of the maritime era, the trade monopoly in Korea and Liaodong had been broken.

The Mongolian Steppe alone couldn't support so many merchants. Some of the Jin merchants chose to head south, while others chose to head north.

The people seated here were basically the representatives of the Northbound Faction. In order to expand the trade route to the Russian Empire, everyone had put in a lot of effort.

Naturally, there were results. However, most of the benefits were swallowed up by Russia's bureaucrats and capital. Everyone was busy, but they could only leave behind some hard-earned money.

The effort wasn't proportional to the return, and no one could stand it after a long time. As a result, everyone decided to work as a transit merchant.

They transported goods from the Empire of the Far East to the border and sold them to Russia's merchants. They would then purchase local products from Russia's merchants and ship them back to the country for sale.

Although the profits were lower, the risks were lower. They didn't have to worry about the goods being swallowed by the local snakes in Russia.

In the eyes of ordinary people, it was acceptable to earn some stable money. However, in the eyes of the merchants, it was a failure if they couldn't maximize their profits.

President Wang smiled. "Xingbai, you're still so honest.

However, you're right. With our strength, it's naturally not enough to open a land trade route to Europe.

But if we don't have enough strength, we can find others to cooperate with! "

"Honest" wasn't a compliment to the merchants. It could even be considered a mockery.

It was obvious that the old man was very unhappy with Zhang Xingbai for doubting him. His words were full of mockery.

Everyone turned a deaf ear to all of this, as if nothing had happened. Even Zhang Xingbai himself didn't say anything.

Where there were people, there would be underworld. The outside was a big underworld, while the inside of the Chamber of Commerce was a small underworld.

Everyone banded together because of the benefits. During normal business competitions, no one showed any mercy. There were definitely many conflicts that had accumulated over a long period of time.

The middle-aged man with the surname Liu said, "Old Wang, Brother Zhang just made a slip of the tongue. You're a magnanimous person, so please forgive him.

However, we really don't understand how to find someone to cooperate with. In the past, it's not that we didn't have partners, but in the end, we all parted on bad terms.

Foreigners have no sense of propriety, righteousness, or honor, and the people of Russia are even more unusual among foreigners. They completely disregard credibility.

Even the government can default and go bankrupt in order to avoid debt. If we cooperate with them deeply, I'm afraid we'll be screwed to death. "

At the beginning of the 20th century, the people of Russia had already become notorious. As the Tsarist government defaulted on its debts time and time again, the whole world had deep doubts about the credibility of the people of Russia.

Needless to say, many of the people present had suffered losses when they worked together before. In the face of a partner who didn't follow the rules, no matter how perfect the contract was, it was useless.

Glancing at the crowd and seeing that everyone wasn't in high spirits, President Wang didn't dare to continue keeping them in suspense. If it wasn't for everyone's cooperation, he alone would definitely be choked to death.

"I can understand everyone's doubts. To be honest, in the past few decades of trade with Russia, I've also been in a lot of trouble.

Our advantage is that we have connections and funds in the country, but our disadvantage is that we lack connections in the Russian Empire, so we can't intimidate the jackals.

Even when we cooperate with the rich and powerful in Russia, they still treat us like pigs and sheep. Once we fatten up, they kill us. There's no credibility at all.

In the end, it was still due to the imbalance in power between the two sides. In the cooperation, our voice is almost non-existent.

After learning from the painful experience, I found that the key to solving this problem is to find partners that aren't too powerful.

It's best if they can intimidate the jackals along the way, but they lack a foundation in the local area, so they have to rely on us for specific business. "

With this explanation, everyone understood. It was similar to bribing officials, giving them a share as a protection fee, and the specific business was still up to them.

With the local network, they could naturally play this way. But it wouldn't work in the Russian Empire. Russia's bureaucrats were mainly nobles, and they had already colluded with whoever they could. There was no room for outsiders like them to do anything.

President Liu shook his head in disappointment, "President Wang, in theory, it's correct. But in practice, we can't find that kind of partner at all, and we might even be involved in political struggles. "

It wasn't his fault for being nervous. In the past few decades, they had invested the most in opening the trade route with Russia.

The Liu family's caravan even went from the Far East through Siberia all the way to central Europe.

It sounded impressive, but in reality, it was just a matter of time. Not only was the traffic in Siberia devastating, but Russia's bureaucratic exploitation was even more shocking.

President Wang's expression didn't change. "Rusong, you're right. Under normal circumstances, we really can't find that kind of partner.

But it's different now, the partner came to us. Compared to a few days ago, everyone has been in contact with the Austrians.

Don't look at them as arms dealers on the surface, their real identities are definitely not simple. Anyway, I've never seen an arms dealer escorted by a warship.

Especially the one leading them, he's actually a noble, and not just an ordinary noble.

I've sent people to inquire, that Sir Louis is a member of the Holy Roman Empire's royal family. Although he's only a distant branch, it's enough to be a guide.

He came to the Far East this time to expand his family's business, and the arms trade was just a side project.

I'm sure everyone has heard of the reputation of the House of Habsburg. Regardless of whether it was in politics or the economy, everything related to them was basically positive.

If we can cooperate with them, we can directly open up the trade route with Europe, be it on land or sea.

The only uncertainty is the battle for supremacy between Shinra and Britannia, but it doesn't matter.

The Royal Navy can't go ashore, and even if they lose the battle for supremacy, the Holy Roman Empire is still one of the world's largest countries.

This is a rare opportunity. If they didn't need us to transport strategic resources for the Russians, I'm afraid we wouldn't even have the right to contact them. "

There was no difference between different types of cooperation. The most ordinary business cooperation was a simple transaction, and there was no human relationship between the two parties.

A deeper level of cooperation was different. It wasn't just a matter of money, but more importantly, they had to consider complementary resources.

Facing the Shinra royal family, the Jin merchants had too little resources. Even the connections they were so proud of were worthless in the eyes of the other party.

After the shock, everyone quickly reacted. This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. As long as they could get on this line, opening up a trade route with Russia would be a piece of cake.

With the participation of the Shinra royal family, and the cooperation with the nobles of Russia, they could only follow the rules. As long as they played within the rules, they weren't afraid.

The man surnamed Liu asked, "Has Sir Wang talked to Sir Louis?"

The old man smiled awkwardly. "It's just a preliminary contact, and we didn't go into detail. After all, Sir Louis not only wants us to transport arms for the Russians, but also to help Russia gather strategic resources.

Without everyone's participation, the Wang Family alone doesn't have the ability to gather enough resources for the Russians.

But don't worry, Sir Louis promised that he wouldn't let anyone suffer a loss on the price, and everything will be according to the market price in the trading area. He will make sure that the Russians pay on time.

Because of the gathering of strategic resources, they will be responsible for dealing with the problems caused by the officials, and they won't leave any hidden dangers. "

Interests were always the best link. As long as there was enough money, gathering strategic resources was not a problem at all.

Before this, although everyone had been going through the west entrance, they didn't transport a lot of resources each time. Other than being worried about bandits, they were more afraid of being cheated by the Russians.