Chapter 748

Credibility was a good thing, and the reputation that Franz had built up over a long period of time had finally come into play.

No matter how much the Russians promised, no one dared to believe it. However, when a member of the House of Habsburg came out to vouch for it, everyone quickly accepted it.

Since Louis dared to make such a guarantee, he naturally wasn't speaking without thinking. The fact that he, a member of the royal family, came out in person meant that this transaction was extraordinary.

On the surface, the arms dealers acted on their own, but behind the scenes, Vienna and St. Peter's Castle worked together to finalize the deal. The real arms seller was the Government of Vienna.

It wasn't easy to make money from a war. Louis naturally couldn't give up this opportunity to make money from traveling thousands of miles to the Far East.

The Government of Vienna sold arms and medicine, but he could also sell other strategic materials! Once the war started, it would be tens of thousands of taels of gold. No matter what he sold, it would be a huge profit.

It didn't matter if he didn't have the goods on hand, but the local tyrants had them. The Shanxi merchants were worried that it would be difficult to collect money from the Russians, but Louis wasn't afraid at all.

The Russian bureaucrats weren't stupid. It was fine if they bullied businessmen without a strong background, but they wouldn't dare to blackmail the goods of the Government of Vienna.

"Using the tiger's skin to raise the flag."

It was enough to intimidate the Russian bureaucrats in the Far East. Even if someone with great power went to investigate, the House of Habsburg's reputation could still hold the fort.

What they really needed to pay was to solve the official problems. It wasn't just the pressure from the Empire of the Far East, but also the pressure from the Government of Japan.

In fact, it was very simple. They just needed to stand up at the critical moment and act tough.

Louis was now the representative of the royal family of Shinra, and he came to the Far East to strengthen the communication between the royal families.

Even if he didn't have much actual power, it was definitely not a problem to use this identity to scare people.

Although the power of Shinra and Britannia in the Far East was just for show, and although they looked scary, their actual power was really limited. However, the outside world didn't know that!

Just by looking at the military strength on the surface, Austria Nanyang had the strength to defeat Japan or the Empire of the Far East, at least in the eyes of many people in the Far East.

The reference model was the Battle of the Philippines. A declining Spain was able to fight evenly with Japan, the strongest country in the Far East. Naturally, Shinra, which was more than ten times stronger, was overestimated.

The Jin merchants were not rootless duckweed. As a local tyrant, once they let loose, the power they could mobilize would be beyond imagination.

After all, two hundred years ago, they had relied on their own strength to survive …

He didn't dare to guarantee anything else, but at least the Russian Army's food problem could be solved. This was also Louis' mission during this trip to the Far East.

In the words of Emperor Franz, they couldn't let the Russians go hungry, but they also couldn't let them eat too much. It would be good if they could fight on par with Japan.

To achieve this, it was necessary to strictly control the input of strategic resources. No more, no less.

Zhang Xingbai cupped his hands and bowed to the old man. "Xingbai is young and insensible. Please forgive me if I offended you just now.

To tell you the truth, I just received news yesterday that our family's caravan only received 70% of the goods we sold to the Russians.

I believe everyone has encountered similar situations. If we can introduce a partner to ensure the normal payment of the goods, Xingbai will be the first to support it.

However, Sir Louis is from the House of Habsburg and has a high position. After he joins, how will the profits be distributed? "

In a sense, the Russian Army's defeat was also caused by their own bureaucrats.

For the sake of profit, the Quartermaster in charge of procurement would often stuff his own pockets with kickbacks, or even pay for the goods.

If the transaction amount was too large, it was even possible that they would kill each other and put the blame on the bandits. This made the smugglers afraid.

It wasn't until the matter got out of hand that the senior officers of the Russian Army came out to stop it, but it was already too late.

Even if there were changes, the number of caravans willing to take risks had decreased. Many people simply turned to do business with the Japanese, so the smuggled goods were greatly reduced.

It was just the beginning, and the amount of transactions each time was not large. It had not developed to the point of being a black sheep. However, it was still common for them to take kickbacks and overpay.

It was indeed very important to be able to solve these problems. However, the issue that everyone was more concerned about was the specific "profit distribution."

After picking up the teacup and taking a small sip, President Wang slowly said, "Let's talk about the current Xikou trade. There are two ways of cooperation.

One is to sign a contract with Sir Louis and we will directly transport the goods to the Russians. He will communicate with the Russians to ensure that everyone's gross profit is not less than 50%.

The second is to establish a business partnership. We will be responsible for the specific management and operation. Sir Louis will be responsible for handling the relationship with the Russians. The shareholding ratio will be determined according to the amount of investment.

After the Xikou trade ends, the business will open up overseas trade routes to any part of the world. He can help coordinate the relationship.

However, these relationships need to be made up in other places. We will discuss the specific situation when the time comes. "

The buyout sounded good with a 50% gross profit margin, but in fact, it was not. The prerequisite for the profit was to safely deliver the goods to the destination.

Although the other party promised to settle the official problems, the bandits and bandits along the way were also a threat.

Even though everyone had connections and everything would be fine after paying a sum of money, there would always be accidents.

Cooperation was different. If the goods were lost, the Shinra royal family's money would also be lost. That would involve international disputes.

As long as they were notified, the yamen would be more anxious than them. They would send troops to suppress the bandits in minutes. Even if the goods could not be recovered, the losses could be recovered.

Especially after hearing that the shareholding ratio would be determined by the amount of investment, everyone's eyes lit up.

Frankly speaking, none of them had thought that the other party would fork out the money. In everyone's opinion, it was nothing more than a second generation wanting to use his connections to make a fortune.

They had encountered this kind of situation too many times. Usually, they would send a sum of dry shares and then everyone would be on the same side.

A partnership with dry shares and a partnership with money were obviously not on the same level.

In the former, the other party did not contribute anything and would just walk away if there was a problem. In the latter, everyone's interests were tied together. In a true sense, everyone would suffer together and prosper together.

Liu Rusong said in disbelief, "Mr. Wang, are you sure the shares will be distributed according to the amount of investment and no other conditions?"

There was no other way. Not to mention the Jin businessmen, no business group in the country could refuse such a cooperation condition.

Although they each took what they needed, the social structure of the Empire of the Far East — scholars, farmers, merchants, and merchants — made them inferior.

Looking at the shocked crowd, President Wang said calmly, "Don't worry, I've confirmed it myself. According to Sir Louis, this is the family rule of the House of Habsburg.

It is forbidden for children to use their status for profit. All business cooperation must be fair to avoid damaging the family's reputation. "

When he first heard the news, President Wang also could not believe that there were people in this world who thought they had too much money and did not want money that was delivered to their door.

However, after sending a telegram to his son who was studying in Europe, he found out that the House of Habsburg did have such a family rule, and it was very well-known in Europe.

"Fair and square" was purely for fun. With the network of connections, they had an innate advantage. However, dry shares were indeed prohibited by Franz.

On the one hand, it was for the family's reputation; on the other hand, there was no shortage of money.

There were many similar family rules, and most of them were aimed at rich children. Once the offense was violated, the lightest punishment would be the revocation of the title and surname, and the most severe punishment would be the imprisonment of the royal family.

It was unknown whether it could be implemented 100% in the future. In any case, no one had tried it during the many years that Franz had been in power.

Before coming to the Empire of the Far East, it was obviously difficult for Louis to take out enough capital. The royal allowance was obviously not enough.

However, after coming to the Empire of the Far East, everything became different. Along the way, he received so many gifts that his hands were sore.

Especially when he came to the capital, after a few banquets, he made a lot of money. Although he still had to give gifts in return, he still made a lot of money after all.

Louis was not a public official, and this time it was an exchange between the royal families. It was completely normal to give gifts to each other.

There were many local tycoons in the Empire of the Far East. In an exchange like this in Europe, it was good to be able to break even. It was impossible to make a lot of money.

Therefore, the common practice was that these gifts belonged to the individual. Whether it was the government or the royal family, they would not interfere.

If it were not for the fact that he was in a hurry, Louis would probably have invited all the royal relatives of the Empire of the Far East to a banquet.

There was no other way. These people were too polite. Anyone who was invited, regardless of whether they came or not, would definitely give a gift. No one came empty-handed.

As a representative of the royal family of Shinra, Louis could not be impolite when others gave him face. He had to prepare a gift in return. He could not let others feel embarrassed.

The number of gifts prepared in advance was insufficient, which was also one of the reasons why Louis quickly came out on business. It was estimated that when the gifts ordered from home arrived, the banquet exchange would continue.

Although the gifts were not in cash, they could also be discounted. In this regard, Shanxi merchants were professionals. One-third of the gifts for the officials of the Empire of the Far East were underwritten by them.

After listening to President Wang's explanation, everyone's morale was greatly boosted. It was not easy to meet such a cooperative partner who respected the rules.

They naturally could not let go of such an opportunity. As for offending the Japanese, it was not a big deal at all.

…

Sir Louis, who did not know that he had easily settled the matter, was still worrying about the matter of collecting supplies. He had no choice. The Tsarist government had actually entrusted the food, drink, and toilet of the hundreds of thousands of Russian Army to him.

It sounded like a child's play, but the Russians did entrust the important task of collecting supplies to the Government of Vienna. Then, Emperor Franz gave him full authority to handle it.

The reason was very simple. There were not many members of the royal family of Shinra in Asia, and there were even fewer who knew Chinese.

However, this task required someone of high status to communicate with them. Otherwise, they would not be able to intimidate the officials. A member of the royal family was the most suitable candidate.

In order to complete this political task, the first thing Louis did after coming to the Empire of the Far East from Austrian Southeast Asia was to make friends.

The effect was very obvious. With the reputation of the royal family of Shinra and his talent in communication, he quickly made a lot of "new friends."

No matter how unreliable this friendship was, it was still possible to get some information. If it was not for the fact that he was worried that too many people would spoil the plan, Louis would probably have pulled a bunch of influential people to get rich.

Of course, it was fortunate that he did not do that. Otherwise, he would have learned what it meant to "do anything, and be number one in causing trouble."

Originally, Louis was very confident about collecting supplies. However, after seeing the roads of the Empire of the Far East, he completely lost hope.

In his opinion, it was simply an impossible task to solve the logistics of hundreds of thousands of troops with such terrible traffic.

If it was not for his friend recommending Jin merchants to him and listing the heroic feat of transporting food to hundreds of thousands of people 200 years ago, Louis would not have believed that anyone could do it.

Since someone could do it, there was no doubt about it. Naturally, he had to cooperate.

After all, it had been more than two months since he received the order. If he did not speed up the progress, the Russian Army at the front line would be doomed.

Louis did not care about the lives of the Russians, but he could not fail his own mission.

Seeing that Louis was in a bad mood, his translator comforted him, "Sir, you don't have to worry at all. The Jin merchants are all smart people. They know how to choose. "

Do I need a translator if I know Chinese?

It could not be helped. There was no unified Mandarin these days. There were many dialects everywhere. Even Louis learned Min Nan dialect.

After a pause, Louis shook his head, "Li, you do not understand military affairs. The consumption of resources by a modern army is completely different from that of an ancient army.

According to the information provided by the Russians, the 500,000-strong Russian Army consumed more than 5,000 tons of resources every day. Even if the Russians could solve half of it, there would still be a shortage of 2,500 tons. In a month, there would be a shortage of 750,000 tons.

If this was in China, this amount of resources would not be worth mentioning. It would be nothing more than a dozen train carriages a day.

But this is the Empire of the Far East. It is unimaginable to rely on manpower and animal power to transport 2,500 tons of resources to the front line every day.

I do not have extravagant demands right now. I just want to satisfy all the logistical needs of the Russian Army. Just solving their food problem and supplying weapons and ammunition is enough. "

Translator Li said, "Sir, the problem is actually not that complicated. As long as the Russians have money, none of this is a problem.

If the food cannot be transported in time, we can purchase a batch of livestock from the grasslands and drive them over.

Now, we only need to transport the weapons and ammunition. If it does not work, we can sell a batch of transport airships to the Russians.

I remember that during the European War, your country once set a record of airdropping 5,000 tons of bombs in a day. It should not be a problem to rely on transport airships to deal with emergencies. "

It was obvious that this translator really did not understand military affairs. It was true that they could airdrop 5,000 tons of ammunition in a day, but the price behind it was that the airship fleet of Shinra would have to rest and reorganize for the next few days.

There was no other reason. After the extreme flight, the airships had to be fully overhauled. Otherwise, there was the risk of turning into fireworks.

Of course, that was the airships from more than a decade ago. Now that airship technology had advanced, large transport airships could even transport hundreds of tons of resources at once.

In theory, as long as there were dozens of giant airships, they could solve the logistical problems of the Russian Army in a short time.

The prerequisite was that they did not encounter enemy planes. Otherwise, it would be a large-scale fireworks show. After the explosion, everything would be gone.

In fact, there would be more restrictions, such as high operating costs, troublesome logistical maintenance, the need for professional technical teams, and so on.

After thinking for a while, Louis said with certainty, "Good idea. I will immediately generate electricity for the country. This is another big business."

It was clear that Louis was well aware of the airship's weaknesses. Even if they created airships to transport airships, they would only be useful in the early stages. By the time the Japanese realized, they would be scrapped.

Due to the influence of the European War, airplanes entered the stage of history in advance. They were rarely used in the Russo-Japanese War, mainly because Japan and Russia were poor and could not afford to maintain an air force.

Although the price of airplanes these days was not high, that was only relative. In particular, logistical maintenance was troublesome. After every flight mission, the aircrew had to be overhauled.

The air force not only had to maintain airplanes, but also the aircrew. In other words, the cost of an airplane and its supporting facilities was much higher than an infantry battalion.

Other than the two rich countries, Shinra and Britannia, who dared to buy equipment on a large scale, even if other countries wanted to follow, they did not have the financial resources to do so.

Knowing was one thing, but this did not prevent Louis from increasing his order. One had to know that Shinra retired a large number of airships every year and was worried about not being able to find a buyer.

It was a good opportunity to sell it to the Russians for an emergency. As long as the number was not too large, he believed that the Tsarist government would be able to gather enough aircrew.