Speaking of land reclamation, this job has a long history. The Dutch have been doing this since the 13th century. Now, one-fifth of the territory of the Netherlands is "built".

The Manhattan Peninsula is surrounded by water. Except for the Lower Town facing the New York Bay, the other directions are surrounded by the East River, the Harlem River and the Hudson River. Li Mu is the idea of ​​fighting the New York Bay. Not only is it close to the Lower Town, but the space for reclamation is also the largest. If Li Mu has the ability, it will not be a problem to create another Manhattan Island.

"Reclaiming land - in what name?" Arthur was interested in Li Mu's proposal, and it was obvious that this was a feasible strategy.

"Since you attach so much importance to public facilities, I'll build a park. Of course, you can also build a few small houses for my company." Li Mu made a good plan and built a company building in the park, which became a garden-style building, which not only created a beautiful working environment for the company, but also demonstrated the company's style near the Xiacheng District. It was really a win-win situation.

What's wrong with Rockefeller?

You should stay honestly in the steel jungle on Wall Street. The environment is definitely not as good as the Empire State Building built in the park in the future.

Morgan, what's wrong with DuPont?

Do you have the ability to turn Wall Street into a park?

If you really get what you want, then Li Mu's company will become the best company on the Manhattan Peninsula. This alone is enough to attract attention. The reason why Li Mu tried his best to squeeze into the downtown area is to seize the best resources and attract more attention.

"If you want to build a park, do you want to take over Battery Park?" Arthur finally got his head out and thought of a way to get the best of both worlds.

"Batry Park? Where is it?" Li Mu was of course interested. It sounded like an unfinished project. This project is the most oily and has similar nature to buying at the bottom.

"Bartley Park is a planned park. This plan has existed for ten years, but it has not been truly implemented-" Unlike Li Mu's expectation, this is not an unfinished project, but a project that only stays on paper and has not started construction at all: "About ten years ago, the New York City government planned to transform the fort area where Clinton Castle is located into a park, but for various reasons, this plan has not been implemented, so Clinton Castle is still an immigration center on the east coast. If you want, you can take over the project."

The Manhattan Peninsula was not just a commercial district these days. During the British-American War from 1808 to 1812, many castle and forts were built around New York City to defend against British attacks. Washington Castle was built during that period, and the word "battery" refers to the fort.

Ten years ago, before Tweed came to power, Li Mu didn't know why this plan was not implemented, it was probably related to the project budget.

Tweed is a well-known corruption criminal. Although this guy is keen on municipal engineering construction, if it is a project that has no benefits, this guy will definitely not waste his energy. The reason why Bartley Park stayed on paper for ten years is probably related to the project budget. After all, even Tweed, it is not easy to significantly improve the project budget that has been formulated.

"Fort Park - You have a good idea, but I have renovated the Fort Area. Where does my building come from?" Li Mu is not afraid of spending money, but he cannot spend money without any purpose. Since Fort Park has been on paper for ten years, the relevant design must be very complete. Every inch of land should be planned. If you can't squeeze out the construction land at that time, it would be a waste.

"There are four castle-style turrets in the fort area. Only one of the plans is to keep, which is Clinton Castle. You can demolish the other three castle turrets and build your building on the original site of the castle--"Arthur, as a local snake in New York, has a deep understanding of New York's urban planning, and it is easy for Arthur to take advantage of loopholes.

Li Mu held his chin and thought for a minute, and resolutely made a decision: "Do it, tell me, how much does it cost to open the joint?"

Li Mu was willing to go out of the way. In order to create a glamorous storefront for Junma Investment Company, Junma Weapon Company, and Times, Li Mu decided to make a bet alone.

"It can't cost much. This project is now a person who is disgusted with ghosts. The city government cannot get any oil and water and is unwilling to start construction. The citizens are looking forward to starting construction but have no ability to promote it. If you are willing to take over, about 400,000 or 500,000 US dollars should be enough. At that time, you can change the drawings at will and build the Fort Park into what you want." Seeing that Li Mu was willing to take over, Arthur breathed a sigh of relief.

As one of Grant's confidants, Arthur knew how much Grant attached to Li Mu now, so Arthur was willing to make friends with Li Mu. If Li Mu's business was big enough, then for Arthur, this would be the political resource in Arthur's hands in the future, so Arthur was willing to extend an olive branch to Li Mu now.

Of course, the more important problem is that it is impossible to use so much money to clear joints. As the person in charge, Arthur intercepted part of it as a public relations fee.

"Okay, 500,000, I'll send you the money tomorrow." Li Mu didn't feel sorry for the money. Morgan still had millions waiting for Li Mu to get it. If he spent this little money, he could win a park in Lower Manhattan, where every inch of land was valuable. This transaction was still very cost-effective.

The next morning, before sending the money, Li Mu went to the fort area to check the environment.

It's still very good. The Fort area is located at the southernmost end of the Manhattan Peninsula. Four castle-style forts are lined up, covering a total area of ​​about twenty acres. If a park is built, it is not big, but it is already very rare in the Lower Manhattan area where every inch of land is Clinton Castle on the right, which is regarded as the center of immigration. Clinton Castle is about 200 meters away from Broadway Street and no more than 600 meters away from Trinity Church and Wall Street. It is located in the core area of ​​Lower Manhattan. If a building is built here, it will be the starting point of Broadway Street and an indisputable Manhattan landmark.

In Li Mu's view, the fort area still has the possibility of expansion. After all, the fort area is near the Bay of New York. If Li Mu spends some more money and fills out a hundred-meter land, it seems not difficult to expand it by two or three times.

Of course, land reclamation will definitely increase the cost, but considering that this is the lower area of ​​Manhattan, it is worth it to increase the cost.

"It's here. I'll find a way to buy the two houses next to me and connect them together. I want to build the tallest building on the Manhattan Peninsula here. This will be the headquarters of our Junma Investment Company." Li Mu was ambitious and wanted to make a big splash in Manhattan.

"I have to say, your idea is very courageous." Grover Cleveland praised Li Mu's plan.

Grover Cleveland is now the head of the lawyer team of Junma Investment Company. Junma Investment Company's business activities must be witnessed by Grover Cleveland. Today, Li Mu will introduce Grover Cleveland and Arthur to meet. When Li Mu is not in New York in the future, if there is any problem, Li Mu will communicate with Arthur through Grover Cleveland.

"After the completion, there is a floor inside that belongs to you, and you can move your law firm here." Li Mu will invest in Grover Cleveland now. Anyway, Li Mu plans to build a high-rise building with dozens of floors. There are only a few people in Junma Investment Company, so there must be no use.

"That's great! Thank you very much, Mr. Reim." Grover Cleveland was overjoyed. As a New Yorker, Grover Cleveland knew how difficult it was to put a law firm in Manhattan.

"You're welcome. We are in the same camp now and we should help each other." Li Mu said lies with his eyes open.

In fact, Grover Cleveland is a Democratic Party, and the Republican Party where Li Mu is located is a standard hostile camp. However, this does not affect the cooperation between Li Mu and Grover Cleveland. The concept belongs to the concept and business belongs to business. Who would be unable to get along with money?

"Haha, it's my honor to be able to serve Mr. Reim." Grover Cleveland certainly wouldn't have thought that he would become president in a few years, so he is very humble now.

In order to hire Grover Cleveland, Li Mu offered Grover Cleveland a price of $5,000 per year, which does not include daily expenses. In other words, for example, the last time Grover Cleveland went to Springfield to defend Li Mu, Li Mu had to pay an extra fee.

For Li Mu, this is not a problem. It is extremely cost-effective to spend this little money to pay a future president. After Grover Cleveland enters the White House, he will easily make a business for Li Mu and Li Mu can earn all his investment.

On April 30, the 200 grassroots officers and skilled veterans requested by Li Mu arrived in New York one after another. During the two days of waiting, Li Mu ordered George Dewey to lead the officers to become familiar with the performance of new weapons, especially defensive grenades. Li Mu did not want to be injured in the battle because he was not familiar with the performance, so he would never allow it.

All Li Mu wanted were veterans, all of whom had participated in the Civil War, had rich combat experience, and was between the ages of twenty-five and thirty-five. These people were in their prime and accepted new things faster, so they were very quick to train, which surprised Li Mu.

Li Mu offered these veterans a weekly salary of 30 US dollars per week, with an annual salary of about 1,500 US dollars. In order to support these 200 people, Li Mu had to pay about 300,000 US dollars a year, which was just a salary. Considering their daily expenses, Li Mu had to pay a total of about 500,000 US dollars. This is just a normal situation. If there are casualties, Li Mu would also have to pay a pension. The amount of the pension is calculated based on the annual salary. If it is a death, it is generally a two-year salary. In other words, a person's life is worth about 3,000 US dollars this year, which is the official price.

The annual salary is 1,500 US dollars. In this era, it is high-tech, and it is no problem to support the livelihood of the whole family. Therefore, the 200 people under Li Mu have a strong desire to fight. They now want to fly to Cuba, drive the Spaniards away, and receive the final bonus as quickly as possible.

Yes, Li Mu has promised these officers that if they can help the Cubans drive away the Spaniards, each of them can receive at least one year's salary as a reward.
Chapter completed!