If it wasn't a loss-making business, I could find you!
You know, we in Russia have never done any business at a loss!
Even though he thought so in his heart, Count Philippe von Bruno still said with a smile on his face.
"Mr. Brino, you know that in Alaska, whether your company engages in whaling or fur hunting, you can get extremely generous returns. As long as you buy Alaska, you can monopolize the local whaling and fur industry.
"
Buy Alaska!
This was the "good deal" that Count Philipp von Bruno came to his doorstep.
Is this a "good deal"?
It certainly is for Russia.
In 1854, after the Crimean War broke out, Russia was defeated by the British and French forces and suffered heavy losses. After the old tsar died of a "stroke", Alexander II, who had just ascended the throne, was frightened by the power of Britain and France, and came up with the idea of abandoning Alaska. Alaska was just the right time.
Located next to the British colony of Canada, once a war breaks out, it will be difficult to defend it.
Although it is extremely difficult to reach Alaska from Canada by land, as long as the British are willing, they can occupy Alaska by sending only one warship. After all, there are only more than 500 Russians there, including mixed-race people.
Even the fur industry that supported the Russian American Company in the past is now suffering from losses year after year due to the sharp decrease in fur production caused by a hundred years of hunting. Without subsidies from St. Petersburg, they cannot even survive for a day.
In other words, the income from Alaska has long been insufficient.
Considering that the British can raid several Russian settlements in Alaska at any time, it is better to sell the place while it is still in their hands and exchange a few dollars to relieve the empty treasury.
You can also get rid of this burden.
But it was not easy to find a buyer. The Tsar spent a long time looking for a new buyer, but to no avail.
We need a rich man here!
But in this world, there are really not many "takeovers" who can afford to pay, and those who can still "take over" still have negative equity.
This is not a wealthy person.
What a fool! What a fool!
It’s really difficult to find such a fool around the world.
why?
Even during the Crimean War, the British did not invade Alaska. It's not that they couldn't, but they just didn't want to carry the burden.
No country wants to bear such a burden.
Because he understood the Tsar's desire to deal with the "negative equity", Count Philippe von Bruno suddenly had an idea in his mind after discovering this rich company.
Deceive this company to take over the deal.
It's him!
They are perfect takeovers. If you are stupid and have a lot of money, how can you not cheat?
"Sir, expensive whale oil is destined to be eliminated, and as far as I know, Russian American Company seems to have been losing money."
Buffett bluntly pointed out this guy's lies, but he ignored the earl's thick skin, and the other party said indifferently.
"You know, it is an official company, and corruption is inevitable, so losses are inevitable. Sir, you are a commercial company, don't you want to expand the company's territory?"
Faced with the count's question, Buffett asked rhetorically.
"The company's territory? What's the use of a big cold storage? Instead of spending money to buy that piece of ice and snow where birds don't shit, it's better to go to the Antarctic!"
As he spoke, Buffett stood up, and Count Philippe von Bruno followed suit. Just when he was about to put it on again like a dog-skin plaster, Buffett said.
"Mr. Earl, I am going to the bathroom. Do you want to go with me?"
Facts have proved that urinary escape may be the only option to deal with dog-skin plaster. After Buffett escaped by urinating, Count Philippe von Bruno, who had been waiting for him to come back, learned that he had been let go.
, but I was not discouraged.
"Let's go back to the room first, he will definitely come back!"
"Sir, it seems that Mr. Brino has no interest in Alaska at all."
Sergey Witte said.
"There seems to be no point in waiting any longer."
"Witt, the Duke asked you to come to London not just to participate in the exposition, but also to learn what diplomacy is!"
Count Philip von Bruno glanced at Sergei Witte and said.
"The most wonderful thing about negotiation is that you never know where the turning point will be, and sometimes the bargaining chips you can choose are not just the chips in front of you, but also the chips in the future."
Werther was recommended by the Minister of Transport, Duke Boblinsky, to participate in the exposition with the delegation. Although he was only fourteen years old, he was deeply admired by the count and was even selected as an attaché by the count. Of course, they never expected that this would happen.
The fourteen-year-old boy would become the most powerful minister of the Russian Empire in the late 19th century. He not only promoted the alliance between France and Russia, but also promoted the reform of the empire, and even successfully renewed the life of the empire. However, now he is just
I am just a student who has just considered attending the Department of Mathematics and Physics at Novorossiysk University.
"A bargaining chip for the future?"
Werther looked at the count in confusion.
"Witt, do you know why we're selling the old Alaska?"
Count Bruno sat on the sofa and asked.
"Is it because it has no value anymore?"
"For Russia, every land has its value!"
Count Bruno lit his cigar and said.
"But as we all know, after the Crimean War, we not only faced a serious financial crisis, but our own defense situation was also extremely weak. Not to mention Alaska, even Europe's defense was very tight. Britain only needs to launch a small expedition,
It is enough to wipe out several Russian settlements in Alaska. Now we have fallen into a state of confrontation with Britain and France. Confrontation in Alaska, which is beyond our reach, has no chance of winning and has no value. And economically, it is also
Burden of Empire."
Maintaining the empire's territory requires costs, and Alaska... has been losing money for decades. It used to rely on subsidies from St. Petersburg, but now Russia really can't afford the subsidies!
"So, there is a tendency in St. Petersburg that instead of continuing to subsidize Alaska, which has no value, it is better to subsidize other areas."
"Sir, are you talking about the Amur River (Heilongjiang) basin?"
Werther asked,
Perhaps Russia was defeated in the Crimean War, but Russia seized the opportunity of Britain and France to invade China, took advantage of the incompetence of the Qing government, and swallowed up the vast land north of Heilongjiang and east of the Ussuri River without firing a single shot.
.
"Yes, after acquiring the Amur River Basin, we can establish agricultural reclamation areas in the Far East. This marks that we may fundamentally change our disadvantages and truly become a Pacific country. The problem is that we currently have a serious shortage of human and financial resources.
!The country has just suffered a major defeat, and the defense of the Black Sea and the Baltic Sea is still tight. How can we raise enough financial resources to develop the distant Far East? In this case, we should concentrate on developing the Amur River Valley and penetrating China's Manchuria
