Chapter 99 Money moves people's hearts (thanks to Tianruo W
"I really didn't expect that such a situation would exist."
Carlo looked at the message sent back by Leifer and couldn't help but sigh.
That's right, Carlo saw the message Leifer sent back about Lan Fang. Some memories of his past life that he had forgotten now came to mind again.
Although there were various praises for this Chinese Republic in the past life network, in Carlo's view, Fanglan's annexation was inevitable. Without local support, overseas Chinese had no strength to resist the wolf-like tiger European colonists.
Although some people compare it to the founding of the United States, at its core, this country is more of a gathering of hometown associations for the purpose of staying together for warmth. Its interior is very narrow and exclusive (the leader can only be a person from Meizhou, and the deputy leader is a person from Dabu).
, coupled with other factors mixed in, it is impossible for Lanfang to develop and grow.
Since it was unable to grow, Lanfang seemed very isolated and helpless in front of the European colonists. Fortunately, Lanfang was still a little clever. They claimed that they were vassals of the Qing Dynasty, which was a bluff. But now the Qing Dynasty itself is in decline.
, this fake vassal state naturally cannot be its life-saving card.
So no, the Dutch took advantage of the Sino-French war to attack Lanfang on a large scale. This news was really timely for Carlo and Italy.
However, he still needs to figure out what the situation is on the ground, and the few words Leifer sent cannot be the basis for him to make a decision.
Thinking of this, Carlo summoned an attendant. "Immediately send a telegram to Minister Jaliwen in the Far East, asking him to immediately find out the relationship between Dutch Indonesia and Lanfang, and mark this telegram as urgent."
When Carlo's telegram was sent to Far East Minister Jia Liwen, the minister immediately felt that the telegram was unusual. The bright red urgent sign on it made him dare not neglect it, and immediately arranged for people to go as quickly as possible.
Inquire about Lanfang and the Dutch colonies.
Of course, it takes time to explore information, but sometimes, some assistance can speed up the progress of information exploration, such as the ability to make money.
Therefore, after Jia Liwen showed sufficient bank ability, the information he needed immediately appeared in front of him in a steady stream. Don't think that colonial officials have such high ethics nowadays. There are countless people who admire Chao's ability like crucian carp across the river.
Jia Liwen immediately organized the information and sent it back to Rome.
When Carlo got this information, he smiled. Now he needs to hold a meeting to get Italy involved.
The bright large conference hall of the palace has been rarely used, because unless a very important meeting is held, it will not be used easily. Of course, it has been closed since Carlo succeeded to the throne.
But today, when the large conference hall was used again, the maids began to clean it early in the morning, while the attendants were responsible for placing some items needed for the meeting.
By nine o'clock, everything was ready and waiting for people to come to hold a meeting.
The first person to come was the Minister of War, Admiral Saragat, and then the Minister of Navy, Admiral Golek, also arrived. Unexpectedly, the military people came so early. Then the cabinet ministers also arrived in twos and threes, and finally the Prime Minister.
Despretis arrives.
After everyone arrived, Carlo also appeared in the large conference room.
With Carlo's arrival, the discussion in the conference room stopped abruptly. Carlo was very satisfied with the effect, which at least meant that he had initially gained authority among these people.
After looking around the venue with his eyes, Carlo explained the topic of this meeting simply and clearly. "I feel sorry for everyone to attend this meeting despite their busy schedule, but because of its importance, this meeting must be held."
After briefly speaking his opening remarks, Carlo did not continue. Instead, he said to Baron Felicius Mickey on the side. "Captain of the Guard, let's begin."
"Huh!" As the curtain on the wall was pulled open, a huge map of Kalimantan appeared in front of everyone.
I saw Baron Felici holding a baton and starting to explain the situation in Kalimantan. "This map is a map of Kalimantan in Southeast Asia. Currently, the island is mainly composed of three forces. To the north are Sarawak and Brunei occupied by the British.
, to the west is the Lanfang Republic established by Chinese immigrants, while to the south and east are Dutch colonies. At present, the island..."
No one present was impatient with the captain of the guard's narration. They all listened carefully to his narration, and some people took notes from time to time. None of them were three-year-old children. Since they talked about the situation in Kalimantan at the beginning, they must
There is a reason.
Sure enough, when the captain of the guard said that Lanfang and the Dutch were currently fighting, many people had already turned their heads.
After the captain of the guard finished speaking, Carlo's speech after taking the stage further confirmed their thoughts. "This battle between Lanfang and the Dutch is an opportunity for our country."
What kind of opportunity it is? Let Carlo tell you slowly.
"As we all know, the trade volume between our country and the Chinese is increasing, and our interests in the Far East are becoming more and more important, so it is very necessary to have our own foothold in the Far East. In view of the current relations between our country and the Chinese and trade reasons, it is not necessary to
It is convenient to obtain leased land in China, so choosing around it has become inevitable. The two countries next to it, North Korea and Japan, are not suitable for various reasons. Therefore, Southeast Asia is the best choice, and since Southeast Asia has long been occupied by various countries, so
I have experienced great difficulties in getting involved, and the current war between Lanfang and the Dutch is a very good opportunity for our country."
After Carlo finished speaking, applause broke out in the conference room. Although he did not necessarily agree with the king's remarks, Italy did need a colony in the Far East.
Of course, after the applause, the next step is the question-and-answer session. Obviously, if you want to get involved, there is no room for discussion if you don’t have enough troops. Since you have to send troops, it involves expenses. All these things take time.
So Foreign Minister Bacona was the first to speak. "Your Majesty, may I ask, does your Majesty want to intervene and capture Lanfang alone?"
When asked by the Foreign Secretary, Carlo said without hesitation, "Yes, our country's strength is enough for the Dutch to withdraw from the competition rationally."
"What if they don't retreat?"
"Then we will use it as an excuse to expand the scope and expel the Dutch from Southeast Asia."
Carlo's words made many ministers' eyes light up. Even Britain and France coveted the interests of Dutch Indonesia. What a huge benefit it would be if Italy occupied it. Of course, Italy would not be able to take all of it, but it would also share some of the profits.
out, but its profits are still staggering.
"But Your Majesty has considered whether Britain and France are standing behind the Dutch?"
Bacona's words made many people wake up. Although Dutch Indonesia has huge benefits, Britain and France behind it are also difficult to deal with. What does Italy need to prevent Britain and France from intervening?
"Don't worry about this. I am prepared to use absolute strength to force the Dutch to bow. Of course, our goal this time is very clear. We only need Lanfang. At the same time, we promise the British that they will not have any influence on the Sarawak and Brunei they occupy."
Idea. Of course, the most important thing is that our country needs to have an absolute advantage in terms of theory and law, leaving the Dutch with nothing to say."
Carlo said this and glanced at everyone in the venue. "For this, I have arranged for Minister Jia Liwen to go and make preparations. The Dutch will definitely be surprised by that time."
Carlo's words made the Foreign Secretary stop asking. Although many details were still unclear, there were generally no problems.
Although the Foreign Minister had finished asking, there were still others who wanted to ask, and the Finance Minister Toston Teela stood up. "Your Majesty, you said you would suppress the Dutch with absolute strength, but I don't know how many troops you plan to send."
Strength of scale?”
Tejeira, who succeeded Sabote as Finance Minister, although he does not have too amazing abilities, his nearly twenty years of experience in the Ministry of Finance is enough to make everyone in the Ministry of Finance unable to escape his eyes, so under his control
Next, the Ministry of Finance is much better than before.
"I can answer this question."
Before Carlo could answer, the Minister of the Navy stood up and saw Admiral Gorek speak. "Our navy plans to use a fleet consisting of the Dulio, Enrico Dandolo and Francisco. It is expected that
The fleet size has reached 27 ships, with a total tonnage of 89,000 tons. In addition, we will also bring 3,000 army officers and soldiers with us."
Admiral Golec's words caused a sensation in the conference room, because the warships he reported were all new ships of the Navy that have been in service in the past ten years. It can be said that basically the best of the Italian Navy has been concentrated into this fleet. With such strength
, let alone letting the Dutch withdraw from the battle for Lanfang, even if they conquer Indonesia, there will be no problem at all. The three battleships alone have a displacement of 38,000 tons.
The finance minister was the one who was most anxious about the scale reported by Admiral Gorek, because the cost of sailing half the world for a fleet of this size was definitely not low.
"Then I would like to ask, has your military made a budget?"
"Did it."
"How much is that?"
"Just for deterrence, the cost is 60 million lire. If you fight the Dutch, it will be 250 million lire."
Upon hearing the numbers reported by the military, the discussion in the conference room became even louder.
"Snapped"
Carlo slammed the table, causing the scene to become silent immediately.
"Don't think this cost is too much. Let me give you some data. In 1880, the Dutch collected 14.2 million Dutch guilders in various taxes from Lanfang. In 1981, it was 15.2 million Dutch guilders. In 1982, it was 16.7 million Dutch guilders. In 1983, it was 16.7 million Dutch guilders.
It’s 17.4 million a year.”
Although Carlo did not say anything further, anyone could see the importance of Lanfang to the Dutch, and the Dutch were not satisfied with the tax and were ready to take over Lanfang directly.
So now the room capacity of the conference room has changed immediately, and the cost is no longer an issue. Italy cannot let go of such a place that provides the Netherlands with three to four thousand lire of wealth every year. (The exchange rate between the Dutch guilder and the lira is at 1
than about 2.2)
Sure enough, money moved people's hearts. The ministers who wanted to continue asking just now stopped asking. Then everyone was high-spirited and prepared to get the annoying Dutch out of Lanfang.
Everything at the meeting was seen by Prime Minister Despretis. He did not speak at all in this meeting, but just sat here and observed Carlo's every move.
The outcome of the meeting was not beyond his expectations. Italy couldn't wait for a colony, not to mention a rich and well-developed colony like Lanfang, which would be a fatal temptation for Binglai.
After the meeting, Despretis returned to his carriage and couldn't help but sigh. His Majesty Carlo had already shown his political charm. What should he do?
