Chapter 1943, the bottleneck of the Western United Firm
The Governor's Palace of Ceylon built halfway up the mountain is extremely luxurious and large. It was mainly built during the time of the first Governor Hu Xian.
Later, Hu Xian was not willing to lose the position and power of the governor, so he also led the Hu family to try to monopolize the entire Western United Trading Company. As a result, he was punished by many owners. Not only did he end up with a different body and head, but also the original
The Hu family, a wealthy family in the south of the Yangtze River, also declined together.
However, the luxurious Governor's Mansion that he led and built has always been preserved, and it has always been the residence of the Governor of Ceylon. The subsequent Governors of Ceylon also worked and lived here.
At this time, the current Governor of Ceylon, Zhu Benduan, was thinking about the Western United Trading Company with a frown on his face.
The Western United Trading Company has developed to its current level. It has become an independent country, but it is not an independent country.
Because there are many owners behind it, Xiyang United Trading Company needs to pay dividends to its owners every year. This also means that the huge wealth earned by Xiyang United Trading Company every year is basically impossible to retain by itself. Most of the wealth is
It is to distribute dividends to shareholders.
The impact and results are very far-reaching.
Although the city of Ceylon is getting bigger and bigger, the more it is built, the more prosperous it is, and its commerce is extremely developed, but in the entire huge Western United Trading Company colony, only this city of Ceylon is prosperous and lively.
Other places are still not much different from before. They are still extremely backward, especially the local indigenous people in Tianzhu. Although these indigenous people are relatively comfortable with the current situation, they are very simple to rule. There is no need to worry about them rebelling or anything.
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Under the long-term caste system, they were content with their situation and accepted exploitation and oppression. In addition, the exploitation and oppression of the Western United Trading Company itself was much lighter than before, which also led to the local
The indigenous people had no objections to the rule of the Western United Trading Company and had no intention of resisting.
However, the number of these indigenous people is huge, but they are hugely different from the Ming people in terms of culture, thought, education, religion, etc.
Deep-rooted and huge differences cannot be corrected by fundamental changes.
The rapid development of the Western United Trading Company was not actually dependent on these local indigenous people, but on immigrants from the Ming Dynasty.
The reason why Ceylon Island became the current Ceylon Island is because basically all the indigenous people on Ceylon Island were killed by the Western United Trading Company and expelled to the mainland of Tianzhu.
The entire island of Ceylon is almost inhabited by people from the Ming Dynasty, which is why the construction and development of the island of Ceylon can be so rapid.
In other parts of the Western United Trading Colony, the southern and eastern areas of the Tianzhu continent, these areas are vast and have a large population, but they have never been able to develop.
The Western United Trading Company could only establish plantations one after another, specifically to grow sugar cane, cotton, tea, spices, grain, etc. Other than that, any other attempts ended in failure.
The people of Ming Dynasty can rule here, but it is difficult to promote the development here.
In recent years, the development of Western United Commercial Bank has begun to enter a period of slowdown, or even a period of regression.
With the development of other vassal states and colonies, the profits of traditional cotton cultivation, sugar industry, spice industry, and tea industry began to become lower and lower, and prices dropped sharply.
This has also greatly affected the revenue of Western United Trading Company in recent years, which has dropped a lot. This has also caused Zhu Benduan to be questioned and distrusted by his bosses, and it is estimated that it will be a problem for him to be re-elected as governor.
Fortunately, the city of Ceylon is developing rapidly, and business transactions are very developed. The Western United Commercial Bank has made a lot of money just by collecting taxes from it. The development of Ceylon City has made up for part of the decline. Otherwise, I would have doubted myself now.
They may all be impeached.
"Traditional agriculture is no longer viable. Even if competition is fierce, competition in industrial products is also extremely fierce."
"The price of cloth has been falling, and the trouble is that we have a large number of cotton plantations, and the cotton grown is directly supplied to colonial factories, so we are not afraid of price competition. However, the price has been falling, and the income has been getting lower and lower.
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"On the contrary, the price of steel has always been relatively affordable, but the production of steel requires large-scale iron mines. Currently, no good iron mines have been found on the Tianzhu continent."
"The sales of cement are also very strong, but the increase in production has always been a problem, and I don't know how it is done in the South African colonies."
"Why do they export a large amount of steel and cement every year, and the prices are lower than ours."
I wish you to think carefully.
He originally thought that the Governor of Ceylon was a very good person, but after he actually sat in this position, he realized that this Governor was not that easy to be.
Not to mention being subject to the constraints and supervision of shareholders at every turn, this Western United Trading Company is such a huge colony, and there are many things to worry about. The most important thing is that it is really difficult to develop well. You must serve the shareholders
We must consider our interests and bring sufficient returns to shareholders every year.
"Having a large amount of wealth handed over to shareholders every year also makes us, Western United Commercial Bank, always lack of funds for the development of the company. If we can keep some funds, we can also expand our production capacity through investment."
"This South African colony can develop rapidly not because the owners behind it are willing to invest in it. They invest year after year, and now the gap is out."
"Colonial South Africa is getting better and better every year, but we are stuck in a state of stagnant development."
Zhu Benduan looked at the map and focused on the South African colony. Originally, the conditions of the two colonies were similar. However, as time went by, the South African colony began to develop rapidly and gradually became more powerful.
The gap between the Western United Trading Company and the southern colonies is also getting wider and wider.
"What is the reason that makes the gap between us wider and wider?"
Zhu Benduan has never figured it out. Obviously, the Western United Trading Company was better than the South African Colony at the beginning. In fact, at the beginning, the Western Union Trading Company developed better and faster than the South African Colony.
Relying on the large amount of cheap labor and slaves in Tianzhu, the Western United Trading Company initially developed very well. However, because the South African colony only used the traditions of the Ming people, it initially faced a serious shortage of labor and slow development.
But now, the situation is reversed. They are developing rapidly, but their own side has fallen into a stagnant state, with weak development and even regression.
This is something that the bosses behind him, the governor, cannot tolerate.
We must find a way to make Western Union Corporation make more money and develop better.
"Governor, there is a young man named Liu Da outside asking for an audience. This is his invitation."
While Zhu Benduan was thinking, someone came over with a greeting card and asked for instructions.
"Liu Da?"
"I've never heard of it."
Zhu Benduan originally wanted to just disappear, but when he saw the picture on the greeting card, he quickly opened it.
"He is actually the Duke of Liao and the son of the Liu Jin family, the chief minister of the cabinet."
If you look carefully at the pictures above, you can confirm that these are the family emblems of the Duke of Liao and the chief minister of the cabinet Liu Jin. Family emblems were not popular in the Ming Dynasty originally, but later with the development of maritime trade, colonialism, and capitalism,
In order to make it easier for people to identify, it gradually became popular.
Every business has its own logo, and every factory and workshop also has its own logo. This logo is equivalent to a brand and trademark, which people can recognize at a glance.
Later, gradually, large and small families in the Ming Dynasty also designed their own family emblems one after another. The unique family emblem can make people know at once which family they are, the children, the industry, etc.
In addition, these vassal states and colonies outside the Ming Dynasty also have their own symbols, badges, patterns, etc. The flags of the vassal states are basically dragon flags, but they differ in color and the number of dragon claws.
"Invite him to the study."
After thinking about it, Zhu Benduan was also preparing to meet Liu Da, the son of the Duke of Liao and the chief minister of the cabinet. This time he came to the Western United Trading Company, maybe there was something important.
This Liu Jin is one of the major shareholders of the Western United Trading Company and has a great say. In addition, the British Duke, Cheng Guogong, Ding Guogong, etc. who wear the same pants as Liu Jin can even be dismissed directly.
It's okay for me to be a governor myself.
The main shareholders who formed the Western United Trading Company at the beginning were these princes who were considered the capital of the north. The Zhu family of Zhu Benduan, the Feng family of Feng Xiang, the Li family of Li Chun, a businessman from all over the world, Wei Guogong, and the Hu family who were destroyed by everyone's joint efforts.
Other southern families are considered the capital of the south.
Originally, Southern Capital still had a larger share between the two parties, but the Hu family was wiped out, and its shares were held by Shouning Hou, Jianchang Hou, and Ning Wang. This has brought about a wonderful change.
The capital share of the North will exceed that of the South.
Of course, the main reason is that Liu Jin's influence is large enough. With his words, there must be many people supporting him. He is not doing well now, and everyone has already criticized him. Will the next one continue to be the governor?
It's still unknown.
At this juncture, Liu Da came here. No one knew whether he came with any purpose. He must meet him, and his purpose must be found out.
Does this mean that Liu Jin came to the Western United Commercial Bank to remove him? Or does it mean that he also wants to work and hold a position in the Western United Commercial Bank?
Soon, Zhu Benduan came to his study room. As soon as he entered the study room, he saw Liu Da sitting and drinking tea. His eyes could not help but widen slightly.
"It's so similar. He is exactly the same as Liu Gong!"
PS: Do you think a colonial trading house like the Western Union Trading Company should focus on making money, or should it focus on running a place?