The sun never sets in America

Chapter 203 Rubber Storm: Contradiction

The Brazilian Empire…

Twenty-five years have passed since the independence of the Brazilian Empire, Prince Pedro, the first Emperor of the Brazilian Empire, and it is now in its twenty-sixth year.

After Dro II came to the throne, he immediately abolished the federal system, re-established a centralized government, and strengthened control over the provinces. In the first few years, republicans opposed the monarchy and launched another riot, but they were quickly suppressed. Soon after, Pedro accelerated his centralization of power. He used the power granted by the constitution to dissolve the lower house, where liberals had a majority, and re-elected conservative members to suppress the power of liberals. In addition, he pardoned the sentences of rebels in various provinces, but also deported them to resolve domestic opposition.

It can be said that in a strict sense, Pedro II is definitely a qualified monarch. Of course, this is based on the average level of the empire.

His reign was also relatively long among previous emperors. If we count Pedro II from the time he ascended the throne in 1840 to the time he was overthrown and fled abroad in 1889, in general, he can definitely be considered a conservative king.

Even judging from his future land reform, depriving illegally occupied land, and developing industry, especially military industry, Pedro II is definitely considered a good one and has the talent to kill the monarch.

If it had been another person, he might have been ousted by the big aristocrats and big landowners with vested interests in the first land reform bill.

And his subsequent liberation of the slaves seriously harmed the interests of the large farmers in the Brazilian Empire. If you include the wars with the territorial countries and internal rebellions under his rule, Pedro II Being able to maintain a stable position for forty-nine years, nearly fifty years, is no simple matter.

Whatever Pedro II did, put it elsewhere, not to mention serious damage, it would still be broken and the country would be in chaos.

But Pedro II was forced to live under his flexible and effective iron-fisted rule. He was not kicked out until he was old. It must be said that Pedro II did have a hand! !

If it were based on the original time and space, Pedro II should be concentrating on the so-called reforms in Brazil and then playing games with the opposition.

It's just that in this time and space, the reforms have changed, but the first to encounter trouble was the Han State, which had never had direct contact.

The reason for this is that in the past few years, Pedro II has been vigorously carrying out land liquidation across the country, euphemistically called measuring the country's land.

In fact, it is to thoroughly investigate those hidden areas and hidden number of plantations.

So as to prepare for the next step of taxation and recovery.

In response to Pedro II's blatant infringement of the interests of Brazil's powerful people, there was a fierce resistance below. However, Pedro II's methods were superb enough and he had a firm control of the army, so he did not cause major chaos in Brazil. Let the Brazilian dignitaries who were waiting to see the joke be surprised.

Just when the Qingzhang Land was about to end, a piece of news came overwhelmingly.

The content refers directly to one thing, rubber! !

Brazilians are actually no strangers to rubber. After all, the first recognized rubber tree in the world was discovered in Brazil.

Later, under the leadership of the Han Dynasty, the global rubber industry rose rapidly. The rubber output value increased from a few million yuan at the beginning to a giant industry with a global scale of more than [-] million yuan.

Among them, Han Guo alone accounted for [-] million yuan in rubber output value.

Half of Han's rubber comes from Brazil, two-thirds comes from Central America, and the remaining one-third is domestic.

It can be said that without Brazilian rubber, Han's rubber industry would have to shrink by [-]%, causing annual economic losses of nearly [-] million yuan. If coupled with the growing global rubber output every year, Han's losses will be impossible to estimate in numbers.

And these are fatal, especially for the booming rubber industry in Han Dynasty. Brazilian rubber can be described as the lifeline of the industry without exaggeration.

For Brazilians, it is a different situation. The weekly newspaper of Sao Paulo, the capital of Brazil, once commented like this:

"Rubber is a precious green gold on the territory of the Brazilian Empire, but now this gold does not belong to Brazilians, but to another country, a completely pagan country. This country relied on violence and conspiracy to seize the The wealth of the Brazilian Empire, and then pretending that nothing happened, transporting our wealth to their country over and over again, using Brazil’s wealth to feed their citizens..."

"And what they left behind to Brazil, the rubber processing factory in Rio de Janeiro, those Han Chinese often mentioned how they helped Brazilians find jobs and develop the economy, but they never said that that wealth was originally ours and belonged to our country. Belongs to Brazilians!!”

This article was published on the front page of the capital newspaper just two weeks ago. Because of this article, many vicious incidents occurred in many places in Brazil, attacking Han people, especially Han businessmen, resulting in three deaths. , seven people were injured.

After the incident, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs immediately sent a diplomatic summons to the Brazilian Empire, demanding compensation and an apology.

The Brazilians naturally disagreed, so they kept arguing for more than a week until the rubber factory arson incident occurred last Tuesday, which completely detonated the relationship between Brazil and China.

At the diplomatic level, there was a wave of verbal exchanges between the two sides.

First, Han asked Brazil to formally issue a written apology and compensation, and to bring those behind the scenes to justice.

Then Brazil refuted it, believing that the incident was just an accident, and that Han's actions were a bit fussy, and also questioned the outflow of rubber resources in Brazil.

And a huge tax of [-]% should be levied on rubber in Brazil to ensure the national interests of the Brazilian Empire.

In addition, the Brazilian Congress also proposed the so-called rubber resources nationalization bill, which would unconditionally take back the rubber industry and natural rubber forests controlled by foreign countries and develop Brazil's own rubber industry.

Naturally, Han could not turn a blind eye to Brazil's almost robbery. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned the Brazilian minister to Han five times in a row. This was unique in the entire diplomatic history of Han, and could even be said to be unprecedented.

Brazil is constantly making so-called just defenses in this regard, that is, everything Brazil does is legal and in line with current international norms, and Brazil is exercising its legal and compliant national rights.

They even hired so-called European reporters to report on it, and also spent a lot of propaganda funds in Europe to promote the Han's bullying of Brazil, emphasizing the origins of the Han's pagan country. Of course, there were no white people in it, because at this time The Han Kingdom is a recognized white country. From this, we can see that Brazil is trying to use the power of the entire Western world to make the Han Kingdom surrender.

The real conflict between Brazil and China is not a fire in a rubber factory or an attack on Han businessmen, nor is it a so-called diplomatic conflict, but is caused by the economic conflict between the two countries.

Han State used Brazilian rubber raw materials to develop a rubber industry chain with an annual output value of more than [-] million, creating employment for hundreds of thousands of people and involving hundreds of industrial sectors. It can be said that it has gained huge economic and national development benefits.

And what Brazil has gained is nothing except an extra four to five million in tariffs every year.

Seeing their own country's resources being used by other countries, it would be strange for Brazilians to be able to endure it, which later led to the Han-Ba conflict.

And if this economic contradiction is superimposed on the land contradiction caused by Pedro II's land reform, Brazil is already sitting on a cannon launcher.

The fuse has been lit and it is impossible not to fire.

However, there are still some people in Brazil who are unwilling to let this artillery shell be launched that may destroy the entire Brazilian Empire.

This man is the second emperor of the Brazilian Empire, Pedro II! !

…………

São Paulo was the capital of the Brazilian Empire since its founding by Pedro I.

This was the first city built by the Portuguese after they landed, so much so that it was named after the Saint.

In Western culture, saint is a word that represents God and Western religious culture. It is generally used for cities or historical celebrities.

For example, St. Petersburg in Russia, Joan of Arc, the Knights Templar, etc.

Sao Paulo is such a city with a long history, and it is also the capital of the Brazilian Empire, the largest empire in South America and even the most extensive in the Americas. (Han is also known as the Empire to the outside world, but it is not as big as Brazil, so it can only be ranked second, but the real situation is that it is first)

For the establishment of the Brazilian Empire in the [-]s, this was also the center of the entire empire. Every political order issued by the empire had to be transmitted from here. This is the real heart of Brazil.

The city of Sao Paulo is a city with a typical Iberian Peninsula, or Portuguese flavor, with various Western-style statues and two-story buildings. The Roman columns of the buildings are carved with regiments symbolizing Christianity.

Most of the streets are cafes. Brazil is a country that produces coffee. Because it is located on the Brazilian Plateau, more than half of the country's territory is the Amazon rainforest. The climate is very suitable for growing coffee. In later generations, Brazil became a major coffee exporter. It’s just that in the end, the Brazilian president cried and complained that Brazilians couldn’t drink coffee.

In fact, the seeds of all the contradictions in Brazil in later generations were already planted during this period.

On the high hill of St. Paul, there are not only solemn churches, but also a large number of chaotic slums.

Slums in South America, or slums throughout Latin America, are the same, built on high places and on slopes.

That is to say, these lands are not suitable for farming in the traditional sense.

As for the land suitable for planting, sorry, it belongs to the nobles and farmers. If you come to their home, it is illegal, and they have the right to evict you with guns.

Later in Argentina, there were even so-called farmers whose families were too big and built a road by themselves. In fact, this situation is very common throughout South America.

Because the independence of South America is actually a kind of independence that is conciliatory and compromised.

The local people just muddleheadedly accepted the legacy of the two colonial empires, Spain and Portugal, and then continued to rule according to the original method without changing the methods.

How much tax was paid in the beginning and how much is still paid now? The land is still a confused account, and the basic default is that whoever grabs it belongs to whom.

Moreover, land property rights are extremely complicated. Basically, the local nobles say which piece of land belongs to their family and which piece belongs to others, and the local people believe it.

Moreover, the so-called land deed was also given, further providing a strong legal endorsement of the land monopoly.

Brazil is such a former colonial country. From a legal point of view, it is an independent country, but from a practical point of view, it is a country co-governed by the emperor and the great nobles.

It's just that the emperor's authority temporarily overwhelms the rights of local nobles, but this is temporary. Once there are problems with Pedro II's rule, the contradictions that were once covered up will fully explode. This is what Brazil is currently doing. The most realistic situation! !

No one understood these situations better than Pedro II, so he carried out land liquidation and carried out a series of internal rights reforms in the country.

It was all about changing the country, the mind-numbing status quo of the entire Brazilian empire.

.............................................

Saint Paul, Royal Palace…

This is a palace built by Pedro I, the first emperor of the Brazilian Empire. In later generations, such a palace no longer exists.

Even the last wreckage has disappeared.

But now, this magnificent palace still stands in Brazil, in the Brazilian Empire, in the heart of this country, Sao Paulo! !

In the palace, Pedro II was taking a walk. Pedro II was walking in the garden of the palace with a beard. Compared to him decades later, his beard at this time was not that big.

Pedro II walked on the stone slabs in the garden with a sad face. The mottled stone slabs reminded him that these were the slabs that his father, Pedro I, had stepped on.

Looking at the various flowers in the garden, Pedro II was not in such a good mood to enjoy the flowers at the moment.

Yesterday the Han minister asked again to meet with him, but he once again refused.

The reason for this is that there are countless pairs of eyes in Brazil staring at him at this moment, staring at every move in the palace. Once he summons the Han minister into the palace, what does it mean? From the outside, this is his The Emperor of Brazil's submission to the Han Kingdom was an insult to the dignity of the Brazilian Empire.

In such a troubled time with conflicts between Brazil and China and domestic reforms, Pedro II did not want to get involved in any related negative news.

For Pedro II, the best way to cool down the matter is to cool down the situation, that is, Han will no longer be held responsible, and Brazil will not threaten Han with tariffs and withdrawal of rubber resources. It is best to maintain a certain degree of cooperation between the two countries. This is what Pedro II most wants to see.

Therefore, under his operation, there were constant calls and votes in Congress to oppose the imposition of rubber taxes. It can be said that China and Brazil did not directly fall out, and Pedro II should be the first to take the credit.

But just like the famous saying, no one can truly master everything in the world, Pedro II cannot fully master it all.

Domestic sentiment against Han's occupation of Brazil's rubber resources has reached its peak, and some people even directly shouted out among the demonstrators:

"Expell the Han minister and take back the rubber belonging to the Brazilian Empire!!"

If this is just a private situation, then that's it. The key point is that a large number of people in Brazil's ruling group are dissatisfied with Han's control of Brazil's rubber resources.

They are basically plantation owners and financial capitalists. This group of people is most disgusted with Han's control of Brazilian rubber resources.

The former is due to the coveting of natural rubber forests. After all, it takes seven years for a rubber tree to mature. This period of time is too long, and plantation owners who like to make quick money can't stand it.

In this way, taking advantage of the rubber resources in the hands of Han merchants became an inevitable choice for them.

The financial capitalists are because of rubber futures. As we all know, in today's financial market, everything can be futures.

There is a futures exchange in the Xijing Financial Market, which is about to open in Han Dynasty.

These are divided into rubber, sugar, steel, grain, coal and other futures that are related to the lifeblood of Han Dynasty.

Brazil also has rubber futures, and they even opened earlier than the Han people. But the biggest trouble is that once the futures are available, who will hold the goods? The Han people.

This is troublesome. If those Han people are unwilling to participate in rubber futures trading, it will be a disaster for the financial vampires in Brazil.

After all, the rubber resources in their hands alone cannot represent the market at all. As long as the Han people have a little manipulation, their rubber futures relying on Brazilian rubber will not be able to continue.

Brazilian financial capitalists have tried to win over local Chinese businessmen who control rubber, hoping that they can participate in this new game and make money together in the financial market.

Objectively speaking, some individuals were moved, but most people, especially Hanguo Rubber Company, a giant state-owned enterprise, ignored it, which resulted in the complete bankruptcy of the other party's rubber futures plan.

Coupled with the news that Han was going to engage in rubber futures, the people in Brazil immediately exploded.

Good guy, use our Brazilian resources to enrich the Han people. We Brazilians can't even smell it. It would be strange if those self-esteemed vampires in Brazil don't blow up the pot.

If we add in those Brazilian emerging industry capitalists who also covet huge profits from the rubber industry, Brazil’s domestic dissatisfaction with reports on Han has gone from dissatisfaction to naked hostility now.

It's all because of rubber, it's all because of money! !

And when Pedro refused the Han minister's request for a meeting for the third time, Brazil and Han's relationship was not far from breaking up.

Pedro stood on the huge map of America and stared at the country of Han, a country that had been accompanied by bloody storms since its birth. Finally, Pedro turned his attention to the location of the United States and British Canada.

His eyes kept flickering, and he didn’t know what he was thinking! !

The storm between Brazil and China is like the tornado produced by butterflies in the Amazon rainforest, unstoppable and unavoidable! !

　Ask for a reward, ask for a monthly ticket

　　

　

(End of this chapter)