Red Mansion: I am Jia Lian

Chapter 571 Focus on Development First

"When our Central Army purchases equipment, they have to pay first and then pick up the goods. But your country wants to use a piece of land with only sand as a payment method?"

Jia Lian said these words slowly and with a hint of coldness. Muhammad lowered his head quickly and dared not look at the scene. In his heart, he silently gave Ibrahim a thumbs up for his shamelessness. He was really shameless and needed the courage to say such words without fear of being beaten. No wonder he was trusted by the Pasha and given the purchasing task. He must admit that he was not as good as him in this respect.

Ibrahim showed no sign of embarrassment, but instead argued: "There are other things, such as abundant pearls and beautiful and enthusiastic Arab girls."

"Bah! A woman who wears a burqa when she goes out, and doesn't show any body, what does that have to do with passion? Forget it, you almost led me astray, let's get back to the point, you can purchase arms, but you must pay with real money. As for the supply point, your friend's ship is going to supply, how can you accept money?" Jia Lian expressed his tough stance very impolitely. There is oil in that area, but the problem is that it can't be used now. Jia Lian didn't even intend to pay for renting a place as a supply point, which was a prerequisite for arms sales, let alone using it to advance the cost of arms.

As long as the Ottoman Empire used rifled guns and could not produce them itself, it would have to continue purchasing them. In the future, perhaps it could get them for free and be appointed as a regional pasha.

Why should you pay for something that you may get for free in the future? To put it bluntly, they are willing to sell you arms only because they have a good relationship with you.

"My friend, if we just want to purchase flintlock rifles, we can buy them from Europe." Ibrahim started to talk business.

Jia Lian sneered, "Which European country has enough production capacity to meet the needs of your huge army? Austria? Britain? Or maybe some other country? No matter which country, first of all, the price is expensive, and secondly, the quality is far inferior to our products. We are willing to provide weapons to your country because we don't like Tsarist Russia. If your country cannot correctly understand the friendship between the two countries, I think the Russians are willing to use gold and silver to buy our weapons."

This time, before Ibrahim could react, Mohammed looked up in shock and exclaimed, "This is not allowed!"

Jia Lian immediately gave a teasing smile and looked at Ibrahim who had an embarrassed expression.

"Sir, please allow us to go back and discuss it." Ibrahim's face looked ugly, as if it was going to rain.

"No problem, you all need to rest in Tianjin for a few days. You two are welcome to visit us at any time." Jia Lian made a gesture, and Mohammed and Ibrahim said goodbye and left together.

Back at the inn, Ibrahim, who looked grim, was still restrained and whispered, "Can you please not speak when we discuss business in the future? Otherwise, I won't invite you next time."

Muhammad nodded honestly: "No problem, I will keep my mouth shut next time. But now..."

Ibrahim shook his head. "It's really difficult, but aren't we still discussing it? Let's work on it bit by bit. Anyway, I must try to complete the task that the Pasha has assigned to me. And we must reach a tacit understanding with Duke Jia before we arrive in the capital."

Mohammed was very smart and asked in a low voice: "Bribe?"

Ibrahim shook his head. "This is just the most basic. No one would help without benefit. The key is to understand his attitude towards Tsarist Russia. He has no shortage of money, women, honor and opportunities to prove himself. For him, this may be more attractive. Who knows? Take your time. Purchasing in full is the last option. You know, the country is not rich either."

In fact, Ibrahim was just trying to comfort Mohammed, and he had no other solution. Jia Lian was too difficult to deal with, and he had to deal with him. What was even more terrible was that Ibrahim knew very little about the information of the Zhou Empire. The last time he came, he had a brief understanding of Jia Lian's status through diplomats.

"If it doesn't work, just put it off for now. When you go back to handle the envoy procedures, you will have a chance to meet the emperor. You can try to make some small requests. I'm sure the emperor won't blame you."

Ibrahim gave a suggestion, which seemed to deny the previous words, but in fact he still held the mentality of saving as much as possible.

When doing business domestically, money is not a big deal, but in foreign trade, gold and silver are the hard currency. The nobles of the Ottoman Empire were not short of money, but the imperial treasury was short of money.

"If it really doesn't work, you can contact those tax-agricultural merchants." Mohammed made a suggestion. Now this matter is linked to his personal future, so the conflict should be put aside for the time being.

"Borrowing money from a squid is like putting a rope around your neck, and then tightening it little by little, and sooner or later you will strangle yourself." Ibrahim has an instinctive aversion to these people, but they have money.

While it was still early, Ibrahim went out again to visit Jia Lian in a private capacity.

As luck would have it, personal friendships still played a role.

Jia Lian invited him into the study. After the maid served him tea, she gestured to invite him in. "It seems that the situation in your country is not good. I think so. The era of being sandwiched between Europe and Asia and monopolizing Asian trade is over. The hundreds of years of conflict with Europe, even if it is for national interests and has the support of Austria, is because of the real contradictions between Austria and Tsarist Russia. And it seems to me that you have not learned how to deal with the Seres. Is this what you call our country?"

Ibrahim did not answer immediately, but pondered for a while before saying: "Austria's support is not in vain. The previous Pasha launched a counterattack against Tsarist Russia, and the funding gap was obtained from Austrian squid merchants at the expense of some regional tax farmers. From your country's system, it can be seen that the tax farming system is not a good system and has been abolished by you."

"What a coincidence! The tax farmer system was learned by the Mongols from Central Asia and Europe. This system is still in place in many parts of Europe, such as France and your country."

Ibrahim remained silent for a while before he spoke in a low voice: "You are right. I hate those people. They are like leeches, sucking blood from the body of the empire. But I can't tell anyone. I can only keep it in my heart."

Jia Lian smiled and said, "This is your country's problem. Our foreign policy has always been to respect each other. We have no problem doing business, but we will not interfere in your country's internal affairs. The tax farmer system has been able to continue in your country for hundreds of years, which shows that this system is suitable for your country's rough management model. In fact, our country has similar problems, but it exists in a different form. In essence, a small number of people solve the country's financial problems by exploiting the people in the west. It's just that your country relies more on this system, while our grassroots officials need to rely on gentry to solve the problem of smooth taxation."

Ibrahim looked at Jia Lian with a look that said, "You are lying to me." He said, "But there is a saying in your country: a county magistrate who ruins a family is a magistrate who destroys a clan. The grassroots government in your country can use state power to solve the problem of whether the gentry will cooperate. In our country, this is simply impossible."

"It depends on whether the country has a strong central government. Otherwise, the situation is similar in any country. The grassroots have the right to directly contact the people, and there are always ways to deceive the superiors and subordinates and profit from it."

This is the most realistic problem, which requires little by little change, and it is not even a problem that can be solved in one era. China, with a long enough history, always solves one problem and then a new one emerges. In the end, the root of all problems points to one place, grassroots power.

Don't underestimate the power of these four words. Whether a country's will can be correctly implemented depends entirely on who holds power at the grassroots level.

Jia Lian thought that this problem could not be solved. All he could do now was to develop rapidly while there was an opportunity. What the country would become in the future was a matter for the future.

If the immediate problems cannot be solved, how can we plan for the future? At this stage, the Great Zhou Empire does not even have a clear long-term development strategy. Most people are satisfied with the so-called prosperity of the present, including the emperor. Despite the emperor's firm words, Jia Lian does not believe that he is still determined to continue to implement the unified tax collection for the gentry.

"Forget it, let's not talk about this. To tell you the truth, the greatest authority I have is to agree to sell some of the latest weapons and equipment to your country. Don't even think about the payment method, just go and raise the money." Jia Lian said this in private without any pressure of conscience, he just wanted to put an end to this guy's evil ideas.

If we don't seize this opportunity to accumulate industrial capital through exclusive products, will we have to rely on our own efforts like the Republic?

No matter what the nature of future capital is, first get the capital and promote the development of the industrial revolution. In Jia Lian's era, modern history was simply unbearable to read, and it was heartbreaking to read.

Suffering is not worth singing about, it just needs to be remembered. Our ancestors said long ago that even a grudge of ten generations can still be avenged.

Jia Lian has not taken action against the laborers because he does not need to do it himself. In fact, there are already millions of laborers in the territory of the King of Dongping in the current Nurgan Dusi. These people were brought there legally through the shogunate. The price is the food produced in the Far East, as well as some local specialties such as wood and dried fish.

The good things that the King of Dongping found in Nurgandusi, such as gold, ginseng, and sable fur, were all used for purchases from the other side. This is also one of the reasons why the domestic steel industry has developed rapidly. The large demand for ironware has driven the development of the industry. The official supervision and business operation model of Zunhua Iron Factory brought a lot of tax revenue to the court. But Jia Lian didn't know what this model would eventually develop into.

He only knew that he had to develop first and then talk about it. As long as there is an industry that can bring huge profits, it will definitely give rise to new technologies. This is determined by the nature of capital.

Not to mention the faraway places, even in the rural areas around Shijingshan, the landlords are now short of tenants and can only spend a lot of money to hire farmers from farther away to farm. Of course, as a landlord, you can cheat, but you can only cheat once. Once someone gets angry and reports to the authorities, there is still the risk of being punished by the government.

This is not because the government has a change of heart, but because Shijingshan is an industry with royal genes. The emperor's spies are always seen nearby, so officials are very cautious.

Ultimately, it is still a question of information flow.

In the Internet age, many things have been exposed, and netizens are shocked and think that this country is doomed.

In fact, it is the same in any country. The difference is that if something is really exposed domestically, the relevant departments will intervene, take measures to resolve it, and give the people an explanation.

Many things have always existed, but you just can't see them. If you look through history books, you will find that many things have actually happened in history. For thousands of years, the only thing that has not changed is human nature.

As long as there is human society, there will be drawbacks brought about by human nature.

The root of most problems lies in the role the state plays in distributing benefits and whether it takes care of the majority.

Ibrahim left disappointed. After learning Jia Lian's bottom line through private contact, he had to give up using other methods to assist payment. The only thing left was the price, which still needed to be negotiated.

After returning, he communicated with Muhammad and made sure that the other party would no longer talk nonsense. The next day, the two of them started a new round of negotiations with Jia Lian.

This time, the negotiation fast-forwarded directly to the price.

Ibrahim believed that since the purchase volume was large, a discount on the price must be given, otherwise it would not be a fair deal.

Jia Lian told him straightforwardly that the fact that they could ship the latest equipment in large quantities was a good deal in itself, so he should not expect anything else and should just collect the money quickly.

Ibrahim changed his tactics again and proposed that the prices of flintlock rifles and cannons must be reduced.

Jia Lian retorted that there was no point in arguing because he could make a fuss about the price of the rifle and the revolver.

Mohammed kept his mouth shut the whole time, watching the two men arguing back and forth, and found that Jia Lian was the winner, and Ibrahim didn't say a penny.

After returning, Muhammad asked in dissatisfaction: "Why didn't you tell me a penny?"

Ibrahim told him the truth with a look of idiot in his eyes: "The price of rifled guns and revolvers will be slightly lower than that of Europeans. Do you understand? Although Lord Jia did not say it explicitly, he has already hinted wildly that we should not insist on lowering the price. In return, we will get his preferential price for new weapons."

After finishing his rest and returning to the capital, Jia Lian immediately summoned the person in charge of the arsenal and listened to the report on production capacity.

"After completing the needs of the three major camps in the capital last year, this year's production capacity is mainly provided to the two kings of the east and the west. However, their needs are not too great, and the arsenal's production capacity is not actually saturated. My lord, you are the ancestor of the arsenal. You have to take care of your own people for this order from the Ottoman Empire." Jia Lian rubbed his arms subconsciously after hearing the corny words of the person in charge.

"Stop talking nonsense. Three thousand flintlock rifles and a hundred field guns are all we have. How long will it take to complete? Give me a definite answer."

"Guns are easy to make, they can be done in two months, but cannons take half a year."

After hearing this so-called definite advice, Jia Lian decided to squeeze a little: "Too slow! Faster, the buyers are waiting for the goods. This round trip takes almost a year and a half, if it's slow, it will take two years."

"Then we can only use the stocks in the arsenal. The rifles can be provided now, but the artillery will take three months."

Jia Lian shook his head in dissatisfaction: "From the active service, give priority to satisfying the needs of customers. Let me tell you, this is a big customer, the Ottoman Empire and Tsarist Russia, and there is a fight to be had, and it may not stop for a hundred years."

"This requires the approval of the Ministry of War, otherwise we can't do it."

"Trading the old for the new, won't they be delighted?" Jia Lian asked suspiciously. The other party looked a little embarrassed, probably because they were afraid to say something.

Jia Lian frowned slightly and cursed in a low voice: "Fuck!"

Just as the White Lotus Sect was able to obtain rifled guns back then, the three major camps in the capital could also report the damage to their higher authorities, and the old cannons did not need to be taken back for recycling but could be dealt with privately.

As for who they secretly sold it to, there are many options. First of all, it was the two kings of the East and the West, and it could also be sold to the south and north of the desert, and even to Xiaozi and North Korea. As long as they were paid, these grandsons would be incredibly bold.

They don't have to pay taxes when they dispose of these old equipment.

All relevant departments are aware of this matter, but there is a tacit understanding that I know it but I won’t tell anyone.

Trade in the old for the new. Where is the old? It was scrapped long ago.

The Ukrainian military and the US military are familiar with this kind of thing.

"It's only been a few years, and they're already so blatantly colluding? The reform of the Beijing Camp led by Yue Qi is just like this?" Jia Lian was so annoyed that he didn't know what to say. With this army, can they guarantee that they won't corrupt the Shenji Camp?

It's really one crisis after another. Jia Lian's scalp is numb and he feels like he's going to explode!

Yue Qi was really caught off guard by Jia Lian's visit, and he felt a little nervous, but he still received him calmly.

After Jia Lian entered the room, he sat down with a majestic look, stared at Yue Qi and said, "Prime Minister Yue, let's discuss something!"

Yue Qi nodded: "You say!"

"The Ottoman Empire needs a large number of artillery pieces, but the arsenal's weapons warehouse is running low on inventory. How about transferring some from the army to fill the gap first and then replenish it later?"

Yue Qi's heart skipped a beat. It had only been a few years since the three major camps were separated from the hands of the old nobles and fell into the hands of a group of new nobles.

We won’t go into details about how the nobles commanded their armies, because Jia Lian, who came from an old noble family, knew it very well.

If we have to say the difference, it is the fresh blood brought in by the Royal Military Academy, but this does not mean that many old bad habits have been eliminated.

What changed with the military academy students was the composition of the officers. The biggest characteristic of these people was that they were relatively loyal to the emperor. The probability of the armies led by the generals becoming private soldiers was basically non-existent.

But what can I say? The prices in the capital are high, and it is not easy for generals to settle down and start a career in the capital.

The Beijing Army is not a navy, so it can still do some water business. They can only get a fixed salary, so there are not many ways.

In the past, it was still possible to collect empty salaries, but now the grassroots officers and some middle-level officers are all graduates of military academies. Aren't you afraid that they will complain if you collect empty salaries?

Therefore, it became a natural thing to collude with the cancellation personnel of the Ministry of War and start a side business. Everyone needs to make money and live.

When Jia Lian arrived, Yue Qi was most worried about the truth being revealed, but this couldn't be done, as something serious would happen.

As long as Jia Lian doesn't lift the lid, everything will be fine.

Yue Qi responded decisively: "No problem, I will make up the difference for you. Don't alert other departments."

The second sentence is very important. It does not mean to alarm other departments. The correct understanding is not to alarm His Majesty.

(End of this chapter)