Persian Empire 1845

Chapter 120 Colonial Expansion
When Bahram and the Iranian army entered Saigon, the local Chinese people naturally gave them a warm welcome, while the Vietnamese looked at them in fear.

"This is really a nice place, but there are too many swamps."

At this time, Saigon was just a small city, with large swamps outside. Because of its abundant agricultural resources, it became a breeding ground for rebellions.

"My lord, after this place was occupied by the Hue court, it was originally intended to be built into another royal city, but because the local generals rebelled sixteen years ago, everything here was destroyed."

Li Cai explained the history of Saigon to Bahram, saying that the location was good and that with careful management, it would soon yield results.

"This place can serve as a market, making it convenient for people to trade. And a hotel can be built next to it."

"The dock also needs to be widened to make it easier for merchant ships to dock."

The governor began pointing out potential development opportunities around Saigon. Li Cai took notes; although it was a long process, they could invest first and then reap greater profits later.

“I think these lands can be subcontracted out. This way, we can not only recoup funds but also develop the local area.”

Bahram knew that Iran was unlikely to provide him with more funds at the moment, so he had to find a way out locally. Although the Chinese were wealthy, he couldn't simply kill and plunder them; that would be too ugly.

Therefore, generating revenue through land sales became the governor's choice, and they were probably quite happy with it.

"Sir, you really have a good eye on this place. If it is developed properly, the future profits could be ten times greater."

Li Cai noted down these lands, planning to have his family purchase them when he returned home. He also planned to bring his business partners along, as was their usual business practice.

Chinese businesses were often family-run and managed in a centralized manner, with personal relationships taking precedence over formal ones. Through trade, a trade network known as the bamboo net was formed.

The bamboo network connects Southeast Asia and the mainland, controlling the local economy through trade among Chinese communities. Li Cai, representing the Vietnamese Chinese, also demonstrated Bahram's potential; using them to govern the region could minimize local costs.

Furthermore, the Chinese wield significant economic influence over the majority Khmer population and play a crucial role in maintaining economic vitality and prosperity. If possible, they could also acquire Cambodia.

"The most important thing now is to gain formal control over this area, Muhammad. Please continue your journey north."

Bahram ordered Mohammad to continue the offensive in Vietnam, forcing Emperor Tu Duc to recognize Iran's sphere of influence, while he himself would govern the country domestically.

"Yes"

Mohammed led his army to rest here for a few days before boarding a warship and heading to Nha Trang, intending to force the locals to surrender.

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The news of the discovery of coal mines in Somalia has been confirmed. Moreover, the recoverable reserves are 610 million tons, which is undoubtedly excellent news for Iran. This allows Iran to have more resources to develop its own enterprises. To this end, Iran continues to order blast furnaces from the UK, aiming to increase its pig iron production to 50,000 tons and steel production to 15,000 tons per year.

The government is spending money like water right now. Fortunately, there are still some funds in the national treasury that can be used, otherwise we don't know what to do.

“Shah, these ores are a gift from Allah to Iran. If they can be developed, the steel mill’s production costs can be reduced by about 5%, and we can continue to increase production. Steel is needed all over the country now, and as long as construction continues, steel will always be profitable.”

After listening to the report, Naserdin asked, "What is the current economic situation in the country?"

Hussein immediately said, "Currently, both industry and commerce and trade are gradually increasing nationwide. There are 116 registered factories nationwide, and 58 of them are in Azerbaijan alone."

This situation represents a national effort for Iran, and many of these factories are small factories with fewer than 20 employees, while those with more than 1000 workers are state-owned enterprises.

If we exclude state-owned enterprises, there are only 94 privately-owned factories, with a total starting capital of just 1060 million riyals. Compared to European countries, this is incredibly small.

"Why is it only this much? Didn't they say the whole country was buying a lot of European machinery?"

“Shah, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry only counts the number of registered factories. Most of the buyers of the machines are small family workshops, which may only have one or two machines, so they are not counted as factories.”

Listening to Hussein's explanation, Nasser al-Din realized he had overestimated Iran's wealth. Even with land reform, it would take farmers several years to become prosperous.

"Under the current circumstances, the only way to support and guide people to start factories is through policy. Banks should also provide assistance. This industry should never be controlled by private individuals."

For some reason, the Shah has very strict regulations on the financial industry. He doesn't allow anyone to establish banking institutions, whereas in Europe, banks are mostly privately owned.

However, seeing the Shah's insistence, they dared not say anything more. Aside from finance, the Shah supported continuing negotiations with Britain and France on tariffs, and he began to take a hard line on colonial affairs. Profit became his primary concern.

"The first batch of teachers have completed their studies and begun teaching students various subjects, and Tehran University has also begun enrolling its first batch of students. Our investment in education is also increasing."

Secular education in Iran began with the establishment of Tabriz University and Tehran University, but it was not yet a complete separation of church and state. The religious council, represented by Fahtamirza, participated in the compilation of history and Persian language textbooks. In order to spread the message that Iran was the sole ruler of West Asia, they began to promote the Achaemenid and Sasanian dynasties, and of course, the Abbasid dynasty was also included.

Throughout West Asian history, aside from a few conflicts with the Roman Empire, the region was largely dominated by Iranians. In an effort to assimilate the Arabs and Persians, they fabricated a story claiming that the two peoples were originally one race, but were separated by a massive flood; one branch came to this region and became the Persians, while the other went to the Arabian Desert and became the Arabs.

I don't know if foreigners believe it, but this is what Iranian textbooks use. And even though people are of different races, their religions are the same. Religion can act as a glue between ethnic groups, uniting them.

However, no matter how well-compiled the textbooks are, someone still needs to understand them. For this reason, literacy campaigns and compulsory education were put on the agenda, but these two campaigns also required a large number of teachers. Therefore, teacher training colleges were the first type of college established in universities.

(End of this chapter)