Emperor Tongzhi was immediately shocked. No matter how much he imagined, he would never have imagined that Benjamin would send such a gift, the actual control of the customs of the Qing Dynasty. No one could guess the huge benefits contained in it, but no one dared to deny its scale.
Zai Chun swallowed dryly, "You...are you telling the truth?" At this time, he could no longer pretend to be calm.
Gordon nodded heavily, "Your Majesty, the customs of the Qing Dynasty originally belonged to the Qing Dynasty. We in the UK obtained management rights through treaties and agreements. In fact, it was just to facilitate the trade between the Qing Dynasty and European merchants!"
"There is no doubt that the revenue from the Qing customs must be turned over to the court every year. Otherwise, who among the courtiers in the Qing Empire would know how to calculate taxes in modern commerce?"
"Overseas trade across countries is inherently very complex. We ask Hart to manage the Qing Taxation Department for the good of the Qing Dynasty!"
"Your Majesty always wants to conquer the country personally. If you want to be an emperor with real power, what can you do if you don't have money that you can control? If Hart becomes your Majesty's personal minister, then all the revenue from the Qing Customs will have to be at your Majesty's discretion. Once dispatched, you can train troops or build factories as you wish, don’t you think you can do whatever you want?”
"Of course, you are not familiar with the specific business here at the beginning. Let Hurd continue to do it. You can find a reliable and capable subordinate to cooperate, and then slowly transfer the rights..."
"Don't worry about Hurd's position. Once the Qing Dynasty decides to build the railway, Hurd will naturally have to take charge of the new business. When the time comes, your Majesty will hold the customs in your hands, and the railway will also be your huge backing. Once these two major sources of wealth are Once it's stable, Xiao Letian's little power is nothing, it's incomparable..."
Gordon kept describing the pie that Benjamin drew, while Zai Chun and the two eunuchs around him, Big and Sixi, were dumbfounded.
Only then did they understand what a railway was. It turned out that Britain was able to give up control of the entire customs for a railway. Could it be that the benefits contained in the railway were greater than the entire Qing Customs?
Zai Chun was not stupid. After thinking carefully for a while, he understood what Benjamin had planned. First of all, the Qing Customs was established with the help of the British. The system and the people who handled the specific tasks were all trained by Hurd. .
It doesn't actually matter whether Hurd is there or not. Even if he leaves the Qing Customs, he still has to operate according to the past system. According to various treaties, the tax benefits enjoyed by the British cannot be omitted at all.
Benjamin did not film Zai Chun secretly doing things at all, because the British privileges in the Qing Dynasty were not obtained through fraud, but were achieved with real swords and guns. They broke through Beijing, burned down the summer palace, and forced an emperor to death. This was Only then came the subsequent generous treaties.
If Emperor Tongzhi dared to do anything in the customs, he would have to weigh the consequences.
In other words, the British Empire did not lose any benefits if Hurd left the customs. On the contrary, Hurd's concession could be exchanged for the advancement of the railway plan. If the British controlled the railway line from Beijing to Shanghai, it would open up the All markets in the entire Central Plains.
The railway is a strategic treasure for a country. I think back then, the Japanese and Russians killed a mountain of corpses and blood on the Middle East Road, and then the Feng Feng marshal fought with the newly founded Soviet Union for this railway. A brutal bloody battle.
Rulers are absolutely determined to launch a war for the sake of railways. Railways are rivers of flowing money, and railways are the arteries through which rulers invest their control capabilities. A railway drives the development of an entire economic belt along the line.
Not only is it money, but the railway can also quickly mobilize resources and troops. Wherever there is a famine, food from the south of the Yangtze River can be transported within a few days. Wherever there is a rebellion, the railway can transport elite troops as quickly as possible.
A railway economic belt, according to the past court management model, may require 100,000 troops to maintain basic security. However, once the railway is built, the court only needs to have 30,000 to 40,000 elite troops to maneuver back and forth to control such a large area. .
If you think about it carefully, railways not only make money through open source, but also save money.
The British are the first country in the world to engage in railways. They see the benefits very clearly. They understand very well that once the railway line from Beijing to Shanghai is completed, it will be a gold mine for thousands of years.
Private logistics can make money, the imperial court can make money by mobilizing materials, and the Qing army can also make money... Moreover, the British colonial army can also quickly penetrate into the interior of China along the railway lines.
You won’t lose money on economic accounts, but you can still make money on political accounts!
"What a shrewd plan! Benjamin is generous enough!" Zai Chun thought to himself.
Zai Chun fell into a deep silence. He looked at the bait thrown by Benjamin and became entangled. Do you want to eat it? Of course I thought about it. In the past, customs revenue had to go into the national treasury and then be distributed through discussion by the entire court.
In the distribution process, the Queen Mother, the Prince, the Eight Banners nobles and the Han ministers all had the right to speak, but they did not have any right to speak.
Don't expect improvements after the personal expedition. Those greedy guys are a bunch of mad dogs trying to protect their own interests!
Now that the British have made it clear that they want to put all such huge financial resources into their own hands, this is equivalent to controlling the court's purse. Those old guys who are showing off in front of them will probably have to change their faces immediately. Come over here.
Zaichun was excited when he thought about that scene, but when he thought about the railway again, the little emperor suddenly lost his composure.
The master had already taught him the importance of the railway. The little emperor was well aware of the empire's ability to control and make money.
Let the British build railways and penetrate into the interior? Emperor Tongzhi was not happy from the bottom of his heart. He could no longer defend the coast, so he could only hold his nose and accept his fate and let the British in.
But this inland area is completely the private territory of the Qing Dynasty. If you let the British in, what will be left of the Qing Dynasty?
Gordon looked at Emperor Tongzhi's tangled expression and had no idea that this child could think so deeply, "Long live! What's there to hesitate about? The entire customs has been handed over to you, and the annual taxes are tens of millions of taels of silver!" "
Emperor Tongzhi's heart skipped a beat. What was the concept of ten million taels of silver per year? The Qing Dynasty was in a state of decline. The annual revenue of the Ministry of Household Affairs was only 50 to 60 million. This was still the amount on the books, and most of the provinces were in arrears.
Ten million taels of silver! This is cash!
Zai Chun's eyes showed greedy light.
"Well, dear, don't be anxious. Let me think about this matter carefully...it's a very important matter, so don't be careless!"
Gordon cursed in his heart, "Why do you still want to raise the price at this time? The terms Benjamin gave are already generous treatment rarely seen in the British Empire for a century. Who in other countries can have such dignity?"
"This little emperor is so shameless!"
Angry in his heart but unable to show it on his face, Gordon sighed and said in a roundabout way, "Long live my Lord! Time waits for no time... This situation has already had such favorable conditions. If it really goes wrong..."
"Haha... I can sign the treaty with Long Live Lord, but I can't sign it with other people...?"
