As soon as the figure of 50 million pounds was exported, Benjamin immediately fell silent. He frowned tightly and did not say a word for a long time.
Is the British Empire short of money? Of course there is no shortage. The Empire on which the Sun Never Sets is the richest country in the world, but being rich does not mean that the country can spend money at will.
This country is a constitutional monarchy, and this system was established by the British Civil War and the Glorious Revolution. It was the right of the bourgeoisie to organize its own army and directly merge with the feudal dynasty to fight for its rights.
In other words, the operation of power within the UK is driven by the mutual struggle of power groups composed of countless capitalists.
It is the capitalist group that controls this country, not the Queen, let alone his Prime Minister!
If what Fisher said is right, this damn war will cost more than fifty million pounds in military expenditures, then it will really be a bottomless pit!
During the First Opium War, one pound was exchanged for about 3.3 taels of Kuping silver of the Qing Dynasty. Now, decades have passed. Due to the wide opening of the Qing Dynasty's trade portal, silver flows to the Qing Dynasty, and the supply of silver in the Qing Empire's silver market is increasing.
Nowadays, the market price can be exchanged for 1:4, so this 50 million pounds is equivalent to... 200 million taels of silver!
"Oh God! How come there are so many? This is impossible, this is impossible..." Benjamin muttered to himself anxiously.
Since the Crimean War, no large-scale war has broken out in the UK, so the more than 40 million pounds spent by the UK in the Crimean War was already the limit of Parliament's imagination.
The Crimean War was fought to restrain the powerful Tsarist Russia and for the core interests of the British Empire in the Mediterranean!
Benjamin still remembered the scenes at that time. Tsarist Russia had been seeking to go to war with Turkey and occupy the strait leading to the Mediterranean. The Balkan Peninsula was also a must-win for them.
At that time, if Tsarist Russia's plan succeeded, then there would be another powerful opponent for control of the Suez Canal, and Tsarist Russia's trade would suddenly have another way to survive.
Huge cargo flows from the Black Sea to the Mediterranean, and can also go to the east through the Suez Canal, or to the west through Gibraltar. Tsarist Russia has truly become a double-headed eagle.
At that time, everyone in the UK worked together, and even ordinary miners knew that if they did not block Tsarist Russia, there would be no good fruits for Britain in the future.
All capitalists are afraid that their business interests will be challenged, and no one wants to have another competitor in the international market, let alone Tsarist Russia, a barbaric nation with Asian genes in its blood.
Genghis Khan has been dead for hundreds of years, but to this day, when people in Western Europe see Tsarist Russia, they still unconsciously think that they are descendants of the Mongols and slaves of the Golden Horde.
People who believe in Catholicism in Western Europe are almost subconsciously on guard against Russia. From the bottom of their hearts, they do not think that everyone is a family.
Therefore, the British people have no objection to blocking the expansion of Tsarist Russia, and it doesn't matter if they spend more money!
But the Chinese are not Tsarist Russia, and Xiao Letian is not the Tsar. No matter how much Benjamin hates him, he has to admit that Xiao Letian is very slippery.
He has always appeared in front of the people in Europe with a very friendly and even humble attitude. When he took Emperor Tongzhi on a trip, he held various charity activities almost every week, and he had many media bragging about him.
At the same time, Chinese food, an extremely tempting food, serves as a pioneer. As a result, the Chinese have a very good reputation in Europe.
Except for France and Tsarist Russia who hated him, other countries had no ill intentions toward Xiao Letian, and some even liked him.
Not only that, the policies designated by Xiao Letian are also very popular with liberal economists. British businessmen have never been prevented from doing business in areas controlled by the Chinese.
Even the cunning Xiao Letian opened the stocks of many good companies to the market for British capital to acquire them!
This is a smoke bomb, which makes those capitalists who believe in free economy have no hostility towards the Chinese, and even actively cooperate with the Chinese behind the scenes.
Why did Gladstone dare to contradict himself in The Times? Dare you secretly protect Xiao Letian's friends?
All this is not just Gladstone's madness. This kind of thing is actually very clear in the eyes of politicians. This is a group of forces expressing their dissatisfaction through Gladstone's mouth!
"Damn it! There is always a group of businessmen who are not patriotic, but love money! If Xiao Letian gives him a little favor, they will not be able to find him!"
"Even going against the British Empire... I'm afraid these people won't grant me funds!"
The thing is just like this. Benjamin has seen it very clearly. During the Crimean War against Tsarist Russia, Parliament could give 50 million pounds instead of 40 million pounds.
But now that the Chinese are going to be attacked, Benjamin doesn't even dare to bring a bill directly to the parliament for them to vote, and he has to resort to stratagems to hide the truth.
There is also a vicious plan to frame the blame on others, and the Chinese must fire the first shot in order to win some sympathy votes.
This is the gap, this is the shortcoming. Xiao Letian has really understood the pulse of Britain!
General Fisher looked at the Prime Minister who kept talking to himself, with an anxious look in his eyes. Of course he knew how difficult it was to allocate funds, 50 million pounds!
The British Empire's fiscal revenue in recent years has been around 250 million pounds. It is definitely difficult to allocate so much to fight a war.
But the arrow was on the string and had to be fired. Benjamin held his pipe and made up his mind, "You...don't worry about military expenses...this is what I should consider, and I will be your strong backing!"
"You just need to tell me how to fight this battle! Tell me your strategy!"
Fisher felt a little more at ease after hearing these words. He straightened his back and said, "Yes, Your Excellency! I have fully planned this expedition!"
"Our warships will pass through the Strait of Malacca and enter China's South China Sea in mid-September... I am preparing to fire the first shot in Brunei!"
"We have formulated three sets of unexpected plans... We can definitely create evidence that the Chinese are actively going to war with us. With such an excuse, we can let go of our attacks!"
"Brunei! It is the base of the emerging Chinese oil industry...cannot stay! Destroy them all, blow them up! Then go north and attack Naha!"
"Today's Chinese people don't have many industrial bases along the coast...the Northern Industrial Zone in the Bohai Bay, Kyushu Island in Fuso, Naha Island, and then the Luzon region in Borneo!"
"These are four mature industrial zones that provide more than 70% of the Chinese heavy industrial products!"
"No one can be left alive! All must be destroyed!"
