Zhu Jingyuan's final request actually had nothing to discuss.
Wedemeyer returned again to report to Emperor Nicholas of Lucia.
First explain Daming’s requirements, and then add your own analysis and suggestions:
“The terms of the cooperation method that Daming finally proposed do not seem particularly unfair.
“The cost of oil resource extraction in the early stages is already high, and Daming actually wants to provide us with technology transfer.
“It seems quite reasonable to take more share in the first twenty years to offset the costs incurred by Ming Dynasty.
“The next twenty years will be divided into 50 and 50, and after forty years it will be regarded as the same as the production share, which seems very reasonable.
“But the problem is, although we don’t know whether there is oil under the land of the Ming Dynasty east and south of the Urals, nor do we know the amount of oil reserves on both sides.
“But according to Daming’s cooperation method, it is obviously most beneficial to Daming if the side of Daming is not developed at all.
“If the contract is signed according to the existing terms, Daming may develop passively regardless of whether there is oil on the Daming side.
“What’s more important is that even if there is no oil at all on the Ming side, and even if Ming Dynasty clearly wants to develop passively, we Lucia cannot make the same response, and we cannot develop passively.
“We need oil from the Volga region because we currently do not find enough oil resources in other regions.
“The Ming Dynasty has abundant oil resources in other regions. Even if the oil in the Ural-Volga region is completely abandoned, it will not affect the Ming Dynasty’s oil resource supply at all.
“We can’t expect more from the Ming side, and Ming is open to development and sharing with us.
“We cannot expect to encroach on Ming’s interests under any circumstances. This is an important principle at the diplomatic level today.
“So the guiding direction when we sign a cooperation treaty should be to pursue fairness as much as possible. Only fairness can prevent us from suffering big losses.
"So we should put forward a final revision request to add supplementary terms for periodic revisions to the contract."
After reading the report, Nicholas fully recognized Wedemeyer's suggestion. The goal of cooperating with Daming was not to suffer losses, so after thinking about it for a while, he replied to Wedemeyer to follow his ideas.
Two days later, Daming and Lucia met again, and Wedemeyer put forward his final proposal:
“Technology is developing extremely rapidly in today’s world, especially in internal combustion engines and petrochemical-related industries.
“At the end of the world war, we could not have imagined the state of our oil and gas turbines.
“What the world will look like ten or even twenty years from now is unimaginable now.
“So we suggest that a contract can be signed according to the current plan, but a special explanation should be added.
“After the contract is signed, revisions are revisited every ten years.
“If the development of technology and situation in the next ten years does not cause major unfairness in the original contract terms, then the revised joint species will only update the signing date and details.
“On the contrary, the clauses that cause serious injustice must be modified and a new version of the contract must be signed.
“This revised clause also urges both of us to let go of our concerns and invest as much resources and energy as possible in the in-depth development of local resources.
"If Daming is willing to cooperate with Lucia in the development of oil resources with a fair and just attitude, then we can start drafting the contract itself now."
The meaning of Wedemeyer's last sentence means that it is his last request. If Daming accepts it, he can sign the contract.
Lin Zexu did not dare to make a rash decision, so he took Wedemeyer's reply and asked Zhu Jingyuan for instructions:
“The Lucians know their position very clearly and there is no illusion of taking advantage.
“If I insist on distributing the income according to a fixed time and a fixed ratio, and do not allow subsequent supplementary amendments, then in the eyes of the Lucians, we are obviously going to develop passively.
“Unless we use force to put pressure directly, the Lucians will definitely delay and shirk the situation further.
"So the student suggested that if His Highness is not prepared to use force, then he can accept the terms of the Lucians."
After reading it, Zhu Jingyuan smiled helplessly and nodded:
"Since Lucia is so calm, then this contract can only be signed like this..."
Zhu Jingyuan then replied to Lin Zexu, asking him to accept the supplementary amendment terms.
So far, Ming and Lucia have finally reached an agreement on cooperation in the development of oil resources in the Volga-Urals region.
After Wedemeyer received Lin Zexu's response, he breathed a sigh of relief.
If Daming can accept his proposal, it shows that Daming is really willing to cooperate, rather than simply grabbing resources.
Wedemeyer's spirit relaxed:
"Thank you Daming for your understanding, then we will let the clerical staff sort out and compile the contract documents now?"
Lin Zexu nodded lightly:
"The contract shall be subject to the clear text."
Of course, Wedemeyer did not raise any objections. It is common practice to sign cross-border contracts in plain text.
Instead, Wedemeyer asked about something else:
"May I ask Mr. Lin, is it Daming Airlines that has come forward to provide technology and participate in the development?"
Lin Zexu shook his head:
"Daming Airlines will not come forward. It is Daming Royal Petroleum Company. They will contact you later."
Wedemeyer was a little surprised. This cooperation was obviously hosted by Prince Dashi, but Prince Dashi's company did not come forward.
In fact, within the Ming Dynasty, some unwritten rules have been formed in the management of the oil industry.
Judging from official regulations, Daming's oil industry is still a franchise for the time being.
At present, only the Imperial Consortium owned by the royal family, the newly established Daming Consortium owned by the imperial court, and Zhu Jingyuan's Daming Airlines are the only three companies that have the right to develop and operate.
Of course, the royal family and the court's consortium have nothing to say. They can operate any industry within the Ming Dynasty.
Daming Airlines is the most special and should not have the right to develop it.
When Daming Airlines was registered, the entire aviation industry had not yet been formed, and the management level was still very crude.
Coupled with Zhu Jingyuan's special status, he directly obtained the management rights of all aviation industry-related industries at that time.
This of course includes "aviation fuel", and aviation fuel is a petrochemical product.
As a result, Daming Airlines indirectly obtained the right to develop and operate oil resources.
Under the franchise model, licensed companies can operate.
Strictly speaking, it is not illegal for Daming Airlines, which has obtained the operating rights, to participate in the development of the oil industry in any region.
But it's also very close to a gray area.
When the imperial court is sorting out and revising the management regulations on the business scope of enterprises related to the aviation industry, it can require Daming Airlines to re-register its business scope, and at the same time revoke Daming Airlines' oil management rights.
It’s just that the Emperor of Ming Dynasty does not have this idea at present, and neither do the officials of relevant departments.
Most people think that Daming Airlines is the second royal consortium.
This is just like the Dashi Kingdom does not need to withdraw from the vassal state at all. It can be regarded as an imperial estate managed by the Prince of Dashi.
However, Zhu Jingyuan himself has high political sensitivity.
Ordinary people and officials may not care about the difference between Daming Airlines and the royal family consortium, but the royal family definitely does.
The profits from Daming Airlines are exclusive to Zhu Jingyuan and cannot be shared with other royal members at all.
Zhu Jingyuan has already received 30% of the Xintianfu royal family's dividends, which has made people jealous to the extreme. Now he is still exclusively enjoying the benefits of the oil resources of the big food country. It is impossible not to make people jealous.
Zhu Jingyuan was favored by the two emperors Zhu Zhongliang and Zhu Jianyan, and was equivalent to the most favored child in the family.
Although in this case, even if Zhu Jingyuan was acting domineering outside, there was actually nothing the other members of the royal family could do.
But that will definitely affect Zhu Jingyuan's image and reputation.
Not only will it damage your impression in the minds of your father and grandfather, but it may also cause trouble for the management of the clan in the future.
Since I have been away from home for many years, there is no guarantee that someone will not give me eye drops around my father and grandfather.
Zhu Jingyuan could not guarantee that his father and grandfather really did not doubt him at all.
At the same time, my father and grandfather may be able to invest heavily in themselves based on the experience left by Emperor Shizu, but others in the royal family and court will not.
He is regarded as the default heir by the royal family and everyone in the court. In addition to being favored by two generations of emperors, it is also very important that he has no obvious stains.
If you are favored but ignorant, others may be helpless, but you can choose not to cooperate.
Only when you are favored and sensible can you truly be popular.
Therefore, after Zhu Jingyuan took advantage of the loophole, he was very conservative in the management of Daming Airlines' business scope in the petroleum industry.
Directly developed oil resources are limited to the territory of the Great Food Country.
The oil resources in Dashi Country were already the richest in the entire Ming Dynasty, and Zhu Jingyuan was very satisfied.
Outside of the Big Food Country, Daming Airlines usually only provides technical support, and at most is responsible for exploration and drilling.
The subsequent daily mining and management work is usually left to the royal consortium.
Now there is the imperial court's official Daming Consortium.
This is the first unwritten rule in oil exploration and extraction.
Then came the development of the domain's oil resources.
Countries such as Xianbei, Kazakhstan, Khiva, and Persia are foreign vassals, and their independence and autonomy are higher than those of close vassals such as the Dashi Kingdom.
The foreign monarchs could nominally run the oil industry on their own.
Of course, the direct development profits from the oil fields located in these foreign vassals belong to the development companies.
Of course, development companies have to pay taxes, and the taxes belong to the monarch of the vassal state.
Finally, the monarch of the vassal state had to "pay tribute" to the Ming Emperor.
This tribute is not just about getting some local products. Emperor Ming after the Renwu Dynasty did not want local products.
Instead, they will ask for 10% to 30% of the local tax, depending on the actual situation.
Taken together, if a foreign vassal monarch develops oil and petroleum on his own, the Ming Emperor can only receive 10% or 20% of the taxes paid to the vassal country by the oil field development company.
Of the total revenue generated from the vassal state's oil resources, only a few percentage points may ultimately fall into the hands of the Ming emperor.
A few percentage points of income from an oil field is certainly a huge amount of wealth for ordinary people.
But for the Ming Emperor, it was very inconspicuous in the income report.
But this is only a theoretical situation.
In actual operation, when foreign vassal monarchs discover oil in their own territories, they will take the initiative to find the Ming Dynasty Royal Family Consortium, the Ming Dynasty official consortium, and the Ming Dynasty Airlines to cooperate in development.
Firstly, they are sensitive enough, and secondly, they do not have enough technology.
The royal consortium is directly involved in the development and operation of oil fields and usually takes half of the proceeds, which is equivalent to a 50% stake.
For the monarchs of the vassal states, this of course reduced a large part of their income.
But without the participation of the royal consortium, they might not be able to get half of it, and they wouldn't feel at ease if they got it.
Only by giving half of it directly to the Ming royal family can they feel at ease.
This is the second unspoken rule.
The current Volga-Ural oil and gas area is expected to cover the Ming Dynasty in Xianbei and Kazakhstan.
However, when it came to the specific cooperative development plan, the representatives of the two vassal states came to observe completely as followers.
The relationship between foreign vassals and the Ming Dynasty was theoretically realized through the loyalty of the monarchs of the vassal states to the Ming Emperor.
Therefore, the oil fields of these two vassal states were of course handled by the royal consortium, not the Ming Dynasty consortium of the Ming Dynasty.
Lin Zexu is familiar with Zhu Jingyuan's habits and fully understands Zhu Jingyuan's attitude. This is one of the many reasons why Lin Zexu follows Zhu Jingyuan, so he is now replying directly to Wedemeyer.
Although Wedemeyer was a little surprised, that was Daming's own business.
Lucia could only cooperate with whichever company Daming arranged to participate, so she didn’t ask any more questions.
The issue of oil development was basically determined, and the two main representatives, Lin Zexu and Wedemeyer, changed the topic. .
After taking a short break, they began to discuss the railway bridge on the Sinou continent, the establishment of a free trade zone along the railway, and the joint establishment of a trading company by the monarchs of multiple countries.
Compared with the issue of oil development, this final cooperation plan is relatively easier to negotiate.
It does not involve the development of specific strategic resources, and it is easier to achieve a relatively fair cooperation plan by simply cooperating at the trade level at the monarch level.
Especially when Zhu Jingyuan does not blindly pursue interests, but cares more about the cooperation itself.
However, the method of negotiation has also changed, because this is not a separate cooperation between Daming and Lucia, but Daming, as the initiator of the cooperation proposal, now invites Lucia to join.
So Lin Zexu directly took out the prepared documents and made a draft cooperation plan according to Zhu Jingyuan's wishes.
While Lin Zexu asked Wedemeyer to read the document himself, he also verbally explained the key terms:
“Initiated by the Ming Dynasty, Lucia, Prussia, and France participated in selecting appropriate railway lines to connect with each other among the east-west main railways in their respective territories.
“The Ming Dynasty chose at least four cities along its own railway lines, Lucia chose at least three cities, and Prussia and France chose at least two cities to establish free trade zones.
“His Majesty the Ming Emperor, the monarchs of Lucia, Prussia, and France jointly funded the establishment of the Shenou Royal United Trading Company to operate passenger and freight transportation and trade businesses on the corresponding railway lines.
“Trains of corresponding companies do not need to undergo border inspections when crossing national borders. Passengers and goods on board can freely get on and off in urban free trade zones established by various countries.
“Unless they leave the scope of the designated free trade zone, no visa is required for personnel activities, and no tariffs are required for goods transactions.
“But when corresponding personnel and goods leave the free trade zone and enter other areas of any country or city, they need to present official documents for inspection and pay import duties for the goods they carry.
“Individuals who go shopping in other countries’ free trade zones and purchase specific commodities below a certain quantity and amount can enjoy certain tax exemptions or tax reductions. The specific methods are negotiated and formulated by each country.
“Private merchants from the Ming Dynasty, Lucia, Prussia, and France can open wholly-owned firms and factories in free trade zones in other countries, and they will be managed by the Free Trade Company Zone Management Committee.
“Ottoman, Austria, Italy, Spain, Portugal, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and other countries can sign and join the free trade agreement according to the same standards, and the royal families of the corresponding countries can also invest in Shenou Trading Company.
"If the above countries join the agreement, Ottoman, Austria, Britain, Spain, and Italy will establish at least two urban free trade zones, and Portugal and the Netherlands will establish at least one free trade zone."
Wedemeyer listened to the explanation and looked through the documents, but found no major problems for a while.
Although this is the first time to connect transportation lines and establish a free trade zone, cooperation at various economic levels is a typical operation of Ming Dynasty in recent years.
Economic cooperation seems to be very fair. In fact, it is definitely more beneficial to Ming Dynasty. However, if other countries do not want to oppose Ming Dynasty, it is not a loss.
However, the longer the cooperation lasts and the deeper the cooperation method becomes, the more difficult it will be for other countries to oppose Ming Dynasty and break away from Ming Dynasty’s economic and trade network.
Lucia and other European and American politicians basically understand it, but in most cases they have no choice.
In Zhu Jingyuan's previous life, cooperation between Thailand and Spain was led by France and Germany.
Not only are there two leaders in this system, but there is also Britain outside the system who is causing trouble.
Therefore, even if there is no problem with Taixi's own cooperation direction, there are various problems in actual operation.
In today's world, Ming is the absolute controller and the only single superpower.
Ming Dynasty took the initiative to promote cooperation with other countries, which would certainly be much easier than the cooperation between the European and Western countries in Zhu Jingyuan's previous life.
Time was tight yesterday, and the last paragraph was a bit messy. After updating due to stuck time, I went back and rewrote the last thousand or so words, and added a few hundred more words.
Friends who were following the update at that time can take a look back to confirm whether the version they watched yesterday was the latest version.
(End of chapter)
