Su Shu returned to the Golden City from the farm and met Staff Officer Cao Zhengyuan.
He immediately stepped forward and couldn't help but sigh: "America is truly a chosen land. The empire has experienced thousands of years of cultivation, and the fertility of the land has long been exhausted.
It's different here in the Americas, where a lot of black soil is very fertile.
Zhao Guo only grows ordinary corn seeds here, and the yield per acre of land is higher than the yield of domestic land using carefully selected seeds and chemical fertilizers. "
Su Shu couldn't understand why his father entrusted such a good land to others.
These lands are directly managed by the empire and will generate more benefits.
He then figured out that the empire itself was too far away from the American continent.
Even a steam-powered ship would take more than a year to make a trip.
If the empire wanted to govern the American continent, it could only appoint ministers to manage it.
These days, where the emperor is far away, as time goes by, they will inevitably become alienated from the empire.
Before the empire has perfect governance methods, it will directly manage these overseas places, so it will not have more energy to capture the territories surrounding the empire.
During the Warring States Period, the strategy of establishing distant relations and close attacks was proposed.
Su Shu could also understand his father's plans from the layout of the vassal states in the American continent, and tried his best to prevent the American continent from being dominated by one family.
The forces of the vassal states were intertwined with each other, and they also competed with the Western colonists for the American continent.
When Chief of Staff Cao Zhengyuan heard Su Shu's emotion, he waved his hand and said: "Your Highness, you cannot compare your own shortcomings with the enemy's strong points.
After thousands of years of farming in the empire, the Chinese civilization and the Han people were formed.
We have moments of glory and moments of decline, but we have always been able to endure for a long time because we rely on the cohesion of civilization.
Now the empire has realized the problem of land consumption.
The empire increased its immigration to overseas provinces, and the four major food-producing areas were Cochin, Siam, Burma, and East India.
The annual rice production of these four major provinces is enough for everyone in the empire.
The barren land in the empire has now adopted a rotational farming model to conserve soil fertility.
One year of growing grain, another year of legumes, and another year of fallow.
All the surrounding people moved out of the land that was not suitable for farming. "
Chief of Staff Cao Zhengyuan introduced the agricultural situation of the empire.
His knowledge, even in unrelated fields, would still be no problem in teaching Su Shu.
Chief of Staff Cao Zhengyuan changed his tune and said: "Your Highness, I have been collecting intelligence in Golden City during this period, and I know the basic situation of the American continent.
If you look at the American continent, the mountains are all vertical, and there is no mountain barrier in the middle of the American continent.
Every heavy rain and snowstorm coming from the north can blow from north to south.
Agriculture is extremely dependent on climate, and the American continent will encounter major natural disasters every few years.
As a result, agricultural crops here have failed.
This is why the American continent is still dominated by tribes and has not formed a country.
They simply do not have enough background to make the transition from tribe to country.
And we have completed this process as early as the Xia Dynasty.
Zhao Guo can easily gain a foothold in the American continent because he has the support of the empire behind him.
Even if Zhao's agriculture collapses, they can still survive. "
Su Shu listened to Cao Zhengyuan's introduction, his eyes widened and he couldn't believe it.
He thought carefully for a while based on Cao Zhengyuan's thinking, and found that it was indeed the case.
The American continent was truly a chosen land, so it was impossible for him to fail to form a complete country within thousands of years.
This is an undeveloped land. To turn it into fertile soil, a lot of resources must be invested.
…………………………
Su Shu's stay in Golden City has reached its last moment.
How long they will stay depends on when the engineers will complete the fleet's maintenance work.
Are there any major problems with the fleet's warships and cargo ships?
If the fleet's warships need to replace important parts, they will have to stay for a long time.
The warships in the fleet only replace regular wear and tear parts, and it only takes about half a month for them to set off again.
When Su Shu was about to leave, he met with the empire's business representatives in Golden City.
If a merchant takes a North American route, the value of the goods can double.
Without this profit, these people would not risk the ship sinking.
Instead of taking the safe Nanyang route, we will take the dangerous Pacific route.
Su Shu asked the merchant: "You travel between the empire and North America. What difficulties do you encounter in doing business here?
You can talk to me about some uncomplicated problems and I should be able to help you solve them. "
Su Shu did this to build his reputation and show to the outside world that he valued businessmen.
He knew that domestic businessmen had been worried about the next generation of emperors, who would resume the policy of focusing on agriculture and suppressing business.
The power of the merchants may not seem great, but if they are determined to cause trouble, Su Shu will be in trouble.
Before Su Shu ascends the throne, he must have more friends and fewer enemies.
He wasn't just talking about things that businessmen couldn't solve despite all their efforts.
Most likely, for Su Shu, it was just a matter of words.
Jin Xiwen, president of the Dahua Chamber of Commerce in Zhao State, heard Su Shu say this.
He stood up excitedly and said with a trembling voice: "Your Highness said so, then I will raise two difficult problems we encountered.
On behalf of all the merchants of the Chamber of Commerce, I would like to express my gratitude to Your Highness for being able to solve a difficult problem.
The first problem is that Zhao State often changes its orders from morning to night.
It takes more than a year for the two countries to go back and forth.
We return to the empire, purchase goods, and then return to Zhao.
The tariffs on goods have changed. Some goods have been classified as contraband and the ship has been detained directly.
We won’t complain about the price issue. In doing business, there are losses and profits. If we can’t see the future trend clearly, we deserve to lose money.
However, Zhao Guo's changes in orders every day have caused headaches for everyone in our Chamber of Commerce.
We don’t expect Zhao to change the law, because he doesn’t understand the law, which leads to breaking the law.
Can goods be confiscated and merchants imprisoned?
Even if it means deportation, we can accept it. "
When Su Shu heard the merchants' request, he said in a relaxed tone: "I will communicate with Duke Su Jinghong and let Zhao Guo handle it properly.
I will also remind ambassadors to help businessmen who encounter difficulties.
If you have really violated local laws, the embassy will not intervene. It will only assist you if you are wronged. "
Jin Xiwen immediately took all the merchants from the chamber of commerce and bowed to Su Shu.
After he saluted, he asked the second problem.
“Your Highness, the Pacific route is extremely risky. Encountering strong winds and waves, the cargo ship sank directly in the ocean.
The ship's cargo, including the sailors, will be lost.
No matter how wealthy the Chamber of Commerce is, it cannot withstand a few times of this kind of torment.
At first, there were a large number of businessmen who wanted to go to the American continent to do business, but now we are the only ones left. "
Su Shu thought about this problem. It was indeed an extremely difficult problem.
He can't think of a solution, but saying so directly would be detrimental to his reputation.
“President Jin, the empire’s maritime trade has not developed very recently, and many systems are imperfect.
The Western navigation industry developed earlier than ours. Their shipbuilding technology at that time was far inferior to ours, and the losses would be even greater.
How did the West solve this problem back then? Did they also let each chamber of commerce take responsibility for its own profits and losses? "
After hearing this, President Jin Xiwen’s eyes lit up, then he shook his head and said, “I don’t know what Westerners do?
Chambers of commerce that go to Europe for trade should be aware of this situation. Our chamber of commerce specializes in North America and doesn’t know much about the situation in Europe. "
Chief of Staff Cao Zhengyuan accompanied Su Shu to meet these businessmen.
Seeing some silence in the audience, he said: "I have read about this matter in the newspaper.
There are specialized businessmen in Europe who engage in a business called insurance.
All ocean-going ships will buy insurance. If there is any damage, the insurance will pay the full amount.
If you reach your destination safely, the premium paid will belong to the businessman selling the insurance.
I read in the newspaper that there are chambers of commerce in Nanyang Province doing insurance business. "
When President Jin Xiwen heard about insurance, his eyes immediately became hot.
As a businessman on dangerous Pacific routes, he could analyze insurance profits.
He left and thanked: "Thank you, Your Highness and Mr. Cao for the reminder.
We already know how to solve difficult problems.
His Highness is working hard for the empire, so we merchants will not bother you anymore. "
President Jin Xiwen saluted again, and then he hurriedly left with the businessman.
Su Shu looked at Chief of Staff Cao Zhengyuan and said in confusion: "Why are these businessmen leaving in such a hurry?"
Chief of Staff Cao Zhengyuan reminded: "These are smart people. They just want to gain benefits and do not want to get involved in the whirlpool of the prince's struggle.
His Highness probably wants to invest money to start an insurance business, and would rather lose money to build a reputation among businessmen.
These people see this and avoid it. "
Su Shu looked stunned and laughed loudly: "I didn't expect that I would become the God of Plague.
That's fine, these businessmen will do business honestly and provide tax revenue for the empire.
If they really want to get close to me, I suspect that these people have different purposes. "
Su Shu knew that his identity was extraordinary, except for the people and forces who were ready to bet on him.
The best attitude for the rest of the people is to keep a respectful distance from him.
With this attitude of the Imperial Navy, they have been actively or passively biased towards him.
This was also the reason why his mother encouraged him to join the navy.
Joining the army takes two or three years away from the core of the empire's power, but it is also very worthwhile.
The queen mother will take care of her in the palace, unless her father suddenly falls ill.
Su Shu was originally the eldest son and had an unusual resume.
After he returns to the capital after training, he will have a better chance of becoming the crown prince than other princes.
As soon as the two of them finished talking, a guard walked up to Cao Zhengyuan's ear and whispered a few words.
Chief of Staff Cao Zhengyuan's expression immediately changed. He looked at Su Shu and said, "Your Highness, something happened to the fleet?"
Su Shu asked eagerly: "What happened? Is there a malfunction on the battleship Taishan?"
He was most afraid that the battleship Taishan would break down and it could not be repaired here.
So this global deterrent trip can only be abandoned halfway.
Su Shu could not increase his knowledge and reputation according to the original plan.
Chief of Staff Cao Zhengyuan said helplessly: "We are all about to leave Zhao State. The fleet has completed maintenance long ago and there are no problems.
This time there are some new problems that have never appeared before. "
When Su Shu heard that the problem was not with the battleship Taishan, his expression became much more relaxed.
Other problems are just minor problems to him.
Chief of Staff Cao Zhengyuan led Su Shu to the port in a carriage.
He introduced in the car: "There is someone in the army who is in love with a girl from Zhao.
Now that the army is leaving, those girls go straight to the fleet.
If this matter is not resolved, it will damage the reputation of the Imperial Navy.
The people will spread this story everywhere and no longer discuss the powerful strength of the ironclad. "
Su Shu didn't understand when he heard this situation.
The empire prohibited brothels, but Han women were prohibited from entering brothels.
It is not uncommon for brothels to be found all over the harbor.
There are many brothels here in Golden City.
The emergence of rubber condoms has also controlled the spread of willow disease.
Officers and soldiers all go to brothels to solve personal problems, how can anyone get married to a good family?
Even if they have some disputes with the brothel oiran, they only need to use silver coins to resolve them.
But a good family member must not use rough means to solve the problem.
Su Shu asked: "Chief of Staff, are there many people? What are their main demands?"
Chief of Staff Cao Zhengyuan said: "The number is less than a hundred, and they are all ordinary soldiers and grassroots officers.
The woman's request is that the two get married. They want to board a warship and live together, or follow the man to the empire immediately. They can also stay in Zhao.
An officer disagreed, and the woman immediately went to Zhao Guoyamen to report to the officer.
Su Jinghong sent someone to notify the fleet, and we learned about this situation. "
Su Shu is not old, but living in the palace, he has seen too many conspiracies and conspiracies, and his sense of smell is very sensitive.
When he heard what Chief of Staff Cao Zhengyuan said, he heard something unusual.
Su Shu said in a cold tone: "Coincidence, this is too coincidental.
We absolutely cannot allow women to live on ships.
There are no women on naval ships because they are afraid of living at sea for a long time, and some people can't help but have major incidents.
With a hundred women on board, naval discipline is likely to break down.
It is not advisable to send these erring naval officers back to the empire.
If this matter is not handled well, in the future some people who are tired of war will get off the ship and have sex with women, and they will be able to return home safely.
How can we maintain naval discipline once such a bad example begins?
I remember that naval discipline has detailed regulations on various matters during the execution of missions.
I think it is a more appropriate way to deal with it according to the provisions of military discipline.
Maintaining military discipline is the responsibility of every soldier. "
Chief of Staff Cao Zhengyuan was very satisfied when he heard Su Shu's account.
Military discipline is an important guarantee for maintaining the military's combat effectiveness. No one can violate military discipline with impunity.
"According to military discipline, these people will all be dismissed and investigated.
The mistakes they made were minor, so just dismiss them and let them deal with it on their own.
I think this is a situation that some people would like to see. "
Su Shu and Chief of Staff Cao Zhengyuan showed meaningful smiles.
They returned to the port and immediately dealt with these matters vigorously and resolutely.
Su Jinghong soon heard about the Imperial Navy's handling of the matter.
He showed a confident expression on his face, then looked at Zhu Leifeng and asked worriedly: "Commander Zhu, will this strategy you propose harm the Imperial Navy?"
Zhu Leifeng said helplessly: "We have no choice, the prince has seen the gap between the two navies.
If Zhao State doesn't catch up, it won't even be able to protect its own maritime borders.
We don’t have naval talents, so we can only poach people through this method. "
Su Jinghong just complained. The thing had been done and he could bear any consequences.
The first time he saw the steel warships of the Imperial Royal Navy, he was shocked.
Zhao must use all means to develop its own navy.
Zhao's wealthy finances can also support the dream of having a powerful navy. (End of chapter)
