Chapter 1103: Super Smuggler

With the outbreak of the Russo-Japanese War, the humble West Exit became lively again, and caravans came in and out every day.
No special organization is needed, and interest is the best driver, bringing together business gangs from all corners of the world.
Although the Russians open their pockets to purchase strategic materials such as grain, livestock, coal, weapons and ammunition, there are always people who want to earn more, and conflicts arise.
Especially after bureaucrats and local snakes joined, the situation became more complicated. Merchants with weak strength and no background background were eliminated first.
There are three ways before them. Either they will be incorporated, and they will pick up some leftovers after the big business gang; or they will give it a go and let these guys take the lead.
Capital is the most realistic, and capitalists are the easiest to compromise. Counterattack to the top, only exists in the novel.
In real life, the major commercial groups have long been entrenched and formed a big net.
In this chain of interests, there are too many big shots sharing benefits, and they are not allowed to be interrupted at all.
To change this situation, unless the superstructure changes and power is redistributed.
Large-scale power shuffling usually takes hundreds of years to happen once, but small-scale shuffling may occur every few years or as many as decades.
Therefore, the trade group is still the trade group, and the replacement is only the leader, and it is done internally.
There is nothing to say, just join if you fail. Picking up some leftovers is better than being hungry.
As for the third road, abandoning the profiteering Xikou Commercial Road, it is absolutely unacceptable.
As Capital says: "With 50% profit, it will take risks.
In order to make 100% profits, it dares to trample on all human laws.
With a profit of more than 300%, it would dare to commit any crime, even risking death. "
Although the bulk commodity profits of Xikou Trade are less than 300%, there is still a good chance to get 100% profits by working hard.
No matter how bad it is, there will be a 50% profit. If the profit is not great enough, everyone will not risk their lives to cross the prairie that stretches for thousands of miles.
As the largest merchant gang in the north, Shanxi merchants will naturally not be absent from this kind of profitable business.
However, the atmosphere in the Shanxi Chamber of Commerce at this moment is a bit tense. Anyone familiar with it knows that it's time to make decisions again.
In order to combat enemy transportation lines and obtain materials to meet their own logistics needs, Shanxi merchants, as local snakes, naturally became the targets of Japan and Russia.
At the beginning, Japan and Russia didn't push it hard, and everyone could still make a fortune from it.
However, with the war falling into a state of anxiety, the two countries have made more and more extravagant moves, and the space for everyone to have a source of choice is getting smaller.
The Russians pulled on the Shinra, and the Japanese went to Britain. The game between Japan and Russia became the battlefield of the four countries.
An old man in a long robe and mantle sighed: "The court continues to maintain its neutrality, and the situation becomes more difficult.
Now Japan and Russia are pressing harder and harder, and Britain and Austria are behind them. Business in the future may not be easy. "
It is impossible to abandon the West Exit trade. The head can be broken, the blood can flow, and the business cannot stop.
Not to mention the pressure of the Japanese, even if the Far Eastern Empire government banned, the business still has to be done.
But this is the small and medium-sized businessmen below, and everyone sitting here is different. Everyone is the owner of a big family, and the industry is not limited to one place, let alone one industry.
Although Xikou trade was extremely profitable, because of the special nature of the war, it was destined that this business would not last.
Continuing to deliver supplies to the Russians will undoubtedly offend Britain and Japan, especially the Japanese.
If Japan is defeated, it will be fine. According to the feces of the Russians, they will definitely be paralyzed.
But once the Japanese wins, the situation is completely different. Those who are in the wrong team are bound to be liquidated in the future.
Of course, the people sitting here are not waiting. At their home court, the Japanese can't help them. But most of the business within Japan's sphere of influence will not be able to continue.
Hearing what the old man said, the next middle-aged man smoking a dry cigarette slowly stood up, walked to the door and vomited for a while, and said fiercely: "It's not easy to do, it must be done.
We don't do it, there are others who do it. Once the market is let out, it will be difficult to get it back.
Besides, the Siberian Railway is about to open to traffic. With the support of the Holy Roman Empire behind it, the Russians have a significantly better chance of winning. "
Opposite a man who was about forty years old and had a fat body echoed: "Wang Lao, Brother Liu said that is very true. Regardless of how the Japanese are now clamoring, they are actually strong outsiders.
The Russians put into the Far East at most one-fifth of the power, even the Japanese couldn't stand it. Once the Siberian Railway was opened to traffic, it was only a matter of time before the Japanese failed.
Once defeated, it is unknown whether they can keep their homeland, and where they can still avenge us.
Regardless of whether they have the support of the British, but now the situation in Europe is tense, the British themselves are too busy to take care of themselves, how can they stand up for them. "
Like the original time and space, before the end of the war, no one can believe that the Russian Empire will actually lose to the Japanese.
Including the financial supporters who supported the Japanese government, they were all prepared in advance for investment. Everyone's highest expectation is to hit the Russians hard.
It was not the British, nor the Americans, who really helped the Japanese government win the war, nor was it the Japanese army or navy. On the contrary, it was the Russian Revolutionary Party, which seemed irrelevant.
It would be a problem if it weren't for the civil strife, and the fact that the tsarist government was the leader, did not delay the war for a few years.
Just look at the Russo-Turkish War, which lasted for ten or eight years, which is a common occurrence.
If you don't have any money in your pocket, wait until the funds are raised before you continue to fight.
Anyway, the Russian Far East is completely blank, and the Czarist government will not feel distressed regardless of the harm.
Snow and ice weather is the biggest ally, but if the Japanese army dares to go deep, don't think of retreating.
Needless to say now, Franz's preparation has not been launched yet, and the Vienna government is still vigorously supporting the tsarist government.
Britain and Japan have limited power in Russia, and even if they want to plan a revolution, they have no ability to implement it.
The Russian Empire itself was not in chaos. Before the Siberian Railway was opened to traffic, the Far East battlefield was in a state of anxiety, and normal people were optimistic that the Tsarist government could win.
Elder Wang waved his hand and said, "Okay, I sighed. If you are anxious, the young man just can't hold his breath.
Even if you want to go to the West Exit, you have to negotiate the conditions first. Although it is lucrative to carry supplies for the Russians, it is not a long-term business.
The Siberian Railway is about to open to traffic. If we can reach an agreement with the Russians to open up trade routes to Europe, the benefits involved can be much greater than the delivery of arms. "
The representative of the Zhang family on the left objected: "Chairman Wang, the greater the benefits, the greater the risks.
The Russians are not easy to meet, they don't have much credibility, even if they reach an agreement, they will break the contract if they say it is broken.
Even if we go to a lawsuit with a contract and go to someone else's territory, we have no place to speak.
In the past years, the big guys we are sitting have not suffered from this loss. "
What business is the most profitable?
Naturally there is a monopoly.
The biggest reason for the rise of Shanxi merchants in the barren north is that they monopolized the trade with outsiders.
With the advent of the ocean age, everyone's trade monopoly in North Korea and the Liaodong generation has been broken.
The Mongolian prairie alone cannot support so many chambers of commerce. Some Shanxi merchants chose to go south, and some Shanxi merchants chose to continue northward.
Most of the people sitting here are representatives of the Northward Sect. In order to open and expand the trade route to the Russian Empire, everyone also worked hard.
The results are naturally there, but the bulk of the benefits have been swallowed up by the Russian bureaucrats and capital, and everyone can only save a few hard money when they are busy.
Pay and return are not proportional, and no one can bear it over time. So that by now, everyone has simply worked as a transit business.
The goods of the Far Eastern Empire were transported to the border and sold to Russian merchants; special products were purchased from Russian merchants and shipped back to the country for sale.
Although you make less money, you have less risk. You don't need to worry about being swallowed by the Russian ground snake on the way.
In the eyes of ordinary people, it is acceptable to be able to make some stable money. However, in the eyes of businessmen, failure to maximize benefits is a failure.
Chairman Wang smiled slightly and said, "Xingbai, you are still so upright.
But you are right. We are naturally unable to open up the land transaction line to Europe with our strength.
But our strength is not enough, we can still find someone to cooperate! "
"Straightforward", to the businessman, this is not a compliment, it can even be called irony.
It can be seen that the old man is very dissatisfied with Zhang Xingbai who questioned him, and his words are full of flirting.
For all this, everyone turned on deaf ears, as if nothing happened. Including Zhang Xingbai himself, there was no indication.
Where there are people, there are rivers and lakes, outside is a big river and lake, and inside the chamber of commerce is a small river and lake.
It is because of the interests that everyone stays together. In normal business competitions, no one has ever softened. The contradictions accumulated over a long period of time are definitely not rare.
The middle-aged man surnamed Liu opened his mouth and said: "Elder Wang, Brother Zhang is just a momentary gaffe. If you can hold a boat in the belly of your old prime minister, bear with me.
It's just that I am looking for someone to cooperate, and I am really puzzled. In the past years, we were not without partners, but in the end we all fell apart.
Foreigners have no courtesy, justice, and shame, and Russians are a foreigner among foreigners, who completely regard credibility as nothing.
Even the government can default and bankrupt in order to avoid debts. If you cooperate with them in depth, I'm afraid you will be cheated to death. "
The Russians in the early 20th century were already notorious. With the tsarist government’s repeated debt defaults, the whole world has deep doubts about the credibility of the Russians.
Not to mention everyone present, many people have suffered a lot from cooperation. In the face of an unruly partner, a perfect contract is useless.
After a glance at the people, seeing that everyone was not very interested, President Wang didn't dare to continue to sell them. Without everyone's cooperation, his family would have to be choked to death.
"I can understand everyone's doubts. To be honest with you, in the past few decades of trade with Russia, I have not been pitted.
Our advantage is that we have connections and funds in the country. Our disadvantage is that we lack a network of connections in the Russian Empire and cannot deter wolves and tigers.
Even with the cooperation of Russian dignitaries, those people regard us as pigs and sheep. If you are fattened and killed, there is no credibility at all.
In the final analysis, there is an imbalance in the power of both parties. In cooperation, our right to speak hardly exists.
After learning from the pain, I found that the key to solving this problem is to find a partner not too strong.
It is best to be able to deter the wolf, jackal, tiger and leopard along the way, and lack of local foundation, we have to rely on us for specific business. "
Everyone understands this explanation. It's just like everyone bribing officials in ordinary times, giving a share of money to pay a protection fee. The specific business is still led by oneself.
There is a network in the local area, so it is natural to play like this. In the Russian Empire, it will not work. The Russian bureaucracy is dominated by aristocracy, and all those who can collude are colluding, and there is no room for them to show off.
The man surnamed Liu shook his head disappointedly: "Wang Lao, theoretically correct. But in practice, we can't find such a partner at all, and may even be implicated in political struggle."
It is not to blame for his nervousness. They have invested the most in opening up trade lines with Russia in recent decades.
The Liu's caravan even went all the way from the Far East to Central Europe via Siberia.
It sounds terrific, but it actually made me lonely. Not only is the traffic in Siberia crashing, but the Russian bureaucracy is struck by layers of exploitation.
President Wang didn't change his face and said, "Rusong, you are right. Under normal circumstances, we really cannot find such a partner.
But now it's different, the partners have delivered them by themselves. Compared to previous days, everyone has been in contact with Austrians.
Regardless of their appearance as arms dealers, their true identity is definitely not simple. Anyway, I have never seen an arms dealer escorted by a warship.
In particular, the leader is still a nobleman, and not an ordinary nobleman.
I have sent someone to inquire, that Sir Louis is a member of the Holy Roman Empire. Although he is only a distant branch, he is also enough to act as a leader.
He came to the Far East this time to expand the family business, and this arms trade was only incidental.
What is the reputation of the Habsburg family, I must have heard of it. Whether it is politically or economically, they are basically positive reviews.
If we can cooperate with them, we can directly open up trade lines with Europe, whether it is land or sea.
The only uncertainty is the hegemony struggle between Shenluo and Britain, but this is not harmful.
The Royal Navy could not go ashore. Even if it failed in the struggle for hegemony, the Holy Roman Empire was still one of the largest powers in the world.
The opportunity is rare, if it weren’t for them to need us to transport strategic materials for the Russians, I’m afraid they wouldn’t have the qualifications to connect. "
There is no difference between cooperation and cooperation. The most common business cooperation is simple buying and selling, and there is no human relationship between the two parties.
Deep-level cooperation is different. It is not only a question of money, but also needs to consider complementary resources.
Facing the Shenluo imperial family, Shanxi merchants had too few resources in their hands. Even the network of connections they are proud of is worthless in the eyes of the other party.
After the shock, everyone quickly reacted. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, as long as you catch this line, opening up Russian trade routes will not be a problem.
With the participation of the Shenluo imperial family, and then cooperating with Russian dignitaries, then it can only follow the rules. They are all played within the scope of the rules, and everyone is still not afraid.
The man surnamed Liu asked: "Wang Lao talked with Sir Louis?"
The old man smiled awkwardly: "It's just a preliminary contact, without going into details. After all, Sir Louis not only wants us to transport arms for the Russians, but also to help the Russians raise strategic supplies.
Without everyone's participation, my Wang family alone would not be able to raise enough supplies for the Russians.
But you can rest assured, Sir Louis assured that: the price will not make everyone suffer, all will be based on the market price of the trading area, and he will urge the Russians to pay on time.
They will be responsible for handling the official troubles caused by raising strategic materials and will not leave everyone with hidden dangers. "
Benefits are always the best link. As long as the money is sufficient, the financing of strategic materials is not a matter at all.
Before that, although everyone was walking the West Exit, there were not many materials delivered each time. In addition to worrying about bandits and bandits, more people are afraid of being hacked by the Russians.
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