Chapter 435: Pande's Largest Grain Merchant
Want to get rich?
Of course I want to...
But none of the three kings dared to respond. They just watched the wedding quietly.
They were all a little panicked.
The wedding process was very long.
First there was Li Ang's coronation as emperor, then the joint military parade, then the unveiling of 'Pende Academy', and finally the wedding itself, which lasted from morning till dusk.
Logically speaking, these things should be separated out separately, after all, each one is a big deal.
But transportation and communication were not well developed in those days, so it was difficult to organize people together, so we just combined them together.
At the dinner, Leon and Alina set up a separate table for each "head of state" from the continent of Pendor.
This may be an unprecedented scene...
Although this table and the dishes on it are no different from other banquets in Changhe City, look at the people sitting around this table...
Emperor Leon of the New Pende Empire; Emperor Alina of the Bacchus Empire;
Amy, Queen of Sarleon; Wendilf, Queen of the Noldor;
Gregory IV, King of Ravenstern; Ursula, who was elected as Queen of Ravenstern by the people of Longsong Harbor;
King Vidis of the Firdsvain; and King Zakar of the newly established 'United Kingdom of Jatu'.
A true imperial seat.
Now that Zakar has proclaimed himself king, the trading post established in Fletcher Village is very much in line with Zakar's wishes. He can exchange daily necessities through fair trade, and there is really no need to risk the lives of his people by robbing. Therefore, Zakar is currently very friendly to Leon.
Of course, it is not certain how long this friendliness can last... In a few years, when the Jatu people discover that there are more and more sick people and deformed babies in their tribe, they will probably be able to react.
But will they still be able to cause trouble by then?
Both Cardan and Emir Xerxes of Desha have surrendered to Leon. They can no longer call themselves Bahad Khans, and they have both accepted the title of Earl. They are no longer eligible to sit in the 'Imperial Seat' and currently sit with Sarah, Leofric and other Earls.
There was still roasted whole lamb , which was cooked very fragrantly. People at other tables were already feasting on it, but no one started eating at the 'Emperor's Table'. Kings are indeed more reserved.
"Thank you all for coming to witness my wedding."
Li Ang glanced at everyone with a smile on his face: "It's really not easy to get you all together. I don't think I'll have this opportunity again from now on. So, while everyone is here today, I want to discuss some small matters with you..."
Everyone sat up straight and looked at Li Ang.
"As you all know, I have set a goal to eliminate poverty in my country within five years."
Li Ang picked up the small knife stuck in the roasted lamb and said as he cut the meat: "But I find this goal difficult to achieve - because there are always new poor people migrating to my country from all over the country..."
"Well... According to Eric and Fothert's statistics, from January this year to now, at least 100,000 Firdsvain have moved to the western part of Sarleon, and more than 50,000 Ravenstern have moved to the North Gulf. Many of these people are robbers, causing huge losses to my territory..."
Amy cooperated and added some data.
Vitis and Gregory IV were visibly panicked.
"Alas, it's all because of the war... These people are so pitiful..."
Leon shook his head compassionately and divided the mutton into the plates in front of Vidis, Ursula and Gregory IV.
"Your Majesty, please speak directly if you have anything to say."
Ursula had a pretty good relationship with the New Pendor Kingdom, and she asked Leon directly about his intentions.
"Well, I'll be frank... The situation in Firdsvain and Ravenstern is probably not that good, right? Even Zakar is richer than you now, and the Jatu people haven't come to my territory to make a living..."
Leon looked at Ursula, then at Vidis: "You should remember that I asked you at noon... Do you want to get rich?"
Zakar was a little confused when Leon mentioned himself, so Wendy stretched out her hand to Zakar and made a gesture of invitation, indicating that Zakar should feel free to do as he pleased.
Zakar heaved a sigh of relief. It seemed that this matter had nothing to do with the Jatu people, and the Jatu people had indeed not come to Leon's territory to plunder during this period. So he took out the longevity paste, lit his pipe, puffed on it, and began to watch the show.
"Who doesn't want to get rich? But we are not as good at making money as you are, and there are always people making trouble..."
Ursula complimented Leon and then glanced at Gregory IV.
Gregory IV snorted and said nothing.
"Ha, you're right. It's really hard to get rich if you keep fighting..."
Li Ang laughed and said as if jokingly: "You have seen it this morning. I held a military parade. Now these 20,000 troops have no battle to fight. I am actually quite uneasy...right Alina?"
"Yeah, I'm also very uneasy now... You all should know that if the army has no war to fight, they will definitely find ways to cause trouble - if there is no war, how can they get promoted and make money?"
Alina took over the conversation with a faint smile.
It is true, and everyone at this table knows it is the truth.
This is also the reason why Vidis and others were shaking all over after watching the military parade.
"So, I plan to help you solve your current difficulties, and also solve the problem of my troops having no battles to fight... The New Pende Empire and the Bacchus Empire will jointly establish a 'World Peacekeeping Force' to maintain peace across the entire continent and even the entire world."
Li Ang nodded: "This is one of the small matters I want to discuss with you. By the way, do you plan to let your troops or the domestic knights join this peacekeeping force?"
Everyone at the table looked at each other.
" Are you going to mediate our...dispute?"
Ursula was indeed a good talker, describing the dispute over the throne and the rebellion as a dispute.
"Mediation? Well... yes, if you are willing to regard me as a judge, I can indeed help you end the war fairly and impartially. We are all part of the continent of Pendor, and it will not be good for everyone in the continent of Pendor if you continue to fight like this..."
Li Ang said while gesturing with a small knife.
"Your Majesty Leon, what do you mean...?"
Gregory IV finally spoke, but he looked obviously panicked.
"What I mean is that Ursula is recognized as the 'Falcon Queen'. With Longsong Harbor and Silver Blade Fortress as the boundary, all the territories in the eastern part of the former Ravenstern Territory will be regarded as the 'Falcon Territory' from now on, and will be independently established as the Falcon Kingdom. And Ravenstern City and the western Mission Falls Bay will be the current Ravenstern Kingdom. In other words, you and your sister will each get half... Is this fair?"
Li Ang stood up and cut the roasted lamb with a small knife, neatly dividing it into two halves.
In fact, this distribution method is indeed fair. Ursula and her brother both have equal inheritance rights, so half for each is certainly appropriate.
And what Leon was talking about were two kingdoms - the Falcon Kingdom and the Raven Stern Kingdom. In other words, Leon would recognize the emergence of two kingdoms in Raven Stern as the emperor of the new Pendor Empire, just as he recognized Zakar's 'United Kingdom of Jatu'.
Ursula said nothing; she was thinking.
Gregory frowned, also considering it.
The two of them definitely needed to think about it carefully. Leon did not urge them. He turned to Vidis and said, "Sir Vidis, as for you, I certainly support you in killing the rebels. After all, Cliff Rock Bay is Amy's territory, and of course we cannot let the rebels occupy it."
Vidis was overjoyed: "That's great! Your Majesty Leon is indeed fair and strict! Qiaoyan Bay should have been the territory of the New Pende Empire!"
Anyway, Qiaoyan Bay has been occupied by Haakon, and Vidis doesn't mind exchanging Qiaoyan Bay for Leon's help.
"Well, but..."
Li Ang smiled and shook his head: "However, I heard that the west coast and the inner sea of Lion Lake are full of pirates these days. I am very worried that pirates will still be rampant after we take back Qiaoyan Bay."
"I swear to use all the fleets to wipe out the pirates, Your Majesty Leon, you can rest assured!"
Vidis stood up with a happy face.
"But the problem is that your fleet is pirates... Vidis, do you understand what I mean?"
Li Ang shook his head, cut off a leg of lamb and placed it in front of Vidis: "Of course, it doesn't matter if you can't bear to part with the pirates under your command. Anyway, my troops and Alina's troops need to continue to fight more battles... If I don't get rid of the pirates, how can I realize my poverty alleviation plan?"
The joy on Vidis's face instantly turned into bitterness. He sat down with his head down and fell into deep thought.
At this time, Ursula raised her head and asked quietly, "Your Majesty Leon, I have no objection to the sphere of influence you mentioned, but I want to know, after we cease fire, how can we make a fortune?"
Li Ang glanced at her and smiled: "You are all kings of your own countries... As long as you don't fight, get rid of the thieves, and ensure the safety and smoothness of the trade routes, it will be easy to make a fortune by doing business with each other. Just ask Zakar and you will know."
Zakar has indeed become rich recently.
The market in Fletcher Village was an official trade fair, where each side collected taxes from its own people.
Leon controlled the Fletcher Market and only collected commercial taxes from Pendle, ignoring the Jatu people. The tax rate was as high as 75%...mainly because the profits from things like longevity cream were too high.
But this is actually a transfer from one hand to the other, equivalent to transferring money from a private treasury to the national treasury, because the commodities involved in the transaction are Li Ang's own properties and all belong to Maixiang International.
The high tax rate is intended to reduce Maixiang International’s dividends and try to make more profits flow into the national treasury, because Maixiang International now has a lot of shareholders.
Li Ang currently holds 60% of the shares, Amy has 10%, Wendy has 8%, Alina has 8%, Leofric has 8%, and the remaining 6% is the dividends and allotments for the non-commissioned officers. However, the others only have the right to dividends, while the management rights and voting rights are all in the hands of Li Ang alone...
Don't think that Leon is rich now. If you really want to talk about assets, Leon is in debt. Even the New Pende Empire is in debt - but this is also a transfer from one hand to the other, because the major creditor Pende Bank is also Leon's own property, and even the money is minted by himself...
But Zakar was different. For every sheep traded by the Jatu people, they had to hand over three dirhams or materials of equivalent value to Zakar...
In fact, this is also a transaction tax, and it is very low.
The current price of sheep in Changhe City is about three dinars per head, which means that Zakar only collects 10% tax on the Jatu people.
But now the daily trading volume of the market is more than 2,000 sheep. Just relying on this market, Zakar can earn more than 600 dinars every day. In half a year, it is more than 100,000 dinars, which is higher than the annual income of most dukes.
Moreover, Zakar made a lot of money from the retail business of longevity cream - most of the longevity cream that Leon brought from Sinjar was traded to Zakar in the form of wholesale, and Zakar sold a lot of the longevity cream to other tribes at five times the price.
The Jatu people are a tribal alliance, and Zakar's tribe is only the strongest one at the moment. Most of the Jatu people belong to other tribes. In order to prevent other tribes from becoming stronger than himself, Zakar must of course use this method to maintain his status.
Plus, now Leon is even willing to let Zakar trade sheep for corn - each sheep can be exchanged for 200 pounds of corn flour, which is a very fair price, and after deducting the shipping cost, there is almost no profit...
So now Zakar is indeed very wealthy, and his people live much better than before.
"Your Majesty Li Ang is indeed very honest in doing business."
Zakar, who was standing beside him, exhaled a puff of smoke with a satisfied look on his face and nodded.
Over the past six months, the Kaichang and Fushou Cream had brought him a large amount of wealth and also forced other Jatu tribes to rely on him. He really felt that doing business with Li Ang was a mutually beneficial thing.
Besides, Fushougao is such a good thing that it can cure almost all diseases, and taking a few puffs of it can make you feel ecstatic...
"I have no objection to the sphere of influence that Your Majesty Leon has divided. Your Majesty Leon, how do you do the business you mentioned?"
Gregory IV finally raised his head and agreed to Leon's mediation.
"Vidis, Ursula, Gregory...you are all short of food, right?"
Li Ang smiled amiably and said, "I can sell you a large amount of food at a low price. As for what price you want to sell it at, that is your business."
"real?!"
“That’s great!”
"Your Majesty Li Ang, I used to have some respect for you... but now it seems that you are really a kind and benevolent emperor!"
All three were overjoyed.
Food!
For them, as long as there was enough food, their domestic problems could be solved and their status as kings could be secured.
"I haven't finished yet... You all know that food is a strategic material. I cannot sell a large amount of food to other countries - unless this country is my ally or a subordinate kingdom. Besides, it seems that you don't have the money to buy it..."
Li Ang spread his hands and explained.
Indeed, to the New Pendor Empire, the Kingdom of Ravenstern is currently a hostile country, and the Firdsvain still occupy the Rocky Bay. They are not friendly neighbors no matter how you look at it, and supplies such as food cannot be sold casually.
"I am willing to form an alliance with the New Pende Empire..."
Ursula responded quickly.
Seeing that Vidis and Gregory were about to say the same thing, Leon stretched out his hand to stop them: "Don't talk nonsense, it's not equal, understand? Currently, the only one qualified to become an ally of the New Pende Empire is the Bacchus Empire."
This is also the truth. Even though Ursula, Vidis and others are unhappy, they all know that whether from the perspective of historical law or current national strength, they are indeed not qualified to be on par with the New Pende Empire.
"Are you going to merge us into the empire? Your Majesty, this is impossible. We would rather fight to the end..."
Vidis shook his head.
"Don't get me wrong, that's not what I meant..."
Li Ang smiled slightly and said, "I just want to say that I can't openly sell a large amount of food to you, otherwise I will be questioned by the nobles. But if you let some of your troops join the peacekeeping force , I can regard you as a partner and use food as a barter - just like the way I trade with Zakar..."
To be honest, no one in China would question Li Ang's decision now...
But barter is indeed more feasible, because Vidis has gone bankrupt, and Ursula and Gregory have been fighting for so long and really don't have much money. Leon is thinking about them.
"There are sheep and minerals in Ravenstern. You can exchange sheep or minerals of equivalent value for food. As for Firdsvain, you can exchange them with ships and seafood. This is also the best proof that you have driven away the pirates."
Li Ang picked up his glass and stood up: "The peacekeeping force will soon escort the grain to Qiaoyan Bay. Qiaoyan Bay is the trading place. The first batch of transactions will be... 100 million pounds."