Volume 4: Hot! The whole world is a warring state Chapter 798: European Merchants
On May 20, 1648, late at night, in the basement of a very ordinary small church in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.
There was no electricity here, and although there were candlesticks, they were not lit. The entire basement was pitch dark. Only the rhythmic and slight breathing sounds in the air indicated that there were still living things in this room.
An old voice was the first to speak: "After the Madrid Conference and Spain's recent actions, Philip's intentions are very clear. For ordinary people, they are temporarily appeased by issuing excessive banknotes. They are also appeased by opening North America to the countries in the alliance and opening up production technology to factory owners. However, these measures are actually just coping measures and have no practical significance at all."
"Yes." In the darkness, another slightly younger male voice with a deep baritone voice rang out: "Excessive issuance of banknotes. Although ordinary people have money in their hands, they will soon find that the new banknotes can buy less things than before. Opening up North America? The only benefit is to let the countries in the alliance drive all the poor people in their countries to North America to fend for themselves, instead of staying in Europe to riot and rebel. As for opening up production technology? Humph, I carefully looked at the technology list from Osvalles, and it's all civilian light industry. There is not a single heavy industry, especially military industry."
"Our lives are getting harder and harder now." Another voice sounded: "Many factories lack raw materials, and even more factories have no market for their products. We , but we can't get them. The vast market in the East has completely left us. Although the opening of North America has provided unemployed workers with a temporary place to settle, this has left the strong labor force in Europe..."
"Now the morale of the soldiers of various countries in the alliance, especially those who struggled back from India, is unprecedentedly low. They generally said that in terms of individual combat effectiveness, the Chinese are not that scary. In many local battles with equal forces, they will not be at a disadvantage in a short period of time. But the problem now is that the command level of the generals is problematic. As the battle goes on, they are played around by the enemy and then fail, lose badly, and lose miserably..."
"Everyone, Philip buried the Holy Roman Empire and established the alliance. It was supposed to eliminate the war in Europe and achieve internal unity. First, he would defeat the Ottoman Empire, then take us to conquer the East, and finally rule the world. But now it seems that the Ottoman Empire is still alive and well. Conquering the East? It's already a joke. It can be said that the existence of the alliance has hindered the development of our respective careers and brought endless disasters to Europe. I propose to send an envoy to China in the name of our Freemasonry, and strive to seek the forgiveness of the Chinese emperor. Let him allow our Masonic merchant ships to sail into the Indian Ocean and even the South China Sea."
"Agree. Send an envoy to state our position. As long as the Chinese emperor allows us to trade freely, necessary concessions are acceptable."
…
"Father, you are back."
"Yes." Old Worm, who was nearly 80 years old, was supported by Wesley, a black slave who had been with him for decades. He held his fat belly and slowly climbed up to the attic of his villa: "George, call your brother Carl up as well."
"yes."
After the father and his two sons, as well as the old butler Wesley, who had served the family for more than fifty years and was already over seventy years old, sat down, Old Worm cleared his throat and said, "The Freemasons have made a decision. We will leave Philip behind and go it alone. Send an envoy to seek an audience with the Emperor of China."
Such a result was expected, so his two sons George and Carl said nothing.
"The messenger should be someone from the Capet family, so we don't need to worry about it. Next, there are two things that our family should do immediately."
"Please give your orders, father."
"The first thing is the independence of the Netherlands. George, more than 20 years ago, when you followed the Prince of Orange and wanted to participate in the Dutch independence movement, I intervened forcefully and made you leave the independence movement organization. Now, can you reconnect with these people?"
"Well, father, it's difficult. In the past twenty years or so, fewer and fewer people have insisted on fighting for the independence of the Netherlands."
"Oh, that's great. Why don't we just set up an independent Dutch organization ourselves?"
"Father?"
"What's wrong?"
George, who was already in his fifties, hesitated for a moment: "You warned me before that a small place like the Netherlands would be better off under the protection of a big country. As long as this big country can make us Dutch people do business all over the world and earn endless profits, it would be fine. But now?"
"Yes, I opposed the independence movement before because I saw it clearly. First, Spain's coercion of Europe at that time was an inevitable trend and could not be resisted. Second, after Spain integrated Europe, peace and tariff unification were achieved throughout Europe. As long as we did not become independent and were Spanish citizens, we would be protected by the Spanish government. Our business could be expanded to the whole world by relying on Spain's strength.
But now it is different. The damn Philip is determined to fight against the Chinese emperor. In the Opium War, Spain lost all its colonies in East Asia. Then it lost South America, and now it has lost India. Our business is getting narrower and narrower. Doing business under the identity of a Spanish citizen is no longer a talisman but a heavy yoke.
At this time, an independent Netherlands would not have to delay economic exchanges with China because of Spain's crimes. As long as an independent Netherlands relies on China, what is insecure? In short, we are businessmen, and we always pursue profits. Spain's integration of Europe can bring us huge profits, so we support Spain's rule over the Netherlands. Now that Spain is hindering us from making money, we must fight for the independence of the Netherlands.
We are the Van der Worm family, formerly a large-scale brewery. Now we are the largest wine merchant, retailer, timber merchant, and wheat merchant in Europe. Our eternal pursuit is only profit! "
"I understand. I will first contact some friends who participated in the independence movement. Then I will start the Dutch Independence Organization."
"Wesley, prepare a starting capital of no less than five million for him. Half of it should be paper money and half is gold coins. It is entirely foreseeable that paper money will . By then, the gold coins we have treasured for many years will make it easier to recruit people and win the hearts of the people."
"Yes, your Excellency."
"George, do your best. Establishing an independent organization at this time will still involve some risks. However, if we take the lead in establishing such an organization at this time and operate it well, when the European Union collapses in the future, we may be able to gain the ruling position of the Netherlands because of today's advance layout. If such a situation really occurs, our profit return rate will be too high. Next..."
The excited old Worm was not tired at all from the journey. He looked at his second son with bright eyes: "Karl."
"Father, please give me your orders."
"What that hypocrite Philip said at the Madrid Congress was all empty talk, but there was still some substance in it."
"Father, do you mean that we should take action against those Jews right now?"
"Smart!" Compared to the eldest son who was a bit bookish, this second son was obviously more like him. The old man patted the armrest of the chair happily: "That's right, in order to calm the anger of the European people and guide them to vent their emotions in a designated direction, Philip's propaganda in the newspaper is equivalent to publicly calling on everyone to rob the Jews. Humph, those idiots who smashed and robbed ordinary Jewish stores are really too low-level. Your mission is to rob a Jewish bank! Our family's business has been growing over the years, and we only need a bank."
"Okay, father, I will select a target as soon as possible and report to you."
"Wesley, Carl also prepared 5 million in funds. Half in paper money and half in gold coins."
"Yes, my lord."
"Karl, there is a bank owned by Jews in Amsterdam. You should target it first. I don't care what means you use, as long as you don't recruit Spanish government troops, bribe local officials, or assassinate Jewish bankers, it's fine!"
"Don't worry, father. I will complete this mission successfully."
"George, don't look at me like that. You should learn more from your brother in this regard. Believe it or not, the things that the other old men in the homes of the Freemasons are telling you are more realistic than what I just said! You are already 52 years old and a grandfather of six children. You must understand. At this time when Europe is about to usher in another great change, a family like ours must either take advantage of the situation or be swallowed up by other families that adapt to the trend of the times!"
