I will be crowned king

Although the process was slightly tortuous, Anson and Sophia finally achieved their goal: the Railway Committee approved of this risky investment plan, and was even willing to accept a temporary shelve from the Free Confederacy, waiting for a final response from Beluga Port.

Yes, the reason why Anson publicly went to the Osteria Palace to discuss with Baekeland, and even specially roped in his beloved brother Christian, was to show Queen Mother Anne, and to let her know that he was indeed It's really about working hard, not just doing errands.

Originally... 20% of the shares of the New World Company, such a big thing cannot be finalized in two or three days; even if the Free Federation is really willing to give it, what channel does Clovis have to receive it? How to settle dividends, which bank account should the cash go to, and whether it should be used in money or in kind?

Don't forget that the predecessor of New World Bank was a mining bank. The collateral was not real gold and silver but coal and iron ore in the mines. They really filled the port warehouse with ore, so would Clovis have to do the same? Think about it, how many ships of capacity do you need to mobilize to collect your "dividends"?

Anne Herred may not be aware of this, but Ludwig certainly understands it, but they don't really care about it - the former hopes to use this to increase the strength of the royal family, and by the way weaken a certain person who is soaring on a rocket. loyal minister; the latter simply hopes to destroy the foundation of strength of his best friend and pave his own path to power.

But now Anson has expressed his attitude: he can give it, but he has to get something in exchange.

Investing in the railway network of the Free Confederacy is definitely beneficial, at least from Clovis's point of view, not to mention that there is no need to invest money himself... Even if it fails, Clovis will not lose anything, and if it succeeds, he will gain a lot of money. Dividends and lowering raw material costs are probably a good thing.

But the problem is that no matter whether the Queen Mother or the Privy Council is in power, their primary goal is not money, but Anson Bach blocked their mouths with the reasons they gave themselves-no matter how tortuous the method is, can the Free Confederation agree, at least I tried my best.

What, you said that this condition is not good enough and you want the Free Confederation to deliver the shares directly? Sorry, I do have a good relationship with the Free Confederacy, but I'm not good enough to make decisions for them. Why don't you try it yourself?

At the same time, Sophia also began to mobilize various newspapers under her command and began to write articles for this joint-stock railway company: "...Clovis provided technology transfer to the Free Confederacy, which reflected the noble attitude of absolute trust and respect for the allies. , showing Clovis's responsibility as a major power in the world of order, showing a different demeanor from some 'leaders' who talk about leading the world of order, but actually divide the interests of their allies and invade the territories of other countries..."

"...In the past fifty years, Clovis people's wealth has often been focused on their own gardens, but people with a little common sense know that only by making venture capital before the market is fully formed can they get the most benefits; it is conceivable that And we know that investing in the new world in the next few years will become Clovis's new wealth vane..."

"...Qualified industrial owners should realize that the capital growth of the downstream industry depends on whether the upstream industry can flourish; when the growth of domestic raw materials becomes increasingly sluggish, the ability to obtain cheap and high-quality raw materials from overseas may determine whether a factory's profits An important prerequisite for health..."

Regardless of whether this professionalism is qualified or not, as soon as the article with a very clear position was published, Ludwig's heart "thumped!" He said: The Railway Commission is going to rebel!

Sure enough... at the meeting at noon that day, the red-faced Lady Catalina publicly announced that she was willing to accept the proposal of the Free Confederation and contribute to the development of the railway industry and the domestic raw material market.

At the same time, Little Baekeland also swore to the Queen Mother Anne that after he returned, he would try his best to persuade the Supreme Council of the Free Confederation to accept this quite favorable proposal.

As for Anson, he has already begun to acquire suitable factories in the outer city of Clovis in the name of the Railway Commission to prepare for subsequent technology transfer to the Free Confederacy.

Although it is only the transfer of railway-related technology in name, on the one hand, building railways and manufacturing steam trains is a very complex industrial system; secondly, if the final result is only to "be able to manufacture steam trains", it is obviously impossible. What satisfies the Free Confederation - at least it must be at a level that is "technically replicable and capable of mass production."

Of course, he, a small army lieutenant general, did not have the capital to acquire a factory, so the real money was paid by Lady Catalina and the distinguished Minister of War.

After all, it would be too troublesome to teach the other party how to make it step by step. It is better to move a complete production line at the lowest level, hire some workers with high wages, and ensure that the other party has the ability to copy the production line.

With the financial resources of the Franz family and the Railway Commission’s huge influence and personal connections on related industries, Anson’s acquisition process was quite smooth; in the words of Carl Bain: “It was like a man who had just gotten off work, holding a list given by his wife. Go shopping one by one in such an orderly manner.”

During this period, Ludwig, who noticed the abnormality, began to try to stop it. He introduced a bill from the Privy Council and promoted the argument in newspapers that "technology transfer would let Clovis' greatest advantage fall into the hands of others," but the effect was not very good. .

Whether it is short-term or money-seeking, the fact is that investing in railways in the New World can yield huge benefits without the Railway Commission having to bear any cost; unless Ludwig can also come up with a bigger pie than this, otherwise The Railroad Commission would certainly not follow him any further.

The loss of the Railway Committee not only meant that a powerful group within the Privy Council would split with many small groups, but they would also become the hands of Sophia and Anson reaching out to the Privy Council, and their own goal of isolating the other party would completely fail.

Not only that, with the joining of Lady Catalina, the original hostility between the Privy Council factions caused by Anson's "robbing the results of the military revolution" has also been significantly weakened; many nobles or parliamentarians have begun to use "technology transfer" Or in the name of "wanting to test marksmanship with little Lisa", I hope to have private contact with him.

"...So, what are you worried about?"

In the newly purchased factory building, Ansen played with a bearing he picked up casually and looked curiously at the girl with a poor expression: "Did something happen to the Privy Council, or is the Queen Mother causing trouble for us again?"

"No, it's nothing!" Sophia shook her head stiffly, her eyes a little wandering: "I... I just want to come and see you."

"look at me?"

"Yes... let's see how you... do." The girl almost said "forcibly calm" was written on her face: "Business acquisition is a very complicated matter, involving the composition of shares, the ownership of production sites and factories, and the source of workers. …In short, it’s very troublesome, very troublesome, and you’re a newbie, so you definitely won’t be able to figure it out right away.”

"Uh... you're right."

Anson couldn't help but raise his eyebrows. He was a little confused: "But I don't need to understand, do I? There is Secretary Allen Dawn and your maid Angelica who are responsible for the actual operations. I actually just came over to take a look, sign my name and stamp it, etc., to let the workers know that I have a new boss.”

"So...everything went well?" Sophia looked at him meaningfully.

"It went very smoothly, or I never thought there would be any trouble."

Anson nodded as he should: "Do you think Ludwig might have tampered with the factory we acquired?"

"Tampering? No! No, no, no...he can't do it. He is more ignorant than you in this regard. Unless someone is willing to help him, no one can do anything to us - even if there is, Mrs. Caterina and I can't do it. You can tell." When talking about this topic, the girl finally showed her previous confidence:

"I'm just a little worried. Maybe I'm worrying too much...well, I should be."

Before she finished speaking, she turned around abruptly, not letting the other party see her messy expression, but her mind was still full of what Mrs. Catalina had said not long ago.

"...I see that you have been completely fascinated by that guy. No matter what he says, you will obey him and trust him 100%. This is a dangerous sign, especially when the guy hasn't given you any commitment yet..."

Could it be...could it be that she really...the girl gritted her teeth and felt a mess in her heart.

No, we have a cooperative relationship. He is someone I personally selected and supported; we trust each other, support each other, and strive for mutual benefit and win-win results. It is definitely not...

"I don't think so." Almost at the same time, Anson's serious voice came from behind her:

"Although premonitions may seem like pure intuition, they are actually accumulated through years of experience. They are signals directly conveyed by the brain when a crisis occurs - your subconscious is telling you that danger is approaching and you must proceed with caution."

"You are the expert in this field. If this is your judgment, I trust it unconditionally." Anson's tone became more serious: "In this case, I will immediately ask my secretary to stop the acquisition, and re-assess this company and the previous ones. All acquired factories will be carefully inspected to prevent..."

"Oh, I've already said it before!" Sophia, who couldn't bear it anymore, turned around suddenly and stared at Anson who was stunned by fright: "There is no danger, just a little worried - intuition Can this kind of thing be used as evidence?!"

"...No, I just think it's better to be cautious."

Anson, who stopped for an instant, carefully took half a step back to avoid bumping into the girl: "But since you said so, forget it."

As he spoke, he showed a slightly flattering smile.

"No...that's not it." The angry girl seemed to suddenly come back to reality: "We partners should respect each other's opinions and ideas - this kind of thing should be decided by us together, not by my own whim. …”

"Is it necessary? I don't think it matters. Anyway, I don't understand business matters at all. You can make the decision..."

"I said it! I...we have to decide together!"

"Yes, joint decision!" Anson quickly said with a straight face: "My 'joint decision' is my unconditional obedience to you, Minister of War!"

"you……"

Sophia, who had just breathed a sigh of relief, immediately became angry, but she still resisted the urge to punch someone: "Okay... Well, anyway, the acquisition work is almost over. From now on, I will I won’t ask any more questions, and you will be solely responsible for dealing with the Free Confederate mission.”

"After all, according to your logic, you are the one who has the closer relationship with the Free Confederacy in public, so it should be handed over to you; from now on, I will not interfere, and I will let Angelica Keep it a secret from me... Don’t worry, no matter how you discuss it with the other person, I won’t know any specific details, how about that?”

"Well……"

Anson was already confused: "But... of course."

"Very good, then it's settled!"

Sophia nodded slightly, with a serious expression: "We are comrades fighting side by side, and this most basic trust is natural; I also hope that you will never betray my trust. I have turned against my brother, and I don't want to And then…and…and former comrades become enemies!”

After saying that, she seemed to be completely relieved, and quickly turned around and left the factory.

Only Ansen, who was still full of questions, stood there motionless as if in a daze.

"So...why did she come?"

"I think this question is quite clear." The weak and sick voice approached from behind. William Gottfried walked to Anson and stopped next to him with two dark circles under his eyes: "It is possible. The answer is slightly different from what you have in mind.”

"That's such a coincidence. I don't have any answer in my heart at all." Anson snorted lightly and then threw the question behind him:

"By the way, how did your inspection go?"

"There is no problem at all. The standard of this factory is still high, and it can barely reach the bottom line of Miss Elizabeth Lemon."

William nodded: "The workers are mainly bankrupt farmers. They have no experience and no systematic study... which is a good thing."

"Can this be called a good thing?"

"Of course, this means that we only need to tell them what to do, and they will do it exactly - a tool to know how to think, sometimes more like a burden." William suddenly couldn't help but laugh:

"This is really an ironic angle. After all, in a sense, I am just a tool for you to build the difference engine."

"I don't think so. You are also a mathematician. Wouldn't it be tempting to build a difference engine from scratch? Not necessarily." Anson patted him on the shoulder:

"Dear William, we are also partners who trust each other and achieve each other in different ways."