Mediterranean Hegemony Road

The Volvo department store is open for ten hours a day, plus preparation work, the employees actually work twelve hours a day, no one objected, and no one asked Ferdinand to work overtime.

One: the salary given by Ferdinand was slightly higher than the market price, which satisfied everyone;

The second is: At that time, factories in Vienna basically had to work 12-hour shifts every day, and some factories had to work 16-hour shifts;

The third is: working in a supermarket is easier than working in a factory. One side is a department store with a comfortable environment; the other side is a dull factory, and danger may occur at any time. Anyway, in the eyes of the people at that time, working in a department store was a decent job. Work.

Ferdinand secretly changed the concept. On the surface, it looked similar to a department store, except that there were a little more things.

After all, the supermarket is a new business, and people don't know what it is for. For the convenience of Ferdinand, the word department store is added, which is easy to accept.

Many people chose to apply for the job because of the name of the department store. Ferdinand was full of people in a short period of time, which was considered a mistake.

Three days passed by, but Carl's butler's efficiency was still very high, and he made a clear investigation of the flour processing factory near Vienna.

His Royal Highness, there are thirteen flour processing factories in Vienna, of which only two are large-scale and have achieved profitability. Seven are basically guaranteed, and the other four have entered a state of loss. The competition is very fierce! 's report

Butler Carl did not agree with Ferdinand's plan to build a flour processing factory. In his opinion, the flour processing industry market is saturated and the competition pressure is too great. It is difficult to make money by joining in now.

After listening to Karl's report, Ferdinand hesitated. After all, there are thirteen flour processing factories in a small Vienna, so how many are there in the entire Austro-Hungarian Empire?

After being silent for a moment, Ferdinand decided to keep his plan unchanged. He still had an advantage. He could produce and sell it himself, and the cost was much lower than theirs. The big deal was that he was developing some related by-products at that time, so he was afraid of competition!

Well, I see. Thank you Karl! Ferdinand affirmed the work of the old housekeeper

It's my honor to serve His Royal Highness! Karl said happily

Karl, how much do you think it will cost me to buy a flour mill? Ferdinand asked cautiously

In 1881, it was not that simple to build a factory. It was necessary to build a factory building, order and purchase machinery, train workers, etc. After all the messy things were done, it would be good to be able to start production within a year.

It is much simpler to acquire a factory, and it can be put into production without much effort.

As long as the price is not too high, Ferdinand is still inclined to buy.

Butler Carl was silent for a moment, as if he was valuing the factory, and then said: Your Highness, if it is a bankrupt small factory, it may only cost a few thousand pounds; the two flour mills that are making a profit are estimated to cost 700,000 to 80,000 pounds!

Ferdinand was shocked, this gap is too big! As soon as I think about it, the factory is losing money, there must be some kind of problem, the equipment is old or the management is poor, or the scale is too small and it is not competitive. Picky.

Well, let's get in touch with those factory owners first to see if they plan to sell them. I'll make a decision after evaluating them! Ferdinand

Okay, Your Highness does what you want! Butler Carl said, and seeing that Ferdinand had no intention of holding back, he turned and left.

After dismissing the old housekeeper, Ferdinand read the newspaper at home. Today he has an important banquet that he must attend in person, the birthday of his uncle, the tragic emperor Franz Joseph I.

Franz Joseph I (August 18, 1830 - November 21, 1916), known to the world for his achievements in establishing the Austro-Hungarian Empire,

In 1879 he formed an alliance with the German Empire led by Prussia and established the Allies, and in 1914 issued an ultimatum to Serbia, drawing Austria and Germany into World War I. He died of pneumonia in Vienna in 1916, at the age of 86.

Recalling the life of the old emperor, Ferdinand was filled with emotion, and the living celebrity was right in front of him!

A great diplomat! This is the evaluation of him all over the world. It may be that God has skewed his talent. Compared with his sharp diplomacy, other aspects can be described as mediocre.

He used diplomatic means to establish the Austro-Hungarian Empire. But this rotten empire has problems all the time. The endless ethnic problems have always plagued him, hindered the progress of the empire, and finally collapsed.

It is a pity that Franz Joseph I did not do very well in this regard, and his indecision was revealed. Although he also took a lot of measures to ease the ethnic conflicts, but the results were very limited.

His later years were even more tragic. His younger brother was shot in Mexico, his wife was stabbed to death by an Italian anarchist in Geneva, his son committed suicide at a young age, and his chosen heir was stabbed to death by the Serbian mafia. His retaliatory war left tens of millions in a sea of ​​blood, and the Austro-Hungarian Empire for which he had fought his whole life was precarious.

Ferdinand, it's time to go, you won't do anything else! Princess Clementine said worriedly

Lately, she has clearly felt that Ferdinand has changed and become more eccentric, and likes to play with some messy things, which makes her very worried.

How can it be, my dear mother, how can you think so! You must believe me! Ferdinand hurried over and said that he had a headache for Princess Clementine.

The original owner, Ferdinand, acted a little weird. Unlike most nobles, he had few friends and liked to mess with things.

Princess Clementine did not doubt whether he had been transferred. Seeing Ferdinand coming, he directly greeted him to get on the carriage.

Vienna - Schönbrunn Palace, which dates back to the Middle Ages. The old emperor Franz Joseph I was born in Schönbrunn Palace, which is also Franz Joseph I's favorite and longest residence.

Now this splendid palace is full of lively voices, the establishment of the Three Emperors Alliance, and the political diplomacy of the Austro-Hungarian Empire are all in the most relaxed era.

The nobles and ministers of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the envoys of various countries, and the great nobles from other parts of Europe have all sent over. The power of the Habsburg family was revealed at this moment.

The banquet was different from what Ferdinand had imagined. There were not so many scenes. The old emperor accepted the congratulations from everyone and started immediately.

Ferdinand is not the protagonist, except for having a familiar face with a group of big men, the legendary dog ​​blood plot did not happen.

Oh, he looks pretty good. Ferdinand has also met a few ladies. If he wants to, there is still the possibility of further development.