1850 American Gold Tycoon

"I have finished what you told me. Mrs. Flagg, that poor little woman, was scared to death by us. Google search to read"

The itching coming from the soles of his feet made Sven feel very uncomfortable. He took off his shoes and scratched his itchy feet and continued.

"If it weren't for gold and to repay my loan sharks, I really couldn't bear to hurt a little woman and bully a woman. It's not what a man should do.

Moreover, Mrs. Flagg is just a little vain and greedy for petty gains. Many people have these shortcomings. She is not a heinous person. My conscience is deeply troubled by this. "

"You didn't hurt her, you just threatened her. You don't have to blame yourself too much." Liang Yao pointed to a box of gold on the ground and said, "Well done, this gold is yours now."

Sven put on his shoes, rolled up his sleeves, moved the box, felt the weight of gold, and then put the heavy box down.

"You gave too much. We agreed on 300 ounces of gold. I know you have a lot of gold, but I have my principles."

"We are old friends. You have helped me a lot. The extra gold is my gratitude to you as a friend. After paying off the debt, what are you going to do?" Liang Yao asked Siwen what his plans were in the future.

Sven and Liang Yao had been together on the Cape Town for more than three months, and they had a very happy conversation during that time.

Liang Yao is different from other Chinese people Si Wen knows. This young man does not have the humility of most Chinese people and has his own unique ideas and ambitions.

Although gold is tempting, these few months of gold mining have also made Sven clearly realize that even in California, where gold is everywhere, not every gold prospector can make a fortune.

After all, the only people who can make a fortune are the very few people like Liang Yao and Brannan who have unique vision and some means.

"You want to hire me?" Sven speculated on Liang Yao's thoughts. He thought carefully and then shook his head and said, "Compared to the mine, the ocean is more suitable for me. After paying off the debt and the liquidated damages of the British Steamship Company, , I will find another shipping company and continue to be the ship’s deputy.”

Sven figured out that the gold mine was not his rightful destination. He gave up his fortune through gold mining. Perhaps he was born to belong to the vast sea. He should get out of this crazy place in California as soon as possible and return to a normal life.

"Have you ever thought about being a captain?" Liang Yao looked at the slovenly Sven and said, "I remember you once told me on the Cape Town that a first mate who doesn't want to be a captain is not a good first mate, although you were not even a good first mate at the time. Neither is the first mate.”

"I didn't expect you to remember what I said."

Sven felt a little relieved, and his cloudy eyes couldn't help but shine brightly. Every first mate has a heart to be a captain, and being a captain is his childhood dream.

When he was a child and mending the sails of merchant ships with his father, he always had the unrealistic idea that he could be a captain in the future, own and command a large ship and bravely brave the rough ocean.

Sven's background was not good. His father made a living by mending sails. As the number of steam ships increased, his father's work of mending sails became less and less.

As for his mother, she was a prostitute, and he was the accidental product of his father's one-night affair with the prostitute.

This kind of background destined Sven to have a bumpy career path. In this era, the sacred profession of captain, which fascinated him, was still exclusive to aristocratic gentlemen.

The first officer is already the ceiling that a low-level pariah like him can reach, and his resume in Denmark Asia Company is perfect. His navigational knowledge and skills were superior to those of many captains, but Denmark Asia Company never considered promoting him to captain.

"Of course I remember, you were my first white friend and my only friend on the Cape Town."

Liang Yao wanted to change the demographic structure of California before it was finalized, so that the Chinese would occupy an important position in California.

To achieve this goal, the current immigration speed is far from enough. Although transportation in California is inconvenient, white people still occupy a favorable location. It is far more convenient to immigrate to California than for the Chinese who are thousands of miles away.

If we have our own shipping company and fleet and open a route from San Francisco directly to the five treaty ports on the eastern coast of China, we can shorten the originally long voyage of three to four months to one month, greatly speeding up immigration. .

Liang Yao had this idea for a long time, but because he had no connections in the navigation industry, he could only put the plan on hold for the time being.

The benefits of owning your own fleet go far beyond this. In the future, bulk commodity transportation transactions will also rely on shipping. Having your own shipping company will not easily be stuck in this regard.

The New York shipping magnate Vanderbilt, who was about to visit California for inspection, later used his monopoly on the U.S. rail transportation industry to increase freight rates to put pressure on his competitors, forcing them to submit. Even the future oil tycoon Rockefeller was not immune.

Of course, the ultimate winners in this classic business war were rising stars like Rockefeller and Carnegie.

Rockefeller, who was more far-sighted, acquired an oil pipeline company, took huge risks and boldly adopted pipeline transportation, a technology that was still immature at the time, to transport his oil, and invested huge sums of money to lay oil pipelines to the eastern coast of the United States and the Great Lakes. The region's industrial zone succeeded in breaking Vanderbilt's monopoly on oil transportation.

Oil flows to thousands of households in the United States through these pipelines, and wealth also flows into the pockets of the Rockefeller family through these pipelines, making them another family with outstanding wealth after the Vanderbilt family, and one that is as rich as the country.

Opportunities tend to favor those who dare to take risks and have vision.

Liang Yao never felt that these wealthy tycoons could stand out from the wild era of rapid industrial development in the 19th century because the era made them successful. Rather, they were the best trendsetters of this era, and they and the era they lived in complemented each other.

"It is more than enough to set up a shipping company with your current financial resources. However, although there are several so-called shipyards in San Francisco, they are all small in scale. The ships they build are not only small, but the quality is also worrying, and the technology is far behind. These small ships He is not qualified for ocean transportation." Si Wen reminded Liang Yao.

"I don't want to become a big fat man after one bite." Liang Yao also understands this. Advanced large steamships are definitely not available in California. "As long as the two- to three-hundred-ton boats built by the San Francisco Shipyard It's enough to be able to go down the coast to Mexico, to the New Granada area."

"Do you want to use these boats to go to these places to purchase supplies directly? This is a good idea." Sven listened in rapt attention, and two lines of clear water snot remained from his nostrils. He sucked hard and then raised his hand. Wiping away the traces of tears, "It would be great if there was a big ship. A thousand-ton steam ship can transport as efficiently as several such small ships. It is also safer and less risky."

"Big ships will be available soon. If you are willing to manage this fleet for me, I will be able to get a large steamship in less than two months." Liang Yao knew that Si Wen was obsessed with big ships.

The shipyards in California are more like docks than shipyards. The ships repaired and vacated by these small docks can be used to get started, but if you want to become bigger and stronger, you still need big ships.

Liang Yao is not trying to make a big deal out of Si Wen. He really has hope of getting a large steam ship of more than 1,000 tons.

Ship king Vanderbilt, who will soon go to California for inspection, is most in need of boats.

Vanderbilt is making a bold move into the railway industry, and a considerable number of transport ships want to be sold for cash. As long as they can negotiate well, Liang Yao can still take over some ships from this shipping king.

"If you say so, I am very interested in your establishment of a shipping company." The temptation to lead and manage a fleet alone was too great for Sven, and he could not resist such temptation.

Liang Yao gave Si Wen too many surprises. Liang Yao boasted that he could get a big ship in Haikou within two months. Si Wen also believed that this was a possibility.

After all, when he was on the Cape Town, he could never have imagined that a skinny boy who traveled across the ocean to hunt for gold with only eight Spanish silver dollars would become a millionaire in just four months.

"I can solve the problems of the ship, but I can't do anything about the problems of the crew and sailors. As you know, I don't have any connections in the navigation industry." Liang Yao has many things to worry about now, such as recruiting sailors and crew, etc. Liang Yao planned to let Siwen solve it by himself.

"Among the gold diggers, there are many sailors who secretly disembarked from the ship to pan for gold after landing. I know them. Like me, they did not make a fortune in gold panning and lived in embarrassment. As long as you have gold, this is not a problem."

The gold diggers in California each have their own small circles. During the four months of gold mining in California, Sven's main job was to hang out in the circles of fugitive sailors and crewmen.

"In this case, our shipping company can be established, and we can sign the contract today."

Liang Yao took a puff of cigarette and put the pipe on the table.

"Sure, but what's the name of this shipping company? The California Shipping Company?"

"It's too petty." Liang Yao shook his head. He was not satisfied with this name.

"American Shipping Company? American Shipping Company?" Sven said two more names.

Liang Yao still shook his head and kept saying: "Still stingy."

"Pacific Shipping Company? That's a pretty name, isn't it?"

"It's much better than the previous one, but it's still not grand enough. Let's call it Global Shipping Company."

Global Shipping is the name of another shipping king group in later generations.

"Global Shipping Company is indeed more atmospheric. It's a good name."

After completing the signing, Siwen officially became Liang Yao's senior employee, and his dream for many years became within reach.

"Are you ready to go to war with Brannan? There is no turning back. Brannan's power in California is so great that I couldn't live without him when I was in San Francisco. What did you do? This choice will have a huge backlash."

Out of good intentions, Sven did not forget to remind Liang Yao that except for the Sacramento area, almost all gold diggers in California lived in the shadow of Brannan. At the moment, only Liang Yao could break this situation.

"The Public Security Committee has set its sights on Chinese shops in California. They will take action soon. I hope you are well prepared."

Sven added a judgment based on what he personally saw and heard in San Francisco.