Australian Storm 1876

   Chapter 700

  Red River Valley, Australia

  Dream Castle

  "How difficult it is to move forward. I stumbled a few steps. I saw that tomorrow was rising, and I met the eclipse of the sun again. How great my appetite was. I was so powerful that I had no choice but to go south. I had to go north. What the **** is this?"

Li Fushou looked at the memorial in his hand dumbfounded, and said with a taste; "So I am the eclipse of the sun, it is really absurd, but the last sentence is a bit interesting, the road to the south is gone, and I can only go north. It seems that Fuso Kingdom’s expansion policy is about to change. This is good news for the Ryukyu Kingdom."

   "Your Majesty Shengming, Weichen also understands this way." Prime Minister Xin Changjun replied.

   "Okay, it's okay if you are convinced, anyway, the money is also available, and it is not good to trouble the Fusang people for a short time, or the British should really jump their feet."

  Speaking of which

Li Fushou picked up a telegram on the case and said with a sneer; "This Nicholas II didn't know what to think. Not long after he took the throne, he sent me such an enthusiastic telegram to connect Tsarist Russia and the Ocean Kingdom. I feel numb in what Friendship said. He thought that with this kind of rhetoric, he would be able to cause the Kingdom of Oceans and the Kingdom of Fusang to fight to death?

  This is too naive, what is in his head? "

   "Your Majesty, how should we reply?" Foreign Minister Tang Zhaoyi asked cautiously.

Li Fushou took the telegram in his hand and read it, touching a line of words with his hand, and said, “On November 14, the wedding of Nicholas II was held in the Winter Palace. What grand ceremony was held, only invited some people close to the country's royal family to observe the ceremony.

  Nicholas II issued an official invitation to the Kingdom of Oceans. It seems that we are cruel to Fusang, which is in line with his wishes!

  I doubt he has misunderstood something?

  Regardless of this, the new queen of Tsarist Russia is Alex, the daughter of Ludwig IV, Grand Duke of Hessen-Darmstadt, Germany. Now she is renamed Alexandra Feodorovna and is also a prominent European family.

  Since they have issued a formal invitation, and they are so numb, it is necessary to respond positively, so as not to chill the hearts of the people.

Crown Prince Siyuan is 14 this year, and he has served on the Navy Blue Dragon for more than a year. It’s time to go to European countries to meet the world. Then let the Blue Dragon take a trip. You can go with me and show me the surface. The work is graceful, so don't let people find faults.

  International politics is such a thing, holding a knife behind his back, hahaha, face-to-face. "

  "The minister abides by the decree." Tang Zhaoyi respectfully took the order.

  Calculating it is now mid-July, at least in late August, I will set off in the European kingdoms along the way, and when I return, it will be 1896. His Royal Highness is also 15 years old.

After discussing the matter, Prime Minister Xin Changjun stepped forward to report on the issue of the war reparations for 3,500 silver vehicles. The interest groups of all parties reached an agreement through the game to divide the additional sanctions.

  This indemnity will be paid by the Qing Dynasty in three years. The total amount plus interest is exactly 36 million taels of silver, or about 6 million pounds, and the Kingdom of Oceans 12 million gold, commonly known as "Golden Ocean".

This money will give 3 million taels of silver to the Kingdom of Ryukyu, and 1 million taels of silver each year. This is a plan proposed by Li Fushou. Because the Kingdom of Ryukyu is too poor, at least a wharf must be built so that multiple ships can be docked. Ocean freighter.

The navy will get more than half of it, which is 21 million taels of silver (7 million gold yuan), but from then on, the navy expenditures of the Ministry of Internal Affairs will be all attributable to government budget expenditures, and His Majesty’s small vault will no longer be paid separately. money.

The Ocean Kingdom’s navy is the most expensive military service. The entire navy has 23,200 people. The daily maintenance cost of personnel is as high as 630,000 pounds per year. The per capita cost is more than 30 pounds. When converted into Ocean Kingdom currency, it is 1.26 million gold oceans, which is not a small burden. .

  This money goes to the Ocean Kingdom Navy, which is more than 5 years of expenditure.

  Ordinary navy soldiers do not have that high income. Basically, the annual salary of sailors within three years is about 25 yuan, which is about 25% higher than the per capita income of metropolitan areas. It can be regarded as a stable salary income.

  15 years of service for naval non-commissioned officers, the highest can get about 78 yuan, almost similar to the middle management of the enterprise.

  It is mainly naval officers with high incomes. This is the naval practice in the world today. Basically, all countries are aiming at the British standard. The Ocean Kingdom implements a salary standard that is lower than that of the United Kingdom.

  The annual salary of a second lieutenant officer starts at 60 gold, plus other subsidies can get about 70 gold, and when it comes to a captain, the annual salary can easily reach 450 gold.

   At the rank of school officer, it is basically a big step forward. Colonel officers are basically above 1,300 to 1,500 gold. This has not added extra money and subsidies, and belongs to an absolute high-income group.

  You need to know whether the salaries of naval officers and soldiers are high or not, you can see at a glance by comparing them horizontally.

  The income of Fusang navy officers and soldiers is generally very low, only about 1/4 to 1/5 of that of the United Kingdom, which is completely incomparable. The salary level of the Beiyang Navy is quite good and has a strong reference.

  The income of Beiyang Navy officers and soldiers consists of two parts;. One is the year's blessing, and the second is the boat's blessing. It almost means basic salary plus subsidy.

  The annual salary of the admiral of the Navy is about 8,400 taels of silver, which is worth about 2,800 gold.

  The navy officer is about 4,000 taels of silver, worth about 1,300 gold.

  The lieutenant is about 3240 taels of silver, which is worth about 1080 gold. Basically, the main captains of the Beiyang Navy are at this level, and they are limited.

  This is just the annual bonus, which is not considered as other "extra" income.

  It is not only the high income of officers, but also the high income of Beiyang navy soldiers.

  At that time, the salaries of the soldiers of the Beiyang Fleet were divided into ranks:

  The annual salary of a first-class sailor is 120 taels of silver, which is worth about 40 gold.

  The annual salary of a first-class artillery is 240 taels of silver, which is worth about 80 gold.

  The annual salary of a shore handyman is 36 taels of silver, which is about 12 gold.

  The annual salary of a torpedo maker is 288 taels of silver, which is approximately worth 96 jinyang.

  The annual salary of the electric light soldier is 360 taels, which is about 120 yuan...

  This level of income is basically half the size of the naval officers and soldiers of the Ocean Kingdom. Considering the higher purchasing power of silver in the Manchu Kingdom, it is actually slightly more than that.

  After all naval funds are attributable to government budgetary expenditures, the money saved by the Ministry of Internal Affairs can be used to build the Grand Palace. Isn’t he fragrant?

King Li Fushou did this with his own considerations. After all, as the country’s armed forces, the navy fleet has been paid by the royal family for a long time. His reputation is unfair, making him seem to be holding on to the military power. He just took this opportunity to get rid of it. .

  From another perspective;

As soon as the southern states of New South Wales and Victoria have a very good foundation, the pasture and plantation facilities are readily available. After more than 4 years of cultivation and immigration, they have a considerable population size and tax sources, which can be afforded. Can afford the ever-expanding naval fleet.

  Secondly, the Great Ocean Kingdom has saved more than 2.4 million pounds (4.8 million gold yuan) in printing tax by issuing its own coins and banknotes, which is equivalent to adding more than 2.4 million pounds to the kingdom’s finances.

  Sanlai established the Ballarat Coal Mining Company under the Ministry of Finance, which is in charge of the unified production of more than 170 gold mines, and produces millions of ounces of gold annually, with sufficient financial resources.

Now the battleship "Red River Valley" is being built on the slipway, and it will be commissioned by the end of next year. The construction of the "Brisbane" will be launched soon, and the next two ships in the plan also seem to be built. It is a general trend to further expand the daily maintenance costs of the naval fleet.

The Army’s share of 6 million taels of silver is mainly used for three expenditures. On the one hand, it is to develop advanced barrel field gun series, including 40 mm, 65 mm, 95 mm, 120 mm, 150 mm and 210 mm field guns. Invest 350,000 to 400,000 gold yuan.

The second aspect is tank research and development. Today's tank chassis improvement is constantly in progress, and it is getting closer and closer to the Army’s satisfaction. The turret is also being further improved. In the future, it is planned to be the first to equip two tank regiments, which can cost a lot of money. It is expected to invest more than 1.3 million gold yuan.

  The third aspect is the research and development of team weapons, with an estimated investment of about 180,000 to 200,000 gold.

  There is not much money left. It is easy to use the money to supplement the office expenses of the General Staff, increase the training of military academies for staff officers, organize rotation training for military officers, and so on.

  In the allocation of funds to the cabinet, the Royal Guards received 1.5 million taels of silver, the Political Intelligence Bureau received 500,000 taels of silver, the Ministry of Interior received 2 million taels of silver, and the Ministry of Culture and Education received 2 million taels of silver.

Let alone the first two, they are mainly used for the replacement of military equipment and clothing, etc., to reduce the financial burden of the business government in disguise, so that they can concentrate their efforts on building the Grand Palace, and don’t be distracted by others. A piece of filial piety.

  The funds obtained by the Ministry of the Interior were used to build multiple police schools, update police equipment, build new police stations, etc., including following up with civilized countries, planning to build multiple prisons, of course, the latter plan was rejected.

  The current hard labor system is very good, and there is no such concept of human rights in this era. What should be changed?

  The funds obtained by the Ministry of Culture and Education are of course used to set up schools. It is planned to establish a number of colleges, focusing on teachers and engineering schools, which are urgently needed talents in the society.

  Prime Minister Xin Changjun reported the whereabouts of these capital expenditures. The matter has passed the full game, so it is a cutscene. After King Li Fushou nodded his agreement, he decreed to be implemented.

  In this war reparation case

  Li Fushou and his Wang family are undoubtedly the biggest beneficiaries. Not only did they get rid of the large project of the daily expenses of the navy fleet, but also the royal guards and the political service bureau made a lot of profits, which reduced internal expenses in disguise.

  According to the amazing profitability of the royal family, the net profit accumulated every year is more than tens of millions of pounds. Even if the construction of the grand palace is done, the Ministry of Internal Affairs will not be able to prevent the Ministry of Internal Affairs from accumulating abundant capital.

After 20 years of continuous construction, the basic facilities within the royal territory have been extremely developed. Railways, highways, bridges, piers and urban buildings have basically been built, and the remaining investment is very limited. Since then, it has entered a long-term and stable The period of capital gains.

  This has further pushed up the income expectations of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, which has soared by a large amount over the previous years.

  As for the construction outside the Wang’s territory, it belongs to the government. The public and the private still have to be clearly distinguished. Based on the principle of who will benefit from the construction, these project investments are all fiscal expenditures.

  For example, the Sydney Bay Bridge project. Since one end of the Bay Bridge is within the city of Beilun in the Consby Plateau, which belongs to the king’s private territory, he paid half of the construction cost.

  The other end of the bridge is in Sydney, which is a financial expense.

   After the completion of the bridge, the tolls are divided according to the shares, and the personnel expenses and maintenance fees are also divided according to the shares, so there is no contradiction.

  Now the third phase of the southern extension of the coastal railway has been repaired to Adelaide, the capital of South Australia. It is expected that the railway line from Melbourne to Adelaide can be completed and opened to traffic before the end of the year, further supporting the economic growth of the southern states.

The funds for these infrastructure constructions came from the Kingdom Finance. Because of the four-year construction, the Kingdom Finance borrowed 23 million yuan in construction loans. With the rapid recovery of the southern state and better than before, the Kingdom’s finances have also turned from deficits. Profit, net profit of 1.73 million gold yuan in the first half of the year.

  A major infrastructure project facing the cabinet today is the northern extension of the coastal railway. This is a long railway line starting in Brisbane and ending in Darwin, the capital of the Northern Territory. The scale of the project is extremely large.

The coastal railway project was originally built from Brisbane to the south to Pine Town. The first phase of the southern extension project extends south to Beilun Town, with a total length of 1,410 kilometers (note, not a complete straight line distance), and the second phase of the south extension line continues to extend south To the border of New South Wales, a total of 315 kilometers.

  The third phase of the southern extension of the coastal railway project continued to turn south and turned to the west, extending to Melbourne about 732 kilometers, and extending northwest from Melbourne to Adelaide, the capital of South Australia, a distance of about 830 kilometers.

  The above railway projects are all completed or about to be completed routes, with a total length of 3,287 kilometers, and this is only the coastal railway and the southern extension line.

  Only the distance between Melbourne and Adelaide, if it is through the coastal road, it is as long as 1150 kilometers.

  In the government plan, lies a heavy infrastructure construction plan, that is, the northern coastal railway project.

  The railway departs from Brisbane, passes through Townsville, Linyi, Qingdao, and arrives at Cairns in the south. This is the first phase of the northern extension project with a mileage of 1,380 kilometers.

The second phase of the   Northern Extension Line starts from Cairns and heads north to Darwin. This is the coastline north of the famous scenic spot of the Great Barrier Reef, and the whole journey is 870 kilometers.

  It takes at least 4 years to complete the construction of the northern extension line railway project. This is because most of the coastal plains along the way are empty and barren, and the land cost is almost in vain.

  But in any case, this is also a railway line of more than 2,000 kilometers. Huge investment is indispensable, especially the second phase of the northern extension line. The cargo volume will not be sufficient in the foreseeable 10 years, and it may be in a state of long-term loss.

   Therefore, after a meeting and discussion, the cabinet still hoped to bring in one of the richest people in the world, His Majesty the King, to invest together, but was reprimanded in a shameless manner.

   "What do you people think about all day?

  Seeing the sky, they just stare at the income of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. They can't come up with any meaningful countermeasures. If you don't have money, you know you can ask for it. What if I don't give it?

  The financial strength of the kingdom is more than ten times better than that of Fusang. It needs gold mines and gold mines, resources and resources, bank loans with sufficient bank loan support, or keeping eyes on the Ministry of Internal Affairs all day.

   Tell me, what's the use of this batch of wine sacs and rice bags?

  Anyone from the Fusang National Cabinet will be able to live better than you and manage the kingdom’s finances. It seems that you are really old, and your minds are completely unable to keep up with the development of society.

  After the expiration of the current cabinet, all the chiefs will resign and give up positions to young talents.

  Roll me now, looking upset. "

  King Li Fushou was furious, and scared all his courtiers to trembling, holding their heads in panic, until they left the dream castle, looking back, the careful liver still thumped and thumped wildly.

  Long Yan's anger is really too scary, it's too much to bear!

  (End of this chapter)