I will be crowned king

That's right, to this day, the scarcest "commodity" not only in Beluga Port but in the entire colony is still people.

To be more precise, they are workers who are young, have sound limbs and have basically no health problems - both men and women.

The vast land and sparse population sounds like great development potential, but it also means that the scarce labor force can only be concentrated on one or two important industries. The poor population base makes it difficult to even expand the scale, let alone support industrial development. .

With the distance from Beluga Port, the most densely populated area in Ice Dragon Fjord, it has iron ore and coal mines, a mature and well-developed forest farm, rich seafood and prosperous port trade... But it is the most important and has the most intensive labor force. The industry is still agriculture.

Not only that, it is obviously the most important raw material producer in the country. Agricultural products and seafood are still the most important commodities in Beluga Port. Their status is no less than ore... Not only does it not need to import, but it can also export food to surrounding small colonies.

If you want to reverse this situation and truly tap the development potential of Beluga Port, increasing the number of immigrants is still the best way; and if you want locals to be willing to take the risk of long voyages and settle down in the new world, in addition to generous conditions, publicity and support are also Very important.

"As for the issue of immigration, I have already negotiated terms with the Cecil family of North Port. They will provide us with convenience as much as possible, but that's all." Anson chuckled:

"My suggestion is to set up an 'immigration company' directly in North Port specifically to recruit immigrants - the merchant ship of the Beluga Port Chamber of Commerce will be responsible for the transportation, so there is no need to hire a transport ship. The immigrants recruited will be paid according to the number of people. It’s all on Beluga Harbor Council.”

There is overt and covert support from the local government and wealthy families, the tacit approval of the royal family, and considerate services provided by the recipient, and the price is guaranteed... The only thing this so-called "immigration company" has to do is to recruit people, and it is very strict about birth and gender. There are no restrictions.

This kind of business with almost zero cost and guaranteed harvests during droughts and floods immediately aroused Erich's interest: "Then is there any cost involved? I mean...specifically how many new immigrants can Beluga Port accept in a year?"

How many? I would rather go without the cap, but the White Whale Port Council is unlikely to agree... Anson took a sip of rum and said, "The specific number is still under discussion, but it should be roughly around 3,000 people."

This is also the current upper limit that Beluga Port can bear. If it exceeds this number, we have to consider whether people will starve to death. Of course, it is also the upper limit of the Beluga Port Council. If it is not forced by Anson, and there is indeed a lack of reliability Labor force, this group of congressmen do not want to pay half a penny more for the poor new immigrants.

However, Anson's purpose is not that pure, it is just for the prosperity of Beluga Harbor - such words can only deceive a simple person like Bishop Riper, not even the Beluga Harbor Council.

The new immigrants can not only supplement the urgently needed labor force in the colony, but also serve as Anson's "tool man": retraining the new immigrants who have nothing, the cost is definitely much lower than resettling the old immigrants.

These colonists, who have nothing to do with the gang of monsters and monsters in the White Whale Port Parliament, are more likely to remain loyal to the "honorary speaker" who holds military power and can provide them with safety and livelihood guarantees.

The continuous flow of new immigrants can also keep the colony's positive vitality - continue to weaken the influence of the reclamation farm groups, mine and forestry owners and workers, and prevent them from trying to bargain with themselves.

"Three thousand people, and they need to be as young and strong as possible... Well, it's not a big number, but it's not particularly easy to get enough."

Erich, who frowned, lowered his head and murmured to himself. He pondered for a while, and then slowly said after a long hesitation: "I will try my best to gather as many people as possible, but I may not be able to guarantee that all of them will be Clovis."

"As long as you can enter a factory or a farm, I don't have any problem with you getting the Iser Elf." Anson raised the corner of his mouth, picked up the wine glass and handed it to Erich:

"But I think that's unlikely, right?"

"On the contrary, if you are really 'interested' in this area, I... really have connections in this area."

Erich held the wine glass in both hands and looked at Anson meaningfully: "The quality is absolutely guaranteed, and it will not cause you any trouble; of course, the price cannot be calculated according to immigration... It is very expensive, and it will not cause you any trouble. Add money."

This completely off-topic answer made Anson silent for a long time. He didn't know how to answer it at all. He could only pretend not to hear clearly: "For the prosperity of the Luen family and Beluga Port!"

The very sensible arms dealer also deliberately ignored the past: "For the great future of the Commander-in-Chief and Speaker of Beluga Port!"

"Snapped!"

The little clerk sitting in the corner knocked his wine glass gently on the coffee table, smiled and drank it down with the two of them at the same time.

……………………

After finalizing the immigration plan, Erich, who had a heavy responsibility, was not in a hurry to leave the colony. He turned around and found Mason Wetzler, the leader of the Beluga Port Chamber of Commerce and the de facto representative of the parliament, and negotiated an agreement with him about the steel plant and the settlement. The construction of military factories.

According to the little secretary, a "representative" like Erich who handles financial issues for the Rune family would be "not less than a penny" by the most conservative estimate - the evidence is that he briefly served as Talia's secretary In just a few dozen days when I was in office, I wrote letters to no less than a dozen "Mr. Erichs."

Therefore, he only needs to send a letter, and Erich does not even need to return to his homeland. A month later, an immigration company with the sign of Beluga Port will "automatically" appear in North Port, relying on their business network to recruit people in the name of the Luen family. migrant.

Since Erich himself had cooperated with Anson before, and the two sides had a tacit understanding of cooperation, it was naturally best to stay in the colony and take over the management of the Luen family's factory, as well as the increasingly prosperous "Moby Dick Harbor Good Man".

As a qualified arms dealer and factory owner, Erich had little experience with newspapers, but fortunately he had no competitors; with a small papermaking workshop and a few second-hand letterpress printing machines, he could monopolize the entire ice. The media world in Longfjord.

Moreover, the printing industry is a very small industry. It does not occupy much labor force and does not affect the development of other industries. It can form an excellent publicity effect when combined with newspapers. In fact, the Beluga Port is not large in size but has very good economic benefits. The first choice for colonial port development.

As for the steel plants and armaments factories that were still under construction, Erich merged the two factories into the "Beluga Steel Company" and directly negotiated the supply agreement with the committees composed of iron and coal mine owners in the Beluga Port Assembly. Through the cargo agreement, with the Rune Family and Storm Division behind them, they were able to obtain sufficient raw materials at a price that was only 10% higher than the local price.

However, considering that the current scale of the steel plant is not large, it only provides support for the military factory to ensure that the Storm Division can be barely self-sufficient in infantry weapons; those committees simply pinched their noses and paid an extra sum of money for protection. fee.

What's more, they didn't suffer any loss - in addition to stable orders, Erich also gave away a total of 40% of the shares free of charge, with each of the two companies accounting for 20%.

Considering that the Garrison Corps is the only and absolutely loyal customer of this steel company, there is almost no possibility of a loss on the books - after all, the Storm Division will not let it sell its weapons to others.

Moreover, Erich did not hand over the shares directly to the industrial owners, but to the "Beluga Port Ore Committee" and the "Beluga Port Coal Committee". The additional dividends were directly paid in cash to the two committees in the same month. representative.

As for how the money will be divided, that has nothing to do with the steel company. It is the "internal affairs" of the two committees and cannot be interfered with.

In this way, Anson does not need to intervene. In order to protect their own profits and external "bargaining power", the two committees will automatically join forces to form a more organized and united interest group than now, and rely on scale to generate greater benefits. Push the entire industry forward.

Once other industrial owners and reclamation farm organizations are aware of this, they must do the same thing in order not to be squeezed out of their living space and robbed of their labor force. The White Whale Harbor Council, which was originally forced to reform by Anson, will do so for themselves. Their respective interests are fragmented.

The "honorary speaker" who holds military power and the League of Trustees is more convenient to mediate between groups, and there is no need to worry about them grouping together to fight against himself, an "outsider".

Of course, promoting the scale and organization of various industries is also to further expand the trade network of Beluga Port and enhance its influence on the outside world, especially other colonies in the New World, rather than just being limited to the Ice Dragon Fjord area.

The entire New World has a total of thirteen large-scale colonies from east to west along the coast of the Turbulent Sea, which can have an impact on the surrounding areas; Clovis controls two colonies, including Beluga Port, and each of the three North Sea countries. There is a place.

The empire nominally controls six places, but because the largest port and navy are in the Principality of Adland, and many other wealthy principalities are very interested in investing in colonies, each of them has funded and even supported many colonial teams, and These colonial teams needed to be escorted by the Imperial Navy to reach the New World safely.

Therefore, which one of the Hred royal family and the Bernard family has greater influence on the colony is a question that His Majesty the Emperor himself does not want to know.

Among the thirteen large colonies, Beluga Port is not the most populous, nor is it the richest in resources - its advantage is that it is the shortest straight-line distance from the mainland (North Port), and the distance from the Three Kingdoms of the North Sea is not too far. .

It was the distance advantage, coupled with the fact that there were already several relatively mature colonies around it that provided labor and a small amount of trade, that helped Beluga Port overcome its initial difficulties. It only took more than fifty years to grow to the point where other colonies needed close proximity. A level that can only be achieved in a century, and it still maintains a considerable degree of expansion momentum.

Anson's next plan is to expand trade with these colonies, increase the purchase of some of their "specialty" commodities, reduce transportation costs by relying on merchant ships rented from the Royal Navy, and strive to win through quantity.

In the past, trade between such large colonies was sporadic and spontaneous. At best, it was like the Beluga Port Chamber of Commerce, buying low and selling high. Of course, it was not as efficient as Beluga Port or even the entire Ice Dragon Fjord. The main body can obtain bargaining power based on its size and purchasing power.

The most important thing is to take advantage of the distance between Beluga Port and the mainland, rely on cheaper and more abundant manufactured goods and luxury goods, and control the market in the new world - not only to go out, but also to attract the other party to take the initiative to Beluga. The whale port trade makes this lighthouse of the "New World" really shine.

This promoted the development of Beluga Port, and also attracted the raw material markets of other colonies to Beluga Port, and transported them to the mainland through merchant ships.

This not only reduces the supply of raw materials to the empire, but also provides the Kingdom of Clovis with a more adequate supply of iron ore and coal, stimulates the mainland to increase trade with Beluga Port, lowers the price of finished products, and further stabilizes Beluga Port. position in the entire new world trading system.

Every time he thought about this, Anson felt that his loyalty became more sincere; it would be really sad if the local people could not agree to his request and appoint an honorary governor.

But just like the most perfect cider will definitely have the taste of oak barrels, no matter how perfect the plan is, there are often uncontrollable, unexpected or unexpected emergencies that break the beautiful blueprint someone has worked so hard to build.

Of course, when this happens, the person will often feel aware of it because of some small details, and his heartbeat will start to accelerate, paving the way for the next thing he least wants to hear.

This situation may be a frightened bird flying in the sky, it may be the last leaf falling from the branch, it may be a wound on the cheek that protrudes without warning...

For Anson Bach, that was when Carl Bain, with an unknown expression on his face, appeared in front of him holding two notes.

"Which one is the good news?"

In the church in the parliament area, Anson almost subconsciously called out to the chief of staff who was about to step forward, causing the latter to freeze on the spot. It took five seconds for him to react.

"It depends on what you think." Karl looked like he didn't know how to answer:

"Anyway, let's talk about the worse one first - your good friend Louis Bernard didn't lie to you. The empire really dispatched a regular army about the same size as ours, about ten infantry regiments, to the colony, and there were a considerable number of them. Considerable cavalry and artillery; plus the colonial militia, there are almost 30,000 to 40,000 people."

"...Where's the good news?"

"The good news is that the people in the Army Staff are just a bunch of fools who are trying to scare themselves. This army was not sent to encircle and suppress us at all - so there is no need to worry about this matter anymore."

"It's not us...who is that?"

"Themselves." Karl rolled his eyes:

"The Empire's colonies have rebelled!"