For the sake of Lev's face, Nicholas II quickly approved the deal, and the handover between the two sides went smoothly.

The locals had two options, either to return to the Russian Empire, to buy all their local assets at the expense of the Bulgarian government; Either stay and apply for Bulgarian citizenship.

This multiple-choice question is very easy to do, most ordinary people have chosen to stay, the civil war has been going on until now, the young and strong of the Russian Empire have suffered heavy losses, and everyone can hide from military service.

According to incomplete statistics, before the outbreak of the world war, the population of the Russian Empire was about 160 million, after the end of the world war it fell to 146 million, and now this number has fallen to 124 million.

In addition to war casualties, the greater population losses are due to the chaotic situation, the poor economic situation, which has caused a sharp drop in the birth rate, and the large number of human losses caused by hunger and migration.

According to the Bulgarian Population Agency, even if the Russian Empire ends the war, the population will still fall into negative growth in the next ten years, a large number of young men were consumed in the war, and now the balance between men and women has been broken, and there are at least six million more young women than men in the Russian Empire!

Benefiting from this situation, the problem of gender balance in Bulgaria has been easily resolved, and the imbalance between men and women in European immigration has been improved.

The credit of the ruble has long since collapsed, and now the most circulating currency in the Russian Empire is the lev, followed by the pound sterling and the franc.

Faced with this situation, the tsarist government did not fail to take measures, they reissued the gold ruble, but unfortunately it was quickly dragged down by the run of the people.

Without enough credibility, the people got the ruble, and the first thing they wanted to exchange for gold was, seeing that the government of Nicholas II was forced to announce the termination of the exchange.

Then the value of the gold ruble also fell rapidly, and finally it was abandoned by the people. Now the Russian people recognize gold and foreign exchange, and they really have no love for the ruble.

The funniest thing is that after the collapse of the credibility of the local banks, the most popular banks in the Russian Empire are now foreign-funded banks, and even the national banks established by the tsarist government cannot be compared.

This state of affairs existed in all three Russian governments. No, it should be said that both Russian governments existed, the Moscow government had been nationalized, the rich people were raided and scratched, the poor had no money to save, even the currency was replaced by bills, and their finances were still relatively the best.

After getting the money, the first thing Nicholas II did was to pay the military salary, which had been owed for half a year, and the soldiers who had previously issued rubles did not buy it, and had no choice but to reissue it.

Now Nicholas II has learned wisely, no matter what, first grasp the army. Not only the army had to be resounded, but even the wages owed by the government departments had to be settled, and in this respect, Nicholas II was also a good boss.

More than half of the income from the sale of more than 2 billion leva was spent, and he still had to buy ammunition and launch a war of unification.

If he doesn't fight, it's okay, this money is enough for him to spend half a year, and once the war is ignited again, it can be used up in a month, and not only the moths of the government will be consumed for him.

Nicholas II said cautiously: "Prime Minister, urge Sasonov to speed up the negotiation process, in 1922 we will launch a war of unification!" ”

The prime minister was shocked in his heart, and said with some hesitation: "Your Majesty, is it better to wait any longer, after a long battle, our soldiers need to be repaired, it is better to delay it for a year!" ”

Nicholas II smiled bitterly and said, "Do you think we can still drag it out?" You know the financial problems, every year of delay, it will cost five or six billion pounds, where are we going to get so much money?

Money is only one aspect, if we are really in a hurry, we can still sell the land, presumably Ferdinand's guy is already ready to take over, as long as we dare to sell, they will take it!

You know, they actually packaged and sold all the war reparations from Germany and Italy, and the Bulgarian government now has money in its hands!

But what about the international environment? Once Britain and France have settled their internal problems, will they tolerate the reunification of the Russian Empire?

If they give blood to those two traitors, how long will this war last? One year, two years, three years, five years, ten years, eight years?

No one can say clearly, if it drags on for a long time, we will find it difficult to reunify again! ”

The Prime Minister is silent, and everyone knows these questions, but they are only selectively avoided. Otherwise, Nicholas II would not have received their support when he wanted to sell the Crimean Peninsula!

……

Sasonov, who received the telegram, began to have a headache, it was already troublesome enough to argue with the bank representatives, and now there are still domestic urges to speed him up!

On October 22, 1921, the negotiation meeting between Bulgaria and Russia on the loan issue was officially opened, and this time the protagonist was no longer Metyev, but the Ministry of Foreign Affairs only provided a venue for both sides.

The head of the bank's delegation was Cage Nicholas, CEO of Union Bank, and the two deputy heads were Wolf Regus, representative of the National Bank, and Marshall Priestev, representative of the Royal Bank.

In addition to these three people, the three major banks have also set up an interim evaluation team, a financial team, and a negotiation expert group, and the total number of personnel is as high as more than 300 people.

As soon as he saw this posture, Sasonov was a little dizzy, it would be strange if he didn't come prepared!

On behalf of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, I would like to welcome you all here, and I hope that you will be able to reach a smooth cooperation in the future, in order to protect the traditional friendship between Russia and Russia."

Alright, I'm done with my nonsense, Mr. Sasonov and Mr. Cage, now you can get started! ”

Cage said: "Thank you, Mr. Mejev, for providing us with this venue, and I hope that our next negotiations will go smoothly."

In business, Mr. Sasonov, how much loan does your government need this time, and what is it willing to provide as collateral? ”

Sasonov was stunned, of course, the more the loan, the better, but the problem of mortgage is a headache, there are no domestic regulations, theoretically where the mortgage, he can call the shots.

This is based on the fact that if the government is able to repay the loan, as long as the loan can be repaid on time, then it does not matter if he mortgages St. Petersburg!

If the government can't repay the loan on time, then it will be a big trouble, and he will definitely not have good fruits to eat in the future, having lost a lot of benefits!

Sasonov asked rhetorically: "Mr. Cage, I would like to know how high the maximum amount of loans your bank group can accept?" ”

Cage smiled and said: "It depends on how big the benefits are, if the interests are big enough, I think we can provide the funds that your country needs!" ”

Sasonov was shocked, and then returned to normal, a bank that monopolized the financial resources of such a powerful country as Bulgaria could not lack funds, and even no consortium in the world had their large cash flow!

Of course, one of the more important reasons is that the lev that the Russians loaned away will eventually have to return to Bulgaria.

It was impossible for Nicholas II to go to war with the lev, they had to buy weapons and ammunition, as well as various strategic materials, and as soon as they changed hands, seventy-seven eighty-eight funds flowed back into Bulgaria, and these money would eventually go to the bank again.

Sasonov thought for a while and said: "We plan to borrow 10 billion leva, and the Russian Empire can use the Volyn Heights, the highlands along the Dnieper, and the Black Sea coast as collateral with an annual interest rate of five percent, and a one-time repayment of principal and interest after thirty years!" ”

Cage shook his head and said, "With all due respect, Mr. Sasonov, no bank in the world would dare to do this business on the terms given by your country!"

Even if there is no civil war in your country, it will be difficult for you to obtain this loan under such conditions in peacetime, not to mention that it is a war year, and if we are not good, we will lose all our money! ”

Sasonov's face sank, he knew that the negotiations could go so smoothly, and the conditions that had just been thrown out were just a temptation.

Instead of answering directly, he threw out the question: "So Mr. Leich, what do you want?" ”

Leitch thought for a while and said, "There is nothing wrong with the loan figure of 10 billion leva, but there will be some changes in the loan interest, repayment method, and collateral!"

The interest on the loan, we have to calculate the interest on a monthly basis, the monthly interest rate is 8/1000, and the monthly settlement is settled, the funds are linked to gold, and you have to bear the inflation yourself.

Collateral I suggest using the Great Plain of Ukraine, controlled by the Russian Empire, as collateral, so that everyone can accept it! ”

Sasonov was like a fryer, and roared loudly: "Impossible, you are taking advantage of the fire to rob!" ”

Cage said calmly: "Mr. Sasonov, you also have to consider the cost of the risk I have taken, once you lose the war, we will lose all our money!"

With such a high risk, we need a little more interest, is this excessive? At present, the benchmark interest rate of international loans is basically maintained at 4.5~6/1000 per month, and I have only raised it a little bit!

As for the issue of collateral, mortgages all over the world are discounted, as long as you can guarantee that you can repay the loan on time, these are not a problem at all!

Unless you are not sincere and have no intention of repaying the loan in the first place, there is no need for you to dwell on the issue of collateral at all! ”

Sasonov said with a sad face: "Your interest is simply too high, it has exceeded the capacity of the Russian Empire!"

As for the collateral you want, it has far exceeded the value of this loan, and even if the collateral is to be discounted, it can't be so ruthless, right? ”

Cage smiled and said, "This problem, we have increased the cost of risk!" Everyone knows that the greater the risk, the greater the benefit!

You can't reduce our risk, so you can only increase our interests, otherwise what's the point of doing this business for us?

Mr. Sasonov, may you like to consult again, the bankers in your country, and ask them, is it really too much for us to ask? ”

Sasonov's face sank, the bankers of the Russian Empire have become the laughing stock of the whole world, and at the same time they have become wanted by the government, isn't it funny to consult them?

If there is no Bulgarian government, the risk factor of this loan is almost 100%, and normal people will not take this business!

But this loan is obviously endorsed by the Bulgarian government, and they have the ability to recover this loan, but if they can't do it, they can sell these mortgaged land to the government, and the risk has been transferred!

Sasonov thought for a while and said: "We can bear the interest rate up to 6/1000 per month, which is also a normal loan in the world, and the repayment standard can also refer to the international standard."

Collateral, the Russian Empire can take out all the factories and enterprises of St. Petersburg, plus half of Ukraine, with the Dnieper River as the dividing line, and the value of these assets is 20 billion leva! ”

Cage shook his head and said, "We don't dare to be interested in your country's businesses, no matter what their value is, it is equal to zero for us!"

And this half of Ukraine, if your country is willing to sell it directly, I think it will not be a problem at all to sell 18 billion leva, but it will not be enough as collateral.

We are a bank, not a charity, we must make money in all businesses, and if we can't guarantee profits, we'd rather not do this business! ”

The two fell into silence, and Metyev on the side suddenly said: "Mr. Sasonov, in fact, Mr. Cage's proposal just now is still very good, you might as well think about it, sell the Ukrainian region directly, you can get a lot of money, and you don't have to worry about all the problems!" ”

Sasonnov scolded in his heart, the good guy just now the bank only suggested selling half of the Ukrainian region, and in a blink of an eye, it became the sale of the entire Ukrainian region.

Do you really think that there is no heavenly thief in the Russian Empire? If you go too far, the Russian people will also punish the country!

However, on the surface, Sasonov still did not change, but politely rejected Metyev's proposal.

He said that although the Russian Empire was vast, not an inch of land was superfluous, as if he had sold land earlier, as if he had not done it!

The first day of negotiations was naturally fruitless, and everyone only had a preliminary look at the bottom of the other party, and it is estimated that there will be a long time to reach an agreement.

Although Ferdinand didn't care about the amount of interest, from the beginning he thought that Nicholas II could not pay off his debts, but as a bank, if he didn't care about interest and focused on the collateral, a fool would know that there was a problem?

Therefore, the bank representatives must negotiate with the Russians on the interest rate, so that they can believe that this is an ordinary loan, which is nothing more than a larger amount and a higher interest, and finally relax their vigilance on the collateral!

As for Chekov's proposal to buy Ukrainian regions, this is also a kind of conspiracy, and many things are reassuring if they are laid out in the open; If the Bulgarian government has no intentions, what if the Russians still suspect that they are engaged in a big conspiracy?

The more aggressive the attitude of the Bulgarian government in buying land, the more reassuring Nicholas II will be, at least they can be sure of Bulgaria's position and just want to buy Ukraine from them, and not use intrigues to seize it!

Well, these questions were not something that Ferdinand could come up with alone, but a government think tank that finally came up with a plan after two or three years of research!

The effect has just begun, no one knows whether it will succeed or fail, anyway, this is a long-term strategy, and it is not a matter of time and a half to achieve results!

……