"In Nanming, countless middle-class people will become millionaires as a result of participating in this round of investment. In Beiming, due to the shattering of the extremely unfair wealth distribution system, coupled with investment support from Nanming and other parts of the world, countless hungry and destitute people will enter the subsistence class. And the original countless subsistence classes will enter the decent middle class. …… Oh, how many families are starting to want to own a car! The entire Ming Empire will become the second country after the United States to enter the era of national automobiles within a generation. …… Yes! Daming and the United States, two great countries, will work together to create this great process...... And in this great process, our Ford will be the protagonist. …… Ahem, at least one of the main characters. ”

After dinner at the Bai family, according to the practice of high society at this time, it was time to show a movie for the guests. Middle?? ? ?.? ?. Xiang Xiaoqiang originally thought that an American movie was going to be released, but Mrs. Bai released a domestic movie of Daming for everyone, which is a romantic comedy.

During the year that Xiang Xiaoqiang came to Daming, he had never been to the cinema, of course, he had watched some movies at his own home. Qiu Yu is a Hollywood fan, and only plays American movies at home, as well as Disney cartoons. Xiang Xiaoqiang was really not impressed by Daming's domestic movies at this time.

But Madame Bai is obviously very good at choosing films, and the romance film she chose tonight not only has a good plot, but also shoots and acts well, which is especially in line with the atmosphere of tonight. The pair of little men and women on the screen are simply so talented, they make people laugh when they are funny, and they are really touching when they are moved. The most important thing is that it is not a superficial farce, but something that makes people laugh and be touched by their hearts. This is something I have never felt when I watched domestic movies in later generations.

Xiang Xiaoqiang was impressed by Daming's domestic movies, and was ready to go back to find some classic Daming movies to watch, and he couldn't keep watching American blockbusters with Qiu Nannizi. It's good to watch old Hollywood movies from the thirties, but if you watch too much, you will get tired of aesthetics.

The movie is shorter than expected, less than an hour and a half. It wasn't too late after the "end", it was only a little after nine o'clock. At this time, it entered the third and most important "agenda" - Madame Bai accompanied Shang Xiaojun, Xiuxiu, Ye Ziyu, and Bai Xiaoman to chat by the charcoal basin in the small living room, and Bai Deli invited Xiang Xiaoqiang to his study to chat.

Xiang Xiaoqiang knew that tonight's "drama meat" had arrived.

Bai Deli took Xiang Xiaoqiang to his private study. Although this house is a Chinese-style building, this study is Western-style. Bookcases on all sides, walnut desks, and a crackling fireplace. There is a small cart parked next to the sand, with several layers of wine.

Bai Deli stood next to the small wine cart, picked up a pot-bellied glass bottle, pulled out the glass stopper, turned his head to Xiaoqiang and smiled:

"Brandy?"

Xiang Xiaoqiang nodded:

"Thank you."

Bai Deli poured two glasses of brandy and served one to Xiang Xiaoqiang. The two sat down on the sand, and Deli opened a wooden box on the coffee table again, pointed to a pile of cigars inside, and said with a smile:

"Mr. Earl, please take one. This brand is my favorite. I've always insisted that drinking brandy with a cigar is the best enjoyment in the world. …… Oh, if it were an ordinary friend, I would say to him, you will not find a better cigar in Nanjing...... But to the Earl, all I can say is that you won't find a better cigar in Nanking – apart from the Imperial Palace and the Yanping Palace. ”

Xiang Xiaoqiang laughed, picked up a cigar, put it on his nose and smelled it, and said with a smile:

"Mr. Bai, don't worry, I have never smoked such a good cigar in the Imperial Palace and Yanping Palace. This is indeed the best cigar in Nanjing. ”

When Bai Deli heard this, the two also laughed.

Xiang Xiaoqiang: Actually, this is out of politeness. He didn't know anything about cigars, where he could smell good or bad.

Xiang Xiaoqiang leaned in the sand, smoking a fierce and mellow cigar, drinking a fierce and mellow brandy, and the whole mouth was intertwined with two fierce and mellow tastes, and the feeling could only be described as "strong and intense".

Within half a minute, Xiang Xiaoqiang was almost overturned. But once you survive this half minute, the indescribably wonderful taste comes flooding in. …… This Lao Bai is right, these two things are enjoyed together, it is really the best enjoyment in the world. At least one of the best enjoyments.

Bradley also leaned in the sand, dragging his brandy glass, and spewing clouds and mist comfortably. The two of them didn't speak for a while, just caring about spitting clouds and mist, like two big smokers in a smoke house.

Xiang Xiaoqiang squinted his eyes, enjoying the hospitality of this "world's top big capitalist", and began to think about what he was going to say tonight?

Bradley's exclamation rang in his ears:

“…… We lost Cuba, but we still have Cuban cigars to enjoy. ”

Xiang Xiaoqiang squinted his eyes, his ears moved, and he immediately took it very talentedly, and also sighed the same:

“…… We lost Beiming, but fortunately, there are still Beiming pine seeds to eat. ”

Bradley turned his face:

"Pine seeds?"

Xiang Xiaoqiang smiled:

"Yes, Nurgandusi red pine seeds are only produced outside the customs of Beiming, and the insiders like to eat them very much...... However, even in the Ming Dynasty, ordinary low- and middle-income people cannot afford to eat regularly...... The output itself is low, and after the Japanese monopoly changed hands, it almost became a luxury in the Ming Dynasty. ”

The "insider" he said was actually Qiu Yu. Pine seeds are Qiu Yu's favorite snack, and when watching a movie at night, I always like to hold a bag of pine seeds in my arms and eat them non-stop, just like a big squirrel.

Bradley also lamented:

"yes, it's amazing to think about. Many of the good things we usually enjoy come from our enemies...... The cigars in this box were rolled into cigars in the dictator Bastida's tobacco factory and then trafficked or smuggled into the United States...... There were also pine seeds, which were harvested in the pine forests of the dictator Emperor Guangwu and then trafficked or smuggled into the Ming Dynasty...... This process, the cost has increased at least several times. If it weren't for these barbed wire fences in between, they would have been cheap. But now, we have to pay several times more and pay ...... How to put it, pay the barbed wire fence in the middle. ”

Xiang Xiaoqiang thought about who he was talking about "Bastida the Dictator", and after a while, he remembered that he was the one who was overthrown by Castro in the fifties and the revolutionary who was even more aggressive than the sharp brother, Che Guevara. Cuba is unfortunate enough, first as a colony, and then independent and then ruled by the military dictatorship of Bastida. Then it was "happy" for more than fifty years under the Castro family, and it was not until the 2nd century that ordinary people were allowed to use mobile phones......

Cuba is too far away, on the other side of the world, to manage.

Xiang Xiaoqiang sat up and made up his mind: But in China in this time and space, especially in North China, all suffering should end. It can't be delayed any longer.

He smiled and said:

"Mr. Bai, is Mr. Ford optimistic about getting the Neutrality Act?"

"What? Do...... Decide? Earl, I'm sorry, I'm not familiar with this term......"

Xiang Xiaoqiang was stunned, and immediately smiled:

"Oh, that's what it means to solve, to break through, to make it not a problem."

Bai Deli understood, and said with a smile:

"Oh, because of the limited space of the telegram, Mr. Ford did not go into too much detail. But his opinion is basically my opinion. Your country's arms purchases in our country have now encountered setbacks. We've seen that as well. But in the long run, it's still relatively optimistic. As for how long this 'long-term' is, it depends on whether you are only prepared to take a detour to the "Neutrality Law" or whether you are prepared to challenge the "Neutrality Law" head-on. ”

"Oh? I would like to hear about it. ”

Bradley pondered for a moment and asked:

"If you don't mind...... Can you give us an overview of how big the order you plan to place in the U.S. when you return home? …… Not just for us Ford, but for the entire United States...... How big is it? ”

Xiang Xiaoqiang shouldn't have answered for a while. If you want to say how big the total number of arms purchase orders is, he really can't say for a while. This is not something that he can set by patting his head alone.

He thought about it for a moment and said:

"Mr. Bai, it depends on how big our war will be, and how long it will be fought. As far as military vehicles are concerned, it is conservatively estimated at 10,000 units. ”

Bai Deli didn't have any expression after hearing this, just "oh", and repeated lightly:

"One hundred thousand? …… Oh. ”

"100,000 vehicles, ......" Xiang Xiaoqiang gritted his teeth and said, "...... to two hundred thousand taels. ”

Bai Deli nodded lightly:

"Well, 100,000 to 200,000."

Xiang Xiaoqiang smiled:

"Mr. Bai, it's quite a lot."

Deli Bradley smiled:

"It's a big order for a company. …… But for the United States as a whole, it is nowhere near enough to tempt it to change a law. It's for us at Ford...... You know, Lord Earl, that from 9 to 927, we rolled 50,000 models off the assembly line in nine years. From '927 to '93, we rolled off the assembly line 450,000 cars in four years. An average of 94,000 units per month. …… 20,000 units is just two months of our production. …… Of course, this is just about us Ford, not the whole of America. ”

Xiang Xiaoqiang swallowed dryly. Although he had known this set of figures for a long time, now that he heard Ford say it with his own ears, he was once again impressed by the power of the American automobile explosion.

He coughed, took a casual sip of brandy, and said:

"Of course, that's why we like the United States. You see, now we are short of cars. The reason why we first think of the United States instead of Germany is because of this kind of production capacity of the United States, which is 'hundreds of thousands of military vehicles immediately desirable'. …… What's more, you're talking about the Great Boom of the 2s. And now, the Great Depression is not yet over. ”

Bradley nodded and said:

"The Earl is right. In this sense, during a recession, a company should see it as a gift from God if it receives enough orders to produce at full capacity for two months. …… But, Lord Count, since we are already related by marriage, I think I must tell you bluntly...... You, as well as many people in your country, and even some dignitaries in your cabinet and royal family...... It seems that there is an overestimation of the ripples that your country's order can cause in our country......"

Well, Xiang Xiaoqiang understands that ripples are also splashes. What this means is that the order for these hundreds of thousands of cars may be shaken in Daming, but if it is thrown in the United States, it may not even make a splash. Not to mention other companies, just Ford, it's not enough to stuff your teeth. So you can't expect too much, don't look at the fact that you haven't come out of the depression yet, but the emaciated camel is bigger than the horse. The order for a hundred thousand cars to the United States, it is good, the Americans are happy. But don't expect the Americans to amend the Neutrality Act for this purpose.

Seeing that Xiang Xiaoqiang was a little embarrassed, Bai Deli comforted him again:

"Of course, we are still optimistic about using some forms to circumvent the Neutrality Act."

"For example?"

"For example...... End the state of war. Aren't you negotiating? Moreover, it was the Northern Qing Dynasty that took the initiative to seek peace. As long as you sign an armistice as soon as possible, even if the state of war is over, you can buy whatever you want. ”

Xiang Xiaoqiang smiled bitterly and shook his head:

"We can't just sign an agreement under these circumstances, can we? At present, the differences between the Ming and Qing dynasties are still quite large, and it is certainly impossible for the Northern Qing Dynasty to sign like this. And we certainly won't. We are now compromising and signing at any cost, and what we get is nothing more than an opportunity to make a big purchase, but what we lose is Shandong and Shanxi. It's not something you can buy some armaments and get it back. Moreover, according to my personal judgment, the Northern Qing Dynasty wanted to use the negotiations to delay, raise troops, build defensive positions, and wait for winter or next spring to counterattack. But it didn't work, now I'm being singled out to preside over the negotiations, and my influence on the High Command is minimized, and the old men in high positions don't think like I do at all.

"Well, their opinions are not necessarily wrong. I may have thought too much about the military, and the old men too much about politics...... Perhaps it is not impossible that Guangwu is really willing to give up everything externally for the sake of stable rule at home...... The so-called preference to give to friends rather than domestic slaves is also a tradition. Now we are 'friends'. …… In addition, we need to take this opportunity to make repairs, improve logistics supply lines, build airfields, and consolidate the areas that have been occupied, which is true. If you continue to fight continuously, you may not be able to win a big victory. Perhaps, both sides are brewing the next round of the big battle. ”

Bradley listened attentively, nodded thoughtfully, and leaned back in the sand, smoking his cigar.

Xiang Xiaoqiang smiled again:

"But...... Mr. Bai and Mr. Ford, you don't just think that the benefits of the United States are limited to these hundreds of thousands of car orders, right? ”

Bradley tilted his head and raised an eyebrow in the smoke:

"The Earl means ......"

Xiang Xiaoqiang smiled seductively:

"After conquering the whole of North China, we will definitely raise it to the level of the Southern Ming...... This is tantamount to building a nation on the ground...... With so much construction and investment, we will definitely not be able to eat it ourselves. Our production forces are far from sufficient to support this task. …… And there is only one country in the world that has such a huge idle industrial capacity, and is neutral, without any ambition or will for war. In the post-reunified China, the two huge economies that were originally closed to each other have been combined, all kinds of resources and wealth have flowed unimpeded, and construction and investment have been everywhere, and it is certain that there will be a golden boom in the economy.

"In Nanming, countless middle-class people will become millionaires as a result of participating in this round of investment. In Beiming, due to the shattering of the extremely unfair wealth distribution system, coupled with investment support from Nanming and other parts of the world, countless hungry and destitute people will enter the subsistence class. And the original countless subsistence classes will enter the decent middle class. …… Oh, how many families are starting to want to own a car! The entire Ming Empire will become the second country after the United States to enter the era of national automobiles within a generation. …… Yes! Daming and the United States, two great countries, will work together to create this great process...... And in this great process, our Ford will be the protagonist. …… Ahem, at least one of the main characters. ”

(In the previous chapter, the old cat wrote that Bradley planned to give his daughter 5% of Ford's shares as a dowry, which seemed too much to be suggested by a classmate.) Because Ford had five people at the beginning of its creation, even if some of them were later merged, the shares could not be too concentrated. In addition, there are retail shareholdings and shareholdings by other consortia...... In short, it is too exaggerated for a shareholder to give 5% away. It makes sense that the old cat has corrected it to %. The shares of other companies that were given back to Xiaoqiang were also reduced accordingly. ）