293. In the midst of difficulties, the heavens are in trouble

The next morning, Sun Yuanqi woke up in his apartment on Jing'an Temple Road. High-speed updates //

This private mansion called Huaxi Garden was built in the spring of the second year of Xuantong in view of the fact that Lilith was the "richest woman on the sea" but did not have a residence commensurate with her status, and it was just completed in the middle of last year, and Sun Yuanqi moved in for the first time. Bloomage Garden captures the essence of Eastern and Western architecture, and blends Lilith's preference for strong colors, and the overall building looks vibrant. Although not as beautiful as the sensational Shanghai Garden next door, it has its own merits.

The strange and luxurious furnishings around him made Sun Yuanqi a little unsure of where he was for a while, and he couldn't help but look around. Sun Yuan moved, and Lilith also woke up, lying lazily and coquettishly beside her. Seeing Sun Yuanqi looking at the furnishings in the house, he said in a tired voice: "Yanke, what do you think of this mansion?" ”

After a night of dying and lingering, Sun Yuanqi felt refreshed and comfortable all over his body, and all the unhappiness he had encountered in the past few days was thrown out of the clouds, and he smiled when he heard it: "The colors are bright, the carved beams and paintings are beautiful, and the elegance is really like you!" It's just that you are the only one living in it on weekdays, don't you feel too lonely? ”

"What about the cold? You're not going to move to Shanghai anyway! Lilith straightened her messy hair and continued, "I heard that Jinghui is pregnant, and the labor date is April this year. Now that Beijing is in a mess, it's always reassuring, why don't you take her, Sister Vera, Nianzu, and Nianxuan to Shanghai to recuperate for a while? In any case, the public concession in Shanghai is always safer, and the level of medical care is much higher than in Beijing. In our spare time, my sisters and I can still talk. ”

"It's good!" Sun Yuan nodded. Now Yuan Shikai is entrenched in the capital, surrounded by the elite of Beiyang, which looks imposing. Jingshi University, located in the suburbs of Beijing, and his wife and children always seem to be hostages he is hostage, which really makes Sun Yuanqi a little worried.

Hearing Lilith mention his wife and children in Beijing, Sun Yuanqi couldn't help but ask, "Lilith, how is Xiao Huaizu?" ”

"Aaron! Our little Aaron is very smart, and although he is not yet ten years old, he is already in the fourth grade. He is very smart and lively, whether it is exams or sports, he is always at the top of his class. And his height is already close to one hundred and fifty centimeters, which is much taller than his peers. It's just that the body is a little thin, but fortunately, it is very healthy, and I have never had any diseases, even colds and fevers.

"Of course, Aaron inherited all the strengths of both of us and was not only smart, but also very handsome! At school, he was always the focus of attention from teachers and classmates, and the girls favored him even more, so much so that his school bag was always full of snacks from girls. Speaking of her son, this strong woman from Shanghai Beach suddenly danced with her eyebrows, and the proud look on her face was no different from that of an ordinary mother. In the end, she smacked her lips with some regret, "Everything else is fine with Aaron, but his parents can't be by his side often, which makes him a little lonely." At school, he was afraid to tell anyone that he was Dr. Johnson's son. ”

Sun Yuan frowned slightly: "Why?" Is it because I am Chinese? ”

Lilith covered her mouth and laughed, "Where do you want to go?" The simple reason is that he is now in Boston, where there are many colleges and universities. In addition to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), which you once worked in, it also includes Harvard University, Boston University, Boston College, Northeastern University, and other famous universities. When I was studying classical mechanics and calculus at school, I hated Newton so much that I thought that he had invented those laws in order to torture future generations, and sometimes even wanted to dig him up from Westminster Abbey and expose his body for three days!

"And the theories you invented are far more esoteric than Newton's classical mechanics, and it is difficult for ordinary students to understand even if they rack their brains. Guess what crazy things Boston students in Boston would have done if they had known that Aaron was Dr. Johnson's son? So every time I thought about it, I shuddered and had to warn Aaron not to say that he was Dr. Johnson's son. ”

Sun Yuanqi couldn't help laughing: "Why don't you let Xiao Huaizu come to China?" ”

Lilith immediately became vigilant: "Why did you let him come to China?" ”

Sun Yuanqi said: "I haven't seen him for many years, I miss him a lot, and I really want to take him with me for a while." And you spend most of the year in China, so it's not a problem to keep him alone in the United States! Anyway, China is also the country of his parents, right? It is only natural to return to China to live and live! ”

"Don't!" Lilith refused, "If you feel lonely, you can let Nianzu and Nianxuan go to Sichuan to accompany you, Jinghui is about to give birth to a baby, and you can also take it with you." Aaron is my only child, and I expect him to learn management well and carry on your family business in the United States. Don't even think about beating him! ”

Sun Yuanqi changed his mind and said, "Why don't we have another child?" ”

Lilith gave him a blank look: "I'm so busy all day and night, I don't even have time to go to Sichuan to see you, how can I have time to give birth?" If you want to have a baby, you better go to Sister Vera or Jinghui! Immediately, she changed the topic and said, "By the way, how many days can you stay in Shanghai this time?" What exactly are the things to deal with? ”

Speaking of business, Sun Yuanqi sat up on the pillow: "This time I came to Shanghai to take care of both public and private affairs, and I naturally came to see you for private matters, we haven't seen you for a long time, and we are all a little rusty." As for official business, there are two main things: the first is that the founding meeting of the New China Party was held in Shanghai, and I, as the chairman, naturally had to attend the meeting; The second is to ask you to help me hire a group of experts from the United States and Europe to formulate a comprehensive development plan covering agriculture, industry, and commerce for the six provinces of Sichuan, Shanxi, Shaanxi, Gansu, Qinghai, and Tibet. ”

Qinghai and Tibet, as long as there are no accidents, will be bagged by Sun Yuanqi within the year. And Yan Xishan took the initiative to beg for mercy this time, and Sun Yuanqi rescued him regardless of his previous suspicions, believing that he would never dare to betray him in the future. If there is a next time, he Yan Laoxi will really "die without illness". Therefore, Sun Yuanqi also included Shanxi in his development plan.

Lilith was not very interested in politics, and subconsciously ignored the establishment of the New China Party, and her attention was immediately attracted by the second thing, and she also sat up on the pillow: "What, ask experts to formulate a comprehensive development plan covering agriculture, industry and commerce for the six western provinces?" As long as you can get a good salary, there should be nothing wrong with that! But before that, do you have any ideas for yourself? ”

Sun Yuanqi said: "I do have my own vision, and the idea is based on an important premise. This premise is a top secret related to the life of the family, and now I will tell you, I hope you can keep it strictly confidential, even Vera, Jinghui, and Tony can't say it! Seeing Lilith nodding in agreement, Sun Yuanqi continued: "According to the analysis of domestic and foreign intelligence collected by the China Broadcasting Corporation, in three to four years, a very destructive large-scale war will break out in Europe, and Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Austria and other powers will be involved, and it will gradually spread to the whole world. This world war will last for four to five years and completely change the world pattern! ”

Lilith was stunned for a moment, and asked in disbelief for a long time, "Really?" You're not talking crazy, are you? ”

Sun Yuanqi bowed slightly: "Just like predicting the rubber stock turmoil last year, this information is true!" Therefore, my idea is to draw up a plan for the development of agriculture, industry, and commerce for the six western provinces that is oriented to the war and provides arms, ammunition, and logistical equipment to the countries of Europe. ”

I don't know if it was because of Sun Yuanqi's determined expression or the success of predicting the rubber stock turmoil last year, Lilith actually believed Sun Yuanqi's absurd speculation: "What about specifically? ”

Sun Yuanqi snapped his fingers and said, "Let's talk about the agricultural development plan first." The six western provinces, Zhongchuan, Shaanxi, and Shanxi, are relatively developed in agriculture, while the three provinces of Gansu, Qinghai, and Tibet are relatively developed in animal husbandry. From now on, we must promote the production of land reclamation through the purchase and storage, and in addition to the usual logistical supplies such as cotton, flour, eggs, vegetable oil, and animal fat, we must also pay attention to tea, tobacco, raw silk, pig bristles, tung oil, and cattle and sheepskins, which are in great demand for war.

"China is now a small-scale peasant economy, which has the advantages of intensive farming and diversified production, but the disadvantages are equally obvious: first, it is relatively scattered, and second, most of the products produced are used for its own consumption. In order to make up for the shortcomings, I want to increase the yield of agricultural products so that farmers can sell more agricultural products. Methods include the promotion of farming techniques, the widespread use of chemical fertilizers, and the use of improved American seeds. ”

Since the middle of the 19th century, the United States has been very advanced in agricultural technology, and is at the world's leading level in terms of farming technology and improved seed cultivation. Of course, at the beginning of the twentieth century, Americans were generally relatively good-natured, and Monsanto was not as unscrupulous as it is now. For example, Yunnan tobacco, which is well-known throughout the country, became famous with the help of improved varieties in the United States.

Tobacco was introduced to China from the Philippines in the Ming Dynasty and began to be planted on a large scale, but due to the lack of technology to cultivate improved varieties and the degradation of tobacco varieties caused by the closure of the country, the tobacco grown in China lagged behind the West in terms of color, aroma and taste. In 1902, British American Tobacco established its first cigarette factory in Shanghai, the Pudong Tobacco Factory, and most of the tobacco used was imported from the United States. All high-grade cigarettes are made with American tobacco, medium cigarettes need 70~80 American cigarettes, low-grade cigarettes need 40~50, and domestic tobacco leaves can only be matched in small amounts. It was not until after the Republic of China that Yunnan introduced American tobacco seeds and tobacco cultivation technology, and this phenomenon was fundamentally changed.

Lilith got up and took a pen and paper, and said as she took notes: "As long as you do a good job as a farmer, it is not difficult to popularize technology, popularize chemical fertilizers, and use improved seeds, and even I can help you solve some of the problems." But one of the things that needs special attention is the production of nitrogen fertilizer in chemical fertilizers, and I have invested 100,000 yuan in Hubei Higher Industrial School according to your arrangement, as the first batch of funds for the study of a full set of natural gas synthetic ammonia equipment. Without ammonia, it is difficult to solve the raw material of nitrogen fertilizer. ”

Sun Yuanqi scratched his head and said, "This matter is not in a hurry!" We can first promote farming techniques and improved crop varieties, so that farmers can taste the sweetness and pave the way for the popularization of chemical fertilizers in the future. As for the problem of nitrogen fertilizer, let's wait for the successful development of synthetic ammonia equipment! ”

293. Again in the difficult world (II)

"So you have a plan for industry and commerce?" It is clear that Lilith's interest is mainly focused here. Update up to 78xs //

In my opinion, the commercial development of the six western provinces should be based on the actual needs of industrial and agricultural development, especially to provide good services for industry, rather than simply for the purpose of making profits. The development of industry had to be prepared for the protracted world war three years later. It is also necessary to select those labor-intensive industries that are relatively dependent on raw materials and have no technical threshold according to the characteristics of the six western provinces. Specifically, it can be divided into two major aspects: light industry and heavy industry.

"Let's start with light industry. The light industry mainly provides means of daily consumption, including food, textiles, leather, papermaking, and daily chemicals, and the three main ones that are closely related to the war and are suitable for the six western provinces are food, textiles, and leather. In particular, in the food industry, Sichuan, Shaanxi, and Shanxi can provide a large number of grain crops, and we have a variety of patents in our hands, such as potato chips, instant noodles, dehydrated vegetables, and monosodium glutamate. ”

Lilith was a little excited, and the tip of the pen poked a few times on the paper, and I thought that the matter of producing battle rations for each team could work with Bergman! As long as it is operated properly, it is completely possible to form a monopoly on the fast food market, so as to obtain pricing power and earn high profits! ”

Sun Yuanqi is noncommittal about whether he can cooperate with Bergman, you can weigh and grasp it, you don't have to ask me. I am concerned about how to build factories and develop light industry in the six western provinces so that the people can benefit from it. ”

Lilith pouted, so go on! ”

Sun Yuanqi went on to say that heavy industry is different from light industry in that it has obvious technical barriers and also requires a lot of financial support in the process of development. To be honest, the current economic, educational, and transportation conditions in the six western provinces are not at all suitable for the development of heavy industry. However, the scale of development and the technical level of a region's heavy industry are important indicators of its comprehensive strength. If the western region wants to shake off poverty and backwardness, it cannot do without heavy industry. Therefore, we must not be afraid of hardships and dangers, and rise to the occasion.

Specifically, it is to take advantage of the opportunity of the world war to take the three pillar industries of steel, petroleum, and military industry as a breakthrough point to drive comprehensive progress in cement, construction, electric power, energy, mining, and transportation, so as to promote the great development and prosperity of the western region."

Lilith was not confused by Sun Yuanqi's circled paintings, but cautiously asked Is your plan too radical? If industries such as iron and steel, petroleum and other industries want to be sustainable, they need rich underground mineral storage, and as far as I know, there are no big iron mines and big oil fields in your six western provinces so far! If you blindly invest regardless of the actual situation, not only will it not bring development and prosperity, but it will also have a serious negative impact! ”

Sun Yuanqi said, I naturally understand the truth you said, but the six western provinces are not without large iron mines and large oil fields, but they did not have them before. According to the teachers and students of the Department of Geology of Jingshi University based on ore specimens and geological structures, there is a huge iron ore with reserves of billions of tons in Sichuan, and there are large oil fields with reserves of more than 100 million tons in Yan'an, Shaanxi Province and Yumen, Gansu Province. Detailed exploration work is currently being organized, but it is still in the stage of secrecy and is not known to the public. ”

Lilith nodded, if there are rich mineral deposits, steel, oil and other industries can be developed. "Immediately, your eyes rolled, didn't you say yesterday that Li Yuanhong, the governor of the Hubei Army, used Hanyeping Coal and Iron Works and Mining Co., Ltd. as a guarantee to ask you to borrow 1 million yuan from Bloomage Bank? If you have an iron ore mine in Sichuan, it is better to directly take down the Hanyeping Company, saving time, effort and money to build a steel plant. ”

Indeed, as Lilith said, building a steel plant is time-consuming, labor-intensive, and costly, which Sun Yuanqi deeply understands. When the Beiping Iron Works was first established, a total of 3 million US dollars were invested, and it took two years to start construction. For example, Zhang Zhidong prepared to build Hanyang Iron Works, one of the predecessors of Hanyeping Company, and successively invested 5 million taels of silver, and it took three years to complete it with the strength of the whole province. During this period, nearly 100 foreign experts were hired to work in the ironworks, including 14 technicians from Luxembourg alone.

Now Sun Yuanqi has not yet climbed where the specific location of the Zhihua Iron Mine is, and the road traffic in Sichuan is inconvenient, so when the exploration results are obtained, he will invest in the construction of the factory, and there is no hope of putting it into production within three or two years. Once the pre-world war stage is passed, it is not so easy to make money! If the Hanyeping Company is directly taken down, and the Panzhihua Iron Ore is transported out of Sichuan for smelting by using the Yangtze River water transportation in advance, it is indeed a wonderful strategy to borrow chickens and eggs!

At that moment, Sun Yuanqi praised Lilith, you have a great idea! But now we want to take down Han Yeping Company, I'm afraid it's a little powerless, right? According to Li Yuanhong, in the 34th year of Guangxu (1908), Hanyang Iron Works, Daye Iron Mine and Pingxiang Coal Mine merged to form Hanye Ping Coal and Iron Works and Mines Co., Ltd., which planned to raise 15 million yuan in new shares, together with 5 million yuan in old shares, for a total of 20 million yuan. As of last year, the paid-in share capital was more than 13 million yuan. The plate is so big that we can't eat it if we want to! ”

Lilith said with a smile You are too honest, Li Yuanhong said you just believe it? No, as of last year, Han Yeping Company had a paid-in share capital of more than 13 million yuan, but it may not be worth so much money now! You have to, for so many years, Han Yeping Company has been losing money, constantly borrowing from Germany, Japan and other countries, and then due to inability to repay, the loans have been converted into investments. Moreover, since the outbreak of the Wuchang Uprising last year, Hanyeping Company has been out of production, and its stock price has already plummeted, and it is not worth so much money at all. If you want to take down Hanyeping Company, now is the best time! ”

Sun Yuanqi thought about it for a long time, and then said with some regret that even if the stock price of Han Yeping Company fell again, his fixed assets were still worth millions of yuan, right? Without a lot of words, I want to buy Hanyeping Company, but I really can't make up so much money in my hand! ”

Lilith took the initiative to ask Yingdao that we will first intercept 1 million yuan from the profits of several pharmaceutical companies, and you Sichuan will take out another 1 million yuan, plus a loan of 3 million yuan from Bloomage Bank, give me half a month, and promise to help you take Hanyeping Company down! ”

Sun Yuanqi asked in surprise, are you going to do it? ”

"First of all, it should be explained that if we want to control Han Yeping Company, we only need to grasp 50% or 60% of the shares, and we do not require 10% or even 100%, so 5 million yuan is more than enough." Lilith didn't hide much, and directly explained her ideas and thoughts, "If we really want to start acquiring Han Yeping Company, I will first let the China Broadcasting Corporation, Japan Broadcasting Corporation, "Political and Economic Daily" and other news media hype up Yuan Shikai's covetousness for Hubei, making people feel that Hubei is about to come and a big war is coming, so that Li Yuanhong and the Hubei government are eager to use Han Yeping Company as a guarantee to borrow money to buy weapons and ammunition." In addition, I will also ask some foreign experts and scholars to publish articles, which are not optimistic about the operating conditions and future prospects of Han Yeping Company, weaken the confidence of shareholders in Han Yeping Company, and then sell shares at a low price. In the process, I will order people to acquire them through multiple channels until we have 50% or 60% of the shares. ”

Isn't this the method often used by some foreign financial predators in later generations?

While Sun Yuanqi approved, he was a little puzzled Lilith, I remember that the total capital of Bloomage Bank is only 3 million taels, and now it will lend 3 million yuan in one go, there will be no problem, right? No less words"

Lilith said disdainfully that the current market value of Bloomage Bank is at least 30 million yuan, and this loan of 3 million yuan is only one-tenth, can it be counted? Besides, after acquiring the shares of Han Yeping Company, you will announce that Sichuan has billions of tons of huge iron ore reserves, and the iron ore will be smelted by Han Yeping Company, I am afraid that the market value of Bloomage Bank will rise with the stock price of Han Yeping Company! Could something go wrong? ”

Sun Yuanqi opened his eyes wide, and Bloomage Bank has only been established for less than a year, and its market value has increased by six or seven times? ”

Lilith crossed her fingers and said that shortly after the establishment of Bloomage Bank, Zhao Jinghui, one of the shareholders, obtained global patent applications for penicillin and sulfonamides, and the stock price immediately tripled, with a market value of nearly 10 million yuan.

"By the end of the year, when the Wuchang Uprising broke out and the provinces declared their independence, the people were skeptical of the officially backed Daqing Bank and the Bank of Communications, and they transferred their deposits to foreign banks, and our stock price rose by another 50 percent.

"At the end of last year and the beginning of this year, Bloomage Bank jointly issued currency with Sichuan, Shaanxi, Gansu and other places, and quickly traveled to the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, and our stock price doubled. If you do the math, isn't it 30 million yuan? ”

Sun Yuanqi couldn't help but gasp: No wonder later generations of American businessmen abandoned the manufacturing industry and went to Wall Street instead, it turned out that the financial industry was the most profitable! After a long time, he said that since we are not short of money, then you can take down the Hanyeping Company, anyway, we will produce steel helmets, rifles, mortars, etc. in the future! ”

Lilith stopped writing suddenly, and now she plans to sell the Zhonggong Model 1911 rifle? Didn't you keep your mouth shut before? ”

"For not selling? As long as the European countries give enough money, I will not even be able to sell planes and tanks! "Sun Yuanqi figured it out: steel helmets, rifles, mortars, planes, tanks, these are also put away, it is better to sell them, which can not only make Europeans shed more blood, but also make Chinese make more money!

Didn't the United States and Russia like to do this in the future? You are welcome to () subscribe, reward, your support is my biggest motivation.