Chapter 1707 Imperial Decree (Ⅱ)
"The empire's colonies in the New World have already paid a huge sunk cost. If the colonists are allowed to continue to expand and conflict with the aborigines, things will get worse, and the final mess will still have to be cleaned up by the mother country."
"Instead of falling into a vicious circle like this, it is better to cut the meat and stop losses as soon as possible, slow down the pace of colonial expansion, maintain harmony with the aboriginals, and reduce the cost of public security. Military spending, if this business is managed properly, it can even open up a new source of income for the imperial government."
The "financial resources" mentioned by John Lauer refers to the huge magic crystal vein that Joan participated in the discovery.
The root cause of the conflict between Midgard and Jotunheim was the competition for this mine. Now that the war is over, the Midgard Colonial Company has kept most of the ore veins, and as long as they are mined, they can bring a steady stream of wealth.
The reason why the imperial authorities decided to make an expedition was mainly to seize this source of income. The mining rights of the magic crystal veins belonged to the Midgard Colonial Company, and the Imperial Royal Family was the largest shareholder of the Colonial Company. Of course, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince must try to get this A piece of fat is firmly in his hands.
The executive directors and managers of the colonial corporations were either colonial-born overseas residents, or were too closely tied to the interests of the colonies, and were more inclined to defend the interests of the colonies than the interests of the empire.
Although the imperial family is nominally the largest shareholder of the colonial company, in fact it cannot directly intervene in the company's management. Over the years, the financial statements submitted by the colonial company have always been "losing money", and shareholders have been losing money.
The strange thing is that the management of the colonial company—even if it’s just a small employee—is all rich and fat, buying houses and land, and living a luxurious life far beyond their proper income level. That's why I saw a ghost!
The crown prince does not trust these self-stealing moths, and needs to send an absolutely credible agent to Midgard to investigate the magic crystal veins, and to form a mining development company directly managed and operated by the imperial royal family. This mission falls on His financial advisor, John Lauer.
Two days ago, John Lauer, as the special envoy of the royal family, followed Joan and others on board the "Lucky" airship and headed to the New World together.
Joan was not interested in the intrigue between the royal family and the colonial company, but he was very relieved that His Royal Highness Frank kept his word, and what he promised was really done!
John Raul went to Midgard this time. In addition to inspecting the magic crystal mining area, he also had a mission to convey a decree jointly issued by the imperial family and the cabinet, ratifying Governor William Nichols and Logan Waugh. The territorial agreement signed by Kilsonge was legal and entered into force on the day the decree was promulgated.
Joan successfully invited this "imperial decree", finally, Qiao An's hard work was not in vain.
The airship floated over the pier and slowly descended towards the landing pad.
The waiter walked into the first-class cabin and reminded passengers that there may be slight vibrations when landing, please hold on to the nearest handrail to prevent falling.
Joan held the armrest wrapped in cotton and silk satin by the window, and turned her head to look at the side seats. Professor Moriarty, Dean Franklin, and Mr. Tennyson were playing cards with a short red-haired man.
When the waiter came to remind the passengers to prepare to land, others were packing up their belongings. Only Mr. John Lauer, known as the "gambler", was still staring at the cards in his hand, and said casually: "What's the hurry? Falling in the air, at least we had time to finish the game before crashing."
Dean Franklin and Mr. Tennyson looked at each other, and were quite displeased with John Lauer's "crow's mouth". However, the other party was the royal envoy after all, and it was not good to offend him for such a trivial matter.
Professor Moriarty remained calm, smoking a cigar, and unhurriedly laid out the cards on the table, no more, no less, exactly blackjack.
"Professor, your good luck is really enviable." John Lauer dropped the deck of cards in his hand, and launched a new round of challenges to Professor Moriarty, "Would you like to bet with me that the airship landed?" Is the time in odd or even numbers, how about minute accuracy?"
"This is very interesting, but before that, we have to adjust a pair of watches to eliminate the interference of jet lag." Professor Moriarty replied with a smile.
Joan heard their conversation from the side, and couldn't help laughing secretly.
As people often say, with only the wrong name but no wrong nickname, John Lauer, who came from a down-and-out aristocrat, was indeed a crazy gambler.
Joann and Mr. Lauer have only spent a short time together, so it is hard to say that they have a deep understanding of him. The deepest impression on him is that this man is very addicted to gambling, and he can bet on any topic.
Of course, if Mr. Raul is just a gambler, it is impossible to win the appreciation and reuse of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince. This person is quick-witted, and has profound insights beyond the times on economic issues such as finance and national taxation. He often makes some remarks that sound shocking at first glance. However, after thinking deeply, Joan also has to admit that his views are indeed very profound. Makes sense.
His Royal Highness Frank valued Mr. Raul's outstanding ability in business and management, so he appointed him as a special envoy to travel across the ocean to Midgard to investigate the magic crystal mining industry.
The airship landed smoothly on the tarmac. Joan picked up his bag and followed the instructor down the gangway.
Governor Nichols learned that the royal special envoy had come to inspect his jurisdiction in this airship, and he led the leading figures from the military, political, and business circles of the Midgard colony to wait at the pier to welcome them.
John Raul stood on the gangway of the airship, his indifferent gray eyes scanned the crowd below, and then unfolded a scroll stamped with the seal of His Majesty the Emperor in front of everyone, and read the edict aloud on the pier:
The imperial government officially recognized the validity of the boundary agreement signed by Governor Nichols and the Volsong Tribe, with the Vimur River-Mead River-Fangshan Mountains as the boundary. The colonists are not allowed to cross the border and invade the homeland of the aboriginal people. Take effect!
On the pier, the people who came to greet the royal envoy were all dumbfounded when they heard the content of the edict, and the crowd immediately made a dissatisfied drum noise.
The colonists generally believed that the decree promulgated by the imperial authorities seriously damaged their interests, and the protests intensified.
"Oh, I didn't expect such a result, Your Excellency the Special Envoy, it really brought us a big trouble!"
The short and fat Governor Nichols wiped the cold sweat from his forehead with a wry smile, and trotted forward to receive the order.