Chapter 92 Turiyi Chamber of Commerce (2)
Now that the two most important Turii merchants have chosen to be courteous, Sostatus no longer refuses. When he stood up, the other businessmen stopped whispering, and listened to him with respect on their faces. This respect was not only because of his background, but also because of his own ability, although he was the oldest among these businessmen. young.
"Everyone, I'll keep the story short so as not to delay everyone's time to earn money." As soon as Sostatus spoke, there was laughter around him.
"After the food we bought at a high price was shipped to the port, His Majesty summoned me and thanked us for our generous donation. At the same time, he also said that it was because of this batch of food that he had the opportunity to lead him in person. The army went to conquer Rome in central Italy, and he hoped that those of us who had donated food to the Turii merchants would follow his army on the expedition--"
"What?! We have donated so much food, and we have to go out and continue to provide military funds for the army!" The wine merchant Calmendes shouted dissatisfiedly before Sostatus finished speaking.
"Shut up, Calmendes!" Sostatus glared at him and warned, "Whether it's your stupidity or whatever else, don't insult the great King Davos again, or you will Get out of here!"
"That's right, the great King Davos cannot be blasphemed!" Tios emphasized loudly on the side, which attracted everyone's response.
Most of the merchants in the kingdom of Dionia respected King Davos very much, not only because the bank established by his wife Cristoia played a huge role in promoting the commerce of the kingdom, but also because of the new commerce he invented. The management model and the process of fine division of labor in the workshop were an unprecedented innovation for Dionia's business, so some businessmen even believed that Davos was not only a descendant of Hades, but also favored by Hermes.
"Kalmendes is definitely not disrespectful to His Majesty Davos, he is just worried about making endless donations for the army's expedition." Shipbuilder Mikris defended his friend.
Mikris was the cousin of Enanilus, and Calmendes was the son of Orifis. These two families were famous families of the original Turii, and they were related by marriage and had close contacts. At the beginning, because of the Polyxis case, Enanilus and Orifis were both implicated and imprisoned, but their family and industry were not greatly affected, but their political status plummeted, and it was inevitable that there would be discomfort in their hearts. . In fact, both Enanilus and Orifis were released a few years ago because their sentences had expired, but because of the impact of that scandal, for the sake of the family, they were no longer fit to make public appearances.
"Looks like you two are really stupid!" The slave trader Cybanus stood up, who was the one who urged Sostatus to speak.
This businessman is tall and rough, and he likes to speak harshly, but everyone is still willing to get close to him because he can always provide satisfactory slaves.
The great demand for slaves in the kingdom of Dionia made Cybernus, who had a rich source of slaves, earn a lot of money.
At this moment, he laughed loudly, "Don't you understand, this is what His Majesty Davos has given us in return for the food donations! Since Dionysus was established, when did the army need our merchants' entourage?! Never before? Yes, but now there is! This means that the prisoners captured by the powerful royal group can be obtained in time at the best price! The spoils obtained by the army can also be obtained at the best price! Occupied by the army We can get shops at preferential prices and occupy the market first! …”
Everyone's eyes lit up with Cybernus' impassioned words, and some people even shouted excitedly, "His Majesty Davos is victorious!"
Calmanders couldn't help but whispered, "Don't be too happy, this expedition will not necessarily win."
But it happened to be heard by the woolen textile merchant Flassias next to him.
Fulacias was originally a cloth merchant from Euboea, and after he came to Turii to do business, he found that Dionia's wool was not only of high quality, but also cheap and abundant (because there were Lucania and cloth). two excellent pastures in the Ruti area), therefore, he chose to settle down, became a citizen of Dionia, and began to make wool textiles, by taking a loan from the Cristoia Bank, abandoning the traditional model of the family workshop, and carrying out a large workshop. The fine division of labor and management, and soon his garment factory expanded rapidly, and the woolen blankets, gorgeous woolen robes, woolen tunics, etc. were well received by the people of Dionia, and were exported to other inland areas. city-state, thus making him a great merchant.
Therefore, after hearing Calmanders' words, he immediately retorted loudly, "Under the leadership of His Majesty Davos, when has our legion ever been defeated! Expecting the defeat of the king's team is not an attitude that a Dionian citizen should have? !"
Facing the dissatisfied eyes of others, Calmendes hurriedly explained, "I...I hope the army will not be too careless, because I heard...I heard that Rome is a very powerful city-state..."
"I heard that the army that went to Rome this time consisted of the first, second, third, fourth, fifth, and sixth legions, as well as the first and second cavalry legions!" Sostatus said. Breaking his words, he exclaimed, "This is an army of nearly 60,000 people! I remember, gentlemen, even the Battle of Crotone and the Battle of Brindisi (the conquest of April at Davos). In the war in the Asia region, the battle with the Maple coalition) has never dispatched so many soldiers! No matter how strong Rome is, how could it be possible to resist such a powerful army of our Dionia!"
"Sostatus is right, this is bound to be another big victory! No wonder you are so excited, Cerberus, you already know the news, this time you will get a lot of cheap latin slaves , and then make a fortune! What are the rest of you still hesitating?!..." With the help of Dickpolis, the atmosphere in the hall suddenly became lively.
The merchants expressed that they would personally follow the army of King Davos to Ladium to open up a new trading base for their industry in central Italy.
Amidst the noisy voices, a question from Frasias made everyone's eyes turn to Sostatus again: "President, are we the only businessmen from Turiyi who follow the army to Latam?"
"Of course not." Sostatus' face showed a little helplessness. "And Lijim's merchants...because they also donated a lot of food to the kingdom for free."
"Hey..." Everyone sighed in annoyance.
At this time, Theos said, "You don't have to worry, Ladium has a vast territory and many city-states. Even if there are more Lijim merchants, there will still be enough profits for us to earn. Moreover, Lijim merchants are quite different from us. Most of their merchants are engaged in transshipment trade, warehousing and hotel services (this is due to the special geographical location of Lijim's barren land, narrow area, but also the most important trade route in the Mediterranean), and we rely on real goods. To make profits, there is not much conflict of interest between the two parties, on the contrary, cooperation can be strengthened..."
"What Tios said also makes sense. I heard that the city-states in the Ladim region are close to the sea due to their backward economy and sluggish trade, and their ports are small and poor. They can just be handed over to the Lijim people who are best at operating ports to expand and manage. I Their subordinates and slaves can also live in their hotel, and they will be in charge of transportation, which will save trouble..." Cybernus's words made the gloom on the merchants' faces dissipated a lot.
In fact, the addition of Lijim merchants did not have much impact on most Turii merchants, but there was still competition for a small number of people. For example, the transportation and transshipment trade of the fleet existed with the main business of Sostatus. direct competition.
But Sostatus has a big heart and is very confident, and he has actually long since targeted the fleet transshipment trade of Lijim merchants. He wants to expand and upgrade his fleet and expand the external The marketing channel is just that Lijim was a free city in the past, and Lijim merchants were monolithic and difficult to approach. Now this city has been completely incorporated into the kingdom, and this expedition has the opportunity to facilitate him to approach Lijim merchants. He believes that there will be Great gain.
But for the shipbuilder Mikris, the addition of the Lijim merchant will be a lot of pressure, because he faces the competition of King Davos's in-law, Alcibiades.
When Mikrith's cousin Enanilus was the commander of the Dionysian navy, the shipyard of Alcibiades was stationed in Turii at the invitation of Davos, due to the mismanagement of Enanilus. , the quality of both warships and ordinary ships manufactured by the family shipyard has declined, so it was robbed of a lot of share by the shipyard of Alcibiades. In addition, his downfall made the ships of the family shipyard even more. Craftsmen and laborers panicked, and as a result, many of them were poached by competitors.
When Mikris took over, the efficiency of the shipyard was not as good as before. Fortunately, he made up his mind, carried out strict management of the shipyard, and actively improved the technology, which greatly improved the quality of the ship and recovered some shipbuilding shares. , but has been far from being able to compete with the shipyards of Alcibiades. At this time, the Ministry of Military Affairs also began to give Mikris an order to manufacture warships, and told him bluntly that this was the king's will. As a result, others believed that the family of Enanilus had been forgiven by King Davos, and began to contact Mikris, so that the sales of the ships he built increased greatly, so that this one in Turii has A family with decades of shipbuilding history has been brought back to life.