I Became A Black Merchant In Another World-Chapter 411: Burden of the Empire (7)

The army became a crusade, and even religions have long since merged.

Now it seems like everything has been achieved.

When I thought about it carefully, there was one thing I almost missed.

I almost missed the opportunity to suck money by inserting a straw.

I almost lost my original intention because I was so focused on developing the New World that I almost missed the most important thing.

‘I should live harder from now on.’

I should devote myself more to utilizing my knowledge of England, America, Japan, Germany, and various other things.

“Thank you for accepting my sudden request to meet with you, Your Excellency the Minister of Finance.”

“I should make time for you. And I also wanted to ask you about war bonds. The war against the Holy Empire will soon begin in earnest, so shouldn’t we issue bonds to raise funds?”

Among the high-ranking officials of the Tuscan Empire, it is almost a certainty that war will break out.

Accordingly, weapons and armor manufacturing plants are being built all over the country, and stocks in these fields are continuing to rise.

‘The military industry is invincible.’

The military industry is not like Gangnam or Seoul apartments, and the bubble will burst someday.

They really know one thing and don’t know the other.

Still, stocks are ultimately a zero-sum game, where you have to put money on the line to make money, so there have to be people who get fooled.

And anyway, if they issue bonds, the stock price will definitely rise in the short term...

It will be a golden opportunity for those who can see the timing and get out.

“Since it’s war bonds, would it be better to use land as collateral? Or would it be better to use the compensation money from there as collateral? Feel free to tell me what you think.” “We can’t help but issue war bonds. The Tuscan Empire has become incomparably wealthier than before, and its budget has increased significantly, but war is a money-eating pig.”

There is a saying that to win a war, you need money, money, and more money.

As the saying goes, you have to pay your soldiers, feed them well, buy weapons, and build a logistics unit to transport them.

There are honestly too many places where money can go.

That’s why, from ancient times to the present, even if you win a war and gain vast territories, it’s very common for a country to fall into ruin or suffer a similar blow.

‘After fighting a war, you become a debtor.’

The Tuscan Empire was not supposed to be able to avoid that situation.

Now, thanks to my war bonds, the empire no longer has to become a debtor.

But that doesn’t mean you don’t have to worry about what to use as collateral.

“But in any case, wouldn’t it be better to minimize the issuance of war bonds? Bonds are something that must be given in the future anyway.”

“You’re right. But we need to prepare now. If we prepare after the situation actually occurs, it will be too late.”

“Your Majesty, what you said is right. But what if we receive voluntary donations from the Empire before issuing the bonds?”

“Voluntary donations... If we receive donations, we can definitely reduce the issuance of war bonds a little.”

It’s better to have even 10 won less in debt.

That’s why you didn’t show any particular resistance to my suggestion to receive donations.

Well, it seems like you don’t have high expectations for the method I’ve come up with right now.

I have my own ideas.

‘Isn’t a story essential for marketing?’

“Instead of appeasing the nobles and asking them to donate money, we need to make them open their wallets and donate. I have a very good idea.”

“What’s your idea?” “Isn’t it enough to create an atmosphere and situation where they have no choice but to pay?”

When you go to the military, absurd and absurd things that would never work in society occur one after another.

Things like tuna crackers prohibited for corporals and below, PX use prohibited, and cyber knowledge rooms prohibited.

In fact, there is no problem with allowing privates to do those things, and they should not be prohibited...

Given the atmosphere and characteristics of the military organization, it is normal to not follow such absurd and absurd things, but those who refuse to do them often end up being trash.

The atmosphere around you tends to overwhelm common sense.

‘If you set the stage properly, no matter if you are a noble or a merchant, you won’t be able to endure it without donating?’

The Sardinian finance minister looked at me with an uneasy look.

Do you think I would do something bad?

I’m just creating a situation where I have to pay?

“I’m going to place red baskets and people in red clothes in the squares of each major city. And I’m going to ask for donations while ringing bells.”

“What’s so great about that?”

“Anyone can do this. But the important thing is starting now.”

Honestly, the red baskets and people in red clothes are not important at all.

I just thought of the Salvation Army and came up with the idea.

“And shortly after the donations start, I’m going to put in two people. One is a child who lost his parents at a young age and is saving up money to donate, and the other is a poor soldier who served in the war and was injured and is receiving a pension.”

People often talk about being rational when having conversations.

Reason can never overcome emotion.

Because we’re all human, and unless we’re born psychopaths or emotionally devoid of feelings to the point where we don’t care about our own pain...

We’re meant to move and act based on our emotions.

It may be embarrassing to not be able to move logically, but...

'On the one hand, that's natural.'

"Those two are saving up their pocket money and donating it to the Tuscan Empire. Imagine, how honorable and noble this is."

No matter how much the Tuscan Empire has developed, our empire still operates on the logic that I should spend more extravagance and do more good deeds than others.

That's why nobles often end up in debt.

In such a country, do rich nobles and merchants save money while poor soldiers and children donate?

'Wow, trash. They'll probably be called a total evil guild or something.'

"And those two are saying this together. They're in a difficult situation right now, but they've never forgotten Your Majesty's kindness for even a moment. So they're saying that they've helped out even a little. It would be more effective if they added that they saved money by skipping one or two meals."

The count’s expression was filled with shock when he heard those words.

“If such a poor child and a veteran were to lead the way in donations, then if there were an author who would only donate a small amount and leave it at that, that person would be completely buried in the aristocratic society. It would be the same for a merchant.”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“The donations would pile up like a mountain.”

“If you don’t donate, or rather, if you donate little, you would become human garbage, so you would donate a lot in order to survive.”

No one in the world disputes the fact that people who earn a lot of money have to pay more taxes, including income tax, than the poor.

Even if there are cases where people feel it’s unfair that the tax rate for the rich is higher than that of the poor.

But if those two actors I mentioned were to spend almost everything they had...

‘Even the nobles would have to pay 20% of what they could afford.’

And since money would be collected from all over the country, it would be a truly enormous amount of money.

Just as if the entire nation paid a ten-thousand-won note, it would be a huge sum of money.

At least the national budget, or maybe half of what I got from my petty fraud in the Kingdom of Lyon, could come in.

I couldn't just pass up the opportunity to eat money.

When I realized this too late, it was really ridiculous.

'I thought I had lost my original intention.'

"It's fortunate that we don't have to issue that many war bonds. Okay, then I will submit it to Your Majesty as you said."

Covering the war expenses through donations is good for the Emperor, but not so good for me.

I can't embezzle that money.

At least I should use some of that money efficiently.

"And can't our Rothschild firm manage that money? More precisely, give me the money and the proceeds from the bond sales."

"Are you thinking of making money with this?"

Of course I plan on making money.

Of course, I have never touched the military service scandal, thinking back to the days when I had to mix rice with seafood bibim sauce...

‘What I do is the cheapest and most certain way to end it.’

“You don’t trust me?”