Chapter 345: Steady and Improving
After the East India Company contracted the Tomorrow Trade for a period of time, another country came up and hoped to contract the trade between them and Japan. This country was Korea.
At the end of the Hongwu period, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu of Japan accepted the request of Lee Korea to ban the Japanese pirates and established diplomatic relations with them. The Japan-Korea trade was established, and not only the shogunate, but also the guardian daimyo, local nobles and merchants actively participated, so the trade flourished. The items exported by Japan to Korea included hematite (the raw material of red dye) and fragrant wood (aromatic wood such as sandalwood) obtained from the trade with the south, which was similar to the Tomorrow Trade. The items exported by Korea to Japan included cotton, Korean ginseng, and the classic version of the Tripitaka. Cotton was not only used by the general public to make clothes, but also by the Warring States daimyo to make military uniforms.
The Japan-Korea trade led to an increase in the number of Japanese living on the Korean Peninsula, so Korea set up a Japanese house in "Miura" to accommodate and govern them to distinguish them from the Japanese pirates. However, due to the active trade, smuggling gradually increased, so Korean bureaucrats began to strengthen the control of the Japanese residents.
Hearing that the suzerain state had contracted the trade with Japan to a third party, the King of Korea sent someone to Nanjing, hoping that he could also contract the trade between Korea and Japan.
Mason readily agreed to this request. Who would have a problem with money? Korea allowed him to open a trading house in Busan, and also paid one-tenth of the trade volume as tax every year.
And the ships from Nanyang to the north were one after another. They carried foreign spices, sulfur and other goods to sell in Ningbo, and purchased a large amount of porcelain, tea and other goods for overseas transportation. In the first ten days of opening the port, the Shibosi earned 110,000 taels of silver. It can be seen that trade is booming.
However, East Asia is still far from Rome, and the trade dividend has not been reaped for the time being, but relying on the route from Temasek to Constantinople, they can also live well. A total of 880,000 lei of income was sent to the headquarters.
The company finally saw the money. They handed over 90,000 lei to the government, and Peter received a dividend of 250,000. Such a large amount is only the trade tax with India and other places. If the East is added, it is really unknown how much it will be.
Constantinople began a major construction, including the restoration of damaged buildings. It is estimated that it will cost 2.5 million lei, which makes Baptiste feel very stressed, but in order to relieve the pressure, he still handed over 400,000 lei first.
Peter decided to restore the sport of horse racing and build a racecourse on the site of the hippodrome. And the infrastructure of the entire city must be renovated, and Galata must be expanded by double, otherwise it will not be able to accommodate.
In addition to construction, military is also a big expense. Infantry, cavalry, artillery, and navy all need money, especially artillery. The manufacture of artillery has caused the factory to expand twice. Peter specifically separated the artillery from the infantry and made it an independent branch of the army. According to the latest decision of the Senate, each city castle needs to be equipped with artillery, ranging from 10 to 60, and medium and large cities such as Constantinople and Bucuriesti will be equipped with about 150 artillery.
The navy also needs to be equipped with artillery and Greek fire for self-defense, and these demands have driven the development of the military industry. The demand for raw materials such as saltpeter and sulfur has soared, and the unified command system has increased the country's ability to coordinate resources, which is also the difference between Rome and other countries.
War is inseparable from money and food, and Peter hoards supplies in various places to prepare for a protracted war. Soldiers and militias on the front line are also trained. As long as there are no accidents in other places, Rome can fight the Ottomans to the death.
In Mircea's governance and Peter's regency, the Boyar Conference also played its role. The previous capital coup and treason case dealt with a group of old nobles. The House of Commons was loyal to the emperor, and the House of Lords was also tightly held by the emperor. Although they have no right to approve laws or something, as an institution that understands public opinion and consultation in various places, some nobles can use their status to influence government decisions.
Victor, the leader of the House of Commons, handed a signed letter of 98 people to Peter, hoping that the government would promote economic growth and expand trade to the western Mediterranean. Peter agreed, and business to the western Mediterranean began to develop.
At the same time, all decisions made by the Senate will be approved by the meeting, such as the treaty signed with Aragon, which was unanimously approved. There is also the military preparation for war against the Ottomans and Mamluks. Representatives living in Anatolia called on the emperor to destroy the Ottomans at the meeting so that the empire can last.
The Boyar Conference actually took over the Senate of the Eastern Roman Empire. It is an institution of the empire, but it has no real power. With a place to debate, those bourgeoisie who clamored for power also calmed down and argued in the parliament every day.
The result of the debate is that they are divided into factions, which can be divided into blue and green factions based on economic factors. The blue faction is mainly composed of wealthy merchants and citizens in maritime trade, hoping that the empire will expand its navy and implement mercantilism; the green faction is mainly composed of emerging landlords, hoping to pay attention to territorial expansion and land distribution. In addition, there are small factions such as the black faction (mining industry) and the cloth faction (handicraft industry), but they are all foils.
The factions in the meeting actually reflected the economic situation within the empire. Agriculture and industry and commerce flourished. The re-establishment of the tax system and the simplification of taxes provided the empire with a stable income. The development of overseas trade promoted domestic industry and commerce. Rome was expanding at an unprecedented speed of revival, which was why the Mamluks were afraid. It was too fast.
Such a developed economy and healthy finances are beyond the reach of many countries. Nomadic countries such as the Mamluks adopted a fast tax farming system. The emperor of the Holy Roman Empire could only live on his own territory and the contributions of other princes. France's finances were destroyed in the war with England. The only ones that could compete with it were the commercial city-states in northern Italy, but they were still in debt because Peter had emptied their treasuries.
As allies of Rome, the Republic of Emilia and the Principality of Romagna kept putting pressure on the Italian countries, especially the Principality of Milan. The emperor hated his inconsistency, so he wanted to capture this place and arrange his youngest son to be a duke. But I'm afraid France will not agree to this request. How could he let you stay in his border area? He was worried.
However, Mircea still admired Justinian a little. Although Peter persuaded him to face reality, it was not impossible to achieve the territory of Justinian the Great in his lifetime with the current army. And he was confident that he would govern better than Justinian.