Since the Accounting: A Chronicle of the Roman Khanate

Chapter 439 Joanna’s Thoughts
It took some effort for Zhu Wenkui to understand her purpose.

According to Joanna, she got the news quickly after the chaos broke out in the city.However, Joanna believes that her own strength may not be enough, so she hopes to get support from other big businessmen within the Chamber of Commerce.

However, there was a dispute within the chamber over how to proceed.

"My original idea was very simple, that is, let's work together to attack." She told Zhu Wenkui: "Our chamber of commerce has been operating here for many years, can our influence be inferior to those of the Ross upstarts? Now that they are in big trouble, aren't we the ones who took the lead? Any chance?"

"In that case..." Zhu Wenkui thought for a while and nodded: "Indeed. My family used to buy wood from a Venetian businessman. Then it was probably the year before last. When I went there, I saw that his shop was all full of wood. It was burned, and the merchants and clerks disappeared. The people over there said that they had a fight with the Russians, but they were driven away. "

"That's not surprising." Joanna said: "Not only the Venetians, but us merchants from other city-states are also being deliberately squeezed and persecuted by the Russians. Moreover, the losses we have suffered may be greater than them."

"Venice is probably the city-state that invests the largest amount here." After all, Zhu Wenkui often dealt with businessmen, so he still had some knowledge.

"Their investment is relatively scattered. The Venetians have been operating for a long time and have many trading points throughout the Roman Empire. But we arrived relatively late and have limited suitable opportunities, so we have concentrated our investment in the emerging Rus-Dadu trade route. A lot of money. This also led to the fact that during the provocation of the Russians, we suffered the largest proportion of losses."

"There is still such a thing." Zhu Wenkui was a little surprised.

"That's right. Originally, the trade routes along the river south of Kiev were controlled by these big merchants, especially the Venetians and Genoese. They imported goods from the Rus region and then sent them to Crimea, Send it to the Black Sea coast, and even to the whole of Europe through the metropolis.”

"In the past, although this kind of trade was highly profitable, it was also risky. Moreover, there were many lords along the way, and no one was willing to maintain the roads and docks. Instead, they competed to collect various toll taxes. If you want to do business well, you have to be there yourself. Just maintain the armed forces and operate the stronghold."

"However, the cost of doing this is very high, and only cities like Venice can afford it. And they are even more harsh on us merchants - many times the local lords just hope to get more from the caravans. Instead of money, I hope the caravans will come more often; while the Venetians will attack us directly and want to completely destroy us."

"We are enemies when we work together." Zhu Wenkui said with emotion.

"Hey." Joanna shook her head: "Originally, many people thought that the unification of the Black Sea coast and the Ross region would help northeast trade. Because Rome was in charge, the Venetians could at least not act as randomly as before. But over the years, this business has become increasingly difficult.”

"It's just because there is an extra Ross chieftain force." Zhu Wenkui probably understood.

"Yes." Joanna said: "Developing the Ross area is a double-edged sword for us. On the one hand, it really lowers the threshold for trade and expands the operating space." "After the trade routes are smoothed, we can purchase goods The channels have increased, and we can even go directly to the production areas to purchase furs and minerals; similarly, the market we can sell to has also expanded a lot. This time, we don’t have to be tricked by various second-rate dealers and local snakes, and we can bring There is huge profit potential. In addition, the trade routes are relatively stable, and merchants with less capital and power can also participate, so it is very beneficial to us 'latecomers'."

"But on the other hand, these Russians have also learned." She said: "They were all confused before, just waiting at home and waiting for people to come to their door. Except for Novgorod businessmen, it was rare to see anyone running too far. But after entering this larger system, many people went to Dadu, and they seemed to have an enlightenment. The local snakes who used to collect tolls are now running caravans in a decent way, relying on powerful people in the local area. Advantages, grab business from us.”

"The Russians are also very rude and unreasonable." Joanna shook her head again: "As long as there is a chance, they will directly use violence against their competitors like you encountered. Let the power of these people expand, and we will all It’s very uncomfortable. My family’s property has also suffered.”

But after hearing this, Zhu Wenkui showed no sympathy for her.

"You just said that the Venetians will also directly use violence against their competitors. I believe that this is not uncommon for Italian businessmen. As long as there is a chance, everyone will do it." He said bluntly: "You They do the same things as the Russians, right?"

"Uh……"

"When I was buying tools, the Greek complained that the Italian businessmen couldn't compete with him, so he bribed the chef and wanted to poison him. Fortunately, his relationship with the chef was... unusual, and the chef immediately warned him He just escaped." After Zhu Wenkui thought for a moment, he thought of an example:
"So if you look at it, it's just that these Russians are relatively simple-minded and can't always cover up bad things. But in fact, what they do is the same as you. Since everyone is originally a gangster, it's nothing more than Winner and loser, no one is more innocent, right?"

Joanna didn't expect him to say that, and she couldn't think of anything to refute.

"Hey, I said too much at the moment." Zhu Wenkui waved his hand and said, "What you mean is to fight fire with fire."

"These Italian businessmen are not kind-hearted people. They must have many servants to protect their homes." He speculated: "In addition, they must have been operating in places such as storehouses and docks for a long time. Just me. As we know, these businessmen always like to organize some associations that they can control, so as to win over some people in the industry and suppress others. Although I don’t know if they can be useful, the Russian organizations are also the same. Pointing people out is always useful.”

"But you said they are not happy? Is it because the benefits are not enough?"

"Not really. Maybe there are too many possible benefits, so it's troublesome." Joanna explained: "I succeeded in convincing them. Now most people think that the Ross Gang and their supporters are just asking for it." Destroyed. However, they were too confident and quarreled again over the possible distribution of benefits afterwards..."

"I really didn't want to wait any longer, so I came here by myself." She spread her hands and said helplessly: "Fortunately, my family also has some strength. I hope I can help."

(End of this chapter)