The Imperial Age with the Resurgence of Han Style

Chapter 184 Corporate War

History only records what has happened, not what has not happened. What did not exist in the past does not mean that it will not exist in the future. The future is not a reappearance of history. The essence of technological progress lies in its unpredictability.

Looking back at the economic development of Qi over the past few decades, especially the process since the so-called "industrial revolution", we will find that "revolution" comes from innovation, which includes not only technological inventions, but also institutional creations.

If there is no protection system for private property, there will not be so much money flowing into the market fearlessly, and it will not attract capital from all over the world.

Without patent laws and a system that encourages innovation, there wouldn't be so many inventions.

Without the increasingly perfect trading company (company) system, these inventions would not have created such great value. Of course, advanced industry would not have been born.

The so-called "industrial revolution" in Qi was undoubtedly triggered by the technological innovations of trading companies and individuals under the strong promotion of the government, but it was the trading companies (companies) that transformed them into real products that could influence society.

Trading companies (companies) are a politically important creation, or in other words, apart from the state, trading companies (companies) are the most important organizational system in this period. To a certain extent, the emergence of trading companies (companies) is no less important than the invention of writing, gunpowder, and steam engines.

As the most special "machine", the trading company (company) system is an amplifier of technology, turning technological innovation into real wealth.

In 1600, the British East India Company was established, and two years later, the Dutch East India Company was established. This may be the earliest origin of the modern corporation. As tools of the colonial era, both the Dutch East India Company and the British East India Company had special national authorizations. In addition to general production and trade, they could also conquer, rule, declare war, and make peace with foreign countries, including forming armies and issuing currency.

To a certain extent, they are called companies, but they are actually the same as countries. For a long time to come, the competition between Britain and the Netherlands was actually the competition between these two companies.

In terms of business structure, these two East India companies, as joint-stock legal entities, are very different from traditional partnerships. They both implement a bearer system, that is, the partners are mainly strangers; ownership and management rights are separated, and decision-making rights are handed over to The board of directors, if investors disagree, can transfer or sell the shares it holds; unlike traditional operators, even if a joint-stock company fails, it does not need to bear debts, let alone go bankrupt. Its only "capital" is to create strength and talent.

In addition, a company is a permanently existing entity with a legal status independent of its shareholders.

The initial capital of the Dutch East India Company was 650 million guilders, while that of the British East India Company was only 7.2 pounds, almost one-tenth of the former.

For investors, capital is a permanent investment. Although they may receive dividends, they cannot expect that this investment will be returned quickly.

In the first 2000 years since the establishment of the Dutch East India Company, the total dividends paid out reached % of the original capital (due to the prosperous aligned trade, the company's operating income was much higher than during the same period in history), making it one of the largest companies in continental Europe. The largest and wealthiest private companies.

In 1643, Qi State imitated the model of the Dutch East India Company, led by the royal family and the government, recruited a large amount of social capital, and also established a foreign trade colonial company, the Indian Trading Company.

Although in 1665, in order to avoid the dominance of one Indian trading company, the government split it into Indian Trading Company and Bengal Trading Company.

However, after more than 30 years of development, the Indian trading company has grown into the largest trading company in Qi, with more than 3200 merchant ships, more than employees and more than armed guards, with annual dividends as high as % Above, the total assets reach million yuan, and the cumulative dividend exceeds %.

This means that if an investor only invested 32 yuan that year, he would be able to earn times more than his initial investment based on decades of dividends!

Someone once roughly estimated that from 1650 to 1720, Indian trading companies successively earned (plundered) a total value of 2 million gold yuan from the Indian region.

The inflow of this batch of capital, if not all the capital of Qi's "industrial revolution", at least promoted Qi's investment in industrial progress, especially investment in steam engines and textile technology.

In the second half of the 17th century, the Daqi Empire, based on the Han continent and the Indian subcontinent as the fulcrum, virtually built a stable new Indian Ocean trade order, and further promoted trade in India, Persia, Arabia, and even the entire European region. Globalization.

Qi's strength and prosperity make it a promised land of infinite possibilities and opportunities, where a fighting spirit prevails and the rule of law is sound and reliable.

When immigrants set foot on the land of Qi, they will leave the troubles of the past behind, and all the baggage of their ancestors' homeland will be removed from their souls, becoming a body of free struggle.

In this regard, Qi is not a nation or a country, it is more like a belief.

What people want is the promising future, not the bad years of the past.

Some radical scholars boast that Qi is like a bright light in the dark night of this world, "the light will help those who seek light."

Standing under the fifteen-story Indian Trading Company Headquarters building, although Fan Agui still didn't understand what a "global beacon" was, he looked at this huge and towering building and its large glass curtain wall that reflected the dazzling sunlight, and his mouth was open in shock. It has never been closed.

This is the atmosphere of a great country!

This is the place of his dreams!

For the State of Qi, Jianye City is like the power heart of the State of Qi, beating forever. The traffic on the road is criss-crossing, the industrial machines are roaring violently, and various equipment are constantly neighing; the black smoke from the factory has darkened the sky, and the machines are interacting with each other. Crash, flames burst, wheels turned, pistons pushed cylinders, gears pressed against gears, belts hooked around huge drums, and the converters spewed fumes of molten steel into the smoky sky.

This is a huge open-air factory that produces thousands of goods with amazing efficiency and continuously supplies consumers in any corner of the world.

Many foreign trade companies in Qi, represented by Indian trading companies, serve as bridges between factories and consumers around the world, dumping countless commodities to every corner of the world, and then bringing massive amounts of raw materials and gold and silver with them. Return to Qi, thereby completing the trade cycle again and again.

In the Qin State, many traditional business gangs built a large number of merchant guilds across the country, such as the Huizhou merchant guild hall, the Shanshan guild hall, and the Shanshan guild hall. Such merchant groups based on rural origins are still essentially in the agricultural era.

In contrast, tall buildings like the India Trading Company Headquarters represent modern corporations in the era of industrialized cities.

In particular, a few years ago, the Imperial Imperial Court promulgated the latest "Company Law", which turned into law the proposal made by Emperor Taejo in the early days that shareholders' risks for the debts of trading companies (companies) were limited to the amount of their capital contributions.

This allows individuals and trading companies (companies) to conduct commercial activities without assuming unlimited liability to repay debts, thereby attracting more investment and entrepreneurs from society, thereby further promoting the development and prosperity of industry and commerce.

The word "company" appeared very early in ancient China.

Confucius said: "The public refers to the wealth of others; the secretary refers to the operation."

Zhuangzi said: "Accumulating shortcomings and making them high, combining small ones to make big ones, merging them to make common things, this is called a company."

Nowadays, in Qi State, the number of various joint-stock trading companies and private partnership trading companies is increasing day by day. Especially different from the traditional mercantilism era, a large number of productive industrial trading companies have gradually replaced traditional commercial trading companies and become the leader in promoting economic development. .

Just as an important minister of the Qin State said in a memorial to Emperor Qianyuan after he went on an envoy to inspect the State of Qi, "Whenever the people of Qi established a business, merchants and people pooled their shares, which was called a trading company. Even if it cost tens of millions of dollars, it was not difficult to Do it according to the time limit. Whenever you build roads, open rivers, explore the earth, make strange tools, and create new ports, you should not rely on this. It is said that it is easy to do it with the help of a crowd. But in the construction of great Qin Dynasty, we often need to use national funds. Do you have to stop yourself?..."

Scholars of Qi State also hold a positive and affirmative attitude towards the increasing rise and expansion of commercial organizations. “The development and progress of a country are mainly based on the principles of commercial organizations on state affairs. Therefore, the division of labor and cooperation in public affairs are also harmonious. The division of labor and cooperation in private life lead to the same goal, and the increased efficiency improves the function and effectiveness of the empire." Since entering the 18th century, Qi's pace towards modernity and freedom has accelerated significantly.

In the 1702th year of Shaoning (), the "Trade Import Control Law" was abolished and many import and export restrictions were lifted.

In the 1723th year of Taiping (), the "Factory Labor Law" was promulgated to protect workers' labor rights and interests.

In the 1725st year of Taiping (), the "Company Law" was passed. Founding a company changed from a privilege and government regulation to a national right, no longer requiring government charter.

For the first time, it allows people to form an enterprise freely and voluntarily outside the country and government under a certain framework, supporting the formal and informal mechanisms of modern companies and establishing a modern trust among strangers. relationships, which makes the company completely different from a traditional family business.

The company changed from charter to free registration, from privilege to equal rights, followed by the formation of a market from monopoly to competition, from closed to open market.

Free competition and free trade have greatly liberated productivity, and Qi has truly become a locomotive leading the world economy.

In Qi State, Yong'an (ie Batavia) has a large number of European residents because it was the headquarters of the former Dutch colony. As for Jianye, as the earliest and largest industrial and commercial city in Qi, it has attracted immigrants from all over the world, resulting in a large number of foreign faces.

The deposed princes of the Southeast Asian kingdoms, the wealthy Indian kings, the exotic Persian dancers, the Ottoman dignitaries who lost power and took refuge, and countless European adventurers with dreams of getting rich... all kinds of immigrants gathered here.

People were coming and going in the streets and alleys, and various languages ​​were heard from time to time. A boss from Qin State opened a restaurant on the corner of the street with unique taste and an endless stream of diners.

A dancer from Persia performed a hot dance in the square, attracting many audiences.

In this city, people with different skin colors, languages, and religions accept each other and integrate with each other, creating a diverse and prosperous culture.

Fan Agui is no longer surprised and curious about these "red-haired and green-eyed" Yi people. He has seen too much and that's it. According to Fan Xingbao, even though some Yi people are well-dressed and well-dressed, they have no political status in Qi State and it is difficult for them to have a big development prospect in the government and the army.

They are some outstanding figures in the field of business or scientific research who have received some attention from the government.

This Qi country is, after all, still the country of our Chinese nation.

"Where is this?" Fan Agui asked curiously as he looked up at another tall building in front of him.

"Jianye Stock Exchange." Fan Xingbao raised his head and glanced at the building, with a fanatical expression on his face. "Do you know? The transaction volume generated here every day is tens of millions of yuan, which is definitely the highest in our country." The richest place.”

"What are securities?...What are exchanges?" Fan Agui asked blankly: "Dozens or millions of yuan are traded every day, could it be a big bank?"

"The money in big banks is all dead money, but the money in this exchange is huge living money!" Fan Xingbao said: "The trading companies that conduct stock trading on the exchange are all large trading companies worth millions. Some of them are worth millions. Trading companies with high rates of return, such as Indian trading companies, Bangladesh trading companies, and Nanyang trading companies, can sell the stocks they sell for thousands of dollars per share! Just for now, you may not be able to buy them. Look at the brokers coming in and out. No? By arranging stock transactions, people can make more money in one day than you can in several months."

Fan Agui looked in the direction pointed by Fan Xingbao and saw several securities brokers leaning in front of the columns in front of the building, smoking pipes leisurely and basking in the warm sunshine while scanning the pedestrians going to and from the exchange building. In order to find potential trading customers.

When they felt the envious glances from Fan Agui and others, they raised their chins arrogantly, as if they didn't even bother to make any eye contact with them.

A bunch of country bumpkins!

With the development of Qi's financial industry, securities brokers are playing an increasingly important role in this industry. Because of their professionalism and long-term tracking of certain companies, they know their inside information very well, so they often provide consultation to some investors and facilitate transactions. In the process, they charge a small commission, which may be insignificant compared to the entire transaction volume, but if the transaction volume is large enough and the amount is large enough, then their income is also extremely high.

There is no doubt that this is an industry that relies entirely on reputation. The success of a securities broker depends entirely on whether he provides quality services to both parties to the transaction. An imprudent suggestion may completely destroy the reputation they have built up with great difficulty, which often means a sharp reduction in their income, and they are labeled as "black-mouthed" by some people.

In Qi State, in addition to the Jianye Stock Exchange, there are also several competitive stock exchanges in Daxing (now Brisbane, Australia) and Guizhou (now Perth, Australia), with a total of five in the country. There are more than a thousand securities brokers, and the daily transaction volume exceeds more than 3 million yuan.

In addition to a dozen large foreign trade companies, there are also many manufacturing factories, railway companies, and transportation companies listed on the stock exchange.

From 1680 to 1700, the climax of the establishment of railway companies across the country, Qi State established more than railway companies with a total capital of million yuan.

In 1720 alone, speculators and investors were able to spend forty million dollars buying and trading railroad stocks and railroad bonds.

A savvy business founder could easily raise millions of dollars to build a new railway line—provided the railway would bring substantial expected revenue.

It can be said that railway construction has become a unique stimulus for Qi's industrial growth over the past thirty years. By 1725, cumulative investment in railroads was greater than the total of all nonagricultural investment, accounting for more than 40 percent of the entire domestic nonresident capital formation.

The introduction of railways created a new era of mechanization, sales and production scale expansion, created capital and credit markets and new functional forms, and developed a new regional model of national economic integration.

In one sentence, "a new world is born."

Fan Agui half understood what he heard, but this did not prevent him from marveling at these novel things.

Qi State is really rich!

I remember that several years ago, the Qin Dynasty wanted to control the river and recruited hundreds of thousands of laborers from Shandong and Henan. I heard that the Ministry of Household Affairs also spent more than 800,000 taels of silver. It was still very difficult and had to be scraped together. of.

As a result, when we arrived in Qi State, the trading volume of any stock exchange could reach this amount in a few days. The capital of even a large trading company can easily reach tens to millions.

That Indian trading company is even more incomparable. It is no exaggeration to say that it is as rich as any other country.

"I also want to make a fortune!...I will definitely return to Qin in glory one day!"

Fan Agui looked back at the towering Jianye Stock Exchange building, and couldn't help but feel a strong internal motivation in his heart.

The wind rises at the end of Qingping, and the waves form between gentle waves!

Everything in life must be done by oneself, and the steps of the country are boundless.

(End of this chapter)