Chapter 177 Commercial Colonization

Bukuriesti is the political and trade center of Wallachia. After several years of development, it has initially shown a prosperous situation.

In the tavern, many people were talking loudly. They came from Moldova, Bulgaria, Serbia, Hungary and other places for survival and wealth.

"The university exam is coming again. I wonder how many people will succeed this time?"

"Don't think about it. It's good enough to fill your stomach. Where can you get the money to go to university?"

They are all civilians who have just arrived here. They are unfamiliar with the place, and most of them have no skills. They can only sell their labor to make money. But fortunately, the university does not restrict the birth level of their children. They can only put the hope of revitalizing the family on their children.

In a luxurious house, a banquet is starting. The participants are all famous local businessmen and factory owners.

"I heard that Sir Edmund has made a lot of money recently. I'm really envious."

"Mr. Merrill, you're too kind. It's a small business, not worth mentioning."

The two people who spoke were both powerful merchants in Wallachia. Edmund was engaged in re-export trade, selling goods from Wallachia and the East to the West, and then selling Western goods to the East, and he made a profit from the difference. Thanks to the expansion of Wallachia, his assets are increasing, and his business is spread across Hungary, Poland, and Lithuania.

And that Merrill is the largest wool textile merchant in Bucuriesti, with 500 manual workers under his name, and the textiles he produces are exported to Eastern Europe. He is also particularly good at learning. In Moldova, he saw a workshop opened by a nobleman, where each worker was only responsible for one process, which gave him a lot of inspiration. After returning, he transformed his workshop, and each person was only responsible for one process, which greatly improved efficiency. His products quickly flooded into the local market, and his share is still expanding.

In recent years, due to the peaceful development of Wallachia, some wealthy businessmen and factory owners have emerged in the town. After gaining economic status, they began to sprint towards politics. The emergence of the examination system eased the contradiction between them and the government and increased their loyalty. The demand for markets and raw material production areas made them keen on expansion. They strongly supported colonial activities and spontaneously organized colonial teams to march towards Anatolia.

"Recently, Transylvania has ordered a large number of our grain and wool products, which are very profitable."

"Yes, there are also Moldovan wines and Constanta artworks, which can find buyers."

"This is all due to the wise leadership of the Grand Duke. Without the Grand Duke, we would not have achieved what we have today."

The merchants said long live the Grand Duke and discussed what to do next. It stands to reason that it is to find more markets, but this is inseparable from colonial expansion.

"According to my experience, selling goods from Viruga and Aaron can make twice as much profit as selling them in Iasi."

"Is it true? It's not a lie, right?"

Mineral merchant Ambrose expressed his own views. He contracted more than a dozen mines in Crimea, Bulgaria and other places. He used the technology learned from the Holy Roman Empire and northern Italy to greatly increase the amount of mineral mining, and acquired shares in some small mines. He also opened a foundry to smelt ore into semi-finished products to increase the value.

Benefiting from Wallachia's huge demand for iron farm tools, Ambrose made a fortune from the iron mines he contracted in Crimea. In addition to the high demand for weapons from above, the price of copper ore also rose. This made him earn a lot of money.

In addition to these few, there are also big businessmen engaged in shipping, finance, oil pressing, wine and other industries, whose assets range from 400,000 to 900,000 silver lei.

A year ago, they formed the Bukuryesti Chamber of Commerce, which is second only to the Chamber of Commerce formed by Peter. In order to continue to expand the market and to find the East, they formed a caravan and took root in Anatolia with the Andre Society.

"I recently heard that the Ottoman Sultan was going to fight a lord in the East, and that lord was quite powerful."

"Can he win? He can't even beat us."

"Not necessarily. I heard that the man has opponents in the south. If they unite, they might win."

"Okay, let's not talk about this. Our progress in Anatolia is very smooth. According to the news, we have established a foothold near Nicomedia."

Hearing this news, some merchants cheered. This shows that their efforts have finally paid off. If they regain the lost land, they will ask for credit again, and the reward will be great.

"In addition to Nicomedia, I think we can also send a caravan to Sicily."

As soon as this word came out, the originally lively room was instantly quiet.

"Will this work? As far as I know, although Sicily was once part of the Roman Empire, that was hundreds of years ago. If we go there, wouldn't that be courting death? Will their king let us go?"

Such words are really helpless. Sicily was ruled by King Martin of Aragon. Although he was later called the humane Martin, he was very fanatical about religion. He not only attacked the Emirate of Cordoba in the south, but also expelled Jews and other pagans. Even the Western Orthodox Church was only carried out underground.

"You only see his rule, but not the boundaries of his rule. Aragon only ruled the ports and surrounding areas of Sicily. He did not touch the vast inland areas, and he could not touch them."

Aragon ruled Sicily only along the coastline and nearby plains, leaving the inland areas to the church and family. These local governments had limited control, so they didn't care. As long as they paid on time and recognized his rule, it would be fine.

At this point, some people were tempted, but the risk of expanding to the west was still too great, so they decided to trade on the island first. Sicily occupies an important position in the Mediterranean commercial trade route and is a place of great strategic significance. With Sicily, there is a springboard for expansion to the west, and Malta and Naples can also be obtained, but it is unknown when Wallachia will look to the west.

There are many trade colonization teams like the Bucuriesti Chamber of Commerce. Some of them choose to go to Northeast Europe, some choose to go to islands such as Crete, and some follow the Danube to Bohemia and the Holy Roman Empire. The farthest one even went to Hamburg. With the support of mercantilism, Wallachia's merchants are growing rapidly, even faster than Venice and Genoa. This was a rapid process of industrial and commercial development, and of course agriculture was not left behind. The cultivated areas of grain and other crops increased, and the yields were high, making it worthy of being the most fertile place in Southeast Europe.