Chapter 328 Common Enemy

Although slave labor only needs to maintain his living expenses on the surface, its cost is the highest among all labors when it is thoroughly calculated.

A person who cannot obtain a little property must eat the most and work the least, and he does not care about anything else.

Based on the experience of past dynasties and countries, I believe that the labor of free people is cheaper than that of slaves.

——Adam Smith

Benny Erbin spoke from the bottom of his heart, but Franz did not want to hit the other party's full blood. After all, the biggest advantage of the capitalist system compared with slavery is the efficiency of exploitation.

"Mr. Benny, your story is very touching. But I want to remind you that Europe at this time is far from as beautiful as you think. And the British government has announced a complete ban on the slave trade. With their naval strength, I believe that it will not be long before the slave trade will be completely cut off from Africa.

As for your war with the Omanis, we really can't help."

Although the other party's speech was very touching, Franz was not a person who was easily moved, and his words were still calm and cold.

"No, you are wrong! The slave trade has never been cut off from ancient times to the present, and it will not be cut off in the future! The British and the Omanis are in the same boat!" Benny Erbin argued.

In fact, he was not the only East African country in history that wanted to sell its land to the powers in exchange for protection.

The Mazrui family, which once ruled Mombasa, gave up their family territory as a protectorate for the British. At that time, a British naval colonel thought it was profitable and accepted the proposal.

But John Bull never disappointed people in disappointing people. They soon found that Said was willing to pay a higher price.

So the British, who had a strong commercial gene, lowered their flag, withdrew their troops, and watched the Mazrui family being destroyed by Said.

It's just that Austria does not have as strong a naval force as the British Royal Navy, which may not make Said afraid, and the Oman Empire at this time is no longer what it used to be, and it has become a veritable overlord of East Africa.

In fact, Oman and the British signed the Treaty of Moresby, which in fact recognized Oman's dominance in East Africa and acquiesced to their ability to engage in slave trade.

The British have always had such outrageous double standards. On the one hand, they can kill slave traders without mercy, and on the other hand, they can acquiesce to some people's legal slave trade.

"Wearing the same pants? As far as I know, isn't Britain expanding its influence everywhere under the name of banning the slave trade?"

Friedrich and Franz were a little confused when they heard it. After all, Britain has always been so loudly promoting it, and it usually does so.

"Sayyid gave them benefits, and those British turned a blind eye and even sold them weapons and warships."

This is in line with the consistent style of the Anglo-Saxons. If they sell some inferior weapons and obsolete warships to the Omanis, it will be even more consistent.

After that, Benny Erbin talked about all the "bad deeds" of Oman and Britain, so I won't go into details here.

Franz and Friedrich's eyes lit up and they perked up again.

After all, Britain was one of the countries that Austria was least interested in at this time. Although there was no direct conflict between the two sides in geopolitics, the small frictions and calculations in the open and in the dark had never stopped.

Moreover, both of them had huge ambitions hidden in their hearts, and in order to achieve it, John Bull would definitely be a hurdle that he could not overcome.

"We can provide you with weapons and necessary support, but the Austrian Empire will not intervene in the battle of Bagamoyo for the time being. Even if you are about to be eliminated, we will not intervene in advance.

In addition, we can guarantee the survival of the Kingdom of Wegin, but it must be included in the market cycle of the Empire. All of you need to abide by the laws of the Empire and obey the will of His Majesty the Emperor."

Franz already had a plan in mind, but now was not the time, so he reiterated his position. Of course, if this group of people could really successfully take Bagamoyo, it would save a lot of trouble.

100,000 florins, even if there was only a 1% chance of eliminating a powerful ally of the British in East Africa, it was worth it. Not to mention, the Austrian Empire also obtained the early colonization of Bagamoyo and controlled an important East African port, which is very beneficial to its future strategic layout.

But even so, Franz will not change his previous plan. After all, this kind of investment is like gambling, and small gambling is fun, big gambling is harmful, and excessive gambling will be wiped out.

"No problem, I can agree to these conditions, but you must treat our citizens as you do."

Benny Erbin, who shoulders the fate of his country and people, must be cautious when facing life-and-death choices, even if it is a roundabout way to save the country, he must sell it at a good price. This is the professional ethics of a businessman.

"Of course, as long as you live in the Austrian Empire, support the rule of the Habsburg family, abide by the laws, regulations, and relevant policies of the empire, and fulfill your national obligations, you are an Austrian citizen and protected by the Austrian Empire."

The above words were expressed in a more formal tone, which made people around him cast puzzled eyes. They didn't know whether the archduke was conveying his personal will just now.

Regardless of what those present think, this is how I define a future Austrian citizen in my own mind.

Friedrich glanced at his nephew helplessly. Benny Erbin, who was refreshed, had a long-lost feeling of being valued, which made him satisfied. The Great Salt Cedar heard a hint of hidden meaning, perhaps

The subsequent events refreshed Franz's cognition again, that is, Benny Erbin was not a commander without troops; he really had an army of about 2,000 people, and the total number of private armed forces of those merchants was close to 2,500.

They originally planned to seek help from India and purchase some equipment.

Fortunately, those Indian merchants also hated the Omani people's extortion and provided a considerable degree of financial support and a lot of intelligence, but unfortunately, they encountered a tsunami on the way back, and everyone was trapped in Mumbai, which led to this scene of seeking help everywhere.

Fortunately, Franz's fleet was large enough to accommodate these 2,500 uninvited guests.

Through these business channels, Franz obtained another valuable intelligence, that is, the alliance between Sayyid and the British was not ironclad, just like the relationship with the Indians.

Both Britain and India benefited greatly from trade with Oman, but these Arabs wanted too much and were not content.

Sayyid planted cloves and spices on a large scale in Zanzibar, which undoubtedly impacted the spice market in India. In order to sell slaves at a high price, they always flirted with Americans and French, which made the British, who were business experts, very disgusted.

Just as Franz expected, the British were also looking for opportunities to cheat the Omanis. So he prepared to write a few letters.