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Volume 3: The Wind Rises in the South Chapter 105: Transformation

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    Balfour did not answer, and began to carefully taste the meaning of the Marquis of Salisbury's words.  Throughout most of the nineteenth century, British politics was governed alternately by the Conservatives and the Liberals, with the Marquess of Salisbury and Gladstone as the leaders of these two parties respectively.  In the first half of the 19th century, when the monopoly of British industry was still maintained, British workers still enjoyed some benefits to a certain extent. As a result, the East End of London (the area where the working class lived at that time) and Manchester  The workers' district of St. Petersburg became a loyal vote bank for the Liberal Party. It was also with the support of workers that the industrial capitalists were able to overwhelm the landed aristocrats and bankers in Parliament and achieve the 1831 parliamentary reform (led by the then Whig Prime Minister).  Gray and Deputy Prime Minister Russell introduced an electoral law reform bill in Parliament. The new bill modified the setting of constituencies, added seats to populous industrial cities, and changed the property qualification restrictions for elections, thus increasing the number of capitalists in Parliament.  seats).  After this, England's capitalists had completely overwhelmed the landed aristocracy in Parliament.  After the subsequent abolition of the "Corn Laws", the British industrial bourgeoisie not only defeated the large landowners, but also defeated those capitalists whose interests were consistent with or closely related to the large estates, that is, bankers, exchange brokers, food and beverages, etc.  Those who benefit.  "Free trade" became the common voice of the entire Anglo-Saxon nation, and all internal and external trade and fiscal policies of the British Empire were completely reformed to adapt to the needs of the industrial capitalists, the class that now represented the country.  Benefit.  This class then set into action, every obstacle to industrial production was ruthlessly abolished, tariff rates and the entire tax system were fundamentally reformed, and everything was subordinated to one purpose, namely, in the eyes of the industrial capitalists  The most important point is to lower the prices of various raw materials, especially all necessities of life for the working class, reduce the cost of raw materials and lower wages.  Britain should become the "world's factory" and other countries, like poor Ireland, should become the sales market for British industrial products and at the same time a supplier of food and raw materials.  What a prospect that Great Britain was the great industrial center of the agricultural world, the sun of industry, with a growing number of cereal and cotton-producing satellites orbiting it!  But as the axis of time gradually moves towards the end of the 19th century, this beautiful picture begins to appear ominous.  After the crisis of 1866, there was only a brief and weak industrial and commercial upsurge around 1873, but this upsurge did not last.  It is true that the complete crisis did not come when it should have come, but since 1876 all the important branches of industry in England have been in a state of constant silence.  There was neither complete bankruptcy nor the prosperous period of industry and commerce that people expected before and after the bankruptcy.  In the face of lifeless depression and frequent oversaturation in all markets in all walks of life, the temporary honeymoon period between the working class and the industrial bourgeoisie naturally ends, and workers no longer vote for the Liberal Party.  But their own party - the Labor Party.  The fundamental reason for this phenomenon is that the monopoly of British industry in the world economy has been broken. When more and more industrial products are emerging from factories in the Old and New Worlds, British industry can no longer maintain its original status with free trade.  There is no share, let alone continued growth, so the cornerstone of the Liberal Party's governance has been loosened.  "You are right, uncle!" Belfort sighed, and turned his eyes to the groups of people walking outside in the cold wind: "The time when Great Britain gained huge operating profits from international trade has passed. It can almost  "Britain is entering a state of stagnation!" The Marquis of Salisbury did not comment on Balfour's words. The carriage remained silent, and only the sound of horse hooves and bells could be heard.  After about half an hour, Balfour suddenly asked: "Uncle, what are you going to do now?" "Lead my party to win the election again!" The Marquis of Salisbury replied: "This time I will stand firmly on my feet.  "What about Burma?" The Marquis of Salisbury frowned and replied, "Dear Balfour, we have more important things to deal with."  , such as Ireland and South Africa. The reason why I am so eager to replace Mr. Grayston is not because of greed for power, but to prevent his reckless actions from causing irreparable losses to the empire, just like Alcibes.  Just like Germany destroyed his motherland for his personal ambitions (Alcibiades was an Athenian democratic politician during the Peloponnesian War. He incited the Athenian people to launch an expedition to Sicily for his personal ambitions. The purpose of this expedition was  The failure finally led to Athens' defeat in the Peloponnesian War) "Uncle, maybe you are right, but we can't abandon Burma! This will cause irreparable damage to the empire's prestige!"  ! ¡±   "Belfort, I don't understand why you care so much about Myanmar. Maybe you saw something there that we didn't see here!" The Marquis of Salisbury replied seriously: "But you have to be careful  Keep one thing in mind, the existence of the British Empire depended on two things: first, the absence of a hegemon on the European continent and the internationalization of the ports in the Low Countries; second, the smooth sea connections between the empire's mainland and its colonies.  In addition, the empire can make compromises on other issues. On the Burmese issue, a decent peace is more beneficial to the empire than a protracted war. " Balfour was finally convinced by the eloquence of the Marquis of Salisbury.  Convinced, he shrugged his shoulders and replied with a smile: "The Chinese should be lucky to have met such a rational prime minister like you." "Everything is for the benefit of the empire. It is important for us to be harmonious and trade with the empire.  This is related to the work of hundreds of thousands of imperial subjects and profits of tens of millions of pounds every year. Peace is more beneficial to us than war!" The Marquis of Salisbury's words were interrupted by a crisp ringing outside the carriage. This was the arrival of the enemy.  As a signal from the Palace of Westminster, he gently knocked on the door twice with his cane and continued: "Of course, the Shun Empire is too powerful in East Asia and has broken the regional balance. In view of this, we should sign a contract with the Japanese  contract to check and balance the Chinese!" Balfour quickly stood up, reached out to hold the Marquis of Salisbury's arm, and said with a smile: "Uncle, last time I went to Japan, I invited Japan to send a  When the delegation comes to London, we can have preliminary discussions with them on this matter!" "Very good!" A smile appeared on the Marquis of Salisbury's face, like an old fox: "What do I want to do?  Regarding their neighbors on the mainland, there are many common topics between the leaders of the two island countries. However, Balfour, what do you think of Japan? " "As you just said, Japan, like Great Britain, is the same.  It is an island country. The sea not only separates them from the Chinese on the East Asian continent, but also protects them. Therefore, they have maintained their dominant position in history, but other ethnic groups on the East Asian continent cannot do so.  But there are also big differences between Japan and us. Historically, their navy has been very weak, and there are no good coal mines and iron mines on their territory. This is very detrimental to the development of industry.  ¡ª¡ª" Belfort lowered his voice: "Japan's population is very dense. When I was in Tokyo, I noticed that their houses are very dense, and a large number of people are constantly coming from the countryside. This is very important to their rulers.  A huge burden. And their resources are very scarce. If they want to build a navy and army that can compete with the Chinese, I doubt that their people will revolutionize because they cannot bear this burden.  "Revolution?" The Marquis of Salisbury stopped. He turned and looked at Balfour: "According to what I learned from businessmen and naval officers who have been to Japan, the Japanese are very loyal to them."  The king's, many people would cut open their stomachs to apologize to the king after failing.  " "No, no, that's just on the surface!  Balfour replied: "From my experience with Japanese politicians and big businessmen, the higher the status of the Japanese, the more indifferent they are to the respect of their king - no, it should be said that it is superficial. They  They just use their king as a cover to prove the legitimacy of their power.  The country is controlled by a small group of chaebols consisting of no more than a thousand people. They use their relationship with the government to control the most profitable businesses in their own hands, such as the export of raw silk, shipbuilding, transportation, etc.  , in these businesses, the state gave them exclusive rights or high subsidies, and they accumulated astonishing wealth. The richest among them can even be compared with the large factory owners in London.  On the other hand, the life of the Japanese people is much more embarrassing. If a farmer has more than two children, the younger brother must leave home when he is thirteen or fourteen years old. If it is a daughter, he will either go to the city to work as a maid or go to Southeast Asia to work as a prostitute.  Only in this way can the family's economy be maintained.  Although I was not there for a long time, I can still feel the hatred of ordinary people towards these rich people. Maybe they dare not directly hate the king, but this does not mean that they do not hate those who really manipulate the power to make a fortune.  Politicians and businessmen!  " "I think what you said is closer to the truth, Belfort!  The Marquis of Salisbury nodded: "Just like the British peasants in the Middle Ages, they may not dare to attack the king directly, but they don't mind hanging the hateful king's favorites."  It seems that things are not so good in this country.  Let us imagine what poor Great Britain would look like now without the existence of the New World!  " Belfort shrugged: "I don't know, but fortunately we don't need to know!  "    "well said!  ???The Marquis of Salisbury: "But this is not necessarily a bad thing for Great Britain. In this way, once they set foot on the path we have marked for them, they don't have to worry about them stopping, and internal conflicts will arise.  Force them to fight to the death with the Chinese, and once we don't need them, the heavy debt will crush them to death!" "Yes!" Balfour said in a rare move.  They made an obscene joke: "When we catch the 'ball' below them, we can also control what the 'ball' above them thinks!" Almost at the same time, the two laughed knowingly at the same time.
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