sovbooks Chapter 131 The Governor and the Crown
Chapter 131 The Governor and the Crown
Chapter 131 The Governor and the Crown
Two o'clock in the afternoon, Buckingham Palace.
The afternoon sun shines through the glass of the first-floor reception room, making one unconsciously feel lazy.
However, King George III and Chen Wenbin, who were sitting on the sofa, were not sleepy at all. Instead, they were staring at the map of North America on the coffee table in the middle, discussing with great interest the agricultural value of the Mississippi River Valley and the Mexican coastal plain.
"In the next thirty years, cotton is likely to surpass tobacco to become the most important cash crop in North America. However, the only suitable places in North America for growing Island long-staple cotton are the narrow strip of land in the southeast, including South Carolina, Georgia, and North Florida. Virginia grows Mexican green-seed short-staple cotton."
Chen Wenbin traced the southeastern coast of North America on the map with his hand, then pointed to the Mississippi River Valley plain, and continued: "But the cotton development potential in the North American interior is huge, especially this alluvial plain of the Mississippi River, which is very suitable for growing upland short-staple cotton and wheat."
The problem is that upland short-staple cotton requires a lot of manual labor to peel the cotton seeds, which is too costly. I'm researching a fast cotton peeling machine that should solve this problem.
As he spoke, he slid his finger down again and tapped a spot marked "Fort George" opposite New Orleans at the mouth of the Mississippi River.
"Here! We must build a new armed fortress and port here, and load the cotton from the plantations upstream onto ships to be shipped to England!"
Wearing only a white shirt and no wig, King George III listened attentively, glanced down at the settlement marked on the map at the mouth of the Mississippi River, and smiled at Lord Chen sitting opposite him, "Robin, I think this place should still be called Robin's Castle, after all, it only exists because of you."
"I plan to name this place after myself!"
Chen Wenbin pointed to the location of Pittsburgh on the map, "I want to build a castle here as a place to pass down my family's legacy."
George III glanced at the map again at Pittsburgh's location, realizing it was just a small town in western Pennsylvania, and casually asked, "Is there anything special about this place—never mind!"
He looked around and, seeing no one nearby, whispered, "Robin, I know what you're thinking. I can appoint you as governor of the Lower Mississippi Territory."
As long as you have the ability to avoid triggering a large-scale Indian war, you can build our cotton plantations there.
Okay, we've already discussed these things in the letter—now I'd like to know how much of a bonus I'll receive in the second quarter of this year?
Faced with the expectant king, Chen Wenbin had no choice but to take out an account book and a dividend receipt from his pocket and hand them over, saying, "If my accountant has calculated it correctly, Your Majesty, your total dividend for the second quarter, including dividends from Robin Pharmacy, Robin Metal Company, Robin Construction Firm, and KFC Restaurant, is £15245."
"Fifteen thousand pounds!"
The young king's eyes were filled with surprise; he thought he would be lucky to have ten thousand pounds.
Chen Wenbin added, "After deducting the reinvestment of shares in Southern Development Company, there will still be approximately 12500 pounds sterling!"
'
King George III paused for a moment, then picked up the ledger and chuckled easily, "Twelve thousand pounds is enough. With that money, at least we won't have to stop work here anymore—my dear Robin, I think the luckiest thing that's happened to me this year is meeting you!"
Chen Wenbin smiled slightly, naturally not taking those words seriously.
When the two first met, there was not much of a conflict of interest between them. King George III needed his medical skills to safeguard the health of the royal family members, so he naturally treated him with kindness.
But now their interests are intertwined. He needs George III's protection and endorsement, while George III needs him to provide generous profit sharing—each gets what they need, and their relationship is closer, but they can no longer get along like friends.
Of course, the king didn't have many real friends to begin with.
As the two were talking, Diana and Queen Sophie, who was pushing a wooden baby carriage, walked into the drawing room from outside, chatting and laughing.
"Gentlemen, what are you discussing?"
The young queen greeted them, then carefully lifted her youngest son, Prince Frederick, from the stroller and sat down on the sofa to thank Chen Wenbin, saying, "My dear Robin, thank you for the stroller—it's truly a magnificent invention! Diane is so lucky to have an inventor husband like you!"
Chen Wenbin chuckled and shook his head, saying, "I just suddenly realized that it would be too hard for Diana to carry the baby around in the future, so I made this car. But she still has three months until she gives birth—we can't just leave it lying in the storage room forever, can we?"
"Honey!"
Diana gave a reproachful look and was about to explain something, but Queen Sophie didn't care at all. She just hugged the prince and laughed, "I really like this gift because it's very practical! Robin, why don't you make more strollers like the spring-loaded carriage and sell them to other people?"
If the price isn't too high, I think many of my friends would be willing to buy one!
Is baby stroller business a good business?
Chen Wenbin shook his head inwardly. Spring-shock-absorbing carriages could sell for high prices because they had strong social attributes and were luxury items for the nobility, similar to modern supercars. But what about baby carriages?
This is just a baby and maternity consumer product, and the production threshold is very low. However, if the Queen herself were to promote it, high-end products could be made, but the Queen must receive at least half of the profits.
In a flash, he figured it out and shook his head at the Queen, saying, "I've also thought about mass production and sales—but baby carriage technology isn't very sophisticated. Apart from ball bearings, any skilled carpenter can imitate it. Besides, noblewomen all have servants to help carry their children, so the market for it might not be very large."
"How could that be?"
Queen Sophie immediately retorted, "Having a servant carry the child is nowhere near as good as pushing the stroller out in the sun yourself. Robin, you're not a woman, you don't understand how we women think—Diane, what do you say?"
Diana, of course, nodded in agreement with the Queen's statement.
Seeing this, Chen Wenbin winked at George III and then smiled and said, "Then let's try doing this business!"
Dear Sophie, would you be interested in partnering with Diana to open a stroller shop?
We'll handle the factory, and you, Diana, and the other ladies will be in charge of designing and selling the strollers. Each of us will take half, and each stroller will be sold for £10. Let's see how many we can sell.
I think it's absolutely impossible to sell 100 units!
"How is it possible that not a hundred cars can be sold?"
Queen Sophie insisted, "Then let's do it! What should the trading company be called? Sophie and Diana Trading Company?"
Chen Wenbin didn't answer, but turned to look at King George III. The latter pondered for a few seconds, then smiled and said, "Since it's a royal item, let's call it 'The Crown.' That way, we'll definitely sell a hundred."
Good heavens, a crown!
Let alone a hundred vehicles, if things are running well, a thousand vehicles would be a matter of just a few days!
He suddenly realized a business opportunity and immediately added, "Actually, besides strollers, we can also sell other baby products!"
For example, strollers and toys for babies to practice walking, cribs to prevent them from rolling off, and even baby clothes and cotton diapers could be sold as commodities—which could also promote the development of the British cotton textile industry.
King George III's eyes flickered as he listened, and he nodded, saying, "In that case, let's get serious. Sophie, Diana, I'll have Lord Butt find you a professional merchant manager to oversee the production of crown merchandise. You'll be responsible for building up the crown's reputation among the nobility."
After he finished speaking, he looked at Chen Wenbin.
"Robin, I remember you bought the London Chronicle, the best-selling newspaper in London. Then have someone write a few GG stories—doesn't your newspaper often publish touching little stories about the King's Carriage, Mafi Aspirin, and sewing machine spring scales?"
Let's go with that style!
Chen Wenbin stared in astonishment—well, a British king, instead of governing the country properly, has actually learned marketing to make money!