You can pretend to be confused, but you can't be really confused. Junior was reluctant to investigate further, mainly because he was worried that the final result would be the enemy they least wanted to face.
If you don't open the cover, you can still pretend to be confused. Let's play this political game together. Once something is found, it will be impossible to restore it to the present.
Marquis Taboada nodded thoughtfully, his expression a little sad. The former empire on which the sun never sets has actually fallen to the point of being plotted against, and it has to pretend that nothing happened.
It's okay to pretend to be deaf and dumb, but the problem still needs to be solved.
Having one more hidden enemy means that the Spanish government must devote more energy to preventing emergencies.
This is undoubtedly a kind of torture for the Spanish government, which already has a headache.
Seeing that the atmosphere in the room was quiet, Antonio decided to change the subject: "Okay, the colony issue, everyone should be vigilant. Let's talk about the loan first!
Unlike last time, there is no incense accumulated in the anti-French war now, and it may not be easy to get an interest-free loan again. "
As an old-fashioned empire, although Spain is in decline, Antonio is still adept at the rules of the political game between the powers.
Frankly speaking, Antonio was already very surprised that he could get a large interest-free loan from the Vienna government before.
According to the normal rhythm, the Vienna government should take advantage of the Philippine war. Unexpectedly, just because of a previous promise, the Vienna government gave up.
It's really good to talk to a trustworthy boss, but the boss also wants to eat meat. The Holy Roman Empire can have today's Nordic territory, and the Vienna government is definitely not as harmless as it seems.
The last time I was willing to help, maybe it was out of credibility, or maybe it was because the Holy Roman Empire needed a political show after it became the hegemon of the European continent.
It is absolutely impossible for similar things to happen twice, and even if the Vienna government is willing to help for free, Spain cannot afford it.
Based on past political experience, Antonio is very clear in this world "the more you want, the greater the price you need to pay".
The cheapness of the hegemony is definitely not easy to take. Once it is stained, when it is repaid in the future, it might be half-life for Spain.
For example: the escalation of the conflict between Britain and Austria, and Spain, which has benefited, must act as a pawn.
Don't expect to default on your debts, Spain simply doesn't have that capital. Just being a France can't stop Shinra's revenge.
Not wanting to become cannon fodder in the struggle for hegemony between Britain and Austria, Spain must maintain sufficient autonomy while hugging Shinra’s thighs.
European governments are doing the same. Despite the existence of the European Continental Union, the Vienna government still has no binding force on countries, and to do something still needs to exchange interests.
Chancellor of the Exchequer Siegfried: "Don't think about interest-free loans, Austrians are not charitable.
Unless we can come up with enough benefits in exchange, this loan will be an ordinary commercial loan.
The Ministry of Finance has communicated with a consortium of domestic banks, who require the government to use the salt tax as collateral, and can only provide a loan of up to 50 million match towers.
The loan fee is 8%, and the annual interest is 8.9%. It is repaid in 30 years, and the monthly payment of principal and interest is 398,700.
I have calculated, the loan of 50 million actually received 46 million, and the total amount of principal and interest to be repaid is 143.532 million.
This is already the best business loan we can get. For ordinary private commercial loans, the interest is doubled.
Such high interest rates cannot even be afforded by the government, let alone ordinary people. All the money was made by these vampires, so it's no wonder our economy can't develop.
We need two wars at the same time, and 46 million match towers are just enough to cover two months' worth of soldiers. If it is used in war, it is a miracle that it can last a month.
According to the most optimistic estimate, if we quell the Philippine rebellion within six months and suppress the Cuban rebellion within the year, the government still has a funding gap of 880 million.
Converted to Aegis, it is about 70 million. If calculated at an interest rate of 8.9%, the annual interest on funds that need to be paid is about to catch up with a quarter of our fiscal revenue.
The actual situation will be even more serious. With our current financial situation, no commercial bank dares to lend us so much money.
Even if there is a greedy vampire who dares to take over this business, the interest rate will be terribly high. A mere 8.9% yield isn't enough to risk losing all of their money to lend. "
(1 game tower is about 0.29 grams of gold)
Since the outbreak of the Philippine War, the Spanish government has lived a life of borrowing, and today Spain's total debt has reached an astonishing 330 million Aegis.
Debt has caught up with one-fifth of Shinra's total debt, but Spain's fiscal revenue is far less than one-fifth of Shinra's, even less than one-twentieth.
There is no way, this is the difference between a semi-industrial country and an industrial country. Spain, which has one-seventh of the population of Shinra, has less than one-twentieth of the fiscal revenue of Shinra.
Today, more than half of the Spanish government's annual fiscal revenue is used to repay domestic and foreign debts.
In this context, the Spanish government's finances are naturally not good. From the very first day as Chancellor of the Exchequer, Siegfried lived a life of tearing down the east wall and making up the west wall.
This is still in the context of establishing a large number of interest-free loans, otherwise the interest on the funds will be able to crush the Kingdom of Spain.
At this time, the biggest problem facing the Spanish government is not the level of loan interest, but its own debt repayment ability.
The richer you are, the easier it is to borrow money. The same applies to the country. Spain, which has lost its ability to repay its debts, will naturally not be easy to get loans.
If you can't get a loan, let alone issue a bond. The capital market has always been the most realistic, and no one is willing to lend money to a poor ghost.
Antonio rubbed his forehead: "The issue of high domestic financing costs, we will discuss it later. Now we still need to find a way to raise funds to get through the current difficulties.
If we were to get this loan from Shinra, what would it cost us? "
Obviously, this is not the first time that these problems have arisen. In fact, the high cost of financing is also a common phenomenon in this era, not an isolated case in Spain.
The commercial loan interest of ten or twenty points seems to be very high, but in this era, it is really nothing.
Behind the high interest is high overdue and high risk. It is common for default to run away. Once the debtor leaves the country, the bank will not be able to pursue it.
Even if there are assets as collateral, there are often multiple and repeated mortgage loans. Constrained by the poor exchange of information, no matter how cautious banking institutions are, they will inevitably step on the thunder.
"High risk" does not scare bankers, so long as lending rates are raised to spread the losses of default among other debtors.
This is also why the cost of government borrowing is much lower than the interest rate on commercial loans. After all, lending to the government has little risk of default.
Of course, the Spanish government is clearly not a premium customer. Therefore, even if the collateral is given, the loan interest cannot be lower.
Siegfried shrugged, pretending to be humorous: "It depends on what the Vienna government wants. Maybe they are in a good mood, and suddenly they are kind, and they lent us the money directly."
Siegfried didn't believe it himself, let alone everyone else.
70 million Aegis is not 7000 Aegis, unless the high-level brains of the Vienna government are collectively flooded, otherwise such charity will definitely not be done.
…
Taking the blame for others for no reason, Franz was in the same mood as the British. Explanation is impossible, and this kind of thing can only be smeared.
From the point of view of pure interests, the motives of the Vienna government to attack Spain are too strong.
Spain, where "children hold golden bricks in a busy city", has always been the object of everyone's scrutiny. As long as there is strength, there is motivation.
Unhappy return unhappy, but Franz can't do anything. The Spaniards are just secretly suspicious, and they don't even look down, what else can they do
After eating this dumb loss, Franz also resented the black hand behind the scenes.
This method and method are really too familiar, the same formula, the same routine, Franz really did not expect to use it on himself one day.
It can only be said that there are still many people in this world. While provoking the Cuban independence movement, they not only hid themselves, but even found several scapegoats.
If it wasn't for his calculations, Franz did not believe that the Spaniards would find out that other international forces were involved when the British were to blame.
…
Franz asked, "Have you found the mastermind behind the scenes?"
The Spanish government was worried that the truth that it did not want to see would not end, and it was unwilling to investigate further.
Although it is not necessary to fight for such a trivial matter, it is still indispensable to find out the culprits behind the scenes and take precautions.
Prime Minister Carr shook his head: "No! This black hand is hiding too deeply. After provoking the Cuban independence movement, he quickly disappeared.
The clues left behind are all messed up, some point to us, some point to the British, the United States, and the Confederate States. There is no way to distinguish the true from the false.
But the attention of the Spanish government was drawn to us, mostly by the British. In order to disintegrate the Continental Union, the London government is about to go crazy.
It's just that the British didn't expect that the Spanish government was so cowardly that they didn't look down at all, so that their arrangements were useless. "
If it can't be found out, it means that this black pot, the Vienna government, has committed itself. This kind of thing does not need proof, just think it is enough.
Just as Prime Minister Carl thought that the British were framing Shinra, Franz still took the conclusion that he was just guessing out of thin air.
"It's fine if you can't find it out. But the government's emphasis on the United States and the Confederate States has to be raised a notch.
In particular, there may be British people in the middle.
The current international situation is very unfavorable to Britain. In the context of the inability to dismantle the continental alliance, it is inevitable that the British would not panic and huddle with the Americans for warmth.
The best way to stop the Anglo-American confluence is to bring up the conflict between the United States and the Confederate States. As long as relations between their two countries do not de-escalate, the British have no choice but to choose between them. "
Frankly, Franz wasn't too worried about a détente between the United States and the Confederacy. Giving up hatred is easier said than done.
The resentment of the southern states in the original time and space toward the north has continued into the 21st century, and has not been completely eliminated.
Not to mention now, not to mention the blood in the north and south, the key is that the two have separated.
Today, hating each other has become a form of political correctness.
Unless the external force is too oppressive, threatening their survival. Otherwise, neither the United States nor the Confederacy will have the possibility of easing relations until this generation is dead.
There is no doubt that such pressure does not exist at all. Neither Britain nor the Holy Roman Empire has the strength to destroy the United States and the Confederate States.
The vast ocean is their best defense line, limiting the power projection of European powers.