The Eagle of Eastern Europe

One day later, Kadajius also came to Constantinople. He came to Peter with a series of bills from the Chamber of Commerce to request Peter's final decision.

"Meet His Highness"

"Well, you're here, let's get started."

At this time, there were only three people in the room, Peter, Mason and Kadajius. Kadajius first reported the situation of the Chamber of Commerce to Peter.

At present, the Chamber of Commerce is actively opening up Egyptian trade routes. In addition to Suez, the Chamber of Commerce has also opened the Nile River trade route. Going upstream along the Nile River can reach the Nubia region, where various trades can be carried out, especially the slave trade.

The Chamber of Commerce currently has 400 employees, a working capital of 320,000 gold lei, two colonies and dozens of caravans. These are the current assets of the Chamber of Commerce.

"Your Highness, what should we do next?" Kadajiu asked Peter.

"Did you feel anything when you entered Constantinople?"

"Yes, the price of spices has dropped a lot. Which caravan is back?"

Peter looked at Kadajiu and then at Mason. Mason personally explained to him the president who was busy opening the Suez Canal.

"Oh, it turns out you are the captain sent by His Highness to explore the East. I'm really sorry that I didn't recognize you."

"Without the support of the president, this fragile trade route will be destroyed by the infidels."

The mutual compliments between the two were stopped by Peter. Seeing that they all met, Peter finally spoke out his order to formally reorganize the Southern Chamber of Commerce and form a trading company.

"I have decided to reorganize the Chamber of Commerce and form a trading company. I will give you a 15-year monopoly on Eastern trade."

The sudden order made the two of them stunned. Kadajiu quickly reacted and expressed his gratitude to Peter. Now the Chamber of Commerce has finally obtained the monopoly of Eastern trade, and it has only been 15 years. How much wealth will flow into their wallets? .

In addition to the trade monopoly, Peter gave the chartered company the power to expand, sign peace treaties with other warring nations, proselytize, and named the company the East India Company. The authorized capital is 500,000 lei, and 7% of profits must be handed over to the government every year, and Peter also owns nearly 40% of the company's shares. There is also a dividend every year.

Mason is naturally also a member of the company, and Peter gave him 2% of the company's shares. There was also a commission appointing him Governor of the East.

"Your Highness, I am afraid that I am not qualified for this position."

"If even you are not qualified, then no one in the Empire can hold it. Mason, I order you to accept this position."

"yes"

Peter's unconditional trust in Mason led him to eventually accept the position, while Cadajou took charge of affairs at headquarters, including the continued construction of the Suez Canal.

In early 1401, the Roman East India Company was formally established, and Constantinople took the first step in colonization. The entire company's decision-making level consists of a governor and a board of directors composed of 16 directors, and there are also 4 departments responsible for commerce, navy, diplomacy, and missionary affairs.

Changes are beginning to change in various parts of the Chamber of Commerce, and the directors are ready to discuss what to do next, but for now they still have to listen to Peter.

"Currently, if we want to ensure the safety of India's shipping routes, we must first capture Aden."

"Yes, Your Highness, the pagans in Aden are the biggest obstacle to our trade. They fund pirates to rob our ships and rob our goods. If Aden is not captured first, the fleet will be in danger of being hijacked."

Mason spoke to Peter about the importance of Aden and another city, Muscat, as key nodes in controlling trade in the Indian Ocean. The first thing the East India Company did was to capture Aden.

"The navy must be established quickly. Before the canal is opened, everything depends on you."

Mason and Cadajo performed a simple ceremony of fealty to Peter, and then spoke of future plans at the first board meeting in Constantinople. The conference adopted proposals for the development of a navy and colonies, partly responsible for immigration and partly responsible for building an Indian Ocean navy.

The port of Andronico became an important stopping point for the Roman navy and fleet, and its current population has exceeded 400 people. Various constructions are already on the schedule. As long as you come here, you can temporarily escape the pursuit of the heretics.

The Sultanate of Ifat was the first regime to attack the colony because the port was built on their land. The local sultan ordered 1,200 troops to destroy it, but was defeated by the opponent's artillery and solid city defenses. More than half were killed or injured. Only then did the colony gain a foothold, and missionaries began to spread Orthodox Christianity around them.

Rome's unprecedented colonial initiative was 100 years ahead of the West, and its exploration was decades ahead of the West. You must know that the first movers can get the most dividends, which can be seen in this trade.

With more funds, they began to build more warships and purchase more slaves to take charge of the reclamation. Naturally, Constantinople's actions could not be hidden from the eyes of Venice. This time, the people of the Grand Council unanimously agreed to give Rome some color.

They unanimously adopted a policy of high tariffs and bans on transportation of some of Rome's goods, which accounted for about a quarter of Rome's exports to the West. It did cause panic among many merchants at first, because their goods were all transported by Venetians, but this also gave opportunities to the Magna Greek Chamber of Commerce, whose main business was shipping. Their merchants took advantage of the opportunity to purchase ships in large quantities and began to occupy the vacancy left by the Venetians.

The Genoese also came to join in, and their prices were cheaper than those of the Venetians. This was originally a measure taken by the Venetians to punish Rome, but in the end it gave Genoa and the Greek region an advantage, and port cities such as Athens and Thessaloniki developed rapidly. . The fleet can use Genoa to bypass Crete controlled by Venice, and then set off to the west; or it can export to the west through Hungary through the Danube River. In short, Rome has 100 ways to circumvent the so-called sanctions of the Venetians.

The so-called heyday of Venice that began in 1380 seemed to be over. Their navy was still the best in the world, but their trade began to be surpassed by Rome. In particular, the important spice trade caused a lot of losses to the merchants who operated it, not to mention other industries.

The continuous encroachment of Venice's trade scope made the Grand Council take quick action. They preset more than a dozen methods, and they even did not hesitate to fight with Rome. According to Rome's current naval situation, it would be easy to destroy him. But this also gave their businesses and industries in Rome to Constantinople, and even if they could destroy the Roman navy, what next would be a continued blockade or mercenaries destroying Constantinople? This is all for the Venetian Parliament to discuss.