February 5, 1456, Constantinople, Western District.
At eight o'clock in the morning, Phil had breakfast and took a carriage to Northern District's exchange to inquire about the news.
Stock Exchange is adjacent to the most prosperous Bank Street, and there are crowds of people inside. Phil did not participate in the transaction, just stood in the corner, took out the paper and pen he carried with him to record information.
His focus is on the textile industry and several companies related to the textile industry.
At ten o'clock in the morning, Phil arrived at Commodity Exchange not far away.
It is divided into numerous areas so that people in the same industry can quickly find each other.
Phil walks around and records the market prices of cotton, wool, Raw Silk, Flax, Alum and other commodities.
A businessman came over to greet him enthusiastically, "Master Di Maggio, I heard that you are going to enter the textile industry. Have you chosen the location of your factory?"
The textile industry is the most profitable and capital-intensive industry, and one-third of the businessmen in the room are related to the textile industry. Upon hearing these words, the nearby businessmen turned their heads to observe this new competitor in the industry.
Phil has connections in the palace, so he is not worried about anyone daring to take the initiative to cause trouble, so he responded calmly:
"I have chosen it. I bought a factory building in the suburbs of Balm last week. The construction team is expanding the warehouse and excavating Reservoir. It will be officially operational in the spring of next year."
Near noon, Phil went to a familiar high-end restaurant. Passing by Municipal Square, he saw many people queuing up to buy War Bonds, and relevant information was posted on the bulletin board next to it.
The issuance of War Bonds is not a new thing.
As early as 1171, in order to retaliate against King Manuel I for expropriating Venetian property, the Governor issued bonds to raise funds and formed a revenge fleet.
During the march, a disease broke out in the fleet, and the battle plan failed.
Later, Venice could not afford to exchange the principal, so it had to be held back. Some people were eager to use money, so they transferred the bonds to others, thus forming a practice of trading bonds.
Phil sighed, "So many people lined up to buy bonds, it was such a lively scene."
The old man nearby echoed, "This is nothing. When the war with Venice started, the whole city was in a sensation, and people spontaneously went to the church to celebrate. From your accent, do you think you are a Italy businessman? Haha, you only want to make money and don't understand the humiliation we have suffered."
Aware of the gazes of the people around him, Phil quickly explained that he was from Florence and had nothing to do with what happened in 1204.
The old man rolled his eyes, "I know, you are all Florence people."
Florence has a good relationship with the Eastern Roman Empire, so some Italy businessmen doing business in Constantinople deliberately pretended to be from Florence. Phil did not want to argue with this group of citizens and quickly left Municipal Square.
Five minutes later, Phil came to the restaurant and sat down, recalling the information he just saw on the bulletin board.
The amount of the bonds issued by the Eastern Roman Empire is 500,000, and the annual interest rate is a common 5%. With the current situation of Finance, it can be paid off soon in the future.
I heard that Charles VII is also issuing bonds. His Finance is not as good as Vitus, so the annual interest rate is higher, and he promises to use royal real estate as collateral.
Phil remembered the latest issue of "Arno River Citizen Gazette", Cosimo·Medici is also issuing bonds, using the real estate of Di Maggio family and other exiles as collateral.
The amount of this bond is as high as 300,000, and Cosimo probably has no intention of paying it back.
If French Army wins, they will use Di Maggio family's real estate to pay off the debt.
Once French Army is defeated, Cosimo will definitely run away, and only the Di Maggio family can clean up this mess.
"Cosimo is really hateful! If the Rome army captures him, I must "repay" his behavior well."
At two o'clock in the afternoon, Phil left the restaurant yawning and heard two passers-by talking about the battleship at the Golden Horn shipyard.
"It was launched twenty days ago and has been anchored on the coast since then. Today it is finally time to go out to sea for testing."
"Is there any live ammunition shooting? It is said that those heavy naval guns can destroy several houses with one shell."
Phil was equally fond of this battleship, so he temporarily changed his itinerary and went to the North City Pier to watch the excitement.
At this time, four red boats belonging to the port were cruising in Golden Horn, ordering the sailboats ahead to get out of the way.
In the west, a larger red Galley paddled its oars, and its stern was connected to the bow of the warship through two ropes, dragging the warship away from Golden Horn from west to east.
The battleship's sail rigging system was not yet perfect. After leaving the bay, it only raised one-third of its sails, turned slowly to the right, and sailed into Sea of Marmara, where the sea conditions were calm.
At the same time, a large group of spectators walked along the coast and finally arrived at the southeastern city. Some stood on higher hills overlooking the sea, while others ran to the seaside to observe the first sea trial of this giant ship at close range.
The garrison commander recognized Phil and allowed him to go to the top of the tower with the best view.
Looking around, there is an unobstructed view of the dark blue sea to the south. The battleship sails slowly in the cold wind, trailing a white trail behind it.
Phil wrapped himself tightly in a thick fur coat and stood in the cold wind for more than an hour. During the whole process, the battleship maintained a very low speed, like an old and slow whale.
"Huh, so boring." He thought it was a waste of time, yawned and left.
Phil Not far away, a continuous sound of cannons was heard from the sea, and the onlookers let out one after another exclamations of surprise.
"Why did you choose to open fire when I wasn't around?"
He ran towards the city wall as fast as he could, panted and climbed to the top of the tower, where he saw most of the ship's hull disappeared in the white mist.
Unfortunately, the battleship only conducted this round of bombardment. The goal was to verify the stability during the bombardment.
As the test firing ended, the warship sailed slowly under the escort of the accompanying boat, and finally returned to Julian Harbor in the south of the city.
In the follow-up, the warship needs to undergo more sea trials, and adjust sails, rigging and other parts based on the test results, which can take as little as a month or as long as several months before it can be officially entered into service.
In this regard, the onlookers talked a lot.
Some people came late and did not witness the battleship shooting scene with their own eyes. They complained that Admiralty was too stingy and only conducted one round of shooting. There should be more rounds to open everyone's eyes.
"How can you get so much money if you drive a few more rounds?"
Phil said to himself and left the city wall, complaining in his heart that the people did not know how to settle accounts.
In one round of broadside firing, more than thirty naval guns opened fire. The total weight of the shells fired was about 600 to 700 pounds, consuming more than 200 pounds of gunpowder.
Just in the morning, he saw the prices of pig iron, sulfur, and Niter from Commodity Exchange. After a rough calculation, the ammunition cost for one round of shooting was nearly one hundred Florin.
Moreover, every time a naval gun fires, it consumes the life of the barrel. In addition to this part of the depreciation cost, the cost of each round of firing is higher. Ordinary citizen families will not be able to save this money if they live frugally throughout their lives.
In order for the new crew to become familiar with the operation, subsequent artillery training requires at least 10 rounds of real live fire, which is enough to buy a medium-sized merchant ship.
Once, Pauli also wanted to build a fleet. After calculating the cost, Florence finally built only four Greece gunboats.
When the war started last year, the Florence fleet was blocked by the France navy in Livorno Port. In the end, it played no role and became the trophy of the French Army.
"Before the war started, if I noticed something was wrong with the wind direction, my brother should have sent the fleet and family merchant ships to the Eastern Roman Empire. There are twenty ships of all sizes. It would be a big loss."
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Phil felt depressed, so he bought a bag of Chestnut from a vendor and ate it while walking along the road.
In front is Great Palace of Constantinople Ruins of Constantinople, which was destroyed in 1204. Its area is larger than Blachernae Palace, and to the north is Hagia Sophia. The royal palace complex extends from the hillside where the cathedral is located to Sea of Marmara, with the north being higher and the south lower.
Over a long period of time, the low-lying ruins were demolished by citizens, part of the vacant land was used to build houses, and part of the vacant land was converted into vegetable gardens or Vineyard.
After Vitus came to power, he asked City Hall to put the Great Palace of Constantinople ruins under control. No one was allowed to collect stones privately, and citizens were not allowed to build new houses on vacant land.
When the decree was first promulgated, the outside world thought that the emperor wanted to rebuild Great Palace of Constantinople. More than ten years later, the ruins still stood in place, witnessing the changes of the city in the wind and sun.
Nowadays, citizens are generally aware of the emperor's stingy character and feel that he will never rebuild Great Palace of Constantinople in this life.
At dusk, Phil came to the south square of Hagia Sophia, and happened to catch up with the last Railway Carriage.
When he got home, the housekeeper reminded him, "Sir, Post Office sent a letter from Tauris this afternoon. It should be related to your sale of Ranch."
Phil opened the envelope, and it started with a long paragraph of polite words from Real Estate Agent. The main text listed the buyer information during this period, and the prices were generally not high.
Last year, the empire went to war with Jagiellon, and then Grand Duchy of Lithuania and Cossacks Rebellion and Outer Tauris broke out in turmoil.
Therefore, Livestock Company moved herds to Don Frontier or Tauris, raising the price of Ranch in both places.
After the emperor negotiated peace with Władysław, the threat of war from Outer Tauris subsided, and Cossacks Rebellion was also suppressed by Lithuania. In this case, Livestock Company relocated back to Outer Tauris, causing the price of Ranch of Tauris to fall.
Phil After reading the letter, he asked the housekeeper to go there in person Northern Black Sea Coast.
"Textile Mill is about to be put into operation. Cash is needed to recruit workers and purchase equipment. After you go there, choose a merchant who is willing to pay cash and ask him to open Bill of Exchange at the Di Maggio branch of Chersonesus, and come back with Bill of Exchange as soon as possible."
At this time, Phil's wife suggested in a low voice. "Why don't you work for another year? I heard that the army likes to eat Canned Food when they are away. When the war broke out, the purchase of Canned Food increased, and the prices of cattle and sheep also increased."
Phil is determined to get rid of this painful and tiring business.
"Northern Black Sea Coast has plenty of cattle and sheep. Businessmen who set up factories in Chersonesus can purchase livestock directly from Don Frontier. The prices of cattle and sheep will not rise too much.
Moreover, my capital is invested in Textile Mill. Even if I keep Ranch, I still have no money to purchase new herds."
The couple came to the restaurant for dinner. The staple food tonight was Lasagna, which has been modified by local people. The taste is slightly different from Lasagna of Naples.
Phil took a bite and found that the meat ratio was different from usual. It used to be beef and pork, but today's Lasagna had a bad smell and added mutton.
Suddenly, a quarrel and the sound of broken porcelain came from the courtyard next door, interrupting Phil's sigh. He looked at his family helplessly and said, "Keep eating, don't worry about this."
Pauli's family has been quarreling a lot recently, and Phil has long been used to it and has no interest in meddling in other people's business.
I ate two pieces of Lasagna, Phil filled a bowl of boiled milky white Fish Soup, and drank it with Silver Spoon in small sips.
At this time, the housekeeper brought three little ones from outside the hospital, all children of Pauli's family. The two older ones were Pauli's second son and daughter, and the youngest girl was Pauli's granddaughter.
"Who broke the dining table today?" Phil let out a long sigh and motioned to the servants to bring in three chairs for the little ones to join in the dinner.
In fact, Phil understands Pauli's frustration.
Di Maggio Bank's headquarters was in Florence, which was taken over by Medici. Pauli temporarily set up the Constantinople branch as the headquarters and barely maintained operations. One year later, his temples were all white.
Not only that, Pauli, as the former leader, had to meet with some Florence immigrants every day. Some people came to him to borrow money because their business was not going well, and some people were seriously ill and asked him for medical expenses or funeral expenses.
As long as Eastern Roman Empire does not expel French Army and Pauli resides in Constantinople, it is impossible for him to escape from this situation.
The next morning, Constantinople southeast, Julian Harbor.
The 68-gun Battleship was moored quietly at the dock, and four Shipbuilding Technician and hundreds of workers were busy adjusting the rigging and sails of the battleship.
Ilya is Minister of the Navy, who gave this matter a high priority and specially brought a group of naval officers to inspect it.
"What was the result of yesterday's sea trial? Can it be used?"
Chief Technician took out a scrawled report and handed it to Minister of the Navy: "During sailing, the hull always tilted slightly to one side, and the bottom Cast-Iron Ballast Blocks needs to be adjusted.
Secondly, the sail layout of the foremast is a big problem, and we are trying to find ways to adjust it. The good news is that the overall center of gravity of the battleship is not too high, and there is no need to significantly change the hull structure."
Chief Technician speculates that the second sea trial will be conducted in half a month. Then, the warship will leave Sea of Marmara, where the sea conditions are calm, and sail to the middle of the Black Sea, where the sea conditions are rough.
If the third sea trial goes well, this battleship will officially enter service and enter the navy as Order of Battle.
Hearing this, the officers who were wearing black Double-Breasted Uniform and with Gold Olive Leaves or Silver Laurel Leaves embroidered on their shoulders whispered to each other, thinking that this battleship would not be able to catch up with the first round of operations.
Cohen (Ionia Fleet Admiral) asked Ilya: "Sir, what is the name of the new battleship? Is it named after the emperor?"
Ilya shook his head, "I mentioned it, but the emperor refused. He casually mentioned a few ancient place names. This warship is called Trikka, the one under construction in the dock is called Gothis, and the next one is called Serdica..."
Ilya feels that the emperor's worries are justified.
The ship is the symbol of the entire fleet and is destined to receive the most attention from the enemy.
Today, the intelligence department has collected ship information of the France camp. The France ship is called Royal Charles, the Genoa ship is called Liguria, and the Naples ship is called Anjou.
The original ship of Portugal was called Saint Martin. Recently, two new ships of Double-Deck Warship were launched. The new warships may be used as ships.
According to the tradition of the Navy, capturing and sinking an enemy ship will result in greater military exploits than sinking a warship of the same size. Once the two sides engage in battle, Eastern Roman Navy will definitely beat the opposing ship to death.
Correspondingly, the Eastern Roman Navy ship also has to withstand the enemy's concentrated fire.
There is no unsinkable warship in the world. If a ship named after Constantinople or the emperor or crown prince is sunk, it will have a serious psychological impact on the people. It is safer to give the ship a conventional name.