Chapter 722: Middle East Territory Issue
"Boss, our bank has not provided any loans to Britain or France at the moment. This is all done under your advice." Blair, CEO of United Bank, took out a written report and said, "Here are the contact information of the British who came to communicate with us."
"That's a lot!" Sheffield nodded his head while holding the report, and glanced from top to bottom. "It's still the same opinion. We won't get involved in European affairs."
"This may hinder the development of the United Bank. Boss, Britain and France are both powerful countries with great reputations in the eyes of the whole world. Banks that provide loans to these two countries are more anticipated by investors and depositors." Blair hesitated, "The consequence of this is that compared to their rapid expansion of business, our United Bank seems to be standing still."
"Perhaps this is why the Morgan family is scrambling to get in, but what does this prove? It only proves that most people are idiots. Maybe I shouldn't use this wording, but that's the fact." Sheffield apologized indifferently and said sarcastically, "Lending to Britain and France will bring huge profits in the future, and banks will also be able to raise funds faster. It seems to be all advantages."
"It is this prospect that worries me." Blair nodded solemnly. "Other banks are making great strides forward while we are standing still. This is a sign of falling behind. This is what you once said, Boss."
"What I said cannot be applied to this. The so-called huge subsequent profits are only a possibility, and they may not be recovered." Sheffield lit a cigar and said intoxicatedly, "I prefer to make money safely, and Britain and France themselves represent instability. Most depositors rushed to get in because of the national credit of Britain and France, hoping to reap greater benefits later. But this is similar to the federal government streamlining agencies and laying off civil servants. The more streamlined, the more bloated, and the more civil servants are laid off, the more they are employed."
"Boss, you mean that the loans we have given out may not be recovered?" Blair frowned and said, "This kind of thing will happen. This is the national credit of the world hegemon."
"A world war has broken out. What can the world's hegemon's national credit tell us?" Sheffield licked his lips and smiled. "They can easily win supporters by using the rhetoric of protecting the civilized world and maintaining world peace, creating the illusion of having more people and power, which will put the United States in a position of forcing them to pay their debts."
The slave owners remembered that the debts from the First World War were not one-on-one relationships. The Allied Powers had a large number of triangular debts. While Britain and France owed huge debts to the United States, the small Allied powers in Eastern Europe also owed Britain and France large sums of money.
European countries alone owe the UK tens of billions of dollars, and the UK also owes the United States more than four billion. France also defaulted on its debts, saying it was to maintain world peace, but the British were much more sophisticated. First, the British forgave the European countries tens of billions of dollars in debt, and by the way, they defaulted on the more than four billion dollars owed by the United States.
European countries were in economic difficulties after the war and were not able to repay Britain. The British knew this and took a high-handed approach by forgiving the debts of these countries, and at the same time dragged these countries into defaulting on their debts to the United States, thus occupying the moral high ground.
After World War II, the United States, which had suffered a loss, was obviously much more sensible. Based on the Marshall Plan, it gained benefits more intelligently, avoiding excessive oppression and repeating the history of being defaulted after World War I. Of course, when World War II broke out, the United States had shed the blood of the British and had recovered all the previous debts, which is another issue.
The phone on the table rang, and Blair reached out to pick it up. After listening for a while, he said, "Boss, this is a telegram from the secretary's office. Louisa Morgan just called them."
"Looking for me? It seems like something happened!" Sheffield didn't know if Louisa Morgan had tried one by one, but the call was made to United Bank, so it must be quite urgent.
After returning home, Louisa Morgan directly stated her purpose, "Eden wants to meet with you on behalf of the British ambassador."
"I never avoid anything, dear." Sheffield kissed Louisa Morgan's red lips, and when he saw Alice Roosevelt coming down from upstairs, he said to himself, "I think it should be one kiss each."
Are you going to talk to him, the man who is holding the banner of anti-British? Sheffield thinks that the British efforts in the field of diplomacy are still worthy of praise, and there is no harm in meeting them.
The location is in the Morgan Building where J.P. Morgan Jr. is located. I believe that the close relationship between the Morgan family and the British consortium can make the liaison representing the British minister feel a touch of friendly atmosphere.
Sheffield arrived with Edith Rockefeller and Louisa Morgan, and pushed open the door of the conference room that Morgan Jr. had deliberately left open. Aiden himself was already waiting. He was obviously dressed much more formally today, wearing a monocle and reading a newspaper. When he saw Sheffield coming in, he greeted him in a friendly manner, showing his gentlemanly demeanor.
"Mr. William, we meet again." Aiden said with a smile, "There are two beautiful ladies, it is really an honor to meet you. Mr. William has two partners of the same status as his wife, which is very enviable."
Sheffield could only admire the fact that the word "mistress" was so elegant and refined. "Please sit down, Mr. Aiden. I have never rejected Britain. You know, I am also a descendant of British immigrants."
"I wonder what Mr. William thinks about this war?" Aiden asked solemnly after sitting down.
Of course it's a dog-eat-dog war between imperialists! Sheffield said without thinking, "Oh, this is a tragedy. We humans call ourselves the masters of nature, but in fact we are also part of nature. We cannot overestimate our abilities. From this war, the emergence of a large number of new weapons has brought unprecedented destructive power. I don't know how many people and their families have paid the price of blood and tears for this war."
Sheffield's voice was low, and it seemed like it was true. He had completely forgotten that he had already joined the war and had just killed nearly 200,000 prisoners of war. Of course, it was a spontaneous organization of Christians in the Middle East, an unpredictable religious conflict. Black Gold Company may have improper supervision, but it was not primarily responsible. It could just find an appropriate opportunity to punish itself with three glasses of wine.
"In fact, the conflicts in the Middle East can be resolved." Aiden was silent for a moment before saying, "As Mr. William said, you are also trying to protect the safety of Christians in the Middle East. The British Empire is actually very concerned about the safety of those Christians. We have no fundamental conflicts. As for the casualties among Indians due to religious and military discipline issues."
"I'm very sorry for the poor supervision of the United Company." Sheffield's voice was gloomy, and he even reached out to wipe away the non-existent tears from the corners of his eyes, and said in a deep voice, "It can only be said that the best thing in misfortune is that the British soldiers are well taken care of. As for the Indian soldiers, in fact, we all know in our hearts that India has plenty of people, and the British Empire can definitely recruit more soldiers."
"Although the Indians have a huge manpower base, they cannot be used indefinitely." Aiden was silent for a moment when he said this, and it was obvious that he had something to hide.
Sheffield understood that politicians in India would certainly take the opportunity to demand autonomy, becoming an entity like Canada, or directly independence, or demanding the same rights as the British mainland. No matter what the demands were, they were unacceptable to the British at that time. At first, Britain refused to recruit Indian soldiers, but later, as the war expanded, the source of soldiers decreased sharply, so it began to recruit soldiers in colonial India.
"They are just colonies. Let's agree to their demands temporarily. When the war is over, the previous promises will be completely invalid. By then, the mainland will have the power to suppress these rebels." Sheffield smiled at Edith Rockefeller and suggested cheerfully, "This is not a difficult thing."
During the war, Britain made a false promise: to grant India autonomy after the war. Perhaps if Britain had fulfilled that promise, in their own country, those Indian soldiers who fought in the war might have been considered to have sacrificed for India's freedom.
Indian nationalists generally believe that after the war, India will obtain the autonomy that has been retained by white people in the Commonwealth, similar to the status of Australia and Canada. At the end of World War I, as a victorious country, Britain refused to recognize the rewards promised to India and did not grant India autonomy, and then suppressed protests in India.
Sheffield no longer helped Britain commit atrocities. This was the British's own idea, but it was easier for him, an outsider, to say it.
The status of the Middle East territory was Sheffield's biggest concern. Eden proposed that both sides stop military operations in the Persian Gulf, recognize the Kuwaiti territory and the land currently occupied by the Eighth Army, and incorporate it into the scope of the Kuwaiti territory, that is, outside the Oman border, and all belong to Sheffield. Britain could also give up attacking Mesopotamia.
The condition was that Sheffield guaranteed Oman's safety. It would be best if he could take a goodwill stance, such as breaking away from the control of the Ottoman Empire. However, Sheffield directly rejected this. "I am the Pasha of the Ottoman Empire. Although I am a foreigner, I will not betray you."
(End of this chapter)
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