Chapter 697: Chapter 393, Hongjian Star Joins_2
Though Flying Wing Star only has a population of eight billion, the shipyard capable of constructing cruisers belonging to the planet is truly tantalizing.
It’s a tremendous wealth. In the hands of Pei Desi, it’s truly a waste; Gu Hang doesn’t think that guy will be able to hold onto it in the future.
With that bumpkin’s level of ability, there are plenty of ways to bring him down.
Moreover, this matter needs to be expedited; Gu Hang isn’t keen on waiting too long.
Get it sooner, and reap the benefits earlier.
As for how to acquire it, Gu Hang already had some ideas.
…
And these ideas had already started to be implemented in their initial stages.
What kind of reaction Pei Desi would have to this wasn’t among Gu Hang’s concerns. No matter how the guy thinks or acts, it won’t change the outcome.
…
While Gu Hang was scheming for Flying Wing Star, another world within the Tianma Star Sector stirred even earlier.
That was Hongjian Star, now one of only two worlds in the Tianma Star Sector that had yet to join the Alliance.
Hongjian Star, an agricultural Empire World with a total population of about two billion, was controlled by many large and small farm owners or agricultural corporations who owned the land. These farmers and agricultural groups formed an Industry Association that represented the highest power structure of the planet.
The association internally elected its leaders, who would also become the acting Planetary Governor, and were authorized to establish a Planetary Government. The government of Hongjian Star was a loose institution, handling public safety issues and providing some necessary public services. They didn’t form a military, didn’t collect taxes, and the essential resources needed for the government’s operations were financed by the agriculture association.
At the same time, the level of military development on Hongjian Star was very poor; the two billion population had only a few million in the Land Forces, with even scarce heavy equipment, mainly comprised of light infantry.
The Imperial Tax of Hongjian Star was arranged through the many people of the agricultural association. These large agricultural enterprises seized every trade opportunity, paying the annual two billion in Imperial Tax with grain on one hand, and on the other, trading grain for various industrial goods required by the planet, especially agricultural machinery.
The development level of Hongjian Star wasn’t high, and there was hardly any industry to speak of. But the residents generally lived rather well. They had a high amount of grain ownership, and though most of it was taken by the agricultural companies and farm owners, the remaining portion was more than enough for the numerous farm workers to live without worry of food and drink.
Gu Hang had indeed considered how to take over Hongjian Star, but found it to be rather troublesome.
The people from these agricultural companies, each a rich landowner, lacked any particular ambition, content to till their own patches of land. There were no particular occurrences on the planet that allowed for an opportunity to intercede.
Although their military was exceedingly feeble, Gu Hang could easily take them over with a simple wave of the hand. But as an Empire World, without sufficient reason, there was simply no way to engage in conflict.
Moreover, the main production of Hongjian Star was grain, and it was very single-minded at that. Gu Hang didn’t see the necessity in taking it into his own hands. As long as there was ongoing trade, allowing Hongjian Star to buy all of the agricultural output beyond what was paid as Imperial Tax while dumping industrial products, that would suffice.
Although Gu Hang had a bit of a ‘coloring the map’ compulsion and, at this stage, really wanted to plant the Alliance flag on every planet in the entire Star Sector,
Given the realities, Hongjian Star truly belonged to the kind that didn’t really matter whether it was incorporated or not.
That’s what Mr. Gu thought, but he didn’t anticipate how much impact his rising fame in the Star Sector, rapid expansion of the Alliance system, and his acquisition of the position of Star Sector head would have on the wealthy landowners of Hongjian Star.
Mr. Gu had no interest in bothering them; he just wanted to do business. But he hadn’t communicated this to them, and the landlords had no idea what Mr. Gu was thinking.
Even if he did, they still wouldn’t necessarily be at ease.
An envoy from the Hongjian Star Agriculture Association arrived at Flying Wing Star with an anxious heart, met with Mr. Gu, and laid out their appeals:
We want to join the Alliance!
This, in turn, amused Gu Hang.
Without lifting a finger, you all want to actively join? Well, isn’t that something?
These local tycoons were not joining unconditionally.
Before sending their envoys, they had done some research on the Alliance system.
They had one major psychological barrier to joining the Alliance—the Alliance would “confiscate” almost all means of production and monopolize all outputs. Whether it was the bosses or the workers and farmers below, everyone would be assigned a rank and receive benefits accordingly.
They certainly couldn’t accept this; it would be even more unbearable for them than death.
However, they were truly afraid of dying.
Although their assessments had led them to believe Gu Hang was unlikely to take direct military action against Hongjian Star, they knew that with Gu Hang’s current capabilities, he didn’t need to resort to military means to deal with them.
A mere trade cut-off, or even just harsh price negotiations, would be fatal for a planet with such a singular production output.
Thus, amidst their troubled frowns, these landowners of Hongjian Star proposed a solution.
They saw that within the Alliance system, there were also some private enterprises. This was more common on Rage Owl Star, where the Alliance Government, in order to avoid systemic rigidity, had opened up opportunities for the public to start businesses.
When the public saw a business opportunity, they could retain their ranks and benefits while going into business, and they could even receive some support from the Alliance Government. However, on this basis, they had to sign contracts with the government and make performance commitments. Then, they could hire soldiers and workers—employees who would also enjoy the rank benefits and allowances, as if the government were paying their salaries.
This was akin to starting a new state-owned enterprise.
If the business outcome was poor, rank would fall, perhaps precipitously, and there might not be a previous position available upon return; if it performed well, the rank would rise quickly, and a portion of the profits made by the venture would be rewarded to the entrepreneur—in essence, an income beyond taxes. Furthermore, the government would provide substantial support for successful entrepreneurs wanting to scale up.
However, under the Alliance system, the cases of successful entrepreneurship were mostly concentrated in small-scale, non-priority industries.
The smallest scale would be a couple running a breakfast stall; slightly bigger might be someone who sees a business opportunity and opens a shop or supermarket, employing a few people; or more ambitiously, starting a transport company or perhaps feeling that the current market fashion is subpar and establishing a clothing factory…
And these landowners of Hongjian Star saw their opportunity within this policy.
They wanted to join the Alliance to avoid being squeezed out or targeted but did not want to lose their current property, so they came up with this wild idea.
They would all adhere to the Alliance rules, obtaining ranks according to the scale of the industry they managed; their farmers and workers would also have ranks, receiving Alliance-standard welfare and allowances. At the same time, they would all obtain the status of entrepreneurs, enjoying the excess profits from their agricultural companies or farms.
Similarly, they promised to accept the jurisdiction of the Alliance system: success would see ranks rise and businesses receive support to scale up and increase profits; poor performance or bad luck, such as being hit by natural disasters leading to decreased production, would mean shouldering the risk themselves, with demotion and business downsizing, or in severe cases, shutdowns and transfer of management to others.
In other words, what used to be market competition naturally leading to these outcomes, now had an additional layer of Alliance oversight and regulation.
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4k
I said I was on a business trip for a week, not that I would stop updating for a week… even though updates might be a bit unstable, but I’m still aiming for perfect attendance—it’s all about the money!
And about the business trip… I started feeling a sore throat the night before last, but initially didn’t think much of it. Yesterday, after a tiring journey by plane and exposure to rain and wind, and with a big temperature difference between the two places—I was wearing a lot, but after landing it was over twenty degrees and I was sweating, so I hurriedly took my coat off, and then felt chilly with the wind. By evening, I couldn’t handle it anymore, feeling dizzy, nauseated, and with aggravated throat pain. I intended to update last night, but didn’t finish.
This morning, to top it off, I’m hit with a low-grade fever.
The good news is that I don’t have to work anymore and am lying low in the hotel; the bad news is that after taking medication and sleeping all day, I have no strength, and the fever comes and goes despite the antipyretics…
I barely managed to finish this chapter.
In the future, I’ll try to write as much as I can to maintain perfect attendance. As for the missed updates, I’m currently unable to make them up…
Off to sleep again…