28th January 1657
Akhanda Bharatiya Samrajya, Imperial City Bengaluru, Simhasan Bhavana
Upon hearing the news about the Empire’s establishment, people throughout the empire spontaneously started celebrating the next day as the new Diwali of the empire. The old Diwali celebrated the arrival of light and marked the end of an evil demon, while the new Diwali commemorated the expulsion of the invaders from their Ahomland.
The excitement was not only among the poor people of the empire but also among the rich. With the end of the war, the chokehold of the military-economic system was being released little by little, and state-owned enterprises, starting with the smallest ones like factories responsible for assembling parts or manufacturing small items, were being privatized by the dozens every day.
For these factories, the ownership after privatization varied based on different factors. If these factories had been nationalized by a company, then by withholding some shares for the top management of the company, the rest of the company would have been turned over to the original owner of the factory.
Although the original owner felt uncomfortable that some shares were taken away from them, considering it was only a little and that these managers who managed the factory during the war were the ones familiar with various functionalities of the factories, they reluctantly accepted it.
These cases are very rare since, in this era of primitive capitalism in the Bharatiya Empire, there aren’t many investors who invest in various companies solely for the purpose of money accumulation. More often, someone invests money to open a factory and simultaneously works in the factory as its manager, chairman, owner, or technical head.
As a result, most of the time, all the equity of these small-scale enterprises remains in the hands of the previous owners, its value now exceeding twofold.
There are also some cases where small-scale factories do not have any owners because these factories were started in the midst of the war. In such cases, factory management is given the option to buy out the factory shares by various means. One option is to loan all the land they had earned during their service, and the other option is to bring in investors from outside.
In this way, many poor people who had climbed the ladder during the war successfully became first-generation entrepreneurs both in the nation and in their families, elevating their lives from low-income class to high-income class, joining the 1% club in one step. The managers who followed them also successfully climbed the ladder from low to middle- to high-income families in one step.
The privatization came at the right time because the rich people of the empire were becoming worried as their wealth began to depreciate at an astonishing speed. It was almost as if their wealth was shrinking by itself due to the depreciation of the Varaha. For this reason, they hoarded gold, driven by fear of losing all their wealth.
Fortunately, as the privatization efforts increased, they saw the hope of regaining their assets, which had magically expanded many times over.
Even though liquid money depreciated very quickly and caused them heartache to look at, this was somewhat compensated by the assets that suddenly appreciated in value. Due to this delicate balance maintained by the Ministry of Finance and the Reserve Bank of Bharat, no large-scale riots or boycotts from the nouveau riche had taken place.
This phenomenon which was almost at the breaking point for the rich, however, was very beneficial to the middle and lower classes of society. Since the value of money continuously depreciated, the money they received also constantly increased, allowing them to buy more with it.
For example, while it was previously possible only for the rich to buy the new swing plough introduced by the Empire’s agricultural ministry, the falling prices of Industrial goods due to overcapacity and the increase in salaries enabled a middle-class household to afford this plough with only two months’ salary.
Of course, this amount is still too expensive for the majority of people who are poorer than the middle class. However, as the empire’s economy returns to normal, most of the population should be lifted out of poverty. Meanwhile, the majority of the wealthy will increase their assets, although at the cost of losing liquidity.
Overall, the middle and lower classes are gaining immediate benefits, while the upper class sacrifices their short-term interests for long-term gains through state-developed industrial enterprises. In this way, a natural and healthy distribution of wealth across the board is expected to take place.
However, it must be noted that these conditions are currently only found in the southern part of the empire, as the northern part has yet to experience these changes. The northern region remains isolated and has not yet been integrated into the larger economy of the empire.
This is because, without proper arrangements and preparations for integration, the economic balance achieved in the south, which has temporarily stabilized all societal classes, could be disrupted by the massive unemployment that would result from the northern region’s integration.
To end this isolation, massive infrastructure projects are needed in the north. However, even major road construction projects connecting key cities in the northern region are insufficient to fully address the unemployment crisis in these densely populated areas.
While numerous infrastructure projects could help alleviate the unemployment issue, the Bharatiya Empire lacks the gold necessary to pay all the wages. Even with strategies such as using land as a payment to reduce costs, the government still cannot afford to compensate the tens of millions of labourers.
Gold is urgently needed to generate further value in society and support these essential projects.
Surprisingly enough, a statement from Ganesh gave Vijay an idea that could help quicken the pace of the northern states’ integration within the empire.
"Your majesty, those Europeans look very interested in the weapons we showed them. It’s a pity that they did not see all our civilian products. Maybe they would be interested."
"If they are, this could alleviate some of the troubles we are facing with the current overcapacity."
Hearing these comments, Vijay’s face suddenly brightened as he got an idea: ’Why don’t I hold an expo?’ he thought.
Currently, a large number of civilian products are being pushed into the market. All these civilian products are based on technologies that have been converted from military technologies. With the invention of these products, civilian life in the Bharatiya Empire began to grow little by little.
However, it is still not enough, as there is a lot of industrial capacity to produce more products, which is going to waste. Theoretically, if these products are sold to the northern part of the empire, there is no problem in fully satisfying the demand. But since the people in the north are not yet capable of buying these products, there is actually no market except for a small minority.
This would require expanding the trade channels to a very vast region, which would prove to be a loss in the end.
If the Europeans would buy at least a few thousand of these novel products, which are not available back in Ahom, the money could be immediately utilized to bring the northern economy back from the brink of destruction to a level capable of coupling with the southern economy.
Thinking of all these thoughts, Vijay did not hesitate. "Ganesh, you will be responsible for implementing an expo."
Ganesh was confused. "An expo?"
Vijay nodded. "Yes, an expo. In simple terms, it means an event to bring all our premium products under one roof for the purpose of exporting them to foreign countries."
"I will write you a draft, and you can implement it as soon as possible. Since those Europeans have not yet left the hotel, immediately send invitations to them."
"The expo could be held in the palace grounds itself, and it should be arranged quickly."
"Send invitations to all the civilian manufacturers and have the government verify the quality of the products. We don’t want faulty or dysfunctional products going abroad and ruining our reputation."
"And show off all these products at a premium cost of 30%."
This content is taken from fгeewebnovёl.com.
Vijay knew that the price could be increased further, but he wanted to use the Chinese model of low cost and quick sales, as that is what is destined for large-scale manufacturing.
Ganesh, who received multiple orders within a span of a few seconds, had a bitter expression in his heart. He had just finished a very stressful operation, and now, before he could breathe, there was another task. Nevertheless, his professional qualities prevented him from expressing his grievances, and he quickly wrote down all these instructions.
"I will get it done, Your Majesty," Ganesh said.
"Good. The expo will be held on the first of February, only a few days from now, so get to it," Vijay said.
Ganesh couldn’t help but let out a twitch at the corner of his mouth, but he was helpless. "Yes, Your Majesty."
Fortunately, after he read the outline, his worries were eased. Although what His Majesty said sounded very complex, at the end of the day, he only had to organize a market for people to buy from, albeit at a higher level.
Seeing Ganesh leave, Vijay was brimming with anticipation.
----
"Your Majesty, His Highness Jayadwaj Singha is waiting for you as you requested."
Vijay was abruptly notified of this message, and then he remembered the important task of convincing the Ahom king to dissolve his independent kingdom and join the Bharatiya Empire.
Initially, this meeting should have happened much earlier, but various things had caused delays. Finally, Vijay had a chance to discuss things directly with Jayadwaj.
For this reason, Vijay had prepared many strategic arguments, promising various benefits far richer than what his brother-in-law had received to sell his claim on the Mahatha Kingdom.
The Ahom Kingdom is still sovereign, unlike the Maratha Kingdom, which had already fallen.
---
Fully prepared, Vijay confidently entered the meeting room where the monarchs of the two nations sat together and discussed the deal.
Two hours later...
The door opened, and Vijay came out with a smile on his face. He had succeeded in convincing the Ahom king to integrate the Ahom kingdom into the empire. However, he was surprised that Jayadwaj had actually taken the initiative to bring up the topic.
From various conditions proposed by Jayadwaj Singha, Vijay realized that the Ahom king was already prepared. Hence, once the core interests were confirmed, it was a matter of negotiating benefits.
After a lengthy negotiation between the two monarchs, the deal ended with the Bharatiya Empire gaining absolute sovereignty over the land of Ahom while appointing the Ahom ruler, Jayadwaj Singha, as the king of the new Ahom state.
Initially, Jayadwaj wished to retain his throne, but Vijay resolutely denied this request as his bottom line was to have absolute sovereignty over the region. Noticing this, Jayadwaj reluctantly gave up, but he put forward a condition that greatly surprised Vijay.
The condition put forward by Jayadwaj was something Vijay had been considering as a major part of the empire’s expansion plan that he had not even mentioned to anyone.
Vijay was suspicious of Jayadwaj’s request for a ticket to this plan, which undoubtedly had great benefits for the ticket holders. However, after various questions, Vijay confirmed that Jayadwaj had no clue about his overall plan; it was simply that Jayadwaj made the request out of his own ambition and unwillingness to lose his kingdom.
For this reason, although Vijay looked very depressed on the outside, he promised the condition of the Ahom king with a smile on the inside.
When King Jayadwaj came out of the conference room, he had a large smile on his face, looking as if he hadn’t just lost his kingdom but had gained a much larger one.
Only the future could tell whether his decision brought him great profit or great loss.
P.S. The reason why Jayadwaj gave up his kingdom so easily is that he was promised something much greater, which ties in with the overall plan (Vijay’s) for the future expansion of the nation’s influence. I will keep it secret for now and reveal it when the time comes.
P.S. Thanks Nobume_Imai_5090, for the Pizza
P.S. Thanks Nobume_Imai_5090, for the Inspiration capsule