Chapter 41

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Chapter 41: One Million Five Hundred Thousand Pounds

Anna von Bismarck was appointed as the Second Secretary of Finance in Prussia, which immediately caused a huge uproar in the political circles.

Opposition voices flooded in like a tide, with many advising Leader One to immediately dismiss Anna. Six cabinet secretaries even threatened to resign.

Firstly, Anna is a woman, and Prussia has never had a woman in the Cabinet Office, especially in such a high position as the Second Secretary of Finance.

The Second Secretary is the second most powerful official in the department after the Chief Secretary, able to influence decisions made by the Minister of Finance on many issues. The political circles in Prussia unanimously agreed that appointing a woman to such a position was outrageous.

Furthermore, Anna had a notorious reputation in Berlin and Gottingen. Anyone with connections to the education sector knew about this rebellious and disrespectful woman, this infamous troublemaker.

The appointment of such a "talent" by Your Highness the Regent was simply intolerable. Members of parliament and noble representatives subtly expressed admiration for the prince regent’s boldness.

Lastly, Prussia is a country where male chauvinism prevails, and women can only reach the lowest positions in government departments.

Anna was promoted directly from a low-level civil servant to the Cabinet Office, a completely unprecedented and unacceptable move in Prussia’s history. Shortly after the appointment was announced, there were protest marches outside the Cabinet Office and Redel-Catherine Palace.

Leader One faced a lot of pressure from different groups such as liberal politicians, nobles, and common people who were unhappy with his decision to hire Anna.

"Let them protest, I will handle it when the crowd grows to ten thousand people. Until then, act as if nothing has happened," Leader One ordered the guards and police to remain calm.

They can march, they can demonstrate, they can gather, but it must be peaceful.

Any looting or disorderly behavior will be severely punished. If the protestors start disrupting the normal social order, Leader One will order the guards and police to take action.

If they peacefully demonstrate, carry banners, chant slogans, and there are only a few people, ignore them. If there are many people, try to calm them down.

The people of Prussia are simple and have experienced the reigns of past kings and the current king. They are not bold enough to protest with weapons anymore. If there is a commotion on the streets for a while and no one pays attention, they will disperse on their own.

Despite pressure from all sides, Leader One continued to employ Anna, and she did not disappoint him.

One week after being appointed as the Second Secretary of the Ministry of Finance, she arrived at Redel-Catherine Palace with two pieces of paper to meet with the Regent.

"Your Highness the Regent, you only need to do two small things, send one million five hundred thousand pounds immediately," Anna stood confidently in front of the desk.

"So fast? How did you manage to gather so much money? This is one million five hundred thousand pounds, not one hundred fifty. Pay attention."

Anna took out the first paper, full of messy handwriting, Leader One felt it looked familiar, like a doctor’s prescription.

This is the record of the meeting between Anna and the branch manager of France Squirrel Savings Bank, Prussia.

"France Squirrel Bank is willing to subscribe to our country’s government bonds for 450,000 pounds, with a two-year term and a profit rate of 7.4% per annum."

Leader One, "This is like a loan shark deal."

Anna shook her head, "In fact, this interest rate is not considered high, and even if you want a loan shark deal, you have to see if you can get it. In the current situation in Prussia, no banks are willing to lend. It took a lot of effort for me to negotiate with France Squirrel Bank."

The total debt of the Prussian state has reached 8.06 million pounds, the principal cannot be repaid, and they can barely pay interest to others each year. In this already heavily indebted situation, it’s hard to continue borrowing.

Those who lend money at high interest rates are not willing to lend, everyone knows what Prussia is like, all the money is taken by the military, and their ability to repay is very poor.

This subscription of government bonds from France Squirrel Bank was negotiated by Anna through some means, she offered many benefits to the branch manager, all the way up to the head of financial investments at the headquarters.

Anna took out another piece of paper, it was a subscription for 1.05 million pounds of government bonds from seven banks in Germany, with an annual interest rate of 8.22% for three years.

Leader One felt even more confused.

"Do domestic banks have so much liquid funds? I asked them before and those guys didn’t want to buy government bonds. Why are they suddenly willing now?"

"Your Highness, do you know which group in the country has money?"

"Of course, the Grand Aristocrats, they have been wealthy for hundreds of years."

"Your Highness, do you know which group in the country has money but no social status?"

Leader One suddenly realized, "You actually managed to get money from them. I thought you were a die-hard conservative, I didn’t expect you to be willing to engage with them."

Anna didn’t dwell on the topic of conservatives, instead she continued discussing the terms of the 1.05 million pound government bond subscription, which had some conditions attached.

Leader One had to agree to remove some slogans, warning signs, and barriers. If they agreed not to wear armbands, the interest could be reduced by 1%, and if they could amend a certain segregation law, the interest would be reduced by a further 5%.

It was now time for Leader One to make a decision, a very sensitive issue that required great courage to make a choice.

"To carry out my reform strategies, for Prussia’s dream of a strong nation, we need money, we need this national debt, so… I agree to remove the warning signs and barricades, but the armbands must still be worn, and the isolation law cannot be changed."

"I will announce the sale of national debt this afternoon, bring me one and a half million pounds immediately."

Anna, "Yes, Your Highness."

A week ago, the prince regent appointed a woman as the Second Secretary of the Ministry of Finance.

The people marched in protest.

A week later, Prussia sold national debt, and eight banks at home and abroad subscribed a total of one and a half million pounds.

The people marched in protest.

The protests in Berlin this time were even larger, with over ten thousand people gathering on the boulevard under the Bodhi tree, moving from the Brandenburg Gate towards the Berlin City Palace, where the parliament is located.

Because the situation was getting out of hand, Leader One had to ask Catherine to help smooth things over.

With the royal guards, Moltke and Hans led the guards to the parliament in the evening and talked to the protesters. The atmosphere on the scene was peaceful and loving, with no bloodshed or violence.

The soldiers stood in formation, and the people gathered below the steps of the Berlin Castle peacefully, without any direct contact on either side.

The crowd asked, "Why are the signs and barriers for the segregation area being removed? Does this mean that inferior people will have more rights in the future?"

Catherine, as the director of the royal affairs, advocated to the people for harmony, friendship, unity, and inclusiveness…

At the same time, Your Highness the Regent was busy dealing with the nobles, parliament, and the traditional Junker class. Making the money was easy, but the subsequent problems kept coming one after another.