"What? You don't agree?" Biddle was greatly surprised.
He didn't understand why Charles wouldn't agree to his family's investment, as it was like providing him with capital for free to make money.
Generally speaking, as long as a Bank finds suitable lending channels, more capital naturally means more loans can be issued and more money can be made.
Why would Charles disagree with increasing capital?
"No! I'm not disagreeing to cooperate with you, I just disagree with you joining my Pittsburgh Bank," Charles said, smiling at the two of them.
He suddenly had an idea.
Biddle didn't understand what Charles meant, but old Biddle, standing nearby, immediately caught on.
"You mean you're planning to open another Bank?"
"Yes! We'll cooperate to contribute capital and establish another Bank.
Through my Pittsburgh Bank, I'll provide you with stable lending channels.
As a guarantee, you can send people to be department managers in my Bank.
Everyone will operate and manage together, but ownership must be separate," Charles said with a nod.
This was truly borrowing a chicken to lay eggs; if they invested directly in his Pittsburgh Bank, it might be like hatching eggs and having the chicks stolen.
He had many projects in his mind that needed loans for development, and although the Biddle family was a financial powerhouse, they were constrained by the knowledge of their era.
They dared not invest in many projects with infinite potential, thus wasting capital.
Now, by using his own credibility to obtain loans from their Bank to develop projects lacking funds, or even simply re-lending to others to earn the difference, it was essentially making the Biddle family the largest deposit customer in his Bank, earning interest.
old Biddle narrowed his eyes slightly upon hearing this suggestion and began to consider it carefully.
Charles didn't disturb him, simply drank tea with Biddle, waiting for the old man's final decision.
Actually, this suggestion also had another benefit for him: it incorporated talents with mature financial management experience from the Biddle family into his Bank system, saving him from having to use unprofessional personnel for management.
Greenspan might be fine for a small place like Pittsburgh, but a Bank in Philadelphia definitely needed professional financial talents to manage it.
And when the old Biddle family dispatched managers, they could also more effectively monitor the flow of loans, ensuring the funds wouldn't go into unguaranteed projects.
This was the most mutually beneficial cooperation plan under the current conditions for both parties.
old Biddle didn't ponder for too long; he quickly extended his hand.
"Councilor Charles, then let's cooperate on another deal!"
"Good!" Charles also shook old Biddle's hand.
"I've already thought of a name for the new Bank.
As Philadelphia's second official Bank, after the Bank of America, it should naturally be the Pennsylvania Bank."
"Hahaha! Yes, let's call it the Pennsylvania Bank," old Biddle laughed heartily.
The family's decades-long dream of establishing a Bank was about to come true, and old Biddle truly couldn't contain his excitement.
"Councilor Charles, then we will first go to raise funds, select a suitable location, and once everything is ready, we will come back to you to sign the formal cooperation agreement."
"Good! You two go ahead and get busy, I also need to prepare."
Charles smiled as he saw off the father and son, who were already full of ambition.
He was also very excited.
Hmm, what about those money-making projects?
Building railways? That's a bit too early, the steam locomotive isn't even finished yet.
Mining? It seems there are already partners for that, and it doesn't require too much capital right now...
"Diana! What are you doing walking back and forth in front of me?" Charles suddenly stopped and asked Diana, who was standing in front of him.
"I'm following you around! I wanted to ask you what you're doing walking around here!" The girl pouted unhappily.
"Uh... haha! I was just thinking about capital raising and usage.
You're a child, you wouldn't understand, don't copy me walking in circles."
Charles realized he had indeed been walking in circles, pondering the problem.
"Hmph! Of course I know what capital is, isn't it just money! Do you need money? I have some! Didn't you say the Castle and some land are my assets?
As long as you're willing to take care of me, you can use them."
The girl pulled Charles' hand, swinging it back and forth.
This statement made Charles' heart stir.
He had originally thought that his own capital was insufficient and he might be squeezed into a minority shareholder by the Biddle family, but how could he have forgotten that he had such a big financial backer in his care?
Although Rogers couldn't be called the richest person in Pennsylvania, she was definitely among the super-rich.
Leaving aside the Castle, just the vast tracts of fertile land distributed across Pennsylvania were worth tens of thousands of pounds, and she had several other immovable properties.
If not for many stock certificates and other documentary proofs being taken away by Rogers' father, she might even have accumulated assets worth hundreds of thousands of pounds.
"Haha! Your money isn't much.
Those farmlands, country estates, and the like are all immovable assets; they can't be used as liquid cash at all.
Moreover, they are healthy assets that can bring you substantial income, and I won't agree to sell them," Charles shook his head.
"Let's sell them all then!" Diana immediately replied.
"My father used to spend so much time inspecting the fields that he didn't have time to be with me.
I've always hated those lands.
Since they can't be used as money, let's sell them all."
"No rush," Even with Diana's authorization, Charles didn't immediately agree.
"Your family currently has no adults to manage the property, and I can't possibly have that much time to manage them either.
It is indeed difficult to manage these lands well.
As for how to deal with them, we need to evaluate it carefully.
For now, let's go to your Castle first, and then decide.
Even if we sell, we'll need a suitable lawyer to help."
The girl, Diana, trusted Charles completely and didn't object to this arrangement.
The two of them made a few preparations, then, accompanied by servants and a few militia guards, they set off by carriage for the grand, luxurious Castle.
As soon as they arrived at the Castle gates, Charles saw two servants carrying a large bundle of firewood, walking directly across the artificial lawn in front of the Castle.
Upon seeing Charles and his group, they even tossed the firewood onto the lawn, bowed, and greeted them.
Waving them away, Charles frowned at the few pieces of firewood left on the lawn and the obvious trail of footprints:
"These new servants really need a good education.
The earl's Castle is not a country farm where you can walk wherever you please.
This beautiful lawn, I'm reluctant to even step on it, and now look what they've done to it."
"Actually, this is still considered good.
I've even seen them secretly drink my father's treasured wine!" Diana added softly.
"What?" Charles' voice suddenly rose.
If it was merely treading on the lawn, one could say it was due to a lack of clear discipline, but stealing from the master's house was a matter of character.
Even in an ordinary family, servants wouldn't dare to casually steal the master's treasured possessions.
It seemed these servants needed a complete overhaul.
And Diana's reluctance to return home, preferring to stay at his house, also seemed to be due to these unruly servants at home.
She had been bullied by bad servants multiple times and probably suffered from servant phobia now; she knew about such things but didn't tell him.
He glanced at Diana; she just kept her head down, not daring to look at Charles.
Knowing the girl was truly pitiful, Charles didn't want to blame her for not telling him sooner.
"Nonsense! Tom, you go in first with some men and thoroughly question all these servants.
Those who stole wine or took things, tell them to leave immediately.
As for the others, train them well.
If anyone disobeys, simply ask them to leave.
I don't want to see people who don't know the rules anymore."
"Yes, sir!" Tom responded, taking a few militiamen who served as bodyguards into the Castle to deal with those lawless, wicked servants.
Charles continued to sit in the carriage with Diana, thinking about how to handle Diana's affairs.
From the behavior of those servants just now, it was quite clear that they dared to openly offend her rights because they knew the master was just a girl, Diana, and perhaps also knew she was a British noble disliked by the people of the Colonies.
Previously, Diana was part of the privileged class of the wealthy; now, although still wealthy, she was no longer privileged.
They wanted to offend her as much as possible to show that they were no longer people she could beat or scold at will, much like the tradition of many families in New England was to "hate the British."
This was somewhat similar to the French Revolution, when many commoners most enjoyed seeing the heads of nobles fall.
They didn't truly enjoy slaughter, but rather enjoyed seeing those who were once high above also have a day more destitute than themselves.
These servants held similar thoughts, and if pushed too far, they might even directly take up arms in resistance.