#499 - Minister Pete, the 'righteous' one (asking for monthly recommendation tickets)

"Haha, I should be the one envying you. If I had Minister Badon's authority, I wouldn't be getting cursed at. Book 69 New" Pete mocked himself magnanimously.

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Seeing Pete being so adaptable, Anduin had no choice but to smile back in agreement. "Minister Pete is truly magnanimous. Under your leadership, the German Ministry of Magic will surely 'flourish'."

"Mr. Wilson, please don't flatter me." Pete knew that the young man in front of him was not easy to deal with, so he didn't bother with formalities. "I heard from Clermont that you will be engaging in long-term trade cooperation with him, which is a great thing for Germany's development."

Pete knew that Clermont attached great importance to the cooperation with Silver Spark Bank, so he especially hoped to finalize the matter during this meeting, also as a favor to his senior partner.

"Haha, is that what Clermont said? Actually, it's still up in the air." Anduin played dumb, noncommittally.

Hmm? Is this kid still hesitating? Pete thought to himself that this little devil was indeed cunning, taking the money but not doing the job.

"I believe that cooperating with Clermont is a win-win-win situation for you, for him, and even for the entire German business community. What are you still hesitating about?" Pete gave Anduin a firm look, as if trying to make the decision for him.

"It's not that I'm unwilling to confirm the intention to cooperate, but..." Anduin struck a conflicted pose. "I just heard news that there have been some changes in Germany's trade policy. To be honest, I'm a little worried whether my business in Germany will get into trouble because of this."

"Haha, Mr. Wilson, you're overthinking it." Pete waved his hand with a smile. "The newly promulgated decree is just to determine the affiliation of major merchants. In fact, there is no change from the past."

"Is that so?" Anduin was still a little hesitant. "But Germany's business environment is changing too fast. New policies appear every now and then. According to Clermont, Germany may split into East and West Germany in the near future. In that case, I would have to find separate agents in the two regions. →"

"But based on what I've seen in Germany, the voices against the split seem to be very strong. What if Germany still maintains its unified state in the end? You know, I'm preparing to sign a long-term contract. If there are two agent partners in Germany at that time, wouldn't I be asking for trouble?"

"Moreover, even if the split is really completed, the newly promulgated decree requires merchants in the country to choose whether they belong to East or West Germany and reapply for a business license, but the decree doesn't seem to stipulate that this choice cannot be changed."

"What if Clermont goes back to East Germany to operate after taking my contract, or opens a branch in East Germany by other means after two years? I can't stop people from expanding their business, right? At that time, agents belonging to East and West Germany will bring us endless trouble."

"You're not a businessman, so you may not understand our difficulties. I just hope that my business can develop in a stable environment and don't want to see any unexpected problems."

Anduin enumerated his several concerns to Pete in an orderly manner, and these reasons all made sense.

Even Pete couldn't help but nod secretly in his heart after hearing this. Anduin's consideration was very comprehensive. If he were in the other party's position, he probably wouldn't be able to make a decision immediately.

However, in order to keep Anduin's industry as soon as possible, Pete could only advise, "I don't think you need to be so entangled. First of all, the division of the German wizarding world into East and West is the general trend. Those protesters you see are just fighting for their own interests."

"I can give you a heads-up. Currently, more than 80% of the merchants in Germany have no objection to the new policy. The only ones with strong opinions are some companies led by Gringotts and Momoran Book Company. I assure you that their conflicts can be resolved within a week. →"

"As for your concern about whether Clermont and other agents will bring you changes, it's even simpler. I can take the lead in signing a subsidiary agreement to ensure that they will not change their registered area during the cooperation period with you, and when expanding to 'neighboring countries', they must not bring your alchemy business over to avoid disrupting the local market."

"Moreover, I can promise that as long as you sincerely cooperate with local merchants, the German Ministry of Magic will become your backup and protect your interests from infringement."

The courage of Pete's promise cannot be said to be small, knowing that this was only their first meeting.

Anduin couldn't help but give Pete a surprised look when he heard this. "Your support is really a great honor to me. It would be great if the Ministry of Magic in every country had your vision, but..."

He paused, organizing his words, "But are you so confident that Germany will complete the division? Even within the Ministry of Magic, I seem to have heard different voices..."

Pete knew that Anduin was referring to Kulle from before, so he looked at the other party with a gentle but firm look, "If you are willing to walk around among the commoner wizards and Dudenlou, or read the news in Germany's major newspapers, you will know that the division between East and West Germany has long been what the people want. All I'm doing is following public opinion."

"Like Director Kulle and others, they are just some old-fashioned people who are conservative and unwilling to accept change. I don't blame them for this, but the final decision still follows the principle of the minority obeying the majority, so the division process may be fast or slow, but it will definitely come."

Pete's eyes were extremely firm when he said this.

I have to say that this 'Minister Pete' really has a way of coaxing people. If he were placed in a large company in the Muggle world, he would definitely be a PUA master, Anduin secretly slandered in his heart.

Then he suppressed the urge to complain and asked sharply, "In that case, will the German Ministry of Magic also be divided into two parts? What will the pattern of the divided Ministry of Magic be like, and what if there are changes in policies and decrees after the division?"

Pete just smiled when he heard this. "Anduin, do you mind if I call you that? I find that you see problems very clearly."

"I can give you a heads-up in advance that the Ministry of Magic will naturally have to be divided in the near future. The gradual division of various departments into two offices is to lay the groundwork in advance, but the Ministry of Magic will still be built on the original basis, and there will not be too many changes in various policies and decrees, at least not in the part under my jurisdiction."

"The part under your jurisdiction?" Anduin raised his eyebrows involuntarily. "That is to say, after the Ministry of Magic is divided, you will still serve as Minister in one of the Ministries of Magic? Aren't you actively reducing your power? And who will be the candidate for Minister on the other side after the division?"

"That's right. After the division, I will serve as the Minister of Magic for at least a few more years to solve all the follow-up problems. And for the happiness of all wizarding people, what is a mere power worth?" Pete looked at Anduin righteously. "As for the Minister of Magic on the other side after the division, it has not been determined yet. Of course, the division will not be completed so quickly, so you don't need to be too nervous."

"I see, it seems that you have considered everything." Anduin nodded admiringly. "But I don't know what the solution you mentioned earlier for companies such as Gringotts is. They don't seem to be able to accept dividing their industries into two parts."

Pete's heart couldn't help but skip a beat when he heard Anduin suddenly turn the topic back to those merchants. This young man was probably aware of something.

"These entrepreneurs have large businesses, and even occupy a very large area in Dudenlou. It is indeed a bit difficult for them to split up suddenly, so we are preparing to establish a neutral area to accommodate these merchants." These things have already been discussed with some merchants, so it is not a big secret. Pete had no choice but to reveal it to the other party in detail.

"Oh? A neutral area." Anduin smiled with interest. "Since there is such a good policy, why didn't you say so earlier? Our Silver Spark Bank seems to be more suitable for experience in such a location, maybe I can directly open a branch here, what do you think?"

Pete was a little worried when he heard this. What he was afraid of was that the other party would have the idea of opening a branch directly again. At that time, if they sold the goods themselves, the club would not be able to operate secretly, and a large part of the profits would be lost.

"The neutral area is prepared for large companies that have been operating in the local area for a long time. Although your Silver Spark Bank is also very large, you have not fully entered the local market before, so..." Pete advised euphemistically.

"But why choose a detour when there is a simple shortcut? As long as you are willing to let our Silver Spark Bank open a branch in the neutral area, I can donate 5,000 Galleons to you as a political donation, plus another 5,000 Galleons to purchase the shop!" Anduin ignored Pete's rhetoric and directly opened the way with money.

5,000 plus 5,000? Can this guy invest 10,000 Galleons in the early stage? Is his business so profitable? Pete couldn't help but be shocked when he heard Anduin's generous words.

Then he realized that Anduin's business scale and popularity might be larger than he imagined, otherwise the other party would not be so confident.

But the more so, the more impossible it was for him to let Anduin open a branch.

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