“Could we stop by the mail and parcel office?” You look at Copperton. “I’d like to send a letter to my family in Rochester.”

“Ah, I assume you mean Rochester, New York?” He smiles.

You nod. “It’s been a while since I sent something to them.”

“Very well, follow me.” He leads all of you into the mail office. “We actually have a writing room for people who wish to prepare additional correspondence when they arrive here.” Copperton directs you to a doorway that leads to the writing room. Inside there are a few desks, as well as the necessary accoutrements for preparing letters.

“We’ll give you some privacy, General.” Sato bows lightly. With that, both he and Nakajima step out into the mail office proper. Copperton, seeming to get the hint, exits the writing room as well.

Sitting down at the nearest desk, you take a piece of parchment and a quill pen, thinking of how to start your letter. You last wrote a letter to your family before embarking on the Choshu Campaign, though you made little mention of the campaign itself. You silently wonder just what you should include.

>Mention everything of note: the Choshu campaign, your promotion to General, the dicey politics of the realm, the outreach mission on which you are currently assigned, and even the situation with Nakajima.
>Go over the important things, mostly about your victory in the campaign and subsequent promotion, also mention the outreach mission. Leave out the grittier details, and keep the details of your involvement with Nakajima to yourself for now.
>Be vague. Tell them that things have been going well, and that you’ve had several recent successes in your career.
>Write-in.

>>3992883
>Go over the important things, mostly about your victory in the campaign and subsequent promotion, also mention the outreach mission. Leave out the grittier details, and keep the details of your involvement with Nakajima to yourself for now.

Howdy Zap, Hope ya had a good Christmas and will have a good new years?

>>3992883

>Mention everything of note: the Choshu campaign, your promotion to General, the dicey politics of the realm, the outreach mission on which you are currently assigned, and even the situation with Nakajima.
Ni need to be coy, her father already knows

Finally, you decide on the initial wording. You mention the Choshu Campaign in some detail, leaving out the political intrigues that accompanied it however. You also mention your promotion to General, as well as the foreign outreach mission you’ve been sent on. You briefly consider mentioning Nakajima, but realize that it would be a bad idea at the moment, and decide to keep all of that to yourself. Sighing, you finish the letter and seal it in an envelope. Thinking of your family brings back memories.

Your father, James Stockton, came from a family of laborers and blacksmiths, mostly from New York City. He moved up to Rochester after saving up enough money to buy a small plot of farmland. His grandfather was a soldier in the Continental Army who fought at Yorktown. That, you imagine, is why your father has always been so passionate about the ideals on which America was founded. He’s so passionate about it, in fact, that he carries a notebook with the entire contents of the Constitution and Bill of Rights written in it.

Your mother has lived in Rochester all her life. Her family were rather well-off to begin with, having owned a general store and a grain mill, so they were not too happy about her marrying a near-penniless farmer. You never learned the details, but apparently their disagreements got so bad that they stopped communicating altogether.

By the time you were a teenager, your parents had managed to do well with their farm; they owned three horses, a wagon, a couple horse-drawn ploughs, and some livestock. Your mother had planned on sending you to Columbia College, and both of your parents had saved up a substantial sum of money to cover tuition costs. You had always been somewhat studious growing up, having learned to read at an early age by your parents’ insistence. Whenever you weren’t helping with farm chores, you had a book in your hands.

The War broke out, however, and ended any plans of you pursuing a higher education. Sighing, you rub your chin as you stand up and carry the letter back out into the main postal office. Opening the door, you look over at Copperton, who is in the middle of a conversation with Sato.

“I see, how fascinating.” Copperton smiles as he replies to something Sato just said. He then looks at you. “Ah, General Stockton. Are you ready to send your letter?”

You nod. “I am.” Handing it to Copperton, you then step back as he walks over to the postman’s desk.

“Put a priority stamp on this, please.” He instructs the postmaster.

“Right away, sir.” The man takes the letter and walks into the back of the office.

Copperton returns to you. “Your letter should reach Rochester within one or two months.”

“Good, thank you.” You say.

“You needn’t thank me, General.” He then looks toward the office door. “Is there another department you would like to visit?”

>”The international banking office seems to be in line with our interests.”
>”I’m interested in the gold and silver exchange.”
>”I’m interested in the property and real estate office.”
>”I believe we’ve done all we need to here. We’ll not take up any more of your time, Mr. Copperton.” (leave)
>Write-in.

>>3992883
>Be vague. Tell them that things have been going well, and that you’ve had several recent successes in your career.
Mail, like email, is not guaranteed to be secure.

>>3992968
>”The international banking office seems to be in line with our interests.”

>>3992968
>”The international banking office seems to be in line with our interests.”

>>3992968
>”The international banking office seems to be in line with our interests.”

Shame we didn't tell them about Naka

You look toward the door. “The international banking office seems to be in line with our interests.”

“Then the international banking office is where we shall go,” replies Copperton.

The four of you cross the hall, entering said office. It is decorated in a subdued fashion, with comfortable-looking couches on either side of the room. There is a world map on the wall, as well as a desk near the back which stands in front of a vault door.

Copperton walks into the middle of the office, looking at you with a grin. “Here in the international banking office, we offer many services for overseas clients such as yourselves.” He rings a bell on the desk, and a young man in a dark red suit vest appears from the room with the vault door. “Ah, Mr. Copperton, a pleasure to see you, sir.”

“Good day, lad.” Copperton nods at the man. “I have some clients here who wish to discuss some particulars with you.”

“Good afternoon,” you nod at the teller. “My name is Daniel Stockton.” You shake his hand.

“Charles.” He replies with a wide smile. “How can I help you?”

You step back, crossing your arms. “Well, I’m curious what sort of services you can provide. I’m a representative of the Japanese government here on an international outreach mission.”

“Ah, I see.” Charles nods. “Well, we provide many services for international clients. The most obvious is that we hold money in the way a traditional bank does, so you could open an account for overseas storage if you were worried about keeping large sums of money safe in Japan.” He leans on the desk, continuing. “We also offer loans and certificates of deposit, as well as other forms of investment. In addition, something likely of interest to a representative from a government like yourself, is that we offer lines of credit.”

“I see,” you nod. The investing side of things doesn’t sound particularly useful for the Japanese government, but could be useful for you personally. Lines of credit and loans could prove quite useful to the realm, however; a large line of credit could give the military enough spending money to rapidly expand its stores of equipment. You don’t know what sort of money the Japanese government has on-hand, but you doubt it would need to be stored over in America at the moment.

>”I’d like to enter negotiations for a line of credit.” (send for Otori Keisuke and begin negotiations on behalf of the government)
>”Perhaps it would be wise to invest.” (look to invest and build your own fortune)
>Write-in.

Really enjoy your quest Zap, might not to get participate as much as I like but I always like reading it.

>>3993056

>”I’d like to enter negotiations for a line of credit.” (send for Otori Keisuke and begin negotiations on behalf of the government)

I really REALLY wanna work on our own fortune, but we're technically here on government business so..Shame we can't do both but can't let the fucking slant eye fall prey to the American leech.

>>3993056

>”I’d like to enter negotiations for a line of credit.” (send for Otori Keisuke and begin negotiations on behalf of the government)

>>3993056
>”I’d like to enter negotiations for a line of credit.” (send for Otori Keisuke and begin negotiations on behalf of the government)

>>3993056
>>”I’d like to enter negotiations for a line of credit.” (send for Otori Keisuke and begin negotiations on behalf of the government)

>>3993056
>>”I’d like to enter negotiations for a line of credit.” (send for Otori Keisuke and begin negotiations on behalf of the government)

>>3993056
>”I’d like to enter negotiations for a line of credit.” (send for Otori Keisuke and begin negotiations on behalf of the government)

>>3993056
Would it be possible to do both, one after the other? Or set up something for yourself later? A diverse portfolio and all that. Got to think to the future, one day you might want to go home, and then it would be cool to be the new rockefeller

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“I’d like to enter negotiations for a line of credit,” you reply. Turning to Sato, you continue. “Sato, could you get Otori Keisuke and bring him here to officiate any deal we make?”

Sato bows. “Yes sir.” He then leaves the office quickly.

Less than twenty minutes later, he returns with the diplomat in question. “General,” he greets you. “I understand you want to conduct financial dealings on behalf of the Shogun?”

You nod. “Indeed, General Otori.” You shake his hand. “I believe a line of credit could prove highly useful in building and modernizing our forces.”

“A line of credit?” He raises an eyebrow.

“Yes,” Charles speaks now, standing across the desk from the two of you. “Essentially, sir, a line of credit is a pre-determined amount of money that can be loaned out to a particular party at any time.” He produces a pair of reading glasses from his vest pocket, putting them on. “Lines of credit are particularly useful as a source of emergency funds, or a secure source of capital.”

Keisuke rubs his mustache, nodding while Charles explains the uses of such a line of credit. “Interesting… Such funds could prove quite useful indeed. And we would be able to call upon this pool of money whenever we need to?”

“Indeed.” Charles nods politely.

Keisuke looks over at you. “Excellent initiative, General. I believe we should enter these negotiations as soon as possible.”

“Well, if you’ll have a seat over there,” Charles gestures to one of the couches in the middle of the room. “I’ll head into the back room and prepare the necessary paperwork to get this rolling.”

You and your compatriots head over and seat yourselves, Keisuke lighting a cigar as he sits down. “Sir,” Nakajima speaks after a short time. “I fail to see why we would need outside funding. The Shogun is, well, the Shogun, after all…”

You nod. “That doesn’t mean he has limitless funding though. He might be able to fund any internal projects with the national treasury, but there’s a lot more to modernizing our army then that.” You cross your arms. “Foreign weapons, equipment, and support aren’t cheap. Plus I’m sure the French or Prussians would be more apt to help us if we were bringing American dollars to the table as opposed to Japanese currency.”

Keisuke nods. “Several good points, General. And with this line of credit, we would not have to worry about it disappearing if a disloyal subject decided to rebel. The Shogun lost control of nearly twenty percent of the national treasury when the Choshu Lords rebelled. Thankfully most of it was reclaimed during the campaign, but it was not available during the lead-up, limiting our capabilities.”

“I see,” Nakajima nods. “Then a large-scale rebellion could prove disastrous, financially.”

You nod this time, grimacing as you remember the financial hardships that occurred in 1861 after the South rebelled. “It’s almost always the case.”

Charles returns from the back room with a stack of papers. “Ah, gentlemen. Here we go.” He sits down at one of the couches, sitting the paperwork on the coffee table.

“Excellent,” Keisuke leans forward. “Let us begin, then.”

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And that's going to be all for this session. My apologies for the shortness of this one, but I'm still trying to get back into the rhythm of writing quickly like this. We'll have a session next week, either on Saturday or Sunday depending on my work schedule. As always, feel free to drop any questions or comments down here and I'll answer whatever I can. Thanks for playing!

>>3994265
>Would it be possible to do both
You'll have the option in our next session. Along with options to do other things, financially speaking.

>>3994551
thanks for running, good to see you back

>>3994551
Hey boss you did fine. Its nice having a burst even if it is short.

My questions then become, Would the shogun be upset with us if we worked on our own finical pursuit while on this trip as well, even if its going strictly towards improving japan?

>>3993069
I'm an intermitttent reader so I'm out of the loop for a general plan here but here's an Idea.

while we have the shogunate negotiate for a line of credit for budgeting at large we should also open a line of credit for ourselves either sometime after this or at a later point if we go abroad again, it will likely be much smaller than the governments of course but one that will allow us to invest both abroad and back in japan should the shogunate ever decide to temporarily or permanently stimmey our efforts at modernisation we will have personal funds to arm at least a small core at our own expense.

>>3994551
This and the (remade) Panzer Commander are the only two quests that still get updates and bring back the good memories of the past, so keep it going, Zap.

>>3997536
Play Valen Quest! You won't get good memories, but it still gets updates!

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>>3997785

Just a heads-up guys, I actually had to work yesterday and a few hours today, so I basically had a 7-day workweek. Will probably do a story post either late tonight or tomorrow evening.

>>4004912
all good chief, we're here and waiting.

The negotiations are long and exhausting, with much of the talk being a bit beyond your expertise. From what you can understand, Keisuke believes (rightly so) that the Shogunal Government should be able to take out a large line of credit, seeing as it is a national government. The bank, on the other hand, seems reluctant to extend the kind of funding that Keisuke desires. You seem to get the implication that the bank is on the fence about whether to even consider the Shogunate a legitimate government.

Eventually, headway is made in terms of monetary negotiations, when Sato suggests a large line of credit with a limit on how much money can be withdrawn per month. This suggestion seems to keep the ball rolling, and Keisuke, though uncertain about the prospect, seems at least willing to consider it.

Nakajima then suggests going to a different bank entirely, which shocks the Wells Fargo banker. You wonder how many other banks in San Francisco would even consider opening a line of credit for the Shogunate, however. The suggestion does make the banker more willing to enlarge the lump sum of the credit line, assuming the maximum monthly amount is lowered.

The banker at one point mentions using precious materials such as gold or silver as collateral for the line of credit, and though you know there is a large amount of gold bullion aboard the Great Eastern, no one seems willing to admit such a thing during the negotiations.

Things again grind to a halt, with both parties seeming unable to agree. Finally, Keisuke turns to you and speaks. “General… I believe you know the American banking system better than I do.”

“Well,” you begin. “I wouldn’t say-“

Keisuke, however, continues. “I will leave the closing of this deal in your hands. You have spoken little during these negotiations, I believe your insight will be more neutral than mine.”

>Go with a small line of credit and no monthly withdrawal limit. It isn’t much, but it can act as an emergency fund.
>Go with a medium-sized mine of credit with a large monthly withdrawal limit. You’ll have a relatively mediocre pool of funds to work with, but the liberal withdrawal limit will give you the ability to use what you do have with some liberty.
>Take out a large line of credit with a small monthly withdrawal limit. The pool of funds will be enough to practically equal the annual military budget, but the amount you can withdraw per month is small enough to make it difficult to decide what precisely to use it for.
>Offer to use some of the gold bullion as collateral. It would allow you a large pool of funds, likely with no limit on withdrawals per month.
>Write-in.

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For some reason my trip got lost over the last day or so. Also, I'll try to space this session out over the course of this week, with one or two updates after I get home from work.

>>4007165
>>Go with a small line of credit and no monthly withdrawal limit. It isn’t much, but it can act as an emergency fund

>>4007165
>>Offer to use some of the gold bullion as collateral. It would allow you a large pool of funds, likely with no limit on withdrawals per month

>>4007165
>Medium Sized fund
It’s supposed to be for emergencies right? Well, when it rains it pours but we still need the best amount to spend per month without being hamstrung by how little it is

>>4007165
>Go with a medium-sized mine of credit with a large monthly withdrawal limit. You’ll have a relatively mediocre pool of funds to work with, but the liberal withdrawal limit will give you the ability to use what you do have with some liberty.
If the monthly limit becomes an issue, the Shogunate can negotiate for loans from the British Taipan firms like Jardines, Swire or Hutchison. Or maybe they are behind the British support of the recent rebellion?

>>4007165
>Go with a medium-sized mine of credit with a large monthly withdrawal limit. You’ll have a relatively mediocre pool of funds to work with, but the liberal withdrawal limit will give you the ability to use what you do have with some liberty.

>>4007165
>>Go with a medium-sized mine of credit with a large monthly withdrawal limit. You’ll have a relatively mediocre pool of funds to work with, but the liberal withdrawal limit will give you the ability to use what you do have with some liberty.

I think the gold is to be used at the outreach mission

>>4007165
>Offer to use some of the gold bullion as collateral. It would allow you a large pool of funds, likely with no limit on withdrawals per month.
Guys, why aren't you picking this one?

>>4007630
because that's the gold we have to make the deals in europe which is our actual mission, this stop here is just a bonus

>>4007165
>Go with a medium-sized mine of credit with a large monthly withdrawal limit. You’ll have a relatively mediocre pool of funds to work with, but the liberal withdrawal limit will give you the ability to use what you do have with some liberty.

Gold is for europa sadly. Japan is resource poor as is.

I want to add that later we should take Naka on a date around the city, we know quite a bit about her country and I'm sure she is very anxious to get to know more about ours, even if she is too demure to ask for it fearing it would be too selfish of her, I would like to see her embarrasssment trying to do it tho.

>>4007165
>Go with a medium-sized mine of credit with a large monthly withdrawal limit. You’ll have a relatively mediocre pool of funds to work with, but the liberal withdrawal limit will give you the ability to use what you do have with some liberty.

If we use it to accelerate our purchases, it's better to have access to more money faster even if it doesn't provide the same returns long-term in terms of sheer funding.

After all, we're realistically going to be using this for international needs: hiring foreign officers; importing weapons and experts; realistically we need to do this as quickly as possible and thus this option provides the best benefits.