Persian Empire 1845

Chapter 66 Urging marriage
Just as he was about to continue enjoying his vacation, his mother, Malik, needed to see him, so he had to put down what he was doing and go to his mother's room.

As soon as he entered the door, he saw the wealthy woman next to his mother holding a thick stack of things, but he didn't know what they were.

"Mother" Naserdin greeted Malik.

"Nasseristin, come here quickly. You've been working so hard lately. Come and have something to eat."

Malik prepared a lot of snacks and milk tea, and Naserdin ate them in front of his mother.

“It’s been years since I last saw you, and you’ve grown taller. Your father even said you look different this time you came back.”

Malik paused for a moment, then continued, "Now that you're all grown up, your father and I have decided to choose a wife for you."

The crown prince stopped abruptly. What had he just heard? Getting married? He was only 16!

"Mother, isn't it too early to talk about this now? There are so many things to do for the country right now, there's really no time."

Naserdin said this, but Malik immediately stopped him, "What do you mean 'too early'? Some people your age are already married and have children. Don't use national affairs as an excuse. Does the whole country stop turning without you?"

Before her son could react, Malik had the lady next to him place something in front of him—photos of various girls.

“Look, these are all daughters of various nobles. This one belongs to Governor Abadan’s family; they own a large amount of land.”

And this one, their tribe is quite large too.

besides"

These people were giving Naserdin a headache; he never expected the pressure to get married to unfold here. Although they were prepared for the marriage, wasn't this a bit too early?
"I'll consider it. I'll take these photos back and take a closer look before making a decision."

Hearing her son say this, Malik was also very happy. "It's alright, at worst we can just add them all to the harem."

"what?"

No, how am I supposed to put this? There are over 20 photos on the table; wouldn't it be exhausting to collect them all into the harem?

"No need for that, I'll take a look myself. I'll be going now!"

After saying that, Naserdin grabbed the photo and ran off in a flash. Malik watched him disappear, knowing he was shy again. But it didn't matter; she would find a beautiful wife for her son.

"Huhu. Huh."

Naserdin returned to his dormitory as quickly as possible. It had been a truly harrowing experience, and it seemed his single life was about to come to an end.

He set the photos aside and picked up another document instead. It was a government proposal to encourage agricultural development.

Iran, a country rich in agricultural resources in West Asia, has always been an important exporter of agricultural products. Following land reforms, farmers' enthusiasm has increased, leading to a significant rise in agricultural output, which can be used for large-scale exports to increase income. Agricultural training programs in Azerbaijan have yielded positive results, with crops such as potatoes being cultivated on a large scale, enriching the diets of the local population, enabling exports, and alleviating hunger.

However, grain alone is not enough; we also need to increase high-value-added crops, such as cotton, sugarcane, and cocoa.

The Caspian coast is an important agricultural production area, producing the most cash crops, with raw silk and tea being exported in large quantities. Other areas also have numerous farms and ranches, and taking advantage of the farmers' high enthusiasm, they are encouraged to cultivate cash crops.

In order to emphasize agriculture, the expert conference passed a resolution to establish an agricultural and pastoral department, and at the same time set up agricultural and pastoral bureaus in various provinces. These bureaus were responsible for various industries such as agriculture, forestry, fisheries, and animal husbandry, as well as the construction of agricultural infrastructure.

What surprised the public even more was that agriculture could be learned. The government established an agricultural school in Tehran, teaching knowledge of planting, processing, and other related fields. The first batch of students recruited 80 students, and the curriculum was divided into four departments: Sericulture, which uses new scientific theories to experiment with mulberry planting and silkworm rearing; General Studies, which uses new methods to experiment with planting common crops; Horticulture, which experiments with planting special flowers and trees from China and abroad; and Crafts, which uses new theories and methods to experiment with agricultural product processing.

According to reports from various regions, farmers' enthusiasm is very high this year. Furthermore, the planting area for potatoes and other crops is expanding, suggesting a good harvest this year.

The proposal to encourage agriculture must be approved; Iran now needs to export agricultural products to generate revenue. In addition, more cash crops should be planted to provide raw materials for industry, and the livelihoods of farmers must be guaranteed.

Industrialization requires labor, raw materials, markets, and transportation, all of which Iran lacks to varying degrees. However, policies to encourage industry are in place; it just needs to proceed gradually.

However, increasing the population was extremely difficult. When the Qajar dynasty was first established, the population was only over 600 million; increasing it to 1000 million was already a remarkable achievement. According to later calculations, Iran's population growth rate at that time was probably less than 1%.

Promoting medical development and introducing Western hospitals is also a government task. In fact, Iran's population growth rate is very high, around 4%, but the mortality rate is also close to 4%, so the actual population growth is minimal.

Population constrains industrial growth because industry requires a large labor force. In the short term, this can be achieved through plunder, but in the long term, reducing the mortality rate is essential.

Besides the textile industry, the military industry is another sector that Nasser al-Din is now focusing on.

In Europe, most defense contractors are privately owned and profit-driven. If they invest too much in research and development, they simply can't recoup their costs. As long as profits are decent, don't expect them to engage in technological innovation.

Technological innovation is hardly a positive term these days, with a failure rate exceeding 99%. Therefore, capital investment is approached with extreme caution. This is why there's a saying that war drives weapons development; only during times of war are people willing to invest in research and development of new weapons and equipment.

However, compared to the army, the navy is the real money burner, but Iran has no intention of developing a navy, at least not now.

Britain and France were colonial empires, which is why they developed large navies. The current major naval powers are all former colonial nations. Even if Iran intends to participate in colonial activities, it doesn't need to immediately expand its navy.

"Ugh, I'm so tired."

The holiday ended quickly, and Nasser al-Din returned to his busy work schedule. Amir, as Minister of Commerce and Industry, presented a report at a meeting of experts.

Given the current situation in Iran, it would be best for the state to take control of heavy industry and the financial sector, announce the establishment of a central bank to control currency issuance, and set up institutions such as the Agricultural Bank and the Development Bank to regulate the financial system.

"As the country's most important industry, the textile industry will be supported by the government through policies. The government encourages private investment in industry and will provide certain assistance to all sectors."

　The main character in history had 85 women in his harem.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)