1627 Rise of the South China Sea

Chapter 1737 Secret Operation
What kind of benefits can the development of shipping and cross-border trade bring to North Korea? Li Xi actually doesn't have a particularly definite understanding yet.However, the various ports that he stopped all the way from North Korea to the south were under Haihan's control. During the berth for supplies, he also saw how amazing the scale of transnational trade Haihan operated.

Although Li Xi didn't think much of businessmen in his heart, he had no prejudice against official transnational trade between countries. If there was an opportunity for North Korea to have such a trade volume, he would be very happy to facilitate other countries' fleets to North Korea.It's just that North Korea does not have equivalent maritime transport capacity. After establishing a trade relationship, it must rely on the other party's fleet to complete the transportation. Then North Korea's position will definitely be very passive.

However, Li Xi heard that Zheng Zuo's plan did not involve Haihan directly, which made him a little worried about whether this plan could really get the permission of the Haihan people.Although he doesn't know Haihan as well as the two parties, but through recent contact, he also knows that the Haihan people have a strong desire to control, especially in the control of trade. Haihan is monopolized.The Annan people's plan is to bypass Haihan and do it themselves. Will the Haihan people tolerate such behavior?

Li Xi tactfully raised his doubts, and Zheng Zuo smiled after hearing this: "I'm sorry I didn't make it clear. In fact, there is another participant in this trade plan... To be precise, a group of participants. Mr. Li has heard of Qiong Lianfa ?"

"What's that? I've never heard of it." Li Xi shook his head and replied.He really didn't have any impression of this strange name, and he didn't understand why this person he had never heard of could be on an equal footing with characters like Annan, North Korea, and Fujian Xu.

"The so-called Qiong Lianfa, the full name should be Qiongzhou United Development Group Corporation." Zheng Zuo explained to him: "This is an investment organization led by Haihan before, and it is responsible for attracting foreign businessmen to invest in Hainan Island and handling related matters. Business affairs. Many big businessmen in the South China Sea area are shareholders of this institution, of course, including us Annan Zheng's and Fujian Xu's."

Zheng Zuo said while pointing to Xu Yuzhuo who was sitting opposite, "Speaking of which, Mr. Xu and I are also the operators of Qiong Lianfa, so our plan will actually use the name of Qiong Lianfa when it is in operation. This will make it easier to contact Haihan."

"So the little prince's plan didn't actually bypass Hai Han?" Li Xi suddenly realized: "It's just that Hai Han didn't directly participate in it, but borrowed the name of Qiong Lianfa!"

"That's right." Xu Yuzhuo who was next to him took over the conversation and said, "The large-scale business plan issued by Qiong Lian actually needs to be approved by the head of the Haihan Ministry of Commerce, Schneidersch, so Haihan still has a part in this plan. .”

Li Xi didn't know what the standard of this so-called "large business plan" was, but since it had to be reviewed by senior Haihan officials, there must be no hidden dangers.But he immediately thought of another thing: "But the little prince's plan is to connect Annan and our country by sea. Can Qiongzhou Island benefit from it?"

"Of course." Zheng Zuo replied: "The strait to the north of Qiongzhou Island is the only way for this route to pass in the future. Danzhou Port and Haikou Port in the north of the island are also very prosperous commercial ports. The fleet going north can berth at these two places for trade. Every year, a few more fleets can go to these two ports to do business, which is naturally beneficial and harmless to Haihan.”

Seeing that the two of them knew everything, Li Xi simply threw out his doubts together: "Haihan's official support for business is not small, why do they have to cover it up and use organizations like Qiong Lianfa as a cover?" ?”

Zheng Zuo shook his head and said, "It's not a cover-up, it's for convenience. Think about it, it was only last year that Haihan established diplomatic relations with Daming. Before that, Haihan was going to Daming to do business. That's right, and the exchange of money will be subject to many restrictions from Daming, that's why Qionglianfa took the lead in establishing Qionglianfa to do business with Daming in the name of a firm. For some commodities that are inconvenient to trade, Qionglianfa can also use internal transfers In name, it will be transported between Daming and Haihan."

Zheng Zuo's description is simple and easy to understand, but in fact it is not comprehensive.When Qiong Lianfa was first established, in addition to introducing resources from Ming Dynasty for the development and construction of Hainan Island, it also had the function of covering the trade between Haihan and Ming Dynasty.But apart from that, establishing business channels through big businessmen from various countries and forming the prototype of an international business alliance was also one of Hai Han's main purposes when he designed this organization.Afterwards, Haihan organized countries to establish the South China Sea Business Alliance on Ambuna Island, which was an operation after upgrading the standard after drawing experience from Qiong Lianfa's operation.

Today, Qiong Lianfa is the first transnational business organization established by the official organization of Haihan, and the industries and regions it covers are no longer what they used to be.And the investment and business objects of this organization have long since ceased to be limited to Hainan Island. All the areas under the control of Haihan, especially the overseas colonies in the new income territory, almost always have the presence of Qiong Lianfa.

For the shareholders of Qiong Lianfa, in these years of operation, they have gradually summed up a complete set of investment plans for overseas colonies that can bring huge profits.They are very clear about how to maintain communication with Haihan officials, so that they can get the latest economic and trade policies of Haihan and the latest trends in the expansion of overseas colonies in the first place.

To them, this information is no different from real gold and silver, and seizing the opportunity means the lowest operating cost and high return, and this kind of opportunity is not available to outside businessmen.Only the dozen or so shareholders who were the first to invest in Qiong Lianfa, whose interests have been firmly tied to Haihan, are eligible to be favored by Haihan and participate in infrastructure construction and agricultural development projects in various places.

Both the Annan Zheng family and the Fujian Xu family are one of the major shareholders of Qiong Lianfa, and they have long been aware of the operation of Qiong Lianfa.Although this plan has not yet been filed with the Ministry of Commerce of Haihan, Zheng Zuo has already included Haihan's part in the conception to ensure the proportion of Haihan's profit from it. The problems that Li Xi is worried about are in their It does not seem to be an obstacle in the implementation of the plan.Moreover, it is not the first time that Annan and Fujian have dealt with each other. The two parties have cultivated a certain tacit understanding in the long-term cooperation, and there will not be too many differences in the operation of this project.

What Zheng Zuo really worried about was whether he could convince the North Koreans to join the plan.According to the information he has, North Korea has always been a vassal state of Ming Dynasty in the past, and it can be said that it is the number one supporter of Ming Dynasty. Although it has established diplomatic relations with Haihan, it may not be willing to participate in the trade system established by Haihan organization. .What's more, Annan took the lead this time. In terms of authority, it is naturally not as good as Haihan, and North Korea will inevitably have scruples.

So this time he specially brought Xu Yuzhuo here, just to add weight to his side and let the North Koreans understand that in addition to the participation of Annan and Haihan, the Ming military will also provide guarantees.Of course, the object of allegiance of the naval forces in Fujian is no longer the Ming court, but the Xu family in Fujian. They just continue to hang the banner of the Ming army for convenience.

However, Zheng Zuo was actually a bit worried. Li Xi's idea was very simple. As long as Haihan nodded, then this trade plan would be beneficial and harmless to North Korea, and it could naturally be implemented.As for whether Daming would blame North Korea for going its own way after learning about this, Li Xi didn't care too much about it. Not long ago, he witnessed how the high-ranking officials of Haihan humiliated the envoys of Daming in full view. It can be said that Daming's majesty In his mind, he has plummeted, and he no longer has so many fears as before.

Good food and wine, coupled with Zheng Zuo's generous terms, even said that he could give Li Xi some special "rewards" after the event was completed. Finally, Li Xi couldn't help but let go, and promised to write a memorial as soon as possible and send it back to China , Persuading King Li Zhen to accept the trade application from An Nanguo.

"Your Majesty and Master Li hit it off right away, and we had a very happy conversation today. Here is some kindness, Master Li, don't follow me and refuse."

Zheng Zuo is a very happy person, Li Xi let go, he immediately honored part of the benefits he mentioned, and ordered someone to present a small wooden box to Li Xi.

Li Xi picked up the wooden box from the tray and it felt quite heavy in the hand. When he gently opened the lid, he saw that there was a gold brick the size of his palm inside. This was indeed a generous move.

Li Xi closed the wooden box and sighed: "Young lord, this is too polite, I haven't done anything here, I won't be rewarded for nothing, how can I accept such a big gift!"

Zheng Zuo said: "Master Li, you are welcome, this little thing, just treat it as a proof of agreement between you and me. After the matter is completed, I will thank you very much!"

Li Xi replied: "Then if I fail to convince the king of our country if I fail to do my best, I hope the little prince will not blame him! I think the little prince should take this thing back first and talk about it after the matter is done."

"Just try your best. If you really can't make things happen, it's because the fate of the two countries has not yet come. But you don't have to take back what you gave to Master Li. Whether it succeeds or not, I would like to make friends with Master Li." Zheng Zuo saw Li Xi wanted to return the gift, so he quickly blocked the other party's mouth with words.To him, this amount of expenses is really only a small amount. If the trade between the two countries can be successfully opened in the future, he only needs to send a fleet to North Korea for a trip, and he can earn back hundreds of times and thousands of times.

Even if the matter cannot be accomplished, spending this little money to establish a good relationship with the North Korean envoy in Sanya may still come in handy in the future.What's more, this Li Xi is still a member of the royal family of North Korea. Now that he is on the big ship of Haihan, he may be able to gain a higher status in North Korea with the help of Haihan in the future.

Zheng Zuo actually learned this set of social skills slowly in the process of getting in touch with the Haihan people.When Haihan people make friends with officials from other countries, they are often more generous than others. Zheng Zuo doesn't know whether Haihan has given Li Xi any actual benefits, so he simply spends more generously. Let's talk about impressions.

After seeing off the guests, Zheng Zuo and Zheng Ting, who had been listening to the whole conversation, discussed the response just now, and after making sure that there were no loopholes, they cleaned up and took a rest.Although the deal with the North Koreans is important, the various foreign affairs activities in the next few days are even more important. Zheng Zuo doesn't want his mental illness to affect his decision-making.In particular, the weapons and equipment that can be purchased from Haihan this year will directly affect the direction of Annan's war against Siam, and must be handled seriously.

The person who gained the most today is actually Li Xi. During the banquet, he saw the diplomatic methods of various countries, especially the series of operations of Haihan's senior officials, which made him truly realize the strength of Haihan in international exchanges.The Da Ming envoy's daring to speak out made him affirm that Da Ming's current situation was already very tight, and he could only swallow his anger and dare not offend Hai Han.

In this case, which side North Korea should choose to stand in, Li Xi felt that he already had a clear answer.However, those in power in the country couldn't empathize with such an international situation. Li Xi believed that most of them would continue to be in awe of Ming Dynasty, but they couldn't realize that the number one power in the Far East was quietly changing.

Li Xi can only hope that the memorial he sent back to the country can give those in power a general understanding of the changes in the outside world, especially the decline of Ming Dynasty and the rise of Haihan, which requires North Korea to readjust its relationship with these two countries.If this stage is not handled well, North Korea's international status may also sink along with Ming Dynasty in the future.

Li Xi did not reject the young prince Annan's intention to win over. The two countries were too far apart. Adhering to the diplomatic principle of long-distance diplomatic relations and short-term attack, Li Xi would seriously handle the establishment of diplomatic relations with Annan for North Korea.

As for receiving benefits from other countries, Li Xi didn't have as many scruples as Fei Cexian.The funds he has at hand are very limited, and after deducting the budget for building the embassy, ​​there is actually not much money at his disposal.Now that a boy like Zheng Zuo who gave money took the initiative to offer benefits, and the request he made was within his ability, then of course the money handed over to him would be considered disrespectful.

However, the small piece of gold brick that Zheng Zuo gave was obviously inconvenient to circulate in the market, and he would have to take it to Haihan Bank to exchange it for local currency.Li Xi knew that Haihan had an official paper currency, and the money that this gold brick could exchange should be enough for him to live comfortably in Sanya for a period of time.

Time flies, and it is already the last day at the end of March.According to the official arrangement of Haihan, several trade negotiation activities will be held in Sanya today.Diplomatic envoys and businessmen from various countries have already studied the materials issued by the Haihan Ministry of Commerce, and have set their goals for the event.

(End of this chapter)