1627 Rise of the South China Sea

Chapter 2687
Delineate an exclusive economic zone at the Port of Busan that is self-governed by Haihan overseas Chinese. This is Haihan's solution to the problem.It is simple, rough, and does not leave room for bargaining to the local government.

Fu Guoqing was still talking about the map, but Wen Zhihong was a little distracted. As a magistrate, he really couldn't accept that the Haihan people took away a part of their jurisdiction in such a way.

Neither the "Treaty of Friendship and Commerce" signed in 1638 nor the various supplementary agreements on trade activities between the two countries later mentioned the delineation of the exclusive economic zone of Haihan in Busan.The plan put forward by the Haihan mission obviously does not conform to the various agreements signed by the two countries in the past, and is completely just its unilateral wish.

But Wen Zhihong's objection was ignored without any waves. Haihan people didn't care whether he was willing to support this plan from the bottom of his heart, as long as he cooperated obediently. This situation made him very angry At the same time, I also feel very helpless.

"Master Wen, do you think there are any questions that need to be answered?"

Shi Chengwu's question brought back Wen Zhihong's thoughts. He glanced at Fu Guoqing in a daze. The other party was standing upright next to the map of Busan.

Wen Zhihong realized that he seemed to have missed a very important part, and quickly asked: "Taxation, what about the taxation in this area?"

Shi Chengwu responded: "It seems that Mr. Wen didn't understand it very well just now, Mr. Fu, please explain it to Mr. Wen in detail."

For a region known as a trading port like Busan, the tax collected from foreign commercial organizations is a very important source of fiscal revenue for the local government. For this reason, it also set up a customs office following the example of Haihan, specializing in the collection of taxes for foreign trade activities.

If the delineation of the Haihan Special Zone will affect the current tax collection method, it will cause great losses to the local government. Wen Zhihong has no way to fill such a big hole.

Fu Guoqing said: "The collection standards for various taxes within the special area still follow the old system..."

Wen Zhihong felt relieved when he heard this, but before he came, he remembered being happy, so he heard Fu Guoqing continue to say: "...But all taxes will be collected by the special area management committee, and part of the taxes collected will be handed over to the government. to your country, and the other part will be retained by the special area, and will be designated as special funds for public affairs such as infrastructure, public security, and management in the special area."

Wen Zhihong was stunned when he heard the words. This is equivalent to cutting off a part of the local important tax revenue source at once, and the exact proportion is still unknown.Besides, if the Haihan people were responsible for tax collection and settlement, there would be little room for manipulation.

Seeing Wen Zhihong's expression, Shi Chengwu and others were quite proud.This plan can not only solve the public security problem that plagued Haihan, but also solve the funding problem that the local chamber of commerce has not been able to agree on before.

When Zhang Fengchu organized various parties to negotiate and establish a security team, the main problem was the plan for apportioning funds.Whether it is a large business or a small business, there are dissatisfaction with the proportion of capital contribution, so that in the end they cannot reach a consensus, so that the security problems faced by the businesses have not been effectively resolved.

But now the special regional autonomy plan proposed by the mission allows them to solve the funding problem of the security force once and for all without additional investment, which naturally has the unanimous support of the businessmen.

Wen Zhihong said with a bitter face: "My lords, other matters are easy to discuss, but the taxation method also needs to be changed, which will definitely affect the stability of the local area! Please think again, my lords!"

Shi Chengwu said sternly: "Master Wen, Chinese merchants who pay taxes to your country should enjoy your country's protection of legal trade activities and personal safety, and provide a stable trading environment. But obviously your country only collected money, but did not Do your due duty. Since your country is not capable in this regard, why not let our country do it for you, at least within the scope of the special zone, and you don’t need to worry about stability in the future.”

Shi Chengwu finally saved a little face for Wen Zhihong, and didn't point his nose at him and scold him for taking money and not doing anything, but for Wen Zhihong's powerless protest, Shi Chengwu obviously would not waver in the slightest.As long as this matter can get through the upper-level links in Seoul, then there is no need to care about the attitude of the local government.

Wen Zhihong came full of expectations, but when he left, his heart was ashamed.The Haihan Mission did not intend to discuss the feasibility of the plan with him at all, but told him what would happen next.

Although Wen Zhihong is a local governor, he seems to be unable to do anything except go home and wait for news, which is tantamount to humiliation to him.Of course, he could also choose to reject Haihan's plan stubbornly, but he couldn't guarantee whether Haihan would use the armed fleet stationed in the port to achieve his goal.

We must know that one of the important reasons why Haihan and the former king Li Yu reached a cooperation agreement back then was that Wang Tom led an armed fleet to blockade the river near Seoul to demonstrate force, and the fleet that blocked the Han River back then was even far smaller than At this time, the fleet was docked at Busan Port.If the Haihan people were determined to use force, Wen Zhihong had no doubt that they could capture the entire Port of Busan within a day or two.

The only thing that can comfort Wen Zhihong is that Shi Chengwu made it very clear that the local Haihan Chamber of Commerce will come forward every year to provide a sum of "office funds" to the government in the form of donations.As for how to use the money, Wen Zhihong has the final say.If Wen Zhihong wants to conduct "private cooperation" in other ways, Haihan will also provide corresponding opportunities.

Of course Wen Zhihong understands that this is the practice of giving a slap and rewarding a candy, but now there are only two choices before him, one is to return empty-handed, and the other is to accept the candy from the Haihan people.

But if he chooses not to pick up, he may be regarded as unwilling to cooperate by the Haihan people. He doesn't want to become a target for the Haihan people to deal with, so it seems that there are two options left for him, but in fact he has no choice at all. .

At the same time, the Haihan Chamber of Commerce is celebrating this "great victory".In the eyes of the businessmen, the Haihan mission's plan is simply perfect, and there is no need to resort to the extremely inefficient local government for some disputes in the future.And the taxes they pay can also be rewarded in a real sense, and they will no longer be like meat buns beating dogs like before.

As for whether the local government is willing to cooperate, the businessmen are not too worried about this issue.In their view, there is no need to worry at all. The strong ships and guns moored in the port are full of confidence. Will the North Koreans challenge the authority of the suzerain country?The answer is obviously no.

(End of this chapter)