1627 Rise of the South China Sea

Chapter 3657

Before arriving at Hambantota Port, Dong Shangyi's knowledge of the place mostly came from the few news reports in domestic newspapers, and his knowledge was extremely limited.

However, what he saw with his own eyes was basically in line with his expectations. At present, this is a pure military stronghold. All construction plans are almost based on military functions to ensure that it can resist the offensive launched by potential enemies in the absence of external support.

However, the base of the settled population greatly limited the number of workers that could be invested in infrastructure projects. Takahashi Minami even had to use part of the garrison troops as engineers to ensure the progress of the project.

Dong Shangyi noticed that there were many dark-skinned locals on the construction site, but they were not very motivated and many of them slacked off while working. The soldiers who were supervising the work did not seem to have a good solution and could only urge them to work by shouting at them.

It was not difficult to see that these laborers were not slaves, but mostly locals hired by the Special Warfare Division. If they were beaten, they would probably all run away. So even if these people were slow to work, the Special Warfare Division could only turn a blind eye.

What surprised Dong Shangyi was that there was actually an office set up by Portugal here. According to Takahashi Nan, this was an insurance policy bought by the Portuguese for themselves, and its main function was to maintain the relationship with the special operations division.

At the beginning of the year, Colombo, the Portuguese base on Ceylon Island, was attacked by the Dutch. If Hai Han had not sent troops to rescue it in time, Colombo would most likely have changed hands.

The Portuguese could not quickly increase the military strength of Colombo City in the short term. Once the Dutch returned, they would most likely not be able to withstand the opponent's offensive. Therefore, they could only temporarily place their hopes on the special operations division in Hambantota Port.

In exchange for asking the Special Operations Division to send out rescue troops, Portugal also delivered some daily necessities to the Hambantota Port and dispatched cheap labor to assist the Special Operations Division in completing infrastructure projects, which to a certain extent alleviated the logistical pressure faced by the Special Operations Division.

But this certainly cannot fundamentally solve the problems of this place. Only by introducing a large number of immigrants can the development needs of the port be met.

It's easy to say, but it's not easy to implement. Regardless of how many people are willing to immigrate to such a faraway place to settle down, the transportation cost of sending people from China to Ceylon is twice as much as sending them to Sing Tao Island or Luzon.

Moreover, Hambantota Port has not yet achieved food self-sufficiency, and the only food available is seafood. Fortunately, the terrain near the base is mostly flat, and as long as there is enough labor in the future, it should not be difficult to reclaim farmland in the surrounding areas.

But after following Gao Qiaonan around the base, Dong Shangyi didn't see any special products, and the only commercial organization in this place seemed to be Fu Ruifeng. He couldn't understand how Fu Ruifeng could operate in such a place with extremely poor business.

However, this question did not bother him for too long. At the welcoming banquet that evening, Qian Tiandun took the initiative to reveal the answer.

"Although Ceylon is not a place with poor mountains and bad water, it does not have many products. However, there is one thing that has some value in the market outside the island."

After Qian Tiandun finished speaking, he asked Gao Qiaonan to present the revenue of Hambantota Port in the last three months.

Gao Qiaonan made a gesture, and a guard immediately presented a wooden box that was eight inches long, three inches wide, and one inch thick. Dong Shangyi looked at it and felt suspicious. How could the local products fit into such a small box? Could it be that they were first exchanged for checks from the Haihan Bank? But thinking about it, it seemed wrong. Qian Tiandun wanted to show this item, and there were no outsiders present. Why should a check be hidden and put in a box?

It was not until Qian Tiandun opened the box in public that Dong Shangyi's eyes lit up. The box was filled with colorful gems, probably more than a hundred of them, big and small.

Qian Tiandun put the box on the table and said to Dong Shangyi, "Master Dong, these are the products of the island. Please appreciate the quality of these stones."

Dong Shangyi did not dare to delay. He stood up and walked to Qian Tiandun. He reached out and took a three-centimeter ruby ​​from the box, held it in front of his eyes and examined it carefully.

Although he was not an expert in gem identification, he was born into a wealthy family and had seen many fine things since he was a child. He could see that this ruby ​​had been initially cut and polished, and its color was uniform and pure, and light could penetrate the entire gem very well, so it was at least of high quality.

If this thing is sold in the domestic market, the price will probably be several thousand yuan. If you ask a skilled craftsman to grind it carefully and make it into a ring face, pendant, or inlay it on some handicrafts, the price may be several times higher.

Dong Shangyi put the ruby ​​back and took out another one to check. He soon found that there were many gems of the same quality and larger in the box. It was difficult for Dong Shangyi to make an accurate assessment of the value of the box.

But there is one thing he is sure of, if the people stationed in Hambantota go to open up wasteland and grow crops, the harvest of three months will definitely not be as valuable as the things in this box, and may not even be worth one-tenth of its value.

Dong Shangyi suddenly understood why Fu Ruifeng had set up a trading post in this remote place. These things were just some beautiful stones on the island, but if they were transported out and sold to rich people, the profits would be considerable.

At this moment, he glanced at his deskmate Li Yuande and found that Li Yuande's expression was not very good. Perhaps he was dissatisfied with Qian Tiandun telling him about this matter.

6◇9◇Book◇Bar

As for why Qian Tiandun did this, Dong Shangyi quickly guessed the reason.

These gems produced in Ceylon are undoubtedly valuable goods, but if the export channels are monopolized by Fu Ruifeng, it will inevitably squeeze the profit margin of the Special Operations Division. Introducing a competitor and letting it bid for the acquisition with Fu Ruifeng will naturally bring more economic benefits to the Special Operations Division.

If Dong Shangyi hadn't appeared here, the competitor might have been a company from Xingdao or a domestic company. But in any case, Fu Ruifeng couldn't monopolize the gem business here for a long time, just like it couldn't monopolize the shipping business in the Special Warfare Division's jurisdiction.

No matter how much Qian Tiandun appreciated and trusted Li Yuande, he would not put all his eggs in one basket. Introducing competitors to Fu Ruifeng at the appropriate time was also for the benefit of the special operations division.

Dong Shangyi knew that he was a tool to check and balance Fu Ruifeng, but he was also happy to play this role. He knew that only if he had enough value could he promote the cooperation between Fujian and the special warfare division.