1627 Rise of the South China Sea

Chapter 3970

As a soldier, Chen Pingliao was naturally very interested in warhorses. He approached them closely and examined them carefully for a long time, occasionally making sounds of admiration.

Arabian horses have excellent endurance and a light and agile gait, making them very suitable as mounts for charging into battle. In fact, long before the special forces divisions opened up trade routes, Western merchants such as those from Portugal and the Netherlands had already imported a considerable number of them from the Middle East, but the prices were always quite high.

This is why the Arabian horse population in China has never been large, and it has not been fully bred locally, with only a certain number remaining in the cavalry forces in the south.

Unfortunately, these warhorses are tropical breeds and not suited to the harsh, cold climate of the north. The few Arabian warhorses previously sent to the northern war zones all failed to adapt to the environment and were sent back to the south after a short time. Therefore, the mounts of the northern garrison are still the relatively small but cold-resistant Mongolian horses.

Seeing the expression on Chen Pingliao's face, Li Yuande knew that he was very interested in this excellent warhorse, and asked with a smile, "You like it, don't you?"

Chen Pingliao nodded and said, "Who wouldn't like such a good thing? It's just that the north is freezing cold, which is not suitable for this kind of horse to live in."

Li Yuande laughed and said, "Don't worry, once you get to Fubo Port, you can ride one of these tall horses around every day."

Chen Pingliao continued, "As far as I know, Arabian horses are quite expensive in China. If your business deals in them, you should be able to make a lot of money, right?"

Li Yuande waved his hand repeatedly to deny it, saying, "Brother Chen, you don't know this. If the Ministry of National Defense hadn't been willing to spend any amount of money to import Arabian horses, probably no one would be willing to do this business, not even Western merchants. It has little to do with the price."

Chen Pingliao asked, "Why is that? Could it be that the profits from cross-ocean horse trading aren't enough?"

Li Yuande explained, "Profit is only part of the reason; the actual operation is also quite complicated. Now that we have Fubo Port, the procurement of Arabian horses will no longer be handled by merchants, but will be directly procured by the Special Operations Division on behalf of the military. They will only pay the merchant ships that transport them back to China for the cost of the return trip, which will reduce profits significantly."

"You should know that horses are not like other goods. They can be loaded into the hold at the dock and then unloaded at the destination, where they can be immediately converted into money and put into your pocket. Brother Chen, please let me explain in detail."

It turns out that the process of transporting horses across the ocean is extremely complicated. A large enough space needs to be set aside in advance to build a separate stable for each horse. Not only must good ventilation and a certain amount of light be provided, but also non-slip and moisture-resistant bedding must be laid on the floor. Sufficient hay, grain, water and other supplies must be stored on the ship for them.

These things take up a considerable amount of space; transporting a dozen or twenty horses could occupy an entire deck. For a seagoing vessel where every inch of space is precious, this is a significant expense that cannot be ignored.

The cost of transporting horses is not limited to this. From the moment the horses are loaded onto the ship, there must be dedicated personnel to take care of them, including feeding them daily, cleaning the stables, and observing their condition. On average, at least two to three professional grooms are needed for every ten horses, and all related expenses must be included in the transportation cost.

Even so, to maintain the horses' health, they couldn't be kept in the cramped cabins for extended periods. Therefore, to complete the long voyage from the Arabian Peninsula to the mainland of Haihan, careful planning of segmented transport was necessary, with horses disembarking and resting along the way. When merchant ships departing from Fubo Port stopped at Phuket, they would unload the horses and allow them to rest for several days at the Phuket horse farm. Once the previous batch of horses had rested, they could be loaded back onto the ship for the next destination.

To ensure that the horses are in good condition when they are transported back to China, small horse farms have been built or leased in places such as Hambantota in Ceylon, Phuket, Sing Tao, and Cam Ranh in Annam for transshipment.

After several loading and unloading operations, a fine horse originally from the Arabian Peninsula can be transported to Haihan in relatively good condition, and the high cost of this process is self-evident.

Without these transit and rest stops along the way, they could certainly be transported back in one go. However, after a long voyage lasting several months, how many of them would survive would be left to fate.

Horses undergo a thorough medical examination before being loaded onto the ship, and are only loaded and dispatched after being approved by the shipping merchant. Therefore, the Haihan Ministry of Defense will not accept any horses that become sick or die en route, and the shipping merchant responsible for the transportation will have to bear most of the loss.

Given this situation, most European maritime merchants have abandoned this business, and currently, only one maritime merchant, Frye & Fung, has the qualifications to carry these goods, whether they like it or not. Therefore, the value of these exotic horses arriving from across the ocean naturally increases several times over.

Li Yuande sighed, “If it’s transporting other goods, as long as it’s within the ship’s carrying capacity, it’s no problem to fill the entire hold. When we arrive at the port, we can check the goods and collect payment. It’s easy and pleasant. But if we bring back a ship full of horses, no one can predict whether the trip will be profitable or not until all the horses arrive at the port, disembark, and are inspected by the military.”

"So although the cost of transoceanic horse trading is high, not many people are willing to take on this business. Commander Qian doesn't trust anyone else, so I'm the only one who can take on this tough job."

Chen Pingliao had no idea that transoceanic horse trading involved so many troubles. Military operations in the northern region, with cavalry mobilizations across the sea, at most involved crossing the Bohai Bay and operating between the Shandong Peninsula and the Liaodong Peninsula, a journey of three or four hundred miles. In bad weather, they wouldn't even go out to sea, which was indeed incomparable to the transoceanic voyages that Li Yuande had mentioned.

Chen Pingliao said, "Perhaps in a few years, when the domestic population is large enough to breed offspring on its own, there will be no need to go through the trouble of importing horses from overseas."

Li Yuande nodded and said, "I also hope that day will come soon."

Chen Pingliao smiled, pointed to the camel beside him, and changed the subject, asking, "I heard that there are endless deserts over there, so camels are necessary as a means of transportation?"

Li Yuande nodded and said, “All I see is yellow sand, endless sand dunes, moving with the wind. It’s impossible to build roads. Ordinary livestock can hardly survive in the water-scarce desert, let alone vehicles. Only camels are not only very drought-resistant, but also have a strong carrying capacity and are docile and easy to train, hence the nickname ‘ships of the desert.’ To travel long distances across the desert, human strength alone is not enough; we must rely on these animals.”

Knowing that Chen Pingliao didn't know much about these foreign animals, Li Yuande explained more about them. Camels can close their nostrils and have double rows of eyelashes to prevent sand from entering their eyes and nasal cavities; their humps are full of fat, which can be converted into energy for survival when food is scarce; and their hooves are covered with pads to prevent them from sinking into soft sand.

Camels are naturally social animals and are accustomed to migrating in caravans following their leader, making them easy to form into caravans after domestication. Not only can they carry people and goods, but in the desert, a caravan arranged in a circle can also serve as a temporary haven when sandstorms strike.