1627 Rise of the South China Sea

Chapter 882 Zhoushan Merchants Association ([-])
Although the riots in Dinghai Port made the port area turbulent, the merchants competing for franchise rights at the Dinghai Fort Merchants Fair were not affected by it.Everyone's focus is on the next business project to debut, and no one cares about the current situation of the former owner here.

Wang Jialin was still soaking in the sea at this time. He had just escaped another group of Haihan soldiers passing by on the pier in the gap between two small boats. Although he was lucky not to be discovered by the enemy, he grabbed the cable beside the boat. His hands began to tremble a little, which was a sign that his physical strength was gradually exhausted.He has been soaking in the water for nearly two hours, but he still hasn't found a chance to go ashore. Now he is completely relying on one breath to hold on. Even if the enemy can't catch him, his physical strength is almost exhausted.

In fact, Wang Jialin had been hiding on this boat hired by Suzhou businessman Wu Huanzhi. He had shaved off his beard and hair, and it was difficult for people who were not familiar with him to recognize him as the bandit leader worth a thousand taels of silver on the reward notice in Haihan.This boat is full of his confidantes, and there is no need to worry about being betrayed by his own people.Being able to return to his old den smoothly is already the first step in realizing his grand plan of revenge.

Wang Jialin originally planned to sneak into the island with his group of dead soldiers during the Haihan people's investment promotion meeting. With his familiarity with the terrain, he would definitely be able to find the residence of Haihan's high-ranking officials.Even if Zhoushan Island cannot be taken back from Haihan, at least a few Haihan people must be killed to avenge their anger.But he didn't expect that the Haihan people blocked the port and didn't allow ordinary sailors to walk around the island at will. The range of activities of their group was compressed within the extremely small area of ​​the port.

Of course Wang Jialin was not reconciled to just strolling around the pier and then left, he had come all the time, how could he be worthy of this desperate trip if he didn't do something to come out.On the first night, he didn't dare to take action lightly. When the China Merchants Fair opened on the second day, many of the port's defense personnel were dispatched. So he called up his subordinates who sneaked into the port at noon when there were few people, and discussed it until dark. Then look for opportunities to get out of the port area.

But his luck was really bad. He had just called the people together when Haihan's port staff came.And the following blunders made all the previous plans come to naught in an instant.The group of people he led collapsed under the attack of the Haihan militia before they even lasted a cup of tea, and only a few people had time to jump into the sea to escape.

When Wang Jialin jumped into the sea, he could no longer care about the lives of others, so he immediately dived into the water and swam out from the bottom of the boat next to him.Fortunately, there are many ships coming to Zhoushan Port in the past two days. There are three floors inside and three floors outside the dock. There are indeed enough gaps in the water for hiding. The Haihan militia organized several waves of searches on the shore, but none These dark corners of the water are swept clean.However, Wang Jialin moved his hiding place in the water many times, and inevitably lost contact with his subordinates.

After finally waiting for the two ships overhead to be searched, Wang Jialin used his last bit of strength to grab the cable and climb to the side of the ship, and then quickly flipped onto the deck.The reason why he dared to be so bold was that during the search just now, all the people on board were taken off the ship by the Haihan militia, and they had to be identified on the pier. He boldly hid for a while.

Wang Jialin lay down on the deck for a long time, finally regained some strength, turned over and slowly lowered his body to get into the back cabin, and dug out some leftovers from the cabinet.He didn't care about picking and choosing, and swallowed two bowls whole, and only then did he have the energy to consider the current situation.

At present, the Haihan people have blocked the port area, and it is very likely that they have found out the identities of their group. It is almost impossible for them to cross the blockade alone.Wang Jialin touched the dagger at his waist. This was the only weapon he had. If he wanted to use this to deal with the Haihan soldiers on the dock with live ammunition, it would undoubtedly be tantamount to courting death.

Wang Jialin didn't want to die yet, at least not until he successfully exacted revenge on Hai Han.He waited patiently until nightfall, then turned over the side of the boat and went down into the water, quickly disappearing into the shadows of the boats on the shore.

Gong Shiqi stayed up almost all night. When the sky was twilight, he received the latest report from the military. During the search last night, four of the seven fugitives were captured, and two floating corpses were also found. After identification , confirmed to be a member of the gang.So far, only one person is at large—that is, Wang Jialin, the leader of the Zhoushan Ship Gang.

Judging from the information obtained during the interrogation, there is no evidence that any spies have infiltrated the venue of the China Merchants Association, and the captives caught on the boat hired by Suzhou businessman Wu Huanzhi also proved that Wu Huanzhi was neither an accomplice nor an accomplice. Tong Dang is indeed a hapless guy who was innocently involved in this matter.

"Boss Wu, we have proved your innocence, you can leave here now." Gong Shiqi personally went to the place where Wu Huanzhi was under house arrest to let him go: "I'm sorry for what happened before, but please rest assured, what you did yesterday The franchise obtained remains in force."

Wu Huanzhi also couldn't close his eyes all night, and asked with two panda eyes: "Then can I leave Zhoushan?"

"Yes." Gong Shiqi nodded and said: "We have prepared a boat for you, and we can take you away from here at any time. Of course, it is no problem if you are willing to stay and continue to participate in the investment promotion meeting. In order to express our apology, Haihan Department of Commerce It is decided to provide you with a one-year interest-free loan of 2 taels."

Wu Huanzhi's bloodshot eyes lit up instantly. Although what happened yesterday made him sleepless all night, the news that Gong Shiqi announced instantly made him forget all his unhappiness and anxiety.With this loan operable, he can at least grab the regional franchise rights of several projects in the next two days of the investment promotion meeting, which is much more beneficial than a verbal apology.

"Then I can go to the venue now?" Wu Huanzhi didn't want to waste any more time here. Every hour during the Merchants Fair is an opportunity to make a fortune. To use the Haihan saying he heard at the venue yesterday, this is called "" time is money".

"I'll arrange for someone to take you there right now." Gong Shiqi was quite straightforward, and immediately asked his subordinates to escort Wu Huanzhi and his entourage back to the meeting place in Dinghai Fort.With people from the security department clearing the way for him, he could save the time of being interrogated twice on the way.

Although Haihan failed to find the property and treasure of the Zhoushan Ship Gang in the first place after capturing Zhoushan Island, the amount of money earned through the franchise auction during the three-day investment promotion meeting was no less than a huge one. treasure.Although merchants in the Jiangsu and Zhejiang regions have been wary of Haihan’s entry in the past few years, when Haihan really broke the barrier and introduced its own business model into this area, the merchants still found it difficult to resist the temptation of profits , One after another spent a lot of money to snatch the regional franchise rights of Haihan products.

In addition to the temptation of real money, Haihan's good business reputation accumulated in the past few years and the tyrannical force displayed by this expedition to the north also greatly promoted the results of the China Merchants Association.The Haisha Gang and the Zhoushan Ship Gang have become the negative textbooks for confronting Haihan. After seeing the fate of these non-cooperatives, no one will question Haihan's ability to control maritime trade in the East China Sea.

The local forces that dominated this region in the past few years have become a thing of the past. Although some people do not want the old rules and profit distribution models to be broken, the trend of historical development is unstoppable, the theory is more advanced, and the methods are more clever It has become a certainty for Haihan to take over the maritime trade operations in the East China Sea.At this time, people with a keen sense of smell will choose to hold on to Haihan's thigh. After all, the southeast coast of Daming is currently under the control of Haihan, and a good relationship with Haihan is basically equivalent to opening up the waterway from Jiangsu, Zhejiang to Nanyang. , this is definitely an opportunity not to be missed for maritime merchants who depend on the sea for their livelihood.

On the third day of the competition, the two-year franchise of Haihan Food Spices in Yangzhou Prefecture was auctioned for a sky-high price of 5 taels of silver, causing a sensation inside and outside the venue.But in the eyes of the Haihan Department of Commerce, which hosted the event, it was just a symbol that the market in Jiangsu and Zhejiang, the most affluent area of ​​Ming Dynasty, was slowly opening its doors to Haihan.There are a lot of wealthy businessmen in these two provinces, and the consumption power of the people is stronger than that in the Fuguang area. As long as the market development measures are appropriate, the benefits that this area can bring to Haihan through trade will be very large. Considerable astronomical figures.

Due to the high enthusiasm of the businessmen to participate in the competition, starting from the next day, the time for almost every bidding will be so long that the investment promotion meeting, which was originally scheduled to end in three days, had to be postponed for another day.And the final transaction amount broke through the two million mark. This achievement also made Yang Yun and other staff of the Ministry of Commerce laugh from ear to ear. After the report is reported to Sanya, the executive committee will definitely respond. It is very likely that He will get a commendation order, and Yang Yun's position as interim director will probably be secure.

The Suzhou businessman Wu Huanzhi, who was a blessing in disguise, also made small gains in the next few days of competition. In addition to the Guangdezhou glassware franchise that he got on the first day, he also won Suzhou at prices of 8000 taels and 2000 taels. Franchise of government soaps and flavors.After the goods he brought to Zhoushan this time passed Haihan's inspection, he also got the long-term supply agreement he dreamed of.Wu Huanzhi can basically earn back the franchise fees handed over to the Haihan people from the supply volume initially negotiated by the two parties.

And the biggest winner in this business promotion meeting is Ningbo Prefecture, to be precise, a group of businessmen who surrounded Qu Yutong, the prefect of Ningbo.This group of people came prepared, not only won more than 20% of the projects in Ningbo, but also successfully grabbed many projects in other state capitals.Although they paid more than [-] taels of silver for this, the benefits they can get from these business projects in the next two years will also be considerable.

Of course, Haihan who contributed to this result did not simply want to praise these businessmen, but to use them to influence his backer, Ningbo prefect Qu Yutong.This result can at least guarantee one thing. In the next two years, the Ningbo government is unlikely to jump out and confront Haihan, and the transition period of these two years is enough for Haihan to build the Zhoushan Islands area into Haihan The main colony and trade center in the East China Sea.

At this time, the only person who was not happy was probably Gong Shiqi. Although the sneak attack by the remnants of the Zhoushan Ship Gang did not cause substantial damage to the China Merchants Association, the escape of the bandit leader Wang Jialin still made him a little bit bitter.Perhaps Wang Jialin had indeed drowned in the sea and became fish food on the way to escape, but no one was alive or dead, this result made Gong Shiqi feel stuck in his throat.But the clues have been broken so far, apart from continuing to strengthen the security of Dinghai Port and the protection of the leader, the Ministry of Security has no other options for the time being.

On June [-]th, Liu Shanxia, ​​the second in command of the Ministry of Construction, arrived at Zhoushan Island. He will stay here for a period of time and be responsible for organizing and implementing the Ministry of Construction's planning for Zhoushan Port Area.Liu Shanxia had been on Taiwan Island for nearly two months before this, coordinating and directing the construction of several ports in the southern Kaohsiung Port and the northern Jilong Port and Danshui Port.After the local construction project was on track, he received an order from the executive committee to go north to Zhoushan to assist in the development and construction here.

Since Haihan has included Zhoushan as a target for a long time, and the development experience of later generations can be used as a reference, the Ministry of Construction's planning for this area is relatively detailed and clear.Starting from Shenjiamen Fishing Port at the southeast end, along the coastline all the way west to Xixiezhi Island at the west end of Dinghai Bay, the 60-mile-long southern coastline of Zhoushan plus a dozen large and small islands near the shore will be the future A key development site for a period of time.

Ports and wharves can be built on almost the entire coastline of this coastline, and it has a natural sheltered environment. Its development conditions are no less than that of Kaohsiung Port in the south of Taiwan Island.The Ministry of Construction also intends to build this piece of land into the largest sea trade port in the Daming East Sea area, and Haihan's most important colony in this area.

As for the islands north of Zhoushan, such as Daishan, Qushan, and Shengsi, where civilian armed forces still operate, the Haihan militia will clean up bit by bit in the next few months, and strive to complete the cleanup before the end of the summer of 1633. The entire Zhoushan Archipelago area was wiped out by force.

Of course, whether it is the development and construction of the Zhoushan port area or the deployment of the Haihan Fleet in the nearby waters, the cost will be huge.Most of the money that the Ministry of Commerce took from the pockets of the merchants of Ming Dynasty would be spent by the military and the Ministry of Construction as soon as it changed hands.

But the money is not in vain. The demand for labor from large-scale projects will attract a large number of immigrants to settle in Zhoushan Island. Liu Shanxia made this clear in the first meeting after landing on the island: "What we need now is not money, but labor. , the more the better."

(End of this chapter)