I'm really not doing business

Chapter 529 A dean who doesn’t want to be a king is not a good captain

The Age of Discovery was nothing more than a fig leaf for plunder. This was the conclusion of Liu Ji, a desperado. Even trade had to be done with a sword. Without sufficient firepower, no interests could be protected.

Portugal, Spain and the Ming Dynasty are all wolves. One provides weapons and ammunition, one knocks on the door with force, and the other conducts smuggling trade. The division of labor is clear. The Ming Dynasty gains the market, Spain determines its dominance and gains cohesion, and Portugal gets a generous reward. Domestic forces are reshuffling.

Everyone has a bright future, except England, the sheep.

This is what this Lisbon meeting is about.

This can deal with England, the Netherlands, France, and even the Holy Roman Empire or Spain.

Scale is depth in economic warfare.

The carnival in Lisbon lasted for three full days. Ships of goods were constantly being moved down. All the Portuguese were extremely excited, and this excitement did not end with the celebration, because the busy trade that followed made Everyone in Lisbon is very busy, the goods are very abundant, and Antonio has the final say on how to distribute them.

For the first time since he was crowned king, Antonio felt that he was a king. From the subjects to the nobles, everyone respected this king who was enthroned by the great eastern country. Antonio not only brought independence, stability and wealth, but no one doubted Antonio anymore. .

Except for himself.

"If there was no support from Ming Dynasty, would you still choose to return to Lisbon to succeed?" Catarina thought for a while and asked.

"Did our Minister of State still not send blessings to our children?" Katarina said worriedly.

Even the greedy and stingy Emperor Ming was a little embarrassed about such huge profits, so Zhu Yijun did not urge Antonio to repay the debt normally. Of course, this did not mean that this kind of debt should be forgiven. Antonio really did not repay, Zhu Yijun We still need to push, and if we are sorry, we still need to get the money we should get, and we can’t lose a penny!
Antonio was not short of decisiveness. Seeing that Felipe II was about to take action against England and the Netherlands, the benefits of the war were not only silver, but also talents.

Antonio whispered: "In fact, what the Minister of State Xu Fan said is right. Archduke Karl II of Inner Austria and his niece Maria Anna gave birth to fifteen children, only seven of which were healthy."

"Wait until I get off." Antonio ran over and washed his face vigorously, and even induced vomiting before dispelling all the drunkenness. Returning to the king's bedroom, he rubbed his brows and said, "What you said is very good. It makes sense, I never thought of it before.”

Katarina smiled and said: "Look, this is bravery and choice. Sword Master Marcus is not a fool. He saw hope in you, so he will follow you to the death. You have done it for eleven years." ,you did it."

"Businessmen are very enthusiastic. They are like sharks smelling the smell of blood in the sea. They swarm in. You don't know how crazy they are today, just to grab a batch of cotton cloth or an iron pot." Antonio stretched out his hand. Lai said: "We in Portugal can earn two million silver every year from the trade of His Majesty's galleons."

It's not that Xu Fan doesn't have a flexible moral bottom line, he doesn't know how to flatter people, and he doesn't understand the world, but he is really worried about the fate of the king and queen.

"Work is very important to the common people you care about because it is their only source of livelihood. You find a way for them to live. You are their only king."

Antonio leaned back in his chair, recalled it carefully and said, "It was more than 3600 years ago."

"I will choose to come back and fight to the end for the civilians! Portugal belongs to the Portuguese!"

"Yes, he is always avoiding the topic." Antonio said helplessly: "Orientals have not advocated marriage of the same clan since the Xia Dynasty. The Xia Yin Dynasty began to dislike marriage of the same clan, and the Zhou Dynasty prohibited marriage of the same surname. People with the same surname will not marry. , fear of not colonizing.”

"In fact, as long as our annual income growth is greater than 4%, there is no need to be too eager to pay off this loan. We will prepare more handicraft workshops to process materials from West Africa and the New World, so that more people can get jobs. This This is the purpose of your Majesty's thirty-year extension. The Ming Emperor in the East is not an overly eager king. His thirty-year extension is to give us the opportunity to develop. "

The two people came together because of Catarina's support for Antonio. The blood relationship between the two made it full of variables whether the child in the belly could be born safely, but the kingdom also needed a healthy child to inherit the throne, at least not Too stupid or misshapen.

Catarina looked at Antonio and said with great conviction: "You don't have to be too eager to repay the loan in advance. Just repay it as scheduled according to His Majesty's extension. The reason is: use the money in the manual workshop to defeat the Netherlands." With England, you don’t necessarily need to do those dirty things. Lisbon has a unique advantage. It is easier for materials from the New World and West Africa to reach Lisbon.”

"There are a large number of craftsmen and workshop owners in the Netherlands, but the Netherlands is in a state of war. These workshop owners want to escape, but there is no place for them to escape. We built a manual workshop, and that's it. Attracted them to come.”

"It only takes six years for us to pay off the loan ahead of schedule. After that, we can have the luxury of talking about Portugal as our own."

The probability of this deformity is already very high. If humans reproduced with this deformity rate, they would have become extinct long ago.

"When is Xia Yin?" Katarina asked doubtfully.

Catarina tried her best to restrain her emotions, shook her head and said: "Why rush to pay off the loan? The annual interest rate of 4% is indeed high, but compared with those damn Venetian merchants, the Ming Emperor is just like a philanthropist Just like that, it has been extended for us for thirty years!”

"The nobility and the church are already huge rocks for the common people. If we add another suzerain country, there will be another huge stone that cannot be afforded. Only the common people will bear the price!"

"Maybe." Antonio shook his head and said: "The courage and choice you mentioned, anyone who is a captain on a ship has such a character, otherwise it is impossible to defeat the ocean."

Antonio really wanted to be a king, and he tried, but he was just a captain and really had no talent. Being a king requires wisdom, and Antonio did not have such wisdom.

The Duchess could only allow this lover to exist.

Whoever works for all peoples is the king of all peoples.

Antonio sighed and said: "I asked him last time. If you don't marry with the same surname, you won't be afraid of reproduction. In other words, it will be difficult for children to survive if you marry with the same surname. Since the Qin and Han Dynasties, the law has been very clear. Marriage with the same surname has a two-year prison sentence. Those with the same surname and the same clan will be punished with one level of adultery, and the Ming law is even more stringent. The same surname will be punished with sixty sticks, and the same clan will be punished with a hundred sticks. "

"Yes!" Antonio said with certainty: "Even if I fail to gain His Majesty's favor, I will still return to Lisbon and fight for Portugal to the last moment until I die! The nobles and church priests want to betray Portugal. Give Felipe II a solid position and power, but Portugal will become a living hell!”

"I thought before that His Majesty was doing it for the 4% interest. Quick repayment would benefit us Portugal, but when you said it, it seems to be true. Catarina, you know, I am not suitable to be a king. I I don’t have any idea about these.”

Antonio nodded and said, "Okay, let's do it."

"It's a good thing we are far away from the Ming Dynasty, otherwise the censors will impeach us if they find out, and they will probably be beaten to death."

"You are finally willing to come back." Catarina looked at the drunk Antonio and couldn't help but feel angry.

A dean who doesn't want to be a king is not a good captain.

"Including this trade of galleons, isn't it obvious enough that the East has set the anchor point of its trade in Lisbon?"

"No, you are very suitable to be a king." Katarina shook her head and said: "Being a king does not require wisdom. To be a king, you must be able to choose. Everything else is not important. Sauron always looks down on you, saying that you are an abbot. "You are a pirate, but Sauron is just a secretary. He doesn't know that the most important thing about being a king is bravery and choice."

Xu Fan lectured Antonio on class theory, but Antonio, who had limited talent, really couldn't understand it. He was even reluctant to admit the existence of class and chose another narrative. Portugal belongs to the Portuguese.

"The Ming Dynasty really has a long history." Katarina was stunned for a moment. The time scale of 3,600 years was a bit too long for her. This vertical scale was deeply rooted.

The Ming Emperor never pressed for loans, because a lot of the huge loans were actually profits and interest. A five-masted ship sold for 250,000 silver, and Zhu Yijun sold to Antonio a total of thirty-five five-masted ships to cross the ocean at this price. The remaining part of the ship is interest. In fact, the cost of a five-masted ship, including everything, is only twenty-five thousand silver.

"And you never lack these two qualities. This is the key to being a king."

While the country was rejoicing, one person was depressed instead, Duchess Catarina. Antonio was busy with various drinking parties and even had a lover. This lover was public and everyone knew about the existence of this lover, Catarina. I don't know how to face this situation.

Antonio said with some distress: "You always encourage me, but in fact I have no wisdom."

"Wait for me." Antonio went to wash his face and wake up a little, then sat on the stool and took a sip of tea before he woke up.

"Alas." Catarina didn't fuss or cry. She just touched her belly. There was uncontrollable sadness on her face. She didn't regret it. For Portugal, she faced Felipe II's aggressiveness. The situation in Portugal is a mess, and she can only choose to support Antonio in this way.

Liu Ji held a volume in his hand, written by Xu Fan, about the enclosure movement in England.

Starting from the "Morton Regulations" that began in the second year of Duanping in the Southern Song Dynasty, England has been carrying out an enclosure movement for more than 20 years, and this behavior is moving from the enclosure of manor owners to the enclosure of parliament. The Queen of England is carrying out After three large-scale land enclosures, the British Parliament controlled more than % of the arable land, and more than % of the land was converted into pasture for wool.

Massive famine was spreading across England, and even the streets of London were filled with homeless people and beggars.

"England is not only cruel to the outside world, but also tolerant to the inside. The Mesta Association is the largest woolen association in the entire West. The association, which is mainly composed of shepherds, is Felipe II's biggest pocket. Even so, Less than 10% of Spain's land is pasture, while more than % of England's land is pasture." Xu Fan looked uneasy.

"Why didn't the English rebel?" Liu Ji's eyes went dark when he saw it. The enclosure of land was annexation, and setting up ranches after annexation was something that even Liu Ji, a Ming desperado, could not imagine. Even the northern captives did not do this. Anda Khan has always wanted to expand the area of ​​cultivated land and obtain more food.

Anda Khan is already very cruel.

"Who says no, but they were all suppressed, and the Scots and Irish suffered the price. When the famine occurred, even the Ottomans couldn't stand it anymore, so they sent three ships filled with food, and Felipe The four ships of the Second Emperor went together to provide relief, and as a result, the seven ships were allowed to enter Ireland with about 1,000 dan of grain, because the British royal family only donated 2,000 dan of grain." Xu Fan explained an anecdote.

During the time when Felipe II was seeking to marry the Queen of England, famine and plague broke out in Ireland. Felipe II prepared gifts and a ship full of food. The Ottoman Sultan was also crazy at that time and wanted to claim the title of the Roman heir. After integrating his identity into Tessie, he went with Felipe II.

These days, transporting grain without Taiyue boxes is a very risky thing. Fortunately, the Mediterranean Sea is a bathtub and is quite peaceful. The disaster relief grain ship arrived smoothly.

"Where is this batch of grain? What happened in the end?" Liu Ji asked curiously. Xu Fan spread his hands and said: "It was sold to the English in London. The English used this batch of grain to enclose the land."

"Huh?" Liu Ji had done two ocean-going trades and asked himself how well-informed he was. He said sincerely: "This is very English."

Pan Jixun was a good old man, but when there was a locust plague in Jiangxi, he was driven to the point of killing people. The nature of the carnivores in this world is roughly the same. In the year of disaster, it can be said that the mountains and rivers are in a different land, but the wind and the moon are in the same sky.

"There is a golden retriever outside the door asking to see him." Chen Dazhuang walked in and whispered.

Jin Maofan is an Englishman. Obviously, the arrival of the Ming Dynasty's ocean-going merchant ships also attracted the attention of the English. Because the proliferation of pirates in the Strait of Gibraltar is closely related to the Queen's privateering license, the English are very concerned about the arrival of the Ming Dynasty merchant ships. , knew it very well, and even tried to rob it once, but never fought.

"Two special envoys of the Ming Dynasty, I am Francis Drake. As a global voyager, I think we have many common topics. I think it is like this, Mr. Liu Ji, captain of the Ming Dynasty's global fleet." Drake greeted him very elegantly. Even if he doesn't smile, he still has a gentleness and looks quite gentlemanly.

"Pirate leader Drake?" Liu Ji answered in Latin.

It is said that the Ming Dynasty is a country of etiquette and civilization. This sentence was a curse word, which made Drake look embarrassed. Although it was true, Drake was obviously the Lord of England! How can it be broken directly?

"That's not the case, these are all lies from Felipe II." Drake waved his hands repeatedly.

Liu Ji and Xu Fan were making eye contact, but Drake felt a chill rushing from his tailbone to his forehead. His intuition was warning him of danger. The sudden silence made Drake feel inexplicably panicked.

"What's wrong?" Derek asked confused.

Liu Ji sat up straight and said: "We are thinking whether to kill you now, pirate captain Drake, your people attacked our fleet in the Strait of Gibraltar, causing four people to be injured."

Drake said confusedly: "We sank seven ships and killed more than 210 people. Didn't the Ming merchant ship win?"

"England dares to attack our ships of the Ming Dynasty. This is a provocation and requires a higher price to be paid!" Xu Fan said with great conviction: "Whether it is the Spanish, the Portuguese, the French or the English, as long as they dare to provoke and attack the Ming Dynasty's ships, Merchant ships have to pay the price!”

For the first time, Drake saw the tyranny of the Han envoys. The Ming Dynasty was still the dynasty of heaven, and the Han envoys would be extremely tyrannical in safeguarding the dignity and interests of the Ming Dynasty. They would not show any mercy when it was time to take action.

It was obviously the Ming Dynasty that won a great victory and sunk seven of his privateers. However, the Ming Dynasty was still demanding compensation.

The victor's posture can be said to have been fully accomplished by Liu Ji.

"What price does Ming need?" Drake said with great conviction: "You can't kill me. I have brought sincerity. Ming should cooperate with our England, not Felipe!"

"Why cooperate with England? How can cooperation lead to the proliferation of pirates?" Xu Fan asked with a sneer: "We, the Ming Dynasty, have suffered greatly from pirates, so why should we cooperate with England?"

"Of course it's a colony of Liangya!" Drake said loudly: "England is just a mosquito compared to their colonies, and their colonies are extremely rich! In Peru alone, there are silver mines and saltpeter mines. Silver is currency, and saltpeter is gunpowder! They control the largest silver mine and saltpeter mine in the world!”

"I don't understand. Daming is always so wise. It is obvious who can get the greatest benefits by cooperating with him. But Daming still chose to be friends with Felipe and Antonio instead of us. England!"

Drake was very excited because he couldn't figure it out anyway. The Ming Dynasty became friendly with Spain and Portugal, but turned a deaf ear to England. When the envoy to the Ming Dynasty did not bring back good news, the Ming Dynasty merchant ship arrived at Cape Liberty. Didn't even have any contact with the English.

"Look, you guys only want to rob, and Ming is just doing business." Liu Ji looked at Drake. His words seemed reasonable, but everything was based on one foundation. Then That means robbery is legal.

It is legal to rob colonies, it is legal to rob one's own civilians, it is legal to rob other countries' goods, and it is legal to rob other countries' merchant ships. But there is no order at all. Everything is based on bandit logic.

"So, why does the Ming Dynasty associate with bandits? Although the Ming Dynasty has declined a lot, it has not fallen to this level." Xu Fan answered Drake's words with great conviction. He said more directly: "You don't have to think about it either. Just use your usual tricks to threaten Daming. What Daming is not afraid of the most is threats."

"You can use such endless pirates to make unreasonable demands on small countries, but the Ming Dynasty is not the same. You can come and rob it, but you won't get a cent of silver, and you will lose countless lives."

"This is a warning to you from the perspective of strength. The Ming Dynasty's ocean-going caravan is only twelve five-masted ocean-going ships. Even if you go out with all your strength, you can't plunder a piece of cotton."

It was good for the Ming Dynasty to do business properly and not rob them, but now it is being robbed on its own head. People can't understand what they say, so they talk with artillery.

"The Ming Dynasty's decision was not wise." Drake insisted: "The English never harmed the Ming Dynasty, but these red-haired thieves made trouble with the Japanese pirates when the Ming Dynasty was in trouble! They even broke through Malacca He stole the kingdom for himself, forcing the Ming Dynasty and England’s caravans to detour thousands of miles before entering the Western Ocean!”

"The Kingdom of Malacca is a vassal state of the Ming Dynasty!"

It was difficult for Drake to understand that the Ming Dynasty, as a kingdom in China, had conflicts and cooperation with Liang Ya. The Ming Dynasty was attacking the Governor's Palace of Luzon and Goa. This was what he saw with his own eyes. However, the Ming Dynasty still cooperated with Liang Ya. It is completely unreasonable for them to choose to cooperate. How can there be such a deal? Hostility and friendship exist at the same time.

"So according to your logic, we should kill you now because your privateer intends to rob our merchant ship." Liu Ji sneered and said, "Equal retaliation, right?"

Xu Fan stretched out his hand to interrupt the argument and said: "In fact, when your envoy John Harrison first went to the Ming Dynasty on a large sailing ship, I, the Ming Dynasty, warmly entertained him, even though Legaz and Antonio described you as Japan, but His Majesty still responded with a letter of credence from the Queen of England, expressing his willingness to do business. "

"But it is a pity that you have chosen another path. Once the privateering license is issued, Ming Dynasty, as a beneficiary of the maritime order, can no longer maintain friendly relations with England."

"After you go back, you should tell the British royal family, parliament, nobles, and gentlemen the reasons for the change of attitude of the Ming Dynasty. You should reflect on it and find the reasons within yourself instead of blindly asking Ming Dynasty and asking why Ming Dynasty refused to establish an alliance with England. relation."

Xu Fan was speaking from his heart. In fact, Ming Dynasty was not averse to contacting England at first. Even though the special envoy of Taixi repeatedly said that England was a troublemaker, stirring up trouble everywhere and making the whole Taixi mess, but Ming did not care about these and private plundering. Once the license is issued, you can't blame Ming for not maintaining friendship with the English.

The stronger the national power, the greater the benefits of order.

Xu Fan and Liu Ji did not kill Drake in the end, but snatched all his body parts and threw him out of the Chinese Hall.

Obviously, Drake was able to come to the Chinese Room of the palace with Sauron's help and Antonio's acquiescence. Spain and Portugal must also know Ming's attitude, and this is an excellent opportunity to test. Liu Ji and Xu Fan have already shown their tyranny. Too much tyranny will make their allies worried.

At the beginning of the new year, Duchess Catarina gave birth successfully and the child was very healthy. This is great news for the Portuguese and can be regarded as a gift from God.

"So the Duchess has not divorced her husband, but she is with the current King of Portugal, and she has given birth to a child. Is Taixi so messed up?" Liu Ji also found out after spending a year in Lisbon that the King of Portugal The queen has not yet divorced her ex, and Liu Ji's brain was almost burned out before he could understand this intricate relationship.

Yes, Duchess Catarina also has a husband named Joao.

Xu Fan said with emotion: "Felipe II used generous conditions to persuade João to support him, including but not limited to the position of deputy king of Brazil, the position of grand master of the Knights of Christ, and the ability to send a ship to India every year A license for private ships, a license for one boat to participate in the galleon trade with the Ming Dynasty each year, and a license for João’s daughter to become the crown prince of the Spanish crown prince.”

"Joao was convinced."

"Actually, the Duchess's right to inherit the throne is above Antonio. Antonio is just an illegitimate son, but the Duchess is not an illegitimate daughter."

"Joao is the Duke of Braganza and has become the most powerful nobleman in the Iberian Peninsula. However, because Joao provided his wife with all support except support in the struggle for the throne, the Duchess could only regretfully announce that she would give up the throne. , which is why the Duchess and her husband parted ways.”

"Chi Qian, you bastard, stop staring at gossip every day. When will you return to Daming?"

"We will set sail back to Daming the day after tomorrow. The return voyage will be very quick because there are not many goods on the ship, and we will trade it again in the Mughal Kingdom." Liu Ji said somewhat relaxedly.

"I really want to go back and take a look." Xu Fan looked at the boundless sea and said with a sense of loss.

The silver was only about two million silver, and there was a large amount of cargo on board. Antonio could not pay for the goods, so he supplemented it with goods. The fleet would arrive in the Mughal Kingdom within three months and do the work in the Mughal Kingdom. The final transaction, filled with cotton, returned to Songjiang Prefecture to complete global trade.

Liu Ji obtained two licenses. These two licenses were issued by the Portuguese royal family and the Spanish royal family respectively, which meant that merchant ships of the Ming Dynasty could supply supplies in the colonial ports of the two countries. It was okay without these two licenses. He only needed to carry eighteen kilograms. When the artillery is brought out, the colonial port will naturally choose to be supplied by the Ming fleet.

Artillery is sometimes much easier to use than a license.

Liu Ji led the fleet to set sail again. The ocean-going fleet, which was inconvenient to stay for a long time, stayed in Lisbon for less than half a month and disappeared into the vast sea again.

On the fifth day of the first lunar month, the Ming Dynasty ended its rest, and the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty began to work, one day earlier than the craftsmen started work on the sixth day of the lunar month.

On the sixth day of the Lunar New Year, the sun was shining brightly, and the Ming Emperor's jade chariot slowly drove out of Tonghe Palace and headed towards the two woolen factories on the bank of the Yongding River.

The sixth day of the first lunar month of the 11th year of Wanli is the day when the Ming Dynasty resumes work. It is also the day when the Ming Dynasty starts issuing industrial silver. It is also the day when bonus silver is distributed. On this day, the Ming Dynasty will award the Ming Dynasty Technology Progress Award for the first time, also known as the Chonggu Award. , because the gold merit reward plate made of pure gold is engraved with the words "Wang Chonggu presented it to the wise and enlightened people".

This is something the emperor promised, so he will certainly do what he says.

Wang Chonggu grinned almost to the back of his ears. The literati could only gnash their teeth and scold Wang Chonggu for being stupid for paying for awards and still being so happy.

Wang Chonggu naturally had something to say: Is he short of money? Sprinkle water (little meaning).

(End of this chapter)