I am Emperor Wanli

Chapter 868 You are the warriors who resist tyranny!

Drake and the eleven captains looked embarrassed when they heard the interpreter's words.

Pay the high price on the spot.

Everyone wants to gain more benefits in the Ming Dynasty, so they brag a lot.

From a business perspective, this is nothing shameful.

"You didn't rob the Spanish silver ship, we did! Xiao Tongyi, you were a member of the fleet at that time, right?"

One of the two interpreters nodded and said, "Yes, Admiral, I was the gunnery officer on the cruiser HMS Lilac.

At that time, our ship was in the Dongrushuhai Islands, 110 nautical miles northeast of Mangzhong North Island, when we discovered the Spanish silver ship sailing out of the port of Cartagena.

After receiving the signal from our Lilac, the Liuhe battleship, along with four frigates and five cruisers, immediately surrounded us, with four communication ships and armed sailboats on the periphery.

Wang Fengju raised his hand and interrupted Xiao Tongyi's words.

“Don’t talk about the process, talk about your gains and the benefits allocated to you.”

"Yes. We intercepted a Spanish silver ship and three escort ships, and seized 52 kilograms of gold, 41 tons of silver bars, four boxes of various gems, 120 tons of cocoa, and 300 tons of sugar."

The other interpreter received Wang Fengju's signal and translated Xiao's words simultaneously, which made Drake and the eleven captains swallow their saliva.

Fifty-two kilograms of gold, forty-one tons of silver bars, and four boxes of various gems!

This is the ultimate pursuit of pirates!

It is said that the Spaniards used to transport 200 tons of silver back to Europe from the New World every year, but now their silver mines in Peru and Bolivia have been seized by the Ming people.

Especially the Potosi silver mines in Bolivia.

It is said that it was the largest city in the New World, and nearly 100,000 Incas were forced to dig silver mines there. Before being robbed by the Ming people, the Spaniards had to transport 40 to 50 tons of silver and an unknown amount of gold back to their homeland every year.

Now the only gold and silver mines left for the Spanish in the New World are Zacatecas near Mexico City and some scattered gold and silver mines in south-central Mexico and north-central Colombia.

About one hundred tons of silver can be produced each year.

The Ming people stole more than 50 kilograms of gold and 41 tons of silver at one time, looting all the gold and silver treasures that the Spanish had accumulated in the Governorate of New Grenada for a year!
really!

The Ming people have strong ships and powerful guns, and they are very powerful. They are much better at robbing than us!

Compared to them, we are just a bunch of despicable thieves.

"Our Lilac was the first to discover the Spanish silver ship, so it was recorded as a great achievement. I was the chief of artillery, and I received about 3,000 silver coins in profit."

The silver coin minted by Spain in Mexico was called peso. One peso weighed about 27 grams and contained 90% silver, about 24.4 grams.

One Ming silver coin weighs 28 grams, 89 grams of silver and 11 grams of copper, containing 25 grams of silver.

The exchange rate of Ming silver coin to peso should be 1 to 0.98.

However, the Ming Dynasty was strong, and banks stipulated that a Spanish silver coin of one peso containing 24.4 grams of silver, or a Spanish silver coin with a face value of eight reales, could only be exchanged for a Ming Dynasty silver coin of 0.8 yuan.

If a five-pesetas silver coin contains only 22.5 grams of silver, it can only be exchanged for a Ming Dynasty silver coin of 0.7 yuan.

Don't try to reason with the bank. According to the current monetary and financial regulations of the Ming Dynasty, gold and silver coins from any country entering the Ming Dynasty will not be regarded as real currency, but only gold and silver of a certain purity.

Whether it is Spanish silver coins, Venetian gold coins, or Ottoman gold and silver coins, they are all the same. When they are exchanged in the Ming Dynasty, only the gold and silver content is considered, and then the cost of melting and recasting is deducted. This is the bank's official exchange rate.

This invisibly raised the value of Ming silver coins.

Silver coins from other countries must be charged a handling fee, but Ming Dynasty silver coins do not require a handling fee.

Not convinced?

Then you should not come to Ming Dynasty to trade and do not buy Ming Dynasty products.

Another interpreter quickly calculated the numbers and said to Drake and others, "Interpreter Xiao received a profit of 3,750 pesos."

Drake and others couldn't help but gasp.

So much money!

Drake, in particular, was most touched.

In the previous few decades, Britain had been frequently at war and its currency had continued to depreciate. The silver content of silver coins gradually decreased from 92.5% to a minimum of 35%, causing banks in Venice, Genoa and other countries to refuse to accept British silver coins.

It was not until Queen Elizabeth ascended the throne that she actively reformed the currency and restored the silver content of British silver coins to 92.5 percent.

One shilling contains 5.6 grams of silver, and one pound contains 112 grams of silver, which is only 4.5 yuan of Ming silver coins, equivalent to 4.6 Spanish pesos.

Xiao Tongyi participated in a robbery of a Spanish treasure ship and actually got a share of the proceeds of 815 pounds.

Is eight hundred and fifteen pounds too little?

More than a decade later, in order to respond to the Spanish Armada expedition, the British mobilized the entire country and raised a sum of military funds to recruit ships from Britain and other countries and build new ships.

The military expenditure was only 100,000 pounds, of which Queen Elizabeth borne 60,000 pounds. Most of the money was borrowed from bankers in Venice, Genoa, the Netherlands and other countries with various mortgages.

Fortunately, the British won the war, so Elizabeth and Britain did not go bankrupt.
Drake and the other eleven captains were so envious!

We are thieves, starving and thirsty; you are robbers, wearing gold and silver.

Wang Fengju pointed at Drake and the eleven captains with his right hand and said, "Look at how poor you all are. Did you rob the Spanish silver ship?
fart!
You don't even smell the Spanish silver!
You are a group of scattered people, fighting each other, and going hungry three times a day. What future do you have?"

Drake and the eleven captains looked at each other and reached a consensus with their eyes.

"Your Excellency Admiral Wang!" Drake spoke on behalf of everyone, "Although we are only twelve people, we can represent all the Protestant privateers in the Caribbean and other parts of the New World.

We had 32 ships of various sizes, but the key was that we were not united. As you said, we were scattered, so we were chased by the Spanish fleet from Europe to the Caribbean, and from the Caribbean to West Africa.

We were of one mind once before, when Captain Lyon came.

On that occasion, there was a French marquis who was on a two-ship expedition to the New World. He called on a dozen Protestant ships from France, the Netherlands and Germany and targeted a Spanish treasure fleet.

Unfortunately, they escaped to England. Later, the Marquis returned to France, and everyone dispersed again.

Now the Ming Kingdom has come, the honorable Lord Wang, please point out a direction for us and guide us to make a fortune. We are absolutely loyal to the Ming Dynasty.
We are not afraid of hardship or dirt.”

Drake had figured it out in the past two months. The Ming people's attitude towards him was like a dung fork.

When dealing with excrement, you have to use a dung fork, but after using it, you think it is dirty and smelly and you want to throw it to the other side of the sea.

But Drake was very clear that a dung fork was a dung fork, as long as it was useful.

The Ming people don't want to dirty their hands, but we are not afraid of hard work or dirt. Just ask us to do any dirty or tiring work.

As long as we have finished our work and someone feels that we have done our best, we can give us a little reward.

We don't ask for as much as Xiao Tong's translation, we just want a little to slip through your fingers.

Wang Fengju and Huangfu Tan listened carefully to Drake's words.

Yes, such a sensible person can use it easily.

Huangfu Tan received Wang Fengju's gaze, understood what he meant, and spoke.

"You are all warriors who are fighting against the tyranny of Spain and the cruel oppression of the Roman Catholic Church!

You are willing to sacrifice your lives for freedom and justice, and as the beacon of human civilization, we, the Ming Dynasty, naturally actively support you."

After listening to the interpreter's translation, the eleven Protestant captains straightened their backs.

That’s right, we are resisting tyranny and despotism!
What robbery, what piracy? As long as we succeed in resisting, it is revolution!

Drake secretly praised them in his heart. Look at the Ming people. Once they raised the banner of the moral high ground, looting and robbery became a just act of enforcing justice.

"We, the Ming Dynasty, have not yet officially declared war on Spain. We have only taken a series of small-scale military actions to expel them from our overseas territories that they illegally occupied.

It will be difficult for us to attack the Spanish ships once they leave the Rushou Sea and the Genxun Continent, which is what you call the New World.

Moreover, our Ming Navy is the personal army of the Emperor founded by His Majesty the Ming Emperor, a benevolent and righteous army. There are some things we are unwilling to do and it is not convenient for us to do them.

However, it is our duty to support the just cause of the European people in their fight against tyranny and for freedom!
If you rob a silver ship from the Spanish, the tyrant King Philip II of Spain who is wreaking havoc in Europe, and the corrupt and despotic leader who suppresses freedom, the Pope of Rome, will have one less shipload of silver to deposit into their warehouses, and the military expenses for suppressing the free people of Europe will be one less shipload, and your revolutionary cause will be able to achieve victory one day sooner!
Everyone, don't look down on your cause. Your cause is just and noble!

You are carrying a historical mission and the expectations of hundreds of millions of European people who are pursuing freedom and justice!"

Huangfu Tan's words made Drake and the eleven captains' blood boil, and they wished they could die together with the Spaniards and the damned Church.

Wang Fengju and the surrounding generals and officers were also stunned.

No wonder you were sent by the General Political Work Bureau to the Qinglong Fleet to serve as the political director!
After Huangfu Tan got excited, he started to talk seriously.

We need to give people a boost, but we also need to provide practical benefits that can be truly obtained. We need to take a two-pronged approach and promote both spiritual and material civilization!

"The ports of the Ming Navy on the east coast of Xunzhou and the Ruoshou Sea are open to you. You only need to report and enter the port according to our requirements to replenish supplies, rest and repair ships.

We have a trading company in Jumang County, where you can sell the treasures on the Spanish ships.

Rest assured, our firm places the highest importance on reputation and we only deal in goods.

As long as the goods are genuine, it doesn’t matter whether you are English, French, Dutch, or German, or whether you are a Protestant or a Catholic, a Christian or a Muslim.

I recognize the goods, not the people."

Drake and the eleven captains were delighted.

One of the biggest problems of being a pirate is how to sell the stolen goods.

It is impossible to sell hundreds of tons of sugar and cocoa at stalls at the port.

It is impossible to just cut off a corner of a silver ingot and use it.

In the past, the seized goods were taken back to Europe to be sold. The merchants in Venice and Genoa were the most ruthless. Now there is another channel for purchasing goods, so why not?
They also know that only with competition will these damn vampires add to the purchase price.

Huangfu Tan added: "We in the Ming Dynasty will open a new route in the next two years, directly from our mainland to the eastern ports of Xunzhou, which are the ports in Brazil, Paraguay, Venezuela and other places you mentioned.

At that time, you will not only be able to sell the spoils more conveniently, but you can also purchase Ming Dynasty goods from us and sell them in Europe.

The Portuguese are selling Ming goods, and Venetian merchants are reselling them from the Ottomans and Arabs. You should have come into contact with them to some extent."

"Yes, I like Ming country cigarettes the most, the ones with a bridge and a river on the box."

Sanggan River and Lugouqiao brand cigarettes were sold for 5 cents and 10 cents a pack in Ming Dynasty, but in Europe, they were said to be sold for more than 50 cents.

"I love Western mirrors. I snatched one off a North African ship and used it to win my wife's heart."

"I like Ming Dynasty clocks, clocks that tell time. But they are too expensive. Those vampires in Venice and Genoa sell them at very high prices.

The last time we fought the Catholics, we stormed into a Marquis's castle near Rouen, and I stole one and brought it back to my home in Brittany. Unfortunately, a few years later, it and my family were destroyed in a fire.

After saying this, the captain made a cross on his chest and said, "May God save their souls."

After the captains finished speaking, Huangfu Tan added: "Everyone, my Ming Dynasty is developing a trade route directly to your Europe.

I believe that in a few years, Ming goods will be shipped directly to Europe's doorstep. Our merchants will not sell in one country or one place, we will select some trustworthy friends and grant them the agency rights for goods in a certain area. "

Huangfu Tan briefly explained what agency rights meant, and glanced at everyone, "In the future, as long as you cooperate with us and build trust with each other, you will be my Ming Dynasty's trustworthy friends!"

Monopoly of Ming Dynasty products? !
Drake and the eleven captains were shocked.

They all knew something about the business methods of the Genoese and Venetian merchants.

These guys cooperated with the Muslim Ottoman Empire, obtained precious goods such as spices, silk, porcelain, tea, etc. from the East from Arab merchants, and resold them at high prices.

Relying on such a monopoly, these businessmen made a fortune, and then opened banks, lent money like vampires, and controlled the economic lifeline of various countries.

If I could get the Ming Dynasty's agency rights, even if it's just the agency rights for a certain product in a certain region, it would be fine!

It can be eaten by several generations!

Seeing that Drake and the eleven captains' eyes were bright and full of desire, Huangfu Tan knew that they had all heard it.

He turned to Wang Fengju and said, "Admiral, you can ask the people from the General Staff Office to tell them the details of the cooperation."

"it is good!"

(End of this chapter)