Rise of the 1630s South America

Chapter 1348 Rio ([-])

"The government of this country warmly welcomes all (big) investors (households) who have invested (dogs)." At a welcome dinner in Hue City, Lieutenant Zhou Yafu said: "In the past, we It is a pleasant cooperation; in the future, I hope that we can work together more closely and create greater brilliance.”

After finishing the toast, he confessed his guilt, and then walked into the back room to meet with Mario who had been waiting here for a long time.It is relatively quiet here, suitable for talking about some more intimate topics, such as the inside story about these investors.

"Now I have a new idea." Seeing Lieutenant Zhou Yafu enter the door, Mario picked up the fragrant coffee cup in his hand, and said half-jokingly and half-seriously: "I heard that you are trying to find a way to get a new one in the southeast of Xinhua Island." Coffee is grown in the mountains, so the climate there should be very suitable, right?”

"It's very suitable, but it's limited to Arabica coffee beans." Zhou Yafu saw Mario drinking coffee, so he simply asked the orderly to bring him a cup of Robusta coffee produced in Xinhua Island Naturalization Island (St. Mary Island) , Smelling the aroma, he said: "Whether it is the climate or the soil, it is very suitable for growing coffee. Unfortunately, the French are not this kind of material. They have abandoned that good place. Of course, they probably have no chance to correct their mistakes now. Yes, because the situation of the Frenchman in New Huaxia Island is quite bad."

"Will the French be driven out of Xinhua Island? I want to be honest, young man." Mario looked at Zhou Yafu and asked.

"From my personal standpoint, I naturally hope that the Frenchman will be kicked out, and then we will happily take over that piece of land. In this way, most of the coast of the entire Xinhua Island will be controlled by ourselves That’s right, except for the area around Antongil Bay.” Lieutenant Zhou Yafu said carefully, “After defeating the French, our government will definitely consider conquering other coastal areas of the island and finally encircling the inland plateau. At that time, There must be many investment opportunities. If you really want to invest in coffee plantations now, then you can try your luck at that time. I believe that based on the relationships and contacts you have managed in the east coast for so many years, this will definitely not be a problem. "

"Very good, young man. I heard that you are going back to the capital next week? Say hello to your father for me. I have known him for many years." Mario got a satisfactory answer and immediately said with a smile: " I heard that you are not married yet? Why, don’t you think about our Italian girl? Prince Cosimo of the Delta Company has a cousin who is a delicate flower of the Medici family, are you interested?”

"No, thank you for your kindness, but I really don't need it." Zhou Yafu said shyly, but his attitude of declining was obvious.What a joke!As an outstanding—well, this is debatable—young general of the East Coast Army system, Zhou Yafu is unwilling to ruin his future by marrying that cousin of Prince Cosimo. I feel sorry for myself who took the risk to join the tour group of the Polish-Russian War. After returning, I fought life and death on the front line. I don't want my future in the army to be ruined like this.Besides, I don't know what that woman from the Medici family looks like. As for me selling myself like this, how cheap it must be, and it's not impossible to get along, so he refused very decisively. Mario's proposal (perhaps as a joke?).

"Well, since you don't want to, I won't embarrass you." Mario put away the smile on his face, and then said seriously: "But Prince Cosimo of the Duchy of Tuscany, you should increase your investment. Mr. Sergio Rivera who came with me this time is not only a shrewd businessman, but also a representative of Prince Cosimo. They are all very concerned about the investment environment in Rio de Janeiro. If the conditions of the island are [-]% to [-]%, I think they will not hesitate to invest in sugar cane plantations here, there is no doubt about it.”

It is said that this Prince Cosimo is the eldest son of the Grand Duke Ferdinand of Tuscany. He has just been married for two years and is now the first heir of Tuscany. It can be said that he is very hot.His "fate" with people from the East Coast started from the Delta State Company established many years ago, in which he held about one-fifth of the shares and invested 320 million bank lire, which is not a small sum.After the company, which is mainly engaged in sugar cane plantations, has steadily reaped profits in recent years, Prince Cosimo's interest has gradually been ditched. After discussing with his financial advisor, he felt that the country on the east coast seemed very interesting. Investment prospects. Although the current investment focus of the Medici family is always in Paris, Lyon and Bordeaux, this does not prevent them from setting aside part of their funds and investing them in the East Coast Republic of China in the New World. Maybe they can reap a lot in the future. What about profits?These are all uncertain things.

Therefore, after tasting the sweetness of the sugar cane plantation on Xinhua Island, even if the prince himself has not recovered all the investment costs, he can't wait to arrange a reliable businessman—Sergio Rivera— Represent yourself to Rio de Janeiro, which is occupied by the East Bank, to see if there is any good opportunity.The meaning of Prince Cosimo is actually very simple. As long as the conditions in Rio de Janeiro are not too bad, then you might as well invest in some industries. After all, it is much closer to Europe, and the transportation cost will be much lower. It is also more convenient to send someone to take care of it. .

At this time, Mario Doria reminded the people on the east coast to pay attention to the investment trends of Prince Cosimo and even the Medici family. In fact, there were multiple considerations.First, they consider it for their own family and even the Republic of Genoa: the north-central region of Italy has historically been the traditional market of the Genoese, and has a deep influence. There is a bit of competition, but it doesn't mean that they have never cooperated, not to mention that in the era of food shortage, it can be said that the wheat in Sicily and the north-central region of Italy fed the entire Republic of Genoa. It is not an exaggeration for people to strengthen ties with this region, and the best way to strengthen ties is undoubtedly to do business and make money together. After all, the binding of interests is the most reliable.

Second, although the sales of goods on the east coast in the port of Livorno have been good over the years, the growth rate is far from that in Brandenburg-Prussia (benefits ceded by the Dutch), Livonia and Russia. Although it has gotten rid of the situation of small profits or even losses in recent years, it is still nonsense to say that it has made a lot of money. Therefore, if this meeting can catch up with Prince Cosimo and take the opportunity to deepen the relationship, then it may not be possible to make goods on the east coast in the future. It entered the market of the Principality of Tuscany on a large scale, and then extended to the surrounding city-states in central Italy. There has always been a dense population, and it is really a small market.Therefore, based on the above two points, what Mario said just now came out - of course, as a big agent of goods on the east coast, the Doria family must also get a lot of benefits from it, but it goes without saying , everyone tacitly is.

What's more, although Prince Cosimo married Louise, the cousin of King Louis XIV of France, it is true that the life of the Medici family in France is getting more and more difficult. Businessmen in Parma, Milan and other places were also affected. Lyon, Bordeaux, Paris and other places were once full of Italian businessmen, and the number has decreased a lot in recent years. Some of them went to Amsterdam with funds and talents, and some returned to Italy. Looking for new investment opportunities.The energy of these merchant groups, if you really want to say it, is actually quite large, otherwise they would not have seized a considerable part of the commercial interests of the huge French market by lending money to King Louis XIII of France.

If the people on the east coast can attract this part of funds and talents, then the large tracts of barren land in the country and overseas colonies may be found to be exploited by "taken advantage", which is self-evident to the country. The rapid growth of strength is beyond doubt.Zhou Yafu pondered what Mario meant, probably the current strength of the East Bank was enough to deal with political and business organizations at the level of the Medici family, so the two sides could consider increasing cooperation—and, if it was done well, then tie up Some merchant groups in Lucca, Parma, Milan, and even Savoy and Genoa, then the political structure of central and northern Italy in the next few decades is likely to undergo some subtle changes.

"Of course we welcome the Medici family to invest, just as we welcome all serious businessmen. The east coast is open and there are no restrictions on people from any country or sect. Prince Cosimo wants to invest in the Hue area. That's good, we welcome and are willing to solve all his worries, especially some security concerns. You know, our investment environment here is much better than that of the Caribbean islands. Those places are frequented by pirates every day. Islands are frequently changing hands between countries, and nobles or monopoly merchants often plunder the plantations they fancy. In short, it is a mess, far from being able to compare with the superior investment environment of our East China Republic. Regarding this point, I think Prince Cosimo has been inspired by the good operating conditions of the Delta Company." Lieutenant Zhou Yafu first boasted (of course, most of what he said was true), and then subconsciously lowered his voice and said: "I will give priority to paying attention to That Mr. Rivera, thank you for your kindness, the Chinese East Coast Republic will remember the friendship of the Doria family."

The two talked for more than an hour, but it was nothing particularly important. It was nothing more than business issues about the Ottoman and Crimean Khanate grain markets. Zhou Yafu didn't know much about these things, so The two sides just had a casual chat, and then it was over.

On the second day, accompanied by people from the East Coast, this rather large Italian investment delegation first inspected some sugar mills on the outskirts of Hue Port.Most of these industries are left over from the Portuguese, and the scale of individual workshops is not large (because the sugarcane industry in Rio de Janeiro was very small in the Portuguese era). After hearing that the people on the east coast will integrate and improve these workshops, a new large-scale After the sugar refining line, Italian businessmen including Sergio Rivera were very satisfied.In this era, people from the east coast are synonymous with advanced technology. They say they want to build a new production line, so this must be a very high-end thing. With this advanced cane sugar refining production line, it must be beneficial to everyone's final profit. There is improvement.

And just at this time, the Youguo Army, which went deep into the inland area to carry out the security campaign, also continuously sent good news from the front line, that is, to defeat a certain tribe today, which village will be incorporated tomorrow, etc., plus teams from deep in the forest. The Tupi Indians who were forced to come out here are enough to illustrate the strength of the East Coast people's rule over the surrounding areas.These Indians should be wiped out sooner or later, and the safety of the plantation should be worry-free-of course, in the eyes of these Italians, the East Coast people sent the captured Indians to work on the construction site first, and then It would be too wasteful to send them to settle in overseas colonies (the mortality rate in this process is extremely high, and it is definitely an exaggeration to say that one out of ten survives, but the real situation is not much better than this), it is better to send them all Just tethered to the land for the needs of the major plantations.It's just that this seems to be the internal affairs of the people on the east coast, and outsiders like them have no right to comment, they just feel it's a pity.

The entire month of August was spent in the careful investigation and negotiation of Italian investors. On September 1663, 9, the Italian businessmen who had completed their inspection were very satisfied and expressed their intention to invest in sugar cane plantations in Hue Port and its surrounding areas. (At the same time, a small number of people plan to try to plant some cinnamon and pepper), and hope that this matter will be implemented as soon as possible.Lieutenant Zhou Yafu breathed a sigh of relief when he heard the words. The last major event in his tenure was finally completed. There should be civil servants from the Government Affairs Council system to take over the work here, and he can finally return to the army system with peace of mind.

On September 9, all Italian investors, including Rivera and Doria, boarded a merchant ship returning from General Espiritu Santo in the north and headed for the Oriental Port in the south.Next, they will move to the famous Dongfang Hotel, where they will discuss the details of the investment with the officials of the Administration Council of the Eastern China Republic in detail. Now that the matter in principle has been settled, there are basically only some details left. After these plantations are gradually produced, the connection between the East Coast and the Italian region will become closer, and the influence will be far stronger than in the past, and these are actually real benefits.

(End of this chapter)