Late Ming Dynasty: The Counterattack Begins with Sea Pirates

With efforts focused on three fronts, Hong Kong Island was a hive of activity.

By autumn, the number of refugees they had taken in had reached nearly ten thousand.

Having more people is naturally a good thing; as the saying goes, many hands make light work, and there's enough to get things done.

However, a large population is not entirely a good thing. The same old problem persists: the surge in the number of migrants far outpaces the progress of Hong Kong Island's development.

Hong Kong Island lacks infrastructure; everything has to be built from scratch.

Faced with the sudden increase in population, Chi Honghai did not organize a dedicated team to handle the matter as he had done before, because he was simply too busy. Even if he worked day and night and got sick from exhaustion, he still couldn't keep up with the pace.

He gathered the refugees who had been brought back and shouted to them, "I'll provide the food, Master Chi. As for housing, you've all seen it now. There aren't enough places to live on the island. Those of you who come to Hong Kong Island, take your tools and go up the mountain to cut down trees and build your own houses. We've already marked out the locations for you. As for what kind of houses you build, that's up to you."

The same applies to farming. Any land that has not been cultivated can be cultivated, but the prerequisite is that the cultivated land must be planted, and the grain must be confiscated. However, the benefits are obvious: after the grain is confiscated, one will not only not go hungry, but will also be able to eat better food.

The housing problem can be solved relatively quickly. Clearing land requires cutting down trees, building houses requires cutting down trees, and there is still surplus wood in the warehouse that can be used. However, the problem of food is not a major issue at the moment.

However, the consumption of more than 10,000 mouths is completely different from the previous consumption. Although there is plenty of grain in the warehouse, and grain can be grown from the ground, the problem is that grain grown from the ground takes time. Even for crops as fast as sweet potatoes, the consumption cannot be replenished before the wasteland is extensively cultivated and the crops bear fruit.

Chi Honghai was of course aware of this, and Ai Si had reported to Master Chi more than once about the recent high consumption of grain.

But people still need to eat, and these people will be the ones working for you in the future. You not only need to feed them, but you also need to make sure they are well-fed.

After thinking it over, he summoned Liu Qingjiang and Shen Er and asked them to take silver to Macau and Fort Zeelandia to buy some grain from the Portuguese and Dutch.

When the two asked how much grain they wanted to buy, Chi Honghai did not directly say how much grain, but instead told them to each bring 100,000 taels of silver. When they arrived at their destination, he instructed them to transport back everything that could be sold or eaten on the other side of the border.

In addition, he instructed Liu Qingjiang to take an extra ship and an additional 100,000 taels of silver to find a way to buy more firearms from the Dutch, since there were now more people and soldiers, and the original muskets and cannons were definitely not enough.

If the Dutch try to stall on selling firearms, tell them that we fulfilled the previous contract perfectly, even at the risk of being discovered by the authorities. Have Liu Qingjiang remind them of their obligations as allies and the previous agreement, otherwise, if there is a next time, we will not cooperate.

Shen Er was a little puzzled. He asked Master Chi why he didn't buy firearms from the Portuguese this time, but instead chose to go to the foreigners.

Chi Honghai looked at the Tianquan and asked Shen Er, "Do you know how much silver this ship costs?"

Shen Er naturally knew, and readily replied: 150,000 taels, sir.

"Do you think this ship is expensive or not, at 150,000 taels of silver?" Chi Honghai pressed.

Shen Er was momentarily speechless. He was not clear about the price of Western ships. Although the Tianquan had been incredibly impressive that day, 150,000 taels of silver was no small sum. For an individual, it was enough to live a happy life, and even more. Most people had never even seen such a large amount, let alone earned it.

"Sir, this... I can't say for sure, but the Tianquan should be worth it, right...?"

Chi Honghai gave a meaningful "hmm". It was worth it, definitely worth it. For their situation, it wasn't just worth it, it was extremely worth it. But in terms of the actual market price, Chi Honghai understood that it was definitely overpriced, and by quite a bit. This Portuguese man looked amiable and kept calling them friends, but he was definitely not a kind person.

Shen Er understood what the master meant from Chi Honghai's meaningful "hmm": the ship was worth it, but too expensive, far exceeding the price that should have been his.

He didn't say anything more, but obeyed the master's orders to prepare things.

Before they parted, Chi Honghai said to them, "Don't worry, we'll have more than one large ship like the Tianquan in the future."

……

After a while, the two returned from Macau and Zeelandia.

Chi Honghai inquired about the situation from both men. In his view, these two transactions were nothing more than ordinary business deals. If there were any variables, it would be whether they would encounter some Japanese pirates or whether Zheng Zhilong's men would turn their backs on them when they went to Zeelandia.

Fortunately, nothing unexpected happened, the negotiations went smoothly, and the items were mostly purchased at normal prices.

For Macau, a normal price for the transaction is fine, but regarding Zeelandia, Chi Honghai asked, "Didn't they give you a discount? Or send you anything extra?"

When Master Chi pressed Liu Qingjiang for an answer, he finally remembered what he had wanted to tell Master Chi on his way back.

"Sir, now that you mention it, I do remember. They said they originally wanted to sell at a low price because they were very satisfied with the last cooperation. However, now Fort Zeelandia also needs various things, and Governor Hans can't just approve it directly."

Listening to Liu Qingjiang's description, Chi Honghai originally thought that this was just the Dutch trying to fob him off. Liu Qingjiang was a former pirate, and he was not good at playing the game of business. He was easily fooled by the other party's few words or a few small favors.

But Liu Qingjiang's next words made Chi Honghai realize the credibility of the Dutchman's words and saw a potential opportunity.

According to Liu Qingjiang, he had only been in Zeelandia for a short time when he saw some unrest around the area. The Dutch said that some of the local indigenous people were ungrateful and often engaged in such robbery and murder, calling it despicable behavior.

Hearing this, Chi Honghai muttered to himself: "I wonder who stole from whom, who killed whom, and who was so despicable."

Liu Qingjiang continued to recount his experiences in Fort Zeelandia. Besides the indigenous people, the Portuguese from the north were also eyeing them covetously. The relationship between the two sides seemed very tense now, not just tense, but at the point of real conflict, although it wasn't on such a large scale yet.

Because of these two situations, especially the threat from the Franks in the north, they are not as well-off as before. Therefore, they can only sell these grains and firearms at the original price. According to them, others would not sell them.

Chi Honghai scoffed and shook his head.