Ming Dynasty: I am truly not the Emperor of Longevity

Consulting an expert beforehand was definitely the right decision.

These are details that no true expert would have thought of; you simply couldn't have imagined them without someone pointing them out.

Lu Chen had carefully considered his choice of a Hui merchant who did not yet own his own merchant ship as a guide.

At this time, the maritime merchants engaged in trade in the East China Sea were mainly divided into two factions: the Fujian faction and the Huizhou faction.

The several powerful figures who later dominated the East China Sea also came from these two places.

Today, Jin Zilao, the first leader of Shuangyu Island, and his deputy Li Guangtou were both from Fujian.

Xu Dong, who replaced Jin Zilao as the second-generation leader, was from Huizhou.

Wang Zhi later joined Xu Dong's business group because they were from the same hometown.

At this time, Wang Zhi was probably still doing business inland and had not yet officially gone into business, but he was probably also eager to explore trade routes.

Shuangyu Port should have been an open secret among Huizhou merchants for a long time.

This Anhui merchant surnamed Xu had already witnessed the enormous profits of maritime trade, but he had not yet been able to own his own merchant ship and could only pay high freight rates to share ships with others.

He must have been eager to quickly accumulate capital and acquire his own merchant ship.

Of course, they couldn't refuse the olive branch they were offered.

Because Lu Chen hired him as a guide for this trip to Shuangyu, offering him a deal he couldn't refuse.

After the transaction was successfully completed and they returned home, they gave him the thousand-stone ocean-going ship as a reward.

The boat was purchased in Yangzhou for only five hundred taels of silver, which was nothing to Lu Chen, and he couldn't possibly take it back with him when he returned to Linqing.

Since we have to get rid of it anyway, we might as well do a favor.

If the trip goes smoothly and nothing goes wrong, then it means that this person is quite reliable.

Giving him this ship would also have another benefit: it would forge a good relationship and personally support a new maritime merchant.

In the future, when Qin Fang is sent alone with his men to deliver goods to Shuangyu for trading, there will be someone to look after him.

You can also get inside information about the Anhui merchants through his connections.

In the future, this person could even be used to establish connections with other Huizhou merchants such as Wang Zhi.

"Thank you for the reminder, Brother Xu. This is Zhoushan, where there are many boats. It shouldn't be difficult to buy a Fujian-style boat here."

Lu Chen first bowed to the young man surnamed Xu, then turned to Qin Fang and gave him instructions.

"Tomorrow, take a few men with Brother Xu to the dock and see if there are any suitable boats. Buy them if you find any."

Seeing how readily Lu Chen agreed to buy the boat without even blinking, the young man surnamed Xu nodded in approval.

Looks like I'm having a lucky day; I've actually met a wealthy businessman.

He had originally planned to save up for another two years to order a Fujian-style ship from the south, but he never expected that taking on this job as a guide would allow him to do just that.

"Master Lu, once we've bought the ship and transferred the cargo to the Fujian-style ship, we can set off for Shuangyu Port."

After discussing the details of buying the boat, the young man surnamed Xu spoke up.

"However, do not go directly south from Cengang via the Zhoushan Inland Waterway."

Patrol boats from Dinghaiwei and Guanhaiwei often passed along this road. Although these garrison soldiers all knew what Shuangyu Port was all about, I even heard that they themselves secretly did business with the "Aozhu" of Shuangyu.

But this did not stop them from boarding the ship under the guise of inspections to solicit bribes.

The ship owner, Lu, and the Qin brothers are both unfamiliar faces. If our ship is stopped by these seasoned soldiers, we'll probably be ripped off badly.

Moreover, ships transporting Western goods coming from the north would arouse suspicion among the sentry boats of the "masters" of Shuangyu.

"I understand what Brother Xu means."

Lu Chen nodded.

"We'll go around the entire Zhoushan Islands from the open sea and circle around to the south of Shuangyu Port."

That would be best.

Seeing that Lu Chen had approved of his plan, the young man surnamed Xu continued,

"Entering the port from the south, it looks like a ship coming from the South Seas."

When we entered the port, the "Lord of Macau" would send a patrol boat to guide us, and at the same time, to inquire about our origins.

Let's say that we obtained a batch of Western imported goods from Southeast Asia, and because we admired the great name of "Lord of Macau" Xu Dong, we made a special trip to Shuangyu to pay our respects.

Xu Dong, the leader, is also one of the "Ao Zhu" of Shuangyu, second only to the Grand "Ao Zhu" Jin Zi Lao Tou Tou.

Leader Xu Dong has always welcomed fellow Huizhou natives.

I speak fluent Huizhou dialect, so I should be able to convince the people on the sentry boat.

Of course, the most important thing is that the cargo on the ship must be genuine Western imports and withstand inspection.

"Do we need to inspect the goods before they enter the port?"

Qin Fang asked.

"That's natural."

The young man surnamed Xu nodded.

"This was the first time the mainland ship owner had gone to Shuangyu Port to do business. He had neither a powerful coastal family to introduce him nor a merchant to act as guarantor."

To successfully enter the port, you must produce something to convince the people on the sentry ship that you are genuinely there to do business, and not that you are spies for the imperial court.

This ship full of Western goods is the best proof of our loyalty.

"Master, what do you think of this?"

Qin Fang looked at Lu Chen and whispered.

Before landing at Cen Port, Lu Chen had already instructed all the dozen or so Imperial Guards he had brought with him to address him as their master.

Qin Fang was well aware of the value of the items on the ship. These were all the exquisite crystal and glass artifacts produced by the Linqing Glass Workshop in a month and a half, totaling more than 700 pieces.

If it were sold at retail prices in Linqing City, it would be worth over 150,000 taels of silver.

Even if it is now intended to be sold in bulk to Shuangyu merchants and the Xie family of Yuyao, the unit price would still be at least forty or fifty taels, which is still a huge sum of money.

Such a valuable item being exposed before even entering port will likely attract unwanted attention.

"Then let's show them!"

Lu Chen pondered for a moment.

"To successfully enter Hong Kong now, we must show some sincerity."

It doesn't matter if the goods are sold out. After we land on the island, we shouldn't look for buyers ourselves, but go directly to see Chief Xu Dong.

"As long as he agrees to our terms and the price isn't too unreasonable, we'll sell all the goods to him in bulk."

. . .

Ten days later.

Inside a house at the foot of Cen Mountain on Liuhang Island.

"These young people are truly formidable!"

Xu Dong picked up his wine glass and drank it all in one gulp.

"I see that the ship owner is only in his early twenties, yet he is able to find a way to ship goods within the territory of the Ming Dynasty on his own."

The ship owner Lu is right. Since there are already people shipping goods within the Ming Dynasty, if Xu were to sell these glass artifacts to the mainland as well, the abundance of these items would diminish their value.

Mr. Xu has agreed to your conditions.

"I will sell all five hundred pieces of Western glassware to the Portuguese and Japanese; I will never sell them within the territory of the Ming Dynasty."

"Since Chief Xu is so generous, I should reciprocate."

Lu Chen also downed the wine in his glass in one gulp.

"This batch of glassware will be sold at the price quoted by Chief Xu, totaling 20,000 taels of silver."

As agreed, every six months thereafter, Manager Qin would come to Shuangyu to deliver goods to Chief Xu, each time carrying approximately two thousand pieces of Western glassware.

I also guarantee that the annual shipment volume within the Ming Dynasty will not exceed half of the quantity supplied to Chief Xu.

"That's excellent."

Xu Dong raised his glass again.

"If the price drops, it won't be a good thing for either of us."

It is my good fortune to be able to cooperate with such a shrewd businessman as the ship owner, Mr. Lu.