Global colonization began with Ming Dynasty pirates.

Zhao Prefecture, Shanghai County, Songjiang Prefecture, Southern Zhili.

Starting a few days ago, the Zhao residence became bustling with visitors once again. The last time it was this lively was when Zhao Dongxi, the young master of the Zhao family, passed the imperial examination.

However, the people who came this time were completely different from those last time. Last time, those who came to see him were all young men from various families who came to pay their respects to the newly appointed scholar Zhao.

But this time, all the guests were women from various families, who came to pay their respects to Madam Zhao.

Everyone's stated reasons differed, but their ultimate goal was the same: to obtain a rare item that had recently left the Zhao residence, called Jade Skin Fragrant Soap.

"Don't worry, Madam, I will deliver the new goods to your door as soon as they arrive."

Madam Xu of the Zhao family forced a deep smile onto her stiff face and dismissed the noblewoman in front of her.

The other party was the wife of the magistrate of Shanghai County, so we dared not be negligent.

Once the sedan chair disappeared from sight, Madam Xu could no longer contain herself and hurriedly ran to where Master Zhao Longpei was.

Seeing the other party leisurely sipping tea in the courtyard, she was immediately filled with anger. "Master is truly blessed. He makes me, a mere woman, deal with so many wealthy ladies every day, while he hides here enjoying his life."

Hearing his wife's complaint, Master Zhao chuckled and put down his teacup, then asked, "How many waves is this?"

Madam Xu sat down beside Zhao Longpei. "Which wave? I don't remember, but all the prominent and wealthy people in Shanghai County have come, even the big families in the prefectural city have sent people to inquire. Master, are you really out of that stuff?"

Now past fifty, her beauty faded, she no longer held much interest in the Jade Skin Soap. However, she was surrounded by many wealthy women. Even her married daughter wrote to her, begging her to send more to her.

"That's all. I don't have any left. But I'm sure I'll have some again soon." Zhao Longpei stood up and walked into the inner room.

"Master is about to have his meal, where are you going?" Madam Zhao asked hurriedly.

"Of course I'm going to get you some soap, otherwise my doorstep will be worn down by all the people walking around!"

......

"The Zhao family sent word that they hope we can provide a large quantity of soap. The Zhao family's people and ships have just arrived on the island."

In an office, Lin Shiyi held a letter and reported to Lin Hao.

This is the office location that Lin Hao chose for the Sihai Gang's document room. When he doesn't need to go out for inspections, Lin Hao basically stays here.

"This is great news. Without this income, our gang's working capital would have been almost gone." Lin Hao reached out and took the letter, then read it carefully.

As stated in the letter, after returning home, Zhao Longpei sent soap to all the wealthy people he knew, praising its effects in the letters. The results were not merely good, but phenomenal. Customers who had used the soap wrote to Zhao Longpei requesting large quantities. Some business partners even offered very high purchase prices.

Therefore, Zhao Longpei promised Lin Hao in the letter that he hoped to receive an unlimited supply of soap. As for the price, Lin Hao promised that he would accept any amount as long as it did not exceed 20 taels.

After reading the letter, Lin Hao put it down and said to Lin Shiyi, "The Zhao family is willing to offer a high price of 20 taels of silver to buy our soap."

"Twenty taels!" Lin Shiyi exclaimed in surprise. Then, incredulously, he said, "The wealth of these rich people is truly beyond my imagination."

"On the eleventh, the letter said that the Zhao family's money for purchasing goods is all on the ship. Take several teams of men to the ship and unload the silver. At the same time, go to the workshop to collect the goods and deliver them to the ship."

Lin Hao carefully folded the letter, then rested his chin on his hand and pondered for a while. "First, send 16,000 ordinary soaps and 2,000 special soaps. Also, give them 500 of our newly produced pearl soaps. As for the price, give them 5 taels each for the ordinary ones and 10 taels each for the special ones."

"Ten taels?" Lin Shiyi was taken aback. "Young Master, wasn't that our previous price? Now the Zhao family says they're willing to offer twenty taels. Why?"

"Soap is not a necessity of life, and there are alternative products."

Our soaps are marketed as luxury goods, and the price of a luxury item depends entirely on how well the story is told. A good story makes it a rare and highly sought-after commodity. A bad story reduces it to a common consumable, making it difficult to sell even a single bar or two.

However, if we pirates are to tell this story well, we can't do it ourselves; we can only rely on the Zhao family and the gentry friends behind them.

To get them to willingly tell this story well, they must be given a sufficient amount of profit.

Of course, I'd like to sell it for 20 taels a bar, but that would leave insufficient profit margin for them to go crazy. Now, I'm proactively offering an additional 10 taels of profit on top of their bottom line. I don't believe the Zhao family won't be tempted. They'll be even more eager than we are for the soap to be elevated to a divine status.

"Young Master is wise. Unlike me, when I heard it was 20 taels a piece, all I could think about was the gleaming silver. I couldn't think of anything else. Eleven has learned something new again," Lin Shiyi replied with a smile.

"Haha, that's not necessarily true. Maybe we'll earn more that way, since it's all about small profits and quick turnover," Li Hao replied with a smile.

It was indeed a low-profit margin, barely a hundredfold. After all, the oil was refined from whales, which could be caught directly from the sea while training troops. Other materials, such as wood ash, weren't particularly valuable. The heaviest costs were actually the spices and labor used as auxiliary ingredients. A bar of soap cost less than a penny to produce. Selling it for 10 taels of silver would indeed result in a profit of less than a hundredfold.

Once the Four Seas Gang's fleet grows larger, they can plunder merchant ships on a large scale. Spices, a crucial commodity in maritime trade, will likely not need to be purchased. All things considered, excluding labor costs, the cost is practically zero.

Through this trade, Lin Hao gained some understanding of the financial strength of the wealthy merchants in Jiangnan. As far as he knew, the Zhao family was not the strongest among all the merchants in Jiangnan, barely considered middle-class. However, they brought 10 taels of silver with them directly to Dongluo Island.

This certainly doesn't represent all of the Zhao family's cash. It's at most a small portion. The wealth of these Jiangnan gentry is evident, but it's understandable, given that since the opening of China during the Longqing era, one-third of the world's silver has flowed into China, and most of it has been stockpiled in Jiangnan.

With 10 taels of silver deposited, the Four Seas Gang's accounts were instantly well-stocked. Lin Hao guessed that Zhao Longpei knew he was short of money, which was why he brought 10 taels of silver for the transaction. Otherwise, 1 taels would have been more than enough for the initial transaction.

With money in hand, it's natural to spend it. Lin Hao immediately ordered an increase in the procurement of various supplies, especially saltpeter, sulfur, copper, and iron, with no limits on the amount purchased.