Luzon was the ancient name of the later Republic of the Philippines, but while it was still in existence, it was limited to Manila and its environs.

Like other countries in East and Southeast Asia, Luzon was once a vassal of China. It wasn't until 1521 A.D., Magellan's voyage around the world, that the Europeans discovered the land. Forty years later, the Spanish colonizer Rigasby landed in Manila Bay, defeated the then powerful state of Luzon, built a castle and fort on the south bank of the Bashi River, and began his colonization of the Philippines.

At this time, Manila and its vicinity had been ruled by the Spanish for nearly a hundred years. However, the history of Chinese here is much longer, and there are indeed many Chinese who have settled and done business here.

The member named Tang Xingyuan sat on Chen Yuanliang's boat all the way south, crossed the choppy sea, and when he approached Manila Bay, he saw that the headland at the entrance, with high rocks and shaped like a wooden pestle, was quite an eye-opener.

"Here, the locals call it losung, and that's how the country of Luzon got its name."

"I see."

Tang Xingyuan has not left Qiongzhou, Guangdong, Fujian and Annan, the family behind him and the family trading company have stable business relations, and he has traveled to and from various places many times. It's just that this Luzon is the first time to set foot in it.

Ships slowly sail into Manila Bay, an excellent natural anchorage with a natural barrier between the Bataan Peninsula and the Central Cordillera mountain range, which is geographically very favorable for the construction of the port. Standing at the bow of the boat, the two of them saw no longer just rocks, shrubs, beaches, and sea water, but also ships in the bay, large and small, and the shape was also insufficient.

Among them, there is no shortage of Chinese-style ships, Fu Boat, Canton Ship, most of which are owned by Chinese maritime merchants, some of them are docked here because of their settlement here, some are here for trade, and there is even the flag of the Zheng Group fluttering in the sea breeze.

"Brother Tang, please see, those are the sea ships built by the Franco man."

As far as the eye can see, in the bay, some sea ships have towering bow and stern decks, some have huge curved sterns, and some have very high stern towers, with four masts, and on the side of the side you can still vaguely see the dense windows that have not yet been opened, perhaps after opening, you will see a black hole in the artillery.

Needless to say, Chen Yuanliang was running a business in Qiongzhou, and he had seen a lot of European ships, and as long as he looked at the shape, especially the sails, he could immediately distinguish them from Chinese ships. It's just that today I am in a foreign country, and looking at these behemoths that are obviously more spectacular than the nearby Fufune and Guangfu, I am naturally more violently touched.

"No wonder the Taixi people can take a boat from so far away to do business in Daming, this ship, I'm afraid it can have a fight with the treasure ship of the Three Treasure Eunuchs."

Tang Xingyuan had never seen a treasure ship before, but he couldn't find a suitable reference for a while. At this point, he was even more glad that the proposal he proposed to build a European-style ship in the conference hall at the beginning, and he was also impressed by Chen Kai's support for it, and he seemed to have touched some context.

"Perhaps, Chen Fujun also hopes that in the future, the maritime merchants of the Ming Dynasty can also cross the ocean like these Taixi people."

With a silent sigh in his heart, he didn't put it into his mouth, but immediately asked Chen Yuanliang: "Ying Long, that Mr. Pan lives here?" ”

It is said that Chen Yuanliang originally went to Qiongzhou Mansion to do cotton cloth business, and he had an intersection with this person because of business. Some time ago, during a banquet, he asked a question about shipbuilding, but he knew someone and could answer, so he boldly raised it. At first, Chen Yuanliang's plan was to put it forward, close the intersection between them, and wait until the return voyage to inquire here, and wait until the next time he goes to Qiongzhou, or writes a letter to Qiongzhou to explain, that's all. Who knows, once this person heard that there were Nanyang Chinese who knew how to build European-style ships, he stayed after the banquet, and after confirming Chen Kai's attitude, he rushed here with him.

Letter, Chen Yuanliang had already entrusted someone to bring it here in advance, and as for whether it was delivered to that person, it was a matter of two words. At this time, the anxious fellow asked, and he repeated the words he had mentioned before, which was nothing more than that people did settle here, but he did not dare to guarantee that he was not there.

"Brother Tang, from now on, remember not to make a statement."

"Well, everything is in the dragon under it."

Chen Yuanliang said this when he set off, and it is a rehash of the old things here. was originally asking for help, and Tang Xingyuan was also a "guest with the host", even if he responded.

Soon, a ship under the Spanish flag approached. After the pier was taken, a man in a European shirt and leggings underneath was holding quills and books, and was escorted by a group of guards in helmets and half-armor with their heads on their heads, and their noses were raised. In addition, a man dressed as a Han Chinese accompanied him, following the man.

This is a routine inspection, Chen Yuanliang is a businessman who has been in Nanyang for a long time, and even settled in Nanyang, but he is not here. I know the situation very well, and there is nothing wrong with it.

During this time, Chen Yuanliang was dealing with the inventory personnel at the port, and Tang Xingyuan was also looking at the visitors. All these guys had black hair, black eyes, deep eye sockets, three-dimensional facial features like knives and axes, and their complexion was darker than the Dutch and Englishmen he had seen before.

There is no doubt that it is a Buddha machine, he wants to come in his heart, and when the person who came asked him about the purpose of his trip through the general matter, he also said according to what Chen Yuanliang had taught him before, only saying that he was here to purchase spices, and that's it.

After a while, the Spanish soldier who entered the cabin to search for the ship returned to the deck, chatted with the man, and the man left Chen Yuanliang's ship in high spirits. Before leaving, he didn't forget to give two orders, these words did not need to be translated, Chen Yuanliang could understand them, and immediately responded.

"It's time to enter the port."

The cabin was obviously in a mess, which could be seen from the looks of Tang Xingyuan's entourage. In this regard, Chen Yuanliang was obviously not surprised, and just said that they were checking for prohibited items, and the matter came to an end.

Their ship slowly sailed into the harbor, and as soon as the ropes were tied, another team of Spanish port crews boarded the ship. This time, the member didn't pay attention to the appearance and clothing of these people, because among the chatter, especially after the translation of the general affairs, he only felt that it was very familiar, and only after a moment he figured out where the source was.

"Didn't you just check it once, how can you check it again?"

He thought so in his heart, but he also knew that when he went out, especially on other people's land, this kind of nonsense was absolutely unspeakable, and it was like Chen Yuanliang, who was used to it.

As the owner of the ship, Chen Yuanliang dealt with the visitors, and talked about where the trip began, where to dock, how long it stopped, what kind of goods were purchased, how many of each, and even the origin and purpose of the crew and merchants on the ship. Looking at that proficiency, it is obvious that there has been a special recitation before. When it was time for him, he was not to be outdone, and poured out the purpose of his trip to buy spices.

"Take your books, and this, to the Port Authority."

The second search still didn't find any prohibited items, and when it came, the Spaniard led by him left such a sentence, and took the lead to get off the boat, not waiting for Chen Yuanliang's reaction at all.

Chen Yuanliang's face sank at this, but he didn't say anything, he got off the ship with his own account books and inspection lists, as well as the other maritime merchants on the ship, and walked towards the Spanish building that was queuing at the gate in the distance.

Others were on the side, and Tang Xingyuan didn't have a word to ask, but he just looked at the faces of other maritime merchants who didn't seem to look very good. Walking to the location of the port authority, at a glance, most of the people in front of the queue were dressed as Han families, and there were only a few Europeans and Nanyang natives. In stark contrast to the relaxed expressions of these minorities, most of these Han Chinese are as pale as their fellow members.

The queue is full of maritime merchants, some coming and some leaving, all of whom have to walk here. Tang Xingyuan stood there, watched carefully, and soon noticed that those Europeans and Nanyang natives were different from the Han maritime merchants, but before he could continue to observe, he saw a few Han maritime merchants walking out with angry faces, and the Southern Fujian dialect that lowered his voice was very unclean, and he left here.

"These people, I have seen, are the subordinates of the Zheng family."

When one companion said this, the crowd was silent. The procession moved forward slowly, some of them were over quickly, and some of them had to grind for a long time. When they arrived, they were ushered into a room, where several Spaniards sat with a messenger by their side. It's just what is being talked about, but I can't bear to look at it directly.

"They all want cotton, silk, porcelain, and betel nut for your ship. In addition, there is a batch of spices to be sold to you. Here's the price, go back and hand it over. ”

There is no room for negotiation at all, and if he is in charge, of course, he is not in charge, but just a translator. Forced to buy and sell, this scene really made Tang Xingyuan stunned, but before his shock ended, the new shock was more clearly presented in front of his eyes with the complaint of the companion who recognized the Zheng family.

"At this price, not only will you not be able to make money, but you will also lose money."

Some people take the lead in complaining, and some echo it. The member turned his head to look at Chen Yuanliang, although he was speaking, but his expression was obviously no different from others. However, he only brought a small amount of money this time, and it was obvious that he was going to buy spices, and when he was still hesitant to follow the crowd, he listened to the general and persuaded him seriously: "There are still some things to buy and sell, be content." ”

What is this called!

Tang Xingyuan's heart was angry, and he just wanted to ask rhetorically, "What is called buying and selling, why is it called not buying and not selling". Unexpectedly, when they heard this, the companions fell silent in an instant, and when they said that they wanted to discuss, they were led by the attendants to the next room. What needs to be discussed is the proportion of the spices, not whether to continue the struggle!

"Is this a compromise?"

"What else, these Franc people have always been extremely harsh on our Daming maritime merchants. There have never been fewer cases of forced buying and selling, and sometimes they don't even give a penny, and they just snatch the ......"

"Is that okay?"

"Why not, this is someone else's territory."

"Then why do you have to trade here, aren't you afraid of being robbed?"

"Brother Tang, you are new to this sea trade, I don't know. The geographical location of this Manila is excellent, and many maritime merchants from Taixi, Nanyang and Daming will come here. And these Franc machine people are not like this every time, but only occasionally. If you run into it, admit that you are unlucky, otherwise what else can you do, we don't have a relationship that is too reasonable elsewhere. ”

In the words of that companion, the profits of sea trade are amazing, but the risks are equally huge. Taking Nanyang as an example, the commercial port of the indigenous people of Nanyang is based on the face, but it is generally relatively friendly to Chinese businessmen, but it is limited to the limited productivity and absorption capacity of goods in the country to which they belong, so most of them are only done by those Chinese businessmen who have solid relationships. The rest was to trade in ports established by European colonizers such as Manila and Batavia, where there was ample capital and supplies, but the Spaniards and Dutch were generally not very friendly to Chinese merchants.

"They were afraid, afraid that if there were more Han Chinese, they would squeeze them out."

In the end, the transaction of buying and selling, everyone shared the share of the spices, to put it bluntly, the losses and risks, and left the port authority and headed for the area where the Chinese lived in the city. It's just that when they left the port, they were checked again, and this time they were more directly attacked, and they searched enough to make sure that they didn't carry weapons before they were allowed to go.

When they arrived, most of them went to visit their business partners, and some went to book inns. The rest of Chen Yuanliang and Tang Xingyuan walked together in the direction of the familiar home, and when they talked about it, Chen Yuanliang couldn't help but sigh.

So, it didn't take long for them to come to the door of the familiar house. knocked on the courtyard door, but it was a man dressed as a subordinate, informed the master that he was at home, made a report, and soon a middle-aged man greeted him.

"This is Tang Xingyuan from Qiongzhou, and this is Mr. Pan Xuezhong Pan."

After the introduction and greetings, Pan Xuezhong naturally knew what the people were doing, so he simply led them to the back study. When he arrived at the study, he sat down in both compartments, and made sure that there was no one near him, and Pan Xuezhong's eyes widened, and he could only see how the two of them were creepy.

"You came from Qiongzhou, are you going to build a Galen ship?"

PS: Just resumed the update, writing a little too slow, just finished writing, sorry sorry.