Port of Messina Marina Terminal, Alessandro. Motta. Morality. Doria was silently watching a fleet of ships leading through the Guò Strait. This fleet is huge, and there is a rare powerful warship with 66 large-caliber naval guns, which is undoubtedly the fleet of the Republic of China on the east coast of China. They had made their way to the Ottoman port of Smyrna to trade, and had just had a bitter encounter with part of the Mediterranean Fleet of the Spanish Navy, in the Tyrrhenian Sea. The outcome of the confrontation ended in a resounding victory for the East Coaster, which left many people in the dark and Doria being one of them.

Alessandro could not have imagined that the Spanish fleet, which he remembered as extremely powerful, would be defeated at the hands of a small nameless nation in the New World, which even made Doria feel a little unreal. But this was the case, and the news of the return of the "Santiago" from injury came out as quickly as possible in the eyes of their family in Naples. At the same time, one of their family's ships transporting supplies passed by the battlefield on the day of the battle, bringing similar news to Alessandro. This made him puzzled and a little excited, maybe he had found a new investment channel for his family?

During this era, as Amsterdam grew stronger in the north, Genoa, which had succeeded Antwerp for a short period from 1557 to 1627 as the economic center of Europe, began to decline. The Kingdom of Spain, in which Genoese bankers had invested heavily, experienced a terrible financial bankruptcy, and although the Genoese had withdrawn a large amount of money in time before the bankruptcy, there is no doubt that the financial turmoil still cost the Genoese a lot.

Although the Spanish king was able to pay off some of his debts by transporting silver bars from Cadiz to Genoa after the bankruptcy, the country's finances and finances were increasingly controlled by Jewish merchants from neighboring Portugal. And according to some hidden and hard-to-tell grapevine. These Jewish merchants also seem to have had inextricable ties with the bankers and large wholesalers of Amsterdam. All in all. The Genoese lost the largest market they had worked so hard to operate in the last hundred years. So far. The most lucrative banking sector was largely devoid of them, and in the twenty years after 1627, the Genoese bankers had withdrawn from the Catholic king's circle of financial advisers, either actively or passively, and retained only the commercial network of wholesale Spanish American goods in the port of Cádiz. They maintained the entrepot trade of these goods until the 19th century.

All in all, this small country, with little strategic depth and a population of only 500,000 people, has lost its largest investment market, and the accumulated commercial capital in the country is extremely impulsive to find the next worthy investment. In fact, the Genoese capitalists were also very "aggressive". In the early years, they ventured in the Black and White Seas, occupied Feodosia, Chios and other places, and carried out trade; Later, they invested heavily in Antwerp, the emerging economic center of Europe, and had many business contacts with the Welser and Fugger families from Germany; After 1557, they began to lend money to the king of Spain on a large scale, often at an annual interest rate of more than 20%, and at the same time financed and participated in the commercial relations between Spain and the Americas. At the same time, they even invested in Muslim countries, with small amounts in France (whose economy was controlled by another Italian capital, Florence, in the early days) and the Netherlands.

In a sense, the Republic of Genoa, a country with a huge amount of commercial capital, and the Eastern Republic of the East, which was dominated by industrial capital, were natural partners. Not to mention the fact that Genoa at this time also had an invaluable banking network and distribution system in all the major European commercial cities, although this system was currently slowly shrinking and disintegrating under the constant onslaught of Amsterdam's rapidly rising merchants after 1585.

And Genoese businessmen, who have a strong sense of crisis, will certainly not let go of every worthy investment object. Historically, Europeans have commented that they "always invest in countries that are on the rise", and the little waves that the East Coast Republic has made in the European textile market over the years have begun to be incorporated into the eyes of the Genoese. They were already a little interested in this remote country in the distant New World. If the country could show some of its strength, the generous Genoese bankers would not mind investing some of their money in the country to help it grow more rapidly – just as Venetian capital entered Antwerp and Amsterdam and Florence in France.

In the wake of the rise of the Ottoman Empire, the Republic of Venesia (its capital, Venice, population about 2 million at the time) began to pour capital into the increasingly active northern markets of Antwerp and Bruges, and worked with bankers from Augsburg in Germany to catapult Antwerp into the economic center of Europe. In 1557, Spain's finances went bankrupt, and the Augsburg bankers (led by the Fugger family) who lent money to the Kingdom of Spain also went bankrupt and withdrew from the European economic scene. According to statistics, one-third of Amsterdam's inhabitants at that time were of foreign descent or simply descendants of foreigners, mostly capitalists from Italy and merchants, clerks and helpers who followed them into the northern markets in large numbers.

"The interest rate on St. George's comptoir's life annuity bonds has been reduced to 2%, and there is a surplus of domestic capital, and it seems that the East Coaster is a better place to invest." A deep middle-aged voice suddenly sounded behind Alessandro, and he continued: "At present, the funds deposited in shops and bank branches in Spain, France, Venice, the Netherlands, Ottomans, Morocco and other countries have reached 180 million bank lira (Genoese accounting unit, the value is fixed at 0.328 grams of gold, 180 million bank lira is equivalent to 59 tons of gold), and everyone does not know what to do with this money. Investing in Amsterdam? It's dominated by the Venetians and the Dutch! Reinvesting in Spain? It was accused by the Portuguese and the Jews! Invest in France? No, no, no, it doesn't work either, it's the territory of the Florentine bankers! Maybe you want to try your luck in the UK and Sweden? There are also Venetians and Jews there. Oh, my dear cousin, are we going to invest this huge amount of money in wheat cultivation in Sicily? Haha, well, it's a joke! Maybe you're right this time, investing in the New World has a lot to offer, and the East Coasters have shown their strength at the right time and proved that they are capable of bearing our 'special love'. This naval battle says a lot, doesn't it? ”

"Mario, haven't you always wanted to re-enter the Spanish market?" Alessandro turned to his cousin and said, "Your father was still a money-earner in Cadiz and a wholesaler of American goods, and he is one of the few Genoese who continued to succeed in Spain after 1627, and is the pride of the Dorian family, and you should emulate him." ”

"It doesn't make money to run a wholesale business, my dear cousin." Mario took off his hat, stroked his curly hair, and said, "Alum from Cádiz, wool from the Castilian plateau, wool from Toledo, a small number of mining machines imported from the Netherlands, these are all my father's business that he can get involved in, and it is not exclusive." I don't know how long this business will last, and maybe one day it will be snatched away by those hateful Jews. So I wanted to spread the money while the market was good, and I had several projects in mind, and the East Coast was one of my targets. Cousin, you think the same way, right? ”

"War has broken out between the East Coasters and the Spaniards, but it is difficult to say what the outcome of this war will be. As far as I can see, it seems that the Spaniards were still primarily focused on the land war with France, and at first they were only stunned and angry at the war that took place in the distant New World. But I don't expect them to let it go, because rumors of gold have been found there, making it difficult for Spaniards on the brink of financial collapse to give up. Therefore, I am not willing to make a decision lightly until the outcome of this war is decided. Alessandro first said a lot, and then changed the conversation and said: "But I am also going to mobilize 100,000 bank lira from the Amsterdam market and try to invest in the east coast market a little." It's not a lot of money anyway, but if you're lucky, it might be a great opportunity. We seem to be lacking in friendship with the people of the East Coast at the moment, and dear cousin, perhaps the special diplomatic envoy of the East Coast, Mr. Mo San, whom you know, is a good springboard, and we should talk to him, who is currently in Marseille. ”

"Mr. Mo San is a funny man, but also a capable businessman and a responsible diplomat." When Mario heard this, he immediately replied: "He is very methodical in the Ottoman Empire, he knows many people, and he is really generous, and many people like him." Tomorrow I'm going back to Genoa, and then I'm going to Lyon, maybe I'll find time to go to Marseille and talk to him. He seems to be heading north to Paris to meet some of the biggest French figures, and I might be able to help him in this regard, since our family still has some old ties in France. I think I can use this as a starting point to talk to him, and he will like it. ”

"Of course, the Doria family shouldn't pass up every potential investment opportunity." Alessandro immediately said with interest. (To be continued......)