Zheng Yong disembarked in Amsterdam.

It is the heart of the Netherlands, the financial center of Europe, the world's largest shipbuilding base and the largest market for used ships, the largest market for grain, the largest market for metals, the market for livestock and dairy products, the second largest market for salt and fishery products, and a third of the city's people are foreigners or descendants of foreigners (mostly Italians), who are financiers and their helpers, who control this port city with gold flowing with money.

At the beginning of the Age of Discovery, the whole of the Netherlands, including Amsterdam, was poor, and even when the Dutch later made a fortune from navigation and trade, his neighbors could not change their prejudices. For example, an envoy of Louis XIV once described the Netherlands as follows: "A very small country, the coast of which is full of barren sand dunes; The country's rivers are crisscrossed, and floods occur frequently on the coast and on both sides of the river, which is only suitable for the growth of grassland, pasture is its only natural source of abundance, and the local harvest of wheat and other food is not enough to feed one percent of the population. ”

The words of Louis XIV's envoys may have been exaggerated, but the reality may not be too far off. The wheat produced here is of poor quality and in very small quantities, feeding only about a quarter of its inhabitants; The country is low-lying and pastures are often flooded when it rains in winter, and then rely on windmills to pump the accumulated rainwater away in the spring. All in all, it was a poor place, with no trees, no trellises, and no enough wheat to eat.

But the Dutch, relying on their own adventurous and fighting spirit, seized the fleeting opportunity in the tide of history and won the favor of Italian and Jewish capital. It then quickly replaced the cities of Antwerp and Genoa, which were under or under the control of Spain. It developed into the financial and economic center of Europe.

This year is already 1649. Amsterdam has been on the rise for almost 80 years (since it replaced the commercial center of Antwerp), and today the city has a permanent population of more than 100,000, perhaps close to 150,000. As for the merchants and their servants from all over the world who gathered here, the number was even more terrifying. Talent and money from all over the world are here and there is no doubt that these are the keys to Amsterdam's prosperity.

Zheng Yong's disembarkation place is the outer harbor of Amsterdam - Tessel Island. In fact, in the beginning, Tesser's Shoal was a place for merchants to trade and meet, but in 1282 a terrible tsunami broke through the sandbar near Theseer Ford. The Zuiderzee was formed by the influx of seawater, and Amsterdam, which was then an inland village, gradually became a place of trade for merchants. As Amsterdam became more prosperous, the island of Tesser became its outer port, where countless ships docked every day and then sailed back and forth between Amsterdam and Amsterdam by barge.

Over the years, the island of Tesser has developed into a sizable dock area, where thousands of ships from all over the world linger, either waiting for a tailwind, for a pilot to lead them around the shallows, or for the Dutch authorities to inspect the boats. The island is full of shops and pubs. Drunken sailors and prostitutes with heavy makeup cuddle each other, and bad-eyed gangsters search for fat sheep. From time to time, there will be hot-blooded young people in the streets who draw their swords and duel, in short, the qiē here looks chaotic, but you can't deny that it is full of energy.

Zheng Yong was a high-ranking diplomatic envoy of the Eastern Republic of China, but his main task on weekdays was to preside over the trading posts in Riga and Danzig on the Baltic Sea coast. Of course, there is only one now, and according to the information just received, the Danzig trading station has been ordered to close by the Kingdom of Poland for a time limit, and the stationmaster Schneider has begun to dismiss employees and settle payments and arrears. As for the land and buildings of the merchant house, they can only be temporarily entrusted to the Valleglevsky family to help take care of them, and this thing is not easy to sell for a while.

Zheng Yong came to Tesser Island today mainly to receive his ship, a second-hand old ship purchased in the name of the Riga Merchant Post. Thanks to the handler (Captain Kuat's youngest son, Freilly), the pine-planked flute boat was bought quite cheaply, only 2,000 ducats, which made Zheng Yong quite satisfied. After all, now that the Danzig trading station has been closed, the income has plummeted, and a new trading station in Arkhangelsk is being built.

"The owner of the boat was in a hurry to get out of his hands, so he came to me directly and did not go through the guò middleman, so he saved a lot of money. The net cargo capacity of 105 Rust is only 2000 ducats, which is honestly really cheap. "Freilly. Kuaite took off his top hat and said to Zheng Yong, who was wearing a black tunic suit.

"Thank you for your help, Mr. Kuat. Your father was an old friend of the people of the East Coast, and we have always worked well together. Zheng Yong thanked him in French, and motioned to his entourage to give Freilly an acceptance bill issued by the Amsterdam Exchange Bank for five hundred guilders, which was the commission promised to him by the East Bankers.

Freilly generously accepted his fair share of income, and then kindly reminded: "Generally speaking, the reputation of the Amsterdam used ship market is still very good, but I still recommend that you buy more scattered spare parts." Even if you don't need it now, you may need it in the future. After all, once you get your ship to the Baltic Sea, the price of these things will increase by at least a third to a half. ”

Frell is telling the truth. Amsterdam is now the largest shipyard in the world, and its famous Saldan shipyard claims that "with two months' notice, the customer will be able to build a battleship ready to sail every week after that." "This speed of shipbuilding is almost a shame on the entire European shipbuilding industry, and even the people on the East Coast of the New World may not be as fast as they are (because of the small scale of shipbuilding, many parts need to be worked on a temporary basis, unlike the Netherlands, which has finished products in stock all year round).

The Dutch not only built ships quickly, but also cheaply. There are three reasons for this: First, they use a lot of machine power in shipbuilding activities, such as mechanical saws, tree mast machines, and so on. Now with the technology of hydraulic machinery packaged for sale on the east coast, coupled with their own research, the shipbuilding technology of the Netherlands is changing with each passing day, a large number of newly developed hydraulic and animal power machines appear in shipbuilding factories, and the principle of involute gears has also been thoroughly studied by Dutch scholars, and then widely used in industrial production, which has further enhanced the industrial strength of the Netherlands and reduced production costs.

Second, the Dutch control the upstream and downstream of the shipbuilding industry chain. Ropes from Russia, asphalt and timber from Finland, masts from Norway, and leather from Jutland were all run by Dutch merchants, so that Dutch shipbuilders, led by the Saldan shipyard, always had access to raw materials at a lower price than in other countries.

Third, Dutch shipbuilders can more easily obtain sufficient, cheap and high-quality bank credit, which is also of considerable significance for reducing the cost of shipbuilders, because not every shipyard is always in a state of abundant capital.

The above three are the secret of the Dutch selling their ships to the North Sea, the Baltic Sea, the Mediterranean Sea and even the New World, and their cost advantage is simply too great! Therefore, at this time, Forelli Jianyi, Zheng Yong and others took the opportunity to buy some cheap spare parts, which can be regarded as pertinent words.

Zheng Yong, of course, was as good as he could, and he instructed one of his retinue to take a dozen or so Rivonian sailors from Riga to the market to buy spare parts. The smile on Freil's face grew even brighter when he saw that his advice had been adopted, and he beckoned, and behind him a freckled young man with a sword at his waist walked up. Freli spoke a few words to the boy in Dutch, and then explained to Zheng Yong: "Let Marco go with you, he is familiar with many things on the island, and at the same time can help you with the cargo." In addition, the East India Company has been recruiting sailors on a large scale recently, and the manpower in Amsterdam has suddenly become strained, and the outlanders running around the streets are dangerous. A few days ago, a group of German hillbillies had gone missing, and I guess they were forced to board a transport ship to the East Indies by this time, so let Marco follow you, he can help you out some unnecessary trouble. ”

Zheng Yong was a little stunned at first when he heard Forrell say this, and then he quickly made a decision to listen to Freilly's advice, after all, he knew the situation best here. And as the agent of the East Coast in Amsterdam, Freilly is also the most trusted person by the East Coasters. His father was an old friend of the East Coasters, and his brother is now involved in the business with the East Coast, and now he is also an agent for East Coast steel, pharmaceuticals and knitted lace textiles.

It's really not easy for these goods from the East Coast to squeeze into the Amsterdam market. First of all, the East Coast Republic of China improved its position in Europe (stepping on the Spanish throne) and sold the Dutch government a face in the peace negotiations with the Kingdom of Spain, in addition, they formed a close trade partnership with the Dutch West India Company, which had a strong background, and finally with the introduction and help of the Genoese, the East Coast people squeezed into Amsterdam and successfully transported their goods to the island of Tesser, and then sold them through Dutch merchants in Guò.

This is really a great historic breakthrough for the people of the East Coast! At the same time, it is also a significant sign of the increase in comprehensive national strength and the improvement of diplomatic relations! (To be continued......)