When the merchants saw that Isabel had returned to the parlor, they made an appointment with her and Captain Hawkins for the day of the settlement. Subsequently, they left the trade fair site one after another. Captain Hawkins, who was seated in the main seat, looked at the accountant standing on the side and ordered, "Show the books to Miss Isabel." ”

"Yes, Captain." The accountant promised to come to her and handed her the account book with both hands, "Miss, this is the account of the sale and purchase of goods. ”

Isabel glanced at the middle-aged male accountant with admiration on his face, and slowly reached out to take the account book and look through it. Later, she discovered an interesting fact from the contents of the ledger that all the goods sold by Captain Hawkins were sold according to the account details written by the accountant of the Spanish planter Diego Alvarado, that is, the barter money received from the sale of a total of 1,480 black slaves on two occasions.

In other words, the various loot that Isabel obtained during several raids was not counted. While looking at the account details, he happily looked at Captain Hawkins, "Captain, the goods sold today are only the goods obtained after the sale of black slaves?" ”

Captain Hawkins took a sip of wine from his glass, then smiled and nodded at her, "Yes, Miss." After deducting the sailing costs of the fleet and the £3,200 you invested, we made about 70 times as much money from each slave! ”

"70 times? Captain, how many pounds? ”

"Mademoiselle, I hope the number I tell you will not frighten you, it is two hundred and seventy-seven thousand pounds in total!!"

Isabel was indeed a little frightened by such a huge sum of money falling from the sky. It is a fact that is unknown to everyone, including her, that by November 1539, Henry VIII had acquired the landed properties of 560 monasteries, large and small, through the Act of Closing All Monasteries, which could generate Henry VIII £132,000 worth of income per year. This means that Isabel and Captain Hawkins earned more than a year's income from all the monasteries of the kingdom in six months.

It was a long time before Isabel turned her gaze from the accounting books to Captain Hawkins' face. Looking at the other party, he cautiously spit out a sentence, "Captain, I think that the money earned from this voyage should be settled in the form of half of one person's earnings and fifty-five shares." ”

As soon as the words ended, Captain Hawkins and his brother Richard laughed. Richard got up from his seat, came to Isabel with his hands behind his back and looked at her calmly, "Miss, these two slave trades between you and your brother can be explained in one sentence, this is a business with no capital. ”

Isabel looked at the smiling Richard and shook her head, "However, the captain still paid a certain amount of sailing costs. ”

"Yes, miss. After accounting calculations and my review, the cost of sailing each ship over a 6-month period was only about £300. This, of course, includes the honoraria of the crew of each ship. ”

"Well, then, how are you and your brother going to divide the income this time?"

Richard Howard just nodded and sat back in his seat, then looked at his brother who was sitting in the main seat. Captain Howard pondered, focused his gaze on Isabelle's face and said, "Miss, I think you deserve eighty percent of your income, and we only take twenty percent. ”

Isabel propped her hands on the armrests of her chair and stood up and walked over to the captain. Looking at the smiling and silent captain, he waved his hand vigorously, "No, captain, twenty percent of the income is too little, and I object to such a distribution." ”

"You tell Sister Isabel, how much is 20% income?" Captain Hawkins didn't answer her directly, but turned his head to look at the accountant standing on the side.

The accountant who was holding the account book in his hand hurriedly nodded at the captain, looked at Isabel very respectfully, and replied word by word, "Miss, the income of 20% is 43,400 pounds. Also, this is the net income after deducting the cost of the voyage. ”

Isabel was vague about the exact amount of money, and she didn't know what the £40,000-plus was like. After the accountant finished speaking, he just looked at him expressionlessly, "Well, is this a lot of money?" ”

It should be said that as a noble lady, she is indeed not good at business affairs, and her almost childlike question even the accountant can't help but want to laugh. The accountant held back a strong smile, stabilized his mind, and said with a serious look, "Miss, this income of 43,400 pounds can be used by the captain to buy at least 11 medium-sized armed merchant ships with a displacement of 700 tons. ”

Captain Hawkins nodded with great satisfaction, "Miss, it only took six months for you to present me and my family with a fleet of 11 medium-sized three-masted armed merchant ships, and I really can't find a better way to describe your generosity and kindness!" ”

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At night, the town of Plymouth becomes more noisy, and the town does not fade from the long hours of sunshine that begin in spring, and the whole city is bathed in flickering candles and lights from oil lamps. These bright lights conceal the sparkle of the stars and the moon, and obscure the softness of the moonlight, allowing the port town of Plymouth to enjoy the splendor of the mundane world.

The Hawkins family's fortified three-story house was still brightly lit, and from time to time bursts of laughter and conversation could be heard from the first-floor dining room. Perhaps, without the presence of Isabel Walton, the aristocratic lady of the North, the laughter and speech would have seemed more wanton, rude and savage.

Dinner starts at 6 p.m. and doesn't end until just after 8 p.m. after sunset. Isabel did not lose the reserve, arrogance, and blindness that a noble lady should have because she received a huge income, and still looked at Captain Hawkins, who was sitting at the top of the table, with a faint smile on her face, "Captain, when the payment for the goods arrives tomorrow, can we discuss the issue of honorarium for the crew?" ”

Captain Hawkins, who had drunk a lot of ale, took out the Indian pipe given to him by the plantation owner Diego Alvarado, put some tobacco in the pipe, which the Spaniards called "holy medicine", and smoked it greedily. When he noticed Isabel's expression, he hurriedly used his hand to drive away the smoke floating in the air, and laughed, "Miss, there is no doubt about it. ”

Brother Richard, who was sitting opposite, also thought that the smell of tobacco smelled good, but he was curious about Isabel's attitude, "Miss, you are disgusted by the Spanish elixir that your brother took?" ”

Isabel glanced at him, "Mr. Alvarado has told me that indigenous women are not allowed to take holy medicine. ”