Chapter 49: Bargains

He Tengxiao sat in the cabin.

Shi Yufeng summoned someone to bring hot tea to He Tengxiao, the tea fragrance was rich and refreshing, and the tea that Shi Yufeng took out to entertain people naturally would not be vulgar. He Tengxiao sniffed the fragrance of tea and took a sip gently. Because the tea was too hot, He Tengxiao just touched his lips and put down the teacup.

Putting the teacup on the table, He Tengxiao opened his mouth and talked to Shi Yufeng about business: "Brother Yufeng, I drank the tea, let's talk about business next." ”

When the five warships were moored at the dock, He Tengxiao carefully examined each of them. In addition to this big ship of about 700 stones, the size of the two sea falcon ships was about 300 stones, which was slightly smaller than the sea falcon ship that He Tengxiao captured the Huang people's water camp. The size of the two ships was slightly larger than that of the Sea Falcon, and it was estimated that they were probably close to 400 stone in size.

These warships are not defective, and He Tengxiao estimates that it will cost tens of thousands of taels of silver to purchase these warships from Longjiang Shipyard alone.

Zhang Yuyang was quite leisurely, slowly blowing the hot steam rising from the teacup, and said with a smile: "When did Lord Qianhu become so anxious. He Qianhu, you have chosen a big bargain this time, these ships are not expensive. ”

"Big bargain? What do you mean by that? Teng Xiao is a vulgar military man, and he hopes that Brother Yufeng will explain his words. He Teng asked puzzled.

Longjiang Shipyard is the largest official shipyard in the Great Zhao Empire, and in its heyday, the shipyard once built a giant sea ship of nearly 100,000 stones and successfully crossed the ocean, which opened the eyes of foreign races and attracted the attention of the whole country. It can be said that Longjiang Shipyard represents the highest level of shipbuilding technology in this era.

Of course, the glorious history created by the Longjiang Shipyard was built on the great power of the Great Zhao Empire, and as the empire's national power declined, the empire's finances were no longer able to support the daily operation of the huge Longjiang Shipyard, and the Longjiang Shipyard quickly declined after a brief heyday. In order to prevent the Japanese and pirates from invading the southeastern coastal areas, the empire implemented a maritime ban policy, and explicitly ordered that without the permission of the imperial court, the private sector was not allowed to go to sea, otherwise it would be punished for colluding with the Japanese invaders. The sea ban policy was undoubtedly worse for the already declining Longjiang Shipyard, which was even more depressed after Muzong.

However, the Longjiang shipyard did not go down in depression, in the early days of the imperial Shenzong Dynasty, Emperor Shenzong forged ahead, for the Zhongxing River of the Great Zhao Empire to use the famous Zhongxing general Shang Chuanren, appointed Shang Chuanren as the general of the rejuvenation of the country and gave Shang Fang the sword, the general commander of the two provinces of Nanzhili, Zhejiang two provinces of soldiers and horses, exterminated the southeast coast of the Japanese invaders.

Shang Chuanren did not disappoint Emperor Shenzong, and after taking office, he invested heavily in Longjiang Shipyard to build new warships, and at the same time cleaned up the naval divisions and land divisions of Nanzhili and Zhejiang provinces. In just five years, the decades-long rebellion that plagued the southeast coast was cleared.

After the Japanese and Haikou were purged, the sea ban was reopened, and the Longjiang Shipyard prospered again. It is a pity that the prosperity of Longjiang Shipyard this time is like a flash in the pan and very short-lived. With the transfer of Shang Chuanren, the three major families in eastern Zhejiang colluded with the Haikou and the Japanese to raise the flag of rebellion. Although the rebellion was suppressed, the Empire's military strength in the two provinces was greatly damaged, and the Longjiang Shipyard was almost destroyed in this war.

Longjiang Shipyard has experienced several ups and downs, but the reputation of the ships shipped by Longjiang Shipyard has always been very good. Ship prices have also remained high.

"You don't know much about what has happened in Liaodong and what has happened in the Zhezhi area, so it's okay, I'll talk to you slowly." Shi Yufeng opened the chatterbox, "In the winter of last year, in order to reopen the southeast sea trade route, the imperial court issued an order to instruct Xia Zhenxian, the governor of Nanzhi, and Shangshu of the Jinling Military Department to supervise the matter of clearing and suppressing the Haikou and Japanese pirates in Fujian and Zhejiang provinces. The first thing to do is to revitalize the sluggish sailors. Xia Zhenxian imitated the practice of Shang Wuyi in the Shenzong Dynasty and bought ships from Longjiang Shipyard with silver. ”

"What does this have to do with me taking advantage?" He Tengxiao asked, Shi Yufeng often stopped in the middle of his words, which was very appetizing.

"It's weird right here." Shi Yufeng explained, "At the time of Mu Zong, the central financial resources were stretched thin, and he could no longer afford to invest money in the bottomless pit of Longjiang Shipyard, but he was reluctant to shut down Longjiang Shipyard. In order to maintain the operation of the Longjiang Shipyard, the imperial court allowed the Longjiang Shipyard to receive orders from the private sector to build merchant ships of less than 800 stone for the private sector, so as to maintain the operation of the Longjiang Shipyard for the profit of private shipbuilding, so as to reduce the financial pressure on the center. After Shenzong Dynasty Shang Wuyi cleared the southeast coast of the sea and the Japanese invaders, the sea ban was lifted, and the maritime trade with foreign countries flourished again, and the orders of the Longjiang shipyard increased suddenly during this period, but unfortunately the good times did not last long, the three major families in eastern Zhejiang raised the flag of rebellion after Shang Wuyi was transferred, and then the Japanese and the Haikou recommitted the southeast sea frontier of our Great Zhao, and the imperial court once again implemented the policy of banning the sea. The ships built by Longjiang Shipyard could not be sold, and they were all backlogged in the dock of Longjiang Shipyard. Xia Zhenxian hit the idea of these backlogged ships in Longjiang Shipyard. The military salary allocated by the emperor to Xia Zhenxian was not as sufficient as the military salary allocated to Shang Wuyi by Emperor Shenzong in the past. Xia Zhenxian was in a daze, and forced these ships to be purchased at a low price and transformed into warships. ”

Hearing this, He Tengxiao understood, and nodded understandingly: "These five ships were bought from Longjiang Shipyard at a price higher than Xia Zhenxian's cheapness. That sounds like a good deal. ”

"Good deal! It's a bargain! These five ships are the best boats carefully selected from the shipyard! From the keel to the hull, the materials are made of the best wood! Shi Yufeng clapped his hands and laughed, "Xia Zhenxian's price for the shipyard is 200 taels of silver for each small ship below 300 stones, and 500 taels for ships from 300 to 800 stones. ”

"I can't imagine that this Nanzhi Governor is so impatient and buys these ships at such a low price, I'm afraid that the capital of Longjiang Shipyard will not be able to come back, and he will have to put money into it." He Tengxiao took a long breath and said, "In this way, the officials of Longjiang Shipyard will definitely compete to sell these ships at a low price first, and I am afraid that Xia Zhenxian will only be able to get his hands on a few broken ships in the end." ”

"Xia Zhenxian is also forced to be helpless, now the saint is eager to seek treatment, if he Xia Zhenxian can't revitalize the Zhezhi Town Army in a short period of time, exterminate the Japanese and open up the sea trade routes, it is inevitable that someone in the court will give him small shoes to wear." Shi Yufeng said, "To get back to the point, I only spent a total of five thousand taels of silver to buy these ships, including the ordnance and equipment I put on. By the way, I also have a big gift for you, which you will love. ”

"What gift?" He Tengxiao asked.

Shi Yufeng smiled mysteriously and whispered a few words to the attendant behind him. He nodded and walked out of the cabin.