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Sunday, March 27, 1622.

West Point is a buzzing town today, with hundreds of townspeople huddled outside a small brick and concrete factory to watch a group of Mohican hired workers carry a few small boxes into the house.

This is the latest investment of the "West Point Tobacco Company" with a registered capital of 30,000 US dollars by Mao Jian, the tax officer of West Point Town, Guan Ruzhong, the police chief, and Li Xiang, the Minister of Immigration, in addition to the 9,000 US dollars raised by the three bigwigs, they also pulled a total of 21,000 US dollars of investment from dozens of people who are still rich and have spare money in their hands, which is another private joint-stock enterprise in West Point Town.

It is said that Li Xiang's contribution also includes a share of 100 US dollars from his father-in-law. Today, in addition to thousands of acres of farms, the Delaware village where Li Xiang's father-in-law, Kenraton lives, also has a lumber yard and a brick-firing workshop.

Last year's several large-scale European trade exports, which led to a sharp decline in the stock of modern cigarettes, have now been banned from export, and the few remaining modern cigarettes have become the most high-end limited sale goods.

Tobacco imported from the Azores is almost exclusively made from primitive pipes, and the demand for homemade cigarettes is increasing day by day.

A month ago, Mao Jian, who was addicted to smoking and was really not used to pipes, found Jiang Zhaolong of General Industries. After a description of Mao Jian, who had a habit of smoking cigarettes, Jiang Zhaolong found a few young engineers, and after pondering for a while, he finally designed an artificial hand-cranked cigarette machine.

It is not yet possible to produce acetate filter cigarettes. Therefore, Mao Jian finally chose the relatively easy to obtain imported refined cottonseed wool as the raw material for the filter. The working principle of the filter roller is basically similar to that of the cigarette roller, one is enough.

Compared to the small artificial cigarette makers that entertained themselves, Jiang Zhaolong's version of the 17th-century artificial cigarette maker was about the size of a small desk, with boxes filled with tobacco, paper rolls, and refined cottonseed wool filters. A full load can produce 2,000 cigarettes.

Only two people are needed to operate, one person is responsible for adjusting and correcting the discharge, and one person shakes the handle, and one snow-white cigarette with filter can be spit out of the cigarette machine.

A total of four cigarette machines and a filter roller, together with a batch of tobacco purchased from the state-owned Import and Export Group, cost almost all of the company's money.

Several West Point townspeople were recruited as cigarette workers, following the example of General Industries' engineers. After some trial and error, a cigarette with uneven internal tobacco fell into the box below. It seems that it will take a long time to effectively grasp the technology of tobacco discharging and cigarette rolling.

But in any case, from today onwards, low-grade "Moose" brand cigarettes and "Double Happiness" brand high-end cigarettes with better quality tobacco are considered to have appeared. Calculated based on current equipment output. With a pack of 20 cigarettes, West Point Tobacco will be able to produce 120,000 packs a month, including 90,000 packs of moose and 30,000 packs of Double Happiness.

Moose retails for 12 cents for a single pack, while Double Happiness sells for 30 cents a pack. If it is exported to Europe, the price will double. And all their costs add up to just 3 cents and 5 cents.

As soon as the news of the imminent local production of cigarettes came out, Finance Minister Liu Xin immediately encouraged the cabinet to submit the "Tobacco Tax Management Bill". The House of Representatives, which has always liked to play a game of bickering with the Cabinet, was almost completely enlightened this time, and stood with the Cabinet without hesitation. The protests of the few members of the House of Representatives, who own shares in tobacco companies, were collectively ignored and voted overwhelmingly in favor of the tobacco tax bill. The Senate's final review was also a green light.

So before Mao Jian, the CEO of West Point Tobacco Company, had time to sell a pack of cigarettes, he was told that the tobacco tax collected by the state would be as high as 50%, and the export tax on goods would be calculated separately!

Under the persuasion of William, the acting mayor of West Point, Mao Jian did not hire any cheap Indian hired labor, but gave the employment opportunities to the townspeople of his own town. With a monthly salary of $20 and a quarterly sales commission, the male and female townspeople who came to apply for the job almost crushed the beautiful villa built by Mao.

After several days of running-in, on March 31, the trial production of West Point Tobacco Company with 20 employees began, including 14 cigarette workers, 4 packers and 2 handymen. On the first day of trial production, 1,000 packs of Double Happiness cigarettes for Congress rolled off the assembly line, and then packed and sent to the small steamer.

Also in the evening of this day, the Feiyun liaison ship galloped into the dock in the southern district of Manchuria, Su Zining could barely maintain his balance, and Yuan Xinyi could almost only rely on the former's support to get off the boat.

Almost no one would have thought that Yan Xiaosong would make such a large amount of more than 4,000 immigrants from the Ming Dynasty, nor did he expect that the transportation cost would be so high, and no one would have thought that Su Zining would have the courage to cut first and then play a prelude, and dispose of the assets and goods of the state-owned import and export group in the Azores with lightning speed.

An uproar inevitably arises within the government and Congress. The funds of the state-owned import and export group of 1.3 million US dollars were all embezzled by Su Zining with a large stroke, and the first batch of Ming Dynasty immigrants to pay to Portugal was still short of 700,000 US dollars.

And that's not even counting the cost of transportation from Brazil to North America, and the cost of eventually resettling these immigrants, which Congress budgeted for in 1622, totaling $500,000!

Su Zining finally calculated the general ledger, in order to complete the final resettlement of more than 4,000 Ming Dynasty immigrants, the total expenditure should be 3 million US dollars. In other words, there is still a shortfall of $1.3 million!

All in all, this immigration fee, which is "comparable" with the entire state budget expenditure in 1622, coincides with this April Fool's Day and knocks everyone's brains hard.

In any case, one such Ming Dynasty immigration plan would cause the entire country's finances to suffer a heavy blow and affect it for more than two years.

The House of Representatives was the first to make a fuss, and the young lawmakers finally broke out with strong dissatisfaction with Su Zining and Yan Xiaosong's self-righteous actions in Europe. Some people even wonder whether Su Zining and Yan Xiaosong have the behavior of filling their pockets.

Almost no one will agree with the immigration fee of $500 for a Ming Dynasty immigrant, in their eyes, even if Su Zining only gets a rebate of $10 per person, it is more than $40,000 in income! Counted in the Hereafter. It's nearly 7 million yuan, and he just moved his mouth, and getting rich overnight is probably like that, right?!

It is still the habit of young members of Congress to always be suspicious of the style of one qiē, and even Liu Lao has to be cautious to take a reserved attitude, after all, the unilateral behavior of Su Zining and Yan Xiaosong this time is too much.

A congressional hearing is inevitable, and if Su Zining can't convince Congress, then this Ming Dynasty immigration is likely to be out of control.

April 1. With the wind and cold infected all the way, Su Zining, accompanied by Yuan Xin's art, walked to the congressional hearing.

"Su Zining, how did you and Yan Xiaosong do things? How much does the Portuguese say? You're just nodding?! ”

A young congressman finally couldn't help but shout, and his attitude was extremely unfriendly. For a time, the more than 60 people present all turned their eyes on the same young diplomat.

"It's really negligent, I didn't expect it to be such a big scale, I received a letter from Yan Xiaosong from Macau. Only then did I know that the final number of people transported would be more than 4,000 people. Su Zining coughed slightly, and tightened the hearing materials in his hand, "From the price, Yan Xiaosong gave the freight." It was in line with the price of the Portuguese in the slave trade of this era, and even lower. ”

"The slave trade? You bought your fellow Ming Dynasty compatriots from the Portuguese like slaves? Do you really think of yourself as a European? So far. If you were transported as a slave, how many people would die. You and Yan Xiaosong haven't counted? ”

The young parliamentarian roared relentlessly, and Su Zining saw clearly at this time that the other party was a retired soldier of the former Maritime Guard.

"As a result of the forced price reduction, the Portuguese might only need 20 ships to stuff everyone, and the death rate at sea for immigrants would be greatly increased. They didn't even have to think about setting up special rest camps for Ming Dynasty immigrants along the way. ”

Then, Su Zining carefully explained the use of all the capital projects, and at the same time announced the content of the secret cooperation agreement signed with the Duke of Bragança.

“…… In this way, with the establishment of special rest camps for resettlement along the way, the safety of our subsequent immigration will be guaranteed, and the cost will be reduced a lot, plus bargaining, I estimate that from the second batch, the freight will be reduced to 300 US dollars per person, which is already the lowest and the lowest. ”

After Su Zining finished speaking, he couldn't help coughing again, and Yuan Xinyi on the side hurriedly handed over the water glass.

"Then you should do what you can......" The young councillor was stunned for a moment, sat down with a red face, and muttered a few words to the others around him.

"It's good to have more immigrants, I think we should go all out to immigrate from the Ming Dynasty! Everything else is secondary! One of the councillors stood up and waved his fist.

It's not left, it's right, basically everyone pulls their ideas to the highest possible height.

"You are more generous than Su Zining. Then I think you should raise the price to $1,000 a person, hire twice as many ships, and provide better living conditions for sea voyages! 4,000 people a year, the price is not high, only more than 5 million US dollars, and they come back after two years without eating or drinking. The voice in another corner said softly, and I saw Finance Minister Liu Xin stand up, look around at the dozens of people present, and a sneer on the corner of his mouth.

"I know there will be a blow to the country's finances this time, but I can't tell the Portuguese that I only need half of the people and the rest will be returned."

There was silence, and after a few seconds, Su Zining sat back in his seat and threw away the information in his hand.

"Su Zining, we all agree with the immigrants from the Ming Dynasty. But everyone knows that you love to be in the limelight in Europe, and you dare to say that you haven't eaten a penny of the state in private? ”

Another young councillor stood up again, his voice cold.

"I don't want to say it, because this issue has nothing to do with Ming Dynasty immigrants." The corners of Su Zining's mouth curled slightly, turned his head, and looked at the members of the Senate, "Most of the people are already on the road now, and I hope that the Congress will add special immigration funds to carry out the work ahead." I have also left funds on the Azores side, which will not affect the subsequent import of materials for the time being. ”

"If the issue of this money is not clear, I and everyone will not agree, the state-owned import and export group is the key revenue channel of the national finance, and the use of all funds must be approved by the cabinet and the Congress, and you Su Zining have no right to cut it first and then play!"

The words of the young congressman who insisted on being killed were echoed by many people, but they were also opposed by many people. Opponents mildly raised the possibility of negotiating with the Portuguese.

"If you still want to let Portugal and Spaniards complete the migration to the letter, don't make people resist in the first fulfillment of the agreement, and there must be a basis of trust in bargaining. We don't really have the strength to compete with Europe yet, and I can't fool them forever by pretending. ”

"I was prepared in advance, also because of the extremely slow communication methods of this era, we can't wait to get to Brazil and still have a fight with those Europeans. The work we have to do is not as simple as stuffing them into the Portuguese boat. Su Zining exhaled a long breath, his face tired.

"Hehe, Su Zining, the Europeans are our fathers? We don't even have the qualifications to bargain? When we have another year or two, we have our own capacity, and we still rely on them? ”

Another voice rang out, piercing and unpleasant.

"Do you know what the monopoly of sea routes was like in the 17th century? Don't look at the dense ports on the map, you can't enter the port at all without the consent of others. Historically, it took England, the Netherlands and France a full hundred years, tens of millions of pounds in military spending and countless lives to cut out the right to open islands and ports from the Spaniards little by little, and to break Spain's monopoly on shipping routes in the Caribbean! It wasn't until the Portuguese married the princess and gave Tangier and Bombay as dowries to England that the English had the opportunity to gain a foothold in Asia and participate in the Oriental trade! Now the Dutch can only reach Southeast Asia by detouring through the southern Indian Ocean via Cape Town and Mauritius, and their occupation of Batavia is not a whim, nor how good Batavia is, but the only option. ”

"If you take a boat to the Ming Dynasty now, and make a few more ports along the way for supplies, I will return to the Azores immediately and bargain with the Portuguese. That's it for my debriefing, thank you. ”

Su Zining lightly threw out the last sentence, bowed towards the venue, and then walked towards the gate of the venue.

", I really think I'm a character, ......"

"I'm against this appropriation anyway!"

"It's not about the right thing, it's not about the person, don't splash dirty water without evidence, even if Su Zining didn't report it in advance this time, but the reason doesn't make sense, and he didn't offend you, what kind of slander?"

For a while, there was abuse at the venue, and some people who had a good relationship with Su Zining scolded others for having brain problems, and they were completely messing around.

"Quiet! Tomorrow's vote will be held, and everyone is asked to carefully consider all the circumstances that Su Zining said. ”

Li Ping, Speaker of the House of Representatives, rang her gavel, and by the way, she glanced at Liu Lao, the Speaker of the Senate, and both of them sighed deeply.

An April Fool's Day congressional hearing in which personal feelings far outweigh the rights and wrongs of the matter itself came to an end, and the entire questioning process was full of extremely "unprofessional" simple suspicions and associations.

Many members of the Senate who had withdrawn privately surrounded Elder Liu, the speaker of the Senate, hoping to understand from the other side what kind of attitude the Senate would eventually adopt towards tomorrow's House of Representatives vote. (To be continued......)

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