Chapter 494 is actually a notice

A hundred years later, Europe and the United States are still playing the tactics of queuing up to shoot within 100 meters, and at this stage, arquebuses are still the mainstream. Adams even thought of a thing, was it to import a batch of rifles from the Ming Kingdom back to Europe to sell? After thirty years of war, the dog's brain was beaten to the ground, and all countries need new equipment to arm themselves and make themselves more powerful.

Just as Adams was thinking, the door to the cabin was opened. A soldier stood in the doorway and said, "Follow me." Seeing that Adams didn't understand, the interpreter was not around, and the soldier cleaned up, Adams understood and hurriedly followed him. When he got off the boat and boarded the dock, Adams' mind was a little confused, and he was amazed at the scale of the pier and the booms that were erected high.

After seeing his destination clearly, Adams seemed to understand something. This battleship is so special, and there is a sense of magnificence all over its body. According to the translator, there was a huge red flag on the battleship with a huge "Chen" character on it. Well, Chinese characters are so difficult to master, that the vast majority of Europeans probably don't have much chance of mastering the language. At least Adams didn't think he had much of a chance at his linguistic talent.

The cabin was huge, far beyond Adams' imagination, with carpets from Turkey on the floor and gold trim on the doorknobs. The guards at the door, standing like a stake, looked ahead without squinting. Gong Salu stood by the door, and after making a gesture of please, Adams stepped on the soft carpet and walked in. Behind a huge desk, sat a young aristocrat. His costume is simple. It's an ordinary military uniform, but the momentum between the arrogant eyes and the very casual behavior in any situation all explain his identity. Adams' mind suddenly short-circuited.

Because he found a problem, he expected a middle-aged person, and all the strategies were carried out around this. I didn't expect this cabinet minister to be so young. "Adams, envoy of the English East India Company, meet Your Excellency." Instinctively, Adams stepped forward and pressed one hand to his chest. Bow in greeting. He speaks English. When the interpreter was about to stammer, the cabinet minister on the other side had already spoken, "Welcome, please be seated." My name is Chen Xie, and I invite you to your company. I sent it out. ”

He speaks English fluently. The downside is that the emphasis is a bit weird. Not like an authentic British, but like the colloquialism spoken by the rough people in the American colonies. Adams is also well-informed, and English is definitely not mainstream in this day and age. He would not be surprised if this nobleman could speak French fluently. But when he speaks English, he can't understand it. In the upper class of Europe, gorgeous French is the mainstream. It's a shock that a Ming country rules, but learned a rough English.

There is no doubt that this was not an overly formal meeting. This can be concluded from the tone of the nobleman, who seems very casual, like a gathering of friends, the feeling of casual conversation.

"You may be seated!" When two beautiful girls brought a chair, Adams came back to his senses. Look at these two women who look exactly the same, dressed in gorgeous outfits, and then see that they have worn the best clothes, they still feel a bit of a countryman. The heads of the women of the Ming Kingdom are all golden and dazzling jewelry.

Across the huge desk, the nobleman sat down and smiled, "What to drink?" There was tea and fresh juice. ”

Subconsciously, Adams said, "Tea! The young nobleman said to a young girl: "Have a cup of black tea, the British should not be accustomed to drinking green tea." "This time it was in Chinese, and the translation was timely. This interpreter is a Chinese from Nanyang, who went to India for some reason, because he knew some English and was hired with a high salary.

"I know you're curious as to why I sent out the invitation. It is not normal for a cabinet minister of the Ming Kingdom to send an invitation to a British company. Chen Xie continued with a smile, and Adams nodded, this question has puzzled the entire East India Company for a long time. Chen Xie smiled and said, "Actually, it's very simple, because we don't have a conflict of interest, and the Dutch just threaten my interests." The maritime trade of the Ming Dynasty has always been limited to the waters of the Ming Kingdom, Korea, and Japan, and we have no intention of expanding externally, and we are willing to be kind to others. But the Dutch didn't think so, and they wanted to use artillery to force the Ming to hand over control of the sea. ”

Speaking of this, Chen Xie shrugged his shoulders and spread his hands, and said in a very helpless tone: "War is the only means that can solve the problem. Personally, I have a point of view that it is easy to start a war, but how to end it is not up to the war-starters to have the final say. The Dutch provoked the war, how and when it ended, that's up to me. During the war, trade could not but be temporarily stopped, and I needed a new object to trade, which is why I invited your company in the first place. In addition to this, I would also like to reach some agreement with your company on the issue of India. ”

At the mention of India, Adams's mind jerked. At this time, India was really not as big as the British. But even so, the annual trade profits of the British from India were considerable. Domination of India was the tireless goal of the British, but only if they could overthrow the Dutch. What the specific results will be, it is not yet seen.

It sounded like the Honourable Cabinet Secretary was direct, but when he savored the meaning of his words, Adams felt that things were not as simple as he thought. Could it be that Daming doesn't want to dominate the Indian market? They have the strength to do it. As long as the fleet parked at the Grand Commander is driven to India, it is not a problem. Now that we think back to the question of the Ming wars mentioned by Gong Salu earlier, there seems to be a clear answer.

"Your Excellency, with all due respect, it is not difficult for you to know that the present situation of the English East India Company seems to be difficult to cooperate with you on an equal footing. Can I understand that what you need is not just the attitude of the East India Company to cooperate, but the attitude of a country? Adams really didn't know how to answer this, so he had to brake quietly. In this conversation, he knew that he was destined to not be able to lead the process of the conversation, and the status of both sides determined that this conversation was an inquiry.

The tea was delivered, Chen Xie cleaned up, and Adams took a sip of it, which was very pure. When tea first arrived in Europe, the way to drink it was very fucked, adding a lot of things to it, and then boiling it in a pot, the taste was that a Chinese can be put down.

"Very good taste." Adams complimented, and Chen Xie smiled: "This is black tea from Fujian, I personally prefer to drink green tea." Well, let's move on to the topic just now. There is a revolution going on in Britain, and if I am right, your forces are negligible at the moment. Adams smiled a little embarrassedly, and Chen Xie smiled disapprovingly, with a feeling that Zhizhu was in his hands. Europe in this period was not an ordinary chaos.

"The problem of the Dutch, I will solve it by myself, and the problem of trade, we can cooperate. The question of India, where I think in the future will be an overseas colony of the Ming Dynasty. The British East India Company, as a partner, was given normal trading rights. Your merchant ships can dock at the ports designated by the Ming Dynasty, and then they can have their own activities and trade in the designated area. I think you've seen the new city behind the docks, which will serve as a window for the Ming Dynasty's foreign trade, and there are currently three similar windows. There may be more in the future. I think now you can see what I mean. Speaking of this, Chen Xie stopped and looked at Adams with a smile.

Even though it was a smile, the meaning in his eyes was hard to calm down. Adams, in particular, was just a very ordinary clerk and didn't have the right to make too many promises. The disparity between the two was so great that Adams struggled for a long time before he said, "I will convey your opinion to the directors of the company." How will it be in the future, I can't give you an answer. ”

Hearing this, Chen Xie's smile became even thicker, and he lightly threw out a sentence: "I know what you mean, no one can predict what the future will be." But I can be sure of one thing, the future problems will be decided by the battleships and artillery. What you need to do is to bring a sentence to your company, the coastline of Daming has opened the window. This meeting can be seen as a tentative contact. I hope to see you again next year or the year after. ”

Adams, who had a mess in his head, got up and took his leave, not forgetting the proper courtesy. The moment he walked out of the cabin, his brain was blown by the wind, and his state of confusion was better. Now he could understand why Gongsaruch kept repeating the word "great." The whole meeting, in fact, is not called a meeting, it should be a notice. Roughly speaking, His Excellency the Cabinet Minister did not like the Dutch and did not want to do business with them, and the British could come, and the Spanish and Portuguese could come. Businessmen from all over the European continent can come and do business with Daming. A similar notice should have been received by more than one British East India Company.

When Adams reacted, a strong sense of urgency rose in his heart. It's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and he has to take it. With this question in mind, Adams decided to return to India immediately, and he had to tell the company the news as much as possible. Maybe because of this incident, his position can be promoted and his salary can be increased.

Compared with Adams, who is responsible, Sheringham, the captain of the Grimm in the depths of freshwater, is more calm. Once on the island, his area of activity was confined to the interior of the new city and the docks, but it did not prevent him from taking out the last shilling in his pocket and loading it back to Europe.

Yes, Sheringham was overjoyed by the news. As long as he has gold and silver as a means of payment, he can purchase whatever he wants at the Chief. The shops in the city and on the docks were willing to trade with him. So, what else is there to say? Tea, silk, porcelain, these are all items that must be procured, and every shilling must be spent on a budget. (To be continued......)