"Director Zhou, this is the 5,000 catties of rice entrusted by the Ministry of Civil Affairs to be transported, as well as 3,000 catties of refined coal, you can send someone to collect it!" Zhan Gui respectfully handed over a piece of paper to Zhou Hengxing, who was sitting behind the huge mahogany desk.

Due to the large amount of maritime capacity required for the Shilu project to transport people and materials from Sanya to Changhua, the Ministry of Shipping had to start dispatching most of its cargo ships back to the coast of Qiongzhou to take on the transportation task. Most of the sea vessels between the coast of North Vietnam and Sanya have temporarily given up their original transportation tasks, but it is impossible to give up the transportation tasks in this area, so the Ministry of Shipping and other relevant units began to coordinate and hire ships from Daming maritime merchants to undertake this part of the capacity demand.

This practice is not the first time to adopt after the crossing, after the development of the Black Soil Port in 1627, because of the lack of Haihan's own capacity, there was a period of time to hire several sea ships to engage in the transportation of people and goods between the Shengli Port - the Black Earth Port, this practice after a long period of operation, each link has been relatively mature, so this time there was a capacity gap, the relevant departments quickly notified some of the Daming maritime merchants with a good cooperative relationship, so that they vacated the ships to temporarily join the fleet under the name of the Ministry of Shipping.

As one of the shareholders of "Qiong Lianfa", and the only business specializing in maritime transportation among the twelve foreign shareholders, Zhan Gui is naturally responsible for this kind of task. After receiving a notice from the Ministry of Shipping, Zhan Gui quickly ordered his shopkeeper to suspend the merchant ships to be sent to Batavia and Canton, and instead sent them to North Vietnam, where he was responsible for the return of rice and coal.

This task seems simple, but for Zhan Gui, the temporary transfer of ships will undoubtedly have to bear a certain amount of economic losses for this. In fact, the employment price given by the shipping department is not enough to compensate for this part of the loss. However, Zhan Gui didn't particularly care about how much silver taels he would lose this time because of Haihan's temporary requisition, he was more concerned about whether the relationship between his ship company and Haihan's executive committee could be further deepened and strengthened.

If the cooperation between the two sides in the early days was just to earn more economic benefits, then at this stage, Zhan Gui's consideration has gone far beyond the scope of how much money he can make. He has now not only bought a real estate house in Sanya New Town, but also moved his family here. And the most beloved youngest daughter Zhan Zheying was also sent to study in the school of the Haihan people, and she has the posture of spreading branches and taking root here.

Zhan Gui has been to many countries and regions because he has been engaged in maritime trade and transportation for many years, and has also seen the customs and customs of various places. Even if it is the bright city of Guangzhou. When it comes to the comfort of life, it is far from being compared to this small Sanya area. It's not just a beautiful natural environment. Moreover, the people's customs and public order are very good, and more importantly, Zhan Gui can clearly feel that the Haihan Executive Committee is not spending effort to govern the local area for economic gain, but is completely developing and building this place as its own ruling area. And this practice is expanding the scope of Haihan little by little with the continuous growth of Haihan.

As far as Zhan Gui knows, at least nearly one-third of the coastal area of Qiongzhou Island has been actually controlled by Haihan, and if it continues to develop at this rate, it is estimated that the entire Qiongzhou Island will have to change its surname to "Haihan" in the last two or three years at most. Although Zhan Gui was born in the Ming Dynasty. However, because he has been active overseas all the year round, he does not have a particularly strong sense of belonging to his nationality, so he does not have a strong sense of rejection for the possible occupation of the Ming territory by the Haihan in the future, but has been thinking about whether the Haihan people will establish a new state power on Qiongzhou Island.

Zhan Gui had a relatively clear understanding of the military strength in the hands of the Haihan Executive Committee, especially the strength of the navy. The layman looks at the bustle, and the insider looks at the doorway. Zhan Gui went to visit the operation process of the Shengli Port Shipyard, and also went to the Haihan warship to observe and train, he knew very well that the combat effectiveness of the Haihan Navy far exceeded the level of the Daming Naval Division, if the two sides really broke out in the future because of territorial disputes, then the Ming Dynasty has a ninety percent chance of suffering a big loss, and it is even possible to completely lose the ownership of Qiongzhou Island because of the defeat.

Based on this understanding. Zhan Gui showed an obvious inclination towards Haihan, consciously increased his investment in various business projects of "Qiong Lianfa", and began to actively participate in various social affairs of Haihan. For example, the selection of "public representatives" that only started in the first half of this year, when most people still did not understand the situation, Zhan Gui had already taken the initiative to participate in it.

This "representative of public opinion" is actually very similar to the squires and village elders promoted by the Ming Dynasty in the people, probably because the people elected people with higher prestige as representatives, who are specifically responsible for negotiating some civil affairs with relevant departments of Haihan. Naturally, this kind of identity has little power to speak of. But for businessmen, it is undoubtedly a shortcut to improve their social status. Of course, Zhan Gui does not have the identity of a naturalized Haihan citizen, so the interest groups he represents are only a part of foreign merchants, sailors and other people.

Moreover, after Zhan Gui became a "representative of public opinion", he found that this identity was not just a fictitious title, and the Ministry of Civil Affairs would often convene representatives to go to Shengli Fort to discuss matters, convey some of the latest resolutions from the Executive Committee, and then transfer them to the grassroots people. Of course, things are not done in vain, and outsiders like Zhan Gui have also gained some practical benefits because of this identity.

Not to mention anything else, even in this maritime trade, this identity has already saved Zhan Gui a lot of money. According to the regulations of the Ministry of Shipping, foreign ships need to charge a certain fee for maintenance at the Shengli Port Shipyard, but as a "representative of the people's will", they completely enjoy the so-called "internal treatment" in this link, and the cost is only less than one-third of that of the outside world. A maritime merchant like Zhan Gui, who has dozens of large ships under his name, now uses Shengli Port as the center of his trade network, and the silver saved on this project in a year is almost enough to buy a single-family villa in Sanya New Town.

After tasting a certain amount of sweetness, Zhan Gui's enthusiasm for participating in Haihan affairs was even higher. At the end of May, as soon as the notice of the Ministry of Shipping was posted, he took the initiative to come to the door and was willing to transfer the ships under his name to meet the transportation needs of the Ministry of Shipping.

Zhou Hengxing took the shipping voucher handed over by Zhan Gui, looked at it carefully, and then pressed a small switch on the desk. Soon a naturalized citizen came in from outside, and Zhou Hengxing handed him the freight voucher and asked him to immediately take someone to the dock to count the goods.

"Boss Zhan, sit down first. I'll call someone to make tea!" "It's not the first time Zhou Hengxing has dealt with Zhan Gui, he has served as the director of the management committee of Sanya Port since he fell back from Heitu Port, and maritime businessmen like Zhan Gui are basically familiar with each other.

Director Zhou was polite...... By the way, in fact, there is still something unclear below, and I would like to ask Director Zhou. Zhan Gui replied politely.

"Okay, you say. Zhou Hengxing stopped what he was doing and looked up at Zhan Gui.

Zhan Gui opened his mouth and said, "Here's the thing. A few days ago, I asked the Ministry of Shipping about the order of merchant ships, but Minister Yue of the Ministry of Shipping said. It is necessary to have a certificate issued by the civil affairs, port affairs and judicial organs, how to handle this procedure, I really don't understand it a little, and I ask Director Zhou for advice. ”

"Buying a ship?" Zhou Hengxing asked in disbelief: "The shipyard can sell ships to the outside world now?"

"A deposit can be paid, but the delivery time is negotiable. Zhan Gui replied honestly: "I fell in love with the exploration-class sailing ship from the shipyard early in the morning, but the shipping department kept saying that there was no construction period to make a merchant ship, so I had to give up." However, recently, the Ministry of Shipping has posted a notice saying that this exploratory-class merchant ship can start booking. ”

Zhou Hengxing nodded slightly while listening, waiting for Zhan Gui to finish the matter. Only then did he speak: "The Executive Committee has not yet issued a corresponding document on this matter, and I can't figure out what the attitude of the Executive Committee is now, so I'll call and ask first." ”

"I'll come back to you later. Zhan Gui was very knowledgeable and knowledgeable, and immediately got up to say goodbye. He had seen many times when the traveler had called, but in his opinion, this thing should be some kind of wonderful spell, although the Haihan people didn't seem afraid to use this kind of telecommunication technique in front of him, but Zhan Gui thought that when the other party cast a spell. It's better to stay away.

However, his behavior undoubtedly increased a lot of favorability in Zhou Hengxing's eyes, and after he left the office, Zhou Hengxing picked up the phone and dialed Yue Zhiyun's number to ask about ordering merchant ships. In fact, it's not that Zhou Hengxing's news is too closed, it is indeed that the Ministry of Shipping has just introduced a new policy, and it is too late to coordinate with various departments one by one.

The Shengli Port Shipyard under the Ministry of Shipping has undergone a one-year expansion process while producing it. Today's shipbuilding capacity has made great progress compared to before. The keels of the 1,000-ton ship are already being laid on the two largest slipways, and it is expected to be launched early next year. At present, the manufacture of military versions of the "Exploration-class" sailing ships with a smaller tonnage has been discontinued, and the navy will only order the larger 500-ton "Expedition-class" sailing ships, which will be used as the main combat vessels of the navy for a period of time to come.

As a result, several slipways at the shipyard were vacated. When the Ministry of Shipping designed the "Exploration Class" sailboat, it had fully considered the possibility of future civilian use. Therefore, the modification and construction of "exploration-class" merchant ships have long had a corresponding design plan. This kind of merchant ship has made certain modifications to the original hull structure, canceling the design of the artillery platform with the second deck, designing the internal cabin as the main structure with the cargo hold as the main structure, and at the same time weakening and canceling the thick hull and ramming angle and other facilities that the warship model has.

Although the commercial version of the vessel is less than a quarter larger than the traditional 400-material Chinese sailing boat, it has a much better cargo carrying capacity than the Chinese sailing ship, and thanks to the advanced hull shape and sail rope system, it also has an incomparable advantage in sailing speed, and the time required for the same voyage is more than twice as fast as that of a Chinese sailing boat. On top of that, this kind of merchant ship is also equipped with Haihan's exclusive steering wheel steering system, which has an irresistible attraction for Zhan Gui.

Although the order price of the "Exploratory" commercial version is significantly higher than that of a traditional Chinese sailing boat, in the eyes of a professional maritime merchant like Zhan Gui, it is worth exchanging silver for a performance advantage. If the Haihan people are willing to sell this advanced sea boat, then it is worth paying a higher price, after all, it is much more cost-effective to run faster than using a traditional sailing ship in the long run, and Zhan Gui believes that it only takes a year at most to use this new sailing ship, and the cost of buying a boat can be earned.

Of course, this kind of advanced sailing boat is not something that can be bought with money, and you must first obtain a purchase qualification. This qualification certification is initiated by the Ministry of Shipping, and is jointly recognized by the shipping, civil affairs, justice, port and other departments before it can take effect. To put it simply, foreign merchants who have not obtained the unanimous approval of the above-mentioned departments are not qualified to order this new type of sailing ship, even if they come with money. However, if the object is qualified to order such a merchant ship but does not have sufficient funds, the Ministry of Shipping also stipulates that the "Haihan Bank" can provide loan services to it, and the collateral is the merchant ship itself.

At that time, after the Ministry of Shipping announced the relevant matters, Zhan Gui had already decided to buy a few ships first. He has been on the sailing ship of the Haihan people more than once, and he is very impressed by its good seaworthiness and fast speed. The sailing speed of the Haihan sailing ship is more than double that of the traditional Chinese sailing boat, and the time required to run two trips on this high-end sailing ship is about the same as that of a traditional sailing boat, which is equivalent to reducing the freight by nearly half, which is a very cost-effective vehicle for professional maritime merchants.

When Zhan Gui came to the door with the silver ticket of Haihan Bank, he heard that this qualification for purchasing a ship still needs to be applied, and the person who wants to buy a ship first goes to the designated relevant departments to issue a certificate. The content of this certificate is mainly to explain the cooperation between the merchant and Haihan, the social relations in the local area, the private industry, etc., to ensure that the purchaser will not use the new ship to do something unfavorable to Haihan - such as selling the ship to the Portuguese or the Dutch at a high price.

Speaking of the credible Cheng Dù, Zhan Gui, who is a shareholder of "Qiong Lianfa" and a "public opinion representative" of Sanya New Town, is undoubtedly a very prominent leader among those who are qualified to buy ships.