The Earl's departure from Xi'an Town greatly relieved the officers of the expeditionary task force, who had been nervous, to return to a happy and carefree life of money.

For an expeditionary contingent armed to the teeth, there is no enemy in the Horn of East Africa.

Britain is its own people, and the British fleet, which frequently travels to and from India, will sometimes anchor in Xi'an Town, and every time such a moment comes, it is a day of carnival in Xi'an Town.

The town will organize dragon and lion dances, rowing boats and other welcome ceremonies with oriental characteristics, and nearby farmers will plant melons, fruits, vegetables, pigs, cattle and sheep to the wharf, no matter how much they can be received, the price is quite good.

Especially for the fleet returning from India, the young men of the British sailors wandered like hungry wolves in the taverns, tasting the peculiar Chinese delicacies of the town of Xi'an, and purchasing a wide variety of goods until they ran out of pennies in their pockets.

Naturally, the officers of the ship are entertained by the upscale officers' club, which offers authentic French wines, Australian beef and smoked sausages and belly dancing Arab women, and everyone can leave an unforgettable impression.

In particular, the unique Chinese cuisine in Xi'an is exquisite and delicious in cooking, frying and stir-frying, which can not be enjoyed in other places.

French warships sometimes visited, and the overall impression was good as if it were a small town under British rule, with logistical supplies and special pastimes.

The most common stops were the 19th-century United Shipping Company's freighters, which operated between Europe and Australia on ocean routes, and almost all of them used Xi'an as a fixed logistical supply base to replenish vegetables, fresh water and meat.

In this day and age

The technology of food preservation is quite backward, and there is no widespread use of chemical products to extend the shelf life of food, and even fresh water can spoil, so most of the ships that sail the ocean are loaded with beer, not to mention the food, which is basically hard biscuits and salted meat.

The hard biscuit of the British Royal Navy is a relative of bricks, do not be deceived by its appearance, you will not know how hard it is until you hit your head, and many sailors are even bored to carve all kinds of gadgets on hard biscuits.

As for cured meat, it was even more terrifying, so much so that some British soldiers commented on the Royal Navy's corned beef;

It must have been placed in a wooden barrel from the beginning of God's creation, and when it was cooked, you could smell it like the smell of an Egyptian mummy.

Although it will not spoil, these foods will still grow worms, so try to close your eyes when eating.

Therefore, as long as there are conditions, whether it is the British army or an ocean-going freighter, there will always be some live animals on board, such as cows, pigs, chickens and ducks, which can provide some fresh meat for officers and sailors, but this opportunity is too rare, most of the time can only gnaw on hard biscuits with a taste of wood, and eat salty cured meat that makes people doubt life.

From this point of view

You can understand how welcoming the crew and sailors are to Xi'an Town, pinch your fingers on the boundless sea and count the days, how many days will you be able to reach Xi'an Town?

Departing from Australia

After a 10-day voyage, the ocean freighter arrived at the port of Chennai, India, where it rested to replenish fresh water and other food, and then unloaded some Australian specialties and loaded with Indian tea, cotton and high-quality jute from the Bay of Bengal, which is the best jute in the world and one of the important raw materials needed by the British textile industry.

Then depart for the next stop, Xi'an Town, after a ten-day voyage across the Indian Ocean into the Gulf of Aden, the crew dreams of Xi'an Town right in front of you, where you can eat authentic potato beef stew, roasted fat sausage and chili fried chicken, drink Lao Bai dry soju, and satisfy the biggest appetite of a Chinese appetite.

After resting here, it takes about half a month to cross the Red Sea to the Suez Canal, and then enter the Mediterranean Sea to reach the destination terminals of European countries, during which time there is no need to dock again.

On the way back

The freighter, laden with European products, arrived in Xi'an again for replenishment, rested, unloaded some cargo, loaded with African ivory, ore, lapis lazuli from Persia, saffron, and Arabian horses for the rest of the voyage.

After resting again through the port of Chennai in India, the ocean-going freighter replenished with fresh water and vegetables continued on its way to the destination port in Australia to complete a complete transoceanic voyage.

It can be seen from here

The town of Xi'an is located at an extremely important juncture, and the grain, fruits, vegetables and poultry products produced in this oasis, including the seafood products of the upcoming marine fishing industry, are in wide demand, and as long as they are produced, they will not worry about selling.

In the long voyage, soybeans can be sprouted into bean sprouts, providing the only fresh vegetables, and the salted sausages can be eaten with white rice after being steamed in a pot, and the nutrients are more balanced.

In a secluded and deep courtyard

More than a dozen military officers and several town officials, who are shareholders of the 1,500-ton smuggling boat, gathered here to listen to a briefing by Captain Li Yong, the largest shareholder and convener of the gathering.

Li Yong is now proud, promoted to the rank of knight and made a fortune, he has deeply liked the hot land of Africa, and is ready to make a lot of money before returning to Australia.

Little did he know that there was no chance of returning to Australia to take up a post.

"Gentlemen, gentlemen;

Our custom-built 1,500-tonne vessel in Australia is about to arrive, a power-enhanced vessel that uses a medium-sized horizontal steam unit, driven by two boilers, and can reach a top speed of an astonishing 16 knots, which the old Ottoman sailboats will certainly not be able to keep up with.

It's time to do a big job, the two river basins and the Persian region have always been rich land, with a huge market of more than 10 million people, the demand for high-quality Australian products is almost endless, especially with Australian high-quality pure wool carded wool tops and combed wool tops, the Persian carpets made are richer and softer, better quality, and the price is relatively cheaper, and it is a popular best-selling product.

Our milk, cane sugar, spices, bicycles and cans are all popular products that can be shipped for real money.

In Basra

With so much wealth to earn, we found the opportunity to connect with influential local families and go it alone without the Persian merchants. ”

"If you do it alone, you will have all the risks on your shoulders." Differing views were expressed.

"I think it's worth the risk, a shipment of four or five thousand pounds, which can be doubled or more by Basra, and our ship has a speed that the Ottomans can't match, there are enough armed guards, and most importantly...... It really can't be done to show the flag of the British merchant ships, the Ottomans are now counting on the thighs of England against Tsarist Russia, they do not have the courage to hold our ships, and the actual risk is equal to zero. If there is a sales channel in Basra, why should we let the big money slip out of our hands and throw it away to the treacherous Persian merchants? ”

The interests are moving, and Li Yong's words touched the vast majority of shareholders.

A custom-built sea vessel is worth a lot, but it's worth it in the long run.

Most of the smuggling ships along the Persian Gulf coast are sail cargo ships, with a cargo capacity of about one or two hundred tons, and the 1,500-ton steel ships they have invested in building are worth the income of the other side's 10 ships, or even much higher.

The advantage of steam freighters is that they use fewer crews, sail fast, have low requirements for wind direction and weather, and can run almost all year round on the Gulf of Aden to Persian Gulf route, and can get back all the investment after a month or two, and the rest is a net profit, which can be called an amazing profit.

This is also due to the special system and situation of the Ottoman Empire, which was full of corruption in this empire across Europe and Asia, and the officials and army were almost rotten, in order to satisfy the extreme desire for luxury, profligacy, and the oppression and exploitation of all the ethnic groups under its rule.

As a result, the various ethnic groups within the empire continued to revolt, pressing the gourd and floating the scoop, and the Ottoman Empire did not consider reforming the rule of officials, but raised a butcher's knife to brutally suppress it.

The empire is divided into isolated islands, with warlords and powerful aristocrats entrenched on one side, and they are very wary of forces from other parts of the empire for fear of endangering their rule.

In addition, the army and local officials expropriated excessively, and there were many checkpoints along the road, making it difficult to carry out normal commercial circulation, which led to a severe shortage of commodities, and the special products of the two river basins could not be sold, and the external goods needed could not come in.

It's a post-apocalyptic scene, and it's also a great time for coastal smuggling.

Lei Xiaopeng was very satisfied with the current situation, nodded in affirmation and asked; "Yongzai, there's nothing wrong with the next house over there in Basra, right?"

"Brother Peng, don't worry, the Yassin family is a famous family that has been entrenched in Basra for more than 400 years, and Ahmad Yasin, who took the initiative to contact me, is an outstanding and powerful person, he has studied in Europe and the United States, can speak fluent English and German, although he is the second son of the family, he has always been very ambitious to inherit the family throne. Working with us has been a natural fit, he takes it very seriously and will be physically present at the time of the transaction. ”

"Well, can the Yasin family eat so much of us?"

"Brother Peng, please rest assured, as long as you get the goods, Ahmed Yassin will quickly increase the price and sell it to some close families, and sell it through the family's traditional channels, which are all popular and high-quality products that cannot be seen on the market, especially the carded wool top, an important raw material for weaving Persian carpets, is in great demand, and almost as much as you eat."

"Iraq itself has a lot of pastures, doesn't it produce wool?"

"Hehe, Iraq's local sheep belong to coarse wool sheep, delicious and delicious, but the quality of wool is very poor, plus the wool workshop is very primitive, the carpet produced is far less famous than the Persian carpet, so the largest goods they smuggle from Persia is the Persian carpet, and now with our Australian wool, the Iraqis are not bad at making carpets, and they can also produce high-quality carpets."

"Oh...... I see. Lei Xiaopeng suddenly realized, and nodded again and again.

Due to historical and ethnic customs, Iraqis in the valley of the two rivers are accustomed to sitting on the floor and using tapestries and carpets, which is almost the largest expense of a wealthy family.

As long as there are conditions, not only the wall hangs, but even the ground must be covered with a thick wool carpet, soft and comfortable to sit on, and it is fragrant to sleep while lying down.

In Basra alone, 100,000 families, even if only a few people can afford them, is a staggering number.

It is almost the nature of the Arab peoples of the two river basins to buy a piece when they have saved enough money, and to buy another piece when they have saved enough money, and to hang it on the wall and spread it on the ground.

You can have nothing at home, but you can't lack carpets, otherwise there is no place to sit.

Add to that the hot items of toffee, spices, cane sugar, canned food, and bicycles, and it's hard not to make a fortune.

Lei Xiaopeng obviously showed signs of fortune when he reached middle age, and he looked at everyone with a red face and said; "Okay, then according to what Yong Zai said, let's get rid of the Persian smugglers and go it alone, as long as we have a gun in our hands, they won't make any trouble.

As long as the Yaxin family has roots, it will be easy to do, and if you dare to hack our goods, let him taste what it means to be full of death, and the chickens and dogs will not be left.

The first time I made a deal, I sent more people, and then brought the two 60mm field guns in the storehouse, and showed them the force, and don't give me any thought.

One more thing

Several brothers from the first and second companies and the artillery company also want to get involved, if we do it alone, it will cost us to prepare so many goods, and we alone can't make it up, so it is better to pull them in and do it together, so that the escort force can be richer, and everyone can relax. ”

"Since Brother Peng said it, I have no problem."

"Okay, they're all brothers of Size, maybe one day I will be entrusted with my life on the battlefield, and I will have no problem."

"It's good, but how many shares do you want to own?"

Everyone replied one after another, some readily agreed, some expressed doubts, Lei Xiaopeng smiled calmly and said; "This is what I have discussed with Yongzai, they should not occupy too many shares after they get on the ship, a company in the new ship each occupies a share, a total of three shares can be transferred, they get the shares and go back to divide, we here account for the proportion of shares to decrease, this part of the money is mainly used to raise money, and then find a bank loan to get some is about the same."

"Okay, no problem."

"I'm okay, Brother Peng, you can do whatever you say."

Everyone agreed, and a huge smuggling syndicate was formed, with the signboard of an Australian private shipping company hanging on the surface, but in fact it was an armed smuggling team supported by the main military and political officials of Xi'an Town, and the power hidden under the surface of the water was quite amazing.

The smuggling syndicate soon spread its business throughout Western Asia, flourishing within the vast territory of the Ottoman Empire, and expanding its tentacles into the Persian kingdom and establishing a regular trade channel with the Ethiopian kingdom.

It's all a later story, so let's not press the table for the time being.