He Bin spread his hands and said: "But I need to get accurate information as soon as possible, before the year, the big shopkeeper hopes to have a clear result in the relationship with the Dutch." ”

"If you want to be fast, you can't reach it, although that Li Zhaoji is a rare hero, but in the end he is young and vigorous, he is still a little impatient." Su Minggang said.

"It is a clear result, but it does not seek peace.

Whether there was peace or war between the Dutch and the trading companies was to be determined. He Bin said.

Su Minggang frowned, he thought for a moment and said, "Okay, then we can find Matsolko." ”

"Who is he?" He Bin said he had never heard such a name.

"The Director General, who took office at the beginning of this year....... Director-General like Cohen. Su Minggang described Matt Solko's authority in as simple words as possible.

He Bin also understood that the director-general was second-in-command after the governor of Batavia, but a director-general like Cohen could really pose a threat to the governor. Such a powerful director-general, Cohen has done, and the current governor Van Diemen has also done.

Although the name of the East India Company is the company, it has begun to fulfill its responsibilities as a country, and it has a vast colony in the East, which can be called the Dutch East India, the Du Empire, and the highest body that manages this empire is the East India, Du Islands Committee.

The Governor of Batavia, in effect, was the head of the company, the head of the committee, but he had no arbitrary authority.

Fifty years ago, when the Dutch began their voyages to the East, the Council system was established and played an important role in the first voyage. Over the past fifty years, the company has gone through eight governors, each of whom has been supervised by the East India Islands Committee.

As a governor, his personal authority derives partly from his political resources in Amsterdam and partly from his own power and prestige.

The Governor-General, the Director-General, the Chief Bookkeeper, the President of the Judicial Council, the Commander of the Army, the Merchant Fleet Administrator, these are all regulars on the Committee, and if you want to hold the Governor's throne and make a difference, you need to have good relationships, but the most important thing is the support from Amsterdam.

This support depends on the profits that the governor can generate for the company, and the profits are related to the direct dividends of shareholders and more importantly, to the company's stock price. Because the company is a listed company, the stock price is several times higher than when it was first issued, and because of this, successive governors have a red line, that is, four times, if someone makes the company's profits fall, and the price of the shares falls below four times the number of new shares, then his career as governor will come to an end.

But this is precisely the most contradictory place of Dongyin, Du Company.

The corporation exists for profit, but the problem is that it also has a large number of colonies, undertakes military, diplomatic and political affairs, and the state functions not only for profit, but also for geopolitics, security and expansion.

The governor of Batavia was destined to find a balance before the company and the state, and it was precisely because of this balance that Van Diemen served as governor for a long time, but the problem was that this balance was gradually broken.

The simple reason is that Van Diemen takes his status as a conquistador too seriously, but for the last seven or eight years he has not had a problem, because the areas he conquered were India, where trade flourished, along the coast, the main transportation routes such as Malacca, and where the Spice Islands were full of gold.

These places belonged to the Kingdom of Portugal or some small sultanates, and often a small amount of input would produce a huge output. But there is no such 'dessert taste' anymore, and in the East, where the rich but not yet conquered places belong to a certain great power, which requires a lot of investment to produce a big output.

For the state, this is nothing, but for the company, it is worth discussing.

This gave Matsolko room to operate, and he conquered seventeen local gentlemen with solid theories and detailed data, obtained the post of director general, and when he arrived in Batavia, quickly confronted Van Diemen.

The business of the company in the East is divided into three parts.

It is divided into colonies, exclusive trade zones, and trading partners.

The colony is a place that is conquered by force such as Batavia and Taiwan's Dayuan region, and the exclusive trade zone is a place where trade is monopolized, such as the area around the Spice Islands, where the Tianfang Sect state functions to trade with the East India and Du companies, and the third is a place without any privileges, such as Japan, India, Du, Siam and other places.

Contrary to what many people think, colonies are not a blood transfusion point for a country, but on the contrary, a blood transfer point for a country.

From the point of view of the national finances, the income received from the colonies is far less than the expenditure invested in the colonies. This was vividly reflected in the British Empire in later generations, and those colonies that were crowned the jewels in the Queen's crown were all grinding discs hanging around the neck of the British Treasury.

For the current East India, the same is true for the company, Batavia, Dayuan and other colonies that are governed by the company, can not create profits for the company at all, but need continuous investment, on the contrary, the company's profit points come from India, Japan, which are not only not trade privileges, but are restricted everywhere.

Quiet trade, this is the goal of Matsolko's administration, and as Director General, that is, the head of the company's trade in the East, he has this authority.

This is not his originality, because the British East India, Du Company did this, they did not want to conflict with any country, with expensive and luxurious gifts and servile attitude to impress one feudal lord after another, and then get the opportunity to trade, so that their profits will continue to rise.

The expansion of the Toindoku company has reached its peak, and it is time for quiet trade and reaping profits.

This was the attitude of the seventeen gentlemen towards the current East India Company, which led to the rise of Matsolco's authority in Batavia.

Unlike Governor Van Diemen's office, which was full of swords, muskets, and maps, Matsolko's office was filled with oriental artwork and the scent of flowers.

When Moder returned to Batavia, he met with a few friends, and the Dutch bureaucracy here praised the generosity and generosity of the new director-general, and although they still did not dare to be disrespectful to the aggressive Governor Van Dimen, it was clear that they liked the new director-general.

The Dutch offered high wages to their employees, but they were not allowed to make extra money, but the British not only did not object, but also strongly supported them, and many times, the returning trading ships would leave a quarter of the space for their own employees to store their goods.

Under Van Diemen, the bureaucracy was terrified, and some were thrown into prison for remitting more than their salaries to their hometowns.

After Matsolko's arrival, the problem was solved, and Van Diemen never seized any of these similar cases, because under Matsolko's management, these bureaucrats opened a new channel to send money home through competitors, the British East India and Du companies.

"The flowers are beautiful, Your Excellency the Director-General." Modell smiled in front of Matt Solko and said.

"Hey, Mr. Modell, you are as shrewd and capable as Harlan said in his letter. It was a pleasure to have tea with you here on this sunny afternoon. I can tell you responsibly that tea is definitely a great discovery of the Ming people, and I hope you like it too. "Matt Solko gave Moder a warm welcome.

Moder opened a box and said, "Yes, you and I share a hobby, so I brought you a set of tea sets from the Ming Kingdom, from Jingdezhen, a province on the mainland of the Ming Dynasty, which was dedicated to the production of porcelain for the Ming Emperor Taohuashi." ”

"Beautiful porcelain, very beautiful." Matt Solko picked it up and played with it.

After a while, Matt Solko cleaned up and said with a smile: "I heard from some people that you brought back the representative of the Oriental Company, and he brought full sincerity. But the Governor did not seem to want me to see that Mr. Ho Bin, saying that he was a traitor and a villain. ”

"A messenger is a messenger, and shouldn't we care about the terms in his head and the authority he has been given?" Moder said.

"That's a good point, so I need you to tell me what the Eastern Company has and what strength they have." Matt Solko said with a smile.

Moder took out a slip from his pocket: "Your Excellency the Director-General, this is a slip that I copied from the Oriental Company. His Excellency the Governor is dismissive of it, but I am sure that you will be of great interest as the Director-General of Trade.

If we can take these goods, this year's profit of the company will definitely be the best year ever, and I guarantee that the figures on the profit statement will make seventeen gentlemen scream. ”

"Really?" Matt Solko asked with a smile, he took the list, and after seeing the contents and numbers on it, he asked, "Are you sure that all these things exist?" It's a good thing, and it will sell for a good price at any port. ”

"I can guarantee with my eyes that they are all stored in the warehouses of Freshwater City and will not be touched until February next year, of course, I mean February in the Ming calendar. I've seen them with my own eyes, touched them with my own hands, and even taken someone to test their quality.

High-quality goods, beautiful and intoxicating. Modell's tone was exaggerated.

The goods listed above are the goods that were traded in Nagasaki at the beginning, mainly raw silk, porcelain, textiles and other things, because the trade was changed to an expedition, and the expedition obtained a large amount of money, Li Zhaoji advanced the money to the Guangdong gentry to settle the bill, and then bought all these goods.

It was a bargaining chip to impress the Dutch, and it was clear that Matt Solko, as director-general, took it very seriously.

"You're in favor of peaceful relations and trade with the Eastern Company, right?" Matt Solko asked.

Modell nodded slightly: "Only in front of you can I dare to express such an opinion." For I have noticed that His Excellency does not seem to like this. ”

"Yes, the guy who blows up gunpowder as soon as he turns his head doesn't want a competitor on the ocean. Even though they have so many high-quality goods, Moder, perhaps we should play a trick and buy them first, and let the governor handle the relationship between the two sides. ”

"Why," Moder asked, "Do you want a beautiful statement for one year, but not every year?" ”

"Does the Eastern Company have such strength?" Matt Solko apparently knew very little about the Oriental Trading Company.

"Yes, when I came, the army and fleet of this company were all gathered in the area of Macao, that is, in Guangdong Province of the Ming Kingdom, and they were helping the governor of Guangdong to suppress the pirates.

Li Zhaoji of the Eastern Company personally told me that the war would end before New Year's Day, and that after the war, he would gain a lot of things.

For example, a large island in the Guangdong Sea was obtained for business, and the entire customs office of Guangdong Province of the Ming Kingdom was taken care of, and those squire officials of the Ming Kingdom would join the ranks of trade.

He said that even if I led a fleet north the day after I returned to Batavia, this fleet would be able to dock along the coast of Daming and buy whatever cargo I wanted. Modell said.

Matt Solko slapped his head: "God, how much did they lie to me, Moder, tell me everything you know."

This is a great opportunity for the company, for you and me.

I seemed to see Lady Luck lift the hem of my skirt ........ ”

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