Chapter 69, Luo Daban's fooling

"General, the reason why Zhu Daohua's army has such sophisticated weapons is because they have the extremely large Daohua trading house in Europe behind them as support."

"They can trade and buy whatever they need."

Rodriguez said.

"The same can be true of the Qing Dynasty, in this world, as long as there is money..."Rodriguez stretched out his hand and made a gesture to count the money, "there is nothing that cannot be bought." ”

"You can buy arms even if you run a bank?"

Fukangan hasn't spoken yet.

Guo Shixun asked.

In order to prepare for this war against the Ming army, the governor of Liangguang also moved to Guangzhou.

After all, Guangzhou is the center of Guangdong, and as long as Guangzhou is still in the hands of the Qing court, Guangdong will not be lost.

Rodriguez hurriedly said, "Master Guo, I am a businessman, I will do whatever I make money." The Qing Dynasty needed munitions, and I could ship muskets, artillery, from factories in Calcutta, India. ”

"The town of Foshan can also produce muskets." Guo Shixun was noncommittal.

"It's natural, and the technology of musket production is not a secret." Rodriguez spread his hands and said, "The only problem is the cost. ”

Speaking of which.

Rodriguez gestured to five.

"Five taels of silver, only five taels of silver! The brand-new Indian flintlock pistol can be delivered to Guangzhou! ”

"Five taels?!"

Guo Shixun and Fukangan were shocked when they heard this.

Not to mention the Ministry of Internal Affairs in Beijing, even if it is a craftsman here in Foshan, the cost of simply building a musket is more than five taels.

"How can it be so cheap?"

Fukangan asked.

Rodriguez thought to himself, of course, because I didn't intend to sell muskets at all, but for your money.

There was a slight smile on his face: "General, I am here to be friends with Daqing." ”

"Friends? Luo Taipan, you can say what you want. "Fukangan said.

He knew that if the other party shipped at the price of five taels of silver and a musket, it was likely to give up the profit.

If the other party gives up profits, he will definitely have to make up for it elsewhere.

Rodriguez didn't answer directly, but showed a playful smile: "I heard that the Thirteen Lines in Guangzhou used to trade mainly with the Dutch?" ”

Neither Fu Kangan nor Guo Shixun answered this question, and Fu Kangan looked at Wu Dunyuan, the chief merchant of the Thirteen Banks, who was sitting on the side.

Wu Dunyuan was originally looking at the nose and nose, and sat on the side like a mud bodhisattva, as soon as Fukangan's eyes came over, he hurriedly stood up, bent over and hung his hands to the center of the hall.

"My lord, the raw silk, porcelain, and tea exported before the thirteen lines were all taken the path of the Dutch."

Thirteen Lines is a commercial organization with the nature of government and business. All foreign businessmen who buy tea, silk and other domestic products or sell foreign goods must go through 13 lines.

The Thirteen Lines do not directly trade at sea.

Instead, it is through the reception of foreign businessmen, and Macao and Guangzhou are used as ports for port trade.

Every year, more than 200 large Western ships come to Guangzhou for trade, and the Guangdong Customs can contribute more than 2 million taels of silver to Qianlong's treasury every year in terms of tax revenue alone.

This is just a "contribution" on the surface.

In fact, the Thirteen Lines have the power to monopolize operations, and they also need to feed the nobles at all levels from the Qianlong Emperor to the banner owners and Manchurian nobles with silver.

Of course Wu Dunyuan knows.

Can the thirteen lines make money?

It's just a matter of a word from these Manchurian princes.

"And since the Dutch were defeated by the Ming Dynasty, there have been no Western ships coming to Guangzhou to trade in the past six months...."

Wu Dunyuan arched his hand and said.

He was forced to send someone to Batam to set up a trading house, and the Ming Dynasty's control of Nanyang made it difficult for the merchants of the Thirteen Lines to sit still.

"This is because the Ming King did not allow Western merchant ships to cross the Strait of Malacca."

Rodriguez added.

"This reversal... This is also too overbearing! ”

Fukangan snorted coldly.

There is less income supplement from Guangzhou's port trade.

I'm afraid the finances of the Qing Dynasty are going to shrink a lot...

However, it is also the merchants of these thirteen lines who are anxious for the time being - because the Qing Dynasty stipulated the minimum tariff amount of the Guangzhou port, if it is not enough, these merchants of the thirteen lines will have to replenish it by themselves.

And the filial piety to the nobles of the Eight Banners like Fukangan is naturally indispensable....

"In that case, how can you guarantee that you will be able to deliver the goods to the Guangzhou Mansion?" Guo Shixun's fingers tapped lightly on the chair's deputy, and his slender eyes glanced at Rodriguez slantedly.

"It's very simple, Western merchant ships can enter Batam, and Oriental merchant ships can also enter Batam, that is, it is just an entrepot trade. The Ming King did not impose any restrictions on the goods traded. ”

When Rodriguez said this, his eyes looked back and forth from Guo Shixun and Fukangan, two Qing Dynasty officials in Guangdong.

"So... If I could, I would like to be able to get the right to trade exclusively at the port of Guangzhou. ”

"Exclusive trade is impossible, but Guangzhou Port does not restrict foreign trade, as long as you pay the ship tax." Fukangan's eyes were staring at Rodriguez, this Hongyi was really whimsical, and he actually wanted to get the exclusive right to trade.

"What a pity..."

Rodriguez said regret on his lips, but his face showed joy.

Seeing this scene, Fukangan snorted coldly in his heart, this Hongyi is really a businessman who asks for money to pay back on the spot.

"Batam's entrepot trade, it sounds simple, aren't you afraid that Zhu Daohua will know that you sell muskets to the Qing Dynasty?"

Rodriguez's gaze turned to Guo Shixun, who was speaking.

"My lord, Daohua Commercial Bank is the most profitable commercial institution in Zhu Daohua's hands now, and the main market of Daohua Commercial Bank is in Europe, especially the United Kingdom...."

Rodriguez pointed to his nose.

"And many of the shareholders of my HSBC firm are nobles of the British Empire, and if I have not violated any laws set by the Ming Emperor, if he acts against my HSBC, his Daohua firm will inevitably be retaliated against by the British Empire!"

"Therefore, King Ming will not offend HSBC, and he will not ignore the relationship with Great Britain, and the trade between us can not even be carried out through Ming Yuan."

"Don't use Mingyuan?" Wu Dunyuan's eyes lit up.

"Lord Wu, if you want to trade with the Qing Dynasty, it's best to bypass Ming Yuan. HSBC has the strength to support the trade between us and us. Rodriguez said, turning his head to look at Fukangan again.

"General, if you allow my HSBC to set up a trading bank in Guangzhou to absorb deposits, then the trade between us will be safer, the Qing Dynasty only needs to deposit silver into the HSBC Bank and exchange it for flying money, and I will be able to transport the musket to Guangzhou, and even our future trade can pass through the HSBC Bank, so as to bypass the Ming Yuan for direct trade."

It is necessary to run a bank to absorb savings.

Is HSBC, which claims to have a lot of the British Empire's wealthy shares behind it, trustworthy?

"Zhu Daohua didn't dare to seize HSBC?"

"I don't dare."

Rodriguez Road.

Wu Dunyuan looked at Fukangan, and Fukangan nodded slightly.

Wu Dunyuan thought about it and said: "Luo Daban, if HSBC can really bypass Mingyuan, the Thirteen Banks can strengthen cooperation with HSBC. ”

Being able to bypass the Ming Yuan, a currency that caused great headaches for officials and businessmen in the Qing Dynasty, HSBC has the value of its existence.

Rodriguez smiled slightly, just about to add fuel to the fire.

An official hurried outside the door and whispered a few words in Fukangan's ear.

Fukangan suddenly stood up.

"Luo Daban, Wu Dunyuan is in charge of the musket trade."

Rodriguez hurriedly followed the example of the Qing officials and withdrew with his hands down.

"Duxian, what's wrong?"

"Reverse Ming.. Occupy Lantau Island! ”

Fukangan took a deep breath.

In the hall, the faces of several people suddenly turned grim.

A gust of wind passed through the hall.

The chill hit.