The Nanyang sailors with weapons had blocked the hatch and shouted loudly for Liu Ziguang to hand over their captain. How could Liu Ziguang take these shrimp soldiers and crab generals seriously, he kicked on the hatch and blocked the people outside.
He knocked down a large area, then jumped out and swung his feet, kicking all those who dared to block the way into the water, then jumped onto the trestle and walked away.
As soon as he walked out of the pier, an inconspicuous carriage rushed over at lightning speed. Liu Ziguang waited until the carriage came to him and jumped on. The people inside immediately closed the curtains of the carriage, and the carriage disappeared in the eyes of the sailors who chased it.
The carriage was sent by Hu Yimin to meet Liu Ziguang. He had been paying attention to the movement nearby. These elite swordsmen moved very quickly and cooperated with each other very well. They were even more capable than the Nanchang people. After the two prisoners were thrown into the carriage,
, the swordsman immediately tied them up tightly and covered their heads with black cloth.
The carriage circled several times and made sure that no one was following it before entering Miss Hu's annex. The two prisoners were carried into the cellar and kept under guard. Liu Ziguang went to the upper room and briefly told Hu Yimin what had happened. After hearing this, Miss Hu
He frowned and said: "There are three main types of taxes levied by the Municipal Shipping Department on overseas merchant ships. The first is water rates. It is based on the volume of the ship, ranging from less than 50 taels to about 1,000 taels per ship. The second is water rates.
Lu rates are the import tax on goods. The average tax rate on imported goods declared is less than two cents. The third is the increased rate for the Oriental Travel Song Silver Ship. The tax rate is six cents. If it is one hundred thousand taels of silver as you said, that is
The tax payable is six thousand taels. The Lai family transported cheap silver from overseas, and then exchanged it for cheaper goods from the mainland and exported it overseas. The tax evaded between the entry and exit amounted to tens of thousands, plus the profits from overseas trade.
, It’s hard even if you don’t want to be developed. If this continues, I’m afraid the Fuyuan will have more money than Rishengchang.”
"What's going on with these overseas silver ships? Did the Ming Dynasty still have little silver? It needed to be imported from overseas." Liu Ziguang lacked the political and financial acumen of ancient times, so he still had to humbly ask Miss Hu for such questions.
"I have mined all the silver mountains in the past. Most of the silver coins circulating on the market come from overseas. There are various silver coins used by Western countries to purchase goods, as well as silver ships coming directly from Japan and the Song Dynasty. Copper is precious in Japan.
Silver is cheap. In the Ming Dynasty, copper coins that could be exchanged for one tael of silver could be exchanged for one, two, and five cents in Japan. This quick and profitable way of making money made many maritime merchants take risks and opened up a sea route to exchange copper coins for silver coins. However, this way
As the number of people increased, it gradually became less easy to travel. Now the price ratio of silver and copper in Japan is almost the same as that in the Ming Dynasty. Later, another channel for the inflow of silver money appeared, that is, the transfer of silver from Lu Song Dynasty to the use of Lu Song Dynasty.
The gold and silver coins are all shipped from overseas in the far east. I heard that the price of gold and silver there is extremely low, as cheap as bricks and tiles, and the quality is indeed very good. Although it is thousands of miles away, as long as a ship of gold and silver is shipped
That’s enough to survive in the next life.”
Liu Ziguang was slightly surprised. If you go further east from Song Dynasty, isn't it the vast Pacific Ocean? Across the Pacific Ocean is South America. Is it possible that cheap gold and silver are shipped from there? It is very possible that the silver mines in Chile and Peru
They are all very developed, and you can dig out fine silver ore just by digging a hole. This is indeed a good way to make a fortune.
After figuring out the truth, Liu Ziguang decided to interrogate the two prisoners immediately. The mysterious young man was brought up first. Liu Ziguang's sixth sense told him that this person might be helpful to him.
After the young man was brought up, Liu Ziguang asked someone to untie him, take off the black cloth covering his head, and asked the maid to make a cup of tea and bring it to him. The man rubbed his tied and bleeding wrists to calm down.
At the same time, Liu Ziguang was also observing him carefully.
His skin is dark, and it is the kind of tan that has been exposed to the wind and sun for a long time at sea like an ocean-going sailor. His eyes are firm, and it seems that he is not too worried about the current situation. It seems that his background must be very strong. His fingers and teeth are all yellow.
, he should be a very addicted smoker, and usually people living in Song Dynasty are more addicted to smokers.
, and more importantly, his face looked so familiar, so similar to someone in his memory. Liu Ziguang quickly searched his mind for this person, who was none other than Lieutenant Commander Zhao Jing of the Song Dynasty Navy who drove a submarine back then.
Liu Ziguang smiled slightly and was the first to break the silence: "People from the Song Dynasty navy went to work in our Ming Dynasty and did not say hello to me, the host. Isn't it too rude?"
The man's expression changed, then he calmed down and said calmly: "I don't understand what you are saying."
"It doesn't matter whether you understand it or not. You just need to know it in your own mind. By the way, how is your brother Zhao Jing? It's not easy to be a submarine soldier. And Wen Jun, I haven't seen Guixiang in a while. When you see him
Bring it for me. Okay, you can go."
Liu Ziguang's move was called playing hard to get. Sure enough, the man was fooled and asked doubtfully: "My second brother rarely appears in the Ming Dynasty. How do you know him? Who are you?"
Liu Ziguang smiled and said: "Didn't your second brother mention that he met any heroes worthy of his admiration in Ming Dynasty?"
"Could it be that you are the Admiral Liu of Nanchang?" the man asked with his eyes widened.
Liu Ziguang smiled without answering, stood up, walked to the window, pushed open the window, and the sunlight came in, coating his body with a layer of gold, making him look domineering.
"I'm downstairs, Captain Zhao Kang of the Anti-smuggling Squadron of the Song Dynasty Navy, to pay my respects to Mr. Liu." The man was also a smart man and hurriedly paid homage to Liu Ziguang again.
"General Zhao is exempt from the ceremony." Liu Ziguang knew that the people named Zhao were all descendants of the royal family in the Song Dynasty, and their status was very respected, so he did not dare to accept his worship. However, Zhao Kang insisted on paying tribute according to his military rank, so he had to accept his worship.
After his identity was revealed, it became easier to talk. Zhao Kang said that he was on an anti-smuggling mission and came to investigate the smuggling silver ship. The man named Ma was called Ma Sufu. He was a Muslim and specialized in maritime smuggling. His route was Xinwen, the capital of the Song Dynasty.
When Bian Jing arrived in Shanghai during the Ming Dynasty, he had a lot of acquaintances in the shipping companies on both sides. He had evaded taxes for many years, amounting to a huge amount. The country of Song Dynasty was not like the spy politics of the Ming Dynasty. He could arrest people without evidence, but it was very difficult.
The witness evidence was important, otherwise the Yushitai would not approve the arrest, so Zhao Lei pursued him all the way to Shanghai, and when he was about to capture Ma Sufu and the account book together, Liu Ziguang appeared, and this was how the current scene happened.
"If you throw the account book into the river, you don't know which fish will end up in it." Liu Ziguang said.
"My lord, don't be anxious. There are frogmen from our fleet in the water to help. The account books may have been on the submarine at this time. Please be kind and hand Masufo over to my subordinates and bring them back together."
"Of course I, a mere smuggler, can give it to you, but this case involves all aspects of our Ming Dynasty. We, the South Factory, also plan to investigate this. I don't think it is better for the two of us to cooperate in handling the case." Liu Ziguang offered the conditions.
Zhao Kang had no choice but to agree. After all, this was on the land of the Ming Dynasty, and the power of the Fuyuan was so huge. With the help of Nanchang, the difficulty of investigating the case was greatly reduced.
"Thank you so much, sir." Zhao Lei cupped his hands and Liu Ziguang reached out to hold his hand with a smile. The two of them clapped their palms in the air, and it was settled.
The next interrogation was conducted by Zhao Kang. After all, he had been following Ma Sufu for some time and had a thorough understanding of all situations. At first, Ma Sufu pretended to be dumbfounded, hoping that someone would come to rescue him, but Liu Ziguang, who was listening to the interrogation next to him, said nothing.
It dispelled all his luck:
"Don't be afraid if you think you have Lai Youwei to support you. Let's be clear, you are now a prisoner of the Ming Dynasty Southern Editing Factory!"
Nanchang's reputation was built through hard work. Who doesn't know that behind Nanchang is the powerful red shirt regiment and Liu Ziguang, a popular figure in front of the emperor? In terms of force and power, who in the Ming Dynasty can match it?
Masufo's psychological defense was quickly broken, and he said in a hoarse voice: "Can you give me a cigar?"
Zhao Kang and Liu Ziguang looked at each other and smiled knowingly. They knew that this case had some clues.
According to Ma Sufu's account, Lai Youwei, the owner of the Fuyuan, hired him to smuggle money last year. Ma Sufu was a pirate and was very familiar with the waterway from Song Dynasty to Shanghai. He was also very proficient in evading maritime surveillance. He gathered a gang of gangsters.
, bought a dual-purpose boat manufactured by the Wuchang Shipyard of the Ming Dynasty, and started the smuggling business like this. There were many smugglers taking the same waterway, but only Ma Sufu was able to travel to both ends of the Song Dynasty and Shanghai, so his business was very prosperous, like a shuttle.
He loaded the silver from Xinbianjing to Shanghai, then loaded it with porcelain and silk to the sea off Xinbianjing in exchange for the silver from the other side of the ocean. He ran in both directions without paying the customs duties at both ends. In one year, Ma Sufu's net worth exceeded one hundred thousand.
I just made money for running errands. As for the real big boss Lai Youwei, I don’t know how many thousands of taels of silver he earned. After all, he has more than just this silver boat.
Ma Sufu knew an official in the Song Dynasty. It was precisely because of his cover that the anti-smuggling officers in the Song Dynasty were unable to capture evidence. As for Shanghai, it was the Lai family who dealt with the Shipping Department. Ma Sufu did not know the specific situation. He only knew that there had never been any evidence.
No one came to collect taxes. The person he usually dealt with was Lai Wenguang, Lai Youwei's nephew. Both parties had the same account books, and signed each other's signatures when loading and unloading as proof of settlement.
Ma Sufu probably only had so much oil and water on his body. Liu Ziguang turned around and left the interrogation room to introduce the situation to Hu Yimin. He saw a swordsman hurried over and said to Liu Ziguang: "Sir, your two friends on the dock have been arrested by the Lai family.