Imai Munehisa understood what Takada Harano meant. Her suggestion to keep the Nanman route of Ranren was also due to this concern.
"That's what my lord said.
Xiang Zong was also in trouble, but the Nanman's iron cannons were powerful, their merchant ships could withstand huge waves, and they monopolized most of the ocean trade.
Especially for iron cannons, the proportion of iron cannons used in wars in recent years has been increasing.
However, iron cannon projectiles and gunpowder are both consumables, especially gunpowder. Every year, a large amount of saltpeter enters Sakai Port to make gunpowder, all of which come from Nanman people.
Today's Portuguese and Westerners are relatively peaceful, but compared to previous years, they are much more active.
I'm worried that in the future, the Nanman Sect will become even more powerful, and they will push further, and our participation in the Nanman trade will be coerced by them."
Takata Yono looked solemn and asked.
"So you want to support that Lan person and give her some port resources so that she can stick to the Japanese trade route and help us leave a way out?"
Imai Munehisa bowed.
"Yes. Among the Southern Barbarian merchants, the British and Chinese are different from the Westerners and the Portuguese. They are not so enthusiastic about the spread of the Southern Barbarian religion, especially the Lan people.
It is said that their country was established only a few years ago and is a country of merchants, which values trade credit and monetary profits most.
In the past two years, the Portuguese bribed local officials on the southeast coast of China and obtained a port called Macao, which gave them an even greater advantage in trade.
If we don't give the Lan people any benefits, maybe they will soon lose out in tomorrow's trade and leave Japan's trade lines."
Takada Yono lowered his head to think and murmured.
"Yeah.."
Japan's maritime trade during this period was mainly the re-export trade attached to the Ming Dynasty, which played a relatively unique role.
After the founding of the Ming Dynasty, foreign trade became increasingly conservative. Originally, Japan could get a share of the pie through exploration and cooperation trade, but as a result of the Japanese rebellion in Ningbo, this road was blocked by the Ming Dynasty.
The Ming Dynasty's lack of official attention to foreign trade was originally supplemented by private trade.
However, after the Jiajing period, the official attitude towards seclusion became more and more severe, and the sea ban was seriously implemented. The southeastern provinces had many mountains and few fields, and private people smuggled out to sea, causing chaos. Within a few years, the sea ban existed in name only.
After the opening of the sea in Longqing and the Wanli New Deal, Guangdong and Fujian allowed Nanman merchants to come to trade, and gradually became Luzon and the main port for Nanman business in Southeast Asia.
Even the steel used in the artillery and guns used by the Nanman people in Southeast Asia came from Guangdong, and countless other materials were obtained.
As the light of civilization in this era, the Ming Dynasty exported silk, porcelain, tea and other high-tech commodities, and was famous all over the world.
The Nanman people could only use spices from Southeast Asia and silver, the main currency of the Ming Dynasty, in exchange for these materials, resulting in a large amount of silver from around the world flowing into the Ming Dynasty.
Japan played a special role in the Nanman trade with the Ming Dynasty. It was a transshipment port and financing, similar to a certain Oriental Pearl five hundred years later.
Ancient East Asian trade can be seen from the map. The round-trip distance from Southeast Asia to Guangdong is very close, while Korea and Japan are far away. In fact, this is not the case.
In ancient times, sea trade followed the ocean currents. When there were trade winds, they were also called trade winds. When the Nanman people from Southeast Asia arrived in Guangdong and Fujian, they could not wait here for several months and then follow the ocean currents.
Instead, it followed the ocean currents, passed through Taiwan Island and the Ryukyu Islands, and reached Japan and Korea. Then it followed the ocean currents and returned to the southeastern coast of China, and finally returned to Southeast Asia.
Only by going in a circle like this can we obtain the greatest benefits. In other words, this is not a point-to-point first-line trade, but a triangular multi-point trade network drawn in circles.
Japan mainly exports specialties such as paper fans, lacquerware, and Japanese swords. The Southern Barbarians don't care much about these things. What they need most is Chinese tea, porcelain, silk, and cotton.
However, the island of Japan is rich in gold, silver and copper. Due to the lack of technology to smelt copper and make money, silver has been cheap and copper has been expensive internally for a long time, so the Yongle coins of the Chinese Empire were used as hard currency.
This is also the reason why Imai Munehisa and others can use the incoming money to trade and make profits, but the Nanman people are even more slippery in this regard.
The Nanman people set out from Southeast Asia and went north to China with spices, where they exchanged materials such as cotton cloth, sandalwood, copper coins, etc. that Japan needed before heading to Japan.
Then through trade with Japan, they obtained a large amount of gold, silver, and special products. Then they turned south and returned to China, buying the tea, porcelain, silk and other commodities they needed, and then returned to Southeast Asia.
During this trade process, the Nanman people not only earned the balance of normal trade through transportation, but also used Japan's huge gold and silver mine resources for financing and obtained generous additional profits.
The Celestial Empire used silver as its main trading currency, and a large part of the gold and silver used by the Nanman people in their trade with the Celestial Empire came from Japan.
Therefore, although Japan is poor in products, it has become a transshipment port that the Southern Barbarians are unwilling to give up due to its unique gold and silver advantage over the Celestial Empire.
Since Japan lost its exploration trade with the Ming Dynasty, it could only obtain high-priced and high-quality second-hand goods through profiteers in North Korea, or smuggle them through the Jiajing Japanese Rebellion on the southeast coast.
With Wang Zhi being killed and Qi Jiguang suppressing the Japanese, smuggling had become unsustainable. The Japanese urgently needed the Nanman people to open up trade lines with the Ming Dynasty and absorb the Nanman advanced technology, such as iron cannons.
In maritime trade, both parties actually have common interests.
In the trade with the Ming Dynasty, the Portuguese had the greatest advantage. Not only did they participate in official trade in Yuegang in Fujian, but they also gained a new foothold in Macau in Guangdong through bribery.
The Portuguese people's devotion to their faith greatly contributed to the spread of Nanman religion in Japan, which aroused Imai Munehisa's vigilance.
It is understandable that she hoped that by supporting the Lan people, she could reduce her dependence on devout believers such as the Portuguese and Westerners in the Southern Barbarian trade.
Although the price of Lanren is higher, you can't put all your eggs in one basket, it is not safe.
Takada Yono thought carefully and finally agreed with Imai Munehisa's judgment.
"You are right, we should keep this Lan man. Nanman trade cannot be monopolized by the Portuguese and Westerners. This is not good for us.
Then I will meet this orchid and give her some resources so that she can persevere.
what is her name?"
Imai Munehisa bowed.
"Lilu, Agot. It is said that she comes from some lowland, the Netherlands. Anyway, it is a small country on the other side of the world that has just become independent."
Takada Harano glanced at her.
"Is it unreliable? In a few years, this country will be gone, right?"
Imai Munehisa smiled bitterly.
"This...I'm not very clear either.
This is how the Southern Barbarians divide today and merge tomorrow. Maybe tomorrow the Portuguese will become Westerners, and the British and Chinese will become people of the same country.
But don’t worry, these businessmen don’t care which country they belong to, they only care about their profits.”