In February of the thirty-fourth year of Qin Shihuang, when the spring breeze blew and the ice melted and the snow melted, Liaonan took the lead in ushering in the first batch of merchants from the "Haidong Trading Company"...
The lives of the Thirteen Dajia were precious, so naturally they would not venture out to sea in person. They sent their concubines and nephews to do the work for them. These young people caught up with the intermittent south wind, took their own ship, and arrived at the Liaonan port first. "Lushun" has been officially placed under Jiaodong County as an independent county.
It is said that Liaodong County protested against this and believed that Lushun should belong to Liaodong on the grounds that it was in Liaodong. However, the court compared it with Jiaodong. The time it took for Liaodong to send officials to Lushun showed that it only took 2 days at the fastest for Jiaodong, while it took at least 20 days for Liaodong. …
In addition, the annual tax revenue Jiaodong can provide to the court is nine times that of Liaodong!
Even if we don’t consider who the county governors are, just looking at the tax amount, which county speaks more forcefully in court, is there any need to say?
So the dispute ended here, the entire long coast of southern Liaoning was assigned to Jiaodong, and Liaodong could only feel aggrieved.
When the merchants arrived in Lushun, there were already thousands of furs paid by the nearby barbarian tribes. Just like the well salt, cinnabar, and chicken feathers handed over by the Ba people, all kinds of strange objects were the taxes paid by the barbarian rulers under the empire. , don’t expect them to hand over food that they don’t even have enough to eat.
Although Haidong Trading Co., Ltd. claims to "make money together," there will still be competition between them. For example, if the thousand mink skins in Lushun were divided equally, the benefits would be thin, and disputes and discord would easily arise.
The thirteen merchants are engaged in different industries. Some specialize in selling silk and some specialize in selling sugar. But when it comes to the goods on the return trip, except for Touma who is interested in slaves, most of them are undoubtedly interested in leather goods. Hei Fu follows the instructions. The area is divided into thirteen areas, and each family competes for their favorite area through "bidding" to obtain the exclusive right to purchase furs there!
Lushun is undoubtedly the most popular, because it is the closest place, and a round trip only takes five or six days, which can save a lot of freight, and the local barbarians take the initiative to hand over their furs to the government. All you need to do is to transport them back, which is the safest way.
The merchants bid fiercely. In the end, Pangzi, a merchant from Linzi, obtained the right to purchase the furs of Lushun through a high price. He purchased the furs at a price slightly lower than the market price in Linzi. As for how much mink fur could be sold in the Central Plains after being processed into mink fur. It depends on Ponzi's own abilities.
Pang's ship carried more than a thousand skins and was satisfied with the return journey, while the other ships could only continue forward.
…
When they arrived at the dotted islands, several empty ships that had unloaded food in Lushun left the main force. It could be seen from the large nets everywhere on the ships that their target was not on land, but in the sea!
As they approached the island, the water turned from dark blue to bright blue. A young man lay on the side of the boat, looked down and shouted:
"Fish, all fish!"
The Pan family in Yeyi has been engaged in the marine fish trade for generations, but these days, they can only fish offshore. After hundreds of years of continuous fishing by the Qi people, the size and quantity of fish in the offshore fishery of Laizhou Bay have slightly shrunk. I heard that there are fish everywhere in the coastal waters of southern Liaoning. Fishing grounds, the money has been invested in the trading company anyway, so I simply sent my children to take a look.
Sure enough, there are really countless fish in this virgin territory that no one has set foot in! The fish in the shallow sea are so dense that if you just put down a basket, you will find a basket full of fish!
After just one afternoon of fishing, the cabin and the deck were all full of sea fish...
After returning to Yeyi a few days later, in addition to the boat full of salted fish, the merchant's son described the scene he saw to his father: "A cauldron was set up, and before the water was heated, the fish for the evening meal had already been caught.
That’s enough!”
…
Fan, a businessman from Jibei who was unable to bid for a good area due to lack of money, set his sights on Xi'anping, which was not under the jurisdiction of Jiaodong. They believed that to the east of Liaodong, there was a vast and unknown wilderness.
There may be some business opportunities hidden in the mountains and forests...
After the boat docked in Xi'an, Fan's eldest son took people to have a good stroll around the market here.
With thousands of Qin troops stationed in Xi'an, Xi'an became much more lively. On market days, in addition to residents of Liaodong, barbarians from Zhenfan, Fuyu and even Sushen would also come here to go to the market and use their own mountain goods.
In exchange for things from the Central Plains.
The messy stalls are full of unfamiliar languages and shouts. Trade is basically barter. Both parties put out their belongings and point to each other. Shaking their heads is not acceptable, nodding is okay, and a loud high-five is a deal.
Then each of them took the items they were satisfied with and left happily.
Of course, there are also those who have a disagreement and draw swords against each other. Such troublemakers will be quickly caught by the patrolling Qin soldiers.
In addition to bear skins, wolf skins, tiger skins and deer skins that were being sold everywhere, Fan's eldest son also discovered many mushrooms, including the famous matsutake that he could name, and many that were not famous. In order to prove that he could
He actually chewed it raw on the spot! Fortunately, he didn’t foam at the mouth and die on the spot...
In addition, there are velvet antler, musk and other precious medicinal materials, but they are surprisingly cheap here. He also noticed that at a Fuyu stall, there was a rhizome plant whose roots were similar to fennel roots. The color was turmeric, but it was lighter than fennel.
The roots are bigger.
"What is this?"
The eldest son of the Fan family asked the translator to help him inquire. The Fuyu people were carving bone flutes boredly. When someone asked about it, they chatted for a long time.
"The people of Fuyu say that if two people climb a mountain at the same time, one with this thing in his hand and the other without, they will each walk for half a day. The one who does not hold it will be out of breath, and the one who holds it will have the same breath as before."
"real or fake?"
The eldest son of the Fan family was doubtful, but the translator said that it was true. Drinking this stuff in soup will produce fluid and restore Qi.
Since it was cheap, Fan's eldest son bought a small amount. After returning to the boat, some fishermen who had been to Xi'anping laughed at him for losing money because of this thing...
"It's not just Buyeo, Shinban, Sushen, Liaodong, Korea, all over the mountains. As long as you know them, you can dig a big basket in a day!"
"The more, the better. If you can make small profits but quick turnover, you can at least get your money back."
The eldest son of the Fan family didn't take it seriously. Their family couldn't compete with others in the trading company. In order not to lose money, they had to look for business in the corners that others didn't care about. As long as they didn't know anything, they bought it and brought it back.
Go try it in Jiaodong!
He never thought that this product would later become Haidong's next most popular commodity after fur: ginseng!
…
The fleet sailed against the ocean current, and when it arrived at Jinliekou, a Korean port occupied by the Qin army, only eighty-nine of the thirteen families were left.
The difference between businessmen and officials is that they only do things for profit. Now that they have joined a trading company, they can only go up the mountain as brothers and work hard to find their own interests.
Those who stayed in Liaonan to look for business took a fancy to the fact that it was closer to Jiaodong, while the merchants who chose North Korea took a fancy to the unoccupied market here!
After Jiaodong's fleet docked, Korean porters with white linen strips tied on their heads came to help unload the goods. Local officials also came to contact the merchants. According to Heifu's suggestion, a "sales exhibition" was held at Liekou.
During the "meeting", merchants would display the goods of each company, and nobles of all sizes from the Korean royal family, village lords, and male protagonists would send people to participate, negotiate with the merchants, and establish trade relations.
The government no longer takes care of the details, but only provides a contact platform. Who can negotiate business with whom depends on their own abilities. Anyway, North Korea and Qin Dynasty have canceled border taxes, and merchants only need to return to Qi to resell the goods.
When you arrive, you just need to pay a municipal tax to the local government.
The "exhibition" in Liekou was held in full swing. The entire area was neat and tidy, and most of the items sold were expensive luxury goods. It was obviously not comparable to the small rural markets like Xi'an Ping.
The merchants all displayed their specialty goods, whether it was exquisite lacquerware arranged on gorgeous wooden tables, or exquisitely crafted lamps, silk as thin as cicada wings, or brown sugar that was unforgettable after one bite.
Then, with the confident and proud smile of a businessman from Shangguo, he waited for his enemy to come to his door...
Since the Zhou and Qin Dynasties, handicrafts such as bronze, silk, and lacquerware in the Central Plains have reached their peak. Qi was also famous for its female arts and beautiful wares at the beginning. Although now, they can no longer compete with those of Chu, Song, and Lu.
, but in North Korea, this group of country bumpkins who have been playing single-player games for 800 years are not going to be able to open their eyes!
The North Korean prince Ji Zhun was invited by Chen Ping and also participated in this "exhibition". Different from the things shipped by the government last year, although they were neat and tidy, they were still a bit rough. This time the goods were all in typical Qi style, making it even more impressive.
The Korean people were amazed. After comparing with it, Wang Xiancheng's "palace utensils" were put to shame and became ordinary people's household items.
After seeing them, the poor aristocrats of North Korea were all thinking, how much more honor would it be if those exquisitely crafted lacquered pottery horns could be kept in their own homes and displayed at banquets! Those silk and silk shoes with beautiful patterns
, wouldn’t it be enviable if it could be worn on my concubines and sisters!
It's a pity that merchants are not interested in the shell coins circulating in North Korea. They either buy them with half a tael or barter for them, preferably furs!
Some people also instigated slaves to bargain, but in this regard, they were no match for this group of shrewd businessmen. Instead, they were deceived into agreeing to buy more things.
The time has come to compete for the money and power of the Joseon lords. Next, these nobles will try their best to squeeze the people under their rule, forcing them to hunt foxes and deer, skin them off, and exchange them for those luxurious and exquisite things.
Seeing this scene, Ji Zhun also suddenly thought that the eight hundred years of wealth and national strength of Ji's North Korea might be drained away by this group of greedy businessmen who came for profit in seven or eight years...
…
Not all merchants, with North Korea as the end point, although Langya merchant Guanyan likes to complain, he also has his own unique business vision. What he likes is Sanhan, which is south of North Korea and closest to Langya!
After May, the southwest monsoon blows fiercely, and it only takes a few days to travel from Langya to Chengshanjiao and then to Sanhan.
In addition to distance, there is another factor worth considering. Guan Tong looked ahead. Ten miles ahead of them, there was a huge fleet of ships with bulging sails and fluttering flags.
That was Prince Fusu's expeditionary force. These five thousand warriors, after resting in Liekou for a winter, set sail again on the ship of Jiaodong Commandery Ren Xiao...
This time Fusu's army went south to find Lord Canghai and annihilate him, but first, they had to establish a new stronghold east of Canghai City, next to the mouth of a large river, at a place later named "Incheon"!
Building a city will definitely require a lot of food and equipment. In this way, the originally unprofitable land of Sanhan may be able to get some profit.
"Guanzi once said that all the prosperity in the world is for profit, and all the hustle and bustle in the world is for profit. But the more places you travel, the harder it is to make money. But in those places where no one cares, there may be great profits that others have not discovered!
"
"Nephew!"
When Guan Tong was daydreaming, another voice came from far away.
When he turned his head to look, he found that several ships were following them closely!
He was actually the only big businessman and concubine merchant who came to Haidong in person, Dao Jian!
"Uncle Knife, what are you..."
Guan Tong looked at the big ship that was traveling with his family with some confusion. Shouldn't he stay in North Korea? Could it be that...
But Daojian on the bow of the boat smiled, pointed at the female slaves gathered behind him and said loudly: "Nephew, it's windy on the sea and it's cold, how many people do you need to warm your bed?"
Guan Tong's face froze, he forced a smile and shook his head, but his heart was full of disdain!
"It's hard for him to come up with this way of making money..."
Not only can you earn money from the barbarians, but you can also earn money from the government! This is Tojian's plan! He has brought two ships of trained female slaves to "reward" the Qin army from all over the country. All he needs is for them to spread their legs.
I can earn all the money and silk that were given to these soldiers who have been living in a foreign land for a long time!
Guan Tong forgot that it was his ancestor Guan Zhong who invented the "nulv" industry!
On the other ship, Dao Jian turned a blind eye to Guan Tong's contempt.
"Everyone else despises this, but for us merchants..."
Daojian smiled calmly: "If there is a need, there will be a demand. People who pursue profit are like mosquitoes and flies chasing odor, and they don't care whether they are dirty or not! They buy furs at low prices and induce the owners of North Korea to buy extravagant things, which makes them
The people were so oppressed that in the end they had no choice but to sell themselves to Qin as slaves, which may not be clean either!"
…
"What we brought to Haidong will not only bring civilization, but I'm afraid it will also bring long-term disasters."
In Qingdao, Jiaodong County, when Heifu couldn't sleep at night, he left his house and walked slowly by the seaside. Thinking that at this moment, thirteen merchants from Haidong Trading Company had arrived on the other side and began their journey to chase the odor.
But he did not feel pity for this and sigh. Instead, he smiled and recited a passage with a pious tone, more pious than the edict of Qin Shihuang...
"Since capital came to the world, blood and dirt have been dripping from every pore from head to toe!"
