Chapter seven hundred and eighty second come to ask for cooperation
"Chen Jun, after I return to China this time to report on my duties, I will arrive at the Third Southern Fleet on December 1st to serve as fleet commander. I will be stationed in Manila. In the future, your ocean-going cargo ships will go to the Philippines to purchase goods. You can directly
Contact me and I will provide you with convenience." Taiji Ohta was satisfied with this number.
In fact, he also understood in his heart that the big bosses in the military command department had given him a transition period. It was estimated that he would stay in the position of fleet commander for a year and a half at most, and he would also be transferred to the reserve force, but this would cost him a lot of face.
It looks much better.
In the Japanese Navy, Taiji Ohta did not have any outstanding achievements. The reason why he was reused and promoted to lieutenant general was because of his deep foundation and seniority. He was the adjutant of Marshal Togo Heihachiro and also participated in the world-famous Tsushima.
Naval battles, this resume is too impressive.
"Congratulations to your Excellency, General, for becoming the commander of the fleet. I will inevitably trouble you when doing business in Southeast Asia in the future. I can give you enough benefits for the local palm oil, tobacco leaves, wood, cane sugar and rubber."
"My cooperation with the Kwantung Army Headquarters is mainly cotton fabrics, but due to the shortage of cotton resources, it is very difficult to meet the needs of the Thirteenth Army itself."
"I hope that before your Excellency the General leaves, you can allocate a batch of cotton cloth to me from the Japanese textile industry to trade strategic materials with the Chiang Kai-shek District. The larger the quantity, the better. However, the prices from Japanese merchants are too high, which is not conducive to exchange.
Therefore, I also hope that the Central China Liaison Department can provide subsidies." Chen Mingxiang said.
Huatong Trading Company and the Kwantung Army Headquarters traded supplies with each other. This was the cause of internal fighting in the Japanese Army and was also a historical issue.
However, the output of Chen Mingxiang's textile factory is fixed. Giving all the cotton cloth to the Kwantung Army Headquarters will inevitably affect the original smuggling of materials. Under such circumstances, it is also a reasonable request to obtain a batch of cotton cloth as a buffer.
For Taiji Ohta, he will soon be transferred to the military, and there is no need to see how ugly the faces of the chaebols will become as a result. Logistics support is a matter for the military.
Besides, if Chen Mingxiang's ocean-going freighter ships goods from the Philippines in the future, he, the commander, must be given some benefits. Real benefits come first.
I have the right not to invalidate it after it expires. While the Central China Liaison Department still has the power to control materials, I can help Chen Mingxiang one more time. This will be good for future cooperation.
"In this way, you write a report to the Thirteenth Army Headquarters and clearly indicate the quantity of cotton needed. The reasons must be sufficient. Lieutenant General Shimomura Sada has just arrived in Shanghai. For the time being, Lieutenant General Sawada Shigeru will be responsible for such matters.
Decision, he has been in contact with you for a relatively long time, and he also knows the importance of Huatong Trading Company to the Thirteenth Army, so there should be no problem, and those textile merchants will not be arrogant for long." Taiji Ohta said.
With the coordination of the Central China Liaison Department, the new commander of the Thirteenth Army, Lieutenant General Shimomura Sada, agreed to temporarily allocate 4,000 pieces of cotton cloth to Huatong Trading Company, but required that they must be replenished by the end of November so as not to affect the clothing and clothing of the winter troops.
Quilts are used.
The fleet arrived at the Shanghai port from Zhenjiang Port, loaded the four thousand pieces of cotton cloth that had been prepared in advance on the ship, and then continued to sail to Yingkou Port. It was not until a week later that Chen Mingxiang reported to Major General Yoshitake Furuno of the Kwantung Army Headquarters Manager's Department
Generate electricity and prepare to settle payment outside customs.
Cotton cloth does not need to be settled because cotton yarn is exchanged for cotton cloth. However, the materials transported to Yingkou Port this time are not only cotton cloth, but also tung oil, bristle, rosin, tungsten ore, sucrose, etc. Chen Mingxiang also prepared for the headquarters
There were several large boxes of special cigarettes, as well as red wine, cigars, and specialties from Southeast Asia.
"Mr. Chen, our Huazhong Salt Industry Co., Ltd. has always been the regulatory agency for Shanghai salt and is responsible for all salt import and sales. I heard that you sent two thousand tons of salt from the Changlu Salt Field in Jincheng. I don't know.
Is there such a thing?" A Japanese businessman named Kudo Kiyoshi found the location of Haiyuan Salt Company.
This guy is the representative of Huazhong Salt Industry Co., Ltd., but his attitude is completely different from those of the coal merchants in Shanghai. He bows as soon as he enters the door and behaves very easy-going. Moreover, he is not empty-handed this time, and he also brings precious Japanese tea.
and porcelain as gifts.
"Mr. Kudo, what happened is that the Thirteenth Army Headquarters and the Central China Liaison Department of the Hingya Institute complained about the tight supply of salt, so they entrusted me to handle this matter. They transported two thousand tons of salt from the Changlu Salt Field every month, and also
A salt processing plant should be built in Shanghai to turn coarse salt into fine salt."
"Please don't be nervous. I have no intention of seizing the Shanghai salt market. Of the two thousand tons of salt, only 500 tons, or one million catties, will remain in the Shanghai market. Coarse salt will be put on the market to be sold to the public, while fine salt will be provided.
To the garrison and Japanese expatriates, the rest must be supplied to Jiangsu Province, Zhejiang Province, Hubei Province and Anhui Province."
"There are more than 4 million people in the entire Shanghai city. Calculated based on one kilogram of coarse salt per person per month, that is more than 4 million kilograms, equivalent to 2,000 tons of salt. My share will not affect your Huazhong Salt Industry Co., Ltd.
No matter how much impact it has on the club's operations, the price will be determined according to your pricing." Chen Mingxiang said.
He was polite and polite, and he was easy to negotiate with. As long as he was given a similar share, he was unwilling to cause trouble again. The market outside the Shanghai Stock Exchange was huge. Thousands of tons of salt were gone in a blink of an eye. It was a situation where supply exceeded demand.
Why bother to have another conflict with the Japanese businessmen in the salt industry?
After all, the textile and coal industry chaebols were all offended!
"Mr. Chen, you have misunderstood. We at Huazhong Salt Co., Ltd. have no intention of objecting to Haiyuan Salt Company's sale of salt in the Shanghai market. This special visit is to seek cooperation with you under the guidance of Lieutenant General Taiji Ota.
Cooperate, let's complete this important task together and get the rewards we deserve." Kudo Kiyoshi said hurriedly.
Chen Mingxiang was slightly startled, what is going on?
After Kudo Kiyoshi's explanation, he realized that the other party really came to cooperate. The fundamental reason was to use his fleet to transport salt from the Lianghuai Salt Fields to Central China!
There is no problem with the salt production of the Lianghuai Salt Farm now, with an annual output of millions of tons. However, in the northern Jiangsu region where the Lianghuai Salt Factory is located, there is a problem with the waterway transportation to various places!
Not only were the military's ships not used by Japanese merchants, but they also requisitioned a large number of civilian ships to transport supplies to Japan. As the war progressed, Japan's domestic shortage of food and various daily necessities was expanding day by day, including raw salt for food and industrial raw materials.
Although Japan is an island country, it lacks high-quality salt fields due to its terrain. It relies on plundering China's Lianghuai Salt Fields and Changlu Salt Fields to support Japan's demand for raw salt.
Due to the lack of ships, the salt wholesale of Huazhong Salt Industry Co., Ltd. has been intermittent, which has also caused the current price to skyrocket. Not only the people in Shanghai, Jinling and other provinces are scolding, but also the Japanese garrison and Japanese expatriates are very angry about this.
dissatisfied.
Under such circumstances, Huazhong Salt Co., Ltd. asked for help from the Central China Liaison Department of Xingya Institute, and Taiji Ota pushed Chen Mingxiang out. Haiyuan Salt Co., Ltd. has the largest private fleet in Shanghai and Central China, and there is a win-win cooperation.
