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Free Web Novel,Novel online - All in oicq.net -> Historic -> New World 1620 Text Chapter 43 Guangdong Trade Agreement (2)
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- Sanyu, the eldest son of the Chang family, was born on a Portuguese ship in the Atlantic Ocean. He went from kindergarten to elementary school, middle school to university, and then to work in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He had never set foot on the land of the Ming Dynasty.
Until Sanyu grew up, the foreigners he had most contact with were probably Spaniards or Portuguese from Iberia. His fluent Latin, Spanish or Portuguese greatly facilitated his diplomatic work. .
Although Sanyu majored in international relations, he grew rapidly in finance and business. When he served as commercial counselor at the Consulate General in Seville, he provided a lot of valuable intelligence and suggestions for China-US trade development in Spain and Portugal. analyze. In particular, Sanyu's report played a crucial role in the diplomatic achievement of mobilizing domestic traders to unite with the Portuguese Royal Chamber of Commerce to open a trade route in the Western Mediterranean.
Now Sanyu is working as an assistant in the Department of Far Eastern Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Going to his ancestral homeland, which he has heard about for a long time, and serving as deputy to the Far East diplomatic strongman Jin Xiaohan whom he has never met is the most exciting thing that Sanyu has experienced so far.
? This includes the Ministry of Foreign Affairs¡¯ expectations for me to continue to increase my training and experience, and it also has the meaning of ¡°returning to my hometown¡± for the first time on behalf of my elderly parents. With such a mood, after Sanyu completed the relevant diplomatic preparations in Hong Kong, he entered Guangzhou City with Zhao Mingchuan, the head of Far East of Eastern Union Group.
Before entering the governor¡¯s office, the carriage had been parked outside the high wall of the street. Through the car window curtain, everything in front of Sanyu felt familiar and strange at the same time.
Familiar ones include oriental costumes that are somewhat similar to gorgeous Hanfu, beautiful Eastern-style buildings with gray tiles and cornices, crowded and dilapidated houses similar to those on the streets of Lisbon, and kneeling on both sides of the street to bring food, like Beggars wandering the streets of Seville.
What is unfamiliar is the way the pedestrians speak with a very different accent from those in Manchester, the rude and flamboyant words and deeds of the street patrolmen, or the sounds of street vaudeville and opera that linger through the windows.
After waiting like this for more than an hour without anyone saying hello, Sanyu still felt a little ridiculous.
Opening the briefcase, facing the light coming from a few car window and door curtains. Sanyu once again confirmed the key points of the meeting with Ming Dynasty officials, and then closed his eyes slightly to rest.
His diplomatic mission this time was to take the lead between the Hong Kong Governor's Office and the local government of Guangdong in the Ming Dynasty to establish a set of local official trade agreements that would be beneficial to Guangdong's coastal non-governmental trade. Once this trade agreement is signed. This will be the first time that China and the United States have established official diplomatic relations with the Ming Dynasty through official business relations.
Sanyu had already read a lot of information on the current situation of the Ming Dynasty on his way to the East, and also learned some about Zhao Youheng's personal political sensitivity from the documents left by Jin Xiaohan. In order to make the preparation work as perfect as possible, Sanyu almost never left the Hong Kong Customs archives in the past few days, diving in to check the information and make up for his homework.
But he doesn¡¯t quite know why as a Chinese-American diplomat. He would look so sneaky, huddled in the carriage outside the opponent's government garrison and waiting. It seems that as long as he shows up, he will hurt the other party.
He was even less clear about how difficult it would be to deal with Ming Dynasty officials and scholar-bureaucrats. On this issue, he was not much different from the European Matteo Ricci back then.
"Mr. Chang has been waiting for a long time. Mr. Zhao, the governor of Guangdong, has invited me."
The door opened, and Zhao Mingchuan stood in front of him with a calm smile. Sanyu quickly tidied his clothes and tie, then stepped out of the carriage with the document bag under his arm, and walked into the door amidst the strange looks of the Fubiao Battalion officers and soldiers. High walls. Became the first Chinese and American diplomat to enter the official government residence of the Ming Dynasty.
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An hour later, Zhao Youheng, dressed in official uniform, appeared in front of Chang Yu in the study room, accompanied by three unfamiliar officials, old, middle and young.
These three people are the Lingnan Sanzhong who recently defected to Guangdong.
??Chen Zizhuang, a native of Nanhai, Guangzhou, is just 50 years old this year. He is the oldest and most senior person in Lingnan Sanzhong. As a Jinshi in the Wanli year, Chen Zizhuang was promoted to the right minister of the Ministry of Rites in the Chongzhen year. During the reign of Emperor Hongguang of the Southern Ming Dynasty, he even served as minister of the Ministry of Rites.
Chen Zizhuang has an upright character and an honest official. He was very disgusted with Zheng Zhilong's behavior of supporting the Tang Dynasty king, monopolizing government affairs, and excluding dissidents, so he directly rejected the invitation of the Longwu court. I returned to Guangdong from Fujian last autumn, planning to go back to my hometown to live in seclusion.
There was no need for Zhao Youheng¡¯s recommendation at all. After the beginning of spring, Chen Zizhuang, who had deep official qualifications, was recruited to eastern Zhejiang by a letter issued by King Lu¡¯s small court, and he would set off in two days. I heard that Chen Zizhuang was going to serve as Dongge University scholar and Minister of War in the small court of King Lu, and together with Xiao Yifu, he became Zhao Youheng's political backing in Guangdong.
Chen Bangyan¡¯s qualifications are much lower. 43 years old this year, a native of Shunde, Guangzhou Prefecture. In the first half of his life, he was just a scholar who studied hard for fame, but he still harbored a lot of ideas and insights in governing the country. He was a die-hard believer in the theory of practical management of the world. An article "Zhongxing Zhengyao" made Emperor Longwu, who was thirsty for talents, praise him. Absolutely.
It was not until the autumn of last year that Chen Bangyan reluctantly submitted to the Longwu court, passed the provincial examination, and was appointed as the head of the Staff Department of the Ministry of War. He was sent to Jiangxi to assist Su Guansheng in recruiting troops, in an attempt to divide the military power of Jiangxi Governor Wan Yuanji.
"It's a pity that Chen Bangyan still has a strong temper. After knowing that this was just an internal political battle decision of the Zheng Group, he gave up his official position and went south to Guangdong within a few days.
On Zhao Youheng¡¯s recommendation, Chen Bangyan was appointed as the Guangzhou Coast Guard Preparatory Officer. He jumped several levels and became Zhao Youheng¡¯s most relied upon assistant.
The last one, Zhang Jiayu, has a bit of a stain on his resume. He is also the youngest and most capable person among the three Lingnan loyalists.
Zhang Jiayu, 31 years old, is from Dongguan, Guangzhou Prefecture. He has been quick-thinking since he was a child. He was a scholar at the age of 19, a scholar at the age of 22, and a Jinshi at the age of 29. He can be called an elite. It is a pity that Zhang Jiayu took the initiative to submit letters to Li Zicheng when he conquered Beijing, and was severely suppressed by Nanming officialdom thereafter.
After Zhang Jiayu was reactivated by Emperor Longwu, he was assigned to Zheng Hongkui as a subordinate to defend Xianxia Pass, a key point in northern Fujian. However, Zheng Hongkui and Zheng Zhilong had a conflict over the defense of Fujian and lost their temper. They actually left Zhang Jiayu and withdrew their troops in anger. Zhang Jiayu lost confidence in the chaos within the Longwu court and abandoned his official position and returned to Guangdong.
Zhang Jiayu has some experience in leading troops. As the supervisory censor of Guangdong, Zhao Youheng arranged to serve as the supervisor of the Chinese Army in the newly established Xijiang Town to learn the command and training of the new army and prepare for the actual command of the army in the future.
As local bureaucrats in Guangzhou, the three of them have now been squeezed out or frustrated by the Zheng Group in the Longwu court. The three of them returned to Guangdong and joined Zhao Youheng, nominally choosing the King of Lu faction.
Three people took office. Taking up important central and local military and political positions respectively, local officials took another step towards unifying Guangdong's military and government.
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"I am Chang Yu, Chang Chang, jade in the rough. I am currently the Assistant to the Department of Overseas and Far Eastern Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of China in Pearl Island. I am very happy to meet Mr. Zhao. I wonder who these three are"
Seeing the Ming Dynasty officials coming in, Chang Yu quickly stood up, nodded slightly, and then extended his hand to Zhao Youheng. While still looking politely at Chen Zizhuang and others who came in together.
"Haha, you are indeed a talented person. He is young and promising! I just heard Zhao Xiandi mention it, and I thought he was an older man. Allow me to introduce three colleagues and friends: This is Chen Jisheng, a scholar of Dongge University in the Ming Dynasty and the Minister of the Ministry of War. Lord Chen (Chen Zizhuang); this is Lord Chen Lingbin (Chen Bangyan) of the Guangzhou Coastal Defense Army; this is Lord Zhang Yuanzi (Zhang Jiayu), the supervisory censor of Guangdong and the supervisor of the Central Army in Xijiang Town."
Zhao Youheng was very familiar with the gorgeous handshake ceremony, so he shook hands with Sanyu naturally.
Chen Zizhuang just gently cupped his hands and sat aside, as if he didn't like this kind of physical contact.
Although Chen Bangyan did not shake hands, he nodded gently a few times and his attitude was quite friendly.
Zhang Jiayu shook hands with Sanyu very curiously, and secretly looked at Sanyu's attire.
"When we first met, I gave some small personal gifts to the gentlemen. These are special-grade propolis and North American ginseng produced in my country. They can prolong life, prevent diseases and maintain good health."
After Sanyu finished speaking, several servants holding exquisite stainless steel gift boxes walked in from outside the study. They were local employees of the Eastern Union Group brought by Zhao Mingchuan from Hong Kong this time to temporarily act as Sanyu's entourage.
"We have always heard that there are many rare and rare goods in the country of the West Sea, and the merchants and people in Nanjingji City are highly sought after. When I see this box, I know it is something special."
Seeing that Sanyu spoke in a friendly and polite manner, and the smile on his face never diminished, Chen Zizhuang's indifference when he first came in also softened a lot. After all, you don¡¯t want to hit the smiling person. Chen Bangyan and Zhang Jiayu marveled at the stainless steel gift box rolled by a steam machine in front of them.
Seeing that Chang Yu was not frightened when he was alone, Zhao Youheng also secretly approved of it. After several courtesies, Zhao Youhengping withdrew the maid. With a calm look on his face, he sat behind a long desk with his colleagues.
"I have been entrusted by the Ministry of Commerce of the Cabinet of the Republic of China and the Governor's Office of the Hong Kong Concession, and authorized by the Department of Far Eastern Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to be sent to the Guangdong Governor's Yamen. I would like to discuss matters related to Guangdong trade cooperation with Mr. Zhao."
Sanyu took a sip of tea, cleared his throat, and took out the diplomatic documents he had prepared long ago from his document bag. He personally placed it in front of Zhao Youheng, and Zhao Youheng humbly pushed the document into Chen Zizhuang's hands first.
Just after turning the page, Chen Zizhuang was attracted by this.I was stunned when I looked at the diplomatic document with simple strokes but arranged according to Dongtu's article reading habits.
Hong Kong and Guangdong Trade Cooperation Services Agreement? What kind of charter is this?
Except for Zhao Youheng, who had already had some premonitions and psychological preparations, the other three people all looked at each other, and they didn¡¯t know why Zhao Youheng suddenly asked all three of them to come together to see this mysterious foreign envoy.
"I also have statistics from the Hong Kong Customs here, which record the import and export trade status of various business groups or individuals in the Hong Kong Concession and the Ming Dynasty in the past five years. It is not absolutely accurate, but the error will not exceed one percent. "
With that said, Sanyu took out another document from the document bag and read it out in front of everyone.
"In the past five years, the average annual import and export trade volume of the Hong Kong Concession was US$2.7 million, equivalent to 1.8 million taels of silver. Among them, the average annual import goods were US$1.2 million and export goods were US$1.5 million"
"Wait a minute!" Suddenly Chen Zizhuang pinched a few strands of his beard, his eyes widened with disbelief on his face, "As your envoy said, the tiny area of ??Hong Kong Island can sell 1.8 million worth of goods a year. two!?"
Zhao Youheng is able to keep his composure, but that does not mean that the three Lingnan loyalists, who are exposed to the truth for the first time, can sit firmly on their stool. Although they had also lived in Guangdong in their early years and knew that Guangdong's maritime trade was prosperous, this was the first time they heard such horrific data.
Zhao Youheng coughed softly, and then nodded slightly, confirming the validity of the data for Sanyu. In Zhao Youheng's view, these are just a few achievements of the Huamei businessmen headed by the Huamei Donglian Group in the East China Sea and Nanyang of the Ming Dynasty.
Damn it! If the world commercial tax set by Emperor Taizu of the Ming Dynasty is 1 in 30, Hong Kong alone should have a public tax revenue of 60,000 taels of silver every year!
Chen Zizhuang suddenly felt a little short of breath. When he was still serving as the minister of rites in the Chongzhen Dynasty, it was not uncommon to see the sad face of Emperor Chongzhen who was exhausted and secretly crying in order to allocate tens of thousands of taels of military expenses.
In the past, when Xiong Wencan was still in Guangdong and Guangxi, it seemed that the municipal shipping tax and local miscellaneous taxes in Guangdong suddenly increased significantly for a few years, which made Emperor Chongzhen very happy. But it died down soon after. At one time, some people said that Xiong Wencan had improper governance in Guangdong and Guangxi and was guilty of amassing money and profit.
"Yes, this does not include entrepot trade, which means that non-local import and export trade items transiting through the Hong Kong Concession are not included in the statistics, nor are commercial exchanges in other Ming areas included." Sanyu nodded with a smile. , everything feels so normal. "Therefore, in order to better maintain the trade pattern between the Hong Kong Concession and Guangdong Province and improve the service quality of Hong Kong Customs, the Ministry of Commerce of the Cabinet and the Government-General of the Hong Kong Concession hope to sign a 'Trade Service Agreement' with you, with the Guangdong Governor's Yamen Based on cooperation with the Hong Kong Concession Governor's Office, we will jointly promote the import and export trade of Guangdong Province and drive regional economic development."
The business of this Chinese and American people in Ming Dynasty is so prosperous, but for a long time, they have not talked about tribute ships or pilgrimage, but how to expand and strengthen the maritime business. Even if the government needs to get involved, what kind of foreign country is this? It¡¯s just a big trading company!
Although the Ming Dynasty¡¯s border trade in the East China Sea and Southeast Asia has been developing rapidly since the Longqing Year, Macau and now Hong Kong were able to allow foreign countries to settle in the concession. It was because the two Ming courts sympathized with the suffering of foreign merchants wandering at sea all day long that they settled on long-term leases.
But as long as it involves the entry of foreign countries, it may be related to national security and border and sea security. The impact of the Japanese pirate rebellion has not dissipated yet.
It is said that at the beginning of last year, before Nanjing fell, Zheng Zhilong, the then Fujian Commander-in-Chief, jointly issued a warning with the North Korean and Chinese ministers, and sent it without even seeing anyone to stop the Chinese and American people from continuing to rent Hong Kong Island.
Seeing that there is still more than a year left, Hong Kong should take it back as agreed. Unexpectedly, these Chinese and American businessmen came to the door in person again, and they were still talking calmly about using Hong Kong as a base for large-scale trade and exchange.
Chen Zizhuang secretly glanced at the governor of Guangdong next to him, who had won the hearts of the people because of the new policy of workers, farmers and commerce in Guangdong. Chen Zizhuang felt a drum in his heart. He also roughly understood why Zhao Youheng was dragging him with him when he was about to leave for eastern Zhejiang. The reason for meeting the unexpected visit of the Chinese and American envoys.
He himself comes from a wealthy family of officials and gentry in Guangzhou City. How could he not be aware of the local ties formed between the officials, merchants and gentry in Guangdong, Fujian and Zhejiang since before the Longqing Switch. When the Huamei Concession was in Hong Kong. Some Guangzhou maritime merchants came to the family to lobby for support.
??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? Chen Zizhuang thought so.
"Since it is a local matter related to the governor's office of Guangdong, I'd better avoid suspicion. Mr. Zhao is the father-in-law of Guangdong Province, and he is well versed in border and sea affairs externally and specialized in agriculture, politics, industry and commerce internally., there must be some trade-offs. My lords, I will go back to my hometown first, and will set off tomorrow, so there will be no further delay here. "
After Chen Zizhuang made a high-profile confession, he decisively left the study.
????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????Outside of the Lingnan family, he is a prodigy who is "able to write at the age of seven". His upright character also depends on the time, and he is absolutely unambiguous when he should be naughty! However, because of Zhao Youheng's relationship, he didn't slap the table on the spot and raise any objections.
The remaining Chen Bangyan and Zhang Jiayu looked at each other again. If Zhao Youheng hadn't been their immediate boss and he was also a native of Guangzhou Prefecture, they might have found an excuse to run away.
Are you kidding me? While Emperor Hongguang was still here, did he abandon Huamei's business in Hong Kong? Everyone in the court knew about it, and now he is mentioning it again? Even if the Guangdong squires and maritime merchants are happy, and the Hongguang court has long been dead, officials still have to think about it, right?
Looking at the various wonderful expressions of the three people opposite, Sanyu suddenly felt a little guilty.
This feeling is subtly different from conducting business and diplomatic negotiations with the Portuguese in Lisbon, but what is the difference, Sanyu himself cannot tell.
"Gentlemen, the main idea of ??the trade services agreement I just mentioned is to provide solid and reliable services to businessmen traveling between the Hong Kong Concession and various ports in Guangdong. It is a good thing that benefits the people and is mutually beneficial, and it does not involve other aspects. .¡±
Thinking that he would have to assist Director Jin Xiaohan in completing the legal renewal of the Hong Kong Concession in the future, the young Sanyu showed the maturity of a professional diplomat and never mentioned anything other than this negotiation.
"I and your lords have other official duties. If the matters mentioned by Mr. Chang are all contained in this letter, then I can think about it for a while. Let's talk about it for the time being and see off our guests."
Seeing that his two subordinates looked confused, in order to prevent conflicts in communication and understanding, Zhao Youheng could only
Announce the end of the meeting.
"Okay, all the text of the Trade in Services Agreement and the last few pages of the document are attached. I'll leave it to you gentlemen to check it out. I'll be out on official duties in the near future, so I'll visit you to discuss it in detail."
It is normal for both parties to finalize a diplomatic matter, which can take as short as one or two months or as long as one or two years. Sanyu, who kept the principles of diplomacy in mind, knew that he had to give the other party time to digest the content, so he was not in a hurry to get an answer in these few days.
Because he will have a more important task soon, which is to visit eastern Zhejiang on behalf of Director Jin Xiaohan. (To be continued.) - Didn't finish reading? Add this book to your favoritesI'm a member and bookmarked this chapterCopy the address of this book and recommend it to your friends for pointsChapter error? Click here to report
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