Emperor Ming Dynasty

On the eve of the Chinese New Year, Li Xiangjun also passed away at the age of sixty.

Zhu Yixi stayed with her for a few days and was quite affectionate.

Kou Baimen is also getting old, and he no longer has the same energy as before.

Before the emperor went out, her voice was slightly hoarse, and her face was full of expectation and fear: "Master, I don't think I can come here for a few years. You, can you come by then?"

Zhu Yixi was startled, then smiled: "How many more years can I live with my descendants? I will treat them equally!"

As he spoke, he pushed back the white hair from the woman's forehead and hugged her into his arms regardless of etiquette, and stayed there for nearly a minute.

"The worst thing that can't be kept in this world is that the beautiful lady is in the mirror and the flower is in the tree!"

Zhu Yixi sat in the carriage and was very silent.

Why are people afraid of death? It is nothing more than familiar people passing away one by one, a kind of loneliness and loneliness lingering, memories constantly lingering in the mind, torturing the human spirit.

However, Zhu Yixi was still holding on to luck at this time: What if I died, could I wear it again?

……

Brunei Port, dense crowds, countless seabirds, huge ships, wandering throughout the port.

A large ship docked, and hundreds of immigrants dragged their families and their families onto the trestle, carefully watching the situation in Hunan.

The bustling scene made many immigrants feel relieved.

Everyone yearns for excitement. Although I have already estimated that it is a remote place, it is best to go to a prosperous place.

"how many people?"

"Fifty-three households, three hundred and twenty people, three died on the road!"

The businessman sighed: "I'm sick, there's nothing I can do!"

"Okay!" The official nodded, and Xiao Li on the side immediately took out a stack of banknotes from his arms and said:

"Three hundred and twenty people, two dollars each, that's six hundred and forty dollars!"

The businessman accepted it with a smile on his face.

In addition to attracting people, he also brought some hot-selling goods, such as books, ceramics, silk, etc., which are light and valuable, and are really good things.

The key is that these are not subject to tariffs.

This was a compromise made to accommodate the merchant ships that courted immigrants.

Of course, if you buy something at Brunei Port, you will naturally have to pay customs duties.

And he will definitely buy something and leave, and he will lose more with an empty ship.

While he was wandering in the market, someone suddenly grabbed him: "You, what are you?"

The person who came was wearing a blue official robe and had patches on his chest. He was obviously an official.

"A certain person is the counselor of Fujian in Hunan." The civil servant politely handed over his hand: "Are you a merchant coming to Hunan?"

"Exactly!" The businessman was flattered and hurriedly handed over his hand, his waist becoming a little stooped.

"We from Fujian are not ordinary!" The civil servant smiled and pulled him into the teahouse.

At this time, the businessman looked around and saw three or five boatmen like him sitting and drinking tea.

People come prepared.

"Everyone, I won't talk too much. To be honest, the country of Fujian has a huge fortune waiting for you. It depends on whether you can hold it!"

The counselor didn't waste any more nonsense and directly talked about the specialties of Fujian:

"Mahogany furniture and teak boats are everywhere in Fujian. The price is very cheap. One piece of wood only costs one yuan!"

At this time, everyone was shocked and stood up unconsciously.

A piece of wood weighs about three hundred kilograms, which can make several chairs, let alone mahogany. It is impossible to get a piece of wood for less than ten yuan on the market.

This is so cheap.

"This is real?"

"Is this still false? You just have to go and see. Borneo is not big. Just run south..."

A group of businessmen were so excited that they stopped at Brunei Port for a long time before heading to Fujian.

Compared with the Xiang Kingdom, the capital of the Fujian Kingdom was just like a small county town, with only the royal palace being a bit like a tourist attraction.

A large amount of wood is placed on the dock for anyone to choose from.

Mahogany, teak, rosewood, huanghuali, chicken wing wood, green dragon wood, these are dazzling.

The key is that it’s cheap!

While buying wood, the merchants also took away some special rhinoceros skins, peppers, coconuts, sago, dried coconuts, dried fish, crocodile skins, etc.

The King of Fujian Zhu Fuzhuo looked at the increasingly prosperous port and sighed for a while.

Not long after he succeeded the King of Fujian, he was eager to change the poverty and backwardness of the country, and now it is gradually getting better, which is exactly what he wants.

And for this, I have to thank one person.

"Your Highness." The businessman beside him said with a smile: "Fujian has been developed for many years. The land is only a few hundred miles in radius. It is unknown how many products there are. Timber is just the simplest."

"Your method is better!" Zhu Fuzhuo said casually: "Use wood to attract businessmen, and sell some special products by the way, so that the vassal government can collect the tariffs!"

"Your Highness!" The businessman cupped his hands and said enthusiastically:

"You borrowed half a million from the Pacific Bank and marched boldly inland to conquer the natives. This was a good idea, but it took too long."

"But, I think you should borrow another 500,000 yuan to build a wood processing plant. How much will it cost to sell the logs directly? Boards and wood are the most valuable."

"Then we will open up wasteland, cultivate the land, and sell the grain to the Ming Dynasty. That is a business that is sure to make a profit without losing any money!"

When the King of Fujian heard this, he twitched the corner of his mouth.

Well, Fujian only paid over 100,000 yuan in taxes last year and had a surplus of only 20,000 to 30,000 yuan. How can we repay that much money if we borrow it?

He then thought, if he did as he said, it would be easy to double or triple the tax, and he would not have to worry about repayment.

"The interest rate is too high!" The young King of Fujian said solemnly: "I can't accept five cents, at most one cent!"

"Don't mention it, Your Highness, we are going to pay compensation. Do you think it's four and a half cents?"

After bargaining, the interest was calculated to two and a half cents, which both parties reluctantly accepted.

The King of Fujian sighed: "You Pacific Bank can make a lot of money!"

"We haven't made much money, and we have all gone to support the vassal state. The interest rate on the market is nowhere less than five cents. Your Highness, we are here to help..."

The King of Fujian ignored this.

When he was in Beijing, he had a rough understanding of Pacific Bank's situation.

Tianxiahuangzhuang was responsible for withdrawing money from other places, exchanging money, and lending very little in the Ming Dynasty, while Pacific Bank was responsible for lending money to the vassals in various vassal states.

The interest rate is neither high nor low, but tariffs are used as collateral. There are more than twenty vassal states, and there are Pacific Bank fulcrums everywhere, and almost no one is left behind.

Because he was under the direct management of the emperor, he was not influenced by others, and he had no regard for human feelings, which can be described as ruthless.

Otherwise, he would not lend money to the businessman and could not afford to lose this person.

"You have failed at Pacific Bank!" King Min suddenly said seriously:

"I would like to make you a county prince and establish a Min Bank. You will be the president!"

These words immediately made the businessman excited and his face flushed.

The position is still empty, the key is the title.

This is a hereditary and irreplaceable title, much more than that of the imperial court.

"I am willing!" The businessman immediately followed his heart and agreed decisively.

"Hahaha!" The King of Fujian smiled and patted his shoulder: "We, the country of Fujian, lack talents like you."

At the same time, a Fujian fleet sailed upstream along the river.

The entire Borneo is covered with rainforests, and the best means of transportation is boats, and this is the case for this army.

Three large ships were loaded with more than a hundred soldiers. All of them were wearing raincoats and hats, holding flintlock guns in their hands, with machetes hanging on their waists, and their expressions were solemn.

Around the boat, several crocodiles followed them like rotten wood, refusing to retreat.

"Whoosh, whoosh——"

A few arrows were fired, and the huge crocodile was immediately shocked, and it rushed straight towards him without fear.

"I don't know whether to live or die!" The burly man at the head held up his musket without fear and started shooting directly.

Thick gunpowder smoke filled the boat, and the crocodile was hit hard by bullets and bled.

Several following crocodiles immediately changed direction and bit the injured crocodile. The scene was extremely ferocious.

"Boss, this is really scary!"

"Let you be careful when grilling fish, these beasts have sharp noses!"

Zuo Chong put away his gun, glared at a few people, picked up the grilled fish and put it in his mouth.

After staying for half a day, they stopped at a simple pier and a group of people got off the boat.

Tribal leaders from hundreds of miles around came to see him one after another, bringing a large amount of food and furs as tribute.

Yes, they are here to collect taxes.

The scope of direct jurisdiction of the Fujian State was only two to three hundred miles of the entire delta. The remaining areas were controlled by the tribes and were governed by tribes. The imperial court could only set up a point for management.

Of course, in addition to collecting tribute, they also conducted trade.

Cloth, salt, and wine are all tools used in exchange for the goods of this group of natives.

At the same time, they also recruit troops every year, recruiting natives as soldiers by drawing one out of ten to weaken the tribe's strength.

Taxation, trade, and conscription are the best ways to control these indigenous tribes.

But what Zuo Chong didn't expect was that there was still a shortage of people: "Why didn't the Sudin tribe come?"

Everyone's head was shaking and they didn't dare to speak.

Finally, a certain hostile tribe spoke:

"The Sudin tribe surrendered to the Laka tribe..."

The Laka tribe is a large tribe that resisted the conquest of Fujian and has always been unruly.

"Okay!" Zuo Chong was furious: "He is looking for death!"

"I require that each of your tribes must send twenty troops to join me in the crusade against the Sudin tribe -"

Soon, hundreds of strong indigenous men gathered, led by hundreds of Fujian soldiers, and headed towards the Suding tribe.

This is a large tribe with nearly a thousand people, hundreds of wooden houses and a wooden village, living near the river.

They did not expect that the Fujian soldiers came so quickly and rushed to meet the enemy.

"Fire--" A large number of muskets crackled. The damage was not much, but it made the natives tremble.

Although they were only wearing leather armor, the strength of the Fujian army was overwhelming to the natives, and they entered the stronghold in a matter of seconds.

The servants and natives also rushed in.

Entire villages were plundered and their wealth looted.

Zuo Chong distributed some livestock and scraps to the servant army, then killed more than a hundred die-hard elements at once, and hung their heads on the wooden stronghold to show off, attracting a large number of flies.

"This is what happens when you resist!"

After setting a fire, the entire village was reduced to the ground. The fire even spread to the rain forest, but no one cared.

All the natives were completely shocked.

After many years, they saw the viciousness of the conqueror again.

As the dry season passed, a steady stream of tribute taxes came to Jian'ou City, enriching the treasury of the Fujian state.

For the Fujian state, limited by transportation conditions, they did not need governance, only taxation and trade, so the profits from the war of conquest exceeded the losses.

The more tribes you conquer, the greater your natural income will be.

As the delta centered around Jian'ou continued to develop, the slaves and indigenous soldiers brought by the conquest were also important resources for land reclamation.

The vast rainforest, this is the simplest and most direct governance strategy, and it is also the consensus reached by Fujian in recent years.

After making money, is it not good for the Han people to immigrate?

Counties may not necessarily be set up to govern the natives.

Even the King of Fujian would allocate some indigenous tribes to the nobles as their fiefs, thereby stabilizing the border and indigenous forces and strengthening the royal power.

This is the mainstream of Nanyang's founding:

Form an army to conquer and tame the natives.

Then they squeezed the remote areas, traded the obtained materials, exchanged them for money, and then went to the Ming Dynasty to bring a large number of Han people to settle there.

The cycle repeats.

The reason why it has never ruled directly like the Qin State is nothing more than this:

Lazy.

The tropical rainforest climate has allowed the indigenous people to have no worries about food and clothing. Over thousands of years, they have developed a lazy character. They cannot teach them how to cultivate and open up wasteland, and they do not have the manpower and material resources.

After the attempt failed, the Southeast Asian countries would rather spend a lot of money to immigrate than to train the natives.

(End of this chapter)