Chapter 915 The First Pot of Gold
Every time the Haihan militia completed operations overseas, it was the turn of temporarily hired and requisitioned civilian ships to appear. A large amount of materials and personnel need to be transported back to the Haihan controlled area in a short period of time. Navy ships alone are not enough. In order to ensure that no news is leaked beforehand, these civilian ships often arrive at the nearest port after the war. Collection. Because the Haihan military has always given good remuneration to the ships and personnel requisitioned during wartime, and the fees are calculated on a daily basis, there will also be people with a keen sense of smell among the people who gather the ships under their names before the war begins. The ports near the war zone are waiting for the navy to requisition them to obtain huge short-term profits.
With this idea in mind, Li Maozi, Liu Qiye, Qi Shipengang and others from Jilong Port in Taipei organized several blessing ships from Fuzhou before the war started, and recruited some local immigrants to transport them to Jilong. After arriving at the port, they just caught up with the arrival of the fleet led by Wang Tom, and naturally became the target of temporary requisition. However, both Li Maozi and Shipyard Qi had official positions in Jilong Port and could not participate in the operation of the fleet. Everything was left to the maritime merchant Liu Qiye.
For Li Maozai and others who are within the system but want to do business, this is probably the best time for them to get their first pot of gold. In just a few days during the war, the fleet they organized ran back and forth between Jilong Port and Miyako Island twice. After the war ended, many people and materials on the island still needed their fleet to at least participate. Three to four shipments will do.
Although the final cost has not yet been settled with the Haihan Shipping Department, Liu Qiye and Qi Shipyard are both relevant practitioners, and they are relatively clear about the remuneration standards for civilian ships recruited during wartime. According to the income they calculated, the income generated during this period was divided among each partner, which was probably as much as two to three thousand yuan. Judging from Qi Shipyard and Li Maozai's current annual income level, this is approximately equivalent to their income for five or six years.
Taking advantage of the time when Liu Qiye returned to Jilong Port to unload and replenish supplies, the three of them made an appointment to meet for dinner at a small restaurant in the port area to discuss the follow-up matters. However, due to the recent large number of hard labor and immigrants arriving in Hong Kong, Li Maozai, in addition to his official duties in the Ministry of Construction, was also seconded by the Ministry of Immigration to help with labor distribution matters, and Shipyard Qi was busy returning to Miyako Island. They were both busy doing maintenance and repairs on the warship. As a result, Liu Qiye waited in the small restaurant until after dark, and then the two men stopped work and rushed to the restaurant to meet him.
"Sorry, sorry, you two have been waiting for a long time!" Li Maozai was the last person to arrive, and he apologized repeatedly without sitting down.
"Sit, sit, sit, you're so busy, you probably haven't had dinner yet, right?" Master Liu Qi understood Li Maozi's situation very well, so he immediately called the waiter over and ordered a few more hot dishes.
"I have no choice. It's time to get off work. Another boatload of people has been pulled back from the dock. I can only help the cadres to count the people before leaving." Li Maozi sighed and said: "I have been working overtime every day during the war. I have to leave early. I’m coming back late, so I couldn’t ask for leave, so I’m sorry for the long wait.”
Liu Qiye said: "The large army is still behind! There are at least two to three thousand people on Miyako Island who need to be transported. You will be very busy during this time!"
Li Maozi smiled and said: "It's good to be busy, everyone can make money! Mr. Liu Qi, how is the situation on Miyako Island now?"
"Zheng Zhilong has surrendered, and a group of his leaders have basically surrendered as well. It is estimated that it will take a few days at most before the militia army will retreat." Liu Qiye sighed: "These eighteen Zhizhi It was very popular a few years ago and was unrivaled in FJ. I didn’t expect it to be destroyed so quickly.”
Liu Qiye himself was one of the first immigrants to move to Taiwan from FJ with Shiba Zhi in his early years. He has seen clearly the process of Shiba Zhi from its rise to prosperity to its destruction in these years. As a personal experience The authors and parties involved had more feelings in their hearts than outsiders like Li Maozai and Qi Chuanjiang.
If it weren't for the arrival of the Haihan people, Liu Qiye would probably be a small official like a town mayor somewhere on the island of Taiwan, or he would be managing a shipping company for Shibazhi. Of course, this position must have come from Shibazhi. The appointment of Bazhi, not the Ming government. After the arrival of the Haihan people, the development and construction process of the colonial settlements on Taiwan Island indeed greatly exceeded that of the previous Shibazhi rule. It was precisely because Liu Qiye felt the huge energy possessed by the Haihan people that he decisively abandoned his original employer and turned to the sea. Chinese.
Shipbuilder Qi said: "Then if Zheng Zhilong surrenders, can his life be saved?"
Liu Qiye looked around, lowered his voice and said: "I didn't see anyone, but it is said that Chief Wang personally guaranteed the lives of Zheng Zhilong and his son. However, such important figures must be from the navy's warships It’s not the civilian ship’s turn to be escorted.”
"A big shot like Zheng Zhilong will definitely be escorted back to Sanya directly and will not stop at Jilong Port." Among the three, the one who knows the most about the operation of the Haihan system is Li Maozai. He explained to the other two: " The Executive Committee spent so much money to send the militia army to Miyako Island to exterminate Shibazhi. Of course, it was necessary to see people dead or corpses. If Zheng Zhilong was captured, he would have to be sent back as soon as possible to report his military merits. First, the heads of the executive committee must confirm Zheng Zhilong’s identity before taking action.”
"Then do you think the executive committee will kill him to avoid future troubles?" Liu Qiye had worked under Zheng Zhilong after all, and was quite concerned about his fate.
Li Maozi shook his head and said: "I can't say for sure. The leaders' ideas are all wild and unconstrained, which ordinary people like us can't guess. But judging from the history of Haihan's foreign conquests in the past, as long as he surrenders, most of them will All of them can save their lives. You must also know that many officers in the militia army have been generals of the Ming Dynasty, Annan, Japan and other countries. Maybe the leader likes Zheng Zhilong and gives him a job. "< br>
Shipyard Qi pondered: "In that case, maybe we will become colleagues with him in the future?"
Li Maozi said: "The leaders are broad-minded and will usually spare the lives of enemy generals who surrender, and sometimes even release them directly. It is unlikely that Zheng Zhilong will let go, but the chance of saving his life is still quite high. As for the future Whether they will become colleagues...it’s hard to say.”
Li Maozi had been working under the Haihan people for so many years, and spent more than half of his time dealing with hard labor camps. Naturally, he had seen many such cases. In his opinion, most of the captives in Shibazhi probably still have a chance to start over, because Haihan is expanding at an extremely fast rate, and there has always been a huge gap in the demand for crew members. Most of the people under Shibazhi make a living at sea, and they are all familiar with navigation skills, which can save a lot of training time.
Except for a very small number of these people who have committed serious crimes, most of them just obey the orders of the leaders above and have no unforgivable sins. As long as they work for a period of time, their mentality will naturally change. The Haihan people paid more attention to whether the prisoners of war would change their stance and be loyal to them, rather than their past experiences. Li Maozi himself has personally experienced this transformation process and feels deeply about it. But what he didn't know was that Haihan's senior management had long-established views on Zheng Zhilong. They had already decided on how to deal with him at the beginning of time travel, and it would not change whether he surrendered or not.
Liu Qiye said: "The war on Miyako Island is over. If we take this job, it will probably be completed soon. When the money is distributed, do you want negotiable certificates or banknotes issued by Haihan Bank?" Li Mao Zai said: "If you hold this money in your hand, whether it is a negotiable certificate or a bank note, it is still a dead money. At most, you can take it back to Sanya to buy two properties and live in an apartment. I have combined it with Qi Chuanjiang Well, it’s better to put this money together and start a business to make money.”
Liu Qiye smiled and said: "That makes sense. Do you have any ideas in mind? If it is feasible, I will continue to contribute a share of the capital. How about cooperating with you?"
Liu Qiye was not worried that his question would appear too abrupt. The cooperation between the three of them was very pleasant, and the trust between them had deepened through this cooperation. There are not many people like Li Maozai in Jilong Port who are familiar with Haihan's policies. Partnering with them can reduce the possibility of violations and mistakes in operations. Liu Qiye is also happy to continue the current cooperative relationship. If Li Maozi and Qi Chuanjiang were really concerned about this, they could politely reject themselves by saying that they had not yet considered the business project.
Li Maozi glanced at Shipbuilder Qi, saw him nodding slightly, and said to Master Liu Qi: "The result of our discussion is to open a shipyard. If Master Liu Qi is willing to join, that would naturally be the best However.”
Liu Qiye was slightly surprised. He did not expect that these two people were so ambitious and wanted to do such a "big deal". He immediately advised: "I also know that Qi Shipianjiang has this technology, but there are not many shipyards." It can be built with only a thousand yuan. When Zheng Zhilong built the shipyard in Jingang, he spent tens of thousands of taels of silver and thousands of civilians, and it took more than half a year to complete it. Qi Shipyard, you are an expert. , you should know that this is not easy.”
Shipyard Qi nodded and said: "If it is based on the standards of the official shipyard of the Ministry of Shipping, the investment will be greater than what Qi Ye said. But we don't need to build that kind of big ship, nor do we need to build a large dock. I have carefully calculated that it can cost ten or twenty thousand. Just invest 100 yuan.”
Liu Qiye said: "If you don't want to build a big ship? What kind of ship can you build?"
Qi Shipyard explained: “There are too few government-run shipyards now, and orders are full from the beginning to the end of the year. Half of the shipyards build warships for the Navy, and the other half build cargo ships for the Ministry of Shipping. There is not much time for private shipbuilding. But in terms of quantity, the demand for private boats is greater. For example, there are natural fishing grounds in the nearby waters of Jilong Port, but there are very few local fishing boats, and most of them are small sampans, which are impossible to reach. Fishing in relatively distant places. I talked with the technicians sent by the Ministry of Agriculture to Jilong Port a few days ago. The government will definitely support the development of local fisheries in the next few years, and building fishing boats will definitely be a good business. "< br>
Liu Qiye still had doubts about this: "I don't know two things. First, whether the government allows private individuals to open shipyards. Second, if you are the only shipbuilder, can this shipyard be opened?"
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"I've already asked my superiors about opening a shipyard. It's no problem." Qi Shipyard replied confidently: "The government-run shipyard is too busy, so we can't keep buying ships from Ming Dynasty. After all, we have to build them ourselves. It is said that Hainan Shipyard is too busy. Bank of China also has special support measures for this and will provide low-interest loans to newly opened private shipyards. In addition, personnel is not a big problem. We are just building fishing boats, which is not technically difficult. Several of my apprentices are also here. Everyone can start working, just hire a group of laborers.”
After all, Liu Qiye was an old man. He did not let go of his doubts after hearing these words and continued to ask: "Is there any familiarity with the related industries? For example, where does the wood for this shipbuilding come from?"
Li Maozai took over the conversation and said: "So in addition to opening a shipyard, we are also planning to open a wood processing factory to provide raw materials for the shipyard."
"You guys have thought it through quite carefully..." Mr. Liu Qi seemed to be unable to find any loopholes now. The funds, personnel, projects, and policies are all there. It does seem to be an operational project: "Then besides providing money , what else can I do?”
"Master Qi often travels between FJ and Jilong Port, so I would like to ask Master Qi to recruit more shipwrights, carpenters and other craftsmen from related industries from FJ." Li Maozai had already thought about this level and immediately Suggestions were made.
"Then where is this shipyard going to be opened? Have you considered the location?" Liu Qiye is also a straightforward person who will do whatever he says. Now that the conditions are ripe, he also feels that this project is feasible, so he immediately inquires about the details.
"It's on Sheliao Island." Li Maozi turned his chopsticks upside down, dipped the tip of his chopsticks into some wine, drew the general topography of the port area on the table, and explained to Liu Qiye: "The southwest of Sheliao Island is flat. The Ministry of Shipping plans to use the beach as a shipyard and warehouse. We only build fishing boats. The land required is not large. Thirty or forty acres will be enough for the initial stage. I plan to put the wood processing factory there. , if you have spare capacity, you can also supply materials to the government-run shipyard.”
"Okay!" Liu Qiye saw that they were not talking verbally, but had already made plans for the relevant matters. He was a little more certain about the deal: "As soon as the matter on Miyako Island is over, I will Rush to Fujian as soon as possible to recruit craftsmen and try to get this thing started as soon as possible.”
"Thank you, Master Qi!" Li Maozi immediately raised his hand to express his gratitude.
Boatman Qi filled the glasses in front of the three of them with wine, raised his glasses and said, "Then I wish us a happy opening!"
The three of them clinked glasses and drank it all in one gulp, and then began to discuss other related details. Although one of these three people is a former prisoner of war, a former subordinate of Shibazhi, and a civilian shipwright. They do not have any extraordinary backgrounds, but thanks to the rapid development period that Haihan is currently in, it has brought them a Opportunity to take off from flat ground.
(End of chapter)