Chapter 1737 Secret Operation
Li Xi currently does not have a particularly accurate understanding of what benefits the development of maritime transportation and cross-border trade can bring to North Korea. However, all the ports he stopped at all the way south from North Korea were under the control of Haihan. During the period of docking for supplies, he could see the astonishing scale of the transnational trade operated by Haihan.
Although Li Xi doesn't think highly of businessmen in his heart, he has no prejudice against official cross-border trade between countries. If there is an opportunity for North Korea to have such a trade volume, he would be happy to facilitate other countries' fleets to go to North Korea. It's just that North Korea does not have equivalent maritime transportation capacity. After establishing trade relations, it will inevitably have to rely on the other party's fleet to complete transportation. Then North Korea's position will definitely be very passive.
However, Li Xi heard that Zheng Zha's plan did not involve Haihan directly, which made him a little worried about whether this plan could really get the approval of the Haihan people. Although he doesn't know Haihan as well as these two parties, he also knows through recent contacts that the Haihan people have a strong desire to control, especially in trade. More than half of the entire Ming Dynasty's sea trade channels are blocked. Monopolized by Haihan. The Annan people's plan is to bypass Haihan and do it themselves. Will the Haihan people tolerate such behavior?
Li Xi raised his doubts tactfully. Zheng Zha laughed after hearing this: "I blame me for not making it clear. In fact, there is another participant in this trade plan...a group of participants to be precise. Mr. Li has heard of Qiong Lianfa ”
"What is that? I've never heard of it before." Li Xi shook his head and replied. He really had no impression of this strange name, and he didn't understand why this object he had never heard of could be on an equal footing with characters like Annan, Joseon, and Fujian Xu.
"The so-called Qionglianfa, the full name should be Qiongzhou United Development Group Company." Zheng Zha explained to him: "This is an investment institution formerly led by Haihan, which is responsible for soliciting foreign businesses to invest in Hainan Island and handling related matters. Business affairs. Many big businessmen in the Nanhai area are shareholders of this organization, including our Annan Zheng family and Fujian Xu family.”
As he spoke, Zheng Zhuo pointed to Xu Yuzhuo who was sitting across from him and said: "Speaking of it, Mr. Xu and I are also the operators of Qiong Lianfa, so when our plan is actually operated, it will be called Qiong Lianfa. This will make it easier to contact Haihan.”
"So the young prince's plan did not actually bypass Haihan?" Li Xi suddenly realized: "It's just that Haihan did not directly participate in the name, but borrowed the name of Qiong Lianfa!"
"That's right." Xu Yuzhuo next to him took over the conversation and said: "Qiong Lianfa's large-scale business plan actually has to be approved by Chief Schneidersch of Haihan's Ministry of Commerce, so Haihan is still involved in this plan. .”
Li Xi didn't know what the criteria for this so-called "large business plan" were, but since it had to be reviewed by senior officials from Haihan, there must be no hidden dangers. But he immediately remembered another thing: "But the young prince's plan is to connect Annan and our country by sea. Will Qiongzhou Island gain anything from this?"
"Of course there is." Zheng Zha responded: "The strait to the north of Qiongzhou Island is the only way for this route to pass in the future. Danzhou Port and Haikou Port in the north of the island are also very prosperous commercial ports, regardless of whether they go south or The fleets heading north can dock at these two places for trade. It is naturally a good thing for Haihan to have more fleets doing business at these two ports.”
Seeing that these two people knew everything, Li Xi simply raised his own questions: "Haihan's official support for business is not small, why do they keep it secretive and use an organization like Qiong Lianfa as a cover?" ?”
Zheng Zha shook his head and said: "This is not to be secretive, but to facilitate things. Think about it, Haihan established diplomatic relations with Ming Dynasty last year. Before that, Haihan went to Ming Dynasty to do business. It would definitely not be possible if he appeared in an official name. It is appropriate, and the money exchanges will also be subject to many restrictions from the Ming Dynasty, so it took the lead in establishing Qiong Lianfa to do business with the Ming Dynasty in the name of the company. For some goods that are inconvenient to trade, Qiong Lianfa can also use internal procurement. In name, transported between Daming and Haihan.”
Zheng Zha's description is simple and easy to understand, but it is not comprehensive. When Qiong Lianfa was first established, in addition to introducing resources from the Ming Dynasty for the development and construction of Hainan Island, it also had the function of protecting the trade between Haihan and the Ming Dynasty. But in addition, establishing business channels through big businessmen from various countries and forming the prototype of an international business alliance was also one of Haihan's main purposes in designing this organization. Later, Haihan organized various countries to establish the South China Sea Business Alliance on Amborna Island, which was an operation after learning from Qiong Lianfa's operations and upgrading the standards.
Today, Qionglianfa is the first multinational commercial organization established by Haihan official organization, and the industries and regions it covers are no longer what they used to be. The investment and business targets of this organization are no longer limited to Hainan Island. Qiong Lianfa will almost always appear in any area under Haihan's control, especially in the overseas colonies that have recently been included in the territory.
For the shareholders of Qiong Lianfa, in these years of operation, they have gradually summarized a set of overseas colonial investment plans that can bring huge profits. They knew very well how to maintain communication with Haihan officials so that they could obtain Haihan's new economic and trade policies and the latest trends in overseas colonial expansion as soon as possible.
This information is tantamount to real money for them. Seizing the opportunity means the lowest operating costs and high returns, and this kind of opportunity is not available to outside businessmen. Only the dozen or so shareholders who were the first to invest in Qiong Lianfa, whose interests are firmly tied to Haihan, are qualified to be favored by Haihan and participate in infrastructure construction and agricultural development projects in various places.
The Zheng family of Annan and the Xu family of Fujian are both major shareholders in Qiong Lianfa, and they have long understood the operation methods of Qiong Lianfa. Although this plan has not yet been registered with Haihan's Ministry of Commerce, Zheng Zha had already included Haihan's share in the calculation when he conceived it, ensuring the proportion of Haihan's profits from it. These issues that Li Xi was worried about were not covered by their plans. It does not appear to be an obstacle to the implementation of the plan. Moreover, this is not the first time that Annan and Fujian have dealt with each other. The two parties have developed a certain tacit understanding in their long-term cooperation, and there will not be much difference in the operation of this project.
What Zheng Zha is really worried about is whether he can persuade the North Koreans to join this plan. According to the information he has, North Korea has always been a vassal state of the Ming Dynasty in the past, and can be said to be the number one supporter of the Ming Dynasty. Although it has established diplomatic relations with Haihan, it may not be willing to participate in the trade system built by the Haihan organization. . What's more, Annan took the lead this time. In terms of authority, it is naturally not as authoritative as Haihan. North Korea will definitely have some scruples.
So this time he specially brought Xu Yuzhuo over to add weight to his side and let the North Koreans understand that in addition to the participation of Annan and Haihan, the Ming military would also provide guarantees. Of course, the navy troops in Fujian are currently loyal not to the Ming Dynasty, but to the Xu family in Fujian. They just continue to fly the banner of the Ming army to facilitate their operations.
However, Zheng Zha was actually overly worried. Li Xi's idea was very simple. As long as Haihan nodded, the trade plan would be beneficial to North Korea and its implementation would naturally be promoted. As for whether the Ming Dynasty would blame North Korea for doing its own thing after learning about this, Li Xi no longer cared too much. Not long ago, he witnessed with his own eyes how the high-ranking officials of Haihan humiliated the Ming envoys in public. It can be said that the majesty of the Ming Dynasty has been In his mind, he has plummeted, and he no longer has as much fear as before. After the delicious food and wine, Zheng Zha kept offering generous terms, and even said that he could give Li Xi some special "rewards" after the event was completed. Li Xi finally couldn't help but let go, and promised to write a memorial and send it back to China as soon as possible. , persuaded King Li Zhu to accept the trade application from Annan Kingdom.
"I hit it off with Mr. Li and we had a great conversation today. Here are some thoughts. Mr. Li, please don't refuse me."
Zheng Zha was a person who was very happy to do things. Li Xi was relieved. He immediately fulfilled part of the benefits he mentioned and ordered someone to deliver a small wooden box to Li Xi.
Li Xi picked up the wooden box from the tray and felt it was quite heavy. He gently opened the lid and saw that inside was a gold brick the size of his palm. This was indeed a generous move.
Li Xi closed the wooden box and sighed: "Young prince, this is too polite. I haven't done anything yet. I have no merit and no reward. How can I accept such a big gift!"
Zheng Zha said: "You're welcome, Mr. Li. This little thing can be regarded as the proof of the agreement between you and me. When the matter is completed, I will thank you very much!"
Li Xi responded: "Then in case I am unable to convince the king of our country, I hope the young prince will not take the blame! I think the young prince should take this thing back first and wait until the matter is completed."
"Just try your best. If it doesn't work out, it means the fate between the two countries has not come yet. But there is no need to take back the things I gave to Mr. Li. Whether it succeeds or not, I am willing to make friends with Mr. Li." Zheng Zhu saw it. Li Xi wanted to return the gift and quickly blocked the other person's mouth with words. This expense is indeed only a small amount for him. If trade between the two countries can be successfully opened in the future, he can earn back a hundred times a thousand times just by sending a fleet to North Korea.
Even if this matter fails, spending this money to establish a good relationship with the North Korean envoy in Sanya may still be useful in the future. What's more, Li Xi is still a member of the North Korean royal family. Now he has boarded Haihan's big ship. In the future, he may be able to get a higher status in North Korea with the help of Haihan.
Zheng Zha actually learned this set of social skills gradually during his contact with the Haihan people. When the Haihan people made friends with officials from other countries, they were often even more generous. Zheng Zha didn't know if Haihan had given Li Xi any actual benefits, so he simply acted more generously and made good first. Let’s talk about impressions.
After seeing off the guests, Zheng Zha and Zheng Ting, who had been listening to the entire meeting, discussed the response just now. After making sure that there were no loopholes, they cleaned up and rested. Although the transaction with the North Koreans was important, the various foreign affairs activities in the next few days were even more important. Zheng Zha did not want his poor mental health to affect his decision-making. In particular, the weapons and equipment that can be purchased from Haihan this year will directly affect the direction of Annan's war against Siam, and must be dealt with carefully.
The person who gained the most today was actually Li Xi. During the banquet, he witnessed the diplomatic methods of various countries, especially the series of operations of Haihan's senior officials, which made him truly realize the strength of Haihan in international exchanges. The envoy of the Ming Dynasty showed that he dared not be angry but did not dare to speak out, which confirmed that the current situation of the Ming Dynasty was very tight, and he could only swallow his anger and dare not offend Haihan.
In this case, which side should North Korea choose to stand on? Li Xi felt that he already had a clear answer. However, those in power in the country cannot empathize with such an international situation. Li Xi believes that most of them will continue to respect the Ming Dynasty and fail to realize that the largest power in the Far East is quietly changing.
Li Xi could only hope that the memorial he sent back to the country would allow those in power to have a general understanding of the changes in the outside world, especially the decline of Ming Dynasty and the rise of Haihan, which would require North Korea to readjust its relations with these two countries. If this stage is not handled well, North Korea's international status in the future may also sink along with Ming Dynasty.
Li Xi did not reject Annan's young prince's intention to win over. The two countries were too far apart. Adhering to the diplomatic principle of distant relations and close attacks, Li Xi would seriously handle the matter of establishing diplomatic relations with Annan for North Korea.
As for accepting benefits from other countries, Li Xi didn't have as many scruples as Fei Cexian. The funds at his disposal are very limited, and after deducting the budget for building the embassy, there is actually not much money at his disposal. Nowadays, there is a boy like Zheng Zha who offers money actively and offers benefits, and the request is within his ability, so of course the money handed to his hand is disrespectful.
However, the small gold brick given by Zheng Zha was obviously not convenient for circulation in the market. He would have to take it to Haihan Bank to exchange it for local currency. Li Xi knew that Haihan had officially issued paper currency, and the money he could exchange for this gold brick should be enough to live in Sanya for a while.
Time flew by and it was already the last day of March. According to Haihan official arrangements, several trade negotiation activities will be held in Sanya today. Diplomatic envoys and businessmen from various countries have already studied the materials issued by the Haihan Ministry of Commerce and set the goals they want to strive for in the event.
(End of chapter)