Chapter 2540
Tao Hongfang took the initiative to change the topic and asked: "Director Wan, can you tell us more about how those who are hostile to our country achieve their ulterior motives through trade activities?"
Wan Yan said: "The trading activities engaged in by these people are mainly divided into two categories, one is to obtain funds, and the other is to purchase certain special commodities. It is difficult for our country to supervise the flow of funds, so the main focus is on materials In terms of circulation. Mr. Tao should know that our country has a list of goods that are prohibited from being sold and traded in the market, right?”
Tao Hongfang nodded and said: "This banned list is approved by the executive committee, and the content will be added or deleted from time to time depending on the actual situation. However, I am not sure how it is implemented outside. I would also like to ask Director Wan for guidance. .”
According to Wan Yan, the materials with the strictest supervision in Haihan are naturally military-related. In addition to standard weapons, ammunition, armor, etc., materials and tools that can be used to manufacture military equipment, as well as war horses, chariots, warships and other vehicles , are all on the prohibited trade list to prevent them from falling into the hands of anti-Haihan armed forces.
But any transaction is driven by demand. As long as there is an urgent demand for these materials in the market, then related black market transactions will naturally be spawned. Even if Haihan has formulated a prohibited sales list and has relevant departments to perform supervision tasks, it still cannot completely prevent the circulation of these materials.
Of course, since they cannot be traded openly, the flow of these materials outside the control range will not be too fast. They are basically bought and sold sporadicly, and the prices are extremely high. For example, the flintlock rifles that were mass-produced in the 1930s, as long as they could still fire normally, the price on the black market was not much lower than the market price twenty years ago. As for heavy weapons such as artillery, because the number lost is extremely rare, the black market price has remained high.
Tao Hongfang couldn't help but interrupt when he heard this: "Our country has always strictly controlled military supplies. Where did these supplies escape from? I guess it can be traced, right?"
Wan Yan shook his head and replied: "That's not necessarily the case. As far as I know, most of the military equipment usually bought and sold on the black market are old or even obsolete models, and have been manufactured and installed for a long time. In order not to be traced To find the source, they often assemble and modify the equipment, and use tools to remove the stamped numbers on the equipment. Moreover, these items have to pass through several hands from seller to buyer, making it difficult to trace the true source and destination.”
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As Haihan has continued to expand its sphere of influence over the years, the size of the troops at all levels and branches has also increased. Today, the strength of the Haihan Army has reached hundreds of thousands, and the equipment that has been eliminated and scrapped due to various reasons over the years has also increased. As more and more money comes in, part of it will flow into the black market through various channels. In addition, with the advancement of production technology, some equipment with simple structures and manufacturing processes are slowly being imitated by folk craftsmen. Although the production capacity cannot be compared with that of arsenals, these items can often be passed off on the black market and will still be used by those in need. acquisition.
As for how these black market transactions are carried out, only departments such as the Ministry of Security and the Military Intelligence Bureau know better. As an official of the Ministry of Commerce, Wan Yan can only be regarded as a layman and cannot bring Tao Hongfang more knowledge. Detailed information.
After talking about these gossips, Wan Yan asked his subordinates to give Tao Hongfang a cup of hot tea, then ordered someone to fetch a large pile of documents and introduced to Tao Hongfang: "These are all officially registered locally in the past year. Please check the bulk transaction records, Mr. Tao!”
For these transaction records registered by the Ministry of Commerce, the transaction amounts are all above a certain threshold, and payment settlement is basically done through Haihan Bank. Otherwise, it would be difficult to use cash based on the existing supervision methods of the Ministry of Commerce. All private transactions of silver are recorded.
Tao Hongfang thanked him, then took out a book and opened it for review. He saw that the transaction time, participants, transaction content, goods delivery location, settlement method and other information were recorded in the columns above. The content was relatively detailed. After flipping through a few pages, Tao Hongfang asked: "So many transactions were recorded in Hangzhou last year?"
Wan Yan explained: “In fact, before taking over the Hangzhou area from Ming Dynasty, the Ministry of Commerce had already established an institution in Hangzhou, and Haihan Bank also opened a branch here, so the relevant records are actually older than our country. Take over Hangzhou”
To ordinary people, these records have no special meaning, but to competent agencies like the Ministry of Commerce, they can extract a lot of valuable information from them. For example, the industries with the most prosperous trade activities in the region, the dependence of bulk trade on Haihan financial services, and the changing trend of transaction volume, etc.
This information can reflect the trade status and development trends of this region from the side, and provide a reference for officials to supervise trade activities and formulate relevant business regulations.
Of course, limited by the current staffing of the Hangzhou office, the business information that Wan Yan can collect is still very limited. It cannot be compared with a place with comprehensive supervision like Sanya, or even compared with Zhoushan Dinghai Port. There is still a big gap.
Tao Hongfang did not plan to read all these records in one go. He would stay in Hangzhou for a while this time and would still have time to review the information later. He proposed to Wan Yan that he would come over to check the information in the next few days, and Wan Yan agreed without hesitation.
Tao Hongfang felt that the meeting had been long enough, so he stood up and said goodbye to Wan Yan, planning to go to Haihan Bank to have a look again. Wan Yan originally wanted to invite Tao Hongfang to dinner, but when he heard that Tao Hongfang was going to Shi Diwen's house for a banquet that evening, he had no choice but to give up and wait until the next time they meet before inviting Tao Hongfang.
At the same time, Ha Jianyi and Wang Anguo had arrived at a base of the Haihan Army outside Hangzhou. Ha Jianyi made his identity known at the gate. The sentry did not dare to neglect and immediately went in to report. Not long after, a second lieutenant hurried over and welcomed them in.
The task Ha Jianyi was sent to Hangzhou this time was to inspect the equipment and training status of the troops stationed in the region. However, the troops in the Donghai Region have always been based on the navy and the army as a supplement. Ha Jianyi, who was born in the army, was a little uneasy about this task, but after meeting Wang Anguo in Hangzhou, he thought of recruiting Wang Anguo to carry out this task together. Task. After all, Wang Anguo's father was once the commander of the Haihan Navy. Wang Anguo inherited his father's legacy and already has rich experience in navigation and combat. He is considered an expert and can make up for Ha Jianyi's shortcomings in this task. plate.
(End of chapter)