Acosta was hurriedly summoned to the Changsheng County Ya, and this time it was not Chen Mu who received him, but Zou Yuanbiao, the magistrate in a civil robe.

This meeting was much more solemn, Zou Yuanbiao was not as casual as Chen Mu when he treated Westerners after all, and there were two interpreters who accompanied him alone, and he received them in strict accordance with the rules of the Ming Dynasty and conveyed a message to Acosta.

"My great tomorrow has said in advance, to set up Youjing in Panama, even if Chen Shuai is not in charge of this matter, so I hope that the envoy will tell the king of the West that Panama cannot be co-governed and must be used as the land of the Ming Dynasty."

Acosta's heart sank when he heard that he was summoned, and now that this heaviness had become a reality, he jerkily arched his hand and said: "Spain needs the Isthmus of Panama to transport goods, and our trade with the Ming Kingdom, without Panama, where will it be transported from?" ”

"And as a country about to sign a treaty, I would like to remind Your Excellency that it is not a secret that the king wants to repair the canal in Panama, but why hasn't it been repaired for decades?"

Acosta didn't believe Zou Yuanbiao at all when he said that the right capital of the Ming Dynasty was here or something, did they think their emperor was a god? Before the war, they didn't even know that there was a place in Panama, and now it is the capital on the right?

Apparently the Ming army's capture of Panama made them know something, for example, the canal plan that they had been surveying for decades? Maybe worse?

Deep down, Acosta didn't care that the Ming Dynasty knew about the plans of the Western Kingdom for the Grand Canal, because no country in Europe had the ability to build it.

It is a hundred times more difficult to build a canal than to pave a road in the mountains, let alone in the New World, even in Europe itself, the state system of the European continent countries is not enough to mobilize the people to build such a large-scale canal.

Of course, the planned Panama Canal was not huge for ancient China, Egypt, or Persia, but it was too large for Europe, where medieval English monasteries built the first 1,750-meter-long canal to transport agricultural products.

Although it was huge, it was not impossible to build it, and Spain captured 4,000 Indians and blacks in the process of paving the road, and as a result, the slave laborers rebelled many times in the process of paving the road, causing them huge losses - what if 40,000 were used?

For more than five years, at least two legions of troops were continuously invested to suppress the slave laborers, just to build a place where the ships could go, not to mention the accidents that would occur during the construction of the canal: the insect-infested towering forests brought blight, the risk of landslides due to the excavation of the mountains, and so on.

Compared to these costs, it is generally believed that it is good to walk with mules and horses on mountain roads for two days.

However, the Ming Dynasty was different, as early as the Marco Polo period, the travelogue recorded the news of the Grand Canal, and this matter was handed over to the Ming Dynasty, maybe it could really be done - at least that's what Acosta thought.

Therefore, although Acosta had a guess, he really hoped that Chen Mu would be willing to take on the drudgery of building this canal, and he was not worried about this at all.

First of all, this planned river is not easy to repair, if it is in the hinterland of the Ming Dynasty, this river is not too difficult, because the Ming Dynasty has a strong mobilization capacity, but in the New World, there is none; Secondly, if Chen Mu really wants to repair, Spain will raise both feet in favor.

The limited energy of the Ming Dynasty in the New World was focused on this river, and the Spaniards could sleep peacefully on the other side of the ocean.

He was worried that the Ming would not allow the Spaniards to use the mountain roads they had built.

"Unless you can pay enough compensation to cover the loss of transportation, for example, if the price of our trade is reduced by another tenth, Panama will not be able to give it all to you."

Although Zou Yuanbiao's status in the Oriental Military Government has long been low to the tip of his toes, in the face of the 'envoy of the border contempt country', the county magistrate still has unparalleled authority and pride, he slowly shook his head, and said conclusively: "No, you don't want compensation. ”

Zou Yuanbiao is not arrogant and domineering, he seems to casually flip through the bison leather notebook on the table, and said very reasonably: "The low price of the goods is one percent, and the commercial tax is increased by three percent as usual. ”

Zou Yuanbiao only said that it was the case, but he didn't say where the example was, because he didn't know where the example was, he just repeated what Chen Mu had told him earlier.

They had long known that the Spaniards would want to make a fuss about the price of goods, and in the analysis of the staff group, Panama was about shortening the transportation distances for the Westerners, and nothing else, because the Westerner aristocracy was only heavy on gold and silver, and even less concerned with governing the land than the plantation owners.

They will not miss any opportunity to gain a trade advantage.

Speaking of which, Zou Yuanbiao really admired Chen Mu more and more, and he could think of a shameless method of reducing the price by one percent and raising the business tax by three percent - he blushed when he said it, but Chen Mu was already very skilled.

Acosta didn't take a breath, and his face turned sauce like a large piece of pork liver that had been sitting for a long time.

Because he really didn't know how to take it.

The trade between the Ming and the West was completely a seller's market, and the goods traded in the treaty were now drafted, whether it was silk, porcelain, muskets, and artillery, they were all buying, and the Ming Dynasty people basically did not buy their things, and all they had was a large amount of silver.

And this silver was dug up under the noses of the Ming Dynasty.

Acosta thought that he thought it would be nice if they could sell something to the Ming Dynasty as well!

Fortunately, Zou Yuanbiao followed up and said: "The imperial court will not compensate you and others, but the imperial court knows that you will work hard, you don't have to transport it in the future, the trade is completed on the west coast, and the imperial court will transport it to the east coast for you, just load it there and wait." ”

"If in a few years' time, the merchant ships of the Ming Dynasty sail to the east coast, then you will be waiting to unload their goods in Seville, and they will all be sent to you."

Adhering to Chen Mu's consistent proposition, Zou Yuanbiao and a group of staff members agreed with Chen Mu's decision to take over the transportation link.

There is no other reason, because Chen Mu said that communication is necessary now and in the future, but this kind of exchange is never equal, if you go to communicate with him, you can dig his corner, get all his good things, and add your own good things to continue to develop.

If he comes to talk to you, it's the other way around, he gets your good science and technology, but you don't get his.

Active vs. passive, there is a big difference in the outcome.

On the balcony of the port yamen, Chen Mu stood on the railing, overlooking his city and let out a long breath.

The history of the world is dynamic in his eyes, he has seen more ups and downs than anyone else, and he knows that the nations that are strong now will experience decline and tribulation in the future, and find a way out of the tribulation and rejuvenation.

More now powerful nations will collapse in the ordeal.

He also knows that now the weak country will become strong in the grinding, and the world will give birth to monkeys.

But he didn't know what the impact of his decision at this time would be on Spain, and which path they would take.

But he knows the secret of the strength of a great country - it is to never admit defeat and work hard.

If Spain is contracted by its contention for the New World, it takes a more long-term view, finds its shortcomings and buries itself in making up for it, endures the weakness it looks at at the moment, refrains from large-scale wars for twenty years, and relies on its strong national strength to develop handicrafts and manufacturing industries on a foothold.

Twenty or even two hundred years from now, Spain will be the world's great power.

But let their nobility endure the weak weakening?

Let Philip not wage war for twenty years?

If he doesn't fight, others will find him.

Chen Mu smiled reassuringly.