Xu Xingxia said a little curiously: "Boss Li, you came here from Lingnan, the road is far away, there are thousands of mountains and rivers, and there are many checkpoints in the middle, even if I give you some glass, I'm afraid it will be difficult for you to transport it, right?" In case something unexpected happens along the way......"

Li Hongxin said with a smile: "This is my problem." [Full text reading]"

While speaking, Li Hongxin has a strong self-confidence. Obviously, he didn't pay attention to the checkpoints along the way. Although he did not reveal his background behind him, Xu Xingxia also understood that behind him, there must be high-ranking officials in the court who are supporting. The characteristic of the Ming Dynasty is that behind every big businessman, there must be the support of one or more high-ranking officials. If there was no tough backstage, in commercial trade, people would have eaten even the bones a long time ago.

It is absolutely impossible to let the glass go out from Ningxia Town and go all the way to Lingnan unharmed, without the support of powerful characters behind it. Such a powerful person needs to be a civil official of at least three grades or above, and he also needs to hold important positions and real power, not the kind that stands on the sidelines. It's just that such a powerful person can't even climb the Lin family, but I don't know which high-ranking official it is? Which high-ranking official in the imperial court has close ties with Lingnan?

For a while, Xu Xingxia was really curious about how those big officials in the court used their power to seek benefits for the big businessmen behind them. Since the other party is a powerful figure in the court and is interested in his own glass, can everyone sit down, have a cup of tea, and discuss slowly? For the sake of money, there's nothing wrong with it! Of course, such an idea is indeed a bit naïve. I don't know that people's hearts are sinister!

Since Li Hongxin is in charge of transportation, Xu Xingxia naturally has no problems. Naturally, the more the better, and it is best to fill all the treasury of the white-clothed army. Now is the time when the White Coats need money. Money is needed for the expansion of the armed forces, money for the production of weapons and equipment, money for improving infrastructure, money for improving the people's livelihood, and money for researching advanced science and technology...... Lin Xiaoniang was still warning him about the financial deficit before, but now that he has the opportunity to make money by taking the initiative to send it to the door, Xu Xingxia will naturally not let it go.

In fact, the glass workshop supervised by Xu Fuqing can continue to increase production. Glass, in the final analysis, doesn't have much technical content. As long as there are enough raw materials and enough exquisite technology, it is completely the production of the assembly line, and there are as many as you want. If necessary, you can build a few more glass factories to continuously double the output. As for the cost, it is almost negligible compared to the selling price.

While increasing glass production, it is not impossible to divide a part and hand it over to this Li Hongxin to sell exclusively in overseas markets. After all, the Lin family's sales network cannot be extended to overseas markets. This is not a violation of the agreement either. When it was agreed with the Lin family, it did not include overseas markets at all. Two different markets will not clash. With the current strength of the Lin family, it is already very good to be able to control both sides of the Yellow River.

Xu Xingxia estimated that the rise of the Lin family would definitely be suppressed by the Jiangnan merchant group. This idea has been around for a long time. Although Xu Xingxia is not very clear about how the Lin family was squeezed out of the Jiangnan market at the beginning, and Mrs. Lin did not disclose it, it is certain that the grudge between the Lin family and the Jiangnan merchants will not be small. Now that the Lin family is trying to rise, Jiangnan merchants will definitely not watch from the sidelines. Because, the sale of glass has really infringed on their interests. In the face of the naked interests, everything else is in vain.

Of course, the necessary warnings are still needed. Xu Xingxia couldn't let Li Hongxin break the rules. Since the Lin family has been promised the right to sell glass on the mainland, it must be maintained. On land, no one can continue to compete with the Lin family for the sale of glass. The vast majority of businessmen are about credibility. Without faith, there is no standing. Xu Xingxia said cautiously: "Boss Li, the premise of your business with me is that these glasses are definitely not sold in China, right?" ”

Li Hongxin hurriedly said: "My lord, please rest assured! We will only sell to markets in various parts of the South Seas, or to Dongfandao, Honhon, and Korea. ”

Xu Xingxia nodded and said, "How much money do you need every month?" ”

Li Hongxin has already measured this number countless times, and when he heard this, he said without thinking: "Let's come 300,000 taels of silver every month!" Add a few more if needed. We estimate that it will soon increase to 500,000 taels of silver. ”

Xu Xingxia nodded, indicating that it was acceptable. The sales of 300,000 taels of silver per month are not very large, less than half of the Lin family. But if it stabilizes, it is also a good income, which is conducive to the steady development of the white army. The main reason is that glass production is almost zero cost, and every tael of silver earned is almost pure profit. Now, the domestic market and the overseas market have been taken over, and there is only one Western Regions market left.

Soon, an agreement was reached on this. Li Hongxin himself sent people to Ningxia City to set up a store, and Xu Xingxia would send someone to deliver the glass to the store on time every month. Pay with one hand and deliver with the other. As for what happens after delivery, Xu Xingxia doesn't need to pay attention to it. Of course, as Xu Xingxia's personal moral help, the white-clothed army would escort the glass out of the country smoothly.

After the agreement was reached, Xu Xingxia asked someone to bring wine to entertain Li Hongxin. Li Hongxin has been walking the Nanyang market all year round, so he is naturally not familiar with wine. After tasting a few glasses, Li Hongxin praised the quality of the wine. Unfortunately, the profit of wine cannot be compared with that of glass. Otherwise, he will be tempted. During the banquet, Li Hongxin suddenly said: "My lord, I still have some words, I don't know whether to say them or not?" ”

Xu Xingxia had a good impression of Li Hongxin, and said casually: "Please speak." ”

Li Hongxin lowered his voice and said with a little nervous face: "I heard that there are some very magical drawings in the hands of adults...... I wonder if there is anything about shipbuilding? ”

Xu Xingxia was a little surprised and said, "The drawings of shipbuilding? What are you going to do? ”

Li Hongxin said expectantly: "The trade in the South Seas can't be done without ships. It's just that our Ming fortune ship is not conducive to battle, and can only be used for transportation and trade. Once you encounter someone else's warship, you will be very passive. We have always wanted to build a large number of warships to fight against those warships from the West. Unfortunately, there are no drawings and cannot be implemented. ”

Xu Xingxia put down the wine glass and thought about it carefully.

Li Hongxin's words mentioned a very important issue, that is, the continuous decline of the strength of the Daming Water Division. The Daming sailors during the Zheng He period were undoubtedly the most powerful, and they went to the West seven times! The world is invincible. Whoever dares to say a word, the army will arrive at your doorstep. It's a pity that after the retreat and the closure of the country, the Daming Water Division was gradually abandoned. Battleships with a displacement of several thousand tons were all subjected to wind and rain on the beach, and slowly decayed in the rain.

While the Western powers continued to explore the sea and gain benefits from the sea, the warships of the Ming Dynasty had all rotted, and even the relevant shipbuilding drawings were destroyed. In the twenty-sixth year of Wanli, to resist and aid Korea, the admiral of the navy, Chen Luan, took a lot of effort to gather hundreds of small and medium-sized warships and set off to fight in Korea. Fortunately, his own warship was also garbage, and in the end, the Daming Naval Division killed the Yueben Naval Division in the Battle of Lulianghai.

However, the Daming Water Division commanded by Chen Lan is purely a return to the light. The warships he owned were simply incomparable with those of the Western powers. By the forty-fifth year of Wanli (1617 AD), the displacement of the largest warships of the Western powers had exceeded 1,000 tons, and the number of artillery pieces also exceeded 100. The combat effectiveness of such a giant battleship is the fortune ship of the Daming Naval Division, and it cannot be compared at all. Especially in terms of combat effectiveness, there is a big gap.

During the Zheng He period, the largest treasure ship of the Ming Dynasty was also displaced, with a displacement of more than 1,000 tons. According to research, it may even exceed 2,000 tons. However, treasure ships are flat-bottomed ships, suitable for ocean transportation, but they are not very suitable for combat, especially for installing too many guns. Only a steeple-bottomed ship could install a large number of guns. However, even so, the drawings of the treasure ship are basically gone. After Zheng He, there was no treasure ship.

And the largest Fuku, with a displacement of only five or six hundred tons. Purely in terms of displacement, it is not far from the warships of the Western powers that came to East Asia. At that time, the largest warships in East Asia arrived from Spain, the Netherlands, and Portugal, with a displacement of about 800 tons. However, the warships of the Western powers have a large number of artillery! There are generally more than fifty doors. The number of guns in the Fu ship is less than twenty. All of a sudden, the gap was widened.

In addition, in the caliber of artillery, there is also a great difference. The caliber of artillery of the Western powers has reached or exceeded 120 mm. At that time, the most powerful eighty-pound heavy gun in the world was even close to 150 mm in caliber. The most powerful red-coated cannon of the Ming Dynasty, with a caliber of about 120 mm. These red-coated cannons were salvaged by the Portuguese from sunken British warships, repaired simply, and then sold to the Ming Dynasty. It can be seen that the British battleships at that time, the caliber of artillery, were already very large.

The caliber of the artillery is directly related to the firing range and power of the cannon. At that time, the largest artillery equipped by the Ming Army Naval Division was the Portuguese Franco machine gun, with a caliber of only about 60 mm. Obviously, in naval battles, such small-caliber artillery is not at all an opponent of large-caliber artillery. What's more, even small-caliber artillery is not as numerous as others! Artillery is inferior to people, and it is naturally inevitable to be beaten in naval battles.

Xu Xingxia said slowly: "What kind of combat ship do you need?" How much displacement? How many artillery pieces are needed? ”

Li Hongxin said with a wry smile: "The size of the battleship, of course, is the bigger the better, and the number of artillery pieces, of course, is also as large as possible." Don't tell the truth that on land, I still have some connections, and I can escort the glass safely to Lingnan, and there will be no accidents on the way. However, when it comes to the ocean, there is no such ability. In the South Seas, Spain, Portugal, the Netherlands, France, Italy, and the British competed with each other. There are also some people who don't know what to call it, and they all try to plug in, and the situation is very confusing. ”

After a slight pause, Li Hongxin said bitterly: "In the past, the Nanyang region was the most powerful of the Spaniards, but then the Dutch came and kept encroaching on the territory of the Spaniards. Now the Spaniards and the Dutch, almost every day, have to fight, and sometimes our fleet encounters them, and they are also injured by mistake. Adults may not know that the cargo of a ship is worth at least thousands of taels of silver, and some may be worth tens of thousands of taels. If it's glass, it's even more valuable. There are no strong ships and cannons, and it is not easy to walk on the sea. ”

Xu Xingxia was a little distracted. What Li Hongxin said, he from later generations, naturally knows best. The battle between the Dutch and the Spaniards will continue for a long time. Soon after, the British would join the warband. It's a mess that can't be sorted out for the time being. What he had in mind was something else entirely. When he thinks of the Dutch, he thinks of the island of Taiwan. The island of Taiwan was occupied by the Dutch, and it was later taken back by Zheng Chenggong and others. He subconsciously said, "Have the Dutch arrived at Dongfan Island?" ”

Li Hongxin said in surprise: "Dongfan Island? I don't think so! ”

Xu Xingxia subconsciously said: "That's good!" Find a way to control Dongfan Island! ”

Li Hongxin was stunned and didn't know how to answer. Xu Xingxia's words, he heard it clearly, but he didn't know what to do. He is just a merchant and does not have his own army, how can he control Dongfan Island? Fortunately, he still knew where Dongfan Island was, otherwise, if he changed to someone else, it is estimated that Xu Xingxia would not know what he was talking about.

Xu Xingxia came back to his senses and felt that he was playing the piano to a cow. You are a businessman with Li Hongxin, and you said that you want to control the island of Taiwan, isn't this nonsense? How can a merchant control such a large island? The white-clothed army was almost as dispatched. However, no matter how long the hands of the white-clothed army are, they can't extend to the island of Taiwan! That's a real headache! Since you have crossed into this world, you can't just watch the Dutch seize the island of Taiwan, right?

After pondering for a moment, Xu Xingxia said in a deep voice: "In this way, I do have some shipbuilding technology here, which should be of some help to you." It's just that, as you know, shipbuilding technology is a systematic project, involving many aspects. It is impossible to improve by relying solely on one or two drawings. If you want to learn these techniques, send some trustworthy craftsmen with strong surnames to come over, and let's study them together. ”

Li Hongxin was immediately overjoyed, and hurriedly said: "Thank you so much, my lord!" Didn't know how much it was charged......"

Xu Xingxia waved his hand casually and said generously: "It's free, no money!" As long as you take care not to let these technologies fall into the hands of Westerners! ”

Li Hongxin hurriedly said: "No, absolutely not!" Don't worry, adults! ”

Xu Xingxia nodded and picked up the teacup, this is to send off the guests. Li Hongxin understood, hurriedly stood up to say goodbye, and turned to leave. Xu Xingxia was about to pick up an official document for review, when Liu Chuang strode in, and said a little anxiously: "My lord, the Eagle Cavalry Army has reported urgently in front of it, saying that near Jingyuwei, a large number of officers and soldiers from Gansu Town have been arrested, and Zhang Yi asks how to deal with it!" ”

(To be continued)