Section 26 Trade Agreement
The workers came like a tide, paying no attention to Li Luoyou and his party who were strutting in the middle of the road. [Read full text] The steward quickly led the group to the roadside, where they found a roadside tea stall and sat down first.
The stall owner and the manager knew each other well, so they rushed over to say hello and offer tea.
"There's no need to pour the tea. Let's have a rest and leave in a while." The manager said, "There's no need to be busy."
He saw this group of dirty workers walking past him without a care in the world. I felt very unhappy.
He didn't speak with a sullen face and just sat there. After sitting for a while, there were gradually fewer workers on the road. Li Luoyou was about to get up when the steward suddenly ran out in a hurry. Came here for a while and came back.
"The third master has already hosted a banquet in the business hall to welcome you."
That night, Liu San and personnel from foreign affairs, commerce, and intelligence departments arranged a banquet in the merchant restaurant to entertain the shopkeeper Li.
Before entering the table, Liu San introduced Li Luoyou one by one.
The banquet was mainly attended by members of Liu's working group and the principals of relevant departments, and Li Mei was also among them - the reason why she was invited to participate was firstly related to her department, and secondly, it was about the social skills at the banquet. There is no being more powerful than her.
Because the elders attended formal occasions, they all changed into formal clothes and no longer used them as training uniforms. It's just that in Li Luoyou's opinion, this formal dress is not much better - it is almost the same as the fake ones they have, but the material is slightly better and cleaner. No wonder there is no distinction between superior and inferior Australians.
With a smile on his face, Li Luoyou couldn't help but say, "I've admired you for a long time." Looking at these monk-like men in short coats, he suddenly felt that they were all young, and all of them had smooth lips on their chins. I couldn't help but wonder, could it be that all the people here were "father-in-law"? Now that I think about it, it's normal for them to talk, so it shouldn't be.
Four people including Li Luo, Quark and others were invited to the table. Sao Ye and others were invited to another place to entertain them. Gu Baocheng didn't dare to sit down at the table. Seeing that Australians didn't pay much attention to the superiority and inferiority of superiors and inferiors, Li Luoyu asked him to join him because he might be laughed at if he persisted in Ming Dynasty's ways.
Compared with the luxurious banquet hall, the banquet seems very simple. The elders unanimously agreed that although this was a quasi-state banquet, it should be done in a "frugal" manner. So at this banquet, there were tomatoes, scrambled eggs, stir-fried broccoli and other vegetables that were not available in this time and space. They were beautifully cooked and made Li Luoyou feel refreshed. Only Quark's gluttony was unsatisfied - he barely ate much. to meat.
Li Luoyou saw that the interior of the building was gorgeous and comfortable, but the banquet was extremely simple. Not only were the dishes mainly light and delicious, but there was no such thing as the chef offering two or three presents for the reward, and there were no singers and little girls singing. Qu Youjiu thought they didn't care about luxury, but he admired them a bit.
The waiters at the banquet were all young women, each wearing a starched black dress with a straight waist and a high collar, and a white burqa with ruffles - only covering the front, and only a pair of crossed suspenders at the back. The skirt was so short that her feet were exposed. Black shoes and socks were all visible, which made Gu Baocheng blush with embarrassment. The hair is not combed in any way, either with hanging shoulders and short hair, or it is combed into a ponytail on the back of the head and tied with various colored ribbons. There was a small shining silver medal on the chest. Li Luoyou looked at it for a long time before he realized that it said "health care" on it.
The black and white outfit looks clean and tidy, and has a different kind of beauty compared to the women of the Ming Dynasty.
But these young women dress up beautifully and do not accompany people with wine or sing songs. They only serve food and wine. Isn’t it unnecessary?
The drinks at the banquet were all made of Lanling wine and kvass, not counting the rum that Quark loved, and not even the several famous wines sold by Zichengji in Guangzhou. Except for Liu Sanyan's toast at the beginning, there was no longer any urging to drink.
The atmosphere at the banquet was relaxed and the conversation was full of gossip. The people sitting here can at least understand Li Luoyou's Cantonese vernacular, and Li Luoyu can actually understand the "Australian dialect" they speak. It is not difficult to communicate. Li Mei is a master at banquets and has a good way of adjusting the atmosphere. The atmosphere quickly became cordial and friendly. As the banquet progressed, Li Luoyou once again confirmed that the so-called Australian dialect spoken by this group had an accent of Liaodong military dialect, which became even more strange.
Li Luoyou is considered very knowledgeable among the natives of this time and space. When he talked about his several trips to Southeast Asia and India, everyone listened carefully and some people asked him from time to time. But when Li Luoyou mentioned Australia, the faces of the elders present were not very lively.
Except for some instructions in a prisoner manual, no one knows what the so-called "homeland" of Australia is like. Is it based on the 21st century or the 19th century?
Seeing their hesitant expressions, as if they had something to hide, Li Luoyu became more convinced of the rumor: this group of Australians failed in the struggle in the palace of their mother country and had no choice but to escape to the Ming Dynasty in an iron boat.
I also heard that most of the Australians in Laigao are single, and most of them are young men. Judging from this, it is possible that the fathers of this group failed in their rebellion and were about to be destroyed, so they were sent overseas to seek refuge overseas to find another job. The reason why we came to Ming Dynasty is probably because of the "same culture and same race" - it has long been said outside that Australians are descendants of the Song people in Yashan.
Thinking of this, I reminded myself not to ask any more questions about Australia, so as not to embarrass them, and to avoid arousing their sadness. However, since many of these men are single, there is a need to start a family and start a business. Li Luoyou didn't really believe the rumors that Australians were making trouble for women. In his opinion, if Australians just wanted to find a woman to warm their bed, do laundry and cook, it would not be difficult to buy her with money or force her with a knife or gun.
The so-called Australian people are short of women, but they are short of women worthy of their status. Li Luoyu thought that many of these Australians must be the children of high-ranking officials in Australia, and they probably have very high requirements for concubines. In a remote place like Lingao, how could the daughter of a small rural landowner like her?
Thinking of this, he was already thinking about how to find his way in this regard.
After dinner, Liu San asked them to move to the lounge. This lounge is similar to the banquet room. It is tall and bright, with crystal glass chandeliers hanging on it. There are large paintings hanging on the surrounding walls - they are said to be landscapes, flowers and birds, but not landscapes, flowers and birds, and Western oil paintings are not like oil paintings. It seems to be a bit of both. The paintings are either mountains, rivers or proud cedars and plum blossoms. The picture facing the screen is full of scenes; a big river is rushing through the mist-shrouded mountains, and rolling into the sea. A red sun has just risen on the sea, with a bright glow, but in the center of the glow is a boat. If you look closely, it is the Australian boat. A big iron ship. There are four large characters written in ink across the painting: "Splendid Mountains and Rivers".
The power of this painting was so great that Li Luoyou suddenly became alert.
A large Persian carpet was laid on the blue brick floor. Li Luoyou felt distressed after just one look at this carpet. This was the highest-grade Persian product. When buying and selling, the price was not based on the width but the wheel size. Not to mention it is extremely dirty now, and there are still many scattered burn marks on it.
As for the seats, I don’t know where they were stolen from. Not only are they not in a complete set, but they are also arranged very strangely. The furnishings were arranged in a semicircular shape. Behind the table and chairs is a beautifully carved thirteen-leaf rosewood screen inlaid with mother-of-pearl and gold and silver wire. It is very large. Logically speaking, such a large-sized screen should be placed in a taller hall to look good. Putting it in a room like the Australian one feels like it's been shoehorned in.
In fact, this house was modeled after the layout of Ziguang Pavilion in Zhongnanhai when Dugu proposed. It was just that the rooms in the commercial building were not suitable for such a layout, which was why it had such a strange appearance. Although it was decorated like a state guesthouse, there were no "state guests" at the beginning. People from the Dongmen City Management Office often used this room as a lounge and smoking room, and a fine Persian carpet was ruined.
There is a name tag inserted on each chair, and everyone takes a seat with the name tag, without the red tape of assigning seats and declining.
After sitting down for a while, the maids presented a fine porcelain coffee set. This was high-grade bone china fired by Director Xiao Bailang. The Foshan porcelain workers recruited used the fine kaolin to screen it according to the process given by him, and then added The ashes are added and finally burned at extremely high temperatures in a gas kiln. The shapes and patterns are all imitated according to modern time and space, and they are made exactly right.
This kind of bone china is currently fired in very small quantities. Except for a small amount going to Guangzhou for Ziminglou to look for opportunities to expand the domestic high-end porcelain market, the rest is kept in Lingao for its own use.
The coffee is hand-roasted from the first batch of coffee beans collected in Wu Nanhai's tropical crop garden, and has a fragrant aroma. Wu Nanhai named it "Golden South China Sea".
Quark and Luoyou Li had seen this kind of drink from Arab and Indian merchants, and they didn't think it was strange. Instead, it was the porcelain that caught their attention. Quark couldn't put it down, and Li Luoyou felt that the shape and texture of this porcelain didn't look like it was made in the Ming Dynasty. Could it be that Australians also make porcelain? Considering that they are from the Yashan Song Dynasty, it is not surprising that there are several porcelain craftsmen among them.
After drinking coffee, the conversation between the two parties got to the point.
Before the negotiation, Liu San had already determined several basic points of the negotiation at Liu's work meeting, and applied for the approval of the Executive Committee and the Standing Committee of the Senate.
1. Li Luoyou transports and sells goods for the Cross Travel Group.
2. Li Luoyou must assist Chuan Chuan Group in opening a local brand. If necessary, he can open a joint-venture brand.
3. Li Luoyou purchases various goods designated by Chuanchuan Group. The price of the goods will be negotiated once a year based on bulk purchases. Lingao has the right to choose to pay with goods or coins.
4. Li Luo provides acceptance business for Delong bills through its branches in mainland China and overseas.
But before making requests, everyone wants to hear what the big shopkeeper wants from Lingao.
Li Luoyou made no secret of his purpose. He complimented the Cross-Travel Group on its "strong ships and powerful guns" and "rare in the world" and then directly requested to purchase arms from the Cross-Travel Group.
The amount purchased was not large, and even the specific types were only as simple as artillery, guns, and short muskets.
Liu San hesitated for a moment. He did not expect that this was Li Luoyou's real purpose in becoming Lingao. Of course he came to seek trade opportunities, but the objects of trade were actually arms? This is no different than selling paper matches. Arms not only consume a large amount of strategic materials, but are also a high-consumption item in terms of industrial production capacity.
Moreover, arms are very sensitive strategic materials and will greatly affect the balance of power on the continent. Issues involving the foreign policy of the Cross Travel Group are not something Liu San and others can decide.
Unexpectedly, Li Luoyou raised a question that was beyond Liu San's authority as soon as he came on the stage. The elders present looked at each other in confusion, not knowing what to do.
Li Luoyou, who was such a person, saw the embarrassed expressions on their faces and knew that this matter was difficult to handle. However, this was probably why he came to Gao Lai, and he was unwilling to let it end, so he said:
"If you have any difficulties, just tell me."
Liu San composed himself: "This matter is not within our scope of authority. We can only make a decision after asking for instructions from the higher-ups."
Li Luoyou nodded to express his understanding: "How long will it take?"
"It will take three to five days to get results."
"Okay, if it's inconvenient to sell guns directly, can you handle the artillery factory as an agent?" Li Luoyou made a second request - in fact, this is his real purpose: since selling weapons is a big deal, help making guns I'm afraid it will have to be decided "from above".
"I will submit your request together." Liu San said with a wry smile, "This matter is related to military affairs. I hope Dongzhu Li will forgive me."
"Save it, save it."
Then came Li Luoyou's request for trade privileges. Lingao has free trade. Currently, import taxes are fully exempted and exports are partially tax-free. It doesn't matter who comes to trade. Li Luoyu is not a small businessman who comes by boat. He has a lot of money and strength, and what he wants is trade privileges.
Specifically, it is the exclusive right to export “Australian goods”. Mainly Australian glass mirrors. Li Luoyou prepared to transport and sell it to Southeast Asia and India. As for the latter, he is also preparing to sell to Europe through the window of Goa.
European Venetian glass mirrors are world-famous. Not only is the price extremely high but the production is limited. There seems to be an endless supply of Australian glass mirrors sold here in Lingao, and the price is much cheaper than Venetian glass mirrors. In particular, Lingao has recently begun to sell cheap glass mirror compacts of various materials on a large scale through Guangzhou channels. The price is more lethal.
This kind of powder box is small in size and light in weight. A sea-going ship can transport a large amount of goods. Even if the cost of long-distance freight is added, the profit can be more than 100 when sold in Europe.
Such small, high-priced items can earn huge profits without even being shipped to Europe. Sea-going ships could exchange for other commodities at various trading ports along the way to Europe. In fact, Li Luoyou never thought about shipping directly to Europe. His plan was to sell part of these Australian goods to Goa, and then transport them to India, the Red Sea coast, and the Eastern Mediterranean by Portuguese merchants, and part of them would be handed over to Quark. , let him transport it to Surat and resell it directly to local British merchants. Of course this secret cannot be told.
"I am willing to sell 100,000 pieces every year, including 50,000 porcelain pieces, 30,000 lacquerware pieces, and 20,000 others." Li Luoyou said, "The price is 50% off your retail price in Guangzhou."
"It's too cheap..." Li Mei shook her head directly. Of course Li Mei couldn't agree - the current purchase price offered by Zichengji to Gaoji was 40% off the retail price. If Li Luoyou is given a 50% discount, he can make Gao Li's business a complete failure if he invests it in the domestic market. What Li Mei hated and feared the most when doing business was "cross-selling". Dealers took advantage of regional price differences to dump goods, and in the end the prices were reduced to a pulp, and no one made any money.
"To open up channels in Europe, the 50% off price is not too much. Besides, I have to ship to Portugal, which is thousands of miles away and full of dangers."
"Your ship doesn't need to go to Europe," Li Mei almost said, "Actually, you have never been to Portugal at all." But then she thought about it and let it go to save face. "As long as it is transported to Goa or Surat, it can be disposed of."
Li Luoyou's smile was a little dull. There are almost no people in Ming Dynasty who know Goa or Surat. There were many maritime merchants in the Ming Dynasty, but they either went to Japan or to the Southeast Asia. They were familiar with places like Manila and Batavia, but they knew nothing about the Indian routes.
"Besides, we already have a trade agreement on the Goa route." Li Mei still remembers the Lingao-Goa route monopoly agreement signed with Li Huamei last year. This agreement only expires in a few months, and the general opinion of the business sector is that it will no longer grant trade monopoly rights, but adopt a free trade policy. But this monopoly claim can be used to increase one's own price tag.
The two sides launched lengthy negotiations on the issue. Finally, a trade agreement was reached with Li Luoyou. Li Luoyou can transport and sell all the products in the catalog of goods that are allowed to be exported by the crossing group to areas other than South Zhili and Guangdong and Guangxi, including Liaodong; the discounts on these goods are in line with the benefits given to Gao Li Discounts are consistent.
"In this case, my cost will be much higher than that of Gao Li." Li Luoyou was dissatisfied with this condition, "My expenses on the road are much greater than his."
"If he wants to transport the goods to Liaodong or the capital to sell, he still has to pay the transportation cost. Your conditions are the same on this point." Li Mei said, "Distance is profit, and distance is price. You and all businessmen know this. .”
For goods sold to Surat and Goa, Crossing Group gives an additional O.5 discount. This discount is on a rebate basis. That is, Li Luoyou pays the full price when purchasing, and the discount will be returned to Li Luoyou after the end of a financial year. As for whether to use goods, cash, or circulation coupons, it is up to you.
For goods exported to Surat and Goa, a trade agreement for the second year must be signed in November of the previous year, specifying the order quantity and type, and the Crossing Group will give it a floating quota of 1o. If the order amount exceeds the floating limit, the rebate discount will be cancelled.
At the same time, it was stipulated that goods sold domestically should be settled in three sections in accordance with Ming Dynasty’s business habits. For export goods, cash settlement is adopted. m! ~!
