His Majesty King Pasaithorn got up as usual, opened the window of his palace and looked out the window. The entire city of Ayutthaya was still filled with sunlight. Ayutthaya, which the Chinese used to call "the big city", is located in modern Bangkok. An island in the center of the river kc kilometers northeast. [Read the latest chapter] Ayutthaya means "the city of eternal victory". This place was the center of the Ayutthaya Dynasty that ruled for 600 years in Thai history.
Although the Kingdom of Siam has not yet been unified, the city of Ayutthaya has become spectacular, and the urban area has expanded to 5 square kilometers. According to the British, the population is roughly the same as that of London, that is, at least 200,000 people.
Even according to the standards of the Ming Dynasty, a populous country, a city with a population of 200,000 is very large. At its peak, it was said to have a population of one million.
The city's palaces are magnificent, pagodas are like forests, and its commercial prosperity is second to none in Southeast Asia. Since the city of Ayutthaya was built on a large island at the confluence of three rivers, water transportation is very developed. Aquatic products from the south and agricultural products from the north are gathered and traded here. Even products from as far away as China are continuously shipped from the sea. .
But the God King had no intention of admiring the magnificent scenery of his capital: early in the morning, he heard a report from the palace, saying that a large fleet had arrived outside the mouth of the Chao Phraya River five days ago. The key was flying a flag they had never seen before. They are currently anchored on the Thonburi shore of the Chao Phraya River.
Pasaithong has been wary of outsiders during this period. Last year, Yamada Nagamasa, a big businessman in Ayutthaya, died of injuries and infection after accompanying the Siamese army on an expedition against the Liukun rebellion. Although he repeatedly expressed his displeasure to Yamada's Japanese The man promised that he had not poisoned Yamada, but he still did not gain their trust. The ministers under his command had long been jealous of the Japanese business in Ayutthaya, so they ordered the army to burn down the Japanese town in the south gate. The conflict further intensified, and the Japanese volunteers and businessmen fled Cambodia one after another. But before the mess was cleared up, a month ago a messenger sent news from Edo: General Iemitsu's attack on businessmen with shogunate background. Angry at what happened to Siam, he officially terminated trade with Siam, which made life even more difficult for the young king: the Burmese were becoming more and more powerful in the west and had already captured Chiang Rai and Chiang Mai.
Although Chiang Rai and Chiang Mai belong to the Lannathai Dynasty, one of the "Three Thais", they are not the territory of the Ayutthaya Dynasty, but they are vassals of the Ayutthaya Dynasty. The two sides have a close alliance, and the truth of Death Tooth Han is not difficult to understand for the rulers of the Ayutthaya Dynasty of Chinese descent.
Although the native Siamese are brave, they do not have high-quality weapons. The metallurgy and handicraft industries in Southeast Asia have always been backward. In the past, swords were imported and exported from Japan, and the Japanese silver obtained was used to purchase gunpowder, matchlocks, and cannons from the Portuguese and Dutch. Once Japanese trade was interrupted, all these things were lost.
He knew that there were only some small fishing villages in Thonburi and a small number of overseas Chinese businessmen from the Ming Dynasty. Compared to big ports like Pattani, where merchants gather, Thonburi is relatively deserted. Because most of what can be exported here is rice and wood. What foreign businessmen are more interested in are Nanyang spices.
He began to ask the messenger who reported the situation for information about the group.
He learned from there that this group of people was different from the overseas Chinese merchants of the Ming Dynasty. Although they had the same faces and used Chinese characters, they did not look like the people of the Ming Dynasty in terms of speech or body shape, let alone their short hair. Very similar to some Siamese generals.
"They said they came here to buy our rice. If we are willing, they are willing to trade with us in silver and weapons." After speaking, the envoy presented the sample given by the Australians to the God King: a standard machete. His Majesty the God King carefully He was playing with the knife, which was not much better than the Japanese knife.
This kind of knife is Lingao's mass-produced model 1631 standard machete. Used to replace the Model 1629 machete. It is widely used in the army and militia, especially in the navy and navy. It is also used in agricultural production. It is a dual-use product for both military and civilian use. The blade is exactly the same except for a few differences in the handle.
Because it is a mass-produced practical tool, the materials and processes are simple. The blade is directly stamped out of the blade blank, which undergoes heat treatment and bluing process. Finally, the blade is shaped and mounted on the handle. Wrap it in oil paper and put it in a wooden box.
In terms of cost and process complexity, such knives are far inferior to the Japanese knives that the Japanese shipped to East and Southeast Asia for sale. However, thanks to the high-quality steel, heat treatment technology and chemical treatment produced in batches, the quality is no better than Sanliang. A low-grade Japanese sword worth a handful of silver.
Pa Sai Tong asked his officers to take out the sword to "try it out" and compare it with various imported Japanese swords.
After a while, the officer came to report that the quality of this kind of knife was no worse than Japanese knives. The weight is also much lighter.
This made Pa Sai Tong moved and asked about the price.
"They said that every one hundred pieces of silver equals one hundred Chinese taels. Everyone present was a little surprised. You must know that Japanese swords are not cheap. The lowest-grade Japanese swords cost three hundred taels for one hundred pieces. "Common people are ordinary. The lowest-grade Japanese swords, which are "self-defense weapons and not military weapons," are sold for one tael of silver each.
In comparison, the price quoted by Ping Qiusheng was very conscientious, one hundred taels for every one hundred knives. The price is equivalent to the worst Japanese sword. The price-to-price ratio was so high that God King Pasai asked the price twice.
"The Australians said that you can have as many knives as this and spears similar to this as you want. As long as you give them enough rice and the privilege to propose a trading station and trade in Thonburi." The envoy accepted the Australians. Seeing the king thinking deeply, he quickly explained.
"Then let Wo Luo Weng do this." Even if the quality of Japanese swords is not as high as that of Japanese swords, as long as there is enough supply, it is what the kingdom needs most, and there is plenty of rice here. If the Burmese from the west continue to attack, That would be a waste of money for them.
Thonburi is on the west bank of what is now Bangkok. In this time and space, it did not develop due to the resources and geographical conditions of Pattani. Its rise was only after the demise of the Ayutthaya Dynasty. Now, except for the core Ayutthaya region of Siam, the southwestern parts can only be regarded as a federation or confederation unified under the banner of Siam.
In the 16th century, Thailand had three kingdoms: Sukhothai, Lannathai and Phayao. According to Chinese custom, it can be called Santai. Santai is an alliance. Later, the descendants of Chinese merchants - Ayutthaya (Ayutthaya Dynasty) established by King Uthong (umhang) replaced Sukhothai and defeated the Khmer, making Sukhothai a vassal of the Ayutthaya Dynasty. As for Lannathai, as Siam The vassals of the dynasty survived until the 19th century.
The Bangkok area in later generations was still a vast jungle at that time. Bangkok itself did not exist, and the only port that could be used was Thonburi on the west bank of the Chao Phraya River. But this is the outlet of the Chao Phraya River, and its geographical location is very important to absorb a large amount of rice from the Chao Phraya River Basin.
The northeastern part of Thailand has a plateau terrain. Due to the barrier of mountains, it has a rainy climate. Summers are dry and the amount of water in the rainy season is too large, making it unsuitable for farming. Thailand's rice export ranking among the top three in the world in the original time and space is entirely due to the Chao Phraya River. As long as the outlet of the Chao Phraya River is controlled, it will continue to absorb rice from Siam. When the engine operation is completed, the layout of Southeast Asia will begin. The food problem of the Crossing Group in South China can basically be solved once and for all. The data Ping Qiusheng found from the Great Library showed that in the middle of the Qing Dynasty, the rice exported from Siam to Guangdong every year amounted to 10,000 koku, which is equivalent to half of the koku in Japan! Even if only one-third or even one-quarter of such resources are controlled by the Crossing Group at this time, it is still enough for the entire province of Hainan to feed the population for a year and still have a surplus. The rest is just a matter of transportation capacity.
In the past few days since the messenger set out, the fleet has not been idle. In addition to measuring hydrology and surrounding terrain, the survey team has also been dispatched to investigate other local resources. The team dispatched within two days brought a surprise to Ping Qiu Sheng. .
"Lao Ping, what do you think this is?" Liu Zheng from the investigation team shouted in a surprised tone, holding a yellow irregular crystal in his hand.
"Amber? Where did you get this?"
"This is a potash mine, to be precise, carnallite. There is a lot of it around here. No wonder the land here is so fertile." Liu Zheng has been in the exploration team for a long time and is very familiar with the ore. He is not as simple as in the past. The travel companion.
"This is good stuff," he said. Because of his ore prospecting, Liu Zheng had a lot of dealings with the industrial and agricultural departments. The issue of chemical fertilizers is often mentioned by agricultural veterans.
Fertilizers are not just nitrogen fertilizers, but potassium and phosphorus fertilizers are also needed. Relative to phosphate fertilizers supplied by struvite and phosphate rock, potash fertilizers have been in short supply. This shortage cannot be solved by simply upgrading industry. Not only Lingao or Hainan, but the entire East Asia lacks sufficient potash mines. The source of Lingao's potassium fertilizer comes from the refined salt industry in Ma Niao. However, the yield is very low. Approximately two tons of potassium salt can be produced for every one hundred tons of refined salt produced. It can be called a drop in the bucket.
If we can get a stable potash industry from Siam, it will be of great help to the entire agricultural production. If it can be mined in batches, as a gift to the Ministry of Agriculture, and processed into potassium fertilizer, all of it will be used in Qiongshan cooperatives. The more immediate and sensational the cooperative effect is, the more successful the series of agricultural reforms carried out in Qiongshan will be.
At Liu Zheng's suggestion, potash mines were also added to the list for this trade.
Thailand's potash mines are mainly located on the Korat Plateau, with many scattered ones. However, potash mines are generally buried relatively deep, mostly three hundred meters underground. However, due to the karst terrain, some veins of minerals still emerge from the ground, and the mining conditions are pretty good. ! .
< >, reading is a kind of enjoyment, it is recommended that you collect it.
