Seeing this scene, Ali was a little confused and asked in shock.
"Master Gao, do you know the owner of this black tea?"
"Hehe, well, that's about it."
Gao Zhang, the highest official of the entire Liangzhe Road, a disciple of the Emperor of the Song Dynasty, the planner of this international commodity expo and the inventor of black tea, smiled.
Ali looked at this enigmatic young man, and his tone and attitude became more and more respectful.
Seeing that this young man was very interested in his country, he naturally cheered up and told him about the customs and customs of his country.
When Gao Zhang heard that the merchant Ali's hometown was surrounded by vast seas on both sides, and on the other side, he could reach the white people with white skin and Catholic faith.
Their business relationships with white people are very close. Many people in their country are engaged in business, but there are not many specialties in their country.
The intoxicatingly sweet dates are their favorite, as well as the local Tianzhu cotton, which is very distinctive.
The clothes on his body are made of long-staple Tianzhu cotton.
Gao Zhang stared blankly at the cotton clothes on his body. In the cold Jiangnan, he really didn't pay attention to the material of the clothes under the leather robes of these Tibetan merchants.
You must know that the cotton in the Song Dynasty was all short-staple cotton, and long-staple cotton seemed to have been introduced into the country in later generations.
Gao Zhang didn't know the cotton varieties in Ali's hometown, but he thought that the high-quality Tianzhu cotton that could be transplanted to the Middle East and the Mediterranean area should be high-quality.
In this case, taking it and crossing it with the cotton currently grown in the Song Dynasty might make the cotton velvet longer, which would also be a good thing.
Moreover, after listening for so long, Gao Zhang finally reacted. In this case, how could he let this guy go?
Gao Zhang looked at this person with a smile and continued to inquire.
“Are there many long-staple Tianzhu cottons like this in your hometown?”
"Fortunately, after all, this kind of clothing is not affordable for ordinary people. After all, the cotton process is cumbersome."
"And this time, I also brought some goods. Unfortunately, I didn't expect that the Song Dynasty also had fabrics of this kind of material."
Having said this, Ali couldn't help but sigh with regret.
Well, long-staple cotton comes from Tianzhu and has been widely cultivated in the Middle East.
Gao Zhang was about to continue asking, but at this time Fu'an had already hurried over from there carrying a cloth bag.
Gao Zhang took out a leaflet about black tea from the cloth pocket that was placed on the square table, and handed it to Ali Dao.
"If you recognize my Song Dynasty characters, then you can get all the information about black tea you want to know, as well as the price..."
"Master, can you give me one too?"
When the merchant at the table next to him heard this, he shamelessly came over and added something at the end.
"Although I don't understand Song Dynasty writing, the interpreter I brought with me understands."
Soon, more and more merchants from the Tibetan country who had already enjoyed the black tea and started to be excited came to this side.
Seeing the greedy smiling faces of more and more merchants, Gao Zhang also smiled, as long as you are happy.
In the vast land of the Central Plains, there is always no shortage of tea. Not to mention the few Tibetan merchants you have, you can afford to supply it ten times more.
Gao Zhang clearly remembered that in the Ming and Qing Dynasties in another historical time and space, tea, silk and porcelain were definitely the three treasures of bulk international trade.
But now, the black tea is only a trial production, and the quantity is really not very large, but...
It can be used just in time to have a good relationship with this Tibetan businessman named Ali.
At that moment, Ali was letting the interpreter beside him explain to him the characteristics and price of this black tea.
On the side, a tall, burly, heroic middle-aged man walked up to the two of them.
"My young master has asked the shopkeeper of Ali to come over and explain."
#####
When shopkeeper Ali saw Gao Zhang again, he was no longer at the Hangzhou Expo, but in a manor not far away.
When I saw this young man, he was wearing a purple robe that represented his distinguished status, and an official hat with two long hat wings on his head.
Ali finally knew the identity of the young man from the Song Dynasty who had just come to help him.
He was actually a high-ranking official of the Song Dynasty who had a very prominent position and had absolute say in Hangzhou and even the entire Zhejiang Province.
The problem of cotton seeds was easily solved. Gao Zhang made an agreement with Ali, who came to trade with a large amount of long-staple cotton cloth this time.
That is, Gao Zhang could buy all his cotton cloth at the price paid when Ali last landed in the Song Dynasty.
In addition, every merchant had a quota to purchase clocks and glass mirrors, and Gao Zhang generously allowed him to purchase them as he wished.
But there is one condition: five thousand kilograms of long-staple cotton seeds will be delivered within half a year.
Although Ali didn't think that kind of long-staple cotton could be successfully grown in the Song Dynasty.
But he was happy to have a relationship with a senior official of the Song Dynasty, especially when this senior official told him.
If he allows himself to sell those glass mirrors as far north as the Mediterranean, he will definitely make more money than if he sells them directly in the Middle East.
However, the other party also told me to get some more fruit and vegetable seeds for him and give them to him.
He even specially drew pictures of fruits and vegetables and gave them to Ali.
As long as he could get it, Gao Zhang was willing to exchange gold for seeds of the same weight.
For example, beet, lettuce, cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower and a series of fruit and vegetable seeds.
Naturally, Ali would not refuse.
#####
The Hangzhou International Commodity Expo has achieved unprecedented success. The most gratifying thing is that whether it is cotton cloth, silk cloth or various specialty products, they are all very popular.
But what surprised Tan Zhen the most was the black tea. Its sweet and smooth taste directly attracted the hearts of countless barbarian merchants, who all waved their money and silk to buy in large quantities.
Unfortunately, the quantity is really small, and most maritime merchants can only buy ten tons, which is a thousand catties of black tea.
Not only was the black tea sold out, but the clock and the glass mirror were sold out on the first day.
Seeing that the newly opened Hangzhou Shipping Company has achieved such explosive growth in revenue in just a few months, it really made Tan Zhenle blossom.
Gao Zhang was also beaming, and all the light industrial products in Suzhou were sold out.
As for the production process of black tea, although there is no way to completely keep it secret, at least within the next ten years, many tea gardens and tea merchants have signed tea purchase agreements with Gaozhang.
We can only honestly continue to supply raw materials to Gaozhang's tea factories according to quality and quantity.
(End of chapter)
