Lady of the Lord From the East - Chapter 150

The topic of the Song Dynasty embassy shifted to crops, but it took advantage of Wei Wei’s intentions.

She also kept an eye on the various supplies brought by the embassies.

As early as the Song Dynasty mission disembarked from Slot, Felix asked the knights and stewards who were good at Latin to get close to the rest of the mission members who stayed on the coast guarding the fleet to find out what they brought on board. come over.

This is not difficult. A group of people who have been drifting at sea for almost a year were attracted by Sloth’s food when they landed. Especially in order to entertain them, Wei Wei specially asked the serfs to make more vegetables and meat. It makes the mission members who have eaten seafood for a long time especially happy.

So for those who came to inquire about the news, they also answered very generously. Originally, this fleet was out for business, and some commodities were naturally not secrets. They even specially asked someone to write a Latin text before entering the Mediterranean Sea. When the steward who accompanied the meal asked, someone handed them the list.

The steward who could write and read immediately copied the list, divided it into several parts, and released several carrier pigeons to Felix at the fastest speed.

The Song Dynasty embassies brought a lot of things, mainly porcelain, tea, silk and other things that were popular in Europe. Before arriving at Sardinson, they had passed through nearly 20 countries and exchanged these things for back. Many local specialties have been introduced, and their products have been greatly enriched.

However, because of this, there are not many oriental specialties they brought on board, and the final destination of the original fleet was to pass through Prady and other Mediterranean coastal countries to go to Rome, Italy, and then go to Rome, Italy. Return to Huaxia on the same route.

If it weren’t for the fact that there was such a destination there, they had deliberately left some of the goods, or the remaining supplies on the ship would have been snapped up by those countries that were very fond of oriental specialties in the previous countries.

But with such a large fleet, even if the remaining supplies are not too much for them, it is already too much for Sardinson, and it is so large that they may not be able to eat all the goods.

Money is second, mainly buying it is useless. Wei Wei does not plan to be a second-order dealer. For her, the most attractive thing is not the best porcelain and silk sold by the mission, but tea and other commodities s things.

This huge sea fleet not only carries a large amount of materials, but also has a very comfortable environment and complete living facilities. In addition to sufficient food and water, they also raise pigs and grow vegetables on the sea. Medicinal herbs and even wine, it can be said that apart from not changing the sway of the ship, life is no different from living on land.

What Wei Wei was looking for was the medicinal herbs that the mission members used for self-sufficiency, as well as the bad tea that the mission sold along the way.

Yes, Chinese tea was not very popular at this time. The origin of tea came from China. It flourished in the Tang Dynasty and flourished in the Song Dynasty. People in the Tang Dynasty liked to cook tea, and people in the Song Dynasty liked to order tea, which is similar to that in the Japanese tea ceremony. A method of grinding tea leaves into powder.

Of course, because the traveling emperor liked to make tea, he specially ordered people to study the process of fried tea, so the tea leaves that the mission loaded on the boat were made of tea cakes made of fried tea leaves, which were more convenient for transportation and preservation than tea powder.

During this period, the spread of Huaxia tea was limited to some countries around China. Outside this continent, there was no tea on other continents.

Promotion takes time. When you see a novelty item, unless the effect of the item is clear at a glance, and you can be amazed at first sight, it is difficult for people who are skeptical about the unknown to go to the first time. accept new things.

Tea is the kind of thing that is difficult to be immediately accepted by people. It looks no different from the leaves. It has a faint bitter taste when brewed. It is difficult for people who are not born to like this taste and understand its benefits. Immediately liked it.

Therefore, although the embassies have been trying to promote the tea they brought, most of them just bought a little and tried it out. Before they clearly understood the benefits of these teas, everyone was reluctant to spend money on them. Money, they are more willing to buy silk and porcelain, which are popular Chinese specialties at first sight.

Therefore, the tea brought by the Song Dynasty mission was unexpectedly unsalable. Originally, they may have to bring these tea back, and then on the way back, sell it to those countries around China that know the benefits of tea, and the European generation of tea sales , I am afraid we will have to wait until the next time the Song Dynasty mission goes to the West.

And the tea brought by the Song Dynasty mission is not too much. After all, silk and porcelain are more valuable than tea, and tea is also a kind of strategic material in the Song Dynasty. They brought it out for the first time. Of course, I also considered the reasons why it might not sell well, so I only brought a boatload of tea, and then I came all the way, who sold the tea in general, but also sold half of it.

Don’t look at the fact that there is only one boat of tea, the ships of the Song Dynasty mission are all giant sailboats. The tea in one boat is full of hundreds of tons, and the remaining half is more than 50 tons. Of course, this weight is impossible in Sardinson County. Eat it all.

These teas are produced in major tea gardens in China, and their prices are quite high. Now they come from afar, and the prices have naturally turned over and over again. Wei Wei would be reluctant to buy them with money. She has money, but she doesn’t want to be taken advantage of.

After the formal conversation, most of the people were sent to the room by the servants to rest. Wei Wei invited the ambassador of the mission and the two deputy envoys to talk in the study together.

After the Song Dynasty embassy proposed to buy sweet potatoes, Wei Wei went with the flow and said that Sardinson could sell it, but she only agreed to barter.

Buy as many sweet potatoes as you want, exchange the same weight of tea, and the same is true for corn and other crops.

As soon as the price was mentioned, the face of the mission was really not good-looking.

They inquired beforehand and knew from the beginning what the price of Wei Wei’s sweet potatoes was, which was far from the price they sold tea to these foreigners, not to mention the same weight exchange, even if it was a pound of tea. Ten catties of sweet potatoes, this price is also a loss for them.

Now they have to exchange in equal proportions, of course they look bad.

No matter how good their previous impression of Wei Wei was, at this moment, in their eyes, Wei Wei has become a greedy profiteer.

Facing their changes, Wei Wei didn’t care, but said helplessly: “We don’t have many sweet potatoes, and the leftover part was planned to grow by ourselves. If I sell it to you, the planting output of Sardinson will be next year. It will definitely be affected, so I hope you can also understand the situation on our side.”

She shook her fan and continued without waiting for them to speak, “Actually, we are also cultivating tea leaves. I believe that in a year or two, we will have our own tea leaves.” At that time, your tea leaves will be even more important to her. valuable.

The three ambassadors looked down at the tea on the table in front of them.

For this negotiation, Wei Wei deliberately took out the tea leaves that were not much in stock, and brewed tea for them with a custom-made pottery tea set imitating the shape of a purple clay pot.

As people who drink tea all year round, they naturally know that the tea prepared by Wei Wei is this year’s new tea. Although the quality is average, it is obviously not a product of Huaxia, and the most important thing is that she has mastered the tea brewed by the other party. The method of frying tea.

This gave them a sense of crisis.

If tea trees are planted on a large scale in Europe, it will definitely affect the tea business after the Song Dynasty.

But soon they put this sense of crisis aside.

A deputy envoy surnamed Hao who has a lot of research on tea shook his head and said, “This is not suitable for growing tea.”

“Yes, most countries in continental Europe may not be very suitable for growing tea.” Wei Wei nodded and agreed: “Although it can be planted on a small scale, it is impossible to produce it on a large scale.”

Therefore, her tea would not threaten the tea trade of the Song Dynasty at all. Even in the modern times of later generations, Huaxia still accounts for the bulk of the production and sales of tea in the world.

“But even if it can only be planted on a small scale, for us, as long as we can start picking steadily, it is enough.”

“Ming people don’t speak secretly, it seems that you are at a disadvantage by bartering, but your tea is not very good, we all know what the price is in the Song Dynasty, and only we have the goods to sell sweet potatoes to you- – Of course, if you are going to talk to the merchants and nobles who bought sweet potatoes, we have no opinion.”

Of course she had no problem, everyone knew it was impossible.

Not to mention whether anyone is willing to sell the sweet potatoes that have already been sold – even if there are, I am afraid the price will not be much better than this – the time the Da Song embassy can stay here is not enough for them to Go to those merchants to talk business.

On the way here, no one has tried to discuss this business with those merchants who want to buy silk. No wonder they came a step late. The seeds and seeds in the hands of those merchants have already been shipped, and most of them have Buyers, these buyers are mostly nobles, and they dare not offend these people, so even if the price offered by the mission makes them more excited, they dare not break the contract and resell the things to them.

And even if someone is willing to sell it, the price they shout is outrageous than what Wei Wei said about bartering. There are too many customers, but the upper limit for single-person purchases has been set. Even if the maximum purchase is only 10,000 kilograms, it is not enough for the mission.

Although it is said that even if only one is brought back, as long as the road is not damaged, they can grow a large piece of land sooner or later with their Chinese farming skills, but since they can save the steps of reproduction and expansion in the middle, why spend the extra money What about human and material resources?

So as soon as Wei Wei’s words came out, the ambassador and others hesitated.

At this time, Felix suddenly said: “His Majesty of our country has recently intentionally blocked the foreign trade of these species. If you wait for his order, then no matter how high your price is, we will not sell it.”

In order to take care of the only person present who didn’t speak Chinese, Wei Wei spoke Latin when talking to the ambassador, and Chinese on the ambassador’s side, but there was an interpreter nearby, so Felix went from start to finish. I could understand their conversation, so I said this at the right time.

What he meant was very clear. If the king ordered, let alone here, even if the Song Dynasty embassy went to other people to buy it, it was estimated that they would not be able to buy it.

Everyone understands that the king ordered to prohibit these species from leaving the country. If they have this good food crop in the Song Dynasty, they do not want other countries to have it. That is the foundation of a strong country.

So as soon as Felix’s words came out, the ambassador and others became nervous. If Prady’s king really issued a blockade order, it would be impossible for them to bring things back.

Seeing that they loosened up, Wei Wei added: “Of course, if you are willing to accept this business, we can also provide other things to trade with you. I wonder if you are interested in bringing some fruit and vegetable seeds back?”

That must be there. They have seen and eaten all of Sardinson’s fruits and vegetables. Bringing these things back can also enrich the products of the Song Dynasty.

In the end, the people of the Song Dynasty mission agreed to Wei Wei’s transaction request. They were willing to exchange fifty tons, which is one hundred thousand catties of tea, for the same weight of sweet potatoes. In addition, the mission also agreed to use silk porcelain and what Wei Wei wanted. The herb seeds were exchanged for 50,000 catties of corn, 10,000 catties of potatoes, and some fruits and vegetables seeds that were not available in Da Song, such as tomatoes, watermelons, strawberries, etc. At the same time, the mission was also very impressed with the various canned pasta and instant noodles produced by Sardinson. Interested, also ordered a large number.

This time Wei Wei didn’t bother them too much. The price of silk and porcelain was calculated at a 20% discount from the price the mission sold to others, and then the price was exchanged for equivalent goods.

It’s a **** to not take advantage of the cheap, so Wei Wei took the opportunity to spend money to buy a lot of silk and porcelain at a 20% discount. Whether it’s for her own use or resale, it’s all good.

In the end, both parties were very satisfied with the result of the transaction, especially after the transaction ended, Wei Wei also gave them a mixed gift bag of seeds.

There are a total of 20 kinds of seeds in this mixed gift bag. The quantity of each kind is more or less. They are seeds that she has tried but cannot grow, such as tropical plants such as coffee, cocoa and even rubber trees.

I believe that the Song Emperor will like her gift.

——Anyway, these seeds will die if you put them down, so it is better to give Da Song a favor, and across the Mediterranean Sea and further south is Africa, she can form a fleet like Da Song and send people to buy there. These, as long as there are interests, I believe that those Africans will be happy to do business with them.

When sending off the group of visitors from the Song Dynasty, Wei Wei also greeted them in a happy mood when they come back next time. It is best to bring some special plants from China, and she can exchange them with other species.

Before leaving, I was taken to visit the villa, and I only saw a bunch of new species that I had never seen before, but the delegation of Song Dynasty, who didn’t get a single seed, said that they would definitely come again.

Why did you think that this lady looks young and can talk (suddenly) easily (you) just by looking at it? It’s obviously a little fox dressed in sheep’s clothing, and his shrewdness is a headache.

After the embassy left, Wei Wei had the opportunity to ask Felix: “The king really intends to block the export of these crops?”

“He meant that, but finally gave up.”

Of course, the king did not want these good things to flow into the hands of other countries, but the political system in Europe is different from that in China. The king’s power is not so great, and many times he can’t control what the nobles do in his territory. If there are nobles who are willing to go out He can’t stop selling these, even some big businessmen may not buy his account, so this is just a matter of thinking.

And when the king had this idea, Sardinson sold the things to those merchants. At this time, some of them might have flowed out, and it would be meaningless to block them again.

Therefore, what Felix said at the time was nothing more than bullying the people of Da Song who didn’t know the situation on their side, just to scare them.

Probably when the Great Song embassy arrived in Prady’s capital, they might not be able to react after seeing the king.

Wei Wei gave him an approving smile.

After the embassy left, Wei Wei became interested in shipbuilding. She had never seen those Da Song ships, but Felix’s men drew the outline drawings and sent them back. Those ships with huge carrying capacity and at the same time the attack power at the top of sea ships are very envious. He now only has two three-oared warships that he bought in the Royal Harbor of the Royal Capital. This kind of ship is the mainstream ship in the Mediterranean. They can fight and transport. Originally, Felix thought they were very good, but when he saw Da Song’s ships, he disliked them very much.

It is not as big as others, its speed is not as fast as others, and even its attack power is much lower, it is simply incomparable.

“If we have a big ship like the Silk Country, we won’t have to worry about pirates at sea in the future.”

The two ships that have been bought are only used to transport goods to the capital, and they only travel along the coast and do not go deep into the Mediterranean. However, Felix is ​​ambitious and will form a sea caravan sooner or later to conduct business in the Mediterranean countries. , One of the reasons why he built a wharf in Thrott is this. He didn’t start to form a caravan now. It’s just that Sardinson’s current production is not enough even in China, and it can’t support foreign trade for the time being. Of course, the other is more important. The reason is that they have no one.

There is always not enough talent. This is the biggest headache for Felix. They are developing in all aspects. They need too much manpower. It is difficult to find talents who are proficient in sailing and business. According to the situation of Sardinson You have to cultivate yourself, this cannot be done in a year or two.

However, the ships can be prepared first. When the dock is built, the dock will soon start construction. At that time, they can build their own ships.

After seeing the outline drawings of the ships sent by her subordinates, Wei Wei began to search for information, and quickly figured out that the prototypes of these ships were ships of the Ming Dynasty. Before the steam engine and steel were made, the ships of the Ming Dynasty were absolutely It was the dynasty with the most developed shipbuilding technology in the history of China, and now it is the most advanced manufacturing technology on earth.

Thanks to the encyclopedia library, she can have such technology.

Wei Wei took some time to draw the design drawings she found and showed them to Felix.

Felix, who saw the drawings, was naturally very happy, but at the same time, he was not without doubts.

When Wei Wei told him that her seeds were brought from her homeland, Felix never doubted it, but after seeing the Great Song embassy, ​​he had to doubt it.

If those seeds were really brought from the silk country, the members of the Great Song Mission could not possibly know anything about it, and could not possibly be willing to pay a lot of money to do such a business with them, right?

What’s more, the Great Song mission also boasted that the ships used by their fleet were the latest research by the Great Song Dynasty, but Wei Wei was able to draw a structural diagram just by looking at the external drawings, which is also amazing. ?

Felix couldn’t figure it out after thinking about it, and finally he decided to ask Wei Wei directly.

“Are those seeds really from the Silk Country?”

Wei Wei had long known that Felix would ask her, but she didn’t expect him to endure so many days to ask.

“I thought you would ask me on the first day the mission came.”

Of course Felix wanted to ask, but he felt that it was not a good opportunity, so he deliberately waited until after the mission left to ask.

He was waiting for her to answer.

“Those were not brought by me from the country of Silk, they were given to me by others on my way to Europe.” Wei Wei looked at him and said seriously, “But I can’t tell you who gave it to me, I can’t say why it gave me this, I promised it I won’t tell the secret.”

These words can be said to be true, but Felix may never have imagined that it was not a human being who gave her these things, but a reincarnation system from the underworld.

She looked at Felix a little nervously, not sure if this answer, which was almost equivalent to saying nothing, would satisfy Felix.

Felix was also looking at her with a rare expression on his face, but Wei Wei could feel that he was not angry.

The atmosphere was a little frozen, and no one spoke for a long time.

Suddenly, Felix said: “The people who gave you these, did they give it because they liked you?”

There was a strong sour taste in his voice.

Since she refused to tell Wei Wei’s secret, Felix didn’t want to explore it either. They had been together for three years. Even if Wei Wei didn’t really have a deep relationship with him at first, Felix could feel it now. With her progress, he can proudly say that they now love each other.

Their relationship is stable, Wei Wei will not leave, and the ultimate beneficiary of the things she brought are him, so what reason does he have to care about her secrets?

Felix is ​​not a villain who takes other people’s benefits and hypocritically cares about how she got these things.

Curiosity returned to curiosity, but since Wei Wei didn’t want to say it, he just didn’t ask.

But jealousy is inevitable.

He felt that the reason why Wei Wei didn’t say anything might be because the person who gave her something might just give it because he liked her.

Felix felt a sour taste in his mouth when he thought that these things might have been gifts from the other party when he was pursuing her.

Wei Wei froze for a while, then laughed, and the more she laughed, the louder she almost couldn’t straighten her waist.

After a while, she covered her stomach and said, “What are you thinking, it’s not because of this reason, it’s not a man.”

The system has no gender in the first place, and if you just look at the time of the factory, it’s just a baby.

In order to prevent Felix from being jealous, Wei Wei decided to say another word: “Those are all prizes, oh, it can also be said to be compensation, anyway, it’s really not for the reasons you said.”