The Imperial Age with the Resurgence of Han Style

Chapter 101 Heshenghao

On December 1724, 12, Portuguese Brazil arrived in Spain.

After more than 160 years of colonial activities, the coastal plain of Portuguese Brazil has reached a high level of economic prosperity, and the natural appearance of the area has also undergone tremendous changes.Especially in the eastern coastal areas such as Bahia and Pernambuco, large areas of tropical rainforest have been cut down, and vast cultivated lands have covered most of the area.The large estates were like small towns with their spacious owners' houses, sugar mills, churches and slave huts.

Native villages had disappeared, and the few remaining slaves and some Indians took refuge in Jesuit missions.For these Indian survivors, people usually call them Mamelukes, that is, Indo-European mixed race people.There are also many people of mixed race, Portuguese and black, who are called mulattos.

Black slaves and Indo-Europeans made up the working population, while at the same time, the Portuguese, as the upper class of society, controlled the large estates and local government.Since the price of sugar in the European market has remained high for more than 60 years, this upper class has the opportunity to accumulate huge wealth and live a luxurious life that is not inferior to that of European aristocrats.However, at the beginning of this century, Brazilian cane sugar was strongly impacted by the sugar industry in China. It fell into a certain difficulty in the European market and its profits fell sharply. However, it did not completely collapse. Relying on the geographical advantage closer to Europe, it could barely maintain its position. With meager profits.

The capital of the metropolitan area of ​​Pernambuco in Portuguese Brazil was originally Olinda, while Lesipai was just a small village located on a beach a few kilometers south of the city. However, more than 90 years ago (1629-1654) the Netherlands During the occupation, the entire city of Olinda was completely destroyed, and most of its residents moved to Resipai, where the Dutch set up their base camp.

After more than ten years, this insignificant little village has grown rapidly, until it has now been built into a "big city" with a large area and luxurious houses of various styles, completely eroding the old city of Olinda.

Lexipai has a population of more than [-], and the entire city has expanded to the nearby islands of Antonio Bais. It is the most important political and economic center in the Northeast.Within a radius of tens of kilometers, there are hundreds of large and small sugar cane plantations and cotton plantations.However, due to the sluggish cane sugar market, the economy of the Northeastern region, including Lesipai, is relatively sluggish, and the population continues to flow out.

What’s even more deadly is that more than 20 years ago, a large number of gold deposits were discovered in the Velas River in the Minas Gerais region. In the following years, gold mines were discovered in Bahia, Goias, Mato Grosso, etc. Gold was discovered everywhere, attracting countless Brazilian locals to go gold mining.

The discovery of heavy metals had a very important impact on Portugal and the entire Portuguese Brazil. The gold rush triggered the first wave of Portuguese immigration to Brazil.A rough estimate is that in the past 20 years, nearly 20 people came to Brazil from Portugal and the Atlantic islands. On average, [-] to [-] people of all kinds make the journey across the ocean every year, including landless farmers, small landowners, priests, businessmen, technicians, etc. Women and adventurers of all kinds.

On the other hand, extensive mining of precious metals temporarily alleviated Portugal's financial woes.During this period, the trade imbalance between Portugal and England had become an unchangeable fact.In the early part of this century and in subsequent years, this imbalance was offset by gold from Brazil.

There are three outlets for precious metals. One part remains in Brazil, thus relatively increasing local wealth; the other part is transported to Portugal and used for consumption in large-scale projects such as the royal family, monasteries and palaces; the third part is directly or indirectly smuggled into the hands of the English. , thus greatly accelerating the accumulation of financial capital in England.

During the crazy gold rush in Brazil, as if it belonged to South Africa, countless businesses and agriculture were abandoned, resulting in an extreme shortage of food and other daily necessities, and an inflationary cycle that affected the entire Brazil for more than ten years.This also caused severe famine in the entire region. Many villages, towns, and immigration settlements were abandoned, and food prices were pushed to an abnormally high position.

Under this situation, Qingguo, which has countless fertile farmland and pastures in La Plata and the east coast, ushered in a grain bull market that lasted for more than ten years.They transported boatloads of grain, soybeans, corn, and countless cattle, sheep, and livestock to Brazil, exchanged them for large amounts of gold and silver currency, and made a lot of money, which effectively promoted the economic development of Qingguo.

A merchant ship affiliated with the American Trading Company has been stationed at the port of Resipai for a week. After unloading a cargo of grains and soybeans, it is preparing to purchase a batch of Brazilian mahogany, cane sugar, coffee, cotton cloth and other materials to ship back. Qingguo.Rosewood is generally re-exported to South Africa or the mainland of Hanzhou, while sugar, coffee and cotton cloth meet the needs of the domestic people.

Of course, with primary products such as grain and livestock alone, Qing could not reverse the trade deficit with Brazil. It usually brought with it some high value-added industrial products from Hanzhou, such as clocks, precision instruments, and high-end utensils. , waterproof rubber ponchos, rain boots, as well as hardware, steel bars, etc., and sell them to planters and factory owners who are willing to enjoy themselves.

"Those English people are really worthless. They will capture some black slaves and transport them for sale." Ding Zaichu, the owner of the Yongding (today's Buenos Aires) trading station of the American Trading Company, stood on the side of the ship, holding a piece of paper in his mouth. With a pipe, he said with disdain as he watched two English slave ships driving off more than 100 black slaves one after another, preparing to bring them to the city for sale.

"This is so normal. Europeans have been doing this kind of business for more than 200 years, and they have also created the extremely prosperous Atlantic Triangular Trade." Olson, the first mate of the Hesheng, glanced at it and then turned his attention below. loading and unloading site.It’s so fucked. After hundreds of years, the Portuguese port is still so backward. There are only a few booms in the entire terminal, and they are all manually operated. Not only are the loads small, but the efficiency is extremely low.Loading and unloading some bulk cargo even relied on the primitive operations of black coolies at the dock.

Unlike the wealthy and powerful Qi State, not to mention the extremely modern lifting and hoisting terminal facilities in Hanzhou, many ports in some overseas territories have also installed steam booms and steam conveyor belts, making loading and unloading efficient in minutes. Kill this port instantly.

Even though our several ports and terminals in Qingguo may be slightly behind compared with those in Qi, they still have many mechanical booms and pulleys, as well as a number of auxiliary loading and unloading equipment such as tracks and human conveyor belts. The efficiency of cargo loading and unloading is also Far more than the port of Le Si Pai.

"Sir, I think it is impossible to complete the loading and unloading of the goods today." Olson sighed and turned to Ding Zaichuhui to report: "We will have to stay in Leixipai for a few more days."

"That's fine." Ding Zaichu nodded and said, "Perhaps, after we stay for a few more days, your captain will be able to recover and resume command of the Hesheng Hao."

"Yes, all our crew members hope that the captain can recover and be able to successfully bring us back to Yongding." Olsen said sincerely.

Oh, it would be best if the captain continues to be ill, then he can command this [-]-ton merchant ship alone and enjoy the highest authority that only the captain has.

Olson is a descendant of European-Indian mixed race, and belongs to the invisible third-class race in Qing Kingdom. Every bit of progress and advancement in society comes at an extremely difficult price.Those who belong to the first-class pure Han people and the second-class Han-Yi hybrids are at the top of the entire Qingguo society. They not only monopolize most of the key positions in the domestic military and political affairs, but also hold positions at all levels of society. It also occupies an absolutely dominant position.

As of 1720, the population of Qing State was more than 25 (excluding indigenous Indians), while the population of Han and Han-Yi mixed blood (including Han-European and Han-Indian mixed blood) was less than [-]%, about [-].The population of Europeans and European-Indians is more than [-], and their social status is second only to the above two groups. They are mainly engaged in commerce, handicrafts, transportation and plantation management.Even lower than them were the indigenous Indians who accompanied Qing in the founding of the country, including the Polar Islanders (Fergo), Tehuelche, Pevenches, Guaraní and Mapu. Qieren, because of his numerous military exploits, was exempted as a free man and had the official national status of Qingguo.

As for the large number of indigenous Indians and Gauchos in the country, they are not recognized as official citizens and are reduced to "savages" in the countryside. They are often arbitrarily captured by plantation owners and mine owners, turned into slave labor, and live a very extreme life. miserable life.

Domestic Han princes, nobles and senior officials enjoy the most favorable political and living environment. Their children receive the best education from an early age. They can even send the most promising children in their families to the mainland of Hanzhou to learn about the world. The most comprehensive and advanced scientific and technological and cultural knowledge in the world.

Olson doesn’t think there’s anything unfair about this. Where in the world is this not true?At the very least, after some hard work and hard work in Qingguo, making outstanding contributions or mastering special professional skills, there is still a chance to join the upper class of society.It is better than the mixed-race ethnic groups in Spanish America and Portuguese Brazil, who never get ahead, and are even violently excluded from mainstream society.

On December 12, the last day of the year, the merchant ship "Hesheng" was fully loaded with goods and slowly sailed out of the port. Then it raised several main sails and turned around to head south.

And not long after it sailed away from Lesi Pai, two English merchant ships hurriedly unloaded the remaining black slaves, raised their sails one after another, and set sail, following the departure trajectory of the "He Sheng" and chasing it from behind.

(End of this chapter)