Rise of the 1630s South America

Chapter 831 Wealth and the sale of stolen goods ([-])

October 1650, 10, Yancheng Port (Port Blanca).

There have been no foreign fishing boats docked in this remote small port for a long time, so it is not a peak fishing season at this time. In recent years, the east coast government has also restricted the number of fishing boats from foreign countries (rejection after the license expires) contract renewal), so most of the ships have left the east coast and then either eastward to South Africa or north to New England.

However, the departure of these foreign fishing boats did not cause a significant decline in domestic fish production on the east coast, because the rapidly expanding number of fishing boats of the South China Sea Fishery Company effectively filled this gap, making the people on the east coast spend less on food fish. significantly increased.The expansion of the production scale of the South China Sea Fishery Company has also caused a surge in the number of domestic registered sailors on the east coast, which is obviously a good thing for both the navy and the merchant fleet.

The wharf of Yancheng Port is now small and large, with three straight concrete plank roads leading directly into the sea, which can berth more than [-] ships at the same time.There are steam booms next to the pier trestle, and many workers in denim are busy back and forth. Most of them are loading and unloading fish and supplies, that is: bringing back fish from nearby or distant fishing grounds ( Most of it is hake, a small part is soft fish, red shrimp and calamari) are unloaded on the pier, and then supplies such as food, fresh water, vegetables and fruits are sent on board to maintain the ability of the boat to continue fishing .

All in all, this is a city born of "fish" (the largest fishing ground in the La Plata region is not far from its southeastern sea).However, in the past one or two years, with the discovery and exploitation of salt deserts in inland areas, Yancheng Port has begun to export the second commodity—coarse salt and table salt. Coarse salt is used to marinate fish or produce chemicals, while table salt is They are selling to the East Coast, and even recently they are trying to sell refined edible salt from Yancheng to Brazilians, so that they can give up sea salt collected from imported beaches in Africa.

But in the inland area except the wharf, it is a desolate color.There are many reasons for this desolation. One is that the territory of the people on the east bank is limited to extending 1980 meters from the city at the end of the war. Beyond this distance is the territory of the Kingdom of Spain. Naturally, the people on the east bank are unwilling to develop it for them; Another reason besides this is related to the soil quality and environment here.

Needless to say, the soil texture of the land near the sea in Yancheng Port is very poor, mainly peat soil (this kind of soil is more common in Hokkaido). The environment, without making great efforts to improve it, is impossible to use it to grow grains. It is just a matter of developing some horticultural fruit forestry. In fact, there are a large number of fruit trees planted around the city of Yancheng Port, including pears, peaches, jujubes, apples, grapes, lemons, etc. , the output is also so-so, and it is enough to supply the local residents and the consumption of ships.

Since this land is not suitable for growing grain in the short term, most of the flour needed for the daily life of the more than 4000 local residents (including the salt mines in the inland area) is imported.They exported salt and salted fish, imported grain and all daily necessities, and there was a slight surplus after subtracting the two, so they could live on.

The city of the people from the east bank is located on the right bank of the Sausé River. It is small in scale and surrounded by high hills (more than 100 meters above sea level).In this coastal basin, because there is a lot of peat soil and clay, it is relatively barren, and most of the low-quality impurity pastures grow. Except for the trees transplanted by the residents on the east coast, there are few native tree species, and even There are not many low shrubs, and it is really a desolate place.

Of course, strictly speaking, the clay in the coastal basin and the quartz stone and marble that can be seen everywhere on the high hills are not worthless. At least these things are used to make bricks (including refractory bricks), lime, cement and so on. And East Coast Building Materials Company really intends to build a branch here to make full use of the local ready-made resources.It's a pity that these clays are not kaolin, which is good enough for making pottery, but not necessarily for making porcelain, which is quite regrettable.

The Sausé River is a small river with a width of about 8-10 meters, but the current is very deep and urgent.It originated in the Andes, and every summer, although the precipitation is scarce, a large amount of snowmelt on the mountain will still rush down the river, and this is the season when the Sauce River floods every year.Following the example of the Southern Railway Company, the local residents dug several artificial reservoirs with gates nearby to retain more fresh water during the wet season.You must know that in the winter of the dry season, with the surge of the Atlantic Ocean tide, a large amount of seawater will pour in at a specific moment, and this is the annual moment when the Sauce River changes from a freshwater river to a saltwater river. It will greatly affect the normal production and life of Yancheng Port residents.

Some freshwater fish are raised in the artificial reservoir, and the water surface is also leased to local residents to raise ducks and geese.However, most of the time, there will be many uninvited guests rushing into the reservoir, such as the South American three-toed ostrich, which has no natural enemies in this land and is almost flooding.

These animals eat everything, grass, plant roots, tree buds, fruit and even small fish on the beach after low tide.They swim, they're very alert, and they run fast, so they really don't have any particular predators in this vast expanse of land other than the puma, so they're so numerous that they're almost a pest.

What Shao Yuanyi saw in the outskirts of Yancheng Port at this time was such a scene: a group of ostriches came out from nowhere, and after eating the green vegetables planted on the bank, they entered the reservoir again and swam to the edge of the sandbar in the center Some aquatic vegetables grown - this food is a delicacy for them.

Shao Yuanyi's sister-in-law, Anna, went straight to the center of the reservoir with a boat. She made noises while punting the boat to scare the ostriches away, hoping to scare them away and stop spoiling the vegetables she worked so hard to grow.The group of ostriches were really timid. Although the food was delicious, it was still not as important as their lives, so they quickly swam to the other side of the bank.

Unexpectedly, they were really unlucky today, and just as soon as they landed, a group of militiamen returning from training outside happened to pass by here.After seeing that these ostriches were not domesticated by private individuals, these militiamen who were still jogging on horses took out shooting star lassoes from their pockets and put them on these ostriches.One of the gaucho cavalrymen in particular threw the lasso very accurately. A huge adult male ostrich just spread its wings and ran out for a long time before it was caught by the meteor lasso thrown by him and rolled to the ground.After struggling hard again, the noose was completely locked, and the male ostrich made a shrill neighing sound.

The rest of the riders laughed loudly. They dispersed their formation and formed a loose encirclement in the distance, making the ostrich who was eager to escape dizzy and at a loss, not knowing where to run.After spending a short period of time, most of these ostriches, large and small, were captured and became the prey of the militia brothers who returned from shooting. What a bloody bad luck!

After Anna negotiated with the group of soldiers, those people gave her three of the young ostriches as compensation for the destruction of the vegetable field.Everyone is from the same village and has a good relationship, so Anna soon came back from punting with a smile on her face.Shao Yuanyi looked at the little ostriches that were still screaming, and consciously stepped forward to help.

Anna kept some three-toed ostriches in captivity behind her yard next to the reservoir, and these small ostriches could just be put in and raised together.The female ostrich lays a nest of eggs about every two or three months, and each can lay about 20 ostrich eggs at a time, which are then hatched by the male ostrich.But Anna will definitely not choose to incubate ostrich eggs here. In fact, most of her ostrich eggs are sold to local merchants on the pier, and then the merchants will sterilize them before transporting them back to the country for sale.

These eggs are big and nutritious, and they have a huge domestic market on the east coast. They are currently competing fiercely with ostrich eggs imported from South Africa.But because the market is far from saturated, the profits of both parties are quite large at present.There are not a few residents in Yancheng Port who raise ostriches. They go out every day to collect food for ostriches, and by the way, pick up wild ostrich eggs scattered everywhere in the wild—in some grass, lucky people can pick them up in a day. To dozens of ostrich eggs, these were eggs abandoned by male ostriches because they were not laid in the nest at all.

After helping to lock up these terrified young ostriches, Shao Yuanyi and Anna greeted each other, and then set off towards the pier.In the afternoon, a large-scale auction will be organized in a large warehouse near the pier, with a wide variety of auction items: wine from the Old World, silk, gold and silver ornaments, livestock, and high-end furs , There are daily necessities, and even some rare items such as gems and spices.

As for where these commodities come from, most people have no idea.However, according to some gossip circulating in private, this is the cargo privately plundered by the Navy from the Caribbean Sea.Take a look at the sailboats of different sizes and shapes moored on the pier. They are half-new and not old, and the design style is obviously not from my east coast. They must have been snatched from others!

As a well-known domestic businessman, Shao Yuanyi is well aware of these things.Therefore, after learning that the navy wanted to hold a low-key auction of stolen goods in the remote Yancheng Port, he and some businessmen who also got the news came here in a hurry with bank drafts, checks, promissory notes, etc. , ready to see if there are any goods you are interested in.

In the afternoon, it was time for the auction to officially start. After being entrusted by the father-in-law to visit his sister-in-law who lived here, Shao Yuanyi came to the auction site and waited quietly while greeting people he knew well.

(End of this chapter)