Chapter 244 Textile Trading

Taxation has always been an issue that merchants attach great importance to. Although most of the shipping companies in the late Ming Dynasty have adopted the tax package system of Yahang agents, the taxes paid by maritime merchants have not been reduced. For example, "Yongfeng Clothing Company"

For fabrics shipped to Guangzhou from Jiangsu, Zhejiang or Fujian, each ship must pay a rate of ten taels per foot to the Guangzhou Shipping Department according to the width of the ship. Generally, the taxes required for a ship of goods are

More than two hundred taels. A big cloth merchant like "Yongfeng Clothing Company" pays almost ten thousand taels of silver in wages every year, which is really not a small amount.

You must know that this is only the rate collected by the Shipping Department and not the tax on the goods sold. According to the commercial tax regulations of the Ming Dynasty, "Yongfeng Clothing" sold these goods in Guangzhou and had to pay a tax of thirty to one.

Commercial tax. Calculated in this way, the tax burden for a ship of textiles shipped from other provinces to Guangzhou is quite considerable.

For cloth merchants, this part of the tax losses will definitely be passed on to the price of the goods sold, and the ultimate bearers are the public or consumer groups like Chuan Chuan Group. As Chuan Chuan Group has a huge demand for textiles, naturally

They would not be willing to pay for a disguised blood transfusion to the Ming Dynasty's treasury. If they could manage to attract cloth merchants to Victory Port, it would be of great benefit to both parties.

Schneider seized the opportunity to explain to Shopkeeper Ma that the cloth merchants did not need to pay any water, land, or increase in rates to transport the cloth to Victory Port, and because these textiles were collectively purchased by the Haihan Executive Committee, they did not need to pay any additional taxes.

There will be any transaction tax. Of course, this kind of preferential treatment is not enjoyed for nothing. The price of these textiles sold to Haihan after they arrive at Victory Port should also be appropriately reduced by the cloth merchants.

Shopkeeper Ma blinked and asked: "If we can really save taxes, then the price can be negotiated. But what if there is too much cloth shipped to your port and you can't buy it all?"

Schneider said: "This is easy to handle. Let's just agree on a rough transaction volume first. How much cloth, yarn, and silk are there every month? Just set the upper and lower limits of the transaction volume. As long as the goods you provide us are within this

If the transaction volume is within the limit, then we will accept the order in full."

Shopkeeper Ma thought for a moment and felt that what Schneider said was reasonable, so he asked again: "What kind of fabrics do you need every month and how much is the quantity?"

Schneider smiled and said: "This is not urgent, because the fabrics we need are quite special. I want to ask shopkeeper Ma to see if they can be made first."

Because there were still technical details to discuss later, Schneider and He Xi did not deliberately attack Shopkeeper Ma at the wine table. After drinking and eating, the three of them moved to the study room, where various

The Haihan glass stationery almost blinded shopkeeper Ma. Many types have never been seen on the market. This is the latest batch of samples sent from Victory Port, because it must comply with the "Fu Rui" regulations.

We have an exclusive agency agreement with Feng, so the technical department specially designed some new models and prepared to promote them to businessmen outside Guangdong.

Looking at Shopkeeper Ma's dull expression, He Xi promptly presented the gift that had been prepared for a long time - a set of Haihan glass carved stationery. Such a set is worth at least a hundred taels in the current Guangzhou market.

Silver, as a gift, is quite important. Shopkeeper Ma pretended to refuse it for a few words, and then accepted the gift with a smile on his face.

For the General Office of the People's Republic of China, using glass products as gifts is undoubtedly an excellent public relations tool. This thing is cheap to make and sell for a high price. You don't feel bad when you give it away, and the other party is also happy. By the way, it also promotes Haihan's culture.

The Guangdong Office has made a suggestion to the base camp to develop a series of glass gifts. The output does not need to be large, but it must have a unique shape, because only non-volume products can have higher value and are more suitable for the recipients to take back for collection or collection.

It's pretentious.

Schneider clapped his hands, asked his servants to serve tea, and brought in fabric samples.

The first sample Shopkeeper Ma saw was gauze. There was no technical difficulty in making this kind of fabric with sparse warp and weft. Shopkeeper Ma just held it in his hand to look at it, and then confirmed with Schneider what the gauze was like.

The required width means it can be customized. Schneider further subdivided the gauze into several different types according to the technical standards proposed by the executive committee, and each set a monthly price of ten to one hundred with Shopkeeper Ma.

Unequal orders.

The gauze customized by Chuanchuan Group is mainly used in three aspects. The first is medical gauze, mainly bandages. Although there is still some inventory of this stuff, its shelf life is limited, usually two to three years, and the relevant departments

You don’t want to find out that the inventory has expired when you need to use it a lot in the future. It is always a good idea to start making relevant preparations in advance. However, what “Yongfeng Fabrics” can provide to Chuan Chuan Group is just ordinary cotton gauze.

, there is definitely no need to count on skimmed gauze in the short term - you have to import cotton from mainland China to make it yourself. The kapok produced in Hainan has short and soft fibers, poor spinnability, and is not easily soaked by water.

, definitely cannot be used in this aspect.

The second use is in the production of masks. Now as various industrial projects are gradually put into production, the physical protection of industrial workers is slowly attracting the attention of the Executive Committee. During Tao Donglai’s last inspection of Heitu Port, Gu Kai

He once proposed to him that labor protection measures for workers need to be strengthened to prevent large-scale occupational diseases in the future. At that time, Tao Donglai did not agree to Gu Kai's request. One of the reasons was that Chuanchuan Group itself did not have the ability to manufacture fabrics.

, even simple labor protection equipment such as masks and gloves cannot be manufactured by ourselves. However, as more and more industrial projects in Victory Port require protection, the requirements for labor protection tools have also been put on the agenda of the Executive Committee.

And the procurement of raw materials was handed over to the Guangzhou Liaison Office.

The last use is to make mosquito nets. Due to the hot and humid climate in Sanya, there are many mosquitoes, which are a very deadly source of infection. In addition to stepping up pest control and epidemic prevention, the medical and health departments also

Make a request to the Executive Committee and consider that it is necessary to purchase mosquito net gauze on a large scale and install screens on the doors and windows of houses to isolate mosquitoes as much as possible - if possible, it is best to allow local residents to use mosquito nets.

After research, the Executive Committee believes that although the amount of work is relatively large, the raw materials are cheap. Considering the current good economic situation, it is okay to spend a sum of money to protect the health of local residents, as long as it can effectively reduce the

The morbidity caused by mosquito bites can actually save a considerable part of daily medical expenses.

Although shopkeeper Ma doesn't quite understand why Haihan people order so much gauze, and they need it every month, but with current interests, he will definitely not refuse this door-to-door business. As for where these gauze will be used, since

The Haihan people refused to take the initiative, so Shopkeeper Ma naturally wouldn't bother to ask. Although the price of gauze is very cheap, it can sell hundreds of pieces every month. The total volume in a year is still quite considerable, at least based on the current order.

In terms of quantity, the amount of gauze needed by Haihan people has even exceeded the local gauze sales in Guangzhou.

The second fabric sample that shopkeeper Ma saw was canvas, which is most urgently needed by the Chuan Chuan Group. Canvas has appeared in the West very early and has been widely used in the production of sails and tents since ancient Rome.

In the 13th century, Western-style canvas production technology had been introduced to China. However, unlike the West, this thick and wear-resistant cloth was not widely used in China and was basically not sold in the market. However, horse

After all, the shopkeeper is also a professional who has been in the industry for many years. As soon as he saw the fabric sample, he told his origin.

Schneider was not interested in listening to Shopkeeper Ma slowly analyze the current situation of the domestic textile market in Ming Dynasty. He was only concerned about one thing: "Can the same fabric be woven?"

"Yes!" Shopkeeper Ma responded confidently, and then added: "But this kind of fabric requires a lot of materials and man-hours, and the price will probably be more than twice as expensive as ordinary Songjiang cotton."

"Price is not an issue, as long as you can produce the finished product as soon as possible, and the material can basically meet the specifications of this sample." Schneider immediately decided to finalize the matter after hearing Shopkeeper Ma's answer. Price is not the primary consideration for Chuanchuan Group.

The current situation is that you can't buy goods with cash, so it's not the time to bargain.

After hearing this, shopkeeper Ma picked up the sample and looked at it again: "These are the two types, right? I wonder what your standard is?"

There were two types of canvas samples that Schneider showed him. The first was a thick canvas used on sailing ships. This canvas could also be used to make covers and tents. The second, slightly thinner one was used to make labor protection clothing and backpacks.

, shoes and other items can be used directly as denim by dyeing them.

Schneider explained: "Based on the yarn count, weight, and width. We will not set a transaction limit for this kind of canvas for the time being. As long as your finished product meets these standards, how much can be shipped to Victory Port

, we will acquire as much as we can!”

After hearing this, shopkeeper Ma's eyes lit up and he said, "Do these fabrics need to be dyed?"

"No, we will handle the dyeing ourselves. As long as you transport the finished products to Victory Port, you can get the cash immediately!" Schneider said with certainty. The chemical industry department has already produced a variety of dye formulas, and he

The cost of large-scale dyeing of cloth is definitely much lower than that of these mainland cloth merchants. There is really no need to pay such unjust money.

Shopkeeper Ma has already made plans in his mind. It will take about ten days to send the news back to Hangzhou. It will take about five days to adjust the loom and try out the fabric there. The gauze is okay, but the latter fabric is too thick and ordinary.

The time it takes for a weaver to weave one piece of cloth will probably take three times that of Songjiang cloth. It will be about a month before the first shipment of finished cloth comes out of Hangzhou.

After looking at the fabric samples prepared by the Guangdong Office, Shopkeeper Ma also asked his entourage to present the fabric samples he had brought. Shopkeeper Ma did not come empty-handed on this trip. He had also made great efforts to inquire about Hainan.

After receiving news from the Han people, I discovered that this group of people had already purchased a lot of bulk goods in Guangzhou. No matter what they bought, they purchased them in large quantities. Even six or seven seagoing ships with 400 materials were ordered, both new and used.

The money he spent was extremely generous. This time he was lucky enough to be able to sell at his door. Shopkeeper Ma was naturally fully prepared and asked his entourage to pick out two large wooden boxes of samples. However, he did not expect that Haihan people would actually show the samples before him.

I placed an order for custom-made fabrics first, and the quantity was huge.

Shopkeeper Ma brought two boxes of samples. One box was made of cotton fabrics, and the other box was made of silk fabrics. The cotton fabrics were mainly cotton produced in Songjiang Prefecture. This Songjiang cotton cloth was not just ordinary homespun cloth, but was divided into standard cloth, button cloth,

Thin cloth, fan cloth, Rongban cloth, Zhongji, small cloth, three shuttle cloth, dragon cloth, cloud cloth, flying flower cloth, starched gauze cloth and many other varieties. The imperial clothes worn by the emperor were made of three cloth produced in Songjiang Prefecture.

The price of cloth made of shuttle cloth is nearly ten times higher than that of ordinary cotton cloth, with the unit price of each piece reaching about three taels of silver. During the Chenghua period of the Ming Dynasty, one piece of this kind of three shuttle cloth could even convert 30 shi of grain, and it was once used by the imperial court.

To pay the official's salary in exchange.

The samples of silk fabrics were also rich and colorful, including various brocades, lenos, velvets, silk satins, embroidery, etc., and soon the floor of the study was covered. Although Schneider and He Xi had been to the cloth industry several times,

I have never seen so many samples listed one by one, it made my eyes dazzled for a while.

Chuan Chuan Group’s current treatment for naturalized citizens is to provide them with full coverage of food, clothing, housing and transportation. There has always been a big gap in the required fabrics, but it seems that it is very hopeful that it can plug this gap in the near future. If "Yongfeng Cloth Industry"

"If the amount of thin canvas provided is large enough, the civil affairs department can even use this fabric to make all the clothing issued to naturalized residents, directly unifying daily clothing and labor protection clothing.

As for the dazzling array of silk fabrics, Schneider and He Xi were not very interested. They just asked shopkeeper Ma to leave a small amount of samples of each silk fabric and wait for their own research before deciding on the type and quantity to order. For the current

As far as the Chuan Chuan Group is concerned, silk fabrics do not have much practical use. The purpose of asking Shopkeeper Ma to leave samples is just to let the Military and Police Department use the samples for combustion tests later to see which type of silk fabrics burns best.

, with the least residue, it is most suitable to be used as a wrapper for the fixed charge package of artillery.

At this time, it was getting dark and the city gate was closed. Shopkeeper Ma would definitely not be able to return to the city. Schneider took the opportunity to stay overnight and asked Yu Xiaobao to take him to the guest room to rest. He also arranged for Shopkeeper Ma's entourage. Of course,

Yu Xiaobao, who has been trained, will enthusiastically show shopkeeper Ma the high-tech Haihan sanitary equipment, letting him know that Haihan people's emphasis on quality of life is not just reflected in the dining table and study room.

After sending Shopkeeper Ma to rest, Schneider asked other members of the Guangdong Office to call the study room and informed them of the results of today's negotiations with "Yongfeng Buhang". Everyone was overjoyed at this unexpected surprise.

Very excited, especially You Yihan from the Ministry of Shipping. Once the canvas supply problem is solved, the shipbuilding plan that has been troubled by the Ministry of Shipping for a long time can finally be implemented. Chen Tianqi recorded the agreements reached between the two parties one by one, and then took the briefing

Go to the confidential room to archive, and send a telegram to inform the base camp of the good news.

Xiao Liang and Yu Yao took the silk fabrics and were about to find a place outside the yard to burn them to see the effect, but they were stopped by Sister Ma Yuma: "You are not in a hurry. At this moment, let me first

Let’s take a pick!”

No one could refute Ma Yu's love for beauty. After all, she was the only female member of the Guangdong Office, and she was also the oldest in the Guangdong Office. They had to accommodate her in every aspect. So the two had to

All the samples of silk fabrics were given to her, and she was allowed to hold them on her body and make gestures, not knowing what kind of clothing she could think of.

Sha Xi, who had been silent until now, suddenly spoke up: "Since Yongfeng Cloth Company has been able to transport fabrics from Songjiang Prefecture and Hangzhou Prefecture to Guangzhou for sale all year round, does it mean that they have a way of shipping?

"

"Eighty percent of the ships in Fujian waters have paid protection fees for the 'Shiba Zhi'." Xiao Liang guessed: "At this time, most of the ships that can safely pass through the Taiwan Strait have paid the money to buy the way, otherwise they will be 'Shiba Zhi'"

If Bazhi's people catch him, they will take the boat and the goods in one pot."

Sha Xi shook his head and said: "Whether they paid the money to Shiba Zhi is not what I want to say. The key is this channel. Do you understand?"
To be continued...