Chapter 814 - Dabo Shipping Company

The ships belonging to the Leizhou Station's shipping firm were modest in tonnage, diverse in type, and generally poor in condition. The personnel were a mixed lot: many had been small-time pirates left unemployed after the Lingao Navy seized control of the strait, or deserters from government naval forces. Others had served as water braves in Zhu An's employ. Although the Leizhou Station offered better pay and the Navy's trade escort system forestalled trouble, they remained a latent threat.

As for the Navy itself, it naturally harbored concerns about a fleet operating entirely outside its command structure. In relevant meetings, proposals to "strengthen unified management of maritime vessels" were constantly raised.

However, unifying the Guangzhou and Leizhou fleets under the Navy's banner and placing them under complete naval control would create an overly complex command structure. Departments in Lingao didn't notice the inconvenience: requesting a ship merely meant phoning the Ministry of the Navy and having the Transport Division schedule it. But for external stations, the process was profoundly cumbersome.

The Guangzhou Station had originally decided to form the Gaoguang Shipping Firm specifically because requisitioning procedures were so burdensome. At that time, using a ship required telegraphing Lingao, navigating the naval command structure to issue transfer paperwork. Not only were there numerous steps that wasted time, but operations proved rigid—sailors aboard the vessels weren't under the Guangzhou Station's direct command, and any slight change required re-telegraphing Lingao to amend orders. The system was completely unsuitable for commercial trade. Finally, external stations had been authorized to organize their own transport fleets.

The confluence of these factors ultimately prompted the Executive Committee to reform the existing maritime shipping system and formally establish a shipping company. This enterprise would be a joint-stock corporation, with the Council of Elders holding fifty-one percent and the remainder open to subscription by locals and naturalized citizens. Qivei was naturally the first shareholder; they had originally held shares in the Gaoguang Shipping Firm.

The newly established shipping company would undertake all the Transmigration Group's shipping business in Guangdong waters, as well as trade shipping to Vietnam. Company headquarters would be in Hong Kong, with shipping offices in Lingao, Xuwen, Qiongshan, Guangzhou, and Sanya. In the long term, shipping agencies would be established in every county of Hainan Island and along the Guangdong coast. The new entity would integrate the fleets formerly belonging to the Guangzhou and Leizhou stations. Simultaneously, the Navy would transfer some vessels unsuitable for combat service to the shipping company, including the five-masted great ship purchased from the Hai family.

The shipping company would operate independently in transport business but fall under the dual leadership of the Postal and Transport Commission and the Navy in organizational terms—similar to the British Merchant Navy Reserve system. All shipping company personnel would be enlisted in the Navy Reserve, with senior seamen granted Navy Reserve officer ranks. Time would be set aside each year for military training and exercises.

After the Second Counter-Encirclement Campaign ended, utilizing the window before the peace treaty was signed, the Executive Committee commissioned the Navy, the Political Security Bureau, and the Postal and Transport Commission to conduct a three-month large-scale reorganization and training of the Leizhou and Gaoguang shipping firms. All indigenous personnel underwent political vetting and study sessions. Unreliable elements were purged: some transferred to land jobs, a few notorious individuals with blood debts sent to labor camps. The remaining personnel underwent a major shake-up—young, able-bodied pirates and water braves were replenished into the Navy proper, while older sailors or those with injuries, illnesses, or low adaptability eliminated by the Navy were transferred to the shipping company. The company's vessels also underwent cleanup and overhaul, phasing out excessively small boats. From an efficiency standpoint, larger ships were more economical in manpower than smaller ones.

The new shipping company was formally christened "Dabo Shipping Company." And Zhang Dabala returned to Leizhou after completing several months of study camp life in Lingao. This old sea dog, who had originally sought nothing more than a steady meal, had—after receiving comprehensive "re-education"—thoroughly solidified his resolve to become a "founding merit subject." He attended a ceremony in Lingao and accepted the rank of Navy Reserve Ensign. He resumed his position as captain—he would sail primarily on the Vietnam trade route, the waters he knew best.

Zhang Dabala walked into a former sugar merchant's residence on Hai'an Street. The building had been converted into the Vietnam Trade Company's base and Dabo Shipping Company's Xuwen Office. Craftsmen were moving in and out of the courtyard; banging and hammering sounds echoed everywhere, and construction materials littered the ground. Renovations were in full swing.

The person he sought was Yan Maoda—who currently served concurrently as Director of the Dabo Shipping Xuwen Representative Office. Yan Maoda assigned him a mission: set sail tomorrow to transport several Elders and a cargo hold of goods to Vietnam.

"Besides myself, several other Elders will be aboard."

The Vietnam-bound party included Yan Maoda, going for reconnaissance and planning; Bei Kai, preparing for permanent station; and several Elders from the military, construction company, and long-range exploration team. They formed the advance party for constructing the Hongji Armed Trading Post.

"Understood. This lowly one will deliver the Chiefs safely without fail." Zhang Dabala radiated confidence. "Never mind that we've switched to a new ship—even in a fishing boat, I'd keep the Chiefs safe and sound."

"Good. I know you have the skill." Yan Maoda smiled. "Take us to Haiyang first, then from Haiyang to Hongji. Any difficulties anticipated?"

"None." Zhang Dabala appeared entirely assured. "Projected trip duration? So I can provision water, rice, and vegetables for the voyage."

"Bring as much as possible. Plenty of everything. We'll be gone a long time." Yan Maoda's tone grew serious. "This voyage to Vietnam isn't like past trips for peddling goods—it's an important mission concerning the Great Cause. You must focus one hundred twenty percent. Preparations must be foolproof."

"Yes!" Hearing this voyage held great significance, Zhang Dabala's enthusiasm surged. Since he intended to follow the dragon, he needed to earn merit; he couldn't end up with only hard labor to his name. For a moment he didn't know how to express his determination, finally blurting out, "Please watch Old Zhang perform, Chiefs!"

Zhang Dabala's ship was a three-masted Guangzhou-style vessel, originally around three hundred fifty tons displacement. After modification by the shipyard specifically for service as an armed merchant vessel for Southeast Asia and the mainland coast, displacement had increased to nearly four hundred tons. The ship now mounted six forty-eight-pounder carronades and one typewriter. The armament was sufficient to deter ordinary bands of pirates. A low poop deck had been added at the stern for steering, command, and accommodation for senior seamen and VIP passengers. Yan Maoda and Bei Kai would stay there. Ship's name: Zhennan—"Suppressing the South."

Zhang Dabala organized personnel overnight to load the ship: besides sufficient food and water for thirty days, the cargo included a large consignment of trade goods—this voyage also served to deliver merchandise to local agents.

Besides sailors, twenty marines were assigned to the ship for armed security, supplemented by several escorts from the Qivei Escort Bureau's Leizhou branch as personal bodyguards.

The Zhennan set sail. The crossing of the Gulf of Tonkin proved less than smooth. Due to wind direction, their course had to follow a circuitous path, requiring nearly four days to reach Haiyang Port in Vietnam.

The Leizhou Station's Vietnam trade was quite active. However, because it involved foreign policy considerations, they hadn't expanded fully, establishing only a trade warehouse in Haiyang Port under the name of their Leizhou shareholding enterprise, Dachang Rice Shop. They sold sugar and sundry goods to local merchants while purchasing rice, high-quality timber, and coal—small coal pits operated in the area. Their largest trading partner in Haiyang remained Vu Ngoc Giap. This North Vietnamese landlord seemed to possess an inexhaustible supply of rice, continuously selling them grain. Eventually, because Lingao's demand proved too enormous, Vu Ngoc Giap's stewards complained they couldn't husk rice fast enough—so now they exported unhusked paddy directly.

Near the Haiyang wharf lay a Chinese Merchant Street, gathering numerous traders from the Ming dynasty who peddled various sundry goods from China and Southeast Asia. The Dachang Warehouse was located on this street.

From the street scenes and pedestrians, this place appeared remarkably similar to small coastal counties in the Ming. Even the sounds were various Ming dialects—predominantly Cantonese, Hokkien, and Hakka. Along the road, Yan Maoda and Bei Kai even spotted several small regional guild halls. The depth of Chinese penetration in this area was evident.

Yan Maoda reflected that this represented a force that could be utilized. Once the comprehensive conquest of Vietnam commenced, these Ming merchants and craftsmen who had settled here for years and understood local customs would serve as an effective auxiliary force for maintaining stability. But for now, these Chinese were temporarily unreliable—not merely unreliable but potentially dangerous. Dachang Warehouse had complained to him frequently. Local Chinese merchants possessed strong regional cliques; in their minds, only fellow villagers existed, not fellow countrymen. Not only did they suppress commercial rivals openly and covertly, but they would occasionally invite wolves into the house—colluding with local officials and bandits to harm their compatriots.

As a brand-new outsider, Dachang had naturally suffered its share of overt and covert attacks. Fortunately, they were powerful; ordinary commercial tricks couldn't topple them. And the cooperative relationship with Vu Ngoc Giap, the local landlord-tyrant, meant others didn't dare act rashly.

The group arrived at the warehouse. It featured high walls and deep courtyards, heavily guarded—the officials of the Le Dynasty only cared about collecting money and never concerned themselves with local security; merchants had to protect themselves. Dachang Warehouse stored and sold bulk sugar and rice; the slightest carelessness could invite arson risks.

The local manager was named Zhu Fuyuan, a clan brother of Dachang Rice Shop owner Zhu Fusheng. His family had been very poor; he had originally made a living running errands for Ming merchants in Haiyang. He spoke excellent Vietnamese and several dialects. Yan Maoda's investigation had revealed that he maintained a family in Xuwen—wife and children—and was a decent person. His entire household depended on the dozen taels of silver he earned annually from Vietnam; life was difficult. Yan Maoda recruited him as warehouse manager, offering not only generous pay but also frequent small favors to win over his family. Before long, the man had become wholly devoted to the Transmigration Group.

(End of Chapter)