Chapter 1495 - Trade on Kinmen Island
"Then I regret to inform you: according to Senate orders, a trade blockade is currently in effect on Xiamen, Kinmen, Anping, and the surrounding waters of Weitou Bay. All trade vessels are prohibited from entering the area. Considering that you were unaware of this decree, no penalty will be imposed this time. Proceed immediately to another port. Should you be intercepted a second time, your ship and cargo will be confiscated." He glanced at the navigation permit. "You've held this permit for some time now, and your record is clean—you should understand how the Senate operates."
Liu Deshan could only assent repeatedly. His hope of making a small fortune in Weitou Bay had been dashed. But selling salt was incidental business—possible, excellent; impossible, no great loss.
The patrol ship officer delivered a few more instructions, then returned to his own deck. Sailors were preparing to cast off the lines when a gray-uniformed officer suddenly emerged from the cabin and whispered a few words into the naval officer's ear. The officer nodded, reboarded the Dongshanju's deck, and led them to the stern cabin.
"You may go to Weitou Bay to trade." He spoke to the suspicious-looking Liu Deshan and Chen Huamin. "However—"
"This humble one dares not, dares not..." Liu Deshan rushed to defend himself. "I dare not violate a Senate decree..."
The officer laughed. "If I tell you to go, then go. What is there to fear? Only, upon your return voyage, you must report to the Hong Kong Maritime Trade Bureau what you saw and heard."
Liu Deshan's legs went weak. They wanted him to act as a spy! He silently cursed himself for coveting small profits—for the idea of sailing to Xiamen to sell salt and purchase foreign goods. If the Zheng family caught wind of this, not only would ship and cargo be forfeit, but his very life as well. Handled poorly, even his cousin and the subordinate managers and sailors might be implicated. That would be a great sin indeed.
Anxiety set his scalp prickling with sweat, and his speech grew incoherent: "This—this, this humble one is not going... not going..."
"Not going?" The officer spoke. "What a pity. Anyone willing to go will receive a free twelve-month extension on their navigation permit—or a free upgrade to a Class A permit."
Currently the Dongshanju held a Class B permit, which authorized sailing and trading only at various Chinese coastal ports, extending no farther than Taiwan, Kaohsiung, and Jeju Island. To reach Japan, Ryukyu, Manila, or beyond required a Class A permit, whose usage fee was naturally much higher.
Hearing about the free upgrade to Class A, Liu Deshan was instantly energized. His speech suddenly became clear: "Since it is a Senate order, this humble one will certainly serve with utmost sincerity! Not even ten thousand deaths could make me decline!"
Manager Liu stood anxiously nearby—how could they possibly touch spy work! He was about to speak up and demur when Chen Huamin pulled him back.
Once the two finished speaking, Chen Huamin posed a question of his own: "If Zheng family people inquire about Australian affairs..."
"Whatever you see, simply report it. No need to conceal anything."
They watched the patrol ship sail south until it vanished in the distance. The Dongshanju re-hoisted her three main sails and continued northward.
In the cabin, Manager Liu complained ceaselessly. How could they undertake such a thing? Liu Deshan himself felt somewhat rash. Chen Huamin, however, was unconcerned:
"The Zheng family is now fractured. Whether the situation in Weitou Bay will last through next year is anyone's guess. We're simply going to do business—no need to pry into anything specifically. Just observe and listen. The free upgrade is a minor matter; helping the Australians with this small favor now means sea trade can only grow easier in the future."
"That's true enough. The Australians are unfailingly honest in their dealings!" Liu Deshan nodded vigorously. "Serving the Senate means one never comes out the loser."
Manager Liu remained uneasy. He conferred with Wang Chengti and instructed the clerks and sailors to maintain strict secrecy.
The Dongshanju sailed north for over two shichen before finally arriving at Weitou Bay.
Chen Huamin stood by the ship's rail, staring wordlessly at the expanse before him.
In former days, ships had entered and exited here constantly, sail-shadows visible everywhere, every port a forest of masts. Now only an empty stretch of sea remained. Apart from a handful of fishing boats still working the waters, they had sailed for some time without sighting a single large vessel entering or leaving. Nor were any ships moored along the shore.
Wang Chengti asked: "Cap—Captain, where do we drop anchor?"
This stumped Chen Huamin. In the past, ships engaged in coastal trade all sailed to Zhongzuosuo or Anping. But conditions had changed entirely. He already knew from the Australian Price Current that Zheng family power in Weitou Bay had splintered. Anping, Kinmen, Zhongzuosuo, and other key points were each controlled by various Zheng relatives and former generals. They did not communicate with one another; though the crisis had prevented open conflict, relations were clearly anything but harmonious.
Liu Deshan, by contrast, had already formulated a plan. He directed the helmsman to sail straight for Kinmen Island—he intended to do business with Zheng Zhifeng.
Zheng Zhifeng remained the most powerful faction among the Zheng remnants, considerably stronger than the Zheng Cai and Zheng Lian brothers, and stronger even than Zheng Sen. But Zheng Sen enjoyed government backing, while the Zheng Lian-Zheng Cai brothers held Xiamen Island and controlled the Jiulong River estuary region, giving them relatively convenient access to goods supplied from the interior. By comparison, Zheng Zhifeng controlled only the two Kinmen islands—Greater and Lesser—and faced considerable difficulty acquiring merchandise. Each faction in the bay, seeking to expand revenue and suppress rivals, had established checkpoints along major traffic arteries in their respective territories, levying transit taxes on passing goods sold by their own side.
Fujian was a land of many mountains and little arable ground, with few roads passable for bulk goods. With land routes choked by rival tollgates, Zheng Zhifeng's commodity costs ran far higher than his competitors'.
Since his current strength was limited and Australian forces eyed them covetously from without, fighting among themselves was hardly sound strategy. Zheng Zhifeng had therefore focused his attention on coastal trade as a source of goods. To this end, he spared no expense sending agents to various regions to publicize his offer: he was willing to attract shipowners engaged in coastal trade to Kinmen, paying premium prices for their cargoes.
As the Dongshanju drew ever closer to Kinmen, the desolation pervading Weitou Bay became increasingly stark. Small islands they passed—once home to settlers—now lay in rubble. Houses had been reduced to charred broken walls; piers were almost entirely burned away, leaving only blackened wooden pilings standing forlorn amid the rising and falling tide.
The devastation at Liaoluo Bay was more shocking still. This had once been the main anchorage for the Zheng family fleet—and had borne the brunt of the assault in the Battle of Weitou Bay. Fire had burned for forty-eight hours before finally dying out. Hundreds of ships, large and small, moored here had all been destroyed. Though nearly half a year had passed, countless twisted, charred hulks of wreckage still littered the waterline and beach.
The witnesses gazed upon the scene in silent awe. This truly was sweeping away dry leaves—utter devastation.
As they contemplated the wreckage, a small boat flying Zheng Zhifeng's flag emerged from one side of the island, approaching to pilot them into berth. The Dongshanju lowered most of her sails and followed at reduced speed until she dropped anchor beside a newly constructed wharf.
From what they could see, the wharf had been built entirely from scratch—hastily thrown together. Zheng Zhifeng had refortified and reconstructed the Greater and Lesser Kinmen Islands. Because too many sunken ships clogged Liaoluo Bay, making clearance impractical, he had simply abandoned it altogether.
The wharf presented a scene of ongoing reconstruction: bricks, tiles, and timber piled high everywhere. A row of warehouses was under construction, workers bustling back and forth—activity that lent a measure of vitality to this desolate, lonely bay.
Yet the harbor held few vessels—only a dozen or so ships moored. Most of the flags they flew were not Zheng family colors. Chatting with the Zheng family foreman who had come aboard, they learned that to defend against a sudden Australian attack, Zheng Zhifeng's subordinate vessels were mostly anchored in the waters north of Greater Kinmen Island; only outside merchant ships were permitted to moor here.
"Merchant ships arriving have been few, however..." Chen Huamin remarked deliberately.
"Originally quite a number came. Recently, the Kun thieves have imposed a sea ban—barely one in ten ships gets through." The foreman wore a bitter expression. "Did you not encounter a Kun patrol ship?"
"We did encounter one. We said we were bound for Shanghai on business, and they let us pass."
"Count yourselves lucky." The foreman said. "Being able to reach Kinmen means you can make a tidy profit. That salt alone is enough!"
After the Australians and the Zheng family went to war, the original salt trade had halted completely. Combined with the recent sea blockade, the salt-deficient region of Southern Fujian—which had always depended on imports—saw prices skyrocket.
The price Zheng Zhifeng offered for salt was quite favorable. Liu Deshan had stocked Haibei Salt Field salt, controlled by the Australians—cheap "private salt" that had never paid official taxes. Transported here for sale, the gross profit margin reached four hundred percent. Though the unit price of salt was low and the absolute profit therefore modest, it more than covered the voyage's expenses. Everything that followed would be pure profit.
Liu Deshan's grin threatened to split his face to the ears. This business trip was truly worthwhile! He immediately lavished praise upon their hosts. Beyond the customary commissions for the foreman, he distributed red packets as usual to every relevant figure on the wharf: the Scale Master, the Tallyman, the Warehouse Keeper...
Salt sold, the Zheng family foreman inspected the remaining cargo aboard the Dongshanju. Upon seeing the main cargo—sugar—his expression fell into disappointment. Fujian was itself a sugar-producing region; Zheng Zhifeng already held large quantities of sugar in inventory and had no need for more.
Learning this, Liu Deshan immediately proposed purchasing the Fujian sugar instead. The foreman was delighted and expressed willingness to offer favorable terms. The sugar goods on Kinmen Island were primarily coarse varieties—brown sugar, yellow sugar, black sugar. Refined goods like white sugar and rock sugar were scarce and not especially cheap; the average price for coarse sugar was comparable to the lowest-grade Leizhou white sugar sold by the Australians. White sugar and rock sugar commanded much higher prices, yet their quality fell far short of Australian Leizhou product.
Even at these prices, transporting the goods to Jiangnan would still turn a profit. At worst, shipping them to Taiwan to sell to the Dutch would also yield returns. The Dongshanju's salt cargo had sold out; using the freed-up hold space to carry extra sugar was simply incidental business.
(End of Chapter)