Chapter 98

The first day of 1634 began with bright sunshine. On this day, whether it was the administrative institutions and factories in Dongfang Harbor, the construction sites of Zhenhai Fort and Pingan Fort, or the coal mines and coal washing plants by the Meih River, the citizens of the Republic of Huaxia's East Coast were given a rare day off.

Due to the lack of entertainment facilities, most residents chose to rest at home, drinking or playing cards. This led to a 30% increase in the sales of mahjong tiles at the supply and marketing cooperative in Dongfang Harbor, and even the various expensive, restricted wines were sold out, demonstrating the impressive purchasing power of the citizens of the East Coast Republic.

Inside the warehouse at Dongfang Harbor's dock, the newly appointed Minister of Trade, Xu Xin, was nervously checking the ledger. The latest batch of woolen and cotton fabrics produced by the machine textile factory had already been loaded onto the ship last night and was about to be shipped to Colonia.

200 bolts of woolen fabric, 500 bolts of white cotton fabric, 100,000 red bricks, 50 tons of cement, 1,000 military knives, 500 tools and small hardware items, 250 tons of refined coal... This was the largest export operation to La Plata since the new year, organized by the Trade Department. Due to the heavy financial pressure, the Executive Committee was generous with rewards for any department that could export, so the Trade Department, under heavy pressure, organized this grand export operation at the beginning of the new year. These goods, with a total value exceeding 13,000 yuan, filled two large ships, the "Eagle of the East Coast" and the "Galician Flying Fish." Today was the day of departure, and Xu Xin was also going along, making the final inspection in the warehouse.

"Brother Xu, good news," Lieutenant Guo Zili of the escort frigate "Red Trout" rushed into the warehouse, smiling mysteriously. "We have a source for our cotton now."

"What?!" Xu Xin was startled, then overjoyed. He stood up and asked, "Little Guo, don't joke with me. What do you mean by 'we have a source'? Is Blanque coming?"

"Blanque isn't coming. But what good would it do if he did? Brazil only has a few cotton plantations, and most of them are in the north, which is probably under Dutch control now." Guo Zili sneered. "It's someone from the Caribbean, the French! They say it's an old flame of Julien de Aubry from Bordeaux, ha ha!"

"The Caribbean?" Xu Xin quickly searched his mind. The French had many plantations on a series of small islands in the Caribbean, such as tobacco plantations on St. Christopher, cotton plantations in the western part of Haiti (i.e., Hispaniola), cocoa and sugarcane plantations on Grenada, and sugarcane and tobacco plantations on Guadeloupe and Martinique. However, interestingly, the French had no official institutions on these islands, and the people who came to develop the plantations were mostly French farmers and large merchants. This situation would not change until a few years later when the famous Cardinal Richelieu eliminated the internal divisions and opposition in France, after which the French government officially sent officials to govern the occupied islands in the Caribbean.

"Is it from Haiti?" Xu Xin asked.

"You got it!" Guo Zili smiled. "Let's go and see. I hear that this Miss Mathilde's family owns a vast cotton plantation in the western part of Haiti. Perhaps this is the solution to our raw material bottleneck."

"Let's go and see!" Without hesitation, Xu Xin put down the ledger and walked out the door.

The two quickly arrived at the dock. A three-masted galleon was already moored at the pier, with a fleur-de-lis flag flying high on the topmast, indicating that it was a ship from France. On the pier stood a group of Europeans dressed in elaborate and exaggerated styles, led by a man in his early thirties. He wore a triangular hat with fringed ribbons, a fine wool and silk suit, a white shirt with large lace collars and cuffs, tight-fitting long pants down to just below the knees, white stockings, red boots, a gray wig, and a layer of white powder on his face, exuding an air of luxury.

Next to him, the most eye-catching was a tall young lady. She had a Fontange hairstyle and wore a dress with intricate and dazzling decorations. The top was a bright velvet corset that pushed up her chest and naturally tightened at the waist. The chest was adorned with large lace, flowers, and bows, and the sleeves had beautiful ribbon bows. The bottom was a floor-length skirt, nearly 5 meters long, held by two maids. The European ladies of this period were called "walking gardens," and indeed, this was not without reason. The young lady, in her early twenties, had an average appearance but looked quite attractive in her beautiful attire.

Julien, dressed in a light blue naval lieutenant's uniform, was having a lively conversation with the young lady. Most of the time, Julien was doing the talking, while the young lady listened quietly. As Xu Xin and the others arrived, Julien seemed reluctant to end the conversation with the young lady, then walked to Xu Xin and introduced them: "This is Mr. Julien and Miss Mathilde from the Pasquier family in Bordeaux. Their family owns a large cotton plantation in the western part of Haiti, and they are here to look for investment opportunities."

"Alright, I got it." Xu Xin smiled and patted his shoulder. "Go back to your lady, handsome young man. As for business matters, I'll report to my superiors and see what they decide."

...

At the back of the administrative building, a three-story building was bustling with activity. More than ten servants and maids were carrying large and small suitcases into the building, which had a wooden sign reading "Dongfang Hotel." The largest and best rooms in the building had been reserved by the Pasquier family's butler. In fact, the hotel had no other guests besides them. Normally, there might be some Poles, Swedes, Danes, or Russians staying here, but with the temporary suspension of trade with Europe, the hotel was now empty.

Xisoko, the former store manager of the supply cooperative and now the hotel manager, was preparing a welcome banquet for the guests in the restaurant at the back of the hotel. The banquet was jointly hosted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Trade, with Executive Committee member Gao Mo personally attending. The hotel prepared a rich variety of ingredients, including vegetables and fruits, the finest beef ribs, fresh La Plata deep-sea cod, tuna, and shrimp, as well as wild ducks and jaguars from Duck Lake. This made Xu Xin and Tao Chenxi, who were attending the banquet for the first time with their superiors, feel that it was quite extravagant.

"So, Julien, your family owns a cotton plantation covering one league (1 league = 3 miles) in the western part of Haiti? That is indeed a valuable asset," Gao Mo asked softly in French.

"Yes, Gao. My grandfather was one of the first merchants to invest in Haiti. He was a younger son of a noble family without inheritance rights. He operated between Haiti and France for forty years and finally obtained ownership of this fertile land. His character is admirable, and his wisdom is unquestionable... Uh, sorry, I digressed," Julien put down his fork and apologized to Gao Mo, then continued, "By the time it came to my father, he used the cotton from the plantation to open a cotton processing factory in Bordeaux, producing fabrics, stockings, and gloves. Unfortunately, the profits were limited. In recent years, my father and I have increasingly considered converting the plantation to sugarcane, cocoa, or tobacco, as these are in high demand and can bring more profit to the family."

"What? Your family is planning to give up cotton cultivation?" Gao Mo's heart sank. This was not good news.

"Don't worry too much, Gao." Julien wiped his mouth with a silk handkerchief and reassured him, "I know you need our cotton. Don't worry. My father has officially documented that one-tenth of the land and slaves in the Haiti plantation will be transferred to my dear sister, Mathilde, who still has a strong interest in cotton cultivation."

Mathilde smiled politely at Gao Mo and said, "I have always felt that changing the crop halfway is not a good idea. Perhaps the land is not suitable for tobacco or sugarcane, or perhaps the slaves lack the necessary knowledge to grow other crops. In any case, I have decided to continue growing cotton. My father's factory is still in operation and needs a certain amount of cotton raw materials, and now you, the people of the East Coast, have joined us. Moreover, I have a good impression of the elegance and erudition of the people of the East Coast." She then turned to look at Julien, who was sitting across from her and listening to their conversation, and gave him a bright smile.

Tao Chenxi, seeing the two of them exchanging glances, couldn't help but exclaim, "What a pair of lovebirds! Rich lady, if you have any business, come to me, not Julien." Xu Xin, who had the same thought, was also thinking that Julien, this pretty boy, would not only marry a rich lady and make a fortune but also have a smooth career.

"Thank you for your praise. The members of the Pasquier family have also left a very good impression on me," Gao Mo raised his glass and toasted, "To our future cooperation!"

"To our future cooperation!"

"Cheers!"