Late Ming Dynasty: The Counterattack Begins with Sea Pirates

Cotton is not a rare commodity nowadays.

During the reign of Emperor Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang, laws were already issued stipulating that farmers must allocate a portion of their land to grow cash crops. For example, farmers with 5-10 mu of land were required to plant half a mu each of mulberry, hemp, and cotton, while those with more than 10 mu were required to plant one mu of each.

The increase in cotton production also spurred the development of the cotton textile industry, and cotton cloth gradually became a commodity circulating throughout the country.

By the mid-Ming Dynasty, people of all social classes and from all regions wore cotton clothing to keep warm. The climate in Henan and Hebei in the north was suitable for growing cotton, making them centers for raw material supply. However, the Yangtze River Delta region had more advanced cotton textile technology and became the center of the textile industry.

However, the same problem remains—the typhoons that came before didn't just destroy houses; merchants' warehouses and farmers' fields were all equally affected.

It's definitely not going to work now to buy cotton from Guangzhou Prefecture. They don't even have enough for themselves, and even if they wanted to buy, the price would be exorbitant. And it's not easy to snatch cotton from those who are charging such exorbitant prices—we can't snatch it!

Then we can only go and see what's going on in the vicinity. As for where to go, there are only two places that are most suitable – Macau and Fort Zeelandia.

These two places aren't crowded, and as long as there's cotton, there's bound to be inventory. Prices are also negotiable, since one is a long-term customer and the other is a cooperative relationship. No matter how you look at it, it's cheaper than in the surrounding areas. Most importantly, it helps build relationships and facilitates deeper cooperation in the future.

Calculating the distance, Chi Honghai first led his men to Macau.

As the sailboat with its full white sails approached, the Frankish man standing guard, rubbing his hands together, knew that his old customer had arrived.

The Portuguese were very pleased with the visit, because the leader believed that Chi Honghai was a businessman of his word, since after his trip to the Dutch, he would still consider doing business with them.

"Friend, friend, long time no see. It's cold outside, let's go inside and talk." The Portuguese man greeted Chi Honghai as they walked into the tent. "How was your trip to the Dutch?"

"Thanks to your message, some problems have been resolved. My ship?"

"Oh, hahaha, you have a good memory. I already sent someone back to Lisbon to report on that ship. Just wait and see, my friend, be patient. But your little sailboat is repaired."

Chi Honghai stretched out his hand towards the fire inside the tent: "Friend, I've come to buy cotton?"

The Portuguese man looked at him and asked, "Is the cotton you're talking about white or black?"

This question completely baffled Chi Honghai. Whether in the present or in his past life, he had never heard of any cotton being black.

"Friend, why have I never seen this black cotton you're talking about before?"

"Oh, black cotton doesn't sell well here. You don't like it, so we sell it elsewhere."

"But this black cotton doesn't look good, does it?"

"It may not be the most attractive, but it's durable and easy to use. You could sell it for a pretty good price elsewhere."

Chi Honghai could understand that, since black things are generally more resistant to dirt than white.

"How much is this black one? I'd like some more later."

"Oh? Friend, you want this? One of these is just..."

"Wait, why are you using 'quantity' to describe this cotton?"

"Is there a problem? African black cotton is sold by the piece? Is your Celestial Empire so rich that you buy this stuff by weight?"

Chi Honghai immediately waved his hand: "No, no, no, friend, we in the Celestial Empire don't need this black cotton. Let's talk about the white cotton instead. How much does the white cotton cost?"

"Oh, well, it's cheap here, so we don't have much cotton here. We usually ship it to Europe, where we can get a better price."

"I'll take all the cotton you have, however much you have. Just name your price."

The Portuguese man clapped his hands and looked at Chi Honghai with a smile. Was there really such a benefit to this business that was delivered to his door?

You should know that before the Ming Dynasty, there was no shortage of cotton.

"We're like brothers now, so I won't charge you the prices from Europe. I'll give you a discount: all the cotton will be priced at 30,000 taels of silver, and I'll also give you some extra linen."

According to price data from Huazhou, Shaanxi Province in 1643 (the sixteenth year of the Chongzhen Emperor's reign), cotton was worth approximately 320 wen (about 3.2 taels of silver) per jin (500 grams).

The other party's offer was reasonable. Although it was more expensive than local cotton, he knew that this was not local cotton. It was white cotton grown from black cotton in some unknown place. But no matter what kind of cotton it was, as long as it was usable, it was good cotton. So Chi Honghai did not negotiate the price.

After the money and goods were settled, Chi Honghai left Haojing with a ship full of cotton and the repaired sailboat.

Back on Hong Kong Island, the snow was much heavier than it had been the previous two days.

After Chi Honghai and his men unloaded the entire ship full of cotton, they distributed it in batches to the women, allowing the newly made, thick cotton-padded coats to be given to those who needed to go out first.

After all, even in the dead of winter, we can't all stay cooped up in this greenhouse; someone has to go out and stand guard or do chores.

"Sir, we have all the cotton we need, so we don't have to worry about freezing. This whole shipment of cotton will make enough to make cotton-padded coats for everyone, and there will still be some left over!"

"Hmm... let's not think about quilts for now. If we make quilts, we won't have enough cotton on this ship. Let's use all this cotton to make cotton-padded clothes and trousers as soon as possible. Stuff more cotton into the clothes that need to be worn outside, so that the brothers don't get cold."

"Understood, I will go and tell Madam and Ai Si to do as Master says."

After speaking, Chi Honghai exhaled white breath, rubbed his hands together, then pulled them back into his sleeves and looked around the shed to check on the construction progress.

"master"

"Sir, these sheds are almost finished. We'll light a fire in a bit and everyone can move in to keep warm."

Chi Honghai nodded: "You've all worked hard these past few days. I've had Ai Si take care of everything for you today."

"Thank you, sir. Thank you, sir. It's all for the sake of everyone that you asked us to make this heating system. Without your help, we might not have made it through this winter."

"What nonsense are you talking about? Do you think you'll freeze or starve to death if you follow me? Alright, get back to work. I'm going to check on the situation inside."

"Alright, sir, watch your step. The snow hasn't been that heavy these past few days, and the ground is wet and cold, very slippery. Look, this young man just slipped and fell, covered in mud."

The young man laughed and patted the mud off his clothes: "It's alright, sir. We're all farmers, this mud feels very familiar to us."

"Take good care of yourself and don't hurt yourself." After saying that, Chi Honghai returned to the house and instructed Ai Si to make a bowl of chicken soup for the brothers outside when they started cooking today, with plenty of ginger to ward off the cold.

Having just given the instructions, he thought again of what the young man had said earlier: crops? He turned around, pushed open the door, and looked at the lush green and white foliage of the back mountain.

If we leave it like this in such cold weather, the crops on the mountain will all die.