Back to Ming Dynasty with Industrial Revolution System

Chapter 1128 Sneaking into the Mughal Port

The Gujarat province of the Mughals, the most prosperous port of Surat in the empire, has Arabs, Persians, Turks, Mongols, Indians, and traders from Britain, the Netherlands, Ottoman and other countries .

After a long voyage, two ships flying the flag of the East India Company sailed into the port of Surat.

Francis Day, the manager of the East India Company's stronghold in Surat, came to the port with a small number of employees to welcome the new owner of the East India Company.

Chen Bangyan got off the warship and looked at this exotic port: "This is Surat Port, similar to some indigenous kingdoms in Southeast Asia."

The mud and bamboo houses and crooked streets are crowded with ordinary residents and businessmen.Along the river near the port are warehouses and workshops set up by merchants from various countries to facilitate trade with the Mughals.

However, the streets here are not well planned, some streets are wide, and some streets are extremely narrow.Cows and horses roamed the streets as freely as pedestrians, and flies buzzed over the filth.There are even tame elephants on a leash.

"It is said that the Mughal emperor had more than 20 war elephants, and he could temporarily form [-] cavalry. It is not only the dedication of the Mongols and Turks to cavalry, but also the influence of the civilization of the Indian Peninsula." Chen Bangyan saw various large Animals walking freely on the streets can't help but have a headache. Of course, the headache is that the environment of an important trade center as a bustling port appears dirty.

"This is the representative sent by the major shareholder to receive the assets of our East India Company." The British employee who led Chen Bangyan to Surat Port introduced Chen Bangyan to Francis Day.

Chen Bangyan was wearing ordinary businessman's clothes at this time, with a revolver and a thin sword pinned to his waist.

"And this is Francis Day, the head of our East India Company in Surat. He only joined our East India Company for three years and became the head here." The man introduced to Chen Bangyan The person in charge here.

"Thank you for managing this place. According to the orders above, after we take over the East India Company, we will continue to appoint you to participate in the operation of the East India Company." Chen Bangyan stretched out his hand.

"Although I am not very satisfied with the decision of the king and the board of directors, this is the rule stipulated in the contract. I will try to help you continue to operate the business here." Francis Day did not want to leave the East because of the sale of the East India Company. The Indian Company, he personally sees a bright future for the East India Company—even now the directors of the East India Company do not believe that they will be able to conquer an empire of hundreds of millions of people with a few thousand people, and continuously draw raw materials from here .

"You won't regret your decision, please take me to the textile workshop." Chen Bangyan said.

"Please come with me... With your attire, you are not a serious businessman, are you? You should be a soldier?" Francis looked up and down Chen Bangyan's attire every day, and Chen Bangyan was riding in a ship equipped with large-caliber naval guns. When the gunboat arrived, it was not difficult to guess his identity.

"Yes, I'm from the army. Our people who are really in charge of operations will come to East India in batches next year to take over and expand the factories here when they are fully prepared. During their arrival, You just need to maintain the normal operation of the factory." Chen Bangyan said bluntly.

"Let me briefly introduce the situation here. As you can see, this is the most prosperous port in the west of the Mughals. The Mughal emperor Shah Jahan is attacking the countries on the Deccan Plateau in the south and wants to unify the entire In East India, the control over Surat has been temporarily relaxed..." Francis Ri guided Chen Bangyan while introducing him to the local situation.

He worked for the East India Company in the local area for three years and had a good understanding of the local conditions. For the Kyushu Army who bought the East India Company, these East India Company employees who were familiar with dealing with the Mughal Empire were an intangible asset. Assets can save a lot of manpower and material resources.

"Don't we need to declare to their customs officials?" Chen Bangyan said.

"It would be good to send someone to say hello and declare customs after this kind of thing. Usually, we spend a lot of gold coins to curry favor with the officials in Surat Port. They won't make it difficult for us to check a person's identity. Surat Port The merchants come from all over the world, and it is impossible to recognize all of them." Francis said casually.

The customs official set up by the Mughal emperor, wearing a turban and luxurious Persian robes, saw two sailing and gunships moored in the port that he had never seen before.The flags of the East India Company were flying on the two gunboats, but he was sure that he had never seen these two gunboats with more than 30 guns before.

"Is this also an armed merchant ship of the British? It's more like a warship, right?" The customs officer squeezed his mustache and squinted at the two warships of the Kyushu Army that were slightly undulating with the waves.

Because these two warships referenced the sailing warship technology of Britain more than 100 years later, they were similar in style to the British warships of this era. Once the flag of the East India Company was hung, they formed the best cover.The Nanyang Fleet can enter the Mughal port under the guise of the East India Company.

"With the number of their cannons, these two ships are indeed more like the ships they used for war. These people from afar are really proficient in navigation and firearms. Our Emperor allows them to live freely, and they should Sell ​​us artillery and giant ships." A junior official said to the customs officer.

"They are very cunning. What they provided to His Majesty the Emperor were only outdated firearms and flashy tributes. Our Majesty the King valued cavalry and didn't care much." When responding to his subordinates' words, the customs officer caught a glimpse of Francis Day Take Chen Bangyan and others to the port established by the British East India Company.

"Those people came off the ships of the British?" The customs officials of the Mughal Empire always felt that something was wrong.How come the people of the British East India Company have an oriental face.

"My lord, it is not surprising that the British brought big merchants from Toungoo, Johor and other places. They even have black-skinned servants." His subordinate officials replied.

"You're right. Who knows why these merchants come and go. As long as they stay in the port obediently and pay the customs duties in full." The customs officials were suspicious of Chen Bangyan and others who appeared here. Didn't pay much attention, because the merchants who come to Surat to trade may be different every year.

(End of this chapter)