June in Malacca is extremely dry under the southwest monsoon, making the Westerners, Southeast Asian natives and Seris people who live here feel like they can breathe out fire every time they take a breath.
The Muar Fortress, which stands not far from the mouth of the Mahe River, is the tallest building in Manchuria and a typical Portuguese castle. With this castle as the core, there are several rows of European-style red brick buildings, which is a symbol of Manchuria.
The residences of high-ranking officials of the Canadian colonial authorities. Among them, the Garden Mansion of the Harbor Master is the most luxurious one.
After the siege of Malacca more than half a century ago, the original palisade defenses of Malacca remained the same. Up to now, the Portuguese colonial authorities have not built a city wall. It is estimated that they have given up on this plan.
Although the colonial authorities of Manchuria collected a tariff of 10% of the value of the goods on every merchant ship and a 2% city defense construction surcharge, this noisy and chaotic trade hub was famous all over the world.
, the corruption of Portugal before and now the Habsburg Dynasty is also "well-known".
Of course, the indispensable buildings in the colony include churches. Facing the port on the north shore is a cathedral, and its tall spire tells everyone who comes to this trading hub that this is a land ruled by the Catholic Church.
The Portuguese expelled the Tianfang religion here and asked the locals to convert to Christianity, with great results. Of course, like the Seris merchants, those who hung the cross before disembarking from the ship may also account for the majority of the so-called "believers".
Get off the boat from the port on the north bank of the Ma River estuary, walk across the bridge facing the cathedral, and reach the most prosperous place in Malacca - Symington Tavern.
This tavern is right in front of the cathedral. Catholics who have traveled across the ocean can finish their prostitution in the dark room behind the tavern and then walk a few steps into the church to confess. The church and the tavern therefore form a wonderful atmosphere.
The symbiotic relationship has been well received by everyone who comes here to make a living.
"Mei, Mr. Mei!"
Portuguese Fernando Melo turned his face and looked at the Seris businessman who called him from behind. The businessman's round face turned black and red under the exposure of the equatorial sun, like a ripe eggplant. He wore a Ming dynasty suit.
Her clothes, from top to bottom, were made of silk that Fernando could not afford.
"Gu! You're back! When did you arrive? Is there any good news?" Fernando breathed out the smell of alcohol, raised the wooden wine glass in his hand, and looked nervously at the round-faced fat man.
The Seris man named Gu was smiling broadly. He threw a double-column silver dollar on the counter.
"I will pay for Mr. Mei's expenses tonight." The little cute coin jingled on the wooden counter and made a clear sound, which could still be clearly heard in the noisy tavern. The bartender quickly accepted the silver coin.
, all kinds of people around the counter soon cast their greedy eyes like wild beasts.
Melo Fernando swallowed his saliva, then showed a fierce look in his eyes, and shouted at several compatriots who came forward: "Go away! This Master Siris is looking for me!" Along with his shouting, Tang
The two short-dressed men beside the gentleman also lifted up their coats, revealing the Seris pistols fastened to their waists.
When the people around were cursing and walking away, the black-faced Mr. Gu motioned for Fernando to sit down at the counter and said with a smile: "Mr. Mei, I did bring you good news." After hearing this, Melo Fernando
Her breathing suddenly became heavy, and she looked at him with an almost fiery gaze.
"Pepper sales are booming. The latest news is that your Carol has earned you four thousand taels. You can pay off your debts."
Fernando's eyes suddenly filled with tears, his lips trembled and he kept crossing himself.
"Of course, in order for this ship of goods to enter the Ming Dynasty market smoothly, I also spent six hundred taels of silver to manage it." Mr. Gu looked at Melo Fernando with a smile, and his eyes were a little more playful.
Fernando wanted to hug the smiling Seris man, but he felt a little ashamed looking at the gorgeous silk. He choked and said: "Thank God, thank you sir, I think I can climb out of this terrible abyss."
.”
Wanli Nine years ago, the wooden stick with the sound of wind in front of the Guangzhou Customs once drove Mero Fernando, the once wealthy Portuguese ship owner, into the abyss.
In October of the ninth year of Wanli, a group of Portuguese businessmen caused trouble at the gate of Guangzhou Customs because of the increased export duties imposed by the Ming Dynasty. Because Fernando was "taken as the leader", he received a stick on the forehead and was also shackles by Lei Yingzhi, the director of Guangzhou Customs.
When he was shown to the public, the thirty kilogram wooden shackle almost killed him.
Later, Governor Alfonso's secretary, Ines Fernando, reminded him that spending money could buy peace. Fernando took the initiative to repay Customs Officer Lei with two thousand taels of silver and spent all the money on the order.
After using money to redeem himself, he could no longer purchase goods, so Fernando had to turn to his fellow Portuguese for help.
At that time, he thought that the shipowners who were making trouble with him would jointly help him pay for the money, but unfortunately, except for a few familiar friends who helped him with a total of one hundred taels, the others did not think that Fernando was being shackled.
The number was for everyone's benefit, and everyone agreed that he was just stupid.
Fernando, who could not stay in Daming for a long time, had no choice but to run back to Malacca with an almost empty ship to look for opportunities. However, he could not borrow the principal in Malacca, and his living expenses were quickly spent, and he could not open a card for salary.
From the first mate to the crew of the Rolle, everyone left him, and Fernando's career entered a rapid downward spiral.
Without money to purchase goods, the Carroll could only park in the port and had to pay berthing fees. Without money to hire sailors, his Carol did not even have the ability to transport cargo. But even if he was in a desperate situation, Fernando did not want to sell it.
Being the only boat, this led him to have no hope of breaking out of this downward spiral.
For a full year and a half, his ship was parked in Managa, and the bottom of the ship was covered with barnacles. So he soon got a resounding nickname: Barakuza, which means "empty ship."
Later, Fernando, who was in desperate situation, had no choice but to mortgage the boat to a loan shark. He was in debt and gave it a try. In order to ensure that the borrower did not lose both people and the boat, Fernando could not follow the boat, so he was detained in Malacca.
Many people were interested in the sale of this ship and contacted him to help him sell it. However, Fernando, who was extremely disappointed with his compatriots, finally chose Gu Mingde, a rising star in Manchuria.
Gu Mingde suggested to Fernando that there is no need to load other goods and that all Nanyang specialty pepper should be packed. Now that the catering and entertainment industry in Ming Dynasty is very developed, there is a huge demand for pepper.
Fernando adopted Gu Mingde's suggestion, and after the two reached an agreement, Gu Mingde took Fernando's ship in his own fleet. Fernando fell into an anxious wait in Malacca, and has waited until today.
Gu Mingde smiled and said: "Mr. Mei, forgive me for taking the initiative and redeeming the IOU for you." After saying that, he took out the life-threatening IOU and handed it to Fernando.
Fernando's eyes were filled with tears again. He picked up the IOU in Gu Mingde's hand and shed big tears on it. Gu Mingde smiled and said: "For your freedom, I suggest a toast!"
After Fernando drank the fragrant wine, he asked Gu Mingde what goods he had brought back from China.
Gu Mingde smiled and said: "I brought you half a boat of cotton and half a boat of silk." Fernando took a breath and said: "Oh my god, you won't let me owe you another debt!"
Gu Mingde smiled and said: "Of course not, I am not as generous as you think. The imperial court exempted cotton and silk from tariffs. When I left Guangzhou, everyone was already crazy about buying goods - because I had already spent four hundred taels.
I only got the right to pass through customs first after getting off my friend."
Fernando used so much force in his hands that he almost flattened the tin cup filled with fine wine. He stuttered and asked, "Duty-free? Did I hear that right?"
Gu Mingde smiled and said: "Of course. You can trust me, I never joke in business. What's even more rare is that Ming Dynasty's silk and cotton are so cheap, we got an unimaginably low price!"
"Are you interested in taking me to Goa? Let us conquer them with three large ships of goods. Let me tell you, the homespun cloth is not as cheap as the high-grade cotton I shipped. As for the fine silk, it is only half the price last year!"