Chapter 217: Middlemen Should All Die!
“So the Imagawa Family just backed down?”
The merchant ships carrying Wanjin merchants like Hirajima Kichijiro slowly sailed into Puquan Port. Apart from some followers boarding to inspect the ships, they were not subjected to any difficulties or charged any taxes, feeling as relaxed and happy as if they were returning home.
“They must have backed down!”
“Why did they back down?”
“I was ready to go up and help fight at the time. I’m not afraid of death, I’m just afraid my goods will be stuck on my hands…”
These workshop owners were still discussing animatedly after stepping onto the pier, feeling a bit regretful that a fight didn’t break out. But they were here for business, so after a little regret, they dispersed in small groups to attend to their own affairs. After all, they needed to unload their goods and also survey local products to avoid returning with empty ships in the future.
Hirajima Kichijiro and a few close friends gathered together and first observed the prices in the port town of Puquan. Upon seeing them, they were greatly shocked, and after a moment, they couldn’t help but beam with excitement – the price of ironware in Tōtōmi was incredibly high, with the retail price being over seventy percent higher than in Wanjin.
They had only traveled for a few days, and the price had already increased by seventy percent. If they traveled for another month, the price…
They dared not imagine it!
No wonder those ship merchants were always going to Atsuta Port to pick up goods. Is maritime trade really that profitable?
Damn it, all the money I made before was mostly earned by those middlemen!
As this group of people gathered to study ironware and inquire about prices from the young employees, the shopkeeper of a merchant here was immediately alerted. After coming out from his earthen seat, he glanced at their strange attire and immediately had a thought. He politely asked, “Are you gentlemen Wanjin merchants?”
Hirajima Kichijiro, due to his status as a councillor, was the default leader of this group and naturally stepped forward to answer. He politely replied, “That’s right, we are from Wanjin. Esteemed shopkeeper, have the prices of ironware in Puquan always been… has it always been this price?”
The shopkeeper gestured for them to go to the earthen seat and said with a smile, “Of course not. The prices only started to drop last year. They used to be even more expensive.”
Hirajima Kichijiro and the others exchanged glances and nodded in understanding. They guessed this was influenced by Wanjin – the Chita Peninsula had a significant increase in iron production last year, and to exchange for grain to cope with the famine, they were having a clearance sale. The iron price at Atsuta Port was subsequently halved, and Puquan Port, being not far from Atsuta Port, likely saw its prices halved as well.
But even after being halved, a seventy percent increase in profit was still incredibly lucrative for them. In fact, even a ten percent increase over the price at Atsuta Port would still be profitable for them. They couldn’t sell in Wanjin or Atsuta Port, mainly because they couldn’t compete with Wanjin’s “state-owned factories.” Those “state-owned factories” dared to operate without profit, but they couldn’t.
Hirajima Kichijiro immediately asked, “Esteemed shopkeeper, would your establishment be willing to purchase ironware? How much stock can you take?”
This question had to be asked first. Currently, Owari and Wanjin have basically abolished the “za system,” so there’s no need for temple permits for exclusive rights. However, they were unclear about the situation in Tōtōmi and needed to inquire first.
If the other party brought up a certain temple, they would need to bring out Yuan Ye to counter them, so they could smoothly sell their goods.
However, they were overthinking it. Tōtōmi’s iron production was extremely low, and ironware itself was imported from regions like Tōkai, Tōzan, and Hokuriku. There were no temple powers operating in the ironware business here. Moreover, the shopkeeper was already prepared, knowing they were here to sell goods. He immediately retorted, “How much stock can you supply?”
“As much as you want!” Hirajima Kichijiro said without hesitation. At worst, they could expand production back home, but the price still needed to be discussed properly. Every extra coin earned was good.
The two parties immediately discussed the price for a long time. The shopkeeper even called the owner of the establishment and a few of his close colleagues. The more goods they could take, the cheaper the price would be, truly haggling over every penny. They also treated them to Tōtōmi’s specialties – Tōtōmi tea and Tōtōmi mandarins, and gave each of them a bolt of “Tōtōmi coarse silk.”
Hirajima Kichijiro and the others felt that Tōtōmi’s specialties were excellent and could definitely be sold back in Wanjin, or even in Owari, Mino, and Mikawa. In any case, Yuan Ye had secured the exemption of “ship tax” for them, so their costs would definitely be lower than others, and they couldn’t possibly lose money.
Both sides stood to gain a lot, and they felt they had met too late. They chatted happily and immediately signed a contract. They then went to a banquet together, had some drinks, and the merchants even spent a lot of money to hire geishas to accompany them, claiming that Tōtōmi geishas were also exceptional, not inferior to those in Sunpu.
This actually startled Hirajima Kichijiro and the others. Wanjin had cracked down hard on prostitution, and they were unsure if hiring geishas in Tōtōmi would lead to repercussions. A great “golden” future was beckoning, and no one wanted to court disaster. They quickly withdrew.
However, this did not dampen their excitement. On their way back to the ship, they were still discussing animatedly, stating that they would organize unloading tomorrow, return together with empty ships, and then rush back to increase production. They aimed to fill their ships quickly and catch up with the main fleet to continue exploring eastward. These individuals were planning to form an alliance, merging several workshops to work together. This time, one person would be responsible for production, one would stay on the road, and the remaining people would follow the main fleet eastward to continue signing contracts.
It wouldn’t cause any delays. The main fleet moved very slowly, exploring and advancing as they went, stopping for several days at each location. They could travel back and forth behind them and still catch up.
The more they talked, the more excited they became. Finally, someone, fueled by alcohol, exclaimed, “It turns out money outside is so easy to make. Why didn’t we discover this before?”
“We couldn’t earn this money before. Without Lord Yuan Ye leading us, it would be difficult for us to even reach here, and we wouldn’t even have money to rent ships. Even if we reached here, we would likely have been fleeced by the Imagawa Family, and we definitely wouldn’t have earned this much.”
“His Highness is a good person…”
“Should we donate some military supplies to His Highness?”
“I think it’s a good idea. We can’t be ungrateful after making money; not contributing a single cent would be laughable.”
“His Highness’s navy is crucial. Without the navy, we wouldn’t be able to travel this far, and Puquan Port wouldn’t have waived the ship tax for us. In the future, we will still rely on His Highness’s navy to deter water bandits along the way. When we make money in the future, we should buy ships and give them to His Highness. This is better than giving money directly.”
“Then why not invest in the Wanjin shipyard, or find a way to commission those merchants to hire craftsmen from other regions who know how to build large ships, like Mr. Okabe?”
“That’s a good idea. We will need a large number of cargo ships in the future, so investing in a shipyard is better!”
Fueled by alcohol, these workshop owners were talking nonsense, feeling that doing business had never been so easy. The more they talked, the more excited they became. Upon returning to the ship, they found even more absurdity. Those selling wine, cloth, and salt were more excited than them, all discussing how money outside was easier to make than in Wanjin and that they should have come out sooner. They also cursed the middlemen for selling their goods so expensively elsewhere.
Their opinions unified: they must build ships, build ships with all their might!
Currently, the Wanjin navy does not have an absolute advantage over the Imagawa Family’s navy. This is unacceptable and requires massive construction. They must ensure that no one dares to look twice at the Wanjin navy once it sets sail. They also need a large number of cargo ships. Their money should no longer be earned by middlemen; they must earn it themselves.
Similarly, many people were coordinating with each other to return with empty ships to transport goods.
…………
The workshop owners of Wanjin were making noise on the ship, forming factions. A Man had also compiled the price statistics for Puquan Port, and even tallied most of the supply contracts signed today between the Wanjin workshop owners and local merchants. The “Life Preservation Style” had been very effective after years of funding.
After A Man finished compiling the data, she was also shocked by the day’s earnings. After all, direct sales from manufacturers were definitely cheaper than middlemen prices. Local merchants would not miss such an opportunity, and they bought goods by the shipful. In Puquan Port alone, they consumed one-third of the fleet’s cargo – this was over thirty fully loaded ships.
She couldn’t help but exclaim, “Is maritime trade really this profitable?”
Yuan Ye also glanced at the list and smiled, “Maritime trade is certainly profitable. Otherwise, why would so many people risk their lives to venture into the sea? It’s just that ordinary people don’t have the qualifications to engage in this business.”
This was just the beginning. In the Age of Discovery, a merchant ship traveling from Europe to South America was considered a failure if its profit was less than 10,000%, meaning a profit rate of less than a hundredfold. Currently, not far from Wanjin, the average profit rate was only around 75%. Among legitimate sea merchants, this would be a cause for ridicule.
What they were earning now was just pocket change.
Or rather, maritime trade inherently earns more the further you go, and the earnings are not just a little more; the profit rate increases exponentially.
A Man couldn’t think that far ahead. She was already extremely satisfied with the 75% profit rate. After all, these workshop owners were competing fiercely with each other in Wanjin and with the “state-owned factories.” Some had already competed to the point of not making any profit, just barely surviving. Some, like Hirajima Kichijiro, would have already perished if Yuan Ye hadn’t extended a helping hand.
If they were allowed to make money like this for a few years, and then a charge was levied against them, their assets confiscated, wouldn’t Wanjin become rich in one go?
She mentally concocted charges for these future wealthy merchants for a while, feeling that the future was promising. Then, after some thought, she asked Yuan Ye, “Currently, it seems that after visiting the three ports of the Imagawa Family, most of the goods will be sold. Should we continue eastward then?”
“Yes!” Yuan Ye replied without hesitation. He had calculated privately before and said directly, “All those workshops need to expand. In the future, Tōtōmi and Sunpu alone will not be enough to absorb their products. Moreover, the goods on these nearly a hundred ships are enough for the merchants in these three ports to digest for several months. To ensure a cycle, we must at least reach the easternmost end of the main island to be barely sufficient. The safest option is to bypass the eastern end of the main island and go to Kansai, but Ishiyama Hongan-ji Temple is not to be trifled with. Let’s go to the easternmost end first and assess the situation.”
A Man nodded gently. Since they were already out, she didn’t mind drifting at sea for a few more months, as she wouldn’t be the one rowing, hoisting sails, or scrubbing the deck.
The matter was thus settled. However, while things are always simple to say, they are quite troublesome to do. Yuan Ye stayed in Shimizu Bay for over ten days before finally completing the alliance with Puquan Port, Shimizu Port, and Sunpu Port. He and the Imagawa Family had become allies again. The Imagawa Family promised to grant him free access to their ports （ actually, the market ）, and he promised not to attack any of the Imagawa Family’s territories in any form. He also agreed to provide a certain amount of gunpowder and matchlock guns to the Imagawa Family at preferential prices.
Of course, there were many other miscellaneous clauses, such as guaranteeing the rights of Wanjin merchants. These were all confirmed one by one. It seemed that the Imagawa Family, busy fighting with the Matsudaira Family, had grudgingly conceded a step to him.
After all these matters were handled, the fleet set sail again, leaving the Imagawa Family’s territory and continuing eastward, heading for the Izu Peninsula.
