Dominate the Country

In the Bay of Bengal, there is a small northern port of Chandernagar, only 20 miles away from Kolkata, the military and political center of British India.

This small port, which is smaller than the territory of Macau, is the only place for the French to settle in the Bay of Bengal.

When the North American War broke out, this town was taken by the British without a single blow. But after the war, the town returned to the hands of France. And the French also relied on the advantages of their ally Mysore Army to force the British to increase the area of ​​Chandernagar Town. It has expanded by about 40%, but its area is still smaller than Macau.

It has to be said that this is a very sad thing.

On June 7, 1789, which was the fifth day of May in the fifteenth year of Chengtian, it was sunny.

The Chandernagar Port in this season has entered summer. The temperature is hot and humid, and there are often thunderstorms accompanied by strong winds, which attack the city intermittently. I don’t know if it is because of the proximity to the sea, but it is very helpful to relieve the humidity and heat.

It is not known whether China's 50 million yuan in real gold and silver has reached Paris at this time, but a certain number of Chinese merchants have truly poured into the north and south of the Indian continent through the five unarmed colonies of the French.

They certainly had trade with India before, and the amount was quite large, but now it has undoubtedly reached a higher level.

Recently, the business of Jindanagar Port has been quite busy. Because of the arrival of Chinese merchants, Indian princes and nobles around it have flocked to it. These indigenous princes and nobles who were squeezed dry by Warren Hastings before may not have real gold and silver in their hands, but they still have a lot of other things.

The most is sandalwood. India's old sandalwood is the best sandalwood. It is characterized by its white and yellowish color, high oil content, and long-lasting fragrance. In Indian history, it has long become a favorite of Indian princes and nobles. And now these sandalwoods are definitely a good deal for the Chinese who also like sandalwood.

Even though in recent years, the high-end wooden furniture and wood market in mainland China has been filled with sandalwood from Honolulu, the old sandalwood here in India is still very popular.

Another thing is the Buddhist relics here in India.

In today's China, thousands of ordinary people have already known the fact that Indian Buddhism has long been extinct. But Buddhism was glorious in India after all, and Buddhism has left many relics in India over thousands of years. For example, the Buddhist caves in India.

In the past, these things were of no value to the Indians who believed in Brahmanism. But now, these things have become treasures again, because the Chinese want them.

Since the first deal was made five years ago, Buddhist caves such as Bhacha, Kalli, Nashik, and Ajanta, which are mainly distributed in the Vindhya Mountains and the Deccan Plateau, have become treasures for the private interests of Indian princes and nobles. They carefully cut off Buddha statues, pagodas, and even whole pieces of floral patterns and reliefs of figures in myths and legends, or more precious painted murals, and sold them to Jinghai for a high price.

Many Indians also "found" Buddha bones and relics. When the domestic Buddhist community heard the news, they were excited. But they were too happy too early. When they arrived in Jinghai in a group, what appeared in front of them was not just one Buddha bone relic, but many Buddha bone relics, including not only finger bones and teeth, but also pure relics. At this time, if the people in the Chinese Buddhist community still believed that these things were real Buddha bone relics, then they were all possessed by evil.

Now that the Chinese have begun to enter India through the French, the Indians are even happier, as they can trade at their doorsteps. In addition to the indigenous princes from all over the northeast, there are also representatives of merchants and nobles from Bhutan, Gorkha, Sikkim and other countries gathered in Chandernagar.

These small countries in the Himalayas are not completely unable to have trade exchanges with China. It is because the Chinese merchants who have gone through the entire Tibetan area and then crossed the Himalayas and experienced untold hardships to deliver goods to their countries ask for too high a price. The price of Chinese goods in Chandernagar is much lower accordingly.

The transportation on the sea route is much more convenient than that on the Tibetan plateau.

They used to gather in Kolkata, but now they come to Chandernagar in waves.

William Edmund once again landed on French land. He is a plantation owner, although his plantation does not grow cotton, which is a popular commodity, but jute. But jute is not difficult to sell, especially during the war a few years ago, when jute was more popular than cotton in the Western world.

Of course, this phenomenon only occurs in Europe, not China.

In the Chinese market, cotton is much more important than jute. Especially after Myanmar began to grow jute on a large scale.

Edmund never expected to ship his own jute to China, but now the Chinese have come to his doorstep. If he sticks to the old way and doesn't deal with the Chinese, it would be too rigid.

The first time he came to Jindernagar, Edmund came with the intention of opening up trade routes, and then he could never forget Jindernagar.

The Chinese goods in this place are not less than those in Kolkata, and they are cheaper.

The axes, hammers, nails, sickles, shovels and iron materials are all things needed for plantations. The Chinese goods in Jindernagar are 20% cheaper than similar products in Kolkata.

In addition, the prices of porcelain, tea, raw silk, etc. are much cheaper than those in Kolkata.

Edmund returned with a full load, and soon he came with pounds.

Edmund came to buy a lot. In the lobby of the hotel where he stayed, Edmund met with the Chinese businessman who had signed the agreement before. Then he got two pieces of news, one good and one bad.

The bad news is that the prices of goods in Jindnagar have risen, and some Chinese specialties are at least consistent with Chinese goods in Kolkata. Of course, ironware is still much cheaper here, but there is not much difference in tea, silk and porcelain.

"This is a compromise. London unanimously disagrees with the agreement signed between my country and France and opposes my country's entry into the Indian continent. We need a mutual concession and compromise."

"This is really bad news." Edmund looked a little listless. He was less than half a month away. When he came to Jindnagar again with 500 pounds, it was already a world of difference.

Of course, the agreements he signed before can all be based on the original price, after all, cash has been paid.

"But I also want to tell you a good news. The exchange rate between Huayuan and British pound has been completely determined. One pound can be exchanged for 45 Huayuan, and the handling fee is only 1%." The Chinese opened a bank in Jindernagar three days ago.

This exchange rate makes many British people profitable.

In the banks opened by the British in Kolkata, the actual exchange rate between the pound and the Huayuan will not exceed 43, and the handling fee is not just one percentage point. The price often falls to 42.5.

So don't listen to the rumors and nonsense from the people. Many people say that one pound should be exchanged for 50 Huayuan, but what they say can never be taken seriously.

Now the Chinese bank in Jindernagar has appeared, and the exchange rate of 1:45 is better than the British bank in Kolkata. So, when Edmund learned of this news, his first reaction was that British banks are really shady.

The exchange rate of 45 minus the 1% handling fee is 44.5. But the British bank gave 42.5, which is still uncertain. How much profit should they make?

"Damn East India Company." Edmund even remembered the currency exchange at the beginning, using European silver to cash in Japanese gold, and then buy Chinese goods.

"This is really good news." Edmund said happily.

He still had 300 pounds left after paying the subsequent expenses of the previous agreement. Three hundred pounds can be exchanged for 13,350 Huayuan, but if it is exchanged at the bank exchange rate in Calcutta, it can't even guarantee 12,600 Huayuan.

The only difference between Chinese goods here and Calcutta is that they must be settled in Huayuan, and pounds must be converted into Huayuan before spending.

750 Huayuan does not seem to be worth much, about 15 pounds, maybe Edmund spent it on a big meal, and holding a small cocktail party would cost almost the same [the pound in this era is really super useful], but it feels like a world of difference between spending it yourself and being taken advantage of by others.

Calcutta, the base of the British East India Company, where they represent the British government. Their presence is much more powerful than that of the UK, where their "home base" is located.

"One pound is exchanged for 45 Chinese yuan! The handling fee is one percentage point." The number that John Deere uttered made Hampton, the director of the major banks in Calcutta, a little dizzy. It was not his fault that he lost his composure. It was really that this price was much higher than the exchange rate of Calcutta Bank.

"After deducting all expenses, the actual amount in hand was 44.5, and we only gave 425. Even during the peak period of those few months, the price of 42.5 could not be maintained, and it fell to 42/42.3."

"Mr. Hampton, the Chinese bank points can issue invoices. In Jindernagar, invoices can be used as money. Whoever holds the invoice can withdraw the corresponding amount from the designated China Foreign Trade Bank business point at any time. The exchange money can be given to the bank point in Jindernagar or to the business point of the Foreign Trade Bank. It is marked on the invoice." John Deere felt helpless. The Calcutta Bank does not have so many deposits in the Chinese Foreign Trade Bank, and even the balance in the East India Company's account does not exceed one million Chinese yuan.

The method that the Chinese can use is not available to the Calcutta Bank at all.

Moreover, the credibility of the Calcutta Bank is far from comparable to that of the Chinese Foreign Trade Bank. The latter is extremely famous in Europe.

This move by the Chinese is destined to hit the Calcutta Bank hard.

You should know that the exchange rate of the pound in the Chinese Foreign Trade Bank was initially 50, but now it has fallen to around 43, and has been hovering between 1:42 and 1:43.5. This depends on the quality and wear of the gold and silver coins. The Chinese do not accept paper money, and another name for the pound is gold. As early as the beginning of this century, the pound was already linked to gold.

This resulted in a fact - the exchange time is long, the procedures are complicated, sometimes the two sides will argue and make up for the rest, and there is also a handling fee. In short, it is not much more favorable than the Calcutta Bank. The currency exchange rate between the East India Company and the China Foreign Trade Bank has always been at 43.5 for the British pound [equal to the value of gold] - before the handling fee is deducted, this is the privilege of the British East India Company. Therefore, it is very profitable to exchange Huayuan in the bank of Calcutta, and it has become a new profit growth point for the Foreign Trade Bank in recent years.

But now, a way of making money for the Calcutta Bank has been cut off.

What is the current annual trade volume between China and Britain?

Tea, porcelain, silk, cotton, medicine, equipment, wood, etc., except for a part of barter, the actual cash transactions are one or two million pounds.

If the bilateral trade volume is calculated using traditional Chinese silver, the bilateral annual trade volume between China and Britain would have exceeded 10 million taels of silver long ago.

Even if there is one million pounds to be exchanged for Chinese Yuan in the Calcutta Bank, the British pounds exchange will at least bring a profit of one million Chinese Yuan. The Calcutta Bank's business targets are not just the British. The financial influence that can be brought about, and the benefits to the East India Company and the Calcutta Bank, are not something that can be expressed by one or two million Chinese Yuan.

This has a great impact on the entire East India Company, and the impact on the Calcutta Bank alone is even more serious.

"Since China began to enter the Indian market, our interests have been constantly affected, and now it is only the Calcutta Bank." The Chinese made concessions. As the price of their entry into India, they did not want to make their relationship with the East India Company stiff. Hampton was strongly opposed to it, and he even advocated taking over Jindernagar. The other French lands are in southern India, and the British cannot reach them, but Jindernagar is right at their fingertips, so they can just reach out and kill them.

Unfortunately, he was only a director of the Calcutta Bank and had little weight in the entire East India Company's committee. Although he had some "like-minded" comrades, he still failed to prevent the conclusion of the Sino-British India Agreement.

"But in the future it will definitely be the entire East India Company." Hampton believed in his own judgment. The Chinese were greedy. After they gained a foothold in India, they would certainly open their bloody mouths to Britain. Just like they did in America!

The only hope to contain China lies in the Russians.

The huge Russians had long been noticed by Britain, and the unarmed neutral alliance created by Catherine II was like a slap in the face of London. But judging from the current situation, if you want to contain the Chinese, you really have to rely on Russia.

It's just that Russia's first target has always been Ottoman Turkey, the Black Sea coast of the Caucasus, not Siberia.

The Russo-Turkish War has been going on for more than a year, and the Second Sino-Russian War has been going on for more than a year. The Russians have begun to issue the second wave of national debt. The whole of Europe seemed to be surging with a different emotion, and the words "yellow peril" were shouted out by King William II of Prussia. Supported by this different emotion, the Russians were in a bad situation, and they still had an advantage over Sweden and the Ottoman Empire, but they were defeated on the Eastern Front. Logically, Russian national debt would be coldly received in the European financial market, and the value would drop greatly. But the fact is not so. With the continuous support of Prussia, Britain, the Netherlands, Spain, Portugal, Denmark and other countries, Russia's national debt was sold quite well.

Yes, everyone is right, Britain is also one of them.

I just don't know whether Russia can stand up on the Eastern Front next. Rumyantsev is also a famous land war general in Europe. Why can't he shake off the prestige of the Rhine River again?

Calcutta newspapers only occasionally report news about the Sino-Russian War, which is too far away. Hampton had no idea of ​​the specific changes, although there were always some unconfirmed rumors circulating among British businessmen and aristocratic representatives from the Himalayas.