New Shun 1730

The Dutch first, then the British, is the national policy tree of Dashun as an imperialist, and the order of priority must not be wrong.

Dupleix actually has something Liu Yu wants, which is the berthing right in Pondicherry.

Pondicherry has a fortress and a military port, and is very close to Ceylon, basically like from Weihai Port to Pyongyang.

The accompanying staff basically formulated several attack plans based on the investigation in Nanyang.

If part of the troops can be transported to the French colony first and some supplies can be stored in Pondicherry, it will be easier to fight.

But Dupleix is ​​not interested in the Netherlands. He believes that in India, France’s biggest enemy is Britain.

Liu Yu is not interested in Britain. He believes that he cannot go to war with Britain now. Dashun must first deal with the Netherlands, and cannot fight Britain and the Netherlands together, otherwise it will really be easy to have an export crisis.

China and France have common enemies and common interests. But Liu Yu and Dupleix, the Governor-General of India, lack interests that can be exchanged with each other.

If the two sides want to cooperate, they can only deceive each other, intrigue, and see who is more advanced.

"Mr. Dupleix, do you think this is possible? The Celestial Navy also needs an ocean-going exercise. After I return to China, I will organize the Navy to conduct an ocean-going exercise, and the destination is the Indian region."

"During this period, you can publicize the alliance between Dashun and France, or you can deliberately show the British that Dashun's navy is docked in a French port."

"In this way, it can deter the British from taking the first step. However, if a conflict really breaks out between Britain and France in India, our dynasty, at least officially, will never go to war with Britain."

"In view of As for our relationship, I can only help you so far. The main thing is to deter the British - I prefer that you do not go to war with Britain in India at this time, and be as restrained as possible. The arrival of the Dashun fleet is only to deter Britain. You can use this deterrence, but it is only a deterrence. "

"We will neither form a joint fleet nor participate in the war. If the British see through that we are just a deterrent and dare not really go to war with Britain, then we can only withdraw. "

Dupleix did not think that Liu Yu's appetite would be so big that he wanted to swallow up the entire Dutch East India Company in one bite. But he was not stupid. Thinking that Dashun might take some action against the Netherlands, the so-called "ocean training" at this time might not be so simple.

"My Lord Marquis, can I understand it this way?"

"In order to prevent the support of the Dutch fleet, you need to station the fleet in Pondicherry to intercept the Dutch fleet heading to Java from the Indian Ocean?"

Liu Yu laughed and said, "This is your understanding. I care more about the result. For you, it doesn't make much difference, both can deter Britain."

Dupleix asked, "What if the Netherlands attacks our colonies?"

"I promise that if the Netherlands attacks, we will certainly participate in the defense."

"What if it is a joint fleet of Britain and the Netherlands?"

Liu Yu smiled slightly at this question.

"This is not a hundred years ago. It is not the time when Spain and Portugal dominated the trade with China. There is no possibility of a joint fleet of Britain and the Netherlands to the east of the Indian Ocean. If there is a one in ten thousand chance that this is true, I can also guarantee to go to war with Britain in the Indian region."

Dupleix also knew that the probability of a joint fleet of Britain and the Netherlands was very small. Thinking carefully about Liu Yu's proposal, it seems to be more reasonable and beneficial to both sides.

In this way, it can indeed deter Britain. Then the initiative is in my hands. If I want to fight, I can take the initiative. In the Indian region, the Palace of Versailles only needs to let me go back. If I want to fight, how can I not find an excuse?

"Okay, I am very interested in the proposal of the Marquis. We can allow your warships to dock in Pondicherry. We will also try our best to help your country prepare supplies... For the company, as long as your gold and silver are in place, your supply needs can be met in India."

"In addition, the company hopes to obtain a batch of firearms. The price of your firearms and artillery, as well as the transportation cost, are lower than buying from France."

Liu Yu nodded and said, "That's no problem. Of course, we can't prepare supplies from the inland like we did when we conquered Junggar. We will pay gold and silver directly, and we can also use trade goods to mortgage accounts."

Dashun has no foothold in India, and it really can't do without asking the French for help. The overall plan of going to Southeast Asia is to close the door and beat the dog, and the door of Ceylon must be closed first.

For the supply problem, Dashun should also try to rely on trade companies to transfer money and supply on the spot, which is ultimately a cost-effective method. If this attempt can be successful, it can also be regarded as accumulating experience for the future. If you want to expand at sea in the future, you must rely on trade companies to purchase locally.

By the way, you can also scare the British and force them to increase their troops in India.

Under this situation, since France can hardly maintain four strategic directions at the same time, and the British have sea control and increase their troops in India, the conditions for France to give up India in the future will be more mature.

Since Dupleix agreed, Liu Yu did not speculate whether Dupleix had other thoughts besides deterring Britain.

Anyway, the command power is in his hands. If Dupleix can do something with this, it is his ability, as long as it does not hinder his attack on Ceylon.

The meeting between the two still achieved a lot of results. Dupleix is ​​the local snake in India. Some things in India do not need to be reported to the Palace of Versailles.

It is better for the county magistrate to take charge now. It is more appropriate to talk to Dupleix alone about the matter in Pondicherry.

It seems that Liu Yu gave up a sesame seed and gave a watermelon.

He disagreed with France sending a fleet to deter Britain under the banner of Dashun, allowing France to use the power of the tiger as a fox. But in fact, it is still to keep the initiative in his own hands.

The French can use flags to cause trouble, but once authorized, they cannot be controlled.

But if the fleet is sent, it must be managed by Dashun people, and the French cannot have any evil thoughts.

The friendship between him and Dupleix, which is as fragile as porcelain, will not last long.

Once Dashun takes Ceylon, it wants to continue to cooperate with France and let France bleed in Europe and North America for Liu Yu's purpose. Dashun will definitely sell France once in India.

Now it seems that the two people talked quite happily. A consensus has been reached on the general direction of the Indian issue, so Dupleix asked Liu Yu for another thing based on personal relationship and affection.

That is... France's "Cotton Cloth Prohibition Order".

Dupleix took out a small gadget from his pocket and handed it to Liu Yu.

It was a small piece of lead with a small number on it and a relatively delicate buckle.

"This is a lead seal. All Chinese and Indian textiles in our company must be sealed with such a seal to ensure that sufficient tariffs have been paid before they can be sold. However, the Dutch have mastered the technology of counterfeiting lead seals, which is enough to make the fake look real."

"In fact, the anti-counterfeiting of lead seals was originally intended to prevent companies from smuggling. But now that companies can't smuggle, Dutch and British dealers use the counterfeit lead seal technology they have mastered to smuggle on a large scale. This regulation is a bit outdated."

"It's different from what you think. We in France also have the "Cotton Cloth Prohibition Order". Last year, the Rouen area under our feet prosecuted more than 70 criminal activities of wearing cotton cloth."

"There are many textile mills and cotton textile mills in Rouen. However, our cotton textile technology is difficult to reach the level of your country and India. Moreover, cotton from the New World has also impacted some traditional local industries."

"You also know the industry standardization issues left by Mr. Colbert. The Rouen area has the only licensed cotton cloth standard in France-only the weft is cotton yarn, and the warp cannot be cotton yarn- —If we use cotton yarn exclusively, it will be difficult for us to weave strong cloth with our textile level, and the price of cotton will be relatively higher. ”

“But in fact, the ban cannot be enforced. If the ban continues, our company will not be able to sell goods in, but those Dutch and British who forged fake lead seals to evade tariffs have smuggled Indian cloth, your country's Jinling cloth, and Songjiang cloth in batches. ”

“For textile workshop owners, the Cotton Cloth Prohibition Order seems to be beneficial to them. But in fact, it is in name only because of the smuggling of the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. ”

“For the company, it has suffered real losses.”

“The only ones who benefit are those Dutch and British smugglers.”

“I hope that when the Marquis goes to the Palace of Versailles this time to meet His Majesty the King, he can have a good talk about trade issues.”

“Even if the Cotton Cloth Prohibition Order is not abolished, it may be possible to increase the volume of trade. A trade agreement can be reached between the company and your country to stabilize the import of more cotton cloth.”

This is different from, and even the opposite of, the fact that most people who were fooled by Europe in later generations believed that free trade in Europe led to prosperity.

France also had a ban on cotton cloth at that time, and if you were caught wearing "illegal" cotton cloth, you would be sentenced.

It was even stricter than the UK.

There were two loopholes in the UK: First, domestically made cotton cloth could be sold as long as it was not pure cotton; second, imported cotton cloth could be sold as long as it paid a 35% tariff and was white cloth and printed and dyed domestically.

These two loopholes were actually very large. You could exploit them.

But in France, it was much stricter. The reason why Rouen could produce some blended cotton cloth was not because the law stipulated that it could be produced in general, but because the local factories were all related households with connections in the Palace of Versailles.

The lead sinker that Dupleix showed Liu Yu actually pitted the French East India Company the most.

Because the French East India Company's hometown was in France, the monk could escape but the temple could not, and if something really happened, France would arrest people. France is known as the "Little China of Europe" and has a high degree of centralization. Its own people dare to forge anti-counterfeiting marks and openly challenge the tariff and tax system, especially for such a large company. They are tired of living.

But the Netherlands and the United Kingdom quickly made fake lead seals, and they could run away from both the monk and the temple. Some smugglers shouted at the French anti-smuggling ship: Damn it, come to London to catch me if you have the guts.

The French East India Company has gone bankrupt and reorganized twice. The fact that the East India Company has become like this has a lot to do with France's extreme "trade protectionism" policy.

The company also needs money and wants to make money.

Dupleix's understanding of India's wealth is "land tax and head tax", not "dumping market and raw material production area".

To be precise, if the tariff is really liberalized, it is a question whether France will dump India or India will dump France.

Dupleix believes that occupying India will take some time and require a lot of funds.

Where does the money come from?

The East India Company relies on trade to make a living.

But France has too many messy bans, and cotton cloth, which can make a lot of money, has the "Cotton Cloth Prohibition Order".

Therefore, Dupleix hopes that Liu Yu can reach a quota trade method similar to "Kanhe Trade" through the relationship between China and France.

Dupleix can import Indian cotton cloth, but there is no need to think about it. The Palace of Versailles will definitely not agree to import Indian cotton cloth and liberalize customs duties.

But since there is close cooperation between China and France, Liu Yu proposed a request from China to allow the East India Company to import more Chinese cotton cloth, which can obtain extremely high profits, thus supporting Dupleix's ambitions for India.