Shadow of great britain

"Nice to meet you, Mr. Schweizer."

In a small cafe outside the Customs House in Liverpool, Arthur took the business card from John Swire's hand, glanced at it briefly, and put it into his coat pocket.

The gentleman sitting opposite him looked quite strange in his attire. He had a dark black turban on his head. The outermost layer of his body was an indigo flannel coat that was longer than his knees, and further inside was an indigo flannel coat. A burgundy vest the size of Alexandre Dumas, followed by a honey-colored rubber bra and an inner and outer white shirt. The most ridiculous thing is that he actually wears a pure white mask connected to a perfume bottle on his face.

It was naturally very difficult not to remember such a unique guy. Arthur couldn't help but joked: "Sir, you have to be lucky that my jurisdiction is not in Liverpool. If you appear on the streets of London in this way, I will definitely Go up and question you."

After hearing this, Shi Huaiya quickly took off his headscarf and mask to reveal his true face.

It has to be said that even if these decorations are taken away, his appearance can be called upright. According to Arthur's initial estimate, in terms of hair volume alone, Mr. Schweizer has defeated 99% of his peers in Britain, and even slightly better than a young man like Darwin.

Seeing his hurried movements, Arthur couldn't help but joke again. He pointed to the branch on the other side's hand and asked: "I'm sorry, although I don't believe you, but are you sure you are really doing import and export trade?" Not a wizard of the British Gudrui sect?”

Hearing this, Shi Huaiya waved his hands repeatedly and said: "Mr. Hastings, don't get me wrong. I know this outfit is a bit strange. But this is all to prevent cholera from invading people. I got this outfit based on recommendations from magazines." . As for this branch, this is not an ordinary branch, but a branch from a juniper fruit. The juniper fruit has a pineapple-like aroma, and doctors say it can help dispel miasma."

Arthur picked up the tea cup and took a sip: "Well... I don't know if it can dispel the miasma. But in my hometown, locals often use it to make wine. Whether it is used to make stout beer or porter beer, they Always love some juniper berries.”

"This..." Shi Huaiya was stunned for a moment when he heard this, and then asked: "Are you from York?"

Arthur smiled and replied: "Sir, you are indeed a wizard. Congratulations, you guessed it right."

Seeing how easy-going Arthur was, Shuaiya felt relaxed. He smiled and replied: "I didn't expect that you and I are from the same hometown. When I heard your last name, I thought you were from the Marquis of Hastings family. one of the members."

Arthur just smiled when he heard this: "You are not the first one to think so, and you probably won't be the last one. However, in Britain, there are few stories of a poor boy who transformed from a penniless boy into a famous big shot. , but it is by no means rare.

You may not know that historians have always liked to make statistics in this area, and similar stories can often be seen in newspapers. Half of Birmingham's millionaires are self-made.

Mr. Arkwright, who invented the water-powered loom, was born in a poor farmhand family and did not receive any formal education. Spelling words was a problem for him. When he was eight years old, his parents signed an eight-year apprenticeship contract with someone else at the price of four pounds and six shillings, and became a barber apprentice.

However, such a poor man who was not worth five pounds suddenly became a fief landlord with carriage servants and 20,000 pounds of real estate within ten years after receiving the patent. By the time he died, this figure had reached half a million pounds, and his annual income exceeded that of most German princes.

The development of trade and the industrial revolution created too much wealth and opportunities for Britain. If Arkwright could come out of a poor boy, then it would be nothing if he could come out of a Scotland Yard superintendent. "

When Shi Huaiya heard this, he couldn't help but think nostalgically: "Yes! For us poor people, maybe this is the best era. You may not know, but I actually started from scratch.

Until I was 23, I worked as a weaver in York. Own family workshop, purely handmade. Although I didn’t make much money at that time, the advantage was that I had no pressure and lived an easy life.

But later on, machines began to become more popular. No matter in terms of output or quality, our manpower could not compare with the iron lump. In addition, the Napoleonic Wars were over and Britain's trade was normalizing. With a steady stream of cheap cotton and linen, my small workshop cannot compete with those big factories.

At that time, I had only two choices, either to stay in York and guard the workshop until death, or to just take a chance, spend all my money, borrow some money, and buy some of its machines! "

Arthur smiled and asked: "So you ran from York to Liverpool?"

Shi Huaiya nodded and said: "That's right. Instead of opening the factory in York, it is better to set it up directly at the port, which can also save a lot of freight. At that time, it was very difficult for me to just deal with the upfront investment. Naturally, the costs in other aspects can be reduced. One point is one point. But judging from the subsequent development, my decision is still wise.

When I first came to Liverpool, there were only four machines in the factory and less than ten workers. Now, the factory has more than 50 machines and employs hundreds of people. The Schweizer brand is also well-known in Liverpool. Not only that, our products are also exported to North America and the West Indies. Mr. Hastings, if you need to make clothes, it is absolutely right to choose our fabrics. The quality of our products is no worse than the big manufacturers in London. "

Seeing that Shi Huaiya's businessman had an occupational disease, Arthur couldn't help but remind him: "Sir, we can talk about business later. Before that, did you forget that you should talk to me about more important things?"

"Oh, sorry, Mr. Hastings, I almost forgot."

Shi Huaiya first looked out through the window, then leaned down and lowered his voice.

"My more than ten years in Liverpool have not only made me money, but also broadened my horizons. The fact that you were sent to Liverpool by the cabinet to investigate smuggling means that you definitely know how much money can be made in foreign trade.

We textile factory owners work hard and hard all day long, but when we settle the accounts at the end of the year, we find that our profits are not as high as those second-rate dealers.

So I thought that instead of letting others earn the money, I might as well earn it myself. It just so happens that my two sons are getting older, so I can bring them into the company to help me.

I jumped into the import and export industry in Liverpool with such confidence. I thought I had products and orders, and all that was left was to rent a few boats and recruit some experienced sailors.

But what I never expected was that the water here was simply deeper than the Irish Sea, and those old companies were playing dirty tricks. After the company that originally represented me as an export agent heard that I planned to go it alone, it first communicated with several large local shipowners and refused to let them release ships for me. He also blatantly told the sailors: 'Whoever runs the ship for Schweizer will not be able to take orders from several of our companies in the future. ’

For this reason, I could only grit my teeth and spend a lot of money to get two boats back from Bristol, including people and boats. They saw that they couldn't trouble me in this aspect, so they tried their best to solve the problem in other aspects.

As you know, the recent cholera outbreak has made people panic. In addition, the quarantine policy has to be implemented, so the import and export trade volume has plummeted, and the prices of various commodities have increased.

During this period, whoever's ship is quarantined for the shortest time can make a lot of money. In fact, most of the so-called smuggled goods that appear on the market are not real smuggled goods at all, but are legitimately unloaded from the ships of various companies.

Although some ships are under quarantine, they will start unloading as soon as the ship docks. The other part is even better. Not only can they load and unload immediately, but the quarantine period of the ship can also be shortened to ten days.

But for companies like ours, not only were we strictly enforced a forty-day quarantine, but after the forty-day period was over, our ship was said to have passed through multiple cholera-endemic areas, so for safety reasons, our ship was impounded. Forty days. "

Shwaya was obviously anxious when he said this. He blushed and put his hands on the table and stood up. Even his weird York accent came out: "Mr. Hastings, you are from York, so you should You know, it rains all day long in our place in York, and when the wind blows, it's like howling ghosts, so we York people have always been solitary and don't like to disturb others. If it weren't for the injustice I suffered, it would have reached this level. Anyway, I am determined not to disturb your afternoon tea time."

After listening to Shi Huaiya's statement, Arthur roughly understood what was going on.

Although he already had speculations in his mind, Arthur still looked forward to Shi Huaiya giving some local opinions on specific issues.

He asked leadingly: "Does the Port Authority know about this?"

"Port Authority? Oh! Mr. Hastings, they were the ones who issued the order to be quarantined for eighty days. Of course they know it. Even if they don't know it, as long as those evil-hearted guys have one eye that is not blind, they will You can see that my boat has been lying on the dock for more than two months without moving."

“What about the city council?”

"Half of the city council is from them. You must also know that 70% of the members of our city council are engaged in import and export trade. Of these 70%, 70% are working on the Atlantic Ocean. In other words By the way, these people can pass a new bill in Liverpool at any time if they want to."

When Arthur heard this, his face suddenly became serious: "Mr. Schweizer, I can understand your saying that they control the Parliament. But you said that they control the Port Authority. Is there any evidence for this? To be honest, I just talked to the Port Authority today. I met with officials from the bureau, and the first impression they gave me was pretty good.”

Seeing Arthur's expression, Schweizer hurriedly took out a document bag from his purse and handed it over: "I'm sorry, Mr. Hastings, maybe I just said something too serious. But the port authority seized my ship. 80 days, this is something I cannot bear no matter what. I have put the relevant explanatory materials here, please take a look."

Arthur took the document bag, pinched it gently with two fingers, and pulled out a thin explanatory document from it.

The material is very concise, and a few words outline Swire's anxious mood and his resentment that he wants to kill the Port Authority - a 200-pound Bank of England acceptance bill.

Arthur pressed the ticket and asked, "Sir, do you want to bribe me?"

"No, I didn't mean that at all."

Schweizer said in an upright voice: "Mr. Hastings, I must emphasize to you that there is no problem with my intelligence. Who would bribe a police officer in person? Wouldn't that mean he would rush him to jail? ? I just think the other pistol on your waist looks quite exquisite. I bought it for 200 pounds. If you think it is not enough, I can add more. I am bound to get this gun today."

When Arthur heard this, he just smiled and raised his eyebrows: "How should I put it? It's truly Liverpool. It's such a port city. It has such a strong commercial atmosphere!"

"Of course." Shi Huaiya said without blushing: "It took me fifteen years since I came here from York to understand these business secrets. But I think Liverpool still cannot compare with London. I have heard many friends say, London generally plays more sophisticated.”

"Yes, your friend is right."

Arthur pushed the document bag back in front of Schweizer: "Your company is committed to continuously expanding its influence, so I suggest you go to London's best-selling fashion novel magazine "The British" and buy three years of advertising. Column, that will definitely help you achieve your goal. There are many big names among the readers of "The British". If Schweizer \u0026 Sons were registered in the hearts of big people, you would not be where you are today. .”

Shi Huaiya didn't understand what was going on at first, but the honest man from York, who was deeply influenced by the commercial atmosphere, changed his mind and immediately understood the joints.

The uneasy mood was swept away, and Schweizer couldn't help but give a thumbs up to Arthur: "Mr. Hastings, you really deserve to be from London. High class! Sure enough, you agreed!" ?”

Arthur looked confused and said: "Promise? Promise to what? Aren't we talking about the issue of malpractice by the Port Authority? If you can give specific relevant matters, or further implement it on one or several events. Then I think this matter should have a result soon. By the way, my audit team will be arriving soon. I can take the liberty to ask which issue do you think they can start to investigate most efficiently? ?”

After taking the reassurance, Shi Huaiya finally stopped hiding anything and hurriedly told everything he had hidden in his heart: "You should know about Liverpool's old dock expansion plan, right? The old dock built in the early 18th century can no longer meet daily transportation needs. , so after the opening of the canal, the Port Authority has expanded four piers along the Mersey River in recent years. You can check what is going on here, I guarantee you will definitely be surprised."