Reborn As a Pirate

Scottish Sea, Moray Firth.

After 12 days of continuous voyage, the Artis Beauty, carrying three people, crossed the mouth of the crystal-clear Spey River and finally arrived at Elgin, the black port in north-central Scotland.

Elgin is a well-known black port.

It is not appropriate to call her a black port, because serious Elgin is not a port at all, but the capital of Moray County under the Kingdom of Scotland.

However, Scotland was in a downturn, and Mary County built a port at Losseymouth, but it was unable to generate profits for the county.

After learning from the pain, the Scots built a new port on the east side of Loseymouth, where the squires received black merchants. They also gave Black Harbor the name of Ergen, and since then, Moray County has really prospered.

However, this had a side effect.

Because of the accent of the Scots, the businessmen who come and go do not distinguish between gold and gold. Over time, Ergen is pronounced as Elgin, and the capital of the inland Mali has also changed into a town called Order on the edge of Lossiemouth, welcoming all parties with a smile. The peculiar Black Harbor.

Lorraine's first stop was here, on the one hand because of admiration for her reputation of order, and on the other hand, because the Scots were struggling financially, there was a good market here for the inferior spices that were difficult to sell in England.

The Artis Beauty half-sails to shore.

In the distance, Haina standing on the observation deck shouted excitedly: "I saw the port! It's in the south!"

Lorraine laughed: "Hina, change hands! Pierce, untie the bow sail, and lower the sail again and again!"

"Yes! Mr. Captain!"

Elgin Port is deep and peaceful, and the Artis Beauty sailed smoothly to the pier with lowered sails, and constantly adjusted the direction with the bow sail during the slow progress, showing the excellent sailing skills of the crew.

Red and white flags fluttered alternately on the pier, directing the Beauty to berth at the nearest pier No. 7 and anchor on the shore.

This is no difficulty for Lorraine.

After a while, the bow of the Beauty hit the embankment lightly, Pierce let go of the anchor plate, and the shiny iron anchor sank to the bottom of the water with a clatter.

"Hina stays on the boat, Pierce, go to the stern cabin to pick up a set of fine china, and follow me to visit the local gentleman."

Lorraine lashed the bowsail and lowered the plank with a snap.

He smiled and greeted the pilot with accurate flag orders. With a flick of his finger, a shiny silver shilling flew into the air.

"Beautiful chess language, sir."

The pilot reached for the shilling and put it in his pocket with a smile on his face: "Nice sail, sir."

Everyone carried the sedan chair, and with this compliment, the following handshake became a matter of course.

"Sir, it's our first time to do business in Elgin, is there anything we should pay attention to?"

The pilot frowned and thought for a moment.

"First of all, you have to respect the living habits of the Scots, and you must be familiar with and abide by the laws of Scotland. Although this is a black port, it is an orderly black port."

Lorraine shrugged: "Don't I need to visit the management committee?"

"That's another matter." The pilot chuckled, "If you want the laws of Black Harbor to protect you and your crew, you must obtain permission from the management committee before trading. Of course, this is mainly for Get a tax card, which is used to declare taxes at the Port Authority."

"The black port that needs to declare taxes... Where should I go to get a tax card?"

"No. 17, Fanhua Street, this is the office of the management committee. There are three gentlemen who take turns in the management committee of Black Harbor, and this month is Mr. Carl Piddick."

"Thank you very much for your suggestion." Lorraine waved his hand as a gentleman's salute, and when he saw Pierce disembarking with a beautiful small box, he offered another shilling, "Does Mr. Piddick like porcelain?"

"Who in the British Isles doesn't like china?"

...

No. 17, Fanhua Street.

Farewell to the enthusiastic pilot, Lorraine brought Pierce to visit,

Very smoothly, he was led to the second floor by the brown-haired secretary, and met Mr. Piddick of the management committee.

Piddick is a typical Celtic, with a round red nose and thick blond hair.

His blond hair was heavily oiled, gleaming and smooth, and he wore a pure white curly wig on top, adding a bit of serious bureaucracy.

With a set of tea sets and the Drake family's aristocratic lineage, Lorraine was qualified to sit on the sofa after meeting for the first time.

Now the exquisite tea set from the East is placed on the coffee table between the two of them. Pitik is looking at the azure teacup and cannot put it down.

Lorraine smiled and said: "The azure color glaze comes from the unique porcelain firing process of the Qing Dynasty in the East. Its full name is copper body filigree enamel. This process originated in the Zhou Dynasty for more than two thousand years, and reached its peak in the Jingtai period of the Ming Dynasty. The peak, so it is also called cloisonné."

"Shocked..." Mr. Piddick smacked his mouth, pondering over the awkward pronunciation, "Mysterious oriental country, learned little Mr. Drake."

He carefully put the teacup back into the wooden box and closed the lid with a snap.

"Little Mr. Drake, are you really from Devonshire?"

"A disdainful descendant who was expelled from the house, this identity is not worthy of an impostor." Lorraine raised his legs and changed to a more comfortable sitting position, "Sir, I brought some spices and East Indian tinware, I hope to Qualify for permanent business in Elgin."

"Spices...and pewter?" Mr. Piddick looked surprised, "You look young, but you have already opened up the eastern route?"

Lorraine smiled and waved his hands: "You misunderstood. Spices and tinware are the trophies of an unforgettable experience. I am just a fledgling businessman. Although I will go to the East sooner or later, it is not now."

"I saw your shining points again, courage, confidence and honesty."

"You flatter me."

After exchanging pleasantries, Mr. Piddick adjusted his sitting posture, put his hands on his knees, and sat upright.

Lorraine also adjusted his sitting posture at the right time, and looked at Mr. Piddick calmly.

Now even Little Pierce knew that the topic was about to begin.

Mr. Piddick cleared his throat, called the secretary in a soft voice, told her to take care of the concussion, and brought a blank tax card and a VIP invitation letter.

The secretary gave the young Lorraine a surprised look, but still followed Mr. Piddick's request and ran back and forth.

The two letters were quickly placed in front of Lorraine. They were all rolled parchment, cut into squares, and engraved with beautiful curlicues.

Mr. Piddick asked Lorraine's full name, first wrote on the tax plate with a quill pen, signed the name, stamped it with wax, and carefully pasted ribbons and flowers while the wax was still wet.

He solemnly handed the tax card to Lorraine: "Mr. Drake Jr., Port Ergen welcomes a noble blood like you who is honest, brave, confident, knowledgeable, and generous."

"With the tax card, you will enjoy the protection of Scottish law and be under the supervision of Mr. Ergen."

"You can buy and sell normally in Ergen, buy properties, and book appointments. The tax rate for each transaction is 20%, and the purchase and sale are settled independently."

Buying and selling are settled independently, which means that for each transaction, Black Harbor will take a total of 40% of the transaction value. This is the world of black market merchants.

This commission was ridiculously high, but after experiencing Cherbourg, Lorraine felt that it was worth the money, so he immediately stretched out his hands and solemnly took it.

"Thanks to Mr. Piddick for his trust and support, and hope that our friendship will last as long as the Scottish bagpipes and never end."

"That's my hope too."

The qualification to enter the port has been obtained. Lorraine rolled up the tax card and handed it to Pierce, looking curiously at another document on the table.

"Mr. Piddick, this is..."

Mr. Piddick resumed his relaxed sitting posture and said with a smile: "You are already a resident merchant in the port, so I must tell you about Ergen's trading rules."

"Including Ergen, most of the black ports in Northwest Europe do not support private transactions. Generally speaking, we have two transaction methods."

He stretched out two fingers and curled one of them: "The first one is an exchange. You must have your own property, be registered at the Port Authority, and be subject to accounting review. Every transaction of yours must be recorded, The Port Authority collects commercial tax every three months, and will still give you a tax refund for your contribution to Black Harbor."

"Generally speaking, if your trade volume exceeds 5,000 pounds in half a year, the tax rebate is 5%, if it exceeds 10,000 pounds, 10%, and the maximum is 50%."

Lorraine calculated in his mind, that is, if the trade volume reaches 50,000 pounds, he only needs to bear 10% of the tax in the transaction, of course, the tax will be refunded first.

He nodded: "What about the second one?"

"The second type is for traveling merchants without an exchange, like you. There is an auction every fifteen days in Black Harbor. Taxes are collected on the spot and tax refunds are not included, but the venue itself does not charge additional commissions."

Lorraine looked at Mr. Piddick with interest: "Is this the invitation letter for the auction?"

"The auction does not require an invitation letter." Piddick corrected with a smile, "This is the invitation letter for the VIP of the auction."

"Guest?"

"VIP guests from the management committee who have their own private rooms have a quieter environment and more spacious seats. Even the legitimate transaction tax is only 15% of the purchase price." Mr. Piddick smiled and handed the invitation letter to Lorraine, "Little Drey Mr. Ke, this is a gift from a friend, I hope you like it."