Chapter 18 Magic
In fact, the situation was even better than Rock had expected, because the commandos were responsible for special tasks and were far more dangerous than ordinary patrolmen, so Rock's salary increased to fifteen pounds. The house worth 150 pounds could now be bought by Rock without eating or drinking for ten months.
A salary of fifteen pounds is considered a high salary even in the UK. These days the middle-class line in the UK is 100 pounds, and those with an annual income of more than 100 pounds have entered the middle class.
Including Henry Matilda and Rock, the total number of commandos was sixteen, including twelve Chinese and four Boers. Due to Rock's insistence, no Indians were selected.
In order to increase firepower, the commandos were equipped with rifles in addition to pistols. Unfortunately, the rifles equipped by the commandos were not the Martini-Henry rifles that Rock and his men were familiar with, but the Lee-Enfield rifles, the latest model in the British army.
"The Lee Enfield rifle was just introduced to the troops four years ago. It is the most advanced rifle in the world, with a caliber of 0.3 inches, smokeless gunpowder, and a ten-round magazine. This type of rifle was not originally provided to troops outside the mainland, but because of the war against the Boers, we have the opportunity to get it in advance. This is a benefit that the director has specially fought for us." Henry Matilda didn't know how harshly the director scolded the inspector in the office, and he didn't feel the pressure yet. Of course, even if there was pressure, Henry probably wouldn't be afraid. Henry was British, and at worst he could just pack up and go back to England.
"I heard from the inspector that the commando team was your idea, so use your intelligence and talents. I have no way to find those Boers. Since it was your proposal, you are responsible for finding them." Henry fully trusted Rock, although Rock did not really want to.
"I'm responsible?" Rock was still not sure what Henry meant. Was he letting go?
"Yes, you are responsible. Let's divide the work and cooperate. I will be responsible for coordinating the work and ensuring logistics, and you will be responsible for investigation and action. The inspector trusts you very much, and I trust you too." Henry's expression was very sincere, but Rock just wanted to scold him. What do you mean by coordinating the work and ensuring logistics? I did all the work, and we will share the credit. It's not your fault that I couldn't solve the case. I failed your trust, right?
The swear words were on the tip of his tongue, but Rock swallowed them back. Why was he jumping up and down?
Isn't it just to gain the trust of the British? Now the opportunity has come. As long as those Boers are found out, Rock's position will be unshakable in the future.
Even if he couldn't find the Boers, Rock would still have a way to get his job done. Isn't there a joke popular on the Internet in the 21st century that says special forces from several countries were training together, and in order to see who was the best, they held a competition - put a rabbit into the forest, and whichever of the three troops found it within a day would be the strongest.
The special forces of one country immediately held a meeting to formulate a plan and quickly launched a carpet search, but found nothing.
The special forces of another country lined up outside the forest, holding a loudspeaker and shouting to the inside: Listen up, rabbits inside, you have been surrounded by us, surrender quickly!
Of course, nothing happened.
The last special forces team was not in a hurry at all. It was not until dusk that the soldiers picked up their weapons and lazily walked into the forest. After a burst of animal screams, the special forces soldiers led a bruised bear out. The bear kept saying, "Don't hit me, I'm a rabbit."
No, no, you can’t do this. This is not right. You must learn to solve problems using the correct method.
"Okay sir--" Rock began to put forward conditions.
"Call me Henry. We are on the same level now. I will also call you Locke." Henry interrupted Rock. He still relied on Rock to solve the case and could not act so high and mighty.
"Okay Henry, I'll apply for case handling funds, take this - 50 pounds first." Rock asked for money first, not for corruption, but for work needs.
"Why do you want money?" Henry didn't mind that Rock asked for too much, but he just didn't understand why Rock asked for it.
"We must first obtain intelligence and bribe informants. We can't just fool people with words. We have to show people real money, then the informants will work hard." Rock didn't know how the police in the 19th century solved cases, but he had watched so many police and gangster movies for a reason. At least they were more reliable than Henry who had no clue at all.
"Haha, no problem, I'll apply for it right away. I know you have a way." Henry was not opposed to spending money on intelligence. As long as it could solve the case, a little money would be a drop in the bucket.
Taking advantage of this time, Rock arranged for the commando members to go to the training ground to familiarize themselves with their weapons, leaving Anton alone.
"Locke, you--" Anton looked at Rock with a complicated look. The words Rock said to Anton a few days ago were still fresh in his mind. Anton was still thinking about it, but he didn't expect Rock to act so quickly, and, what's more, it worked so quickly.
"Come on, Anton, if you want to, you can do it. I'm just reminding you that the war will be over soon. New police stations will be established in Pretoria and Bloemfontein. Many positions will be vacant. Opportunities won't always be there waiting for you." Rock was just a reminder, not forcing him. But if Anton missed this opportunity, then Rock would stop talking nonsense. You can never wake up a person who pretends to be asleep.
"I - I will go to become a citizen tomorrow." Anton finally made up his mind. The power of role models is infinite. They are doing the same job, others earn five pounds a month, and he earns 1.2 pounds a month. Rock gets his high salary by his own ability. Even Reed can get a higher salary than Anton now. This is really unacceptable for Anton.
It is still easier for the British to communicate with each other. If Rock had applied for funding, it would probably have taken some effort. Henry didn't have this problem. Rock only asked for 50 pounds, and Henry actually gave him 100 in return. This finally made Rock feel the pressure.
The cost and gain are equal. Since the bureau has invested so much, it must want to gain more. If Rock can't do it, then how much the British have invested now will determine how miserable Rock's fate will be in the future.
It doesn't matter. Things have come to this point. There is no use worrying. Let's get down to business. Rock went to the training ground and called two of the strongest Chinese policemen. He went out with Henry and called a two-wheeled carriage to go directly to the prison.
A two-wheeled carriage was the taxi of that era. Rock's salary used to prevent him from hiring a carriage. There were two types of carriage fares. One was based on distance, six pence per mile in the city and one shilling per mile in the suburbs. The other was based on time, two shillings within an hour, and an additional six pence for every fifteen minutes after an hour.
Does it look familiar?
Yes, the nineteenth century was magical.
