Chapter 47 Ada
In a blink of an eye, it was December 24th. After lunch, Rock and Henry led all the commandos out of the city to Darmstadt Manor.
Darmstadt is a city in central Germany, formerly part of the Grand Duchy of Hesse, where Governor Alfred Milner was born.
"Are you all ready?" On the way to Darmstadt Manor, Henry finally began to feel a little nervous.
From the perspective of the Cape Colony government, Rock and Henry's behavior was extremely treasonous. If this matter were leaked, Rock and Henry would probably be thrown into Robben Island as accomplices of the rebels. This would still be a light punishment. In more serious cases, Rock and Henry would even be shot.
"Don't worry, the bait has been sent out." Rock was not nervous. The entire operation was commanded by Rock himself. Now, as long as the rebels who tried to sneak into the banquet venue and create chaos were killed on the spot, there would be no other troubles.
Today's luck is not as good as last time. It rained a little in Cape Town yesterday and the ground was a little muddy, but it was not serious. Rock and Henry still rode on horses, while the other commandos took carriages. As long as they entered the Darmstadt Manor, the road conditions were still good and the road surface had been hardened, just like the city center of Cape Town.
When we entered Darmstadt Manor, we saw police on duty at the intersection. They had blocked off the area around Darmstadt Manor two days ago and ensured round-the-clock patrols. Not only could people, but even rabbits could not get in.
The police are not allowed to appear in front of the VIPs. From now on, the commandos will take over the outer defense of the Darmstadt Manor.
As per the pre-arranged plan, four commandos in full dress uniforms took over from the police on duty and were responsible for the security of the intersection.
In fact, it hasn't reached that point. Security is no problem. The main thing is to maintain order and guide the carriages of VIPs. Unless those people have ulterior motives, no one dares to cause trouble tonight.
Rock and Henry's posts are at the gate of the manor. In fact, they should have assigned one person to stay at the intersection, but the situation tonight is special, so Rock has to stay at the gate to ensure that Henry can complete the task. Forget about the intersection, there won't be any problems there.
"Thank you for your hard work, guys. Your clothes are really nice." The one who came to greet them was the bearded knight. He also brought some cigars for Rock and Henry. Forget about the wine. No one dared to drink tonight.
"Of course. It's very expensive. Twenty pounds a set." Henry has experience in dealing with this kind of people, and the proud expression on his face makes people laugh.
"Then you have made a lot of money." The bearded knight is also a clever man, and his words are double entendres.
For some well-known reasons, official purchases are always more expensive, and perhaps of lower quality.
The price of clothes customized collectively for the commandos should be cheaper than those customized individually, but it is even more expensive, and everyone has become accustomed to it.
"Haha, I don't know about that. Who knows?" Henry didn't respond. No one should laugh at each other. Working for the governor, the bearded knight has more opportunities .
"I'll leave you here tonight. We can have a drink together some other time." The bearded knight had no intention of arguing. He said hello and went back to the manor. It was good to work beside the governor. There were sofas in the guards' lounge.
Of course, the bearded knight did not forget Rock and Henry. After a while, the bearded knight had someone bring two chairs, a round table, and a pot of black tea. These were prepared for Rock and Henry, and not for others.
As night fell, guests began to arrive one after another. Rock then noticed that there were street lights on both sides of the road. However, these were not electric lights, but oil lamps covered with glass. When it was time to light the street lights, the servants in the manor would bring ladders and light them one by one.
Henry sighed as he watched the street lights gradually light up, but Rock was too weak to complain.
"It's beautiful, this is what civilization means." Henry said proudly.
Rock curled his lips and didn't respond. Henry thought Rock was shocked, but when he turned around, he found that the expression on Rock's face clearly showed disapproval.
"Aren't you surprised? So beautiful." Henry thought that Rock should show an expression that met Henry's expectations.
"Is there anything surprising? It's just a white glass lampshade, an industrial product. In my hometown, every household will hang big red lanterns during festivals. We will also set off fireworks, visit relatives and friends, and party all night long." Rock couldn't continue. He was not talking about the Qing Dynasty, but the Celestial Empire in the 21st century.
This is the first time Rock has been reminded of this era.
"Ha, they are all industrial products—" Henry thought Rock was just being tough, so he imitated Rock's tone with contempt in his words: "Is there any industry in your hometown? Those big red lanterns are all handmade, right? Industry is the symbol of social progress, and handmade products will be eliminated sooner or later."
What else can Rock say? Henry would not understand. Industrial products are indeed popular now, but in a few decades, when people are tired of industrial products, the value of handicrafts will be far greater than industrial products.
In fact, that is not true. Even in this era, handmade things are usually more valuable than industrially mass-produced things. For example, custom-made clothes in British tailor shops are more expensive than cheap clothes sold in Jewish stores. This is the difference between handmade and industrial products.
Rock was about to refute when he suddenly saw the carriage of Police Chief August Russell in the distance. His carriage was really conspicuous, with a big police badge on the body.
At the same time, Rock also saw Reed, who was on duty at the intersection. He was not far from August Russell's carriage and was signaling to Rock repeatedly.
According to the agreement between Rock and Reed, it was Reed who discovered the rebels' carriage.
It’s hot, how did you get together?
But this is also a good thing. Only when they come together can they leave the most profound impression on August Russell.
"Henry, what's the situation here?" August Russell opened the door and stood on the shaft of the carriage as he passed by Rock and Henry, his voice as loud as a bell, like a general inspecting his troops.
"Mr. Director, no problems ." Henry stood straight, like a guard of honor being reviewed.
"Good job, boys." August Russell waved to the commandos lined up and prepared to return to the carriage.
August Russell, by the way, rode in a horse-drawn carriage.
Rock and Henry stood at attention and saluted, watching August Russell's carriage slowly pass by. Just after August Russell's carriage passed, Rock seemed to see a pretty face that looked happy or angry in the window of the carriage behind.
It's Ada.
