Chapter 82: First Encounter with Literary Inquisition (V)
"Bang!" The pistol fired a shot successfully.
Without even looking at Bai Siwen's expression, Huo Chong opened the chamber of the gun, used the ejector to eject the copper shell, and loaded another bullet. Then he aimed at the wooden board that served as a target and fired another shot.
After firing three shots in a row, Huo Chong handed the three bullets and the single-barreled pistol to Bai Siwen. Bai Siwen was tense and did the same thing with a look of complete disbelief.
Even though Spain had begun to decline at this time, these colonists could still operate firearms by imitating others with just one look. After firing three shots, Bai Siwen began to study the hand cannon made by Huo Chong without saying a word.
Huo Chong picked up a Luzon cigarillo and lit it. The fragrant aroma was so relaxing that he even felt like he had returned to the 21st century.
After studying it for a while, Bai Siwen returned the pistol to Huo Chong, with a hurt expression on his face. Huo Chong could understand this expression. As a colonial power in the world, and with hundreds of years of wars in Europe, the Spanish were really confident in their firearms.
This confidence is by no means arrogance. Even now, the level of firearms in Europe is higher than that of the Qing Dynasty. It won't be long before the level of firearms in the whole of Europe will surpass that of the Qing Dynasty.
Seeing such an epoch-making product as the percussion cap gun at this time, Bai Siwen would of course feel unhappy.
"How are you going to sell it?" Bai Siwen asked.
"How do you know I want to sell it to you?" Huo Chong said with a smile.
Bai Siwen looked serious, "Sir, don't joke around. What price do you want? Do you want cowhide? Or more sulfur and mercury? Or silver?"
"I heard that the Japanese daimyos are very interested in this kind of thing. What if we plate our guns with gold or silver, or make gun handles with deer antlers? Forget about ivory, I really can't get it. If we do this, can we sell it at a higher price?" Huo Chong was dreaming.
"That was the old times. In the era of Oda Nobunaga and Toyotomi Hideyoshi, a set of steel armor was plated with gold and silver. It could be sold at a high price. In addition, Lord Huo, the gold and silver plating is not for appearance, but for corrosion prevention." Bai Siwen shattered Huo Chong's dream with some disdain.
Huo Chong felt a little embarrassed and didn't know what to say, when he heard Bai Siwen continue: "This kind of hand gun is very suitable for gold plating. Deer antler handle is also very suitable. If Lord Huo needs deer antlers, I am willing to provide them."
"Yeah." Huo Chong finally felt a little saved.
Just as I was thinking about it, I heard Bai Siwen continue to say: "Mr. Huo, the real value of your hand gun should be these bullets, right? Without bullets, the hand gun can only be regarded as a work of art."
Fuck! As expected of a captain from an old colonial country, he has a sharp eye! Huo Chong couldn't help but admire him in his heart. Since Bai Siwen was so knowledgeable, Huo Chong didn't want to waste his words, "Captain Flamingo , what are your requirements for this kind of goods?"
An hour later, Huo Chong received his first arms order in his life. 50 pistols, 1,000 rounds of ammunition. Spanish Captain Flamingo was willing to make a special trip for Huo Chong. However, Huo Chong's price surprised Flamingo. After thinking for a moment, he said, "Mr. Huo wants coconuts. You should know that coconuts are very expensive commodities."
"Captain, the seashore is full of coconut trees. You told me that they are very valuable commodities. Do you think I have never seen a coconut forest?" Huo Chong couldn't stand the deception of these unscrupulous businessmen.
The Spanish captain, whose Spanish name is Flamenco, Japanese name is Oda Hideyoshi, and Chinese name is Bai Siwen, rolled his eyes and then laughed heartily, "Then the transportation fee is very expensive."
"I want coconut shells, which are very durable to store." Huo Chong stated his purpose.
The captain agreed without hesitation, without even asking Huo Chong what he wanted it for.
After seeing off the captain, Feng Yukuan asked Huo Chong if he was willing to go and buy someone. Huo Chong's originally good mood turned bad again. If he got entangled in the literary inquisition of the Qing Dynasty, who knows what the result of such a mess would be.
But can you avoid being entangled if you want to? Huo Chong didn't have much confidence. Recently, Xu Youlin came and told Huo Chong that he had bought the land and was waiting for Huo Chong to send people to cultivate it. Xu Youlin also told Huo Chong what happened in the capital.
The victory of the 14th prince had triggered a comprehensive change, and more and more people believed that the 14th prince could ascend the throne. In addition, Kangxi was in very good health, so good that everyone thought he could live to be 80 years old.
The fourteenth prince was only thirty years old now. Even if Kangxi lived another ten years, he would only be in his thirties. For an emperor, this was definitely the golden age of his prime.
If Huo Chong didn't know that Kangxi didn't live to 70, he would have believed that the 14th prince could ascend the throne. The 4th prince is already 41 years old this year. If Kangxi can live to 75, Yongzheng will be 50. If things really develop to that stage, it is likely that the 14th prince will ascend the throne.
Huo Chong found himself tempted by this possibility, and shook his head vigorously, finally breaking free from this emotion. Feng Yukuan misunderstood Huo Chong's meaning, sighed helplessly, and lowered his eyes.
"Uncle Feng, I'm willing to help with this matter." Huo Chong quickly made his thoughts clear.
Feng Yukuan raised his head in surprise, "Master Huo..."
"If I can really buy those people, I won't stop Master Feng from taking them away." Huo Chong sighed. The victims of the literary inquisition were actually quite pitiful, and Huo Chong was actually willing to give them a stable future.
"Mr. Huo, you are such a good person." Feng Yukuan unconsciously gave Huo Chong a card.
Huo Chong gave a bitter smile and ignored the question. A good person is a good person. If possible, Huo Chong did not want to be a bad person.
After returning to Zibo County from Mouping County and giving clear instructions on the mission, Huo Chong rode on the strong donkey produced by the donkey farm and set off for Jinan with Feng Yukuan.
There were still people coming and going on the official road. Huo Chong and his group of six had a healthy donkey each, and they also prepared four donkeys to carry things. Each donkey had horseshoes nailed on it, and it was even a bit cool to walk on the road.
After arriving in Jinan Prefecture, Huo Chong went directly to meet the Jinan judicial official based on the information provided by Feng Yukuan. This official did not put on airs in front of Huo Chong, which made Huo Chong feel as if something was wrong.
After hearing Huo Chong's request, the official frowned. Huo Chong was a little nervous. Human trafficking was still legal in this era. But Huo Chong couldn't believe what kind of family members were involved in the literary inquisition. Sure enough, the official just said "I know" and sent Huo Chong away.
After Huo Chong left, the official immediately went to see the prefect of Jinan. The prefect did not answer immediately after listening, and the room fell silent. The official waited for a while, and then asked tentatively: "Sir, do you want to agree or write a memorial?"
"This matter is originally your responsibility. You should make your own decision." The prefect handed the ball back to him in an unfathomable manner.
When the official got home, he called his advisor. It was the advisor's suggestion to go see the prefect. Everyone was confused at this time, not knowing why Huo Chong wanted to get involved in this mess. The advisor didn't understand it at first, but he should have some ideas at this time.
"Boss, according to what you heard, Huo Chong is a cunning guy." The lawyer confirmed the basic information again.
"How about Master Zhou go and see Huo Chong?" The official also wanted to kick the ball away.
The lawyer did not refuse. This was really interesting. He also heard that Huo Chong was an interesting guy, so he wanted to see the world. He met Huo Chong at the post station where Huo Chong lived. Hearing the lawyer's Shaoxing dialect, Huo Chong was very impressed. This judicial official could also use a Shaoxing lawyer, which showed that his family was not ordinary.
The two talked for a while, and Huo Chong said frankly that he didn't know about the literary inquisition. It was just that someone came to ask for help, and Huo Chong heard that it was just to buy some women and children, so he was willing to help.
"Master Zhou, I don't think I'm that kind of pretentious person. If this matter can be solved with money, I'm willing to help. If this matter has nothing to do with money, I have to take care of myself. Since Master Zhou is here, please give me some advice."
Master Zhou listened to Huo Chong's words and didn't know how to answer for a moment. It was said in the officialdom that Huo Chong could make the truth sound like a lie. What he said just now was really Huo Chong's style.
In theory, what Huo Chong said was right. If it was just a matter of money, there was nothing wrong with buying some women and children and keeping them in his hometown in Shandong. As for using money to settle things, it was also right in theory. I heard that Huo Chong's annual tax payment was as high as 2,000 taels. Such a guy was really rich, and it did cost a lot of money to buy people, but this money was nothing to Huo Chong.
But the problem is that even the lawyers don’t know how serious the case will be for the family members of the literary inquisition. Those who are guilty are all men…
"Brother Huo, have you wronged those who committed crimes?" the lawyer asked tentatively.
Huo Chong waved his hands repeatedly, "Master Zhou, I was just helping to buy those girls and children. If they committed a crime, I would not care. As for those who wrote things, I don't care at all. I haven't been to school, so how can I know what they said. The government punished them, so of course I think it was right."
After talking for a while, Master Zhou finally understood what Huo Chong was trying to do. After several attempts, he could not get anything else out of him. He declined Huo Chong's invitation to drink and went back to .
After telling the boss what happened, the lawyer tentatively expressed his thoughts, "Boss, Huo Chong probably wants to sell some benefits. I heard him say that if he was allowed to buy those women and children, he would not stop them if their families wanted to redeem them."
"Is that so?" The official was a little surprised, but not particularly shocked.
Just when the master thought that the boss would not agree, he saw that the boss's expression softened a little. This surprised the master. Although the boss was not a bad person, he rarely reacted like this.
After a while, the official sighed and said, "Since Huo Chong wants to do market entrustment, you should go and tell him that he can buy people. I heard you say that Huo Chong has been asking about the specifics of how to do it. Tell him."
"Oh?" The lawyer was even more surprised. But this kind of thing is legal, especially if it is done through legal means, then there will be no problem.
But this "no problem" is a problem, no one knows how things will turn out in the end. Huo Chong is taking a risk, and the Dong family is also taking a risk to some extent.
But as long as legal things are recognized by the government, they are legal. Huo Chong bought people through legal channels. Half a month later, the donkey was harnessed to a cart, pulling several carts of people back along the official road.
After Huo Chong finished the formalities, he returned to Zibo County. Feng Yukuan was in charge of the matter. Since this guy was the initiator, Huo Chong asked Feng Yukuan, who lived in Jinan, to take full charge of the matter. If we were to die, we would die together, and Feng Yukuan, the culprit, could not stay out of it.
A total of more than 40 people were bought, and more than 30 were sent to Zibo County. Less than 10 were secretly redeemed by their mothers' families. This ratio really surprised Huo Chong. He had never thought of really buying and selling people, so it didn't matter even if the car that came back was empty.
Since people had come, Huo Chong had no choice but to accept them. He arranged for them to stay and let Qian Qing take care of the cleansing and grooming. A few days later, Huo Chong met these people.
The women and children all looked clean, but they all lowered their heads. These women rarely went out after getting married, and they looked extremely embarrassed to face their new masters as slaves.
Huo Chong was also embarrassed. He could say that he was forced to be the leader of a feudal society, but in Huo Chong's eyes, human trafficking was not only a crime, but also a kind of moral corruption. In order to get rid of the embarrassment, Huo Chong said: "Since you are here, I will not hide it from you. You have to work hard to support yourself and your children."
From Huo Chong's perspective, turning these private slaves who legally belong to him into employees as soon as possible can solve Huo Chong's embarrassment to the greatest extent. Facing a group of slaves and facing a group of employees are completely different psychologically.
Unexpectedly, all the women's faces changed drastically when they heard this. Some people couldn't help crying. After hearing what Huo Chong said, one of the women immediately raised her head. She looked ordinary, but her eyes were very bright. She stepped forward and said loudly, "Master Huo, I heard that you don't run a brothel!"
"Nonsense. Of course I won't do that kind of wicked business." Huo Chong was so angry that he almost rolled his eyes. "I don't know what those people said. I tell you , I have many people under me, and most of them can't read. It costs too much to hire some teachers. Once those teachers start teaching, they will think about teaching their own nonsense. I want you to work, not to let you go to the fields, but to let you teach my subordinates to read. Remember, reading, not teaching them to read."
If the women had been shocked to the point of "10" when Huo Chong asked them to work to support themselves, then they were shocked to the point of "9" when Huo Chong asked them to teach people to read. Many women did not believe it at all.
Huo Chong was too lazy to persuade him and just said, "I won't let you starve, but I'll make it clear. In my place, if you want to eat well, you have to work. Teaching people to read is a kind of work. Whether you can live a good life depends on how much you can do."
