Volume 3: The Richest Man in the World Chapter 32 Outbreak
"The Portuguese troops in Macau are not strong enough to confront me... and the British army head-on," Charles told Wu Chengjian, "so after Milton went to talk to the Portuguese, the Portuguese surrendered."
Wu Chengjian cursed Milton and the Portuguese in his heart, but he sat there casually with a calm expression: "What did they talk about?"
"I didn't find out about that." Charlie said, "But after Milton came out, the British ships changed to the Portuguese flag, and the soldiers on the ships also changed into Portuguese uniforms before entering the port . If nothing unexpected happens, the British army should have taken over the forts and other key points in Macau."
Wu Chengjian pondered for a while and said, "They came east in large numbers, but changed their flags and modified their equipment..." A sneer suddenly appeared on the corner of his mouth: "So this is to delay time, or are the British still unsure?" He stared at the short-legged British man in front of him: "Charlie, what do you think?"
He thought about it and it made sense. The British were probably not ready for a full-scale war with the Qing Dynasty yet. This should be just a test. However, if this test was not handled properly, it might lead to major changes in the subsequent course of history.
"Aha," Charlie said, "I don't know."
"Really don't know?" Wu Chengjian's face darkened. "Charlie, have you forgotten the agreement between us? Or do you think you are still my only information channel?"
Charlie laughed twice and said, "Hao Guan, you also know that we British are the friendliest people in the world..."
"Speak human language!"
"Really friendly, really friendly." Charlie said, "Of course there are some people who are ambitious, but the Lord asked me to assure you that those people are not the mainstream in London. The spirit of Great Britain has always been to hope that the whole world can do business in a friendly, fair, just and open manner. This is beneficial to the Qing Dynasty, Britain and the whole world."
"So..." Wu Chengjian said, "If others don't follow your ideas, will you attack them with warships and use guns to enforce the friendly, fair, just and open business principles?"
Charlie smiled, neither refutating nor admitting.
Wu Chengjian said: "I have said that China is not India. Although our country has many problems now, it is not a soft persimmon that can be squeezed by others. Go and tell Milton to stop before the situation is exposed. Those navies and ships should go back to where they came from. Otherwise, if they cause trouble later, Milton, me, Britain, and the Qing Dynasty will all suffer!"
After Charlie left, Wu Chengjian's face became gloomy.
He acted calm in front of Charlie, but the actual situation was not as easy as he appeared.
"What on earth is He Zhongtang thinking? He already knows about the matter, but I don't know if he has reported it to the court... Or is it that something has happened in the Forbidden City and he is now too busy to take care of himself? If so, why is he bothering me?"
Thinking of this, he became annoyed again.
Not only is the Forbidden City in a sensitive period now, but the Wu family is also in a sensitive period.
And the British happened to come and cause trouble at this time!
At this time, Wu Qi sent Charlie back and asked, "Hao Guan?"
Wu Chengjian came to his senses and said, "Go to Panjiayuan quickly and tell Qiguan everything about what Charlie has brought. Then go to Xiguan and inform Maoguan and my father-in-law."
No one heard what Wu Chengjian and Cai Qiaozhu said in the room. Even Wu Liu and Wu Qi, who were outside the room, only heard a few words when their voices got louder. However, Wu Chengjian left Lirongyuan in anger, and then smashed the floor of Ritianju, which was seen by many people. The world of servants was a world of its own, and soon all kinds of news spread throughout the Wu family.
Ye Youyu thought about how Wu Chengjian had become after returning from Lirongyuan, and she also had some opinions about Cai Qiaozhu. She wanted to talk to Wu Chengjian, but Wu Chengjian was busy again. She felt depressed and had nowhere to vent. After thinking about it, she asked Dongxue to send someone to Xiguan to pick up her mother to talk.
At that time, Guangzhou, especially Henan Island, had dense waterways and rivers everywhere, so Wujiayuan had several small docks, and it was sometimes more convenient to travel by boat.
Dongxue arrived at the small pier, and the captain said, "The two first-class boats have been sent out, and now we only have two second-class boats. Is that okay?"
It is impossible that there is only one small boat entering and leaving Wujiayuan, but there are only three first-class boats. One is at Manqian Penglai and disappeared with Zhou Yijin and Wu Xiaojiu. One is controlled by Tietou Junba and no one dares to move it unless it is urgent. Moreover, Wu Qi just went to Panjiayuan. As for the remaining boat, Dongxue found out that it was sent to pick up Old Lady Cai from Daxing Street.
Dongxue and Ye Youyu were close as master and servant, and she knew that Ye Youyu was holding back his anger but couldn't let it out. Now that he was provoked by the boatman, she couldn't help but get angry, but she couldn't find a reason - Lirongyuan needed to use a small boat, and if Ritianju said no, people would criticize them if it got out. Therefore, Dongxue couldn't scold him, so she pointed at the bow and said, "Second class is second class! Fortunately, my in-laws don't care about this, so don't make any more mistakes!"
The captain sent the boat away, but couldn't help muttering, "If something goes wrong again, I don't want that."
Dongxue, who was walking back, turned back suddenly: "What did you say!"
The captain quickly shut up.
After Cai's mother handed the yellow paper to Cai Qiaozhu, she didn't get a response for the whole day until Cai Qiaozhu sent Wu Liu to pick her up. Then she hurried over excitedly and entered the private port of Wujiayuan. She heard the bow of the small pier say, "Oh, old lady Cai is here again. She's been coming here quite frequently recently."
This sounds interesting, but it actually doesn't mean anything. It's boring, but it seems interesting inside.
Mrs. Cai was unable to speak for a moment, so Wu Liu slapped her and said coldly, "Mrs. Cai came to visit the eldest young lady, and she still needs your approval, right?"
The man at the bow covered his face with his hands, feeling aggrieved, but dared not say a word.
Wu Liu said: "If I hear these idle words again, it won't just be a slap in the face."
Wu Liu has been with Wu Chengjun for twenty years and has always been kind and honest. This is the first time he has shown off his power. Although he is also a servant, his status in the Wu family is different. Even Guang Shao has to call him "Sixth Uncle". The male owner of Lirongyuan is Guang'er, and he is Guang'er's half guardian.
Cai's mother got on the sedan chair and felt that the atmosphere was not right. After entering Lirong Courtyard, she couldn't help but pull Wu Liu and asked, "Ah Liu, did something happen?"
Wu Liu hesitated for a moment and whispered, "Hao Guan and the eldest young lady had a quarrel." He said nothing more and led Cai's mother to the main house.
Cai Qiaozhu was sitting in the room, staring blankly at the paper-cutting, looking very unhappy.
Only when he saw Cai's mother come in did he calm down.
Cai's mother took Cai Qiaozhu to sit inside the green gauze cabinet and asked, "What happened? I heard from Wu Liu that you and Hao Guan had a fight?"
Cai Qiaozhu's eyes suddenly turned red. The years of relationship between the uncle and sister-in-law were there. Wu Chengjian was sad, and she felt bad too. When her mother asked her about it, tears welled up in her eyes, and she told her conversation with Wu Chengjian in a halting manner.
Upon hearing this, Cai's mother said angrily, "This, this... As expected, now that we have a son, our nephew has to stand aside! Hao Guan is so anxious because he is afraid that Yao'er will be suppressed by Guang'er in the future."
Cai Qiaozhu hesitated and said, "This... shouldn't be the case..."
"Of course not!" Cai's mother said, "If it's not like this, what else could it be? Don't you see who is the head of Wujiayuan now? Who is in charge? Hao Guan hasn't even called himself the master yet. I have to look at his face when I come here to take a boat. From now on, I'm afraid it will be difficult for me to even come to see you and say a word."
Cai Qiaozhu asked hurriedly: "What's that expression? Who gave you that expression?"
Mother Cai then told him what had happened at the dock.
Cai Qiaozhu was also a little annoyed when she heard this, but she still said, "Hao Guan wouldn't do this, even if there were fish, it wouldn't happen. It must be that the people below are ignorant. Don't be angry, mother."
Cai's mother said, "Everyone has a pair of eyes. If the people in Ritianju don't know anything, I don't believe that the people below dare to act on their own!"
"Anyway, Ah Liu has already taught him a lesson about this matter." Cai Qiaozhu said, "But as for Hao Guan, maybe... maybe he got some news, and He Shen is really unstable."
Cai's mother said, "You said it yourself. If Heshen was really unstable, why didn't he resign his own official title, but only wanted to resign Guang'er's? This is clearly an excuse."
Cai Qiaozhu shook her head: "I don't believe it. I don't believe Hao Guan is such a person. He... Mother, you don't know that he and Cheng Jun are the kind of people who are willing to sacrifice themselves for their family and friends."
Cai's mother sneered a few times, not believing it: "Chengjun is naturally very good, and Haoguan might have been very loyal when he was young. But Qiaozhu, people will change. Fathers and sons, uncles and nephews, are close first and then distant. This is human nature! Don't be blinded by your soft heart. Once you ruin Guanger's future, be careful that the child will blame you for the rest of his life when he grows up."
When talking about her son, Cai Qiaozhu's heart was in turmoil: "Then...what should I do?" She could endure any injustice, but she could not let her son suffer.
Cai's mother said, "What else can we do? Anyway, we can't resign from our official position. As for opening the ancestral hall, although Hao Guan is the head of the family, he has no father or brother as the elder, and no mother or sister-in-law as the mother. He is the head of the family, but you are the eldest sister-in-law. You can't compete with him in public affairs , but he can't cover up family affairs with one hand. Don't you have a few elders in your Wu clan? For such a matter of honoring the ancestors, even if he is the head of the family, he can't stop his nephew from getting promoted. Besides, Guang'er's official position was conferred by the court. No matter how big the rules in the family are, can they be bigger than the emperor's decree?"
"Mother is saying..."
"Open the ancestral hall!" Cai's mother said, "You should send someone to Ritianju to tell him first. If he is willing to give in, then everything will be easy to deal with. If he is still stubborn and refuses to give in, I don't believe that there will be no elders of the Wu family who are willing to speak up for justice before Chengjun's body is cold."
