Chapter 41 Returning home in glory
July 13, 1866, Far East.
Wang Dazhi is an old member of the Chinese immigrants in the East African colonies, and is now a member of the Chinese immigrant army in Binhai District.
Just a month ago, senior officials from the Chinese Immigration Office in the East African colonies found Wang Dazhi and discussed with him about using his Chinese identity to return to the Qing Dynasty to attract people.
The current Qing government has just pacified the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. The south has been suffering from military disasters for a long time, which has greatly eased the contradiction between man and land in the south. Since the Song Dynasty, the economic center of gravity has moved southward, and the south is a densely populated area. Although the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom and the Qing government The mutual conquests left a large amount of vacant land, but after the end of the Taiping Rebellion, the population of the surrounding areas could quickly fill these vacancies.
In the north, the rise of Tsarist Russia and colonial expansion directly threatened the Qing's Longxing Land. Before, they were afraid that the Chinese would destroy the Qing's Dragon Vein ancestral land. Now that the Rakshasa people are coming, there is no need to consider the distinction between Tsinghua University and the Qing Dynasty. Now, in order to immigrate to the border, the Qing government relaxed restrictions on immigrants from the Northeast, and a large number of Chinese poured into the Northeast. This was a breakthrough to Guandong.
In the Shanshan area in the northwest, they also have an immigration route, which is to farm land for the princes and nobles in Inner Mongolia, that is, through the west entrance.
The current main option for immigrants from the East African colonies is to go north, through the northern seaports, and be transported back to East Africa by ship.
The people in the north currently have two choices, one is to go to the Northeast, and the other is to East Africa. Compared with foreign countries, their own land is of course the first choice, so when making the choice, most immigrants choose to bring their families with them. Pass through Guandong.
This is also the reason why this time the East African colonies want to bring over the old immigrants who are already living in East Africa. Otherwise, if these Chinese see real benefits, who will believe what you Western devils say?
As for the south, it is not so easy to recruit people. In addition to the new living space created after the Taiping Rebellion, the locals have two options. One is to go from the Yangtze River Delta and the Pearl River Delta to the Americas. The Americans currently have the advantage of Germany. It's incomparable. Even the British and French would recruit some Chinese to serve as thugs in the colonies.
The second one is the south, especially the southeast coast and the southwest border. They can start their own business and develop in the Nanyang region. Because of the convenience of sea transportation or the proximity to the border, many people have gone down since ancient times. Nanyang or go to Southeast Asia to explore.
There are many clans in the south, and the township parties they spontaneously formed will also recruit people in the south. Therefore, it is the most difficult for the East African colonies to recruit people in the south. There are many competitors, and the conditions they offer are also very difficult. Not very tempting.
Why would these Chinese spontaneously go to the East African colonies? In addition to actually distributing land to these Chinese, they will definitely drag their families and their families to colonize East Africa.
But Ernst will not give away the land in vain. The land in East Africa is Ernst’s private property and will be of great use in the future. If he gives the land away directly, he will not necessarily be greeted with tears of gratitude. It is possible to breed white-eyed wolves.
Only when it was time to divide the land was it time for Ernst to give these Chinese immigrants land property rights.
That is war. Only Ernst who works hard and has voted for the certificate will distribute the land to the meritorious people in the form of military merit.
Now that the land in East Africa has been divided, in the future when Britain, France and other countries start to eye the land in Africa, what will Ernst do to win people's hearts? Or land.
And in Ernst’s vision, the future of agriculture in East Africa is intensive, rather than self-sufficient among small farmers. You work hard for the Hohenzollern family, and I give you the land, and you work harder and harder. The more land they get, the more large-scale farms will be born in East Africa.
If everyone could get two or three acres of land, then the Chinese would dare to have children. It would be okay if there was a shortage of people in the early colonies, but what if there is no shortage of people later? By then, no matter how fast East Africa develops, it is estimated that it will not be able to keep up with the rapid growth of population.
Therefore, Ernst carefully considered the issue of immigration and the way of survival after immigrating to East Africa. Anyway, he should not be too radical, as East Africa was there and he could not escape.
Even if Britain, France and other countries began to carve up Africa, Ernst estimated that there would still be a population of 5 million in East Africa at that time. Not to mention 5 million, there would be 300,000 plus the help of the German Empire. Do you dare to start a war with the British in Africa?
……
Mopan Village, an unremarkable small village in North China.
The village is very lively today, not because there is any festival, but because Wang Dazhi, who left a year ago, is back.
There was nothing strange about Wang Dazhi's return. What really surprised the villagers was that Wang Dazhi came back with foreigners, and there were several soldiers behind him, all holding real things in their hands.
At first, when the villagers saw a group of people coming to the village entrance with Western guns, they didn't dare to show their heads. These days there is a lot of war and chaos. Who dares to join in the fun because it hurts their necks?
Fortunately, everyone knew Wang Dazhi, and he took a big loudspeaker and spread the news everywhere in the village.
"Folks, don't be afraid, I am Wang Dazhi! Don't you remember me? Now that I am prosperous, I am here to lead you to a good life."
Wang Dazhi was wearing a military uniform and looked like a man of five. He held his chest high and held his head high as he went around the village to spread the word. When he reached the depths of the village, several acquaintances pulled Wang Dazhi into the house.
"Dazhi, it's really you! Oh my god, you're so fat that I almost didn't recognize it."
Wang Dazhi looked at the black hemp straw in front of him and almost didn't recognize it.
"Aren't you Lao Xu from the end of the village? How are you doing? Now that my brother is prosperous, he will lead you to a good life."
Lao Xu walked around Wang Dazhi. After two laps, he said in surprise: "You are so developed. The clothes you are wearing now are all stained with flowers! You look like you are going to be a soldier!”
Although Lao Xu didn’t recognize the Prussian military uniform, the soldiers behind him were still there when Wang Dazhi entered the village. But you can't deceive people, the things you memorize are all real things.
Wang Dazhi said with a smile: "No, no, I am now the deputy captain of the 25th Squadron of the Binhai Branch of the East African Colonial Chinese Immigration Army." He said with a complacent look on his face. Old Xu asked curiously: "I'm really an official! Okay, this is the East African colony, what else is Binhai? How big is your official position?"
As soon as Wang Dazhi heard Lao Xu ask himself , and immediately said with joy on his face: "Brother, I am no longer what I used to be. I am not a big official, and I only manage five or six people under my command. Don't think that this official is not big, but the things inside are very particular. , this is not an ordinary official, but a gift to Germany You don’t know what an official is. With my outfit, I walked hundreds of miles from Jiaozhou to here, and all the officials I met along the way gave me gifts when they saw me.”
< br>Wang Dazhi then pretended: "The one in our town Do you know that Mayor Li was nodding to me just before I returned to the village?"
Old Xu said in surprise: "What kind of German soldier do you have such a big background? They are all shorter!”
"Old Xu! You are so ignorant about this. Do you know about the foreigners breaking into the Forbidden City a few years ago?"
"Of course I... have heard of it."
" That's right, even the emperor is afraid of foreigners now, let alone foreign soldiers? Look at me, I was originally an old farmer who couldn't afford to eat in the village. After the land was taken back by the rich man Wang, Didn't I go to Jiaozhou to beg for food? I heard that you could carry bags and earn some money at the Jiaozhou pier, so I went there. Then I met a big boss in Germany who was recruiting people, saying they would farm for them. I didn't pay much attention at the time, after all. I almost couldn't eat, I couldn't find a job, I was so hungry that I was skin and bones. When I arrived at the dock, the steward saw that I was dying and didn't accept me. It happened that the Germans were recruiting me, so I just signed up. After being given a meal, I signed up, and after a few days of free food, I got on the boat."
Wang Dazhi recalled the past days and couldn't help but sigh: "On the boat, I had to vomit and have diarrhea. Fortunately, it didn’t take long to reach land. Later, I heard that it was East Africa. The German boss wanted to cultivate land and was short of manpower, so I was recruited to work on the land there at first. There is a lot of land, and no crops are grown. The local indigenous people make a living by hunting lions and wild beasts, and the land is left uncultivated. The German boss asked us Chinese to develop these lands."
"Later, there were more and more people. At this time, the German commander in East Africa began to look for men among our group to serve as soldiers, and I was selected.”
Lao Xu curiously asked: "Isn't this the same as the Qing Dynasty? If you can't afford food, you go to serve as a soldier!"
"It's different! Lao Xu." Wang Dazhi hurriedly said to Lao Xu: " Can you be a soldier of the Qing Dynasty as well as a soldier of Germany? Let me tell you, do you know how many meals I eat every day?" Wang Dazhi said with a look of superiority.
"Two meals? That's not bad."
Wang Dazhi said to Lao Xu with a look of disgust: "You really think that Germans are not so stingy. I eat three meals a day. A meal, and you can also eat meat every week. The clothes are made of Western fabrics, and you can also get a small salary every month."
As he said this, he handed the cuffs to Lao Xu and others. Said: "You all feel this clothes, what a good material, how smooth."
When Lao Xu and others touched it, it was true that Wang Dazhi had done a really good job. When he was in the village, his ribs could be seen through his clothes. Now he is not only fatter, but also has a red face. He can tell at a glance that he is good at oil and water. , also wearing five or six people.
However, Lao Xu still asked cautiously: "This foreign master is so kind to you? He didn't ask you to work hard."
Wang Dazhi said disgustedly: "You have to work hard to get your turn. Ah! And you don’t know, we are also encircling and suppressing the land in East Africa. "Look, those natives are holding mallets and poles, and the better ones have stone spears. I can knock one down with one shot from a long distance. They are very weak."
Hearing this, Lao Xu waited. People began to think about it. What Wang Dazhi said really made people feel itchy. Who doesn't want to live such a good life? But who knows whether you, Wang Dazhi, have chosen the best.
“Brother Dazhi, this East Africa is so good, doesn’t it have any shortcomings?”
Wang Dazhi understood. This group of people were still worried, so he comforted him: "It's a good life. You won't believe me if I say there are no shortcomings. There is indeed one shortcoming."
"Brother Dazhi, what is it?" ?" several people asked curiously.
"The disadvantage is that there are too many old men there and too few women, but don't worry, when you go, you won't have to worry about a wife in the future."
"This Isn’t that contradictory? Brother Dazhi.”
“You are confused! Think about it, is it easy to find a wife in the Qing Dynasty? You are poor. After a few years in East Africa, you can save some money and take good care of yourself. When you come back, you will be strong and have money. Will that girl look down on you? "
Wang Dazhi then whispered to a few people: "To tell you the truth, I came back this time to solve the problem of my wife. The commander told me that when the time comes to return to Nanyang, he will spend money to buy me one in Nanyang. , there is a way there, of course, the premise is that I work hard!”
“Look, I have money now, I have a livelihood, and I even have a wife. Isn’t this what makes me prosperous? Are you lying? Come to the village to help me publicize it, especially those old bachelors. If you don’t act now, you will be single for the rest of your life!"
After hearing this, several people became anxious and said to Wang Dazhi: "Brother Dazhi. How many people are you recruiting? If there are too many people, don’t you want us?”
Wang Dazhi looked at the anxious people and waved: “An Xin. , Don't worry, you don't have to worry about being robbed. There is a lot of land over there, but there is a shortage of people. Come and get as many as you want. In this way, if you can recruit a few more people in the village, I can speak for you in front of the chief. A good word to find a good place."
When several people heard this, they quickly assured Wang Dazhi that he would definitely live up to his expectations. Soon the propaganda team went to the village to publicize it door to door. It's even more exaggerated than Wang Dazhi, just saying that East Africa is paradise. If it's late, you won't be able to eat hot food.
(End of this chapter)