Chapter 552 Soft Nail
The man bowed and said: "I am Li Jiang, the clerk of the local port management office. Before you two get off the ship, you need to check the people on the ship against the registered list."
"What does this mean?" Li Jin frowned and said, "Do you suspect that there are some unidentified people on this ship?"
Li Jiang responded in a neither humble nor arrogant manner: "This is the rule at Lijiazhuang Pier. I'm just doing things according to routine. If you two adults don't want to cause trouble, then it's okay if you don't do anything, but the people on this ship will not be allowed to disembark."
Li Jin immediately became angry: "How can you, a commoner, have the courage to point your fingers at the imperial officials! What right do you have to prohibit us from taking action!"
But Li Jiang was unmoved and still said calmly: "My lord, it's useless no matter how loud you yell at me. These rules were not set by me, and I have no ability to change the rules here. If you If you are dissatisfied, you can order the ship to turn around and leave here. The other side of the river is not the territory of Lijiazhuang, and there is no need to abide by these rules."
"You guy..." When Li Jin heard this, he felt that he was even more angry. He rolled up his sleeves and planned to teach this disrespectful guy a lesson.
Yan Mingjun, with quick hands and quick eyes, quickly reached out to stop Li Jin and said to Li Jiang: "As for rules, this Lijiazhuang belongs to the Ming Dynasty and should abide by the rules set by the Ming Dynasty court. Are the private rules of your Lijiazhuang bigger than those of the imperial court? ”
Li Jiang glanced at Yan Mingjun and his tone suddenly became cold: "In the first year of Chongzhen, Lijiazhuang was besieged by thousands of bandits. At that time, the village sent people to ask for help from Guangzhou Prefecture. However, the adults seemed to have forgotten that this place belonged to the Ming Dynasty. There was no intention of sending troops to rescue them. At that time, no one told the people here what the Ming Dynasty was doing!”
This Li Jiang was originally from Lijiazhuang. When Lijiazhuang was besieged by rogue bandits, he was one of the people who witnessed it. He was very impressed by this period of history. Lijiazhuang is also an area with a high degree of Haihan control. Many people in Lijiazhuang chose to join Haihan's hometown after that battle, in order to be able to get Haihan people in time in case they were once again attacked by bandits. group's rescue. Li Jiang is also one of them. He was assigned a job immediately after naturalization and was specifically responsible for negotiating foreign civilian and merchant ships.
"You..." Yan Mingjun was choked by Li Jiang's words and was unable to refute. During the bandit turmoil in the first year of Chongzhen, bandits and bandits roamed everywhere, which made the security situation in Guangdong and Guangxi a mess. Lijiazhuang was not the only place that encountered banditry. However, Panyu County is within easy reach of Guangzhou City. After receiving the local request for help, the defenders remained stationary and watched Lijiazhuang being besieged by rogue bandits. This is unjustifiable in any case.
This behavior of the Guangzhou garrison has also been remembered by the people in Panyu County, especially Lijiazhuang. In the end, if the Haihan Militia had not arrived for reinforcements, it is really difficult to say whether Lijiazhuang would have been captured by the rogue bandits. As for the original resentment of being isolated and helpless, the people naturally remembered it on the government and the court.
After all, Yan Mingjun was a scholar, but he was not as impulsive as Li Jin. He quickly calmed down and asked, suppressing his displeasure, "How long do you need?"
"Please ask the two adults to call out all the people on the ship. After checking the list, the two adults can land." Li Jiang responded.
Before Li Jin could say anything, several people came up from the springboard on the shore. They were all wearing gray cloth shorts and holding five-foot-long firecrackers in their hands. They looked at Yan and Li with eager eyes. . When Li Jin reached the point of protest, he immediately turned it into saliva and swallowed it back in his stomach. Before he boarded the ship, Liu Qian warned him not to conflict with the militiamen on the territory controlled by the Haihan people, because most of the soldiers in the militia came from the Limiao and Annan ethnic groups, and many people only knew Haihan. The Executive Committee does not know that there is a court. If there is any trouble with the militia, it will not be worthwhile for these stupid militiamen to directly attack them.
In desperation, Yan Mingjun could only ask people to call all the people on the ship and gather them on the deck so that Li Jiang could check as soon as possible.
In fact, Li Jiang's actions were indeed under the instructions of his superiors, and he was not usually so strict in investigations. What's more, this ship originally belonged to the Ministry of Shipping, and the crew and sailors were all naturalized citizens. If there was anything unusual on the ship, these crew members would have jumped out to expose it. The Lijiazhuang Port Management Office arranged such a link mainly to impress upon these alternate officials their power and sharpen their spirit.
Li Jiang's head count was a symbolic process, and it was completed in a moment. After nodding the heads, Li Jiang bowed to Yan Mingjun and Li Jin and said: "Thank you two adults for your cooperation. Now we can land ashore. But please try to stay within the scope of activities we have designated to ensure the safety of adults and their families." Personal safety.”
"Hey, we've also defined the range of activities!" Li Jin responded angrily and amusedly: "I don't know how big the range of activities is. Can it allow me to do a few somersaults?"
Li Jiang said without changing his expression: "After the two adults arrive at the pier, as long as they don't go out of the area separated by red lines on the ground. As for whether they can do somersaults, this adult can do it happily after landing!"
Before Li Jin could attack again, Li Jiang retreated on his own. Yan Mingjun smiled bitterly and said: "Brother Li, this Lijiazhuang is known as the No. 1 village on the Pearl River. I don't know about other things, but at least it seems that it has the most rules."
The so-called "No. 1 Village on the Pearl River" has only slowly emerged in Guangzhou in the past year or two. Since the banditry in the first year of Chongzhen, Lijiazhuang has conducted in-depth cooperation with Haihan. Not only has it built immigration transfer camps, large comprehensive docks, Lijiazhuang military training base and other facilities, but the local social management system has also gradually integrated with Haihan. Areas under Han rule became more unified. For example, most of the regulations and measures formulated by the Lijiazhuang Port Management Office copied those of Shengli Port and Sanya Port. Haihan's successful experience in port and terminal operations has also prevented the very few opposition parties in Lijiazhuang from making a strong voice at all.
With Haihan's support, Lijiazhuang's permanent population has doubled several times in just two years. In addition to the population in the immigration transfer camps, an increasing number of migrants have come to settle near Lijiazhuang, working directly or indirectly for the Haihan people. Even among the local people in Lijiazhuang, a considerable number of people, like Li Jiang, chose to work for Haihan.
Due to Lijiazhuang's special location in the Pearl River Basin, the wharf here has quickly become one of the cargo distribution centers on the Pearl River. In order to avoid being exploited by the municipal shipping company at the Guangzhou City Wharf, many ships that trafficked goods from other places to Guangdong chose to unload the goods at Lijiazhuang, and then transported the goods to Guangzhou and other places. As a result, Lijiazhuang's economy was quickly boosted, and its prosperity even exceeded that of Panyu County. In addition, the public security here was also excellent, so it was dubbed the "No. 1 Village on the Pearl River" by the people.
The two of them got off the gangplank to the shore. When they saw that the first few ships that had docked first were still getting people off, they knew that what Li Jiang said was true. This fleet was probably no exception. All ships had to accept the local people first. Only those on board can disembark after an inspection by the port agency. It was the first time for Li Jin to step on this kind of concrete ground. He couldn't help but rub his feet on the ground. Finally, he squatted down and touched the ground. Then he praised it with unsatisfied words: "This Haihan Cement The material is so smooth, and each piece is two feet square. I don’t know how the Haihan people paved such a large area.”
Yan Mingjun laughed dumbly and said: "Brother Li, this cement is not cut stone bricks, but is as solid as mud. The pieces you see on the ground are actually the marks framed by wooden strips when paving the road. After limiting the area in this way, it will also facilitate the construction of road paving and make the road surface smoother. ”
Li Jin suddenly realized: "So it's just that I am ignorant and embarrassed."
Yan Mingjun said: "The Haihan people have endlessly mastered all kinds of strange skills and ingenuity. Even I have many things I have never seen before. Brother Li, don't mind. I heard that there is a kind in Yazhou that does not require animal power and can run quickly by boiling water. This strange black iron car is like a horse, and it can also pull a load of ten thousand kilograms. If there is a chance, you and I should go and see it.”
Li Jin sighed: "These Haihan people have so many secret arts in their hands, and they have endless gold and silver to back them up. It's no wonder they can inspire the people to work for them."
"What you two said is different. This is not some mysterious technique. Haihan people call it 'science'. It is difficult for others to understand. They just don't understand the reason." Suddenly someone interrupted from the side, and the two of them looked sideways. He saw a young man wearing a blue satin robe with longevity characters.
Yan Mingjun saw how he was dressed, and the hat on his waist and head were both inlaid with jade stones. He knew that this person must have a high status, and he had never seen this person before, so he took the initiative to greet him: "I haven't asked, who is this brother?" ”
"I don't dare to take it seriously. I am Li Nai, courtesy name Chuanrong, and a local. You two adults are so polite!" The young man talking to the two officials was none other than Li Nai, one of the owners of Lijiazhuang, Mr. Li San.
Yan Mingjun saw that Li Nai was polite and polite, so he was probably not an ordinary rich man, so he chatted a few more words, and found out that Li Nai was one of the heads of the Li family village, and that he was also a member of the family, and was related to him. It was fate that he passed the national examination in the same year.
After exchanging pleasantries about academic qualifications, Yan Mingjun took the initiative to ask: "Since you and I are of the same age, we should be on a par with each other. I just heard from Brother Rong that he seems to be very familiar with Haihan's situation?"
Li Nai responded: "Then I'm being disrespectful. Since Brother Jungu asked about it, I'll tell you about the relationship between Haihan and Lijiazhuang."
Li Nai started from the time when the Haihan people first arrived in Yulin, how they established a foothold in the local area, how they then connected with the "Furuifeng" trade line, and how the two sides began to cooperate. Talking about the experience of going to Victory Port for the first time, Li Nai also had many feelings: "At that time, I just thought that these overseas visitors were quite business-minded, but I never thought that they could develop to what they are today in just a few years. However, In terms of their abilities, even if their achievements are ten times or a hundred times more, they are just around the corner.”
It was the first time for both Yan Mingjun and Li Jin to hear someone talk about their experiences in the Haihan settlement in such detail, and they both listened attentively. It wasn't until a servant came over to invite them to the dinner that the three of them stopped talking.
Yan Mingjun said: "Brother Chuanrong, if it is convenient, can I bother you again after the banquet?"
"Brother Jun Gu, you're welcome. We'll invite you two next time. We'll rest in the village tonight and set off with the fleet tomorrow." Li Nai also likes to socialize with people. It's rare that there are people today. He was so willing to listen to him promote Haihan culture, and he also wanted to talk more about it.
The reception banquet prepared for these candidate officials was also arranged by the Guangdong Office. During the banquet, the local temporary supervisor Sha Xi also came forward to meet with the officials. However, Sha Xi didn't have many plans to get close to these officials, because he knew very well that these officials would be ignored after arriving on Hainan Island, and they would have no real power to exercise. The reception banquet arranged now was actually to observe these officials. Are there any dangerous people with a more radical attitude among the people, so that Hainan Island can prepare early.
In addition to the banquet, Sha Xi also arranged a place for these officials to stay overnight - a local guest house specially used to receive visitors from the base camp. There are more than twenty rooms in total, all of which are fully occupied. However, in the second half of the banquet, when people started to register for accommodation, Sha Xi received a report that Yan Mingjun and Li Jin were not planning to stay in the guest house, but were invited to spend the night at Li's house in Lijiazhuang.
Sha Xi found an excuse to leave the banquet hall and asked someone to call Li Nai out. Li Nai also understood why Sha Xi was looking for him, so he took the initiative and said: "Director Sha, this Master Yan and I were elected in the same year, and we have some friendship. We talked about it just now, and we can be considered to have reached an agreement. So, I took the initiative to invite them to Zhuangzi. Although Mr. Li is a martial artist, he is not an unreasonable person. I think that if the measures are taken properly, these two people can win over."
Sha Xi laughed dumbly and said: "Well, Li Nai, you took the initiative to take over all these jobs that were originally supposed to be done by the Security Department! I will say hello to Mr. He later and simply recruit you into the Security Department as a special agent. It’s time to invite guests!”
Li Nai did not shy away and said with a smile: "If Mr. He wanted to bring me into the team, he would have spoken out long ago. I don't need Director Lao Sha's recommendation. I'm not too busy, I just think these two people can get along well, and I want to give it a try." Can it change their view of Haihan? ”
Sha Xi nodded and said: "Since you have this intention, I won't stop you. But you know our policies. You have to know what you should say and what you shouldn't say."
Li Nai bowed and said, "Don't worry, Director Sha, there will be news tomorrow."
(End of chapter)