Chapter 553 Li Nai’s routine
After the banquet, Li Nai invited Yan Mingjun and Li Jin to his home as promised. Other alternate officials, their families, subordinates, and servants can only live in temporary residences arranged for them by the local port management office—what the Haihan people call guest houses. Yan Mingjun also visited the place where he lived in the afternoon. Although it was just a two-story wooden inn with simple conditions, it was clean and tidy, and the living environment was much better than the living environment on the ship.
However, their fleet, which temporarily stayed overnight at Lijiazhuang Pier, had its activity area restricted to the vicinity of the pier, and could not even go to Lijiazhuang, which was one mile away. When Yan Mingjun and Li Jin followed Li Nai out of the dock area, they discovered that there were indeed red and white warning lines drawn on the ground at the entrance and exit, and there were armed militiamen on duty. It seems that the activity area Li Jiang mentioned earlier on the ship is not a fiction, but a rule that is actually being implemented.
Beyond this isolation line is a larger activity area, including an immigrant camp that can accommodate thousands of people, and Lijiazhuang, which currently has more than 1,300 residents. Outside this large activity area, that is the area that truly falls under the jurisdiction of Panyu County, Guangzhou Prefecture of the Ming Dynasty.
After encountering the banditry that almost destroyed Lijiazhuang three years ago, the Li family learned their lesson and specially asked the Haihan Ministry of Construction and the military to redesign Lijiazhuang's peripheral defense system and built a perimeter around the village. The ring-fort-style defensive wall is similar in shape to the Victory Fort in Sanya. The wall is 1.23 feet high, with concealed forts arranged at regular intervals. There are also deep trenches outside the fortifications, which introduce Pearl River water came to strengthen defense.
According to the design standards, when the weapons, ammunition and combat personnel are in full order, the defense of Lijiazhuang Fortress cannot be broken by a small group of armed forces. Even if the regular army of the Ming Dynasty comes, they will have to use their heads to consume the ammunition of the defenders. There is hope that we can capture this place. Once the personnel stationed in Guangzhou find that the situation is not good, they can first withdraw here from the Guangdong Office, and then rely on the local defense facilities to hold on until reinforcements arrive.
Li Jin is naturally a discerning person. Although it was getting dark at this time, Twilight could still see the general appearance of the castle clearly. Although Li Jin didn't quite understand the meaning of this strange-shaped outer wall, he recognized the fort facilities on the wall. Not caring about being abrupt at the moment, he asked Li Nai: "Master Li, can I go up to the top of this wall? Can you let me go up and have a look?"
Li Nai smiled and rejected his request: "I'm afraid it's hard to obey. The bastion in Lijiazhuang was designed and supervised by the Haihan people. The Haihan people don't want their skills in building fortifications to be copied by others, especially this Regarding the construction method of the fortress, I signed a confidentiality agreement with them and paid a large price before they were willing to help me build this fortification in Lijiazhuang. Except for the militia and clan elders, no one else was allowed to go up there without permission. ”
Li Jin muttered: "You are so mysterious and ghostly, is it really so powerful?"
Li Nai just smiled and didn't answer. He had witnessed with his own eyes how powerful Haihan's artillery was. Ordinary bandits and bandits are nothing to mention. Even the regular army of the Ming Dynasty cannot take advantage of the Lijiazhuang militia provided by Haihan and trained by him. Now the Panyu County government does not dare to intervene in the affairs of the Lijiazhuang area. This is largely because the civilian armed forces here are actually far superior to the official ones. In addition, the Li family is now one of the most wealthy people in Guangdong. Open Who would want to meddle in someone else's business when you can get money every year if you close your eyes.
Yan Mingjun had been a local official for many years and had a more personal experience of the situation of these civilian armed forces. In fact, civilian armed forces exist everywhere, but the degree differs. And Lijiazhuang is indeed the best Yan Mingjun has ever seen. The militia soldiers here are almost all issued with matchlock guns made in Haihan, and the gray military uniforms they wear are the same as those of the Haihan militia, except that the uniforms of the Haihan militia are There are badges representing military rank on the collar and chest, but the Lijiazhuang Vigilante Group only has a white clan emblem with the word "Li" sewn on the chest.
Li Nai has already married and has his own house in Lijiazhuang. After the Li family cooperated with Haihan, Li Nai, as an avid fan of Haihan culture, renovated his house in accordance with the style of the Guangdong Office in Guangdong. The boiler room, bathroom equipment, and sewage system were all copied from Haihan. Chinese style, all custom made in Sanya. If shipping and installation costs are included, the value of his house is much more expensive than the villa he bought in Sanya.
Many wealthy households in the entire Pearl River Delta region have installed various living facilities produced by Haihan in their homes. However, it is still extremely rare for people like Li Nai to completely renovate their homes. Cost is one aspect, and another aspect is the cost. On the one hand, it is also because many things that need to be customized cannot be solved with money. If we didn't maintain a close relationship with Haihan, it would be difficult for the production workshop to allocate personnel to make these customized small batches or even individual products.
In the eyes of outsiders, these special customized products are really something extraordinary. After entering the courtyard, I saw the cement path in the courtyard. Yan Mingjun had seen it before when he was in Luodingzhou. But when he went to the study room, he saw the double wooden framed glass windows inlaid with one-foot-square plate glass. The floor-to-ceiling inlaid The glass door really frightened him. After entering the room, Yan Mingjun's eyes were firmly attracted when he saw various Haihan glass stationery on the desk.
Of course, he also has a few collections of glass stationery introduced by Haihan people. Of course, he didn't buy it with his own money. Naturally, some people would give these popular items in the cultural circle as gifts. Yan Mingjun also loved this kind of crystal-clear Four Treasures of the Study, and had thought about collecting it for a long time. However, after he inquired about the price of the high-end version of Haihan glass stationery, he had no choice but to give up this plan - the high-end customized version was easily available. It's just a few hundred taels of silver. His annual income can only be spent on two or three sets, and he really can't afford it.
However, these collections in Li Nai's study really opened Yan Mingjun's eyes. Although he couldn't afford the real thing, he had seen the illustrated books, and almost all of the special limited editions could be found in this study.
"Brother Jun Gu also likes these Haihan glass stationery?" Li Nai saw Yan Mingjun's eyes light up after entering the study, and naturally knew what he cared about, so he took the initiative to ask.
Yan Mingjun sighed: "To be honest, Brother Chuanrong, although I have a preference in this area, my money is tight, so I can only buy some cheap items for my collection. I can never afford the high-end suits like the ones here from Brother Chuanrong." .”
Li Nai smiled and said: "It doesn't matter. If Brother Jungu likes something, I will give it to Brother Jungu as a farewell gift."
"How can this be done!" Yan Mingjun quickly declined.
Li Nai waved his hand, indicating that there was no need to debate the matter anymore, invited the two of them to sit down, and then asked the servants to pour tea and bring cakes.
"Li Jin, a simpleton like me, can't understand this glass stationery, but the doors and windows of Mr. Li's study are quite unique. I'm afraid it's expensive, right?" Li Jin's attention is still on the doors and windows inlaid with plate glass. In his opinion, this thing is much more practical than those glass furnishings. "The prices on the market are naturally very expensive." Li Nai nodded and replied: "But after several years of dealing with the Haihan people, I have some friendship. The price they supply to me is naturally Much lower than the market price. These two sandalwood-framed glass doors are estimated to cost about a thousand taels on the market, but I can get them for about 300 taels of silver. If you want to buy them after you go to Qiongzhou Island. For real estate, if you want to purchase these novelties from Haihan, you can ask the local 'Furuifeng' firm to purchase them for you. The price will definitely be cheaper than buying them from Haihan people yourself."
Yan Mingjun smiled bitterly and said: "It costs a few hundred taels to buy a door, but not even tens of thousands of taels to buy a courtyard?"
Li Nai said sternly: "I heard that both of you went to Danzhou to take office. The housing prices in that place haven't risen yet. You should be able to buy a nice courtyard with two to three thousand taels of silver. But in one or two years, the price will be low." I’m going to pursue Sanya. If you plan to buy real estate, you might as well do it as soon as you get there.”
"Sanya? Isn't that the hometown of Haihan people? Are houses sold very expensive?" Li Jin asked without knowing why.
"The starting price for a two-entry courtyard is five thousand taels, and it does not include any supporting facilities. If you want to buy everything, the price will almost double." Li Nai explained.
"So expensive!" Li Jin was so frightened that he almost jumped up from his chair: "The yards in Guangzhou can't be sold at this price. Then Sanya is in such a remote place, and it can be sold at such a high price. Could it be that Haihan people Is there any suspicion of forced buying and selling? ”
"Forced buying and selling?" Li Nai smiled and shook his head and said: "Now it's not a question of whether it's expensive or not, but whether it's affordable. Even if you buy it with cash, you still have to wait in line for Haihan Construction The Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development’s Housing Management Office has issued a number for sale. Now, eight out of ten businesses in Guangdong and Guangxi have purchased real estate in Sanya. They all brought their own money to purchase, and there was no forced purchase or sale. .”
"The local housing prices are so scary, why do businessmen still flock to them?" Yan Mingjun asked puzzledly.
"It's very simple, for the convenience of doing business." Li Nai continued to explain: "The two ports in Sanya are now far more prosperous than the Pearl River Wharf in Guangzhou, and comparable to large ports like Quanzhou and Zhangzhou. And almost all merchant ships going to Nanyang trade will Sanya is a transit station, and the prosperity of local business is beyond the imagination of the two of them now. Although it costs a lot to buy a house, considering that there are all kinds of big businessmen living around, it is very convenient to do business. This money can be earned back in just one or two years. Being able to afford the best housing in the area is also a symbol of financial strength. For businessmen, buying real estate in Sanya is a very cost-effective investment. "
"Even if it costs two to three thousand taels, I'm afraid I can't afford it!" Yan Mingjun shook his head helplessly. In order to seize the opportunity to be transferred to Qiongzhou Island, he spent almost all his savings to get through various connections. If there was any money left to buy real estate, he would probably have to live in the government office first.
"Brother Jun Gu, there is no need to worry about this. If you want a house, the Haihan people will prepare it for you." Li Nai began to give ecstasy to Yan Mingjun and Li Jin: "Buy a good courtyard in Danzhou City , help you take care of everything, just carry your luggage and you can check in directly.”
Yan Mingjun is not a fool. He naturally knows that there will be no free pie in the sky, so he immediately asked: "What conditions will the Haihan people have?"
"The conditions should be very simple. At most, they will ask you to cooperate in handling local government and military affairs." Li Nai avoided the important and said lightly: "Brother Jun Gu, you can rest assured that we will never ask you to do anything embarrassing."
As for what constitutes embarrassment, whether it is turning a blind eye to local affairs or betraying the Ming court, Li Nai did not explain. As long as these two people reach out and take the benefits given by Haihan, many things will no longer be left to their own decision. Of course, if possible, Li Nai hopes to persuade them to voluntarily serve Haihan.
"There is no rush about this matter. Let's wait until we go to Qiongzhou Island and see the local environment before making a decision!" Yan Mingjun is not a young man, and he will not be fooled by Li Nai's few words. There was no rush to express his position at the moment.
At this time, the servants also brought hot tea and cakes, and Li Nai changed the subject and talked with the two about his various experiences in Sanya. For people living in the environment of Ming Dynasty, everything in Sanya is completely another world, and Yan Mingjun and Li Jin are no exception. The experiences Li Nai talked about were completely novel to them. Giant iron ships that could float on the sea, heavy iron cars that could run as fast as flying, and all kinds of unheard-of new things were constantly coming out of Li Nai's mouth. , making them all stunned.
The two of them would interrupt Li Nai's narration from time to time and ask questions about points of interest to them, and Li Nai would patiently answer them one by one. However, there were also many issues that Li Nai didn't quite understand, so he could only deal with them with excuses such as "Hihan's secret technique must not be leaked." The goal he wanted to achieve was not to popularize Haihan knowledge about the two officials who were about to take office, but to arouse their curiosity. This was one of the strategies Ning Qi taught him.
As long as outsiders become interested in the wonders of Haihan, they are likely to be continuously brainwashed and indoctrinated in the process of contacting Haihan culture and business circles. After a long period of repeated brainwashing, it was difficult for even Ming officials with official status to remain loyal to the Ming Dynasty.
(End of chapter)