Chapter 1708 is not simple
For these Spanish prisoners of war in the hard labor camps, the prison authorities only provided them with the most basic living conditions, and they needed to do heavy physical labor in exchange. Even Tan Juren, who advocated the implementation of the New Deal for the slave labor camps, would not be kind to the Spanish in this matter. What he wanted was a higher work efficiency for the slave laborers, not humane management. Therefore, once any Spanish prisoners try to resist the arrangements of the hard labor camp, they will be severely suppressed by force, and those who try to escape from prison will be shot to death. But even so, there will still be some Spanish prisoners secretly plotting in prison to try to change their situation.
Qin Huacheng carefully considered the purpose of this mission. He believed that in order to obtain valuable information from the Spanish prisoners, they must first gain their trust. And if this is to be accomplished in a short period of time, it may require some cooperation from the prison authorities.
On the way here, the guard who brought him here had already given him a general introduction to the Spanish prisoners on the construction site. Although these prisoners are all from Manila, they are not all in the same camp. Instead, they are divided into two relatively independent groups because of their different backgrounds. One group of people were all sailors from the original Manila Fleet, and the other group was from the city defense army originally commanded by Francis.
No matter which country it is, it is an innate instinct for the army and navy to compete for military expenditures and resources. This kind of internal contradiction is basically impossible to be completely resolved, and the Spanish will not be an exception, even if these people have become Haihan's prisoners still maintained their past habits and were automatically divided into two groups in the hard labor camp.
In fact, the resources that these two groups can compete for in the hard labor camp are not many, but as long as there is a fight, the winner must be determined. Whether it is the amount of food, the distribution of labor tasks, or who is more daring to confront the prison authorities in such a life-threatening matter, the two parties will have a desire to compete. Of course, the rivalry between the two gangs was also deliberately arranged by the prison authorities. Qin Bodu would even deliberately create some unbalanced situations to provoke the two gangs to fight each other.
Regarding the situation of these Spanish prisoners, Qin Bodu had already asked Qin Huacheng to do homework. As for how to take advantage of this situation, gain their trust and collect useful information, it mainly depends on Qin Huacheng's own on-the-spot performance.
The leader of the sailors is named Gago, and the leader of the city defense army is named Rodriguez. Both of them were low-level officers in the army in the past, so they have certain authority and appeal in their respective groups. Of course, it is unlikely that senior Spanish officers will appear in the hard labor camp in Xingdao, because most of those senior officers are imprisoned in Manila, and Haihan officials still hope to squeeze money from them through ransom payments, and these Low-level officers and ordinary soldiers had no property at all, so they could only be exiled to other colonies to work as coolies.
Qin Huacheng also thought about why Qin Bodu didn't just get rid of these two leaders. As long as there is no leader, these two groups will become a mess. But later he also figured out the reason. After dealing with these two people, maybe the newcomers who emerged would be more troublesome than them. Moreover, after the internal friction between these two groups was gone, the prison's custody pressure would definitely increase exponentially. However, It's better to keep them as leaders, knowing the basics will make it easier to control the situation.
In an environment like prison, it is very difficult for a prisoner to gain the trust of others, but there are many ways to gain favor. Qin Huacheng believes that the first step in establishing a good relationship with these Spanish prisoners is to try to win their favor. As a translator, it is not difficult to find or even create opportunities for performance.
Qin Huacheng soon found an opportunity during observation. A Spanish prisoner probably fainted from exhaustion after staying in the water for too long. If the prisoner next to him hadn't had quick eyesight and quick hands to fish him ashore, this guy would have been directly hit by the current. Rush into the Strait of Johor.
Usually when such an accident occurs, as long as no one is killed, the prison will not give the prisoner any special treatment, and he will have to continue working when he wakes up. If someone wants to take the opportunity to cause trouble, they can only call for severe suppression. But this time Qin Huacheng took the initiative and asked the guards to provide the fainted prisoner with medicine, dry clothes, and adequate rest time. Of course, these demands of his were obviously unlikely to be recognized by the guards, but instead they were almost served with batons.
When Qin Huacheng saw other Spanish prisoners standing nearby watching the show, he immediately informed them of his plan in Spanish. However, this did not win the appreciation of the Spanish prisoners, because they all knew that such a request would not be responded to. Even if the new Han translator looks righteous and righteous, in the eyes of the prisoners, it is just because he has not learned enough lessons. After being beaten, this guy may understand what requests can and cannot be made.
What happened next was just as Qin Huacheng planned. The guards beat him very cooperatively. Although it was an act, in order to pursue good results, Qin Huacheng also got a few hard blows on his face. Soon there were a few more bruises. After receiving this beating, Qin Huacheng still insisted on his request and refused to change, and performed the tough guy drama in front of a group of Spanish prisoners.
Although some Spaniards were still a little skeptical of this cruel trick, most people expressed their appreciation for Qin Huacheng's righteousness. He was able to persist in his own opinion despite being taught by the guards with batons. This kind of toughness is worthy of admiration, not to mention that he did not do it for Instead, he stood up for another Spanish prisoner whom they had never met before. This was probably the kindest Han Chinese they had seen since arriving on Star Island.
Of course, there is another reason for this general goodwill that cannot be ignored, that is, Qin Huacheng speaks fluent Spanish, which makes everyone consciously or unconsciously ignore his Han appearance and regard him as "one of their own."
So soon all the Spanish prisoners on the construction site knew that the new translator had a fight with the guards on the first day of work. Although he received a severe beating, it seemed that the Chinese translator was on their side.
Qin Huacheng's origins quickly became a matter of interest to the prisoners. He did not dare to report that he had served in the militia under the Manila City Defense Army, because many of these prisoners had served in the City Defense Army. Confrontation can easily reveal the truth. Therefore, Qin Huacheng claimed to be a descendant of immigrants from the Ming Dynasty who had lived in Manila for a long time. He was born and raised in Manila since he was a child. The reason why he was arrested and imprisoned was naturally because he chose to go against the Haihan people after his family was destroyed in the war.
During the short break, Qin Huacheng used his emotional description to convince the Spanish prisoners of the character he had just conceived at noon today, a Manila citizen who was persecuted by Haihan until he lost everything. After seeing these Spaniards moved by his description, Qin Huacheng was convinced that he really had a talent for acting. The two prison leaders, Gago and Rodriguez, did not take the initiative to make friends with Qin Huacheng, but they both conveyed their condolences to him through their subordinates. This kind of caution is understandable in Qin Huacheng's view. After all, he is a newcomer who has just entered this circle. It is unlikely that these prison leaders will accept him so quickly. Being able to express his stance is already a great progress.
When Qin Huacheng returned to the horn in Dongying District at night, Lin Xingsui was shocked when he saw the injuries on his face, and quickly asked him where he had been after disappearing all day. Qin Huacheng smiled bitterly and said that he was captured by the warden and sent to Xiying District to do hard work. As a result, he was injured on the first day of work.
"Congratulations, brother! You have established a relationship with the warden again so quickly. It must be related to the high-ranking Haihan official you met yesterday." Lin Xingsui said with envy. As for where the injuries on Qin Huacheng's face came from, Lin Xingsui did not ask further. Since it was an errand assigned by the warden, and someone dared to beat him like this, there was no need to guess. The one who did it must be the guard.
Qin Huacheng said: "Master Lin is joking, you can tell by looking at my face that this job is not easy to do!"
Lin Xingsui said sternly: "Since it's an errand assigned to you by the warden, I won't ask about the content. But the greater the risk, the greater the reward. You were beaten on the first day of work. I guess it will be after the job is completed." The rewards you can get are also great. Your three-year sentence may be shortened.”
Lin Xingsui's speculation was consistent with the situation Qin Huacheng encountered. Warden Qin Bodu had indeed agreed to Qin Huacheng's promise. After the incident was completed, his performance would be offset in proportion to his sentence, so he was willing to take the risk. This errand. Of course, as for what Qin Bodu asked him to do, he would never reveal it to Lin Xingsui. As the saying goes, you know the person but not the heart. Qin Huacheng had already suffered a big loss in Manila, and he would never make the same mistake again.
Lin Xingsui had a conversation with Qin Huacheng, and saw that the other party was tight-lipped and refused to reveal any information. He was not a dazed young man who couldn't tell the important things. He knew that the matter might involve a lot, so he took the initiative to stop discussing the topic and went to read it. He brought out a small porcelain bottle, saying it was a private collection of tumbledown wine, and asked Qin Hucheng to rub the injured area. After Qin Huacheng thanked him, he rubbed the injured area with medicinal wine and it seemed to feel better.
Qin Huacheng didn't sleep well that night. On the one hand, the injury on his face ached slightly, and on the other hand, he kept thinking about how to get the information he wanted from these Spanish prisoners. Qin Huacheng didn't think he could make the Spaniards trust him after performing the trick today. At most, he would gain some goodwill. Moreover, this trick must not be used repeatedly, otherwise it would be easily seen through. Of course, he really didn't want to feel like being beaten again.
Qin Huacheng did not dare to choose a radical and adventurous route, and Qin Bodu did not set a specific time limit for him, so he decided to take it step by step and gradually build mutual trust with the Spanish prisoners. This meant that he could no longer be a quiet spectator in many matters, but had to get involved in the work and life of Spanish prisoners, which invisibly made this task more difficult.
But in order to escape from the hard labor camp as soon as possible, Qin Huacheng had no choice but to bite the bullet and continue working even though he knew the risks and drawbacks of his job. And even if he regrets and wants to quit midway, the warden will definitely not let him go easily.
After a week of this, the two prisoner leaders finally came forward to talk to him in person. But the purpose of both Gago and Rodriguez is very clear, that is, they want to recruit Qin Huacheng to join their camp, and then use Qin Huacheng's special identity to gradually connect the Hispanics in the entire Second Battalion of Hard Labor. Prisoner.
"If we can organize an armed riot of three to five hundred people, we can occupy the camp in a short time, seize weapons, take everyone here as hostages, and demand freedom from the Haihan people. You follow us Let’s do it together, and when we leave this hellish place, we will take you with us too!”
"As long as we have enough intelligence information, we can organize a quick operation. I have more than a hundred professional soldiers under my command. Their combat effectiveness is no worse than that of the Haihan people. All they lack is weapons. If you can help us get it To get weapons, we only need one night to turn this place upside down and then leave here!”
The two prisoner leaders expressed their plans to Qin Huacheng respectively. As expected, they both planned to launch an armed riot, but they were stuck in the implementation process due to limited conditions. Warden Qin Bodu expected that, but he did not expect that the Spaniards' ideas were still far from being implemented. For Qin Huacheng, if the Spaniards' plan was just an idea, the severity of the crime would obviously be very limited. Even if the two leaders were sentenced to extended prison terms, I'm afraid it wouldn't be too long. Calculated in proportion. , the benefits Qin Huacheng can get are even more limited.
But if he really wanted to provide more information to these Spanish prisoners and help them connect with the Spanish prisoners in the hard labor camp, Qin Huacheng was not so bold. This kind of thing was too risky, and he would overturn if he was not careful. Moreover, the request given to him by Warden Qin Bodu was to investigate the unusual movements of Hispanic prisoners, rather than to actively create abnormal movements. If he applied to Qin Bodu for permission to act, he would definitely be rejected.
Qin Huacheng thought about it and the only more feasible way was to drag more people into the water, so as to increase the rewards he could get afterwards. Since the Hispanic prisoners wanted to organize a riot in the hard labor camp, this kind of operation obviously could not be accomplished by just two prisoner leaders. As long as Qin Huacheng could get a list of participants, he could get twice the result with half the effort.
(End of chapter)