Chapter 2519
When they left Kaohsiung and headed north along the west coast of Taiwan Island, several young people had the idea of going to Taiyuan Port to find out the details of the Dutch. However, there was no such itinerary and they did not want to cause trouble, so they finally restrained their curiosity. . However, when I came to Zhoushan Dinghai Port, I saw the Dutch industry up close this time. Now I could go and see its business conditions with my own eyes.
Ning Zijing, who was in the lead, stopped the carriage, and the following cars also stopped. Ning Zijing got out of the car and asked the others if they wanted to visit the Dutch store. Tao Hongfang and others immediately agreed.
The group soon arrived at the gate of the Dutch Store. This building was significantly different from the surrounding Chinese-style buildings that were mainly wooden structures. The entire store was made of red bricks and stones, with a total of three floors. . On the ground floor facing the street, there are multiple arches connected in series to form a corridor. The windows are all white lattice windows, and these windows are all inlaid with glass. It can be imagined that the construction cost is not low.
The main entrance leading to the store is an archway one foot high and more than six feet wide, and there is an open space circled outside the door for parking cars and horses. Above the main entrance is a herringbone vault, and a flagpole is erected on the top. What is hanging is the red, white and blue flag with the VOC logo that Ning Zijing saw in the car earlier.
They had seen such a conspicuous flag at the Dutch office in Sanya, so Ning Zijing was able to identify the building at a glance.
As soon as the group of people stood outside the gate, a sharp-eyed waiter saw that they were extraordinary and had an entourage, so he immediately came over to greet them. Ning Zijin saw that this guy was actually a Han Chinese, so he jokingly asked: "Your boss is Dutch, right? Can you understand him?"
The waiter responded: "This young master is right. My boss is indeed Dutch, but he also understands our Chinese Mandarin, and he speaks it very well. Please take a seat inside, and I will go and invite the boss." Come out and meet everyone.”
Upon hearing this, several young people became curious. They immediately asked the waiter to lead the way, and the group entered the Dutch store.
Entering through the door and passing through the porch, there is actually a large patio, which is ten feet square. There were several flatbed trucks parked in the courtyard, and a lot of goods were piled up. It looked like there should be other entrances for vehicles and horses to enter and exit. The laborers who were busy loading and unloading goods in the courtyard were basically all Han Chinese in appearance and body shape. When I contacted the clerk, he said that the boss could also speak Haihan Mandarin. It can be seen that this store is full of locals from top to bottom. Become.
The waiter led them to a reception room on the second floor, served tea, and asked them to wait here for a while.
Taking advantage of this time, everyone also took a look at the furnishings in the room. Presumably in order to cater to local customers, the tables, chairs and furniture in the reception room are all in a relatively obvious Chinese style, and the materials and workmanship are not popular, and the cost should not be low.
Ning Zijing joked: "It seems that apart from the architectural style, this place doesn't have much traces of the Netherlands."
Bai Letong also agreed: "That's true. If you just look at the decoration of this reception room, I think it looks like a business inn in the south."
Hot tea was served later, and sure enough, even the tea sets were produced by the official kiln in Jingdezhen, Jiangxi Province. It can be seen that the boss here is quite knowledgeable, and he showed his understanding of Han culture in such details.
Not long after, a red-haired man hurriedly arrived. After entering the room, he held his hands to several people and said, "I've kept you waiting for so long!"
This speech was actually in Hainanese Mandarin with a smooth accent. Although Tao Hongfang and others were mentally prepared after hearing what the waiter said before, they were still slightly shocked when a Dutchman spoke with such a standard accent. .
The red-haired man continued to introduce himself: "I am Peter De Jong, the person in charge of this store. You can call me Peter." "It turns out to be the shopkeeper Pi, whom I have admired for a long time!"
Although Tao Hongfang and others were here for the first time, they still greeted the person in charge with due courtesy.
"I don't dare to take it seriously, haven't you asked me yet?" Of course Peter could tell that these young people were not ordinary. In addition to their clothes and demeanor, even the few followers standing behind were all very capable. .
He guessed that these young masters from powerful families were traveling together, but they did not necessarily come to discuss business with him. But being able to make friends with these people may come in handy in the future, so he was still very polite and hoped to find out the identities of these people first.
Tao Hongfang introduced everyone, but did not give their names, only their surnames, so that if the other party heard their names, their origins would be exposed.
"...I was going north and passed through Zhoushan, so I decided to take a day's rest at Dinghai Port and go ashore for a walk. When I walked nearby, I happened to see your store with its unique appearance, so I came uninvited. I'm going to be a big nuisance!"
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Tao Hongfang made up a random reason. He thought that Peter was a smart man and would not change his attitude or turn them away just because their purpose was unknown.
As expected, Peter didn't take this seriously and said enthusiastically: "So you are all from the south, so please allow me to make a bold guess. Judging from your accent, you should be from Hainan Island... No, to be precise, He should be from Sanya, right?”
Tao Hongfang responded noncommittally: "It seems that Shopkeeper Pi is very familiar with the situation in our country's capital!"
Pete responded with a smile: "I have a lot of connection with Sanya, because I came to Sanya when I was very young and lived there for several years. I also learned Haihan dialect there. What do you think? ”
"You speak very standardly! If I just listened to you talk, it would be hard for me to imagine that you are a Dutchman." Tao Hongfang praised sincerely. He didn't expect that this person had lived in Sanya for a long time. Fortunately, he didn't give out his name rashly, otherwise his identity might be exposed.
But Peter didn't seem to think so much, and continued to say excitedly: "Sanya is one of my favorite cities, just like I like Batavia and Zhoushan. Every time I go to Sanya, I will sigh. What a miracle on earth! This magical city is enough to prove that Haihan is a greater oriental civilization than the Ming Dynasty!”
Pete's generous praise quickly won the favor of young people. They had seen many foreigners in Sanya who could speak Hai-Han dialect, but most of them were stumbling and couldn't express themselves well. It is extremely rare to be able to use it as freely as Peter, and to do it right away. Presumably, Peter was not telling lies, because indeed only people who grew up in Sanya can have such a pure accent.
(End of chapter)