At this moment, a horse-drawn carriage loaded with five or six barrels came from a fork in the road in the direction of the main street. As the carriage turned along the road and came to the street, John Hawkins, who was still running, spotted the carriage at a glance, and laughed secretly as he ran, "Just a ride to get rid of that Brady guy." ”

Thinking of this, he suddenly picked up speed and ran towards the rear of the carriage. When he ran very close to the rear of the carriage, he reached out and grabbed the door at the rear of the carriage, followed by two feet on the frame at the bottom of the carriage, and looked behind him like a victor.

"John, you stinky guy dare to cheat!" Brady yelled as he ran from behind.

"See you later, Brady." At this point, John was in a good mood and waved at his cousin, who was getting farther and farther away from him.

Breathing in and feeling the fresh sea breeze, admiring the houses and pedestrians on both sides of the street moving rapidly backwards in front of his eyes, the cool sea breeze made John feel comfortable from the outside in. He moved from the rear of the carriage to the coachman's side with both hands on the wooden carriage. The coachman, who was wielding a horsewhip to drive the carriage forward, glanced to the left and spotted him, and when he was about to reprimand loudly, he laughed kindly, "John Hawkins, how did you end up in my carriage?" ”

"Sir, the ship arrives late, and now I'm going home for dinner."

"Oh, you're worried about being reprimanded by Captain Hawkins, come here, sit next to me."

"Thank you very much, sir."

While the carriage was still moving forward rapidly, John climbed up to the coachman and sat down. Turning around and looking at the barrels in the carriage, he glanced at the coachman, "Sir, what's in there?" ”

The coachman's eyes were fixed on the road ahead, and his mouth said loudly, "Cane sugar and wine." ”

John nodded, his legs swinging back and forth under his seat, "I know, cane sugar is delivered to pharmacies and wine is delivered to taverns, right?" ”

"John, you're saying it well. You know, if your father hadn't led a fleet to Brazil to trade with the Portuguese, the merchants and gentlemen of Plymouth would have been left without sugar. ”

John smiled and looked at the coachman, then pointed his little finger to his stomach, "Sir, I know that cane sugar cleanses my belly, helps me pee, and makes my belly feel comfortable. ”

Captain Hawkins' son was right that by the 16th century, sugar had been a luxury and rarity, and was not used as a food in Europe and England, but more as a medicine. By this time, the medicinal properties of sucrose had been widely adopted throughout Europe, and its use was documented in detail, and sucrose began to be mentioned frequently in some English medical literature.

At this time, cane sugar was a valuable medicine sold in pharmacies, and only nobles, gentlemen, and wealthy merchants would take them when they were not sick, to show their noble status or to show off their prestige. Until the 18th century, it was still monopolized by a privileged few, and its use was usually mainly as medicine, spice or ornament.

"Sir, where are you going to send all this sugar and wine?" John, who was idle and had nothing to do, asked curiously.

"Oh, to North Prospector." The coachman said casually.

"North Prospector? Today's luck was too good. John Hawkins smiled lightly and turned to look at the coachman, "Sir, you can go to North Prospector just past the village of Stoke, where can you drop me off?" ”

"Drive...!" The coachman raised his whip again and turned his head to look at him, "Of course, because you're the son of Captain Hawkins." ”

Soon, the carriage stopped on the street in front of the Hawkins family domain after traveling less than two miles. John glanced at the tall iron fence gate of his estate, jumped out of the carriage and smiled and waved at the coachman, "Thank you very much, sir. ”

"I'll see you later, John." The coachman smiled and nodded, and drove the carriage back on the road.

John Hawkins entered the fence gate and bounced down the forest road towards the largest house to the north. The mood of returning home was joyful and relaxed, and John broke off a branch and played with it as he walked down the road. Before he knew it, when he came to the small square in front of the three-story house, he was surprised to find a strange sight.

His father, his uncle, the butler, and several captains and adjutants of the family, accompanied by a young woman in a cuirass, a sword at her waist, and high riding boots, were leaving the house and entering the small square. Not only that, but he found that the woman was followed by a young man dressed as a merchant and several young men with swords and spears.

John wondered who the young woman was, "Who is this guest?" She would let her father, uncle, and family members all accompany her? ”

"It seems that I have come to discuss trade matters with my father and uncle."

"But what kind of trade needs a woman to negotiate?"

Standing on the side of the road, tilting his little head in thought, a maritime lieutenant saw him and said a few words to his father. John saw his father suddenly turn his head and shouted at him, "John, come here." ”

"Yes, father." John threw down the branch and ran in the direction of the crowd.

When John came to the crowd, he was less than 5 feet tall and looked up at the group of adults in front of him. Just as he was about to salute his father, who was the patriarch, he saw his father commanding him, "John, salute this Miss Isabel quickly." ”

"Yes, father." John agreed, and turned his gaze to the young woman beside his father, and without daring to look at the young woman's face twice, he quickly bowed and said respectfully, "Good day, Miss Isabel." ”

With her left hand resting on the hilt of her handguard and her right hand on her waist, Isabel whispered with a smile on her face, "Good day, John Hawkins." ”

John's father, Captain Hawkins, explained with a smile, "Miss, this is my eldest son, John, who is a midshipman on the family merchant ship. ”

"Well, your eldest son looks very thin." Isabel looked at John twice, then looked at the captain on the side, "Captain, if you want your eldest son to inherit your family, you should give him more food that is good for his health." Besides, he started as a trainee sailor at such a young age, and the sea was a severe test for him. ”

Captain Hawkins smiled and nodded, "Yes, miss, I'll let the butler take you to the house now." I'll send someone to inform you before dinner. ”