Huatong & Co.'s recruitment of overseas workers has become the focus of the most attention among refugees outside Jinan. Pen, fun, pavilion www. biquge。 As long as you sign up and sign the contract, you will immediately get five silver dollars and a small bag of white rice as a settlement fee. That's not all, the nearby labor camp wafts with the aroma of rice and meat, and the thick meat porridge torments the nerves of every refugee. Alas, it's good to be good, but it's a pity that I have to leave my hometown, saying that I went to a distant foreign country to work as a Chinese laborer. It is said to be Africa, but no one can say where Africa is.

"It's worth it to go abroad to be a fart ball, just to drink meat porridge."

A man jumped up from the ground, stumbled straight to the registration place, leaving behind the crying woman and child.

"Yes, I'm going to drink porridge."

"Let's go, drink porridge."

In response, many refugees who were still hesitant were stirred up, and it didn't take long for a large number of people to gather outside the registration point.

"Line up, don't crowd, come one by one."

Spy Yijiu pulled his neck and shouted, but no one listened to him. Crowding exaggerates the mood of refugees, and people become more noisy and therefore more crowded.

Suddenly, the sound of iron chains sounded, and the white missionaries walked in front, and the young man who was chained hand and foot was escorted by the official officials and followed behind. Seeing the official coming, the crowd calmed down a little. Taking this opportunity, Spy Yijiu finally gathered the refugees who were going to sign up into a rough formation.

"Huatong Foreign Company recruits two kinds of Chinese workers. Chinese workers who are between 20 and 40 years old, in good health, can bring one or two family members, take care of food, housing, seeds and farm tools for the first year, and hand over half of the harvest from farming. The Chinese workers who opened the mines were only recruited young men between the ages of 14 and 20, and they were not allowed to bring their families, and they were in charge of food and housing, and they were entitled to five silver dollars per month. ”

After announcing the recruitment requirements, Spy Yijiu immediately caused a commotion among the refugees. The land rent of tenants in the Qing Dynasty is generally five to seventy percent, and only fifty percent is collected for everything, which is a big bargain.

"Won't you recover the cost of food and lodging in the future?" Someone in the crowd asked.

"No, Huatong Foreign Bank only charges half of the ground rent." Spy 19 replied.

"How much land can each household have?"

"About twenty acres, but it's all wasteland, and you need to reclaim it yourself."

"Will that kind of ripe land be repossessed?"

If you have the mind to think more long-term, you will grow the land for a few years, and the harvest will be different.

"The planting contract is signed for five years, and the land plots given to you within five years will be planted by yourself, of course, you are lazy and do not farm well, according to the contract, Huatong Foreign Bank has the right to recover the land."

The registration was followed by a physical examination, and a local Lang Zhong was hired to handle it, mainly to check for hepatitis and tuberculosis. Tuberculosis is also known as tuberculosis, Chinese medicine has long been determined about the symptoms, hepatitis is also known as jaundice in Chinese medicine, and the appearance of the body can be much different with the pulse. As for those who are suspected of being inaccurate, they will be strictly refused, as long as there are symptoms. Infectious diseases are not a one-person business, and a boatload of people will get sick with them. The family members of the Chinese workers who farm the land must also have the same physical examination, and the strictness is the same, but there is a suspicion that they will refuse together with the applicants.

Even so, the number of people who signed up was still crowded, and the speed of the physical examination was far from keeping up. The refugees who were waiting in a hurry kept clamoring, too, the fragrant porridge was not too tempting for those who were about to starve. There was no way, Spy Yijiu had to temporarily open up a transitional camp, and those who were qualified from the outside would first enter the temporary camp to supply gruel, and then be carefully inspected by Lang Zhong.

After more than two days of sea voyage, the passenger ship Xiangsheng finally arrived at Tianjin Zizhulin Wharf. This is the Haihe River, with many wharves on both sides, especially on the west bank, which is the most prosperous British concession in Tianjin. The Jardine Matheson Steamship Company Terminal is located at the end of Jardine Matheson Road on the west bank of the Haihe River.

"I'll carry the things, just take care of your mother."

Liang Hong took the initiative to take the suitcase from the girl's hand, and the boat was bumpy all the way, and the mother and daughter were seasick and vomited badly. After traveling on the same boat for more than two days, he was already very familiar with the Shen family. In order to save 20 yuan, the Shen family only booked a first-class cabin and two bunks, which only included food on board for two people. Fortunately, Liang Hong and the three of them had two first-class cabins, so they could even out one bunk.

"Where's your luggage, brother?"

Living in a cabin for two days, Shen Mingxuan and Liang Hong called them brothers, like old friends for many years.

"With their help, they can't get it." With his mouth, he snuggled the spy zero five and spy one eight who walked in front.

"Are they foreigners?" Shen Mingxuan was surprised.

"They are all employees of foreign banks, and it just so happens that my brother is a big class."

Taipan is the manager of the foreign bank, which came out of Cantonese in Guangdong, and first referred to the person in charge of managing the goods on a foreign cargo ship. Shen Mingxuan has been in the British Concession for a long time, and he understands it as soon as he hears it.

"What is the big move for? Could it be that foreigners also have coolies to carry things? ”

Shen Yue next to him didn't understand and asked, but he had a studious attitude.

"Kindergarten is when children go to school, and I'm a grade above them." Liang Hong laughed and talked nonsense, he remembered the kindergarten when he was a child.

"Don't listen to his nonsense, Taipan is the manager of a foreign bank, similar to your principal." Shen Mingxuan smiled and debunked.

"Lying nose will get longer", Shen Yue glanced at Liang Hong indignantly.

Pinocchio, written by the Italian Collodi eighteen years ago, was translated into English in 1892 and became a reading material in church schools.

Mrs. Shen watched coldly at a few people talking and laughing, and now she could only move her steps with difficulty, and she didn't have the heart to restrain her daughter from talking to strangers. In other words, this cheeky person is no stranger to their family.

Before leaving, Shen Mingxuan took a telegram to the Tianjin Telegraph School, thinking that someone would come over to pick up the ship in advance. When they got off the boat, they found that no one came at all, which made the Shen family feel very lost.

"Let's go, not far from here is the Li Shunde Hotel, which is quite famous in Tianjin. We're going to live there anyway, so it's safer for us to settle down first, and then go to the Telegraph School. ”

Liang Hong looked at Shen Mingxuan's appearance and shook his head secretly in his heart, this is a nerd. Tianjin Telegraph School, which was founded by Li Hongzhang, is a Beiyang school, not to mention that now Emperor Guangxu is constrained by the Hou Party, and the reform has been defeated. is really successful, just because Weng Tongyi and Li Hongzhang are sworn enemies in the political circles, you should be the same.

I called three rickshaws at the pier, went south along the Haihe River, and crossed the Heba Road to see the Li Shunde Hotel. AstorHotel, originally an ordinary hotel operated by the German merchant Li Shunde Company when the concession was first opened, after the equity was acquired by the British businessmen, Guangxu was rebuilt into a three-story building, the tallest building in Tianjin at that time. Just like on the boat, a total of three guest rooms were requested, Shen Yue's mother and daughter paid out of their own pockets, and Shen Mingxuan stayed with Liang Hong as usual.