Chapter 16, the twenty-seven moments of Chongzhen's four years (16)

The sixteenth moment: Xu Xia's guest tour is in high heights

In the late autumn of the fourth year of Chongzhen, Lingao County, Bopu Port

-- Since the "thief" who took the big iron boat landed here in the first year of Chongzhen, Lingao County, the capital of Qiongzhou in the Ming Dynasty, a small and remote county on the land of China, has been reborn in just over three years and has become the headquarters of the advance base for the "Australians" to conquer the great cause.

Throughout the border of Lingao County, the Bairen City built at the head of the Bairen Beach is the ruling center of the Senate of the Traverser; Dongmen City, which is attached to Bairen City, has become the most prosperous trade market in the whole Hainan Island; Fort Mayuan is the central military base; Nanbao Town is the industrial and mining center of the county; As for the original county seat, it has almost become a forgotten place. The Bopu Port, which has been repeatedly expanded, is the window to the outside world of Lingao Traverser Group.

For the ancients, who were accustomed to the slow-paced life of an agricultural society, Lingao, the base camp of the traverser, was as busy as a beehive.

Anyone who comes to Lingao for the first time usually feels the busy, tense and active fast-paced atmosphere as soon as they board the pier of Bopu Port. When they go deep into the industrial, agricultural and residential areas on both sides of the Wenlan River, this feeling may become even more profound.

-- In the mast-lined harbor, all kinds of ships came and went, and the small boats specially used to tow them had iron chimneys erected and spewed thick black smoke, and although there were no oarsmen, they were so powerful that they could easily drag heavy boats.

Relying on a series of long trestle bridges, the vast majority of ships arriving at Bopu Pier usually do not have to use small boats to carry goods and people in a boat. Cargo can be lifted off the ship by crane, and personnel can go directly up and down the gangway, thus saving a lot of time and manpower - the whole of East Asia is probably the only place in the port of Bopu, where the turnover rate of ships can be calculated in "hours" and "days" rather than "weeks" and "months".

Next, every major road after leaving the dock and entering the inner 6 is filled with a constant stream of people and vehicles. The convertible wagons pulled by the small locomotive were either full of goods or crowded with people. Although the relevant departments have long since promulgated safety regulations prohibiting the occurrence of "ticket hanging" and have increased the number of police officers and soldiers of the National Army to maintain order at the station, no matter how much the management department has repeatedly ordered it, every time it is time to leave the train, the outside of the carriage is still full of people. So much so that every day someone falls out of the car. Thankfully, the steam train was not much faster than walking, and the casualty rate remained at a level that the authorities could barely bear.

Every day, countless people come here and countless more leave here. Coming and going, this new city is thriving day by day.

Then, under the warm winter sun of Chongzhen's four years, another group of passengers came to Lingao on a lucky boat. Among them, two elderly scholars, dressed in half-worn Confucian shirts, were standing on the deck curiously, gazing at the Bopu Harbor that was getting closer and closer to them—the wide stone trestle bridge jutting into the sea, the tall cranes, and the "automatic cars" running with their carriages smoking and spitting fire on the tracks...... Finally, there is the majestic "big iron ship".

Although these two people had seen some exquisite and ingenious "Australian goods" in their hometown in Jiangnan, and they had also heard a lot of strange stories about the "Australian Beards" on the way to Linggao, but when this port under the rule of the "thieves" was really displayed in front of their eyes, these two scholars, who are also well-informed now, still held their breath - the scene in front of them was completely a strange world beyond their comprehension.

-- Chimneys of all sizes were emitting black smoke into the air, and white steam was spewed out with the low sound of iron striking and permeated the air over the wharf, like a faint layer of mist, and all kinds of cranes, pipes, and tracks were crisscrossed and crisscrossed, and whistles and whistles whistled sharply, one after another. Four- and five-storey buildings can be found everywhere, and the forts along the coast are as majestic as a hill.

“…… It's really the power of ghosts and gods, Brother Zhongzhao. The slightly younger middle-aged scholar looked at it for a while, and couldn't help but sigh to his companion.

“…… Yes, it's like arriving in the country of lions and camels in "Journey to the West", and the demons are dancing wildly" Another tough old Confucian named Brother Zhong Zhao also nodded and echoed with heartfelt emotion, "...... It's hard to believe that this is still the realm of Daming."

“…… Hmph, the thief jumped off the beam, and the strange tricks and obscenities of this generation pretended to be the descendants of the Song family, but they were short-dressed, and they changed their summer to Yi, and they were cheap and gentlemen. If you act so perversely, and you don't know the teachings of the saints, even if you have a strong ship and a good gun, how can you achieve great things? "Standing behind them, a young gentleman who had boarded the ship from Guangzhou, was holding a folding fan and making a gesture of pointing at the country, his eyes full of disdain," ...... The thief learned strange skills overseas, but he forgot the righteousness of heaven and earth, the avenue of saints, thinking that he could dominate a corner by relying on iron ships and firearms, and he also tempted the people to shave and obey with small profits.

Listening to the clamor of this crazy student, the two elderly Confucian scholars had to shake their heads and smile bitterly, many scholars who did not do anything in the late Ming Dynasty had such a common problem, on the one hand, they were extremely contemptuous of the martial artists of this dynasty, thinking that they were not worthy of a grain of rice and a tael of silver; On the other hand, they have blind confidence in the military prestige of the "Heavenly Soldiers of the Imperial Court", and each one shouts higher than the other...... And I don't feel any contradiction between the two

“…… Hehe, this posterity, is he really bragging about not playing the draft court soldiers? Governor Wang came to attack the Australians once last year, but before he touched the edge of Lingao County, he was beaten all the way to Guangzhou by the Australians."

A chubby, short, round-faced businessman casually said casually while flipping through a half-old "War History Research" magazine that he got out of nowhere, and reading the article "Heavy Snow Full of Bow and Knife -- The Great Ming Classics and the Beginning and End of Liaodong" as a pastime, "...... If there is a big chaos today, the Beijing city of the emperor Lao'er has been besieged twice by the Liaodong barbarians, and the Central Plains is also full of rogues and smoke, where can the imperial court still have the spare strength to take care of this small border county thousands of miles away? The Australians are going to tear up the territory on this Hainan Island, besides, didn't you plan to take refuge in Australia? I haven't recommended myself yet, and I'm here to demean others, do you still want to mix up here?"

-- As a matter of fact, since the "Australians" invaded Guangzhou and shook Lingnan, in the past two years, some scholars have felt that this "Australian bandits" seem to be vulgar and unliterate, and that there should be no scholars. So they went to submit books and climbed, many of them were not the first talents or old children, and they were all people who couldn't carry baskets in their hands and couldn't bear them.

These scholars originally thought that the Lingao thieves were barbarians in the southern part of the country. After reading the sage books for many years, he deigned to come here, even if he couldn't be like the person in white who worshipped the prime minister, at least it was like Zhang Yuan and others who rushed into the Western Xia in the Song Dynasty, and they could establish a reputation and seek some wealth.

Who knows that although the Guangzhou station of the thief has indeed been recruiting displaced people, it is true that regardless of the farmers, industry and commerce, they must be treated as immigrants, first "purified" for a month, shaved their heads, bathed and changed their clothes, and broke their buttocks to check, needless to say, if they want to be "in the ministry" on the side of the Australians, they can't rely on a few volumes of strategies to reach the sky in one step, but they have to re-take the diploma there, and the content of the exam is not the eight-strand Shiwen, but most of them are miscellaneous studies that have nothing to do with the way of the saints. Even if you become a "Yu Ministry", you have to start as a junior official...... How can you soldiers, who regard themselves as pillars of the country, endure it? Angry, this group of saint disciples cursed behind their backs from time to time: "...... Australian thieves humiliate scholars, do not respect the way of saints, sooner or later will be thundered"

The young gentleman on the deck once wanted to join the thief to be a noble strategist, but he touched his nose in front of the "office" of those Australians in Guangzhou, and he was so angry that he suddenly changed from "Australian fan" to "Australian black". But then I couldn't find any way to be a staff member in Guangzhou, so I had to carry a few proud articles on my life, and I came to Lingao to try my luck to see if I could bump into an Australian chief with a discerning eye for talents, but unfortunately my mentality has not been adjusted for a while. Now that the old story was revealed, and seeing the accusations and ridicule of other travelers, his face immediately turned red, and taking advantage of the unpreparedness of the businessman, he snatched the "Research on the History of War" in his hand with relish, and offered a rogue trick to change the topic.

“…… The reason why my generation of scholars did not hesitate to go to the thieves' caves and sacrifice their lives to feed the tiger was also to spread my Confucian Dao to the barbarians, this Australian is vulgar and ignorant, and it really needs the edification of my saints and disciples, such a beautiful white paper, but printed with such vulgar and unbearable words, and using these fonts with few strokes, it is really ridiculous."

With a few fingers, he pinched the Journal of the Study of the History of War, which he had stolen from the hands of a merchant, as if it were the most vulgar thing in the world, and his face was full of disgust, even though the "Australian Magazine" was bound and printed on fine white paper, and it was beautifully printed with pictures and texts. But because this magazine is a simplified Chinese version, not an "export version" of traditional Chinese characters, it has become a laughing stock in the eyes of this scholar.

“…… Look at the crudeness of the bandit's books. Not only is it written from left to right in a horizontal row, but even every word is misleading people's children about the so-called relatives who don't see each other, love has no heart, production is not born, and is empty. There is no wheat on the surface, there is no car to transport, there is no way to guide, there is no child, and there is no wing. There are clouds and no rain, there is no door to open the prison, there is no lang in the township, the saint cannot listen or speak, and there is a head under the hook knife. There is a dagger under the turn of the man, and he is not getting better and better and goes to the well, but the devil is still a devil, a ghost is still a ghost, stealing or stealing, cheating or cheating, greedy or greedy, poisonous or poisonous, black or black, gambling or gambling...... On Yuyun's "Left Guard,,This thief claims to be a descendant of Zhao and Song,But the left book is short,It's full of typos,Sure enough, after staying overseas for a long time, it became Yidi"

After feeling proud and proud that he was able to write the way of writing fennel beans, in order to express the anger in his heart, the gentleman was about to throw the magazine out into the sea, but was knocked over by the anxious businessman and snatched back the magazine "Studies in the History of War".

“…… You are poor and sour, if you want to lose your books, throw away your Four Books and Five Classics, don't lose my books."

The merchant muttered and scrubbed the book of the magazine, and after slapping it again, he put it away with great care, and grumbled, "...... Alas, I don't even understand the truth of respecting words and paper, and I don't know that books can't be lost, so you dare to say that you are a reader."

“…… You, you" The young Confucian was beaten and sat down on the deck, trembling with anger, but he could no longer speak.

On the other hand, I heard that this young gentleman was so loyal and patriotic, but behind his back, he had already been turned away by thieves in Guangzhou, and he didn't give up on coming to the thief and acted so nonsense, and the two older scholars also sighed again and again.

“…… Alas, I can't imagine that the Shilin atmosphere in Lingnan is so unbearable today. The scholar who looked older said with emotion.

“…… Brother Zhong Zhao, don't laugh at the Lingnan people, how many scholars from other places talk about honesty? For example, some of the gentlemen in the Jiangnan Restoration Society, who have always been self-defeating and do dirty things behind their backs, I really don't know how many there are, but on weekdays, they know that the wind and the moon are howling, leaning on the red and green, and the lamb wine, when they hear the hardships of the crops and the hardships of the people's livelihood, they scoff at it, and dare to call themselves gentlemen like this with disdain."

Another middle-aged scholar shook his head, "...... The younger brother thinks that he can't go with them, so he can only send his love to the landscape."

-- This plainly dressed middle-aged scholar was none other than Xu Xiake, a famous donkey burner in the history of the late Ming Dynasty, who was a prodigal son who tried and failed to do his job in the eyes of the world at that time, but his name in the textbooks of later generations was much louder than that of any new champion of his time.

Over the years, Xu Hongzu, a donkey burner, or the famous Xu Xiake, has never sheltered from the wind and rain, tigers and wolves, accompanied by the long wind and clouds, filled hunger with fruits, quenched thirst with clear springs, and traveled to famous mountains and rivers all over the world, which can be regarded as fulfilling his wish. This time I came to Qiongzhou across the sea, but I had seen a lot of "Australian goods" in Qinghefang, Hangzhou, which made Xu Xiake very curious, so he and his brother Xu Zhongzhao floated south together, planning to travel to the "Australian scene" of the Lingao people, if there was still wealth at that time, then hire a guide to enter the Li District, to see the scenery of Li Mu Mountain.

After another few moments, the Daifuku ship, full of passengers, was towed to the berth by the Australians' steam dinghy. As soon as the boat stopped, several small officials wearing thieves' official uniforms came on board to investigate. Xu Xiake shrank in the corner of the deck with his luggage, peeked in, and saw that these thieves were indeed as rumored, all of them were like monks, and they probably felt that it was indecent to be bareheaded, so they were still wearing a hat, a rattan helmet like a soup basin, a simple cloth hat, and a long brim stretched out in front of the forehead, which was really indescribably weird.

The clothes on these thieves are all tight, and there is a belt around their waists, which is not like the wide robes and big sleeves of the Ming Dynasty. The clothes are all cotton cloth of one color, not only do they have no silk patches, but they also have no minimum ornamentation - not even as good as the public servants standing at the gate of the Daming local government, but their hats are decorated with a bird feather. Barely decorative, the only thing that could be said to be decorative was the small colorful cloth on their collars and the row of numbers sewn on their chests - Xu Xiake knew that they were called Arabic numerals, similar to "Suzhou yards", and there were two Chinese characters under the Arabic numerals: "Port Affairs".

Seeing the thief on board, most of the passengers were a little nervous, for fear of being blackmailed - this is a common thing in the Ming Dynasty, but the thief's port official seemed to be quite easy to speak, just asked the captain about the situation, checked the list of passengers, and asked if there were immigrants on the ship - everyone hurriedly shook their heads, even the young man who had the heart to seek a way out in Lingao tried his best to deny it, lest as soon as he agreed, he would be stuffed into the legendary "Jinghua Camp" by the thief officer, shaved his head and took a bath, broke his butt to see the chrysanthemums, Then he was "imprisoned" in it for more than a month to learn the rules...... Although if it is done, then it will most likely have to be shaved. But if you shave your head first but you can't do it, then how can you go back to your hometown?

After the thief left, the Xu Xiake brothers, who had already packed their luggage, were very depressed to learn that they could not go ashore at the moment, and had to spend several days of "quarantine period" by the dock, during which no one could get off the ship, at most they could only walk around the dock, and in addition, they had to report the health of the personnel to the patrolling thief officials every day, and if anyone was sick, they had to report to the port staff immediately, and the shore would immediately send a doctor to see them.

“…… Can't get off the boat when you get to the ground? What a hassle...... But this Australian is kind and cares about ...... doctor."

Xu Xiake's brother Xu Zhongzhao muttered so, but the short and fat businessman before laughed a few times from the back of the page - he had already taken out the journal "Research on the History of War" and looked through it: "...... This old man, you don't know, they are not kind, but they are afraid of spreading the plague, so they do not allow anyone to get off the boat. If anyone on board was sick, we would all have to be taken to the camp,-- and then we would have to shave our heads, bathe every day, and eat gruel for a few months, whether you want to or not. I don't even want to tow the ship with the goods to the open sea and burn it down."

Xu Xiake was suddenly startled when he heard it, although he had traveled a lot before, he really hadn't been to the sea much: "Is it really so strict?" ”

“…… This is natural, and now Lingao comes and goes every day with so many people, but rarely spreads the plague, relying on this system. Although it is a little unsympathetic, it is useful, and I heard that in recent years, there have been plagues in the north, but I don't know if the imperial court has a similar treatment......"

Humpty Dumpty Merchant sighed, then put on a smiling face, "...... Our Wang Mingshan, a native of Guangzhou, I don't know what the two gentlemen are called? ”

Xu Xiake and Xu Zhongzhao glanced at each other and introduced themselves, and then Xu Xiake asked tentatively, "...... Looking at Brother Wang's appearance, it seems that he is very familiar with the Australians on this high ground? I wonder if you can tell our brother? ”

“…… It's easy to say that the little brother of Lingao is also a frequent visitor, and he must have endless words for the two. Wang Mingshan smiled and nodded, "...... Looking at the appearance of the two of you, it seems that you have also traveled from south to north, and you have been to a lot of places, so there is nothing to do in the past few days, so let's talk more together......"

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Waiting for the days of quarantine on Bopu Wharf is naturally very boring.

In order to beat the time, but also to find out more about the details of the thieves, Xu Xiake has been chatting with Wang Mingshan, a businessman in Guangzhou, in the past few days, and they talked with each other quite interestingly-as the leading "travel friend" in China in this year, Xu Xiake's wonderful experiences in his stomach are naturally countless, and he casually talked about his experience of trekking thousands of miles on foot, visiting Yandang Mountain, Songshan, Wutai, Huashan, Hengshan and other famous mountains and rivers, and all kinds of difficulties and ups and downs encountered during the period, and many strange things he saw. It made Wang Mingshan, who had never left the Lingnan realm in his life, amazed and sighed.

Compared with Xu Xiake, although Wang Mingshan's stomach is not so colorful, but there are many beautifully framed and unique books in his luggage, and there are several issues of the magazine "Research on the History of War" alone, which immediately makes Xu Xiake like a treasure, and he is reluctant to put it down when he holds it - in addition to the most famous traveler in ancient Chinese history, Xu Xiake is also a very famous book lover. Not only does there be a library in the mansion of Jiangyin's hometown, but he also likes to collect books that he has never seen before. As long as you see a good book, even if you don't have any money, you have to take off your clothes and change the book.

In the troubled times at the end of the Ming Dynasty, all literati and writers liked to read military books and talk about military affairs, and looked at the articles in the magazine, "Shura Field in the Mountains - On the Rebellion of Luxury", "Analysis of the Eight Banners System", "The Beginning and End of Huangtaiji's Accession to the Throne", ...... and other articles that introduce details, are well-argued, and easy to understand, as well as the maps and illustrations of the war zone in the appendix, even the officials of the imperial court may not know so much about the chaos in the southwest and the situation in Liaodong

Xu Xiake and his brother Xu Zhongzhao immediately felt as if an unprecedented door had opened in front of them, and they felt extremely excited in their hearts, if it weren't for Wang Mingshan saying that there was a library in Lingao, and there was a bookstore that sold magazines, it was very convenient to borrow and buy books, and there would definitely be an accumulation of old magazines. Xu Xiake probably couldn't help but take out a pen and paper and transcribe a few articles that he was most interested in.

During the quarantine period, a few hawkers occasionally came to sell fruit snacks, wine and tea, books, newspapers and magazines, as well as the "Lingao County Traffic and Tourism Map" - this map surprised Xu Xiake, because in general, the imperial government regarded the map as a military secret and was not happy to be kept by the people. Although it is impossible to prohibit trading in the dark, it is still very rare to sell openly like this under the jurisdiction of the Ming Dynasty.

Therefore, Xu Xiake bought a map of Lingao, several copies of the "Lingao Times", and the latest issue of "Research on the History of War", and commented with other travelers on the historical events of the war, jokes, and secrets of the palace with relish -- the "Australian" wrote all in the vernacular, the chapters were easy to understand, the analysis went from shallow to deep, and they were all explained very clearly and interestingly, and even those who did not read much seemed to have no difficulty.

In this way, after the quarantine period is completed, all passengers can disembark. Under Wang Mingshan's guidance, Xu Xiake and Xu Zhongzhao hurried to the customs building to apply for a temporary ID card as soon as they got off the ship -- according to Wang Mingshan, this is probably a thief's "road guide", "waist card" and the like, without this thing, it is difficult to move an inch in Lingao: even if it is a businessman who does business in Lingao for a short time, he must also apply for a "temporary certificate", otherwise he will not be able to stay in a hotel when he gets to the shore, and he will not be able to stay in a hotel when he encounters a thief's fanzi official blocking the road and checking it, and if he has no documents on his body, he will have to stay in the class room for one night. Find someone to prove it before you can come out. If you can't find someone to prove it, you'll have to dig sand for a few months at the river's construction site.

When you get to the registration office in the customs building, the first step is to register and fill out the form, followed by a medical examination - that is, you take off your clothes and let the hygienist look at them to see if there are any epidemic diseases or the like. With the level of health care and administrative resources of the Lingao crossers, it is not possible to make every person who enters the country receive a comprehensive "purification". Only officially organized "immigrants" and "immigrants" who have access to guò channels for recruitment, enrolment and military service are entitled to such treatment.

However, even such a shrunken "physical examination" is almost humiliating in Xu Xiake's eyes - although in his half-life career as a travel friend, he has suffered countless hardships, and he has not been chased and kidnapped by bandits once or twice, and even the days of being a savage in the mountains have been experienced, but he still can't help muttering a few times in his mouth: "......'Ao Song, such humiliating scholars and sweeping the floor, how can there be a little bit of the legacy of the Great Song Dynasty?" ”

After getting dressed again, fastening his belt, handing the physical examination form to a short female thief sitting behind the wooden counter, and pressing the fingerprints of ten fingers on the registration form and a small piece of cardboard, and after some concoction, Wang Mingshan, Xu Xiake and Xu Zhongzhao got their temporary ID cards.

Carefully looking at this "Australian Road Guide", Xu Xiake is now much more delicate than Daming's road guide, which not only has its own ten fingerprints, but also the main characteristics of name, age, height and appearance, and a string of Arabic numerals. It's covered with a round stamp—but it's not red, it's a stamped stamped with a mold, and I don't know how to get it. If you look closely, it turns out that this cardboard is not ordinary thick paper, not only thick and strong, but also has fine and complex patterns on the paper, which is not at all carved by ordinary woodcut boards.

Hide this road guide closely, and exchange some circulation on another counter - it is the Australian treasure banknote, Xu Xiake was originally worried that this Australian treasure banknote would not be like the Daming treasure banknote when it was on the market, but Wang Mingshan patted his chest to ensure that there was no problem. Recalling that during the quarantine period, when the passengers on the ship bought things from the hawkers, it seemed that some people were also using this circulation coupon to pay the bill, and Xu Xiake was relieved.

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Carrying his ID card and circulation coupons out of the customs building, Wang Mingshan took Xu Xiake and Xu Zhongzhao to walk around Bopu Town. Since the "Australian" ascended 6, the once deserted Bopu has become a rather lively port town, with new and neat houses and streets, wide streets paved with black sand, the smell of sea water and fish, and the streets are lined with shops and bustling...... In terms of the bustling and lively Cheng dù, it is no less than many county towns and even Fucheng that Xu Xiake has seen. But according to Wang Mingshan, compared with the East Gate City where the "Australian Chief" is stationed, the street market here in Bopu is still far behind, if the Xu brothers want to see the real "Australian scene", they have to go there.

So the group planned to go to Dongmen City to find an inn to settle in, according to Wang Mingshan's construction, the fastest to go by train. It's just that the Xu brothers followed him to the red brick railway station to take a look, only to see that the train was really crowded, the car was full of people, not to mention, there were people sitting on the roof of the car, and even people were hanging outside the railing...... made Xu Xiake beat the drum in his heart, for fear of being squeezed out of his luggage. At this time, Wang Mingshan also heard that a small train exploded in the port last month, and he was also a little timid, so he turned around and took the Xu brothers to take an ox cart.

In Xu Xiake's eyes, although the "Australian" public ox cart looks very different and the ticket price is slightly more expensive, it is always more reassuring than the train that smokes and makes a loud noise. However, such a huge ox cart, Xu Xiake has seen it for the first time in many years of traveling south and north - the ox cart is a row of seats for three people, a total of six rows, which can seat eighteen people, plus one on both sides of the driver's seat of the driver and the driver, the total passenger capacity is twenty people, and the luggage is hung outside the car in a hanging way, and four bulls act as traction.

Wang Mingshan, Xu Xiake and Xu Zhongzhao happened to fill the last row, hanging their luggage behind their backs, while curiously looking at the surrounding scene, only to see that there was a messenger at the station holding an iron horn shouting orders, urging the passengers who bought tickets to get on the train quickly; There are also people using a long pole to flip the flop number plate hanging on the truss, which shows the arrival location and the time of the car in turn; There are also vendors who carry large baskets and crowd to the side of the car, selling all kinds of food...... Xu Xiake tried to buy a few candy balls wrapped in paper with the circulation coupons, and sure enough, the vendor received them very happily. I turned around and peeled off the paper on the outside of the sugar ball, only to see that the golden sugar ball was crystal clear, shining with a beautiful luster, looking like amber, throwing it into the mouth and tasting it, not only the taste is sweet, but also with a palatable sour taste and a light fruit aroma, it is indeed very delicious.

When most of the seats on the cart were filled, the driver whipped and drove the cart forward with four oxen.

Coming out of Bopu Port, the first thing to pass is the green landscape belt on the bank of the Wenlan River, the rushing river is sparkling, and the turf has grown on the embankment built of stones - here according to the design of the traversers, it is a place of rest and entertainment for urban residents to go on an outing, similar to the common riverside park in later generations, not only with flowers and trees, but also with a small number of pavilions and pavilions, and if it is a sports facility, it looks like a bonsai.

“…… I can't imagine that these Australians still have a little bit of elegance, maybe they really have a little bit of Zhao Song's legacy. ”

Looking at the man-made scenery along the river, Xu Xiake couldn't help but secretly admire in his heart - naturally, he has seen countless scenic spots in the world, and the scenery is more beautiful than a hundred times that of this place, but the regularity of the houses along the way, the smoothness of the roads, and the cleanliness of the village streets are something he has never seen. It's a pity that the river seems to be quite muddy, and there is a lot of garbage floating on it, which makes people feel a little regretful.

Then, the ox cart drove through the endless fields in the face of the autumn breeze - although it was late autumn, the autumn breeze was never cold in this part of Hainan Island, but rather quite refreshing and pleasant. It would be a sunny day, when it would be lukewarm and rainy, and the peasants would be in the fields, working, merchantling, or carrying burdens on foot or carts, and there would be many pedestrians on the road, most of whom seemed to be neatly dressed, and there were few poor people in tattered clothes. Looking out on both sides of the road, you can see a yellow-brown path that winds its way between dirt slopes and paddy fields overgrown with shrubs and trees. The second crop has just been harvested, and the paddy fields are already planted with winter wheat, broad beans and various green manure crops. At a glance, there was a lush and vibrant scene, which made Xu Xiake look very emotional.

-- In his career as a traveler in the past few decades, although he has seen many famous cities and towns that are densely populated and smell of chickens and dogs, more often than not, they are in danger and bleak and dilapidated villages. In those remote places, as long as you are a little far away from the villages and towns, the grass on both sides of the dirt road grows taller than people. Everywhere there are wild dogs, foxes and even wolves roaming the wasteland, making terrible barking sounds, often rushing out of the grass to hurt people, leaving behind many legends of fox fairies, wolf demons and white bone spirits...... But compared to the bandits who eat people and don't spit out bones, these beasts are even merciful.

However, here in Lingao, the wide road is bathed in bright sunshine, the surrounding scenery is unobstructed, there is not much grass and shrubs in sight, most of the flat places have been reclaimed into fields, and only bamboo and miscellaneous trees are left on the hillside, and some are planted with saplings, many of which are fruit trees, and there is absolutely no sense of decay and decay. Even on both sides of the road, there are many coconut trees.

However, to Xu Xiake's surprise, there were still many tall wooden stakes standing on the side of the road, painted in pitch black. Neatly arranged along the road, connected to each other by black ropes. Each stake is also fastened with a number of glass-made bottles. Since he really didn't know the purpose of these wooden stakes and "black ropes", Xu Xiake had to ask Wang Mingshan, but Wang Mingshan didn't know much about it, only knew that Australians seemed to be able to use this thing to send letters, similar to some kind of tricky trick...... So, Xu Xiake had no choice but to suppress the doubts in his stomach in his heart.

Although the black wooden stakes on the side of the road felt a little strange, Xu Xiake was still very intoxicated by such a peaceful and comfortable pastoral scenery, but then when the ox cart passed through the industrial area, the previous leisurely idyllic idyllic song was completely gone—the rhythmic roar and hammering sound were faintly heard in the wind. The red houses were like jagged teeth, and red brick chimneys of all sizes were lined up, and the black and white smoke almost obscured the sky. The stockyard by the river was full of hill-like piles of ore and coal, and countless sacks, barrels, clay pots, and crates of various sizes were piled up in huge stacks, covered with reed mats. Tall steam iron cranes panted for white steam and loaded the cargo onto barges on the river, which was filled with cinders and all kinds of garbage...... All kinds of pungent and strange smells wafted in the air, and there seemed to be a faint smell of sulfur, which choked Xu Xiake and his brother for a while, and they were busy covering their noses.

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The ox cart stops and stops along the way, and people keep getting off and getting on along the way. With the passage of time, the houses on both sides of the road became denser and denser, and the shops increased

When I arrived at the bus transfer station in Dongmen City, almost all the passengers on the ox cart were empty. Xu Xiake also picked up the package and looked curiously at this strange and prosperous town. I saw that there were many trolleys and rickshaws parked in the open field outside the station, and there were many vendors, men and laborers gathered around, which was very lively. As soon as I saw a guest getting off the bus ox cart, Yiyu, who was originally squatting and chatting, came to the spirit of dozing off and came up to solicit business: "...... Sir, do you want fruit? Fresh Australian-grown pears, so cheap", "...... "Lingao Times" has a supplement today's "Lingao Times", "...... Staying in the hotel, Lingao Ministry of Commerce assessed the three-star hotel, the guest room bedding is a guest and a change, there are no fleas, no insects, the body is tired, and the little girl massage - there is a yellow ticket", "...... Cheap inn discount, pay a month's room fee in advance for a month and a half"

In the midst of the noise, Xu Xiake was very vigilant to protect his package, squeezed through the crowd and walked onto the street: as an old donkey passenger who had traveled through most of China, he knew very well that the wharf of any prefecture and county was usually a place infested by all kinds of gangsters: robbers, pickpockets and swindlers all liked to do business in this lively place.

At this time, it was already lunchtime, and the three of them were hungry, so Wang Mingshan was very familiar with finding a small restaurant to entertain the east, and greeted the boss surnamed Gou to serve three bowls of beef rice noodles, and also asked for a few extra "Australian dishes" - hot rice noodles were brought to the table, only to see the slightly yellow rice noodles floating in the soup with oil flowers, and the ingredients such as beef slices, sauerkraut, peanuts, and shrimps were scattered on it, which made people very appetizing at a glance.

And those "Australian dishes" opened Xu Xiake's eyes - he had seen a lot of "Australian goods" in his hometown in Jiangnan before, but the "Australian vegetables" had not been transplanted for the time being: the scrambled eggs with tomatoes tasted sweet and sour, appetizing and delicious. There are also green tender pods, which are sweet and tender when stir-fried. There are also flower-like vegetables, some white, some green, white hard crispy, green rotten soft, each with its own taste.

After eating and drinking enough and settling the bill, the three of them parted ways -- Wang Mingshan had to go to several businesses with which he had dealings to collect accounts and place orders to buy goods, while Xu Xiake and Xu Zhongzhao went to settle down in a low-cost government-run hotel "Weimin Hotel" that rented a house for a long time according to Wang Mingshan's recommendation.

Not far from Gou's restaurant, this "Weimin Hotel" is a three-story red brick building. The appearance is not beautiful, it is as boxy as a box. There are quite a few windows on the walls, and they are all glazed. However, this kind of "luxury" is already aesthetic fatigue for Xu Xiake - large flat glass, which is rare elsewhere, is the most common thing in Lingao, and it is also one of the "Australian characteristics".

Walking into the door of the "Weimin Hotel" with his luggage, a very complex and unpleasant smell came to his face, which was a special smell composed of a mixture of tobacco, soju, sweat and tattered clothes -- Xu Xiake could often smell this strange smell in low-class hotels in various places in the past. However, the smell of this hostel is also mixed with a strong pungent smell - the smell of disinfectant water.

Although the smell was unpleasant, the light in the foyer was bright, and I saw a short woman in blue sitting behind the counter desk, and a thick pile of guest books in front of her. The large wooden board behind him was full of keys. There is a banner on the wall next to it: "No one without ID card is not allowed to stay"

Seeing that the guys in this inn were all on official errands, Xu Xiake couldn't help but sigh a little - although the Ming Dynasty also had a post station, it only entertained people in the public gate, and did not open business to small people, and it had now been abolished by Emperor Chongzhen. And on the side of the Australian people, there are so many officials in a small county...... Alas, needless to say, there must be a lot of redundant officials and redundant officials in this beard, but they are the same as the Great Song Dynasty, which is really good and not bad

Although they had all kinds of thoughts in their hearts, the Xu brothers didn't hesitate, they took out their ID cards and went to the counter to check in. After registering their ID cards, the lady asked, "Do you live in a bunk or a single room?" ”

“…… Do you have a private room? Xu Xiake's eyes suddenly lit up, although he had never been afraid of eating and sleeping in the open air, living in a broken temple and sleeping in a tree hole with beggars, almost all the hardships had been tasted, but in any case, Xu Xiake was also born as a gentleman, and he was pampered from childhood to adulthood. This trip brought my brother Xu Zhongzhao with me, and it is better to live comfortably if you have the conditions," ...... Can you take a look at it first? ”

“… Of course. The first and second floors are bungalows, and the third floor is a single room. I'll take you up. ”

Compared with some of the high-class inns where Xu Xiake once lived, the single rooms of the Weimin Hotel are very small, a bed occupies 30% of the floor, and the furniture is only a table, a chair and a cabinet with extremely simple styles. The ceilings are also low - the so-called third floor is actually "two and a half floors". However, the windows are bright and clean. What's more important is that the price is cheap, only twice as expensive as the price of the shop.

So, Xu Xiake happily asked for two rooms, one room for each brother and his brother, and agreed to rent it for five days first, and then renew the lease if necessary.

“…… Our hostel does not include meals, if you want to eat, go out and turn left, there is a public canteen in the second alley. It's also easy to be willing to go to a stall or a small restaurant – it's all there. The toilet is at the end of the hallway, showering down to the bathroom on the first floor. There are also people who help with laundry, but they have to charge money. ”

After collecting the money and completing the formalities, the lady in blue enthusiastically introduced Xu Xiake one by one, "...... Hot water is only available from 6 to 8 o'clock in the morning and evening. Cold water is available throughout the day. However, I just changed to a new stove today and tried it out, so there is hot water right now, so if you want to take a shower, you might as well hurry up. ”

“…… Thank you very much. Xu Xiake nodded and replied, thinking that this hostel has a big pot of boiling water for guests every morning and evening. When I got to the bathroom, I was surprised - the floor and walls were all tiled, not to mention, the toilet outside was also made of porcelain, and the bathroom was also not used to bathtubs and baths, but showers under the pipes that sprayed water, and hot and cold water came down as soon as the valve was opened......

Regarding the principle, Xu Xiake has seen and investigated in Hangzhou Ziming Building, cold water should have a water pipe leading to a certain reservoir, as for the hot water, a big furnace was built, and people were constantly sent to burn the fire. But what he never expected was that such a magnificent high-class bathhouse could be enjoyed by even the peddlers' pawns on Lingao's side, even though it was only two hours a day...... The luxury of Australians is really unimaginable.

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All in all, Xu Xiake and his brother Xu Zhongzhao took a hot shower after checking in, washed away the hustle and bustle, and then changed into a new set of clothes and a pair of Yujing cloth shoes.

――On the way to the "Weimin Hotel" before, the prosperity along the way has dazzled the Xu brothers. At the moment, I just feel that my two eyes are completely insufficient: in general, many of the houses here are tall and beautiful. As far as Xu Xiake knows, in many dilapidated small counties in the mainland, even a two-story building can arouse the people's talk, but on the streets of Lingao, even a five-story building is not uncommon.

The main street of Dongmen City is paved with black sand, which is far wider than the streets of most prefectures and counties in the Ming Dynasty. In the middle is a driveway, where only horse-drawn carriages, carts, rickshaws and cattle are allowed, and the streets are flanked by separate stone sidewalks with coconut trees – Australians seem to love coconut trees and plant them everywhere on their turf. What is puzzling is that there are high poles along the street, with an iron mesh glass on them, I don't know what they are used for, Xu Xiake vaguely thinks that this may be a light, but he thinks that no one should be willing to be so extravagant and wasteful.

On the streets of Dongmen City, there are not only horse-drawn carriages and mule carts loaded with goods, but also many "Australian rickshaws" coming and going - there is hardly a sedan chair or sliding pole in Dongmen City, and the streets are full of this kind of two-wheeled carts that pull people, in Xu Xiake's view, this is simply a circle chair covered with cloth on both sides of the wheel, and there are two long handles in front for the coachman to pull, and there are a few folded bamboo bone cloth on the backrest, which seems to be able to support a canopy. Dressed in blue cloth cardigans with a string of Arabic numerals painted on their backs, the drivers drove the cars away in the midst of the crowd, and the bells on the cars tinkled non-stop. In addition, there are several spacious two-wheeled carriages driving Mongolian horses proudly trotting through the streets, but the coachman in a big coat is standing behind the car and driving, such a peculiar shape, so that the Xu brothers are amazed.

Although the street is full of traffic, but the road is so clean, not to mention garbage, not even a peel can be found, there are no common beggars and gangsters in the bustling market. I can't even see a single character in the rivers and lakes such as running horses and selling solutions. Only on both sides of the street are lined with shops, displaying a wide variety of goods. Almost all shops are more than two floors, three-story buildings are very common, there are also a few five- and six-story "high-rise buildings", and single-storey bungalows rarely have street frontage, and one building is next to each other, densely packed, and the style is also different from that of the Central Plains. Each house is clad in tiles, and windows, large and small, are inlaid with large pieces of glass. The store is full of people inside and outside the store, and it is very prosperous.

The Xu Xiake brothers walked on the sidewalk like this, although they wanted to maintain a certain scholarly demeanor, but there were too many new things here in Dongmen City, and they couldn't help but start looking around. Street lamps, public toilets, zebra crossings, garbage baskets and large glass windows all attracted the brothers to stop and watch, and the route on the street gradually became a zigzag - every shop on both sides of the street had to go inside. Even if he was ridiculed as a dirt bun and a hillbilly, he had the cheekiness to endure it: Xu Xiake had also seen such crowded bustling streets in Nanjing and Wuchang, but he was by no means so impressed by the good order of the market, the neatness of the streets, and the "exoticism" of the houses.

In addition, there are many young women in fancy dresses on the street, in groups of three or five, holding all kinds of snacks and snacks, eating while playing and laughing, as if no one is around, and some women are even walking alone on the street. Xu Xiake couldn't help but be secretly surprised in his heart: In the Daming realm, it is rare for a woman from a good family to go shopping, and there is not even a man with him around, what kind of system is this? What if someone molests and abducts you? Even though the security here is excellent and there is no fear of abduction, what kind of custom is it for a woman to be so wild? Even in the Song Dynasty, it shouldn't be like this.

Xu Xiake thought about it, but he could only speculate that the "bearded people" had been away from the Central Plains for a long time, forgot about the rituals, and gradually became infected with barbarian customs. However, these women look really beautiful, how do they seem to ...... More delicate than those girls in his hometown in Jiangnan?

-- Since ancient times, there has been a saying that Suzhou and Hangzhou produce beautiful women, one is indeed because the water and soil here are warm and moist to support people, and the other is actually because this place is relatively wealthy, even if the women of poor families often have the ability to modify themselves, so there are many illusions of Jiangnan women and in Lingao, where the traverser rules, due to the crushing productivity of industrialization, the living standards of the people at the bottom have even passed the Jiangnan water town, and Lingao itself produces a large number of cosmetics, which are sold at a low price locally, and civilian women naturally have the ability to consume various cosmetics. Therefore, it is very beautiful in the eyes of the ancients......

So, the Xu brothers turned around like this, both looking at people and unconsciously walked to the vicinity of the main store of Lingao Cooperative -- this "government-run department store" of the traverser is not only the largest in scale on this street, but also the most magnificent decoration, as soon as you enter the store, it is the atrium that reaches the roof, and the second and third floors are all horse buildings. As long as you stand in the middle of the room, the lofty momentum is so overwhelming that people can't speak.

The most surprising thing is the roof, which is actually a dome glass skylight - the entire atrium is covered with a frame made of iron bars, and the whole glass "tile" is inlaid on it. The bright sunlight shining through the glass tiles illuminates the three-story building extremely brightly, which is very different from the ordinary dark shops in the interior of the Ming Dynasty. In the glass-roofed atrium, there are also a lot of potted flowers and plants, which looks like an indoor garden.

Looking at this luxurious building full of various "Australian style" characteristics, the Xu brothers couldn't help but be stunned for a while, and it took a long time to come back to their senses. As for the goods in the store, not to mention, Xu Xiake originally thought that Nanjing should be the world's first-class place for rare and exotic goods, but he didn't expect that it couldn't even be compared to a fraction of what it was here. Colourful trillions, delicate pastries and sweets, transparent soaps embedded with flower petals...... I don't know how many gadgets he hasn't seen before, so he can't wait to buy them all home as gifts for relatives and friends, and the female guy who sells them is also very enthusiastic, but Xu Xiake and Xu Zhongzhao finally gritted their teeth and didn't buy them - not because they are shy in their pockets, but because they plan to go to see the scenery of Limu Mountain next, and if they buy too many things now, it will definitely be inconvenient to enter the mountain, so they can only wait until the return trip.

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After a tour in this way, seeing that the sun was in the west, Xu Xiake hurriedly grabbed the unfinished brother, took out the tourist map from his sleeve and looked at it, and decided to leave the commercial street, and returned to the Minmin Hotel to rest through the alleys of the houses, and by the way to see how the people's livelihood was under the rule of the people - the two took the map all the way to the alley, and now the houses in Dongmen City are also very good, no matter how deep and remote the alleys are, they are all paved with stone slabs, and they are also very clean, not only do they not have garbage and feces, but even stagnant water is rarely seen. Moreover, there must be a toilet at the mouth of every alley, and there is a common well platform in the middle of the alley, which is very convenient for washing with water - even the dwelling for the common people is so comfortable that it is no wonder that so many people prefer to shave their heads and change their clothes.

After walking for less than half an hour, the Weimin Hotel was already in sight, but at this time it was dinner time, and the Xu brothers did not rush back to rest, but went to the public canteen next to them for dinner according to the instructions of the female guy in the hostel before...... Meat dishes are mainly fish, shrimp and shellfish, and meat is basically absent. Diners take their own plates, are willing to take a few dishes, walk to the end of the counter and pay the bill, the fee is not much, but the food is very full, and at the end of the bowl of tofu and kelp soup with some oil flowers.

Xu Zhongzhao is old, and he doesn't dare to eat too much for dinner, just a bowl of vegetable and egg porridge and a small nest; Xu Xiake asked for a fried rice noodles with shrimp and mussels and tomato sauce, and then looked back and saw that most of the people eating in this canteen were "body laborers" dressed in stubby, such as the rickshaw driver on the street and the coolie carrying a big bag at the dock, but the food they ate was no worse than that of his brother...... In the interior of the Ming Dynasty, even in the so-called fertile Jiangnan water town, the people at the bottom can never afford to eat such food. As for the northern provinces, even the families of the gentry may not be able to eat white flour and rice at a time - it can be seen that under the rule of this "Australian", the life of the common people is indeed quite better, much better than under the rule of the Ming Dynasty.

As soon as he thought of this, Xu Xiake's heart couldn't help but have mixed feelings...... Back in the room of the Weimin Hotel, Xu Zhongzhao washed up and fell asleep.

As usual, Xu Xiake lit a "Australian wax" on the table, then spread out a book, picked up the pen and polished the ink, and wrote today's notes - in Xu Xiake's decades of travel career, no matter how tired he was, he had to record the experience and observations of the day every day. Sometimes he traveled more than 100 miles, lived in a deserted village and a wild temple at night, or slept under the ruins of old trees, he also lit oil lamps, lit bonfires, and insisted on writing travel diaries.

“…… Looking at the high market today, sure enough, the department stores are gathered, the land port is abundant, and there are no people who are hungry. Even if the peddlers are pawns, busy and short-term workers, there are also rice noodles to eat. Even if he is the leader of the chieftain, although he is known as luxurious, he is actually very frugal. It is not like the hometown of Jiangnan, the children of the gentlemen are poor and luxurious, and the people of Li are rarely satisfied...... Recalling the land of Huaibei in the past, there was no rain all year round, and locusts covered the sky. The price of rice is four taels of silver per stone, and the folk take the rotten residue of bad grain as the treasure, or eat the elm bark of tree chips. So the beggars were full of roads, and many pillows died. Jiangnan is also a nuisance, and there are often small groups of bandits lurking in the bush.

Looking at Qiongzhou under the rule of today's people, the government is harmonious, and all kinds of waste are prosperous. Although the industry and commerce are prosperous, they are ridiculed by the world as the end of the sacrifice, but the prices of rice, grain and vegetables are all cheap, and the common people do not suffer from hunger and cold......

In the deeper and deeper twilight, Xu Xiake was frowning and thinking about the wording under the candlelight, but suddenly vaguely felt that the window was gradually brightening, and he looked up and peeked out of the window, and was stunned: he saw that on both sides of the street in front of the hotel, the pillars that he couldn't guess the purpose of the were already lit at this time. The flame of the gas burned behind the glass cover, much brighter than the flame of the lamp oil candle, and even the best "Australian wax" could not compare to it...... Spot after light streamed down the street as far as he could see. As far as the eye can see, the entire Dongmen City seems to be bright. Under the bright gas lights, some women moved benches to do needlework, and the vendors and men who solicited business shouted loudly, and the various food stalls were lined up, looking warm and comfortable.

“…… I don't want it to be a street lamp, it's more than just a street...... There must be at least a hundred, no, two or three hundred lights, is it that Australians are so extravagant that they can afford so much oil and wax for lighting? This courage is comparable to the Ming court."

As a well-informed traveler, Xu Xiake knew that there were stone lanterns on both sides of Yongxiang in the imperial palace in Beijing, which were lit every night. In addition, in some of the mansions of the wealthy families he visited, there were occasionally one or two similar stone lanterns, which was already a very luxurious thing. I can't imagine that the Australians in Lingao are so extravagant and shine the whole town so brightly, how much money does it cost?

Looking at this brilliant light that was as bright as a galaxy, Xu Xiake shook his head, as if to shake out the unbelievable feeling a little...... No matter how much he tries to understand the strange city in front of him, he will still fall into the myth that he can't decipher. At last he closed the window, lay down on the bed, and let out a long exclamation, which ended the day's miraculous observations:

“…… A group of Australian homeless people, who came across the ocean and entrenched in a remote small county in Qiongzhou for several years, were able to build such a prosperous business with Australia's legal agriculture. I don't know what kind of prosperous and rich scene should be in the home country of Australia? I can't wait to see it with my own eyes."

It is a pity that Xu Xiake's above-mentioned beautiful reverie about "Australia" is actually pure fiction - what Mr. Xu Xiake does not know is that at this moment, thousands of miles away in the south of his place, those "real" Australians are around, but there is no noisy market at all, no bright street lights, and no all kinds of exquisite food, can only look at the bright Milky Way stars in the sky, listen to the wind blowing across the wilderness, and only have expired canned cakes around him, hard-to-swallow roast kangaroo meat, Strange grasses and trees, crocodiles, snakes and poisonous spiders...... In addition to the native Stone Age savages, the neighbors are a group of Poles with a talent for death......

-- Although these poor "true-Australians" are indeed from the same place as the 500 "true-Australians" entrenched in Lingao County, Qiongzhou......

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