Accompanied by the howling cold wind, heavy snowflakes covered the earth tightly, covering thousands of miles of ice and drifting snow, all the way into the dense and boundless boreal coniferous forest.
In the vast primitive jungle, a railway came from the west. With the sound of whining, a train drew a long line in the snow, dividing the land.
"It's so cold!"
Here at the Vladivostok port, dock worker Li Scartou rubbed his hands and feet and warmed himself on the coal stove. The wine on the coal stove was already warming, and the barbecue was exuding an alluring aroma.
Pour yourself a bowl of wine and take one gulp. Your whole body is radiating warmth, and the coldness in your body seems to disappear completely in one fell swoop.
Pick up the barbecue, take a big bite, take a few big bites, your mouth will be full of oil, the aroma will fill your tongue, and you will be satisfied.
"Vladivostok is really strange. The seas in other places are frozen, but the port of Vladivostok will not freeze."
Look at the sea again, it's hazy and you can't see very far away. The cold water beats mercilessly against the rocks on the shore.
Li Scartou had committed a crime before, and it was a serious crime. He should have been sentenced to death, but he happened to encounter an amnesty, so the death penalty was changed to exile. He was lucky enough to be exiled to Vladivostok and became the first batch of people to come to Vladivostok.
People of Ming Dynasty.
I also saw with my own eyes that Vladivostok in front of me slowly transformed from a deserted land into a port, and now it has developed into a city with a population of more than 100,000. It is even connected to trains and has cement roads connecting other places.
The port here is also becoming increasingly prosperous and busy.
Here, Li Scartou also made a new life. He married a Korean woman and gave birth to children. He also owned a piece of land here and was busy at home during spring plowing and autumn harvest. In normal times, he mainly worked as a coolie at the port, loading and unloading.
Workers are responsible for helping load and unload goods.
The work of loading and unloading goods is hard work, but the income is quite good. Normally, you can earn several taels of silver a month. If you are busy, you can even earn 10 taels of silver a month.
It was precisely by earning money through hard work and owning his own land that Li Scartou was able to resume his life in Vladivostok, with his wife and children, and he lived a happy life.
"Drinking again~"
Just as Li Scar was drinking a small drink and admiring the scenery outside, a girl's voice sounded.
When Li Scartou heard this, he immediately looked over and burst into laughter.
"Haha, my baby, come here quickly and give me a hug."
The person who came was none other than Li Scartou's precious daughter, Li Xiaotou. She was his darling, and she was afraid of melting if she held it in his mouth.
"I don't want you to hug me. I only know how to drink. Mom has told you to drink less, but you just don't listen. When you get home, you can kneel on the washboard by yourself."
Li Qiaoqiao is only six years old now, but when he talks, he folds his arms like an adult and looks very angry.
"Okay, okay, I won't drink. I won't drink anymore."
"I can finally give you a hug now."
After Li Scartou heard this, he immediately smiled even more happily. He quickly put away the wine, then picked up a piece of barbecue, carefully cooled it and said, "Come and try daddy's barbecue. It's delicious."
"That's pretty much it."
Li Gaodou was then contented to be hugged by Li Scar, and then he happily ate the barbecue.
Holding his daughter in his arms and watching her happily eating barbecue, Li Scartou became extremely peaceful.
Looking back on my own life, my parents lacked discipline when I was a child, which resulted in me developing a lazy, lazy personality. I was young and ignorant, causing trouble everywhere, and caused countless troubles to my parents.
Later, he and a group of gangsters committed illegal crimes and committed the serious crime of beheading. Fortunately, he grew up in a good era and happened to meet the prosperous age.
The emperor loves his people like his own son, and has granted amnesty to the world time and time again, giving those who have made mistakes a chance to reform. Under such circumstances, Li Scartou, like many others, was exiled to Vladivostok.
Here, it was very difficult at first, and there were too many discomforts.
As a southerner, Li Scartou once felt extremely desperate when he came to such a cold place. In winter, the biting cold is really unbearable.
Later, the situation gradually improved, and the foundation here gradually improved.
Here he cut down forests, reclaimed land, and built roads and houses. More than ten years later, he also had a wife, children, and became a parent. Only then did he gradually understand what a bastard he had been.
Therefore, he cherishes his current life even more, cherishes everything he has now, and strives to live a better life.
Fortunately, this is a good era, an era that is changing with each passing day.
Thanks to the rapid development and advancement of the Ming Empire, even the prisoners exiled here in Vladivostok are gradually living a good life.
He just wants to continue living like this forever. Even though working as a dock worker is very tiring, he feels that it is okay to be tired, as long as he can create a better life for his children.
"Lao Li, haven't you drunk?"
At this time, another voice sounded, and it turned out to be Wang Jiuzhi, also a dock worker. Like Li Scartou, he was a prisoner and was exiled to Vladivostok.
They all got married and started businesses here, with their own wives, children, and fields, and started a new life.
"The Grasshopper is here, no drinking is allowed."
Li Scartou smiled and said.
"Haha, this world is so big that it won't help if I don't have your daughter."
When Wang Jiuzhi heard this, he couldn't help laughing.
"Uncle Wang, you are not allowed to drink, otherwise I will tell Sister Yueyue to go."
Li Kuai looked at the wine bottle held by Wang Jiuzhi and pouted.
When Wang Jiuzhi heard this, he immediately nodded his head.
There are many exiled criminals in Vladivostok. It can be said that half of the people are exiled criminals.
But the public security here can be said to be the best in the entire Ming Dynasty.
The criminals who were exiled here have the opportunity to rehabilitate themselves, and they can also live a good life here, so they all cherish this hard-won opportunity to rehabilitate themselves.
Although there are many criminals here, it is much safer than everyone imagines. With all kinds of people gathering together, everyone can live more harmoniously.
As for those who are truly stubborn and unrepentant, the people here have plenty of ways to deal with you. After all, they are all serious criminals and are old gangsters. Everyone was exiled here because they basically thought about it.
Become a new person, change your past, and live a peaceful life instead of being the same as before.
Once you get here, once you commit another crime, there will be no chance for you to change your ways.
"Old Li, whoever marries your grasshopper in the future will definitely be a rake."
Wang Jiuzhi was from Sichuan and Chongqing. He smiled and chatted with Li Scartou.
"Haha, raking your ears is good. There's nothing wrong with listening to your wife."
Li Scartou immediately laughed.
Then he looked at the heavy snow outside and said, "Why are you not hugging your wife at home in the cold weather, and why are you here at the pier?"
"I have nothing to do, so I came here to take a look. If there is a boat, I can also make some money. It's such a winter. I have to eat every day but there is no income. I don't feel at ease."
Wang Jiuzhi smiled and said.
In the past, Wang Jiuzhi would not have thought this way.
In the past, Wang Jiuzhi was a well-known dashing child. He ate, drank, whored and gambled, and was a thief in everything. He always had a green-woods style of eating meat and drinking a lot of wine. Because of this, he committed a serious crime and was exiled to Vladivostok.
here.
Now that I'm here, and I'm a little older, and have a wife and children, I finally come to my senses and live a down-to-earth life. Every day I think about how to make more money and live a better life at home.
Porcelain is more solid.
"You might as well go out hunting with others. Now the whaling team is recruiting people. You can earn 300 taels of silver a day. You can earn several taels of silver in a month."
When Li Scar heard this, he thought about it and said.
"I'm seasick and can't do the whaling job. Besides, I can't swim and I'm afraid of the cold. If I fall into the cold water, I wouldn't even dare to go there."
"It's better to come to this dock and have a look. Maybe if you're lucky, a boat will come by and you can make a little bit of money. If there is really no boat, I can still chat with you."
Wang Jiuzhi shook his head and said.
The main industries in Vladivostok include logging, shipbuilding, fishing and ports. It is obviously impossible to do logging in this winter. The snow in the forest is higher than that of people. Once you enter, you cannot get out. Logging can only be done in summer and autumn.
Logging.
Shipbuilding requires skills, and ordinary people cannot get into it, especially exiled prisoners. The shipyard will not want them at all, unless they have good skills.
The only things left to do are fishing and stevedores.
The hottest seasons for fishing are autumn and winter. The weather in these two seasons is cold and there is a lot of ice and snow that can be used to preserve the freshness of captured marine fish, crabs and the like, and transport them to the Beijing-Tianjin area.
In spring and summer, because the weather gets warmer, it is difficult to keep fish fresh, and even if it is caught, it will smell bad and not sell for a good price. Therefore, spring and summer are generally the off-season for fishing.
Dock stevedores are generally busier in summer and autumn, because there are many ships at that time, especially a large number of ships going to and from Golden Island, which will pass through here, bringing a lot of work to the dock workers. Winter and spring are also the off-season.
, few ships will arrive here.
"Heroes think alike, and I think so too."
"I really don't want to go fishing at sea. The feeling is too uncomfortable. Although I get a lot of money, it's too cold. My wife and daughter are also worried about my safety."
"Think about it, forget it. Anyway, I don't have to worry about food and drink, and I still have some money in my hand. I can just live my life slowly."
After Li Scartou heard this, he quickly raised his thumb and said with a smile.
"Haha, that's right, that's right~"
"Anyway, there's not enough food to eat in the house, and the vegetables are stored in a cellar. Meat is cheap, so I don't have to worry about food and drink. I can just live carelessly like this."
"Come, come, drink, drink."
After Wang Jiuzhi heard this, he also expressed his deep agreement.
Although I was exiled to Vladivostok, I felt a lot of discomfort and dislike when I first came here.
But as time went by, I gradually found that it was better here.
Although it is cold here in Liaodong, the land is very fertile. There is fertile black soil everywhere. The land is vast and sparsely populated, and there is a lot of land. You can cultivate it as you like, and it will be yours.
So you can cultivate a large area of land casually, sow the seeds in the spring, and harvest in the fall. It doesn’t require much management at all, because the winter here is cold enough to kill most pests.
The land is fertile enough, so you don't have to worry about what you plant.
In addition to the vast and fertile land, there are also extremely rich resources of all kinds here. Needless to say, forestry resources. There are endless virgin forests in several major mountain ranges. You can cut them down as much as you want, and you won't be able to use them up.
Moreover, there are many kinds of animals in the forest, including deer, wild boars, pheasants, roosters, bears, tigers, hares, etc. They are everywhere, and you can hunt and eat endless amounts of meat.
In addition, there are many kinds of mushrooms, fungus and the like in the forest, and ginseng is also something that can often be seen. These allow people here to enjoy delicious mountain delicacies and increase their income.
In addition, the iron, coal, oil and gas resources here are very abundant, briquettes are very cheap, and gasoline and kerosene are also very cheap.
After getting used to it, I gradually fell in love with it and everything here.
Compared with my hometown, life here is richer and simpler, and living is much easier.
Because it is close to the sea, seafood is also extremely abundant. If you go to sea at any time, you can bring back boatloads of seafood. The price is cheap and the quantity is so large that you can't finish it all.
Although it is a place of exile, life is actually quite good for everyone.
Otherwise, this North Korean woman wouldn’t be desperately trying to get married.
"Did you hear that?"
"If you commit a crime now, you will be exiled to Black Earth Province."
The two chatted, and soon they talked about the current situation of criminals being exiled.
"Black Earth Province, I heard it is in Europe. It is in the far west. It is thousands of miles away from Liaodong."
When Wang Jiuzhi heard this, he also said quickly.
"Isn't that true? I heard that it is as cold as our place in Vladivostok. It is extremely cold in winter, but there is no way to compare it with Vladivostok."
"We have everything we want here. The Black Earth Province is different. There is nothing. It is all grassland. I heard that a large number of local indigenous people have been retained. These indigenous people rebelled not long ago. His Royal Highness the Crown Prince was furious and ordered
They went on a killing spree and tens of thousands of people died."
Li Scartou said.
"Today's prince and the emperor are different. The emperor is generous and kind, loves his people like a son, and seldom kills. But the prince is different. He killed tens of thousands of people in one fell swoop."
"We are also lucky. If we had it now, we might lose our heads."
Wang Jiuzhi sighed and said, secretly glad in his heart that he was lucky, otherwise he would not be able to live the small life he is living now.
"Yes, yes~"
"Even if you don't lose your head, I estimate that with the current policy, we will be exiled to Black Earth Province, God knows how far away. Vladivostok is still in Liaodong, and there is a railway. As long as we are not guilty, we will still have the opportunity to return to our hometown in the future.
Look at your parents."
"If I am exiled to the Black Earth Province, I'm afraid I will never come back again."
Li Scartou shook his head as he spoke.
Nowadays, newspapers are developed and sold everywhere. There are more people reading newspapers and more people reading newspapers. Even illiterate people can listen to others reading newspapers and learn about what is happening in the Ming Dynasty and around the world.
The two of them were illiterate, but they both knew what was happening in the Ming Dynasty and even around the world. They listened to people reading newspapers every day, and then they discussed them privately with each other in small groups.
"I was exiled to Winter City before. I heard that Winter City is a really scary place. It's much colder in winter than here in Vladivostok."
"There is also the exile in Australia or the Golden Continent. The Golden Continent is better. I heard that it is quite good. There are some uninhabited areas in Australia. That is terrible. There is no human habitation for thousands of miles. It is so lonely.
of."
"So after all, we are actually very lucky in Vladivostok. At least we have food and drink here, so we can live a leisurely and leisurely life."
"Yes, yes, it's pretty good here. The land is fertile and the resources are rich."
"But I heard that the Black Earth Province is actually very good. The land there is also black soil, and it is extremely flat and open. Many people are rushing to immigrate to the Black Earth."
"Immigration is immigration, exile is exile, and the treatment of immigration and exile are very different."
"When you immigrated here, the imperial court was responsible for building a house for you and distributing seeds and grain for you. How can those who were exiled get such treatment? It's good to have food to eat."
"That's true. After all, we are exiled, but it is much better than before. The place where we were exiled before was not a place for people to live at all. The place where we are exiled now is at least good. At least there is land for farming. There is no need to
Worrying about food and drink.”
"Today is different from the past. Now I don't have to worry about food and drink anywhere in the Ming Dynasty. There is so much food that I can't finish it. It's not like before, when everyone farmed for the landlords, and they were exhausted from hard work and couldn't have enough to eat or wear.
Life is too hard.”
Li Scartou and Wang Jiuzhi kept chatting. In winter, nothing can be done, so chatting has become a normal thing here.
"Daddy, daddy, we have a boat. It's such a big boat."
At this time, Li Kaichuo, who had been looking outside, suddenly shouted.
"Is there a boat?"
"What a big boat?"
Upon hearing this, Li Scartou and Wang Jiuzhi quickly looked towards the sea outside the port. In the haze, three large stern ships were slowly approaching.
PS: Today is a big chapter with 5,000 words, I’m too lazy to split it up~~
