The afternoon autumn sun shines on the fields outside the city. It is already late September, but Guangzhou is located in the south of Lingnan. The climate is warm all year round, and the fields are still lush and green.
There are crisscrossing ditches and soaring egrets, which makes it a peaceful pastoral scene that has passed through time.
The mule cart drove slowly along the dirt road in the fields, and soon arrived at the coast of the Pearl River. Zhang Yanling looked far away from the car window and saw that the Pearl River was extremely open, with lush reeds along the coast, boats and ships on the river, and tall sails. , quite busy.
Where Guangzhou Prefecture is located, waterway transportation is extremely convenient. It is connected to the sea and rivers, and leads to the mainland. It is an excellent place to develop trade. In this era when land transportation is extremely inconvenient, having waterway access is a natural capital, and even more Not to mention the ports connecting to the sea, there are also rivers leading to the inland.
There were many large state capitals in the Ming Dynasty that also had such advantages in sea and river transportation. If they were all utilized, it would surely lead to the great development of maritime trade and domestic trade.
It's a pity that the Ming Dynasty's sea ban wasted such a good geographical location. To put it bluntly, the sea ban is actually a kind of seclusion.
After walking west along the riverside road for more than ten miles, the road turned away from the riverside road and turned onto a gravel path. The path led to the depths of the Pingchou fields in the northwest direction. It was rutted and crisscrossed, and it was obvious that vehicles and people were frequently passing by.
After about three miles, the mule cart stopped.
"Master Marquis, the manor is right ahead. I'm afraid we can't get any closer." Chen Shiyi said in a deep voice.
Zhang Yanling stuck his head out and looked in the direction Chen Shiyi was pointing. In the distance was a stretch of green trees. There were vaguely visible high walls, and there seemed to be a lookout tower standing among the green shade.
"Last night, we went less than half a mile when we saw patrolling patrols with weapons in their hands. If we go any further, we're afraid we'll be discovered," Chen Shi said.
Zhang Yanling nodded, thought for a moment and said, "Keep going."
Chen Shi was stunned for a moment, and without asking any questions, he jumped on the car and drove away. Zhang Yanling raised the car curtain, exposed his head and face, took out a folding fan from his waist and started fanning slowly.
The mule cart moved forward for less than a moment, and sure enough, seven or eight men came galloping in front of them, wearing short clothes and short backs, with bows, arrows and swords hanging from their waists.
"Stop, stop, who are you?" someone from the front shouted loudly.
Chen Shi hurriedly stopped the mule cart, and Zhang Yanling got out of the cart. Seeing the seven or eight men with angry eyes running towards them, he waved his folding fan and stepped forward to salute: "Brothers, you are polite!"
The leading man frowned and waved his hands and said: "Where did you come from being poor? What are you doing here? Let's go quickly."
Zhang Yanling said hurriedly: "I'm out for an autumn outing. I'm a little thirsty when I get here. When I see the village in front of me, I want to ask for a glass of water. Are some of you people from the village in front of you? Can you have some tea?"
"Drink water? There is plenty of water in ditches, rivers and ponds in the wilderness. Just go and drink it. How can we have tea for you?" The man frowned and shouted.
"How can I drink the water in the wild? If you don't want to, I'll just go to the village and ask for it from other people. What a bunch of rude people." Zhang Yanling said displeased.
"What did you say? Stop talking nonsense and get out of here. This is not a cottage, this is a private estate. The place you are standing on is a private place. If you break into a private place, we can break your legs. Do you understand that I want you to be sent to the official? If you keep talking nonsense, don’t blame us for being rude." The man said angrily.
Zhang Yanling seemed to be frightened, and her expression changed: "Are you so fierce? Even if it is a private manor, asking for a glass of water is not too much. As the saying goes, helping others is the foundation of happiness. The owner of this manor will not even ask for a glass of water.
Just refuse to give alms."
"Hey, I said you are deliberately looking for trouble, aren't you? I told you to go away, why are you talking so much nonsense? Brothers, if you don't leave, we will overturn their donkey cart, drag it down and beat them up." The man shouted loudly.
"Okay, give me a good beating and you'll be honest."
"Get out of here, get out of here!"
The other men loudly agreed, rolled up their sleeves and yelled curses.
Without saying a word, Zhang Yanling hurriedly turned around and got into the car. She was so hasty that she almost fell down. Several men laughed with their arms akimbo, laughing at Zhang Yanling's clumsiness.
"You are so rude. I will ask someone to come and make a review when I return to the city. My father is a newly transferred official to Guangzhou. It will be easier for you. Just wait for me. Coachman, go quickly." Zhang Yanling got on the car.
shouted from the car window, waving a folding fan.
"Hey! This bitch is so stubborn, beat him up!" a man yelled angrily.
"Hit him!" the others echoed.
"Wait a minute!" The leading man waved his hand to stop, frowned and whispered: "This guy said that his family is an official, so we don't need to cause trouble. The master has told us not to cause trouble, just leave now."
Everyone had to silence. Zhang Yanling, who was in the car, said reluctantly: "Afraid, my father is the new school principal of Nanhai County. You guys dare to mess with me. Just wait and see. What is the name of the owner of your manor?
Name? I will definitely ask my father to argue with him."
"Nanhai County Xuezheng?" All the big men looked at each other and suddenly burst into laughter.
"What kind of official do you think I am? It turns out that I am just a county school official in Nanhai County, which is under the jurisdiction of Guangzhou Prefecture? Hahahahaha. It's ridiculous, so it counts as an official?" The leading man burst into laughter.
A man next to him seemed confused about the situation and asked: "Boss, what kind of official is this Nanhai County Xuexue?"
"What a shitty official. He's just a teacher at the county school. Hahaha, he's a nine-level official at the government school, and he's at the ninth level at the county school. What kind of official do you think he is? A sesame and mung bean official. That's ridiculous." The leading man laughed.
"That's it, hahaha."
Zhang Yanling was trembling with anger and said angrily: "You dare to insult my father's official position. This is outrageous. My father will definitely argue with your master. Do you dare to tell me your master's name?"
"Hahaha, you silly boy. You are so mean. Fortunately, you are new to Guangzhou. With the way you are, you were beaten to pieces in Guangzhou within a few days. I will tell you when I go back to the high-ranking official.
Damn it, Dad, just say that I was raped by Mr. Lu today
The manor's nurse has been bullied. Do you think your father dares to challenge Mr. Lu? If not, I will have to drag you to kowtow to apologize to us. Hahaha. You know nothing. Get lost."
The leading man laughed loudly.
"Master Lu? Which Master Lu? What official? Do you dare to name me?" Zhang Yanling shouted to herself.
"Damn, he's still talking too much. Do you really want a beating? Brothers, beat him up." The leading man couldn't bear it any longer and started yelling and scolding.
Zhang Yanling hurriedly turned back, lowered the curtains and urged loudly: "Car driver, go quickly, go quickly."
As soon as Chen Shi waved his whip, the green mule pulled the cart and ran away quickly. Seven or eight men who were guarding the hospital behind were laughing loudly and shouting curses.
Zhang Yanling and Chen Shi drove two miles away and stopped in a quiet place. Zhang Yanling got out of the car and walked to the reed marsh next to the river fork and sat down.
As soon as Chen Shi came over, he said in a deep voice: "Master Hou, what should we do now?"
Zhang Yanling said with a smile: "Wait until dark to go in and have a look. Things have already become clear. The people have already been picked up. Now we have to see if the goods are delivered correctly."
Chen Shi asked: "What do you mean, Master Hou? Who is the right person?"
Zhang Yanling said: "I almost forgot to tell you. I encountered something yesterday morning."
Zhang Yanling recounted what happened yesterday morning at Haiyun Tower, and Chen Shiyi was shocked and stunned.
"This... how could the Marquis be like this? Didn't we agree that if the humble post is not around, the Marquis will not fight with others? If something happens, what should we do?" Chen Shiyi complained.
"What can I do in that situation? Do I have to stand up? Don't worry, you don't know my methods." Zhang Yanling stretched out his hand and pulled out the blunderbuss from his waist, spinning it around in his hand, click, click, click.
Fiddled with the bolt of the gun.
"That's true. What the Marquis means is that the Mr. Lu that the woman said is the Mr. Lu that the gang just mentioned. Is that correct?" Chen Shi asked.
"Ninety-nine percent of it is him. He has something to do with smuggling sea goods, and they are all called Mr. Lu. How can it be such a coincidence? Who is this guy? I remember that there is no official named Lu in the Yamen of the Chief Secretary of Guangdong and Guangxi. There is no official named Lu in the Yamen of Guangzhou. Could it be that?
Are officials just businessmen? If they are just businessmen, how can they be so capable? Could it be that there is collusion between officials and businessmen?" Zhang Yanling frowned and said in thought.
Chen Shi thought about it for a while, but he couldn't understand it either. He had to stand aside and say nothing.
Zhang Yanling said: "I don't want to think about it anymore, let's check it step by step. When it gets dark, let's go into the manor and see if the goods inside are smuggled sea goods. After confirming, we can make a conclusion on the previous judgment. Maybe this is the place.
It’s the gathering place for their smuggled goods.”
Chen Shi nodded and said, "Okay."
Chen Shiyi also sat on the grass next to Zhang Yanling. The two of them chatted without saying a word, watching the sun go westward little by little and set little by little. As dusk gradually fell, the surrounding areas became colder.