Deng Leizhou Sugar Company found a wheelmaker in Leizhou, Mr. Bian from Leizhou, "! Every household has an oxcart. [Full text reading] However, the wheelmaker that can be found specializes in making a wheelmaker for the local oxcart that transports sugar cane. This kind of plate-type wheel without spokes has good endurance, but it is too bulky and completely unsuitable for use.
"What kind of wheel is it made of? Does it have spokes or not?"
"Is it still called a wheel without spokes?" Huang Ande asked in confusion.
The man he was talking about was named Bao Lei, who opened a wheel-making workshop in Foshan. Bao Lei is not a local, but a wanderer from the north. He settled in Foshan more than 20 years ago.
, Bao Lei is a fugitive criminal. His family has been an official craftsman for many generations. He specializes in manufacturing vehicles for the army and has the unique skill of wheel-making.
Being an official craftsman in the Ming Dynasty was a hereditary job. This is a kind of forced obligation imposed by Zhu Baba when he came to power, not welfare. It is different from the workers in this time and space who cut their heads and want to join the power supply bureau and get high benefits and high wages. In the Ming Dynasty, the status of official craftsmen was slightly better than that of slaves.
Bao Lei grew up in such a family of officials and craftsmen, and the wheel-making craft was passed down from his ancestors. But he soon discovered: Some people say that being an official craftsman is like being a slave to the government. In fact, the life of an official craftsman is worse than that of a slave. The slave owner also knows how to give the slaves a few good meals so that they can work hard, but the official craftsman is almost starving to death.
So one day, Bao Lei ran away.
Bao Lei's escape was not thrilling, and there was no such thing as crossing a barbed wire fence or scaling a wall. One day, he packed up some of his family's belongings, loaded them into a cart he made himself, helped the old and young, and left without anyone asking him where he was going. After a period of time, the official who had already falsely responded to the story put his whole family on the list of "lost".
Abandoning his craftsmanship and not paying the labor service fee is equivalent to running away privately. But this kind of thing is no longer a big deal in Ming Dynasty. Even so, the Bao Lei family still felt guilty and simply ran to Guangdong in one go. This was already the southernmost point of the Ming Dynasty in their concept. If they had known that there was Qiongzhou further south, they might have fled to Hainan Island.
However, Bao Lei's life was limited after his escape. He found that people here didn't use cars much and had good skills, but the business was always deserted. Fortunately, there are still some car dealerships in Foshan Shangda, and we can still make ends meet.
Bao Lei's life can't go on anymore.
For some reason, the government suddenly remembered that he had come to Guangdong Province to build cannons. The demand for artillery carriages suddenly increased sharply. As a result, all the craftsmen related to the construction of carriages in the province were dismissed, and Bao Lei's whole family collapsed. Second, he and his sons were also sent to Foshan. The eldest son, who was originally an apprentice as a craftsman from a colleague in Guangzhou, was also conscripted to Foshan, and there was an inexplicable reunion between father and son.
"Since they are official craftsmen, how can we take them away?"
"Don't worry, shopkeeper, it's all for sale." Huang Ande whispered, "Here we are working day and night to build the artillery carriage, but we don't even get a day's payment, and even the food is withheld. I heard that many people have died. This Bao Lei sold all his belongings in Foshan's workshops and bribed the supervisor, so he got out of trouble."
It was difficult to escape, but it also became impoverished, and half a lifetime's savings were wiped out. The eldest son, Bao Boqing, had a place to go, so he went back to his original workshop in Guangzhou to continue working. Although the hardship was a bit harsh, he could still survive. Bao Lei, his wife and their young son had nowhere to go, not even a place to stay.
"These days, the whole family is living in a dilapidated temple. The father and son are working odd jobs as carpenters in the market. They can no longer afford to study. They are all willing to go to Lingao with the shopkeeper."
When Huang Ande brought Bao Lei, Huang Tianyu took a closer look at the man in front of him. This man was similar to the common people in this time and space he saw at the refugee inspection camp in Lingao. He was thin and shriveled, and his exposed skin had become dull due to years of toil. He was rough and his eyes were cloudy and dull. For a moment, Huang Tianyu thought he was blind.
The man looked very old. Huang Ande told him that Bao Lei was about fifty years old. In this time and space, he is already half buried.
"Your name is Bao Lei?"
"It's little Bao Lei." Bao Lei showed the inherent dullness of people who have worked hard all year round.
"Are you a wheelwright?"
"The little one knows how to make wheels," Bao Lei continued, "he can also do ordinary carpentry work."
"Want to go to Lingao?"
"Yes." Bao Lei nodded, "As long as the shopkeeper is willing to give me some food."
"Do you have any other requests?"
Bao Lei's request was also simple, hoping to hire his youngest son. In this way, the whole family finally has food to eat. Huang Tianyu agreed wholeheartedly. Not only did he agree to hire him, but he also said that he could bring his wife with him. There would be plenty of work to do in Lingao.
After taking in Bao Lei's family, Huang Tianyu recruited a dozen craftsmen with nowhere to go among the craftsmen who had been bought and released from the craftsman labor camp. They had various types of work, related to car building, and could basically be equipped with It’s a complete vehicle workshop. It's just how much money the foundry workers finally raised. But at least we have recruited a complete car-making team, which will be of great use to the Work Capacity Committee.
The workers recruited and the materials purchased in Foshan were all transported by Qiwei's semicolon. Liu San was busy visiting guests and attending banquets. After he was invited by Lin Baihu once, he suddenly became a local celebrity. Liu San was also happy to socialize with Yang Shixiang everywhere. The more business contacts, the better.
"Dr. Liu is running around pharmacies these days." The waiter said, "He buys all kinds of patent medicines such as pills, pills, ointments, and powders. There are always a lot of them when he buys them. I can see that he has written signature papers one by one. I don't know if there are any. What's the use
Li Luoyou was sitting in the study, listening to a boy reporting on the activities of Yang Shixiang and Liu San.
He cared more about these people than Lin Ming.
"A shopkeeper named Huang next to Dr. Liu never goes to the drugstore. He only goes around kilns, foundries, and teahouses. His subordinates are looking for workers everywhere.
"Recruiting?" Li Luoyou listened carefully and asked at this time.
"I have inquired about it, and it seems that they want all kinds of jobs, including drugstore clerks, kiln workers, foundry craftsmen, carpenters, and lathes," the clerk said. "He is old and frail, and he will accept any craftsman that other families don't want. Even his family members have agreed. Take them away together."
In the old business habits, with larger fonts, employees had room and board in the store. They were not allowed to go home and stay overnight. They were given a few days off every month, and some even only gave a few days off every year. For those who live far away from home, it takes almost three years to take leave and go back home. This is not only the case for ordinary clerks, even if they are the head clerk, manager, or shopkeeper, as long as they are not the "owner", no exceptions are made. So it's quite strange that a man can bring his family with him.
Li Luoyou nodded, rewarded the man with five silver coins, and let him go. It seems that Australians are setting up their own factories and workshops in Lingao. That’s why we don’t care about the industry’s massive recruitment of craftsmen. The so-called Australian goods are actually Lingao goods, at least they will be like this for a long time.
The reason for agreeing to take away the family members was to allow the craftsmen to work safely in Lingao, and probably to prevent them from escaping.
"I would like to see what medicine they are going to sell in the gourd in Lingao."
"Selling medicine?" Quack Qiong's voice came from outside the door. He came back from outside. He just took a look at the newly delivered silk samples and chose several types.
"Yes, does anyone want to sell medicine?" Li Luoyou said, "Have you made your choice?"
"The choice has been made." Quark didn't have much money. He was a typical British small businessman similar to Swift's. With a capital of several hundred pounds to sell, he traveled across the ocean in search of wealth. He is very shrewd. Every time he buys goods from Li Luoyou, he carefully selects the goods that can make the biggest profit.
Leroy used him to communicate with the British East India Company and even the British mainland. He was no longer satisfied simply doing business with the Portuguese. As for the Spanish in Manila, Li Luoyu was extremely disgusted. He believed that these people were exactly the same as the slaves. They were rude and barbaric. They blindly exploited and exploited the Han people and were always restrictive and hostile. It was comparable to He Jiannu. The Manila Massacre during the Wanli Period made Li Luoyou even more worried. So he never did the Manila route business.
Quark's direct connection with Britain also gave him the possibility of purchasing European books and instruments directly. You can also get these things from the Jesuits, but it is obvious: the Jesuits will not buy for him certain books that the church does not like. In comparison, Protestant Britain is more relaxed.
"Are you talking about those people from Australia and Zhejiang?
"It's them Li Luoyou said with a smile, "These Australians often do unexpected things. "As he said this, he told the guy what he had learned.
"" It's okay to build a fortress in Lingao. I'm afraid I'm going to start a workshop in Lingao. Li Luoyou shook his head and said, "I really don't understand. If it's for trade, it's okay to set up a business hall and build a fortress." Yes. Why recruit so many workers?
After hearing this, Quark shook his head and said, "I'm afraid the Australians are not here for trade. They seem to want to colonize."
"Colonization?" Li Luoyou was surprised. He knew a little about colonization, which generally meant immigration and settlement.
"No," he shook his head, "If you want to colonize, you must look for open wilderness. For example, you told me last time, what is the name of Amei State?" "
"America," Quark said.
"Exactly, I heard that the land there is fertile, but it has always been uninhabited, and there are only some savages. It makes sense to immigrate and colonize. Lingao is a county under the Ming Dynasty. It has been a prefecture and county of the imperial court since the Han Dynasty, so there is no need for outsiders to colonize!"
"It's hard to say." Quack said, "I heard that they have the same culture and species as China. Maybe they think they have this power."! ~!
