Chapter 49 The task of making a living
It took Lando more than half a year to get used to life in this time and space - he could speak Italian fluently and could pretend to be aristocratic. He quietly hired a ship and returned to Dongsha. island. [Read the latest chapter] The fishing boat was safe and sound. He managed to sneak in and took out some guns and ammunition for his own use, as well as a few emergency kits - the modern medicines inside were priceless.
Changes are both disasters and new opportunities. After Lando settled down, he began to think about his future.
In this strange time and space, there is no problem in making a living by relying on your skills and the firearms in your hands. But he was a little unwilling to continue like this.
What about going to Europe? Lando quickly rejected the idea: he was an American and had no idea about Europe. You have come a long way back, what do you do for a living? The United States does not exist yet. Of course you can become an immigrant yourself, but it would be too hard.
Lando thought about floating the ship. With these guns and motor boats, he might as well become a pirate himself. Manila's galleons would bring a large amount of silver every year. A considerable part of this silver went to Macau and was used to send money to China. People buy various goods. The Jesuits were also actively involved, and Lando saw too much of it.
If we could get a ship, the South China Sea would be full of gold. Portuguese ships, Spanish ships, and Dutch ships, every one of them would not be loaded with silver and go to China. As long as he robs a ship, he will be rich. With money, he can recruit desperadoes, buy ships and cannons - Lando is very different from the Chinese time travellers. He had never bothered to make anything on his own. He was accustomed to using all ready-made weapons. Now he was very good at playing with matchlocks and flintlocks, and he was one of the top ten masters in the local area in swordsmanship.
When you have plundered enough, and you have the capital and troops, you can just create a small independent country and be the king. There are so many unopened wastelands that you can tie up a few Portuguese women you like, and then sneak away to Australia or New Zealand to become kings. The colonists are fine. He soon realized that he had nowhere to refuel, not to mention any of his men. If a person becomes a colonist, he will probably be eaten by the Maori.
In addition, he did not have the technical means to salvage the ship. Disappointed, Lando decided to hang out in Macau for the time being, and then try to gather a group of reliable people.
But he soon became disappointed: in Macau, a city full of adventurers, everyone talks about money, and only missionaries have ideals. After more than a year, he didn't even make any real friends - he had quite a few friends who drank, gambled and made money.
As for his patrons and patrons: the Jesuit priests, their soul-seeing smiles contained something that frightened him.
He began to miss his old friends, whose lives and deaths were unknown. As long as one or two people are still alive, there can always be help from each other, which will definitely open up a small situation.
If there is anyone he can trust in this time and space, it is his black slave - he won it from the gambling table. In order to commemorate the third part of a certain movie that he wanted to watch but had not seen, he named the black man Shrek.
Schlick is a melancholy black man who is taciturn. But he is loyal enough to Lando - Lando at least still adheres to the basic human rights concepts of modern people in the 21st century: feed him well, do not whip him, and will not lose him as a gamble at any time.
Every morning, Shlick would respectfully prepare face wash and clothes for him. The communication between master and servant basically relies on eyes, gestures and a strange dialogue: Schlick speaks a strange Spanish, Lando speaks broken Portuguese.
There are very few differences between Spanish and Portuguese, and their language communication can barely understand each other.
"I'm going to have no money again." He muttered, turned around and walked from the pier to the inn where he lived. After narrowly escaping from Zheng Zhilong's hands, Liu Xiang generously gave him three hundred Spanish pesos - and also tried to recruit him to serve him. This tall and strong man fought one against a hundred on a big ship. He was obviously not an ordinary person. He needs a strong general like this.
Lando refused. Having this life-threatening experience once was enough.
After returning to Macau, Gelanzani rewarded him with another hundred pesos. Just as everything has a beginning and an end. It was finally time to use up the four hundred pesos. He ate, drank, gambled, and sometimes provoked women - Lando once seduced the wife of a well-known local Portuguese businessman, and then beat the jealous husband almost to death. He was notorious for this, and if he hadn't thought that Jesus would go through life and death and Jesus would come forward to put an end to the matter, he would have had to run away.
These enjoyments quickly emptied his wallet. In fact, Gelanzani still took good care of him and gave him small jobs from time to time, but he was very stingy in doing so. Never had fifty pesos.
He was short of money and struggling to make ends meet. If this continues, I'm afraid I'll have to live like nothing. The Jesuits wouldn't give themselves a penny if they didn't have a mission, and they would always welcome free meals - if bread, bean soup and sour wine mixed with cold water could be considered a meal.
He began to seriously consider whether to work for Liu Xiang - his agent in Macau always welcomes desperadoes from all over the world to serve him - especially Europeans. He needs people to control European guns for him. The terms of the offer are not bad, four hundred Spanish pesos per year for the gunner. Lando figured that he should be worth a thousand a year.
The inn was in full swing. It was an inn run by Portuguese Jews. A small inn like this should have everything: a warm landlady, a chubby boss, a noisy dining room, and a room that can barely be called comfortable. Lando liked that this place was relatively clean - Jews were the most hygienic compared to Europeans in this time and space - and the food was good. Although the price was a bit expensive, he still made this place his long-term stay.
In the blink of an eye, he has been here for more than two years. As usual, if you stay for a long time, you will get some discounts - such as outstanding debts. When he saw the landlady, he realized that he owed the rent and house money here for almost three months.
The landlady's face looked very ugly, and the candles on the candlestick she gave him were almost gone.
"Good night to you." She didn't even say the word "sir."
"Good night, madam." He made the most charming smile of an Italian man. Not many women could resist this smile, but the Jewish woman was obviously indifferent to him. Then he turned around and went to greet the customers who could afford the money.
He quickly slipped back to his room, a small room on the third floor - officially called "the attic". Shlick was sleeping on a straw bed in front of the door. Seeing him coming, I quickly got up.
"Go to sleep, go to sleep, you nigger." Lando muttered, opened the door and walked in.
The furnishings in the room were extremely simple. He hung the clothes behind the door and carefully brushed them twice. Then he sat down and took out half a loaf of bread from the drawer - the other half had been given to Shlick before going out. If the situation is good, the waiter will bring him food when he comes back. Of course there is no need to think about it now.
He took off the holster of the pistol he always kept with him and put it under the pillow. This stiff Chinese-style pillow also contained a few modern possessions he had salvaged from the ship: a medical kit, an atlas of East and Southeast Asia, a pocket compass and a wallet with several hundred dollars hidden inside. Just some floral paper.
Lando ate his bread with cold water and thought about his future.
When you become a pirate, you are alone and weak, so it is impossible for the time being. He is unwilling to work as a mercenary for Liu Xiang - it is too dangerous, and he cannot play his role at sea. Unless he joins a gang, vz68 will be of no use at all, and bullets are limited...
At this time, he thought of that strange group of Australians again - although he never saw them again after that time. But Lando was 100% sure: this was a group of people from the same time and space as him. Just look at their ridiculous claim to be "Australian".
Australians, you are just a bunch of Chinamen.
As for how these Chinese guys got to this time and space, I'm afraid only God knows.
But the Chinese are clearly in a much better situation than themselves. They were neatly dressed and looked good. And they are still selling various products. When he first saw the "crystal mirror" that the rich in China were showing off, his jaw almost dropped.
Isn't this a plastic mirror? He has seen it in many dime stores around the world.
Then more and more news spread to Macau, such as the Australians building a castle on a large island in southern China. They had an iron ship bigger than the largest Galen ship, and there were many strange things. . Moreover, firearms are very powerful.
After comprehensive analysis, Lando came to three conclusions: the so-called Australians are the Chinese from the 21st century; they have modern ships and weapons; they have many people.
As for the big island in southern China, of course it is Hainan Island.
He checked the atlas he carried with him and found an unfamiliar place name on the map: Lingao.
Lingao. He remembered that Father Comange had told him that he was transferred to Macau from Lingao by the Chinese government. He could still recall being escorted onto the ship almost naked by a group of ragged Chinese soldiers holding spears and swords. It seemed to be a desolate place.
Lando had a vague feeling that he would come here and have a great relationship with them.
What do these Chinese people want to do when they come to Lingao?
As more and more goods came from Lingao, Australian goods became a well-known brand, and when many goods showed obvious signs of being produced in this time and space, Lando revised his judgment to: This group of people The Chinese also have machinery and equipment, engineers and qualified technical workers.
Even the so-called "Australian products" changed his life: Paper specially used for wiping buttocks in the toilet appeared on the market, and the price was surprisingly low, so Lando's excretion finally no longer became an economic burden.
The Chinese even began to supply matches, cigarettes, rum and soda in oak barrels to Macau. There are many such vendors on the streets of Macau, carrying two small barrels with spigots on their backs, one for sour and sweet drinks. of soda and one of rum. You can buy it alone or in a mixture, and you can even add grated mint leaves in the summer. Lando thought, isn't this just a cocktail?
God, Lando thought, at least the Chinese made his life in this time and space less difficult.
News of Lingao's "Australian" lifestyle gradually spread to Macau, including their good streets, perfect municipal management, and lights that shine like stars every night...
Now, Lando, who was desperate to start a new business to conquer the world, seriously considered for the first time the idea of defecting to the Australians, or the Chinese. At the very least - they have plenty of toilet paper and clean toilets. In addition, he still likes Chinese food in the 21st century.
Instead of working for Liu Xiang, it is better to join the Chinese. As people from the same time and space, we should have more common language. Speaking of which, when I saw them in Gelanzani's official residence, there was also a European among them - a very beautiful girl who seemed to be Latina.
Since there are Europeans, we will not exclude another European. He Lando has no motherland in this time and space, so the other party definitely doesn't have to worry about him in this aspect.
He has served as a volunteer and should be the professional talent they urgently need. There will definitely be food to eat and a high status when he goes there - how can Liu Xiang understand his value? But the Chinese in the 21st century definitely understand.
Thinking of this, he suddenly felt that defecting to Lingao was a bright road - he even wondered why he didn't think of it earlier, because at least he would have missed one year of fasting.
Moreover, he also thought that the weapons and ammunition sunk on the reefs of Dongsha Island alone were a huge wealth. Relying on this, I can also get a good position in Lingao's group.
He began to plan his "departure to freedom" and didn't even bother to eat bread. Getting to Lingao is easy, and the Australians, like all maritime powers in the region, have semi-open agents here. From time to time, there are also ships traveling between the two places. And there are no travel restrictions on the Lingao side, anyone can go if they want to.
Suddenly he thought of a question: Are these modern Chinese in Lingao under the command of their government? Could it be that the Chinese government has mastered some secret of traveling through time and space, and is it plotting some amazing conspiracy in this time and space?
If this is the case, if I rush over to reveal my identity, I am afraid that I will be silenced immediately.
Lando's enthusiasm immediately cooled. No matter how clean the toilet and delicious food are, the premise is that you can live freely. It would be meaningless if he was locked up or simply shot.
He couldn't bear to think about the matter, and then he thought that if the other party wanted to know if there were other Americans besides himself in this time and space, it would endanger their mission, and maybe they would torture him...
He shuddered at the thought and started eating the bread again.
That night, Lando had a strange dream. One moment he arrived at Lingao, put on the "people's uniform", and sat in a grand auditorium for a meeting; the next moment he became an agent of the US government, meeting the SEALs in the wilderness, and said loudly: "Lingao Just in that direction." After a while, he was tied to a chair again. In the dark secret room, several Chinese people wearing training uniforms looked at him coldly, as if they wanted to torture him. When he called for help, He also realized that the person interrogating him was actually Gelanzani. He said, "You infidel, prepare to atone for your sins."
Then he found himself standing on a pile of firewood.
Lando yelled, rolled out of bed, and woke up.
He touched his forehead, which was covered in sweat.
"God" he cried, it was terrible.
"Master, how are you?" Shlick poked his head in from outside the door.
"I'm fine," Lando said. "Give me some water to wash my face."
Lando was not served any breakfast in the dining room. The landlady just reminded him with a smile: He still had three months of unpaid debts.
Lando and Shlick had no choice but to wander the streets. Lando wanted to see if he could meet any acquaintances with whom he could have a meal. If that didn't work, he had to go to the Jesuit church for dinner.
A short black woman wearing cotton clothes suddenly came closer. Her appearance made him lose his appetite for breakfast.
"Mr. Lando, Mr. Lando," she called in Portuguese.
"What's the matter?" He looked at this black woman. It seemed that she should be a slave girl of a rich man or something. Her appearance is different from that of African slaves. Her eyes are yellow and slanted. His appearance can be called ugly no matter which time and space we look at it.
"Please come over here." The black slave girl motioned him to a Chinese tea stall on the roadside.
"Sorry, I don't have time." Lando said carelessly. He was too lazy to talk to such an ugly woman.
"What if we have this?" The black slave girl took off a money bag from her waist, and the silver coins made a pleasant friction sound.
"Okay. I've never refused a woman."
The black slave girl asked for a pot of tea and seemed to want to say something to him. But he watched the Chinese stall owner frying something in the pot with vague eyes - he vaguely remembered that this thing could be eaten in Chinatown, and it seemed to be called fried dough sticks.
The aroma of fried dough sticks made him obsessed with it.
The black female slave gave him a helpless look, took out some Chinese copper coins, and asked the stall owner to bring you dough sticks and sesame cakes.
Lando picked up the sesame buns in a gentlemanly and arrogant manner, followed the example of other Chinese people, folded and rolled up the fried dough sticks. Started eating with big mouthfuls.
"Give my servant another piece." He asked the stall owner in Chinese.
So Shlick also got a piece of sesame cake and fried dough sticks.
"I would like to ask Mr. Lando, are you free recently?" m! ~!
