"Look, this is obviously a weapon forged by pagans, but it is stained with the blood of Christians," the police chief said sarcastically: "Even if he is a fraudster, he is still a fraudster who prays before Christ."
Governor Juan Salamanca has remained silent on officials' gossip. When the servant took away the count's gifts as he ordered, the governor suddenly asked the police chief: "Mr. Brambilla, I heard that Count Fannanova likes to sit in his villa and hunt, especially Shooting monkeys, do you understand this?"
The police chief was so shocked that he couldn't say anything. At the beginning, he was instigated by Sanavria and others with ulterior motives in an attempt to find out the count's origins and the secrets of his residence. The police chief tried his best to bribe and intimidate, and finally succeeded in controlling a Tagalog servant in the count's mansion. Unfortunately, the servant only gave out worthless news once and then disappeared. Until one day when the earl was hosting a banquet for colonial officials, he casually complained about a greedy servant who secretly drank too much rum, so that he went crazy and jumped into the sea to commit suicide.
An inside route to developing an informant failed, as did the native spies sent to monitor the villa. Weiss bribed the fishermen and farmers in the surrounding villages, and these suspicious strangers would be driven away as soon as they appeared during the day. A few particularly diligent peepers will lurk until sunset and sneak up on them in the dark. Without exception, the special reconnaissance team snipers on duty on the watchtower equipped with night vision goggles and Mosin-Nagant rifles will send A warhead or two as a reward for his enthusiasm and patience. Sometimes Weiss would bring his fal rifle to participate in this "low-visibility target shooting competition" - naturally he would come first every time. All the colonial officials heard was the Count's slight complaint at the banquet - monkeys were overrun in the suburbs of Manila. In order to protect the famous trees and fruits in the garden. He had to patrol the garden all night, shooting at any monkey that climbed up the wall.
Naturally, Mr. Brambilla could not see the remains of the "monkeys" - their fate was all the same, whether they were shot dead or seriously injured. In the end, without exception, they were tied with large rocks and thrown into Manila Bay. However, after the spies sent out one after another failed to return, the police chief finally realized that his opponent was not easy to mess with. Moreover, as the reputation of Earl Fannanova increased day by day, such shady surveillance and investigation were still early. It would be nice to have some closure. But these shameful things were actually exposed by the top boss in public. The police chief suddenly felt his hands and feet were cold and he was at a loss.
"The Earl has the right to sue you, if he so chooses, to the Supreme Court of the Colonies for abusing the powers conferred by His Majesty. And I can sue you for dereliction of duty. What you have done. squandering valuable financial and human resources on matters that have nothing to do with it." place, but you allow Dutch spies to run amok in your jurisdiction. The numerous crimes they have committed have threatened the entire colony and the safety of all His Majesty the King's subjects. I would like to hear what you have to say about this. of!"
The governor's angry rebuke echoed in the silent hall. He didn't have seizures for no reason. nearly a month ago. A strange fire turned the largest cockfighting ring in Parian into a smoking ruin. It was the busiest time of the day at dusk. More than 300 gamblers and spectators, including many Spaniards and European tourists, were killed in the flames. . Before the fire was extinguished, dozens of Chinese shops were burned down. What bothered the Governor of Salamanca most was the tax revenue from cockfight gambling that had become one of Manila's financial pillars. The cockfighting ring was destroyed. The colonial government was losing thousands of pesos of revenue every day. This made the governor who spent money like water was furious - Baguio's gold was indeed bright. But there are too many unknowns in mining and transportation, and they are not as reliable as the cockfighting tax that can provide a fixed income every day.
Before the cockfighting fire could be solved, the dock area on the Pasig River caught fire again. Many valuable Chinese goods had just been unloaded from the ship and moved into the dock warehouse. There were also more precious Australian goods stored inside, but they were all destroyed by the fire. This time someone reported seeing a suspicious person before the fire started. The police chief arrested a lot of people at random, and after extorting money one by one, he let most of the Chinese go. A few natives who were so poor that they couldn't squeeze out any oil were thrown into prison as arson suspects. . It didn't take long. Another horrific incident occurred in which a convoy transporting military supplies was attacked outside the city. Survivors reported that although the attackers were outnumbered, they were well-armed. Well-trained, obviously not a native bandit.
Just when the whole city was panicked by the successive disasters, more reliable bad news came from Formosa. Dutch ships frequently appeared in the northern part of the island, attacking supply ships, and even fired at Spanish city defenses close to the coast. There was no doubt that the Dutch were about to launch an attack on the cities of San Salvador and Santo Domingo. Although most Spaniards in the Philippines do not care about the two colonies that did not bring many Chinese goods, the bad news one after another has somewhat changed the attitude of the military and political officials in the colonies. The Governor of Salamanca said: The Dutch's vigilance to invade and send spies to act as saboteurs did not seem so unreasonable, but a threat that could become a reality at any time.
"Sir," Zapatero reminded cautiously, as if interrupting His Highness the Governor's tantrum was a terrible thing, "the count is waiting outside."
The city officials wisely stood up and prepared to leave, including the police chief who had been slumped in his chair. However, the governor stopped Chief Parian: "Mr. Aguilar, I entrust you with the task of making saltpeter from excrement. You can rely on the Chinese under your jurisdiction. It is said that they have a tradition of collecting excrement as fertilizer." , which is very beneficial to completing your work and solving our current difficulties."
"I will fulfill your instructions!" Juan Aguilar shouted frantically. "I swear to Jesus Christ and to you, on my honor, that I will never squander even a copper penny from your Majesty's colonial treasury. But do it." Construction projects always cost money, please allow me to collect another community public fund from the Chinese."
"Yes, but remember not to oppress them too much. The Chinese still have a lot of use for us. But you have to pay attention to those suspicious people. Most of them are spies sent by the Netherlands. Once you find a Chinese carrying weapons and firearms, Don’t hesitate, arrest immediately.”
The ashen-faced police chief, the uneasy mayor, the ecstatic District Chief Parian and others all walked out. Weiss Lando was guided in by the servant from the other side door. The governor looked at the belt of his black satin cavalry uniform, and sure enough, there was no saber under the belt. There was only a short sword hanging on it, with several strange Chinese characters engraved on the hilt. The Governor of Salamanca was surprised by this strange feature of the Eastern colony, which seemed to have been conquered by the Chinese, their way of life, and national symbols. Even the Spaniards in the colony were accustomed to traveling in Chinese sedans, and they always had a folding fan made of gilded paper with Chinese characters written on it. The governor did not like this custom, especially when he found that the visitor was looking at him with a look that was not humility, which made him even more unhappy.
"Mr. Vincenzo," the Governor said, omitting Weiss's title and title, pointing to an armchair near the end of the table. Weiss sat down nonchalantly, at least this position was close to the fan hanging from the ceiling. A Negrito short black man squatted in the corner, weakly pulling on the rope to drive the wooden frame covered fan blades to swing back and forth. This was the only way to relieve the heat. The Malacañang Palace that Weiss had visited as an American soldier was still just a wasteland on the banks of the Pasig River. In this plane, there were no etiquette and rituals, just in this hot, dark, and humid room. Weiss was equally unhappy to be received by the Philippines' supreme ruler in a rancid-smelling room.
"Stinky Spanish pigs," he cursed in his mind, even though he was still smiling.
The Governor continued in a cold tone to his subordinate officials: "I am glad that you took the time to come in response to my call, but I asked you to come to remind you that the Philippine Colony is governed by the decree of His Majesty the King of the Indian Islands. Code, as well as our country's written code and part of the customary law. No matter which law you follow, killing someone in a duel is not allowed, you should know."
"Your Excellency, for an innocent person, your words are completely correct. But for a damned person, what difference does it make if the death penalty is executed early or late?" Weiss pressed the copycat version of Zhongzheng hanging on his belt. The sword - which he had acquired from a certain senator in exchange for a fine Toledo sword - replied calmly: "Esteban Sanabria is a liar. He forged government documents and bonds. He not only stole and defrauded the property of law-abiding people but also extorted them. He did everything possible to evade taxes and harm the country. He engaged in smuggling trade and even sold weapons and gunpowder to the enemies of the empire. He also committed murder, In order to seize property, he tortured and killed Filipinos, Chinese and Mexicans who had converted to God. However, he himself was a suspicious new Christian, and even secretly maintained the despicable heretical beliefs of the Jews. The royal prosecutor from Madrid told me, The petitions and letters of denunciation he had received against Esteban Sanabria now filled the room where he lived. Shouldn't a man with such evil deeds die? God through any hand he chooses Come to kill this villain, isn't it all based on his divine judgment?" (To be continued...)
