Lin Ming received the mission and knew that the Australians would make great use of him. It was the time to show his loyalty. Although he was full of entanglements, he still saw the general situation clearly. He knew that he only had one chance to follow the dragon. Only by seizing it could he earn the long-term wealth of his children and grandchildren. At that moment, I cheered up and went to the Hundred Household Office first. The hundred households in the office were old and dim, and they had long ignored everything and just took money. Lin Ming has the final say in this small one-hundred-household house.
Lin Ming first prepared an official document and sent it to the county offices, health offices and other places in the counties of Xijiang and Beijiang in the name of Baihu Office, saying that the office handles "major criminal cases" and hoped that all counties would cooperate. In fact, his Foshan Hundred Household Office and the counties along the way are not even close to each other, not even on the same level - if it were an ordinary Hundred Household Office, he would really be a Sesame Mung Bean Officer who is no better than a big-headed soldier - but Jin Yiwei's The prestige is still there, and generally yamen have to sell some face. Free food, drink and accommodation along the way plus a husband are no problem.
After everything was done, he went home and settled down with his family. He said that he was going on a business trip for several months. Although the wives and concubines were extremely reluctant to leave him, they couldn't stop him when they heard that it was an official errand. They just gave him some more instructions. Lin Ming wanted to please his new superior, so he asked his wives and concubines to cook more "street food", saying that he wanted to "respect the superior".
After waiting for a few days, the instructor once again invited him to "have flower wine" and met "guests from the center" on the flower boat.
There were three people in total. The leader was less than thirty years old and tall and handsome. The one next to him was in his thirties, with a beard, a strong body and a powerful figure. The last one was a young man in his twenties with a complexion. Dark, looking smart and capable.
Although their looks are different, the three of them all have the same capable and strong figure, and they all look full of energy - Lin Ming is such a smart man. He has met many "Australian chiefs" in Lingao. One look at the temperaments and expressions of the three people in front of them and they knew that most of them were so-called elders.
Three elders came over at once. The importance of this task is obvious to everyone. He quickly took a step forward, bowed and said loudly, "Lin Ming, a humble official. I have met three masters."
"You're welcome." The leader said, "My surname is Suo. From now on, just call me Mr. Suo in public."
"Yes. I know I know."
The elder Suo introduced them one by one: "This is Mr. Kang, and this is Mr. Xie."
Lin Ming did not dare to be negligent. No matter what Chief Suo said, "Don't be too polite," he still insisted on giving thousands of greetings one by one. After the ceremony, everyone took their seats. Lin Ming was still sitting on his buttocks, looking respectful and ready for orders at any time.
Seeing the behavior of the hundred households in front of him, Thorp secretly despised him. It seemed that this person had a lot of officialdom. But the other party is a newly surrendered person, not a naturalized citizen. Naturally, you can’t ask for too much.
He asked: "Comrade Lin Ming——"
Lin Ming immediately stood up: "Sir, please give me instructions -"
Thorpe waved his hand dissatisfied: "Comrade Lin Ming! It's better to put away your old habits of the Ming Dynasty officialdom. As officials, we serve the Senate and the people, and we don't use this set of hypocritical etiquette!"
"Yes, yes, I understand!"
"Sit down and talk." Thorpe already had opinions about the old officials, but Lin Baihu's behavior became more and more annoying to him.
Lin Ming felt bored, knowing that the Australians were not interested in this, so he quickly sat down.
"Because the center said that you are very familiar with the situation in Guangdong, we will ask you to be our guide for this mission and take us deep into various places along the Xijiang and Beijiang rivers." Thorp considered the words. "Do you have any difficulties? Now let's explain it first, so that everyone can discuss a countermeasure. Don't say that this won't work or that won't work when the problem comes."
"Don't dare. It's a humble honor to let humble people lead the way." Lin Mingmei smiled, "There are some difficulties, but they don't get in the way. Even humble people can overcome them."
"Okay, then everything will depend on you." Thorpe saw that he answered simply and offered conditions without any pretense, and his impression was slightly better, "I'll have to make a plan on how to get there."
"I've already thought about this humble position." Lin Ming was determined to please and show off in front of his new boss, and had already gone through the things to be done in detail. "I wonder which route the gentlemen are going to take first?"
Thorpe and others had discussed beforehand that among the three rivers in Guangdong, the Xijiang River has the best navigation conditions. Through Xijiang. Not only can it control the mountainous areas affecting western Guangdong, but it can also directly penetrate into the richest areas of Guangxi. In the Ming Dynasty, the governor's office of Guangdong and Guangxi was located in Zhaoqing Mansion, where the Xijiang River flows. There are Ming troops stationed here. This is the focus of military deployment, so prior reconnaissance is necessary. So we decided to take Xijiang first, and then Beijiang.
"We plan to take the Xijiang River first," Thorpe said, "and then go up the river to Wuzhou."
Lin Ming's heart skipped a beat. As soon as he came out of Sanshui, he saw Zhaoqing Mansion on the Xijiang River, which was the residence of the Governor's Office of Guangdong and Guangxi! There are still several battalions of soldiers stationed there. This group of Australians was the first to go to Xijiang. Their purpose is self-evident.
"It's easy to walk along the Xijiang River. The Xijiang River is deep and wide. We only need to prepare a big boat in advance - the boat is spacious and comfortable to live in. It is also convenient if you want to bring your female relatives..." As he spoke, he quietly used the corner of his eye to watch the reactions of several Australians.
He had been in Lingao for a long time and knew that the senators valued maids the most and spent huge sums of money on them. He thought that they were all lustful people and deliberately catered to them.
"This is a serious matter, what kind of female companions should we bring?" Thorpe frowned.
"Yes, yes." Lin Ming saw that his speculation was completely wrong, so he simply stopped showing off his merits, and said that he had prepared official documents from the Jin Yiwei, and that he could travel in the name of Jin Yiwei's case investigation.
"... Using the name of Jinyiwei not only makes it easier to pass customs, but also allows you to ask for support from the county government along the way. No matter what you do, it is convenient. Gentlemen, what do you think?"
Thorpe nodded, this is not a bad idea. Although he thought it was a bit whimsical: the staff trip to Guangdong organized by the General Staff was actually going to be done under the banner of Ming Dynasty and using Ming Dynasty's resources. It's really interesting.
"Okay, just follow your plan."
"Okay, I'll go prepare the ship now..."
"You don't have to worry about the ship," said Thorpe. "I'm ready."
Before they got up, the Qiwei Escort Bureau had already received orders to prepare ships and reliable sailors, as well as multiple escorts accompanying them. The water world of Guangdong in the Ming Dynasty was not a peaceful world. Not to mention water bandits everywhere, ordinary boatmen and fishermen would not hesitate to kill and steal goods as long as they got the opportunity.
Although Lin Ming's official cover is used as a cover, it is hard to say whether these water heroes will be able to accept this trick.
“Our first stop is Sanshui County,” Thorpe said.
It is only more than thirty kilometers from Foshan to Sanshui: in the 21st century, Sanshui is a district of Foshan, but in the Ming Dynasty, Sanshui was a county under Guangzhou Prefecture. It has a short history and was only separated from Nanhai and Gaoyao counties during the Jiajing period; Hekou Town, where its county seat is located, is located in the northwest corner of the Pearl River Delta, at the intersection of Xijiang, Beijiang and Suijiang, hence the name Sanshui. This place is the gateway from Guangzhou to western Guangdong and Guangxi. In particular, western Guangdong and northern Guangdong are mountainous and have inconvenient transportation. The transshipment of goods and people mostly relies on shipping from Xijiang and Beijiang. Its geographical advantages are very obvious. Therefore, it was opened as a trading port in 1895, and a customs office was established accordingly. The British who worked at the customs at that time wrote in the report: "The vast Beijiang Basin is actually undeveloped. Mineral products in these places are extremely rich and can be easily transported to Sanshui for transshipment or processing. Sanshui is located in a geographical location similar to Guangzhou. , it is extremely convenient to travel to and from Hong Kong, and it seems to have been designated to become a natural cargo distribution center between the great commercial port and the two major rivers."
The unique transportation and geographical environment here makes it not only the most prosperous water transport terminal in the province, but also the first railway in Guangdong: Guangzhou-Sanshui Railway.
It is for this reason that Thorpe suggested at the General Staff meeting that this be the main military station of the Guangdong Raiders. Supplies, ammunition, wounded, replacements and loot will all be distributed and transported here. In the future, when the Senate engages in economic construction in Guangdong, this place will become a material transshipment center.
The purpose of Thorpe's visit was to conduct a staff trip before the start of the Guangdong strategy. Along with him came Cummings, a veteran of the General Staff, and the other young man was not a veteran, but his favorite disciple Xie Peng. This young man has been designated as a staff officer to be trained by the General Staff. This time I came specifically for an internship. by
The reason why Lin Ming was asked to lead the way was because of the complexity of social sentiments along the Xijiang and Beijiang rivers. Although Jin Yiwei is an "official", he is responsible for detective work. He has many contacts with the lower classes of society and is familiar with social conditions. Compared to the escort agency, and because of their status, everyone is afraid of San San, and can give San San a little face at critical moments.
"Is this Lin Ming reliable?" Cummins couldn't help but ask after Lin Ming left.
"The center said he can be trusted." Although Thorpe felt that he was unreliable and had old habits, after talking with him, he felt that he was not cunning. "We still trust the center's judgment."
The instructor of the intelligence network said with a smile, "Don't worry, you guys. He has a big family in Foshan Town - there are four wives alone. If you want to hold back the bad news, you have to take care of your own family."
"Four little wives? They are really capable." Cummins said casually.
"Lin Baihu's concubines are famous for their beauty. But this is not unusual." The instructor said, "The key is that other people's wives and concubines don't get along, and it's common for them to fight. But his family is the most harmonious. . Outsiders say that the Lin family’s wife is virtuous.”
"Xianhui? Haha." Thorp smiled, "Let's not talk about his family affairs. When will the powerful ship be ready?"
"The boat has arrived and is parked in the outer river waiting for orders." The instructor said, "The escort agency has come with six good men, and they are all waiting on the boat. The boatman is also selected by the escort agency. He is familiar with the road and is reliable." (To be continued)
