Chen Ding rested at Wu's house for a few days, and the injury on his head was almost healed. Seeing that the day to go to Lingao was approaching, he was also very excited.
He was very curious about the legendary Lingao, and had originally thought about going to Lingao for sightseeing and seeing what opportunities there were to make money.
But later, due to the enemy's attack, something happened at home. I can only put this year aside temporarily.
Unexpectedly, I came to Guangzhou and got beaten up and lost a huge sum of money, but in exchange for such an adventure! Chen Ding was originally an open-minded person, but now that he has a bright future, he not only put aside the Nansha matter for the time being, but also became less concerned about losing two hundred taels of silver. All I can think about is how to set up a factory.
He had heard many people talk about Lingao in the past. But that can only be regarded as hearsay, and there are a lot of exaggerations in it. As the old saying goes, seeing is believing, so he wanted to see with his own eyes what this Australian lair looked like and what novel objects it contained.
On this day, officials from the Planning Institute’s Guangzhou office sent invitation letters and ferry tickets. Ticket is the latest "number" launched by Dabo Shipping to operate the Hainan-Guangdong route.
As the Senate's rule in Guangdong and Guangdong became increasingly stable, the number of tourists traveling between Hainan and Guangdong increased sharply. Some of them are naturalized citizens traveling between the two places for "official business" or "visiting relatives", but the number of "business travel" guests has also increased significantly, and the originally small number of "spontaneous immigrants" has exploded. increase. These immigrants include poor people looking for a way to make a living, and rich people who are worried about the situation in the Central Plains and hope to come to the "Peach Blossom Spring" to take refuge from the chaos.
Since 1636, the passenger volume on the route from Hainan to Guangdong has increased more than ten times. The original mixed passenger and cargo model of Dabo Shipping gradually could not meet the demand, so two large transport ships were specially modified and became full-time "mail ships" . They are named "Wuzhishan" and "Baiyunshan" respectively. Currently, they operate once a week.
On January 20, 1637, Chen Ding and Wu Yijun boarded the Baiyun Mountain at Tianzi Pier outside the South Gate. The prototype of the Baiyun Mountain is a T1200 standard ship hull with an iron frame and wooden shell. After some modifications, the internal cabin configuration is more focused on carrying passengers. While maintaining the sail rigging, a steam engine was also installed, allowing the average speed to reach 8 knots. It is the largest and most luxurious shipping liner on the Hainan-Guangdong route.
From the perspective of the elders, the standard 1,200-ton iron-framed and wooden-hulled sailboat was not very spectacular - after all, the two Spanish Galen they captured were also similar in tonnage. But for local people, T1200 still has a strong visual impact. Especially after the transformation into a passenger ship, there was an extra building on the deck and a bridge. The most conspicuous thing was naturally the two chimneys billowing with black smoke.
"I've heard for a long time that the ships of the Song Dynasty were strong and powerful, and it turns out it's true." Wu Yijun sighed.
A large number of passengers have gathered at the waiting pier next to the gangway. Passengers are divided into several different areas according to the cabin they bought. The tickets for Chen and Wu were in the second class cabin, and there were not many people there. Almost all of them were big business owners who had purchased concessions at the tea house, their servants and related accompanying persons; there were many more people in the third class cabin. , most of them looked like naturalized civilian cadres and workers, and there were also some businessmen-looking passengers; as for the fourth-class waiting area, it was bustling with people, not only supporting the elderly and the young, but also They were carrying all kinds of luggage, big and small, and their accents were all kinds of different.
The most expensive first-class waiting area has the smallest number of passengers. Compared with other waiting areas, they do not have to wait in the open air. Instead, they wait under a specially built awning to board the ship, and there is a dedicated person to provide tea.
"This Australian is really stingy. He only gave us second-class seats when he invited us to go!" Chen Ding said in a low voice with a smile.
"If not, how can we call them Australians?" Wu Yijun also found it interesting. In fact, although Australians are known as "luxury", savvy businessmen have long recognized that the two are actually the same kind in terms of profit-seeking.
The two were laughing when Chen Ding suddenly felt a shiver in the back of his head, as if someone was staring at him. He turned around suddenly, but didn't see anything strange.
"What's wrong, Brother Shi?"
"nothing……"
At this time the whistle sounded - the signal to board the ship. The passengers gathered in the waiting area suddenly became commotion. The crew and dock staff immediately came over to maintain order and guide passengers to board the ship from the left and right gangways of the ship.
Chen and Wu were guided to the cabin by the crew. Because the T1200 is essentially a sailboat, the cabins are all below the deck. Although there are portholes, the light is not very good.
"It's so dark, I'm afraid I won't be able to read." Chen Ding said.
"If you want to read, you have to buy a first-class ticket at the stern of the ship." Wu Yijun said, "There are many windows on the upper floor of the ship and the space is large. But the second-class cabin is already good. I heard that the fourth-class cabin is on the lowest deck, not only There are no portholes in the entire bunk, so it’s pitch black when you get down, and you rely on oil lamps for illumination day and night.”
Looking around, this cabin is not big, the environment is clean and tidy, and the decoration is gorgeous and exquisite. All kinds of utensils needed for travel are available. The tea set cabinet is equipped with a thermos on a fixed base and a complete set of enamel tea sets. There are also various teas such as green tea, oolong tea, black tea, etc., all packed in small bags, and even Sweets and kvass are also available.
"It's really elegant." Chen Ding saw a small desk against the porthole. Although it didn't have the four treasures of the study, it had a fixed inkstand and pencil case, equipped with Australian pens and inks. When he opened the drawer, there was a neat printed book. He couldn't put it down because of the thick and white paper that had the watermarks of "Dabo Shipping" and "Baiyunshan" on it.
It's just that the bunks in the cabin are very small, just enough to accommodate one person. The two bunks accommodate one master and one servant. No wonder the inspection notice specifically stated that each person can only bring one servant for free.
Wu Yijun took the servant back to his cabin, and Chen Ding asked Chen Yu, who had come to serve him, to pack his luggage. He also took out two books from the luggage and placed them on the bedside for entertainment.
At this moment, the crew knocked on the door and came in to warn: "The ship is about to leave! Please stay in the cabin and don't wander around or go on the deck. Don't touch the portholes. No smoking is allowed in the cabin!"
"What is this? A toilet?" Chen Ding asked, pointing to the white enamel drum with a lid fixed on an iron frame next to each bunk.
"This is the vomit bucket," the crew member said. "It keeps on vomiting."
Here we could only hear the whistle blowing three times in a row outside, and the whole ship shook. Even in the small cabin, a strange whine could be heard. It was such an amazing feeling to take an Australian boat for the first time!
As the vibrations and roars gradually became calmer, the ship suddenly moved. Chen Ding quickly opened the porthole and looked out, only to see the ship gradually heading towards the river.
“I just wish I could go up to the deck and see this rare beauty!”
When the ship arrived at the center of the river, because the weather was very good today, passengers were allowed to walk on the deck and rest, but only in the first three classes. Fourth class has a fixed "on-deck time" of half an hour each time.
At first, Chen Ding and others were in high spirits, strolling on the deck and looking around. However, as the ship left the Pearl River Estuary, the wind and waves became stronger, and they gradually became seasick. When Wu Yijun saw this, he quickly asked him to go back to the cabin and lie down to rest.
As soon as he lay down, he never got up. First he was spinning, and then he was vomiting profusely. During the next two days and two nights of the voyage, Chen Ding didn't eat a single meal. He just slept on the bed half asleep, in the dark. In a daze, someone came over and fed him some salty and sweet water.
Suddenly he felt a shaking and found that it was Wu Yijun shaking his shoulders and telling him to get up.
"We're almost there! Get up and clean up quickly. What's going on?"
"I...I am..."
"You've been sleeping for almost two days. The ship will arrive at Lingao soon." Wu Yijun urged, "Wash your face first, and then eat something - are you not dizzy now?"
"It's true that I'm not dizzy anymore." Chen Ding touched his head, and his originally groggy mind became clear. His stomach also made a noise. He was pleasantly surprised to find that his appetite was back.
"Thanks to Chen Yu this time," Wu Yijun said with a wry smile, "Xiaofu and I were also very dizzy, and we relied on him to take care of us these two days."
Chen Yu said hurriedly: "This is the duty of a villain. Don't kill the villain. I think you are hungry too. Do you want to get some dry food for snacks?"
Chen Ding was very hungry now and said hurriedly: "Yes! Yes! Get the cookies in my bag!" As he said this, he found that he had been covered with a blanket at some point. This gray blanket was smooth, soft and extremely warm. , and the weaving skills are quite superb, but he can't feel what the material is, and he doesn't know if it is Wu Yijun's blanket.
I ate a few cookies and drank a cup of tea. Wu Yijun suggested walking on the deck and enjoying the breeze.
The two walked onto the deck, and what they saw was the Qiongzhou Strait. Fields stretched on both sides of the strait, and Lingao was in the distance. There was faint black smoke coming out. This kind of black smoke also appeared in Guangzhou recently. I heard it was caused by a fire in Australia. What the power produced was more black smoke in Lingao than in Guangzhou.
Suddenly, he heard a woman talking and laughing next to him. He turned around and saw several women wearing the same Australian clothes on the other side of the boat. They all wear a brown round hat slanted, a brown Australian coat on the upper body, a white collar exposed at the neck, a black cloth tie on the chest, and a brown pleated knee-length skirt on the lower body. There was only a pair of black socks on her calves, exposing her knees. He was also wearing a long coat, some had it buttoned up, while others had it open.
Even though it’s Lingnan, the weather is still January. Isn’t this Australian woman afraid of cold legs? Chen Ding has long heard about the strange customs of Australians - women's attire is the most widely spread and discussed one. After all, this 17th-century lack of costumes from both East and West is truly shocking and full of temptations.
(End of chapter)
