Ye Yongjia was supported by the two merchants in a friendly manner, and his feet slowly stepped firmly on the deck. He looked at the boundless sea in the distance, his sleeves were slightly blown up by the sea breeze, and he felt refreshed all over.
"Sir, please come into the cabin to discuss." Wu Sijing said, looking around again.
"Okay." Ye Yongjia agreed readily, then walked down a flight of stairs, leaned down low, and opened the cabin door.
"It was Bishop Wu who facilitated this meeting. I'm really grateful." Ye Yongjia took a step back, smiled and held hands with Wu Sijing, "Please go ahead."
Wu Sijing was a little at a loss. He looked blankly at the merchants. Seeing that they were nodding frequently, he returned the greeting: "Then... it is better to obey orders than to be respectful."
Ye Yongjia wanted to follow him in, but when he looked up and saw him entering the cabin, he suddenly stood still, waved his hands to the left and right, and then sat down on the chair in front of him, looking unnatural.
His heart tightened and he turned back subconsciously, but the narrow passage was already full of people, and the merchants kept crowding forward, leaving him no room to find a way out.
Before he even had time to prepare, he was forced into the room. He looked around hurriedly and saw that there was nothing but a large round wooden table. It was very empty. There was only a small window on the wall, and the darkness of the light was suffocating. Just as Ye Yongjia gradually relaxed his vigilance, a two-foot-long shotgun suddenly stretched out from the dark corner - there was actually a whole team of soldiers standing there holding blunderbuss and swords!
"Wait a minute," the bearded businessman held down the tip of his gun and showed a sly smile, "This is a distinguished guest, so you must not be so rude. Just stand by the side with your brothers and keep an eye on me." After saying it in Chinese and repeating it in his own language, the soldier put his gun back.
At this time, Ye Yongjia's face was pale. He was as stiff as a stone statue and motionless on the spot. His mind was completely confused. He couldn't believe that this was a banquet set by Wu Sijing!
"Ye Shangshu," Wu Sijing exhaled a heavy breath and stood up with his support on the table, "the guests have gone hard, but we can't let them return empty-handed. I have to do this because of emotion and reason. Several of you, Help him sit down, and hurry up and show Mr. Bingbu something."
Ye Yongjia was still in a daze, and the merchants had no choice but to hold his arms and press him to the armchair.
"This is a plan that several guests made early." Wu Sijing took out a roll of parchment from the window and threw it on the table. "I would like to ask you to simply sign and stamp it. Everyone will be happy. You are now desperate. , what will be the consequences of not signing...just think about it."
Ye Yongjia slowly came back to his senses. He took the document under the gaze of everyone and began to examine the contents. He read it patiently without blinking.
He read it word by word and basically understood the requirements put forward by the Westerners, which roughly included the following points: 1. Allow the firearms factories of the four merchants to set up in the country and not drive them away without reason; 2. If the government purchases firearms, they must Purchase them at the market price and do not change the price at will; 3. Precious weapons such as shotguns must be transported to the factory by themselves, and the merchants will not bear the cost; 4. If the war is won, the merchants will also have credit to claim, and the court will Should be given a title.
Each of these gave Ye Yongjia a headache. He stared intently at the crooked Chinese characters, and then looked up at the group of soldiers, feeling almost swallowed up by fear in his heart.
The bearded man handed him a writing brush, opened his palm and thrust it into his hand arrogantly: "Sir, it's time to sign."
Ye Yongjia pinched the pen barrel tightly and turned it around on the inkstone several times before placing it on the parchment. He stared at the end of the pen, his hand trembling, still reluctant to write; Wu Sixing stared at him even harder, as if he wanted to eat him in one bite.
Beads of sweat slid down his cheeks, and the white light outside the window made him dizzy again. His whole body began to feel hot and weak, and he almost fainted. But he knew that at this moment, he had to grit his teeth and persevere, so he steadied the table, stood upright, put away his wandering eyes, and suddenly became determined. His heart was beating wildly. In order to contain the tension, he took a deep breath, gently released his hand, and dropped the brush on the table.
Hearing a "swish" sound, the firecrackers in the corner were raised at the same time, and the black muzzle was pointed at his head.
"Don't fire!" Wu Sixing quickly shouted at the soldiers.
"Master Ye, what do you mean?" the bearded businessman asked in surprise.
Seeing everyone's reaction, Ye Yongjia felt a little relieved. He spread his hands and said, "What do you mean, you want to kill me? Okay, kill me, a third-rank official of the imperial court, and see how you can still stay here." Business! Come on, fire away."
Wu Sijing and Beard looked at each other, this bluff was no longer working.
"Haha," Fat Fanshang laughed awkwardly, "You see, this matter is making a lot of noise. If you have any opinions on this plan, we can discuss it."
"There's no need to discuss it." Seeing that they didn't have the guts to kill anyone, Ye Yongjia felt confident. "I came here to discuss business with you out of kindness, but you lured me to the boat and put a blunderbuss on my head. Isn't that what guests treat me like?"
The bearded man hurriedly waved his arm and moved the gunmen out. After closing the door, he turned around and bowed and laughed, and said a dozen times.
"After all, the guests came across the sea and were impatient, so they made this decision." Wu Sijing bowed to him, "I really shouldn't have offended Mr. Ye. Please consider Brother Jian's face and forgive Wu. A heinous crime!”
"Yes, yes!" The four merchants also pleaded in unison.
"I am not a person who harbors grievances and holds grudges." Ye Yongjia wiped the sweat on his head with his sleeve at this time. "For military and state affairs, I can write them off. As long as you show your sincerity, you will definitely move the court and God." .”
"Thank you, Lord Ye!"
"Don't thank me yet, I can't make the decision on this matter yet," Ye Yongjia waved his hand, "But your plan is definitely not feasible."
"I understand!" The bearded man strode to the table, crumpled the parchment into a ball, tore it into pieces, sprinkled it out the window, and floated out with the waves.
"There are too many problems in that plan. It seems that you have a big misunderstanding of the situation in our country," Ye Yongjia said with a smile, "If you don't want to wait, one person can follow me to Beijing, together with Prime Minister Feng and others. Talking and talking can also make the business of setting up the factory proceed steadily, what do you think?"
The merchants all laughed and replied: "This is a great idea! Bishop Wu has a bright mind and has lived here for a long time. Let him go with you!"
