The next day the sky brightened, and the seven Feyaka people who had summoned their courage finally appeared in the sight of the Beihai Town sentry.
"Stop! Stop right there!" As the soldiers in the watchtower shouted loudly, a sharp whistle began to sound.
Mergu turned to the six people behind him and asked, "What is that person talking about?"
The six people looked at the chief together, which clearly meant that even you who were canonized by the Qing court would not understand, let alone us!
Mergu'a then turned around and continued walking forward.
With a "crack" sound, the soldiers on the watchtower pulled the bolt of their guns and began to aim their guns. "If you go any further, we'll shoot!"
At this time, the seven people opposite took off the animal skins, antlers, and dried bear bile they carried from their waists, and waved to the sentry in greeting.
"Want to change something?"
"I want to change into the clothes you're wearing!"
"Would you like to change your hat?"
...
Wukambe, who came after hearing the news, hurried to the foot of the watchtower and shouted to the sentry above: "Don't shoot! I'll ask first."
When the sentry saw that it was Ukanbe, he remembered that the other party was from Hezhefeyaka, so he reminded: "Be careful!"
Wu Kambei took a few steps forward and shouted in Manchu to Meier Gu and others: "Stop!"
Now that he could finally understand, Mei Ergu and his party stopped hesitantly. Wu Kambei carefully looked at the seven people opposite. These people were all bearded, wearing long green or black cotton robes, with a hat on their head, and their hair under the hat was tied back. Shoulder level. They had daggers and daggers in their arms, a bow and a big bag on their backs. As for the quiver, it must be hidden behind his back.
The most striking thing is that the seven people in front of them are all barefoot and don't wear shoes at all.
Ukanbey immediately realized that these were the people of Kufiyaka! He cupped his fists with both hands, bowed to the seven people and said, "I'm in Wukambe. I was originally a fisherman from Hezhe on the Dan River. What do you call me?"
Mei Ergu frowned and said, "Hezhe? Why don't you grow a beard? Your face is as smooth as a woman's."
As soon as he said this, Sembakul and the others behind him burst into laughter. Facing the laughter of these people, Wu Kambei responded with a normal expression: "I am currently serving in the Beihai Town Army. The rules here are strict and soldiers are not allowed to grow beards. In the past, my beard was better than some of yours. All long."
"Beihai Town? In the military? Who are you?!" Meier asked loudly in ancient times.
"Brother, who are you?" Wukambe asked with a smile.
"My name is Meir Gu, and I was appointed by the government of Ninggu Pagoda to serve as the local Kalada."
"Oh? Then I will call you Brother Melguda. The Ningguta government you mentioned was defeated by our Beihai Town just last year."
When Wu Kambei said that "we" defeated Beihai Town, he felt a little guilty, because at that time he was still a member of the Manchu "retreating barbarian army".
When Mei Ergu heard this, his eyes almost popped out. That was the Qing Dynasty, the Celestial Dynasty!
At this time, the guard company commander came from behind and asked Ukanbe: "Who are they?"
Wukanbei quickly saluted the company commander and then explained the situation. The guard company commander said to Wukanbe: "Stabilize them, I will report to the chief."
"yes."
Wukanbei's salute aroused the curiosity of Meiergu and others. He walked in slowly and asked Ukanbe, "Who is that?"
Wu Kambei thought for a while and then explained: "Oh, that's my boss. He is going to report to his boss." (There is no word "superior" in Manchu, only "hafan", which means boss.)
Mei Er Gu felt something in his heart after hearing this, and quickly asked: "Boss's boss? Do you have two particularly tall people here?"
Wukanbei was stunned after hearing this. Now the two tallest people here except Zhao Xin are Liu Sheng, so he suddenly became wary and asked as if nothing had happened: "Brother Mei'er Ancient Brother, how did you know?"
Mei Ergu pointed back at Sembakul and said, "He saw it."
Wukanbei quickly asked: "Where did you see it?"
Sembakul pointed to the northeast and said: "A few days ago, it was at the mouth of the Oha River!"
Wu Kanbei was already sure that they were talking about Zhao Xin and Liu Sheng. He shook his head and said: "My master is very busy and he doesn't have time to see you. If you have anything, just tell me directly."
It is said that in Manchu, the words "lord, master, monarch, emperor" are all expressed by one word, which is ejen. As a result, Wu Kanbei's expression strengthened Meier's idea of meeting Zhao Xin in ancient times. In the minds of the Feyaka people, God is the master!
As the saying goes, those who are barefoot are not afraid of those who wear shoes, but Merguda really did not wear shoes. He made up his mind to meet those two people no matter what he said today.
During the stalemate, a soldier ran over and said to Ukanbe: "The chief wants to see them."
Wukanbei breathed a sigh of relief, and he didn't know how to deal with it if he continued talking. So he met Meier's curious gaze and said, "The master wants to see you."
Mei Ergu was overjoyed. He waved hello and was about to go inside when Wukanbei stopped him again.
"Put down your weapons and I will return them to you when you leave."
The six subordinates looked at each other and Mei Ergu looked at each other, and when they saw each other nodded, they took off the bows and arrows on their backs and the daggers in their arms. They followed Ukanbe all the way through and entered the residential area.
At this time, many people in the residential area had already gotten up, washing their faces and mouth, or squatting in front of their homes to have breakfast. Because everyone is doing hard work these days, Zhang Bo specially arranged to have white-flour steamed buns for three meals a day. At this time, I saw soldiers walking in with seven barefooted natives. Many people looked around curiously while eating breakfast.
The seven ancient Meier people could not help but swallow a few mouthfuls of saliva as they smelled the smell of white-flour steamed buns in the air. He had been to Deleng Enmu City and had some experience, so he refrained from speaking. But Sembakul behind him couldn't help it anymore. He pointed at the steamed bun in a child's hand and said, "I want to eat this! I'll exchange it for the animal skin."
As soon as he opened his mouth, the other five people also said that they would exchange things for steamed buns. At this time, Hu Liu's daughter Niu Niu was holding up the steamed buns. Seeing everyone's eyes looking at her, Niu Niu suddenly felt aggrieved. Should she eat it or not?
She thought about it and saw the barefoot bearded man still pointing at the steamed bun in his hand, so she got up and walked slowly to Sembakul, held up the steamed bun, and said with a slight cry: "I won't eat it. , give it to me."
This scene was so embarrassing that Mei Ergu wanted to find a crack in the ground and crawl in! These six scumbags! What a shame!
Sembakul was also stunned. He didn't expect that the first person to exchange things with him would be a child. He forced out a smile and said blatantly: "I'll give you something in exchange, you won't suffer any loss." After saying that, he took a piece of deerskin from the big bag he was carrying, stuffed it into Niu Niu's arms without any explanation, and then Take the steamed bun, open your mouth and take a bite.
The refugees who gathered around to watch were also confused, thinking to themselves, why would they bring someone like this? A piece of deerskin for a white flour steamed bun?
Suddenly, a refugee held up the steamed bun in his hand and said to another Feyaka man: "I'll trade this with you."
Others also reacted at this time, and gathered around holding uneaten or half-eaten steamed buns.
"Change it with me, change it with me."
"I just took a bite, and it's like I didn't eat it!"
"I still have half a draw left, so I'm not greedy. I'll just win with a small piece of skin."
A few scumbags took out the leather goods with a smile and were about to start exchanging steamed buns with the refugees. Mei Ergu cursed angrily: "You idiots! Haven't you ever eaten white noodles?!"
"Chief, I haven't eaten for a long time. The last time I ate was when you took me to Deleng."
"Yeah, I'll just change it."
"Half is enough, I'll try it."
"Shut up!" Mei Ergu was furious.
Wu Kanbei and several soldiers couldn't laugh or cry at the moment. They hurried forward to disperse the refugees, and said to Mei Ergu and others: "There are plenty of steamed buns. I will get them for you in a moment. Follow me to see the owner first."
Upon hearing this, several people quickly put the animal skins in their hands into their bags and followed Wukambe towards a large green tent with a smile.
This is Zhao Xin's temporary residence. There are two soldiers with guns standing at the door of the tent. Seeing Ukanbe coming with seven natives, the soldiers immediately became nervous. A guard said to Wukanbe: "The chief is inside, go in." After saying that, he opened the thick curtain.
Meiergu followed Wukanbei into the tent, and his eyes suddenly lit up. He looked up and saw a bright object above him emitting light, illuminating the tent so brightly that even the corners could be seen clearly.
Under the gable to the north of the tent, two guys with bare chins sitting on cushions were smiling and looking at themselves. Behind the man sitting in the middle, an extremely beautiful woman was sitting there on her knees, holding the man's arm and looking at herself up and down.
Wukanbei first stood at attention and saluted. His serious look made Senbakul and others stand up straight involuntarily and look at Zhao Xin, Liu Sheng and A Miao.
"That's the three of them." When Sembakul saw the appearance of the three of them clearly, he couldn't help but was stunned, and quickly walked to Mei'ergu and whispered.
"Please sit down." Zhao Xin raised his hand and said to Wu Kambei, "You stay here to translate."
There were no chairs in the tent, just a row of thick cotton mats placed on the west side. After listening to Wu Kanbei's translation, Mei Ergu and others sat down on the mats hesitantly.
No condescension, no murderous guards. What Zhao Xin wanted was this scene, with everyone sitting cross-legged in the tent, chatting freely. As for the opponent who violently injures someone, the pistol on the mat behind him is not a casualty.
Everyone introduced each other, and several soldiers brought tea. Mei Ergu suddenly said: "Are you from the sea?"
Zhao Xin nodded and said, "Yes."
"I heard from my people that your ship is as big as a hill. Can I see it?"
"Okay. Someone will take you to the north in a while."
"I also heard..." Mei Ergu hesitated for a moment, then summoned up his courage and said, "I heard that you can make a ship as big as a mountain disappear in the blink of an eye."
Wukanbei was stunned when he heard it, but he still translated it.
"Who did you listen to?" Zhao Xin's expression suddenly changed after hearing this, and he looked at Meirgu with burning eyes.
"I, I saw it." Sembakul changed from sitting to kneeling, lying on the mat with his head lowered and replied. "That day, that afternoon, I was chasing a red deer, and then I saw, and you waved your hand, and the four boats disappeared."
When Wu Kambei finished his stammering translation, A Miao's expression behind Zhao Xin suddenly changed. She raised her head and stared at Zhao Xin's profile with a stunned expression.
Liu Sheng's expression on the side also changed. His originally smiling expression suddenly dropped. He stared at Sembakul and asked, "Then what is the purpose of your coming here today?"
When Sembakul saw the strong man with the bear speak, he quickly explained: "I went back and told Kelada, and he brought us here."
He didn't dare to tell the truth. Meiergu's original intention was to grab a share first.
Mei Ergu looked at Zhao Xin and Liu Sheng and explained: "We came with goods and wanted to see if we could exchange them for something."
"So you just want to change to steamed buns?" Someone had already told Zhao Xin and Liu Sheng in advance about the scene in the residential area just now.
"No, no, no!" Mei Ergu quickly waved his hands and said quickly: "We want to change some iron weapons. It would be better if you have weapons here." At present, the seven of them are unarmed, and even if they have the intention to be thieves, they have no courage. .
"Weapons?" Zhao Xin shook his head. "I don't have any weapons here."
"The ax you used to chop down the tree yesterday was very good."
Liu Sheng stared and said, "We still need to use the axe, we won't replace it!"
Mei Ergu asked cautiously: "Can you tell me why you want to live here?"
Zhao Xin said in surprise: "Here? It's very good here."
"But it smells bad here, and you can't drink the water in those puddles. It's all black. I heard the shaman in the village say that it's the blood of the devil!"
"Oh? Hahaha, what else did the shaman say?"
"No more. The shaman was killed by the red-haired man. I plan to go to the mainland next month and invite another shaman over." Wu Kambei's heart suddenly tightened after hearing this.
"Red-haired man?!" Zhao Xin suddenly became nervous. Could it be...
Mei Ergu sighed and slowly explained: "Yes. Our village used to be more than a hundred miles west of you, close to a large lake. A few years ago, red-haired people came in big boats. . After they landed, they killed everyone they saw. These people were tall and had many hands. In addition to sharp weapons, they also carried a kind of iron pipe that could spit fire. We couldn't beat them and many people died, so we moved to Gone south."
The more Wu Kambei listened, the more he felt that those people were similar to the bandits who killed his family. He hurriedly asked loudly: "Do they have blue eyes, a high nose, a big beard, and an animal skin cloak?"
Mei Ergu said in surprise: "Have you seen it before? In addition to most of them having red hair, some of them have yellow hair. They are almost the same color as dead grass in autumn."
Wukanbei couldn't ask any more. The bones in his fists cracked and veins popped out on his forehead. He guessed in his mind that those people were probably the ones who killed his wife and children; even if they weren't, they were probably in the same group.
Zhao Xin and Liu Sheng saw Wu Kanbei like this and asked strangely: "Wukambei, what's wrong with you?"
Wukanbei took a few deep breaths and felt that his emotions had calmed down a bit, and then he translated what he had just said to the two of them.
After hearing Wukanbei's description, Zhao Xin and Liu Sheng looked at each other and said in unison: "Tsarist Russia!"
Twenty years ago (1765), since the Qing government had no official garrison on the island (because there was no external threat here in the early days, the Qing garrison stayed for a while and then withdrew to the mainland), the Tsarist Russians on the Kamchatka Peninsula sent An expedition composed of soldiers and exiled prisoners. They raided the northern end of Ku Island, killed the local Feyaka people, built camps in the mountains, and mined coal. The docks of these Tsarist Russian invaders were located in a lagoon in the north of Kuye Island. This lagoon was called "Lake Zaliv Baikal" in another time and space.
A few days ago, when Beihai Town's fleet sailed around the northwest of Bitterleaf Island, they did not find any trace of the Tsarist Russians or ships due to their high speed and no stop.
Historically, four years later, in 1789, the Tsarist Russian expedition would invade the southwestern part of Kushima. After landing on the island, they massacred the local Feyaka people and deported them back to the mainland; at the same time, they built city hall, churches, prisons, schools and other buildings in Mizambo (Alexandrovsk, the center of the coal mine).
According to what Meier said in ancient times, the camp of the Tsarist Russians was only about fifty kilometers away from Zhao Xin and the others, separated by a dense virgin forest.
At this time, Wukanbei still didn't know that the murderers who killed his wife and children, destroyed their bodies and destroyed their memories, and set fire to his home were really in that camp.
