On the afternoon of April 17, the fifty-fourth year of Qianlong's reign, several large boats with a 300-stone awning and a black roof sailed upstream along the Yangtze River and stopped near the Chaotianmen Pier in the northeast corner of Chongqing.
After the Qingming Festival, more merchant ships came and went on the Yangtze River. The river bank outside Chaotianmen is densely covered with trestles, and various wooden boats are moored along the river bank and in every nearby river bend. Various large and small shacks and stilted shops are lined up on the river bank. The streets and alleys are bustling with people walking like ants. , full of life and interest.
"Brother Xu, why is this place called Chaotianmen?" Several young people standing on the bow of the awning boat looked back and asked.
"Uh..." Although Xu Dayong had been to Chongqing once, he didn't know about this kind of thing.
At this time, I only heard a sailor rocking the oar say: "I want to let a few young brothers know that the arch above is facing the direction of Nanjing, so it is called Chaotian. There is a saying here in Ba County, 'Chaotian Gate, the big wharf, greeting the sky' The official receives the saint'. Well, there is the official reception hall."
Several young people from Beihai Town followed the sailor's pointer and looked up, and then they saw the courtyard with the vermilion gate on the pier.
Xu Dayong returned to the cabin, opened the curtain of the boat awning and said solemnly to the man named Zhang who was sitting drinking tea: "Brother Zhang, look, that is Jiangbei Hall City. The locals call it Manying." .”
Zhang Beihai took out a military telescope from a backpack beside him, huddled in the cabin and looked at the north end for a long time, then nodded and put the telescope away again.
The place name "Jiangbei" was still used in history in another time and space. Later Chongqing was divided into two administrative divisions during the Qing Dynasty. The main part is the area where Chongqing Fucheng and Baxian County are combined into one. To the north of this area, on the north bank of the confluence of the Jialing River and the Yangtze River, is Jiangbei Tingcheng, where the Chongqing Tongzhifu Yamen is located. The "Jiangbei Barbarian Camp" is located in Jiangbei Hall.
The so-called "Jiangbei Barbarian Camp" has been buried in historical archives in later generations, and even many Chongqing locals no longer know about it. On the surface, Jiangbei Manying during the Qianlong period was a diverse community of non-Han immigrants; however, the real situation was that it was a large-scale red light district that abducted and coerced minority women into prostitution.
Xu Dayong also heard people talk about it when he came to Chongqing last year, and he has paid attention to it since then.
At this time, under a mat tent on the beach north of Chaotianmen, Li Shangyuan, a porter who was sitting crookedly and picking his teeth with a bamboo stick, lightly kicked the buttocks of a porter in front of him and muttered: "Silly. Kui, the ship is coming, let’s go and take a look.”
"Yes." The porter, known as Shakui, responded in a muffled voice. He knocked the pipe pot on the ground, emptied it and inserted it into his back, and then walked over with his companions.
When Sha Kui walked to the river, several sand boats flying the same flag had just tied their cables. From the depth of the ship's draft and the outer packaging of the large cargo on the deck, he estimated that the ship was carrying cotton.
At this time, the gangplank has not yet been lowered, and seventeen or eight Yaxing people have gathered on the beach, shouting at the boat to solicit business.
"Rhehe Xingxing, Renhe Xingxing, Renhe Xingxing, specializes in copper and lead. The business is fair, and no one is deceived!"
"Ji Yi Xing, specializes in raw silk cotton~~"
"Zhengtaihang, Zhengtaihang, agent for medicinal materials from the north and south..."
Xu Dayong was well prepared. He came from northern Jiangsu and brought a lot of cotton with him. So he beckoned the Yaren from Jiyi Xing to come over and asked a companion to negotiate the cost with him.
Due to climate reasons, Sichuan is rich in rice, but cotton production is insufficient. However, the textile industry is very developed. Therefore, when many merchants came to Sichuan, they brought goods to Sichuan and sold rice to Chu.
Shakui also came onto the boat at this time, following behind Yaren, waiting to be assigned to move the goods. However, when he caught a glimpse of Xu Dayong walking out of the cabin from the corner of his eye, he suddenly felt that this man looked familiar. When he turned around and looked again, he couldn't help but open his mouth in shock.
"Xu, Mr. Xu, why are you here again?"
When Xu Dayong saw it, he immediately grinned and said, "Silly Kui, why did you become a porter? How are you making a living these days?"
"Okay, okay." Shakui responded hurriedly, and then bowed to Xu Dayong. When he raised his head, he saw a flash of light in the sky, so he hurriedly stretched out his hand to catch it; when he looked again, he saw it was a piece of broken silver as big as a soybean. This time he was extremely happy.
Among the trackers Xu Dayong talked to last year, there was this silly Kui.
"Thank you, Mr. Xu. I wish your business is prosperous and smooth sailing!" Sha Kui happily put the money away, and then said to Xu Dayong: "More, thanks to the third brother for taking care of me. After the winter last year, I was with the porter." Let’s find a job.”
Xu Dayong smiled and said, "It's fate that we met each other. The job of transporting goods is yours. I'll meet you for a drink in two days."
"Hey! Mr. Xu is so, so polite. Ant (a humble name for common people) is just a poor pick, and he doesn't deserve such kindness from Mr. Xu."
"Where's all this nonsense? Hurry and greet people. After moving the goods, we still have to go into the city."
When Shakui went back to call for people and told the leader Li Shangyuan about Xu Dayong, Li Shangyuan rolled his eyes for a few times before saying: "Here he comes again? Forget it! As long as he doesn't cause trouble and goes about his business honestly, It has nothing to do with us. Since he said he wants to treat you to a drink, then you should check it out. If he wants to drag people away again, someone will come to deal with it. "
In order to avoid causing trouble, Xu Dayong left all the sales and purchases of goods to Yahang. Afterwards, the soldiers from the Inspection Department boarded the boat and inspected the goods, tickets and the road leading out of Funing County. Then the group was divided into three groups and walked towards Chaotianmen along the stairs along the river.
There are three gates entering the city from Chaotianmen, namely the outer gate with "Ancient Chongqing Xiongguan" written on it, followed by the second and third gates. Xu Dayong and a few people had just walked to the second door when they were suddenly hit from the side and behind. When he turned around to look, suddenly Wen Yuman came into his arms.
"Ah~~" The woman who rushed over reacted quickly. As soon as she bumped into Xu Dayong's arms, she pushed out of the way with both hands, and her face suddenly turned red.
Only then did Xu Dayong realize that the other party was actually a young woman who was sweating profusely. After taking another look, he found that the girl seemed to be about sixteen or seventeen years old. She was very pretty, but her complexion was sallow. She was holding a heavy bamboo basket in her hand, and she was wearing very ordinary clothes; she was wearing a coarse cotton dress divided into two pieces, with several patches on her knees, and she was wearing a pair of straw sandals on her feet.
When the girl saw Xu Dayong staring at her, she became even more embarrassed and cursed at Xu Dayong. However, because of the strange accent, Xu Dayong and the others did not understand what the other party said. However, when the woman turned around and tried to leave again, Xu Da grabbed her arm.
"Hand it over."
"What?"
The woman only raised her head at this moment, and her beautiful eyebrows immediately dazzled the people around her. However, for him who has been outside for many years, this little trick is nothing.
"Hand over the things, or I will report you to the official." Xu Dayong sneered twice, and then motioned to the two soldiers at the second door with his chin.
When the woman saw several big men surrounding her, she realized that she was in big trouble. She also suddenly planned to steal the sheep, but she failed and was soon frightened to tears.
"Don't do this to me! I've seen people like you come and go so many times. Once caught, you pretend to be pitiful."
Seeing that the woman couldn't run away, and the eyes of the people around her began to look at her, she took out a brown deerskin bag from the basket, which looked heavy. When she handed it back to Xu Dayong, she said bitterly: "What's so great about it is that you are just bullying me, a weak woman, by relying on the crowd."
Xu Dayong didn't know whether to laugh or cry. He was about to teach the other party a few words, but Zhang Beihai beside him said with a serious face: "Girl, I think you have a decent appearance and you don't look like a gangster. Why bother to do this? If you want to use money to save money, just go to Just tell us.”
"You need to take care of it! There are no good people in this world!" After saying that, the woman shook off Xu Dayong's hand, turned around and walked towards the pier, and quickly disappeared into the crowd.
The group of people thought this was just a minor disturbance. Unexpectedly, when they walked through the Sanmen Cave, they heard a rush of footsteps behind them. Looking back, they saw the woman running up with a look of panic on her face. Everyone on the road They all looked sideways.
"Help me! Someone wants to take me back." The woman grabbed Zhang Beihai's sleeve with a look of pleading on her face.
"Take you back?" Zhang Beihai was a little dumbfounded, thinking that it was none of his business.
At this time, a companion walked a few steps quickly and went down the steps to the second door. Looking out, he saw some chaos at Chaotian Gate. Several men in Tsing Yi kept pushing away the pedestrians in front of them and running up quickly.
"Did you steal other people's things again?" Xu Da pushed the woman's hand away and said to Zhang Beihai: "Don't worry about it, it's none of our business."
Just as Zhang Beihai was about to leave, the woman was heartbroken and knelt down in front of everyone. She pulled Zhang Beihai's trouser legs and said, "Sir, I escaped from the Barbarian Camp. They are trying to arrest me." Go back! Please do well and repay me by being a cow or a horse in the next life!"
"Barbarian camp?" Xu Dayong's eyes lit up and he asked hurriedly: "Are you a barbarian?"
"I was sold from Guizhou. Those traffickers want to sell me to a brothel again!"
As soon as he said this, Xu Dayong's expression suddenly became serious. He didn't bother to ask any more questions and said to a few of his subordinates who came to Chongqing with him last year: "Find a way to block those people and meet at the inn later."
After his companion understood and left, Xu Dayong said to the woman: "Follow us first, and then we can find a place."
On the other end, when the men in Tsing Yi chased them outside the Sanmen Cave, the leading guy suddenly felt as if something tripped under his feet, and then he fell down on the steps and rolled down again; and the other men in Tsing Yi also did the same. Each of them was knocked down and fell upside down with a black nose and a swollen face.
"Damn it, why don't you have eyes when walking? On such a wide road, you have to bump into people?!"
Several people in Tsing Yi screamed "Ouch" and argued in their mouths: "You foreigners are so rude. It was obviously you who bumped into someone, why do you still blame me and others?"
As soon as the two sides began to quarrel, pedestrians coming and going on the steps immediately gathered around and started talking in all directions. The gatekeepers at Chaotianmen also noticed the movement and walked up.
At this time, another spy from Beihai Town slowly walked down the steps and helped the man in Tsing Yi, saying sorry repeatedly, holding his fist and saying: "My brother has such a hot temper. He originally wanted to go out and sharpen his skills, but he is still so impulsive." ." After that, he took another ten cents from his arms and said that he would invite a few of them to tea as an apology.
"It's my fault! My bones will be broken when I fall. I won't be able to make more than fifty cents!"
...
Two-quarters of an hour later, Xu Dayong, who had entered the city, arrived at an inn near Baoen Temple in Dongshuimen with a group of twists and turns. When the store clerk saw that a group of men were actually staying in the hotel with a woman, he asked more questions. However, Xu Dayong glared and said that this was the maid I had just bought, and the man immediately did not dare to ask any more questions.
After the room was opened, Zhang Beihai led the woman into the guest room and asked the waiter to bring tea. Then he said to the woman: "It's safe now, can you tell us?"
The woman grabbed the front of her shirt and twisted it for a long time, hesitating. Xu Dayong slammed the table impatiently and said sternly: "If you don't tell me anything, I will send you to the official!"
As soon as he said this, the tea girl was so frightened that she started to cry.
Zhang Beihai raised his hand to signal Xu Dayong not to threaten, and asked in a kind tone: "What's your name?"
"...tea lady."
Tea lady? This name is really weird.
"Where are you from in Guizhou? Can I pay someone to take you back?"
"Go back..." The tea lady looked miserable, raised her head and looked out the window, seeming to be recalling the past. Gradually, two lines of tears fell down her face. She shook her head and said, "I don't know the road."
Seeing that Zhang Beihai was very kind to her, the tea girl told the two of her life experience.
She was a Miao. When she was ten years old, she went to cut grass outside the village and was kidnapped. She was then transported to Sichuan with other kidnapped women. Afterwards, she changed hands several times and was sold to a barbarian camp in Jiangbei as a maid. This time, the traffickers planned to sell her to a brothel as a prostitute, so the tea girl escaped desperately. When she met Xu Dayong before, she also had no money, so she thought of using the dirty tricks she learned when she was a maid to make some money.
Throughout the early and mid-Qing Dynasty, human trafficking was extremely rampant in the Miao territory of Guizhou. Due to various reasons, it was repeatedly prohibited and became a stubborn disease that the Manchu government could not control.
It should be noted here that the "Miao people" in the Qing Dynasty did not only refer to the Miao people, but also included more than 20 ethnic groups such as Miao, Dong, Yi, Yao, Zhuang, Shui, and Buyi. "Miao territory" can also be divided into broad and narrow senses. Miao territory in the narrow sense refers to the Miao inhabited area centered on Guzhou (now Rongjiang County) in eastern Guizhou, while Miao territory in the broad sense refers to Yunnan, Guizhou, and Sichuan. , Hunan, Hunan, Guangxi and other provinces where ethnic minorities live.
In fact, this is related to the overall environment in Sichuan in the late Ming and early Qing dynasties. In the early Qing Dynasty, immigration measures such as "Huguang filled Sichuan" were implemented to enrich Sichuan's population. The reality of Sichuan's vast territory and sparse population also promoted and intensified human trafficking activities in the neighboring province of Guizhou.
By the Yongzheng period, in the Sichuan-Guizhou human trafficking market, a well-organized human trafficking transaction chain had been formed in which Sichuan traders and local Guizhou families shared labor and spoils, forming various large and small human trafficking gangs that abducted and kidnapped people. .
Take the tea girl for example. After she was kidnapped, she was first sold to a first-level human trafficker, a guy called a "ground stick", for twenty taels of silver. Then, the ground stick resold her for about ten taels of silver. The second-level human trafficker is the "Sichuan trafficker"; after the "Sichuan trafficker" trafficked her into central Sichuan, her worth rose to more than 20 taels. Every time it is resold after that, the price can rise again.
Taking Songjiang Prefecture in Jiangsu Province at the end of the 18th century as an example, the market price of one stone of rice ranged from one to two to three qian to one to 26 qian. In other words, the tea girl's life is equivalent to 3 to 4 shi meters in Songjiang Prefecture.
The price of reselling a person has skyrocketed from "four or five taels" in the "origin" to "more than 20 taels" in the "destination". This will inevitably drive a group of desperadoes to take risks and engage in this illegal business of huge profits.
Although the Manchu and Qing Dynasties carried out severe crackdowns during the Yongzheng period, because the slave trade in Ming and Qing society was an officially permitted market behavior, it was banned repeatedly.
According to the "Laws of the Qing Dynasty", "Laws of luring people and selling them", human traffickers can go to Guizhou to buy and sell people, but the number of people they can buy and sell is limited, generally no more than 4 to 5, and they must be authorized by the government. The official media registers and compiles records so that the government can understand the number, origin and flow of the people being bought and sold.
To put it simply: "It is okay to traffic in people, but the quantity cannot be too large, and you must obey the government's orders."
However, in the actual implementation process, it is easy to allow traffickers to enter Guizhou, but it is very difficult to restrain and supervise them. Therefore, these seemingly carefully crafted provisions actually provide a legal basis for human trafficking in Guizhou and release countless human-eating devils onto the land of Guizhou.
In fact, at that time, Han women also faced the fate of being bought and sold from time to time. In the feudal era, wives, concubines, and daughters were to a certain extent a "financial tool." When a family faced a threat to survival, selling wives, concubines, and daughters was a means of hedging.
Later economists discovered that the differentiated pricing of wives, concubines, widows, and child brides in many areas of China during the Qing Dynasty was basically consistent with the pricing rules of general commodity and asset trading markets.
(The most shocking one comes from a lawsuit file in Ba County during the Qianlong period. A woman named Qin was sold five times in eight years.)
Not to mention Sichuan and Guizhou, there was the mule and horse market outside Xuanwumen in Beijing. Many people in later generations only knew that livestock were traded there, but they did not know that there was once a "human market" there.
Tan Qian, who wrote "Guo Que", saw it with his own eyes when he traveled in Beijing. The inner street of Shunchengmen (the old name of Xuanwumen) has a mule and horse market, a cattle market, a sheep market, and a human market. There are so many people coming to buy and sell every day. People usually go to the other party's house after negotiating good terms, either to take people there or to see the "goods."
As for Xu Dayong's original trip to Luoyang to buy the Chen Jishan brothers and sisters who were prostituted by bids, that was simply too ordinary.
