A dilapidated Dafu boat arrived at the dock on the Huangpu River in Shanghai.
At this moment, the Huangpu River Wharf is the busiest time of the year.
Because there are only ten days left until the Spring Festival, which falls on the first day of the first lunar month in the eighth year of liberation.
For the Chinese, whether they have money or not, they go home to celebrate the New Year.
Shanghai, a place where 80 to 90 percent of the population is foreign, will definitely be deserted during the Spring Festival.
Although the bosses of those factories are not willing to take a holiday during the Spring Festival.
But the Ming court didn't really care about the suffering of the people at all.
At least there is still a seven-day national holiday during the Spring Festival. During these seven days, except for patrols and the military on duty.
The rest of the government agencies, large and small factories, etc. are all on holiday at the same time.
And there won’t be any off days.
To be honest, it is seven days.
There are court regulations.
Those gangsters don't dare to violate it. After all, not letting people go home for the New Year just sounds a bit inhumane.
not to mention.
During the Chinese New Year, no business can be done.
Therefore, before the Chinese New Year, factories of all sizes are busy rushing to finish work.
The Huangpu River has also become busier and busier.
The whole city was running at full capacity, as if it was trying to make up for the time lost due to the long holiday.
The Shiliupu pier is bustling with busy coolies - they are the hardest workers in the city. It is on their shoulders that large packages of goods are carried up and down, and circulated in all directions. Although they are called coolies, it is difficult to see the word "hard" on their faces.
On the contrary, they are all overflowing with joy. As the New Year approaches, the business of these coolies is booming, and their wages have increased by 30%. Don’t look at the rags they are in now. When they get off work, they are all well-dressed. Satin clothes.
If you are single, you will probably go straight to the restaurant on Fourth Avenue to have a good meal...
In fact, the income of dock workers at various coastal ports in the Ming Dynasty is not low.
A strong man can earn thirty or forty yuan a month. If he catches up with the month before the Spring Festival, he can double his income.
This is much better than working as a worker in a textile factory.
And at this time.
After traveling in Europe for several years, I opened my eyes to see the world, and then studied law at Daohua University. I got the remnant of the former Jinghai Marquis of Qing Dynasty, who was photographed by a lawyer, and now changed his name to Wu Wanghai and got off the ship.
Next to him was a man in his early fifties wearing a robe and a melon cap.
This man was Shi Bingde, the younger brother of Marquis Jinghai, and Wu Wanghai's father. Now his name was changed to Wu Bingde.
Behind the two people, there were several servants carrying salutes.
"Haier, the people carrying big and small bags on these piers are all descendants of the Xiaodao Society. The Xiaodao Society has a close relationship with the Tiandihui. Zhu. The current emperor is also the boss of the Tiandihui. They are not easy to mess with. You can't do it casually in the future. It ruined their jobs."
Wu Bingde pointed to the coolies carrying big bags and whispered to his son.
They are father and son. These two remnants of the Qing Dynasty have now made a fortune.
They had already taken away a lot of Marquis Jinghai's property. Wu Wanghai invested in the newspaper industry in Guangzhou and was the major shareholder of [Junzi Daily].
And what about Wu Bingde.
It can be said that he got lucky.
After he arranged for his son to run away, he took part of his family property to live in seclusion in Shanghai County and bought more than 100 acres of land on the Huangpu River.
Originally I wanted to collect rent and provide for the elderly, and at the same time become a survivor of the previous dynasty, and never serve in the Ming Dynasty for the rest of my life.
But I didn’t expect it.
Accidents will happen.
This man's luck is really unstoppable.
Unexpectedly, the emerging Ming Empire suddenly embarked on the fast lane of capitalism, and Shanghai became the city with the fastest economic development in the Ming Dynasty.
It was originally a wilderness land. Within a few years, it became a lively and prosperous place.
Wu Bingde was also a quick-thinking owner. Of course he seized the opportunity of this "reform and opening up" and took back hundreds of acres of land from tenants.
Part of it was converted into docks and warehouses, and the other part was sold to the Shanghai County Government at a high price for use in urban expansion.
"Father, my son doesn't want to take over the dock!"
"What? If you don't take over this pier, then who will give it to you? Do you know how profitable this pier is? How many people are jealous! Hai'er, you are the only son as a father. If you don't take over this family business, Who will pick it up? Let me tell you, this pier can be passed down to the family, and the wealth of future generations will be tied here!"
Wu Bingde said anxiously.
Over the years he has been in Shanghai, he knows very well that location is the most important thing.
The pier on the Huangpu River.
At a glance, you can see that as long as there is no turmoil in the Ming Dynasty, you can make money and trade safely!
"Father, have you forgotten the hatred of the country and the family?"
"Keep your voice down!"
Old Wu quickly stopped his son's words and pointed to two large steam sailing ships parked on another pier not far away. "Look, those two ships are flying the Tuanlong flag. Some big shot must have arrived in Shanghai. The Jinyiwei crowd has been very active these past two days!"
Wu Wanghai looked in the direction of his father's finger.
The Wu family's wharf can only berth some sailing ships such as Dafu ships and Daguang ships.
In the distance, the Shanghai Port Company's wharf can berth such super-large iron-clad ships!
At this time, there were two large ships of more than 3,000 tons anchored in Shanghai Port.
It is the battleship Daming and the Guangzhou, a main gunboat of the Pacific Fleet of Daming.
"It wastes people and money!"
Wu Wanghai muttered and strode off the springboard with Wu Bingde.
A gold-encrusted four-wheeled Western carriage was parked on the pier. The door had been opened. A coachman wearing a black satin cotton-padded jacket was standing guard there. When he saw Mr. Wu and Mr. Wu approaching, he quickly opened the door diligently.
"Let's talk about it after we get in the car." Wu Bing pulled his son into the car.
Then he asked the servant carrying the luggage to get into another carriage carrying goods.
"Zhen'er, forget it."
As soon as the wheels of the carriage rolled up, Wu Bingde sighed and said, "In the blink of an eye, it has been eight years since the liberation. The world of the Ming Dynasty is as stable as a rock... The hatred between the country and the family is a thing of the past. We should look forward. Now for My father also supported the family business, including a dock, real estate, and several sailboats. Every year he earned more than 100,000 yuan. When your uncle was the Marquis of Jinghai in the Qing Dynasty, our family did not have that much income."
"Then the lives of hundreds of members of the Shi family are just like this?"
Wu Bingde shook his head and said with a bitter smile: "If you don't forget it, what else can you do? When will the change of dynasty not kill everyone? To be honest, Lebao of the Manchu Qing Dynasty still maintains a piece of Manchu incense in India. They Manchu people It was lucky that we were not massacred. Back then, the Five Huns invaded China, including the Huns, Xianbei, Jie, Di, and Qiang people. Look where they are now. Our family was a traitor and worked for the Manchus. After enjoying wealth for more than a hundred years, that’s about it. It’s all about fate. You’ve been preaching about democracy and republic for several years. How many people believe it?”
"There are still a few..." Wu Bingde's face darkened.
In fact, there was only one person who really believed it, and that was Sun Wen, who was studying medicine. He had already gone to Europe with Wu Wanghai's financial support.
Other students who participated in the Constitutional Government Research Society all went their separate ways after graduation and were busy with their own careers.
As for Du Ruchong and others in "Jun Zi Bao", they originally scorned the republic, thinking that it had no king and no father, and was not worth mentioning.
"What can you accomplish with just a few people? Zhen'er, I think you should marry a wife as soon as possible, get a few concubines, have a bunch of children and grandchildren, and let your father enjoy a few years of family happiness."
"Father, son... my son doesn't want to start a family." Wu Wanghai said helplessly.
As soon as I returned home after graduation, I urged to get married.
Is this also tradition?
"No... don't want to start a family? Zhen'er, are you sick?" Wu Bingde was shocked. He only had one son. He was the only seedling in Jinghai Hou Shi's family. If he couldn't sow seeds, what would happen? Come on, can you live up to your traitorous ancestors?
Isn't it true that he will be extinct because he was punished for being a traitor?
"I'm not sick..."
"Then you don't like women?" Wu Bingde's face looked a little strange, "Son, then you can marry one and give your father a grandson. Is that okay?"
"Dad, what did you say Wu? My son... still wants to do big things!"
Wu Bingde's face darkened, "Zhen'er, why are you still dreaming! Nowadays, the Ming Dynasty is already in ruins. Even the Russian Empire can't defeat the Ming Dynasty. What else can you guys do? Take advantage of the fact that no crimes have been committed. , it’s better to stop immediately!”
"Dad, son, I have my own sense of discretion."
"What are you going to do?"
"My son wants to wander around the Ming Dynasty first and check out the society."
"Society? What?"
"This is the world. My son wants to see what is going on in this world?"
…
What's going on in the world now?
Honestly.
Even the Ming Emperor Zhu Daohua himself was not particularly clear.
Especially this hurt.
So Emperor Zhu also came to have a "Private Interview in Private with the Emperor Guangfu".
He took off his dragon robe.
She changed into an ordinary cotton robe, with a pistol and a sword hanging on her waist. Behind her were several female soldiers of the Guards disguised as maids. Next to her, Queen Luo was also wearing an ordinary robe, with a wooden stick stuck in her head. Hairpin, holding Emperor Zhu's arm, walking on the streets of Shanghai.
Just like an ordinary Shanghai boss going out in style.
Before the Chinese New Year, Shanghai is the busiest time.
Shops everywhere have been decorated with lights, and cupboards are filled with a dazzling array of New Year's goods, which are about to be put on the streets.
Because there are several ways to go to the northeast, go to the northwest, go to the Southeast Asia, and go east to the New World.
So there are no vagrants, beggars or the like on the streets now - if there are, they will definitely be taken over by the yamen to work as farmers in collective farms in the above places.
Zhu Daohua arrived in Shanghai suddenly early yesterday morning.
Even the Shanghai Municipal Government did not know that the emperor had arrived.
So now Zhu Daohua went out early in the morning with Queen Luo and several female Ouchi masters - all good sumo wrestlers, the kind of masters who often performed sumo without clothes to show Emperor Zhu.
Take a look around Shanghai.
There is actually no such chaos as when I came to Shanghai two years ago.
The streets are very clean, obviously someone cleans them regularly.
It shows that Shanghai's municipal government is functioning normally - this is for sure, Shanghai is the city with the highest taxes in the country.
The central taxes paid by one city are almost as much as those of Guangdong Province.
Secondly, I didn't see any "lying" dead people. It's winter now, and those beggars sleeping on the streets can easily freeze to death.
But now I don’t even see the beggar.
So it's not that surprising.
Emperor Zhu was walking on the street, buying some gadgets from time to time, which was very pleasant.
Ever since he became emperor, Boss Zhu has rarely been as relaxed as he is now.
But for Emperor Zhu.
His empire has now entered a period of steady development.
Domestic industrialization is in full swing, and under the impact of the market economy, the small-scale peasant economy in rural areas is collapsing.
The huge immigration investment in the Northeast, Northwest, Nanyang, and New World is actually equivalent to the "stability maintenance funds" of the Ming Empire.
Because if the rural economic structure is destroyed and farmers have no other way out.
It is difficult to say whether the industrial development of the Ming Empire can still operate in a stable environment.
A group of children carrying schoolbags rushed out of the small road nearby, chasing each other.
There is a new primary school on that small road, and they are probably students from that primary school.
Winter vacation is coming soon, and these primary school students must have just finished their final exams.
These primary school students are all boys, and some of them are running and shouting: "For the Ming Dynasty, for the emperor, move forward, move forward..."
Then everyone lined up in a neat queue and marched forward in a neat and orderly manner.
Zhu Jishi asked a female guard to stop a child and ask him what the slogan was about.
"Sister, my husband taught me this. I have to shout every day during exercises. I also teach it in Chinese class."
Emperor Zhu nodded with satisfaction. It seemed that the mission department was carefully compiling the teaching materials.
In fact, this is Boss Zhu plagiarizing the bad methods of Prussia and other countries during World War I.
In fact, at that time, European nation-states were more or less militaristic, and you can always find such content in textbooks.
The French marched for the emperor, the Russians marched for the czar, the British marched for the queen, and the Prussians marched for the king.
Say it without hesitation.
This is brainwashing.
In essence, the current Ming army is not an army armed with nationalism in modern times.
They are still essentially a group of mercenaries.
So what kind of army can be considered a modern army?
Of course, it is an army composed of a group of fanatical nationalists who believe that the interests of the country and the nation are closely related to themselves, and who want to use the sword of Japan to seek land for Japan.
otherwise.
If there was a war, European kings would have to rely on money to hire troops to fight.
No matter how rich the country is.
It cannot afford the cost of more than 100,000 dead in a battle, and the cost of killing almost half of the country's young and middle-aged people after a war.
But Emperor Zhu couldn't help it. There are already signs of this in Europe.
If he doesn't do this, he will have to face a group of white troops armed with nationalism and possibly extreme racism.
(End of chapter)
