Chongzhen Wiretapping System

Chapter 701 Bargaining?

According to Li Laiheng, the Japanese pirates couldn't be easier to defeat.Those Japanese pirates are simply mobile cash machines for military exploits!
In this way, many people have forgotten the dangers of the war, and just think about making military exploits, like Kuhaha, that is, Li Laiheng, who made military exploits, and will be able to return to their hometown tomorrow, and return to their hometown in full glory!

This brought unexpected surprises to the county magistrate of Mizhi County and even the magistrate of Yan'an Prefecture.The government where all the people are soldiers has become particularly smooth after the soldiers of the Dongjiang Army have returned to Shaanxi to visit their relatives.

…………

While Qin was in a state of joy, thousands of miles away in the south, Xiyi was encountering a particularly troublesome thing.

This place is called Haojingao, and it is Frangji who has a headache.

Right in the center of the town of Haojingao, a group of soldiers from the Ming army, led by a military officer on horseback, surrounded a sedan chair.On the side of the sedan chair, there were two Xiyi with languid expressions, wearing shackles and guarded by Ming soldiers.

And in front of them, there are many Frangji soldiers, both white and black.Each of them looked a little nervous, holding the flintlock in their hands tightly.

But none of them spoke, just watched the Frangji in front of them communicate with Ming officials.

The military commander just rode on the horse and did not get off. He looked down at the Xiyi in front of him, and sternly shouted: "My Daming really regards you as friends from afar, and I will give you a place to live and rest, but I don't want you to wait." The wolf is so ambitious that he dared to send people to help Yunnan to rebel against the imperial court, what can we say now?"

The members of the Macao Council who rushed over after hearing the news looked at the two Xiyi one by one, with the expressions on their faces, they were really surprised and resentful.One of them immediately imitated Daming's etiquette, clasped his fists and replied in the substandard Daming official dialect: "This general, we don't know these two people, why do we say they are our Frangji people? I can guarantee that we The people here are all in Daming, it’s just doing business properly!”

The council has dealt with Ming officials for a long time, so it is natural to be able to speak the official language of Ming Dynasty.However, the new governor standing next to them was named Du Chen, who just arrived this year and couldn't understand the Eastern language at all, so there was an interpreter carefully translating beside him.

The man in shackles was exactly Carlos who was captured by Emperor Chongzhen and sent to Guangdong. He knew that the officials of the Ming Dynasty would negotiate with the compatriots in Haojingao, which would determine his fate, so he kept his ears open. listening.

He couldn't understand the official language of Daming, but he heard the translator's words. Suddenly, he panicked, and quickly raised his head to stare at the compatriot who dealt with the officials of Daming and said loudly: "My name is Carlos, and I am in Annan. On the side, from..."

The speed of the speech was fast and urgent, which shows how frightened he was. From the Ming army's side, it was the chirping birdsong, which was unhearable at all.

But Frangji could hear him clearly. After hearing him explain his situation clearly, he immediately understood that this person was really their Portuguese.

However, the leader of the meeting, named Johnson, sneered and said to him: "You say it is, but do you have proof? We are doing business with the Ming Dynasty according to the rules, and we can even send people to help." Daming fought against the barbarians in the north, how could it be possible to help Daming rebel against the court. You are definitely not Portuguese!"

For him, the interests of the Portuguese in Macau are above all else, so he wanted to get rid of this trouble directly.

But he had just finished speaking when Du Chen, the new Governor of Macau, interrupted and said, "He is right. I met him in Goa and knew that he was sent to Annan by the Governor of Goa."

Among the Portuguese overseas colonies, the Governor of Goa governed the colonies in the Far East.Although Macau at this time, that is, Hao Jing Macau, was not a colony of the Portuguese, it was also under the jurisdiction of the Governor of Goa.

At this time, what Du Chen said was tantamount to confirming Carlos' identity, and it also stopped Johnson's simple and rude way of solving this trouble.

In fact, Du Chen could pretend not to know, which would save trouble.However, although he is the governor of Macau representing the Portuguese royal family, his actual power can only be the military power that governs Hao Jing Macau.As for the executive power and other powers, they are all in the hands of the Macau council.

The cost of allocating troops for the Governor of Macau shall be borne by the Council of Macau.Therefore, naturally, there have always been conflicts between the Governor of Macau and the Council of Macau.

The so-called strong dragons crushing local snakes, these Macau governors sent from abroad are basically evacuated and embarrassed by the Macau Council with various means.It is also because of this that the governors of Macau in front of Du Chen basically did not have a long term of office.Even in his previous term, he just served as the governor of Macau for a year and then left.

After Du Chen came to Macau, it was inevitable that he would have conflicts with the Macau Council.He was feeling uncomfortable, so naturally he didn't mind and made the Macau Council uncomfortable, so he came forward to prove Carlos' identity.

When Carlos heard this, he couldn't help being very grateful to Du Chen.

Why didn't Johnson know that if the Ming government didn't have any evidence, it would be impossible for a white man to come over and say he was a Portuguese.Now confirmed by Du Chen, it is impossible to turn a blind eye.After all, the Ming officials also have translators who will translate the words here.

Sure enough, I heard the military general yelling: "Stop denying it, answer quickly!"

Johnson had no choice but to look left and right at the other members of the council, seeing that they were all let him deal with it, and no one wanted to come forward to cause trouble, so he could only squeeze out a smile, bowed his hands to the military officer, and then said to the sedan chair: "My lord, it's been a long journey, so why don't you take a rest first. This is a very important matter, and I have to discuss it with other people anyway."

He naturally knew that the final decision was not made by the military attaché on horseback, but by the civil servant sitting in a sedan chair, the magistrate of Xiangshan County who governed Haojing Ao.

Hearing what he said, the military officer really stopped talking, and waited quietly for the county lord in the sedan chair to speak.

As the parent officer in charge of the Portuguese in Haojingao, he naturally knew that the Folangji people had to discuss things together.This matter is indeed very important, so after a little hesitation, he said: "That's fine, but you have to reply within half an hour, and I have to report back to the magistrate."

After finishing speaking, a yamen servant next to him stepped forward and lifted the curtain in front of the sedan chair, and a civil servant in a green robe stepped out of the sedan chair.

When Johnson saw it, he quickly stepped forward, smiled and gestured with his hands, and guided the Xiangshan County magistrate to the luxurious reception hall dedicated to entertaining Ming officials.While walking on the road, he loudly ordered others in Ming Dynasty Mandarin to quickly prepare the newly arrived Nanyang specialties to entertain them.

Ordinary Ming soldiers naturally don't have this treatment and can only stay outside.After the military officer and the county official entered the reception hall, they were separated again because of their different status.The military attache stayed in the outer hall and was entertained by other Frenchmen, while the county magistrate entered the inner hall and was entertained by Johnson himself.

Without outsiders, the attitude between the two is obviously different.I saw that Johnson also relaxed a little bit, but still with a sense of respect, he said to the magistrate of Xiangshan County: "My lord, let me make a price. How much money can make a big thing a small thing this time?"

Speaking of this, he quickly added: "My lord, you also heard just now that these two people are not from the Flangji people of Haojingao, but from Annan's side. To be honest, this is not the same as that of Haojingao. It really doesn't matter at all. This... This is a disaster without reason! If your lord asks too much, I will have a hard time doing it."

When the Portuguese first came to the Far East, they wanted to deal with Ming as they did with other colonies, but they were taught a lesson by Ming.So he learned to be good, and acted according to the rules of Daming.

They came here on the pretext of a long voyage, and the goods were soaked and needed a place to rest, so they went to the local government of Daming to rent Haojingao, which was not very populated at the time, and the rent was 500 taels of silver a year.

For the local government of Daming at that time, it was a place with few people, and they could get 500 taels of silver every year. Why not do it!

Therefore, Falang Ji Talent has established itself in Hao Jing Ao and has been waiting for a long time.

In the process of dealing with the officials of the Ming Dynasty, they gradually figured out how to deal with the officials of the Ming Dynasty. It can be said that they bribed the local officials of the Ming Dynasty so that they could have a good time in Haojingao.

Not only that, but they also worked hard to deal with senior officials of the Ming Dynasty, or the court of the Ming Dynasty.They not only sold Hongyi cannons to Daming, but also sent their people to serve as mercenaries of Ming to train the soldiers of Ming to use firearms, and even went into battle to fight for Ming.

Of course, this is also related to the huge price paid by Daming.The cost of hiring these Francois is very high.At that time, the leader of the Folangji mercenaries, Xi Lao of Gongsha, had a salary of 150 taels per year, plus an additional 15 taels per month, while the others received 100 taels per year and an additional [-] taels per month for food.

At that time, the general recruitment of soldiers of the Ming Dynasty was about two taels of silver a month, and only 24 taels a year.Basically, they only get one-tenth of the treatment of these Folangji people.

At this time, after Johnson stated his bottom line, he waited quietly for the magistrate of Xiangshan County to make an offer.This time, he knew that not only the county magistrate should benefit, but also the superiors above him, the magistrate.I was mentally prepared to bleed once, but there was an upper limit.

He also knew that these Orientals liked to haggle.He has also learned, just wait for the county magistrate to make a price, and then he will bargain again, and he will count as much as he can cut.

However, this time, he made a huge mistake.

(End of this chapter)