Just when Dong Shutong and the others were about to give up and accept their fate, a cloud of sand and dust rose up on the eastern hillside.
"Tap-tat-tat..." The messy sound of horse hooves came from far away.
Dong Shutong will never forget that moment: an Indian girl, her face is very similar to a Chinese girl, but the bridge of her nose is slightly higher, her dark hair is tied into two twists hanging on both sides of the shoulders, and she wears eagle feathers on her head
Made hair crown.
She took the lead and led a group of Indian cavalry to surround them. The Indians made loud trumpets from their mouths.
Seeing the Indians surrounding them, the mine guards on horseback put away their guns.
The two sides stopped on both sides of the Chinese workers. However, it was obvious that the Indians were much more numerous.
"Miss Zhumu of Juning, do you want to fight against the government?" a mixed-race guard said in Spanish.
"Kumar, you have stained half of your Indian blood by speaking like this. Have you forgotten that the priest said that anyone with black eyes and black hair is a partner of Indians?" said the Indian girl Zhumu.
"No, Zhumu, these people are Chinese. They are Chinese workers sold by merchant ships. They are the property of the company. You cannot take them away." Kumar continued to explain.
"Kumar, when we Indians see the weak being bullied, we must stand up."
"Hello, madam, my name is Dong Shutong. We are just workers kidnapped by them, not their property. Now we are not willing to continue working for them, and our wages are not required. I hope you can take us away.
"Dong Shutong hurriedly said in Spanish.
"Oh, you know Spanish? I am the only one in our tribe who knows Spanish." Zhumu asked curiously.
"Yes, I come from China, which is a great country across the ocean. I was originally a businessman, but these robbers kidnapped me, took away my property, took me to Peru, and forced us to help them
Labor." Dong Shutong replied calmly.
"Kumar, did you hear that? I think you are committing a crime. If you don't want me to kill you as kidnappers, leave here immediately and disappear from my sight."
"Jumu, you will regret your decision." Kumar said in a threatening tone.
"Bang..." There was a sound of a bowstring playing, and a sharp arrow shot Kumar's hat away.
"Let's go!" Kumar was so frightened that he almost fell off his horse, and he shouted to his companions in embarrassment.
In this way, Dong Shutong followed Zhumu to their tribe. Zhumu's tribe was the largest Indian tribe in the Juning area.
When Zhumu was very young, his father hired a Spanish female teacher for her and taught her Spanish. Because she learned Spanish, she also read many books.
Her archery skills are also very good, and the young people in the tribe are very convinced of her. The tribe leader, his father, even wants to change the tradition and pass his position to her. Therefore, she is allowed to participate in major decisions of the tribe.
She has done a great job and many things in the tribe are now managed by her.
On the way back, the two kept chatting. Due to the gap in knowledge, Zhumu and the Indians around him basically had nothing to talk about.
Dong Shutong had been working in the shopping mall for many years and was very good at talking. Coupled with his knowledge, the two of them got along very well. From Zhumu's mouth, Dong Shutong learned about the current situation in Peru.
Peru is a country bounded by Colombia to the north, Chile to the south, and Brazil and Bolivia to the west.
After establishing an independent republic in 1821, Peru has been in a state of turmoil, with a sharp decline in population, leaving only more than one million people. Selling guano to European countries is now an important income for Peru, but Peru lacks labor, so it only
It can bring in a large number of immigrants. This is why Dong Shu and others were trafficked here.
Zhumu told Dong Shutong that Indians were enslaved by white people to work in the mines, and many Indians died in the mines, so Zhumu was very sympathetic to Dong Shutong's experience.
Later, the Indians continued to resist and fought for their own rights. Now the largest population in Peru is Indians, but the government still has the final say. However, white people are afraid of war and generally do not dare to provoke Indians.
"Have you Indians never thought of uniting and driving these white people away from your own land?" Dong Shutong asked Zhumu.
"Some tribes have tried before, but the Indians are not united, and the white people have muskets and cannons. Every time we resist, many people die."
"Then you Indians can also buy muskets and cannons?"
"We can't buy anything. The coastal ports are all under the control of white people. Most of the Indians live in the mountains in the middle and the forests in the west. We can't buy muskets." Zhumu said helplessly.
"It's okay now. White people and us Indians basically don't invade each other. We don't want to go to war. Now I just want my tribe to live a better life."
"Yes, war brings only destruction. War is valuable only when it protects one's loved ones." Dong Shutong said.
"Tong, what you said is very good."
"Can you also tell me about your country?" Zhumu asked curiously.
"My country is very big, dozens of times the size of Peru. It has a long history. We established our country more than 5,000 years ago. And we have a population of 300 million, hundreds of times that of Peru..." Dong Shutong
As he spoke, his eyes were filled with pride.
"Wow, Tong, your country is so big and there are so many people!"
"Yes, our culture values peace. Our nation never likes to bully others, and we are not as greedy as those white people."
"Tong, do you know me? Our ancestors have always had a legend that our ancestors came from the west."
"Maybe we were a family thousands of years ago! You see, we all have black hair, yellow skin, and black eyes. Those white people are different from us."
"Yes, same, I think so too."
…
In this way, this group of Chinese workers were brought into the Indian tribe. The Indians were very simple and honest, and they quickly accepted this group of Chinese workers and regarded them as members of the tribe.
Most of these Chinese workers were farmers. They were surprised to find that these Indians also farmed. Most of what they planted was corn and potatoes.
These farmers from China quickly integrated into their new life. They farmed together with the Indians. The farming methods of these Indians were relatively rough.
The Chinese taught the Indians what intensive farming practices are, how to repair missing seedlings when the corn seedlings emerge, and how to dig ridges in the fields so that the corn can be better ventilated when it grows. These new agricultural technologies have indeed improved the Indians' ability to grow.
Agricultural production has increased.
This made the Indians recognize this group of Chinese workers even more. Some Chinese workers have forgotten to go home. It may be that the way home is too far for them, or it may be that they have no worries in their hometown.
One after another, Chinese workers married local Indian women. Due to the wars in the past many years, there were more women than men in the Indian tribes, and these Chinese workers were all young and strong. Many single Indian women dangled in front of them every day, making fire with firewood, and the consequences were dire.
Just imagine.
Dong Shutong and Zhumu stayed together every day, and they became inseparable. Although Dong Shutong did not come from time to time, he was a cultural figure in the Qing Dynasty, and in Zhumu's eyes, he was knowledgeable. He told Zhumu that he could go to the tribe's creek.
Build a simple dam so that the stream water can flow into the cornfield along the ditch.
He also helped Zhumu handle tribal affairs and helped Zhumu formulate simple tribal laws.
…
Gradually, the two also developed feelings for each other.
It's not that he didn't think about going back, but he knew that he would be taken back by the mine owner after leaving the protection of the Indians.
"Just think that you have died and come to another world." Dong Shutong thought in his heart.
Before he knew it, Dong Shutong had been staying in the Indian tribe for half a year, and he was basically able to communicate with the surrounding Indians in Inca language.
Because he was very knowledgeable, the Indians in the tribe called him "the learned man".
Dong Shutong also taught the Indians how to do business. Under his leadership, the tribes exchanged more than twice as much as before this year.
Only then did everyone realize that those nasty white people had been tricking them before.
"Tong, let's get married!" Suddenly one day, the straightforward Zhu Mu said to Dong Shutong.
As a businessman who was deeply influenced by Confucianism, Dong Shutong was so embarrassed that his face turned red.
"Why, you don't like me?" Zhumu continued to ask.
"No, no, no, Zhumu, you are fine!" Dong Shutong hesitated, not knowing how to answer.
"Then you agree."
Dong Shutong did not speak, only nodded slightly.
At this time, Zhumu suddenly jumped into his arms. Indian girls are unrestrained and bold.
"Tong, you also know that only two of us in our tribe have read books, so besides you, I don't know who else to choose."
Well, this reason is so powerful.
The joining of this group of Chinese workers injected new vitality into the tribe. The old leader also hoped to keep this group of people in his tribe through marriage, so he readily agreed to the marriage between Zhumu and Shutong.
What follows is a lively Indian wedding.
Dong Shutong originally thought that he would spend the rest of his life in the tribe with his lover. What he didn't expect was that his troubled brother would soon find him. This would deviate from his life trajectory and even change the entire world.
The political ecology of South America.
…
Back to Shanghai. Today is the day when the Prussian delegation arrives.
Dong Shuheng has sent a transportation boat to contact the Prussian fleet in advance. He will greet the arrival of these guests at the dock in Shanghai County.