Zhao Xin and Liu Sheng returned to the Thor and began to greet the men who were preparing to go ashore to start shaving their heads.
Liu Siting looked at the bald lads and was happy for a long time, then suddenly asked: "Then what should I do?"
Come on! The group of people have been busy for a long time, and they really forgot about her. Director Liu Da originally had short shoulder-length hair. After coming to Beihai Town, he cut his hair even shorter because of work reasons.
Normally he looks really cool, but now.
Zhao Xin thought for a while and then said: "It's my fault. Before boarding the sand ship, you should find a piece of cloth to wrap your head. If I buy you a Qing Dynasty woman's wig, I won't have time!"
A group of men struggled for a long time to put on fake braids. Fortunately, Lu Shoushan and three others helped, so they didn't make a fool of themselves. Liu Sheng touched the rat-tailed braid on the back of his head and tried to imitate the way in movies and TV shows to throw it around his neck.
How can such a short braid be wound up?
He couldn't help but angrily cursed: "They're all such a lie!"
Zhao Xin smiled and said: "Aren't you cheating? If you watch "Huan Zhu Ge Ge" and "Step by Step Scary Heart", if the brothers, Erkang, Ertai and the like all have money tails, the audience will not like them.
look."
"That's right, when the domineering music plays, the emperor played by Zheng Shaoqiu comes out with a pigtail swinging from the back of his head. That scene... Wow!"
Everyone laughed after hearing Wu Siyu's words.
Xu Dayong on the side couldn't help but feel frightened when he listened to the words "emperor", "elder brother", "pig tail" and the like said by the lords of Beihai Town.
Three days later in the morning, Shen Jingdan's sand ship "Shen Yihe" arrived. He and Lao Huang carried several large bags full of clothes, hats, shoes and socks onto the Thor, allowing everyone to change into them.
As for the identities of everyone, everyone had already thought about it. Because Zhao Xin was fluent in Beijing movies, he pretended to be a businessman from the capital who purchased cigarettes; Liu Sheng, Wang Yuanfang, Ding Guofeng, and Wu Siyu pretended to be him
Liu Zheng, a man hired from the escort agency, pretended to be Zhao Xin's personal attendant. As for director Liu Da, he had to pretend to be Zhao Xin's wife. Lu Shoushan, Pan Xiucheng and Xu Dayong dressed up as Zhao Xin's wife.
A local hired help in Shanghai.
Deng Fei couldn't get off the ship. He wanted to drive the Thor back to Beihai Town. The next time he picked up Liu Sheng and the others would be thirty days later.
After Shen Jingdan received Liu Sheng's explanation three days ago, he prepared the corresponding clothing and accessories according to his identity. Everyone then found clothes and changed into them according to their respective identities.
Zhao Xin's clothes are a brand new blue satin robe, a brown lake silk mandarin jacket, white cotton socks, and black satin shoes. In addition, there is a small black satin hat with coral knots. This is
Shen Jingdan had it specially made according to Zhao Xin's figure, and it fit perfectly.
As for Liu Sheng and the others, they were all dressed in short clothes; Liu Zheng was wearing a half-worn black jacket and a dark blue cotton mandarin jacket.
But when Liu Siting changed her clothes and came out of the ship building, everyone on the deck was stunned.
She wears a collarless sapphire blue top decorated with black edges, and a light-colored satin vest with big clouds; the bottom is a dark skirt with black embroidered rails, which makes her figure very graceful. But her feet
The shoes were hidden in the wide skirt, and only the red corner could be seen. But when Liu Siting took out a cyan cotton scarf from behind and wrapped it around her head, everyone felt that it was really embarrassing.
After everyone was properly dressed, Shen Jingdan and Lao Huang explained the words and deeds of each person's disguise, including how to salute and how to reply. It took Zhao Xin and his group a long time to learn how to salute with fists and how to hit Qian'er. Kneel down, how to greet people when meeting them, etc.
As for the weapons everyone carried with them, except for Xu Dayong, who was given nothing, everyone else had a SIG P226 hidden in their bodies.
After everyone said goodbye to Deng Fei and all the soldiers and sailors, they boarded the sand ship. Before setting off, Shen Jingdan repeatedly warned that if there was an emergency, they must take shelter in the cargo hold to avoid being exposed when the patrolling Qing troops boarded the ship.
Zhao Xin and others noticed that when the sailors on the sand ship saw them boarding the ship, they all had indifferent expressions. They were not curious and no one was staring. He couldn't help but secretly thought that these people were either following Shen Jing. Dan's friend for many years has either been bribed by Shen Jingdan.
Sure enough, when Zhao Xin asked Shen Jingdan in a low voice, Shen Jingdan smiled slightly and said: "To be honest, these people on the sand boat are all old people who have been with me for more than ten years. I have also been involved in illegal immigration before. Did it with them."
It really overwhelms the brave to death and starves the timid to death. Zhao Xin never expected that Shen Jingdan would do such a thing.
"It seems that Boss Shen has done many illegal things before!" Wu Siyu, who was listening on the sidelines, whispered to Wang Yuanfang.
Two hours later, the sand ship entered the ocean on the south side of Chongming Island, and three Susong Town Zuoying sentry ships patrolling here soon appeared in the distance.
Shen Jingdan ordered the sailors to slow down the sand ship, and the three sentinel ships quickly approached. However, after the other party saw the three characters "Shen Yihe" on the bow of the ship, they turned around and left in the distance.
Because the smell in the cabin was really bad, everyone in Beihai Town stayed close to the cabin door. When the sentinel ship came, everyone entered the cabin, and Wang Yuanfang and others put their hands on their lower backs. To prepare for emergencies.
After the sentry ship had gone away, Zhao Xin and others came out of the cabin. He smiled and asked Shen and Huang who were standing on the deck: "How much money were given?"
Shen Jingdan shook his head and said: "Mr. Zhao, you don't know something. Su Song's navy knows my boat, and every year he pays two thousand taels of silver to the navy admiral. But when we enter Wusongkou, the sand ships coming and going There will be a lot of people, so please stay in the cabin; if the ship doesn't dock, don't show your head yet."
Zhao Xin nodded and suddenly asked curiously: "Boss Shen, Boss Huang, did you do this before when you came back from Nagasaki?"
Shen Jingdan smiled and said: "Yes, and no."
After he finished speaking, he started to explain. It turns out that when sea trading ships returned to China in the Qing Dynasty, the inspection procedures after entering the inner ocean were still very strict.
When the patrol ship discovers a merchant ship returning home, it will immediately return to Shuying and notify the big boat to intercept it so that it can be boarded and inspected.
The content of the inspection includes whether there are prohibited goods, or whether there are Japanese or other foreigners hidden. If everything is normal, the officer on the sentinel ship will issue a customs business license, which needs to fill in the name of the ship, the size of the ship, and the load. , after indicating that the goods contained are free of contraband, a large seal will be stamped to allow entry. The sea trade ship must take this business license to Jianghai Customs in Shanghai County to pay customs duties, and wait for the tax to be paid and get the receipt. , then you can find a dental store to sell the goods on your behalf.
Liu Sheng, who had been a seaman, looked enlightened and said: "Oh. It turns out that you can enter Wusongkou with a business license."
"Not yet, we still need this." After Shen Jingdan finished speaking, he raised his hand and pointed to an earthy yellow pennant on the top of the mainmast. There seemed to be a red flame-like border around the edge of the flag.
"With the stamped customs business photo and this flag, the ship carrying goods back to China can enter the inland waters and then enter Wusongkou."
After Shen Jingdan explained, he asked Zhao Xin: "Mr. Zhao?"
"Boss Shen, just call me Zhao Dongjia. From now on, my identity is a businessman. As for them, you can call them by their pseudonyms."
"Zhao, Mr. Zhao, where do you want to visit after you arrive in Shanghai this time?"
Zhao Xin already knew that Lao Huang had bought a house in Jiangning, Suzhou and Yangzhou. He thought for a while and said: "Let's check out several places. As for where to go first, it depends on how you arrange it, Boss Shen." .”
Shen Jingdan thought for a while and said: "Then I and Boss Huang will accompany you to Suzhou first, then to Yangzhou, and finally to Jiangning."
After that, everyone chatted with Shen and Huang. When Zhao Xin learned that Lao Huang’s biggest cigarette customer in Shanghai County and Suzhou Prefecture was actually a brothel, everyone was shocked. No one expected that the channel of brothel could actually sell so much. good.
Shen Jingdan talked about the sales situation in Yangzhou. The largest customer group of cigarettes in Yangzhou is actually a group of literati! Since Shen Jingdan brought cigarettes to the Majia Poetry Club gathering, he has won praises from scholars. As a group of scholars The first poem praising cigarettes spread, and cigarettes actually became popular among the upper class gentry circles in Yangzhou.
In the evening, the sand boat docked at the dock outside Chongming County for the night. In order to reduce trouble, Zhao Xin and others stayed on the boat without getting off the boat.
Although the accommodation conditions were very poor, everyone knew that they would land in Shanghai County in the 18th century tomorrow, and their inner expectations and excitement took over, so they endured the discomfort for the whole night.
Early the next morning, the sand ship left the Chongming County Wharf. Since it was not carrying goods this time, there was no need to evade tax and smuggle, so the ship entered the Huangpu River from Wusongkou.
During the Qianlong period, the Huangpu River was still called "Huangpu". Although the river was very wide, in the understanding of ordinary people, the Huangpu River at this time was just a fork of the Wusong River.
When the cargo ship passed Laohezui (Hanhaitang), it was only 40 miles away from Shanghai County Daguan Pier. At this time, a long queue of sand boats heading north to the sea formed.
Liu Sheng stood at the hatch of the ship and looked at the densely packed two-masted and even three-masted sand ships on the river. He asked in surprise: "Where are all these ships going?"
"Shandong and Guandong." Lao Huang explained with a smile.
"Are you going to Guandong now?" Liu Siting suddenly asked.
Shen Jingdan explained: "You don't know. From Shanghai and Jiaxing's Zhapu Port, there are about five to six thousand sand ships traveling from Shandong and Guandong every year, and each ship can carry between two and three thousand stones. These ships He is a local from Dongdu and has a rich net worth, worth hundreds of thousands. He carries oil, wine, bean cakes and other goods between the two places almost three or four times a year."
"cake?"
"soy?"
"Soybean oil?"
Everyone was stunned when they heard this. They did not expect that the maritime trade between the north and the south was so prosperous during the Qianlong period.
Lao Huang also agreed: "Yes, it's soybeans. This is a good thing. After pressing the oil, the soybean cake can also be used as fertilizer. To be honest, these merchants who are engaged in Guandong sea trade have shops in Guandong and Shanghai. "
Zhao Xin thought for a while and asked: "Where are the places in the north that produce soybeans?"
Old Huang said: "There are many. For example, in Shandong, there are mainly three prefectures: Qing, Lai, and Deng. In the coastal areas of these three places, due to the thin soil, the locals have to grow beans to make a living.
"
When Zhao Xin heard the word "skinny", he didn't quite understand it. According to him, it was a saline-alkali land.
Just listen to Lao Huang continue: "As for Guandong, the main production area is Jinzhou, but the shops are all in Niuzhuang."
Zhao Xin did not expect that the bean trade would be so prosperous under the Qing Dynasty. He originally wanted to plant soybeans on a large scale in Beihai Town for trade, but it seemed that this road was unworkable.
Historically, before the Opium War, the richest sand ship owner in Jiangsu and Zhejiang had more than a hundred sand ships under his command. Sometimes more than a dozen of them could go to sea at the same time. When going to sea, they were backed by Su Song Navy officers and soldiers and protected by green camp ships. The division of labor on the ship was meticulous, and the manpower was
There are many; there are stewards, cooks, treasurers, bowmen, and sellers, all performing their duties.
After a few people chatted for a while, the boat had passed the Taiping Temple area, and there were more and more sand boats on the river. From the Wusong River in the northwest, to Shanghai Pu, Yangjing, and Xigou in the south, there were rows of sand boats heading out to sea.
There was a long queue; at this time, the city wall of Shanghai County was already faintly visible.
"It's almost here. Please go back to the cabin and take shelter for a while." Lao Huang reminded.
At this time, there were too many sand boats going south and north on the river, and the sailing speed suddenly slowed down. It was almost noon before they docked at the Xiaodongmen Pier in the northeast corner of Shanghai County.
After the ship stopped, Shen Jingdan came over specially to tell Zhao Xin to wait a while and someone had already been sent to call the carriage.
Zhao Xin and others were eager to rush out of the cabin and go to the deck to take a look, but they were afraid of causing trouble to Shen and Huang, so they kept holding back.
Almost half an hour later, there was a sound of horse hooves and the sound of shouting animals outside the cabin; everyone guessed that the carriage had arrived. Sure enough, not long after, Shen Jingdan greeted at the cabin door: "Everyone, please get off the ship. The carriage has arrived.
.”
Zhao Xin and a group of people came out of the cabin, facing the city wall of Shanghai County. On a city gate not far away, there were four big characters written "Treasure Belt Yan Hai".
Shen Jingdan said as he walked: "The city wall in Shanghai County is two feet and four feet high, and there are seven gates in total. The place we stopped at is the Yanhai Gate in the northeast, but we usually call it the Little East Gate.
"
Liu Sheng and others had already entered the role at this time, so they bowed and asked Shen Jingdan: "Master Shen, are we going to the city?"
"I'm really sorry about this, because time is short, and the new yard needs to be cleaned before people can move in. Please go and rest in the humble house first, and go to the newly purchased yard later."
Zhao Xin nodded without saying a word, and walked towards the carriage in the middle as Shen Jingdan pointed out. Liu Siting wrapped her hair with a cloth handkerchief, lowered her head and said nothing, followed Zhao Xin, and came to the carriage.
As a result, before Zhao Xin could say anything, Director Liu crossed over to Zhao Xin, took two steps, stepped on the bench prepared by the coachman, got on the carriage, and got into the carriage shed.
This made the hired coachmen on the side look dumbfounded. Everyone could see clearly that the woman just now was a natural foot! In these days in the Jiangnan area, the only people besides the boat girls who dared not bind their feet were the bannermen.