Lin Ming's adventure can be described as "bearing the humiliation and bearing the burden": although he was just a trial member of a small Baihu Institute in Foshan, Baihu, in the Ming Dynasty's military service system, he could only be regarded as an extremely low-level "official".
"If he were an ordinary military household, he would really be nothing. Fortunately, the intimidating title of "Jinyiwei" was still quite powerful in the late Ming Dynasty, and everyone had to respect him.
This time, he pretended to be a man and boarded the ship to work, and did not sail directly to Lingao, just to make it safer for him to sneak into Lingao - it is true that he fully integrated into the character, working hard and rushing to do it, and he spared no effort to win over people.
.My face has become tanned and my skin has become rough. Gradually, the "official air" and "gongzi brother" in my body have been rubbed away one by one.
After sailing back and forth on the sea for several months, Lin Ming felt that it was almost done, so he told Gang Shou that he wanted to join the Australians in Lingao - this was not a rare thing in Guangdong and Fujian.
There has been a large-scale active immigration wave in the country. Every day, people cross the sea to Lingao to "go to Kun". After paying their wages, they disembark in Kaohsiung.
He made careful plans to disembark in Kaohsiung - he has been here more than once, is quite familiar with the situation here, and has a general understanding of the Kun thief's style of doing things. Not only that, there are many ships coming and going from Lingao here, and
It is not far from Dajuan. There are many Ming merchant ships in both places. Most of these ships need to recruit additional personnel on the spot before setting off, so it is easy to get on board.
Now he is staying below the deck of Dongshan Residence, with bright eyes, planning his next move.
"Young man, what are you thinking about?" Manager Liu went to get dinner and brought it in.
"No, I didn't think about anything." Lin Ming concealed it. When he saw that Manager Liu had brought dinner, he quickly stood up and said, "Manager Liu, I should take care of this..."
"You are new here and are not familiar with the ship. What should I do if I ask you to take it out of the sea?" Manager Liu squinted his eyes and said with a smile, "I know you are a scholar and you must be able to play chess - just play a few games with me after dinner.
Already."
"How can I be a scholar..." Lin Ming quickly denied.
"Young man, don't hide it from me. Not only are you a scholar, but your family background is probably pretty good." Manager Liu said as he took out the wine bottle and wine glass from the cabinet.
"You can't drink on the ship. I'm old. If you drink a few sips to rejuvenate your blood, you're relying on your old age to act like you're old. I won't let you do it."
"You can do whatever you want, Manager Liu. I understand the rules on the ship." Lin Ming quickly changed the subject.
Fortunately, Manager Liu stopped talking about family background after pouring the wine. Lin Ming breathed a sigh of relief and looked at the food on the plate - it was unexpectedly good! What was even more unexpected was that Manager Liu and he ate so well.
It’s the same. Even if it’s the boss and the boss of Dongshan Jushang, the food is not much different from that of ordinary sailors. In the past few months, he has only eaten on the ship to satisfy his hunger. At the beginning, the rough food was simply difficult to eat.
After swallowing, it took a long time to get used to it.
The food at Dongshan Jushang is quite sumptuous. Not only are the vegetables fresh - that's okay, since we have just left the port after all - but there are also fish and shrimps to eat. You must know that although Lin Ming has been living on the ship almost every day in the past few months,
But I haven't eaten decent fish and shrimp a few times. They are all salted fish and braised shrimp. Not only are they salty and smelly, but they are also pitifully small. I don't know where the boatman gets them.
"How about it? The food on our boat is good, the owner is a kind-hearted person." Manager Liu couldn't help but brag on behalf of his master, "Which boat owner can you tell me how good the food is for his crew?"
In fact, Chen Huamin and Liu Deshan accepted the ideas of some Australians, and the food and pay for their men were better than those of other maritime merchants. Soon after implementing this policy, they discovered that "better treatment requires a small number of people, but a large number of people".
"It is much more cost-effective to use a large group of people with low wages. The sailors on the Dongshanju only have about half the cargo capacity of the Ming Dynasty Merchant Ship, so the cost of labor per voyage is actually one-third less."
"You are right, Manager Liu. You two gentlemen are kind." Lin Ming has now developed the habit of echoing whatever anyone says.
Lin Ming hadn't had a decent meal for several months. When he encountered this "good meal", he ate it up like a storm. Even the little bit of marinade on the bottom of the dish was mixed with rice and eaten.
After eating, he poured another bowl of water and rinsed his mouth.
Manager Liu took a sip and said with a smile: "You also said that you are not a scholar. How can any ordinary clerk be as good as you? Needless to say, you can lick the vegetable juice clean with your tongue. Rinse your mouth after eating. Then
Not to mention. We, Mr. Liu, are not like this."
Lin Ming secretly complained in his heart. He didn't expect that after several months of hard life, he had not completely changed the traces of his original life. This old man could see it. Can the thief Kun see it? He couldn't help but feel a little discouraged.
Frustration could not help but appear on his face. Manager Liu thought that something had touched his heart, so he couldn't help but exhort him: "Young man, don't be discouraged. You are still young and have a lot of strength. The sea is now peaceful. Do your best. If you want to
Although it is not easy to become wealthy, it is probably possible to earn a living from a well-off family."
Lin Ming suddenly had an idea. He realized that no matter how much he covered it up, the traces left by his past life could not be completely erased. Being on Lingao was no different than on this sea ship. The sailors and crew members were always coming and leaving at any time.
, no one cares about anyone else's business. I heard that the thieves love to inquire deeply, and any clues they reveal will definitely be discovered by them.
Manager Liu's words seemed to come from the old man's love of nagging, out of kindness. Lin Ming knew that it also contained the meaning of "bottom of the plate".
If I can't answer satisfactorily, I won't be able to gain their trust. This boat was built by an Australian shipyard, so the relationship between the ship owner and the Kun thief is probably very shallow. I'll have a few words with the Kun thief when I go to Lingao.
, I will die immediately without a burial place! It seems that it is not possible to pretend to be poor in such a secretive way. I have to make up a reasonable life experience to deceive others.
Thinking of this, he had made up his mind. He turned around in his mind several times and already had a draft. He deliberately sighed and said: "Manager Liu, you are indeed very experienced in seeing things! To tell you the truth, there was indeed something in my family in the past.
With a small family fortune, although it is not considered rich, we have no worries about food and drink. It's just that our parents left early..." With tears streaming down her face, she made up a traditional story about a prodigal son who lost his family fortune and had to live on the sea to make a living.
.
Although this kind of story is old-fashioned, there were many examples at the time, and it is easy to make it up perfectly. Lin Ming also has an advantage. He is a "worm on the ground" in Foshan. He is extremely familiar with the local situation and can be found easily.
There were families with similar stories, the family he chose to deed, the young master died in Guangzhou after falling into despair - others didn't know it, but Lin Ming knew it.
He immediately settled the family's affairs on himself, and when he got emotional, he pretended to wipe away tears to show that he was crying. In this way, even an old man like Manager Liu was fooled by him.
Seeing that he was sad, Manager Liu even tried to persuade him a few words.
"Originally, I thought you were good at writing and doing calculations, so I wanted to keep you on board as a copywriter. But since you want to go to Lingao to join Kun, I didn't mention it." Manager Liu said, "I heard that Australians are very popular there.
There are many people who can't make it there to find a way to survive, and they are all doing well now. You are young and literate. As long as you are willing to work, you will definitely be reused in the future."
"Thank you, Manager Liu, for your comfort. I don't dare to think about this now. I heard that there are many Australians working in Lingao, and as long as they work hard, they will have food to eat. That's why I wanted to go to Lingao. I just want to be able to come here in peace."
"Gao, I have a job, a house to live in, and I just need to be down-to-earth and earn a bowl of food. I really can't do the work on this ship."
Before modern times, there were no weather forecasts, weather radars, or barometers for navigation; navigation charts were incomplete, and there were pirates... There was no safety in sailing, and going to sea meant taking risks. Ordinary people were not desperate people, and no one was
He was unwilling to board a ship to make a living. Lin Ming's confession was reasonable and completely consistent with his status as a descendant of a poor family.
"You are being too modest," Manager Liu said after taking a few sips, his face slightly flushed. "You probably don't know that someone like you, who can write and calculate, can do anything if you are willing to shave your head and have a bonnet.
Become a 'cadre' and work as a 'cadre' - probably the 'official' of the Australians. No matter how much, you can first eat a portion of the imperial grain. Do you think this kind of benefit is available in the Ming Dynasty?"
Lin Ming was startled and thought to himself, I really didn’t know that Kun was so thirsty for talents, but this way, his plan is one step closer to success. He quickly apologized and said with a smile: "My parents are so cruel to me.
Shaving your hair is a big deal. Even if you don’t shave your hair, it’s probably easy to earn a living..."
Manager Liu nodded: "The filial piety of young people is commendable. As an old man, I won't say much. I just go to Lingao and live a good life. I am an old man. I have stayed with the master all my life. I am used to it and I can't walk anymore.
, no matter how young you are, ten or twenty years old, you can join the Australians and find a future." After that, he drank the wine in the glass in one gulp.
After dinner, Lin Ming cleaned up the tableware and returned to the cabin. Manager Liu had already set up a chess game, and the two of them went back and forth to kill several games. Lin Ming usually had nothing to do in the Hundred Household Office, so he wanted to relieve boredom.
He was proficient in all kinds of entertainment and his chess skills were superb. He knew that this ship was closely related to the Kun thief. Liu Guanshi and others had been to Lingao many times, which was an excellent channel to understand the inside story of the Kun thief, so he deliberately
Controlling his chess skills, the two of them fought back and forth in an inseparable manner. Manager Liu, who had been sweeping the entire ship, was hooked. The two chatted while playing chess, and Lin Ming took the opportunity to learn a lot about Lingao.