Lin Gao Qiming

Chapter 580 Continuation of Travel Notes of Dongmen City
"Unexpectedly, your third master Liu is not only a famous doctor, but also proficient in Tao Zhu's art."

"The third master is indeed a strange person!" The steward boasted sincerely, "Runshitang is in its current state thanks to the help of the third master."

"In this way, Australians are very capable."

"Who says it's not? Farming, working, fighting, building houses, and doing business are good at everything, and they don't know how to do a lot of things."

"Let's go, find a place to rest." Li Luoyou said together with his fan.

Gu Baocheng knew that his uncle's intention was to do business with Australians, but when he arrived at the Australian goods wholesale place, he didn't move, felt strange, and quickly reminded Li Luoyou.

"It's not a problem." Li Luoyou shook his head, "This is a wholesale place for small customers, let's just take a look." Li Luoyou had other plans. He originally came here to meet the Australians to discuss business. Aussies are sure to give themselves a much bigger discount.Li Luoyou believed that the resources in his hands were enough to ruthlessly kill Australians.

Just as she was about to go out, she heard a commotion at the door, and saw a cooperative woman in a blue dress waving a small pennant, leading a dozen people to rush in through the door.

"Come on, ladies and gentlemen! This is the largest commodity wholesale market in Lingao - the main store of the cooperative! This store has more than 1000 kinds of goods. From the mirrors used by the empress to the pickles for the common people... everyone Take a look, there are all kinds of Australian goods, and you can make money when you buy them back! It’s not easy to come to Lingao, and I’m sorry for my legs if I don’t buy more goods..."

The female buddy was holding a triangular paper tube and waving a pennant while roaring.Followed by a group of people who looked like traders, when they first came to such a luxurious and magnificent shop, they couldn't help but feel a little timid when they looked around.

"Let's have a cup of tea first, don't be polite, take your time and choose carefully, there is plenty of time." As he spoke, a female waiter had already brought trays of cups, including hot tea, herbal tea, kombucha, and kvass , so that the small traders who got off the boat and waited in line for a long time for the customs, and then sat in the bullock cart for a long time, calmed down.

These are the small merchants who came to Gaohuo. Since the rescue of Haijia's five-masted ship, the merchants on board found a much closer commodity channel, so they made a special trip to come to Gaohuo.At that time, Xiong Buyou, who was in the external liaison department, wanted to promote the light industry products of the crossing group, so he quickly discussed with the executive committee, should he organize a "one-day tour of Dongmen City" for these people?
So this one-day tour of Dongmen City has continued.As soon as the small traders pass through the customs, they will be organized, and a dozen people will pull into the specially prepared ox carts and go shopping in batches.

The prosperity, cleanliness, and order of Dongmen City have opened the eyes of small businessmen.The dazzling array of various commodities made them even more itchy.There are too many new gadgets that cannot be seen on the mainland: thick "towels" that are gradually becoming popular among urban residents in Guangzhou, sewing needles with excellent steel tips, snow-white sugar, colorful candies, Thin, soft and breathable knitted socks, small wooden sticks that can be ignited by simply swiping anywhere without flint, white and clean paper... and many kinds of food and alcohol that I have never seen before...

The dazzling array of goods made the small merchants dizzy, and everyone was thinking about what could be sold for a lot of money if they were transported back.But to buy these things, neither silver nor copper coins will work. Only "slips of paper" - circulation coupons are accepted here.

There was a long queue in the hall of Delong Grain Bank. Small merchants all ran to Delong Grain Bank to buy brown rice chips with silver according to the daily price of grain, and then put the rice chips on the counter to exchange for circulation coupons. .

Over time, for the convenience of customers, Delong not only set up exchange points in Dongmen City, but also set up temporary exchange points in some designated stores for the convenience of customers.

In the past, there was only one shop for wholesale shopping.After the second general meeting, this kind of wholesale point expanded to many places, including cooperatives after "nationalization", Tianchu Sauce Garden, and even Runshitang also joined this system of mass circulation coupons.Yang Shixiang's willingness to accept a large number of circulation coupons is mainly because he needs to pay for services such as buying machines from the Transit Group.

There is also a newly opened shop dedicated to rattan wares.There are many never-before-seen rattan wares on display, including various rattan furniture, daily necessities and tools--the export of red and white rattan is the largest in Lingao traditionally.Wu Kuangming felt that it was a pity that such a good resource only exported primary products.So a rattan workshop was set up to develop rattan products.These products have certain particularities, and it is not suitable for them to be sold by commercial halls or cooperatives if they need a large display place. Therefore, the Ministry of Commerce opened a rattan wares store.

Small merchants buy good products, and each store collects the freight and packs them on their behalf, and then the post office collects them for consignment. By the time they get on the return ship of Gaoguang Shipping Company, the packed goods have already been loaded in the bilge.

The route of Gaoguang Shipping Co., Ltd. has also expanded from the simple Guangzhou-Lingao to Guangzhou-Qiongshan, Guangzhou-Xuwen, Lingao-Qiongshan and other regular routes.The concept of a fixed liner was introduced.Expanded the group of customer sources.

The one-day shopping tour in Dongmen City has gradually become popular under the vigorous promotion of the Time Travel Group, and small vendors welcome such thoughtful arrangements.There have also been more merchants selling goods from Laigao. In addition to simply bringing cash to purchase, many people have begun to bring goods to trade.Many goods are now shipped directly by merchants on the mainland without purchasing from Guangzhou, which not only meets the needs of the crossing people, but also meets the needs of ordinary people for daily necessities.This is not without benefit to the supply of the entire Lingao society - the Time Travel Group can't manufacture everything by itself.

Li Luoyou watched with great interest this group of small businessmen loudly commenting on the good and bad of the goods in the store, wondering how much money they could make. It was the first time that people didn't understand the rules and had to bargain. So he just pointed at the "no bargaining" sign and smiled without saying a word.

Australians not only welcome big deals, but also spare no effort for such small customers.What is the purpose of such an approach?And judging from the manager’s introduction just now and their own impressions, Australians don’t like silver. They want goods—not the most popular foreign goods such as silk and porcelain, but ordinary goods: iron , coal, cloth, grain, timber...

He was suddenly shocked--Australians want everything for national use and people's livelihood!The idea suddenly broke into his mind.When he thought of Jian slaves trading with him, what he valued most was grain and ironware, and he was often willing to pay a lot of money to buy them—this was similar to the Australians.

After coming out of the cooperative, the manager saw that they were a little tired, so he opened a private room in the cooperative restaurant.Li Mei was checking the accounts in the restaurant of the cooperative. Hearing that a distinguished guest was coming, she came out to entertain herself.

Li Luoyou saw that this "big business" female Australian was only wearing a very simple green cloth skirt and jacket, with short ear-length hair, no jewelry on her body, and no inch of silk. This outfit is Guangzhou. Even the maids with the slightest prestige in rich families can't compare.

The business is so big, but the enjoyment is so simple, Li Luoyou admires it very much - at least he can't do it.

Li Mei already knew about the arrival of the storekeeper Li, so she will be even more attentive.The highest-grade bird's nest coconut milk mixed fruit syrup is specially presented, which is smooth, fragrant and cool, and there are many unknown fruits in it, which makes Li Luoyu, who is not addicted to desserts, very satisfied.As for Quark, his eyes were straightened by eating it.

Li Luoyou looked for an opportunity to inquire about the internal affairs of the Australian, but although the female Australian was courteous, she either looked around at him or just smiled when he asked him.

Still a ruthless character!Li Luoyou thought to himself.According to the steward's introduction, this Li Mei should be a powerful figure among Australians, and he seems to be some kind of "minister".Now that we have met once, we still have to deal with it carefully, so we may be of some use to her in the future.

In a moment of thought, the topic changed, and the words became very sincere, and he even praised the operation of the cooperative.Sure enough, Li Mei's face revealed a smug look.

Seeing that the time was almost up, Li Luoyou winked, and Sao Ye was already prepared, and took out a brocade box from his bag:

"It's a small gift from Liaodong's local products, I hope you can accept it." He cupped his hands, "There are still many places that Minister Li will take care of in the future."

"Where did you start, your old lady is out of touch—" Li Mei smiled like a flower.After receiving the box and opening it, it was a ginseng with whole whiskers and leaves.Even according to the value of this time and space, it is still an expensive gift.

This made her hesitate, recently she really wanted to buy some ginseng for herself and the old man to use as a winter tonic.But according to the regulations, expensive gifts must be handed in, and if you want to keep them, you have to buy them at the market price.It's not like she was stingy with the money—this ginseng was in such good condition, it would be a good deal even if she bought it herself.But the relationship between Master Li and his side is not clear, will there be any sequelae if he hastily accepted the gift?She is someone who has suffered once, so she has to be cautious about this.

After thinking twice, I returned the ginseng.

"It's a heavy gift," she said. "It's a shame."

Sending off again and again, the other party still politely refused.Li Luoyou used ginseng as a stepping stone, and he was able to find success wherever he went, but now the other party sternly refused.Quite a surprise.

Li Mei perfunctory with them again, before leaving.After a while, someone brought four cotton sacks, the sacks were exquisitely made, and the lines were dense and neat.On the pocket, there is a lettering embroidered with colored silk thread: "Gift of the Cooperative Association".

"This is Minister Li's wish."

Instead of accepting his own gift, he gave a gift to himself instead. After opening it, he found the most popular and popular commodity among Australians, a pair of towels, one large and one small.The blue and white patterns are dyed very carefully.

Although it is a very popular Australian product, it is quite practical in Lingao, after all, the value is very low.I sent it on a special trip. I don’t know what’s the point?
The Aussie has a really different mind.Li Luoyou had a strange feeling: he and Jiannu had more common language, at least he could understand the thoughts of barbarians.For this group of people, I feel that I can't find North at all.

"Go, let's go shopping again." Li Luoyou waved his fan.

When he walked to the crossroads, he saw a building made of the best red bricks, and after asking, he knew that this was the place where the market trade was managed.There are people standing at the door, probably a yamen or something.But people came in and out at the gate on the steps, and the people on duty did not stop them from questioning, so Li Luoyou became interested and wanted to go in and have a look.

"There's nothing to see inside." The manager said, "It's just a place to do business."

"It doesn't matter, I just want to see how to do things." He lifted his foot and went up the steps.

This yamen is really nothing to see. Australian houses have a lot of windows inlaid with glass, so the room is always bright. This makes Li Luoyou who is used to the dim light in the room not very used to it. He can't imagine himself in such a room. can do things here.

There is a large table in the middle, with three objects on it, one is a huge balance scale.There are many weights placed beside it.One is a ruler that seems to be made of steel, and the last is a small bucket made of iron sheet.

There is a sign in front of the big table, which reads "Official Scale".According to the steward, this place is dedicated to storing standard weighing instruments. Anyone who buys and sells objects on the street and has doubts about the size and weight can come here for review.If you don't know how to use it, there is a special book office to help.

Li Luoyou nodded, and took a closer look, the size seemed to be different from Daming's.Take a closer look at the scale of the ruler called "meter", the scale of the weight is called "kilogram", there is another unit called "gongshi", and the small bucket is the volume, called "liter".

"These weights and measures should have been brought from Australia."

"It should be." The manager said, "It's different from the standard of this dynasty." He pointed to the "meter", "This ruler is about three feet more than the building ruler of this dynasty."

"Is that how it works?"

"These three scales have been set up since the opening of Dongmen City," said the manager. "Originally, one foot is long or short, and one catty is more or less. They all say that they are the most accurate. With these three Weighing tools will be accurate, and there will be no disputes about how long or short it is when doing business—if you are not convinced, just come here to weigh and measure. Everyone finds it convenient, so they use it.”

Private weights and measures.Li Luoyou added another crime to the Australian. Turning around, he saw a large room on the left side of the courtyard separated from the courtyard by a half-person-high wooden fence. There was a door on the fence, which was now locked.Inside is a long table arranged in the shape of a horseshoe.The table in the middle is high up.On the wall behind the middle table hangs a huge wooden sculpture, a bit like a European coat of arms.Above is a round of red sun, in the middle is a balance, and below is a wave pattern.

"It's more like a court." Quark said suddenly.

This reminded Li Luoyou that it was indeed very similar to a European court.When I asked, it was indeed a "place for hearing cases", and the official name was "Dongmen City Summary Court".

According to the manager, this court specializes in all kinds of trivial cases, such as littering, fighting, shortfalls, and stealing. It is also responsible for hearing small-amount trade disputes and issuing notarial certificates and other legal documents.The trial is very simple, just a few words, the facts are clear and the judgment is made in court, and more than a dozen cases can be tried in half a day.

If there is no plaintiff in a general public security lawsuit, the case will be closed directly by the court.For example, if the police caught stealing, it was just a formality in the court, and after the verdict was read out, the labor camp was directly recruited to work as a free coolie.As for the original defendant, both parties have to spend money to buy standard official paper to fill out the complaint.This kind of official paper is in a uniform format and printed uniformly, and all legal documents are written on this kind of paper.

"Is there an office certificate here?" Li Luoyou suddenly asked.

"Yes, there are, but very few people do it, and everyone doesn't understand it very well..." The manager pointed to a row of mirror frames hanging on the wall, "It's all written on it."

"Let's go and have a look." Li Luoyou greeted Quark.

Li Luoyou looked at it carefully, and exchanged a few words with Quark from time to time.Quark can speak Chinese but not read, so he can only judge based on Li Luoyou's retelling.

"...According to what you say, these Australians use the European legal system." Li Luoyou said, "At least the notarial certificate does not exist in Ming Dynasty."

"Yes, there are these laws. If this is made by Australians, then the people who made the laws must be familiar with "Roman Law" and various continental codes." Quark said, "I don't know much about laws, but according to you The content of the Australian judicial system is obviously related to that of Europe, but it is different." He shook his head, "I have a feeling that they should be better than us."

"Smarter than your motherland?" Li Luoyou joked.

"Hehe, my motherland can't compare to it." Quark didn't hide it, "An overseas colony can do this, but the mother country doesn't know what it is like. I really want to see it."

After leaving the management office, the sun has gradually set to the west, and the pedestrians on the street have dispersed.The streets became empty and quiet.Quark bought some small things on the street and said that he was going to ask someone to take them back as gifts.

At this time, there was a sudden sharp howling sound from the air, from far to near, as if some monsters were screaming one after another.Gu Baocheng's face turned pale.Li Luoyou also trembled in his heart, and was about to check where the voice came from.The person in charge hurriedly consoled him: "It's okay! It's the siren for the morning shift."

The whistle sounded long and short, seventeen times in a row.Soon after the sound, groups of people in greasy blue coarse clothes increased on the road.Like a tide, they filled the entire Dongmen City at once.

While talking and laughing loudly, the artisans poured into those cheap hotels and restaurants in groups.The food stalls on the side of the road also regained their spirits, shouting hard one by one.

Suddenly, Dongmen City was filled with a strange smell of sweat, oil and food.The street market, which was a little deserted at first, suddenly became full of vitality.

(End of this chapter)