Guide to traveling through the Northern Song Dynasty

Chapter 1114 1109 [Gold Diggers and Gold Nuggets]

Huang Lun was in debt.

His ancestors can be traced back to Huang Yuanfang, the first ancestor to enter Fujian. Huang Yuanfang's twelfth-generation grandson Huang Dian migrated to Guangdong and then spread out in Guangdong.

Huang Lun was born in the Nanhai Huang family, but his branch had fallen into decline.

In the past few years, Guangzhou's maritime trade has become more and more prosperous, and there have been constant rumors that someone went to sea to make a fortune.

Huang Lun was tempted and couldn't bear it. When his father died and several brothers divided the family property, he finally couldn't hold back. He mortgaged all the property he got to the silver shop to get a loan, and borrowed money from his father's friends before his death. He finally got more than 300 strings of cash.

This guy entrusted his wife and children to his brother to take care of, bought goods, rented space, and went out to trade without knowing anything.

Huang Lun came to Jambi by boat. At that time, the Governor's Office had just moved to Jambi, and the Jambi Exchange had not yet been set up. The sale of goods depended on his own contacts.

Because he was unfamiliar with the place, Huang Lun did not find a buyer right away. By the time he found a buyer, the price of the relevant goods had dropped, and the selling price was only slightly higher than the purchase price in Guangzhou.

How much money could he make?

It cost money to rent a cabin, eat, drink, and defecate, and he also rented a warehouse in Jambi for a month. When he sold the goods in his hands, he could only buy a very small amount of spices to take back, because he had to rent a cabin and eat on the return trip.

When he returned to Guangzhou, he sold the spices at a high price, and he still lost more than 40 guan, not counting the interest on his loan.

But Huang Lun did not give up, he thought he had experience. Moreover, he inquired about a lot of relevant information from the small merchants on the same ship, and heard that Jambi would also set up an exchange.

So he bought goods and went out to sea again the next year.

But when the news of the establishment of the Jambi Exchange was passed back to Guangzhou, the number of merchants who rushed there doubled, and many Fujian merchants who did not run the Nanyang route also joined. Moreover, at that time, Nanyang merchants still went to Guangzhou, and were not forced to switch to the Indian route.

The result is conceivable, there are more sellers and fewer buyers in the Jambi Exchange. It was no longer a matter of selling at a reduced price, but it was difficult to find a buyer even if it was sold at a low price.

Huang Lun lost all his money. He was unable to pay the rent for the warehouse. The day before the warehouse was to be cleared, he sold all the goods at a half-sale and half-gift price.

He recovered some funds, but could not buy goods to return to Zhanbi. Because there were too many merchants who did the same thing as him, they bought up all the spices and other scarce goods, and the prices of those Nanyang goods were extremely high.

He returned to Guangzhou with some money. When the silver shop learned that he was losing money again, they sent people to collect the debts every day, and finally sued to take away all his mortgaged property.

Huang Lun also borrowed money from his deceased father's old friend, but he had no ability to repay it.

He could only apply to be a crew member, relying on his ability to write and calculate, while working to pay off his debts.

He always felt that he could still turn things around, so he did not settle in Zhanbi, Jiaozhi or Nanyu. Because if he went to those places, although he could directly divide the land and get a resettlement fee, he still could not pay off the debt in a short time, and he would be tied to the land.

His wife and children have been watched by creditors. If the debt is not paid off, the family can't go anywhere.

Are there gold mines in Australia?

I want to go pan for gold!

The crowded cabin smells particularly bad.

Fortunately, the ship owners are afraid of widespread illness and don't stuff the gold diggers in like sardines.

Although it's uncomfortable, it's still bearable.

"Huang Sanlang, are you willing to join the hometown association?" Chen Youfang, who was in the same cabin, asked.

Huang Lun asked, "Do you have to pay membership fees?"

Chen Youfang said, "Of course you have to pay membership fees. It's not much, just a few dozen coins per person. If a member gets sick, it will be withdrawn from the membership fees. When we get to the gold mining area, those who join the hometown association will live together, help each other and not be bullied."

Huang Lun thought about it, nodded and said, "Then I'll join."

Not only do immigrants who go out to sea to pan for gold have hometown associations, but immigrants from all over the country also form their own hometown associations. There are hometown associations of all sizes, from east to west, from south to north, and even in Kashgar there are similar organizations.

When you are away from home, you must stick together for warmth!

A few days later, the fleet arrived at Coconut City (Jakarta).

There are three states on Java Island today.

West Java is Sunda, which split from Srivijaya. It believes in Theravada Buddhism and Brahmanism.

Central Java is called Mataram and East Java is called Kediri. They both believe in Brahmanism and Buddhism.

The port of Coconut City (Jakarta) was just a small port before Srivijaya was destroyed, but now it is developing rapidly. Relying on the collection of port entry taxes, Sunda became rich and developed its army crazily, and invaded Mataram from time to time.

When the fleet entered the port for supplies, Huang Lun and other gold diggers were allowed to get off the ship for fresh air.

Most of them were poor people who definitely had no money to spend, so they could only sit near the pier and feel the stability of the land.

The foreign people here are greatly influenced by India in their daily dressing, but in recent years they have been deeply influenced by Fujian and Guangdong culture. Combined with the local traditions of Java Island, the superposition of various elements looks very strange.

Huang Lun has been used to sailing for many years, but many gold diggers who are going out to sea for the first time are sitting there and watching excitedly.

Especially the fellow villagers from Shanxi and Huainan who were invited by Wang Chongdu, Li Zuqia and others, where have they seen such a scene?

The humidity and heat of the Coconut City also make people from the inland extremely uncomfortable.

It is the rainy season now, the temperature is below 30 degrees, but the humidity is frighteningly high.

After stopping for one day in Yecheng for supplies and setting sail again, dozens of people fell ill one after another. It was mainly caused by the lack of adaptability to the climate. The doctors and apprentices on each ship were extremely busy, and one person had died of illness when they arrived on the northern coast of Australia.

For fear of affecting morale, Wang Chongdu did not abandon the body, but landed specifically for cremation.

Before lighting the fire, Wang Chongdu said to everyone: "When you go to sea to make a living, you are likely to encounter anything, and it is common to be acclimatized. If you want to survive, you should listen to the doctor honestly. If you can drink hot water, don't drink raw water. Water, if you can eat cooked food, don’t eat raw food. When you go to the mining area, wash your hands and bathe frequently. Don’t think that washing and bathing will delay your gold mining..."

In addition, everyone can also receive mosquito repellent supplies every day. These are given to the gold diggers on credit. They are recorded in the account and must be repaid together with the boat tickets and food.

From the north coast of Australia to Jinshan (Melbourne), except for docking to replenish fresh water, the fleet made no other stops and sailed at full speed with smooth winds all the way.

"This is Jinshan, and His Majesty personally gave it its name!"

Huang Lun and some fellow Guangzhou residents got off the boat and lined up one after another.

But I heard Li Bin shouting: "Who knows how to shoot an arrow? Come forward and get the crossbow first!"

Several people from Shanxi ran to get crossbows.

Then, another pile of waist knives and spears were brought from the ship and placed there.

Li Bin said: "These weapons are all given to you on credit. You will repay the debt when you find gold. Take the weapons with you anytime and anywhere, who knows when the natives will attack. After you settle down, we will take turns to practice, each person will do it every month." It will take at least two days of training. All those who have studied should come out!"

Huang Lun quickly stood up.

Li Bin shouted again: "Those who have served as soldiers, including militiamen, all come out." More than twenty people stood out.

Soon, these more than a thousand people were divided into ten brigades, and each brigade was divided into ten mandarin duck squads.

Those who have read books serve as "military" clerks.

Those who have served in the military will serve as temporary officers. If there are not enough people, they will be elected again.

They did not go to the mining area immediately, but camped on the shore to rest and began basic military training the next day.

After practicing for five days in a row, Wang Chongdu finally led everyone to set off.

During the drill, the indigenous people discovered them and were frightened by the military training to become more vigilant. They did not even send anyone over to conduct transactions.

They headed northwest along the river, and the nearest indigenous tribe sent people over to observe from a distance. It wasn't until they left the tribe's territory that they finally felt relieved.

Since we were carrying a large amount of production and living supplies, we walked slower this time and finally arrived at the mining area after six days.

It's all flat land, no mines.

You can pan for gold directly in the river, or you can dig up the nearby soil for mining. Anyway, the surrounding land is full of gold. At the current mining efficiency, it is enough for 150,000 people to continue mining gold for ten years.

More than a thousand people chose to camp by the river.

The next day they went together to cut down trees and build their own houses first. It doesn’t have to be very formal, at least there must be a shack for transition.

Just as they were cutting down the trees, the tribe here finally couldn't sit still.

The chief personally brought people over to negotiate, and he made a speech, which probably meant that he asked Wang Chongdu to take people away.

Wang Chongdu took out a lot of cloth, salt, and even a few iron pots, and then pointed to the nearby land, trying to buy this piece of land with goods.

The chief was furious and yelled at Wang Chongdu.

Both parties broke up unhappy.

Three days later, Huang Lun had built his own shack and was learning to make gold mining tools.

Suddenly a military bugle sounded, and several sentries ran back from the north.

Wang Chongdu, Li Bin, Gao Wenbao and others hurriedly picked up their weapons and shouted: "Form up to defend against the enemy, form into formation to defend against the enemy..."

Huang Lun hurriedly ran to his shack. He bought a waist knife on credit and threw it in the shack useless.

There were more than a thousand gold diggers, all running around in a mess, having long forgotten the training content of the previous days.

Fortunately, the treasure-hunting trio had private armed forces, many of whom had retired from the regular army. They quickly formed a formation, leaving some to protect the gold diggers, while the rest all went towards the natives to kill them.

Those natives seemed to have recruited allies to help. There were more than a thousand young men, and they were not just from one tribe.

The main weapons of the indigenous people are spears, bows and arrows, and slings. A few also carry V-shaped darts that can fly back. Its bows and arrows are the most deadly because they are soaked in venom.

"Bang bang bang bang bang!"

Forty flintlock muskets fired freely, and several native warriors fell instantly.

As they rushed closer and closer, the Han armed forces had already reloaded their ammunition. This time he got closer and hit more accurately, killing and wounding more than 20 people one after another.

The natives were inexplicably horrified, and most of them stopped and watched.

There were also a few brave natives who continued to charge forward, and then threw their spears violently - using them as javelins.

As for the poison-quenched bows and arrows of the indigenous people, they have not yet found a chance to shoot because their range is too short.

Three rounds of musketry had been fired on the battlefield, and the gold diggers on Huang Lun's side finally managed to complete their assembly. Even though a military formation had been formed, the gold diggers still did not dare to step forward and stood there cowering and watching.

"It's just a bunch of savages, you're scared of me! Listen to my order and step forward!"

The instructor responsible for training them forced the gold diggers to join the battle.

Huang Lun held a waist knife and moved forward bravely. He didn't go far when he found that the formation was out of order. The instructor didn't bother to care about this and continued to lead the people forward. Anyway, he didn't expect the gold diggers to kill the enemy.

"Bang bang bang!"

Another round of gunfire, the natives finally retreated.

"Follow me and kill!"

Huang Lun heard the instructor's shout and saw the natives defeated. He rushed forward with a knife.

When he charged, his mind was blank.

When he regained consciousness, he was already sitting somewhere. He didn't know when the knife in his hand had shed blood. He only felt sore all over and his hands and feet were weak.

"Wealth and honor are sought in danger, wealth and honor are sought in danger..." Huang Lun kept muttering to comfort himself.

Wang Chongdu pursued them all the way and destroyed the nearest tribe directly. All the houses were burned, all the food was taken away, and more than a hundred natives were captured to pan for gold.

For a long time, there were no more natives to kill.

Huang Lun did not stay with his fellow villagers, and divided them into groups according to the teams during the drill. They were a group of more than a hundred people, and they were divided into ten groups, gathering in a large area to mine gold.

At the beginning, they all mined in the river because it was the most efficient.

But the upstream river channel of the settlement was set as a no-mining zone to avoid contaminating drinking water.

After half a month of continuous panning, Huang Lun was numb. He no longer thought about anything, but just mechanically performed various actions. It was boring, tedious, and his waist and back ached.

Especially his waist. After working all day, he couldn't even straighten it up.

At this moment, he stepped on the river water with both feet, scooped up the mud and sand with the gold panning sieve, and stretched out his right hand to wipe it in the sieve.

He touched a small stone, which could not be sieved out, and Huang Lun subconsciously wanted to throw it away.

Before throwing it away, he took a casual look.

Yellow stone?

Yellow!

Huang Lun, whose mind was numb, suddenly became energetic, and then his breathing became rapid. After a long time of silence, he finally shouted: "Negative gold!"

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