Daming Town Haiwang

Chapter 927, Nanyang slaves
In a large plantation in the residence of Nanyang chief envoy Si Danhe, the planter Zhao Ming had a smile on his face, and it was another harvest season.

This year in Nanyang Province, the weather is also good. The [-] mu of sugar cane planted in Zhao Ming's house has ushered in a bumper harvest. Looking at the huge sugar cane garden in front of him, his mind is full of money.

"Everyone, work hard. When the sugar cane is harvested, I will give you a few days off so that you can have a good rest and rest."

Zhao Ming rode a horse and walked in his plantation, looking at the slaves who were busy in the sugarcane plantation, he also said loudly.

There is a big difference between Nanyang Province and Cochin Province. The population here in Nanyang Province is mainly immigrants from the Ming Dynasty, and the number of local aborigines is very small.

However, there is another huge population in Nanyang Province, which is not included in the population statistics of Ming Dynasty, and that is the huge number of slaves in the large and small plantations in Nanyang Province.

The number of these slaves is very large. There are dozens or hundreds of slaves in any plantation, and some large plantations even have thousands of slaves.

These slaves numbered as many as one million and spread throughout Nanyang Province, growing sugar cane, rice, etc. for plantation owners.

However, slaves are slaves, and they cannot be counted among the population of Daming. Their status is similar to that of livestock in the family. They are regarded as the private property of slave owners, and their status is not even comparable to that of the natives here in Nanyang.

"Thank you master, thank you master~"

When the slaves heard this, they immediately expressed their thanks.

Although they are slaves, here in Nanyang, as long as they are willing to work honestly, generally speaking, slave owners will not treat them too badly. They can eat whatever they want, white rice, vegetables and radishes, and occasionally They eat sea fish, chickens, ducks and geese raised in the plantation, etc., and they also have their share during the festivals.

Here in Nanyang, there may not be many other things, but there is still too much rice to eat. Every plantation will have a field for growing rice. Under three crops a year, there is more than enough rice.

As for clothes, shoes, etc., the price of cloth is getting lower and lower, and Nanyang is located in the tropics. In fact, it doesn’t take much cloth to make clothes.

So these slaves, life is quite good, except for no freedom, other aspects are okay.

"Well, well done."

Zhao Ming nodded in satisfaction. There are thirty-six slaves in his plantation, including twenty adult male slaves, ten female slaves, and six young slaves.

The male slaves are mainly used to cultivate land, grow rice, and sugar cane, while the female slaves are responsible for raising pigs, sheep, chickens, ducks, geese, planting vegetables, washing and cooking, etc. As for the six small slaves, they are herding cattle for Zhao Ming. horse.

Zhao Ming is very satisfied with the days when he rides a horse to his own plantation and manages his slaves aloft.

He is an immigrant from Shanxi. He used to be a farmer with his face on the loess and his back to the sky. He worked hard all year round for the landlord's old money, and he couldn't even finish his meal.

Later, when they immigrated to Nanyang, the imperial court directly allocated hundreds of acres of land. After the family worked hard to plant sugar cane and rice for a year, they began to buy slaves one after another to plant and cultivate. scale.

It has a total of more than [-] mu of fields, a complete set of reinforced concrete houses, and more than a dozen houses and warehouses where slaves live. In addition, there are five cows, three horses, more than a dozen pigs, and hundreds of chickens and ducks. Goose and more.

All of this was accumulated in just a few years. With such a huge wealth, if he was in his hometown in Shaanxi, he would never have dreamed of such a life.

In Shaanxi, even Lao Cai, a landlord, may not have such a huge property. There are land, slaves, cattle and horses, etc., and Lao Cai, an ordinary landlord, may not really be able to own these.

"My lord, the sugar cane is full!"

At this time, a tall, fair-skinned man with a high nose and deep eyes came to Zhao Ming respectfully and said.

His name is Hussein, and he is a Persian businessman. He used to settle in Ceylon Island. He used to live a wealthy life with a beautiful wife and lovely children.

But last year, the Western Union Company attacked Ceylon and took Ceylon very easily. Like many Persians, Arabs, and locals of Ceylon, he became a slave and was trafficked to Southeast Asia. Here, after changing hands several times, it was finally bought by Zhao Ming and became a slave of Zhao Ming's family.

Although he was also a slave, Hussein was a businessman in the past and had the shrewdness of a businessman. He also traveled to many places, was well-informed, and had a strong learning ability.

Therefore, he also quickly learned the language of Ming Dynasty, and by helping Zhao Ming bargain when buying and selling sugar cane, he made a lot of money for Zhao Ming.

Therefore, Zhao Ming also appointed him as the housekeeper of the manor, responsible for helping to manage the affairs of the plantation, arranging slaves to work, etc., instead of doing coolies directly.

"Let's go to Danhe City!"

Zhao Ming nodded and said.

"Yes~"

Hussein nodded respectfully, and also led two slaves to drive the carriage to follow Zhao Ming to transport the sugar cane to Danhe City for sale.

"Hussein, I have asked people to find out clearly that your wife was bought back by a person from the Western Union Company to be a concubine because of her beauty, and your two children were also bought together. Now there is no food or clothing. Worry, you don't have to worry too much."

Zhao Ming was riding the horse, and remembered something, so he slowed down and told Hussein about it after he reached Hussein.

Hussein is still very good at managing the plantation. He asked himself to inquire about the whereabouts of his wife and children. Zhao Ming also asked someone to inquire clearly. The news came only recently.

"Really?"

When Hussein heard this, he immediately asked excitedly.

"Well, people should still be on the side of Ceylon Island."

"You do things well for me. I will apply for you to be released as a slave in a few years. Then you can go to Ceylon Island to see them."

Zhao Ming nodded solemnly and said.

Regarding slaves, Daming has also promulgated relevant laws and regulations, which have strict specifications and restrictions on all aspects of slaves. There are strict regulations on the scope of activities, marriage status, property owned, and even the clothes worn by slaves. Regulations and Restrictions.

At the same time, there are also strict restrictions on the status of contact with slaves. It does not mean that you can restore your freedom if the slave owner is willing to restore your freedom, and you must go through the approval of the local government office.

If you want to pass the audit, you must first of all master the language of Ming Dynasty proficiently, and the original bad habits, respect Han etiquette, respect Confucius and Mencius, understand loyalty to the emperor and patriotism, be grateful to Ming Dynasty, and so on.

The second is that during the slave period, he did not have any bad performance, worked diligently, and worked faithfully for the slave owner.

In short, it is not easy to obtain freedom, but it is finally given hope in law. After the slave status is lifted, one can obtain the status of an ordinary citizen of Ming Dynasty, have personal freedom, and obtain a piece of land on the side of Ming Dynasty .

Hussein also knew about this point, which is why he conscientiously managed the plantation for Zhao Ming. He wanted to be free, and he didn't want to be a slave for the rest of his life, nor did he want his descendants to be slaves.

"Thank you master, thank you master~"

When Hussein heard this, he immediately thanked him again and again.

Finally, there is news that they are all safe, and that is enough.

As for the wife becoming the concubine of the Ming people, this is almost a matter of no thought, as long as the children have no worries about food and clothing, his requirements are really not high now.

To be able to be free and then to be able to see them and, if possible, earn enough money to redeem them would be perfect.

Driving a carriage and carrying a cart full of sugar cane, they came to Danhe City.

First of all, the sugar cane was sent to the Ryukyu Sugar Factory here in Danhe City, and it was sold very smoothly. A large cart of sugar cane was also sold for two taels of silver.

"Well, it's not bad. Although the price is lower than last year's, it's still much more cost-effective than growing rice. After all, my thousand mu of sugarcane can be sold for more than three hundred taels of silver."

Zhao Ming took the silver and weighed it slightly. This white silver dollar is really likable.

"Master, after my calculations, it can be sold for about three hundred and fifty taels of silver."

Hussein also said hastily.

"Well, that's almost the number~"

"Too many people have planted sugarcane in the past two years, not only here in Nanyang Province, but also in Jiaozhi, Xianglin, and Zhenghe provinces. The scale of sugarcane planting is very large."

"In addition, the entire Ryukyu is almost full of sugar cane, and our Ming Dynasty's Guangdong, Guangxi and Fujian also have a large amount of sugar cane planted."

"The production of sucrose is also increasing year by year, getting bigger and bigger year by year, and the price is also constantly falling, so the price of sugarcane is also falling."

"It's also fortunate that my Ming's merchant ships are all over the world, and the sugar can be sold all over the world. Otherwise, the price will drop."

Zhao Ming nodded slightly. Although he used to be a farmer, he is now a plantation owner. He often comes to Danhe City to communicate with other people. The Ming Morning Post is also popular everywhere. Under the influence of his ears and eyes, he knows a lot of things. About sucrose I am very concerned about the situation.

"Master, I heard people say that the price of rubber is very high now, and it needs to be imported from the Golden Continent. There is a firm in Nanyang that has introduced it to Nanyang for planting."

"Master, can you also consider planting some rubber trees?"

Hussein also nodded slightly. After coming to Daming, he came into contact with a wider world, knew the strength and vast territory of Daming, and also understood why the people of Daming were so confident.

So he is working hard to learn Daming dialect, and at the same time, he is also working hard to learn Chinese characters. He wants to read newspapers and often pay attention to the conversations of Daming people.

This rubber matter was also mentioned by someone when he followed Zhao Ming to Danhe City.

"rubber?"

"What it is?"

When Zhao Ming heard this, he suddenly asked with some doubts.

"I heard that it is the liquid that flows from the rubber tree. It is very elastic and can be used to make many things. It is said that the price of a catty of rubber has reached the point of several taels of silver."

Hussein thought for a while and said.

"How much is a catty of rubber?"

Upon hearing this, Zhao Ming widened his eyes slightly, then thought for a while and said, "I'll find someone to inquire about it later."

(End of this chapter)