Nanyang Storm 1864

Chapter 106 Zhang Dalei's Gratitude (Seeking monthly tickets and recommendation tickets for support, please give them to me.)
The colonial government protected the plantations in this valley very strictly. Except for cinchona trees and some fruit trees, other tobacco, rubber and various spices were not allowed to appear to prevent affecting the growth environment of cinchona trees.

There are more than 270 Chinese families in this valley plantation, forming a large village with 120 officers and soldiers. It is located not far from the valley entrance, with two rivers with abundant water winding through it, and the scenery is very pleasant.

These stationed officers and soldiers all have families, and there are indigenous women who are given to them free of charge by the colonial army, and they are given priority. In addition, they have military salary subsidies, so their lives are much more comfortable than those of ordinary villagers.

Zheng Guohui paid special attention...

But at first glance, I was greatly disappointed.

The indigenous women selected by the officers and soldiers were mostly between the ages of 20 or and , especially those who were tall and strong. The standards were big breasts and big buttocks, and they were willing to give birth when taken home.

As for appearance, tsk… can that thing eat or drink? Can it work or give birth to babies?

The reasons are indeed powerful, and one cannot help but admire the values ​​of simple people. Everything is centered on practicality and the ability to reproduce family offspring, and everything else is just empty talk.

Zheng Guohui also saw the three daughters-in-law of Zhang Dalei, standing there like three door gods.

Perhaps it was because they ate well and had enough nutrition, the three native women all had rosy faces and were pregnant. This only shows that Zhang Dalei was really working hard at home.

If you pick any woman from his family, I guess no ordinary Chinese man can handle her.

In Mindanao
Indigenous women who are under 14 and over and have weak bodies cannot be sold at a high price. They are usually sold for around ten to twenty taels of silver, which is a relatively low price.

The prices for Aboriginal women of childbearing age, between the ages of fourteen and twenty-five, vary greatly.

The cheaper ones are 20 to 30 taels of silver, the better ones are 40 to 50 taels of silver, and the expensive ones are more than 100 taels of silver. The prices vary greatly depending on factors such as age, teeth, body shape, and appearance.

The closer you are to the mature age of seventeen or eighteen, the higher the price will naturally be.

If you buy a girl of fourteen or fifteen years old and bring her home, you will have to raise her for several years in vain. It will not be easy for her to have a baby and you will have to spend money on treatment if she gets sick. Isn’t that a loss?
If top-notch stuff like Zhang Dalei's family were to be sold on the human trafficking market, it would fetch at least 180 taels of silver, and they are the most sought-after and most expensive indigenous women.

You can use it as a strong laborer as soon as you buy it home. It is plug and play, and can be used for work and raising children at the same time. It is very cost-effective.

If Zhang Dalei was not an officer who enjoyed the right of priority selection and received rewards after every major battle, it would be impossible for him to gather so many door god treasures.

Okay...as long as you are happy.

Zheng Guohui turned and called over his followers, pointing to the three door gods of Zhang Dalei's family and commanding, "Since you have all given birth to children, this general must also show his appreciation. I will give each of them ten taels of silver, two pieces of cloth, and one piece of silk. From now on, you must do your best to help our Chinese family branch out and continue the incense."

Zhang Dalei was extremely excited when he heard this. Seeing that the three indigenous women were still standing there in a daze, he shouted angrily, "Kneel down."

Then he knelt down on both knees first, and kowtowed three times with the three door-god-like women, and said in a trembling voice;

"I thank you, General, for your grace. I would like to ask you, General, you are a god-like figure. Could you please give me a name for my unborn child?"

"Oh... What class is it?"

"Reporting to the general, my Zhang family's motto is "honest and upright, blessed with good fortune and health, steady and far-reaching, and trustworthy." It's the turn of the Fu generation."

"Well... the 'Fu' generation, then let's just 'carry on the past and open up the future'. Today, our fathers and I have established our territory and made great achievements in Southeast Asia. We need our descendants to carry on this legacy, create a vast living space for the sons of the Han family, and achieve unprecedented achievements..."

Perhaps Zheng Guohui was used to giving speeches, so he spoke nonstop. He seized the opportunity and gave everyone present a lot of spiritual chicken soup.

Hearing that "carrying on the past and opening up the future" has such great significance, the general rewarded it to his own flesh and blood. What a great favor is this?

Zhang Dalei's eyes were filled with tears from excitement. He lay down and kowtowed more than ten times. The three wives of his family members who were door gods did not understand Chinese, so they followed his lead and kowtowed desperately.

Zheng Guohui could only step forward and hold him back, saying amiably, "Alright, alright... there's no need for this. Just guard this plantation for me, and that's all. And... tell your woman to stop kowtowing."

Such a tug

Zhang Dalei, the fool, stopped with an excited look on his face. His head was already a little purple, which showed how hard he kowtowed.

Fortunately, this is a muddy ground. If it was paved with stone slabs, the blood would have flowed down and he might have died here.

Zheng Guohui has always wanted to abolish the etiquette of kowtow. Except for paying respects to ancestors and elders, kowtow should be abolished in all other occasions. People should not kowtow so often that their legs become weak from kneeling.

But now is not the right time, so I keep postponing it.

There are currently too many things missing, such as the enthronement, the country's name, the national flag, the kingdom's emblem, the royal palace, etiquette and regulations from top to bottom, the official rank order, the government governance structure, etc., none of them are clear.

The main focus was on putting together a makeshift team, the purpose of which was to confuse the European and American powers and buy time for development and growth. This was a self-protection strategy when they were weak.

I don’t even know it myself, how can anyone find out?
After the initial long blockade, Zamboanga and Davao have now been gradually opened to the outside world, allowing merchants from all over Southeast Asia to come to trade and transit, exchange goods, and further prosper the market.

However, controls still exist, which are limited to a certain area near the docks. Foreign businessmen are not allowed to go deep into the city, nor are they allowed to settle down, buy and sell houses and land, marry and have children. Their personal safety will not be guaranteed by the government after entering the inland.

Everything is limited to the trading market near the dock. This is a limited opening, but to what extent?
Diplomats from European and American powers were needed to come and negotiate, and the negotiations dragged on, and one or two years passed.

When you become strong and your wings are strong, you will naturally stop pretending and show your cards...

When Zheng Guohui visited Zhang Dalei's house, it was noon and almost time for lunch.

I simply stopped running and had a meal at Zhang Dalei's house.

Davao Governor Zheng Shouzhong personally issued a note, allowing the use of village public property to prepare a good meal.

The conditions in the valley plantation are pretty good. Every family raises chickens, ducks, pigs and cattle. Zhang Dalei's family raises 4 calves, 15 pigs, and a large group of chickens and ducks.

Without three daughters-in-law who were as strong as oxen, he really couldn't raise so many livestock and poultry by himself.

Originally, Zhang Dalei wanted to show his filial piety, but was rejected by Zheng Shouzhong.

There were more than 40 military and political officials and personal guards who came to inspect, and they all came on horseback. Although Zhang Dalei's family was relatively wealthy, it was not easy to entertain them.

Apart from the chickens and ducks that have grown up, his family has young calves and pigs that are still growing, so there really isn't much meat on them.

So they recruited more than 10 soldiers to help the indigenous women in Zhang Dalei's family. Zhang Dalei was busy giving orders, and their enthusiasm was beyond words.

Zheng Guohui, Zheng Shouxin, Qian Jiang, and Zheng Shouzhong sat aside, drinking tea and eating some fruit while waiting leisurely. They talked about whatever came to their minds and chatted about things during the inspection.

He was in a position where he could see Zhang Dalei and his wives busy at work. Whenever he saw this bastard and his native wives with bruised heads, cutting and chopping, they were busy all the time.

There was an inexplicable sense of humor that made Zheng Guohui laugh.

He had no choice but to force his head away and try not to look at these people, otherwise he would always laugh, and wouldn't that make him lose his dignity?

Zheng Shouxin could tell that the general was quite fond of Zhang Dalei, so he tentatively said, "General, since you've kept Zheng Fu and Zheng Gui with you this time, you don't have many available personnel around you. Otherwise... transfer Zhang Dalei to the personal guards. He'll have no problem making him deputy captain."

"Not yet. Let him stay here and take care of the plantation first." Zheng Guohui waved his hand to reject the suggestion.

If we want to hire people, there are at least eight hundred, if not a thousand, members of the Zheng clan (especially those who are young, knowledgeable, have ideas, and have no connections). There are even dozens of sons born in the family. Are we still worried that there will be no one to hire?
The officers, soldiers and personal guards that Zheng Guohui brought to Nanyang this time were all elite troops who had been tested and trusted enough to deepen control over the island.

Of the more than 2000 soldiers, only 150 would be taken away as personal guards when they left, and the rest would remain on the island.

Some officers and soldiers who want to retire are also well resettled, starting at at least as a village chief or village militia captain.

Other grassroots officials in places like the police station, the tax bureau, and the newly established prefectural and county offices were mostly injured or retired officers and soldiers, most of whom were from Tongzhou.

It cannot be said to be nepotism, it can only be said to be a characteristic of the current era.

As for the rest of his military subordinates, Zheng Guohui would place them in various prefectures in Nanjing or Jiangnan to train them slowly, eliminate the troublemakers and those with no good intentions, and promote and reuse his confidants who would actively approach him. This would take some time.

It won’t be completed without two or three years.

At noon, we enjoyed a sumptuous lunch, which included stewed chicken with coconut meat, stewed pork ribs with pineapple, liver with rosemary, roast duck with cassava, scrambled eggs with wild vegetables, and of course a fruit platter.

A meal of Chinese cuisine leaves one wanting more, but there's always a feeling that something is wrong, but I can't put my finger on the flavor.

After continuing the inspection in the afternoon, he made some important instructions. Governor Zheng Shouxin arranged for people to write them all down in a small notebook to be used as a basis for future administration.

Every word the general says is golden and cannot be taken as a joke.

At around 3 p.m., a group of military and political officials, escorted by their personal guards, rode out of the valley plantation and soon disappeared in the distance.

Only Zhang Dalei, with a bruised forehead, stood on the hillside, waving at the direction where everyone left for a long time, his eyes filled with deep gratitude and reluctance, muttering;

"General, your kindness is as great as a mountain. Even if I, Old Lei, were to be torn to pieces, I could never repay you. From now on, I can only carefully teach my children to become adults and live up to the general's great wish of "carrying on the past and forging the future."

"I, Zhang Dalei, have lived a good life today, and I feel so blessed for eight generations."

"From now on, every generation must be loyal to the General. Anyone who disobeys will be deemed an unfilial descendant of our lineage and will be expelled from the clan and left to fend for themselves."

Let’s not talk about the grand ambition and oath that Zhang Dalei made, nor whether he will take a new concubine in the future.

Just based on the three door gods with bruised foreheads at home, each of them can give him a class, and he is definitely worthy of the title of top-notch stuff.

If a person really has forty or fifty children, the number of grandchildren would be astonishing.

A strong man like Zhang Dalei has nothing to do in the mountains, so he might as well have children.

(End of this chapter)