Chapter 1211: Digging the Ancestral Graves with Joy (First Update, Please Subscribe)

"Within the empire, people have plenty of food and clothing; outside the empire, people suffer from poverty." This was the promise of the Ming Empire to its subjects. This prosperity and wealth is also one of the most powerful evidences of the legitimacy of the Ming Dynasty, Britain and other empires.

However, these empires certainly do not include the "Tatar Qing Empire". They even do the opposite. "The territory of the empire can be ceded, the power of the empire can be used to make friends, and the people of the empire are poor, but outside the empire, they have enough food and clothing."

Well, so, “Our Qing Dynasty is destroyed.”

Unlike the other world where we have survived for more than ten years by relying on preferential laws without receiving any liquidation, in this world, our Qing Dynasty is not so lucky. Faced with the mighty "rebels", we can only flee.

Of course, their luck was not bad. At least, compared with the kings of previous dynasties who either fell into the water, fell off their horses, or took the wrong medicine, Guangxu and a group of princes and ministers fled to India on a British ship.

Not only did they flee to India, but even tens of thousands of Manchu Eight Banners descendants also fled to India. It’s not that they were willing to leave their homes, but they had to flee. The Tang Dynasty would not treat them well, and sparing their lives was considered a special favor.

For the Eight Banners of the Beijing Garrison who had lost their main crops and whose banner lands were confiscated, their lives had been getting worse day by day since Li's "rebellion". For these bannermen who had no special skills, many of them mortgaged their houses, sold their homes, and even sold their children to make a living. Well, many women in the banners started the "half-open door" business.

Not to mention, the people who do this business with the sky-high patterns on their heads are really authentic.

However, no matter how authentic it is, the city of Peking has been declining day by day since the fall of the Qing Dynasty. There is no way around it. In terms of transportation, it cannot compare with Tianjin's water and land terminals - the advantages of railways and ports have allowed Tianjin to replace Peking as the largest city in the north.

As for what is there in Beiping City?

In addition to the Forbidden City, there are also the million-strong banner camp inside and outside the city. No, there are also the imperial tombs in the suburbs of Beijing.

However, for archaeologists, the city of Beiping is a treasure trove. After getting off the train, the ancient city appeared before Sun Kuiyuan's eyes. Although it was his first time to visit this ancient city as an archaeologist, he had been fascinated by it for many years.

Beiping...is not only the capital of the Qing Dynasty, but also the former capital of the Ming Dynasty!

"Peking's population is said to be two million, but in fact it is less than 800,000 now. There are about 100,000 households. All of them are tiled houses, and basically all of them are bannermen. Not only are there bannermen living in the inner city, but there are also many bannermen living in the outer city. There are only two or three streets in the city that are as wide as our Ming Dynasty, and there are open-air shops on both sides of the road, which feels very narrow. This kind of road is divided into carriage roads and sidewalks. The owners of the open-air shops stay there, so it's like their own house. The road is still in its original state and has never been repaired, so it's bumpy and difficult to walk..."

Consulate Counselor Lin Ren emphasized this.

"According to the information I read, the Qing Dynasty has not repaired the streets of Peking since the Jiashen Year. Many drainage ditches are filled with garbage and even covered with houses. The bannermen don't like to be clean. Just like the rumors, they urinate and defecate everywhere on the road, and the smell is everywhere. But they have become accustomed to it and don't take it seriously. Urine flows everywhere, either into the ditch or into the pool. If you walk carelessly, you will step on it..."

Without even waiting for Lin Jie's introduction, Sun Kuiyuan smelled a foul odor in the air as the car entered the city. As he frowned, he heard Counselor Lin say.

"It's good to poop..."

Counselor Lin said.

"It won't stay there for long. The feces in this place will be processed by pigs, dogs and people. People drive dogs, dogs drive pigs, and they compete with each other to see who can get more. Dogs are very cunning. When people defecate on the road, they will wait on the side and eat it up as soon as they are done. People will go and drive the dogs away. There will be people here with backpacks on their backs, who will scoop up the feces after driving the dogs away, carry them to the suburbs, and sell them as fertilizer. There are also manure fields outside the city of Peking, and there are even manure tyrants who occupy the manure fields. In the past, the manure tyrants were mostly bondservants in the palaces of princes and nobles, but now there are all kinds of people..."

Everything was incredible, even unheard of. When Sun Kuiyuan was surprised, he heard what Counselor Lin said.

"There are often thunderstorms here in the summer, and it's windy after the rain. Almost once a week, there is a sandstorm blowing from the desert that blocks out the sun and makes the sky dark. So it's very hot and stuffy. What's even more unbearable than the heat is a kind of white insect. This insect is similar to a bedbug, a small flying insect that is almost invisible to the naked eye. Sometimes you need to see a doctor after being bitten by it. I have been bitten myself, and now there are black bumps..."

"The water quality is not good and cannot be drunk directly. In a word, my suggestion is that the archaeological team should stay outside the city. Our consulate is located outside the city. However, there are also advantages to being inside the city..."

Counselor Lin said in a low voice.

"If you want to sleep in Beijing, the prostitutes there are really cheap. You can sleep with them for half a year for one yuan, and you can even find some money to buy a steamed bun when you need it..."

Sun Kuiyuan, who was admiring the northern scenery outside the car, looked at the counselor beside him and said in confusion.

"What?"

"Haha, it's a place of love and pleasure. There are not only eight alleys in Beiping, but also a large number of private prostitutes who work with their doors half-closed. There are at least 70,000 or 80,000 prostitutes, and some of them are princesses. For hundreds of years, the bannermen have relied on exploiting us Han people for a living. They have no skills and no iron crops, so they can only rely on crooked ways to make a living. It is common for men to steal and women to be prostitutes. Now, these Pingjies are the characteristics of Beiping. Many people from Tianjin take the train to come here to play for a few days. Of course, there are also many Pingjies who go to Tianjin to earn money. Not to mention Tianjin, there are also many Pingjies in Xuzhou and Haizhou. They all say they are princesses, sisters, sisters-in-law, and even mothers and daughters are not uncommon."

With a cold smile, Counselor Lin continued.

"But even so, as soon as those people sell their wives and daughters for a little money, or meet a few people who are in a good mood and give them a lot of money, they will forget their roots in an instant, and go to restaurants as usual, eating and drinking poorly. These people... do not deserve sympathy!"

"pity?"

Sun Kuiyuan said in surprise.

"Why should we sympathize with them? It's normal for their descendants to suffer the sins committed by their ancestors. How miserable are they? Can they be as miserable as the hundreds of millions of Han people who were massacred? Can they be as miserable as the Han people who have been oppressed for hundreds of years?"

As an archaeological expert, Sun Kuiyuan knows a lot about history and would definitely not have the slightest sympathy. He smiled coldly and said.

"Besides, Sun came here this time for archaeological research. However, archaeological research inevitably requires hiring some laborers. My only worry is whether I can hire people who are willing to work for me here. After all, the place where this archaeological excavation is taking place is a little unusual."

"Not ordinary? So what?"

Counselor Lin said.

"As long as they are paid money, they will be the first to dig the earth and shovel, not to mention archaeology!"

Hearing this, Sun Kuiyuan was surprised.

"Counselor Lin, do you know?"

This time it was Counselor Lin's turn to be surprised.

"What? Know what?"

(End of this chapter)