18

Seeing that everyone looked scared and wanted to flee, the man smiled and said, "The sea is rough, so we need to be prepared when transporting goods. It's okay, just put the goods down."

As he spoke, he waved to the boat and said, "Someone is exchanging food, hurry up and move the goods down!"

With a call, everyone carried bundles of food, as well as buckets, scales and other items off the boat and piled them on the shore.

Just poke the bag and the golden rice will flow out.

The man grabbed a handful and handed it to the old village chief: "Look at this new rice, old man. It's from Jiaozhi."

The taste of Jiaozhi rice is slightly worse than that of double-cooked rice, but it's still very filling! Old Man Zhang immediately smiled and said repeatedly, "Okay, okay! Let the merchant weigh the goods quickly!"

So everyone got busy weighing and dividing the rice.

Coming from fishing families, these crew members have a good eye for distinguishing seafood. They can clearly tell the good from the bad, and their prices are very fair, which convinces the villagers.

It didn't take long before a large pile of rice was placed in front of the villagers.

This is new rice, the late rice has not yet come in, so it would be a huge sum of money if converted into money.

It's a pity that their seafood is still a bit scarce. I wonder how much will be left after paying the tax...

Seeing his expression, the man suddenly smiled and said, "The goods from your village are all good. I believe you are a sincere man. How about this: if you are short of money, I can sell you another batch of grain on credit, not exceeding the amount you paid this time. When we plant next spring, you can exchange it for seafood."

You can even buy on credit!

Although we don’t know the prices of seafood and rice next year, we can think about next year’s matters next year. If we can get more food now, we can have more jobs.

By then, whether I sell or pay, I will be able to get through the New Year!

Pinching his thigh hard, Old Man Zhang trembled and said, "Your company is so generous! Are you kidding me?"

The man chuckled, "We all make a living at sea, and we know how hard it is. We've finally got our catch, so how can we let unscrupulous merchants take advantage of it? Why not leave all the catch to us? Since we're friends, we can't just watch people starve to death. What's the big deal about buying some rice on credit?"

These words were so reasonable and considerate that the old village chief burst into tears. He wiped his tears and said with a sob, "I never thought that I, an old man, would meet such a righteous person. I wonder what the origins of your company are?"

"They are all seafarers, not worth mentioning. But my captain's surname is Cheng, and he is a very powerful man!" When talking about his captain, the man's eyes lit up and he looked proud.

"That name sounds like a blessed one. He'll surely live a long life!" Old Man Zhang immediately praised him, then hesitantly asked, "How do I buy grain on credit? I need to sign a contract..."

"I will continue my journey south and return in five days. I will take someone with me to sign the contract." The man laughed heartily.

Still want to go with them? Old man Zhang thought for a moment and gritted his teeth: "Then go quickly, brother, and come back soon. I will go with you then..."

"Village Chief, no!" someone shouted. These people had unknown origins, and what if they never came back?

"Why not? Do you think they can harm me?" Old man Zhang cursed in frustration.

It's really harmful. Would they go to the trouble of transporting grain in exchange for seafood?

Besides, he is already old. Even if something happens to him, his children and grandchildren can take care of the village. It is better than a young person dying, right?

The other party smiled and shook his head: "Don't worry, old man. There may be several villages sending people to accompany you on the return trip. We can just go together then."

Hearing this, the old village chief's eyes lit up. Yes, it would probably take several villages to sell all the rice on this ship, and he was definitely not the only one who wanted to buy on credit.

It would be safer if we could go together then.

Thinking of this, Old Man Zhang immediately laughed: "That's right! I'll be waiting for you to come back, don't forget!"

To be able to encounter such a good thing must be the result of good deeds done by our ancestors, and we must not miss it!

…

"You've only learned carpentry for a few years, and you dare to talk back to me? The Sun family's boat is no good, it's far worse than our Li family's!" The carpenter of the Li family stood in the valley and cursed loudly. Even though this was not their Donggou Village, it did not stop him from being righteous and his voice shook the whole area.

"How dare you brag about your boat in front of me? The sketches given by Master Fu are all here. Can't you read the drawings?" The carpenter of the Sun family retorted without showing any weakness.

This mountainous area is close to Yanglin Village, but it's the Sun family's territory. How dare that old man from the Li family speak so loudly in front of him?!

"Wow! You dare to call this broken thing a picture? The drawing is so messed up that I can't make out what it means! A water mill is a big wheel after all. If you don't fix the wheel, what can support the treadle mill?" Carpenter Li became even angrier. He had already said that he had to build the wheel first and put the wheel in the canal first. Only when he could make it turn would there be hope.

Now we have to fix the linkage first, isn't this just a joke?!

"What's so special about a wheel? The key is how to drive the treadle. It's like building a ship. What good is a deck without a keel? What if you rush to build a wheel and it doesn't hold together later?" Carpenter Sun wasn't buying it. "Isn't this Li guy just relying on his age? The Li family's boat has been passed down for three generations. What else can you do besides tinkering?"

The two quarreled so fiercely that the younger people inside and outside the house did not dare to stop them.

The boat is the lifeblood of the village. These carpenters who build the boats are all respected and admired by everyone. But when they get angry, they can really scold people and make them look bad. Even the village elders can't stop them from trying to persuade them.

The carpenter of the Lin family did not get involved. He was grinding a wooden stick by himself. When it was round, he turned it in his hand, chiseled a hole in the middle, inserted a shorter stick, and gave it a slight turn. The protruding short stick also turned.

Carpenter Lin nodded in satisfaction and suddenly said loudly, "Just make a horizontal bar like this, right? Just put a few more hammers in it."

These words caused the two men to turn around at the same time, look at the short stick that was constantly spinning, and suddenly they were speechless.

We're all carpenters, so how could we not see what this thing is? After all, a water pestle is no different from a treadle pestle: both rely on stepping on the pestle's pole to let the hanging heavy hammer hit the rice to husk it.

If you install a few short and thick hammers on a long log and place it behind the treadle pestle, and wait for the water wheel to drive the log to rotate, the hammers at the door will naturally press on the bottom of the pestle, lifting the pestle. When it turns around, the pestle will fall, and then you can pound the rice, right?

"This, this seems to be a little different from Mr. Cheng's drawing." Carpenter Sun took another look at the drawing. Although it was drawn in a sloppy manner, it seemed to have several wheels and belts involved.

Carpenter Li perked up and sneered, "He's an educated man, so what he's seen must be something new and novel. Can you understand it just by looking at the picture? I think Brother Lin's method is not bad, it's much simpler than making a dragon frame."

Carpenter Sun almost choked to death at these words. Carpenter Li had already stood up and waved to his family: "Don't just stand there, hurry up and fix the water wheel!"

His apprentices quickly got to work, and the two carpenters, Sun and Lin, did not delay either, and brought their families to work as well.

One family was repairing the water wheel, one was repairing the horizontal beam, and one was repairing the treadle pestle. Wood chips were flying everywhere and the work was in full swing.

In the distance, young men were building sheds and repairing canals. They saw a house covering a large area rising from the ground.

…

"Hurry, hurry! We're about to be caught up!"

"Can you do it? If not, I'll do it!"

"Come on, we're almost there! Hurry!"

"Hey, just a little bit!"

There were two groups of people on the boat, half of them laughed and cheered, while the other half sighed.

The two boys who had just emerged from the water were surrounded by the crowd in an instant, and the one who swam slowly was placed in the middle.

"Hurry! Hurry! Eat it quickly, I admit defeat!" Someone excitedly stuffed the green fruit into the young man's palm.

Just looking at the fruit, the young man's face wrinkled into a ball, and he felt sour in his mouth.

However, with so many people surrounding me, I had no choice but to eat.

He gritted his teeth, peeled off the skin and threw it into his mouth. The sour taste rushed to his forehead. The boss couldn't even stand by himself, so he squatted on the deck with his head in his hands.

"Hahahaha! Don't vomit, or you'll have to eat two more!"

Along with the wild laughter, countless slaps were slapped on his shoulders. Those who were angry just now were no longer angry, and everyone laughed heartily.

"Now you know how powerful this green orange is, right? Back on the boat, you'll have a chance to eat it!"

This stunned the newcomers. One of them asked tremblingly, "Why do we have to eat this on board?"

"Isn't that what Master Cheng said? You have to eat fruit when you go out to sea. If you don't, you'll get sick. Oranges are the most abundant thing here. There are so many green and yellow ones that you can poop. Eating them will make your teeth fall out!" A big man laughed.

"Hey, you can't say that. There are delicious fruits too. When we get to Hepu, we'll have sweet mangoes. They taste so good, and you'll get a handful of honey after peeling the skin!" The other one obviously likes sweet things, and he spoke with a smile on his face and saliva flying everywhere.

"I think bananas taste better..." someone disagreed.

"That's right, if you can't poop, you'll naturally like bananas more!"

These rude words immediately angered the man, who rushed over and started fighting.

However, no matter how noisy it is, it can be seen that it is just a joke.

They were obviously not from the same village, but they could be so close, which really surprised the newcomers.

Seeing their silly looks, a burly man chuckled and said, "Don't be afraid. Anyone who can get on a big ship is a good fighter. With Captain Cheng's guidance, you can become a brave man in the future. Besides, we have the best food and accommodation on the ship. I heard that next time we will get some chickens and ducks for eggs, and bring some ewes for milk. Do you dare to think that this is going to sea?"

I dare not! Several people shook their heads. Is this still a seafarer? With fruits and eggs and milk, it's probably more comfortable than a rich man's house.

I originally thought that being able to eat rice and salted fish was already a rare good life, but I never expected that life on the big ship would be so comfortable!

"This food is so delicious..." someone couldn't help but murmur.

"Once we start training, you won't feel any better." Another scarred man said, "Hey!" "Our boat has the most intense training. We swim in the sea, run up the mountain, and swing bamboo poles for an hour or two. That feels great!"

"Don't drink too much water before running, be careful of vomiting." Someone else reminded with a smile.

This is too difficult! Why does it sound more tiring than fishing at sea? Although they were nervous, the sight of those tanned, lean, and capable men made the newcomers feel a little envious.

This is the most powerful person in the three villages, and the one in charge of the ship is Mr. Cheng, who is admired even by the captain and the village elders. Isn't it a blessing to be able to work on such a big ship?

"Alright, enough fun, let's start practicing now, before Master Cheng comes back to lecture us!"

Following the mate's shout, everyone quickly took their positions, picked up their spears, and started practicing loudly.

On the beach, rows of tents have been set up, some are moving goods, some are cooking, it is a busy scene.

After waiting for five days, the ship finally returned, and Old Man Zhang got on board without saying a word.

As the man had said, he wasn't the only one on board. Elders and village chiefs from four or five villages were also on board. Perhaps out of fear of having their route discovered, everyone was kept in the cabin and forbidden from going up on deck to observe.

There was nothing to do but sit in the room and chat. It was at this time that Old Man Zhang learned the origins of this group of people.

Not to mention some of the close neighbors, there were even two families that had been robbed by pirates before. Most of the young and strong people in the village died, and the ship was destroyed.

Old Man Zhang was a little skeptical.

In a village like this, I'm afraid even fishing is out of the question. It's full of old, weak, women, and children. What good are they? If they can't pay their debts on credit, they might as well sell themselves into slavery.

But he couldn't interfere with other people's affairs. After two days of being stuck in the cabin, the ship finally reached the shore.

When the few people came out of the cabin, they were immediately shocked by the scene in front of them. They saw two boats fighting on the sea, with drums beating and gongs ringing. It was terrifying to watch.

Someone trembled and asked, "Did we run into thieves?"

The man leading the team laughed and said, "It's just an ordinary exercise, just the captain's tricks."

How could they possibly be training like this? There was a large two-masted ship in there, and so many soldiers, so powerful, could it really be an ordinary merchant caravan, not pirates?

The shouting and screaming made them uneasy. Several people even walked in fear and did not dare to look around.

When they reached the shore, they were arranged to wait in front of a large tent.

Not long after, someone came over to greet them and asked them to go into the tent one by one.

Old man Zhang was assigned to the first position and was taken in before he was ready.

Is this to meet the ship owner? With such a large fleet, he must be a fierce man. He was so scared that he didn't even dare to raise his head, for fear of angering the other party.

Unexpectedly, the voice that came from the seat was unexpectedly young: "Are you the head of Shakou Village?"

Old man Zhang was stunned for a moment, then he looked up and took a peek, only to find that the person sitting at the table was a young man, probably only fifteen or sixteen years old, with a handsome face and a pair of bright black eyes. It was obvious that he was a man with his own ideas.

Could he be the ship owner's son? He didn't dare to think too much, so he said quickly, "I'm from Shakou Village. I heard I could borrow some grain, so I came here..."

"This is on credit, and you must exchange it for your seafood for next year. How much seafood could you collect in winter in previous years?" the young man asked directly.

"There are many fish in winter. Conger eels and swordfish can only be caught at this time, so the harvest is definitely better than now. It's just that salt is not easy to get, so there will be less pickled fish and more dried fish. But there are too many pirates, and I can't guarantee how much fish we can catch..." Old Man Zhang said cautiously.

He knew, of course, that speaking out might affect his grain borrowing, but the world was such that if he didn't speak out clearly, what would happen if he couldn't catch as many fish in the future? Wouldn't that ruin the village's reputation?

This honest answer brought a smile to Cheng Xi's face. "In that case, I'll give you thirty stone of grain on credit, based on this season's catch. We'll go get the grain next spring. If there's a lot, we can exchange it for rice or money."

That's thirty stone of grain! It would cost twenty or thirty taels of cash, and spring is also a time of food shortage. It would be a good thing for them to be able to harvest seafood at that time! The old village chief nodded and bowed hurriedly: "Thank you, young master! We will definitely prepare seafood when the time comes!"