Although Charlie was a businessman, his interests lay more in his beloved architecture, and he wasn't particularly sensitive to these kinds of things.
Carl did notice.
Carl asked Charlie, "Charlie, you're always carrying around your sketchbook and never pay attention to your merchandise. Do you know that several of the people who came with us at the same time have disappeared?"
Charlie was quite surprised. As an Englishman, he didn't have much affection for his compatriots, but now, in a foreign land, hearing about this, he couldn't help but ask with concern, "What happened? Did you offend someone?"
It's no wonder he made that guess. Although these British merchants were highly sought after by the Qing people, they were, after all, outsiders and couldn't compare to the local bigwigs. If they offended the wrong people, they might really disappear.
Carl shook his head: "I don't know. I haven't heard of them offending anyone. I heard they had already found a buyer and were preparing to leave for home soon. I don't know how they disappeared."
Charlie felt something was wrong after hearing this and was very worried, even though he didn't know those people.
"Why don't we report this to the authorities? Although we are outsiders to the Qing Dynasty, we still bring goods to the Qing. No one can refuse money, right? As long as we unite, we will definitely get an explanation from the Qing government. Otherwise, I don't feel safe staying in the Qing. If more people report this to the authorities, it will surely attract attention. It's much better than waiting for news like this."
Carl was very interested in Charlie's suggestion.
They were all outsiders, and as the saying goes, even a powerful dragon can't suppress a local snake. If they showed weakness, everyone would want to bully them in the future, so sticking together was a must.
“You’re right. I’ll find some more people, and we’ll go to the yamen together.”
Most people shared Karl's opinion, and then, spurred on by Karl, they went to the government office to report to the authorities.
Although there was no news outside about why those British merchants disappeared, some people in the government offices had some connections and knew the details.
They hadn't expected the British merchants to collectively come to their door to report to the authorities.
"Lord Zhou, what do you think we should do?"
what to do?
What could they do? Of course, they had to go to the Emperor. The Emperor had ordered the arrest, and the reason given was vague and unclear. It sounded plausible, but they didn't know the specifics. Now that someone had suddenly come knocking on their door, they felt somewhat guilty.
"Your Majesty, Lord Zhou has sent a letter."
Yinzhen: "Let him in."
After Zhou Liaoping entered, he first bowed before explaining why he had come.
"Your Majesty, the British King and his entourage have gone to the government office and demand an explanation. Several British merchants have disappeared without a trace, and the Qing Dynasty is asked to investigate the truth."
Yinzhen chuckled and then said to Zhou Liaoping, "I know about this. Go back and tell those people to wait three days and give them an explanation after three days."
Although Zhou Liaoping did not know what the emperor was going to do, he knew that at this time, he should just do as the emperor said, and there was no need to delve into the details.
Zhou Liaoping went back and told Yinzhen what he had said, telling him to wait three days and give him an answer after three days.
British merchants weren't the type to hold grudges. Since the authorities had already stated that the missing person wasn't one of theirs, they simply went along with it out of camaraderie and fear that if they themselves disappeared, no one would care.
After receiving a reply from the government office, they returned home.
Two days later, Yinzhen also took control of the wealthy merchants in Guangzhou who were addicted to opium. One of the merchants was particularly addicted, and Yinzhen saw him in person. He knelt down and begged for mercy, his nose running, just to get some opium. Yinzhen estimated that he would have done it if asked to bark like a dog.
It's not that no one noticed the dangers of this opium, but they all seemed to enjoy the feeling. Some even tried to use it to control others to achieve their goals, and Yinzhen discovered two such cases.
One was a wealthy local businessman surnamed Liu. His nephew learned about this substance and gradually added it to Liu's food, making him addicted.
One case involved the backyard of a wealthy businessman surnamed Wang. The stepmother knew about this substance and had her stepsons put it in their food. In both cases, the substance was successfully added.
The wealthy businessman surnamed Liu now treats his nephew better than his own son. As for the wealthy businessman surnamed Wang, his stepmother truly controls her stepsons and stepdaughters. Although the stepsons and stepdaughters are useless, she has gained a good reputation.
Most others try it at first, then fall in love with the blissful feeling. They may know in their hearts that it is addictive, but they are reluctant to give it up.
"Your Majesty, all the people have been brought under control. Those who used the drugs and participated in the drug use have all been apprehended."
Yinzhen nodded: "Bring everyone to the yamen tomorrow. I will also go there tomorrow for a joint trial."
"yes"
The person speaking to Yinzhen was Zhou Liaoping. Originally, it wasn't his business, but Yinzhen thought he was reliable and had a good word to keep. Although the people around him were all capable, they were still unfamiliar with the place and people, and they couldn't compare to Zhou Liaoping's expertise in investigating things and controlling people.
Zhou Liaoping had been following the investigation these past two days and had seen the humble appearance of people addicted to opium. He learned that the opium came from the missing British merchants and knew that the Emperor was probably going to make a big move this time.
On his way back, Zhou Liaoping was finally able to relax a bit. He hadn't been able to relax at all these past two days because of the investigations. Now that he was finally able to relax, he thought of the officials who had been dismissed and punished some time ago. When he connected the two things, Zhou Liaoping knew why.
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