Chapter 664 Special Operations in Paradise (First Update, Please Subscribe)
Haizhou is an adventurer's paradise!
Just like the name of Shanghai in another time and space, many foreigners in this world also call Haizhou this way. Because at this time, Haizhou was a mixture of Chinese and foreigners. The concessions were only concerned with the concessions, and the Chinese area was only concerned with the Chinese area. A large amount of capital and labor poured in. In this case, a gray area was created outside the rules. In this area, whoever has the courage and is willing to take risks is likely to gain huge benefits.
History has some amazing coincidences here.
The rise of Haizhou was entirely due to the fall of Shanghai and the Heavenly Kingdom's order of expulsion in 1863. From then on, the Shanghai Concession became a thing of the past, but soon, the British and French consuls found a new paradise in the north, not Tianjin, but the Haizhou Concession.
Although Haizhou did not have the silk from Jiangsu and Zhejiang, nor the local products along the river, it had concessions. Especially with the construction of railways leading to the inland, not only could local products from the inland be transported to Haizhou by train from Hankou and Xi'an, but foreign goods from various countries could also be imported into the inland from Haizhou.
As a result, Haizhou quickly became the most important commercial port in the Qing Dynasty. In just ten years, with the promotion of railways, Haizhou had become one of the most prosperous cities in the Far East. There were electric lights and trams here, and you could see the most fashionable new things in the world. Of course, the premise was... the concession!
Haizhou has its "Ten Miles of Foreign Lands", which is the concession in the coastal area. After Britain, France and other countries withdrew from Shanghai, they reopened the concession in Haizhou after negotiations between the two countries' envoys. A few years ago, a "Ming Concession" was added to the north of the British and French Concessions, which is at the foot of Houyuntai Mountain. This was in accordance with the supplementary clauses of the "Nanqing Treaty of Commerce and Navigation".
The Ming Concession was not big, only 3,817 acres, but it was the most prosperous of the three concessions. After all, for the Chinese, they prefer to live in a place ruled by their own people. After all, there is at least no discrimination against Chinese. The Ming Concession and the British and French Concessions carried out "modernization construction" almost simultaneously, and paid more attention to the work of "creating a civilized and hygienic city", transforming the riverside embankments, and building a large number of parks and green spaces. When the parks in the British and French Concessions still prohibited Chinese people from playing, the Ming Concession did not have any bans. After all, the Ming people were also Chinese, so how could they discriminate against themselves?
Of course, for the people of the Qing Dynasty, this place is not called "Ming Concession" but "Nanhua Concession".
Like all the Ming people who came here, Li Chengliang and Zhang Wenjie did not feel uncomfortable here. Here you can see Ming-style buildings, Ming-style streets, Ming-style parks and communities. Except that most of the residents have braids and wear long gowns and jackets, there is not much difference from the Ming Dynasty. Of course, there are many differences. The biggest difference is that the expressions on the faces of the residents are obviously different from those of the people in the Ming Dynasty. That difference is hard to explain. It is more of a spiritual difference.
"Look, that's the British Concession!"
Standing in the room on the third floor, Xu Mingheng pointed to the other side and said.
"The concession is a country within a country. This road..."
He pointed to the road in front of the building.
"It's the boundary between us and the British Concession. North of this road is where we were in the past, and the British couldn't get involved. Similarly, south of the road is British territory. If anything happens to you there, we have no way to rescue you. After all..."
Looking back at Li Chengliang, Xu Mingheng, the deputy chief of police of the Ming Concession Police Station, smiled.
"You came here in a private capacity. We will not admit to having any relationship with you. Of course, if you are arrested, we will ask the British for your release through the Municipal Council. After all, we have an agreement between us, but..."
Pointing to the lights on Houyuntai Mountain in the southwest of the British Concession, Xu Mingheng said.
"Sassoon is not only a well-known foreign businessman in the British Concession, but also a member of the board of directors of the Municipal Council. His status is extremely special. If it weren't for this... we would not agree with your arrest of him. After all, in the Concession, we need to unite with Britain and France at certain times."
"Captain Xu, don't worry, we will try our best not to attract attention from the outside world."
Li Chengliang said with a smile.
"We need a guide."
"OK."
Xu Mingheng thought for a moment and said.
"Let's let Liu Tianrong, he's a local, and it's more convenient for him to move around with his braids, actually..."
Looking at the people present, Xu Mingheng smiled.
"If you could change into robes and put on a hat, it would be easier to move around."
…
In the next few days, Zhang Wenjie and his team members went to Hou Yuntai Mountain for reconnaissance many times. The villas of the dignitaries in the concession were mostly on Yuntai Mountain, facing the sea, with unique views.
Because of this, the streets here are usually quiet, with only private carriages passing by and no vendors to be seen. So after several reconnaissances, Li Chengliang directly rejected the idea of taking action in Yuntaishan. After much deliberation, they chose a corner at the foot of the mountain, which was sparsely populated and the most suitable place for action.
Today is the day for action.
The carriage was waiting outside.
"After a while of action, try not to shoot."
Looking at the members of the Rangers, Li Chengliang said:
"I'll be in charge of giving the signal at the intersection. Wenjie, you'll personally supervise the battle. Remember, the target must be captured alive. The lives of others don't matter."
"clear!"
Soon, a group of people went out in three carriages. Zhang Wenjie, wearing a long robe and a top hat, put a pistol on his waist within easy reach.
There were also two Winchester rifles and an iron box under the seat, which contained grenades.
If they could not escape successfully, they would certainly surprise the entire British Concession with their powerful firepower.
"Wenjie, do you plan to go back home after the operation is over?"
Qian Shaoyuan asked on the way to the destination.
"There are not many people in my hometown anymore."
Zhang Wenjie replied calmly:
"But I also want to go back and see if my father's grave is still there..."
The land has long been someone else's, and whether the grave is still there is another matter.
"I'm better than you. I have a brother and a sister back home."
Qian Shaoyuan smiled and said:
"I've made up my mind. When the operation is over, I will go back to my hometown and pick up at least a few of my nephews and nieces. Even if they don't starve to death in Tangshan, they don't have much of a future. It would be great to go to Ming Dynasty, don't you think?"
Seeing that he didn't say anything, Qian Shaoyuan said:
"Anyway, although we can't say we're returning home in glory, we can still make a living. It won't be a problem to take a few children over. You can go look for them too. I remember you said you have a little sister."
"He was sold a long time ago. I don't know where he went..."
Zhang Wenjie said leisurely:
"If we can find her, that would be great. I'm just afraid that if we look for her over and over again, we'll end up looking for her in vain and lose the desire for her!"
He particularly emphasized the three words "found an empty space". Over the years, the only thought in his mind was that his sister was still alive. After all, only in this way did he feel that he was not alone.
"Why……"
Qian Shaoyuan sighed and then remained silent for a while:
"In this world, if we hadn't burned incense in our previous life, we would have died somewhere..."
Yes, compared to many people, they were lucky. If they had not boarded that immigrant ship, they might have starved to death in some unknown corner.
How could it be like it is now, with no worries about food and clothing, and living a life that I couldn't even imagine in the past.
"Yeah, we must have been very lucky in our previous life, otherwise it wouldn't have been our turn."
Another team member echoed.
Afterwards, no one said anything. The people in the carriage just sat there quietly, and it seemed that everyone had their own secrets in their hearts.
Soon the carriage arrived at the destination and stopped...
(End of this chapter)
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