Chapter 131 Bulblom: This is called winning without any effort!
Macau, City Hall.
The Governor of Macau, Jacques-Louis, the French Minister to France, André-Lucio-Rodriguez, the American Minister to China, and others gathered together to discuss the affairs of Guangzhou.
"Gentlemen, do you think we should agree to the request of the Grand Commander of the Restoration Army and hand over all the opium in our hands?"
"If we have to pay it, the loss will be too great!"
Bulbron took a sip of the red wine in the glass and asked with a frown.
Since the Opium War, the opium trade has become a legal business, and from then on, merchants from various countries began to transport opium to China.
The number is countless!
If they really handed over all the opium in their hands, the loss would be at least several million taels.
No one can afford this loss!
However, now Bulbrunn felt not only worried, but also secretly happy.
the reason is simple.
The British went to great lengths to wage the Opium War across half the globe, which lasted for several years, before they finally used force to open China's door.
But the result?
Feng Shui turns around!
The British, who were most enthusiastic about opening China's door and even resorted to war, were banned from trade. Instead, they can come to Guangzhou to trade freely in the future.
What is this horse called?
This is called winning without any effort!
Tsk tsk, this feeling of getting a bargain from the British made Bulblom secretly happy.
Britain and France have always been enemies.
Especially after the Napoleonic Wars, the French people hated the British to the extreme for organizing the anti-French alliance and destroying their dream of unifying Europe.
Although France now begins to feign friendship with the British and become a younger brother of the British in order to get rid of the restrictions imposed by the anti-French alliance.
In many cases, they chose to follow the British and move forward and backward together.
However, enemies are enemies forever, and hundreds of years of grievances are not so easy to resolve.
The country's overall pro-British trend does not mean that the French people cannot be anti-British.
Now that Bulbron saw that the British were in trouble, he was naturally happy.
Upon hearing this, Mashali spoke.
“The loss is definitely not small.”
"But we have to hand it over. We still have many people in the hands of the Restoration Army."
"If we don't agree to the Restoration Army's demands, what will those people do?"
When the British wanted to invade Guangzhou, their own fleet was not strong enough.
A number of armed merchant ships were recruited to join the army to increase its momentum.
Merchants from France, the United States, Portugal, the Netherlands and other countries are involved.
Then, after the Battle of Hong Kong, these armed merchant ships and the sailors and crew members on board became prisoners of the Restoration Army.
He is still being held in the Restoration Army’s prisoner-of-war camp.
Under such circumstances, none of them dared to break off relations with the Restoration Army.
Jia Duosu also said with a wry smile.
"Your countries may still have a choice, which is to do the same as the British and cut off trade, but I really have no choice."
"Whether it is banning smoking or withdrawing from Macau, I will fully cooperate with the Restoration Army."
There are not many troops stationed in Macau, so if we were to fight, we would definitely not be able to win.
After all, the Restoration Army defeated the British Army and recovered Hong Kong, let alone a small Macau?
Rather than resisting to the end and eventually having all the Portuguese expelled, Jia Duosu felt that he might as well surrender.
Anyway, Li Yi has agreed to allow the Portuguese to continue to reside in Macau.
Bulbulon nodded slightly when he heard this.
"That makes sense."
"But I think we can cooperate appropriately on the smoking ban, and we can also carry out trade normally."
"As for the matter of investing in building a factory in Guangzhou, let's discuss it later."
"After all, the rebels have just captured Guangzhou. The Qing counterattack and the future retaliation from Britain are all problems."
"If they can't make it, then all our investments in Guangzhou may be wasted. The risk is too great."
After hearing this, everyone nodded in agreement.
Upon hearing this, Jia Duosu's eyes began to reflect.
If the British launch a revenge attack on Guangzhou in the future, then by then, relying on the centuries-old alliance between Britain and Portugal, Portugal might still have a chance to take back Macau...
However, China is too far away from mainland Europe.
It would probably take several months just to pass on a message. Even if the British wanted to retaliate, it would take at least one or two years, including the time it would take to mobilize troops and pass messages back and forth.
Well, during the Opium War, from the destruction of opium at Humen to the British sending troops to Guangzhou and the outbreak of the Humen Battle, almost a whole year had passed.
The American Minister, Marsali, made a suggestion.
"Regarding the matter of handing over opium, I do have another idea."
"We can hand over a small portion of the opium we have, as a sign of our willingness to cooperate with the Restoration Army in banning opium."
"However, we can also ship the remaining opium to ports such as Fuzhou, Xiamen, Ningbo, and Shanghai for sale. We can also ship it to Vietnam, North Korea, Japan and other countries for sale."
"If the Restoration Army wants to ban smoking, they can only ban it in Guangzhou. If we sell opium in other places, they will definitely not be able to control it."
When everyone heard this, they all praised Marsali for coming up with a good idea.
……
Outside Guangzhou city, Li’s residence.
The two leaders of the Guangdong secret society, Li Wenmao and Chen Xianliang, sat side by side at the top, while their subordinates sat on both sides.
"Big brother."
"All the opium dens in Guangzhou City of our Tiandihui have been closed down by the Restoration Army. The owners and waiters of those opium dens have been imprisoned and may even be beheaded. You two can't just ignore this matter!"
"We brothers all rely on these opium dens to support our families!"
A man with a shiny head stood up and spoke. As he spoke, the fat on his face trembled and he looked very fierce.
After this person finished speaking, people around him also started talking.
"Yes, brother, you can't just ignore this matter!"
"This Restoration Army is too bullying. They are the ones who destroy bridges after crossing them."
"That's right, that's right. We just helped them defeat the Qing demons and capture Guangzhou, and now they want to close down our opium den. What the hell is going on?"
"..."
These people expressed indignation and were truly angry in their hearts.
To put it bluntly, the Tiandihui is a group of gangsters.
If the underworld wants to develop, it needs money.
Where else can the underworld get its money from?
Of course it’s pornography, gambling and drugs!
The profits from the sale of opium accounted for the absolute majority of this. The Restoration Army's ban on smoking was equivalent to cutting off a major artery of the Tiandihui.
No wonder they are anxious!
Upon hearing this, Li Wenmao did not make a rash statement, but turned his gaze to Chen Xianliang.
"What do you think, Brother Chen?"
Chen Xianliang's face darkened slightly.
"How else can I watch? I'll sit and watch!"
"The Restoration Army wants to ban smoking. Who can and who dares to oppose it?"
"Aren't you afraid that the people of Guangzhou will tear us to pieces?"
"Or do you think you can be stronger than the Restoration Army? The Qing government and the foreigners were defeated by the Restoration Army. What else can we do except obey their orders?"
Guangzhou was the first city in China to open and shut down, and is also the city with the closest foreign exchanges.
It can be said that he was deeply harmed by opium!
The Restoration Army wanted to ban smoking. I wouldn't say all of the people in Guangzhou supported it, but at least 90% of them supported it.
The remaining ten percent are either drug addicts or opium dealers, etc.
No one dared to stand up and openly oppose this matter which was in the will of the people.
Upon hearing this, Li Wenmao also spoke.
"Just ban smoking. We used to make money with such a shameless attitude, and we were often criticized by the people of Guangzhou." "I want to stop this business, but I can't bear to do it."
"Now that the Restoration Army has banned smoking, it's a good thing. At least I don't have to worry about whether I should do this business or not."
When the people below saw the two big brothers express their opinions, they couldn't help but talk about it.
"Brother, the Restoration Army can ban smoking, but there is no need for them to close down smoking houses and confiscate opium, right?"
"Even if they want to seal it up or confiscate it, they should at least compensate us for the losses, right? We bought all that opium with real money."
"That's right. The Restoration Army didn't give us any compensation and directly confiscated our opium. What's the difference between this and robbery?"
There was a lot of noise among the crowd, and their true purpose was clearly revealed.
In fact, these people also know that banning smoking is a huge trend, and no matter who tries to stop it, they will be crushed to pieces.
And they didn't even think about confronting the Restoration Army.
They just wanted to ask the two big brothers to come forward and ask for some compensation from the Restoration Army on their behalf.
They felt that they had contributed to the Restoration Army's attack on Guangzhou.
In addition, the two big brothers Li and Chen came forward.
The Restoration Army should give them some compensation.
Then they were satisfied.
Hearing this, Li Wenmao and Chen Xianliang looked at each other, and both of them were somewhat tempted.
Because they also had a stake in those closed-down opium dens and confiscated opium pastes.
It would naturally be a good thing if we could get some compensation from the Restoration Army to make up for the losses.
Chen Xianliang picked up the teacup and took a sip, then said after hesitating for a while.
"Don't worry, I'll go find Brother Luo and get some information."
Li Wenmao nodded.
"Brother Chen, let's go together."
Chen Xianliang naturally would not refuse, so he nodded and agreed.
"That's fine!"
"When there are more people, the voices can be louder!"
……
Li Wenmao and Chen Xianliang left Li's house and rode together towards Guangzhou city.
After entering the city, the two went straight to Luo Dagang's mansion.
After the Restoration Army captured Guangzhou, except for Li Yi who occupied the Guangzhou General's Mansion, all the generals under his command also received their own houses.
Well, they were all the houses of the former Eight Banners nobles.
Luo Dagang is naturally no exception.
The two men arrived at the Luo Mansion, informed the doorman, and then were taken into the flower hall of the Luo Mansion.
After waiting for a while, Luo Dagang came over wearing a well-tailored coarse linen shirt and wiping his wet hair with a towel.
"Haha, Luo was just taking a shower and changing clothes. Sorry to have kept you two waiting for a long time."
The sound came before the person arrived, and Luo Dagang's hearty laughter was heard immediately.
Upon hearing this, Li Wenmao and Chen Xianliang stood up from their chairs and clasped their fists together.
"I've met Brother Luo!"
Luo Dagang nodded slightly, walked to the chair and sat down, then greeted him.
"You two brothers, please take a seat first. No need to be polite."
He asked after they both sat down.
"I wonder what the two brothers have come to my place for today?"
Luo Dagang is now behaving very amiably.
The two looked at each other and Chen Xianliang spoke.
"Brother Luo, this is what happened."
"Isn't the Grand Commander going to ban smoking now? We brothers have opened several smoking houses in Guangzhou City. We are willing to take the initiative to hand over the opium paste in the smoking houses and cooperate with the Restoration Army to ban smoking."
Upon hearing this, Luo Dagang nodded.
"Haha, this is the best."
"If the Grand Commander knew what the two brothers did, he would definitely be very pleased."
Li Wenmao continued.
"It's just that we paid real money to buy those opium dens and opium pastes."
"Now the Grand Military Governor's Office has been confiscated all at once, and many brothers have lost their livelihoods."
"I wonder if the Grand Military Governor's Office can compensate us for a certain amount of losses so that we brothers can have the capital to do some other business?"
Chen Xianliang immediately took over the conversation.
"Yes, many of our brothers rely on the opium dens to support their families. If they were all raided, they wouldn't be able to make a living."
The two of them sang the same tune, wanting Luo Dagang to come forward and intercede for them.
Luo Dagang looked at the two people in front of him with a gloomy look, then shook his head and said.
"Brothers, there is no need to mention this matter any further."
"The ban on smoking was ordered by the Grand Commander himself, and everyone in the army agrees with it."
"Some people even suggested that we should round up all the people behind the opium dens and confiscate their properties and exterminate their entire families."
"The Grand Commander did not punish the two brothers for the opium issue. He has already shown mercy to them because of their contributions. As for compensation, don't even think about it."
"This is absolutely impossible!"
Li Wenmao and Chen Xianliang looked at each other and saw the helplessness in each other's eyes.
But there was nothing they could do, they could only accept their fate.
Who told them that their arms can’t twist their thighs?
Luo Dagang continued.
"Besides, the two brothers now have military positions, so their future is definitely limitless."
"Why do we have to bother with such a conscienceless business?"
Li Wenmao and Chen Xianliang both made great contributions in the Restoration Army's capture of Guangzhou, and Li Yi was not stingy in rewarding them.
Both of them are now holding the title of regiment leader.
Upon hearing this, the two could only nod in agreement.
Luo Dagang talked to the two men for a while, then waved his hand to send them away.
After the two left, Su Sanniang walked out from the back hall, gracefully came to Luo Dagang and asked.
"Brother Luo, why did Li and Chen come here today?"
Luo Dagang slowly exhaled a breath and then spoke.
"The no-smoking thing."
"These two people run a lot of opium dens. The governor wanted to ban smoking and confiscated their opium dens. They came to me to get the upper hand and ask for some compensation."
Su Sanniang was a little surprised, and then complained.
"These two really want to go blind."
"They have been making such unscrupulous money for such a long time and they are still not satisfied. They still want compensation? In my opinion, the Grand Commander should put them in jail and punish them for their crimes."
"The morals of our Tiandihui were corrupted by these people!"
Su Sanniang said with some indignation.
She had seen many miserable cases of drug addicts whose families were broken up and whose loved ones died, and she had absolutely no good feelings towards these opium dealers who were addicted to opium.
Luo Dagang shook his head and said.
"The Grand Commander attaches great importance to rules. He will not show mercy to those who violate military law, but he will not do anything that would punish without warning."
"Even when banning smoking, they first ordered people to post notices to inform the public, and when they saw that some people did not change after being warned, they sent the army into the city to search and confiscate the property."
"Although they were selling opium, that was before the Grand Commander announced the ban on smoking. The Grand Commander will not punish them for what happened before..."
(End of this chapter)