Chapter 299 Guangdong Customs
Feeling relieved, Sun Shan spent the following days quite easily.
I wandered through the streets and alleys and visited most of Guangzhou.
Aunt Sun specially sent a servant to follow Sun Shan and serve him when he traveled.
Sun Shan finally saw the long-lost foreigners in Guangzhou Prefecture. He came to the legendary "Guangdong Customs", which is the ancient Huangpu Port.
Guangdong Customs is the "No. 1 Customs in Guangzhou".
All foreign merchant ships coming to Guangzhou must obtain a license in Macau, be guided by pilots to Huangpu Village for anchorage, open warehouses for inspection of cargo, and then be connected to Guangzhou City by barges.
Sun Shan has always been curious about what the "First Checkpoint of Guangdong Sea" is like.
Taking advantage of the rare leisure time, he asked around and led the servant, finally stepping into this legendary ancient port and village.
Rows of merchant ships docked at the dock are quite spectacular.
The Huangpu Harbor Terminal was packed with people and no one could get through.
Sun Shan followed the crowd and saw many imported goods along the way.
Sun Shan thought it was very exquisite. After asking the price, he finally chose not to buy it. The reason was that it was too expensive and he could not afford it.
Walking and stopping, I met many "foreigners".
The servant pulled Sun Shan's clothes and said fearfully, "Master Sun, let's go back. The foreigners here are so scary."
Sun Shan saw the fear on the boy's face, patted his shoulder and comforted him, "Don't be afraid, we are human, they are human too, we have noses and eyes, they also have noses and eyes, they just look different. You will get used to it after seeing it more often."
It was obvious that the servant had never seen foreigners before, and he felt scared when he suddenly saw so many of them.
The servant followed Sun Shan tremblingly. As a servant he was very conscious.
How could he dare to leave when Young Master Sun didn't leave?
The Second Madam has already said that he will follow Young Master Sun wherever he goes. In order to protect Young Master Sun's personal safety, he must follow Young Master Sun closely.
Sun Shan walked along the dock, carefully observing the ships there. He could not believe that foreign ships were so large and advanced. He wondered what Daqian’s ships were like.
Sun Shan tried to get closer to the foreigners, pretending to look at the goods but actually listening to what they said.
It was a gibberish that Sun Shan couldn't understand, but the only thing he was sure of was not English.
I listened to several foreigners' speeches one after another, but in the end I just felt lonely and didn't understand anything.
My eyes rolled around and I saw that the foreigners here included those with blonde hair and blue eyes, those with red hair and blue eyes, and even black people.
There were people of all races, which made Sun Shan a little uncomfortable.
Having always lived in the remote Sunjia Village, I suddenly came to a big city and saw so many foreigners. It always felt unreal.
Sun Shan didn't understand, so he pretended to buy imported goods and asked the merchant where these foreigners came from.
Looks so scary.
The merchant saw that Sun Shan was thin and weak, and small. Then he looked at the burly servant behind him.
Although he looks like a servant and not like a master, judging from the material of the Confucian clothing Sun Shan wears, he is at least a scholar from a well-off family.
Thinking that the young master was very curious, he brought the thief here secretly to see the "foreign people" and buy "foreign things".
He told Sun Shan very enthusiastically that the one with eyes like a cat, a mouth like an eagle, a tall body, a high nose, curly hair and a red beard was a Portuguese.
The people with deep eyes, long nose, red hair, tall stature, and blue or green eyes are the "red-haired barbarians".
The black men who are completely black in color are their servants.
The merchant also kindly reminded Sun Shan not to get close to the boat, otherwise he would be captured by the "foreign devils" and sold to other places as a slave, and would never have the chance to return to Daqian.
Sun Shan was not frightened by the merchant's words, but the servant behind him turned pale with fear. He pulled Sun Shan's clothes tightly and said, "Master Sun, let's go back to Hejia Village and don't come here. There are human traffickers here. Be careful not to be caught by the traffickers and put on the boat."
Sun Shan saw the tall and strong servant trembling and acting as timid as a mouse, apparently he was really scared.
So he bowed to the merchant, said thank you, and said goodbye.
The merchant thought the business was a sure thing, but who knew that the young master and the servant were actually frightened by his words. They regretted saying so much nonsense and missed the opportunity to make money.
Sun Shan had no idea what the merchant was thinking. He was already sitting in the carriage, with the servant driving the carriage as fast as he could.
The "Falangji" and "Red-haired Foreigners" mentioned by merchants actually refer to the Portuguese and the Dutch.
It seems that this was still the Age of Discovery, and Daqian had not yet completely fallen behind.
Sun Shan frowned, not knowing what to do for a moment.
Then he shook his head, thinking that perhaps the historical trajectory of this life would be different from that of the previous life.
But even if it is the same, he can't change it at the moment, so he should focus on the present and study hard.
After returning to Hejia Village, the servant told Aunt Sun and Uncle He what happened today.
The two men immediately banned Sun Shan from going to such a dangerous place, and also put him under semi-house arrest, allowing him to move only within the scope of Hejia Village.
Uncle He also didn't expect Sun Shan to be so bold as to go to the place where the foreigners lived. He said nervously, "Shanzi, this kind of place is full of people and snakes. You are not allowed to go there anymore."
He also told Sun Shan that the Portuguese had a strange custom, which was that they liked to eat children.
It tells the tragic story of how the Portuguese in Guangzhou bought children with a small ingot of gold and cooked them alive.
Uncle He said worriedly, "Shanzi, those foreign devils are very scary. You must not go there. If they trick you into leaving on the boat, you will be helpless. You will never be able to return to your parents in this life."
Aunt Sun, who was always very gentle, also said angrily, "Shanzi, from today on, you are not allowed to go out. You must stay in Hejia Village. Do you understand?"
Sun Shan nodded guiltily and said, "Uncle, aunt, I understand. I will never go there again."
Only when they saw Sun Shan's attitude of admitting his mistakes and correcting them did Aunt Sun and Uncle He feel relieved.
What they fear most is that Shanzi will be lured onto the ship out of curiosity and sold as a pig. By then, even if they cry their eyes out, it will be of no use.
After that, Sun Shan only moved around Hejia Village, sometimes helping out in the dessert shop, sometimes reading in the bookstore, and sometimes helping to look after the children.
Life is leisurely and comfortable.
When He Shuqiang was on vacation, he came to visit Sun Shan again. He heard that Sun Shan failed the entrance exam to the academy and would no longer study in Guangzhou Prefecture, but would return to Zhangzhou Prefecture to study.
He said very sadly: "Brother Shan, don't be sad. It's their loss if the academy misses you. You are so smart, it's just a momentary mistake, it's not that you really can't pass the exam."
Sun Shan smiled and said, "It's nothing. If I fail the exam, I won't pass it. I don't have enough knowledge."
He Shuqiang quickly shook his pig-like head and said anxiously: "Brother Shan, your knowledge is not insufficient. It's just that you made a mistake and didn't perform well. You will definitely pass the exam next time."
Sun Shan nodded and said, "Thank you, Brother Qiang. Don't say these words to comfort me. I have taken the college entrance examination these days and done countless questions. I have learned a lot from them. I really can't do some questions. It's because my knowledge is not broad enough and not deep enough. I will work harder in the future. Brother Qiang, you too, study hard."
After a pause, Sun Shan added: "Lose weight well."