Rise of the 1630s South America

Chapter 85 New Immigrants ([-])

The sea breeze at the end of October is cool and pleasant, and the strong southeast wind and ocean currents make the ships returning to Europe from the East Indies smooth.On the sea southeast of Dongfang Port, the Portuguese ships "Algarve Merchant" and "Molucca" are slowly approaching.At this time, the escort gunship "Red Trout" that was patrolling the sea quickly went up under the command of the acting captain Guo Zili. vessel.

After hearing the news, Li Wei, director of the Dongfang Port Bureau, jumped up immediately, signed the entry documents with a few strokes, and then hurried to the dock, waiting for the port of the Portuguese ship with excitement. .

Dongfang Port is wide and deep, and the stone breakwater built with huge manpower and material resources keeps the turbulent waves of the South Atlantic Ocean out of the embankment, making the inside of the embankment a calm haven.The four cement trestles in the harbor go straight into the sea for nearly 50 meters, and there are many high-quality deep-water berths.Under the dispatch of the pilot of the Port Authority, the two Portuguese ships slowly entered the port and docked at the trestle.

Captain Eduardo Paulo de Assuncao stepped onto the solid reinforced concrete trestle from the diving board, and only a three-masted sailing ship was moored in the empty harbor.This small and medium-sized sailing ship with the red double-sword goshawk flag seems to be a frigate. Captain Assuncao took a closer look and found that 20 cannons were installed on this ship.

"Crazy Tatans!" From Captain Assuncao's sharp eyes, this frigate with a displacement of two to three hundred tons at most can be equipped with 14-16 8-18-pound guns. Aren't you afraid that the center of gravity of the ship will be unstable if you do this nonsense?Thinking of this, Captain Assuncao couldn't help shaking his head.

However, he did not dare to underestimate these Tartans. The beautiful and sturdy artificial harbor in front of him had already won his respect.The hardware facilities of this seaport are top-notch even in Europe at this time, not to mention the long-barreled heavy artillery that is densely packed around the port and looks frightening.When replenishing at the port of Goa, the governor of Goa vaguely mentioned to him that the Brazilian colony is now asking for these Tatans, and warned him that he must handle the relationship with the Tatans very carefully, and try to avoid unsuitable incidents with them. There are conflicts.

The sea was very windy. Captain Assuncao adjusted his appearance a little, and then he walked towards the shore of the pier surrounded by the first officer, the second officer and other officers. As for the captain of the "Molucca", Joao Mr. de Carvalho remained on board as a precaution.The wharf ground was still flat and solid, and some natives in shabby linen deftly handled the pulley-block booms, ready to start loading and unloading, but the two ships might disappoint them.Because these are two immigrant ships, Captain Assuncao wished that every corner was filled with immigrants when he set off from Macau.As for goods, there may be some, but very little.Because apart from the franchised spices, tea, porcelain and silk, what other goods can compare to the 8 Cruzado (old Portuguese currency, about 400 yuan) one person's Macau-Tatan port population transshipment business?

After receiving news from Brazil at the end of last year, Captain Assuncao and Captain Carvalho started preparations separately.

Captain Assuncao’s work did not go well at the beginning. Those Ming people who came into contact with him were basically unwilling to immigrate. Even if they were willing, they would only go to Malacca, Luzon and other places.After sweeping away all the beggars from the Ming Dynasty wandering in Macau, Captain Asuncang had to turn to Liu Xiang, a pirate on the Guangdong ocean.

Liu Xiang's situation this year is not good. After losing to Zheng Zhilong, he has close ties with the Dutch and he doesn't mind cooperating with the Portuguese in Macau.So, at the end of last year and the beginning of this year, Liu Xiang gathered some people, adhering to the tradition that rabbits do not eat grass beside their nests, ventured into the coast of Zhejiang, went ashore to plunder, and then fled in a hurry.After returning to Guangdong, Liu Xiang threw the hundreds of plundered people to the Portuguese in exchange for some gold, silver and weapons.

Captain Asuncang did not dare to stop in Macau, and he brought the population captured by Liu Xiang to Malacca.At the same time, Captain Carvalho also rushed over from Japan.This guy went too far. He started to collect Chinese living in Nanyang, but the number was not large, and almost no one was willing to go to "America" ​​with him, which made him have to forcibly abduct them.Even so, the population they got was still pitifully small. In the end, this unscrupulous guy simply went to Japan, trying to find a way to get a group of Japanese immigrants to make up for it.In his opinion, these orientals look alike anyway.

Captain Assuncao and others stayed in Malacca for another two or three weeks, during which time they made a selection of the immigrants.Not for those who are too old, not for those with disabilities, not for those with diseases, and not for those who are weak. At the same time, refer to the requirements of the time-traveling people and try to keep the family intact. After such a selection, there are still More than 800 immigrants.So, at the beginning of spring, the two ships left Malacca, along the northeast monsoon of the Indian Ocean, via Goa, Sofala, and then directly to Dongfang Port.

Counting the time spent waiting for the monsoon, avoiding storms, resting halfway, and taking this route for the first time, the entire voyage took 7 months, which was almost more time-consuming than returning to mainland Europe from the Moluccas. Long.The death rate of immigrants reached 3% during the entire voyage, and there were 605 immigrants alive on board when they arrived at Dongfang Port.

To be honest, Captain Assuncao and others transported these immigrants with conscience. The "Algarve Merchant" has a load of 550 tons, and the "Molucca" has a load of 500 tons. If these two large ships follow the rhythm of their Portuguese counterparts selling black slaves, they can put 2000 people in for you.

It all paid off now.It seemed that a Tatan official came over on the pier. Captain Asuncao took a deep breath and greeted him.After a brief confirmation in Spanish, the Tartan officials stared absently at the boats on the pier, much to the displeasure of Captain Assuncao, who was ready to get acquainted.However, he quickly adjusted his mood. As long as they keep their promises and pay his immigration fee of 4840 Cruzado in full, what does it matter if he suffers some slight slights?Then, let's satisfy the wishes of these Tartan patrons and let them see their "goods" as soon as possible.

Soon, the first unkempt immigrant set foot on the concrete trestle with the assistance of dock workers.The fresh sea breeze on the pier refreshed him who was used to the dirty air in the cabin, but his face still looked a little dull, and he didn't even know what to do when he stood on the pier.The two workers of the Charuya Quarantine Bureau were familiar with the road, and each of them picked up the person and went to the isolation room on the side of the pier.Bathing, disinfection, and isolation, they have done this set of procedures many times, and they are already familiar with it.

To be honest, Li Wei was a little disappointed at the moment.The immigrant from the land of etiquette and etiquette that he imagined in his head turned out to be such a down-and-out beggar, even more shabby than those European immigrants when they first arrived. This really disappointed him. I can't even see my face.Alas, it seems that there were natural disasters and man-made disasters in the Ming Dynasty, and the common people were really miserable, he thought to himself.As a result, Li Wei was not in the mood to continue watching. He simply brought a group of idle dock workers to help, and let these "hometown people" who had been tortured for more than half a year go ashore quickly.

After the immigrants entered the isolation area, the health bureau divided them into two groups according to men and women. This caused some small commotion among the immigrants, but the commotion quickly disappeared under the fierce eyes of the police from the Ministry of Internal Affairs.After all, it’s not about life and death, it’s just that men and women are divided into two groups to take a bath and disinfect. Immigrants can’t afford to fight these vicious soldiers.

A large public bath house was built in the isolation area that can accommodate thousands of people to bathe at the same time. Each person was given a simple soap made of plant ash and animal fat (original soap, the shame of the public, embarrassing). Wash everything.Since the Quarantine Bureau does not force them to shave their hair, they even have to wash their hair clean.After everyone takes a shower and is checked and passed by the staff, a staff will send them a set of machine-made cotton clothes, and then lead them to the public canteen opposite for dinner.

The meals in the public canteen are relatively rich. In addition to the staple food of potatoes, each person can also be assigned a piece of salted fish, a bowl of fish soup, a portion of roast beef with soybeans, and a small amount of vegetables.These migrants spent more than half a year on the ship, eating crude food like maggot-infested bread, and their bodies were relatively weak.However, those who can survive the long-distance voyage at sea are generally not too poor in health. According to the past experience of the Health Bureau, after nutritional supplementation during this isolation period, these people can basically recover quickly.

At this time, many time travelers who were off duty or not on duty ran to the pier to watch the surprise.These Ming Dynasty immigrants who were surrounded by them followed the workers of the Health Bureau numbly and walked forward. They didn't bother to pay attention to the people around them who were judging them, but just walked forward.This made everyone very boring to watch, and they dispersed after a while.

However, the news of the arrival of the Ming Dynasty immigrants still began to spread rapidly in the county, and almost all the travelers who were still in the county knew the news immediately.No matter how these Ming Dynasty people will view the time-travelers in the future, at least at this moment the time-travelers will regard them as their own kind.

Of course, it is only the same kind in race and blood.As for the culture, values ​​and way of life, they are not much different from the European immigrants who have been being transformed by the time-traversing people, and they all need to be instilled and transformed slowly.

(End of this chapter)