Chapter 135 The Arabian Nights The beach, the coconut grove, the sea and the sky are the same color. Amidst the azure blue, there are patches of pure white clouds in the sky, and huge ships are moored quietly in the water. Because many wealthy business travelers came from Daming, many local people went to the seaside to do business with Ming people. After Xia Xun went ashore, he bought two coconuts at a small stall. The dark-complexioned, short stature old man chopped off a piece of coconut skin with a knife, rolled it up with a green and clean leaf, and inserted it into the cut coconut's mouth. , it becomes a straw.Xia Xun handed two coconuts to Su Ying and Tang Sai'er, and the two sucked them with relish, and walked around with him happily all the way.

The guards spread out, all pretending to be sightseeing tourists, and the interpreter walked behind him, dressed and behaved like a housekeeper. There are a lot of goods sold on the beach, but the varieties are limited, most of which are birds and beasts, dried fish and shells, and of course the most are coconuts.Wine made from coconut milk, oil boiled from coconut meat, sugar made, food made, and cups and bowls made of coconut shells. Coconut trees are an important living material for local people, and their houses are also made of coconut trees , including boats. The houses of the rich here also use bricks as walls, but the buildings in the courtyard are still built like buildings according to the characteristics of this place. Most of them are wooden structures. With thatched roof.

Most of the rich people here wear bright clothes on their upper bodies, sarongs on their lower bodies, and a flower crown on their heads.The folk customs here are very simple.Although there are so many customers coming to the beach at once, they will not raise prices, and they sell things very readily. Basically, you can take some money away.If some goods are sold by the catty, you only need to weigh a part of it, and then estimate the total price. As long as it is not too outrageous, they will just smile and help you move things. Xia Xun and his party strolled away, and came across a shed built with palm branches and leaves. Behind the shed was a courtyard house, which seemed to be a restaurant. The environment under the shed was fairly clean, and the table was placed All kinds of cooked food were delicious and mouth-watering, so Xia Xun smiled at Su Ying and said: Do you want to stop and have a rest?I heard that the food here is quite delicious, especially the rice wine here, which is mostly made from coconut, sweet and delicious, and the price is very cheap.

Su Ying smiled and said: "It's delicious, so it's delicious. It's cheap and not cheap. It's ridiculous to say it from your mouth. If you pretend to be a businessman, do you really think you are a businessman?" Xia Xun laughed and walked down the shed.There is a man sitting under the shed, who should be the owner of the restaurant. This man looks to be in his early thirties, but he may not really be that old. The man here is thin and dark, and looks older.He wrapped his head in a white cloth, and sat there in a naive manner, the folk customs here are really simple, even when the guests stopped, he didn't know how to get up to invite them, he just sat on the chair and watched helplessly.

Seeing Xia Xun walking in front of him, the man stood up and smiled shyly. Xia Xun pointed to the various cooked foods on the table and said, "Cut some of each for us and taste them all. Let's have some rice wine." altar.Oh, do you understand Chinese? After Xia Xun finished speaking, it occurred to him that this person might not understand what he said. Just as he was about to turn around and call for an interpreter, the shopkeeper smiled honestly and said: "The villain understands, master, madam, miss, please sit down." Xia Xun said in surprise: Do you understand Chinese?

The shopkeeper replied honestly: We often have Han people coming and going here, and everyone who does business knows some Chinese! When Xia Xun heard this, it dawned on him that although the official merchant ships of Ming Dynasty had just started appearing in the Nanyang area, the Han Chinese who were half smugglers and half pirates had always been very active in this area.Before he went ashore, he heard that there were two groups of Han people on this island, each with more than a thousand people, who had gathered alone to form a village. It is not surprising that people know Chinese. Xia Xun sat down at the Sifang small table and asked, "Daming treasure money, do you accept it here?"

The shopkeeper had already picked up his knife and started cutting meat for them. When he heard the question, he nodded hurriedly: "Yes, yes, Da Ming Bao money, we all use it here." There was no country in this place before, and this land was made of tin, so the currency commonly used by the people is tin blocks, but other currencies can also be circulated. In addition to gold and silver, the most circulated coins are Chinese coins. These Chinese coins are not just Ming Dynasty coins. Even the ancient coins from the Tang and Song dynasties are still in circulation here, and the exchange ratio is also established by folk conventions, but it is unknown to outsiders.

Xia Xun smiled and said: Okay, all the rice wine here is self-brewed, right?Bring me a jar of the best quality, and two cups. The shopkeeper's business came to the door, and he was very happy, so he agreed repeatedly. Tang Sai'er put aside the unfinished coconut, licked the sweet taste from the corner of his mouth, and said, "Father, I want to drink too." Xia Xun glared at her and said: No way!What do girls drink? Tang Saier pouted: This coconut milk has no taste, you said rice wine is sweet, I want to taste it! Xia Xun still refused, Su Ying smiled and smoothed things over and said: "Drink it, drink it, the rice wine is not strong."Don't talk about rice wine, it's that strong wine, I drank it when I was thirteen, why?Am I not a woman anymore?

With Su Ying's support, Tang Sai'er proudly made a face at Xia Xun, then shouted to the shopkeeper: "Shopkeeper, bring three cups!" With a promise from the shopkeeper, he leaned over and took out a cup made of coconut cords from under the cabinet, took another jar of coconut wine, and brought it to the table. At this moment, with a creak, the door behind the shed opened, and a man and a woman came out from inside. This shed was originally set up at the gate of this family, and the inner wall of the shed is actually the outer door of the yard. Open the door and enter the yard of this family.At this time, a man and a woman came out from the inside. The woman wore a bright corolla on her head, a colorful blouse, and a patterned tube skirt that reached her knees, revealing a pair of wheat-colored legs with beautiful lines. , strong and tight.

Her complexion is a bit dark, but her facial features are very beautiful, her eyes are shining brightly, and her blouse and skirt reveal a section of round abdominal muscles in the middle, making her look even more playful, cute and full of vitality.It's just that if such a woman came out, it would not have attracted the attention of the three people at Xia Xun's table. The problem is that the person who came out with this woman was actually a Han, and he was an officer and soldier! This officer and soldier was about eighteen or nineteen years old, and he was very handsome, but he was faintly childish. On him, he was wearing a uniform of a Ming army navy.Not to mention, when he came out, he wrapped his arms around the woman's waist. Seeing someone outside, he probably wasn't used to such open intimacy, so he withdrew his hand. Xia Xun noticed that his face was slightly unnatural , on the contrary, the woman had a calm demeanor without any abnormality.

Xia Xun's insightful eyes, trained through years of professional work, only took a quick glance, and found that the navy officer and soldier were disheveled, and the young woman, who didn't know whether she was a girl or a young woman, had disheveled hair, flushed cheeks, and slight sweat stains on her forehead. Those eyes are watery, this kind of style, only adultery! Xia Xun and Su Ying looked at each other and came to this conclusion unanimously.Then the two felt guilty: This adulterer is a member of the Ming warship, why did he run out in such a grandiose manner, if someone caught him, wouldn't he even be ashamed of himself! But the shopkeeper, who was busy cutting meat, glanced at the adulterer and adulteress, and greeted the soldier warmly, yelling at the naval officer to stay for dinner. The officer didn't recognize Xia Xun, but Looking at their attire, they were all dressed in Han Chinese clothes. They thought they were wealthy gentry who came with the boat, and their expressions were a little unnatural. They declined the shopkeeper's kindness, and hurried away. Before leaving, the woman lost her enthusiasm. Give him extremely hot and charming eyes. Xia Xun and Su Ying couldn't help but looked at each other: Could it be that this woman has nothing to do with the shopkeeper?But when the woman called the shopkeeper, they shattered their last illusion. When they were on the boat, they also briefly understood some local languages. If they heard correctly, the woman called the shopkeeper, It should be calling him a husband. Xia Xun and Su Ying looked at each other in shock, and suddenly reacted together, Su Ying immediately showed a look of contempt.This kind of thing also happens in Daming. In some families, the wife is a prostitute, and the husband is watching the door. Unexpectedly, there is such a family here. For a while, Su Ying didn't even have the desire to eat. Her low voice , said with deep disgust: Shameless! At this moment, shouts came from not far away, and Xia Xun turned his head to look, only to see that the naval officer who had just walked out was wrestling with a man. The other man's clothes seemed to be from the Nanyang area, but he was slightly different from the locals. It's different, he also has a few companions who also came up to help. The Navy Junior School was four-handedly defeated by one person, so he couldn't help pulling out his knife. Then they fought again. When Xia Xun saw this, he jumped up against the crime and was about to rush out to help. Some of the soldiers protecting him were wearing military uniforms and pretending to be walking slowly. To be able to protect Xia Xun, he was more than a half-dozen better than ordinary soldiers. With their help, they fought for two times, and blood was seen in just a moment. Although those Nanyang people had fierce fists and kicks and fierce fights, they couldn't hold back the guards' kung fu. In addition to the large number of people, all of them were killed, or were stabbed in the arm, or bleeding profusely from the leg. In the end, they were overturned one after another. Before disembarking, these officers and soldiers had to be instructed not to kill or injure people in the local area, so as not to arouse the resentment of the local people. Those Nanyang people were knocked to the ground, throwing away their knives one after another to express their surrender. They didn't spare them, and beat and kicked them hard, making those people's noses and faces swollen and bloody. Since the Ming fleet arrived at the port, Bailimisula also sent people along the coast to maintain order. These people were poorly dressed natives, with dark backs, grass skirts, and bare feet. Very straight spears, black and thin and malnourished, seeing a fight here, these soldiers who are soldiers, policemen and urban management functions rushed over immediately, shouting to separate the two sides. Although these soldiers had no fighting power, they were local snakes after all, and their king was accepted by the Ming Emperor. These Ming officers and soldiers had to show some face, they stopped their hands resentfully, and continued to curse.In fact, they don't know why the two sides are fighting. Anyway, when they see that their own people are at a disadvantage, they will do it, whether to help relatives or not, it's as simple as that. It took a long time for the Nanyang people who were beaten to be bloody and bloody to get up from the ground, yelling, pointing at the soldier who just came out of the shop from time to time, and pointing at the simple restaurant here, as if Report to local soldiers.When the soldier saw that the men who did the fighting were wearing Ming military uniforms, he didn't want to offend them. A little leader waved his hand and croaked a few times, and the soldiers rushed up and tied up those Nanyang people who had been beaten with bruises and bruises. Those Nanyang people were extremely angry, and they yelled strangely again, but the soldiers ignored them. Hearing their scolding, they stabbed them a few times with spears, or kicked them a few times, waiting to tie them up. Well, they took him away, and the little leader nodded and bowed to the Ming masters with a smile for a while and passed on small words. At this time, Xia Xun, Su Ying, and Tang Sai'er all stood in the shed to watch, and the shopkeeper and his wife also stood in front, seeing that the soldier who had just left the shop was slightly injured, the woman ran over and held him up. He comforted him softly.Xia Xun was puzzled and couldn't help asking the shopkeeper, "Shopkeeper, what's going on?" The shopkeeper said angrily: "Those people are Siamese, a group of businessmen from Siam, the leader just now is one of their leaders, named Sawang Susi." Xia Xun couldn't help but suddenly realized when he heard it: No wonder they moved their hands fiercely, punching to the flesh, especially good at elbows and knees, it turned out to be muay thai. The shopkeeper said: "My wife is beautiful. After being seen by Nashawang Susi, I like him very much. My wife also loves him to be strong. So every time he comes here to do business, he often communicates with my wife."The Chinese soldier named Li Zhijue came to drink in my shop the day before yesterday. My wife saw that he was handsome and elegant, and he was very different from Nasawang Susi's rudeness. Unexpectedly, Nasawang Susi held a grudge, so he invited friends to seek revenge. what? What? Xia Xun picked out his ears and looked at the store in astonishment, seeing that he still had a look of disdain and anger. Dude, are you still fighting for the beaten Ming soldiers? ! Su Ying's lungs exploded with anger. For a few filthy money, this kind of man let his wife run the skin business and let others go whoring.Su Ying couldn't help but sarcastically said: Since you are in this flesh and blood business, as long as the customers have money, do you still have to pick and choose? The shopkeeper was stunned, and said in surprise: "What kind of flesh and blood business?"Immediately after reacting, he said unhappily: That man likes my wife, and my wife also likes him. Let's have a little reunion. It's a consensual thing. My family doesn't accept his belongings. How could you be selling your lust? Su Ying was stunned: I don't want money, so why?What is the atmosphere here? Is it possible that my wife can make peace with anyone she likes, and the husband doesn't care?This seems to be much more unrestrained than what Xianggong said, that on the grasslands of northern Xinjiang, it is much more unrestrained to let men get into their felt tents, have sex with their daughters, and let their parents let them go. Su Ying really guessed, the shop owner was misunderstood by her, and she regarded it as a great humiliation, so she explained the atmosphere of this place, and the atmosphere of this place is indeed the same. It is an honor to attract men, and to treat the adulterer with wine and food. Of course, the adulterer also needs to be of a prominent status, and it must not be worse than her male status, so it will be regarded as a humiliation, but this humiliation is only issued because of the other party's low status. As for chastity, if they have a dictionary, then There is no such word in their dictionary.In the past, Manga was under the jurisdiction of Siam, and the Siamese were naturally the upper class. Now in the hearts of their local people, it is no different that the identity of the Chinese is the most valuable. The soldier named Li Zhijue returned to the warship after being comforted by the woman. Seeing that nothing serious happened, Shi Shiran returned to the desk to cut meat and stir-fry vegetables. Su Ying stood there, so frightened that she couldn't wake up for a long time. , As for what the shopkeeper said, she didn't believe it at all.Tang Sai'er's face was flushed, and it took him a long time to curse out angrily: Shameless! Xia Xun hurriedly covered her mouth, and said in a low voice, "Shut up!" If Xia Xun hadn't been covering her mouth at this moment, this heroine, who was famous for her rebellion in history, would have raised her banner and shouted: "Light up the sky lantern!"Riding a rocking horse!Dip the pig cage!Light up the sky lanterns!Riding a rocking horse!Dip the pig cage!Cut to pieces!Kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill! When Tang Sai'er's murderous energy was about to explode, a Westerner suddenly came to the door. This person was attracted by the fight between the two groups just now, and he stood there watching.The soldiers guarding Xia Xun saw their own being bullied, so they rescued the soldier righteously. After the businessmen from Siam were taken away by the local soldiers, they walked back. Two soldiers were very clever. They thought that with such an action, everyone would still be scattered in this way. They might be seen as responsible for the mission, so they also walked to this restaurant, trying to hide their identities by eating, but they just walked to the palm branch. In front of the constructed awning, he was stopped by that foreigner.This foreigner has black hair, brown eyes and a big nose. He is not tall. His hair is naturally curly and he has a thick beard. Hello. The foreigner was all smiles and greeted them in weird Chinese. The two soldiers stopped holding their knives and asked vigilantly: "Who are you and what are you going to do?" The man hastily explained to them, but unfortunately although his movements and tone were extremely exaggerated, and he had changed several languages, there were not many Chinese characters mixed in, and the two soldiers didn't understand at all in a daze.Xia Xun waved to the interpreter, and asked in a low voice, "Do you understand what he said?" The interpreter replied: He just spoke several languages, one of which is Dashi (the name of a certain Iranian tribe. It is also a general term for Arabs and Muslims in Iranian-speaking areas in China during the Tang and Song Dynasties.) language, I can understand it . Xia Xun nodded and said, "Well, go and ask him, what are you going to do?" yes! The interpreter agreed, stepped forward to let the two soldiers go, and asked in the idiom: Who are you?What are you going to do? The man was scratching his head anxiously. He was overjoyed to hear that someone understood his words and could speak the same language fluently. He said hastily, "Hello, I am a traveler from the far west. I heard that your ship is about to Heading west, can I take it? The interpreter turned his head and translated to Xia Xun. The two soldiers next to him became impatient and waved their hands: "Go, go, go aside!"We are warships!Understand? The man probably only knew a few simple greetings in Chinese, and he also couldn't understand what they were saying, but he guessed a bit from their actions like swatting flies, and said quickly: "I heard that there are many merchants in your fleet. If there is a woman, it doesn't matter if you can carry one more passenger, right?Can you introduce me to your Mr. Commander? Xia Xun looked him up and down, and said to the interpreter, "Please come in, this gentleman!" As soon as Xia Xun spoke, the two soldiers stopped talking. They just entered the shed pretending to be tourists, asked the shopkeeper for some small dishes, and sat down at another table to eat.The man was very happy to be allowed to approach. He walked into the shed, looked at Xia Xun carefully, and asked: "This honorable gentleman, can you help me generously?" Xia Xun said: "Sir, please sit down."I am a businessman, I think, if I agree, our fleet may allow you to join, but first I need to know who you are, where you come from, and why you are here?You have to tell me your experience before I can decide! The man was very happy after hearing the interpreter's report. Businessmen in the West are very prestigious. His knowledge of the East is obviously limited, so there is no doubt that a big businessman can influence a commander who commands the most powerful naval fleet in the world. Ability. After getting Xia Xun's permission, he excitedly sat next to Xia Xun and explained eloquently: Hello, honorable sir, I come from the far west, a place called Venizia, and my name is Fei. England.Da.Kandy, I traveled the world and came to this place, unluckily, my ship was ransacked by pirates This Westerner talked eloquently, and the interpreter could translate what he said, but he could only transliterate the names of people and places he said. After listening to the interpreter, Xia Xun thought about it carefully, but he had no impression of the name Venizia. Even in modern times, he only knew some famous places in the west, but he couldn't know every place well. God knows where this guy named Fei Yinglun came from.What's more, in this era, the names of many places in the West may also be different from modern times. Xia Xun frowned and said, "Mr. Fei Yinglun, what is Venezia you are talking about?" Fei Yinglun danced and explained: Venizia is our capital, known as the city of water. It is a city built entirely on water. It is a miraculous existence. I have traveled to so many places in the world and have never seen it again. A place like ours, our country has one of the most powerful navy in the world, of course Fei Yinglun said dejectedly: After I saw your warships, I think we have to be ranked second Water city?A city built entirely on water, unique, Venezine, Vene Xia Xun suddenly understood, and lost his voice: Venice?Are you from Venice? Fei Yinglun's eyes widened in surprise: Do you know where we are?Yes, Venice, that's what the English call us, but God!I have been to the Far East for so long, and this is the first time I have met someone who knows our country! Xia Xun smiled and said, "Your Excellency is not the first person to come to the East. I am going to do business in the West. Of course, I need to know something about the West."Well, my friend from Venice, how did you get here? The very talkative Fei Yinglun told Xia Xun his legendary story with the help of an interpreter. According to Fei Yinglun, he is a Venetian businessman. More than ten years ago, due to poor management, he went bankrupt, and the burden on his shoulders was a huge debt that could not be repaid. He could not continue to survive in Venice, so he had to leave Venice. , to Alexandria, Egypt, hoping to use his ingenuity to make a comeback and make money to pay off his debts. In his opinion, if you want to make a lot of money, you have to sail to far away places and bring back rare local commodities in order to make a lot of money.However, the ruler of Egypt at that time came from the Asian prairie and was a devout Islamic believer. In the mind of this ruler, the entire Indian Ocean was a big lake and a holy lake that belonged to them, so Christians were not allowed to cross Cairo and enter their holy lake. So he lived in Egypt for several years, learned Arabic, married a local woman, and converted to Islam.In this way, he can continue to travel around the world as an Islamic businessman without being stopped. After some preparations, he and a group of like-minded friends jointly bought a boat and started his voyage. After going through all kinds of hardships, they came to Guri, India. They have made some money through their business. In Guri, they He sold the goods he brought and bought a large number of local goods. At this time, they heard that there was a country in the farther east that was rich in gorgeous silk and exquisite porcelain. If these goods were shipped back to the country, each piece could be regarded as a priceless work of art and sold to those people at a very high price. A rich man whose treasury is full of gold coins and has nowhere to spend. It was not easy for them to voyage once. They were extremely lucky not to be buried in the sea by a storm during this journey. If they wanted to do it again, they didn’t know when they would have the chance. So after some discussion, they decided to continue traveling eastward. As a result, I met a group of oriental robbers in the sea off Manlajia. Those robbers owned many warships and soldiers, they were just a merchant ship, they couldn't resist at all, all the goods and the whole ship were snatched by the pirates, his partners were brutally killed by the pirates, and he was also cut, He fell into the sea. Fortunately, he didn't die. He drifted here along the sea and was rescued by the aborigines here. Now, he has lived on this island for more than two years. He is looking forward to returning to his hometown day and night. His wife is still looking forward to him, and he shed tears of sadness as he spoke.As Fei Yinglun said, he also showed Xia Xun the scars on his arms and legs. His complexion was tanned, and there was a deep scar on his cheek, but most of it was covered by his beard. Su Ying heard him talk about his wife who was still waiting for him to return in the distance. She couldn't help being touched, and she felt compassion, so she whispered to Xia Xun: "Master, there is no one missing on the boat, so just take him with you." Well, what happened to this man is really pitiful. Xia Xun thought for a moment, then said to Fei Yinglun: "Okay, we can take you with us."How far our fleet will sail this time is still uncertain, maybe we will send you to a certain port, where you can look for other merchant ships to continue westward, maybe we will sail all the way to you hometown. After hearing the translation, Fei Yinglun was ecstatic and thanked him again and again. Xia Xun smiled slightly, waved his hand and said: You are welcome, I want to take you along, not to help you for free.You shall be employed by me in return for your ship's wages and all expenses incurred on board.You must fully obey my orders until your employment is terminated.When to terminate the employment relationship is up to me, you have no right to make your own decisions! Su Ying was a little displeased when she heard this, and thought to herself: Master is so stingy, to save people in danger, he still has to ask for conditions.This man is so pitiful, does he really think of himself as a businessman? Fei Yinglun bowed his head and thought for a moment, then nodded to Xia Xun and said: "Okay, I am willing to sign a contract with you. As long as you can take me back, I am willing to serve you!" Xia Xun smiled and said, "Very good!"The last time our fleet sailed, we only went to Kezhi and Guri, which is exactly the end point of your journey. I hope that with your help this time, we can sail to far, far places.Come, let's eat something first! Su Ying and Tang Sai'er hated this family, even the food they sold was dirty and refused to eat it. Xia Xun knew what they were thinking, couldn't help smiling, and asked Fei Yinglun, knowing that he had been here for two years , I already have a simple residence with a few simple household items.Xia Xun then asked Tongyi to leave him a bamboo badge on the ship to identify his identity and the ship he belonged to, and told him to go back and get his own things. With this badge to the port, someone would naturally lead him aboard. boat. After finishing the instructions, Xia Xun will leave and leave, and naturally all the food on that table will be given to Fei Yinglun. Leaving the small restaurant, the three of them walked back. Seeing Su Ying and Tang Saier's still disdainful and disgusted faces, Xia Xun couldn't help laughing and said, "Traveling thousands of miles and reading thousands of books, now I know how strange things are beyond the four seas." right?I don't think the shopkeeper is lying, the customs here should be like this.Don't you know that the customs in many places are even more incredible than here. In some places, when distinguished guests come to the door, it is necessary to treat the guests with their wives. In other places, before the daughter's family gets married, she must first dedicate herself to the leader of the clan.The place where our boat is going next, the monks there are more noble than the royal family. Before a woman gets married, she must first go to the temple and hand over her innocent body to the monks. Even if she is as expensive as a princess, she must first accompany the third What about monk Tian? We may not like it, but it is also a tradition that has been formed for thousands of years, so there is no need to impose our ideas on others.Along the way, there may still be all kinds of incredible things, so please don't make random comments and cause unnecessary disputes. Tang Sai'er was even more unbelievable than the behavior of the shopkeeper couple he saw today when he heard all kinds of things he said, and she couldn't help saying in horror: "Is there really such a thing in the world?" Xia Xun glanced back, and Fei Yinglun was wolfing down a table of food.Xia Xun smiled slightly, and said with deep meaning: Of course, the world is so big that there are no surprises. Things that you think are unbelievable may not be true; things that you think are absolutely true may not be false!