Chapter 8: The Poor Governor of Guangdong

  Bai Gui saw the foreigner pull out a gun and was immediately shocked, breaking out in a cold sweat. He hastily made a bow to Li Mingfeng: "This official mistakenly thought you were a Taiping rebel, how stupid! Please forgive me, sir, don't take it to heart."

  Li Mingfeng saw Bo Gui's flattering expression and also looked down on him in his heart. However, since his own future life was still dependent on Bo Gui, he couldn't suppress him too much.

  "Does Lord Bai know who I am?" Li Mingfeng decided to start his blackmail plan.

  "I don't know!" replied Bai Gui sincerely.

  Li Mingfeng curled his lip and said with feigned arrogance: "I'm not some kind of big shot, just a humble army interpreter. But for now, I can say a thing or two in front of Lord Elgin, the commander-in-chief of the Anglo-French coalition forces."

  Bo Gui, being very aware of the situation, hastily added: "Ah, I didn't expect that you, sir, were serving under the foreigner's command. This humble official has eyes but failed to recognize Mount Tai, please forgive me."

  Li Mingfeng despised this governor to the extreme, thinking that Bai Gui was also a high-ranking official of the Qing dynasty, but he actually flattered a small military interpreter so much.

  "Now that the Allied forces have entered the city, I'm afraid it will be difficult for all of you gentlemen to protect yourselves. On my way here, I heard that Ye Mingcen has been thrown into prison and his property confiscated. As for the residences of the Governor, the Provincial Judge, and the various Circuit Intendants, they have all been looted clean. And several of your daughters and wives have been ravished by foreigners... it's truly a case of 'the people suffering under military chaos'! Alas!" Li Mingfeng seemed to be genuinely moved on behalf of all living things, with tears welling up in his eyes.

  He pulled out a handkerchief to wipe his eyes, turned his head to look at Bogui and asked in a heavy tone: "I wonder how Lord Bogui plans to handle himself in such chaos."

  Bai Gui took out his handkerchief and wiped the sweat from his forehead, trembling as he said: "This official has always stood on the side of the foreign master, never thinking of opposing him. The decision to go to war was entirely Ye Mingchen's idea. Now that you gentlemen have broken through Guangzhou, this official is willing to serve the foreign master with all his might."

  Li Mingfeng listened to the governor, who didn't mention a word about money, and felt somewhat impatient. If he didn't remind him, they might drag on until who knows when? What if Elgin wanted to summon this person? His own happy life would be ruined then.

  "The governor-general doesn't have to be like this, I'll just say it clearly. Do you know why the foreigners are attacking the city?"

  Bai Gui was puzzled as to why Li Mingfeng asked this, but now his life was in someone else's hands and he had no choice but to answer. "The foreigners want opium to be legally traded, but the imperial court does not allow it; they also want more ports opened for trade, but the imperial court still does not permit it, which is why the foreign troops are attacking the city."

  "It's nothing, these foreigners want opium to be legalized and ports to be open for trade. What's the point of all this? Isn't it just about seeking wealth? These foreigners are also human beings who need money to support their families... I've said all I can say, it's up to you to decide what to do."

  Li Mingfeng smiled and looked at Bo Gui, watching his expression change from shock to ecstasy and then to worry.

  Bai Gui never thought that these foreigners would come to rob them, they want money, just take it by force, why bother with such nonsense? However, since the foreigners want money, it proves that his family's lives are spared, he felt a sense of relief, but then feared that his meager savings wouldn't be enough to satisfy these wolves.

  The governor of the same city has much less power than the governor, so naturally he also gets much less benefits. Therefore, Bai Gui is considered a poor governor.

  Bai Gui Sheng feared that his small amount of silver would not be enough to buy the lives of his entire family, so he anxiously asked: "I wonder how much silver the foreign master wants in order to spare my family from disaster?"

  Li Mingfeng stretched out five fingers and waved them in front of Bo Gui.

  "Five... five... thousand taels of silver?" Bo Gui looked at Li Mingfeng with a puzzled gaze.

  In modern times, Li Mingfeng has seen this kind of pricing method that doesn't know the bottom line too many times. If you ask for less, it's naturally not a good deal. If you ask for too much, you'll reveal your bottom line and let the other party know that you're just randomly asking for prices. The most reasonable way is to let the other party quote their own price, while you observe their expression to infer how much money is their bottom line.

  Bai Gui's initial offer was definitely one he could accept, but Li Mingfeng wouldn't let him have his way. Upon hearing the price, he merely hummed coldly in his nose. As soon as they heard this cold hum, Palande, Andrew and others immediately showed a fierce glint in their eyes, ready to teach this uncooperative guy a lesson at any time.

  Bai Gui was taken aback, his face twisted in distaste. "Your Excellency wants 50,000 taels of silver? I'm afraid this Guangdong Governor is not living up to his name. With the Viceroy above me, in this city of Guangzhou, whether it's officials or merchants, they all have to send silver to Ye Mingchen. In all these years, I haven't gained much benefit."

  Although Bai Gui said so, his expression did not show any panic, only a hint of melancholy. Li Mingfeng thought to himself that the 50,000 taels of silver might be within his reach after all, and it would also hurt his vital energy; he'd better stop while he's ahead.

  But then, how much is 50,000 taels of silver? Watching TV, ten taels is a big ingot the size of a fist. This 50,000 taels won't fit in several large boxes! Although it's shared with Palan and the others, there are only over a hundred people in total, one person gets 500 taels, it's still a burden for the boss.

  "It's not 50,000 taels of silver, but 5,000 taels of gold. Mr. Bai Gui has gathered this gold, and I and the other foreign gentlemen will definitely ensure that your family is safe." After calculating for half a day, Li Mingfeng felt that gold was better, easier to carry.

  "50,000 taels of gold? This is really putting the lower official in a difficult position. The lower official's entire family's gold, including melted down gold jewelry and utensils, can't even add up to this amount." Bo Gui's face clearly didn't look good, 50,000 taels of gold? Besides the treasury, where could such a large amount of gold come from?

  Li Mingfeng knew that he was being a bit too demanding and didn't force the issue, saying instead: "You can just go and make up the difference with silver."

  In the Qing dynasty, the early gold and silver ratio was 1:8. There is a saying that "buy antiques in peace, hide gold in troubled times". After the Opium War, gold became more and more expensive, and by the Xianfeng period, the price of gold rose to around 1:15. Five thousand taels of gold would be equivalent to about 75,000 taels of silver, which was still bearable for a governor like him. Li Mingfeng did not know this exchange rate, he came from modern times and saw it on TV, feeling that the ratio was always 1:10, so he only asked for five thousand taels of gold, unaware that in reality he had raised the price again.

  Please recommend this book to your friends (via QQ, blog, WeChat, etc.), remember the more you share, the faster the update will be!!!

  Tips: