Chapter 557

Li Dazui's speech seemed casual, but it actually aligned with the overall ideology of the crossing regime.

Considering the long-term world structure ahead — the transmigrators had no intention of unifying the globe to physically deactivate all its "waste heat" — terms like "international situation" were bound to emerge in the future, and mutual recognition of nobility ranks between East and West was a basic operation.

Given the current ecological framework of the transmigrators, an imperial system was a foregone conclusion. Since it would be an imperial system, there would definitely be clearly defined and publicly acknowledged social strata of nobility and commoners. That being the case, they couldn't be too unreasonable with these Franks, even if less than a tenth of these ruffians were actually certified nobles by the Portuguese crown.

Of course, no matter what, the Franks were still the losers in this war, so they would certainly have to bear the due losses. This was a plane where transmigrators had the final say; there would be no scenes of defeated enemies strutting around arrogantly and gaining benefits through negotiations.

In the end, the so-called preferential treatment only allowed the Franks to keep their own residences and some personal property. In fact, some of them couldn't even hold onto that much, because every noble lord had to pay a ransom fee. Those whose financial situation was already poor were now paupers overnight.

No matter the plane or era, paupers never meet a good end. So in the days that followed, Macau City quickly produced a large batch of Frankish paupers driven out of their homes.

In the early morning, Zong Ben, Master Zong, sat on a lychee wood chair, gazing at himself in the mirror.

Unlike the bronze mirrors his ancestors used, the glass mirror on the table had a seven-inch face, its surface crystal clear. Borrowing the morning light, it meticulously reflected the person in the mirror. Looking at his reflection, Master Zong's clean-shaven face was radiant and spirited, as if he had become more than ten years younger.

"Mm." After a final inspection of his attire, Zong Ben stood up and straightened his tie. "It's getting late. Let's move."

"Yes, Master."

The servant who had long been waiting nearby heard this and brought over a light Western-style suit to help the Master put on, then used a soft brush to gently sweep away nonexistent dust from the Master's shoulders and back.

Once properly dressed, Master Zong reached out himself, took a fashionable gray gauze formal hat, put on a pair of fashionable quartz sunglasses, and finally picked up a machine-made mahogany cane by the door... which the New District called a civilization cane.

Outside the door at this moment, seven or eight men of varying ages, all wearing canvas jackets and trousers, clean and efficient, were already waiting. Seeing the Master step out fully armed, a uniform sound rang out: "Greetings, Master."

Seeing these old comrades, Zong Ben felt somewhat emotional. As he paced slowly, he spoke in a clear voice: "Due to the circumstances days ago, I, your Master, had no choice but to sell off all my holdings in Haojing'ao... ahem, Macau City. Regarding this matter, my brothers likely disapproved, and I am well aware of that."

"However, as it turns out, I, your Master, have won the gamble after all." Zong Ben laughed heartily. "What that silver bought was not just a share in the South Seas, but also the great backing of the General Headquarters!"

At this point, Zong Ben's pride was written all over his face. To think that he, a bastard son driven out of his home, had now transformed into a guest of honor at the General Headquarters... "Hmph, just you wait. One day, this master will fight his way back and teach you all a lesson!"

The thought flickered by. Coming back to his senses and seeing his men still respectfully waiting for his instructions, Zong Ben waved his hand. "What are those meager holdings? With a great backer, what holdings can't be conquered?"

Saying this, Zong Ben paused and thumped his cane on the ground. "Look at this Macau City — in less than seven days, it changed masters... Hmph, the Great King I am taking you all to pay respects to today is the new Great King of this city. All of you, puff out your chests for me! Remember, from now on, wherever it's Cao Darao's territory, we men are the superior ones!"

"Congratulations, Master!"

Amid a chorus of congratulations, Master Zong walked out the main gate of the guild hall.

Since Zong Ben had already sold off all his properties in Macau City, and most of the hotel staff had fled during the war, after the city-entry ceremony, Zong Ben could only take his retinue and temporarily move into the Dongguan Guild Hall, which still had two garrison personnel.

Now, five days had passed since the General's triumphant entry into the city, and the guild hall was gradually regaining some liveliness. Three days ago, Zong Ben had already sent a visiting card to arrange contact with the Macau Special District Chief, Li Dazui... Mr. Li Long... Li Dazui's formal name was Li Long.

Exiting the main gate of the Dongguan Guild Hall, an exquisite horse carriage was already waiting at the door. This carriage was a preferential gift from the New District government to its subordinate merchants, its body marked by a unique nanmu wood badge.

The content of this wooden badge was very simple: five rings hand-painted in colored lacquer. People of later generations would be very familiar with this symbol, as it appeared in the public eye every four years.

Currently, this badge was the emblem of the newly formed "Chinese Commerce Union."

One could tell from the emblem and the name that this was definitely something cooked up by the transmigrators. Indeed, this newly opened Chinese Commerce Union was the official institution the transmigrators used to absorb "progressive merchants." And the vanguard, Master Zong Ben, was now already half an official, one of the twelve Standing Directors of the Chinese Commerce Union.

After the attendants helped the Master into the carriage, they formed two rows and followed behind it, as the carriage slowly advanced along the narrow gravel paths of seventeenth-century Macau.

Macau City had just experienced a war, neither too big nor too small, so pedestrians were sparse on the roads, far from its pre-war bustle. As the carriage traveled along, half of the shops along the way were still closed.

Fortunately, with the transmigrators now in power, the Special District had immediately mobilized a large number of laborers to enter the city. As the laborers moved in, the city gradually regained some liveliness, and some businesses with dealings with the General Headquarters also promptly opened their doors for trade.

After the carriage passed through a commercial street mixing Chinese and Iberian architectural styles, it soon arrived at the central area of Macau City: the Portuguese Quarter.

The Portuguese Quarter mostly consisted of relatively upscale European-style mansions. It also housed churches and the church headquarters, as well as various municipal buildings, making it the city's core.

As the carriage passed through here, through the glass window, Zong Ben contentedly appreciated scene after scene of "a nation ruined, families destroyed": soldiers holding guns surrounding luxury mansions; clerks in white shirts holding registration booklets, responsible for confiscating properties; and Red Hair lords, agitated and shouting, tragically stretching out their arms before their own doors, trying to block the "robbers."

Watching the show all the way, Master Zong... Zong Dongshi arrived by carriage at the front of the Municipal Hall.

Since it was still under military control, there was not only a registrar at the Municipal Hall entrance but also a Platoon Leader on Duty. After being helped out of the carriage by his retinue, Master Zong first registered at the door. Then, because he was a big shot, a Director, a registrar specifically led him through the main gate of the Municipal Hall.

In just a few short days, the old-style building had changed its appearance. The windows had all been replaced with large panes of glass transmitting bright light. The former main hall was now lined with rows of office desks, and behind each desk, a short-haired clerk in a shirt was busy at work.

The corridors on both sides of the hall now had patrolling guards moving back and forth. These guards had firearms at their waists and carried short batons — their attention was focused on the people sitting on the corridor benches who had come for handling affairs.

Among these people here for handling affairs, there were both Chinese and foreign merchants. They all uniformly wore a temporary pass, a white-lacquered wooden carved seal, on their chests, and many of them held a wooden box in their arms.

Master Zong knew that the wooden boxes contained deeds and documents. These people were clearly here, "responding to the government's call" under duress, "voluntarily" coming to the Municipal Hall to register their property and exchange for new-version land and house deeds. And as coincidence would have it, Master Zong spotted an old acquaintance among them: the great Portuguese translator, veteran broker, Niu Xijian, Master Niu.

In the past, Master Zong would certainly have gone up to exchange pleasantries with Master Niu, who had bought his properties. But times had changed. Zong Dongshi was now a man registered with the General Headquarters, a big shot who could participate in the implementation of the General Headquarters' major commercial directions. Someone like Master Niu was no longer in Zong Dongshi's sights.

So Master Zong's eyes glanced sideways. Leaning on his civilization cane, walking with a stride that disowned all relatives, under the smiling service of the registrar, he swaggered right past Master Niu and went all the way to the rear hall.

In the rear hall, the newly appointed Macau Special District Chief, Comrade Li Long, Li Dazui, was chatting happily with several directors who had arrived early.

Half-reclining in a folding chair, his leather shoes propped high up on a large table made of Taiwanese red cypress, Li Dazui saw Zong Dongshi enter in his Western suit and trousers and immediately laughed heartily, proactively extending his hand.

Li Dazui had a very good impression of Zong Dongshi. This Master Zong, after the ceremony on the day of entering the city, was the first Ming native to come forward and congratulate him. In front of Regional Commander Cao, Master Zong was well-dressed and spoke pleasantly, making Li Dazui feel very honored.

Seeing Lord Li extend his hand, Zong Dongshi hurried forward and shook hands across the table. Now, the Ming natives close to the transmigrators all knew that these high officials from the General Headquarters disliked receiving gifts, and their daily greetings were simple. In Zong Ben's own words: "Truly, they are all men of action."

After a warm and enthusiastic handshake, Zong Dongshi also joined the lively discussion from before. And the content of the discussion, after several more directors arrived one after another, shifted under Li Dazui's guidance to the grand topic of how Macau should develop in the future.

When noon arrived, seeing that the discussion was nearly complete, a confident Li Dazui stood up and expressed that he would first treat everyone to a meal out, and then take them on a field inspection to grasp the Macau blueprint in his heart, Lord Li's vision.

So the group chatted and laughed as they exited the rear hall.

When passing through the front hall, an unexpected scene suddenly unfolded: a figure wearing a robe of copper-rust satin suddenly darted over, hugged Zong Ben's thigh, and cried out: "Master Zong, you must bear witness for your old brother! This deed was truly transferred from your hands before the war!"