Chapter 9: Dividing Silver With Large Scales
A ship worker came to knock on the door.
Lin Qian put down the sea chart, closed his sore eyes, pinched his brow, and called for the person to come in.
“Helmsman, the shop assistants for unloading cargo have arrived.”
Helmsman is Great Ming’s term for captain. After killing the original ship captain, the ship workers then called him Helmsman.
Lin Qian indicated that he knew.
Exiting the cabin, he saw Zhou Xiucai and Lei Sanxiang already directing people to unload the cargo.
The remaining ship workers were also helping to carry and pass cargo on the ship, in good order.
Fuchuan Ships all use watertight compartment design. The cabins are divided by wooden boards into individual small cabins. Unloading requires handling each cabin one by one, quite complex.
But the advantage is that if one cabin takes on water, the whole ship won’t sink. Safety is much higher than on Western ships.
An old man with a tobacco pipe in his mouth puffing clouds was directing the ship workers to open the deck cabin door of the cargo hold.
This man was the ship’s carpenter, couldn’t speak, and everyone called him Mute Huang.
Seeing Mute Huang, Lin Qian had a thought and called him over.
Mute Huang came over with a face full of smiles. Before he got close, a pungent smoke smell wafted over, as if his whole body had been soaked in tar.
Lin Qian took out a sheet of paper from his bosom. On it was drawn the shape of a fountain pen nib.
“Make a bamboo brush like this. Can you do it?”
Mute Huang took it, glanced at it, and gave Lin Qian a thumbs up. This was praising his drawing.
Lin Qian in his previous life did design work. Drawing was a basic skill. During his student days, he often went to the suburbs to sketch from nature. Of course, using sketching as an excuse to appreciate a few female models was also common.
Mute Huang returned the blueprint to Lin Qian, patted his chest to indicate no problem, and then turned to fetch tools.
In less than the time of one incense stick, Mute Huang returned with the bamboo brush.
Lin Qian took the brush. The tip was exactly as he had drawn, and the grip felt comfortable.
Lin Qian returned to his room, dipped the brush in ink, and casually wrote a few characters. The ink flowed evenly. With a slight press, the tip split faintly, allowing for variations in thickness.
Except for needing to dip ink occasionally, it was almost indistinguishable from fountain pens of later eras. It was much better than quill pens that cost one silver peso each.
Lin Qian said to Mute Huang, “Well done. Pen making will rely on you from now on.”
Mute Huang smiled and patted his chest.
Unloading continued for three or four hours before all the ship’s goods were unloaded.
Then Lu Cheng Ji’s shop assistants carefully carried over a dozen large boxes onboard.
Lin Qian opened a few boxes to inspect. Inside were neatly stacked silver ingots and silver coins.
These boxes together made up the entire cargo value.
By the time the boxes were fully transported, it was almost evening. Lin Qian rewarded each laborer with three rials. The laborers beamed with joy.
After the laborers walked far away, the sun had sunk to the sea surface. A bleak red stretched between sea and sky.
All the ship workers looked at Lin Qian with bright eyes.
“Third Brother, take some people to fetch one box of silver coins.”
“Good!” Lei Sanxiang responded with full vigor.
“Second Brother, fetch the ship’s scales and account book.”
“Alright.”
Lin Qian paused, scanned the other ship workers, and said loudly, “Everyone to the deck! We’re dividing the silver!”
After the time of two incense sticks, everything was prepared on the deck.
Lin Qian and his sworn brothers stood at the stern. In front of them was an open box full of pesos, gleaming with silver light.
Nearby were five or six scales of various sizes.
The ship workers gathered around, waiting for their pay.
“Let me say this upfront: silver given to whom is whose. If anyone steals or robs, this is what happens!”
With that, Lin Qian swung his blade, chopping off a corner of the railing.
None of the ship workers spoke.
“Qi San.” Lin Qian called a name.
A ship worker squeezed out from the crowd, smiling as he stepped forward and held out a sack.
Zhou Xiucai grabbed a handful of silver coins and put them on the scale. He kept adding and removing until the weight was around one hundred fifty taels. Then he used a small scale to weigh precisely, ensuring not a fraction was off.
After weighing, Lin Qian poured the silver coins into Qi San’s sack. They slid in with a crisp clinking sound.
Everyone swallowed hard upon hearing it.
“As agreed before, one hundred taels per person. The extra fifty taels is the Helmsman’s reward!” Lei Sanxiang announced loudly.
Hearing this, Qi San wanted to kneel and kowtow in thanks, but Lin Qian held him up.
“We’re all brothers. No need to kneel.”
Qi San rose tremblingly, wiped his eyes, and shouldered the sack.
Zhou Xiucai had Qi San press a handprint in the account book.
“Qian Wu.” Lin Qian called the next name.
……
Including Lin Qian and the sworn brothers, there were forty-five crew members on the ship. This came to a total of six thousand seven hundred fifty taels of silver. They divided over two boxes of silver coins.
By the time the silver was divided, night had fully fallen.
Ship workers who received silver early had already gone ashore to enjoy themselves.
Those who divided late could only return to their cabins, endure the night scratching like cats in heat, and plan to head to the city to splurge at dawn.
Most of the silver Lu Dongzhu gave Lin Qian consisted of silver ingots brought by Manila Galleons. To prevent imported inflation, Governor’s Mansion regulations prohibited silver ingots from circulating on the island.
What Lin Qian distributed to the crew members were silver pesos, Luzon’s legal tender.
The goal was to get the crew members spending more. Silver that comes quickly naturally goes quickly.
Lin Qian planned to stay anchored in Manila for a while.
Officially, to wait for the monsoon.
In reality, to let the ship workers splurge in Manila.
Once most of it was spent, they’d need to earn more. That would bind them tighter to his sea bandit group.
This might seem a bit unscrupulous.
But for those wanting to be nice guys, dock laborer at Yuegang Port was clearly a better job than sea bandit leader.
Besides, Lin Qian wasn’t forcing them to spend the silver. If they stayed on the ship, avoided whoring and gambling, and lived honestly, they could naturally save it.
After dividing the ship workers’ silver, Lin Qian called his sworn brothers to the stern cabin.
“To be frank with you brothers, this cargo sale netted over thirty-six thousand taels of silver. We’ve divided out over six thousand seven hundred taels, leaving over twenty-nine thousand taels. How to divide this money—please discuss, brothers.”
Lin Qian spoke straightforwardly while having Zhou Xiucai open the account book on the table.
No one spoke.
After a moment, Lei Sanxiang said, “Lin Laodi, you set the rule.”
Zhou Xiucai said, “Helmsman, please speak first.”
Lin Qian said, “Brothers disregarded life and death, only then did we rob the ship and gain this wealth.
Though Fourth Brother and Fifth Brother broke their oaths first, they were unrighteous—so we can’t be unrighteous. Their shares will naturally go to their families when we return to Great Ming.
Now the ship robbery is done. If anyone wants to take his money and disband, I won’t say a word against it. I’ll personally escort him back to Great Ming and deliver the silver.
But don’t forget, Great Ming is still rife with corrupt officials and ruled by evil gentry. Even with huge sums, alone and weak, it’s hard to hold on to it.
Moreover, we all have murder charges hanging over us, making stable lives even harder.
Now everyone sees the huge profits in maritime transport. With brothers united, we can definitely carve out a career at sea. If you brothers trust me, why not stay?”
No one replied. The atmosphere grew quite heavy.
After a moment, Chen Jiao spoke: “Looking at those official masters’ faces, it’s nothing like the free and easy life at sea.”
Lei Sanxiang laughed and cursed, “Damn it! Lin Laodi, your roundabout words got me all confused… Anyway, just for not forgetting brothers, I’m sticking with you.”
“Zhou Xiucai, you won’t miss your own fame and fortune, will you?” Lei Sanxiang said.
“What fame and fortune?”
Zhou Xiucai waved indifferently. He was actually just a tongsheng without xiucai status.
Great Ming’s county exam wasn’t some elementary school test. It was a real single-log bridge for a thousand troops—a hundred examinees, fewer than five pass.
Otherwise he wouldn’t have ended up as a ship worker.
His real name was Zhou Youcai. Because he was literate, the ship workers nicknamed him Zhou Xiucai.
Even so, when it came to a scholar’s dignity, Zhou Xiucai couldn’t let the words drop. Indignantly, he said: “Court and countryside alike indulge in factional strife. The imperial examination no longer values essays but whose faction the chief examiner belongs to and who best fathoms the examiner’s mind. Better to entrust this life to rivers and seas than join such a foul officialdom.”
Lei Sanxiang clapped Zhou Xiucai’s shoulder hard: “Too many books, can’t speak plain… Never mind. Staying means good brothers.”
Everyone looked toward Bai Langzai.
