Chapter 1642 - The Bastion Market

Early the next morning, the three met outside the Great East Gate and set off together toward the Great World.

They were not wealthy folk, unable to afford sedan chairs or rickshaws, so they could only walk. Fortunately, it was already autumn, and the weather was considerably cooler than in summer. Traveling early, the three felt relaxed and at ease.

The Australian Great World had commenced construction shortly after they withdrew from before Guangzhou City. The area along the route from the Great East Gate to the Great World had originally been nothing but mudflats silted up by the riverbank. Not to mention houses and fields—even decent large trees were scarce. Scattered among wild grass and misty vapors were some desolate graves. Since the Australians came here three years ago to build the Great World, they had first constructed a grand road connecting it with Guangzhou City. Thus, before the Great World even opened, the link with Guangzhou had already been forged.

The road naturally followed the Hair-people's consistently extravagant style: paved with a mixture of crushed stones and black coal cinders, wide and level, with drainage ditches on both sides and a row of kapok trees lining its length.

Over the course of three years, most items purchasable from Guangzhou for the Great World construction site had been transported along this road, and various artisans and laborers from the city also walked it to reach their work. Residents near the Great East Gate had grown accustomed to the steam whistle summoning workers at the Great World construction site each morning.

At this moment, quite a few pedestrians already traveled the road, mostly heading in the same direction. Most were "short-clothed folk"—laborers doing hard work. There were also some small peddlers selling food, carrying loads on shoulder poles or pushing carts, streaming toward the construction site in an endless flow.

However, mingled in the stream of people were also some sedan chairs, and some who appeared to be merchants, riding donkeys and bringing little apprentices along, slowly making their way toward the Great World.

Huang Binkun was suddenly startled to observe quite a few people among the peddlers and laborers with hair cropped short. Could there also be many Fake Hair-bandits here? Looking again, these people still wore Great Ming clothing, unlike "Fake Hair-bandits"—so he whispered to Wu Ming what was going on.

"These are all local commoners. Having worked for Hair-people for a long time, they also learned from the Australians to cut their hair short," Wu Ming said. "They claim it's cleaner and easier to manage."

"The government doesn't intervene?"

"The government prefers one less trouble to one more. Who is willing to offend Australians over this?"

"Truly lawless!" Huang Binkun said indignantly.

After walking less than half a li, they observed workers inlaying long iron strips onto the road surface one by one. Wu Ming explained this was the Hair-people's Ox-Drawn Railway—many people had seen Hair-people using oxen to pull freight cars loaded with building materials. He had heard that later one could ride to the Great World by the Pearl River for just a few wen. Besides ox-drawn freight cars, there were also small iron cars speeding along the completed road sections, flying forward as long as two people pressed up and down.

"This isn't an ox cart railway—it's the track for the Hair-bandits' Fire Wheel Cars," Huang Binkun observed the construction with worry. "Before long, Hair-bandit small trains will be able to reach directly to the Great East Gate."

"This I must experience," Wu Ming was full of interest. "I've heard their small trains don't use oxen or horses or manpower, moving by burning fire and boiling water. I never understood how it works—now I can witness it with my own eyes!"

Huang Binkun smiled bitterly to himself. This train was naturally an extremely useful device. Once the railway was completed, Hair-bandit troops reaching the Great East Gate would be a matter of mere moments—not to mention that transporting large cannons would be effortless. Rather than saying a thoroughfare to the Great World had been built, it was more accurate to say an iron chain was being fastened around Guangzhou City's neck.

But what use was it even if he said so? The government dared not intervene—let alone these scholars of the Yuyuan Society.

The group continued forward. Walking a short distance further, they saw a spire tower rising from the ground. Beneath the spire stood an arched stone gate—according to Wu Ming, this was the main entrance of the Great World.

Members of the Yuyuan Society were interested in everything Australian, so naturally they would not overlook this specimen right before their eyes. Every ten days or half a month, someone from the society would always come here in company to observe—Wu Ming could be counted among those who came most frequently.

"The shape of this tower seems to follow the Red-haired people's style," Wu Ming said. "Only there is one thing I don't understand: Why is the top floor open on four sides? Someone said it's for hanging a large bell, but this tower has been built for over a year, yet no hanging bell is visible. It's enclosed with reed mats on four sides. I don't know the explanation."

Huang Binkun, however, understood that this "clock" (zhong) was not that "bell" (zhong). He shook his head. "Worthy Brother Wu, this clock is not the great bell hung in temple bell and drum towers, but the Australians' clock..." He pondered how to explain. "There are probably some wealthy families in Guangzhou City who also have them."

"Could it be that floor-standing Australian large clock in Young Master Liang's home?" Wu Ming was somewhat skeptical. "I've seen that clock. Very novel. Only it's merely the size of a wardrobe."

"Australian clocks can be large or small. Small ones can be tucked in one's bosom; large ones are installed on clock towers." Huang Binkun shook his head. "There are several such clock towers in Lingao. They chime once every hour. There is no clock on this tower—probably not yet manufactured. These great clocks are extraordinarily difficult to make. Even in Lingao, those clock towers stood empty for several years."

"I see now."

The three walked forward along the tracks for a while longer, and the Great World lay before their eyes. The appearance of this Great World was most peculiar. To call it a commercial firm—yet the scale was grand, resembling a small city.

Standing on a mound by the road at that moment, they could roughly discern that the Great World by the river was a huge pentagon. Huang Binkun recalled seeing it in Huang Ping's mathematics book: this was called a regular pentagon.

The length of each side was approximately one li. Huang Binkun drew in a sharp breath of cold air. This scale would suffice for a county seat in Hainan. The Hair-bandits called this opening a commercial firm? Clearly they were building a city!

Huang Binkun had experienced battles and was familiar with military affairs; he also understood the Australians' city defense architecture well. He recognized at a glance that this Great World was exactly the same as the various military forts and camps the Hair-bandits had built on Hainan Island. All were so-called "Bastions"—Star Forts. The stockade presented a pentagon, with a small fortress on each protruding angle. This so-called clock tower was precisely one of the protruding angle fortresses.

What felt slightly comforting was that the two wings extending from the clock tower had not been built as city walls, but rather as two open colonnades—the military flavor not very pronounced. Here, apart from portions still bearing bamboo scaffolding, most had been completed. Thick stone pillars were carved with patterns in relief, appearing towering and magnificent. Through the colonnade, one could see the interior was a large square. The ground had not yet been leveled, piled with yellow sand, stones, and various materials.

A thick, ferocious black iron-framed tower in the center was the topic of conversation for everyone in Guangzhou City—rich or poor, noble or humble—in recent years: a steam crane.

That this steam crane was thick and solid, capable of lifting heavy objects, and could rotate freely was one thing. What most confused Guangzhou citizens—including the scholars of the Yuyuan Society who aspired to study "Banditology"—was: How did this tower crane grow taller by itself?

Citizens who loved watching excitement had witnessed this iron tower machine rise from over one zhang high all the way to seven or eight zhang high as the Great World's buildings grew ever taller.

How this crane tower was raised had become a topic of unceasing discussion in many tea houses and restaurants throughout the city. The Yuyuan Society also argued endlessly. For this, Young Master Lin had even specially hired several carpenters and coppersmiths of excellent skill to go to the site and observe this machine. Only they could not get close to the construction area. Watching from afar several times, they could not discern the principle.

They could only see it being built and raised section by section. However, this tower was so tall, and the iron frame of each section so enormous and heavy—obviously not hoisted up by manpower or pulleys. Moreover, there was a long cantilever and a small iron-framed glass cabin at the very top of this tower frame. Adding height layer by layer seemed utterly impossible to achieve.

At this moment they had no inclination to discuss this matter—only following the flow of people into the Great World.

Outside the Great World construction site, a bamboo fence had originally surrounded it at a distance. Now, the fence gates had all been thrown open. Road signs stood at the entrance: one side read "Labor Work," the other side read "Business Recruitment."

The group walked toward the "Business Recruitment" direction following the road sign. Along the way, merchants were crowded together. The three followed the flow of people through the colonnade, entering the large square still piled with building materials.

All three were stunned: What manner of building is this?!

They had never seen the main building before their eyes—not only Zhang and Wu who resided in Guangzhou, but even Huang Binkun who came from the "Hair-bandit Old Nest" had not seen it.

This enormous structure before their eyes stood in the middle of the square, built entirely of stone. On the magnificent stone outer walls were tall and narrow long windows, glass gleaming upon them. This building was not only a five-story mansion, but each story was also higher than the floors they commonly saw. The main gate of the grand building rose the height of two stories, supported by stone pillars in the middle. On both sides of the high steps crouched a pair of stone lions of unusual appearance—ferocious faces and wings on their flanks. Above the main gate rose another clock tower. Looking carefully, this building was not square. Like the Great World's outer wall, it was also a regular pentagonal structure. Each of the five corners bore a tower. Extending from the two wings like outstretched arms were two-story buildings, connecting all the way to the two towers of the Great World's outer wall.

"So tall! Simply, simply..." Zhang Yu stammered, suddenly feeling that his walnut cookie small shop was finished—coming here himself had basically been a waste of effort.

"Such height is simply like a Buddhist pagoda," Wu Ming forced himself to remain calm, gazing up at the enormous building. Ancient China had rarely built multi-story buildings; the few that existed were mostly two stories. Only religious structures like Buddhist pagodas could truly be called high-rise buildings. Though some pagodas' heights could rival later generations' twenty or thirty-story buildings, the floor area was small and they held no practical value.

While Huang Binkun marveled, his heart suddenly sank. In Lingao, he had never seen the Hair-bandits erect such a magnificent building. Why spare no cost to build such a grand and magnificent structure outside Guangzhou City?

Xiang Zhuang performed the sword dance, but his intention was on Pei Gong. This so-called Great World they had built was clearly a letter of war declaring hostilities against the Imperial Court. This Great World was no dazzling, flower-bedecked realm of Australian style—it was a through-and-through impregnable fortress!

(End of Chapter)