Chapter 442: Is This over Seventy Years Old?

The area around Sutter's Fort is famously quiet because there is only one household here, Sutter.

Now Sutter is the mayor of Sacramento. He no longer has to patrol with a gun in person because he is worried about the theft of crops on his farm like he did five years ago.

Not to mention the crops on the farm, even the animals in the mountains and forests, no one dares to touch them without Sutter's consent.

Sutter's Fort is more than 30 kilometers away from downtown Sacramento.

In order to facilitate commuting to and from the city, Sutter even paid for a railway from Sacramento to Sutter's Fort.

If he has official business to handle on weekdays, he will take his private train to Sacramento to handle official business. It only takes less than an hour from Sutter's Fort to Sacramento.

If he has nothing to do, Sutter either holds a banquet in his luxurious manor or hunts in the endless mountains and forests with a shotgun or a bow. He occasionally stays in the study, basking in the afternoon sun and reading a book.

Even Liang Yao envied Sartre's life, which was simple, leisurely and boring.

Compared with Robinson, Sartre did not have much political ambition, and compared with Fremont, Sartre did not have Fremont's lofty ideals.

Sartre only cared about a corner of Sacramento and his own estate.

Therefore, Sartre lived a more relaxed life than Robinson, Fremont and others.

Now Sartre has brought his family from Europe, and the family is enjoying the joy of family in Sacramento.

Sartre's special train slowly drove into Sutter's Fort, and accompanied by a sharp brake sound of metal friction, the train slowly stopped.

"I left Baidi in the morning among the colorful clouds, and returned to Jiangling in a day. There is nothing better than this. This train, except that it is a little uncomfortable to sit on and makes people feel a little nauseous, is very convenient, faster than a fast horse."

After the train stopped, Liang Weiming couldn't help but sigh.

Because the southern coastal areas of the Qing Dynasty were far away from the political center of the north, the business atmosphere was relatively strong. Therefore, compared with the scholars in the north, most of the scholars in the south were relatively open-minded.

Guangzhou in the Guangdong region is the only long-standing foreign trade port, and it can also be said to be the only window left. Therefore, the Guangdong region centered on Guangzhou is the most civilized place in the entire south, and even in the entire China.

This is also the reason why Liang Weiming is not so averse to new things in the West.

Liang Weiming not only does not reject trains, he even likes this means of transportation that is better than horses.

The capital of the Qing Dynasty is in the capital in the north, and Liang Weiming lives in Guangdong Province in the southernmost part of China.

Whether it is going to Beijing to take the exam when he was young or returning to his hometown, he has to travel by land and water every time, which takes several months, and the expenses along the way are not cheap.

However, for the candidates from various provinces in the Qing Dynasty who went to Beijing to take the exam, the candidates in Guangdong are not the worst. The worst are the candidates in Yunnan and Guizhou.

The Yunnan and Guizhou regions are densely covered with mountains and forests, full of miasma, and sparsely populated, and often haunted by wild beasts and poisonous insects.

In all dynasties, there were many records of people from Yunnan and Guizhou who went to Beijing to participate in the imperial examinations, or even went to the provincial capital to participate in the provincial examinations, but were bitten by wolves, tigers and leopards, poisoned by snakes and scorpions, and robbed and killed by mountain bandits on the way.

If they passed the exam, it would be fine. If they failed, the candidates from Yunnan and Guizhou would have to continue to take this difficult road to the exam four years later, or even for the rest of their lives.

It can be said that the candidates from Yunnan and Guizhou took their lives to participate in the imperial examinations, and every journey out of the village was a test as difficult as the journey to the West to obtain scriptures.

"With the train, although the two places are thousands of miles apart, they can still be reached in one day." Liang Yao laughed.

The Pioneer has a passenger speed of about 35 kilometers per hour. Without considering the time spent on stopping at stations along the way, it can still run more than 800 kilometers a day, or more than 1,600 miles.

Of course, the speed of freight trains may be slower.

Liang Yao saw that Liang Weiming just kept his mouth shut and didn't speak. He knew that Liang Weiming was sick from the train and wanted to vomit, but because there were too many people at the station, it would be a bit inappropriate to vomit in public.

Liang Yao took Liang Weiming to a secluded place with no one around, patted Liang Weiming's back and said.

"Grandpa, there's no one here, you can vomit if you want."

Liang Weiming saw that there was no one around, so he vomited wantonly.

It was just that Liang Weiming had vomited several times on the train just now. After getting off the train, there was nothing left in his stomach. After vomiting for a long time, he only vomited some bitter water.

"Refreshing, refreshing, much more comfortable." After vomiting, Liang Weiming stroked his stomach and said contentedly.

"This is the bow you want. The poundage is not too big or too small, about 45 pounds, which is enough for hunting some small prey." After entering Sartre's manor, Sartre handed Liang Yao a longbow.

Sartre likes hunting. He not only hunts with a hunting rifle, but sometimes he also changes his taste and hunts with a bow and arrow.

Hunting with a gun is like fishing with a net, which is relatively easier to hunt prey. Bow hunting is like fishing, which is relatively more difficult to hunt prey.

However, each has its own fun.

Connie gave two top-quality volcanic rock lever rifles. The bullets used in this gun are pistol bullets, with a small charge, small recoil, and rapid shooting. They are more suitable for hunting for newcomers like Liang Weiming who have basically never touched a gun.

Liang Yao originally planned to let Liang Weiming and Liang Shaochen hunt with volcanic rock lever rifles, but Liang Weiming doesn't like guns and likes bows.

The Liang family does have a few small bows and Qingjiao bows at home, but they were not brought over.

There are not many people who are good at bows in California, so Liang Yao can only ask Sartre to choose a suitable bow for Liang Weiming.

Liang Yao took the longbow from Sartre and handed it to Liang Weiming, but he was still a little worried. After all, Liang Weiming was already over 70 years old, so he reminded him.

"Grandpa, don't force yourself. If you get hurt, it will be a problem."

Liang Weiming snatched the longbow from Liang Yao and rolled his eyes at Liang Yao: "Shooting is one of the six arts of a gentleman. You underestimate grandpa. Grandpa's body is not so weak that he can get hurt by pulling a bow."

After saying that, Liang Weiming put on the ring, held the bowstring with the thumb of his right hand, and pulled it with the index finger.

Sartre subconsciously took a step back when he saw this, fearing that Liang Weiming would shoot him.

Liang Weiming was of medium height and thin, and Sartre did not think that this thin old man could pull a 45-pound longbow.

In the next second, Sartre almost dropped his jaw in shock. He stared at Liang Weiming with wide eyes in disbelief.

Liang Weiming not only pulled the 45-pound longbow, but also controlled it very steadily.

"WTF?! Are you sure your grandfather is over 70 years old?"

Liang Weiming easily pulled the 45-pound bow and was able to control it steadily, which shocked Sartre.

"This is a bow for children to play with." Liang Weiming put down the longbow and asked Sartre, "Does Mayor Sartre have a heavier bow?"

Liang Weiming was not satisfied with the longbow provided by Sartre.

Not only because the poundage was low, but also because the pulling feeling made Liang Weiming feel a little awkward and uncomfortable.

"Yes! Yes! Yes!" Sartre nodded hurriedly.

There are not many people in California who like bows, and even fewer people who are good at using bows.

Sartre usually goes bow hunting with some Indian chiefs and Indian guards. It is rare to meet someone who can use a bow, which makes Sartre very excited.

Sartre brought Liang Weiming to his treasured bow storage room, where Sartre collected various good bows from all over the world.

English longbow, Tatar bow, Turkish bow (Turkish bow), Persian bow, and even the combined bow Sartre just got from Japan.

Unfortunately, Sartre did not get the Qing bow from the Qing Dynasty.

Sartre asked his followers to string these bows and let Liang Weiming choose.

After some experience, Liang Weiming finally chose a 60-pound Turkish bow and asked Sartre for a good horse.

"Your grandfather is not simple." Sartre sighed.

"I was also surprised, and I underestimated my grandfather." Liang Yao sighed.

Liang Yao's stereotype of the Qing Dynasty literati was not very good. In Liang Yao's stereotype, the literati in the late Qing Dynasty were addicted to smoking opium, weak and pedantic. It was difficult for him to associate the literati in the late Qing Dynasty with the term "full of martial virtues".

Facts have proved that he was wrong. He still underestimated the literati. Perhaps many literati in the late Qing Dynasty were indeed as unbearable as Liang Yao's stereotype, but not all of them.