Southern Rose [Gone with the Wind]

"Yes, the island..."

"have you been there?"

"I have been there once. My mother said that I will take you to see it when you come back. Grandma will distribute the income of this island equally to her four children. Dad will also distribute the income equally to the two of us in the future. In this way, As long as the island does not sink, we will still have an income."

"How much is this profit?"

"I don't know, it's not less than $1 a year."

"Whoa! Is that a quarter income?"

"almost."

That is an income of about US$5 a year, which seems very little-compared to those rich people-but considering the price level of this era, US$5 a year is not a small figure.Besides, if the owner is not watching the plantation, the housekeeper cannot avoid corruption, so the annual income of the sugar cane plantation must be more than 5 US dollars.

This small island that she has never seen before is like a paradise, a hidden "surprise", and maybe it will be a lifeboat for their family.

She really wanted to transfer the property as much as possible before the civil war, but this kind of thing still depends on the wishes of her father and brother. If she can't persuade them, this thing can't be done.

"What are you thinking about?"

"Thinking about the future."

"In the future? What will happen? Don't worry, Dad is determined to find you a good husband, with wealth worthy of your appearance and family background, so that you will have no worries for the rest of your life."

"So, his appearance is not considered?"

Charles laughed. "Oh, my sister! You know, it's almost impossible for you to find a husband as handsome and intelligent as I am in the South."

Josephine couldn't help laughing too: Brother is really arrogant and proud.

"But maybe we can go to New Orleans, where there are some new immigrants."

"Are we going to New Orleans?"

"Yes, when we get back from Washington."

"and then?"

"It's all up to you." He kissed the back of her hand, and then kissed her cheek.

In the afternoon, John took his little grandson to the gentlemen's club he frequented, and Emile took his daughter to the afternoon tea party at Andensson's house.

Victor came to say goodbye to his mother, "Mom, grandpa is taking me out."

"Okay, listen to grandfather." Gently pinched the tip of his little nose, "My baby is really a little gentleman."

Victor was a little proud, "Grandma took me out yesterday, and the other wives praised me as a good baby." He really wanted to tell his mother what those wives said to him, so that his mother Can praise him more.

Josephine signaled the servant to carry Victor to the seat and stood there, and pulled his little coat, "Of course my baby is a good baby. Tell mom, do you like this place?"

"Yes," he nodded earnestly, "I like grandparents."

"Do you like living in this house, too?"

"Like—will we always live here?"

"It's hard to say. But you can live in this house as long as you like, and grandparents and uncles will want you to stay."

He smiled happily, "I don't miss Katie, Caroline, and Claude at all. They always laugh at me for not having a father. I don't like them."

Josephine felt a pain in her heart, "Those are bad kids! You have a dad, everyone has a dad, but your dad went to see God and he can't come back. It's not your fault baby, those kids who laughed at you Bad boys, bad boys, nobody likes them, and nobody wants to play with them. Now, go out with grandpa, tonight—what do you think mother will take you out to play tomorrow?"

"Are you really going out to play?"

"Yes, and uncle, uncle also likes you very much, right?"

"I like it a little bit, I've only seen him twice." He stretched out his hand and gestured.

"Uncle will love you, he just doesn't know you well. You are my child, he will love you for sure. Sheldon, take the young master downstairs."

The black servant and freeman Sheldon Robillard nodded, hugged Victor, and led him out of the room.

Slave owners usually change their names after buying slaves, and black slaves do not deserve a surname, but when registration is required, slaves are required to have a surname, and sometimes the owner's surname is used directly.If a black slave is lucky enough to meet a master who is generous, kind and of status, it is an honor for them to be able to use the master's surname.

Sheldon is already the third generation of slaves in the family, 4 years older than Josephine, and became the young lady's black boy at the age of 6. He served her, took care of her, and protected her. It can be said that they are like brothers and sisters.The four black slaves brought to Paris by Josephine all grew up with her. They have a deep affection for the little mistress and are of the same age. Posey is the oldest, 4 years old this year, Sheldon is 27 years old, and Candy is 26 years old. Stanley is 25 years old and Lydia is 24 years old.

Three years ago, Josephine gave 3 people the documents to release their slaves, and married their childhood sweethearts, Sheldon and Lydia, in a French church, and promised that Lydia's children, regardless of gender, would have the opportunity to receive education.

It is one thing to enjoy the life of a wealthy bourgeois family. Buying services with money is a normal equivalent exchange, but if the services you enjoy are provided by slaves who have lost their personal freedom, she cannot take it for granted.

Sheldon received the education of tutors with the young master and young lady, because Charles hoped that someone would copy textbooks and write papers for him. Charles was not the kind of kid from a rich family who was ignorant, Mrs. Jenkins said, and Master Charles refused. He practiced calligraphy well, so he always thought of tricks when doing homework, he dictated, and Sheldon copied.

Because of this, Sheldon's writing speed and vocabulary are very good. It can be said that he is the black slave with the highest level of knowledge in the Robillard family. John originally wanted to train Sheldon to be Josephine's butler, but Sheldon Ton could be Josephine's steward without remaining a slave, for a fee, and that was a job.

Sheldon is unwilling to leave the little mistress, and besides, he still has a large family in Savannah. The success of the "gradual redemption" redemption plan that the little mistress said made all four of them full of hope, and none of them doubted why the little mistress changed so much Big, firstly, the little mistress has become a wife and mother, and secondly, slavery has been abolished in France, so it is normal for the little mistress to make changes.

They want to be optimistic about things that are good for them.

Keeping your subordinates loyal was an art, and Josephine thought she was doing a good job.

Southern slave owners have their own way of treating slaves, but no matter how gentle and kind-hearted the slave owners are, they still think that slaves are "property" rather than "persons". This is very contradictory, backward and not up to date.Josephine is not sure that she can change the status quo of slavery in the south, at most she can only change her own composition from slavery to employment.

Josephine tactfully asked the ladies what they thought of slavery at the afternoon tea party.

She took the fashionable Paris as a sample. There is no slavery in Paris. Everyone is a free citizen, and blacks can do many jobs.The ladies thought it was incredible!How can a family be considered "upper class" if there are no black slaves in it?

They have been exposed to the lifestyle of southern slave owners since they were young. Every family has a considerable number of black slaves. They are used to the selfless dedication of black slaves, and they cannot imagine how black slaves should live as free people.

"It's terrible! What can they do?" A lady said: "They don't know anything, so they barely do the housework at home. What can they do when they leave home? Who will take care of them when they are sick? How do they pay their bills?"

"And where are they going to live?" Another woman worried deeply. "I don't want the streets of Savannah to be full of unemployed black people."

"There are states that have 'progressive buy-outs' for decades, where slaves make their own money to pay for the ransom, they just aren't slaves anymore, but they can still do the old jobs, you -- I mean we can pay The pay for their work. It’s the same as before."

The wives were at a loss for a while, and then realized, "Shouldn't this mean that the household expenses have increased? Why should I pay this fee?"

It makes sense and cannot be refuted.

"Isn't it 'all men are created equal'? It's written in the Constitution."

"That's right, all people are created equal, except for black people. They are born lowly, and they are only worthy of lowly jobs and slaves." A lady said contemptuously.

The hand of the black female slave who was serving at the side paused for a moment while pouring tea.

Josephine immediately glanced at the female black slave: she was at least the third generation of mixed blood, her complexion was already very light, her long black hair curled around her face, her gray-blue pupils, her appearance was extremely beautiful.

She is the most beloved house slave of the owner, Mrs. Antonson. Her usual job is to accompany her for a walk and read. Antonson takes her to all social occasions and proudly shows her to the wives in Savannah and Charleston. It is said that a northern gentleman wanted to buy the slave girl for 1 US dollars, but Mrs. Andenson proudly believed that she was not short of the 1 US dollars.

Mrs. Anderson named the slave girl "Diana".

"Forgive me for disagreeing." Josephine gracefully picked up the Chinese porcelain teacup, "When God created humans, they must be equal, and differences in skin color should not affect their status."

"You actually think that these dark-skinned people are the same as us?" One of the ladies asked in surprise: "Then you admit that you should also be slaves like black people?"

Aha!

Josephine immediately lifted her spirits: among the ladies who generally have low levels of knowledge in the south, there is a person who knows how to argue, that's not uncommon. "Aren't I the same color as you?"