Du Dewei left Yuegang soon after having a secret talk with Xu Xinsu that day.

After returning to Haimen Island, Du Dewei quickly closed the door with Hu Ba and began to discuss secretly. During this period, a fierce dispute occurred. Of course, as usual, Du Dewei still won in the end.

So the two parted ways the next day. Du Dewei went north without knowing where he was going, while Hu Ba went straight back to the Zhongzuo Institute to join Li Kuiqi.

Not to mention how Li Kuiqi cleaned up the mess in Xiamen, I only said that Du Dewei and his party of 20 miscellaneous ships did not delay at all after breaking up with Hu Ba that day, but went all the way north to Fuzhou.

It was the southerly season right now, so the 20 or so boats of the Du family headed north very quickly. Although they were dragged down by some broken fishing boats, they still arrived at Luoshan, the northernmost tip of the Haitan Islands, on the evening of the third day.

Island area.

After anchoring in a random bay on Dongluo Island, which is only more than 30 kilometers away from the mouth of the Minjiang River, Du Dewei first changed into a fisherman's shorts early the next morning, and then picked an inconspicuous broken fishing boat from the team.

Then we drove towards Fuzhou City.

It followed the coastline all the way north, and then turned westbound when it reached the mouth of the Minjiang River. It was not until noon that the fishing boat found a place to dock at the Jingloumen Pier in the north of Fuzhou City.

Du Dewei casually took out some copper coins and sent them to the sharp-mouthed tax collector. Du Dewei stood at the pier and looked around, then lowered the bamboo hat on his head a little more, and then said: "Let's go." Then, the three of them walked to the well in silence.

Go to the building door.

Outside the gate of Jinglou is the government-run Minjiang Shipyard as well as private shipyards of various sizes. Here there are forests of boats and oars, countless timber and ship equipment are piled up along the river, large and small private docks are densely arranged, with a large flow of people and a cloud of craftsmen.

All kinds of people gather here.

Du Dewei and the other three saw a Western scene at the pier today.

After walking a few steps on the shore, a strange procession appeared in front: two government officials in official uniforms walked at the end with their hands behind their backs, and seven or eight white servants walked in front with sticks and chains in their hands.

There are about 10 prisoners with their hands tied and their foreheads marked with black paint.

Not long after the team walked, they turned into a large bluestone pier.

At first glance, this wharf is owned by a wealthy businessman: it is made of long strips of bluestone, with some thin plaster caulked between the bluestones. It is smooth, smooth and solid.

There are three brand-new big fortune boats parked on the pier at the moment. Under the boats, there is a group of beggars, all in tatters and half-clothed, being driven to the boats by some sailors in short robes. Du Dewei, who is drifting away, takes one last look.

What I saw was the government officials handing over the prisoners to the sailors on the dock, talking and laughing.

The three ordinary fishermen passed through the Jinglou Gate easily. Of course, they still had to pay a few copper coins for tolls. After entering Fuzhou City, the three first ate a bowl of pig blood rice noodles at a roadside shop, and then

We walked all the way to Chuanxing Street as planned.

Chuanxing Street is located near Jingloumen. It has a traditional front street and back river layout: the street is in front of the store and the Wuhui River is behind the store. It is very convenient for boating and unloading. Because most of the merchants on the street are to support the shipyards outside the city.

Therefore, there are many offices of shipyard owners on this street, including some wholesale stores of raw materials such as ropes, sails and nails, as well as shipbuilding clubs.

Du Dewei had been here many times when he was running boats when he was young. And just two years ago, he came here to buy a second-hand bird boat, so it didn't feel strange to visit the place today.

The only thing that surprised him was the ground beneath his feet.

The mud floor in my memory has been replaced by a bluestone floor at some point, and like the dock outside, there is also a kind of gray fine mud caulked between the seams. The bluestone is paved densely and flatly, like a

A flat mirror is average.

What surprised Du Dewei about this street was not only the ground, but also other aspects: there were toilets on the street, and there were old men in cornet coats constantly sweeping the streets. The whole street was clean and tidy, even the necessary items in the streets and alleys

Beggars are nowhere to be seen here either.

The three of them walked along the familiar yet unfamiliar street, and then Du Dewei saw the destination of their trip: a shop called "Haidong Trading Company".

The situation here is no longer consistent with the scene in Du Dewei's memory: there were originally a row of shops of different heights, but now there is no trace of them. In their place, there is a row of seven shops with the same shape.

These seven large shops are all made of red bricks, and the exterior walls are painted white with lime. They are extraordinary. Except for the first one, which has "Haidong Trading Company" written in gold on the door plaque, the names of the other shops are

At the door, there are also painted signs indicating "shipping", "wholesale", "labor" and other business types.

At this moment, a large number of carriages and sedan chairs were parked in front of the shops, and many businessmen and housekeepers dressed in silk clothes and accompanied by servants were going back and forth among several shops.

Seeing such a noisy scene, Du Dewei couldn't help but frown slightly. He was now dressed as a fisherman, and if he rashly went in to look for someone, he might cause some trouble. So he did not step forward, but continued to the end of the street with his entourage.

No matter how good the business is when you go shopping, there will always be a time when you get off work.

Unexpectedly, the three of them didn't go far before they saw another Western scene.

The original location of 7 large shops was at the end of Chuanxing Street, next to Ganye Temple and a stone tablet field.

Nowadays, Ganye Temple, which covers an area of ​​dozens of acres, has long disappeared, and even the bald donkey in the temple is missing.

The same is true for the site filled with semi-finished stone tablets. Originally, there was a fat tablet carver here who impressed Du Dewei deeply. This person was from the same family as him and his surname was also Du. What made Du Dewei unforgettable was that Fatty Du.

He always has a sad face and says to everyone he meets: "Well, all the gentlemen are living in good health this year, so this business can't be done anymore."

The two places mentioned above were replaced by large open-air warehouses along the river. What surprised the three country bumpkins the most was the iron wire outside the warehouse.

The two-meter-high iron wire was fixed on thick wooden piles that were driven into the ground at regular intervals. It was so long that it extended along the side of Chuanxing Street, isolating the planned cargo yard along the Wuhui River from the outside world.

When Du Dewei came to the iron wire in surprise and reached out to grab it, the idle man watching the excitement showed a contemptuous smile: three more country bumpkins came. Soon after, the guards patrolling the goods yard along the iron wire also left.

He came over and without saying a word, he gave Du Dewei two sticks through the wire: "Get out, if you break it, I will arrest you and go to work to pay for it!"

Three bumpkins dressed as fishermen were driven away amidst roars of laughter.

Of course, Du Dewei didn't go far. He just walked forward a short distance, then stopped, and then observed the goods yard through the wire eye.

The land that was originally the main hall of Ganye Temple has been bulldozed and compacted, and a layer of fine gravel has been paved. A large piece of thick wooden board made of square stones is covered with piles of cement.

In addition, bamboo sheds were built on some plots of land piled with lime and sand. Farther away, there were neat stacks of red bricks.

And just at the entrance of the goods yard separated by wires, a large number of people who looked like craftsmen and housekeepers were bargaining with the accountants in front of a row of wooden tables. Teams of coolies were pushing carts to move the cement and red bricks in the goods yard.

, lime is transported to the river port where there is a string of small boats lining up neatly waiting for work.

Du Dewei soon saw an acquaintance through the wire: Fatty Du who carved the stone tablet.

At this time, Fatty Du and Du Dewei were completely different from each other. I saw this guy with an arrogant face, wearing a Songjiang fine cloth robe, wearing a golden knife, sitting behind a lime line with a row of craftsmen. In addition, this guy

There is also a small table in front of the goods, with tea and snacks on the table.

Behind this guy, there were two arrogant disciples standing on the left and right.

General Heng Ha had one hand on his hip and the other hand holding a cover. On both sides of the cover were embroidered the two lines of big characters: "Class A Qualified Professional Flooring" and "Centennial Monument with Silky Feel".

Du Dewei stood behind the wire until 5 p.m., and finally had a clear view of the western view. Except for the bags containing cement, which he did not understand, he probably understood everything about the operation mode of this place.

Then it’s time to get down to business.

There was no electricity in the Middle Ages, so ordinary shops closed relatively early. Generally speaking, people would close their doors one after another starting from 17:00 Uh.

Du Dewei wandered outside the goods yard until after 5 o'clock. Guessing that it was almost time, Du Dewei and his entourage came to the door of Haidong Warehouse again.

Seeing a row of large shops that were already deserted, he did not hesitate this time. He randomly picked a shop and walked in. He went straight to a counter with various red and yellow straw mats and asked the waiter inside: "Little

Bro, may I ask if Shopkeeper Stephen Chow is here?"

The waiter at the counter was stunned at first, then immediately reacted, and then said with a smile on his face: "Yes, yes. Distinguished guest, please follow me."

The waiter who spoke walked out of the counter, then took them out diligently, turned left, and entered the last room in the row of shops. Along the way, the waiter didn't pay any attention to the three fishermen's attire.

This shop sells planks, and the lobby is filled with machine-made wooden boards of various thicknesses. The next moment, Du Dewei and his party walked through the lobby and were led to a study in the backyard to sit down and drink tea.

After half a cup of tea, the door curtain opened and a tall, fair-skinned middle-aged man walked in.

As soon as this person entered the door, he clasped his fists and said, "I am Stephen Chow. I wonder what your guest's last name is?"

Du Dewei stood up quickly at this moment, clasped his fists in return, and then said according to the code taught to him by Xu Xinsu: "Don't dare, don't worry, I will moisturize my hair next week."

After hearing the words "Chow Yun-fat", the middle-aged man chuckled. He first stretched out his hand to signal Du Dewei to sit down, and then he said kindly: "It must be Mr. Du Dewei and shopkeeper Du in person? I'm Xue Haiyuan."

ps: Book friends, I am Su Luohan. I recommend a free novel app that supports novel downloads, listening to books, zero advertising, and multiple reading modes. Please follow the WeChat public account: dazhuzaiyuedu(). Book friends, please pay attention.
Chapter completed!