Sihai Tea House is a new property of the capital's Du Liuye. The front door facing Xiyanhe Street is a two-story brick and wood building with a bluestone foundation. It stands out among the surrounding low-rise shops.
When the rooster crows three times on the fourteenth day of the winter lunar month, the tea shop clerk removed the door panel as usual. Du Liuye, who got up early, practiced boxing in the courtyard to activate his muscles, bones and blood vessels, put on his big cloak and walked to the street.
.
At this time, the morning sun had already risen, and Du Liuye's teahouse looked gleaming in the winter because of the glass windows. He looked at his property with satisfaction and casually dealt with the neighbors who gathered in front of him to chat.
"Dad, breakfast is ready. Mom asked you to come in for dinner -" Because the court reiterated the slaveholding order, the slaves of Du Liu's family had long since changed their words and called Du Liu "daddy".
Although there is a way to circumvent the slaveholding order such as "adopted son, adopted daughter", there are fewer and fewer slaves today. Those in the north are going to the northeast, and those in the south are heading to Burma. There are more ways to survive, and fewer people are selling themselves.
Moreover, the laws of the imperial court are becoming more and more stringent - if an "adopted son or daughter" reports "adopted father or mother" for being treated harshly and he does it, the master will pay a large sum of money for compensation, but the "adopted son or daughter" can
If you "return to the clan" immediately, you will inevitably lose both your life and money.
Therefore, "employment" has gradually become popular in recent years. The work of serving people is also like working in a factory. The employer signs a contract with the person who sells the labor force, and there is no longer the personal dependence relationship that existed in the past - except for the words, these employees have no previous relationship.
Respectfully, nothing else has changed for the time being.
But five years ago, if this young man dared to call Du Liu "you", he would be slapped in the face. Du Liu glanced at him first, then the scar on his face twisted and glared at him fiercely.
.
The little boy didn't understand why at first, but then he bowed in realization and said, "Dad, mom invites you in for dinner -"
Du Liu "hummed" again, raised his eyes to admire his new tea house again, and then raised his legs to cross the threshold.
"Du Liu'er, it's time to start shaking, it's time to start a big business..." Du Liuye heard this voice, his open shoulders suddenly pulled inward, his straight waist immediately leaned forward, and his knees were slightly bent.
, suddenly changed from being proud to being groveling, which made his godson look straight in the eyes.
I saw my "daddy" trotting all the way to the east to meet him. He bowed his head with both hands like pounding garlic, and said repeatedly: "Mr. Chen, why do you have time to come here today? Have you had breakfast? Are you in your room?"
Please - son, go to Lao Sun's house in Xitou to get some fruit preserves and ask your mother to make some good tea - Hey, I said I saw magpies chirping when I went out today -" A series of flattery made Wanping County's
Chen Dianli couldn't get in the conversation.
He stood up and looked Du Liu up and down. When Du Liu saw Chen Dianli's pair of triangular eyes with a fierce look, his heart was pounding and he stopped talking.
After walking for a while, Chen Dianli had a few drops of sweat on his fat face. The flesh on his cheekbones rolled, indicating that he was in a very bad mood.
Seeing that Du Liu had stopped talking, he glanced at the crowded street, grabbed Du Liu's shoulders and dragged him to a deserted place on the roadside. Du Liu was tall, and in order to facilitate Chen Dianli, he hurriedly pulled him to the side of the road.
The waist bent down again.
"Du Liu, can you still use those shrimps, soldiers, and crabs of yours?" As soon as he said this, Chen Dianli saw that Du Liu's body was as soft as noodles. "Hey, hey, why are you shaking? I'm not trying to deal with you, stand here Straighten up! Stay calm!"
"Sir, you are so scary today. What happened?" Du Liu heard Chen Dianli say that he didn't want to clean himself up, so he raised his sleeves and wiped the sweat on his head.
"Damn it, something big has happened." Chen Dianli shook out a piece of paper, "Yesterday, there were twenty pieces of this stuff posted in every corner of Wanping County. I heard there are some in Daxing as well." He handed the note to him. Du Liukan.
He recognized both the characters "Er" and "Du Liu", but when they were put together, he didn't quite understand what they meant. He looked at Chen Dianli in confusion, which meant he was waiting for Mr. Chen to explain.
Since the county magistrate didn't explain it, Mr. Chen didn't understand either, so he just said vaguely: "This is anti-poetry!"
"Hey? The sky is blue and the sun is bright, the universe is bright, what kind of thing is this peaceful and prosperous age like-"
"You know a lot of damn idioms! Then tell me what they mean."
Seeing that Mr. Chen didn't understand, Du Liu had to lower his head and read the note. After smacking it for a long time, he said: "The word 'Juzheng' refers to the old Prince Zhongxing. It must be right." After hearing this, Chen Dianli said: "Aren't you talking nonsense?"
"Caifeng? Caifeng? Are you talking about the one from Cining Palace?" Du Liu took a breath and said, "Mr. Chen, tell me, what is 'zhouji'? Is it a paddle?"
Seeing the ghostly expression on Chen Dianli's face, Du Liu was deeply encouraged and continued: "Think about it, this oar is thick and hard, and the little widow is still uncomfortable -"
"Shut up, you bitch!" Chen Dianli's voice was so thin and high-pitched that Du Liu was frightened, "You don't want your head anymore?"
After saying that, he looked around and whispered: "It turns out that this is the meaning of 'Caifeng'. I thought about it for a long time, and it turned out that it has the same pronunciation. You can understand it just by pronouncing it aloud."
Because he saw something extraordinary, Mr. Du Liu also looked around furtively and asked in a low voice: "Mr. Chen, do you want me to find out who did it?"
"Then I came to you to tease you. How many people do you have at your disposal now? Come out and find out -"
When Du Liu heard this, he smiled and said: "This post is about palace matters. The 'Jinyi' gang are not allowed to go to the city to investigate? Why should Mr. Chen bother -"
Chen Dianli's eyes widened and he interrupted in a cold voice: "What? You don't want to do it?"
Du Liu didn't have the guts, so he hurriedly agreed, saying that he would notify all his "old friends". Seeing his unsparing look, Chen Dianli sighed. After hesitating for a long time, he got out of his arms. He took out a wallet and painfully took out two dragon tickets.
After thinking for a while, he put back another one and handed the remaining one to Du Liudao: "I will reward you with ten yuan, which is considered hard-earned money. If there are any important clues, I will give you a big reward~!"
The amount of the ticket was not exciting, but it was the first time he had made money from Chen Dianli, which made Du Liuye feel happy and wanted to have fun. At this time, he knew that the case was really serious, and at the same time he pretended to be flattered. , and agreed wholeheartedly.
Seeing Chen Dianli's eyes staring at the big crisp ticket in his hand from time to time, Du Liu called the waiter to bring over two bunches of tea cakes, which cost about ten yuan - Chen Dianli felt better now.
Then he said goodbye to Du Liu and muttered: "Yuan County Magistrate is young but he is really cruel. He said, 'It's the fault of the magistrate if a treacherous person is not punished.' I will make it easier for you."
Du Liu bent down and watched Chen Dianli go west, then turned back and went into the house to eat. When he entered, he handed the ticket to the boy at the door: "Go to Ertiao Hutong, find a calligraphy and painting person, and give this ticket
Frame it, I want to hang it and look at it."
The little boy opened his mouth wide, wondering what the bastard father was doing. Du Liu ignored him and walked to the back room, muttering: "What kind of bullshit is this? We are all kidding."
People say that widows are right and wrong, but we are here to make a big show of it."