Yuan Shuzhi pretended to be surprised and said: "Boatman, how do you know someone is going to jump into the river?"
The boatman showed a scornful expression: "I've seen a lot of things on this river. All these people think it's a pie falling from the sky! Tsk, tsk, just buy a piece of waste paper for two yuan and throw yourself into the river if you don't think about it."
"
"Waste paper? So..."
"That's right, guest, you are right." The daughter of the Dan family said with a smile, "I think among the guests on the ship, you are always the one who has seen the world. You have not been fooled by them!"
"It's cruel and shameful. Over the years, I have been running around for a living, and I have seen some dangers in the world." Yuan Shuzhi deliberately said, "This is probably not the first time."
"Exactly." The boatman nodded, "This happens once every ten days and a half. All the old passengers on this boat are ignored, but there are strangers every time. As long as they are greedy, they will fall into their trap.
",
"You are so bold, and you are not afraid of someone reporting you to the official?"
"So what if you report to the officer? There are rivers and waterways everywhere here, and you can get on and off boats at any time. Send people to catch people!" The boatman lit a dry cigarette, "You are not considering yourself unlucky! There are people who have been cheated of their money, or save their lives.
Money, if you can't think about it for a moment, you will throw yourself into the river."
Yuan Shuzhi didn't think it was strange. It can be said that similar scams are everywhere. Even in the city of Guangzhou, which is now the territory of the Australians, there is the "New Life Movement" and "Catch the Floods", and they also carry out "security crackdowns".
All kinds of scams are still emerging in endlessly. Even old converted cadres from Lingao have been deceived.
While chatting, I saw people who had gone to "beat the top" one after another. Some people were pale and dejected, and once they came back, they loudly cursed "I will not have a good death." There were also people who stamped their feet and beat their chests, cursing themselves for being "obsessed." Yuan Shuzhi looked at it.
, I sighed secretly in my heart.
The person sitting opposite him was a young man who also bought counterfeit money. After returning from the pier, he sat alone on a slat with his head in his hands. He remained there until now, but now he sat upright. Yuan Shuzhi saw his eyes.
His hair is straight, his face is blank, and he knows something is wrong - he is going crazy.
Sure enough, after a moment, he suddenly jumped up from his desk and hit the roof with his head heavily, making a loud bang. Everyone was shocked.
This person didn't realize it, and kept jumping around in the cabin, shouting nonsense: "I'm rich! I'm rich! I have a lot of money!" After that, he was giggling wildly and throwing a few counterfeit coins everywhere.
throw.
Yuan Shuzhi knew that this person had just spent ten yuan to buy five counterfeit coins. This ten yuan was not a small amount, and no one could figure it out.
The young man was yelling in the cabin, and there was a commotion in the cabin. As he watched him go to the stern of the boat, he was also shouting "I'm going to the Dragon Palace to hunt for treasures" and was about to jump into the river. The Dan family girl hurriedly brought two boatmen over.
, finally managed to control him and tied him to the stern of the boat with a rope.
An old man next to him said: "What a sin! He and I got on the boat together, and the ten yuan was given by my family to buy medicine to save his life in Huizhou!"
Yuan Shuzhi was just watching the fun, but the old man's unintentional words piqued his interest. He thought that he was sent to Huizhou by Zheng Yuanlao to investigate counterfeit medicines. This man also went to Huizhou to buy medicines. Could there be any connection between the two?
?
He pretended to be ignorant and said: "Go to Huizhou to buy medicine? Can't you buy it locally? Besides, it's close to Guangzhou. Guangzhou is a big place. What kind of medicine can't be bought? Why go to Huizhou instead of being close?"
The old man looked Yuan Shuzhi up and down, and saw that he was dressed in a "Ming Kun and Bi" attire. He couldn't figure out where he came from, so he said politely: "Who is Mr.?"
"I am a bookkeeper." Yuan Shu knew. "I lost my job in Guangzhou. A friend recommended me to Huizhou to find a job."
"So that's it." The old man whispered, "It turns out that you are from Guangfu! You probably don't know that starting last year, Huizhou's medicine market - the medicine market in Luofu Mountain, do you know?"
"I know, I know, how can I not know about the four major cities in the world!"
"That's it. Since last year, there have been a lot of miracle medicines in the medicine market. They are all effective immediately after one dose. Especially when the symptoms of sores are not healed, high fever is not going away, and persistent coughs are not going away, try it a hundred times.
It turns out that it is on par with the Australian miracle medicine, but the price is much cheaper than that Australian miracle medicine..."
Yuan Shuzhi had already known the situation from the materials provided by Zheng Mingjiang, and said: "Is it Hearthstone Powder or something like that? But this medicine is also sold in Guangzhou, so it is not a rare thing. Why go to Huizhou to buy it."
"Sir, you know about this medicine? That's it. In fact, there is more than one Hearthstone Powder. Although it is sold in Guangzhou, the price is not as cheap as in Huizhou Medicine Market. Therefore, some people are willing to sacrifice the near for the distant."
"So that's it." Yuan Shuzhi nodded and sighed, "This ten yuan is probably the family's capital. Now that he has been defrauded of everything, the patients at home are probably in trouble. No wonder he can't think about it.
Already."
"Sir, that's not true. It's just that once a person's greed comes up, even swords and fire can't stop him." The old man sighed, "I went crazy on the ship, and I don't know if I can wake up soon. I'm afraid.
He is so crazy that he doesn’t know where his home is, so he is living outside! I don’t know how sad his family is.”
There was no talking all night. When Yuan Shuzhi woke up the next morning, the crazy young man had disappeared. The old man next to him said that he made so much noise in the middle of the night that the boatman drove him to the shore and left him to fend for himself.
, as long as you don’t die on the boat.
The boat traveled for more than ten miles. When the wind was strong, the sails were hung, but when there was no wind, the poles were poled. In some places, the boatmen were asked to go down and carry the boat all the way eastward. At noon, they arrived at a bend in the river. The water flow was gentle and the river surface was gentle.
It is wide. A tributary flows into the Dongjiang River here. This is a valley flatland with a lot of people gathered, forming a quite large grass market. There are two restaurants and many tea sheds. Many passenger and cargo ships come and go.
Stop here to pick up and unload guests and goods.
The boatman also stopped the boat here to tip off the boat so that the passengers could go ashore and relax.
This place was no longer within the scope of Yuan Shuzhi's usual travels. He had been on the boat for a day and a night, but his hands and feet felt stiff, so he took advantage of the opportunity to stop the boat and go for a walk to loosen up his muscles.
This market is close to the Jiangbei River and has convenient transportation. Agricultural products from four townships and commodities from all over the world are mostly distributed here, so it is very prosperous. Today is another market day, and people and vendors from everywhere come to the market. The market is very busy.
lively.
After walking a short distance, I saw many people surrounding the pier, and some people were vaguely shouting. They were probably selling something.
Yuan Shuzhi moved over on a whim.
There were three floors inside and three floors outside the berth. Yuan Shuzhi protected his bag and squeezed in carefully, only to see a cargo ship moored on the shore. There was a piece of "traveling materials" parked in the boat canopy. There were more than a dozen wooden piles piled on the pier.
The boxes are all bearing the name of Zichengji and the brand of "Guo Shi Wushuang".
There was a straw mat next to the pier, and there was a woman and three children of different ages kneeling, all of whom were wearing filial piety, crying beside them. Only a middle-aged man wearing a white filial piety belt was explaining and shouting.
After listening to his shouting, Yuan Shuzhi realized that it was a northern businessman who originally lived in Guangzhou. He had imported a batch of "unparalleled national scholars" from Guangzhou Ziji and wanted to transport them to the north for sale and send his children back to his hometown. Suddenly, he did not agree with the situation.
He died of a sudden attack, leaving behind orphans, widows and a shipload of goods.
Before the businessman died, he asked his steward to sell the wine at a discounted price and then send his wife, children and coffin back to his hometown after getting the money.
"...Everyone, please do a good deed. I am pitiful for this orphan and widowed mother. She has to carry her coffin back to her hometown after wandering on the road. It is very difficult. If you have a good wine shop, buy a bunch of it. You will get benefits and accumulate karmic virtues. Our master
The spirits in heaven will also be grateful..."
When the steward mentioned something emotional, tears flowed down his face. In addition, the orphan and widowed mother kneeling on the reed mat nearby wailed in grief, causing the onlookers to sigh and sympathize. At that moment, some people were willing to buy wine to tide over the hardship.
Yuan Shuzhi saw that the berths were selling unparalleled fine wines, and the boxes had the stamps of Purple City. He couldn't help but be moved. Then he heard what the steward said, because outside the boundaries of Guangdong, the Ming Dynasty did not recognize Australia.
If you collect a bunch of banknotes, you have to go back to the city to exchange them for silver. Therefore, you only receive silver dollars, and all of them are discounted by one dollar; the other is to sell out quickly and leave, so this wine is not retail.
At least six bottles per box.
Although it was a tearful sale, one yuan per bottle was far beyond the purchasing power of many people. Plus, there was also a box for sale, which was an unbearable price for ordinary people. Many people who were originally eager to try it suddenly left.
Seeing that no one came to buy, the manager asked the waiter to open a box, took out two bottles of wine, and took a few gourds and gourds. He said:
"These are the unparalleled Guoshi that our boss bought from Zichengji! If you want to drink them in the restaurant, you don't have to worry about five or six yuan. If you don't believe it, come and have a taste and you will know whether it is real or fake!"
Everyone was talking about it, when a few people came over in a hurry, pushed aside the people outside, and shouted, "I'll take a look first, leave me two boxes!"
Yuan Shuzhi was pushed and taken to the inner floor. Yuan Shuzhi heard a few people chatting next to him and said that these people seemed to be the shopkeepers of a local restaurant.
The owner of the restaurant didn't drink the opened one, and talked a few words with the steward. Then he opened another box, took out a bottle, drank it with a gourd, tasted it, and nodded. The waiter next to him immediately took out twelve pieces of white flowers.
The silver dollar was handed to the steward.
The manager was overjoyed. He took the money and bowed to the end, thanking him repeatedly. The shopkeeper said: "It's really not easy for an orphan and a widower to live outside!" After that, he ordered the waiter to take another dollar, wrap it in white paper and hand it over.
Put it in the hands of a woman with filial piety.
"This is my little tribute. Let's bring the coffin back home so that we can raise our children." After saying that, he asked the waiter to carry the wine and left the crowd. The crowd praised him and said that he was a good person.