The year 1864 in the Western calendar, which is the third year of Tongzhi, is about to pass. Since entering the twelfth lunar month, the city of Beijing has been immersed in an extremely strong New Year flavor, and this year's New Year flavor is much heavier than in previous years. The reason is very simple. Just this year, the 13-year long hair disaster finally came to an end. With a fire in Nanjing, it was the prelude to the Tongzhi ZTE.
The streets were full of children running around, and the grocery stores and rice noodle shops were crowded with people from the imperial capital doing their shopping. The unique shouting from hundreds of years ago was loudest at this moment. The boys shouted like a competition. They knew that if they wanted to take home a few more pennies at the end of the year, it would depend on today.
In fact, life in Beijing is still miserable as usual. The economy that was devastated by the war has not recovered at all, and the price of rice and noodles continues to be the same as during the war. But isn’t it true that people only live with a hope? Since the Qing Dynasty completely wiped out Changmao, life should be easier in the future, right?
It is in this illusory hope that people's numb faces actually have a smile, and the incense that goes to the temple every day to pray for the long life of our emperor and the endless years of the Qing Dynasty is also filled by three points.
It is already the twenty-sixth day of the twelfth lunar month. As the saying goes, the meat is cut on the twenty-sixth day, the New Year chickens are slaughtered on the twenty-seventh day, and the dough is made by the twenty-eighth twenty-nine. This is almost the last big purchase before the year. And it was today that the belated flag pay was finally distributed, and it was a rare 70% off, not the 50% off or 40% off at the worst time.
At this moment, the bannermen all over the city burst into cheers, and everyone shouted, "Long live the Emperor, and the Queen Mother is wise." The sales of all shops in Beijing soared by 50% that day.
In the past ten years or so, the life of the Manchu people has been quite miserable. For example, when the British and French invaded Beijing four years ago, the bannermen were reduced to begging for food on the streets, not to mention that even a mouthful of grain flour and porridge was a luxury. And the emperor never meant to make up for it. In the following years, the situation was slightly better, but the monthly money and food were still discounted by 40% or 50%.
The banner men have become much thinner in recent years. Just a few days ago, the bannermen all over the city were still complaining about the delay in payment of banner salaries and the difficulty in passing the New Year. Unexpectedly, the Emperor and the Queen Mother actually had a big surprise in Niangen. Now they can be considered as able to pass the New Year. A fat year.
Amidst the joy of the city, a group of people came to the capital after a long journey. They did not bother to appreciate the various scenes of the imperial capital a hundred years ago, and drove their horses and whips straight to the Flower Alley of Xicheng.
The Flower Alley in Xicheng, Beijing, has been a gathering place for Manchu nobles since ancient times. In a dark courtyard deep in the alley, several ancient and vigorous trees protruded from the courtyard. It can be seen that this house is old, and the horse-tying stone at the gate has been polished, which reminds you of the glory of this house in the past.
This is Fu Qing's home. Third Master Qing inherited this house from his ancestors. Although this was just an outhouse built by Fu Kang'an back then, with the prosperity of the Fucha family in the Qianlong Dynasty, an outhouse was already extremely luxurious. .
"Oh, you guys are so stupid. You said you had to buy beef and mutton at Jubaoyuan in Niujie Street. You really don't have a long memory..." A Manchu aunt in front of the main entrance of the courtyard was cracking melon seeds and giving instructions.
"Where's Butler Wang? I asked him to buy firecrackers. Why hasn't he been seen for most of the day? Did he secretly go to the teahouse to listen to the opera again? Let's see if I don't break his legs when I come back..."
"Oh, my girl from the Fan family, why did you come out to work? You are a guest, how can I let you do it? You are here to watch with your sister. Let's cook mutton at noon. We Manchus don't have so many rules. , serve it like a woman..."
The girl from the Fan family who ran out of the yard was Fan Yan's daughter Huniu. After passing through Yixian County, their family's relationship with the Fuqing family deepened, and the two families moved around from time to time. And that Manchu aunt is Fu Qing's sister Fu Hui. She is just twenty-nine this year, and will be thirty after the new year.
Speaking of this, Fuhui was a famous aunt among the Manchus. She married a commander of the Zhenglan Banner at the age of 17. Not even three years after the marriage, the commander died of illness. However, Manchu women did not behave like Han people. When they were 22 years old, they remarried Niu Lu, a man from Xianglan Banner. Unfortunately, Niu Lu died on the southern battlefield within two years of their marriage.
The two unfortunate marriages did not affect her, and the strong Fuhui started his third marriage. The result was that four years ago, when she was 25 years old, he actually married a Hanchen. Of course, people pitied a woman who had killed two husbands and turned a blind eye, not bothering to pay attention to the ban on intermarriage between Manchus and Chinese.
I never expected that Fu Hui's life would be so miserable. The British and French allied forces captured Beijing the same year they got married. On the way to escape, the Han minister disappeared and in the end, not even his body was found in the capital. , god knows how he didn't. Please come to more and faster chapters.
From then on, no one dared to propose marriage to Fu Hui. This Manchu aunt was completely unwanted. The Hanchen family was not a prominent family and had little property in the capital. Fuhui had no choice but to return to her natal family to keep company with her younger brother.
Although Fu Hui was not lucky, he was very cheerful. He was very good at handling housework and keeping in touch with relatives and friends within the Eight Banners. If someone had something big or small, Fu Hui would be able to handle it easily. Gradually, the nickname of a female Zhuge emerged in Sijiu City. Even the queen mothers of the two palaces lamented her life experience.
To be honest, this time Fu Qing wanted to run his business back to the capital, and the route he took was handled by his old sister. It was expected that Fu Qing, an idealist, would not be able to keep his face and rub the cold ass of those in power.
"Hey, little girl, why are your hands so cold? Come on, please make me a bowl of ginger, brown sugar and water. I'll deduct your wages later...Hahaha, sister, don't be surprised. These slaves in my sister's family are here. I just don’t know how to serve, and my skin will itch if I don’t scold him for a day..."
Just when Huniu was serving the hot ginger syrup, there was suddenly a sound of horse hooves on the long street, and soon a familiar figure appeared in front of him. The little girl's eyes were covered with water vapor, and her hands A soft bowl fell to the ground with a clatter. Please come to more and faster chapters.
"What's wrong? Is it burned..." Huniu didn't care what Sister Fuhui was saying. She stood up and looked straight at the figure in the distance. The man who haunted her in dreams actually said I actually made it to Beijing before the holiday.
Now, with the bad guy Xiao Letian here, no one dares to bully him anymore, not even his uncle.
"Sister, what are you looking at? Who are these people? They are so arrogant... Oops, is that the singer at the beginning? Why is this face so handsome..." Fu Hui's heart skipped a beat at that time, as if she was upset. bottle. Update as soon as possible
"Hahaha, Huniu, you can make it easier for me to find you. I will go to your home in the south of the city first. Then the housekeeper told me that you and the old shopkeeper are here. When I thought that Fu Qing was no longer an outsider, I would come to your house. You're a bad visitor..." Xiao Letian turned over and dismounted, his figure was as handsome as he wanted to be.
At this time, Xiao Letian didn't have the same embarrassment as when he was living in the mountains. In just over two months, Xiao Letian had revealed the temperament of a superior person from the inside out, with an aggressive light in his eyes.
Xiao Letian looked back at Fu Hui and exclaimed in his heart, God, isn't this the real version of Wang Xifeng? The unique temperament of this mature woman is simply unforgettable. But he didn't have time to admire the beauty now. He just nodded to her in a friendly manner, then grabbed Hu Niu's hand and rushed inside. Please come to more and faster chapters.
"Fu Qing... Third Master Qing... Evil guests come to the door, you have to take care of the food..." As he said this, he rushed in just like his own home. The entire concierge's servants were dumbfounded. They had never seen such guests before. They rushed in without a greeting card or reservation, calling the master's name. At any rate, Third Master Qing still had the rank of fourth rank. Well, I went in without even a door bag.
"Hey, look, grandma, what do you say..." The housekeeper slapped his thigh and led the people to chase after him, but at this time they heard the hearty laughter of Third Master Qing in the backyard.
"Brother Xiao, you are here today. You and I will not come home until we are drunk. Shopkeeper Fan is also here..." The butler shrank when he heard this. Oh my God, is he Xiao Letian? Mr. Xiao, whom the Third Master talks about eight hundred times a day?
Fuhui's eyes suddenly lit up, and she thought to herself that he was indeed a real person. No wonder my brother, who has eyes so high above his head, is so obsessed with me. Not to mention that he is talented but not talented. His looks are top-notch rich and noble. First update. At this time, she saw several burly men standing at the door. She quickly smiled and asked the butler to arrange the food and drinks.
The sky turned gloomy at some point. When the big copper hot pot was completely turned over at noon, snowflakes suddenly fell from the sky. After a while, the whole yard turned white.
"It's so refreshing. It's so refreshing. Watching the snowy scene around the fire, and Mr. Xiao's wonderful writings to accompany the wine. I'm so lucky! I'm so lucky!" Mr. Qing was already drunk before he had three drinks. He and Fan Qian were rushing to watch. Xiao Letian brought the manuscript, and when he saw the highlights, he raised his hand and drank a glass of wine. The ancients said that Chinese books can be paired with wine. You really don’t deceive me.
The Manchu family banquet really didn't have the rules of the Han people. Three grown men and two women gathered around to drink and eat boiled mutton. This feeling made Xiao Letian feel warm, especially when he could clink glasses and chat with the two beauties from time to time. , two more bites of the absolutely unreal mutton slices, and a sense of happiness from a hundred years ago immediately surrounded him. Please come to more and faster chapters.
Xiao Letian looked at Fu Qing with some disdain. This guy is really ignorant. Isn't it the story of the Spanish Armada? He was so excited that he drank three glasses of wine in a row. There is also Shopkeeper Fan, who looks like an old money junkie at first glance. His eyes light up when he sees countless ships filled with treasures sunk in the Atlantic Ocean. If there is a treasure hunting ship for him, the old man will definitely be the first to rush on it.
Not to mention how virtuous Huniu was today, her face was already red after just two glasses of wine, and she didn’t say anything funny. She only served Xiao Letian with a pair of chopsticks, and in a short time she figured out what Xiao Letian’s favorite food was. She carefully discovered the mature meat and the addition of chive flowers in the sauce. This is great, Xiao Letian is being served beautifully.
I sigh with emotion. In the era when Xiao Letian grew up, how could there be such a virtuous girl? She would only care about the man she loved if she didn't eat, and her eyes were filled with the light of attachment.
"What a good article, it's really a good article!" While Xiao Letian was enjoying it, Shopkeeper Fan slapped the table, "You can't stop. I can't stop reading this book. I'll arrange for someone to do it tonight." Even with double the reward, my book will be published as soon as possible!"
"But Mr. Xiao, you haven't finished writing your book yet. How did Britain, France and the Netherlands come to be? Is it okay to publish it before finishing it..."
Xiao Letian laughed after hearing this, "Hahaha, Shopkeeper Fan, you don't understand. This is called serialization, which is the latest form of publishing. These 150,000 words are just enough to print one book. The stories here are enough for readers to read carefully. Read carefully all night..."
"With these words at the bottom, those readers have become addicted. Then I stopped publishing. Every time I wrote a chapter, I posted it all over the street for people to read for free. I want to make these readers who are waiting for the update anxious to death. Hahaha... "
Fu Qing rolled his eyes angrily, "Shameless, shameless, as a scholar, how can you be so shameless? You are so unkind, and scholars all over the world will scold you to death..."
"Shameless? Third Master has discovered my advantages so quickly! Oh, thank you, thank you... You are really discerning..." After saying this, the half-drunk Xiao Letian rushed forward and shook hands with Fu Qing.
Fu Hui couldn't hold it back any longer. She covered her mouth and burst into laughter. In this dull Qing Dynasty, where had she seen such an interesting young man? And this kind of badness is really addictive.
"Smile as bright as a flower!" But this was the only word that flashed through Xiao Letian's mind. At that moment, the more he looked at Fu Hui, the more he looked like Wang Xifeng in the 84 version of Dream of Red Mansions. Her look and temperament were simply modeled after the same mold. The half-drunk Xiao Letian seemed to have swallowed a large mouthful of saliva, making a loud gurgling sound.
