Neither Zuo Zongtang nor Li Hongzhang were heavy drinkers. A few drinks only made them feel drunk, and the bad feelings between the two of them who had been drinking and talking for many years were reduced a lot.
After the banquet, he looked at his pocket watch and saw that it was only eight o'clock in the evening. Li Hongzhang suggested going out for a walk to digest the food!
The house given to Zuo Zongtang by the imperial court was in Nancheng, not far from Dashilar. The two of them led their guards in casual clothes and walked through the alley to the most prosperous place.
I have to say that the capital has really changed a lot. Zuo Zongtang and Li Hongzhang have not returned to the capital for a long time. The night view of the capital really broke many of their old impressions.
The density of restaurants and restaurants has more than doubled compared to when he left Beijing. The stores along the street are no longer enough. Many houses deep in the alleys have been rented out and turned into various consumption places.
Just walking through the alley to Dashilar, Zuo Zongtang and Li Hongzhang encountered three women!
People who rely on the door to sell jokes are as difficult to deal with as flies and have no shame. Maybe seeing these two people wearing silk clothes, they thought they were businessmen from somewhere.
He walked over and held his arm without letting go, "Masters, if you want to drink or have tea, come to the courtyard. The courtyard is bright and bright..."
"You can also listen to the music. As long as you can order it, I can sing it..."
"Haha... Do you want to listen to Shiba Mo? If you don't want to listen, you can just touch it..."
The three Liu Yings with the door half-opened grabbed the two of them by the arms and started to fuck them, making them blush. "Go away! Go away, go away!"
"What a shame, it's such a moral depravity!"
"Ouch... As I said, you were not at home to rest in the middle of the night. Didn't you come out just to have fun? You smell of alcohol all over your body, which means you have just finished drinking. You are full and full, and you still come to my sister's door for a stroll, isn't it? Do you want to have fun or something?"
"Stop pretending, we have met many dignitaries here in the capital. We just like this bite and like to eat it secretly!"
"It's for sale in the Bada Hutong, so it's not exciting... Or you can come to our good girl's house to eat secretly, that's exciting! Don't worry, the price is clearly marked. You can spend the night for three silver dollars. If you just feel comfortable, one silver dollar is enough." enough!"
"Why are you so embarrassed? Come from the courtyard!"
Zuo Zongtang secretly sighed, three silver dollars could buy a yellow-flowered girl in the northwest, and the grains could be enough to feed the family for a year, but in the capital it only cost a night.
With such a financial impact, what kind of face does this person need? Sure enough, everything has a price. It’s not that women don’t want to be ashamed, it depends on whether you have a big wallet!
"Shameless! If you keep messing around, I'll send you to the official! Get out of here..." Zuo Zongtang finally got angry.
But he never expected that the people in the capital were well-informed and courageous. Several Liu Yings would fall out at first sight, and their arrogance suddenly became even more arrogant.
"Hey...hehe, you are here to have fun, and you are not vindictive. You still want to report to the government? Let me tell you clearly, we also pay the makeup tax in this industry!"
"It's half a silver dollar a night! You can leave if you want, just give us a silver dollar, otherwise, you won't be here right now!"
The three women actually got into a fight and refused to let them go without giving them a silver dollar. Zuo Zongtang did not expect that the atmosphere in the capital would degenerate to this extent. He was so angry that he was trembling and speechless.
"You...you are so shameless..."
"Nonsense, who would do this if you want to lose face? Don't talk nonsense. Either go inside the house or give money. My aunt can't waste words with you? How much business will it delay for us?"
When the three Liu Yings made such a fuss, more or less people poked their heads in at the entrance of the alley, and everything happened in the blink of an eye, with no time to react.
At first, the two guards thought that the boss had suddenly become obsessed with the world and was looking for some excitement, so they did not follow him.
But at this moment, something seemed wrong. He took a few steps and opened his mouth to scold them, but Li Hongzhang cleverly turned around and waved his hand, not allowing them to make a sound.
"Take this...this is my reward for you to drink tea. Today, my master, we are not feeling well, so we won't have fun with you. We will support you in the future. What do you think?"
A silver dollar was handed over, and the three people who opened the door suddenly laughed, holding the silver dollar and beating him with a handkerchief, "This man still knows how to be funny, unlike this man who is just a piece of wood... Hahaha!"
At this point, this Xiangfen Alley is finally safe!
Exiting the alley is Qianmen Street, and the Dashilan archway is not far away! Zuo Jigao had no intention of watching the street scene illuminated by gas lamps.
"Hey... I'm so angry. Why are you giving money to such a despicable woman? Why don't you let the soldiers arrest her? Are you also suffering from this problem?"
Li Hongzhang was so angry that he said, "My old brother, what are you talking about? I'm here to help you!"
"You were so angry just now. Fortunately, you didn't make a noise. It's shameless for these women to dare to lean on the door and show off their laughter. What can't they do if they can get some money?"
"If you dare to make a noise, she will immediately take off her clothes and show off. She will say that you didn't give her any money after you finished playing, and she won't let you go. What should you do?"
"What will you do once everyone knows about it? People like these in the capital are very bad-mouthed, and they will tell you anything if something happens."
"You have no excuse at all. How can you tell every citizen in this huge capital carefully? The more you explain, the more they think it's true!"
"Just give me a small amount of money and treat me like a beggar. Just don't let the soldiers follow you too far in the future!"
When Zuo Zongtang heard this, he sighed deeply, "When I led the troops to leave the capital, it was not at this point? Why has moral decay reached this point now?"
"Isn't it because of the money? What do the people know? How can you pull out the white money if it gets into your eyes? In the past, people's money was hidden and the people could not see it!"
"Whether it is corruption or collusion between officials and businessmen, it is all operated secretly under the cover of night. People can't see it and pretend it doesn't exist, and they don't have so many ideas!"
"Not now. The Jingshi Exchange has put everything on the table. If the trading volume is one million taels a day, that means there are one million silver coins circulating in the market!"
"Everyone knows who makes money! You make one thousand taels, he makes ten thousand taels, and soon the news spreads all over the city!"
"Money is easy to come by in the exchange, and people spend it lavishly. Look at this newly built restaurant and theater? Look at how much the Bada Hutongs have expanded in size."
"Look how much this half-closed door has increased. These women used to be women from good families! Why don't you just let money help you get into this business?"
"Before there was an exchange, it would be considered good if you could earn half a copper coin a night by operating with a half-closed door. A stunning beauty only costs one silver dollar!"
"But suddenly there was a lot of money on the market, people were relaxed, and these willows also became richer. Do you dare to charge three yuan a night for such an ordinary thing?"
"Imagine the price of those stunning beauties has already increased countless times!"
"Being shameless depends on how much money you give. Women with half a copper coin are chaste and fierce women, but someone with three silver dollars has to think about it!"
"Brother, the capital of today is no longer the capital of the past!" Li Hongzhang patted the gas lamp pole next to him and said with a sigh, "Without this gas lamp before, the dirty and smelly ones were hidden in the dark, and they were not visible. water leakage!"
"Now that we have this gas lamp, all the dirty things in the darkness are exposed, but these people... they just like to do bad things rather than good things!"
"If you think about it again, if one day the money flying around in this capital suddenly... disappears!"
"What a world-shattering scene that would be!"
Note: I should have added a chapter yesterday, but I’ve added it to you today!
