After setting off from Shanghai, Zhao Xin and the others took the sand boat all the way north. By early morning on the third day, the sand ship had passed the Chaohe Lock of the South Canal and sailed out of Danyang County.
The heads of Cai Jiashu and his son and Tong Zhilin were pickled by Lu Shoushan and Pan Xiucheng with quicklime on the ship and put in oilcloth bags to be held in remembrance after arriving in Yangzhou. Modern people such as Zhao Xin really cannot accept the ancient practice of using dead heads to pay homage to the souls of the dead. But thinking about what happened to the poor Xu brothers and Shen Xuan, it was hard to stop them with words; I just hope that the contents of this bag don't stink along the way.
It is said that using human heads as sacrifices has appeared in ancient times. Only after the Qin and Han Dynasties did people begin to prohibit the use of human sacrifices. However, the feudal laws were just that, only state officials were allowed to set fires, and the common people were not allowed to light lamps. Therefore, although the people are prohibited from doing this, the rulers can still use living people as sacrifices in a high-sounding manner.
For example, the murderous sacrifice before leaving the army in the Ming Dynasty was a typical military ritual. The purpose of the whole set of actions is not just to kill people; it also contains a large degree of moral punishment. The ancients believed that the human head is the seat of the soul and can communicate with the gods. Using the enemy's head as a sacrifice to the souls of the dead can vent hatred to the greatest extent.
At this time, Shachuan had just passed the Yongning Bridge. Shen Jingdan said to Zhao Xin and others who were watching the scenery on the deck: "Everyone, we have arrived at Zhenjiang Prefecture now. Once we cross the Yangtze River, we will enter the boundary of Yangzhou."
"Finally the block is here!" Zhao Xin and others are extremely uncomfortable with the speed of travel tools in this era. In later generations, the high-speed train took three hours from Shanghai to Yangzhou. Now it takes more than three days to take a boat without stopping all night, which is really tiring!
At this time, Liu Siting saw a very tall pagoda on the hill on the right front side of the bow, so she asked Shen Jingdan: "Boss Shen, where is that place?"
Shen Jingdan replied: "Oh, that's Jishan Temple."
"The person there is dedicated to Zhang Xun, who guarded Suiyang in the Tang Dynasty. I heard from the old people at home that there used to be a temple fair in Dutian Temple every year during the Dragon Boat Festival. I heard the old people said it was very lively." Wu Siyu said excitedly. Everyone explained.
When Shen Jingdan and Lao Huang heard this, they couldn't help but look at each other. What the hell is Dutian Temple? That place is obviously called Jishan Temple! However, Jishan Temple does hold a temple fair every Dragon Boat Festival; businessmen from all over the country, even Shanghai and Suzhou, come to the temple fair to sell goods.
Wu Siyu still didn't know that he had spilled the beans. This Jishan Temple in Zhenjiang was not until the Xianfeng period that Zhang Xun, who was enshrined in it, was added as "Emperor Dutian" by Xianfeng, and the name was changed to Dutian Temple from then on. Counting from later generations, the history of the temple fair in Dutian Temple is only two hundred years.
Shen Jingdan then raised his hand to Wu Siyu and asked, "May I ask Wu Da? Oh no, Wu Zhuang's ancestors were from Yangzhou? When did he leave and go overseas?"
"This... late Ming Dynasty, late Ming Dynasty." Wu Siyu said sarcastically.
"Then do you still remember where your home is in Yangzhou?"
"Hey, I can't remember this clearly." Wu Siyu's home was at the Yangzhou East Bus Station in later generations. But in the eighteenth century, it was a proper countryside. Wu Siyu himself didn’t know what his neighborhood was called in the Qing Dynasty.
After that, the sand boat went all the way north, passed the canal lock and entered the Yangtze River. In order to avoid the crowded South Canal, Shen Jingdan specially asked the sand boat to go east around Jiaoshan and sail from Shahe to Yangzhou City.
When it was dark, the sand boat docked on the river outside Gongchenmen in the north of Yangzhou City. Under Shen Jingdan's arrangement, everyone arrived at the living room of a house outside Guangchu Gate an hour later.
After the sand boat docked, Zhao Xin and others did not dare to speak casually; it was not until Shen Jingdan led everyone into the main entrance of the courtyard and sat down in the front hall that everyone relaxed.
Shen Jingdan originally wanted to arrange a banquet, but Zhao Xin and others refused, so he had to ask his servant to buy some food from a restaurant on the street. While waiting, Shen Jingdan introduced the origin of this house to everyone.
The entire courtyard covers an area of three acres and faces south. There are more than 20 small courtyards in the front, back, left and right, plus gardens, and the layout is very regular. The entire house is arranged in three parallel ways horizontally. The main house extends vertically into three directions, and the left and right wings are courtyards. Each courtyard has sufficient ventilation and lighting, is connected vertically and horizontally with each other, and can be freely separated and combined inside and outside. It is a typical courtyard architectural pattern in Yangzhou in this era.
However, because it has been unoccupied for many years, many of the furniture in each courtyard are damaged; and the garden in the backyard is very dilapidated because no one has taken care of it. After Shen Jingdan took over, he hired people to clean various places in the courtyard, repaired several dilapidated houses, and added furniture, which was a lot of trouble.
To elaborate, this courtyard was the property of Lu Jianzeng, the then Lianghuai salt transport envoy, decades ago. In the 33rd year of Qianlong's reign, the Lianghuai salt scandal occurred. Lu Jian was arrested and imprisoned, and sentenced to death by hanging. In order to settle their relationship, the Lu family sold the house. After several twists and turns, it was finally bought by Ma Yu, one of the eight major salt merchants. When Shen Jingdan became acquainted with the salt merchant Ma Yu over cigarettes, he casually mentioned that he wanted to buy a yard. Ma Yu, whose family was in decline, transferred the land to him for five thousand taels of silver.
After Shen Jingdan said the price, except for Lu Shoushan, Pan Xiucheng and Xu Dayong who were stunned, Zhao Xin and other modern people had no reaction. Shen Jingdan thought that Zhao Xin and the others were wealthy and did not take it seriously. Little did he know that these people on the other side were just a bunch of bullies and had no idea about the purchasing power of five thousand taels of silver!
(There is very little information on housing prices in Jiangnan during the Qianlong period. However, taking the government-allocated housing built by the Qing government for the Eight Banners outside Beijing as an example, the market transaction price of each house at that time was close to 40 taels of silver, so a standard courtyard house with 17 rooms was More than six hundred taels. Considering that Yangzhou was the most prosperous city in the country at that time, five thousand taels of silver for this big house was quite cheap.)
After everyone chatted for a while, the food from the restaurant was also delivered.
During the dinner, Liu Siting suddenly asked Shen Jingdan: "Boss Shen, where do these Yangzhou thin horses usually live?"
"Skinny horse?" Shen Jingdan was stunned. He didn't expect that Dr. Liu actually knew about thin horse.
"Yes, isn't Yangzhou's thin horse famous all over the world?"
Lao Huang smiled and interjected: "To be honest, Doctor Liu, this thin horse is not an ordinary hooker girl. If you want to see it, you have to find a matchmaker to take it to someone's home; you can't usually see it in the market. .”
"Oh. So there is something else to say. What about the brothel?"
Zhao Xin and other men at the dinner table actually wanted to ask this, but they were too embarrassed to ask considering Liu Siting was present. Who would have thought that Director Liu Da was more curious than anyone else, so everyone raised their ears and waited for the next step.
Shen Jingdan knew what Zhao Xin and others looked like. So he put down his bowls and chopsticks and said with a smile: "The brothels and brothels are all in the Xiao Qinhuai area in the city. If you are interested, you can rent a boat tomorrow night and have a panoramic view of the scenery of Xiao Qinhuai."
"OK!"
"This is arranged!"
As soon as he finished saying this, Zhao Xin and others all nodded with smiles on their faces, saying that this arrangement was really good!
The Xiao Qinhuai that Shen Jingdan refers to is Jiahe outside the Xiaodong Gate of the old city of Yangzhou. This place is also called Liuxiang. Since the Ming Dynasty, there have been many Goulan brothels in the Xiao Qinhuai area. The streets and alleys in front of these brothels are called "Flower Streets and Willow Lanes". At the back door of each brothel, there is a pier leading to the Xiao Qinhuai River; a painted boat is moored by the river to facilitate guests to board the boat at any time and take a night tour of the Xiao Qinhuai River.
"Virtue!" Liu Siting glanced at Zhao Xin and others and muttered in her heart.
After taking two bites of rice, Director Liu asked curiously: "Boss Shen, is there a brothel called Lichun Court in Yangzhou City?"
"Master Wei?" Zhao Xin interrupted.
"Yeah yeah."
Liu Sheng plucked the food from the bowl and said, "Director Liu, why are you, a woman, so interested in brothels?"
"It's fun. Boss Shen, have you heard of Li Chun Yuan in Yangzhou City? It seems to be on the edge of Slender West Lake. I heard it is the largest brothel in Yangzhou."
"Ah?!" Shen Jingdan said all this nonsense, where did he hear it from, and he even made up the idea of being number one in Yangzhou. He shook his head and smiled bitterly: "Well, sorry for my ignorance, I have never heard of a place called Li Chun Yuan. I wonder where did you hear it, Doctor Liu?"
"Ah? I learned it from" Liu Siting can't say that she learned it from the martial arts of later generations.
"Oh. We heard from the Japanese people." Zhao Xin quickly covered up.
Shen Jingdan said "Oh" and said: "The Japanese spread rumors, which is very abominable. There are many academies and bookshops on the banks of Slender West Lake, and the residences of wealthy salt merchants are also nearby. How can there be a low-class Qinlou Chuguan? !”
Zhao Xin nodded in agreement and added: "Boss Shen's words make sense. For example, in Beijing, the Fireworks and Willow Lanes are all in the Bada Hutong area in Nancheng. I have never heard of them near the residential areas of the dignitaries in Xicheng and Dongcheng."
Everyone had a hasty meal, and Xu Dayong was responsible for clearing the dishes. Shen Jingdan asked his servants A Si and Guisheng to hold lanterns and take Zhao Xin and others around the various courtyards that had been tidied up. The interior of this house is connected in all directions and winding, which makes Zhao Xin and others have big heads. In the end, everyone decided to wait until dawn tomorrow and concentrate on the third entrance of the main room to deal with it all night. Shen Jingdan proposed to let Ah Si's son Guisheng stay here to take care of him, but Zhao Xin refused. People like me have something to discuss later, so how can we let outsiders be present?
When Shen and Huang saw that it was almost time, they said goodbye and would come back tomorrow.
When Zhao Xin and others arrived outside the main gate, they noticed something like a shrine on the wall of the courtyard gate opposite, but when they touched it with their hands, they found it was made of bricks.
"Boss Shen, what is this?"
"This is called the 'Fu Temple', also called the Earth Temple. It is built with bricks on the wall. Incense is burned morning and evening on weekdays to worship the earth god at home to ensure the safety of the house. The incense and candles have been prepared and placed in the concierge. In the house.”
Shen Jingdan was about to take a step forward, then pulled back, turned around and said to Zhao Xin: "By the way, I will ask Guisheng to bring someone to deliver tomorrow's breakfast. As for noon."
"No need at noon, we will figure it out ourselves. On the way here, I saw that there are quite a few restaurants nearby."
"In that case, I'll ask Ah Si to bring some money tomorrow for you to use on the streets."
Zhao Xin smiled and cupped his hands and said, "Boss Shen has to worry about it, but we have prepared the money."
Shen Jingdan shook his head and said solemnly: "The Qing Dynasty is different from the Japanese country. Generally, no one uses silver to buy things in the market. Please pay attention to this and be more careful."
Then, he reminded everyone in a low voice: "Don't use the thousand-foot silver bars from Beihai. Once someone pays attention to them, the government will be alerted."
"Ah? There is still such a saying!" A group of modern "bangchui" suddenly realized that the several thousand or two thousand pure silver bars they had prepared before were in vain, and they could only exchange them with Shen Jingdan to make money.
Thinking of this, Zhao Xin took out two silver bars from his arms, handed them to Shen Jingdan and said, "Then please ask Boss Shen to help exchange for some money that can be used in the market."
The silver bars Zhao Xin took out were made by the workshop. Zhao Liang melted and purified all the silver seized from Fukang'an Camp, and then molded it into 500-gram thousand-foot silver bars. Due to the use of high-temperature casting below 1200 degrees and manual polishing, the entire silver bar is in the shape of a rectangular column with extremely fine water lines. In order to prevent traces from being detected, only three Chinese characters "nine" were embossed on the silver bars using a mold to represent a thousand feet of silver.
Shen Jingdan didn't show any pretense, he smiled and took it into his arms, and then he and Lao Huang said goodbye together.
Everyone returned to the outside of the main hall, using the lanterns hanging on the corridor and the moonlight to admire the carved beams and columns in the courtyard, and couldn't help but marvel. Shen and Huang were both there just now, and everyone was holding back for fear of showing their timidity.
Zhao Xin told Lu Shoushan on the side: "Shoushan, you and Xu Dayong should work hard tonight and stay in the concierge. Boss Shen will send someone to deliver breakfast tomorrow morning."
"Yes. Don't worry, sir, I'm used to doing these things before."
It was just after nine o'clock in the evening, and a group of modern people were not sleepy at all, so they sat in the main hall and chatted happily. Lu Shoushan, Pan Xiucheng and Xu Dayong went to the kitchen to help boil water and make tea.
Liu Siting suddenly remembered that Wu Siyu said that she was from Yangzhou, so she asked: "Hey, Wu Siyu. Is your home located in the city or outside the city?"
Wu Siyu thought for a while and said: "Outside the city, near the East Bus Station. It doesn't seem to be very far from here. Just follow Dongguan Street and cross the canal."
"His family is still a farmland now." Wang Yuanfang said with a smile.
"Maybe it's the courtyard of a landlord's house."
Seeing that Zhao Xin didn't speak for a long time, Liu Sheng asked, "What are you thinking about?"
"I'm thinking about what we're going to do next." Zhao Xin has been thinking about what he's going to do in Yangzhou this time, which is the "Thin Horse Plan." The most critical thing about the entire plan is that Shen Jingdan and Lao Huang cannot be implicated in the execution process.
"I thought about it again and again. I still have to find an opportunity to explain this matter to Shen Jingdan. Otherwise, once it is exposed, we will completely trick him. I also want to go to Xuzhou to see if there are any people fleeing the famine. According to historical records, The drought in Henan has started now and will turn into a severe drought nationwide next year. We must prepare in advance and plan the route."
"What if Shen Jingdan disagrees?" Liu Sheng asked.
"There is no other way. We are too short of people now, so we can only do this." Zhao Xin sighed.
Liu Siting said nothing. This matter had been discussed repeatedly in Beihai Town, and Director Liu Da finally agreed in view of the current situation. The reason why she came with him this time was to be responsible for the most critical part of the operation, which was the use of Halothane on the target and the comfort during the evacuation.
The current illiteracy rate in Beihai Town is too high. Even though literacy schools have been opened for children and the army is also opening literacy classes, they have not been able to solve the problem. If the cultural level cannot be improved, it will be difficult to master modern mechanical technology. He couldn't even understand the instructions and maintenance manuals. A large number of equipment that Zhao Xin bought before could only sit and collect dust. If you don’t even know the words, let alone become a skilled worker.
The seven people discussed until late at night, and finally decided that Zhao Xin, Wu Siyu, Ding Guofeng, Liu Zheng, and Wang Yuanfang would pretend to be wealthy businessmen from the North, come forward to select thin horses, and pay close attention to the situation in the hospital. As for the situation around the houses of people who raise thin horses, Lu Shoushan and the others will be responsible for investigating.
As for how to tell Shen Jingdan and Lao Huang, Zhao Xin is responsible for this.
(End of chapter)
