After everyone had lunch, they decided to walk around the streets in the afternoon.
In the Qing Dynasty, women's status determined that it was impossible for them to wander the streets alone, so Director Liu could not go out during the day and could only stay in the yard. Fortunately, the house is large enough and has two gardens, so it's not too boring. Because of his body shape, Liu Sheng decided to stay at home with her.
Since we were going to board the painting boat in the evening, and we were going to see the Shou Ma from the day after tomorrow, everyone could no longer dress like a housekeeper. So Zhao Xin, Wang Yuanfang, Wu Siyu, and Ding Guofeng, together with Lu Shoushan and Guisheng, went out to buy clothes.
The five people went out to the east and walked to Tianning Temple. After crossing the bridge, they arrived at Buying Street. There are businesses on the roadside here, some are shops, and some are directly set up mat tents or stalls. There are purse sheds, hat sheds, shoe sheds, cloth shops, clothing shops, restaurants, noodle shops, etc.
Guisheng, who was accompanying him, said that the shops on the shopping street were modeled after the shops outside the Qianmen of the capital. However, the places with the most complete range of shoes and hats are still "Duozi Street" outside Xiaodongmen and Caiyi Street to the north. To buy fabrics to make clothes, go to Duozi Street. To buy ready-made clothes or find a tailor, go to Caiyi Street.
"Oh? Duozijie, what's the point of this?" Wang Yuanfang asked casually.
Guisheng scratched the back of his head and couldn't explain why.
Wu Siyu explained: "My family members told me that it used to be called 'Satin Street'. Isn't the homophonic pronunciation of 'Satin' 'Death of children and grandchildren'? Later it was changed to 'Duozi Street'."
After hearing this, Guisheng looked at Wu Siyu strangely. He didn't understand why this man from a foreign country knew the secrets of Yangzhou. When Zhao Xin saw Guisheng staring at Wu Siyu, he thought he was going to be evil. He rolled his eyes and asked Guisheng with a smile: "Guisheng, are there many antique shops in this city?"
Guisheng thought for a while and said, "Sir, are you talking about antique shops? There are stalls selling antiques on the shopping street, both small stalls and hanging goods stalls. There are also two antique shops. But the old shop on Dongguan Street If there are many, there will definitely be no fakes, but the prices are more expensive than here.”
Zhao Xin planned to take a look at the clothes after buying them. Even if there were fakes in an antique store in the 18th century, they were fakes from the Qianlong period!
A few people looked around and found that there were mostly greenhouse stalls here, so they planned to go to Caiyi Street to have a look. Fortunately, Caiyi Street is not far from Tianning Temple, and you can reach it by walking south for less than a mile.
Along the way, Guisheng kept talking and told Zhao Xin and others about the commercial streets in various places in Yangzhou in detail. For example, Caiyi Street sells clothes, as well as Pishi Street, Qihuo Lane, Lime Lane, Dengcao Lane, Steamer Lane, Bird Cage Lane, Chicken and Duck Lane, Tank Lane, Iron Lock Lane, Cantaloupe Lane, Dumpling Meat Lane, and Lantern Lane. Lane, Bellows Lane. In addition, there are Luodian Alley, Iron Goods Alley, Lacquer Goods Alley, Copper Alley, Sesame Oil Alley, Pifang Street, Tangfang Alley, Charcoal Jizuo, Milk Fang Alley, etc. They are all named according to different markets and commercial workshops.
Zhao Xin saw that Guisheng's speech was clear and coherent, so he asked: "Guisheng, have you read any books?"
"Study for three years."
"Hey, your father is quite discerning and is willing to spend money to send you to study. Why don't you get a merit degree?"
"Young man is not that good, and the money for the private school was not paid for by my father, but by my master. The master said that after the Chinese New Year, he would let me help in the shop and learn some skills."
During the conversation, a few people arrived at Caiyi Street. When Zhao Xin and others saw it, it was indeed very lively. The alley, which is less than 300 meters long, is almost full of shops selling clothes, one next to the other. The Qing court set up a garment making bureau here, which mainly contributed clothing materials and ready-made clothes to the palace. It was a government-run high-end ready-made clothes shop.
Zhao Xin and others planned to enter the Garment Bureau's store to have a look. Who knew that when the clerk at the door saw Wang Yuanfang and Wu Siyu dressed in short-sleeved servants' clothes, they immediately stepped forward to stop them and said with an arrogant look that servants could not enter. Zhao Xin had no choice but to go inside and take a general look. He found that a mandarin jacket sold there actually cost two taels of silver, and the robes were even priced as high as three or four taels apiece.
"It's so expensive, you're cheating!" Zhao Xin cursed in his heart, turned around and left.
After wandering around for a long time, they finally bought the gown, trousers and mandarin jacket they needed in a very elegant-looking tailor shop. Then I bought a hat, a belt, satin shoes, a purse and socks. In order to make it easier to go out, Zhao Xin also bought a set of men's clothing for Liu Siting. Anyway, fake pigtails are still rich, so women can go out in disguise, as long as the idea comes to it.
(In later generations, there were more than 2,000 garment shops and more than 40,000 garment craftsmen in Old Shanghai, and about 200,000 people relied on them to make a living, accounting for almost one-tenth of the population of Shanghai at that time. Those who were called Shanghai's "main gang" Among the tailors and craftsmen in Shanghai, there are actually very few local Shanghainese, and most of them are Yangzhou people who immigrated to Shanghai in the early days. Therefore, some people think that the so-called "original gang" tailors in Shanghai are "Yang gang" tailors.)
Zhao Xin didn't want people to know where he lived, so he declined the store clerk's door-to-door delivery service and asked Lu Shoushan and Wang Yuanfang to go back with two large bags of clothes.
After buying clothes, Guisheng reminded Zhao Xin if he should buy some jade pendants so that he would look more elegant. So he and Wu Siyu, led by Guisheng, returned the same way and went to the 13th Fang Commercial Area east of Tianning Temple.
When they found a jade shop to choose jade pendants, Zhao Xin and Wu Siyu realized that each of them had to buy two pieces of jade pendants. It is said that in ancient times, men's jade pendants were divided into two groups, the left and right groups, and the emphasis was that "the jade pendants must be paired". In addition to buying a jade pendant, Zhao Xin also bought a white jade bracelet for Director Liu to make up for the regret of not being able to go shopping.
Fortunately, Wu Siyu brought a few extra pieces of silver, otherwise Zhao Xin would not have had enough money. When checking out, Zhao Xin almost said, "Tuluzui, please give me a QR code, I don't have enough cash!"
What caught Zhao Xin's eye most in the jade shop was a mutton-fat jade carving of Guanyin and a jade ring, but the shop owner wanted them for seven hundred and thirty taels. Zhao Xin really didn't dare to take out the Qianzu silver bars from Beihai Town, so he had to wait until night to tell Shen Jingdan to exchange some silver and come back to buy it tomorrow.
After carrying large and small bags home, it was past four in the afternoon. A group of people took their things and went back to their houses to change clothes. Director Liu Da was quite satisfied with the bracelet. As for the two jade pendants given to her, they were sent back to Beihai to Hong Tao.
At six o'clock in the evening, Shen Jingdan and Lao Huang arrived as scheduled. Guisheng went out and hired a few carriages, and everyone took the carriages to Liuxiang in the city.
When riding in the car, Zhao Xin specially shared a car with Shen Jingdan, and on the way he talked about wanting to buy some "skinny horses". Shen Jingdan knew that most of the women in Beihai Town were Japanese women, and he understood the actions of Zhao Xin and others. He said that he would go find a matchmaker tomorrow, and if possible, the day after tomorrow he could go see the "Skinny Horse" to select a matchmaker.
"Ah? We have to wait until the day after tomorrow!" Zhao Xin thought he could go see it just by telling him.
Shen Jingdan twirled his beard and said with a smile: "This matter cannot be rushed. I know that Zhao Dong's family does not want to reveal their whereabouts and whereabouts, but you don't know that there are so many families in Yangzhou who raise thin horses. Once this matter spreads, those Yapo agents will I'm afraid if you try to break through the threshold, you won't be able to blow it away."
Zhao Xinxin said that I wish they could all come, so that the choice would be wider. His only problem now is that the high-speed official boat he asked his cousin to buy is approved for 24 passengers; considering that the girls are petite, it is estimated that 30 people will be okay. If you calculate it this way, you have to make two trips. By bringing back 60 literate girls at a time, plus a few teachers recruited from another time and space, most of Beihai Town's basic education problems have been solved.
Thinking of this, he thought about it and told Shen Jingdan about his plans.
Shen Jingdan was still smiling at first, but the more he listened, the more outrageous it became, and the more he listened, the more frightened he became. By the end, he was shocked and sweating profusely.
He didn't expect that people like Zhao Xin came to Yangzhou to rob people and take them to Beihai, and the person they robbed was the famous Yangzhou Shou Ma!
"Dong Zhao, you can't do this!" Shen Jingdan had changed from a sitting position to a kneeling position, lying in the carriage car, and begged in a low voice with runny nose and tears: "I, the Shen family, are eighty-seven. , the whole family has lived in Yangzhou for many years. If you do this, I, Shen Jingdan, will be finished!"
Zhao Xin helped Shen Jingdan sit up and explained in a low voice: "This matter will not affect the Shen family. You listen to me first and then decide whether it is okay. This is my plan..."
The carriage stopped at the entrance of a brothel called "Yuli Pavilion" in Liuxiang. As soon as the car stopped, several waiters who had been waiting at the door for a long time came over to help lift the curtain and wait for the car to get off. As soon as a waiter opened the curtain of the carriage, he saw a handsome young man coming out with his head lowered.
"What a handsome young man!" The waiter was admiring in his heart. Unexpectedly, when the man passed by him, a faint fragrance of a woman wafted through his nose. If you look closely at the man's walking figure, the guy immediately became stupid. This is a woman!
Zhao Xin and others stood at the entrance of Yuli Pavilion, looking around. They saw strings of red lanterns hanging high at the door of every house in Liuxiang, and there was an endless stream of guests coming and going. The sound of singing strings and silk pipes, the delicate laughter of young women, the sound of drinking and punching by brothel guests, and the sounds of laughter and laughter come and go, just like being in a dream.
Liu Sheng, who was on the side, walked over and laughed in a low voice: "How is it? I think your laughter is about to leak out."
"Nonsense! Where can it be?" Zhao Xin said, while subconsciously wiping the corners of his mouth with his hand. When he turned to look at Wu Siyu, he saw that the guy was also stunned, with an expression of "It's actually like this".
After Lao Huang got out of the car, he saw Shen Jingdan standing in front of the car with a sad look on his face. He quickly walked over and asked in a low voice: "Brother Shen, what's wrong with you? You looked so happy when you got in the car just now. Did Mr. Zhao tell you something?"
Shen Jingdan sighed and said in a low voice: "Let's talk about this when we go back tonight." After saying that, he forced a smile and called everyone into the Yuli Pavilion.
As soon as he entered the door, the madam came over and greeted Shen Jingdan with a smile: "Boss Shen, I just talked about you, and you are here."
While she glanced at Zhao Xin and others, she kept saying: "These old ladies are the distinguished guests from the North you mentioned, right? Oh, they are all so heroic... Ah! This old lady is It’s so majestic!”
Liu Sheng curled his lips and said dissatisfied: "I have just turned thirty, what are you old for?! There is an old man on the left and an old man on the right."
Lao Huang on the side smiled and explained to Liu Sheng: "Yangzhou people are polite. As the saying goes, 'people get old when they go to Yangzhou, but they get young when the boat goes to Guazhou.' Anyone over thirty years old is called an old man."
After hearing this, the madam covered her mouth with her handkerchief and laughed for a while. Then she walked up to Liu Siting, who was disguised as a man, and praised him: "This man is really handsome." But then her expression changed and she looked at Shen Jingdan. Shen Jingdan shook his head gently, signaling to keep quiet.
The madam didn't say anything anymore, and asked the waiter beside him to lead Shen Jingdan and others through the house, to the riverside at the back door, and boarded a boat.
Wang Yuanfang is a little cautious. He has never been to Fengyue place. Looking at the gorgeous furnishings and furniture in the cabin, I couldn't help but ask: "Eating dinner on the boat?"
Shen Jingdan smiled and explained: "The food and wine will be prepared and served in the restaurant."
"A restaurant?"
Lao Huang smiled and pointed at a sand flying boat behind the boat. Zhao Xin and others saw lanterns hung on the boat, seven or eight people were busy on it, and smoke was everywhere. "There is no stove on the boat, so a sand flying boat is used instead of a wine boat. There are chefs and firemen on the boat, which can cook various dishes. This sand flying boat will follow us today. The wine and food will be delivered as soon as they are ready."
"Oh, there's also this particular point."
Everyone returned to the round table to sit down. Lao Huang and Shen Jingdan took advantage of the absence of the female performer and the accompanying girl to chat with everyone about the story of Yangzhou Fengyue.
Speaking of which, the Yangzhou brothel tradition mainly comes from Suzhou and Jiangning. Since the Ming Dynasty, the Qinhuai Waterside Pavilion in Jiangning has been the most beautiful in the world. The name Xiao Qinhuai has been around since the Kangxi period. Since the Qianlong reign, this area has become a place where three religions and nine streams such as Qingke Pinghua, female magic troupe and painting painters live together. In some apartments along both sides of the river, many current masters of music, chess, calligraphy, painting and famous chefs live. Those famous singers who possess special skills have learned pipa, drum board, Kunqu opera, and minor tunes since childhood, and are very proficient in them. In addition, they must also master poetry, painting, piano, chess and other skills to attract the attention of today's literati.
As for the tradition of thin horses, we have to talk about Hui merchants. There is a local proverb in Huizhou that "it takes three and a half years for a couple to live together", which means that Huizhou people must go out to do business when they are sixteen years old. Therefore, when a man reaches the age of twelve or thirteen, he must get married; then he goes out to do business, and sometimes it takes several years, ten years or even decades before he can return home. In order to meet the physiological needs of long-term single life, Huizhou merchants spent a lot of money on concubines and prostitutes.
After many local salt merchants in Yangzhou made a fortune, they married seven or eight concubines every year. In order to adapt to this situation, the prostitutes in Yangzhou ingeniously trained young girls so that they could have a sense of propriety when dealing with others, serve their elders, and give way to their peers (yin Tongchai, which means peers), so as not to cause disputes and ensure the peace of the family in the future. After hundreds of years of mutual learning, Yangzhou concubines have become ideal candidates for favors to compete for. The so-called "if you want to marry a young man, ask for it in Yangzhou" is well known to everyone in the country.
Having said this, Liu Siting asked curiously: "Boss Shen, how much does this skinny girl cost?"
Shen Jingdan said: "A first-class woman will need one thousand five hundred taels, a second-class girl will always need five hundred taels, and a third-class girl will also need one, two hundred taels."
After saying that, he glanced at Zhao Xin, the meaning of which was self-evident.
Master Zhao, Mrs. Zhao, if you kidnap all first-class women, Yangzhou city will explode!
Zhao Xinxiao asked: "I don't know what's so special about this class of women, but they actually cost one thousand five hundred taels?"
When Old Huang was about to speak, he saw the Madam leading several women with musical instruments into the boat. The first woman stood tall and graceful, wearing light makeup and holding a pair of sandalwood boards in her hands.
"Greetings, gentlemen."
The old bustard led the girls to bow down. For a while, the boats were filled with orioles singing and dancing, and all the girls were vying for beauty. Everyone except Shen Huang and Zhao Xin were stunned.
"Everyone, get up." Zhao Xin smiled and raised his hand.
When Shen Jingdan saw that Zhao Xin was the only one among the crowd who was very calm, smiling, and not frightened, he couldn't help but sigh to himself: "This man really has the demeanor of a general!"
Little did he know that Zhao Xin used to hang out with a bunch of directors in the entertainment industry and saw too many beauties during dinner. Not to mention the beauty in front of him, he has seen ten times more draft scenes than this one. Besides, after selling the antiques, he went completely crazy for two weeks...
So, it’s a small scene~~~
Shen Jingdan smiled and said to the woman in plain clothes: "This is Miss Chen Yin'er, right? I heard that Miss Yin'er has learned singing since she was a child, and her voice is as loud as a young phoenix. She once worked in many dramas overnight, and even the old performers sighed that she was not as good as her." I heard about the famous name, but I got to see the true face today." Shen Jingdan met Chen Yin'er when he attended a gathering of literati at Ma's Linglong Mountain Pavilion.
Chen Yin'er bowed slightly and said, "Mr. Shen is too complimentary."
Shen Jingdan smiled and pointed at Zhao Xin and others at the table, and introduced: "These are wealthy businessmen from the North. I have heard about Miss Yin'er for a long time, so I brought her here to meet her."
Liu Siting curiously looked at Chen Yin'er in front of her, and saw that she was wearing a light green gauze shirt, lined with a light willow-yellow dyed light pink robe. A pair of snow-white pearlescent plain clothes is tied around the waist, and the skirt is slanted with green woven brocade. He couldn't help but praise: "Your clothes are so beautiful! Where did you buy them?"
Finished bird! Now everyone knew that this man with a beautiful face was actually a woman!
During the quiet period, the flying sand boat behind brought the prepared wine and cold fruits. The madam smiled and stepped back, leaving behind the girls and a boatload of guests.
The boat slowly left the shore, and Shen Jingdan took the opportunity to say, "Please ask Miss Yin'er to sing a song."
The women then found their seats and sat down, forming a half circle around them. The pipa was playing, and Chen Yin'er knocked on the sandalwood board, her red lips parted slightly:
"A glass of wine, people are in the east of the painting hall. Secret appointments are made, whispers are whispered, and the oath of alliance is profound. The clouds and rain are stagnant, and the joy is strong. The chickens in the Maodian deliver the goods. In the moment of separation, the thrushman goes to the empty mirror. The Luo quilt is heavily searched for. Fragrant dream, the sun in the east turns red when I wake up."
Zhao Xin and other northerners didn't understand it very well. They only felt that the singing was clear and graceful and the melody was beautiful. Wu Siyu, Shen and Huang were smiling and tapping their fingers on the table to the beat.
Chen Yin'er sang the most popular song "Ten Cups of Wine" with ten arias in total. It tells the story of a woman who longs for her lover and the two pledge each other to each other, to the end when Xiao Lang goes away and her husband never returns. In the end, the woman sees through the world of mortals and chants Huang Ting day and night.
That night, the boat sailed all the way to Slender West Lake, allowing Zhao Xin and others to fully appreciate the nightlife of Yangzhou. However, because Director Liu was present, everyone did not dare to be too presumptuous. They just drank, ate and chatted, mainly listening to Shen and Huang's stories about the romance of Yangzhou. The flying sand boats following behind kept delivering the prepared dishes to the boat, and a large table was filled with dazzling dishes.
After everyone had eaten and drank enough, they chatted with the female dancers and watched the night view. It was almost nine o'clock in the evening before returning to Xiao Qinhuai. Zhao Xin made an appointment with Shen Jingdan and Lao Huang to exchange money to buy antiques tomorrow, and then said goodbye and went home. Starting from tomorrow, Zhao Xin and the others will start looking for Ya Po to look at the thin horse.
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