"A down-and-out doctor who has just returned from the other side of the ocean. Most of his assets have been spent on the ship ticket, and now he only has nine pounds and fifteen pence left..."
"Haha, the more you mess around, the more backward you become."
"Last time, he was still a famous lord in the whole city."
After joking to himself a few words, Lu Li stood up and took out a pocket watch from his pocket. It had cowhide, gold edges, and a smooth crystal surface.
Apart from the wolf's head, sword and crutch, this was the most valuable thing around him.
Of course, it was impossible to pawn this thing. Lu Li needed to watch the time, and he was a single man. As long as he didn't waste anything, nine pounds would be enough to live in London for three months.
"Half a penny, sir, to warm your hands and fill your belly!"
Just as he was thinking about it, a voice came.
A middle-aged aunt wearing a headscarf was waving to Lu Li. If no one was patronizing her business, she wouldn't even notice this down-and-out middle class man.
In fact, many stall owners glanced at Lu Li without stopping for even a moment, and naturally they had no impression of him, as if this person did not exist.
[Exclusive Skill: Low-key Kingly Way]
Lu Li did not activate this skill deliberately, and the skill changed his temperament:
Ordinary, passerby.
Four thirty-seven in the morning.
There was a click.
Lu Li closed the silver lid, put it back in his pocket, and then walked towards the middle-aged aunt who was hawking. His stomach was a little empty.
The stall owner looked like a character in a game, shouting lines and looking particularly skillful:
"Delicious hot eel - delicious hot eel, half a penny, warm hands and full belly!"
"Have some."
Lu Li lived up to his enthusiasm. He opened his wallet and took out a coin without saying anything arrogant, such as:
No need to look for it, this is a tip.
For an ordinary family with six children, if the adults tighten their belts and live in London for a year, the cost is about twenty pounds.
Nine pounds seems like a lot, but after renting a house, it is only enough for daily food and drink, and there is not much leftover money.
In other words.
Before robbing the rich and giving to the poor, poverty restricted Lu Li.
"Gudu... Gudu..."
Just as I was thinking about it, the fragrance wafted from the small iron cup in front of me.
"My son bought these eels from Billingsgate Market at midnight. They were extremely fresh."
As she spoke, the aunt opened the lid, added some flour to make the soup thicker, and then started adding parsley and pepper.
It's autumn now, and it's extremely cold in London in the early morning. Hot eel is cheap, has a sticky texture, and is easy to fill the stomach. Therefore, it is very popular among the working class.
While the aunt was talking, two workers came over. They had just finished their night shift, they were tired and wanted something hot to drink.
"One hot eel and one coffee."
"Me too."
The two of them didn't pay attention to Lu Li standing next to them, and subconsciously ignored him.
The stall owner nodded, indicating that she had heard. At the same time, she handed the cup covered with cloth to Lu Li and said, "Come here to warm yourself by the fire."
With that said, he turned around and continued working.
At the same time, Lu Li took the iron cup with the hot eel and walked to a place out of the way to stand, silently enjoying the smell of the burnt eel.
When you first arrive, you have to figure out the situation before taking action, and you are not pressed for time.
"Eluo!"
"Eluo!"
Another stall was pushed over. The stall owners were two and a half-year-old children, twelve and a half years old at most, but they acted swiftly. One of them was responsible for selling, making a fire and boiling water, and the other was responsible for cleaning.
After a while, the water was boiled.
A whole pot of snails was poured in and stirred continuously with a broom handle. The mud and dust were removed, as well as the inedible digestive tract. The snail shell was intact and looked very good.
However, Lu Li didn't feel sorry for the two children's hard work, he just felt that the world was abnormal.
But if given the choice, who would want to make their children work so hard?
poverty.
This is something imprinted in the bones of Fog City East District.
During this period, the stall owner's aunt gathered around four more night shift workers. They were thinly dressed and slender, and they were looking expectantly at the iron cups being heated.
Some people eat hot eel, while others are willing to drink coffee. What they both have in common is that they can put their hands outside the cup to keep them warm, and their bodies can be heated by the hot food. As for the taste, they have to be put to the back.
"If this food were placed in the West End or the Financial City, it would cost at least one penny."
The worker who spoke had a sallow face and held two thin slices of bread in his hands. There was no strawberry jam, no bacon, just a small piece of butter.
After working for sixteen hours, he had to eat something before going home, otherwise he wouldn't be able to sleep at all.
"Who will save that unfortunate girl?"
A worker had an inexplicable smile on his face, blew on the coffee he bought for half a penny, and said: "She looks very young. I have never seen her before."
Unlucky girl.
This is a polite term for a wandering warbler.
Following the worker's line of sight, Lu Li saw a girl.
He was about sixteen or seventeen years old, with a few freckles on both sides of his nose. He was wearing only a one-piece long skirt and a jacket. He was standing by a stall a little further away, warming himself, looking extremely cramped.
Night shift female workers usually travel in groups. Even if they want to buy something to eat, they always stay in groups to avoid being stared at by unpredictable people.
With one professional exception, they often appear late at night and alone.
Somehow, Lu Li thought of Jack the Ripper, but he was immediately denied. How could such a coincidence happen?
In addition, according to incomplete statistics, in the foggy city of this era, about one-sixth of the women of the right age had become a wandering warbler. If he followed this route to find events that he could relate to, he would probably be exhausted.
"How do I get to Uxbridge?"
Under the gaze of several people, two homeless people walked over. They couldn't find a stall where they could stay warm for free, and they didn't want to become a source of conversation and be laughed at and discussed by the workers.
"We are brothers. We came to London the day before yesterday to look for work and found nothing. We want to try our luck in Uxbridge and find a hard job."
The girl was startled, but after hearing the tramp's explanation, she regained her composure.
It is not uncommon in London for country people to come to the city to try their luck, only to have the last penny wiped from their pockets and leave in despair.
"Go there... there is a roadside..."
She answered patiently, and when she saw that the two poor men seemed to understand, she simply squatted down and picked up the broken branches on the ground, and kept making gestures.
"I know, but it's cold now and you can easily get sick from the cold. You have to wait until the thick fog dissipates before setting off. Eat some bread, butter and coffee. I'll pay for it."
It's a pity that the workers couldn't hear this conversation. They speculated maliciously and showed obscene smiles from time to time, as if doing so would make themselves happier and forget the fatigue of work.
Only Lu Li, who was acting as an observer, saw the valuable side. The two workers took the girl's bread and kept thanking her.
Then, he ate a little decently, less than a quarter of it, and only heated it for a while before walking deeper into the thick fog.
He didn't ask for butter or coffee, and he declined the sixpence offer from the girl.
