Two oval tin boxes containing tonight's staple: hot mashed potatoes.
Mi Gao probably bought them because they were printed with royal flags and various bright colors. After eating, they could be washed and used as toys.
As for the side dishes, there are some meat and some vegetarian.
Ham, beef, bratwurst, and a hot pea soup.
If you have to be particular about it, the taste will definitely not be good. After all, Lu Li has eaten too much delicious food, but he is not picky, as long as it is salty and salty.
As for Mi Gao, the smile on his face has never stopped since he got the key.
Especially after eating, when he returned to the bedroom, the boy kept rolling on the bed and fell asleep until midnight.
midnight.
Listening to the faint snoring next door, Lu Li picked up the books on the bookshelf and started reading them one by one.
There are three medical books, but there are serious missing pages, and the records are not very advanced. There are even errors in some places.
After carefully reviewing them, Lu Li put them back on the bookshelf, with the exception of the last one. There was no name on the cover. Turning to the back, you could see a twisted symbol with a metallic luster:
Pentagram.
But it is not neat and crooked, like a child's graffiti.
“Miskatonic University…”
The first page was full of characters, but most of them were mottled and broken, and could not be connected into words at all. Lu Li had to guess a lot before translating two words.
"Miskatonic University?"
Unheard of.
Either some unknown pheasant university, or a mysterious college far away from the world.
Maybe take the time to visit that crappy dentist, who seems to have moved to East London.
Just as he was thinking about it, Lu Li turned to the next page.
Blank.
The third page is blank.
Page four is blank.
…
After flipping through the book quickly, Lu Li, who was leaning on the bed, sat up straight. He was now extremely sure that except for the first page, there were no words or symbols in other areas of the book.
Something is wrong.
The page that says "Miskatonic University" is extremely mottled. How could it be worn to this extent if I didn't read it frequently.
Could it be that its previous owners liked to stare at blank pages in a daze? And he was still in a daze while stroking.
Because it was his first time encountering this kind of situation, Lu Li didn't know the correct way to open it.
In addition, experience and reason tell him that he must remain cautious enough about unknown things.
[Just like the surface of the Thames, it seems bright and bubbling happily upwards, but beneath its meanderings, there are countless skeletons hidden. 】
【Once you step into this city full of shadows and darkness, you are close to death! 】
At the same time, a reminder from the principal came to mind.
In the end, Lu Li decided to put it away for the time being, and then go to the East District to find his last owner after settling all kinds of chores.
…
The morning sun shines and the thick fog gradually fades away.
Residents who have lived in the foggy city for many years began to discuss this rare weather. You should know that at this time, the entire city is usually covered in rain and mud.
Knock knock knock——
"Sir, it's time to get up and have breakfast."
The childish call sounded along with the knock on the door.
In fact, Michael woke up at five in the morning. This is a biological clock that has been formed for many years.
However, since being adopted by Lu Li, he no longer has to run around on the streets.
Because of this, the grateful Mi Gao acted as a nanny. He spent half an hour dressing and washing, and got up early to go shopping.
Click.
The door opens.
"Good day, sir." Mi Gao, who was wearing a red coat, said energetically.
"Good day."
Lu Li was not wearing a windbreaker, and the charcoal fire in the fireplace made the entire second floor extra warm. He raised his hand and rubbed Mi Gao's fluffy hair, "How was your rest last night?"
The little boy enjoyed this action very much, and it invisibly brought the relationship between the two closer.
"It's good, like heaven."
It can be seen that Mi Gao's vocabulary is very poor.
In addition, he used to live in the church and would be more or less affected by it.
During the conversation, the two came to the living room.
Six seats surround a red square table, on which are placed a pot of hot milk, two bacon sandwiches, a plate of fresh green watercress, and a small piece of butter.
"Sir, are you going to eat fried steak for lunch today? I bought some pieces of fresh beef when I went to the market this morning. There is a pan in the kitchen downstairs."
"Of course, I also bought mushrooms, which can be cooked into soup. As for dinner, I can go to the market in the afternoon and buy some shrimps and crabs..."
Although he only slept for a few hours, Mi Gao showed unimaginable vitality. He was excitedly counting his fingers, thinking about what to prepare for the next meal, or even the next meal.
While being moved, Lu Li couldn't help but have doubts in his heart, "Don't these things cost a lot of money?"
As he spoke, two silver coins were pushed over.
"If you have any leftover food money for the next three days, prepare a sumptuous dinner on the last day."
"yes."
Mi Gao took the money without hesitation, then took out a small notebook from his pocket, like a butler, and said with a serious face:
"Yesterday you gave me one shilling, and I spent ten pence on my dinner. I left two pence to go shopping this morning, and I spent one shilling on it."
Hearing this, Lu Li nodded, wondering how Mi Gao used to make up the difference. You know, he had used almost all his savings to buy himself a deerstalker hat yesterday, so he probably didn't have much money to put in.
"You wanted to throw away those two newspapers yesterday, but then you were too busy and forgot. In fact, they can be exchanged for money. The newsboy will recycle them at half price, so I disposed of them on the way to the market, totaling six pence. .”
"Finally, after buying you a gift yesterday, I still have five pence left."
In this situation, there is an atmosphere of a soldier reporting to the commander on the military situation on the front line.
"Well, thank you for your hard work."
Considering that there was some butter on his hand when he was eating the sandwich just now, Lu Li took back the hand he was about to extend and took out a silver coin from his wallet: "Then I'll leave it to you for the next three meals. In addition, go get breakfast." When in town, be sure to bring back a copy of The Times and The Advertiser."
Pan Ming once said that he would contact himself and Duke by publishing it in the newspaper.
The latter can provide a lot of information, not only advertisements for house rentals and construction contracts, but also some weird commissions.
Take yesterday's copy of "Advertiser" as an example. There was a very interesting commission on it:
Search for Ms. Clayton Kitty's missing ruby ring. Those who pass the interview will receive five pounds of activity funds. After the lost item is recovered, there will be more generous rewards in the future.
For the candidates, this is very much like the principal's handiwork, or in other words, an easter egg, rewarding those who read the newspaper seriously and pointing them in a direction.
Frankly speaking, if Lu Li hadn't made up his mind to rent the house on Baker Street before other participants, he might have passed.
…
It's nine o'clock sharp.
There was a murmur of movement from the kitchen.
After having breakfast and resting for an hour, Mi Gao started working and was busy cleaning up the ingredients for lunch.
Staple food: fried steak.
Side dishes: Beef stew with peas, mushroom soup.
Although it was a bit meaty, it was still his first lunch in this world, and Lu Li was full of expectations.
At this moment, he was lying on the sofa in the front hall. There was a tin pot on the coffee table in front of him, and the aroma of coffee wafted from it.
As the landlord Uncle Johnny described, when there were no guests, Lu Li could lie here, sipping coffee, reading the newspaper and enjoying life.
However, Pan Ming's missing person notice has not yet appeared.
"The Advertiser" published several commissions worthy of consideration.
One of them was particularly eye-catching. The publisher was Scotland Yard, or to be more precise, Lu Li's old acquaintance, Mr. Harvard Vincent.
The chief officer of the Criminal Investigation Department seemed to have encountered some big trouble again and needed to seek help from the detective.
As for the specific circumstances of the case, the advertisement did not mention it, probably because it was worried about causing mass panic.
4 Whitehall Street.
This location was put on Lu Li's schedule. He was going to East London in the afternoon to visit his former tenant.
That mysterious book has his scent on it. If you look carefully, you should be able to find it.
If it really doesn't work, I won't come back at night. An afternoon plus a whole night is definitely enough time.
If conditions permit, go to Whitehall Street as early as possible the next day. Scotland Yard declared in the mission commission published that they needed a large number of detectives and the time limit was very relaxed——
It shall be valid for at least seven days from the date of publication, and may be extended as appropriate.
Of course, several other commissions are also valuable.
[Investigating the Southern District Mental Hospital]
The client was the son of a patient. He sent his mother to the Southern District Mental Hospital and soon received a death notice.
Limited by his own abilities, the gentleman was unable to investigate in depth and could only hand it over to a private investigator.
This can be seen from the bounty, which is only two pounds for finding out the truth. The initial activity fund is only five shillings, and you still have to pass an interview.
Typically less money and more work.
It is worth mentioning that this commission did not mention anything strange, and it seemed to have no mystery.
But Lu Li felt that things were not that simple.
On the one hand, the water in this world is too deep. If he hadn't been reminded by the principal and discovered the mysterious book, he would most likely have thought that "the fog is nothing more than this."
On the other hand, a certain lunatic asylum I once explored was too terrifying. From the patients to the chefs to the doctors and even the hunting dogs, it all cast a shadow on people's minds.
[A thorough investigation into the truth behind the Tully Street fire]
The bounty is extremely exaggerated, a full 10,000 pounds!
It is no exaggeration to say that it can drive detectives all over London crazy.
You know, the British pound is directly linked to gold, and even the raw material for casting them is gold. No matter how light a ten thousand gold coin is, it will take a carriage to pull it.
To put it more intuitively, a family of three with an annual income of fifty pounds can live a happy middle-class life in this city.
Ten thousand pounds will last a lifetime.
Regarding this case, there are many clients, and you can even see multiple agencies, including private and official.
Mr. Hodges, brewery owner.
Mr Anthony, Borough High Street Policing Committee representative.
Tully Street Peace Committee.
Scoville Warehouse Management Committee.
Fire Protection Association.
Roche Pharmaceuticals.
Fog City Fire Department.
The Braidwood Family.
…
A list of clients, long enough to be recited like a long poem.
This group of gentlemen joined forces to offer this crazy bounty, which also reflects the terrible damage caused by this fire and how wide its impact was.
The most important thing is that this commission takes up two pages and has a relatively detailed description.
[There are fires in the southeast, northwest, and everywhere!
The bright red and dazzling flames covered the sky, not the thin, picturesque tongues of fire beside the building, but a broad, raging, flickering wall of fire.
The fire rose and floated like clouds, covering the entire street, including the pier.
No matter from which angle you look at it, this scene is grand and terrifying—the energy at the peak of its power despises everything in the world. In front of it, all human efforts seem insignificant.
…
Even standing on the other side of the Thames, one could smell the burning smell... The fire was like a volcanic eruption, igniting the fog and the sky, adding an unnatural color to all nearby streets and all public buildings. Like an autumn sunset.
The masts, flags, and rigging of the ships on the river also glowed with red heat. It turned out that even the river water could not prevent the fire from spreading. All the ships near the pier burned, and the water reflected the towering flames. The entire Thames River seemed to be on fire. 】
"Nuclear explosion?"
Looking at the words on the newspaper, Lu Li couldn't help but think of a nuclear explosion.
Of course, there are no such destructive weapons in this era, and the scope of the impact will not be so small.
Around ten o'clock.
Lu Li sighed deeply and closed all the newspapers. He wanted to collect today's copy of "The Advertiser" and told Mi Gao not to send it for recycling.
"The Tully Street fire... the Tully Street fire... was some evil ritual?"
"Forget it, it's best not to make preconceptions before conducting on-the-spot investigation."
At this time, the door was suddenly pushed open.
"Doctor Joseph, help!"
A muffled cry for help came.
The strange visitor looked pale and kept shouting the name of the previous tenant.
It was obvious that he was tortured by the pain. He didn't bother to look around and climbed directly onto the operating table, eager to receive treatment.
"Sorry, Dr. Joseph was evicted a few days ago because he couldn't pay the rent."
"But you should be lucky that my new tenant happens to be a surgeon."
With that said, Lu Li walked towards the medicine storage cabinet. He was currently playing the role of a doctor who aspired to engage in the detective industry but had not yet become famous.
Most importantly, money is currently scarce.
"Whoever you are, please save me!"
"help me!"
"Give me the pain relief first, quickly!"
The cries of pain continued.
Toothache can be linked to death, which gave Lu Li a sense of accomplishment.
It just so happened that Joseph left a lot of medicine and tooth extraction tools in order to offset the liquidated damages.
【Chloroform】
【Salicylic acid】
The former is an anesthetic and the latter can disinfect and sterilize.
Finally, under the watchful eyes of the patient Mr. Brian and his boy friend Michael, Dr. Lu began the first operation in his life.
No matter how small a mosquito is, it is still meat.
In the same way, why can’t tooth extraction be considered surgery?
