After receiving the special instructions, Zhao Huai quickly left the door.
Although the three days and nights in the basement were a long time, it felt like it passed very quickly.
In retreat, I have no awareness of the passage of time. At this time, I am still a little uncomfortable seeing the bright sun.
It was mid-afternoon, and vendors gathered in the neighborhood. Caravans of all kinds kept flowing, and pedestrians leading horses could often be seen on the streets.
There are basically no monks on the street, mostly literati holding fans, and occasionally two knights walking with swords.
"Believe in the Crow Immortal, keep the wind and rain smooth, and prevent diseases!"
"You can enter bliss and gain wealth!"
At this time, there were teams of people wearing black robes, shouting loudly, beating gongs and drums, looking very impressive.
Their clothes were all embroidered with jackdaws, which looked like some kind of sect.
Zhao Huai glanced at it, raised his eyebrows and said, "Believe in Crow Immortal? What kind of organization is this?"
Then he turned his head away and ignored it.
He read as he walked, holding the directory, and read slowly: "Thirty-two pieces of wine koji...Is Madam planning to make wine?"
"In addition, there are blue crane porcelain incense burners, silver silk embroidered lotus purses, jade bean cakes..."
"In that case, let's go buy some liquor first."
Zhao Huai turned into a bluestone alley, and occasionally saw a drunk man passing by with a blush on his face and a crooked posture.
When we reached the end of the alley, a shop appeared in front of us.
There is a yellow wine flag with the word "Sun" hanging on it. The shop is not big, with only five square tables inside and a dozen wine jars inside.
The wine of this wine shop can be said to be famous far and wide, and its sales are no less than that of Tobacco. It is a must-have drink for some drinkers before meals.
Because of his great reputation, when Zhao Huai came, there were guests at all five tables. Judging from their clothes and their Shu embroidered jade belts, they were all wealthy gentry in Jinzhou City.
Zhao Huai didn't pay attention to them and shouted directly: "Old Sun, have a pot of Xiaoyao Brewing."
"Okay! Da Zhuang, serve wine to Shopkeeper Zhao!"
The owner of the wine shop is a fifty-year-old uncle who is really good at making wine. The wine here is often bought out.
He and Zhao Huai were also acquaintances. Zhao Huai would come to this store basically every time he bought wine. He would occasionally chat with the boss about home affairs. Over time, he became familiar with him and even called him Lao Sun.
When Lao Sun saw Zhao Huai, he recognized him at a glance, then smiled and said to Zhao Huai:
"Good afternoon, shopkeeper Zhao! I haven't been here for a few days."
"Well, I can't help it. I've been a little busy lately."
Zhao Huai responded softly, looked at the wine tank, and asked:
"Old Sun, you have a Jiuqu bar here. My family wants to make wine and needs three taels of Jiuqu. The price is easy to talk about."
"Of course."
Lao Sun entered the shop with a smile on his face, quickly took a small bag of distiller's yeast and handed it to Zhao Huai.
"How much?"
Lao Sun pretended to be dissatisfied: "Hey, it's already so familiar. It's just a little koji. Just give it to the shopkeeper."
"Thanks then."
Zhao Huai was not polite and put the wine koji away.
"Go, go, go! Where are the victims, stay away from me!"
"Go away, you are really unlucky!"
While the two were negotiating, a burst of curses came from the table next to them.
Zhao Huai looked away.
"Sir, please give me some coins. My child has been hungry for several days."
I saw a female beggar with a dirty face, hunched over, looking at the drinkers at the table, pleading with her eyes.
He was holding a broken porcelain bowl in his hand, his complexion was sallow, his skin and bones were all exposed, and he looked miserable.
Her other hand was holding a little girl who couldn't be more than eight years old. The girl's face was dirty, but her eyes were bright and clear.
"I told you to get out! Didn't you hear me?"
"Boss! Take care of it!"
The female beggar stood in front of a round-headed drinker, but the drinker covered his nose impatiently and cursed, as if he couldn't stand the stench of the other party.
"Sir, I'm sorry, I'm sorry!"
Lao Sun smiled and stepped forward to apologize and took the mother and daughter beggars aside.
Then he took out a handful of copper coins from his sleeve, put it into the beggar's bowl, and sighed:
"Take it."
"thanks, thanks!"
The female beggar had just been scolded so hard that she could not lift her head. Now she was still shivering and shivering. She thanked her with a choked voice and pulled the little girl away in despair.
Zhao Huai glanced at the drinker, frowned, and felt a little confused.
He couldn't help but turned to Lao Sun and asked:
"There haven't been any refugees in Jinzhou for a long time. What's going on?"
Lao Sun said helplessly: "There is a severe drought this year. Many farmers in the outer city have lost their harvest. Many people are hungry. They are all poor people. There is nothing they can do."
"The government doesn't care?" Zhao Huai frowned.
Lao Sun glanced around and whispered: "The government can't control it. My cousin, who is an official, told me that all the grain reserves in previous years were used as military pay."
After hearing these words, Zhao Huai's frown deepened.
"Sir, your wine is ready."
The apprentice in the shop looked unfamiliar, he must be a newcomer, he looked honest and honest, and handed the wine to Zhao Huai with both hands.
"gone."
Zhao Huai dropped a piece of silver and left directly.
"Young master, I gave you too much!"
The apprentice shouted quickly.
"Thank you."
...
Carrying the wine, Zhao Huai passed by alleys and alleys and vaguely heard roars.
"It's just such a small amount of money! How many meals is enough for you?!"
"What a waste! That's all it takes in a long time!"
Since breaking through to the foundation building, his mental power has been extremely sharp, and he can hear noises even from far away.
As the footsteps moved forward, the sound got closer and closer.
In front of him was a disheveled male beggar, wearing shabby shorts and bare feet, pointing at a mother and daughter and yelling curses.
This mother and daughter were the beggar woman and the little girl in front of Zhao Huai just now.
"Hurry up and ask for it again! Otherwise, you won't be able to eat at night!"
The male beggar held a handful of copper coins in his hand and said with a fierce expression.
The female beggar could only protect the little girl's head, lowered her head and remained silent.
"You're still stunned, aren't you?"
When the male beggar saw that the woman still didn't act, he stretched out his hand and was about to slap her.
But as soon as he raised his hand, he found that his hand could not move immediately.
I felt like I was being pulled by something.
Looking back, I saw an extremely handsome young man.
"roll."
Zhao Huai said calmly with cold eyes.
With a gentle pull of his hand, he threw the male beggar to the ground.
Fear flashed across the male beggar's face, and he didn't dare to fight back. He got up, rubbed oil on his soles, and ran away without looking back.
Zhao Huai picked up the copper plate on the ground, took another piece of broken silver from his waist, and handed it to the female beggar.
"Take it and let's go."
"Thank you, sir..."
The female beggar choked and burst into tears. Without stopping, she pulled the little girl and quickly left the alley.
Zhao Huai turned around and vaguely saw in the shadow alley in the distance, there were beggars lying scattered in various directions, huddled in the corner, motionless, not sure whether they were dead or not.
There were also some beggars who stared in the direction of the mother and daughter, their eyes shining brightly.
But when they saw Zhao Huai's eyes, they all lowered their heads and didn't dare to take another look.
Zhao Huai is wearing a martial robe, tall and with piercing eyes. Since he broke through the foundation building, he has gained a lot of momentum, and he must not be messed with.
The cold and silent atmosphere in the corner of the alley is not very comfortable.
From time to time, the barking of dogs from the yards of wealthy families could be heard in the distance.
"What a prosperous age this is."
Zhao Huai shook his head, turned and left.
It wasn't long before he left.
Waves of gongs and drums came from the street, and then entered the alley.
"Believe in the Crow Immortal, keep the wind and rain smooth, and prevent diseases!"
"If you join our Raven Cult, you will receive a bucket of rice. The Crow Immortal Society will protect you. You will enjoy ultimate happiness after death, and you will be rich in the next life!"
Devout believers walked among the alleys, shouting.
"Is there really rice?"
A beggar with a yellow face and skinny muscles crawled out, with a hopeful look on his face.
"Of course it's true. Join the Raven Cult and you'll have enough money."
The leader of the believers smiled slightly and said confidently.
...
