To Fucha Nashan, Mr. Baylor, this teahouse seemed ordinary, but in a way, it was a free information site.
How much information about delicious food, fun, and interesting things can be learned by interested people through casual exchanges among tea drinkers.
"…………"
At noon on this day, Fucha Nashan had nothing to do and came to Mingxiang Teahouse as usual.
Fucha Nashan belongs to the noble class and can be regarded as a relative of the emperor. Although he has no real power, his status is still very high compared to ordinary people.
After seeing Fu Cha's aftermath from a distance, the clerk at Mingxiang Teahouse certainly didn't dare to neglect him. He quickly stepped forward to greet this distinguished guest with a smile.
"…………"
The waiter first bowed for a while, and then said continuously: "Hey, it's Lord Baylor here, please come in quickly."
Looking at the waiter who greeted him warmly, Fucha Nashan couldn't help but frown, obviously not very happy.
In his capacity as Master Beile, he had previously been the shopkeeper of Mingxiang Teahouse, so he went out to greet him in person.
However, this time, it was just a clerk, Fucha Nashan, who instantly felt that he had been neglected.
Just listen, Fucha. Nashan looked at the waiter in front of him with a displeased look on his face, and asked in a deep voice: "Where is your shopkeeper?"
Upon hearing Fucha Nashan's inquiry, the clerk scratched his head, seeming embarrassed, and said in a squeaky voice.
"Mr. Beile, please forgive me. My shopkeeper is temporarily busy and will not come to the restaurant today."
Hearing what the waiter said, Fucha Nashan nodded, and his face looked much better.
"..."
Fucha Nashan waved his hand and said, "In that case, forget it. Take me to my old place and bring me a pot of dragon tea and two more delicate snacks."
Upon hearing this, the clerk eagerly agreed.
After Yin Fucha and Nashan sat down at the old place, the waiter apologized and immediately went down to prepare refreshments.
Fucha Nashan, on the other hand, looked around, and after seeing the specific scene in the teahouse, he couldn't help but frown.
Nothing else, because the Mingxiang Teahouse, which was always bustling, actually had very few guests today and was quite deserted.
"…………"
At this time, there were only a few shabby guests in commoners drinking tea in the teahouse, but looking at the subtle expressions on their faces, there was some inexplicable turmoil and loss.
"..."
"Is it weird? Why are there so few customers in this teahouse today?"
"Did something happen in the capital recently, but I didn't know about it?"
Looking at the unusually deserted Mingxiang Teahouse, Fucha Nashan thought secretly.
"…………"
While Fucha Nashan was thinking secretly, the conversation between two tea guests not far away caught Fucha Nashan's attention.
………
"Brother Wanyan, why don't you see Brother Ma Jia here today?"
"Hey, brother Hera, don't you know that he bought a transparent cricket jar in the Qiao Gong Pavilion, and he is probably showing it off at this time."
"Oh? It is said that this completely transparent high-quality glass cricket jar has been bought for eight coins. Brother Ma Jia is a Three Flags after all, so he bought it easily."
"..."
"Ha, that's bullshit. We are all bannermen. What difference does it make? He just has a good father."
"Having a good father, doesn't it mean that brother Ma Jia has the advantage of being a Shangsanqi? Unlike you and me, we can only buy a translucent cricket jar..."
"To be honest, I am also very greedy when I look at Brother Ma Jia's completely transparent cricket jar. However, I am used to spending a lot of money on weekdays. At this critical moment, my money is in embarrassment."
"Brother Hera, if you are not convinced, you can probably buy it if you are a little frugal and save for half a month."
"That's true, that's all, that's all, I'll spend less money these days!
After a pause, the "Brother Wanyan" asked with some confusion.
"Brother Hera, you said that this foreign glass was originally a tribute from the Western big noses to the emperor, how could it suddenly appear among the people?"
"I once heard someone say that this Western glass is crystal clear, as if it were completely transparent." "
"Originally, little brother, I just thought it was exaggerated. But now I see it with my own eyes and I know that you are sincere and don't deceive me..."
"If these Western glass were replaced in the Tang and Song Dynasties, they might be able to replace an entire city, maybe..."
As he spoke, anyone could hear the admiration in "Brother Wanyan's" voice.
"..."
"Brother Hera" also nodded repeatedly and said with greed.
"Yes, who would have thought that Western glass can be so transparent, and can reflect colorful light when placed in the sun, as if it were a divine object."
………
"Brother Wanyan" heard this and replied with full approval.
"This is not only true for Brother Hera, but also for me, little brother."
"To be honest, up to now, all I can think about are those exquisite glass cricket jars with colorful colors under the sun. Unfortunately, I am short of money and cannot be as casual as Brother Ma Jia."
While "Brother Wanyan" and "Brother Hera" were exchanging skills in fighting crickets, the teahouse clerk from before also brought up the tea snacks and placed them one by one.
After the teahouse boy turned around, he said to "Brother Wanyan" and "Brother Hera".
"You two gentlemen, don't you know? Because of this Western glass jar, a new game has appeared in the world of cricket fighting, called Cricket Happy Betting."
Hearing what the teahouse waiter said, Brother Wanyan and Brother Hera were both stunned, and then they asked in unison.
"Seriously? How do you, a lowly little guy, know so clearly?"
When the teahouse clerk heard this, he sighed and said, "I am not a villain. I am well-informed and know clearly. It is the two guests who are a bit slow to inform."
"Of course, I also listened to what our shopkeeper said, otherwise, at my level, I wouldn't know the news,"
"Due to the widespread appearance of cheap Western glass, there has been a large-scale betting competition similar to horse racing in the capital recently."
"Dozens of cricket owners put their proud crickets into a completely transparent glass arena and fight. They use this as a bet. If they are lucky and guess correctly, they will get dozens of times or even hundreds of dollars. Double the reward.”
As he spoke, the waiter pointed at the empty teahouse and then said.
"Tell the truth to the two guests, if it weren't for this, the business of this teahouse wouldn't be so deserted today..."
"Other guests in the teahouse all ran to watch the cricket fight, and many people chose to place bets."
"My shopkeeper also likes to play this."
"One time, I was lucky enough to hit the strongest cricket, and I earned more than a thousand taels of silver in one fell swoop."
"This is equivalent to the income of this small teahouse for one or two months. If I'm sorry, my shopkeeper has been hanging around the cricket fighting ring these past few days, never wanting to leave."
"Except for coming back yesterday to take money from the counter to use as gambling capital, I no longer care about the teahouse business."
Hearing what the teahouse waiter said, the two people, "Brother Wanyan" and "Brother Hera",
After looking at each other, their hearts were ready to move.
The teahouse waiter scratched his head, smiled, and continued.
"But you two need to make more preparations, because this business is booming now, and the minimum gambling cost for cricket fighting is one tael of silver."
…
"Brother Wanyan" and "Brother Hera", the two bannermen who depended on the iron crop, looked at each other after hearing this, and were about to express their opinions...
Fucha Nashan, who had been listening for a long time, snorted coldly.
"…………"
After glaring at the three people, Fucha Nashan, Lord Baylor, stood up straight away.
At this moment, he neither ate cakes nor drank tea. He threw the tea and pastry coins on the table with a cold face, and then turned around and left without hesitation, as if he disdained the company of these people. .
"Recently, I often hear others say that the physical fitness of the bannermen has been greatly weakened. They can no longer even use horseback riding and archery."
"It seems that it is because of you, these bannermen who are idle and doing nothing on weekdays, that the reputation of the entire Manchu and Qing bannermen has been ruined."
"You are the trash and trash among the Eight Banners disciples."
Fucha and Nashan didn't know what he had in mind. Before leaving, he dealt with the three people for a while.
Speaking of this, we have to talk about the order of superiority and inferiority of the Eight Banners of the Qing Dynasty.
From high to low they are: straight yellow flag, bordered yellow flag, pure white flag, true blue flag, bordered white flag, true red flag, bordered red flag, bordered blue flag.
Among them, Zhenghuang Qi, Xianghuang Qi, and Zhengbai Qi are the upper three flags, and Zhenglan Qi, Xiangbai Qi, Zhenghong Qi, Xianghong Qi, and Xianglan Qi are the lower six flags.
The Zhenghuang flag is the symbol of Manchu princes and nobles. Only the emperor, several princes and their descendants have the right to use it.
And Fucha Nashan is also a Zhenghuang Banner and belongs to the most noble banner people.
The chain of contempt within the banner people has always been to go up to the three flags, look down on them, and go down to the six flags.
"…………"
Upon hearing Fucha Nashan's harsh words of reprimand, all three of them looked ashamed, angry and embarrassed.
However, Fucha Nashan was a frequent visitor here, and they all knew that Fucha Nashan was a relative of the emperor. Although he had nothing to do with the emperor, he had some connections with him, and ordinary people couldn't afford to offend him.
Due to Fucha Nashan's status, although these three people were very angry, they did not dare to say anything.
……………
As for Fucha and Nashan, after venting their anger, they left Mingxiang Teahouse without looking back. But he kept thinking about the conversation he just heard in his mind. Words like "tens of times, hundreds of cups of profits" and the like kept echoing in his mind.
In this way, after walking a few streets in a daze, Fucha Nashan suddenly grabbed a passing bannerman.
