Go back to the prosperous days and become a layman

Chapter 936 935 Rosewood Bed, Racing Boat

After dinner, Tang Zhitong found a burlap sack and filled it with corn from the large urn.

The corn in the jar weighed less than 200 jin (100 kg), not even enough to fill a sack.

"Won't it be a bit conspicuous?" Xiao Wang looked at the bulging sack with slight concern.

"It's alright, everyone's asleep early now. I'll leave a little later, no one will see me." Tang Zhitong wiped his sweat. Xiao Wang's consideration made sense, but he wouldn't really deliver Da Shi Zuo Hutong that late. He was just looking for an excuse to go out and throw the sack into his spatial storage.

The highest military unit was located on the east side of the entrance to Dashizuo Hutong, where guards stood watch 24 hours a day. Only a madman would carry sacks of grain under their noses.

In addition to the corn, Tang Zhitong also tied the remaining chestnuts, pine nuts, and the dried goods that his uncle had brought to his bicycle.

It's fortunate that it's a 28-inch bicycle, otherwise it might not have been able to carry it.

At this time of year, many people would gather under the streetlights to cool off. Even when the streetlights were off, some people who were not willing to sleep would chat and fan themselves with palm-leaf fans at the gate.

But there are fewer people like that this year. To save energy, most people choose to rest early, and who knows, they might even have a sweet dream of a full meal at night.

Before leaving, Tang Zhitong scanned the surrounding area with his phone. All the neighbors' doors were closed, and even Grandpa Zhu from the intelligence station was asleep.

All around was quiet, with only the cold moonlight shining on every corner of the city.

"Go back, I'll be back in a bit." Tang Zhitong pushed his bicycle out the gate, letting Xiao Wang go back and rest first.

"Okay, drive carefully." Xiao Wang didn't dare to say it loudly, but he was still a little worried.

Tang Zhitong waved his hand, lifted his leg and swung onto the front bar of the bicycle, then pushed off with his feet and slowly rode towards the entrance of the alley.

The moon was bright and the stars were few. The streetlights were off. Listening closely, one could hear the sounds of a cricket concert coming from the corner of the wall, as if they were wishing Tang Zhitong a safe journey.

After turning the corner of the alley, Tang Zhitong immediately threw the sacks and ropes from his bicycle into the storage space.

Although the load was lighter, Tang Zhitong continued riding forward. Since he had already told his family that he was going to Dashizuo Hutong, he had to make sure he spent enough time outside to make the round trip.

Tang Zhitong rode his bicycle leisurely along the empty streets of Beijing, heading towards Dashizuo Hutong, but when he reached Jingshan East Street, he turned right and rode towards Di'anmen.

If you ride any further ahead, you'll find guards on duty. Ride to Di'anmen and then turn back home; that should take about the right amount of time.

Di'anmen is located between Jingshan Park and the Bell Tower. It was the north gate of the Imperial City. Although it is still called Di'anmen, it no longer resembles a city gate because it was demolished in 54.

(In the picture below, the gate with three arched openings above the Shouhuang Hall in Jingshan Park is Di'anmen.)
Di'anmen is located on the central axis of Beijing. It has been rebuilt many times during the Ming and Qing dynasties and has historical value, but it has also had an adverse impact on traffic and seriously affected the travel of the people.

When the demolition was planned, some social elites were very agitated. At that time, the Beijing Municipal Government made concessions, numbering and registering the doors, windows, wooden beams, wooden pillars, wooden rafters, and wooden purlins that were dismantled from Di'anmen, and transporting them, along with the bricks, stones, and glazed tiles, to the Temple of Heaven. They promised to relocate Di'anmen to the Temple of Heaven, which finally appeased those individuals.

Unfortunately, a fire broke out after the materials were delivered, and not a single piece of wood was left, so the relocation project was abandoned.

Returning from Di'anmen, the lights in the main house and side rooms were still on.

After locking the front door, Tang Zhitong went to the main room and told Zhang Guifang through the door, "Mom, I've put it down. Everything went smoothly. You should get some rest."

"Okay, you should go to sleep early too, Wenwen is waiting for you." Zhang Guifang replied from inside, and with a "click" the door closed, the lights in the room went out.

"How did it go? Was it all right?" Not only was Xiao Wang still awake, she came out of the room to greet her husband after hearing him move.

"Successfully, they're all in the cellar. We'll carry them out little by little after we move." Tang Zhitong lied through his teeth.

"Alright, Comrade Tang, you've worked hard. Go soak your feet and go to bed." As her husband entered the room, Ms. Wang closed the door to the side room.

Although it's hot in Beijing during the day recently, the heat island effect isn't significant, so it's still okay to sleep at night if you don't move around too much.

"You're out of peaches, aren't you? I'll see if they're selling any tomorrow and buy you some more," Tang Zhitong asked with concern as she poured out the water for washing your feet.

"No need, I've stopped throwing up." Although her husband didn't say it, Ms. Wang knew that this house-buying trip had cost a lot of money, and it was good enough that the family could have enough to eat. She didn't want her husband to spend more money on her.

"This has nothing to do with whether you vomit or not. Just give you and the baby some extra nutrition." Tang Zhitong poured the water, took off her pants, and put her feet into the foot bath while wearing only her underwear. The hot water covered her feet, and the scalding sensation was incredibly comfortable.

"You need money, right? You must have spent a lot on this house purchase. How much did you borrow?" Xiao Wang squatted down and expertly rubbed her husband's feet.

"I didn't borrow any. I spent three hundred at the housing management bureau, and this afternoon I went to the wood factory to order two sets of desks and a bathtub, which cost eighty. I still have more than twenty left to buy a peach." Tang Zhitong lied about ten yuan, and before Xiao Wang could refute, he immediately changed the subject to the bathtub.

"I'll trouble Factory Director Zhang to deliver it the day after tomorrow. I think you'll really like it when you see it. Let me tell you, that tub is this long and this tall. I think it can fit both of us in one tub." Tang Zhitong spread out his arms to show Xiao Wang the size of the tub.

"Hmph, you really just want to take a shower?" Ms. Wang looked up at her husband and rolled her eyes, not believing what he said.

“Really, think about it, boiling water is such a hassle. If you're just taking a shower, how much hot water would you have to boil to fill the tub? It's different with two people. As soon as I go in, the water level rises. Not only does it save water, but it also keeps both of us warm from being soaked in hot water. It's a win-win situation.” Tang Zhitong firmly denied that she was thinking of stacking herself on top of others.

"I don't believe you." Xiao Wang applied pressure and gave her husband a foot massage.

"Hahaha, if you don't believe me, who else can you believe? Alright, wipe your feet and go to sleep." Tang Zhitong grabbed the washcloth and dried the water off her feet. If she didn't dry them soon, she was afraid that Xiao Wang would torture her until she blushed.

Although Ms. Wang didn't say much, her husband's words had stirred up some different thoughts in her mind. What's more, Liu Yue had whispered in her ear that day that being gentle during pregnancy would bring a different kind of experience.

Pregnant women are naturally more emotional, and after getting into bed, Xiao Wang tossed and turned, unable to sleep, and began to grope and tease Tang Zhitong.

Having shared a bed for over a year, Tang Zhitong knew perfectly well what Xiao Wang's actions meant.

"Should I be gentler?" Although it wasn't yet three months, Xiao Wang's condition had been stable, so Tang Zhitong thought it was worth a try. The sea breeze blows gently, the waves sway gently.

Tonight's mahogany bed is like a small boat on the water, creaking and groaning incessantly.

Tuesday, May 7th.

Xiao Wang was full of energy early in the morning. After breakfast, when Zhang Guifang was looking for vegetables to pick in the yard, she stopped her and said, "Mom, Anzi brought several lotus roots over yesterday. We don't need to pick them these next few days. Let them grow a little longer."

“Lotus root? Lotus root is good, it’s crisp and filling.” Zhang Guifang was taken aback at first, then replied with a smile. As for where her son bought the lotus root, she guessed that he probably bought it yesterday with their food ration coupons, because her son had taken all the food ration coupons and food vouchers with him early yesterday morning.

"Yesterday, on my way out of work, I ran into someone selling lotus roots from a shoulder pole, and I bought some along the way." Tang Zhitong, afraid that her mother would misunderstand, gave the lotus roots a proper origin.

“Yes, buy more if you see them; lotus root keeps well. After we finish eating the lotus root, I’ll go to the vegetable store and buy some more for you to take over. The teacher works hard tutoring us; we can’t let him down.” Zhang Guifang was a little embarrassed for misunderstanding her son, but she didn’t object to using her own ration to subsidize her in-laws. She was already very fortunate to have such a good teacher; she couldn’t be stingy with the food.

"Mom, no need. After we move, let Jingying and Jingmin stay with us for a while. I'll take care of the grocery shopping." Tang Zhitong was a little tired. She had a wealth of knowledge but couldn't tell her family. She could only try to make up for it by finding ways to hide it.

Fortunately, Zhang Guifang and Xiao Wang have been asking less and less about the source of their side dishes, which is a good sign.

Tang Zhitong didn't go to the escort office today. He first sent Fengzhi to Chunshu Hutong, and then took the set of documents to the street office where Dashizuo Hutong is located to complete the procedures.

The procedures weren't exactly troublesome, but they weren't exactly easy either. At least the checks here were much stricter than those in Donghuashi. They asked Tang Zhitong many questions and looked at his documents again and again.

In order to allow the wall to dry as quickly as possible, Tang Zhitong finished the formalities and rushed back to the new courtyard to continue burning firewood.

This time, Tang Zhitong learned his lesson. After lighting firecrackers in each room, he took out the books and stools he had brought from home, closed the front door, and hid in the east wing to read.

The east wing has a cellar. When you open the lid, cold air keeps escaping out, just like a natural air conditioner.

After reading for a while, Tang Zhitong heard faint sounds of opera singing coming from behind him, accompanied by erhu music. And to his surprise, the voices were quite good.

Although songs have been developing in China for decades, apart from a small number of popular songs, they have never been very well received.

Currently, the most widely enjoyed form of entertainment is traditional Chinese opera. From south to north, from east to west, different dialects have given rise to various styles of traditional Chinese opera, such as Peking Opera, Yue Opera, Huangmei Opera; Sichuan Opera, Qinqiang Opera, Liuzi Opera; Henan Opera, Cai Diao Opera, Gaojia Opera, and so on.

Besides the more famous operas mentioned above, there are also various local operas called Bangzi. According to incomplete statistics, there are nearly 300 opera genres in the country.

Since it's Beijing, it's most likely Peking Opera. Tang Zhitong only knows the basics of opera. Although he doesn't understand it very well, he knows the roles of Sheng, Dan, Jing, Mo, and Chou. The creaking noise in the backyard is clearly a female voice, so it's a Dan role.

Tang Zhitong couldn't guess any more than that, because most of what he knew was related to gossip.

The most famous place for opera in Beijing is called "Hanjiatan". During the Ming Dynasty, a tributary of the Liangshui River flowed through this place, accumulating water to form a pool. The pool was surrounded by weeds. In autumn and winter, when the wind blew, the withered grass swayed in the wind. The literati felt that the cold wind and reeds by the pool were very artistic, so they named it "Hanjiatan" (Cold Reed Pool).

During the Qing Dynasty, a Grand Secretary named Han lived here, and gradually, "Hanjiatan" became "Hanjiatan".

Han Jiatan is known not because of this Grand Secretary, but because it is located in Dashilan, a famous red-light district and one of the eight major hutongs in Beijing.

As the saying goes, "People don't shy away from the road, tigers don't shy away from the mountain, and opera singers don't leave Baishun Hanjiatan." This place not only has brothels and brothels, but also brothels for male prostitutes. The theater is one of the sources of the Rabbit God's supplies, so it naturally set up camp here. Most of the well-known opera troupes in Beijing have held concerts here.

After liberation, the Beijing Municipal Government set up eight women's production and education centers in Hanjiatan and Baishun Hutong. People are considered inferior when they leave their hometowns, and some who were unwilling to go far away continued to live in Hanjiatan. Although they were all unfortunate people and most of them got married, their lives were not very happy.

That's why Tang Zhitong even heard that, besides the park, people here had started selling half-closed doors, both men and women.

So before Dongdan Park became a paradise for 10 enthusiasts, Hanjiatan played a similar role?
The opera singing went on for a little over half an hour. Tang Zhitong found it so irritating that he even felt like smoking.

Don't underestimate this little paper stick that you put in your mouth. Anyone with a smoking habit knows that its allure is no less than that of certain deep conversations.

Tang Zhitong took out a cigarette, wanting to light one for himself, but ultimately refrained from doing so.

To distract himself, Tang Zhitong put down his book, inspected each room, added some firewood, and went down into the cellar to gather two full baskets of peaches and apricots from the space.

Fang Yuan offered to help with the move, and Tang Zhitong had been thinking about how to thank him.

Providing meals was inappropriate. Firstly, they would most likely leave behind their food coupons under Fang Yuan's leadership. Secondly, since they had just moved in, they didn't have time to start a fire and cook.

A little bit of fried peaches and ripe apricots is just right, and since Xiao Wang is out of snacks, we'll take this opportunity to give him all of them.

The cellar is cold, so when it's served tomorrow, it will be almost as cold as if it were chilled.

Looking at the two baskets of fruit in front of him, Tang Zhitong thought to himself with delight: "I'll definitely look very impressive then."
As for its rationality, it must be rational.

The western and northern parts of Beijing are mountainous, and the temperature in the mountains is low, so peaches and apricots are harvested later. Apricots can be produced until mid-to-late June, and the fruiting period for peaches is even longer.

It's reasonable that we can eat apricots now, but if it's any later, we won't be able to explain the origin of apricots.

Tang Zhitong gave himself a thumbs up for his cleverness.

After finishing all that, Tang Zhitong was still not satisfied. He put the food and dried goods he had taken into his space last night into the cellar, planning to carry them up tomorrow after everyone left.

To ensure food security, Tang Zhitong also hunted down all the rats around the area, not even sparing the baby mice that hadn't yet opened their eyes.

As for whether anyone would come to steal it, Tang Zhitong thought it was unlikely, since there were guards standing watch here.

(End of this chapter)