Love letters are not allowed in exorcism notes

Chapter 245 Shady People and Business

It’s not that Tianmen people don’t have nightlife, it’s just that most people have to work hard outside during the day to make money to support their families, and don’t have much energy to go out and wander around at night.

There are still a lot of wealthy idlers in these days, especially after the old and young children of the previous dynasty, and the descendants of princes and princes collectively migrated to Tianmen. In order to cater to the huge consumption potential of these wealthy idlers, or it can also be said that to keep their pockets After spending money, Tianmen City Government has always maintained a very tolerant and acquiescent attitude towards evening entertainment projects.

Except for XXX, which are banned, other aspects are very loosely regulated.

According to the rules of Laotianmen, anything before twelve o'clock is called a night market, and anything after twelve o'clock is called a ghost market.

Most of the night markets sell street food, clothing and groceries, and various so-called foreign trade goods. What usually costs one yuan in a store may be sold at a reasonable price of 40 to 50 cents at a street stall.

Of course, these are not the most important things. The most important thing is the local evening opera program in Tianmen. Almost all night markets were originally located around a few theaters that opened for late performances, specifically to provide services for moviegoers who were ready to go home after watching the theater.

After twelve o'clock, people leave and the lights go out, and some shady business gradually begins to surface.

Ghost market, also called black market.

Many future generations' understanding of the black market is limited to the level described by online novel authors as a mysterious person who set up a stall specifically for the protagonist to pick up the wrongdoers.

In fact, the main bulk commodity in the black market is grain, followed by salt.

This may sound counterintuitive, but in the past, no matter whether there were natural or man-made disasters, food was the most essential thing in ordinary people's homes. It is also the easiest business to earn profits from.

Tianmen, as the northern water transport hub that has been passed down from the Sui and Tang Dynasties to the present day, can be written in a new book with 5 million words about the food, grudges, and resentments (of course no one will read it).

Putting aside these old sayings, it has only been two years since grain, as the main commodity in circulation, gradually disappeared from the black market. The reason is of course the stabilization of food prices after the establishment of the new government, but the people actually don't have much confidence in how long this coercive policy can be maintained.

After all, those big men who used to be in the grain business didn't even get peanuts last year, and they were still having fun every night.

In today's ghost market, antiques, various rare objects of unknown origin and purpose, and even imported items from the West are more common.

These are not things used to trick poor people.

But you can't help but those who are particularly eager for progress, who don't have enough money in their pockets to pretend to be uncles, who daydream all day long and dream of stepping on shit... who come to this ghost market to increase their popularity.

There are no lights in the ghost market. At most, the stall owner prepares a kerosene lamp, and the small and sparse flames illuminate this small place. What we need is this dim environment where we can't see the buyers and sellers clearly, otherwise we wouldn't have to go out to do business at twelve o'clock in the middle of the night.

Just doing business without talking about human relationships saves a lot of trouble and avoids a lot of accidents.

For example, if a woman in red comes to your stall in the middle of the night to take care of your business, you can pretend not to see her, and she will not continue to pester you.

Hello, hello, hello to everyone.

Zuo Yan said she wanted to go out to visit the ghost market.

Li Mumu asked Winsty if she wanted to go. Naturally, Winsty wanted to go. She had been coming to Tianmen for so long and she had not found any interesting place. How could she miss such an invitation.

It’s a ghost market anyway, so there’s no need to dress up carefully if you’re in the dark. Just bring a silk scarf to cover your face.

With Zuo Yan's bright red wedding dress and the lingering smell of pig blood, Li Mumu felt that there would be no danger in going out for fun. This is indeed the case. From the moment the three of them entered the ghost market, the polite locals got out of the way one after another. They looked at their noses, noses and mouths, and mouths and hearts. They did not squint or utter a word, and did not approach at all. Harassment means chatting up.

There is no place to eat in the ghost market, and no serious person would come here for a late-night snack. The only hot food available was the mutton soup sold by the old lady on the street.

There are legends about evil spirits disguised as sheep in both the East and the West, but some people are worried about the sheep's butts, while others are thinking about whether they can be sold for money.

Of course, the local midnight mutton soup is also very particular. In the past, it was specially prepared for those people who were neither human nor ghosts.

A few decades ago, opium was not yet banned and opium dens were in full swing. As soon as it gets dark, those old smokers who smoke until they are unconscious are kicked out of the opium den and stumble home holding on to the wall.

Those with a clear head can still find their way home. Those who are not clear-headed, or those who have lost their home, wander down the street. Whether they can wake up again tomorrow depends on their fate.

At this time, a bowl of piping hot lamb soup with plenty of white pepper noodles and some unmentionable condiments is a life-saving miracle medicine.

Also known as the rejuvenating soup.

In addition to mutton soup, there is another kind of food in the ghost market that is not taken out, which can also be said to be fruit, which is sliced ​​green radish.

Green radish, a local specialty in Tianmen, is sweet, crisp and juicy. Many local people who cannot afford fruit use green radish as a snack to cool down and quench their thirst.

Of course, the point is not whether green radish is delicious or not, but it is said that radish can remove evil spirits and open up the body, but ghosts have no clue and will not eat radish.

So if you see a stall owner or customer holding a half-eaten green radish in his hand, no matter what his true identity is, you can at least be sure that he is a breathing person.

It's not necessarily true if you eat raw pork liver in the middle of the night.

Today is a peaceful time. It is rare to see food, cloth, controlled items, guns and ammunition in the ghost market. Most of them are antiques and antiques, and there are many subdivisions here. For example, there are those who specialize in selling stones, there are those who specialize in dumping things out of the soil, and there are also those who fall out of the family and sell their ancestral property.

Everyone has a story, but not everyone is good at telling stories. Most of the stall owners who go out to do business in the middle of the night have stories in their hands, but they don’t like to talk very much.

Zuo Yan led two little girls to a stall, knelt down and picked up a pair of rusty bronze candlesticks, and asked softly: "You dare to take these?"

The stall owner shrank his neck and didn't say a word. He looked very introverted.

There was no green radish in his hand, and he looked like he was not a local. He had a cigarette in his mouth, which was almost burning, but he was still motionless.

"How much does this pair cost?"

"You... just play with it if you like!"

"Isn't it appropriate?"

"There's nothing inappropriate about this. Just think of it as my filial piety to you."

The stall owner wiped away the cold sweat, tremblingly took out a wad of paper money from his arms, and handed it to Zuo Yan respectfully.

(End of this chapter)