Knife splashing

Chapter 664: Abacus City at the End of the Nine Rivers

The tea stall that the three men rushed into was not selling water, but "tea soup".

This thing is a kind of noodle tea.

Grind sorghum or millet into fine powder, add warm osmanthus syrup as a base to make it into a paste, then use boiling water in a large copper kettle to make it into a thick paste, finally sprinkle with red and white sugar, and eat it slowly with a small spatula.

It is sweet and delicious with a rich flavor.

The teapot for flushing water is also very particular. It is a specially made large copper kettle with a dragon mouth, similar to the structure of a hot pot, with iron wire dragon whiskers inlaid with large red thread balls, which extend upward from both sides of the faucet.

There is also a copper whistle on the top of the kettle, which makes a humming sound when the water boils.

This thing is not expensive, and it can fill your stomach when paired with steamed buns or baked buns filled with red bean paste.

Of course, tea is also sold, but it is all inferior tea, with some color at best.

Therefore, there are many such stalls on the pier.

The tea shed was also very simple, with a few tarpaulins supported by thick wooden poles and a few shabby wooden tables placed inside. They had long been soaked black by the sweat of the dock laborers and the oil stains from their meals.

As soon as the three men stumbled in, the shopkeeper's copper kettle shook with fear.

"Get the hell out of here!"

The scarred man in the lead kicked over a bench, lifted up his clothes, revealing the green-scale badge on his waist.

The waist badge is engraved with fine scales, which is the token of the Jinghai Gang.

The few porters in the tea stall put down their bowls and fled in a hurry.

The shopkeeper was so frightened that his legs went limp. He wanted to run away, but he couldn't bear to leave the big copper pot in his hand.

This thing has been passed down for three generations and the whole family depends on it for their livelihood.

However, this slight hesitation had already made the scarred leader impatient, and he stepped forward and kicked him hard, "Fuck you, don't you have ears!"

There was a loud bang, and the shopkeeper fell to the ground along with the copper kettle. He was scalded by the boiling water and screamed. He crawled out and stood by, enduring the pain.

These people from the Jinghai Gang would at most beat him up.

But if he ran away, the copper pot would be stolen by thieves.

After driving the people away, the leader tore off the tarpaulin with a sizzling sound, blocked it slightly, then took out a tin box and a large pipe from his arms, put some sticky black paste on them, and lit it with the fire.

Hearing the smell, the addicted man rushed over, snatched it and took a few sips.

As the foul-smelling smoke spread, his tense muscles relaxed and he looked as if he was floating in the air.

"Hey! Give me one too!"

The other two men couldn't help it and took a few puffs.

Soon, the three of them took turns taking a bite, with happy expressions on their faces.

The tattered tarpaulin was leaking air everywhere, and coupled with the noise just now, it quickly attracted a lot of people to watch.

The kind-hearted porters helped the boss up, comforting him and whispering to him.

The old man selling pancakes nearby shook his head and said:
"This is the third time this month. Last time, Liu Er from Shuimen got addicted and bit off his tongue."

Li Yan and others were also among them, all with cold eyes.

They have all seen how terrifying this thing is. It can turn people into ghosts.

I originally thought that it was only smoked privately, but I didn't expect it to be so popular in Tianjin.

"This old man, what are they doing?"

Li Yan had an idea and asked the old man selling pancakes.

"Why are you asking?"

The old man looked disgusted and said, "It's not a good thing..."

Before he finished speaking, the sound of horse hooves was heard in the distance.

It was a team of garrison soldiers wearing scarlet armor, coming from near the dock.

The leading flag officer dismounted from his horse, the goose-feather knife on his waist shining like a mirror. He glanced around with a gloomy face, then looked towards the tea shed and shouted angrily, "Where did these filthy people come from? Arrest them all!"

At the command, the soldiers rushed in like wolves and tigers and dragged the three men away.

Unexpectedly, the three men were not afraid at all.

They were like a puddle of mud, and they were making faces at the garrison soldiers. The flag officer didn't seem to notice anything, but just looked around coldly. After seeing Li Yan and his group, he narrowed his eyes, turned around and left.

Without the excitement, the crowd quickly dispersed.

The old man selling sesame cakes didn't want to say much at first, but after Li Yan stuffed some silver into his pocket, he led everyone to a secluded place and muttered, "That thing is called Fushou Paste."

"I heard it came from Southeast Asia. The Jinghai Gang's casinos and brothels sell it. It's not expensive, but once you start smoking, you can't stop. With this stuff, the Jinghai Gang's business has been booming in the past two years."

"But the doctor at the clinic said that this substance is very poisonous. I have seen several people die from it."

"Oh?"

Li Yan narrowed his eyes slightly, "Who was that flag officer just now?"

"That one is the grain transport ship guard of the Navy Camp. No one dares to mess with him on the Sancha River..."

After the old man left, everyone looked at each other.

"Tsk, tsk."

Sharifei taunted, "From the looks of it just now, I'm afraid the people from the Navy Camp are also involved."

At the same time, Long Yan'er also waved her hand, and with a buzzing sound, a poisonous insect picked up a piece of "Fu Shou Cream" and landed in her palm.

Long Yan'er said thoughtfully, "It's a little different from what we've seen before. The one used by Master Yang Laohai and his disciples is more mellow and has herbs added to it. Even cultivators can't handle it. These are just ordinary stuff."

Li Yan looked at the city gate in the distance and said in a deep voice: "Although they are of different types, they must have the same origin."

"I'm afraid the people from Jianmu Organization are also in the city. We should be careful and find a place to stay first, and then look for the murderer who killed Brother Wu!"

After saying that, he led everyone to the city gate.

……

People in Tianjin have a saying, "Dazhigu came first, and then Tianjin."

Zhigu was the old name of Haihe River. During the Song and Jin Dynasties, the Jin people established Zhigu Fort here and sent troops to garrison.

There are many place names with "Gu" in Tianjin, such as Sanchagu, Donggu, Xigu and Dagu, so there is also a saying of "the lower end of the nine rivers" and "the seventy-two Gu".

Tianjin developed rapidly because of its canal and sea transportation.

During the Daxing period of the previous dynasty, this place was occupied by the Golden Horde. They changed Zhigu to Haijin and established the Dazhigu Salt Transport Commissioner's Office to specifically manage salt transportation. When the Daxuan Dynasty was established, a garrison was built to protect the capital and build cities.

Because the city is long from east to west and short from north to south, it looks like an abacus, so the people call it "Abacus City".

The city wall is made of rammed earth covered with bricks, and has four gates: Zhendong, Anxi, Dingnan and Gongbei.

Li Yan and others entered the city from Dingnan Gate.

From a distance, you can see the Tianhou Temple with its red walls and golden roof, filled with smoke from incense.

The deity enshrined in Tianhou Temple is the famous Mazu.

But everyone's attention was attracted by something else.

The banks of the South Grand Canal are densely packed with docks and workshops.

On the thirty-meter-long wooden slide, the supervisor was waving an iron ruler to reprimand the slacking craftsmen, shirtless men were brushing tung oil on the keels of the canal boats, and thick smoke was emitting from the terraced blacksmith shops, with clanging sounds coming one after another.

Farther away, a salty smell wafted from the kitchen where sea salt was being steamed. The salt workers were walking barefoot on the blackened salt grains. The skin on their ankles had already ulcerated, but they still gritted their teeth and endured the pain to work.

There are also workshops for porcelain making, textile production and bamboo basket weaving.

There are also a large number of slum areas near the workshops.

At first glance, there seems to be no end in sight, and there is an inexplicable feeling of hustle and bustle and frenzy.

"Wow, so many!" Sharifei opened his mouth wide. Others were also quite surprised when they saw it.

Only Li Yan glanced at him calmly.

Ever since he understood the current situation, he knew that this situation would occur sooner or later.

With more people pouring in, the population may be even larger in the future.

They stopped and watched for a while, then followed the crowd into the city.

After entering the city, you will see Nanmen Street.

There are more people in the city. In front of the brick and wood shops on both sides of the street, there are signs saying "Changlu Salt", "Fujian and Guangdong Frosting", "Chengdu Silk"..., almost gathering all the specialties from the north and the south.

"Newly arrived rhino horn cream from Siam!"

Outside the drugstore, the clerk was banging on a copper bowl and shouting, and even ran over to them to sell his products.

Of course, there are countless restaurants and teahouses of all kinds.

Amid the hustle and bustle of the crowd, Sharifi asked in a hoarse voice, "Brother, I'll go ask someone."

After saying that, he turned and went into a nearby teahouse.

After a while, a young man in a blue shirt was brought over.

This was a local. Seeing Li Yan and the others' extraordinary demeanor, he was already half a head shorter. When he heard that they were looking for an inn, his face was even more smiling. "I am Liang Biaozi. You have found the right person. There is no place in Tianjin that I don't know. I can walk back and forth with my eyes closed. Food, drink, and accommodation, no matter what you want, I can help you find it..."

"stop!"

Seeing this person chattering nonstop, Li Yan quickly raised his hand and said, "Let's take our luggage and find a place to stay first. Where are all the inns in the city?"

"That's a lot!"

Liang Biaozi bowed and said, "There are many inns in the city. There are more than 30 inns near Sanchahekou and Beidaguan. They are all places for boatmen and merchants to rest. Although they are simple, they are cheap."

"There are many silver and gold shops around the government office and near Hubu Street inside the north gate. The inns are of a higher quality and are mostly for wealthy merchants and officials to stay in. There are also many brothels and teahouses nearby, which are very lively at night. There are also many outside the Tianhou Palace and the City God Temple, most of them are scholars and pilgrims..."

"You all seem to be wealthy people, so the government office is more suitable."

Li Yan frowned slightly, "Is there a quiet place?"

Logically speaking, the high-end inns near the government office are better, but there are many that are not.

Their identities cannot be concealed, which will inevitably lead to some trouble.

At least I can't take care of other things until the murderer is found.

"this…"

Liang Biaozi rolled his eyes, patted his chest and said with a smile: "If you want to talk about secluded and clean places, it is undoubtedly the guild halls in various places in the city, but it is not easy to live in them. If you trust me, I will help you to get in."

"Guild?"

Li Yan's mind moved, "No need, just take us to Jinzhou Guild Hall."

He almost forgot that he was still carrying the token given by the Jinzhou Chamber of Commerce.

As long as you show your badge, Jinzhou Guild Halls in various places will do their best to entertain you.

Although I don't want to owe too many favors, it is undoubtedly the most appropriate one at the moment.

"okay!"

Liang Biaozi was stunned for a moment, but didn't say much. He led everyone to the north of the city.

Jinzhou Guild Hall is located three streets away from the government office.

It was still the style they had seen before, with high walls, large courtyards, tall gates and narrow rooms, like a fortress.

Compared to the one in Shuzhong, this guild hall is relatively busier. Before I got close, I saw four or five merchants with servants coming in and out, and their words were full of Jinzhou accents.

"Where are you guests from?"

Seeing them coming, the gatekeeper hurried forward to greet them.

Although his face was full of politeness, it was obvious that he was rejecting the offer.

Li Yan's gang had a special temperament and looked like gangsters. Most of the time, the guild hall was used as a place for local merchants to rest and conduct business, and they did not want to interact too much with gangsters.

"Please take a look at this."

Li Yan didn't waste any words and took out the badge directly.

"Oh?"

When the servant saw this, his face immediately turned serious. He bowed respectfully and said, "I will go and tell the shopkeeper. Please wait a moment, my dear guests."

After saying that, he hurried into the guild hall with the token.

A trace of surprise flashed in the eyes of the young man Liang Biaozi, and at the same time he clasped his fists awkwardly and said: "You are indeed noble people. If I said something wrong before, please forgive me."

He just said that he would stay at the Shutong Club, and it was obvious that he wanted to make a big profit.

But this was the first time he had seen the Jinzhou Guild Hall in this state, and he was already feeling a little scared.

He didn't even intend to take the reward money and just wanted to say goodbye and leave.

"Wait a minute."

Li Yan's heart moved, and he took out a ten-liang ingot of silver from his bosom and waved it in front of the boy, "Brother, I am familiar with Tianjin, and I would like to ask you for help with something."

Looking at the silver, Liang Biaozi's eyes were a little hot, but he didn't dare to reach out to take it. "My ability is limited, why don't you tell me what it is first."

"Simple."

Li Yan stuffed the silver into his hand and whispered, "Go around the city and help me find a family with an old man over 80 years old, or a person who died and suddenly came back to life a day or two later, and see whose house has this pattern on its door."

As he spoke, he drew a swastika-shaped pattern with a lotus background on the ground with his foot.

This is the symbol of the Huangquan Organization.

Their "Living Yin Messenger" heritage is related to Buddhism and the six realms of reincarnation, hence this mark.

Unlike Li Yan who got lucky by chance, these people will take the initiative to look for missions in order to obtain the Gangling. However, they cannot afford to offend the powerful ones, so they can only look for ordinary people who have regained life in a confused state.

Of course, it must first be installed and confirmed by the guards, marked, and finally the person arrested in the middle of the night.

The Huangquan organization has collapsed, but this habit may not change.

"It's easy to talk about it!"

Liang Biaozi gritted his teeth, clasped his fists, turned around and left.

Listening to Li Yan's strange request, it was obviously not a good thing, but he had not opened for business for several days. He went to the teahouse every day and didn't even dare to order the tea he called out by name. How could he miss this opportunity?
At most, I can spend a day or two and buy a pair of shoes to take a tour around Tianjin.

"Young Master Li, I am sorry for being so slow!"

As soon as Liang Biaozi left, an old man walked out of the Jinzhou Guild Hall.

He was wearing a clerk's uniform, a square scarf on his head, and his white hair was neatly combed. When he saw everyone, he apologized repeatedly, then raised his hand and said, "Everyone, please follow me in."

Li Yan was not surprised by his enthusiasm.

The tokens given by Jinzhou Guild Hall all have names on them, and you can tell his identity by just checking the number.

Like the Jinzhou Guild Hall I had seen before, this one was also a large house with three courtyards in front and back, and even had a stage where a plump woman was performing a drum story.

"I have prepared a secluded house for you all."

The shopkeeper said with a face full of hospitality, "There was a temple fair at the Tianhou Temple a few days ago, and there weren't enough rooms in the guild hall. It just so happens that there are quite a few vacant rooms these days. If you have any instructions, please feel free to ask."

"You are too polite, shopkeeper..."

Li Yan smiled slightly, then stopped suddenly.

The Gou Die, which had not moved for a long time, began to heat up slightly...

(End of this chapter)