Taichang Ming Dynasty

Chapter 391: Laborer's Drinking Party
"Don't yell here," the employer said impatiently. "I'm only deducting two cents from you, which is already too little. Get out of the way and don't block others from getting paid."

"Are you being fair? I just stopped to take a break, how can I be considered lazy?" Chen Weiye frowned and still refused to take the money.

The employer did not confront Chen Wei. He glanced at Chen Weiye and chuckled, "If you are lazy, your wages will be deducted, otherwise it will be against the rules. If you think it is unfair, just don't work for us in the future." The employer looked over Chen Weiye's shoulder and looked at the crowd behind him.

After saying that, the employer no longer paid any attention to Chen Weiye. He moved his gaze to the next person's name and called out loudly.

"Didn't you hear what our master said?" At this time, the long-servant came up, grabbed the small amount of money that his employer had thrown on the table, and threw it forcefully to Chen Weiye. "Take the money and get out."

Thirteen coins wasn't much, and wasn't very heavy, but after he threw it like that, its power couldn't be underestimated. If it had hit his face, a cut and some bleeding would have been inevitable. But Chen Weiye simply raised his hand to block it, and caught the coin steadily.

The attendant wanted to say a few more words to provoke Chen Weiye, but as soon as he opened his mouth, he was frightened by Chen Weiye's sinister look and shut up.

Chen Weiye just turned around and left. When he left, he didn't even say another harsh word.

After leaving the dock, Chen Weiye didn't go directly to his base southeast of the Acropolis. Instead, he walked along the riverbank to Nanhe Alley. This place wasn't far from the Caoyun Dock, but it wasn't in the best location. This, in turn, made it a popular place for Tianjin workers. Whether they were doing short-term labor or those with long-term employment contracts, they all chose to make this their home or temporary residence.

As the saying goes, where there are people, there's demand, and where there's demand, there's a market. Therefore, in addition to the densely packed houses along Nanhe Alley, there are also numerous taverns and teahouses. These taverns and teahouses provide a place for workers to rest and relax. They can enjoy small dishes or large amounts of alcohol for a small price. If they get angry, they can just turn around and head to Xiaobei Hutong, where they can quickly relieve their passion for a few coins with a prostitute. For a little more, they can even sleep in the company of a prostitute.

After walking around for a while, Chen Weiye arrived at a pub he often went to.

This tavern is quite large, with plenty of tables and chairs, but it has no second floor and no private rooms. So regardless of whether you are rich or poor, you can only drink and chat in the lobby on the street.

After crossing the threshold, Chen Weiye walked straight to a long, large counter. Seeing a customer coming, the shopkeeper, who was looking down at the account book, immediately put down his pen and raised his head. "Oh, Mr. Chen is here."

The owner of the tavern, a man who looked to be in his forties or fifties, neither tall nor muscular, with dark skin, always had a smile on his face when he spoke. He had a good memory and was a master of business. He could remember a person's face once he'd seen them, and if a stranger came back, he'd silently note their address. By the third visit, the stranger would become a regular, and in addition to a warm greeting, he'd be given the elegant title of "Mr. So-and-so" and a small, free pot of cheap wine.

Chen Weiye seemed to be holding his breath and didn't respond to the shopkeeper. He glanced around and found that there were not many people in the restaurant, and there were no acquaintances he was interested in making friends with, so he sat down on the wooden stool in front of the large counter.

Without waiting for the shopkeeper to ask any questions, Chen Weiye took out five copper coins and threw them on the counter.

The copper coins were scattered on the counter, and one even rolled out crookedly.

Snapped!
The shopkeeper, with his sharp eyes, snatched the coin with a slap. He turned it over and saw that it was, as he had expected, a common Wanli Tongbao coin. As he collected the other four coins, the shopkeeper asked, "Master Chen, would you still like a pot of wine and a dish of bamboo shoots cooked with salt?"

Chen Weiye replied, "If you'd like, you can give me an extra plate of braised pork."

The shopkeeper didn't respond to Chen Weiye's question, but instead picked up the five-cent copper coins and examined them one by one. After examining them for a moment, the shopkeeper's gaze passed through the coins and fell on Chen Weiye's face. "Why do you look so miserable, Master Chen? Did some ignorant idiot offend Master Chen?"

"I was bitten by a dog." said Chen Weiye.

"Is it a wild dog or a domestic dog?" The shopkeeper held all five copper coins in his hand.

"Family dog." The corner of Chen Weiye's mouth twitched slightly, as if he was smiling.

"Which dog is so blind as to dare to bite our Master Chen?" The shopkeeper opened the cash box under the counter and put copper coins in. The copper coins collided with each other, making a crackling sound. To the shopkeeper, this was the most beautiful sound in the world.

"Who the hell knows what that fat pig with a face full of fat and eating bran all day is called." Chen Weiye cursed, but his brows were only slightly furrowed.

"Whose flag is flying on the boat?" the shopkeeper asked casually.

"It's a foreign ship, and that fat pig should just be a shipping agent." Chen Weiye said.

"What did he do to you?" The shopkeeper moved out a wine jar closest to him.

This jar contained a very cheap kind of liquor. This liquor wasn't even brewed from sorghum, but rather a secondary product made from the lees of yellow rice wine. Because of the cheap raw materials, this liquor was very cheap. Even in a tavern like this, you could buy a large pot for only two or three cents and drink it heartily.

"I was just taking a break while unloading the goods, and that bastard directly deducted two cents from me." Chen Weiye lightly hammered the counter.

"Two cents can buy a cake." A familiar voice came from behind Chen Weiye.

"Who said it wasn't! It's so damn unlucky." Chen Weiye's eyes moved, and he looked back and found that the person who came was indeed one of his drinking buddies he met in this tavern, Cheng Yanshou.

Because Cheng Yanshou is the sixth child in the family, people who know him also call him Cheng Liuzai or Brother Liuzai.

"Brother Liuzi." Since ancient times, courtesy has not been inferior to that of common people. Chen Weiye only needed to raise his head slightly and say hello, which was considered a greeting.

"Erdanzi." Cheng Yanshou grinned and pulled a stool next to Chen Weiye. "What did you want?"

"It's still the same, a pot of wine and a plate of snacks." Chen Weiye said.

"What's that?" Cheng Yanshou sat down. "Salt-cooked bamboo shoots," the shopkeeper replied, pulling out a large, round, narrow-mouthed ceramic wine jug from under the counter. After removing the stopper, he didn't immediately pour the wine in. Instead, he turned the jug upside down and gently shook it.

The shopkeeper was telling Chen Weiye that there was no water at the bottom of the pot. Honesty was paramount in business, and if they added water to even the cheapest liquor, they were truly destroying their reputation.

Chen Weiye nodded, and the shopkeeper opened the lid of the wine jar and scooped out half a liter of wine from it with a large bamboo ladle and slowly poured it into the ceramic pot.

"Since Erdanzi ordered bamboo shoots, I'll order beans." Cheng Yanshou also took out five copper coins from his pocket. Unlike Chen Weiye, he didn't just throw the coins on the counter. Instead, he placed them one by one in front of the shopkeeper.

"Okay. Please wait a moment." The shopkeeper responded, but did not take the money immediately.

The shopkeeper held the mouth of the jug, lifted it up, and gently shook it in front of Chen Weiye. He asked, "Second Master Chen, do you want to warm it up? Or do you want to drink it cold?"

"It's good that it's cold. I'm very angry now and need to cool down." As soon as Chen Weiye finished speaking, the shopkeeper placed the wine pot and a small ceramic bowl for wine in front of him.

"What about Mr. Cheng Liu? He also wants to cool down?" The shopkeeper turned to look at Cheng Yanshou.

"I don't have any anger to quench, so just warm me up." Cheng Yanshou said with a smile.

"Okay." The shopkeeper nodded and turned to the kitchen and called out, "Someone come over and warm up the wine!"

After shouting, the shopkeeper swept Cheng Yanshou's five-cent small flat coins from the counter. "Oh, there's also a Longqing Tongbao."

Not only was the Longqing reign significantly shorter than the Jiaqing and Wanli reigns, but the average annual coinage also fell short of those two dynasties. For example, in the first year of the Longqing reign, the southern and northern capitals minted a combined 20,000 strings of copper coins, barely half the average annual minting output during the Jiajing reign. Because Longqing Tongbao coins are relatively rare, the shopkeeper sighs a little whenever they receive one. But sighs aside, a copper coin is only worth what it's supposed to be worth; the market doesn't justify the use of one penny as two simply because a particular coin is rare.

"Who made you so angry?" Cheng Yanshou asked.

Chen Weiye knocked on the counter and gestured to the shopkeeper to bring him another bowl. The shopkeeper understood and placed the bowl in front of Cheng Yanshou.

Chen Weiye picked up the wine pot and poured a bowl for Cheng Yanshou first, then poured some for himself. As he poured the wine, he complained, "He's just a boss who hired temporary workers. I don't even know his name, but he's fat and big-eared, like a fat dog that's eaten too much shit."

"Haha." Cheng Yanshou laughed a few times, picked up the wine bowl, clinked it lightly with Chen Weiye's, and drank the wine in the bowl clean. "Why did he deduct your money?"

"I just took a break after unloading the goods and took a few breaths. That bastard said I was lazy and deducted two cents from me." Chen Weiye also drank, but he was not a drunkard like Cheng Yanshou.

"You shouldn't have done that. Did you offend him?" Cheng Yanshou said.

"No! Why would I offend him? I only met him twice, when I registered and when I got paid, and I didn't know him. I just took a break, and that bastard couldn't stand it," Chen Weiye was about to repeat what he said, but he was interrupted halfway through.

"Bullshit!" Chen Weiye knew it was Li Youyu from the clamoring noise. In two or three steps, Li Youyu was between Chen Weiye and Cheng Yanshou, grabbing Chen Weiye's shoulder. "Why would someone dislike you for no reason? I saw it clearly from the side. You clearly had an argument with your employer's servant, and you offended him, which is why you're being retaliated against."

"Brother Li, tsk!" Chen Weiye seemed a little embarrassed. He turned his head, supported his head, and his eyes drifted to the shopkeeper. "Where are my salt-boiled bamboo shoots? It's been a long time, why haven't they arrived yet?"

The shopkeeper understood, raised the empty wine jug he had just received, turned it over to signal Cheng Yanshou and Chen Weiye, and said loudly: "Second Master Chen, don't worry. I'm just pouring wine for Master Liuzai!"

The owner is shrewd. While guests can get awkward with each other, he doesn't let them get embarrassed; he helps them resolve their awkwardness. If a guest needs a change of subject or a way out, he's there to help. The tavern business isn't just about selling drinks and food; it's also about emotional value. If a guest isn't happy with their drink, they might go elsewhere next time.

At this time, a young man of about thirteen or fourteen came from the backyard. This young man was the son of the shopkeeper and also the waiter of this tavern.

"Bring a plate of salt-cooked bamboo shoots for Mr. Chen Er, and a plate of salt-fried beans for Mr. Liu Zai." The shopkeeper called out casually.

"Okay." The young man walked to a place just a few steps away from the shopkeeper, first took out two plates, and then picked up and scooped out the side dishes that Chen Weiye and Cheng Yanshou needed from two large ceramic bowls.

These dishes were all prepared in advance and had been sitting here for so long that they'd gone cold. Generally speaking, the workers didn't mind this; cold dishes and wine were standard. However, if someone wanted to heat it up before eating, they could just tell the shopkeeper and have it reheated in the kitchen. The shopkeeper wouldn't charge them extra for this. Just like warming the wine, hot dishes were also a free option; whether to eat them hot or cold was entirely up to the customer's preference.

"Take Mr. Liu's wine and warm it up. It should be 70% hot." The young man placed the two dishes in the middle of the guests. At this time, the shopkeeper also poured the wine.

"I'll go right away." The young man took the wine jug and walked towards a stove where charcoal was burning and water was warming.

Cheng Yanshou already had a good impression of Chen Weiye, and after drinking Chen Weiye's wine, he felt that he should speak up for Chen Weiye. He turned his head to look at Li Youyu, raised his eyebrows and asked, "Since you saw it, why don't you go up and say a few words for him?"

"That's not necessary. I was just bitten by a dog, so I don't need to bite it back." Li Youyu chuckled. "It would be bad if my money was also deducted."

"Hey! Who are you?" Cheng Yanshou was furious. "So you weren't just standing there watching? You even came up to make sarcastic remarks?"

"That's not just a sarcastic remark, I'm telling the truth." Li Youyu shrugged. "The money's with them, how can we fight them? Why bother? If Erdanzi had just endured those arguments and sold the goods well, he could have gotten the money. And what good would it be if he won the argument? He might have lost more." As he spoke, Li Youyu actually put out ten coins. "It's not that I don't want to spend this little money, but I don't want it to be wasted. Wouldn't it be better to spend it on a plate of meat? Here, Lao Xue, cut up some chicken."

(End of this chapter)