Spring Breeze Twenty Years

Chapter 600 Umbrella Shop

After picking out a few umbrellas—four folding umbrellas and one large straight umbrella—Xiao Hong said to Xiao Wei with satisfaction, "Pay up." The folding umbrellas were for each person to use, while the large umbrella was for Xiao Wei to hold for her.

The girl selling umbrellas smiled at Xiaowei and said, "Sixty-six yuan."

Xiao Wei said, "Oh? It's so expensive?"

The saleswoman said, "It's not expensive. My umbrellas are high quality. If there's a problem, just bring them over and I'll fix them for you, or adjust them."

Xiao Hong kicked Xiao Wei's shin: "Give me the money. Is that all you're going to do to say a few more words?"

Xiao Wei smiled and took out his money, while the young woman smiled and asked, "Where are you from?"

Xiao Wei asked, "Have you ever been to Liaodong?"

The young woman took the money and went to get change, saying, "No, I haven't traveled far, but people from all over often come here, so I've seen quite a few. Are you going to Beibeitou? That's not interesting. If you want to go to the riverbank, walk along the 18 Steps, take the cable car, and go to Chaotianmen Wharf to see the river and take a boat. The night view is beautiful, and there are cruise ships going to the Three Gorges."

Xiao Hong asked, "What is Shibati?"

The young woman said, "Go down the stairs, one floor at a time, from the upper city directly to the riverbank in the lower city. That's where old Chongqing is."

Xiao Wei said, "Why bother going there? There are steps everywhere here."

The younger sister said, "It's different. That side is more authentic. The houses are all old ones, and it's more famous there." She gestured in the air, "Vertically across the street, that's the past, and this is the present. Horizontally across the street, the bottom is the past, and the top is the present."

Xiao Hong said doubtfully, "The way you're talking makes it sound like that place has been abandoned by the city. Everything else is changing, but that place remains the same."

The young woman smiled and nodded: "That's right, just like you said. Actually, the lower city hasn't changed much. It's just that area that connects the upper and lower cities that stands out. It's famous because it's been like that since the Ming Dynasty, and the No. 65 air-raid shelter is also there."

Xiao Wei asked, "I understand air-raid shelters, but what is the '65 Air-Raid Shelter'?"

The young woman laughed and said, "We just call it the Eighteen Steps Air Raid Shelter. I only called it June 5th because you're from out of town, because of the June 5th Massacre."

Xiao Liu asked, "Is it the one where two or three thousand people died at once?"

The young woman nodded and said, "Yes, yes, that's the one, the Japanese bombing."

Xiaohong said, "Oh, I know that too. Can I see it?"

Xiao Wei said, "Why didn't I know?"

The young woman shook her head and said, "You can only look at it from the outside. It's not open inside. It's only open twice a year." She held up her fair fingers: "June 5th and August 15th."

Xiao Hong said, "There are still eight days left."

Xiao Wei said, "I can't stay there. What's there to see? It's just an air-raid shelter, all gloomy. We can just hold a memorial service from the outside."

The young woman said, "No, it's very cool inside the air-raid shelters, even in summer. Many restaurants are located inside them, and there are even shops inside the air-raid shelters near Seven Star Crags. It's great; you don't need air conditioning in the summer."

Xiao Liu said, "There are a lot of air-raid shelters in Chongqing; they're all over the city."

Xiao Wei nodded and said, "People live on the mountain, so digging tunnels is convenient, and they're also convenient to use."

Gazi said, "Then let's go take a look. It's just a matter of eighteen ladders and a few steps."

The young woman covered her mouth and laughed, waving her hand and saying, "No, the Eighteen Steps means there are eighteen bends, it's very long, and it takes a long time to walk from beginning to end."

Xiao Wei took out a map, located the area, and examined it carefully for a while. He exclaimed in surprise, "This area is huge! What's this called, 'Eighteen Steps'? It must be 1,800 steps! This area must be over 100 acres, at least 120 acres! My goodness! Why is this whole area covered with buildings while this whole area remains untouched?"

The young woman laughed and said, "I don't know, that's the officials' business."

Actually, there are quite a few old residential areas in the lower part of the city now, but this area is more concentrated, and with the surrounding buildings, it stands out. However, it's not wrong to say that this area is still like this today. In 2010, there was talk of demolition, and some parts were demolished, leaving a mess and garbage everywhere. No one knows the specific reason.

Who can really say what's going on with government affairs? It seems like many projects in Chongqing have been stalled since 2012.

The young woman stretched out her hand and pointed at the map, saying, "There's a cable car here. Going down, you'll reach the train station square. It's a really long slope, you can ride it. This is the Arc de Triomphe elevator, which also goes to the lower part of the city. Next to it is the Yangtze River Cableway. Have you ever seen one? A metal cabin suspended on a steel cable that goes to the other side of the river."

A trolleybus drove by on the street, packed with people. It looked as if the two long braids were too heavy for the trolleybus to move. Two girls walked past a few people, wearing strapless, wide-necked, sleeveless dresses. One was a light purple ink-wash style, and the other was a blue, red, and yellow checkered dress. They walked hand in hand, chatting and laughing.

The younger sister watched the two girls walk by with a hint of envy, then took a breath and said, "You should also go to Gele Mountain, the Zhazidong and Bai Mansion, and the Martyrs' Cemetery. People from other places really like going there. There's also a former site of an American general on the banks of the Jialing River, called Stevie Wonderland."

Xiao Wei asked, "Where is Chiang Kai-shek's headquarters?"

The young woman blinked, thought for a moment, and said, "You mean the place where Chiang Kai-shek lived in Chongqing? It's not here, it's on Nanshan Mountain, very far away. There are signs along the roadside that you can see it."

Xiao Hong said, "You could be a tour guide! You know everything. Why don't you just become a tour guide?"

The young woman smiled and shook her head, saying, "That won't work. I need to mind the shop, and no one will hire me anyway. If I go out and wander around, my father will scold me."

Raindrops started falling again. Little Red asked, "Does it rain every day here?"

The younger sister said, "No, there are sunny days too, and it rains two or three times a month."

Xiao Hong said, "Really? It started raining yesterday, and it's raining again today. I've been caught in two out of two or three games a month?"

The younger sister smiled, revealing her white teeth, and covered her mouth, saying, "No, it's next week."

Xiao Hong's eyes widened: "One event, a whole week? How can that person survive?"

The younger sister said, "It's okay, it won't be too heavy. You can do it without an umbrella, but it's better to use one. The heavy rain will only last for a short time, usually just one or two days."

Xiao Hong said, "My God, it must be so humid here! How can anyone stand it?"

The younger sister said, "It's okay, you'll get used to it. We eat spicy food, with Sichuan peppercorns and chili peppers. Have you tried it yet?"

Xiao Hong said, "Yes, can you recommend some good places to eat around here?"

The young woman smiled and said, "They're all delicious! They're all delicious. It depends on what you want to eat. There are several long-established restaurants around here. Yi Zhi Shi is a Sichuan restaurant, Lu Gao Jian is a Su-style braised dish, Jiu Yuan is a steamed bun and vegetable restaurant, Wu Chao Shou (wonton), Dan Dan noodles, Xiao Bin Lou snacks, Wang Ya Zi (duck), and there's also a very good old mutton restaurant over there that's been open for many years. There are also several other old-fashioned snack shops, all of them are old establishments, and you can eat very comfortably there."

(End of this chapter)