Start: Datang Wanli a lonely city

Chapter 942 Every drink and every peck has a reason ([-])

It was a little later, when the sun was about to set.

To the north of the Old Summer Palace, a straight line distance of twenty-three or four miles away is near Princess Tomb.

The so-called Princess Tomb is named after the burials of Emperor Jiaqing's third daughter, Princess Heshuo, and his fourth daughter, Gu Lun; but this is not the point now.

The point is that beside an official road not far away, Wang Laosan, a native of the suburbs of Beijing, opened a simple roadside shop with four big characters on the front: Wang's Shop.

It can be regarded as providing some simple tips and accommodation services for travelers entering and leaving the capital.

Relying on this livelihood, Wang Laosan's business is not very good on weekdays, but the money he earns is enough to feed and drink for his family of seven.

Even the two sons in the family can afford to attend private schools in the countryside.

Forget about the eldest son. According to my husband, the younger son is just a material for studying and will at least be admitted as a scholar in the future.

It's a pity that since the Yinfa foreign devils came ashore from Dagu Port and fought fiercely all the way, the gates of the capital were tightly closed. In the chaos of war, there were naturally no guests coming and going.

For more than half a month, the business of Wang's store has been getting worse day by day.

In the past seven or eight days, there have been almost no pedestrians on the official road, and there has been no business at all.

But under the setting sun, Wang Laosan stood at the door of the shop, and what he cared about was not the fact that his shop had not opened for several days.

Instead, he looked in the direction of the Old Summer Palace, which had not seen any movement all day long.

But he was muttering: "In the past, you could hear a little bit of cannon fire, but why is there no sound today? Could it be that all the grandfathers in Xuan Ge Camp died in the battle?
  Why! God, this thief is really short-sighted. "

The reason for this is entirely due to this man who attended private school for two and a half years when he was young and could barely read and write.

When I was young, I also read some banned books written by Xuan Geying in private. After thinking about it carefully over the years, I also realized that everything in the book made sense.

Because of such a fate, it would be impossible for him to fight to the death with Xuan Ge camp now. After all, he still has a family to take care of.

But it doesn't hinder him at all. He hopes in his heart that the heroic grandfathers of Xuange Camp can persist in the Old Summer Palace for a longer time, the longer the better.

As for his business, will it be affected? A family can always get by if they save a little.

But if Xuange camp is destroyed, the last bit of hope in my heart will also be gone.

It's a pity that there was no movement in the Old Summer Palace today. It seemed that the heroic grandfathers of Xuange camp finally couldn't bear it anymore. As long as he thought of such a possibility, he felt indescribably uncomfortable and aggrieved.

Just when Wang Laosan was feeling heavy, a voice with a Lu accent suddenly came from behind him: "Store, is there anything else to eat?"

Looking back, I saw a tall man holding a whistle stick in his hand. As he strode towards me, he shouted something to me from a distance.

After many days, business finally came to his store, and Wang Laosan quickly adjusted his mood.

After all, no matter what, life must go on.

Food rations for the family to eat and drink, pens, ink, paper and inkstones for the baby's clothes, fabrics and needlework for the wife, and traditional Chinese medicine for the parents to recover from illness, etc., can only be bought with money.

With a smile on his face, Wang Laosan answered:
  "My dear, you are really good at joking. Now that you are open for business, where is there nothing to eat or drink?

However, since the capital strictly prohibited people from entering and exiting, and the Xuange camp and the British and French barbarians fought for days in the Old Summer Palace, there was no business, and the store did not prepare any cattle, sheep, or pork.

Fortunately, they raised some chickens and ducks and brewed some village wine, so they could still provide some wine and meat.

In addition, the store also has some noodles, steamed buns, rice porridge, and seasonal vegetables. "

"Bring me a big bowl of Yangchun noodles, stir-fry half a fat chicken, and half a pound of wine. Let me wait until I finish eating whether you want to stay in the hotel or not," the big man said immediately after hearing this.

Although the man doesn't make much money from what he orders, it can still be considered a business, right?

With such an idea, Wang Laosan called his wife, who was taking care of the child in the backyard, and asked her to quickly go to the kitchen and start kneading the dough. Therefore, I did not notice that the man from Lu Province, after hearing the news of the "Serial War at the Old Summer Palace", his face immediately turned ugly...

******
  I don’t know if it’s because I heard the magpies chirping early this morning.

After seven or eight days, the business of Wang's store suddenly improved this evening, and it was still extremely popular.

At that time, the hot water Wang Laosan used to kill the chickens did not have time to boil.

Three more men dressed as scholars walked into his small shop together and spoke in Mandarin as softly as Wu Nong's soft language.

I ordered the remaining half of the fat chicken, two vegetables, six steamed buns, and a bottle of wine.

He just said "Wait a moment", but Wang Laosan didn't have time to start working in the kitchen. Another sound of horse hooves came closer and closer, and finally stopped at the door.

This time, a group of about ten people actually came.

After they dismounted, the leader shouted in Mandarin with a Hunan accent:
  "Store, if you have any good wine or meat, bring it to us immediately; also feed our horses well, use the best ingredients, and add a few eggs into it, so you won't be short of money~"

Then, a middle-aged man in his forties came into the store and sat down. Although he was dressed in an ordinary gown, he looked like he was not an ordinary person.

And such a situation is just the beginning.

In the following time, customers came in an endless stream, and soon the small shop with only five tables was filled to capacity.

In the end, Wang Laosan took the two and a half grown-ups in his family and moved out the tables and chairs he used at home.

It only took half an hour for more than fifty guests from all over the world to settle down.

Even his father and mother came together to help kill chickens, ducks, and choose vegetables. After a lot of work, all the wine, meat, and meals were arranged.

Just don't wait for Wang Laosan, who is too busy with work, to take a breath.

Then I heard a voice with a Hunan accent shouting: "Come over here, my master Zuo, wants to ask you something~"

Although I was a little busy before, these customers basically ordered wine and meat, and their income was comparable to the income for several days when business was good.

Immediately, Wang Laosan stepped forward to salute with a smile on his face and said:
  "I have met this Mr. Zuo. If you want to know anything, just ask. As long as you know, you will tell me everything you know~"

After hearing this, the middle-aged man smiled very kindly, and spoke with a Hunan accent: "I'm sorry to bother the shopkeeper. I want to come to the capital to do some small business, but I don't know what's going on with the war between the imperial court and the Yinfa barbarians. ?
  correct! I also heard that people from Xuange camp also appeared in the capital. I wonder what the situation is? "

As he spoke, he motioned to the man next to him, and the man immediately took out some broken silver from his pocket and slapped it on the table. In total, he probably didn't have as much as two or three taels.

Suddenly, due to the small area, more than fifty people squeezed into the small shop, and it suddenly became quiet.

However, Wang Laosan, who usually does the business of welcoming people and sending them off, and is very good at observing words and emotions, is sensitive to one thing:
  These people suddenly became quiet, not because of the generosity of these Hunan guys.

But it was the middle-aged Mr. Zuo who asked the question, especially the question about 'Xuange Camp'.

The many customers who came from all over the store suddenly stopped eating and drinking, or were talking quietly with their companions, and their ears perked up.

Don’t ask about things you shouldn’t ask, and don’t interfere with things you shouldn’t care about.

The above is the biggest secret that Wang Laosan has used to successfully open his "Wang Family Store" here for more than ten years.

Although I was very surprised by the guests' reactions, I still acted as if I didn't see anything and told them everything I knew.

Including today, we didn't even hear the faint sound of artillery. The good guys in Xuange camp were afraid that something was wrong, so they just said it all like pouring beans through a bamboo tube.

Then you can see with horror that the faces of the customers in the store are full of grief and anger...

(End of this chapter)