Lu Ming

So Yang Liushui quickly explained: "Brother, to be honest, I don't dare to inquire about so many things... You work in the yamen, so I don't want to ask more questions!"

"what!"

Probably because of drinking a little bit, Zhou Yi was very chatty today.He waved his hand lightly: "Sixth Brother, the Intelligence Bureau is a private investigative office set up by Mr. Cao, and it is the same way as the Jinyiwei Yamen in Guangzhou City, there is no need for Sixth Brother to be afraid of it. "

After a pause, Zhou Yi continued: "Please don't worry, Sixth Brother. I have told you on weekdays what I can let you know. It is a matter of confidentiality. I have a tight-lipped brother, and I have never violated the rules of the yamen."

Hearing this, Yang Liushui breathed a sigh of relief, and nodded again and again: "That's good, that's good! What I said today, my brother, is the truth. I think it's my brother who thinks too much."

"Moreover."

Zhou Yi picked up the matchbox, polished a match, and stared at the flame until a wisp of green smoke rose. Then he said leisurely: "The Jinyiwei yamen of the imperial court, the office of thousands of households and the office of hundreds of households in the city of Guangzhou, Fanzi Isn’t it upright for them to spend their days paying for fresh clothes and riding angry horses across the state?”

Speaking of this, Zhou Yi squinted at Yang Liushui with probing eyes: "Sixth brother, tell me, if the imperial court can open these two vast lands, surely Master Cao can also open them?"

"Good! Good!"

Speaking of this matter, Yang Liushui, who was "deeply benefited" by a certain force, has a fairly stable class position.

He stretched out his thumb and punched hard on the table twice with his fist: "Master Cao is this! Look at Nanxin City, how well it has been rehabilitated! Officials never take money from small people randomly. Well, in my opinion, Master Cao We should open two more yamen!"

Speaking of this, Yang Liushui suddenly remembered his daily life, and he slammed the table again angrily: "The imperial court just can't see people well! Hmph, the Zagou who was in charge of the street a month ago just accepted a family with 300 ren 'Immunity' money! Half a child is also counted as a head!"

The more Yang Liushui thought about it, the more angry he became: "Ah~ bah! The Panyu county government is such a waste, what kind of immunity is there! It's just a trick to make money by imitating others, and the feces and urine in the back streets can't be cleaned!"

"Ha ha."

Zhou Yi heard what Yang Liushui said was interesting, so he refilled his tea, during which he answered intentionally or unintentionally: "Oh, who said otherwise. If Mr. Cao came to manage the old city, there wouldn't be so many bad things... "

"Ah! That's right!"

Yang Liushui was filled with righteous indignation: "I think the emperor in the capital was deceived by treacherous ministers! Mr. Cao should be allowed to sit in the top spot in Guangdong and Guangxi!...Well, what kind of mansion...the governor is here."

"Hahaha! Brother Six, he is the governor of Guangdong and Guangxi!"

"Yes, Governor of Guangdong and Guangxi!"

Zhou Yi laughed out of relief at this moment, with a fatherly smile on his face as the son of a scumbag who finally scored 60 points in the exam.

The next moment, he reached out and wiped his face, making himself more serious.Afterwards, after taking a few sips of tea slowly, Zhou Yi said: "Brother Six, I am going to the north. It will take a long time, and the weather will take a year or two."

"Oh, so long?" Yang Liushui's thoughts suddenly returned to reality.

"Brother Six, your family must have someone to take care of me now that I'm gone. Have you made any plans for the future?"

"The plan has been in place for a long time, and I wanted to find you, my brother, to be the master today."

Coincidentally.In fact, Yang Liushui has had some thoughts on this issue in private.Even if Zhou Yi didn't ask today, Yang Liushui still wanted to speak out and ask his brothers for advice: "I'm planning to see if I can sell this courtyard house after the Chinese New Year, and then move my family to Nanxincheng to buy a... 'Commercial housing' settles down...brother...is it called commercial housing?"

"Hehe." After Zhou Yi heard it, he "tortured" the elder brother a little teasingly: "Sixth brother, this ancestral house, is it worth the exchange?"

"It's just a courtyard house, small and dilapidated, what is not passed down from ancestors."

Yang Liushui probably has been thinking about this issue for a long time, and today he spoke resolutely and smoothly: "Business in Xincheng is easy to do. This is one. The child's health is not good, and Xincheng is convenient to see a doctor. This is two."

"Moreover." Yang Liushui said, his eyes became firmer: "I got it right after I asked. An apprentice in Xincheng went to take care of food and lodging. He was paid, and the master was kind and not bullying. Your nephew is not a student. It is expected that when the time comes to live there, I will find a workshop for him to be an apprentice."

Lighting a cigarette, Yang Liushui lowered his head, and said in a muffled voice, "I think that iron machine maker is pretty good. He is a serious craft. If you learn it, you will be able to support your family in the future. It's better than walking around with me without a decent job."

When Yang Liushui said this, he raised his head, and looked at Zhou Yi with hope in his eyes: "Brother, do you think I'm going this way, is it the right way?"

"Haha, that's right, it's a decent way... But there's one thing that's not right."

Zhou Yi nodded repeatedly after listening to Yang Liushui's "Great Plan".But then his expression changed, and he prolonged his tone. He asked jokingly, "I said... big brother... you don't know the truth of relying on mountains to eat mountains, and relying on water to eat water?"

"Backing... eat?"

Yang Liushui was a little puzzled when he heard this: "Brother, big brother has already benefited from you...Look at the wine and meat on the table, and the nourishing life now, it's all thanks to the things you brought to grow hair. "

"cut."

Zhou Yi shook his hands in disdain: "What are these things?

"Brother, you and sister-in-law are relatives of my Zhou Yi. The current situation... I'm afraid it will be turned upside down in a few years. I have to find a way out for you."

When Zhou Yi said this, he took out a white envelope from his pocket and put it gently on the table: "I originally planned to find you a house in Xincheng. But after hearing what you said today, I still feel that it is not Moving is the best policy."

"This is……?"

"letter of introduction."

Looking at Yang Liushui's puzzled eyes, Zhou Yi smiled mysteriously: "There is a 'Kebo Pavilion' on the West Street of the Lin Family Archway, brother, do you know?"

"I know, I know. The store opened two and a half years ago, selling groceries. Brother, I'm not bragging. I don't know any old or new shops in the streets and alleys of Guangzhou!"

"Very good. In the next year, take this letter to the company. That place is actually an expatriate agency at Guangzhou Station, and there will be a special person to receive it. Sixth brother, you went to the market with you, and you should answer the truth, me and yours. To tell the truth about the relationship, there is no need to hide it, just fill out the form and press a fingerprint and it’s over.”

"Finished?"

"Well, other background checks will be done by a special person, you don't need to worry about it. There will be a simple training later to learn the rules. In short, after you are done, you will be an employee of the agency under the General Intelligence Bureau... Sit in, get the regular banker kind."

"Sit... sit and explore!?"

Yang Liushui couldn't understand anything else, but he understood the word Zu Tan.

In an instant, the honest Yang Liushui also woke up from the wine, his face turned pale with fright, and he waved his hands wildly: "This... this is probably not... Oh brother, you have done a big job for me! This detective I'm afraid I'm going to lose my head, do you think I'm that material?"

"Which material is it?"

Zhou Yi asked disdainfully: "It's just a simple monitoring of social and public opinion. Is it possible that you want your brother to break into the governor's mansion at night to steal the concubine's flower belly bag and come back?"

"Social conditions?"

"It's what you usually see and hear." Zhou Yi explained patiently: "You are the lowest-level information collector, let alone big jobs, and small jobs will not be assigned to you."

"There is no need to ask, and there is no need to do anything else. On weekdays, Sixth Brother, when you go out to your stall, you see someone who is using earth and dragon dung to repair the back alley ditch, and someone who is poor is being bullied by the guards, and who is crazy on the street? You are cursing the streets and cursing the emperor... Just write down these trivial things, and report to the store every few days, and it will be over."

"oh, I see."

Yang Liushui was shocked when he heard this.After silently smoking half a cigarette, after calming down, he finally nodded slowly and said, "If that's the case, then I can do this job!"

"Brother, you are a living map of the old city of Guangzhou. This is your ability. With this status, walking around the streets is a serious business." Zhou Yi patted the envelope with his hand lightly at this time: "My endorsement , plus your ability, it is not easy to get this letter of recommendation, so go and work hard when the time comes."

Yang Liushui nodded, his face was full of gratitude: "Brother knows the difficulty, this time I accept your love again."

Although he agreed, Zhou Yi saw that Yang Liushui's face was still a little panicked, so he said a few more words of relief: "Mr. Cao is surrounded by thousands of people, and he has thousands of elite soldiers. He lives a good life with him. What are you afraid of? Just rely on those bullying and fearful officials in the government. How can we take our brothers?"

Yang Liushui nodded: "That's true."

"Sixth brother, once you enter the door of that firm, you will be your own from now on. From now on, even if I am not around, you will have someone to rely on..."

When Zhou Yi said this, he looked proud, leaning on the back of the chair and knocking on the table proudly: "Brother Six, what kind of unit is the Intelligence Bureau, you will know later. Hmph, there are no taboos."

"That's a good feeling...that's..."

"What is it?"

"I don't know how much it's just the salary of the scout." Yang Liushui said anxiously: "Commercial housing...don't buy it?"

"What else to buy!"

Zhou Yi hated iron but steel: "You have a house in the new city, how can you be a scout in the old city!? Salary? What is that little salary!"

"The important thing is the length of service! Do you understand the length of service?"

Zhou Yi tapped his fingers heavily on the table a few times, emphasizing the word "seniority": "With seniority, Mr. Cao will be able to choose a house before others as soon as Mr. Cao becomes the governor of Guangdong and Guangxi."

"Hmph." Zhou Yi was looking at the dark sky outside the door, lying on his back on the chair, with a look of disdain on his face: "Those broken commercial houses that don't have water and drainage are all bought by Kuhaha, who has never seen the world. Whoever wants to live."

"When that day comes, Sixth Brother, you will be eligible to buy new commercial housing in the old city based on your seniority."

"Do you know what a new type of commercial housing is?"

"what!?"

"Hmph, upstairs and downstairs, lights and telephones."

Chapter 645

Guangzhou Old Town, south of the city, Geshui Street.

The light from a kerosene lamp came from far to near, and accompanied by the sound of "da da" horseshoes, the carriage slowly drove along the old stone road.

The old city of Guangzhou under the night is deep and quiet.On the right side of the narrow stone road, there is a small river in the city that flows silently, with fragmented moonlight floating on the water.

On the left hand side of the stone road is a high wall.I don't know which big family's back house wall stretches continuously.The base of the bluestone wall is covered with delicate moss, and the surface of the blue brick wall is covered with fine scratches of the years. Every corner tells the prominent family status of the owner of the house.

Curled up, with the sleeves of his robe folded, Zhou Yi was half lying on the roof of the car.He didn't close the curtain, but stretched his legs out of the car.

The old-fashioned two-wheeled carriage without a shock absorption system and rubber tires is constantly bumping along the way, even if it is a relatively high-end stone road.

However, Zhou Yi is very used to this kind of bumps, especially in today's environment.

His mood at the moment is very "empty".

The bumps of the wheels, the specially opened curtains, the slowly receding street scene... Whenever these elements come together, Zhou Yi's memory will jump out of an unforgettable scene: when he escaped from his hometown in Ezhou, he was sitting on the same bumpy car. The carriage left the gate of Ezhou City and boarded the Yangtze River Wharf.

Everything is so specious...the same stone road, the same river in the city, and the same high wall.At this moment, Yuanyuan and Ezhou merged with Guangzhou where he was, which made Zhou Yi's thoughts empty, and his whole person was in an "empty" state.

The rare state of mind relaxation was not long interrupted by the noise.

When Zhou Yi woke up, he suddenly found that the carriage had passed through the quiet Geshui Street and arrived at Xingshi Street not far from the South Gate.

Zhou Yi immediately reached into his pocket, took out a delicate copper pocket watch and took a look.

In the dim car hood, the green fluorescent pointer on the dial told Zhou Yi brightly that it was the end of Xu time—9 o'clock in the evening.

"Fortunately, we can catch up."

Seeing that there was no problem with the time, Zhou Yi relaxed his heart, and lazily lay back in the car bucket.

Almost an hour had passed since he came out of Yang Liushui's house.

Tonight's New Year's Eve, Zhou Yi had a perfect time.It's not because of the wine, the most important thing is that through the festive atmosphere and the communication with Yang Liushui's family, Zhou Yi, who is alone, has obtained a "spiritual" supplement in this distant foreign land.

In addition, Yang Liushui's "work" and "organizational" problems were completely solved this time, and to a large extent, he "repaid" Yang Liushui. This arrangement made Zhou Yi feel very comfortable.

He knew that he would be away on business for a long time in the future, and if he didn't settle Yang Liushui well, he wouldn't feel at ease when he went out.

However, such things as emotions will eventually dissipate.When the carriage came to the noisy Xingshi Street, Zhou Yi, who seemed to be lazily lying in the carriage, had actually seamlessly switched to the "working" state, becoming a minion of the empire produced by the ruthless training system.

……

With the growing influence of the new district, the seemingly old and dull old city of Guangzhou has already been affected in all aspects, and the South Gate complex is the place that has changed the most.

In the years before this, although there were various traditional programs inside and outside the city after nightfall, most of them were limited to the "entertainment industry", such as painting boats and courtyard streets.As for the rest of the city, most of them were pitch black.

Night, in fact, has little to do with ordinary people.This is the seventeenth century, and ordinary people just light an oil lamp and can't afford other programs.

However, when the carriage turned around and entered the city street today, the noise and the dense lights rushed towards us, which caught people off guard.

At night, the area near the South Gate of Guangzhou has become a bustling market.There are all kinds of food all over the roadside, including traditional rice noodles, wontons and glutinous rice chicken, as well as new fried chicken, barbecue and food stalls.

Most of these stalls are hung with bright kerosene lamps.Amidst the smoke and cooking smoke, many diners from nowhere packed the seats to the brim, shouting and laughing non-stop, making the stall owner sweat profusely.

After the food stalls, go further to the inner square of the South Gate, which is also brightly lit, and the square is full of trucks from the city and the north of the city.

Originally, there was no square here at the South Gate. After entering the South Gate, there is the main street and the shops and residences on both sides.

Later, one day, the government went crazy and forcibly demolished a large piece of land inside and outside the south gate.Later, a circle of two-storey small buildings was built around the square, and began to be rented out to various big business houses for food and rent.

Now whenever night falls, the goods from the city and the north of the city will be assembled, inspected, and accounted for in the inner square of the south gate.The major companies will ship the goods out of the south gate for shipment in the early morning of the next day, and send them across the river to the new district in time.

Zhou Yi's carriage came to the south gate of the city against the constant flow of people in such a strange environment that was as bright as day, which had not been seen in thousands of years.

At the gate of Nancheng, Zhou Yi got out of the carriage, first politely took out the broken silver and settled the bill with the driver.

Next, he straightened his clothes, and then walked out of the city with ordinary steps.

If it was a few years ago, at this point in time, the main gate of Guangzhou Nancheng would have been closed long ago.However, in the past few years, with the elimination of bandits in the surrounding areas and the development of commercial activities, the closing time of the southern gate of the old city of Guangzhou, which is the closest to the new district, has been pushed back and forth. close the door.

Zhou Yi didn't encounter any troubles when he left the city... The guards at the gate of the city who were in charge of collecting tolls would not pay attention to a person who was dressed in ordinary clothes, looked ordinary, behaved in ordinary manner, and would forget him at a glance.

When he walked out of the city gate, Zhou Yi passed by a large number of tired-looking "workers" in denim overalls.These people are the root cause of the bustling and bustling inside and outside the South Gate - the aborigines in the city who work the night shift in the new district.

The weakness of the basic industry and the rapid expansion have caused the embarrassing situation of "hard to find a house" in the new district.In addition, the refugees who are constantly transported from the sea need to be resettled, so there are still many migrant workers in the old city who have not been able to get into the house. They can only take a shuttle boat to and from get off work across the river every day. dicks.

Passing through the majestic and heavy South City Gate, Zhou Yi saw the dazzling lights on the other side of the river at a glance.In the night of the seventeenth century, the light caught the attention of the natives and was so shocking.I don't know how many indigenous elites were overwhelmed by the mighty power represented by that piece of light, and devoted themselves to the cause of crossing people without hesitation.

At night outside the south gate, no one rests, and the industrious Ming people have already started to work the night shift.Small passenger ships and cargo ships with lights hanging on the bows are busy in and out of the pier.There is also the "highway" construction site outside the south gate, where the prototype of later county-level highways has appeared.

In order to supply the huge appetite of the new area, the original industrial chain has already been established.During Zhou Yi's short journey to the pier, he saw no less than three boats of live ducks and geese waiting in line to board the slaughter boat.

A Qingyuan live goose, after being processed all night by the industrial chain, will turn into a smooth embryo goose and transport it to the new area at three or four o'clock in the morning.By tomorrow morning, the embryonic goose will turn into a delicious roasted goose in beeswax, lying on a porcelain plate, waiting for Mr. Chuangui to enjoy.

At the same time, all goose feathers and duck feathers will be collected and sent to factories to make down jackets for export, without any waste.