Shadow of great britain

East End, Tower Hamlets, Whitechapel.

Business at Martin's Tavern is as brisk today as ever.

Perhaps because the business here is so prosperous, not long ago the owner, Mr. Martin, also bought the grocery store next door and carefully renovated the tavern.

Today, the former counterfeiter can proudly declare to everyone that Martin's Tavern is the most beautiful landmark in Brick Lane.

But unfortunately, the guests who come to Martin's Tavern never care about the decoration of the restaurant. They only know that Martin's beer is not only large in quantity but also cheap.

And those customers who care about decoration will not condescend to go to a slum tavern filled with brick factory dust and slaughterhouse sewage to drink a few mouthfuls of horse urine.

But as the saying goes, any bird can be found in a big forest. Martin's Tavern can not only attract wandering warblers, but also occasionally attract an owl that is originally a raptor but is actually very herbivorous.

In the evening, Mr. Owl opened the door of the tavern and took up the wind chime hanging in front of the door.

There was only a pleasant sound of jingle bells. Mr. Owl gently raised the brim of his hat with his fingers and said softly: "Mr. Martin, I always thought you were a tough English guy with a rough style. I didn't expect you to be interested in these small objects." ?"

When Martin saw Arthur coming, he hurriedly came over with a smile on his face: "Mr. Hastings, how can I bother to play with these gadgets? Just settling accounts every day is enough for me. This Anne was clamoring to buy the wind chime. I thought it was not expensive and it would remind us when guests came in, so I bought it."

Arthur took off his hat and fanned himself. He looked at the noisy drinkers and the two busy waiters. He leaned at an empty table and chatted casually with Martin: "Why didn't you see Anne today?" ? Let me guess, you found a good family for her and finally married this big girl off? "

Martin smiled and shook his head: "It would be great if it was like what you said. That little girl Annie didn't have such good luck. But a rogue was eyeing her a while ago and coaxed her with sweet words. She was almost deceived by that bastard. If I hadn't discovered it in time, she might have been crying and asking for help from her Uncle Martin."

Arthur said: "No way? Anne, this girl, usually seems quite shrewd, and she spends all day dealing with local gangsters in the tavern. Haven't you seen the true nature of those gangsters yet?"

Martin sighed: "Mr. Hastings, you don't know, this is how a girl's family is. When you don't see her in the right eye, she is smarter than anyone else, but once she is coaxed into being fascinated, you can use the iron chain to Locking her up wouldn't do much good.

I have seen this kind of woman too many times in the East District. I have never seen much of the world. She can be deceived by someone with a few words, a bottle of wine or a beautiful dress. After half a year or so, she got tired of playing with her and kicked her into the gutter.

If this woman had any conscience, she would have to drag that little bastard with whomever she had a child with while doing chores like laundry to make ends meet.

Not to mention if that woman has no conscience. Mr. Hastings, you should also know that several dead babies are fished out of the Thames from time to time, and this is basically how the little mouths waiting for feeding in the workhouse come from.

Alas... my God! Open your eyes and see, what kind of evil is this! I can't control other people's nieces, but my niece can't bear these sins that deserve to go to hell.

She must find an honest man to marry. If she dares to elope with that smooth-talking gangster, then from now on she will never step foot in the door of my tavern again. Whoever has the seed in her belly will be responsible for it. The Martin family's money is not something that a shameless guy can spend. "

At this point, Martin's face turned red with anger. It can be seen that he seems to be very angry at Anne's almost deviant behavior.

When Arthur heard this, he could only say a few words of relief: "Mr. Martin, you don't have to lose your temper. Hasn't Anne been persuaded to come back? There will always be times when people are young and make mistakes accidentally. As long as we don't really make a big mistake, then the past is the past."

When Martin heard this, he just said helplessly: "You don't know, that girl just admitted my mistake, but I could see that she was not convinced in her heart. She always felt that I was scaring her, and she didn't believe me. What I said is true. Alas... Anyway, I have said everything I should say. If she wants to live a hard life, let her go. I can guarantee that as long as she hooks up with that bastard, If we go together, in two or three years, she will become a yellow-faced woman with yellow hair, rough skin, and a bucket-waist. Did she really think it was so easy to find someone to live with? She thought she was going Which wealthy family is a countess?"

When Arthur heard this, he pondered for a while: "Although I don't know if the young man who hooked up with Anne was really that bad, but if his conduct is indeed so bad that it cannot be improved. Mr. Martin, please don't forget, You still have a friend here."

When Martin heard this, he was stunned for a moment, and then said happily: "Mr. Hastings, I didn't expect you to be willing to bother with such a trivial matter. How on earth should I thank you? Damn it! It's such a blessing to be friends with you. It's a great honor! If you want to eat something today, I'll go to the kitchen and prepare it for you."

When Martin said this, he couldn't help shouting to the kitchen at the top of his lungs: "Anne! Anne! Mr. Hastings is here. Grape pudding and tomato meatloaf, Mr. Hastings's favorite meals, can be Get ready!”

Martin shouted for a long time, but there was no response. He slapped his head and cursed in a low voice: "This little girl must be lazy. She must have been fascinated when she went to the Penny House to deliver drinks. Hastings Mr. Si, don't worry, I'll go there and find her out right away."

Arthur didn't mind that the food was served slowly. Anyway, he didn't come here specifically to drink and eat. He was obviously more interested in what Martin called the penny house than in the grape pudding and tomato meatloaf.

“What is a penny house?”

“You don’t know about the Penny House?”

Martin explained while smiling apologetically: "But it's normal that you don't know. This thing has not been popular for a long time, and it is mainly an entertainment that girls like. My wealthy male customers will not be willing to spend a penny. Let’s go and listen to a few songs, and for the money, they would rather have two more generous glasses of ale.”

Having said this, Martin pointed to a room at the back of the tavern that was separated from the main hall by a blue cloth curtain and said: "Did you see that room? That's the penny room I reserved for the girls. It only costs one penny." For the price, they can have a whole night's entertainment here.

Although the shows here are not as elegant and high-end as those in regular theaters, nor are they as thrilling as those in small theaters on the south bank of the Thames, our Penny House in Martin's Tavern is not without its merits.

The singers we have here are definitely the best in the East District. You will never find a better singer than him. From six to ten o'clock, as long as the beer pipe is enough, he can sing continuously for four hours without stopping. . And our dwarf artists here, do you know how difficult it is to get through the fire ring and then over again? Especially in the cramped little environment of the Penny House, it was not easy. "

When Arthur heard how interesting Martin's introduction was, he couldn't help but become interested in going to the Penny House to find out.

He took out a coin from his pocket, flicked it into Martin's hand with his fingernails, then stood up and said: "Before my guests arrive, I hope the penny house can bring some fun to my boring waiting time. "

"Mr. Hastings, how can I take your money?"

Martin was about to put the penny back into Arthur's hand without thinking, but Arthur pushed his hand back: "Mr. Martin, making money from business is your God-given right. Besides, this A penny is nothing more than an appetizer compared to what I will spend next, so just accept it."

After saying this, Arthur walked towards the penny house.

He opened the dark blue curtain of the room, and he immediately had a panoramic view of the secret world in the tavern.

Perhaps the stingy Mr. Martin was worried that someone would peek in on the Penny House performance from outside. There were no windows in this room, and the only lighting provided for the room was two kerosene lamps swinging on the ceiling.

Under the dim yellowish yet warm light, the room was filled with smoke. Arthur gently sniffed the smell in the room. He quickly determined that it was a mixture of beer, tobacco and a variety of cheap The complex smell of perfume.

Although the smell could not be said to be very good, compared with the stench of sweat and vomit left by the drunkards in the hall, Arthur felt that the smell was not too bad.

He glanced at the scene and layout of the room. The stage here was quite simple, with only two temporary curtains made of floral curtains. Even the stage for the performance was made of several wooden beer crates.

On this stage, which can only accommodate four adults standing side by side, is sitting a wandering singer with a bagpipe in his arms. His hair is a little messy and the shirt on his body has been washed white, but this does not affect him. Roll up your sleeves, puff out your cheeks and plan to have a big fight. There is no other reason, this is his place.

The audience sitting or standing under the stage was, as Martin introduced, a group of young girls in their teens and twenties. The mixed smell of perfume, tobacco and beer that Arthur smelled before was also emanating from them.

Perhaps because the space in the room is too small, or perhaps because Martin wants to charge more tickets, he is not even willing to arrange too many dining tables here. There is only one large public round table in the room for the girls. Beer glasses and dinner plates.

As a well-known Scotland Yard detective, Arthur can easily analyze their occupation, experience and past from their clothing and consumption.

The people standing against the wall listening to the music were mostly laundresses with rough fingers, wearing patched black cloth skirts and headscarves. Their incomes were not ideal. Spending a penny on entertainment for a night was enough. The cost is high, so naturally I can't bear to order more drinks or a few pieces of bread and half a sausage.

Those who held dinner plates in their hands and ate gracefully, as if they were afraid of swallowing them all with their slender white fingers, were the hired maids and tutors. Their income situation is a little better than that of laundresses, and their employers also provide accommodation, so they naturally have much more money, and occasional luxuries are completely acceptable to them.

And those who sit around the round table, imitating the way the upper class tastes wine, sip the beer in the glass, and occasionally take a sip from the long and slender women's cigarette bag, and slowly spit out a string of smoke that is so rich that it cannot be melted away. This is a person A beautiful lady wearing various fashionable wide-brimmed women's hats.

As for their identities, it goes without saying much. After all, there are only so many industries that ladies can engage in these days. In just this moment, Arthur saw several girls he had seen around Fiona.

The girls seemed to notice that someone was looking at them. They looked back and met Arthur's eyes. Several of them were stunned for a moment, and then they recognized Arthur's appearance.

Seeing this, Arthur had no choice but to take off his hat and nodded to them apologetically, which was regarded as a greeting.

Unexpectedly, when the girls saw Arthur saying hello, their reactions were different. Some smiled and greeted him, some pulled their partners beside them into snickers, and some winked at him with evil intentions. Blinking, as if waiting to see his joke.

Just when Arthur didn't understand why, he suddenly heard bursts of street singers singing from the stage.

"I'm a homeless person, and just last summer I heard that the Manchester Railway was opening.

After three months of collecting horse manure, he also stole two geese from the village. I finally qualified to be a first class passenger.

I boarded the train anxiously. The train whistle roared, and the steam blew across the station platform, blowing the ladies' long skirts to open and close.

From then on, I finally understood why bees love colorful flowers, because they are yellow, white, red, purple, colorful and colorful.

I slapped the windows, I yelled at them, I whistled at them. I shouted: Madam, please stand there obediently, I, transformed into a bee, will rush over to collect honey! "

When the wandering singer sang this, he immediately caused a burst of wanton laughter from the ladies in the tavern. There was only the sound of clinking wine glasses as they drank the beer in the glasses.

Perhaps it was the effect of alcohol, or perhaps it was the need to relieve the stress of life. From time to time, girls in the audience shouted at the wandering singer: "Edward, have you been collecting honey for a week? The singing today is not as good as last week." Loud!"

Not to be outdone, the street singer Edward shouted to the audience: "You bunch of sluts, please restrain yourself! Today has just begun! I'm warning you, don't get flooded so soon." ! Don’t you think the smell in the house is not strong enough?”

However, his clamor was nothing more than another joke to the audience. After all, in the Penny House, interacting with the singer was also one of the entertainment options.

"Edward, go to hell, I tell you, you can't make a few bucks in one night by showing off your talk. Selling your butt will definitely make money much faster than singing!"

Anyone who sees this scene will inevitably doubt their life. I am afraid that everyone cannot figure out where are those frail ladies who can be seen everywhere in the streets of London?

Martin, who followed Arthur closely, couldn't help but feel embarrassed when he saw this scene. He touched the back of his head and said: "Mr. Hastings, why don't you go to the private room on the second floor and sit down first? In fact, I am a penny house. It's not always like this, today it just happened. Of course, at the end of the day, the shows we have here are not as good as those musicals you often hear."

Martin originally thought that even if Arthur wasn't angry, he would still be embarrassed.

Unexpectedly, Arthur just took out a matchbox and lit a fire gently, leaning against the door and smoking: "This song actually sounds good, and it has a strong sense of life. And I was listening to a sermon at Scotland Yard today. , prayers and hymns are really getting a little overwhelming, and now listening to the bees collecting honey can wake me up. Otherwise, I will always be serious, and I will not be able to discuss business with customers later. "

"Discussing business with customers?"

Martin's heart trembled when he heard this. He thought for a moment and seemed to understand something in an instant. With a smile in his eyes and sweat on his forehead, he said: "Mr. Hastings, let me tell you, your identity Even if you want to discuss business, you should go to the West District. The girls in the East District are really not a match for you, and it is not safe and confidential here, and it is easy for you to get into trouble later."

Having said this, Martin hurriedly rushed to the counter, fumbled under the cabinet for a while, took out a tattered booklet, then walked to Arthur and mysteriously handed it into Arthur's hand. inside.

"What is this?"

Martin looked around, then lowered his voice and said: "Don't ask so many questions. This is a good thing. It is definitely a decisive guide for a novice like you."

Arthur lowered his head and opened the cover, which was so blurry that he couldn't make out the specific text. He saw a line of title written energetically on the title page - "Bernie Harrison's Wonderful Journey Ranking List".

As soon as Arthur saw this title, he immediately remembered that there was a similar one in Scotland Yard's list of banned publications. If he remembered correctly, the name of that banned publication was - "Harris's Covent Garden Brothel" Ranking list".

Speaking of this magazine, it has a long history. As an annual magazine with its first edition in 1760, it sold more than 250,000 copies in more than 30 years. It was not published until 1794. The publication was forced to cease publication due to strong censorship by the parliament.

It's just that although "Harris' Covent Garden Brothel Ranking" will no longer be updated, similar underground publications will pop up almost every once in a while. No matter how hard Scotland Yard works, something will always slip through the net. of fish.

But the one Martin handed to Arthur was particularly interesting. After all, the name Bernie Harrison made such a profound impression on him.

Arthur thought for a while, and finally put the magazine into his arms calmly, and then gave Martin an encouraging look: "Mr. Martin, next time you have such a good thing, remember to leave it for me." Here. Not only do I need this, I believe my guest who is coming soon will also need it."

Martin asked with a smile: "Really? Your guest is also a novice?"

Arthur just smiled, shook his head slightly and said, "I don't know, but I guess he won't be a novice."

Martin heard this and asked curiously: "Why do you say that?"

Arthur raised his eyebrows and said: "It's very simple, because he is a Frenchman, and he is from Paris. Although London is already very bad, as far as I know, London is not ranked first in front of Paris. "

"ah……"

Martin suddenly understood, and he immediately laughed and said: "Why else would you be able to become the superintendent? Sure enough, you are very thoughtful."