Chapter 1178 of the Notes of a War Photographer: In the basement where the famous prostitute Mei Xiang was hidden, Wei Ran rerolled the greasy Type 44 rifle and put it back in the camphor wood box, and walked towards the wall.
There are two ventilation holes that are about the size of a rice bowl.
I turned on the flash mode of my mobile phone and put it in to take a few photos. I pulled the screen to check, but found that the top of the vent hole that was diagonally upward had been tightly blocked.
After some rough estimation, Wei Ran turned around and left the hidden basement, and used a broken padlock to lock the iron door with the good news on it.
Climbing the rusty steel handrail back to the spacious semi-basement, Wei Yan climbed out along the aluminum alloy ladder by the window and lifted out a bag of cement and a bag of sand, as well as a plastic basin and a large bucket from the car.
Mineral water was delivered one after another.
After mixing the sand and cement, pouring water and stirring, Wei Ran relied on the half-baked skills he had learned when he was building a kang with his uncles in Inta, and rebuilt the disassembled small door with the dismantled bricks.
On top of the base, he then moved the iron cabinet that originally contained the weapons with a bang and blocked it tightly.
Of course, he didn't intend to secretly hide those scraps of metal that were still lethal. He had no shortage of weapons. Living here, he wouldn't need weapons at all. Those things would eventually have to be handed over.
But now that the New Year is coming soon, he doesn't want to stop celebrating the New Year. What's more, even if he wants to hand it over, he has to understand what happened here first.
"Anti-Japanese killing gang."
Wei Ran was mumbling as he sent the remaining cement out through the window, then threw the electric fan used for ventilation into the basement, and then used his shabby craftsmanship to seal the newly opened window.
After taking off his dusty fake camouflage clothes and putting on clean clothes from the car, Weiran tore off the power cord, held up a flashlight, and walked step by step in the yard as he recalled.
After some measurements, he finally stopped between the wall of the small building and the courtyard wall and discovered an anomaly. At first, this place was filled with all kinds of garbage.
Now, although the garbage has been cleared away by my second uncle and the workers, a long flower bed has also been cleared out.
The flower bed is surrounded by a circle of irregular shapes, but each one can have pebbles the size of a watermelon. Inside the flower bed, in addition to the white pebbles paved there, you can also see two stone lanterns distributed between them.
Both stone lanterns are in the shape of an octagonal pavilion. The diameter and height of each base can exceed half a meter, and all eight facades are carved with a large number of holes.
Holding the octagonal top cover of one of the stone benches with both hands, Wei Ran tried hard and then decisively gave up. He couldn't move this thing by himself, but he was almost certain that the two ventilation holes were probably hidden there.
In this stone lamp.
Such an exquisite design also made him more and more curious about the history behind this small building and the stories that had long been lost to time.
Opening the locked iron door, Wei Ran glanced at the "general protection level" historical building public notice on the outer wall and secretly shook his head. Although he had left the task of cleaning up this small dilapidated building to his parents, he had not been able to do it in the past few days.
Tian Que also heard his second uncle and his mother complain about how troublesome it was to go through the procedures to renovate this dilapidated house.
Since it's "general protection," does that mean that even the official authorities probably don't know what happened here?
After thinking hard to no avail, Wei Ran drove the car out in the night, locked the rusty iron door again, and drove straight to the capital overnight.
In the blink of an eye, the next morning, Wei Ran, who had barely rested for a few hours in a hotel near the airport, drove his newly washed car to the airport and met the four girls headed by Suisui. People around him were filled with envy.
He walked towards the airport pick-up port with strange eyes.
"What did you find out last night?" It wasn't until she sat down in the rest area near the airport pick-up port that the sleepy Suisui asked, leaning on Wei Ran's shoulder and yawning.
"Nothing was found." Wei Ran shook his head regretfully. Not only was he unable to find anything, but he had more and more doubts in his heart.
Hearing this, Suisui yawned, "If you haven't found it, then you haven't found it. What are you going to do with the small building after it is renovated?"
"How to deal with what?" Wei Ran, who was distracted, asked subconsciously.
"Use it to live in or just leave it there?"
Suisui, who was shrouded in thoughts, finally sobered up a little, "If you use it to live in, you have to find a designer to design it properly."
"Do you want to live there?" Wei Ran asked with a smile.
"Do you still want to live in Kazan for the rest of your life? You will have to come back sooner or later?"
Suisui asked back, "It would be much more convenient if we could live in that small foreign-style building than in Cangzhou. We haven't been there even a few days since we came back. If I had known, I wouldn't have been so interested in helping keep an eye on him."
It’s been decorated.”
"Let me decide after I investigate what happened in that small building." Wei Ran gave an ambiguous answer.
Without waiting long in the chat, the rich woman Kou Kou came out with her Indian housekeeper and pushing a cart of suitcases.
"Although!" Kou Kou shouted enthusiastically from a distance.
"Kou Kou!" Suisui responded immediately.
After the two rich women, who obviously didn't speak the same language but had a very good relationship, had said hello through the Katenka sisters' translation, Wei Ran took them straight to the parking lot and got into the car.
In the next few days, Wei Ran, in addition to acting as a driver for these girls who focused on eating, drinking, having fun and visiting scenic spots every day, all the rest of his energy was focused on looking for clues related to the small building. He even didn't forget to ask for help.
Xia Shuseki returned from the Simpsons in Australia.
As the saying goes, hard work pays off. There are only three days left before New Year's Eve. Wei Ran has already taken the girls to visit all the scenic spots in the capital. When he is preparing to return to his grandma's house the next day, Xia Shushi is also here.
At almost ten o'clock that night, I sent a photo, and immediately after that, I received phone calls over and over again.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! Wei Ran, who was sitting on the sofa, and Suisui, who was riding on his lap for exercise, looked at each other helplessly. The latter rolled his eyes and got up and walked to the bathroom. Wei Ran
Ran was finally willing to pick up the phone that had been ringing and pressed the answer button.
"You won't go to bed so early, right?"
As soon as the call was connected, Xia Shushi, a bachelor, complained very innocently, and then asked hurriedly without waiting for Wei Ran's answer, "Did you see the photo I just sent you? About that small building
Floor."
"Let me see"
As he spoke, Wei Ran deliberately yawned, turned on the speakerphone and recording, and clicked on the photo sent by Xia Shushi.
This photo was taken of an old poster with cross creases. On the poster is a beautiful woman wearing a cheongsam, holding a small fan, and wearing a string of pearl necklaces around her neck.
On this poster that Wei Ran had seen in the hidden basement, the words "Miss Meixiang is here in person, the Seventh Heaven Ballroom Ball!" were clearly written.
"In the winter of 1930, the famous actor Shang Xiaoyun lost his wife. At that time, there were rumors that there were three women who were most likely to become his new wives."
Xia Shushi paused for a while and then said, "One is Xue Yanqin, the earliest Peking opera actress in China, and the other is said to be a princess from the Qing Dynasty. The last one is Mei Xiang, a famous prostitute in Tianjin at that time, who is the woman in the photo."
"I know this"
Wei Ran responded, "I checked it on the Internet a few days ago. The information I saw said that Mei Xiang, a famous prostitute who is not a prostitute, is not only good at singing and dancing, but she also looks very similar to Shang Xiaoyun.
, the most important thing is that she will go to see Shang Xiaoyun's performance whenever there is one.
But the public information I saw also mentioned that none of these three were together with Shang Xiaoyun, and the one who finally married him was Mei Lanfang’s niece.”
"That's true," Xia Shushi on the other end of the phone said proudly, "I'll tell you something you don't know next."
Having said this, Xia Shushi cleared his throat and said with a hint of pride, "According to the clues I have investigated, the surname of Miss Meixiang who admires Shang Xiaoyun is Tao, and she is a fellow villager with Marshal Zhang.
Not only does she play Jinmen drums and Peking and Kunqu operas, she also plays the piano, is also a very good ballroom dancer, and can even speak German, English and Japanese.
On the other hand, although this Miss Meixiang is an artist but not a prostitute, just chatting with her for an hour costs 50 yuan, and she has to make an appointment in advance."
"How much?" Wei Ran was stunned, "Just chatting?"
"No, it depends on the identity of the guest. If he is an old man who doesn't know a few Chinese characters, Miss Meixiang won't accept her even if she has money."
Xia Shushi sighed, "Based on the current currency value, it's almost equivalent to two thousand yuan an hour, and that's just for chatting."
"Where did you find the clue?" Wei Ran became increasingly curious.
"Fengyue Pictorial" was founded by Jinmen celebrity Ye Yongfang in 1933. Its content mainly describes the lives of prostitutes, dancers and waitresses in Beijing, Tianjin and Shanghai."
Xia Shushi became more and more proud, "After a lot of effort, I finally found a few words about the famous prostitute Mei Xiang in a romantic pictorial."
"Did the above say anything else?" Wei Ran asked.
"It is only rumored that the famous prostitute Mei Xiang runs a love story apartment in the British Concession."
Xia Shushi paused and continued, "That's all. After the fall of Tianjin in 1937, Fengyue Pictorial ceased publication, so I'm afraid it will be difficult to find clues from this guide to buying sex.
Brother, I suspect that the small building you showed me two days ago might be the love story apartment run by that famous prostitute."
"Is there any record about that small building in the official historical archives?" Wei Ran automatically ignored the other party's teasing and continued to ask.
"This is true"
Xia Shushi said, "According to the historical records I found, your building was built in 1920 by a British missionary who trafficked opium. However, the house was sold in 1930. It seems that the person who bought the house was Shaoshuai Zhang.
one of his adjutants."
"An aide of Marshal Zhang?" Wei Ran frowned, "Where did you find the clue?"
"Davis, the British businessman who founded Rylon & Co."
Xia Shushi continued, "Davis was very famous at the time. His father was a soldier of the Eight-Power Allied Forces that invaded China, and he himself was also a very shrewd businessman.
When Gao Xingqiao was building Quanyechang, he was short of funds, so he acted as an intermediary, borrowing 500,000 from Macquarie Bank to build it.
This Davis not only engaged in the stock and foreign exchange business, but also specialized in purchasing properties in the British Concession for the Qing Dynasty elders and warlord landlords at that time to earn commissions.
He bought that house with the help of the adjutant, or he bought it for someone else in the name of the adjutant. I suspect that the real buyer may be Miss Meixiang."
At this point, Xia Shushi took a deep breath and then continued, "What I just said was found in a transaction file left by Ruilong Foreign Company founded by Davis. The person who liberated Tianjin was
At that time, these materials were relatively intact.”
This time, Xia Shushi did not wait for Wei Ran to ask further questions before adding, "Of course, there is not much mentioned in the file. There are only a few lines of words, which probably record the details of the year and month for whom to trade real estate, and how much commission was made.
.”
Looking at Suisui who came out of the bathroom wrapped in a bath towel and sat on his lap again, Wei Ran hugged him and asked with a normal look, "What else did you find out?"
"The last clue," Xia Shushi said, "I asked the beast to help find this one."
"That's what you said"
Wei Ran urged Xia Soseki to finish, and did not forget to kiss Suisui.
Xia Shushi on the other end of the phone didn't know what Wei Ran was busy with. He just sent a picture and said, "The next thing is after the founding of the People's Republic of China. This house was allocated to a state-owned unit as a staff dormitory in 1967.
In the spring of 1979, this house was repaid to a woman named Yang Panyi.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! But in the autumn of that year, the owner of this house was inherited by a woman named 'Cao Qiushi', who was Yang Panyi's goddaughter.
Then in 1984, the owner of this house became a man named Tao Canhua, and he and Cao Qiushi were husband and wife.
From then on, the property rights of this house changed again, and it came into your hands not long ago through a free gift."
"etc"
Wei Ran stopped Xia Shushi and Suisui, who was teasing him, and said, "You just said that from the founding of the People's Republic of China to the time I took over this house, it had never been traded. It was all through inheritance."
To change the property owner?"
"That's right"
Xia Shushi replied, "The beast found this out for me. I just forwarded the chat records between him and me to you."
"Do you have any information about Yang Panyi and Cao Qiushi?" Wei Ran asked.
"After the founding of the People's Republic of China, Yang Panyi retired from his position as a canteen worker in a local clothing factory in Jinmen. This old man did not die until he was 83 years old."
Xia Shushi answered well prepared, "According to the records found, Cao Qiushi was a ticket seller at a local cinema in Tianjin. She worked in this job until her retirement in 1981. Unfortunately, she
He died in 1984."
"Is there any other information?" Wei Ran asked.
"That's it, but I'm quite surprised that the records about this house are so detailed."
Xia Shushi said as if he was taking credit, "Of course, don't think it's easy to find this information. Let me tell you, what I just mentioned would be a waste of time. If you hadn't introduced me to that rich woman last time,
’s life.”
"Okay, okay, hang up. I'm busy here."
Wei Ran didn't even wait for the other party to finish speaking before he hung up the phone in a hurry, threw it away, and continued working on another extremely important matter.
The next day passed in a blink of an eye. Wei Ran got up early, compared the recording of yesterday's call with Xia Shushi, and carefully compiled the clues he had obtained on his laptop.
However, looking at the additional names and time points above, Wei Ran had more doubts in his heart.
Suppressing the curiosity in his heart, Wei Ran waited for Suisui to get up and turned into a driver again, driving the girls who had had enough fun all the way back to his grandma's house in Baiyangdian.
However, just four or five days later, when he drove the car to the door of his grandma's house, everyone in the car saw from a distance that a stage had been set up in the small square across the road.
At this time, there were some people with facial makeup and costumes singing on the stage. Beside the stage, there were also some old men with teeth who might not even be able to make up the whole group. They were playing various kinds of music.
Traditional Chinese musical instruments.
Under the stage, not only were villagers sitting or standing watching the show and cheering, but there were also stalls selling various snacks such as roasted sweet potatoes and candied haws. He even saw that even the village party secretary of his village, grandma,
They were all wearing suits that they got from who knows where, and they were being interviewed by a pretty young reporter from the county TV station with their faces glowing red and spittle flying around. That pretty reporter was still his junior high school classmate.
"Have you really started singing?" Wei Ran and Suisui muttered in unison, and at the same time they lowered their car windows.
When the cold wind outside the window blew into the car, everyone also heard a melodious libretto coming from the speakers on the stage - about ambitions that want to bring the stars together, empty hearts that have yet to be wiped out, and sighs about the life and death of heroes.
