War Photographer's Notes Volume Chapter 1182: Basement Watching Xiao Su's mother through the door until she got into the rickshaw waiting for her on the roadside outside the door, Meixiang sighed and said to Wei Ran, "
From now on, be more respectful to Xiao Su’s mother and don’t really hurt her.”
"Okay" Wei Ran nodded and agreed.
"Miss, why are you still speaking for Xiao Su's mother?" Qiushi, the little girl who had been hiding behind Meixiang just now, asked with a pout.
"She saved my life"
Mei Xiang sighed, but did not continue to explain. She just stood up with a smile and said, "Jasmine, Uncle Mute, you, Wei Ran and Xiao Yao, sit down and eat. Mother Yang has left some food for you. Let's take a break after eating.
After a break, at half past two, Jasmine, take them to the practice room."
"yes"
Jasmine responded, not forgetting to take out a pack of cigarettes that Wei Ran bought for her and handed them to Mei Xiang.
Watching Mei Xiang and Qiushi go upstairs, Wei Ran and Yao Canhua picked up their belongings and returned to their rooms.
Compared with later generations, there were not many servant rooms on this floor. Cao Duba occupied a room next to the garage, and Wei Ran occupied a room next to the door and facing the courtyard door. As for Yao Canhua, he was assigned
It was a room with a window facing east next to the storage room.
From his room, he could just see the tall ginkgo tree outside through the window. Wei Ran even knew that the later Tao Canhua passed away in the same room on the second floor. He believed that it was absolutely
Not a coincidence.
After helping Yao Canhua put down the various things he bought, Wei Ran simply returned to his room and locked the door.
Drawing the heavy curtains to block the sunlight outside, Wei Ran loaded the film into the camera and the battery into the flashlight as quickly as possible. Then he took out the food box and put all the spare film, batteries and extra bullets into it.
What he put in the food box together was a large bag of brown sugar, half a catty of tea leaves and a small bag of salt that he bought with money - he was really frightened by hunger.
Without wasting too much time, Wei Ran put on lighter and more breathable thousand-layer cloth shoes, then opened the door and returned to the living room, where he sat at the dining table at Miss Jasmine's greeting.
Needless to say, among the people at this table, Cao is mute. If he could speak, Miss Mei Xiang upstairs would probably run down to look at him.
Yao Canhua, a young man with a dull personality, carries the inferiority complex and cowardice that are unavoidable for Chinese people in this era. He doesn't even dare to raise his head, and when he eats, he only eats from the plate in front of him, and naturally he doesn't open his mouth to chat.
As for Jasmine, who was also sitting at the dining table, the strong girl held two white-faced steamed buns pinched together in one hand, and the chopsticks in the other hand were like an excavator. Naturally, she had no time to talk when she was idle.
Yang Ma, the only one who might be willing to chat with Wei Ran who was eager to obtain information, after serving the food left for them, had already yawned and went up to the second floor, obviously ready to rest for a while.
After finishing their lunch in slight silence, Jasmine and Cao Yaba put down their chopsticks and each took out a handkerchief and wiped their mouths. Then they each took out their cigarette cases from their pockets in unison.
Wei Ran, who had also finished his meal, saw this and took out a dark gray handkerchief he bought not long ago from his pocket and wiped his mouth carefully. Then he took out the cigarette case and pulled out a Qianmen brand cigarette, and slowly put on the cigarette holder.
, and took out the lighter and lit it.
When there were three big smoking guns on a table, Yao Canhua, who had also just eaten, could not sit still. He stood up and took the initiative to help clear the dishes on the table, and then fled into his room.
"Come out at 2:25, remember to wash your face in advance and feel refreshed."
Jasmine hurriedly said before Yao Canhua closed the door, "Everything else is easy to talk about. Miss hates people who are not punctual and don't care about cleanliness."
"I understand, aunt" Yao Canhua responded honestly before closing the door.
"I won't be too late"
As Wei Ran spoke, he took out the pocket watch in his pocket, checked the time with the clock in the living room, took a long puff of cigarette and asked, "Do you go out often, Miss?"
“Don’t go out often”
Jasmine responded in a low voice while puffing out mist, "In addition to participating in dances and card games, Miss will only go out frequently when she comes to Jinmen for five yuan to sing in an opera."
"Shang five yuan?" Wei Ran was stunned, "You mean Shang Xiaoyun?"
"Who in the entire Tianjin family doesn't know that our young lady admires Shang Xiaoyun?" Before Jasmine could finish her words, Cao Mute cleared his throat, obviously telling Jasmine to shut up.
"What's this?"
Jasmine dusted off the cigarette ashes nonchalantly, stood up and sat where Yao Canhua was sitting before, leaned forward and whispered, "Let me tell you, Shang Xiaoyun saved the young lady's life before!"
"Is there still this matter?" Wei Ran deliberately pretended to be attentive.
"No, I can't tell you about this." Jasmine finally chose to keep the secret from Wei Ran for the time being under Cao Mute's straight eyes.
"As if I didn't ask anything"
Wei Ran took the initiative to give up his curiosity, took a final sip from the cigarette butt, pulled it off the holder and threw it into the ashtray. He stood up and walked into his room and said, "I'm going to take a nap."
Without looking at the two people behind him, Wei Ran walked straight into the room and closed the door, then immediately put his ear to the door.
Unfortunately, Jasmine and Cao Dumb obviously had nothing to talk about, so he didn't hear anything.
Turning on the ceiling fan above his head, Wei Ran took off his white shirt and lay on the bed, but he just closed his eyes to rest and didn't dare to fall asleep.
Waiting until 2:20 in the afternoon, I lit the fire and put on the shirt that had been left to dry on the balcony to be exposed to the sun again. I stepped on the leather shoes again and wiped the dust off the shoes. Then I took a pair of white shoes.
Towel opened the door.
With just one glance, he saw the open door of Yao Canhua's room and Yao Canhua sitting beside the bed in the room, obviously waiting to "gather".
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! Nodding to the other party as a greeting, Wei Ran walked into the bathroom and peed, and by the way, he washed his face in the faucet.
When he came out, Yao Canhua was already standing respectfully at the door, and footsteps could be heard on the wooden stairs.
Wrapping the towel he had just poured water on around his wrist, Wei Ran straightened his collar slowly and then saw Jasmine walking down alone.
"Go and change into cloth shoes," Jasmine glanced at Wei Ran and said.
Hearing this, Wei Ran turned around and walked back to the room, taking off his leather shoes and putting on cloth shoes.
"Come with me." Jasmine, who had changed into a pair of loose silk clothes and pants, had not finished her words before she had already walked towards the storage room next to the kitchen.
Following Jasmine into the storage room, Wei Ran couldn't help but raise his eyebrows. What kind of storage room was this? It was clearly a dressing room.
In this room, there are a row of long tables against the walls on both sides. On the wall are glass mirrors made up of pieces. Above the head, there are two fluorescent lamps and a kerosene lamp suspended by a thin iron chain.
Gas lamp.
At the end of the room facing the door is a window equipped with a metal anti-theft grille. On the ground less than half a meter away from the window is the undisguised entrance to the basement.
Unlike later generations, the steps leading to the basement are not only paved with thick teak floors, but there is also a partition wall on the other side of the stairs that seems to be made of wooden boards, so that you cannot see what is in the basement from the stairs.
situation. And at the end of the stairs, there is a thick cotton curtain hanging.
On the other side of the wall, there are several slender windows that provide the only light.
However, these windows are made of glass with beautiful patterns, so although light can come in, you can't see what's going on outside at all.
Going all the way down until he passed through the thick cotton curtain that could be used as a quilt, Wei Ran immediately felt the rare coolness in this hot weather. This is a basement after all, so it is of course much cooler than the ground.
Although it is a basement, thanks to several windows with screens on three sides, the lighting and ventilation inside are very good.
Looking at the wooden partition on the side of the stairs coming down, Wei Ran couldn't help but was stunned. What kind of partition was that? It was just a big mirror!
This mirror not only goes straight up and down to the ceiling, but is only wide enough to leave a two-meter-wide passage at the end of the stairs for people to enter and exit.
Such a large mirror cannot be made of a whole piece of glass, but is a piece of glass one meter wide and two meters long, spliced together. There seems to be a layer of extremely shiny tin in the gaps between the splicing.
.
At the junction of every four pieces of glass, there is a metal nail that may be made of silver and shaped like a lotus for fixation.
Not to mention in this chaotic Republic of China era, even in later generations, such a large glass mirror would probably cost a lot of money.
But doesn’t this block the entrance to the hidden basement?
Wei Ran looked at the edge of the oversized mirror at the entrance. The thick solid wood frame was as thick as an arm, and it was also carved with exquisite Christian patterns. However, it was also blocked by the metal handrail of the staircase.
On it, there is even the words "Beware of bumps" written in conspicuous red letters with white borders.
Withdrawing his gaze, Wei Ran finally lowered his head and looked at the exceptionally clean wooden floor under his feet, and then turned his attention to other decorations.
Apart from anything else, in the center of the basement, between the four thick load-bearing columns, is a small square stage less than half a meter above the ground.
In the surrounding area against the wall, the most conspicuous thing was several sets of costumes hanging on a wooden shelf. Among these costumes, the one that attracted Wei Ran's attention the most was naturally the Zhaojun costume.
In addition, in the deepest part of the basement diagonally opposite the entrance, there is an organ that has never been seen in later generations, placed against the wall.
In addition to these things, there are several tables placed slightly closer to the wall, some of which have hot pots, tea sets and washed fruits. On another table two chairs away, there is also a
A record player and a wooden radio.
At this time, Meixiang was sitting at the table with the radio, eating watermelon every bite. On the small stage, the little girl Qiushi, who had also changed a set of clothes, was keeping her head turned up with sweat.
He gritted his teeth and held on while pedaling.
Glancing at the wall clock on the load-bearing pillar, Mei Xiang raised her finger and pointed in the direction and said, "There is a piano on the piano table over there, Canhua and Weiran. You two can each pick a piece of music that you are good at and play it for me.
"
Hearing this, Yao Canhua subconsciously glanced at Jasmine, and seeing the latter nodding towards him, he looked at Wei Ran again.
"You go first," Wei Rangong said casually, cupping his hands.
Hearing this, Yao Canhua walked over, lifted up his long robe and sat cross-legged behind the piano table, and played Guangling San smoothly without any preparation.
Although Wei Ran had not systematically learned an instrument, he could still tell that the Guangling San played by Yao Canhua, who was only sixteen or seventeen years old at this time, was better than Chen Guangling's later generations. It's hard to say whether it was better, but it was definitely better than Chen Guangling's.
My son Chen Luoxiang is not the least bit stronger.
When the song ended, Jasmine immediately asked in a low voice, "Miss, how did my nephew play?"
"It's good to be able to play like this at this age," Mei Xiang said while wiping her hands with a wet towel, "but his voice is better, and it would be a waste to play the piano."
Having said this, Mei Xiang looked at Wei Ran with a smile and said, "It's your turn."
"Are there any rewards for playing well?" Wei Ran asked as he walked towards the piano table.
"Ah!"
Meixiang became more interested, put down the towel in her hand, crossed her legs and supported her chin with her hands, and said with interest, "If you can play better than Canhua, I will dance with you."
"Is this considered a reward?" Wei Ran was already sitting behind the piano table as he spoke.
"In the seventh heaven, a dance with me costs at least one hundred oceans. Isn't that considered a reward?" Mei Xiang asked with a smile, but there was no show off in her tone, but a touch of ridicule.
"I'll dance with you, and how about you let me take a picture of you?" Wei Ran asked while holding down the strings.
"You can also take pictures?" Mei Xiang looked at Wei Ran in surprise.
Wei Ran did not answer this question, but also played the Guangling San that Yao Canhua had just played on the piano.
By the time the song ended, Yao Canhua's eyes were widened, and Miss Meixiang suddenly said as Wei Ran came back, "So what Yang Ma said is true, have you really killed someone?"
"What did she tell you?" Wei Ran sat down on a chair and asked with a smile, but he had no consciousness of being a "servant".
"Mother Yang said that you lived abroad for two years and joined a gang in Shanghai. Then you accidentally killed someone and escaped back."
Although Mei Xiang's tone sounded like a joke, there was a hint of seriousness hidden in it, "I'm even considering whether to use you. A bodyguard like you is too dangerous."
"Don't worry, I will protect you." Wei Ran looked around and gave an answer.
"Please let me dance," Mei Xiang said with a smile.
What Wei Ran didn't expect was that just after she finished speaking, the tall and tall girl Jasmine actually stepped towards the organ and played Mendelssohn's Song of Spring fluently.
Seeing Wei Ran's surprised look, Mei Xiang's face showed a hint of pride, and she raised her left hand slightly.
After coming back to his senses, Wei Ran bowed slightly to ask for the dance, then dragged the other party's hand and walked a few steps towards the middle of the basement.
Accompanied by Jasmine's solo piano music, Wei Ran and Mei Xiang, a famous courtesan from the Republic of China, finished a dance, and at the end they completed the graceful dance.
"not bad"
Meixiang said with satisfaction, "Moli, invite Miss Gu and Mr. Feng to come and dance at home tomorrow night."
"Yes, Miss." Jasmine stood up and responded, walking straight to the outside of the basement.
"You really can't sing?" Mei Xiang asked Wei Ran expectantly.
“Really not”
Wei Ran spread his hands, hoping that the old book could teach him how to sing an opera or a song, so that he wouldn't have to eat melon seeds when he followed Suisui to the KTV.
Hearing this, Mei Xiang didn't say anything, let alone whether she agreed with Wei Ran's photoshoot, or where the camera came from. She just turned to look at Yao Canhua, who was standing aside honestly, "Canhua, will you?"
Is this a drama about Zhaojun leaving the fortress?"
"I learned clowning in a theater troupe," Yao Canhua answered honestly, "I have practiced it myself, but I have never been on stage."
Hearing this, Meixiang looked at Qiushi, who was still practicing basic skills on the stage, "Qiushi, you can be the stable boy today."
"Sister, are you trying to kill me?"
The little girl Qiushi, who was already sweating, said something that Wei Ran couldn't understand, and then asked, "Or a cappella?"
"Should I go and ask you to play drums?"
Meixiang pinched Qiushi's ears angrily, but completely ignored Wei Ran, who was watching the excitement, and greeted Yao Canhua to the small stage in the center of the basement.
After a little preparation, Yao Canhua sang: "All defeats are due to the lack of generals."
The three of them were playing together on the stage, and Wei Ran, who couldn't get along, simply found a seat and sat down, picked up a corner of the watermelon and took a bite.
It has to be said that the watermelons of this era have many seeds, and they are really not as sweet as the watermelons of later generations.
Although the watermelon is not sweet, I really can’t tell whether the three people on the stage are singing well or not. But no matter what, the basement is much cooler than upstairs, and I am eating the boss’s watermelon and listening to the boss’s singing.
Singing an opera by yourself is a good thing that maybe those sluts who spend 50 yen just to chat with Mei Xiang for an hour may not enjoy it.
While enjoying himself, Wei Ran was also secretly thinking about two other things.
One is when and how to enter the hidden basement.
Secondly, it was already July 24, 1937. This was the exact time he got from a newspaper being sold when he went out before lunch. In other words, there were only a few days left before the fall of Jinmen.
Less than a week.
But thinking about that nonsense return mission, Wei Ran had to pay attention to another more urgent matter at the moment. There were only five hours left before dark, and he still had a dozen cigarettes to smoke today.
