On the afternoon of July 25, Wei Ran, who was catching up on his sleep in his room, was awakened by a loud knock on the door.
Pulling out the pistol from under the pillow and loading it, Wei Ran first opened a corner of the curtain and looked outside, and then opened the door.
"Brother Wei, I want you to get ready and go out with Sister Moli and Tao Canhua later." Outside the door, a sleepy Qiushi conveyed Mei Xiang's instructions. After speaking, he did not forget to yawn.
"I'll just wash my face"
Wei Ran responded, waited for the girl to turn around and knocked on Tao Canhua's door, then closed the door, put the pistol hidden behind the door on the table, and started to change clothes, brush his teeth and wash his face.
After he had packed up and calibrated the pocket watch, Jasmine also yawned and walked down the stairs.
The two waited for a while, and Tao Canhua, who also hadn't slept enough, finally finished cleaning up his personal hygiene and followed Wei Ran and Jasmine into the car with a confused look on his face.
"Go to Mr. Schweiger's Bank," Jasmine said as she closed the car door.
Hearing this, Wei Ran didn't ask any questions, started the car and drove out of the small courtyard. He waited for Tao Canhua to help close the iron gate of the small courtyard, then increased the speed of the car and drove to the door of the German foreign company.
But what surprised him was that after he parked the car, after Jasmine helped him get a driver's license from a foreign store, she took the two of them across the road, got into the clothing store, and gave him a driver's license.
Wei Ran and Tao Canhua each picked up several other sets of custom-made clothes.
This was not over yet. Next, Jasmine took the two of them around in various concessions, either asking Tao Canhua to come forward, or asking Wei Ran to come forward, or she herself came forward, and purchased various medicines piecemeal from various pharmacies.
and gauze, etc., and purchased various pastries and fruits, and even ordered a few ice bricks. At the same time, the car was filled with fuel imported from the United States.
This was not over yet, as the sky was getting dark, Jasmine took them to Quanyechang, which they had just passed by the door before.
After a stroll upstairs and downstairs, the girl picked and bought a lot of things until the trunk and the passenger seat were full, and then she asked Wei Ran and the two to go downstairs and go home.
Before his return trip, Wei Ran summoned a familiar-looking cigarette seller at the entrance of Quanyechang, bought a pack of Camel and two packs of Qianmen brand cigarettes from him, and then drove back.
But when he returned home, he was stunned. Although the sun had not set yet, the small building turned into a construction site. Not only were the windows around the basement sealed with red bricks and cement, but also
A flower wall nearly one meter high was built around the corner of the small building.
And looking at the operations of those workers who don’t know where they came from, the red brick cement wall that completely blocked the basement windows was completely like a slope like a dam, and before the cement inside was dry, it was filled with moist sand.
, I planted roses that I don’t know where they came from.
"What are you doing?" Wei Ran couldn't help but asked curiously.
"Miss's instructions before leaving"
Mother Yang, who was delivering sour plum soup to the workers, lowered her voice and said, "Miss said there is going to be a war. Reinforce the basement. If the Japanese attack here, there will be a place to hide."
"Miss before she left?" Wei Ran raised his eyebrows, "Where did the lady go?"
"Following Miss Andy," Yang's mother replied, "From what she said, she is planning to stay at Andy's place for a few days."
"Qiushi also followed?" Jasmine asked as she got out of the car a little later.
"It's gone." Yang's mother shook her head helplessly, "Miss Andy took her away by force."
"So, how many of us are left?" As Jasmine spoke, she had already picked up the snacks and fruits she had purchased.
"No, it will take a few days for the two sisters to come back." Yang's mother had already received the snacks and fruits from the other party and walked into the small building.
When Jasmine and Tao Canhua followed each other with their purchased items, Wei Ran frowned.
He could vaguely sense that there was a trace of moisture in the words of Yang Ma and Jasmine. He could almost guess that maybe Meixiang and Qiushi were hiding in the hidden basement at this time! He remembered clearly, above.
The next time Xiao Su's mother came, she had chatted with Mei Xiang in Japanese, and the latter also promised to hide with Qiushi after the private dance at home.
While thinking to himself, Wei Ran also picked up the medicines, gauze and other items he bought from various pharmacies and followed him.
As Jasmine walked into the basement, at this time, in addition to the rice, flour, grains, oils, medicines and other items purchased yesterday, the surrounding windows had also been tightly sealed with wooden boards. There seemed to be a thick layer between the wooden boards and the windows.
quilt.
And against the wall, there are several wooden refrigerators that I have never seen before.
This so-called wooden refrigerator, to put it bluntly, is actually an insulating box. It has a carved wooden shell with a metal liner inside. The space between the liner and the outer shell is usually filled with cotton or wood charcoal powder for thermal insulation.
This thing itself does not consume electricity, but it does need to put ice cubes inside to release the low temperature. And it seems that in order to extend the heat preservation time, these wooden refrigerators are also tied with thick quilts on the outside.
Following Yang Ma's instructions, he put the various things he had brought down in the refrigerator or on the table, depending on the situation. Wei Ran glanced at the huge mirror again without leaving a trace, and followed them around silently.
Went upstairs and moved the rest of the things in the car down one at a time.
Near 7:30 in the evening, Yang's mother sent away the workers who had arranged to come over to build the wall the next day, and Wei Ran and others finally had dinner.
This night, it was a lot quieter because Miss Meixiang was away. I only caught up on my sleep during the day, and the weather was hot, so I couldn't help but feel sleepy. What's more, Weiran had to finish a whole pack before 12 o'clock.
Only Qianmen brand cigarettes will do.
Since it was a long night and it was difficult to fall asleep, Wei Ran simply got up quietly, stood in front of the French window facing the small flower bed, opened the window, lit a cigarette and listened quietly.
Unfortunately, there was no movement from the two stone lamps that seemed to be ventilation holes. Instead, after seeing the light of the fire, the parrot chirped a few words that no one could understand.
As a cigarette was approaching, Wei Ran quietly walked to the door of the storage room and gently held the door handle.
It's a pity that the door of this storage room is usually locked from behind, and at this time, it was no accident that it couldn't be turned at all.
Without trying to pick the lock, Wei Ran turned around and went back to the room, locked the door and lay down on the bed again.
In the blink of an eye, it was early the next morning, and everyone had just finished breakfast. The workers drove the big trucks over again to continue the construction. Jasmine also greeted Wei Ran and drove out again.
But this time, apart from buying a few packs of cigarettes each, Jasmine did not purchase anything. Instead, she directed Wei Ran to drive around the city and then drove into Nankai University, where they were familiar with each other.
I found the office of Feng Maoyun’s wife, Mrs. Huang, and delivered a food box.
The food box contained snacks that Jasmine bought from Guishunzhai yesterday with Wei Ran and Tao Canhua. But the excuse that Jasmine gave was, "Mrs. Huang said before that the snacks made by Yang's mother were delicious.
So the lady asked me to send some more."
"Miss Meixiang is interested"
Mrs. Huang put down the food box and asked casually, "Is your lady free tomorrow? Tomorrow is Tuesday, and I should go give her English lessons."
"In addition to delivering snacks to Teacher Huang this time, the second thing I am doing here is for tomorrow's English class."
Jasmine glanced at another teacher in the same office as Mrs. Huang without leaving a trace, and said with a normal expression, "Miss Andy invited our girls to stay at her place yesterday afternoon. They seemed to be planning to go to Peking with Miss Gu to listen.
It’s estimated that I’ll have to stay for a while before I can come back, so I’m afraid I won’t be able to continue classes until next week.”
"Then next week"
Mrs. Huang gently patted the food box placed on the desk, "When your lady comes back, remember to thank her for me, and also thank Ma Yang for me."
“I’ll bring it”
Jasmine responded respectfully, then said goodbye to Mrs. Huang who had a calm smile on her face, took Wei Ran downstairs, and drove away from the school.
"Where to go next?" Wei Ran asked in a hoarse voice. He had no choice but to stay dumb. He almost vomited himself trying to finish the pack of cigarettes last night.
"Turn left ahead"
After speaking, Jasmine took out the cigarette case, lit a cigarette, and then lowered the car window completely.
Under the girl's command, Wei Ran drove the car to the edge of the Japanese Concession, and finally stopped at the entrance of a opium den.
"Have you got a gun?" Jasmine asked before opening the car door.
"Take it." Wei Ran subconsciously reached out his hand to his lower back.
"Leave the gun in the car"
As Jasmine spoke, she had already opened the car door, and then took out a rattan food box from the rear compartment.
After a moment's hesitation, Wei Ran pulled out the small PPK pistol, rolled it up with the tunic jacket draped over the back of the seat, and placed it on the passenger seat.
After taking out the key and pushing the door open to get out of the car, Wei Ran followed Jasmine into a townhouse next to the opium den and went downstairs and knocked on the door.
When a woman in a kimono and apron, who looked to be in her forties, opened the door, Jasmine immediately asked, "Is Xiao Su's mother at home?"
"You're at home, please take off your shoes and come in." The woman bowed slightly and said in Chinese.
Hearing this, Wei Ran and Jasmine each took off their shoes and walked into the small building. Then they saw Xiao Su's mother kneeling at a low table under the ceiling fan, and on both sides of another small square table next to it,
Two Japs playing Go.
Among the two devils, the one wearing a kimono seems to be Mr. Ueda, who had visited the Love Letter Apartment before. This one can be regarded as a tall and muscular man, especially on his temples, which has a slender string.
Although the marks are not conspicuous, the skin color above and below is quite distinct.
In contrast, the Japs he was playing against was a thin and small man, wearing glasses, a beard, and a monkey-like look, so that when Wei Ran saw these two Japs, he
There is an illusion that a three-dimensional version of Fat Tiger and Xiao Fu are playing chess.
"Why are you here?" Xiao Su's mother, who was grinding tea powder, asked without raising her head.
"The lady asked me to tell you that she, Miss Andy and Miss Gu went to Peking to listen to a play, and I'm afraid it will take four or five days to come back.
In addition, the windows in the basement of the study apartment leaked in the summer. Before she left, the lady ordered the windows to be completely blocked and a flower bed built to block water. Therefore, the study apartment has been under construction for the past two days, and I am afraid that it will not be able to receive guests."
Jasmine said and pushed the food box in her hand, "This is the filial piety from the young lady. She was afraid that you would be unhappy, so she asked me to come over and help her take a leave of absence."
"This loser knows how to play!"
Xiao Su's mother snorted angrily, opened the food box and looked at the silver coins inside, then waved her hand impatiently, "Let's go, let's tidy up the study apartment while your lady is away."
Nephew, help your cousin keep an eye on her and don’t let those servants sneak around."
"What my aunt said is," Wei Ran responded quickly, "I will keep an eye on it for my cousin."
"Your cousin is soft-hearted. Since you are looking for your cousin to be your backer, you must sincerely protect her."
Xiao Su's mother scolded her arrogantly, "You can't hang out with the servants and deceive your cousin. Also, what happened to the silly nephew your cousin picked up a few days ago?"
"I recognized it when I went to the theater to listen to a play."
Wei Ran explained with disgust in his tone, "That stupid boy came here on his own, saying that he came all the way to Jinmen to beg for food just to join my cousin.
My cousin was soft-hearted and saw that he was pitiful, so she gave him a job of playing music in the study apartment. In addition to taking care of food and accommodation, whether he can make money depends entirely on whether the guests in the study apartment are willing to reward him. "
"How does he play?" Xiao Su's mother asked with great interest.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! "Anyway, no one appreciated him at the dance last night." The sarcasm in Wei Ran's tone became more intense, "That silly boy is an old man at first glance."
"There are advantages to being a silly boy, at least he is honest."
Xiao Su's mother waved her hand, "Okay, you go ahead, don't be an eyesore here, remember to come and tell me when your cousin comes back."
"When my cousin comes back, I will come and tell my aunt the news." Wei Ran said, and was about to follow Jasmine out.
"Wait a minute." Just when Wei Ran was about to turn around, Mr. Ueda suddenly said hello in Japanese.
Although Wei Ran could understand, he didn't stop until Xiao Su's mother shouted for him to stop, then he turned around with a puzzled look on his face.
"I went to the study apartment yesterday, why haven't I seen you?" The fat man with a sinister face... ah no, Mr. Ueda asked Wei Ran in Chinese with a Japanese accent.
Seeing Wei Ran looking at her, Xiao Su's mother waved her hand impatiently, "Just answer whatever Mr. Ueda asks you."
"In reply to Mr. Ueda," Wei Ran replied respectfully, "When you went there yesterday, I was busy repairing the leaky window in the basement."
"When I went there yesterday, was the person playing the musical instrument hiding behind the screen the person you just mentioned?" Ueda asked again.
"I didn't go up, but I guess it will be." Wei Ran replied respectfully with a smile on his face.
“I live here these days”
Ueda knocked on the table, "Starting tomorrow, at two o'clock every afternoon, I will ask that young man to come over and play Chinese musical instruments for me for an hour. I will give him two oceans a day."
"I would like to thank Mr. Ueda for his kindness on his behalf!" Wei Ran said happily, with a hint of jealousy in his tone.
"Go ahead." Zhitian waved his hand as he spoke and threw the two silver coins at Wei Ran's feet.
Without any hesitation, Wei Ran hurriedly picked up the two silver coins and left the living room with great gratitude.
"This silly boy is so lucky!" Wei Ran said to Jasmine in a slightly lowered voice while putting on his shoes at the door.
"No! Two dollars a day!"
Although this girl Jasmine is tall and thick, she is extremely thoughtful. She also said extremely jealously while putting on her shoes, "If that silly boy gets the appreciation of Mr. Ueda, he might become famous in the future."
"No!"
Wei Ran raised the door slightly, pushed it open and walked out. At the same time, he didn't forget to hold the two silver coins and blow hard, then put it to his ear and listened.
After the old woman in kimono behind her closed the door, Wei Ran and the other two got into the car.
Putting his jacket on the seat again, Wei Ran put the small pistol on his waist again and whispered, "Go back and have a talk with Canhua. I think that Japs is holding back some bad things."
"What does he want to do?" Jasmine frowned and muttered.
"Buy Canhua"
Wei Ran said, started the car and left here, and said as he drove back, "If two oceans can buy Canhua, Mr. Zhida can get the lady over there every day, no, he can get the daily movements of the bookstore."
.”
"That end?"
Jasmine was amused by Wei Ran's unique wording, and then asked in confusion, "Why is he staring at Miss? Could it be that he likes Miss?"
"My cousin is worth more than just her looks."
Wei Ran said with emotion, "Not to mention anything else, the number of celebrities invited to the dance organized by my cousin last night is where my cousin's value lies. I think Zhitian on the other end may want to use the lady as a breakthrough to break into those
In the circle of celebrities."
Having said this, Wei Ran signaled Jasmine to raise the car window, and then whispered, "Remind Miss, Ueda is a Japanese soldier over there."
"How do you know?" Jasmine asked in surprise.
"His head was tied into a two-color gourd by the military cap."
Wei Ran pointed at his temples and gestured, and then said, "And look at the way he was sitting just now, with his chest straight out and his abdomen in check. Look at the way the thin monkey is sitting. By the way, that thin guy is sitting there."
Do you know the monkey?"
"That's Mr. Furukawa, he opened the two opium dens next door."
Jasmine said with a strange expression, "Little Su's mother is close to him now. Mr. Furukawa seems to love little Su's mother very much. He is even planning to marry her and take her back for examination."
"How old is Furukawa?" Wei Ran also had a strange look on his face.
"About thirty years old," Jasmine grinned, "Anyway, she's not much older than the young lady."
"Tsk, tsk, tsk, he is a pervert..."
Wei Ran muttered to himself, stretched out his hand to roll down the window, letting the wind outside take away the sweltering heat accumulated in the car, and then asked, "Where should we go next?"
"Three things to do"
Jasmine raised her finger and pointed in the direction. Seeing that Wei Ran was a little confused, she added, "Nanshi Street, just drive forward. I'll show you the way."
Hearing this, Wei Ran didn't ask any more questions and drove to the so-called "Three Guessers" under Jasmine's command.
What's more interesting is that when they rushed to where they wanted to go, they found that this street was tightly guarded by people. Behind these people, there were actually two groups of people fighting with sticks on the street.
"Hold on"
Jasmine, who didn't get out of the car at all, said quite accustomed to it, "Let's go in after they finish fighting."
"Is this a turf war?" Wei Ran asked curiously. He had heard about Jinmen's unique green leather culture more than once in later generations, but catching up with it at such a close distance was extremely rare and novel.
"Three days a small one, five days a big one," Jasmine muttered, rolling her eyes. It was obvious that in this girl's eyes, those who were brave enough to fight and fight in groups were not heroic, but rather childish.
Although the girl looked down upon the people fighting outside, Wei Ran also gritted his teeth at the sight.
Nothing else, those people were really cruel, and their mouths were really tough. There were shouts and curses in the fight, but he didn't hear anyone shouting for pain or begging for mercy.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! This drowsiness lasted for more than half an hour. The two warring parties dispersed one after another, followed by two more groups of people rushing out from the streets and alleys.
Just when Wei Ran thought that these two groups of people were going to continue fighting, these people carried away the wounded on their own side peacefully. Among the two groups, there were a group of people on each side who were busy cleaning up the mess and picking up the fallen items.
Weapon sticks, and even buckets and brushes were used to clean the blood stains on the ground and even on the steps and walls of various stores.
At the end of the day, the whole street was swept clean, and each side sent a person wearing a long gown and a melon-pipe hat to knock on the doors of closed shops door to door, clasping fists or bowing, and speaking extremely politely.
A polite word like "Shop so-and-so, I'm sorry for delaying your business."
And those shopkeepers who were knocked on the door of the store also responded with fists in arms, and some even gave them medicines and other supplies prepared in advance.
In less than ten minutes, the shops facing the street opened their doors one after another and started doing business. Those who were originally blocking the street bowed to everyone from a distance, then clasped their fists and bent down to get out of the way.
"Get out of the car," Jasmine said, already rolling up the window and pushing open the door.
"Is this the end?" Weiran asked in shock after opening the car door.
"It's not over yet? Otherwise, what else could we do?"
Jasmine said quite matter-of-factly, "Although these gangs dominate the market, as long as you pay the protection fee, it is definitely better than the patrol room, and women will not be harassed even if they come here to go shopping at night."
"You are quite familiar with this place," Wei Ran muttered.
“I’ve had food here before”
Jasmine was extremely calm when she said this, and even pointed to a food stall along the street, "I also lived in that shack. If it weren't for the residual heat of the biscuit stove, I would have been killed a long time ago.
so cold."
Hearing this, Wei Ran sighed secretly, but for a moment he didn't know what to say.
"Uncle Meng, bring me two sesame cakes." Jasmine said, having already taken out two big pieces from her pocket and placed them on the table.
"You, my little girl, are you giving me any money? Isn't that degrading to me?"
The food stall owner patted his thigh, picked up the spatula and shoveled out two crispy sesame cakes from the hanging stove, wrapped them in a piece of newspaper, and handed them to Jasmine along with the two big pieces.
"Take it"
Jasmine took the money and put it on the table. She handed one of the sesame seed cakes wrapped in a newspaper to Wei Ran, "I have something to do today. I'll come sit here with you when I have time."
"Why!"
Uncle Meng, who ran the food stall, responded loudly and forcefully, and his voice was full of pride.
"When I used to beg for food, Uncle Meng would give us freshly baked sesame cakes every morning and evening." Jasmine said, taking a big bite of the sesame cakes and a small piece of newspaper, and said vaguely while chewing, "Try it."
Well, it’s delicious.”
"I'll try it"
As Wei Ran spoke, he also took a hard bite of the sesame seed cake in his hand. It was burnt, crispy, and had a light salty taste and the smell of five-spice powder. Coupled with the aroma of sesame seeds on the outside, it was indeed very good.
eat.
"We're here." Before Wei Ran could finish the bite of sesame seed cakes, Jasmine also stopped at the door of a shop, "You can wait outside, or you can go shopping around."
"I can't go in?"
Wei Ran asked tentatively, this shop is a cloth shop that sells cloth, and its name is simple, just "cloth shop". In addition, there is a small sign hanging at the door, which says "Concurrently engaged in shrouds"
of words.
"You can come in"
Jasmine said as she took another bite of sesame seed cake, walked into the store, looked around, and winked at one of the waiters, who also waved to her and led her and Wei Ran into the back room.
"Fifty feet of white cloth, five feet of floral cloth, and twenty feet each of red cotton rope and green cotton rope." Jasmine said as she walked into the inner room, "and bring me 10 sewing needles made in England."
"Sister Jasmine, the little brother who came with you looks angry." The waiter said warily.
"Our lady's cousin is out to see the world." As Jasmine spoke, she had already taken out two envelopes of silver coins from the bag she was carrying and handed them to her, "Hurry up, we are in a hurry to go back for lunch.
"
"Really your lady's cousin?" While the boy was talking, he tore open two envelopes of silver coins, randomly took out a few coins from them, blew hard on each one, and listened to his ears.
"If he's not our lady's cousin, why can't he be your cousin?" Jasmine urged with her hands on her hips, "Hurry up!"
"Hey! Wait!"
As the waiter said this, he casually threw the opened silver coins on the table and left the room with peace of mind.
"Let's go"
As Jasmine spoke, she beckoned Wei Ran to leave along another door between here, passed through a small courtyard full of debris, went out through a small door, and blended into the crowd.
Next, Wei Ran wandered around with Jasmine, buying some daily necessities such as tobacco, wine, tea, and sugar. By the way, Jasmine also ordered a few large water tanks from a porcelain tile shop, and ordered some from a fish stall.
There are very few carps and loaches in the water.
When they returned to the car parked on the street, Wei Ran saw at a glance that there were several cloth bundles on the floor of the back seat of the car, but he clearly remembered that he had locked the car before.
Got it!
"What are you doing standing still? Let's go," Jasmine urged while already carrying the things she just bought and getting into the passenger seat.
Seeing this, Wei Ran could only suppress the doubts in his heart, start the car and leave the street.
"go home"
Jasmine yawned and said, "Remember to go to the entrance of Quanyechang and I'll buy a few packs of cigarettes."
"become"
Wei Ran responded, but held back and didn't ask a single word. Jasmine, who was sitting in the passenger seat and was busy lighting up a new cigarette, had an imperceptible smile of satisfaction on her lips.
