The hotel named "Seabird's Rest" is located at the corner of No. 22 Jiaoyan Street. It is a two-story stone building that stands out compared to other low-rise houses on the same street.
Not far away from the hotel, there are several low walls covered with moss and vines. The silver pine trees behind the walls are swaying with their silver-white leaves, making a rustling sound.
Midsummer is the season when the seaside is getting hotter. Originally, there was a cool sea breeze blowing from the sea to soothe the unbearable heat. But since the factory was built, the forest of steel chimneys has been spewing thick smoke, covering the sky of the city.
After that, the heat accumulated in the streets, houses and high-rise buildings has no way to dissipate. Even if the wind blows blindly, it just makes the heat wander aimlessly in the wild forests, like an oven with the lid closed.
Suffering from the heat and irritability in people's hearts.
Only the inconspicuous small hotel on the corner of the street is shrouded in the shade of trees, enjoying the rare coolness. It is quiet and quiet here, as intoxicating as the forest at night. Sometimes you can hear the echo of the wind coming from the deeper alleys, like
Some kind of wonderful call evoked thousands of echoes between the empty sewer opening and the gutter full of green water. It must be said that this is really a good place to escape the heat, and an escape from the noisy world.
A good harbor is even more valuable, especially when other places are occupied by the stench of slaughterhouses and the cries of sailors on the docks.
Walking into the hotel amidst the sound of wind chimes swaying under the eaves, the light is a little dim, but it does not prevent you from seeing the surrounding things clearly. The first floor is a classic pub layout, with counters, wine racks, neatly wiped tables and chairs, and a faint smell.
The fishy smell of sea salt comes from the kitchen. It is probably a local specialty food, such as pickled silver fish or dried kelp.
The owner of the hotel is an eccentric bald old man. He hides behind the counter alone, rolling some cheap tobacco with dried silver pine leaves under the dim light of a kerosene lamp, and puts the rolled cigarettes in the matchbox next to him.
Here. When Ringer went over to ask him if there was any free room, he saw that the matchbox was already filled with two rows of twenty-four simple cigarettes, enough for the old man to smoke from morning to night. But he
It seemed that he had not thought about doing this. He still silently spread out the dried leaves, put the tobacco shreds in, and rolled them slowly, as if the meaning of doing this did not lie in the result, but in the process. p>
He didn't bother to raise his head and answered Ringer's question in a hoarse voice: "There are no more rooms, go somewhere else."
Hearing this, Lin Ge looked around. It didn't look like there were guests, so he frowned slightly: "That's not what Miss Rorona said when she introduced us here."
Hearing Rorona's name, the old man finally had some reaction. He raised his head and glanced at Linger, with a somewhat suspicious expression on his stubborn face: "Are you that child's guests?"
"Yes." Ringer nodded, but did not elaborate. After all, Alice's custom-made swimsuit is not a glorious deed suitable for bragging to outsiders. Besides, there is no need for him to lie, and he is not far away.
Is there any need to lie about something that can be verified in a few minutes?
"That's really strange."
The old man snorted coldly, put down the half-rolled tobacco leaves in his hand, stood up, dragged his probably disabled left leg, limped to the counter, opened the drawer, and took out a bunch that was all rusty.
He took off three keys from one of them, handed them to Ringer casually, and said coldly: "Since she introduced it, I must have explained the price to you, right?"
"Yes." Ringer took the key, placed the three one-shilling coins handed over by Saint Xalia on the counter, and asked: "Is this the price for three people to stay for one night?"
The old man set his eyes on the three coins on the counter. Through the dim light of the kerosene lamp, he saw that the pattern on the front of the coin was a red dragon with a crown on his head, two swords on his feet, and a fire under his wings.
The queen, who was wearing a tiara, holding a scepter, and had a noble and elegant temperament, was suddenly a little surprised: he had seen this kind of coin, although it was a long time ago. At that time, the sky of this city had not been scattered.
The clouds are shrouded, but the sea water has not yet been polluted by piles of garbage.
"What are the people from Great Britain doing in Lauterdale?" He picked up a coin and examined it in front of his eyes. The inside of his fingers was as dark as coking coal due to long-term contact with tobacco leaves, and his tone was:
Duoyou was disdainful: "Are you here to buy ore or build a factory?"
"No." Ringer shook his head and said, "We are here to travel."
The old man looked at him like he was looking at a monster. He suspected that the young man in front of him was actually amusing himself. However, after looking at each other for about half a minute, he saw that Ringer's expression was still serious and did not look like he was joking, so he reluctantly
Believing this statement, he replied noncommittally: "It's best - I don't care whether you are sincere or have other purposes. In short, it's okay to say this here. Don't talk to the residents of Zoot Street and Deka Street."
Say this, otherwise, I cannot guarantee what kind of treatment you will receive."
Zote Street and Deka Street are the two streets closest to the beach where Ringer and his friends landed. In other words, they are the two streets closest to the polluted sea. Naturally, these remarks are not allowed to be heard. After all, in the tenth
Years ago, the residents of these two streets could enjoy the boundless sea view from their balconies, and they could reach the beach full of tourists in just two steps. For others, it was a precious seaside holiday experience, but for them, it was a precious experience.
It’s just an ordinary thing.
But what about now? Standing on the balcony, all they can see is the filthy sea and the piles of garbage on the sea. If they want to go out for a walk, they will be attacked by the stench. When they raise their heads, they can only see the thick haze...
...without having to put his own feelings into it, Ringer could understand how strong their resistance to this change was.
And he also believed that there were definitely not a few residents in Lottana who had the same ideas as them. The only ones who might be able to benefit from this urban industrial reform were the factory owners, capitalists, shipping companies and the religious leaders who occupied the majority of the interests.
It's just a union of religious groups. But can these interest groups unite together to ignore the public opinion of an entire city? What's more, the union of religious groups has always participated in various social undertakings with the image of safeguarding the rights and interests of civilians, and their high reputation among the civilian class is exactly what they want.
Being able to get a steady stream of talent support and faith support despite interfering in the internal affairs of various countries, have they not considered that this approach will cause the image they have always maintained to fall to the bottom?
If the insightful people in the Union of Orders have realized this, then I am afraid that it will not be too far away from the time when Lottana City will usher in the second reform.
Of course, this had nothing to do with Ringer at the moment. He could tell from the old man's tone that he seemed to be quite familiar with Rorona. Based on his previous doubts, he decided to take this opportunity to inquire about some information. So he handed over the key.
Gave it to Saint Xalia and asked her to take Alice upstairs to see the room.
When the shepherd girl took the golden-haired maid up the stairs who was muttering and complaining that "there is a room but just said there was no room", he took the opportunity to sit down on the chair in front of the counter without directly revealing that he wanted to inquire about Rorona.
Instead, he raised a question: "Mr. Store Manager, when you just heard me say that I was Miss Luo LeNa's customer, you said that this was very strange. Can I ask the reason? Is it possible that very few people patronize Luo LeNa?
Miss Na’s shop?”
"This is one reason."
The old man had already sat back in his original position, rolling tobacco leaves, and replied slowly: "The other reason is that Rorona is very picky about her customers. She almost never takes business from customers she doesn't like." "Then what kind of guests does she like?" Ringer asked, showing appropriate curiosity.
Of course, he really wanted to know why that principled-sounding girl was so fond of foreign tourists like him who he met for the first time.
The old man raised his chin and glanced at him, as if looking at a brainless idiot: "I think I have made it clear enough, young man, this is not that complicated."