"Selling jujube rolls, sugar noodles, and white sugar cakes!"
"The almond tea is really delicious. There's a lot of green rose and white sugar. Come and buy it. It's flavored with osmanthus!"
"..."
Zhou Hexuan was walking blankly in the narrow alley, listening to the cries that had penetrated for a century. He would rather that all the scenes in front of him were dreams.
However, this is all true.
One moment, he was in a bustling modern city, and in the blink of an eye, he was in a narrow and dark alley. It is impossible for Tianjin in the 21st century to retain such a complete group of ancient residential buildings.
Zhou Hexuan ran around like a headless fly. He had walked through several alleys, but he still couldn't return to modern society.
A peddler carrying a load came towards me. He was wearing a worn-out faded short coat, and the cloth shoes on his feet had big holes. His wrinkled face was full of vicissitudes of life. He looked at Zhou Hexuan and asked flatteringly: "Mr.
, Do you want to buy hemp flowers? The hemp flowers with assorted fillings are delicious and not sticky to the teeth.”
"How do you sell your twists?" Zhou Hexuan tried to talk.
When the salesman saw that there was a business to be done, he immediately put down his burden and said, "Six cents a pound."
"Can it be cheaper?" Zhou Hexuan cast his eyes on the other party's burden. There was a stack of old newspapers on the twist, with the words "Republic of China 15th Year" printed on the masthead.
The fifteenth year of the Republic of China, converted to 1926, what a time travel!
Zhou Hexuan was wearing a suit and leather shoes, and he looked like a wealthy man. The salesman smiled and said, "Sir, this is a small business. If you buy it sincerely, how about I give you 5 and a half cents per pound?"
Zhou Hexuan pretended to take out his wallet, which contained only bank cards and RMB coins. He held a green note and asked in a confused tone: "Do you want U.S. dollars?"
The salesman said: "Look what you said, you need foreign money to buy some twists. Even if you give it to me, I can't find it."
Zhou Hexuan was full of lies and made up nonsense: "I just came back from abroad, and I only have foreign money with me. Where is there a bank in this city? Or a pawn shop. Please give me directions."
The salesman smiled and said: "It turns out he is a gentleman who has returned from studying abroad. No wonder he speaks Mandarin so well. If you want to exchange foreign money, it is best to go to the concession in the southeast, where there are the most foreign banks. If you are looking for a pawn shop, exit this alley and walk east
There is a Lin’s Rice Shop, which is easy to find.”
"Mipu is still in the pawnshop business?" Zhou Hexuan asked in surprise.
The salesman explained: "That rice shop also has a small business."
Zhou Hexuan asked a few more questions and finally figured it out. The so-called small pawn shop is a pawn shop that has no name, no signboard, and operates secretly. This kind of small pawn shop can pawn more money, but the interest rate is very high, so it is suitable for death.
.If you want to redeem it later, it is best to go to a regular pawn shop.
After thanking the seller, Zhou Hexuan inquired all the way and finally walked out of the alley and arrived at Lin's Rice Shop.
"Sir, do you want to buy rice?" the waiter asked enthusiastically.
Zhou Hexuan said: "Treat it as something."
As soon as he said this, an old man in a long gown came out and whispered: "Please come in."
The smartphone must not be taken out. The only valuable things Zhou Hexuan had on him were a watch and a necklace. He followed the old man into the store, took off his watch and said: "Swiss handmade mechanical watches, the hands inside are all gold.
The scales are also set with diamonds, please estimate the price."
"Hey, foreign watches like this are rare." The old gentleman was unsure.
He saw that the watch strap was white and shiny, reflecting a charming brilliance, and seemed to be made of fine steel. The dial was gaudy and far more exquisite than the popular pocket watches today. As for the gold hands and diamond scales, they had to be taken apart to verify.
In any case, this kind of Western goods should be very valuable. The old man held out two fingers: "20 oceans."
Zhou Hexuan pretended to be angry, took the watch back and said: "I bought this in London, the original price was 100 pounds!"
hiss!
The old gentleman took a breath. 100 pounds is almost 800 silver dollars. With a little more money, he can buy a small courtyard house in Tianjin. He was really unsure and said: "Forgive me for my poor eyesight. For such valuables, sir, I'd better look for those
It’s a big shop.”
"How much is the most you can give?" Zhou Hexuan asked the price.
Seeing that Zhou Hexuan was wearing a suit and leather shoes and that he didn't look like a liar, the old gentleman thought for a moment and said, "At most 30 yuan."
After all, the deal was still not concluded. Zhou Hexuan asked for directions and found two regular pawn shops. The one with the highest offer only gave 60 silver dollars.
It was already noon, and Zhou Hexuan, who had not had breakfast yet, was so hungry that he grumbled with hunger. He finally chose a job, with a deadline of 100 days and a profit of 3 cents. When he paid 60 yuan, he only got 58 yuan and 20 cents - a month's deduction.
interest.
If Zhou Hexuan does not come back to redeem the watch after 100 days, the watch will belong to the pawnshop.
The money was packed in bags, including 58 silver coins, with Yuan Datou printed on the front and "One Yuan" on the back. There were also 60 copper coins, yellow and clear, with the words "Dang Shi Wen" printed on them, a bit like the fifty-cent coins of the Republic.
But it's bigger.
It was a bit heavy in his hand and made a rattling sound when he shook it. This was his entire net worth now. Zhou Hexuan sighed and walked out of the pawn shop. He was extremely confused about the future. Time travel was too unbelievable.
Zhou Hexuan is an orphan. His parents died in a car accident when he was in middle school, leaving him hundreds of thousands in compensation and a house. Later, he was admitted to the History Department of Peking University with excellent results. When he was about to graduate, his beloved girlfriend
Sudden accidental death.
Zhou Hexuan, who suffered continuous blows, became bohemian and cynical about life. He gave up his studies directly and chose to sell his property and travel around the world because his girlfriend's wish during her lifetime was to travel around the world, and he felt that he should realize this for her.
wish.
The United States, France, the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Russia, Australia, Japan, South Korea... In the past five years, Zhou Hexuan has traveled to every corner of the world.
The inheritance left by his parents was quickly spent, and Zhou Hexuan had to work while traveling. Along the way, he enjoyed the scenery of various places, learned the local language, understood their history and customs, and wrote and read travel notes when he had time.
The days passed freely and fulfillingly.
But when he finished his journey and returned to China, he actually traveled through time and came to Tianjin in 1926!
Alas, take it one step at a time. Zhou Hexuan has long since learned to live with the situation.
After leaving the pawn shop, Zhou Hexuan found a restaurant and sat down.
Meals are very cheap, a bowl of noodles only costs 5 cents, and the portions are huge, enough for an adult man to eat.
"Boss, I just arrived in Tianjin. Is there any house for rent?" Zhou Hexuan asked while paying.
This is a habit he has developed from traveling all year round. Whenever he goes to a new place, the most important thing is to first implement "eat" and "accommodation".
"It's easy to rent a house," the boss suddenly shouted to a diner, "Hu Laosan, someone wants to rent a house."
"Here we come!" Hu Laosan didn't care about eating noodles. He threw down his bowl and ran over to ask, "Sir, what kind of house do you want to rent? Is it a short-term rental or a long-term rental?"
Could this be the real estate agency of the Republic of China?
"An ordinary single room can be lived in," Zhou Hexuan inquired, "What's the usual price?"
Hu Laosan said skillfully: "The cheapest old house rents for one or two yuan a month, while a small western-style house is more expensive. A single room starts at at least 10 yuan. I see, sir, you are a cultured person. You will definitely not be able to live in a house that is too bad."
, or live in a courtyard house, the monthly rent is about 3 to 10 yuan, the specific price depends on the house and location."
Zhou Hexuan nodded and said: "Okay, you take me to see the house first."