Yangzhou is one of the nine states in the world, and the first of the three states in the south of the Yangtze River.
The prosperity of Yangzhou is unparalleled in the world, and people often describe it as having a hundred thousand coins in one's waist and riding a crane down to Yangzhou.
In order to rush for time, Wang Xu chose to take the waterway.
Take a boat from Sanding River in Liyang County to Jinshan Prefecture, and then from the Grand Canal in Jinshan Prefecture, all the way east to Yangzhou Prefecture.
"They say Sanding River is a small river, but I didn't expect it to be so big!"
Standing on the pier and looking at the Sanding River in front of him, Wang Xu didn't think the river was small at all.
Sanding River is said to be a small river, just a small branch under the Grand Canal. In fact, it is at least half a kilometer wide, and modern cruisers can drive in.
On the pier, there were hundreds of ships of various sizes parked, some hauling goods, some hauling people, and there were also patrol boats directly affiliated with the imperial navy.
"My guest, are you going to Yangzhou?"
A passenger ship more than thirty meters long was docked at the pier, and a boatman asked from a distance away.
The boatman was an old man, he looked to be around sixty, and he was accompanied by several middle-aged men in their thirties and forties dressed as helpers.
"Old man, is your boat fast and safe? How many days does it take to get to Yangzhou Prefecture?"
Wang Xu was wearing a Confucian scholar's uniform and carrying a bookcase on his back, looking up and down the passenger ship.
"Don't worry, sir. I guarantee that you will arrive at Yangzhou Mansion in eight days. As for safety, hey, everyone who hangs this on the flagpole has been enshrined by the higher authorities. You can't do anything even if you want to."
As the boatman spoke, he pointed to the big flag erected on the bow of the ship.
Wang Xu raised his eyes and looked up. He hadn't noticed before, but the flag actually said: "Yangzhou Dragon Palace, Jinshan Water Mansion, Water Dividing General Li An!"
"Lee An?"
Wang Xu asked with doubts: "Old man, who is this General Li An?"
"You don't know this. You've never been on a boat before, have you? General Li An is the Hebo of Jinshan Water Mansion. He is in charge of hundreds of rivers up and down Jinshan Mansion. Who are the people who run boats on these rivers?
No one is allowed to worship General Li An at home!"
Mentioning the water-dividing general Li An, the shipowner looked in awe.
The human race has an alliance with the dragon race, and all rivers in the human race are controlled by the dragon race.
Any well-known rivers, lakes, rivers, and dragon tribes will send dragon lords or water tribe generals to guard them. Because there are people above them to take care of them, there are very few reports of water monsters being infested.
In return, during the Dragon King Festival every year, sacrifices will be held for those who eat the bowl of rice on the water.
This kind of sacrifice is recognized by the imperial court and even Confucianism. It is said that if it satisfies the Dragon Lord or the general of the Shui tribe, it will even be celebrated in front of others.
Li An, the water-dividing general, is the general under the jurisdiction of Longjun of Yangzhou and in charge of the waters of Jinshan Prefecture.
Those who can hang this flag on the boat have all paid filial piety to the higher authorities. Even if there is a storm on the river and the boat capsizes, there will be water monsters who push the boat to the shore, which is like insurance.
After receiving the guarantee, Wang Xu paid the fare and boarded the passenger ship.
The passenger ship doesn't look big from the outside, but there are quite a few rooms inside. The upper and lower floors add up to more than thirty rooms.
The rooms are large and small. The large ones are similar to modern small hotels, while the small ones are just like bathrooms.
Wang Xu chose a house with a subtitle A and asked about the shipping fare. The eight-day journey from Liyang County to Jinshan Prefecture cost five hundred taels of silver.
The ferry fare for House B is much cheaper. For the same distance and the same number of days, just because House B is not next to the deck and has a smaller area, the boat fare is 200 taels cheaper than House A.
Asking again, the T-shaped room on the lower floor is cheaper. It only costs one hundred taels. There is a bed in the room. People are packed in like sardine cans and have to queue up to go to the toilet.
Wang Xu was not short of money and did not want to wrong himself, so he directly occupied one of the only two A-shaped rooms.
Wang Xu inquired about the other room named A, and it seemed that it was occupied by a medicinal materials merchant who went to Yangzhou Prefecture to inspect the goods.
Yang Fan set sail, and the passenger ship full of people headed straight for Yangzhou Mansion along the Sanding River.
In the evening, there are free meals provided by the boatman.
Free food is certainly not very good. Even for guests in first-class rooms, they only get dried salted fish and soybean curd, plus a small plate of shredded kelp and two steamed buns.
The A-class rooms are like this, but the B-class rooms are even worse. They don't even have dried fish, and they only have steamed buns and shredded kelp.
As for the cheapest T-shaped room, sorry, we are not responsible for providing food. If you want to eat, you have to bring it from home.
It’s not all that bad. As long as you’re willing to spend money, there are still small stoves on board.
This boat is a family business. The owner of the boat is the father-in-law, surnamed Shi, who leads his four sons and one daughter-in-law into the water business.
Those who are willing to spend money can eat on the small stove on the boat. Even if they are lonely, they can rent fishing rods from the boat and go fishing on the bow of the boat.
However, eating Xiaozao is not cheap.
There were wine and food, but the price was ten times that of the restaurant. After asking about the price, even the druggist who also lived in a first-class room shook his head and left.
Everyone has an account in their mind: they can eat on a small stove for eight days on the boat, but they can eat in a restaurant for three months if left outside.
It's not like you don't have food to eat, and you just have to endure it. Unless your family is very rich, who would be willing to spend money like this.
"I'm tired of eating so much fish and meat every day at home, so I just want to try steamed buns and salted vegetables to change my appetite." The herbal medicine merchant said to Wang Xu.
The medicinal materials dealer is a middle-aged man in his thirties, transporting medicinal materials to Jiaozhou, and Liyang is just his transit station.
From the conversation, Wang Xu learned that the medicinal materials merchant had some wealth, but he could not be said to be very rich. He was almost the same as the Wang family before they became prosperous.
The herbal medicine dealer is a bit stingy and snobbish. When he has nothing to do, he only chats with Wang Xu and ignores everyone else.
On the second day, a man in the D-shaped room got seasick and came to borrow hot water. The herbal medicine merchant insisted on asking him to pay for it before he gave it to him.
Passengers are not allowed to light fires on the ship, and hot water is only supplied to Room A, while others can only use cold water.
From this incident, Wang Xu realized that the medicinal material merchant was a relatively realistic person, and he had two different attitudes towards the poor and the rich.
Wang Xu gave it, but received no thanks.
The seasick person was a poor scholar who came from a poor family and had a reputation as a scholar. He went to Yangzhou Prefecture to participate in a poetry festival.
After drinking the hot water Wang Xu gave him, the scholar didn't give him a good look and muttered: "If you show your courtesy for nothing, you are either a traitor or a thief!"
It's hard to be a good person these days. There are many people who hate the rich and few who are grateful.
The herbal medicine dealer found out about this and went to Wang Xu and told him in the tone of someone who had been there: "When you are away from home, it is better to do less than to do more. If you help some people, they will think you are a fool."
Wang Xu did not answer, because the herbal medicine merchant rushed him to have dinner, and after finishing speaking, he sat down on his own without waiting for him to speak.
"This is grass carp that was just caught from the river. It looks so tender. This sweet and sour fish is my favorite. I have to drink some with you today." After the herbal medicine merchant sat down, he went to get the chopsticks.
.
Wang Xu still didn't say anything, but just blocked the sweet and sour fish with his hands.
"What, are you afraid of my brother eating it?" Seeing Wang Xu's actions, the herbal medicine dealer looked very dissatisfied.
Wang Xu smiled and said softly: "You taught me that doing more is worse than doing less. If you help some people, they think you are a fool."
"hey-hey"
The herbal medicine dealer looked embarrassed and left with a blushing face.
From then on, the medicinal material dealer never came to see him again, but Wang Xu heard from the ship owner that the medicinal material dealer had said bad things about him outside.
Wang Xu didn't ask what the bad words were. He thought it was just a matter of being unkind and unjust for profit. In fact, they didn't know anyone at all.
boom!!
On the fifth day on the ship, we were already close to Yangzhou Mansion, and Wang Xu saw the Shui Tribe for the first time.
It was two groups of people fighting. One group was a group of people with shrimp heads and crab brains, and the other group was a group of people wearing unicorns and armor. They were standing on the river, making waves and fighting.
Far away, an aquarium with a human body and a shrimp head waved a pair of axes and said loudly: "Li Eryu, you have made my sister's belly bigger. You have to give me an explanation for whatever you say today, otherwise I will
Drink your fish head with wine."
Another water tribe wearing lin and armor with a black fish head said: "Xia Laosan, your sister has a lot of people. Who knows who the child belongs to? I don't recognize this matter. If you are wise, get out of the way immediately."
, otherwise I will break your shrimp legs and it will be difficult for you to do business after you go back."
Wang Xu was happy when he heard it. Sure enough, wherever there are people, there are rivers and lakes. Apart from their different appearance, what are the differences between the so-called aquatic tribe, demon tribe and barbarian tribe from humans.