Zhao Laosan is a dull man who has been working as a long-term worker for ten years.
He is twenty-seven years old this year. His family is poor and he has never been married. He used to work as a long-term worker for the wealthy Ai family in Zhuangzi, but he was really too poor. Zhao Laosan secretly thought that this would not work, so he asked for a job as a pig trader at the beginning of this year.
Zhao Le took him in and became a pig dealer.
Although there is only one or two taels of silver a month, it is much better than working as a long-term laborer. At least this monthly money can allow Zhao Laosan to buy rice and noodles to keep him full.
To sell pigs, you have to go to various towns and villages to do business, buy fat pigs raised by farmers, bargain for prices, and then drive the pigs to the butcher's house in the market. Of course, the somewhat dull Zhao Laosan does not need to bargain with others, he
He has the lowest status among the pig dealers and is only responsible for catching pigs and driving them to the butcher's house.
This month, the owner Zhao Le said that he received a big business, saying that the chief executive of Fanjiazhuang bought five pigs a day. The owner Zhao Le was very happy because the business in Fanjiazhuang was stable and the price was fair.
Unlike those cunning butchers with bad intentions - those butchers are not good, they will kill you for the price after seeing your pigs have arrived. The boss said that he sells five pigs every day to the general manager of Fanjiazhuang, and he can earn an extra two taels of silver every month
.
Fanjiazhuang is quite far away, more than forty miles away from Zhao Laosan's village, but the owner is obviously willing to walk an extra ten miles.
The boss's words made Zhao Laosan murmur in his heart.
Zhao Laosan has been to Fanjiazhuang. Four years ago, wasn't it the earthen wall where a poor military household lived? There was a man-high earthen wall outside the village to guard against wolves, and there were three to four hundred people living inside. Those poor military households
Everyone lives in the same adobe house as Zhao Laosan. When did he live such a good life? He had to kill five pigs a day?
But no matter what, if the boss is happy, Zhao Laosan will naturally follow suit. In these turbulent years, isn't he just trying to make a living? If the boss makes money, his job is guaranteed.
The owner is very attentive to the business in Fanjiazhuang and does not allow for any mistakes. In the past few days, the owner had brought several experienced hands to drive the pigs to Fanjiazhuang. Today, an old helper was sick, so the owner asked Mr. Zhao to drive the pigs.
It was still dark, so Zhao Laosan rushed to Hujiazhuang, where he found the owner who was buying pigs from the farmers. The four of them caught five pigs and walked to Fanjiazhuang, waving bamboo whips. Zhao Laosan knew the owner.
Take this business seriously and be careful along the way.
Halfway through, it was dawn, and Zhao Laosan said worriedly: "My boss, I'm afraid it's going to be late today!"
The boss said loudly: "It's okay, the helpers in Fanjiazhuang only eat meat at noon, they eat eggs in the morning!"
Zhao Laosan was stunned when he heard this. He eats meat at noon and eggs in the morning. Is he a helper? Even the rich man in his village, the head of the Ai family, does not have such a luxurious life! The Ai family has more than 200 acres of dry land.
Five households of tenant farmers are still not as good as the helpers in Fanjiazhuang? Are these helpers all masters? They eat so well!
Zhao Laosan has always lived in the village and doesn't like talking to people. He has never been knowledgeable. Hearing what his boss said today is an eye-opener.
Zhao Laosan asked: "Boss, are the helpers at Fanjiazhuang doing so well?"
The two helpers nearby were very happy when they heard this, and they all said: "Zhao Laosan, you are so stupid, you don't even know about Fanjiazhuang?"
"Zhao Laosan, you don't like talking in the village. You really don't understand anything!"
The boss Zhao Le shook his head and said: "Zhao Laosan, let me tell you, this Fanjiazhuang is really a strange place. Maybe you haven't been there in the past few years? You will know after you go there!"
When they arrived at Fanjiazhuang, Zhao Laosan saw the majestic West City Tower from a distance. The two-foot-high double-eaves tower was built on a brick-covered city wall more than one foot high, which looked very majestic. The city wall paved with blue bricks stretched left and right.
One or two miles away, where is the shadow of the shabby Fanjiazhuang in Zhao Laosan's memory?
Fanjiazhuang has changed a lot. It has become a big city?
Zhao Laosan walked to the city gate and was stopped by the officers and soldiers guarding the city gate.
"What's your name? Don't you have a pass? Is there anyone guaranteeing it?"
Zhao Laosan thought that the officers and soldiers were trying to extort money from him, so he was speechless and speechless.
Zhao Le went up to flatter him and said: "Master Bing, this is the helper I hired, new here today."
The officer and soldier said: "You two go to the team leader and have your fingerprints pressed!"
Zhao Le asked the other two people to keep an eye on the pig, and he took Zhao Laosan to a soldier sitting next to him. The soldier asked Zhao Laosan again, wrote a few words in a notebook, and then asked Zhao Le and
Zhao Laosan all pressed their fingerprints.
"If Zhao Laosan is doing something illegal or spying on intelligence in the city, your guarantor Zhao Le will be jointly liable. Are you clear?"
"Clear, we know it, Master Bing!"
After the team leader sitting at the table finished explaining, he took out a small white wooden sign and handed it to Zhao San. After getting this pass sign, Zhao Laosan entered the city.
Zhao Laosan wiped the sweat from his head and said to himself that it turned out that he was not extorting money from him. This Fan family village is really strict.
After entering the city, Zhao Laosan was even more surprised by the scene in the city.
The roads in that city are very wide. The main road is about two feet wide, and two carriages can run parallel. The roads are paved with bluestones, with the middle high and the sides low. Deep drainage ditches are dug on both sides, which is very impressive. There are buildings on both sides of the road.
The two-story house with black tiles and white walls is neatly built and very decent. Various shops are open on both sides of the road, conducting various businesses.
It was just dawn, and all the shops were open. There were steamed bun shops, steamed bun shops, restaurants, and teahouses. There were shouts and shouts, and pedestrians in twos and threes were going in and out of each shop, creating a bustling scene.
If it were a Ming Dynasty city elsewhere, how could there be so many people spending money in outside shops? The people elsewhere are all miserable, saving money to buy rice and noodles to live. Only the residents of Fanjiazhuang are so wealthy and have money.
Flowers in the shop outside.
The pedestrians on Fanjiazhuang Road are all well-dressed, with only a few patches on their clothes. Moreover, all of the pedestrians have good looks, are not as skinny as people elsewhere, and are well-nourished. Zhao Laosan is walking on the street and
When compared with the locals, his clothes were torn and his figure was thin, so he looked like a foreigner.
The people in Fanjiazhuang are so rich! This is still the shabby Fanjiazhuang. This is a prosperous city! How come it has changed so much in just a few years?
The security order in the city is very good, and there are soldiers patrolling the roads from time to time. Those soldiers are very strong, holding long guns and marching forward. But although these soldiers are strong, they do not disturb the people at all, and they are not at all like the soldiers in other places.
We. The people were not afraid of these soldiers at all, and everyone seemed happy to have soldiers maintaining law and order.
What surprised Zhao Laosan the most was that there was no garbage at all on the roads in the city, let alone the disgusting human and animal excrement. The city was clean and tidy, and there was no stench here at all that you would smell upon entering the city in other cities.
There are large garbage cans every ten feet on both sides of the road. From time to time, people come and throw garbage. No one dares to throw garbage on the ground. The soldiers patrolling in formation seem to be maintaining order in the city and are ready to punish those who violate the order.
of bad guys.
Even the fallen leaves on the trees on both sides of the road were being swept away by a woman with a big broom.
This is the city of Ming Dynasty? It’s too clean!
After entering Fanjiazhuang, Zhao Laosan's boss Zhao Le was very cautious, fearing that he would be caught if he made a mistake. He asked three helpers to drive the pigs to the "Food Department" in the south of the city. Halfway there, a pig pulled out a few pieces of pig manure.
On the way, Zhao Le also quickly walked over and wrapped it in paper, cleaned it up and threw it into the trash can.
Even when driving pigs into the Tianjin Acropolis, Zhao Laosan never saw his employer so abiding by the rules.
The catering department in the south of the city was a big room with a lot of warehouses inside. Zhao Le asked Zhao Laosan and others to wait outside, then walked in. After a while, he walked out with a big manager. The big manager led
Zhao Laosan and his party walked to the door of a pig pen. He asked Zhao Le to drive the pigs to the side, weigh them on a large floor scale, and calculate the money for Zhao Le.
Zhao Laosan saw that there were already more than a dozen pigs in the pigsty. Together with the five he had arrived, there were twenty pigs in total. Seven or eight butchers were standing outside the pigsty, sharpening their knives and boiling water.
Several people pushing carts were chatting and waiting nearby, preparing to transport the meat. It seemed that the slaughter of the pigs was about to begin.
This Fanjiazhuang eats twenty pigs a day? According to the current calculation of fifty-one taels per pound of meat, this would cost more than one hundred taels of silver per day! The owner of this Fanjiazhuang is really rich!
When Zhao Le was driving the pigs to the scale, Zhao Laosan curiously asked the big man: "Master, all the people who work in Fanjiazhuang eat pork?"
The big man glanced at Zhao Laosan and said, "Thanks to Mr. Cheng! Those of us who work for Mr. Cheng have to eat eggs in the morning and three taels of meat each at noon and afternoon!"
"Is Master Cheng so rich?"
The big man smiled and said, "Are you new here? It's not a joke to conduct your business."
Zhao Laosan took a breath and said flatteringly: "Master, are Fanjiazhuang still recruiting people?"
The big man smiled and spat: "How many people want to come to Fanjiazhuang to do work? It's not easy for you to come in!"
Zhao Laosan knew that he was imagining it, so he rubbed his hands and said no more.
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