Chapter 222 [Tea House]
The city wall is low and dilapidated. It is a pure rammed earth city without bricks.
There are even gaps in many places. Judging by the color of the grass and stubble covered by the collapse, it can be seen that the city has been in disrepair for some years.
The original square arrow **** above has been weathered into a round shape, irregular and crooked. The horse-faced enemy building and the surrounding sheep and horse walls are even more dilapidated.
It was near noon, and the sun was not shining on the opening of the east city gate. The soldiers collecting city tax at the gate did not have to try their best to hide from the hot summer sun as they did in the morning. Instead, they sat at the gate of the city with spears in their hands, bored, Watching the people entering the city throw the copper into the basket.
If they enter the state of "why meet each other before", the lazy gatekeepers will not be able to spot Fang Chang just like pedestrians, but he did not break the rules, but like an ordinary quack doctor, he did not hide his identity from the eyes of the people around him. shape, slowly walked into the city gate.
Take out a copper coin from the package, gently throw it into the bamboo basket next to the gatekeeper, and make a "clang".
Put the Lingquan sword turned into a sign into his back, and Fang Chang walked into the small town with his hands behind his back.
The buildings on both sides are not as dilapidated as the city walls. Although there are few pavilions and high-rise houses like Fucheng and Zhoucheng, they are neatly repaired and clean.
The soil quality here is still yellow, the city walls are yellow, the walls of people’s courtyards are also yellow, and even the feet are covered with loess. It is said that in the farther south, the soil is red, so there are many lightning strikes on rainy days.
Although this small town called "Lu Ming" is relatively dilapidated, there are quite a few people in it, and activities in various industries are very prosperous.
It can even be seen that there are many people from the surrounding villages and towns who come to the city specifically to discuss life.
Or many people just take their families to the city to go around the city when the crops in the field don’t need much care, buy some fresh things that can’t be seen in the village market, and buy some food for children and the elderly.
At least here, it is still a scene of peace.
Fang Chang walked slowly in the small town, occasionally looking at novel things here, such as the special food here, a kind of rice milk mixed with sesame seeds, a circle-shaped rice cake fried in an oil pan, and meat jelly Big soup dumplings made with vegetables are made and sold along the street.
There are also pubs in the small town, but there are fewer people drinking heavily here. Only in the shade of the trees not far in front of the pub, there are only a few drinkers sitting on the bench, chatting with a plate of peanuts, and holding them carefully. Drink carefully from the bowl, and raise the bowl to signal each other from time to time.
There are many hills and lakes here, but the soil is fertile.
The flat land is naturally full of rice, while on the sloping land, in addition to various fruit trees, there are continuous mulberry trees. A small part of them is reserved for fruiting mulberry trees, and most of the rest will be picked for mulberry leaves, which are used as raw materials for sericulture.
Fang Chang walked out of the tavern.
Just now, he added a lot of sorghum wine to the wine gourd on his waist.
This confuses the shop owner: the gourd on the waist of this charlatan is not filled with panacea, but for wine!
But there is no reason not to do business delivery to your door.
The store still added a lot of wine to the gourd, and then quoted a price to Fang Chang.
In terms of real volume, every time you add wine, it is enough to fill this gourd to nearly full, but this gourd is already extraordinary, and the capacity inside is constantly increasing.
Fang Chang just poured wine into it routinely whenever he went to a place.
The speed at which he buys wine is far faster than his usual drinking speed, which increases the amount of wine stored in the gourd. Counting it, there are seven or eight tanks.
Fortunately, no matter how much it is loaded, the weight of the wine gourd does not change much, and it will not fall into the belt. Of course, Fang Chang's belt is still the one used to bind many monsters before, and it has not been replaced.
Curious, Fang Chang stepped in.
It was quite spacious inside, but most of the space was filled by a large pile of wooden machines.
To be precise, most of the parts are made of wood, and there are also some copper and iron parts. The copper and iron utensils are oiled, and the wooden parts are painted with varnish, which also exudes the aroma of wood.
It seems that there is a reason why the entrance of this house is so wide. Otherwise, even if these machines were bought, they would not be able to be shipped out completely, and could only be disassembled and reassembled.
Seeing someone coming in, the shop waiter hurried up and asked:
"What would the guest officer want?"
Fang Chang didn't plan to buy things here, not to mention that he had a purpose in his trip, and he couldn't carry a loom back to Yunzhongshan. "Guest officer, please go ahead."
The little guy is very reasonable, stepping aside gently, ready to serve customers at any time.
The looms in the shop are sophisticated and complicated, and there are jacquard mechanisms, which are far from the ordinary ones that Fang Chang plans to make back on the cliff. Therefore, the shopkeepers are not afraid of being watched, anyway, they have enough confidence in their craftsmanship, and as long as they sell outside, the structure cannot be kept secret.
Fang Chang didn't intend to steal the teacher, he just came to see a novelty.
After calling a boy, Fang Chang smiled and asked:
"Do you sell looms driven by water power here?"
The boy saluted and said:
"I'm really sorry for the guest. Our Luming City is far away from the big river, so we don't have this kind of thing. However, there are such looms on the south side of the Guiyuan River. Moreover, this kind of loom is very expensive, and small households can't afford it. , only those large factories are willing to buy and use, the water pusher moves like flying, and one can support five.”
"Well, I've heard of it too, and I must go and see it if I have the chance." Fang Chang said.
"It's good to be close to the water. I once went to Fucheng, where there is a fast-flowing river passing through the city. A powerful family built a water mill by the water, which saves labor and effort. It is very good for rice and wheat milling. The principle of that kind of thing is similar to that of a hydraulic loom, and it is more reliable in drought and flood. Having one at home is like a cash cow, and the money is endless..." The young man said enviously.
Finally, Fang Chang didn’t buy anything, and chatted with the boy for a long time after he had enough eye addiction, and he didn’t come out until new customers came in.
Walking gently on the street, although many residents would cast their eyes on him because of his charlatan attire, not many people would call him to stop.
There must be a doctor in the city. For the people in the city, an old doctor who knows the basics is much more reliable than a quack like him—except when buying dog skin plasters and Dali pills, it’s a pity that Fang Chang doesn’t sell these.
"But it said that in the cloud mountain..."
A sound was perceived by Fang Chang's keen hearing, he said "Huh?", turned around and walked towards the direction of the sound.
Twisting and turning, turning around.
It seems that there has been a lack of planning. The road he passed was not smooth, but was squeezed by many disorderly buildings, with forks everywhere.
Fortunately, Fang Chang’s hearing ability is superb, and he can locate according to the sound without losing his way.
Walking closer, Fang Chang looked up.
There are several large characters on the plaque "Mingde Tea House".
Thank you Alloy Niu Niu for your reward.
(end of this chapter)