Chapter 24: Travel notes of Dongmen City

Yang Shixiang's family dinner that night was very exquisite. It was not a 55-food meal that was not popular, nor a 50-food meal, nor a stairs of Shixian candy, and a high-end dish. The twelve small plates of wine and ten hot dishes were served. The local flavor was mixed with Guangdong's official dishes, and it was unique. Although Li Luoyou tasted it lightly, he still felt that it had a unique flavor.

After dinner, he served tea fruits and two singing geniuses from Yang Shiyi to accompany him and sing songs. Although Quark knew nothing about this, he was a little excited when there was a woman and kept giggling and cheering. That night, he even asked Saoye with a face, could he make a woman sleep with him? It made the group very despised.

Li Luoyou was tired of traveling and got up very late the next day, and he only got up at noon. After lunch, he told the manager who came to serve that he wanted to go around the county town and Dongmen City and take a look at the local scenic spots. I wonder if the ground here is quiet? How many people should I take out?

The manager smiled and said, "The ground is very quiet, the man just wants to play." As he said that, he hurriedly asked someone: "Prepare the car!"

Li Luoyou made a mule cart in the capital, but he was almost shocked at that time and almost all his internal organs were furrowed. He heard that the car was about to be frown, so he swept over quickly and whispered a few words to the manager.

"It's not a problem," said the manager. "This is an Australian carriage, not a big saddle carriage in the north. It's more comfortable to sit than a sedan that is not leaning against all sides."

The car was naturally a red flag carriage, but the model has been improved: the number of leaf springs has been increased, ball bearings are installed on the axles, and the interior of the carriage has also been improved. As for the appearance of the car, it was decorated by the skillful handicraftsmen from Zizhenzhai from Guangdong, which is generous and luxurious.

Because the number of horses is limited, only two of these cars were built, and they did not come out on weekdays and were only used as concierge.

"This is very similar to the European carriage." Li Luoyou sat in the car, and under his butt was a spring mat that he wanted to refuse. The spring rolled out of the factory was not very qualified for the manufacturing industry, so he could barely use it to build a sofa.

"It's much lighter and more comfortable than the British carriage." Quark looked at the interior of the carriage, "It looks like a cool sedan we've ever sat in." The weather in Linggao was hotter, so the carriage abandoned the interior of the first red flag, such as velvet and satin used in the first red flag, and changed it to cool and smooth bamboo rattan and yarn.

The car windows are inlaid with glass, covered with green screen frames, and thin bamboo curtains for sunshade. In addition to the two rows of chairs sitting opposite each other, there are also low stools on the side. This is specially designed for the national conditions of the Ming Dynasty. The carriage is fast, and it is impossible for servants and maids to follow along like sitting in a sedan chair. If they are riding together, how can ordinary masters and officials be willing to let their servants sit side by side with them? Therefore, two low stools were specially designed.

Saowye was sitting on the stool, and suddenly his eyes lit up: "Master, this car is really strange!"

The so-called strange thing is the dark cabinet on the wall of the car. When I opened it, I saw that there were two vine shell bottles inside - they recognized it in the room yesterday. This was a thermos bottle. The boiling boiling water was poured out after one night. It was still hot.

With this thing, you can take hot water anywhere and get hot water anytime and anywhere. Saowed leaves feel that this kind of Australian goods is much more practical than things like mirrors.

One bottle was filled with boiling water, the other big-mouthed bottle was filled with broken ice. In addition to the hot water and cold ice, there were also a few glass bottles of gawas, which were sealed with corks, and a few bottles of red drinks. I don’t know what it was. Quark was anxious and simply opened a bottle to drink.

"What does it feel?" Li Luoyou joked.

"Sweet and sour, and a strange fragrance." Quark smashed his mouth, "It's delicious."

After pouring a bottle of kombucha, the quark became more and more enthusiastic, but there was no rum in the cabinet, which made the British shout "stingy".

The carriage left the county town and went straight to the main road. The weather was clear now. It was a day when it was lukewarm and hot, and the weather was good. Farmers were going down the fields, working, merchants, hiking or pushing carts to carry loads, and pedestrians were everywhere on the road. The double horse carriage passed by the middle of the street, and people kept pointing fingers in the sound of the wheels. Li Luoyu turned a blind eye and just sat steadily. He secretly regretted that going out like this was too ostentatious!

The car stopped shortly after a while. The manager came down from the position of the driver and reported that he had arrived at Dongmen City.

"Please tell me if you get off the bus here or drive the bus directly to the city?"

“Get out here.”

When I got off the car, I saw a gray embankment crossing the river surface. The river water tilted down from the top of the dam, and the white water vapor swayed, and the scene was quite magnificent. Not far away, there were a large area of ​​red houses on the bank of the river, surrounded by tall earth trunks and towers above.

In the center of the pile of houses stands a tall iron tower that he had never seen before. On the other side of the river is another red house, which is continuous like jagged teeth, with red brick chimneys of all sizes, spewing black, yellow and white smoke into the air. Li Luoyu almost forgot about his god. This kind of scene has never appeared even in the strangest dream.

A rhythmic roar and hammering sound came faintly in the wind. A stimulating smell floated in the air, and there seemed to be a scent of sulfur. Li Luoyou shivered, and the sun shone under the blue sky, but he felt a smell of hell.

Quark couldn't help but draw a cross.

"Several masters, please leave here."

The prosperity of Dongmen City quickly attracted them. Of course, the prosperity here is not as good as that of Foshan, Guangzhou. However, the houses are neat and the roads are smoother than before. The weather in the city is a hundred times better than that in Foshan, Guangzhou. The road surface is clean, not to mention garbage, you can't even find a fruit peel, and there is no water accumulation on the street. Although the street trees on both sides are not big, they can provide some shade.

What is puzzled is the tall poles along the street with an iron mesh glass cover on it.

"What is this?" Li Luoyou asked.

"It's a street light." The manager's answer.

Li Luoyou also guessed it was a street light. However, the spirit was probably only available in the palace in line with the streets. When he was talking to the eunuchs in the capital, he said that there were stone lanterns on both sides of Yong Lane in the palace, which were lit every night.

It would be too luxurious to light street lights in such a town. Even if the night market is prosperous, merchants will light the lights themselves, so why bother to do this? Li Luoyu disagreed.

Walking on the street, there were many pedestrians on the road, poor and rich, and they were busy running around. Among them were local natives, foreign vendors, and Australians wearing blue, gray, and yellow twin-breasted jackets and short hair like monks. At a rough look, there were quite a lot of Australians. But the accent from the opening was heard that most of them came from Guangdong, Guangxi and Fujian. This is probably the so-called "fake".

There is no way to verify the number of real hair. However, there are many fake hairs. If you pay a little attention, you will find that although fake hairs are dressed almost the same, you can still see the specific work in details.

Those who wear brimmed hats, belts and short swords were hung, soldiers, etc.; those who wear wicker helmets, open chests and roll up their sleeves were probably craftsmen in the workshop; those who wear straw hats and roll up their legs, needless to say they are farmers who go to the field. The last type of clothing was neat and meticulously dressed, and most of them were carrying a bag. Li Luoyou couldn't tell what it was, so he asked the manager.

"This is the Australian's book office." The manager said, "helped to do business and govern for Australians."

"It's just a clerk in the yamen." Li Luoyou nodded.

"Yes, not." said the manager, "It's complicated inside. The library alone has different levels of rank. They are called "cadres". There are many tricks in it, so we outsiders can't understand it. But you see, for any "cadres", there are four pockets on the top. If it's a general library, there are only two below."

Looking over, it turns out. Li Luoyou nodded and suddenly saw a woman wearing similar clothes.

"What? Australians still have a Women's Book Office?"

"That's right." The manager told him like news, "Australians have no defense between men and women. Women are also officials and managers. Some factories and workshops also recruit female workers to do their jobs. It's not surprising that there are a few female scholars."

There are no common beggars and gangsters in the bustling market here. There is no one here, even a person like the world of martial arts. Li Luoyou looked at it and secretly wondered: Could it be that he had specially cleaned up here for him? I think he didn't have such a big face.

At this moment, I only wandered around the market and saw that there were many shops and all kinds of goods. Li Luoyou went into a few casually and saw nothing unexpected. He could buy all kinds of Australian goods sold here in Guangzhou. However, the houses here left a deep impression on him.

Almost all houses are above the second floor, and the third floor is very common. One building next to the next, densely packed, and the style is different from that of the Central Plains. Quark shook his head when he saw it, saying that it was slightly similar to the houses in Europe, but it was absolutely different.

It is hard to say that the house looks good or not, but this kind of house is obviously very cost-effective. Li Luoyou has always been puzzled. There are so many wastelands in Linggao, why save it so much?

In front of me, there was a large shop with five-bedroom shop in front of me and people were in and out. Walking past, I saw that there were several female friends wearing blue cloth dresses greeting customers in various dialects from time to time. Sometimes, they were sometimes Cantonese vernacular, sometimes Hakka, sometimes Leizhou, and sometimes Fujian dialect... Li Luoyou frowned secretly. Do you use female friends to do business? It means to attract people by lust.

But when you walk in, you find that the so-called recruitment of lust is nonsense. These female friends are all big and round waists, and none of them have a graceful look. There are wooden brands hanging on their chests. There are three big characters on the back of their clothes: "Cooperative".

"This is your first time here in the local area, right? All kinds of fresh and easy-to-sell goods can be disassembled and broken. Our store also packs and ships for customers, and the quantity is better!"

A female friend saw that Li Luoyou was stopping to watch and hurried over to promote it enthusiastically. Li Luoyou did not refuse and simply went into the store to take a look.

The store is extremely large, with a courtyard directly to the roof in the middle, and the second and third floors are all walks of horse buildings. Standing in the middle of the house, the vast aura makes people speechless.

The most surprising thing is the roof, which uses a bright tile skylight.

Of course, it is not rare to have a bright tiles. Some people use translucent mica, cow horns or thinly ground clam shells to make bright tiles on the roof. But it is just a small piece.

But here are glass tiles, and they are on the huge side - the entire atrium is full of frames made of iron bars, and the entire piece of glass is inlaid with sunlight from the bright tiles, making these three floors of buildings extremely bright, which is very different from the dark feeling in ordinary shops.

"What a big deal!" Li Luo couldn't help but praise.

There is a large plaque hanging on the three-story Zouma Building, with a black mud and gold sign with three large characters "Cooperative". There is a wooden pillar on both sides of the large plaque, which is titled: "Good quality and low price", "No bargaining".

Li Luoyou asked the manager: What does this cooperative mean?

"I don't know if the young ones don't know." The manager said, probably the name brought from Australia.

There is a round counter in the atrium, with five or six women in blue skirts inside. These people are different from those who greet outside. They are all pretty women with 24 or 5 faces. In front of each person, there is a small box in front of them. When a customer comes, the female friend presses something from time to time. Then she hears a crisp "ding bell" sound, and a drawer pops up from the box. Li Luoyou is fascinated by the sight, but he doesn't understand what he is doing.

"This is collecting money." The manager said, "the money needs to be received in this drawer."

Li Luoyou didn't know what the meaning of doing this was, and he didn't know whether he asked the manager or the manager. However, Australians seemed to like using this box that would pop up the drawer whenever they collected money.

Outside the counter, there was a female friend standing in various parts of the atrium. When she saw a customer who was Daili didn't know what to do, she went up to greet her and guided the customer to shop and see the goods.

"Really, really," Gu Baocheng was young and had never seen such a formation. His face turned red, "It's not a serious place."

"This is also a business practice." Li Luoyou didn't think so, "Without real money, what's the use of just using a few women?"

"The person in charge of this shop is a female Australian, so the shop's staff are all women." The manager interrupted with interesting silence.

"Oh? This is a strange woman."

"Who said no!" said the manager in the news, "This old lady is very powerful! She is better at doing business than one. Look at this store, from building a house, choosing a friend to setting up a store rules... it all comes from her hands."

"I have to meet you if I have the chance." Li Luoyou said.

There are no counters in the store, only treasure shelves inlaid with glass, with various colors of goods displayed on them, which can be seen or touched. A piece of hard cardboard is marked next to each item, with the price written on it. Li Luoyou looked at it and found that there are three prices, retail, whole pieces and whole batches. Finally, there is a "large quantity" that says "negotiable".

There are a wide variety of goods, which is dazzling. If you look closely, most of them are daily necessities and local local products. Just like Li Luoyou's guess: the so-called Australian goods are actually Linggao goods. The cooperatives are probably mainly wholesale.

The customer chose the goods in front of these treasure racks and saw it. The female friend issued the invoice on the spot. The customer took the ticket to the counter in the middle to pay, exchanged for a small ticket, and walked backwards. I wonder what it was.

"The rules here are," the manager explained to him, "it was shown that the sample was paid to issue the invoice, and then the goods were picked up with the ticket later."

Quark asked: "There is only the sample of goods. What should I do if the product is obtained is different from the sample of goods?"

"This is absolutely impossible. The goods here are the most important things to pay for real goods." The manager said: "The biggest advantage of Australian goods is that the goods are exactly the same, what the goods look like, and what the goods are like. Even if there is a little difference, it is a slight difference."

He then asked another question: "What is the 'yuan' in this price? I don't seem to need silver or copper coins to collect money."

"It's used for circulation coupons."

After hearing what the circulating coupon was and seeing the actual appearance of the circulating coupon, Li Luoyou fell into deep thought. What he saw and heard today shocked him a lot, but none of them were as good as the circulating coupon.

Li Luoyou is not an economist and does not understand what monetary economics is. However, with his businessman's mind, he will not misunderstand the difficulty of promoting paper money and the huge benefits it will bring once the promotion is successful.

The entire Ming Dynasty did not pay much attention to minting money, and the people suffered from the lack of coins and inconvenient circulation. Therefore, private minting small and inferior coins were rampant, and the government couldn't help it. Tokens similar to circulating coupons were also used in places, but they did not use such a scale. Moreover, from the managers, they knew that Australians had a strict system for the use and exchange of circulating coupons, and a special grain bank was set up to manage it. These practices are by no means an ordinary stopgap solution to the lack of coins.

Australians have tried their best to promote circulation coupons here, and this transaction is not as simple as the tunju trade. Li Luoyou has a layer of doubt in his heart.

The second floor of the cooperative is still a variety of glass display racks, but the third floor is a small room with doors closed. Someone comes in and out by chance. The manager said that if there is a big deal, the guy will invite people to this small room and serve tobacco and tea. Naturally, someone will talk to you slowly.

"…Our shopkeeper has also done business here."

"Mr. Yang is also purchasing goods here?"

"No, it's selling goods."

It turns out that this cooperative not only sells and wholesales various Australian goods, but also purchases goods from the local area. Some of the "Mei Su Wan", "secret tangerine peel", "lost leaf tea", "dry herb tea", "stewed meat spices" and so on are also sold here.

In the past, there were many such things in traditional Chinese medicine stores that were not considered medicine and medicine for sale, which did not account for the majority of the business. Pharmacies did not try to make money by relying on this, mainly to win over relationships with local customers. Therefore, the price is not high, and it is convenient for people to use it at home, which is very popular. Liu San attached great importance to this business and believed that these products had a great sales channel in the rural market, so they were manufactured in large quantities and packaged in a unified manner. Although the profits earned on this are limited, they have miraculous effects in playing brands.
Chapter completed!