The sun is setting, and the smoke is curling.

Pedestrians on the streets are becoming scarcer, and some stalls are starting to close. And those small shops that make food are busy times.

The guise of "Wang Kee Beef Soup" swayed gently in the setting sun. The eight tables in the room were already full of guests. Everyone drank the fragrant beef soup and the baked cakes that had just come out of the pot, not to mention how comfortable.

A man of medium stature, dressed in a white coarse cloth coat, with a bamboo hairpin pinned to his head, and a beard on his face, staggered in. He glanced around the room, and when he saw that there was no vacancy, he came to the side of Boss Wang, who was busy working on the stove.

He stretched his neck from behind the boss to look into the pot, and exclaimed in his mouth: "Hey, I said Lao Wang, your skills are really getting less and less." Look at this soup, milky white and milky, just looking at it like this makes people drool. ”

"Boss Zhu San, you better stay away from my boss. The last time you rubbed lard on my boss's body, my boss lady was not happy. The young man behind him looked at Boss Zhu clinging to his boss and reminded him dissatisfiedly.

"Ouch, I said Boss Pig, why didn't you come here without washing the lard on your body?" Someone in the diner joked.

Zhu San is the owner of the nearby pork stall, and he is also familiar with the people around him. Because his surname is Zhu, he sells pork. That's why some people like to call him Pig Three, or Pork Three.

Zhu San is also very cool, and he doesn't care about their chatter at all. He retorted with a smile: "What do you know? Lao Tzu's body is called oil and water, and as the old saying goes, you get rich and get oily, which is like Lao Tzu. ”

Zhu San's words caused everyone to burst into laughter.

After Zhu San laughed a few times, he turned his head to look around, and asked in surprise, "Why didn't you see your boss lady?" Where did the hostess go? ”

"I'm smoked by your oily haha."

"Just your fat body, and ask where the boss lady went?"

Everyone teased me again. Zhu San didn't care at all, and while chatting with them, he shouted to Boss Wang: "Old rules, come to a bowl of beef soup and two baked cakes." By the way, do you have meat on your bones? Don't be stingy, add a few more pieces to your brother. ”

Boss Wang said with a smile: "Drink the soup tube, but there is no meat." He said with a smile as he scooped the soup from the pot. There was a hint of solemnity in his eyes.

"The hostess is back." The young man shouted at the door, and staggered up to salute.

I saw a woman in a pale yellow satin dress walking in lightly, she gently shook the fan in her hand, and greeted everyone with a smile. There is a heroic spirit in the smile and cheeks, which makes people awe-inspiring.

When she came to the backyard, she said to the little girl who was carrying the vegetable basket behind her, "You go and dispose of these things." I'll go lie down in the house for a while, and don't bother me if it's okay. ”

"Yes, ma'am." The little girl agreed in a crisp voice, "Do you need the slave to call you up?" Seeing the proprietress shaking her head, the little girl said again: "The slave maid is sitting in the yard, if you have something, call the slave maid." ”

"Alright, go, go." The proprietress waved her fan and said impatiently. Stretched out his hand to cover his mouth and yawned, muttering, "This day, it's really going to tire people to death······"

The little girl stared enviously at the back of the proprietress, and after seeing the proprietress return to the house, she walked directly to the inner room, guessing that the proprietress must have gone to make up for sleep. Unconsciously sighed, "It's really the same life!" ”

Then he said suspiciously: "Can you sleep at night to catch up on sleep at this time?" ”

When the proprietress returned to the house, the smile on her face slowly retracted. She walked into the inner room and listened intently for a moment. From his cuffs, he took out the small paper ball that he stuffed into his hand when he passed by Zhu San just now. After taking the paper ball in his hand and examining it carefully, he found that there was no trace of it being opened.

only to open it cautiously. She put the top piece of paper aside, picked up the other one, and when she saw it clearly, she lifted the censer on the table and threw the note in the fire.

After seeing that the note was swallowed up by the tongue of fire and there was no residue, the lid was closed. Carefully tucking another piece of paper into his sleeve, he found an ordinary cotton skit from the dark compartment.

Skillfully dressed, he gently pushed open the window and jumped out with agility. A few dodges disappeared into the courtyard.

At the entrance of the alley of East Street, a thin old man in a gray coarse cloth trouser gown squinted slightly, leaning against the wall as if he was sleeping. In front of him was a table with the Four Treasures of the Study.

The proprietress sat on a small stool across the table, took out a piece of broken silver and put it on the table, and said with a smile: "The shopkeeper is so leisurely, he actually nested there and began to daydream. ”

The old man's body shuddered, and he squinted at the broken silver on the table. After rolling his eyes, he sat up slowly, and asked with a smile: "This sister-in-law is so familiar, are you reading or writing letters?" ”

The proprietress giggled, "Neither, I'm here to carry the letter." ”

"Piggyback?" The old man raised his eyebrows in surprise and said incomprehensibly, "I'm afraid you're in the wrong place." The old man spreads small profits and does not make loss-making transactions. ”

"I can add money!" The proprietress said slowly, reaching out and taking out three pieces of broken silver from her purse and placing them on the table. Smoothly formed a circle.

The thin old man looked at the broken silver on the table, and said in a low voice: "The master wants to ask about the situation over there?" ”

The proprietress whispered, "If you just ask about the situation on the other side of the East China Sea, you don't need to be so troublesome. The master asked you to inform Lan Yi and Xiongfei to take people to the East China Sea to find people. ”

"Looking for someone?" The thin old man subconsciously looked around and said in a low voice, "Lan Yi They are the master's dark chess, and they can't be activated until the critical moment." Besides, there are royal people on the other side of the East China Sea, and if Lan Yi and them are exposed, the consequences will ······"

The proprietress said in a serious tone: "The master said, now is the critical moment. Be sure to find Young Master Lu! She paused for a moment, and only after the passers-by around her walked over did she continue, "The master's attitude is very resolute, he must see people in life, and he must see corpses in death!" ”

The thin old man was still a little hesitant, and he always felt that Lan Xin's decision was too impulsive. The proprietress groaned for a moment, and then slapped the piece of paper with the seal of the head of the Yu family on her sleeve on the table.

After the old man looked at it carefully, he quickly nodded and agreed.