After Du Dewei had a secret conversation with Xu Xinsu that day, he soon left Yuegang.

After returning to Haimen Island, Du Dewei and Hu Ba quickly began to discuss secretly behind closed doors, during which a fierce dispute occurred. Of course, as usual, it was Du Dewei who won in the end.

So the two parted ways the next day. Du Dewei went north and didn't know where to go, while Hu Ba went straight back to the center and left to vote for Li Kuiqi.

Not mentioning how Li Kuiqi cleaned up the mess in Xiamen, only said that Du Dewei and his entourage of 20 miscellaneous boats of various colors did not delay for half a minute after breaking up with Hu Ba that day, but went all the way north to Fuzhou.

It is the south wind season now, so the speed of the Du family's 20 boats going north is still very fast. Despite the drag of some dilapidated fishing boats, they still rushed to the area of the Luoshan Islands, the northernmost point of the Haitan Islands, on the evening of the third day.

After finding a random anchor in Dongluo Island, which is only more than 30 kilometers away from the mouth of the Minjiang River, Du Dewei first changed into a fisherman's short suit early the next morning, and then picked an inconspicuous broken fishing boat from the team, and then sailed in the direction of Fuzhou City.

All the way to the north along the coastline, after reaching the mouth of the Minjiang River, turn west, zigzag, until the afternoon, the fishing boat found a place to dock at the Jingloumen Wharf in the north of Fuzhou City.

casually took out the copper coin and sent the tax collector with the sharp-beaked monkey's cheeks, Du Dewei stood on the pier and looked left and right, and then lowered the hat on his head a little more, and then said, "Let's go." So, the three of them walked silently to the door of the well building.

Outside the gate of the well building is the government-run Minjiang Shipyard and large and small private shipyards. This place is like a forest, along the river piled up countless wood, boat equipment, large and small private docks densely arranged, the flow of people like weaving, craftsmen like clouds, all kinds of people and so on all gathered here.

Du Dewei and the three of them saw a Western view on the pier today.

A few steps had not gone ashore before a strange procession appeared: two officials in official uniforms walked last with their backs behind their backs, and seven or eight white servants with clubs and chains in their hands; In the middle of the procession were about 10 prisoners with their hands tied and black paint on their foreheads.

The team walked for a short time before turning into a large bluestone pier.

At first glance, this wharf is owned by a wealthy merchant: the whole body is made of a long strip of large bluestone, and the bluestone is twisted with some fine stucco, which is smooth and smooth, and it is solid and magnificent.

At the moment, there are three new Daifuku boats parked on the pier. Under the ship, there was a group of tattered and unclothed Hanako, who were being rushed to the ship by some sailors in short robes. The last thing Du Dewei saw when he was drifting away was the officials handing over the prisoners to the sailors on the dock with a joke.

......

The three ordinary fishermen easily passed through the Jinglou gate, and of course, the toll of a few copper plates still had to be paid. After entering Fuzhou City, the three of them first ate a bowl of pork blood rice noodles at a roadside shop, and then walked all the way to Chuanhang Street as planned.

Chuanhang Street is near the left side of Jinglou Gate, which is the traditional pattern of the front street and the back river: the street in front of the store, and the Wuhui River behind the store, it is very convenient to unload the boat. Since most of the merchants on the street are set up to support the shipyards outside the city, there are many offices of shipyard owners on this street, including some wholesale stores of raw materials such as rope, sail and nail wood, and a shipyard clubhouse.

Du Dewei had been here many times because he ran a boat when he was a teenager. And just two years ago, he also came here to buy a second-hand bird boat, so he didn't feel strange when he revisited the old place today.

The only thing that surprised him was the ground beneath his feet.

The mud floor in my memory has been replaced with a bluestone slab floor at some point, and like the dock outside, the seams between the slabs are also made of a kind of gray fine mud twist joint, and the bluestone slabs are paved densely and flat, like a flat mirror.

What amazed Du Dewei about this street was not only the ground, but also other aspects: there were latrines on the streets, and old men in cornets were constantly sweeping on the streets. The whole street is clean and neat, and even the beggars who are essential to the streets and alleys are nowhere to be seen.

The three of them walked along the familiar and unfamiliar street to the end, and then Du Dewei saw the destination of the trip: a shop called "Haidong Commercial Bank".

The situation here is no match for the scene in Du Dewei's memory: the rows of shops that were originally tall and short are now gone. Instead, there are seven doors with the same shape.

These 7 large shops are all made of red bricks, and the exterior walls are painted with lime white, which is extraordinary. In addition to the plaque on the door of the first room, which reads "Haidong Commercial Bank" in gold letters, there are also lacquer plaques at the doors of the other shops, with some business types such as "shipping", "wholesale" and "labor".

A large number of carriages and sedan chairs were parked in front of the shops at this moment, and many people wearing silk and carrying the appearance of merchants and butlers with servants were shuttling back and forth in several shops.

When Du Dewei saw such a noisy scene, he couldn't help frowning slightly. He is now dressed as a fisherman, and if he rushes in to find someone, he may cause some trouble. So he didn't step forward, but continued to walk to the end of the street with his entourage - no matter how good the business is, there is always a time to get off work.

......

I don't think the three of them have gone far, but they saw another Western scene.

The original location of the seven large shops was at the end of Chuan Hang Street, next to Ganye Temple and a stone tablet field.

Now the Ganye Temple, which covers an area of dozens of acres, has long been gone, and even the bald donkeys in the temple are nowhere to be found.

The same is true of the site, which is full of semi-finished stone monuments. Originally, there was a fat stele engraver who impressed Du Dewei here, and this person was from his own family, and his surname was Du. What makes Du Dewei unforgettable is that the fat man Du always has a bitter face, and he will say when he meets people: "Alas, this year, the old men are living in good health, and this business can't be done......"

...... In their place, there are large open-air warehouses along the river. And the most surprising thing for the three country buns was the barbed wire fence outside the warehouse.

The two-metre-high barbed wire, fixed to thick wooden stakes that smash into the ground at intervals, stretches long along the side of the boat street, isolating the planned freight yards along the Wuhui River from the outside world.

When Du Dewei came to the barbed wire fence in surprise and stretched out his hand to grab it, the idler who had already watched the excitement on the side showed a disdainful smile: there were three more country buns. Not long after, the yard guards patrolling along the barbed wire also came over, and without saying a word, they gave Du Dewei two sticks through the wire: "Get out, if you break it, I will arrest you and pay for your work!" ”

Three dirt buns dressed as fishermen were driven away amid laughter.

Of course, Du Dewei didn't go far. He walked a short distance before he stopped, and then looked through the barbed wire to observe the freight yard.

The land that was originally the location of the main hall of Ganye Temple has long been bulldozed and compacted at this moment, and is paved with a layer of fine gravel. A large sheet of thick wooden planks made of ashlar was covered with stacks of cement bags; In addition, bamboo huts have been built on some plots of lime and sand. In the distance, there is a neatly stacked stack of red bricks.

And at the door of the freight yard, which is separated by barbed wire, a large number of craftsmen and stewards-like people are bargaining with the tents at a row of wooden tables. Columns of coolies were pushing carts to carry cement, red bricks, and lime from the yard to the river port, where a string of small boats lined up in a regular line.

Du Dewei soon saw an acquaintance through the barbed wire: the fat man who carved the stone tablet.

At this time, Du Fatzi and Du Dewei were already judged as two people in their impressions. I saw that this goods was full of arrogance, dressed in Songjiang fine cloth robes, and sat behind a lime line with a row of craftsmen. In addition, there is a small table in front of this product, on which there is tea and snacks.

And behind this cargo, there are two high-spirited apprentices standing on the left and right.

Hum Ha two generals one hand on the waist, the other hand holding a pole disguise, on both sides of the banner embroidered with "first-class qualification professional floor" and "century-old carved monument silky feel" two lines of big characters.

......

Du Dewei stood behind the barbed wire fence until 5 p.m., which can be regarded as a thorough view of the Western landscape. Except for the bag containing cement, he didn't understand it, but he had already understood the operation mode of this place by seven or eight points.

Now it's time to get down to business.

In the Middle Ages, there was no electricity, so ordinary shops closed relatively early. Generally speaking, from 5 p.m. onwards, people close one after another.

After Du Dewei wandered outside the freight yard until more than 5 o'clock, he estimated that the time was about the same, and then he came to the door of the Haidong warehouse with his entourage.

Seeing a row of big shops that had been deserted a lot, he didn't hesitate this time, and after picking a random one to enter the door, he went straight to a counter with red and yellow straw mats of various colors, and asked the guys inside: "Little brother bother, dare to ask Stephen Chow if the shopkeeper is there?" ”

The guy at the counter was stunned for a moment, then reacted immediately, and then said with a smile on his face: "Yes, yes." Come with me, your guests. ”

The man walked out of the counter, and then led them out of the door, turned left, and entered the last room of the row...... Along the way, the guys didn't care about the fisherman's dress of the three.

The shop sells planks, and the lobby is stacked with machine-made wood planks of various thicknesses. The next moment, Du Dewei and his party walked through the lobby and were led to a study in the backyard to sit down for tea.

After half a cup of tea, the curtain was lifted, and a tall, fair-skinned middle-aged man walked in.

As soon as this person entered the door, he clenched his fists and said: "Stephen Chow is below, I don't know the guest's surname?" ”

Du Dewei hurriedly got up at this moment, also returned the salute with his fists, and then said according to the code that Xu Xinsu taught him: "Don't dare, don't be expensive, run fat next week." ”

After the middle-aged man heard Chow Yun-fat's three words, he smiled, first stretched out his hand to signal Du Dewei to sit down, and then he said cordially: "Presumably Du Dewei Du is the shopkeeper in person?" Under Xue Haiyuan. ”