It's a little late, when the sun is about to go down.

To the north of the Old Summer Palace, there is a straight-line distance of twenty-three or four miles near the princess's tomb.

The so-called princess tomb is named because the third daughter of Emperor Jiaqing, Princess Heshuo, and the fourth daughter Gulun were buried; But that's not the point right now.

The point is that next to an official road not far away, Wang Laosan, a native of the suburbs of Beijing, opened a simple roadside shop, with four big characters on the banner: Wang's shop.

It is considered to provide some simple tipping and accommodation services for pedestrians entering and leaving Beijing.

Relying on this one to make a living, Wang Laosan's business on weekdays is not very good, but the money he earns is enough for his family of seven to eat and drink.

Even the two sons in the family can afford to go to a private school in the countryside.

The eldest son is forgotten, and the younger son, according to Mr., is a reading material, and he will at least be able to get a reputation for a talent in the future.

It's a pity that since the Yin Fayang devil came ashore from the mouth of Dagu and fought all the way violently, the gate of the capital division has been shut; Under the chaos, there are naturally no guests.

For most of the month, the business of the Wang family's small shop has been getting worse and worse day by day.

In the past seven or eight days, the pedestrians on the official road have almost disappeared, and there is no business at all.

It's just that under the sunset, Wang Laosan stood at the door of the small shop, but the thing he cared about was not that his own shop had not opened for several days.

Instead, he looked in the direction of the Old Summer Palace, where there was no movement all day today.

In the past, I could still hear a little cannon fire, why is there no movement today, could it be that the grandfathers of the Xuange camp have all died in battle?"

Ay! This thief is really not long-sighted. ”

The reason for this is that this man who also studied in a private school for two and a half years when he was a child and can barely read and write.

When I was young, I also read some forbidden books written by Xuan Geying in private; After thinking about it over the years, I also know that everything in the book actually makes sense.

Because of such a fate, he naturally can't do it now to fight to the death with the Xuange camp, after all, he is still dragging his family.

But it didn't hinder it at all, he hoped in his heart that the heroes and grandfathers of the Xuange camp could hold on to the Old Summer Palace for a longer time, and the longer the better.

As for his business, will it be affected? If the family saves a little, they can always get through it.

But if the Xuange camp is destroyed, the last bit of hope in my heart will be gone.

It's a pity that there is no movement in the Old Summer Palace today, and it seems that the heroes and grandfathers of the Xuange camp finally can't bear it; As long as he thought of such a possibility, he felt unspeakably uncomfortable and aggrieved in his heart.

Just when Wang Laosan was in a heavy mood, a voice with a Lu accent suddenly sounded behind him: "Shopkeeper, do you have anything else to eat?" ”

When I looked back, I saw a tall man with a whistle stick in his hand, and when he strode over, he shouted to himself from afar.

After a few days, his own small shop finally came to business, and Wang Laosan hurriedly adjusted his mood.

After all, no matter what, life has to go on.

The rations for the family to eat and drink, the doll's binding, the pen, ink, paper and inkstone used, the daughter-in-law's cloth and needlework, and the Chinese medicine for the father's mother to recuperate, all of which can only be bought with silver.

With a smiling face, Wang Laosan replied in his mouth:

"This master, you are really good at laughing, this opens the door to do business, where is there no food and drink?

However, since the Jingshi strictly forbade the people to enter and leave, and the Xuange camp fought with the British and French barbarians in the Old Summer Palace for several days, because there was no business, there were no cattle, sheep and pork in the store.

But fortunately, I raised some chickens and ducks, and I brewed some village wine, which can still provide some wine and meat.

In addition, there are some noodles, steamed buns, rice porridge, and fresh melons and vegetables in the store. ”

"Bring me a big bowl of Yangchun noodles, stir-fry half a fat chicken, and then half a catty of wine; Do you want to stay in the hotel, and wait until I'm done eating~" After hearing this, the big man immediately said in his mouth.

Although the things ordered by the man don't make much money, it can be regarded as a business opening.

With such an idea, Wang Laosan called out to his daughter-in-law who was taking the child in the backyard and asked her to hurry to the kitchen and start kneading the dough.

Therefore, I didn't notice that the man from Lu Province immediately turned ugly after hearing the news of the 'Battle of the Old Summer Palace'......

******

I don't know if it's because I heard a magpie call this morning.

After a lapse of seven or eight days, the business of the Wang family's small shop suddenly got better in this evening, and it was still extremely hot.

At that time, the hot water that Wang Laosan used to kill chickens did not have time to boil.

Another three men dressed as scholars, after walking into his small shop together, spoke in a soft official dialect like Wu Nong's soft language.

I ordered the remaining half of the fat chicken, as well as two vegetables, six steamed buns, and a pot of wine.

The mouth said 'Wait a minute', Wang Laosan didn't have time to start working in the kitchen, and the sound of horses' hooves was getting closer and closer, and finally stopped at the door.

This time, a group of about a dozen people came.

After they dismounted, the first person shouted in an official dialect with a Hunan provincial accent:

"Shopkeeper, if there is any good wine and meat, bring it all up quickly; And feed our horses well, use the best concentrate, add a few eggs to it, and naturally it will not shorten your money~"

Then, he was escorted to a middle-aged man in his forties, although he was dressed in an ordinary long shirt, but at first glance, he was not an ordinary middle-aged man who entered the store and sat down.

And such a situation is just the beginning.

In the time that followed, a steady stream of customers arrived, and he was not too busy to fill his small shop, which only had five tables.

In the end, Wang Laosan took the two and a half children in the family and moved out the tables and chairs at home.

In just half an hour, there were more than fifty guests from all over the world.

Even his father and mother also went out together, helping to kill chickens and ducks, and choose vegetables, and after a lot of work, all the wine, meat, and meals were prepared.

It's just that Wang Laosan, who didn't wait to choke on his busy work, took a breath a little.

I heard a shout with a Hunan provincial accent: "Come over here, my old man Zuo wants to ask you about something~"

Although they were a little busy before, these customers basically ordered wine and meat, and their income was comparable to the income of several days when business was good on weekdays.

Immediately, Wang Laosan saluted with a smile on his face, and said:

"I've seen this old man Zuo, what do you want to know, just ask, as long as the little one knows, he must know everything~"

After hearing this, the middle-aged man smiled very kindly, and after he spoke, he also spoke with a Hunan provincial accent: "I'm tired of the shopkeeper, I want to come to Jingshi to do some small business, but I don't know how the war between the imperial court and the Yin Law barbarians is?"

That's right! I also heard that the people from the Xuange camp also appeared in Jingshi, I don't know what the situation is? ”

As he spoke, he gestured to the man beside him, and the man immediately took out some broken silver from his pocket and slapped it on the table, adding up to two or three taels.

Suddenly, because the area was not large, but the small shop with more than 50 people was crowded in, it suddenly quieted down.

However, Wang Laosan, who is very good at observing words and emotions on weekdays, is sensitive to one point:

These people suddenly quieted down, not because of the generosity of these Hunan provincial yakees.

It was after the middle-aged old man Zuo asked the questions on his lips, especially the question of the 'Xuange Camp'.

Many customers from all over the world in the store suddenly stopped eating and drinking, or the sound of talking to their companions, and pricked up their ears.

Don't ask what you shouldn't ask, and don't worry about what you shouldn't care.

The above is the biggest secret of Wang Laosan's successful opening of his 'Wang's shop' here for more than ten years.

Although I was very surprised by the reaction of the guests, I still treated it as if I hadn't seen anything, and my tongue gave everything I knew.

Even today, I didn't even hear the faint sound of cannons, and the heroes of the Xuange camp were afraid that it was not good, and they all said it cleanly like pouring beans from a bamboo tube.

Then you can see to great horror that the faces of the customers in the store are full of grief and indignation......

(End of chapter)