As night fell, the swaying light of the gas lamps illuminated the hurried pedestrians on the cobblestone pavement.

It's dusk, but it's still crowded around Covent Garden, so why do you ask?

As the British proverb says, God has given a mouth and a pair of hands, and if the hands are to work, the mouth must eat.

For most of the economically disadvantaged groups of workers, they do not have time to buy food for the coming week during the day, and only in the evening, when the factories are closed, do they start their own purchases when they pass by the market after work.

Although most of the remaining goods in the market are not so fresh at this time, correspondingly, the vendors do not give them the price of standard fresh food.

For budget-conscious working families, there's nothing more exciting than being able to buy discounted goods.

Moreover, the second-hand goods and discounted food that circulated in the Covent Garden Market attracted not only workers, but also the middle class who were struggling to make ends meet.

While Britain may be one of the richest countries in the world at the moment, a family of six would need to spend at least £54 and 10 shillings and 4 pence a year to feed and drink enough to feed and drink in London.

And if the family of six wanted to live a decent life in the middle class, they would have to spend a minimum of £230 on hiring a maid. If they want to go one step further and plan for the future of their four children, they will need to save £75 a year to cover the high cost of higher education in the future, which means that their family income must be as low as £305 a year.

The high cost of living and the natural good-looking nature of the Britons led many middle-class gentlemen and ladies to occasionally consider replacing the expensive new dresses with some 'new' second-hand goods.

In such a noisy market area, there is such a strange place, through a narrow alley, a richly decorated white Regency-style building comes into view. A distinctive red lantern hangs in front of its door, and through the gap in the curtains, the candlelight in the room can be faintly seen.

The unwitting gentleman ladies, who were impressed by the magnificent decoration of this new apartment, hoped that they would be able to move into such a house in the future.

And those who know, even the most devout of the faithful, do not want to set foot here, because they know that it is a place of indulgence hidden in the shadows of the city, a blasphemous sin.

Unfortunately, however, a considerable number of quirky gentlemen in London are quite fond of coming here to be judged.

The Nightingale Mansion, the cage that made countless iron men break their halberds.

Want to taste the whip dipped in water?

Ladies and gentlemen, I assure you, in 19th-century London, you will never taste a more authentic whipping than the Army, the Royal Navy, and the expensive public schools everywhere.

The door of the Nightingale Mansion was gently pushed open, the wind chimes rang, and several gentlemen in black coats stepped into this world full of temptations and embarked on an adventure that they had never imagined.

Their arrival didn't attract much attention, nor did it cause much noise, and unlike what the big guy had imagined, the place was fairly quiet, and you really couldn't hear anything more than the occasional crisp whipping and a few dull moans.

Arthur took off his hat and looked up at the decoration of the front desk, the interior was luxurious, with exquisite classical oil paintings hanging on the walls, and the carpet was heavy and soft, and every step felt like stepping on the clouds. The air was filled with the smell of perfume and tobacco, the gramophone at the front desk was spinning in slow circles, and the muffled music echoed through the room.

It can be seen that the lady who set up the room is in good taste, because the music played on the gramophone is none other than Chopin's most famous piece in London, "Waltz in A minor: To Hastings".

And the oil painting hanging on the wall, it is a "Crucifixion", Jesus is hanging high on the cross, his head hanging limply, and around him is a circle of women who are sobbing and wailing for him, Mary Magdalene and the women under her leadership.

As this picture shows, every customer who comes here will go through the ordeal like Christ, which fully demonstrates that the Nightingale Mansion perfectly implements the principle that the customer is God.

In one corner of the room, a demure blonde was leaning on a couch, her skirt lifted slightly, revealing a snow-white thigh. On the other side, in the ballroom, a young gentleman was dancing with a dark-haired woman, her fingers gently sliding over his cheek, and their eyes locked tightly, as if the world around them had disappeared, and as if there was another Kaizi in the world who was going to pay a lot of money.

Louis and Alexandre Dumas looked at their surroundings, and the instincts of the two French people were instantly stimulated, revealing a hint of an ambiguous smile.

It was only at such moments that Arthur would not hesitate to agree that Monsieur Louis Bonaparte was absolutely 100% French, though not necessarily of the Bonaparte family.

Alexandre Dumas raised his elbow and poked Arthur, coughed and asked, "I say...... Arthur, are you sure there is no other service here? Is it simply whipping? ”

Arthur casually picked up the list of the front desk, glanced at the service items on it, shook his head slightly, and said, "Alexander, you underestimate these lovely ladies too much." If you like, you can also choose a stick, and with a little extra money, they can even change it for iron. Although they are now doing legal business, don't forget what business they used to do, and they can't forget their roots, and the old craft of knocking on the stuffy stick has not been lost. ”

Dumas was dismayed when he heard this: "Arthur, look, what are you doing here?" Do you think you're still a police officer? ”

As soon as Dumas finished speaking, he heard Plunkett behind him speak: "Mr. Dumas, although Sir Arthur Hastings is no more, we are still working in Scotland Yard. ”

But then I heard Ridley say with a hippie smile: "That's okay, aren't we off work now?" When you go to work, you are a policeman, and when you get off work, you are an ordinary citizen, work is work, and life is life. Thomas, we've been a cop for so long, can't we enjoy it? ”

Hearing this, Plunkitt sneered: "Ledley, if you like this kind of enjoyment, I suggest you go to the army, and you must join the 57th Regiment." ”

"Why?"

Plunkitt took a puff of his cigarette, spit out the smoke ring, and said, "Because the 57th Regiment has a nickname, we all call them 'Steelback', guess where they got this nickname?" With your little body, if you stay there for three or five months, I guarantee they'll break your backbone. ”

Ridley was about to argue when he heard this, but in an instant he saw the blonde woman sitting on the couch walking towards him.

The kid's face immediately bloomed like a summer sunflower, and he took off his hat and said hello: "Miss Selena, I didn't expect to meet again so soon." ”

The girl named Selena glanced at Ridley and the gentlemen beside him, and said with a playful smile, "Are these also police officers from Scotland Yard?" Are you here today as a collective atonement? ”

"Of course, uh...... No, it's not...... Selena, you can't talk like that. ”

Ridley spoke: "Although there are indeed two active police officers and two retired police officers here, the atonement or something is purely false. We're here today to find a regular customer from your field. ”

After speaking, Ridley couldn't help but lower his voice and said, "Madam, you'd better be careful, if you offend the gentleman who is looking through the list, your boss will 100% deduct your salary." You do manual work, and you earn all the hard money, why can't you get along with yourself? ”

"My boss?" Selena glanced at Arthur, who was looking at the gadgets in the glass fruit bowl at the front desk, and asked in a low voice, "Is that the reason why the crazy woman suddenly converted to Catholicism?" ”

"Converting to Catholicism?" Ridley frowned, "When did this happen?" ”

Selena rolled her eyes and said, "God knows! The only thing I know is that she actually converted our lounge into a prayer room and paid a fortune to get a life-size statue of Jesus back from a well-known carver. Do you know how hellish it feels to go back to the break room after you have just stolen someone's blood and see Jesus open his arms to you? I was working, but I acted like a crime. ”

Ridley coughed lightly and said, "In a sense, Selena, you have indeed committed a crime, according to the provisions of the law, it is possible to convict of personal injury by drawing blood from someone's buttocks." ”

"You guys didn't ask me for that?"

Selena looked a little angry: "Ledley, I have never wanted to cause trouble, but I am not afraid of you and your police, why are you standing there and accusing me with dignity?" It's as if you know what morality is. ”

Ridley smiled and nodded, "Yes, that's right, ma'am, you will be punished for making mistakes." So please use a little more force the next time you swing the whip. ”

Selena said angrily: "Are all the people in your Police Intelligence Bureau so perverted?" ”

"That's not it." Ridley raised his thumb and pointed at Arthur and said, "Our former boss is there, Sir Arthur Hastings, a legend of Scotland Yard, and the tradition of the Police Intelligence Service is established by him, if you are not satisfied, please ask him to go." ”

Selena heard Shi Shiran and walked towards Arthur, who was obviously not as casual as Ridley with this guest.

It's just that what she didn't expect was that before she could speak, the other party took the lead in asking questions.

Arthur took out a dice from the fruit bowl, pointed to the text on it and asked, "Why is this dice different from what everyone usually plays?" Ordinary dice are marked with 1 to 6 points, why are the dice in this fruit bowl written on historical figures or events such as 'Cromwell's Long Parliament', 'The Trial of Bloody Mary', 'Joan of Arc's Battle of Orleans', 'French Revolution'? ”

Selena smiled with a standard professional smile: "You are really knowledgeable, and you can see the difference between the Nightingale Mansion at a glance, and these historical events are actually special themes that we offer our guests.

For example, in the Trial of Bloody Mary, the guest plays a committed Protestant, and we play the role of Mary I, who violently suppresses the Protestant, and you have to die under the whip to strengthen your faith.

In Joan of Arc's Battle of Orleans, guests will play the role of a noble English knight captured by Joan of Arc, and we will play the role of the French witch who must defend your knightly honor and loyalty to England under her torture.

Of course, if you can't stand it anymore, we don't want to fall under the coercion of Mary I and Joan of Arc, but for the sake of your experience, I personally always think you should at least hold on a little longer. ”

When Dumas heard this, he suddenly popped his head out and asked: "In that case, does this script of the French Revolution need to play Louis XVI of France?" And you and your lovely buddies are going to play Jacobins? ”

Selena nodded slightly: "You are indeed very smart, but the script of the French Revolution is not immutable. Since some of the guests insisted that Robespierre was a good man, we sometimes had the guests play as a French Republican, and we would play Napoleon's accomplice or royalist or something, depending on his preference. ”

Alexandre Dumas's eyes lit up when he heard this, and the French fat man took out a quinie from his pocket and slapped it on the table: "I'm going to play the Republican Party today...... No, no, I'm originally a French Republican. ”

Seeing this, Louis on the side also took out a quippy and said: "I don't need you ladies to do the whipping, no one in this world knows how Napoleon dresses better than me." Ma'am, may you tell me, where is the item I am going to use today? ”

"Damn! Louie, you want to pump me? ”

"No, Alexander, I mean to offend, but I can't stand by and watch you slander my uncle like this!"

Arthur saw the two Frenchmen who were already making a fuss, and took out a piece of gni and handed it to Selena: "Madam, prepare a good room for them, and this gold coin will be your reward." By the way, I would like to ask again which room Mr. August Schneider is in, and I have something to look for him. ”

Selena was surprised at first, but she quickly accepted it. Anyone who came to the Nightingale Mansion, and it was not uncommon to see Dumas and Louis on occasion.

She accepted the gold coin, smiled and winked at Arthur, "Sir, thank you for your generosity. I'll arrange the room, but ...... You said you were looking for someone...... Sorry, I don't know who that person you just said is. There are rules in the store, whether he has been here or not, we are not allowed to reveal the identity information of the customer, which is the most basic respect. ”

Arthur leaned against the counter and said, "So, recording in the room is also a way to protect the privacy of guests?" ”

Selena's face turned white with fright when she heard this, but she still pretended to be calm and said, "Sir, how can a noble person like you slander the innocence of others out of thin air? ”

Arthur took a puff of his cigarette, shook his head slightly, and said, "Whether you are innocent or not, no one knows better than me, because I asked someone to install the recording equipment." Miss Selena, if you feel like you can't be the master, call Fiona to me. I don't want to embarrass you, it just so happens that I haven't seen her in a while, and you called her over, and we just happened to catch up. ”

"Uh...... You're looking for Miss Ivan, aren't you? When Selena heard this, she hesitated and said, "Yes, but can you wait a while, it's time for her to pray, I'm afraid I'll anger her, and she'll have to put on my little shoes again." ”

"It's okay, ma'am, I'll take care of the trouble." Arthur spoke, "I just need your help to tell her that Mr. Arthur Hastings is here." ”

(End of chapter)