Chapter 28 third chapter

It is said that Tao Gan walked back along the embankment alone, admiring the scenery on the river, turning around the gate of the Municipal Shipbuilding Department, and walking northward on a stone street when he saw no one at the end.He remembered that the Governor's Mansion was at the northern end of this gravel street, near the shore of Lanhu Lake. After a while, I saw a tall wooden archway, thinking that this must be the Nanhai Temple.When Tao Gan roamed the rivers and lakes more than 20 years ago, he lived in Guangzhou and Chaozhou to make a living.Revisiting today, many street scenes in Shiliao are still the same as before, very familiar.Tao Gan went into the temple and burned a stick of incense, and shook a hexagram again, and found out that he was very rich, which was not funny.Go around the back door again.He remembered that there was originally a wide tank on the back of the South China Sea Temple, which could be used for horse racing.Usually, it is crowded with stalls of all kinds.As the temple fair day approaches, there are even more tourists, bustling and lively. ——It was the place where Tao Gan lived in poverty.

Tao Gan went out the back door and looked, only to see piles of rubble, sand, and lime, all desolate.The four sides have been delineated, and it seems that some officials and eunuchs have built a house here. Feeling a little frustrated, he was about to turn around when he heard someone panting behind a pile of bricks and tiles.He listened attentively, like a woman's moan.Then he tiptoed forward, and saw two rascals hugging a woman behind the pile of bricks and rubbing their hands to make fun of them.The woman's lips were tightly covered, and she only kicked with her legs. Tao Gan touched a piece of brick and stone, and went to the lime pile to scoop up a handful.Unexpectedly, after going around to the two gangsters, he picked up a brick and threw it at the head of a gangster.The gangster yelled and fell to the ground.The other gangster just turned his head, and a handful of lime powder had already been thrown in front of the door. He couldn't help covering his eyes and crying loudly. (I think the translator may be from Jiangsu and Zhejiang, because "He Fu Dao Di", "Lime Mo Zi", and "Mian Men Xin" are all used in Suzhou dialect——Di Renjie Note)

Tao Gan stepped forward to hold the woman's hand and fled in a hurry.After walking for a long time, I saw more and more pedestrians before stopping. "Thank you, Mr. Your Majesty, for your rescue." The woman smoothed her temple hair and straightened her skirt, very shy. "Miss, why do you come out and walk alone in the evening?" The woman replied: "My family is going to burn incense in the Temple of the South China Sea. I used to go, but today I met two short-lived people." Tao Gan said: "This is already a busy street, you should take a detour and go home. Don't go to the temple alone again."

The woman agreed, said Wanfu, and was about to set off when she said timidly: "I lost my bamboo pole, please help me find one." Tao Gan looked into the woman's eyes and suddenly realized that the woman was blind.He looked around and found no sticks or branches, so he said: "Miss, it's inconvenient, so let me accompany you back to the mansion. I just don't know which street the mansion is on?" "Thank you, Mr. Miao. This seems to be Miaoqian Street. Not far from Shexia, it's next to the fruit shop at the bottom of Shizifang." The woman pulls the corner of Tao Gan's robe and comes to Lion Square.As he walked, he asked, "Your Honorable Minister has acted bravely when he sees righteousness. It seems that he is a public servant in the yamen, so he made such a move."

Tao Gan was surprised: "This blind girl has good eyesight." But he shook his hand and said, "I'm an agent, and he runs a business in Lizhiwan." The woman smiled and said: "Your accent is not from Lingnan. The tone of voice is like a Beijing official." Tao Gan was even more surprised.Just about to prevaricate with words, I suddenly heard the woman say: "Here we are, we are here. This is the entrance of Shizifang." Tao Gan saw it, and it really was the Lion Square.The woman said again: "This alley is deep and narrow and it's not easy to walk. Let me lead the way, and go to Hexia to have a bowl of tea before we go."

It was indeed dark and gloomy inside the Lion's Square, the wooden houses on both sides were crooked, and there were no lights on.The ground was full of smelly water, slippery and difficult to walk on.The woman was familiar with driving, and she walked like flying, and soon reached the bottom of the alley.The fruit shop was finally lit. The woman led Tao Gan into a wooden house next door. "Go upstairs. My room is on the roof. You must be tired from walking." After walking the twists and turns and creaking stairs, I finally arrived at the woman's room.Seeing her take out the key and open the door, she quickly lit the candle.The room was empty, with only a few pieces of old and simple furniture.A bamboo curtain is pulled up at one corner, and behind the bamboo curtain is the woman's bed.

The woman changed her skirt and shirt behind the bamboo curtain.Tao Gan suddenly saw a bamboo pole stretched from the top of the room.A dozen or so silk cages, large and small, hang from the bamboo poles.There are also several layers of shelves under the corner of the wall, and eight or nine clay pots are stacked one on top of the other.One of the green-glazed porcelain basins is even more conspicuous, and the lid of the basin is engraved with dragons playing with pearls. The woman came out from behind the bamboo curtain, she had already changed into a stone blue cloth skirt, and tied a silk sash around her waist.Skillfully cut a lot of diced cucumbers from the chopping board, and fed them in silk cages and clay pots.

"If I'm not mistaken, Miss has a lot of crickets here?" "Cricket? What a nice name! We call it cricket. You see, the most famous species is raised in this flat gourd. Experts call it 'Golden Bell'. It is good at fighting. It has red and purple beards and six carapaces. , a pair of sharp teeth, invincible. Its sound is also mellow and sweet, very pleasant." "Miss sells crickets for a living?" Tao Gan asked in surprise. The woman nodded: "The ones hanging from the bamboo poles can sing, and I am reluctant to sell them. The ones in the earthen basin over there are fierce and good at fighting, and they can be sold for a good price."

"I don't know how miss captures so much?" "My ears are very wonderful, and I am the best at distinguishing sounds. In the old vegetable garden, at the base of the tree hole wall, every time I hear the cricket, I know the quality. If it is a famous species, I use wood poultry slices and cucumber cubes to trap it, which is very effective. " Tao Gan was amazed, and said, "I haven't known Miss's name for half a day." The woman laughed and said, "My husband didn't ask, why did I report myself first? My name is Lan Li, and I left home after losing my eyesight. I was alone and had nothing to worry about. It seems that my husband doesn't have to hide my identity."

"My name is Tao Gan. Just as Miss guessed, I'm an official in the capital's yamen. I came to Guangzhou on business with Master Di, the Governor of Lingnan." "Today I met Tao Xianggong, Sansheng is lucky. I still have some days to come to look up to you and protect me." "Miss Lanli's life is too poor. Living alone is a lot of inconvenience. Besides, she can earn some money by selling crickets." Lan Li smiled: "Mr. Tao underestimated. This cricket can be sold for a hot price, one tael per head. The 'Admiralty Bell' is even more expensive, and it is not produced locally. I would not sell it for ten taels of silver. ——When I caught it last night, I was so proud that I didn't close my eyes all night. When I woke up this morning, I heard its beautiful singing, and I felt a little intoxicated."

Tao Ganshi didn't want to talk about crickets with her any more, and intentionally or unintentionally perfunctory: "Where did you catch that golden bell?" While thinking about it, he left. "Hey, do you know Huata Temple? It is the biggest jungle in Guangzhou. I was walking along the back wall of the temple last night. I was at the foot of the Huata. There is a gate at the base of the wall, and the sound of the golden bell came from the gate. It was crisp and sweet to the ear. I listened carefully for a long time and knew it was a famous species. I felt that the cry seemed to be frightened and made hastily. So I put a piece of cucumber under the wall and imitated the cricket's call to lure it out to eat. Sure enough , the golden bell poked out two whiskers first, and saw the cucumber. I put the cucumber in the trap door of the flat gourd, and the golden bell jumped out, and when it was full of cucumbers, it closed it into the flat gourd." Tao Gan listened absentmindedly, seeing Lan Li pause for a moment, he hurriedly cupped his hands and said goodbye.I'm afraid this silly girl will talk endlessly about crickets. Seeing that Tao Gan was about to leave, Lan Li suddenly thought that she hadn't even had tea yet.He apologized: "Mr. Tao has been sitting for half a day, and he forgot to respect the tea." Unconsciously, his face turned red. Tao Gan said: "I still have urgent business to go back to Yamen, see you some other day." Lan Li hurriedly took off a silk cage from the bamboo pole and sent it to Tao Gan.Tao Gan firmly resigned.After a hasty farewell, I went down the stairs and went out.