Chapter 112: When will the Jinling singing and dancing end? (3)
On the Qinhuai Painted Boat, the Jiangnan scholars chatted, recited poems and composed poems, watched dances and listened to music... It was really fun. After they were too drunk, the red waiters (the red waiters were the ones who slept with them, while the pure waiters only played the piano and sang songs) helped them into the boudoir and had a good time with them.
As for Yu Guozhen, a few time-travelers, and a few idlers who were joining in the fun, as second-class companions, they did not receive such elegant and glamorous treatment - although as long as they were willing to pay out of their own pockets, they should be able to get girls. But the problem is that today's Qinhuai River is really "gathered with talents". Faced with so many elegant scholars, the business of the Qing Dynasty and Hong Kong people is extremely prosperous. The brothels are probably already full. Ordinary people Even if they were willing to spend a lot of money, they couldn't get any famous actors... So, after they had had enough wine and food, they said goodbye and disembarked with a wink.
When Yu Guozhen led the team down the painting boat, the sun had already set in the west. Standing on the stone embankment by the river and looking out, he saw the ten-mile Qinhuai River under the twilight. Colorful ribbons were dancing everywhere, light boats were like a forest, and wine tables were fluttering on both sides. , there are many arch bridges, row upon row of gold powder towers, painted boats rippling in the waves, the sound of lights and the shadow of lights... the riverside On the small bluestone street, there are Confucian scholars in kerchiefs walking together, debating the classics, and wealthy businessmen and businessmen in gorgeous clothes, cheering in front of and behind; there are also some official ladies' sedans wandering along the river, and from time to time they come from inside. Lifting a little bit of gauze curtain, revealing the beautiful hands and half of the pretty pink face...
And on the river where the lights are reflected and the water is rippling, the exquisite boats are filled with silk and bamboo, singing and laughing... Everywhere there are countless girls in beautiful flowers, singing and dancing on the terraces of the boats or river houses. From time to time, a touch of snow-white skin is revealed, which really makes me look like a maid...
——This is Nanjing in the late Ming Dynasty, the most beautiful place in the south of the Yangtze River. "Three mountains gather treasures to connect the economy, and the rising sun of Hongwu establishes peace." Thousands of celebrities have gathered together, poems and prose are romantic, hundreds of years of prosperity in the south of the Yangtze River, outstanding people, and the wealth and heritage accumulated by half the world are all gathered here, unlike Beijing. Similarly, it is necessary to face the danger of foreign invaders at the border, so this city has created a world-class natural treasure, just like a dreamy and prosperous style!
Unfortunately, the dream of prosperity in troubled times is ultimately false, and will eventually turn into a wisp of smoke and dissipate quietly in the smoke of war.
Whether it was the ten-mile foreign market in Shanghai during the Republic of China or the Qinhuai River in Nanjing in the late Ming Dynasty, their ultimate fate was the same.
"...The seven-stringed strings are elegant, and the wonderful sounds are lightly plucked; ten miles away from Qinhuai, there are jade trees and smoked radish; the wind, flowers, snow and moon, the poems are harmonious; the years pass by in the blink of an eye, and I am drunk with a clear night's dream... Hey, such a lively scene of singing and dancing, I'm afraid I won’t be able to see it for a few days! If you want to inspect it, you have to hurry up!”
Under the setting sun, Yu Guozhen held the already drunk senior Ma Tong with one hand. While holding on to the willow tree on the river embankment, he sighed to the old professors around him, "...we can take photos and videos of various scenic spots in Nanjing." How’s it going? How many places have you not visited in the Forty-Eight Scenic Spots of Jinling?”
"...Well, except for the imperial palace in Nanjing, which cannot be entered because a new king has moved in, we have pretty much seen other places."
An old professor of archeology replied, "...Actually, many of the so-called Forty-eight Scenes of Jinling are far-fetched. For example, the so-called Crow Clothes Sunset, Crow Clothes Alley in the Ming Dynasty are actually just ordinary people's old houses from the Eastern Jin Dynasty. It has long since disappeared (for a period of time in the Tang Dynasty, the city of Nanjing was almost completely abandoned, just like the ancient Mayan city), and there is really nothing to see. There is a flat embankment on Xuanwu Lake to view the lake. In fact, the scenery is exactly the same in Nanjing in the modern world. It is also a Xuanwu Lake and a Taiping Embankment. There is really no need to make a special trip to the late Ming Dynasty to see it... In short, it is just like what we had at that time. It’s the same as in the tourism industry. It’s just a gimmick and it’s just a scene. You have to come up with a nice number, but there’s actually nothing to see..."
"...Haha, if you follow your idea of finding faults everywhere, are there any scenic spots worth seeing in this world?"
Yu Guozhen shook his head and smiled, "...Don't be too demanding! Before all this disappears in the war, try to see as much as possible!"
In general, although this day was full of contempt and indifference from the Jiangnan scholars, the travelers were still in a good mood. After all, I have seen so many quaint and authentic street scenes of the late Ming Dynasty, and experienced a wonderful atmosphere that cannot be felt in any movie theaters or theme parks. As for the bad attitude of the Jiangnan scholars... everyone is generally more tolerant of those who are about to be in bad luck or even die without a burial place.
However, when they walked to the Sanjin house they rented in Nanjing city, they found that two uninvited guests with bad intentions were already waiting inside.
——Classmate Wang Qiu, who was sitting on a chair with his legs crossed, with "envy, jealousy, and hate" written all over his face, and Political Commissar Guo, who also had a dark face.
In this antique flower hall with carved beams and painted beams and swaying lights, the air seemed to be filled with some kind of atmosphere called "condemnation."
"...Ahem! Comrade professors, speaking of which, you are full of children and grandchildren in the world over there, and you are about to receive your retirement salary! Why are you still running so diligently to Qinhuai, ten miles away, in the past two days?" Political Commissar Guo coughed dryly. , said, "... pay some attention to the impact!"
Although Political Commissar Guo said it very righteously, professors of history and archeology disagreed with it - if you came to Jiangnan in the late Ming Dynasty and didn't visit brothels, how could you examine the folk culture of this era? Besides, in the late Ming Dynasty, the older the men were, the more they liked visiting brothels!
——The land south of the Yangtze River has always been prosperous in culture but lacking in martial arts. According to Chinese traditional habits, most literati gatherings in the Han and Tang dynasties were held in taverns. For example, Li Bai would drink wine while shouting, "The water of the Yellow River comes from the sky and rushes to the sea and will never return." As for the literati gatherings in the Ming and Qing Dynasties, , most of them will choose to stay in a brothel Huafang, from the white-headed old man to the young boy with a yellow mouth, all regard visiting brothels in groups as a very elegant pastime, which is not much different from going to attend celebrity concerts in later generations. Due to the lack of money, many people go to brothels. It’s really just about drinking tea and listening to music.
Just like the idol stars of later generations, those first-class courtesans are invited to attend countless gatherings and banquets of all sizes every year in order to take advantage of their fame, just like later generations of celebrities are invited to attend opening ceremonies, Book signings and more. And they can also promote their reputation by attending events, thus benefiting both parties. In addition, in the absence of newspapers and magazines, brothels at that time were also very important information circulation centers. If ordinary people wanted to know the latest poetry, gossip, and famous stories, the most convenient way was to go to the brothels to inquire. .
Moreover, judging from the grade and classification of brothels, the more high-end brothels these days, the older the customer base is, and the rules are stricter. As soon as you enter, you have to sing promises, burn incense, play the piano, couplets, and antiphons. , and music, etc. Those who know it understand that it is a ritual before mating, but those who are not familiar with it may think it is a courtesy for meeting the emperor... Although the steps are so complicated that it is confusing, it is very appetizing to those old guys.
Famous literary and political elders like Qian Qianyi, Xia Yunyi, and Ruan Dacheng all like to hang out in brothels everywhere. If any girl gets their favor and writes a poem or something, that girl will immediately leap over the dragon gate, and her worth will increase a hundred times. Therefore, under this social background, the market rules of brothels in Jiangnan are naturally "there are cowards when you go to bed, and there are no virgins on the first night." And there is an unwritten rule. Generally, if a high-end brothel is going to open, the first thing it does is definitely not to decorate it, but to ask a master to write an invitation as soon as possible, and then send it respectfully. Go to the mansions of those big guys and ask them to come and support you... If you put it in the modern world, it would be equivalent to the opening of a high-end nightclub. As usual, Mamasang would have to find Mo Yan, Zheng Yuanjie or Lang Xianping to promote the business as soon as possible!
In short, after witnessing with one’s own eyes the romantic behavior of the elders of the Ming Dynasty’s literary circle who slept in flowers and willows all day long, with red sleeves adding fragrance, the old professors here have long since lost their bottom line, their moral integrity has been shattered, and their three outlooks have been ruined. Now, I don’t have any psychological pressure anymore when I go to a brothel and flirt with little girls...
Um? Already old and frail, and your lower body is not strong enough? It doesn't matter, we are all modern people, don't we still have magic oil and Viagra to help! Even if you take those medicines, it won't do anything... Ahem, but as a man, if you don't have that dream, what's the difference between life and salted fish?
Therefore, all professors and comrades turned a deaf ear to Political Commissar Guo's preaching... As for Miss Ma Tong, she is still drunk!
Wang Qiu, on the other hand, didn't care too much about these old men who lacked moral integrity who formed a group to visit prostitutes - as a time traveler who was so tough that he didn't need to explain, he thought he was very restrained when it came to women, but he was already asleep. The two women (Marikawa Shizuka and Minami Rika) may also eat two silver-haired lolita (Hansel and Gretel are being raised) in the future, so I feel that I have no position to speak out about these philandering old professors. no.
However, he was deeply surprised by the ability of these old men to squander public funds-the speed of spending could even catch up with gamblers in Macau.
"...Comrade Yu Guozhen, Comrade Ma Tong, and these professors and comrades, could you please explain to me, let's not mention the expense of traveling and enjoying the mountains and rivers on the road from Guangzhou to Jiangnan for now. The problem is that now you We have only been in Nanjing for a few days, why did we spend fifteen thousand taels? Money for the inspection? No matter how much you go to the Qinhuai River to listen to music, go to prostitutes and drink wine, you can't spend a lot of money on it to support women! , each of them found a famous prostitute to redeem himself?”
"...No way! We have been in Nanjing for less than half a month, and we haven't even recognized the names of the famous prostitutes on the Qinhuai River!"
"...How is it possible? We are not from this world. No matter how extravagant and wasteful we are, we will not support famous prostitutes in the late Ming Dynasty?"
"...You can eat randomly, but you can't talk nonsense! Lao Guo, we don't have any grudges, right? Do you want me to be beaten to death by my wife when I go back?"
"...I have been suffering from vomiting and diarrhea for the past two days. I have never even been to the Qinhuai River. I just listened to Liu Jingting's storytelling once!"
"...I have been inspecting several markets in Nanjing these days, but I just bought some groceries! Well, there are also a few small antiques."
In response to Wang Qiu's question, all the old professors screamed, "...the expenses these days are all accounted for, you can check the account books yourself!"
After a while, facing the account books presented by the old professors of history and archeology, Wang Qiu and Political Commissar Guo's expressions became increasingly weird.
"...The numbers on this account book look very similar. But...a stone of brown rice in Nanjing costs ten taels of silver? Everyone has heard that a book costs twenty-five taels? What does your house cost every month? The rent is seven hundred taels? Are you a liar? Please don’t fool me!”
Wang Qiu rolled his eyes angrily, and glanced at the old professors with disdain. He felt that these sanctimonious old men really knew who they were and what they were doing, "...I know, they disguised themselves as a group of Ming Dynasty people. long distance between people Traveling is very hard work. Of course the relevant departments don’t care if you take advantage of the opportunity to commit corruption, but it’s best not to go too far! You have already traveled to another world, don’t you still forget about the corruption issue?”
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"...Ahem, Comrade Xiao Wang, you don't have to believe what we say, but you can't despise our personality!"
A short and fat old history professor suddenly blushed and had a thick neck. "...You can just go to the street and ask if the prices in Nanjing are so high!" Others also nodded. Echoed, they all complained that prices in Nanjing in the late Ming Dynasty were too exaggerated.
Seeing that these guys didn't seem to be faking it, Wang Qiu couldn't help but become a little suspicious, "... In this way, are the prices in Nanjing really so outrageous? But... the prices in Beijing and Jinan are so high. As the war spread, all water and sea transportation was cut off, and the food supply in the south Supplies could not be transported, and the Yizi were eating each other during the siege. Only then did the price of one stone and forty taels of silver appear. However, Nanjing was still the land of Taiping. Merchant ships came and went on the Yangtze River pier, and the south of the Yangtze River was a land of abundant fish and rice. , How could prices soar to such an extent? ”
"...Sigh, although wars are raging in the north, the south is actually not peaceful either. Now the Wenxiang Sect rebel army has swelled to hundreds of thousands, and they are fighting fierce battles with the Nanzhili soldiers and horses in Yangzhou Mansion. And Zhang Xianzhong's rogue bandits burned Feng Feng Positive After the Imperial Mausoleum, the Nanjing court's actual control area in the north of the Yangtze River has been reduced to the enemy's territory not far from the river bank."
Yu Guozhen sighed, stood up and explained to Wang Qiu, "...so, in order to escape the refugees and the disaster of war, the wealthy gentry people in various places in the north of the Yangtze River packed up their belongings and moved their families across the Yangtze River to the south. Even Yangzhou, which is the richest in the world, has A large number of salt merchants, Jin gentry and official families chose to flee the city in Nandu. After Jiang, some of them went to Suzhou and Songjiang, but most people still flocked to Nanjing out of habit, causing the city's population to increase rapidly. It was difficult to find a house in the inner city... The rent was naturally only The price has skyrocketed. If you don’t pay a high price, you won’t be able to rent it!”
"...Is that why the rent of this house is so outrageous? But why are the prices for food and drinks so expensive?" Wang Qiu continued to ask.
"...On the one hand, it's because the wealthy gentry families who fled from Jiangbei usually brought large sums of gold and silver, and then settled down in Nanjing, where they socialized and spent a lot, which naturally drove up prices. On the other hand, it was because of the war. The panic has caused local people to desperately shop for goods. ”
Another history professor who seemed to have done a lot of research on ancient economics replied to Wang Qiu, "...you should have learned in the history textbook that during the War of Liberation, when Generalissimo Chiang was issuing gold yuan coupons on a large scale, Jiangnan's Prices seem to be jumping up like a rocket!”
"...This seems different! One is paper money with no guarantee at all, and the other is real gold and silver precious metals!"
Political Commissar Guo frowned and retorted, "...Chairman Chiang Kai-shek during the Liberation War could run the money printing machine like crazy to raise money. But the Ming Dynasty's treasured banknotes had long since been discarded, and they could only be traded in real gold and silver on the market. Well! Can we create hyperinflation using only precious metals?”
"...Yes, the market in the Ming Dynasty was indeed dominated by precious metal currencies. There is no way to print money like Chairman Chiang did." The history professor said, "...But even if the total number of currencies cannot double instantly, but Compared with the total amount of social funds, the total number of commodities on the market is always in short supply - money will continue to accumulate and flow rapidly, but the quantity of commodities has its own production laws, which leads to it always being in short supply when faced with the total social funds. is in short supply, especially in the retail market and with long production cycles. This problem is particularly obvious when it comes to agricultural products. Did the Russians go to war when the Soviet Union collapsed? Did they print money like crazy? But the rubles in the hands of the Soviet people were still there. Didn’t it suddenly depreciate into useless paper? In the modern world, South America is already peaceful enough, right? But why do Latin American countries always experience sharp price increases every few years? Is the Middle East even more exaggerated? ”