Daming Yinghua

Chapter 110 Female Tracker

Zheng Haizhu saw that their faces were sweating profusely, but their lips were dry and chapped like a drought-stricken land, so she didn't immediately respond to their request, but said in harmony: "Sisters, it's a pleasure to meet you. Take a breath first, May I ask everyone to moisten their throats, drink mung bean soup, or sour plum soup?"

These women have never been treated so politely since they were born from their mother's womb, and they said incoherently for a while: "Drink all, and the nobles can reward you with anything."

Zheng Haizhu and Wu Bangde led them to sit down in the shade behind the tea stand, and asked the waiter to bring drinks, plus one of the most common folk snacks in Zhenjiang: Baguier.

This kind of baked pastry, which has become the intangible cultural heritage of later generations, is called "Jingjiang Navel" by modern people. Because it has eight corners, the people of Zhenjiang in this life named it Ba Navel.

Later, when the Qing soldiers went south, they suspected that the Han people used "eating eight navels" to scold the Manchu Eight Banners, so they ordered the noodles to be changed to six corners, and the name was also changed to "Jingjiang navel", otherwise the shopkeeper's head would be beheaded. .

Now, this fragrant scone still has eight corners, and it is still called "Eight Navel".

Zheng Haizhu swiftly stuffed the pastry into the dirty hands of the women, picked up one herself, said "Come on, let's eat up the eight navels", and took a big bite first.

For most of the day, she was hungry and thirsty as a talker, let alone a coolie.After the women flinched a little, they couldn't bear the salty smell of the eight navels, and started to gobble up the sour plum soup.

Zheng Haizhu caught a glimpse of Wu Bangde getting up to strike up a conversation with the buddy, and cast his eyes indifferently from time to time, knowing that he is very smart, as a man, it is not good to stare at these disheveled women at close range, so he stepped back to observe.

After everyone was ready, Zheng Haizhu asked: "Sisters, how do you call them?"

Everyone looked at the woman with the square face and big eyes, waiting for the leader to speak out.

Zheng Haizhu said in his heart, yes, a small group of just a few people also has strong organizational discipline.

The square-faced woman said, "My lord..."

"My surname is Zheng, you can just call me Miss Zheng."

"Zheng, Miss Zheng, my name is Mu Zaohua, her name is Wang Zhaodi, her name is Zhang Lingzhi, her name is Chen Sanni, her name is Li Heimo, and her name is Cui Yuer."

Zheng Haizhu matched these down-to-earth names with each face, and asked again: "These days, why have I never seen you?"

Mu Zaohua replied: "The men don't let us look for work here, we all work at Guazhoudu."

"Guazhoudu?" Zheng Haizhu wondered, "Isn't it abandoned?"

"The tank boats and ordinary passenger boats don't go there, but many scholars will ask the boatman to go there and ask the girls they bring to sing, and sometimes they sing themselves."

Oh, makes sense.

Zheng Haizhu understands that the barren Guazhou Ferry is just like the Internet celebrity check-in spot of later generations, but it is the place where current scholars go to imitate the past and recite the wind and moon.

Zheng Haizhu's eyes fell on the large piece of rough black skin next to Mu Zaohua's neck.

In the past few days, she has seen a lot of marks on the man's shoulders worn by the rope, and thinks how difficult it would be if the process fell on her.At this moment, seeing a large cocoon of skin of the same sex, the sense of substitution is stronger, and the embarrassment becomes more and more.

"There is a rocky beach on the other side of Guazhou, and the waterway is unmanaged. It's amazing that you can stretch there."

When Mu Zaohua heard that Zheng Haizhu was not only showing off her airs, she also praised them sincerely. After relaxing physically and mentally, her simple and honest smile showed a bit of pride like gossamer.

"Miss Zheng, our strength is really no less than that of men. We can handle whatever jobs they can handle."

"Yes," another woman finally dared to continue Zao Hua's words, "I escaped all the way here, and some men wanted to arrest me and cook them, so I beat them all away."

Another woman said: "You have practiced boxing with your sister-in-law since you were young. I don't have any kung fu. On the way, there was a man who wanted to eat meat. He was not as strong as me. Instead, I pressed him on the ground and slapped me in the face. But I didn't." Eat him, I'm a human being, I don't do what a beast would do."

Zheng Haizhu only felt a lump in his throat, and hurriedly looked over everyone's shoulders, looking at the surging river and passing boats, in order to calm his mind.

But I saw a woman in ragged clothes, walking towards this side quickly, with a bump on her back, and there was a doll.

"Uh, is that your sister too?" Zheng Haizhu asked.

Everyone turned their heads and greeted the woman with a smile.

Mu Zaohua said: "Miss Zheng, that's the youngest of our Qixian girls, Dong Erya."

"Qi Xian Nu..." Zheng Haizhu read the name of the group.

The girl named "Cui Yu'er", with a lively and playful look in her eyes, said to Zheng Haizhu: "Yes, Miss Zheng, those of us who are born in hard times can't be the seven fairies in the clouds, but we can also be seven-fiber girls in the world." live."

While talking, Dong Erya came to the front, bowed to Zheng Haizhu, and looked at the eight navels on the hands of the sisters.

Immediately, three or four hands stretched out in front of her: "I'll save it for you, you're breastfeeding the baby, and you have a big appetite."

But Wu Bangde had already walked over, and handed Dong Erya two hot navels, and the waiter brought a big bowl of mung bean soup.

Dong Erya thanked her in one voice: "Master Bodhisattva, grandma Bodhisattva."

When she saw Zheng Haizhu wearing a single-snail bun, she thought it was Wu Bangde's daughter-in-law.

Wu Bangde smiled at her kindly: "This is Miss Zheng, I am her friend."

After that, he walked away again.

Dong Erya stuck out her tongue in embarrassment.

Miss Zheng saw that although she was as dark as Zhang Fei, her face was full of innocence and childishness. She was estimated to be fifteen or sixteen years old, about the same age as Fan Polu, and yet she nursed the child out for stretching. Said softly: "Eat quickly, your baby, may I hold it for you?"

After all, Mu Zaohua's eyes were sophisticated, and she saw that Zheng Haizhu really wanted to hug the baby, so she hurriedly helped Dong Erya untie the baby, handed it to Zheng Haizhu, and said, "It's a girl, but be good, don't make trouble, girl Give it pain."

The doll's sitting bones are already very hard, and the thighs are also long. It is estimated to be eight or nine months old. Zheng Haizhu saw that the baby had sprouted two small teeth like corn kernels, and stared at the eight navel in her hand with dripping eyes. So he broke some dough and gave it to the baby.

The baby grinned and smiled at Zheng Haizhu, and a puddle of saliva dripped onto the back of Zheng Haizhu's hand which had healed well after being burned.

Dong Erya said: "Don't think that my baby is young, but she can know good from bad. She knows who treats her well."

She took a bite of her navel, and then remembered that she was here to apply for the job, to find the master's family, and hurriedly told Zheng Haizhu about her experience: "My man, in order to protect our mother and daughter from being caught and boiled, Desperate with people, dead."

She spoke very calmly, so calmly that she didn't even delay eating pancakes.

Even after gnawing for a while and returning to the topic, when she said, "The baby my man bought with his life, I'm worthy of him for raising him so well", this girl who is still a bit childish still doesn't have any sadness in her tone .

The people on this land are so strong in bearing suffering.

At this moment, Zheng Haizhu felt that he could be sympathetic to the common people in his heart, but if he showed too much appearance on the face, he would have a condescending superiority, making people uncomfortable.

Then she also asked in the same calm tone: "Then what will you do when you stretch the fiber?"

Dong Erya said: "Tie it to the tree stump at Guazhou Ferry, and a dog will watch it."

Mu Zaohua saw Dong Erya's mouth full of pancakes, and added for her: "Erya picked up the dog. At first we were worried that the dog would bite the doll. In fact, the dog is very reliable. Not only will it not bite the doll, but it will even get close to it." The wild dogs are desperate."

Cui Yu'er, who has a lively personality, interjected: "We all said that the dog was reincarnated by her man, and the baby is under strict control."

Dong Erya didn't feel offended at all, but said seriously to Zheng Haizhu: "Girl, my dog ​​is really a good dog, it has more conscience than many people."

Zheng Haizhu pursed her lips and smiled.

After a while, he opened his mouth and said, "Where's your dog? Go and get it, I want it together."

Dong Erya replied "Okay" naively, and Mu Zaohua had already realized the meaning of Zheng Haizhu's words, and she was about to pull her sisters to kowtow to Zheng Haizhu when her butt left Mudun'er.

Zheng Haizhu helped her up: "There is no need to be polite, I just want to ask you a question from the leader. If you separate the seven sisters, how many of you will go to Songjiang with me, and how many will follow my friend to do business in Zhenjiang?" Girlfriend, okay?"

Mu Zaohua agreed with all her mouth: "Okay, okay, you can do whatever you want the girl to do."

"Okay, I'll discuss it with my friend."

Zheng Haizhu got up and walked towards Wu Bangde.

Wu Bangde left the tea stand knowingly, and stopped under the willow tree farther away.

"How many women do you want to add to my team?"

"Well, women are better than women, let alone those who are capable. It's a pity that we don't recruit them."

Wu Bangde nodded: "The leader is a bit courageous and shrewd, so he must give it to me. That Cui Yu'er talks too much, so I don't want it. I don't want the baby's one either. You take it to Songjiang..."

Just as he was talking, he saw a young man with the appearance of a young man in a green cloth bunt, walking towards here with a big burden on his back.

Mu Zaohua seemed to recognize him and went to meet him.

The servant gave the burden to Mu Zaohua, said a few words, Mu Zaohua was about to kneel down again, the servant waved his hands, turned his head and walked away quickly.

Zheng Haizhu and Wu Bangde walked back and asked why.

Mu Zaohua said: "At this time, we are really blessed by God, and we always meet noble people. This dress was given by the lady who hired us to stretch today. She went to Songjiang to visit relatives, and she was in a hurry when she went to Guazhoudu to have a look. On our way."

Zheng Haizhu said: "Oh? What a kind person, have you asked which one is in his house?"

Mu Zaohua said: "I just asked that little brother, and the little brother only said that his girl's surname is Wang."

(End of this chapter)