unclear

Chapter 541 A disaster from heaven
"Shopkeeper, shopkeeper, something bad is going on, the mob, the mob, the mob is coming... Close the door quickly, get on the board quickly!"

But what was greeted was not the guests, but the theater troupe rushing back to greet the guests. Originally, his painted face was quite funny, but now his facial features were almost out of place, and his originally clear and loud voice became shriller, calling down all the waiters on the third floor.

The troupe did not yell to welcome the guests. There were indeed many people on the street. They looked like farmers and refugees in their clothes. They were holding torches and various farm tools and sticks in their hands, and they were moving north from the main street in the south. , walking and smashing the shops on the street.

The two restaurant fronts guarding the street entrance had been set alight, and from the light of the fire one could vaguely see the workers struggling to resist. But there were too many people on the other side, so they were quickly dispersed, and soon thick smoke also came from the second floor.

"Oh, put down the knife, we can't defend it! Quick, quick, bring out all the good wine and fine materials from the warehouse, and the girls and troupe behind, hurry up and pack up the fine stuff, the sooner the better, Follow me and hide in the shipyard. If this building burns, let it be built again as long as people can build it again!”

If there is an understanding person in a business, he can often play a decisive role, and the more critical the moment, the more the difference will be revealed. The second shopkeeper only glanced at the door a few times and knew that today's unprovoked disaster would be difficult to avoid, let alone withstand.

What we can do now is to minimize the losses. If the restaurant cannot be moved, we have to leave it to fate. But the girls, troupes, and chefs in the building, as well as the old wine and various spices in the warehouse, can still be saved if they run fast.

Of course, this also depends on geographical advantages. For example, the dozen or so shops near the street are not so lucky. Even if they want to run away, it is too late. The shopkeeper could only lead his men to pick up anything that could be used as a weapon to resist desperately, trying to keep the dark mob out.

"Master, Master, please open the door. We will not run around inside. We just want to avoid the limelight in the factory. I will thank you very much in the future! Come on, come on, you guys can take the money first." ...I asked you whether you want your life or jewelry. Why don't you take it out and give it to the military master?"

The location of Guanhai Building is indeed unique. There is a large shed just across the west gate of the shipyard. The second shopkeeper made a prompt decision and was the first to run to the gate with dozens of people.

However, there is a large iron gate made of thumb-thick iron bars, which is not much wider than the thousand-pound gate on the county city gate. If the navy soldiers and Jin Yiwei inside do not open the lock, no one can get in.

At this time, it depends on the courage of the person in charge. The second shopkeeper still did not disappoint everyone. I saw him first stuffing the silver box he was holding in his arms through the gap in the iron bars. Seeing that the navy flag on duty did not pick it up, he guessed it was too little, so he turned around and asked the girls in the building to put the gold jewelry away. Take it all out, wrap it up in random clothes and stuff it in.

"Shopkeeper Qi, don't panic. I definitely won't dare to open the door, but your lives will definitely be safe. If you can trust our navy, you don't have to go anywhere, just watch here. But you have to get the door out of the way. In case you miss something important, it’s best to lie down on the wall and close your eyes.”

The naval officer on duty did not accept the silver or jewelry, nor did he show any intention of opening the door. He obviously knows the second shopkeeper of Guanhailou, and his words are quite polite, but the content is a bit crazy.

"...Master Jun, please ask me, is it still too late to run to the shipping terminal?"

The second shopkeeper obviously couldn't understand these remarks, but now that he didn't believe it at all and couldn't find a way out, he could only do the next best thing and try to find out if there was any possibility of accommodation at the shipping terminal. "There are more mobs over there, and they come from Suzhou Prefecture. And there is a lot of wasteland around the shipping terminal. It's hard to tell who is who during a fight. If you want to survive, it's better to stay here honestly."

Faced with the sudden change, the naval officer did not seem to be surprised. He spoke calmly and without any nervous expression on his face. And you can know what’s going on at the shipping terminals and spinning mills without leaving home.

"Master Jun, if I'm not particularly in trouble, can you be accommodating and let me go in to avoid trouble? You see, in addition to the clerks in the shop, the troupe and girls are all familiar faces here, so I'm sure there won't be any trouble!"

At this time, the shopkeeper of Wangfan Tower also ran over with a large group of people. He happened to hear the conversation between the officer and the second shopkeeper, but he didn't listen to the whole conversation. He thought that the second shopkeeper was not generous enough, so he took a heavy baggage from the waiter's hand. , stuffed in along the gap.

"Shopkeeper Zhang, it's not that I can't be accommodating, it's because of the military order. Even if I agree, others won't agree, and I still can't get in. Get out of the way quickly, no one can afford the penalty for delaying the military order."

Unfortunately, the naval officer was unmoved at all. At this moment, a black shadow suddenly appeared behind him, moving quickly towards the door. Seeing this, he didn't care about talking nonsense with the two shopkeepers. He just said a word and turned around to leave. Soon disappeared into the darkness.

"I'm a girl, I'm a soldier! Come on, come on, girls, go and lie down under the wall. Buddha bless, Buddha bless, if I can survive the disaster today, I, Qi, will definitely collect enough incense money to go to Putuo another day. Make a wish on the mountain!”

The second shopkeeper still didn't give up. He leaned on the iron door and looked in, hoping to see if he could meet an acquaintance with a higher official position. As a result, if you don't look at it, after you see the trotting figure clearly, your face suddenly turns pale, your legs become weak involuntarily, and you almost have to hold on to the wall before moving away.

However, he was not idle. He whispered to the people in Guanhai Building to disperse to both sides of the gate. He also gave everyone a warning, curled up his body, and lay down against the wall, still holding his head in his hands.

Fan Bing, yes, the second shopkeeper has a really good eye. The person who rushed out from the shipyard was really a Xifan man with colorful eyes and armor on his body. However, the second shopkeeper did not see the whole story. There were only a few dozen Xifan people, most of whom were dragging small cannons with ropes. After going out, they did not rush forward and began to arrange the cannon carts on the spot.

Following the Xifan people were a group of soldiers dressed more strangely. They all had black hair, black eyes, and dark skin. They looked very similar to the people from Guangdong and Fujian, but everyone wore a pointed rattan hat and upper body. It was a thick leather armor, but the lower body was only shorts and straw sandals. It looked a bit like a beggar who had just robbed the armor warehouse. The whole thing was very mismatched.

However, everyone held a long firecracker in their hands, numbering about two to three hundred. After leaving the gate, they immediately spread out and formed two horizontal lines, blocking the Western artillery behind them.

(End of this chapter)