Mr. Bao and his son: Only use Stankang for hair oil

Chapter 99 Going to Tianjin
December [-], [-].

Suzhou's major textile factories have been suspended for more than a month, and the taxes levied by the government on textile products imported from other places into the city are also increasing.

However, it seems that it is still profitable under the heavy tax. People from the countryside rush to the city carrying cotton and linen and other things to sell them. When they leave, they have to exchange more oil and salt for return. After all, it is not suitable to go out in winter. .

The price of cloth in the market has been rising again and again. Sometimes, the price of a piece of coarse cloth has increased by two or three copper coins overnight.

When poor people rush to a cloth-selling shop and finally decide to buy a piece of cloth with their long-spent savings, they will be told this news:

"Manager! Can you ask me? Is the price of cloth going up or down today?"

"The factories have stopped shipping goods, and things from the outside can't come in! The government wants to ask for prices and taxes when they come in. Are you still thinking that the price of cloth will drop? You want to be fooled! Compared with yesterday, it has increased by half a percent!"

Auspicious snow heralds a good year, and the colder the weather, the more expensive the cloth. Ordinary people can grit their teeth and buy some, and wear them decently. It would be better to just sit at home and cover yourself with a quilt at night.

The beggars on the street have no recruits. They cannot afford clothes. They don’t even have a house to shelter from the wind. They can’t hide anywhere. Their stomachs are still growling with hunger and they will melt in a few days. Because he is a corpse, he can best understand one sentence - the sky is not responding, and the earth is not working.

Suzhou Provincial High School finally announced its winter vacation on this day.

"After this winter vacation, students will meet in this classroom again in [-]! I hope everyone can study arithmetic well during the winter vacation..."

Mr. Shen stood on the podium and spoke, and the students were all happy and excited. After all, warming up by the fire at home, drinking hot soup, and lying on the sofa reading some magazines and newspapers is always better than reading in the cold winter.

"Bao Guowei, let's go!"

"Baozi, come to my house to play when you have time!"

"Bao Liujia, are you going to play basketball on Bayer Street tomorrow?"

After Bao Guowei said hello to a group of familiar classmates, he packed up his belongings and started on his way home.

"Guowei!"

Every time you leave the school gate, you can hear Lao Bao's shouting. Even in the cold winter weather, he will pick up Bao Guowei from school on his old cold legs.

……

It has been more than ten days since the beginning of winter. It rained continuously last night, and the rain hit the banana trees all night long. After being moistened and washed by the water droplets, the recently planted vegetation in the Bao family's courtyard was obviously much more beautiful.

In the morning, no one could see the sun, and the sky was only white, indicating that it was not yet late at night.

The fire in the main hall of Bao Mansion was crackling. The strong fire drove away the cold air from outside, making the air scorching and distorted.

An old man in his 50s or [-]s, covered in gray coarse cotton clothes and with a full face of stubble, was plowing inside with a pair of pliers. This was the new servant.

The old man's name was Zhang Ergou. He had participated in the Northern Expedition. Since he had fought in the war, he wanted to see that he was very good at nursing home. He would also teach Wang Dachui and Wang Xiaowu some boxing and kicking skills on weekdays, and he could receive a salary of three yuan a month.

The cook Aunt Li was wielding a spatula in the kitchen, while the maid Xiaoxiu was cleaning every corner of the foreign-style building. She even took down the landscape paintings on the walls and carefully wiped the dust on the back of the frames.

Bao Guowei sat on the edge of his big bed, repeatedly studying the white envelope sealed with lacquer in his hand, and smiled unconsciously on his face.

"Hello, classmate Bao Guowei, I have received your letter. If you want to see me, you can come to Tianjin Yongli'an Alkali Plant. If nothing happens at the end of this year, I will stay in Tianjin."

This letter is of considerable origin, coming from none other than Hou Debang, the current director of the Wynn Alkali Plant.

A few days ago, this letter was forwarded through the Chu family. Although the two places were two thousand miles apart, the response was received within a few days, which was very efficient.Why ask the Chu family to forward the letter? After all, Bao Guowei has been monitored. It may not be meaningful to contact Hou Debang secretly through the school's teachers. On the contrary, it will have some negative effects.

Looking at the smile on Bao Guowei's face, Lao Bao sitting next to him showed some worry:
"Guowei, are you really going to travel far this time? Is there anything that can't be resolved through letters?"

Bao Guowei still looked at the letter with a smile on his face:
"It's better for me to handle this matter in person. It's not appropriate to send a letter or a telegram. Besides, Wang Dachui and Wang Xiaowu are following us on this trip. I don't think there will be any danger."

When Lao Bao heard Bao Guowei's words, he kept nodding his head, but he still felt a little uneasy in his heart. Now that the north is in chaos, is it really safe to take a foreign train?

"How about I go with you? There's still a war in the north..."

"No! I'll take the train to Shanghai first, and then to Tianjin. It's a direct ride in two trains. It won't take long, not to mention the safety aspect. Is there anyone who dares to rob a big train?

Besides, it's winter, so you'd better not go out far. Your legs won't hurt when you go out in winter?Just sit at home and warm yourself up by the fire. "

After Bao Guowei finished speaking, he put the envelope away, put on a thick and dense light blue wool sweater, opened the door and went out. .

Lao Bao wanted to say something else, but looking at his son's leaving back, he could only sigh.

……

The first floor of the western-style building is obviously much warmer, and hot tea and breakfast are neatly placed on the dining table.

After a simple breakfast, Bao Guowei opened the white wooden arch and prepared to go outside to get some fresh air. Before leaving, he wanted to take a final look around the city of Suzhou—Tianjin and Suzhou are more than two thousand miles apart, and this trip may take a long time. It takes a lot of time.

There is a smell of dust in the air, and the temperature has obviously dropped a lot. Even if you put on a thick woolen sweater, you can't cover your face. When the wind blows, the cold makes your ears hurt.

"Master, it's cold outside, put on your coat!"

When Xiaoxiu saw that the young master was about to go out, she quickly put on a large black cotton-padded jacket for him.

Bao Guowei tightened his clothes, looked at the two doormen who were still beating each other with sticks in the yard, and shouted at the top of his lungs:
"Wang Dachui! Wang Xiaowu! Go out!"

……

Even in this cold winter weather, there are still newsboys wearing thin but clean clothes standing next to the road. Although they are shivering from the cold, they are still waving newspapers in their hands.

"Extra! Extra! There has been no rain in Guanzhong for several months! God bless the north...defeat..."

As Bao Guowei expected, the severe drought that was about to hit Guanzhong was fortunate that the situation in Jiangnan was much better. After all, there was never a shortage of water in this land.

Bao Guowei stepped on a pair of black hard-soled leather shoes, walked up to the newsboy, took out a coin from his trouser pocket, handed it to the newsboy, and took a newspaper.

What is written at the top of the news is not a small drought in Guanzhong. After all, except for Bao Guowei, no one knows how far this drought will eventually develop:
"Citizens please keep warm. One hundred and four people died from freezing in five days, and another 36 people died from freezing in the previous two days. The observatory observed that the weather will get colder.

Although the weather in this town is not very cold, the temperature in the early morning is slightly below zero degrees Celsius. As a result, there are still many beggars sleeping in the street and freezing to death. The work of restraint is still very busy..."

Bao Guowei put away the newspaper and saw the little newsboy in front of him, who was less than 1.5 meters tall, counting money in his pocket. It seemed that all the broken coins added together were not worth the one coin.

Master Bao is in a good mood today and is willing to give some money to the poor.

"Take it, you might as well add some firewood to the house."

(End of this chapter)