Chapter 295 Chicken Feather
The sky was darkening, and dense snow fell from the sky.

The cold wind is like a knife, cutting into people's faces.

Zhou Kai stood in the snow, his legs already numb. He softly comforted his wife on the backrest behind him: "Azhen, just keep holding on."

As he spoke, he walked towards the chicken feather room with a paper lantern lit in front of the door.

He just held a few coins in his purse, feeling a little guilty and timid.

"Um……"

His wife's weak response came from behind him. Zhou Kai gently lifted his back frame and relaxed his shoulders that were stuck in the flesh with the hemp rope.

Stepping into the courtyard, the conversation inside became louder.

You can hear the cheerful voices inside from a distance, and occasionally there is laughter.

The door was not closed, just a thick curtain hung to block the wind.

Zhou Kai stretched out his hand, lifted the thick curtain, and stepped in. The hot air in the room mixed with the smell of human sweat and alcohol hit his face.

The coldness in his body subsided slightly, and his frozen face and hands began to feel numb, as if they were being pricked by small needles.

The room was very lively. There was a huge stone stove in the middle, with a raging fire burning inside. If you look closely, it turned out to be charcoal.

Several men wrapped in robes were sitting around the stove, discussing something loudly. They all had a crude pottery water cup in front of them.

Hearing the sound at the door, someone looked up, then lowered his head, sipping tea in small sips.

A lean man stood up and came over: "Are you going to spend the night?"

There was a huge protruding scar on this man's face, extending from his closed right eye to the corner of his lip. Apparently, the scar almost split his head in half.

But what really makes Zhou Kai fearful is the temperament of this man.

Temperament is a very mysterious thing.

Zhou Kai could see the traces of the military in the man in front of him at a glance, just like those soldiers in Lingzhi City who straightened their backs and looked like pine trees.

Out of the common people's fear of soldiers in this era, Zhou Kai bent down unconsciously and whispered back: "Yes, yes."

The man with the scar on his face was not tall and strong, but his eyes were sharp and he looked up and down with his intact left eye.

Seeing the woman's bun exposed from the quilt roll on Zhou Kai's back frame, she relaxed a little.

"Shake off the snow in front of the door. Don't make the floor wet." After giving instructions, he walked to a table with account books and sat down.

Zhou Kaiji hurriedly went outside, shook the snow off himself and his wife, and then returned to the warm room and stood in front of the man.

"Take out the talisman letter." The man said this and struggled to pick up a strange-looking pen with his left hand.

Only then did Zhou Kai notice that three fingers were missing from this man's right hand. Half of his palm had been cut off, leaving only his ring finger and little finger.

Noticing Zhou Kai's gaze, the man didn't pay attention. Instead, he raised his hand proudly: "This is a military medal."

No matter how kind he behaved, Zhou Kai didn't dare to talk to him, he just handed over the talisman letter with a flattering smile.

The man was a soldier who had been injured and retired from the army. He was worried that these soldiers would leave the army, spend their money on pensions, and end up living in a miserable life. Gongsun Yan properly arranged jobs for them.

He was a little regretful that he could not tell again how he had been injured and performed meritorious service, and killed Wuhuan Zasu. He asked Zhou Kailai what Lingzhi was doing. He held the pen awkwardly with his left hand and carefully wrote a few crooked characters on the booklet. .

"There are only two types of rooms in the Chicken Feather Room. The men's room and the women's room in Datong Shop are both paid for." The man paused and looked at the quilt roll carried behind Zhou Kai. "Your wife is sick, and according to the rules, she cannot stay in Datong." Because of the spread of immune diseases, you can only live in a small single room in the backyard."

Zhou Kai was overjoyed when he first heard that he could spend the night with just one article. When he heard the man's words, his joy disappeared and he asked cautiously: "I wonder what the price of a single room is?" The man had dealt with too many people and knew Zhou Kai's concerns. , then waved his hands and said: "Don't worry, the chicken feather house was originally built by Lady Yan because she was worried that the homeless people in the city would freeze to death. It was not for money. Even a small single room only costs three coins."

Zhou Kai breathed a sigh of relief: "That's good, thank you!"

After collecting the three coins that Zhou Kai took out, the man led him inside.

The layout at the back is very simple, with a passage leading to the back door and rooms on both sides.

This space is narrow and feels much warmer.

Zhou Kai couldn't help but reached out and touched the wall. The earthen wall actually exuded a warm warmth.

"This... is actually warm." He whispered to his wife behind him.

The man leading the way had sharp ears. Not only did he hear it, but he also replied proudly: "Of course it's warm. This is a wall of fire."

"Fire wall?" Zhou Kai was surprised, "Is it the kind of fire wall that a wealthy family would have?"

"That's right!" Men like to see others unaware and surprised.

Zhou Kai found it hard to understand that a place that cost only one penny to live in for one night could use a fire wall. "This is too expensive."

How can they be worthy of common people like them in Guizhou Province?

While he was talking, the door next to him opened with a creak, and a hunched man came out, holding his belt in one hand, as if he was going to the latrine.

Following the crack in the door, Zhou Kai saw that the room was covered with chicken feathers.

Several people were sleeping in boxes covered with chicken feathers, snoring loudly.

"Okay, a lot of chicken feathers." Zhou Kai stammered.

In this era, it was considered good for a family to have two chickens. How had he ever seen such a house full of chicken feathers?

After hearing his uncontrollable emotion, the man who came out with his pants raised his head and smiled, revealing his chipped teeth due to malnutrition: "Otherwise, why is it called the Chicken Feather Room?"

He is dirty, his stench can be smelled from a distance when he smiles, and he has a slippery and cunning look on his body.

"Although chicken feathers stink, but coupled with a wall of fire, they are as warm as a price of money."

The man leading the way waved his hand in front of him: "Come on, you are still talking about others. I should have told you to pay attention to your hygiene. It stinks like nothing."

"The better-paid recruiters in this dirty and smelly city won't pick you first. Are you really going to be a homeless beggar for the rest of your life?"

Men who have retired from the military and are accustomed to the military's health regulations will always scold these dirty and unmotivated men.

The man holding his trousers belt is also a poor talker. Who doesn't know that these fighting men who have retired from the army have the support of the government.

He sneered twice and slid along the wall: "I was just thinking that if I had this last year, my mother wouldn't have froze to death on the street."

The man scolded him: "Even if we had this last year, you wouldn't be able to afford it without Mrs. Yan's subsidy. What do you want to do?"

"Remember to get up early tomorrow morning and go to recruit workers. The heavy snow has destroyed the house and we are in need of labor."

"Got it!" came the man's reply from a distance.

Zhou Kai looked at the strange sight in front of him and their strange conversation, feeling a little dazed for a moment.

(End of this chapter)

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