Late Qing Dynasty Executioner

Chapter 4 Prices
You can see the Yangtze River as soon as you exit the Daxi Gate.

The surging river flows eastward. Jiangjin is located in the middle and upper reaches of the Yangtze River. The river water here in winter is not surging at all. Not only is it only thirty to fifty meters wide, the water surface is also very clear.

After leaving the pier, Liu Er walked straight into the path on the left and soon arrived at a thatched hut.

Inside the straw hut, a man dressed in yamen runner's clothes was saying something, and in front of him were two fishermen who were still listening attentively with their sleeves and trouser legs rolled up in the middle of winter.

There was a straw mat covering the ground. Judging from the bulging shape of the mat, there should be a corpse underneath.

"Sour scholar!" Liu Er shouted as he walked into the straw hut.

The man in the yamen runner's uniform glanced at Liu Er, then at Chen Gu, and said, "Here we are, hurry up and finish the job."

Chen Gu bowed to the Suan Xiucai, who looked to be in his 40s or 50s. Although he was very thin, he was about 1.7 meters tall, which was a rare height among ordinary people in that era.

Whether you want to grow tall or strong, you need to eat, which means you need to absorb enough nutrients.

Could he really be a scholar? Then why was he wearing the clothes of a government official?
Liu Er pointed at the straw mat on the ground and said to Chen Gu, "Go and see for yourself. Tell me what you saw after you're done."

After Chen Gu finished speaking, he put down the straw mat and stood up.

The other type is local bodies. After they are fished out and placed in the charity cemetery, the county will issue an official document to the various townships below to see if there are any missing persons in the family, and the family members will come to the charity cemetery to claim them.

The sour scholar waved his hand to the two fishermen and said, "Take it to the charity cemetery and keep it there. Ask old man Wang to report it and issue an official document!"

"Yes!" The two honest fishermen answered with joy on their faces, then wrapped the body with a straw mat, one lifted the head and the other lifted the feet, and ran away carrying the body.

The sour scholar looked at Chen Kui in surprise and said to Liu Er with a smile: "Your apprentice is quite good!"

The deceased's clothes were made of good fabric, which showed that his family was well-off and could afford to give him money.

One is the corpse from other places. There is nothing much to say about this. In order not to pollute the environment and water sources, the government gives forty cents for each corpse.

"It's okay!" A smile appeared on Liu Er's lips. The reason why he brought Chen Gu to see the corpse was because of the four words "horrible face". Chen Gu was qualified as he was not scared, and he could say so much, which earned face for him.

"A man, about thirty years old, not hard, not smelly, not swollen, probably died not long ago. His face is hideous, probably died a violent death. His clothes are made of good fabric, probably from a wealthy family, that's all!"

The amount of money usually starts at one or two taels of silver, and the specific amount depends on the individual. After the money is collected, the charity cemetery, the coroner, the corpse retriever, and the superiors can all share the benefits.

After Liu Er pondered for a moment, he gave a brief explanation.

Fishermen along the river usually work part-time as corpse retrievers, and the corpses they retrieve can be divided into two types.

"Why are they so happy?" Chen Gu couldn't help but ask.

Generally, family members have to pay a sum of money to claim the body.

Chen Gu raised his eyebrows, walked over, squatted down and lifted the straw mat.

If the family members continue to pursue the murderer, the entire government office will get a share of the benefits, especially if the murderer can be caught, then the benefits will be even greater.

After Liu Er finished speaking, he threw two coins to Chen Gu and said, "Run quickly, go back and get the gourd, buy some stewed food, and get a pot of wine."

This is to drink two cups with the sour scholar, Chen Gu took the money and ran back. Liu Er usually doesn't drink, and I don't know why he would treat me today and be willing to give two silver coins.

The two silver coins given by Liu Er are called Jiaqing Treasures. One is equal to one penny of silver, which is one hundred copper coins. They weigh about five grams. Of course, they are not made of pure silver, but their purchasing power is indeed one hundred copper coins.

Because it was the first batch of silver coins minted domestically, it was exquisitely made and had a considerable silver content, so it was well recognized by the public.

Chen Gu quickly ran back home, took the wine gourd, put on a backpack, and ran to the main street.

It has been a week since Chen Gui came into this world, but he has never been out on the street. Every day he just goes to a few wealthy families to collect wood in the morning and delivers the firewood back in the evening.

This was Chen Gu’s first time shopping, so naturally he had to take this opportunity to get to know the world’s market conditions. After all, if he didn’t understand the market conditions, how could he make money!
Chen Gu first arrived at the tavern. The sign read "Longjingshan Distillery". Inside was a proprietress who was in her twenties and still had a charming look.

"What kind of wine would you like, young man?" The proprietress looked at Chen Gu, then looked at the wine gourd in Chen Gu's hand, and asked with a smile.

"What kind of wine do you have here?"

"There are so many. We have yellow wine, rice wine, glutinous rice wine, Huadiao wine, and white wine. Which one do you want to drink, young man?" the proprietress introduced.

"What are the prices?" Chen Gu said with a smile, "Shopkeeper, please introduce them to me!"

Seeing the lady boss rolling her eyes, Chen Gu couldn't help but say, "I'm Liu Er's apprentice, don't lie to me!"

"Liu Er!" A trace of disappointment flashed in the proprietress's eyes, and she stretched out her hand and said, "Give me the wine gourd!"

Chen Gu was stunned and handed over the wine gourd. The proprietress took the wine gourd and walked straight to a large vat. She lifted the wooden board, hooked two grapes with a bamboo basket, and poured them into the wine gourd with a funnel.

"Forty cents is a discount!" said the proprietress as she handed the wine gourd back to Chen Gu.

Chen Gu couldn't help but curl his lips. After taking the wine gourd, he took out the silver coins and paid the money.

It was a really bad start. I just found out that a pound of strong liquor costs 20 cents.

Chen Gu cursed inwardly, and walked away with his wine gourd in his hand with a sour look on his face, intending to go to the dry goods store to have a look and learn about the market prices of oil, salt, sauce, vinegar and tea.

Coming out of the dry goods store, Chen's backpack was filled with half a pound of dried chilies worth ten cents, a pound of dried shrimps worth forty cents, a pound of dried mushrooms also worth forty cents, and two pounds of dried kelp worth twenty cents.

The last three items were bought by Chen Gu with his own money. On the first day, Liu Er threw the dime to Chen Gu at the door, but Liu Er did not take it back.

Afterwards, Chen Guanyou went to the vegetable market. He bought a pound of pork belly for 40 wen, a whole black tripe weighing three pounds for 40 wen, and a big carp weighing three pounds for 50 wen. With the remaining 30 wen, Chen Guanyou bought some vegetarian dishes such as lotus roots, potatoes, cabbage, and tofu.

When Chen Gu returned home, Liu Er's face was dark. He looked at the basket on Chen Gu's back and asked in a deep voice, "I asked you to buy some braised dishes. Why did you buy so many things?"

The sour scholar looked at the master and disciple with a strange expression.

"How much can you buy with just two silver coins? Why are you in such a hurry after just having dinner?" Chen Gu put down his backpack and said, "Wait, I'll make hot pot for you. I guarantee you'll enjoy it!"

　I am looking for investment, collection, recommendation, monthly ticket and reward for my new book.

　　Thank you all for your support!
　　Everyone please collect it. There are more people investing than collecting. What do you mean?

　　
　
(End of this chapter)