There was nothing to do on this day, Du Zhongxiao took Shisanlang and a few entourages to Xiangyang County to take a look at the newly opened private shopping malls here.

In the city of Xiangyang, most of the yamen are in the south of the city, and the newly opened shopping malls are in the north of the city. There were several acres of vegetable plots, which were bought by these merchants and tooth people and built into a shopping mall. At this time, of course, the shopping mall did not have the shadow of the department store of later generations, but only built sheds on flat ground and divided into many areas.

Du Zhongxiao and his entourage did not go through the main entrance, but entered the mall through a small side door. As soon as I entered the mall, I saw many people squatting on both sides of the road, with a few things in front of them, each shouting for sale. There are those who sell vegetables, those who sell eggs, those who sell live chickens and ducks, and of course, those who sell fish, shrimp and crabs.

Du Zhongxiao felt strange, walked forward, saw that the river shrimp sold by the family was fat, and asked, "How much is this shrimp?" ”

Set up a stall and said: "The guest officer has a good eye!" This shrimp is freshly caught from the river and is the freshest! If you use it to make drunken shrimp, the entrance is delicious and rare and delicious! I don't have a false price here, fifty dollars, take it all! ”

Du Zhongxiao looked at the half bucket in front of him and said, "My family doesn't have a large population, how can I eat so much?" ”

The man scratched his head: "How can this be handled?" I didn't weigh it, so I can't sell it separately. Guest officer, fifty wen didn't have much money, so I bought it all! ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "I can't eat it." In this way, I will count you three pennies for one penny, and thirty for you, and I will give you thirty pennies. ”

It's also convenient to calculate in this way, the shrimp seller counted thirty shrimps, wrapped them in a lotus leaf, and handed them to Du Zhongxiao.

Du Zhongxiao handed over the shrimp to Shisanlang, paid the money, and asked casually, "Isn't this a newly opened shopping mall?" How do you sell shrimp here? Could it be that they are also people in the mall? ”

The man waved his hand repeatedly: "No, no. Those of us rented a shopping mall and gave them a few pennies to sell some goods here. This mall is run by the people of the city, and it is not worth selling live animals, so we will set up a stall. ”

Du Zhongxiao nodded, understanding what was going on for a while. The tooth people are the operators of the previous business, they control the market, determine the price of goods, can make the seller of goods not make a penny, can also let them return with a full load, and are the masters of the shopping mall. Turning over the hands for the clouds, covering the hands for the rain, I don't know how many means. These fresh goods are difficult for the mall to do business, so they set aside a special space and rent it to hawkers. It not only collects rent, but also improves the variety of goods in the shopping mall. Needless to ask, in addition to fresh poultry and livestock, some other businesses that are difficult for them to do for a while are just afraid that they are all handled like this. As long as there is a place and a flow of passengers, are you worried about not being able to find someone to sell here?

Du Zhongxiao said goodbye to the shrimp sellers, and looked all the way over, this area is full of vendors who set up stalls like this, or there are some people who grow vegetables and raise chickens. The scene was messy, like the vegetable market outside, and the smell was a little unpleasant.

After walking a short distance, I saw that several sheds had been built in the open space in front of me, and there were people selling food there.

The shopping malls in Fancheng have eating and drinking areas, with a small number of sheds, most of which are shops. The mall collects their rent, and at the same time cleans up the garbage and manages the sanitation. There is no service at all, and there is no management here, just a place to come out, and you can do business here after paying the money.

Du Zhongxiao said: "I'm just hungry, let's go over and buy a bowl of soup to eat." ”

Thirteen Lang said: "Tiju, this place looks pickled on the ground, how can you eat it?" Why don't we go outside, find a restaurant, and buy some to eat. There's no one to take care of here, so who knows what's in the pot over there? ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "It's okay, let's go over and have a look." If you can't eat it, it's not too late to go out and eat again. ”

As he spoke, he reached the front of the shed.

The first one is to sell all kinds of river fresh, the most nearby, the price is cheap, two pots are placed on the stove, and they are all fried on a hot fire. This practice is still implemented by Du Zhongxiao, and because of the simplicity and ease of production, there are many food stalls that do so.

There are a few large wooden barrels next to the stove, and the fish and shrimp in them are fresh.

Du Zhongxiao was ordering a fish to eat, and Thirteen Lang said: "Tiju, look at the pot they use over there, one is done, and the brush is not brushed, so they will make the next one, how do you have an appetite?" We have bought shrimp and will go back and eat shrimp in the evening. ”

Du Zhongxiao smiled, bypassed this house, and went to the next shed.

The soup in the pot is full of aroma, and the boiled mutton is piled on the table, thinly sliced into thin slices. On the other side is chopped coriander and chopped green onions, which are green and lovely. There is a dough cake next to it, so you can soak it inside and eat it.

Du Zhongxiao said: "The soup here looks clean, and the utensils are clean, so let's drink a bowl of broth." Fill your stomach and go back in the evening. ”

Thirteen Lang looked really clean, nodded and said, "It's good to drink soup." Two bowls of broth, you can last a day. ”

Several people found a table to sit down, Du Zhongxiao and Shisanlang sat at a table, and the others sat at a table.

The little guy came over, and Du Zhongxiao said: "Let's have a bowl of broth and add more meat." A few loaves of bread for each of them, and I don't want them. ”

The little servant said: "Guest officer, we only drink soup here, which is a bowl of five cents." If you add meat, you can add 10 yuan, 15 yuan, and 20 or 30 yuan. The more expensive the meat, the more meat you have, you can add as much soup as you like, and the bread is free to eat. ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "Okay, then each person will have a bowl of thirty Wen." Since it came out, why be stingy! ”

As soon as he heard that he wanted the most expensive, the little guy agreed, and happily went quickly.

After a while, the soup came up, and Du Zhongxiao saw that it was a big sea bowl, and most of the bowl of cooked meat in it was really affordable. There is a layer of green onions and coriander floating on it, which is very refreshing to look at.

Picking up the chopsticks, Du Zhongxiao ate a few pieces of meat and praised: "Good, good, this soup is fragrant, the meat is soft, it's really good." ”

Thirteen Lang grabbed a few large pieces of meat, chewed and nodded: "What the official said is that there is good soup and good meat here!" ”

As soon as the words fell, I heard a crisp voice next to me: "Daddy, look at those people eating meat!" ”

Du Zhongxiao followed the sound and looked over, only to see a young couple in their twenties drinking soup, and a five or six-year-old child sitting next to them, looking at them with a blank eye. The child's eyes were clear, and when he saw himself looking at him, he lowered his head in embarrassment.

Du Zhongxiao was in a good mood, and called the little maid to come and said, "The family over there, send a bowl of soup for 30 yuan, count me as invited." By the way, with this bowl of soup, they will be free of money if they drink soup and eat cakes, right? ”

The little guy looked at the family, it didn't seem to be able to eat much, and nodded: "What the official said is true." ”

After bringing the soup, the man was taken aback and hurriedly asked the little guy what was going on. I heard that Du Zhongxiao invited it, so I hurriedly pulled the child over to thank him.

Du Zhongxiao said: "It's not worth anything. If it's not enough, you can just add soup and eat cakes, and if you have meat, you don't need money, and you can eat all the time. By the way, are you from the neighborhood? Visiting the mall here? ”

The man said: "Huiguan, the youngest is from Yanshi County, Henan Prefecture, and because of his difficult family background, he went to Jinghu South Road to join his relatives. A relative of mine lives in Dingzhou, and when he heard that there was a shortage of manpower, he brought his children to join him. ”

Du Zhongxiao nodded.

The family thanked them and went back to eat meat and drink soup. The two mouthfuls picked out the meat, ate it as much as the child could, and took two breads and soaked them themselves.

As the train arrived in Gangneung Province, many people who were unhappy in the Central Plains went south one after another. There are already a lot of field workers on Jingxi Road, and now they don't recruit people casually, and most of them have entered Jinghu Road. This railway started a boom in the development of the two lakes.

With the influx of population, it is inevitable that the immigrants will clash with the original local barbarians, causing some small troubles. Jinghu Road has dealt with the barbarian rebellion for many years, and with the support of railway materials, it is easy to deal with it.

This is similar to the development of the western United States in later generations, attracted by the land, one after another into the undeveloped areas. The difference between production customs and culture will naturally cause a backlash from the indigenous people. However, the Song Dynasty was dominated by Zhao'an, while the Americans carried out genocide.

The developed land was not a colony, but an expanded territory, linked to the original territory. Whether it was the development of Jinghu in the Song Dynasty or the development of the western part of the United States, it was a process of effective territorial expansion, which was completely different from that of the colonies.

After development, it will become a part of the country and be integrated into the country. Its commerce is part of the national market, not a place of raw material supply and dumping. Only then will this expanded territory become part of the state. On the contrary, the colonies, for the most fundamental purpose of development, would eventually become independent even if the population was the same as that of the main ethnic group.