Three days later, the Qin family convoy finally arrived outside Tianjin.
The towering city walls and the constant flow of people coming and going through the city gates are even more spectacular and lively than Shanhaiguan.
Especially among the crowd entering and leaving the city gate, there were many people with very strange appearances and clothing.
Red hair, yellow hair, green eyes... they look like mountain spirits and ghosts that came out of strange stories.
The boys from the Ye family all hid behind their adults and held on to their clothes tightly, fearing that they would be captured and eaten by monsters.
Qingtian was also leaning against the car window at this time, taking in the sight.
Wei Yan supported her and told her the origin of Tianjin Wei, and also asked Qin Hexuan and Ye Changrui to listen along.
Tianjin is located at the lower reaches of the Nine Rivers and is a strategic point between rivers and seas.
Since the city was built in the previous dynasty, it has been a military stronghold, playing an important role in protecting the capital.
However, until the end of the previous dynasty, Tianjin Wei was still just an inconspicuous earthen city.
There were only military generals but no civil officials, only soldiers but no civilians in the city.
Until this dynasty, Tianjin Wei first became the end point of the canal transportation of grain from the south to the north.
In addition to transporting grain, many people also brought specialties and goods from the south to the north, and gradually several spontaneous large markets were formed around the docks.
Merchants from all over the north smelled the scent of making money and all rushed to Tianjin to buy and sell goods.
As a result, various restaurants, teahouses, opera stages, bathhouses and inns came into being.
However, it was not the canal transportation that was the real contributor to Tianjin's prosperity today.
It was because more than a hundred years ago, the Great Qi lifted the maritime ban.
Compared with canal transportation, maritime trade is more risky, but the profits are astonishingly high.
The combination of the two factors has brought about earth-shaking changes in Tianjin compared with the previous dynasty.
These strange-looking people were not monsters, but Westerners who had traveled across the ocean to Da Qi.
No wonder Mrs. Qin said that after arriving in Tianjin, it was convenient to buy anything she wanted.
Here you can buy specialties from almost any place in Da Qi, as well as Western goods. The variety of goods is more complete than in the capital.
The Qin family's convoy only waited for a while and soon entered the city.
After entering the city, the Ye family felt that their eyes were not enough.
Clean and smooth roads, rows of shops, pedestrians huddled on the streets, and the sounds of hawkers clamoring one after another...
Everything was so new and novel, so prosperous and bustling that they had never dreamed of it.
The convoy crossed the street, turned into an alley, and stopped at the door of an inn.
The servant that Li Fu had sent to scout ahead hurried out, bowing to Madam Qin's carriage and saying, "Madam, Young Master, we've booked this inn. The upper rooms are all ready. Madam and Young Master, please go up and rest!"
Although the innkeeper didn't know the Qin family's background, he was very attentive to the guests who were generous enough to book the entire inn.
However, with the arrival of Li Fu, the shopkeeper was no longer able to step forward, and the Qin family's servants directly took over all the chores in the inn.
The upper room, which had been cleaned long ago, was cleaned again carefully by the maids, and all the items on the bed, couch, and table were replaced with those they brought from home.
Li Fu also specially asked someone to clean up two suites on the second floor.
One room is for Wei Yan to live in, and the small hall outside can be used as a study to continue teaching the children.
The other room is the best-lit room in the entire inn, and is specially reserved for Ye Ersao to mend her skirt.
On the other hand, the situation was much simpler for the Ye family. Under the command of Old Mrs. Ye, each family divided up several ordinary guest rooms on the east side of the first floor.
Seeing that it was almost noon, Mrs. Ye was thinking about making lunch, so she went to ask the innkeeper: "Hello, where is the kitchen of our inn?"
The shopkeeper mistook Ye Jia for a servant of the Qin family, and without asking any questions, he led her to the kitchen.
"We have a chef, two kitchen assistants, and several cooks in the kitchen.
“You can cook for yourself if you want, or you can ask them to do it.
“Our chef went to the south to learn his craft, so he knows how to cook both northern and southern dishes.
"So even though our inn is located in a remote area, thanks to our chef's excellent cooking skills, we can still attract quite a few customers."
When Mrs. Ye heard this, she immediately felt a little inferior. She stopped and said, "So there's a chef? Then let the chef prepare lunch."
"Okay, just hold it!" The shopkeeper was quite confident in his chef's skills and patted his chest to guarantee, "I guarantee your wife and young master will be satisfied."
Mrs. Ye nodded randomly and went back to her room.
Seeing this, Boss Ye asked curiously, "Didn't you say you were going to cook? Do you want me to help?"
"No, there are several people in the kitchen of the inn, so there is no need for me to do it."
Seeing that she looked a little strange, Brother Ye took her hand and said, "I feel so distressed seeing you cooking for so many people these days.
"It's just right that someone has done it now, you can finally take a few days off.
"We can just follow the Qin family and take advantage of their success!"
Mrs. Ye's mood improved a lot after hearing what he said. She nodded and said, "Why are you so talkative all of a sudden? I feel much better after hearing what you said."
It was the first time for the Ye family to stay in an inn. After entering the room, everyone couldn't help but look around, and everything they saw was new and interesting.
Guo looked at the tall and spacious room, touched the soft bedding on the bed, her eyes full of envy.
"The rooms on the first floor are already so nice. I wonder what the rooms upstairs where Madam Qin and the others live will be like."
"If you want to know, just go upstairs and find your second sister-in-law." Ye Laosi had just returned from outside and was much more informed than Guo.
"What?" Mrs. Guo was stunned when she heard this. "Second sister-in-law lives upstairs?"
"Housekeeper Li prepared a room upstairs for my second sister-in-law, saying that the light was good, and asked her to do needlework there."
Guo could no longer sit still. She jumped up as if her butt was on fire and ran upstairs.
She had just gone upstairs and passed by Wei Yan's door when she suddenly heard Wei Yan's voice coming from inside the house: "What the hell is this for lunch today? It's so disgusting!"
After he finished speaking, he slammed his chopsticks on the table and said unhappily, "Put them all away. I don't want to eat anymore."
When Mrs. Guo heard this, her eyebrows almost flew up with joy.
If she hadn't been afraid of being known to be eavesdropping, she would have wanted to laugh out loud.
She knew that her sister-in-law's cooking skills would only be praised a few times in the village, and there was no way she could possibly be praised even by the nobles in the capital.
The Qin family and Mr. Wei must have never eaten it before, so they just found it new.
Now that the novelty has worn off, she is nothing!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
