East 42nd Street, Fu Zuo Mansion.
Old Man Fu looked at the things Lin Sanqi took out of the car and smiled so hard that his eyes became slits.
"I'm so embarrassed! Such a big piece of fat! I haven't eaten meat in a long time. Oh, this is high-quality flour. Okay, with this, we can have dumplings for the New Year."
Lin Sanqi chuckled and took out another large sack:
"Here, old man, there are 50 kilograms of cotton in here. This is cotton cloth. You have a large family, so you can make some new clothes. It's the New Year and you have to celebrate."
Suddenly, Mr. Fu looked at the New Year's goods all over the yard and stood there wiping his tears:
"Little Brother Lin, I really thank you. It's been so many years, and life hasn't been easy for us old people from the previous dynasty. Back then, our house was always crowded with people, but now you see, it's deserted. Only you still remember an old man like me."
Lin Sanqi thought, this is just the beginning, your hard days are still ahead.
In fact, Lin Sanqi liked Old Man Fu very much. He had inquired and found out that although Fu Zuo was a nobleman of the Qing Dynasty, he had never done anything to bully men or women.
Later, when the Japanese occupied North China, he resolutely refused to cooperate with them, which was much better than his emperor brother.
After liberation, he just played music, chess, calligraphy and painting at home. When he had nothing to eat or drink, he would go to the black market at most. Unlike the impoverished nobles of the Qing Dynasty, he never did anything shameful like cheating, eating, drinking, whoring and gambling, and he had a very good reputation among the people.
For example, when Lin Sanqi went on a business trip to the three provinces in southern China, his transportation would have been a big problem if it weren't for the car provided by Old Man Fu, not to mention that the old man also gave him a jade ring that belonged to Emperor Qianlong.
Just because of the old man's generosity, Lin Sanqi is willing to make friends with him and is willing to help him when he is in trouble in the future.
If I hadn't helped him by then, the date of death on his tombstone would probably have been no more than seventy-six years ago.
"Old man, we are close friends, don't be polite. I just happen to have this ability and I will definitely not forget you. But you have to keep this a secret, not even telling my family."
Old Man Fu nodded firmly and agreed:
"Don't worry, little brother Lin. I know how much valuable supplies there are, and I won't tell anyone even if you kill me. Hide these things in the garage first, and I'll take them out one by one later. Now, come to my house and have a drink."
Lin Sanqi had nothing to do, so he planned to visit and see what an authentic royal palace looked like.
Fu Zuo's house is a large house with five courtyards, and there are east and west courtyards on the left and right. It is very large, with dragon carvings and paintings, and the decoration is also very exquisite.
The only drawback is that, except for the central courtyard, which is still cleaned, the east and west courtyards are overgrown with weeds, like a deserted house.
Old Man Fu is an optimistic person. He introduced with a smile:
"Back then, our family had over 200 servants, and it was such a busy place. Now, in this new society, hiring workers is no longer allowed, and all the servants have been sent back to their hometowns. We can't even keep the house clean by ourselves."
At this time, Lin Sanqi really wanted to say, since your family doesn't live there, can you sell me one of the cross-courtyard houses?
Later, he forced himself to hold back. Mr. Fu’s main courtyard and the cross-courtyard are connected. In a few years, they will definitely be arranged in a unified manner, such as becoming an agency or a school.
Even if Mr. Fu is willing to sell one of the courtyards now, it is estimated that they will be confiscated together, and the investment will be wasted.
The two of them walked through the screen wall in the front yard and arrived at the main house, which still had a green glazed tile roof. The main house had a large living room, with two more rooms on each side.
Lin Sanqi couldn't help but sigh that these wealthy families in ancient times were really luxurious and could not be compared with the Xiguan mansions in Huadu at all.
The living room was large but empty, and it was extremely cold because there was no heating equipment. Lin Sanqi was led into Mr. Fu's study.
"Brother Lin, come and have a cup of hot water. This is my warm room. The walls are warm. Now we can't get coal, so we have to use the stove to keep warm. You have to make do with it."
Lin Sanqi looked at the room full of calligraphy and paintings in the study and sighed again:
"Old man, you are in such a refined mood."
Mr. Fu laughed and said proudly:
"There are many paintings and calligraphy by famous artists, and some are treasures from our ancestors. Look at this picture of a standing horse, it was painted by Emperor Xianfeng himself. Of course, there are also some that I drew myself. If my drawings are not good, people will laugh at me."
"You call this a bad painting? Just this calligraphy and painting will be a true antique in a few decades, and thousands of people will be vying to collect it."
"Hahaha, no way..."
Lin Sanqi looked around and found that there were many antiques in the study alone. Those that could appear in the prince's house were definitely not ordinary items. If he could get them, he would definitely make a fortune.
But then I thought it was a pity that this was a pseudo-medical novel and not about antiques. If it were an antique novel, the protagonist would have made a fortune.
However, these antiques, calligraphy and paintings probably won’t belong to the old man anymore.
The two chatted for a while, and Lin Sanqi was ready to leave.
There was a large group of uncles and aunts in the hospital waiting for him to come and give them gifts, so he had to run from house to house and was very busy.
"Old man, I'll leave first. I'll come to see you next time."
"Yes, we have to go. Stay and have dinner before you go."
Old Man Fu had obviously been lonely for a long time. It was rare for him to have someone to talk to, so he was particularly reluctant to see Lin Sanqi leave.
"What are you going to eat? These days, if you go to someone's house to eat, you'll be scolded for not knowing etiquette. Haha, just kidding. If you have any difficulties in the future, come to the Chinese medicine hospital to find me. I will definitely help you if I can."
Mr. Fu became familiar with Lin Sanqi and also knew each other's workplace. Neither side hid anything anymore.
"Oh, right, wait a minute, little brother Lin. Last time, didn't you ask me to properly dispose of some of the family property? Then I thought about it and realized that having too many houses isn't a good thing."
Lin Sanqi was a little confused, but Mr. Fu took out two documents from the drawer:
"This is the land deed, and this is the house deed. This is our house in East Mianhua Hutong. It only has two courtyards. It was used by my father as a concubine. Don't be disgusted. You gave me cotton to survive the winter, and I gave you the house in Mianhua Hutong to live in. This is also a good story, haha."
Lin Sanqi was stunned, thinking that this was a lucky charm.
Were the local tycoons of the previous dynasty so extravagant? They gave away a house as a gift whenever they made a purchase? And it was in East Mianhua Hutong.
Of course Lin Sanqi knew about Dongmianhua Hutong. The Central Academy of Drama was located there. It was a place full of beautiful women and luxury cars on weekends. It was definitely the city center and later became the famous Nanluoguxiang area.
It is just across a main road from Kuanjie Chinese Medicine Hospital.
"Old man, you're not confused, are you? You're just giving this house away? At least you should have given me a price. I'll buy it. How can I accept it if you just give it to me?"
There are many such news on TV, where the elderly give their properties to their nanny or the owner of a fruit beach without the family's consent, and then their children or relatives sue you to get the house back, which is very annoying.
Old Man Fu chuckled and said with a dejected look:
"Don't worry, my family has plenty of houses, and I'm not just giving them to you. I've given away all the other outer houses, and I'll even give away this Prince's Mansion if there's a chance. If you listen to me, I won't keep any of them. If we lose our backers, anyone who keeps them will be a nuisance.
"Brother Lin, let's not talk nonsense. I know you are a capable person and have a legitimate job. This house is given to you. You can keep it and it won't be given away to others. Also, I have a favor to ask of you."
Seeing the old man's seriousness, Lin Sanqi also became serious:
"You say!"
"It's not a big deal, actually. I just want you to give me a meal and lend me some clothes. You're a man of loyalty, so think of it as an investment from me, your elder brother."
"Not really, not really. Your hands are clean of the people's blood. As long as you sacrifice all your wealth, you will definitely be safe in the future."
Old Man Fu smiled bitterly:
"Brother Lin, look at that book on the wall. It's the Twenty-Four Histories, and it's full of cannibalistic history. When the Qin Dynasty fell, how many members of the First Emperor's family survived? When the Han Dynasty fell, they even killed the young emperor. How many members of the royal family could escape?
Not to mention the Tang Dynasty, where members of the royal family were killed one after another by their own people, and were finally wiped out by Huang Chao; the Song Dynasty was even worse. After the country was destroyed, all members of the royal family were arrested, killed, and humiliated. Even the imperial tombs were dug up, and no remains were left.
Let's not talk about the distant past, let's just talk about the Ming Dynasty royal family. After the fall of the Ming Dynasty, many of them died in the peasant army, but in fact, even more were killed by our Qing Dynasty to eliminate future troubles. Prince Zhu San hid among the people until he was 75 years old, and was found by Emperor Kangxi and beheaded.
Look at me, what's my last name? Aixinjueluo. My hands are clean, but my ancestors are not. They are stained with the blood of so many Han people. Now that the Qing Dynasty has fallen and the preferential treatment for royal family members has been abolished, I am afraid too..."
Lin Sanqi scratched his head, wondering what to do. It seemed only natural that descendants should repay their ancestors' debts.
But comfort is still necessary:
"Don't worry, old man. We are now in a new society. In this new society, arresting people is based on evidence. You are just an idle prince who plays with birds and dogs. You won't do that."
Mr. Fu sighed heavily: "I hope so. Anyway, I always have a bad feeling."
Lin Sanqi said cautiously, "Have you ever thought about selling your property and taking your family overseas? Or even closer to Hong Kong."
Mr. Fu glared:
"No, I'm a Chinese. How can I be a second-class citizen in a foreign country? I'm already old and I want to be buried in my own ancestral tomb, with my parents. I won't go anywhere else."
Well, the old man is quite stubborn, so there’s nothing we can do.
"Okay, old man, don't worry. From now on, as long as I have something to eat, I will never let you go hungry. This is my promise to you!" (End of this chapter)
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