Chapter 79: Ren Family Town
Chapter 79: Ren Family Town
Without worrying about how the guards split their money, Liam quietly observed the county town as he walked through it. The town was quite bustling, with numerous street vendors hawking their wares on the main street, and dozens of shops lining the thoroughfare. Some stores even sold matches and kerosene, which were considered foreign novelties.
Given that this was a relatively remote county town, people dressed like Liam were not common. As he strolled down the street, he attracted a fair amount of attention from the locals. Liam could even hear them gossiping.
"Whose young master is this? I've never seen him before."
"Look at him, just a fake foreigner, acting all high and mighty."
"But he's really rich. Look at the fabric of his clothes; it must have cost several silver dollars."
...
Liam didn't want to stand on the street and be gawked at like an exhibit, so after a quick tour, he entered the largest restaurant on the main street.
The waiter greeted Liam warmly and escorted him to a private room upstairs. Since it was just after dinner and not a typical mealtime, Liam placed five or six Silver Sikka on the table and instructed the waiter, "Go and bring me a pot of tea, the best you have, and four kinds of tea snacks. If you tell me some interesting stories about the area, this silver is yours."
"Sure thing, young master. Please wait."
The waiter bowed happily and left.
After the waiter departed, Liam began to examine the room's decor. The furnishings were antique and elegant, with large pieces of solid wood furniture that were finely crafted. It seemed that these traditional crafts had not been forgotten in this era.
However, as the largest restaurant in the county town, the private room still reflected some modern touches. For example, there was a hot water bottle in the corner, and an old phonograph on a table. Of course, "old" was relative to Liam's time; in this era, these items were the height of fashion.
Since the county town likely didn't have electricity, a candlestick was placed on the cabinet instead of a kerosene lamp (after all, a kerosene smell during a meal at a high-end restaurant would be quite unappealing). In larger cities, electric lights were probably already in use, but this small county town hadn't caught up yet. The lack of infrastructure and the absence of a power plant were significant factors.
After about fifteen minutes, the waiter returned with a tray. In the center of the tray was a porcelain teapot and a teacup, surrounded by four small plates.
"This is the latest Liuan Melon Seed Tea from this spring, a private stock kept by the owner. It's brewed with the best local spring water. The four snacks are Lotus Flower Pastry, Osmanthus Cake, Almond Tofu, and Osmanthus Victory Cake. Please enjoy, young master."
Liam nodded in approval and tossed the Silver Sikka to the waiter. He then asked, "Are there any interesting stories around here? I love hearing them, and I'll give you more if you tell me something good."
Due to modern living standards, twelve-year-old Liam looked like he was fourteen or fifteen, and he could already handle responsibilities in this era. Additionally, his Mandarin accent was close to the Beijing dialect. The waiter, mistaking Liam for a high-ranking official from the capital, bowed and said while stuffing the silver into his pocket:
"If you're looking for interesting stories, you've come to the right person..."
As he spoke, the waiter reached into his pocket to feel the silver coins. With years of experience in serving guests, he could tell that these coins were genuine and even purer than the silver dollars he had seen before.
Spurred by the money, the waiter eagerly recounted a few rumors, true or not, mostly about someone's wife having an affair or a man being dragged out of a brothel by his shrewish wife and beaten black and blue.
Liam had little interest in such gossip, so he interrupted the waiter, saying, "I want to know about any unusual people or events around here, not these trivial matters."
The waiter lightly slapped his own face. "Look at me, talking nonsense. Young Master is a refined person and naturally wouldn't want to hear such sordid things. But speaking of unusual people and events, there is something. There's a Ren Family Town nearby, where a Master Lin is said to be able to exorcise demons and catch ghosts. He's been invited to our County Town by wealthy families a few times, so I know about him."
This must be the world of Mr. Zombies, or perhaps the world of a series of zombie stories. No wonder it felt like a world dominated by the dark and the eerie on the way here.
To confirm, Liam asked the waiter for more details about Ren Family Town.
It turns out that Ren Family Town is thirty miles away and was originally called Prosperous Town, a name that hints at the many wealthy residents. Over the years, the Ren family has been the wealthiest in the town, so after the founding of the Republic, it was renamed Ren Family Town.
At this point, the waiter added, "The Ren family's young miss seems to have studied abroad. She recently passed through County Town wearing Western clothes and riding a horse."
It seems this is indeed the world of Mr. Zombies. Liam took out a few Sickle coins and gave them to the waiter, asking him to find a carriage to Ren Family Town and wait downstairs. The waiter took the money with a broad smile and left.
After finishing his tea and snacks, Liam went downstairs and boarded the carriage. The carriage headed north along the dirt road. Thanks to his Western attire, he passed through several checkpoints without any trouble.
An hour later, the carriage arrived at Ren Family Town. It was indeed a bustling town, with what looked like over ten thousand residents.
After getting off the carriage, Liam asked a street vendor for information about Master Lin. The Taoist priest was indeed a local celebrity, and the first vendor he encountered, who made sugar paintings, knew a lot about Master Lin.
After Liam bought a few sugar paintings and gave them to the children playing on the street, the vendor was more than happy to share everything he knew.
For example, everyone called Master Lin Uncle Kiu, and he lived in a mortuary outside the town.
The Taoist priest had two disciples: one was the nephew of the owner of a cosmetics shop in town, and the other was older and more mature.
Uncle Kiu was a very upright and good person, but he was also quite frugal. He always wore old robes and even bought meat in small quantities, never more than half a pound at a time.
"Hong Kong Zombie Films, what a legend, and this is where the legend begins", Liam thought to himself.
Although this plot had been overused in countless traversal novels, experiencing it firsthand still filled Liam with immense excitement.
After all, for a man who was a 90s kid in his past life, Uncle Ying's zombie films were an indelible part of his childhood.
After confirming that the story had not yet begun, Liam, munching on one of the sugar paintings, strolled through the ancient and picturesque streets.
After a thorough exploration, Liam headed out of town, ready to meet Uncle Kiu, the protagonist of this world.
(End of Chapter)
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