An extraordinary life journey through old Beijing courtyard houses

Aunt Jiang interjected, "Whether he can learn it or not, there's a teacher to teach him. Is that something you should worry about?"

After a long back-and-forth, Jiang Baobin still didn't give in.

But the Chiang family didn't take his opinion too seriously—can a small arm twist a big leg?

As Jiang Baobin walked out, he was thinking about whether he could take advantage of the apprenticeship opportunity to leave this family.

As I passed by my younger sister, I saw that she looked very concerned.

Jiang Baobin felt a warmth in his heart; life wasn't all cold, calculating calculations, there was still warmth.

Jiang Baobin smiled at her and strode away. With everything laid out, he felt relieved.

Surprisingly, after the "tinder" was lit, the smoke was not much, and it smelled quite nice.

The effect was quite remarkable—mosquitoes fled, and my ears were instantly quiet.

For the first time since his transmigration, Jiang Baobin slept soundly for the first time in ages.

Is this a good omen? Jiang Baobin tried to reassure himself.

The next day, my younger sister brought me breakfast.

"Brother, Dad wants you to be an apprentice, why don't you want to? Is there something wrong with it?"

My younger sister hadn't forgotten about this; she asked about it as soon as she came in.

Jiang Baobin smiled brightly—this younger sister actually cares about him so much, that's wonderful, he must treat her well from now on.

There was nothing to hide, so Jiang Baobin shared all his concerns.

The younger sister was very worried, fearing that he wouldn't be able to get past his parents.

Jiang Baobin just smiled; there were some things he couldn't tell her right now.

Jiang Baobin went to the newsstand at Beixinqiao first. He didn't buy the map; he had to say hello to the people there, he couldn't be a person who broke his promise.

The newsstand owner didn't say anything harsh to him.

Even though this shameless guy continued to sneak a peek at the newspaper, he didn't get impatient.

The principle of harmony brings wealth, no matter the circumstances, especially for someone of Jiang Baobin's age.

Who knows what he's thinking? What if he puts a sack over your head tonight? So it's best not to offend him if you can avoid it.

After reading the newspaper, he followed his memory of yesterday and arrived at "Xitao Hutong".

He knocked on the door and took a step back.

"Who is it?" a clear voice came from inside.

Jiang Baobin was overjoyed; the young lady was at home, which was a good omen.

"It's me, I've come to buy matchlock."

"How many?"

"Two, two are enough."

Of course, I can't buy too much, otherwise I won't have an excuse to meet you again next time.

A short while later, "Liu Yifei" came out—this time without a straw hat.

Wearing simple blue cloth trousers and a jacket, he looked dashing and heroic.

Liu Yifei handed the iron box in her right hand to Jiang Baobin; it already contained several copper coins.

With a clang, Jiang Baobin subconsciously tossed the money for the fire rope into the box.

Almost simultaneously, two fire ropes were stuffed into his hands.

Before Jiang Baobin could react, the girl had already gone inside.

The guy stood there, stunned, still savoring the fleeting glimpse he'd just caught.

Beauty is justice. Although the girl was indifferent to him, Jiang Baobin still felt that he was beautiful.

This guy stumbled back to Nanluoguxiang, his steps uneven.

All the way, he only had one thing on his mind—how to win over "Liu Yifei".

A man?

Some say all men are lecherous, either they already are, or they're on their way to becoming lecherous.

Despite Jiang Baobin's vivid imagination, he actually has very little experience.

I must have been a single dog in my past life.

In his simple mind: to pick up girls, especially pretty girls, the first thing you need is money.

Beautiful women are a rare commodity; you can't win them over without paying a high price.

So here's the question—how can you make money, and make a lot of money, in the fastest way possible?

"Robbery"? No way, with my small frame, I'd be lucky if I didn't get robbed.

"Scamming and cheating" won't work either, not only because I have no experience, but more importantly, I'm completely clueless about this area.

What if you try to steal a chicken but end up losing the rice instead? You might get beaten to a pulp.

I thought and thought, but couldn't figure it out.

Jiang Baobin took out the second-hand "Beiping map".

His gaze moved slowly, finally settling on a place name, and his eyes lit up...

At noon, while Jiang's mother went out to deliver lunch, Jiang Baobin began rummaging through drawers and cabinets.

These are the two camphor wood chests that He Yuzhu opened yesterday.

Don't overthink it. There are no valuables like gold or silver treasures inside, otherwise they wouldn't be kept in this room.

They were just decent clothes, including suits, Zhongshan suits, and leather shoes.

After much deliberation, Jiang Baobin finally selected only one suit, one Zhongshan suit, and two pairs of leather shoes.

It wasn't because he was picky, but because he was quite tall, and most of his clothes were too small for him.

This thing unceremoniously claimed it for itself—why keep it hidden away, that's such a waste, let it serve me first.

As for the fact that they are all second-hand goods, no one knows who wore them before, and they haven't even been washed.

I can't worry about anything else, making money is the most important thing.

After that, he rented a "storage point" near "Jiaodaokou" and stored his belongings there.

At that time, there were many "lodging points" in the city, which were also department stores, hotels and restaurants.

Moreover, the price was cheap: a package cost 2 copper coins for a day and a night, and a large suitcase only cost 4 copper coins.

Jiang Baobin chose a hostel.

Clothes make the man, and a saddle makes the horse. After putting on a suit and leather shoes, a person immediately looks a hundred times more energetic.

Why is it so complicated? Of course, it's because Jiang Baobin doesn't want to expose himself too early.

Otherwise, why would I show up at No. 95 Courtyard dressed so smartly? Who knows what kind of trouble that might cause?

After making some inquiries, Jiang Baobin finally arrived at the legendary bus stop.

It's actually just a round iron sign, about 30 centimeters in diameter.

Below are the names of the first and last stations: "Qianmen ←→ Jiaodaokou".

The name of this website is inside the circle.

Below the sign was a cast iron pole painted dark red.

After a long wait, a red and yellow Dodge T110 finally arrived.

After painfully paying 10 copper coins, Jiang Baobin staggered to the "front door".

Wow! The crowds are huge! This place is much more lively than Nanluoguxiang.

Qianmen is a common name; its official name is "Zhengyangmen," and its original name was "Lizhengmen."

To the west is "Dashilan", and to the east is "Qianmen East Street".

Jiang Baobin walked less than 200 meters eastward, relying on his memory.

The two-story building of the "American Consulate" suddenly appeared before our eyes.

"Can I help you?"

A dozen or so guys dressed similarly to Jiang Baobin, looking quite respectable, had already gathered here.

Whenever a blond, blue-eyed "foreign devil" came out of the gate, they would swarm around him and ask him this question.

Wow! My proud English skills finally have a chance to be put to good use.

Quite coincidentally, from junior high to high school, all of Jiang Baobin's homeroom teachers were English teachers...