It turns out that this lane was called Lushi Lane, and it was lined with brothels and bookstores.
This isn’t a weird combination either.
But it was the custom of the Northern Song Dynasty.
In fact, from a legal perspective, the Northern Song Dynasty had certain legal prohibitions against this industry, mainly to prevent women of good character from being forced into prostitution, and there were also certain restrictions on officials.
It has been a thousand years since the Qi State. The rulers are also very clear that this thing cannot be completely banned, so why bother to turn a blind eye to it? They can only give appropriate regulations.
In addition, the Northern Song Dynasty was a commercial society and was very prosperous in this aspect.
As for why bookstores were mixed with brothels and theaters, one of the main reasons was that the current literati liked this, and literati were the main consumers in today's society.
A typical example is the Straw Lane outside Zhuangyuan Building.
This Zhuangyuan Building is where the candidates from all over the country live, but outside the building is a very famous fireworks place in the capital.
Most of the brothels, big and small, in Bianjing were built in places where many literati frequented.
Lushi Lane was the largest bookstore street in Bianjing, and it was located outside Xiangguo Temple, with a large flow of people. It was very reasonable for brothels to appear here.
All I can say is that Zhang Fei is making a fuss out of nothing and has never seen the world.
He had indeed never seen this world before.
Without these brothels and whorehouses, it would not be considered an upscale area. For example, there are no brothels in Slaughterhouse Alley because there are only butchers there.
Since it is what literati like, if you want to serve them, you have to cater to their preferences. As a result, all the famous geishas in the Northern Song Dynasty were talented and their literary skills were not inferior to men. They were sought after. Many ladies from wealthy families, such as Xu Zhiqian, also made friends with these geishas.
This is why Xu Zhiqian did not attract too many sidelong glances when walking in this place of fireworks.
On the contrary, Zhang Fei felt a little embarrassed at first, but seeing that Xu Zhiqian was frank, he gradually relaxed and began to look around, trying out the options first to see which one was better in case of future need.
Halfway through the walk, the scent of rouge gradually dissipated, replaced by the scent of ink.
Zhang Fei looked up, but saw a row of bookstores in front of him. There were four treasures of the study, ancient musical instruments, calligraphy and paintings, so dazzling that passers-by were overwhelmed.
Many talented scholars and literati were also seen wandering around the shops, reluctant to leave.
"Look, if there's a sign with the word 'zhuang' written on it, that's the store you're looking for."
Xu Zhiqian pointed forward.
This kind of bookstore is equivalent to a law firm, and its full name is "Law Writing Bookstore".
Zhang Fei looked up, counted for a while, and said, "It seems there are only seven or eight, not many!"
Xu Zhiqian said: "This is already a lot. Because shops like this are all opened by tea and snack people. They have very close relations with the government, and they are more standardized than your spies."
"Yeah?"
Zhang Fei asked: "What's the difference?"
Xu Zhiqian said, "Take the official documents approved by the government for example. The official document approved to you is only approved to you personally. But if you want to open this kind of bookstore, you must apply for another official document. This official document is approved for the bookstore. Every bookstore must record it in the case, and it must also be reviewed by the government every three years."
“I didn’t expect it to be so standardized.”
Zhang Fei nodded thoughtfully.
This is actually the difference between a law firm and a lawyer. You have to pass an exam to get a lawyer's license, but having a lawyer's license does not mean you can open a law firm. It still has to undergo multiple government reviews and you can't just open one whenever you want.
You have to be qualified.
The same is true for tea eaters, because tea eaters generally serve as supplements to government offices, and their petitions can help government offices save a lot of work.
To understand the case, it is enough to just look at the complaint they wrote. There is no need to send someone to investigate, because the person who reports the case is responsible for the complaint. If there is a problem with the complaint, the person who reports the case will also be implicated. The person who reports the case does not need to be implicated, so generally speaking, they dare not write anything wrong.
This can help the government save a lot of public funds. You know, the current government finances are in a mess, so they have to save wherever they can.
Since the requirements are so strict, of course there will be less.
So, I still have to apply for an official document to open a law firm. Oh my god. Zhang Fei had a headache and asked, "Does that mean that the ear writer must also find a living in this bookstore?"
Xu Zhiqian said: "People with outstanding ear and pen abilities can work in these bookstores, but most of them are in the alley over there."
As he spoke, he pointed to a small alley not far away. This alley had a special name, Erbi Hutong.
Zhang Fei glanced at the alley. It was so narrow that only a small stall could be set up, and it was impossible to open a shop. He said, "In fact, we, the ear pens, can also write petitions and defend ourselves in court. Why is there such a big difference in status?"
Xu Zhiqian explained: "The tea eaters have close ties with the government. If it is just to write a petition, the wealthy families are more willing to find a tea eater. The ear pen people need to go to court to defend themselves in order to make more money. This also leads to the government not liking the ear pen people. Many ear pen people still have to find tea eaters to write petitions to fight lawsuits."
"I see!"
Zhang Fei nodded thoughtfully.
Tea and snack people help the government solve problems, which the masters of course like. However, earphone and pen people will cause more trouble for the government. If there is a lawsuit, the government will have to deal with more troubles, which the masters of course don't like very much.
This led to some cases where the informants had to borrow the names of these big bookstores, knock on the door of the government in their names, and then file a lawsuit.
Over time, many powerful spies were directly recruited by these large bookstores.
It can be seen that these large bookstores are monopolistic in nature.
As they were chatting, Zhang Fei and Xu Zhiqian came to the alley. As expected, there were more than ten stalls inside. Almost all the stall owners had a short pen stuck on the brim of their hats. However, business didn't seem to be very good, and many people were dozing off.
"Young man, do you want to write a petition?"
An ear pen man came forward and asked enthusiastically.
Zhang Fei asked: "How much?"
The man with the pen said, "That depends on what kind of lawsuit you are fighting. If it is just an ordinary dispute over money and the amount is not large, it will only cost one hundred coins. If it is more expensive, it will cost more money. If you need our help to go to court, it will cost one or two strings of coins."
According to the current market conditions, a petition from a bookstore costs about 180 wen, while it is much cheaper for an espionage writer because they bear less responsibility.
you get what you pay for.
Zhang Fei frowned and said, "It's just this little!"
The ear pen man had a very quick mind. When he heard what Zhang Fei said, he immediately became suspicious, "Young man, you are not here to write a petition, are you?"
Zhang Fei smiled and said, "We are in the same business. I also plan to open a stall here."
The man with the pen suddenly changed his expression and said, "Young man, as a senior, I have to advise you that you are still young and should change your career. This job is not easy! Look at them, they are all dozing off."
Zhang Fei laughed and said, "Don't try to deceive me. In our business, we can make a living for three years if we don't open a business for three years. Don't let us catch any of you."
"Three years?"
The man who was listening to the pen rolled his eyes, too lazy to pay attention to Zhang Fei, and turned back to his stall.
This complaint costs one hundred cents a piece. You have to eat it for three years and let me see what happens.
You are incompetent, okay? Zhang Fei curled his lips in disdain, turned around, and said to Xu Zhiqian behind him: "Why don't we find a place to sit first."
Xu Zhiqian said: "Why don't you go to the bookstore?"
Zhang Fei shook his head.
I have to say, I felt a little disappointed. He had little money and a low status, and his upper limit was even lower. The best he could do was just that, and he couldn't even catch up with the upper class.
Xu Zhiqian did not force him and took Zhang Fei to Xiangguo Temple, where they found a relatively secluded tea stall to sit down.
"You come here often?"
After sitting down, Zhang Fei asked casually.
Xu Zhiqian pretended not to hear and just said, "Have you made up your mind, to open a stall yourself or to gain some experience in a bookstore first. If you plan to do it yourself, I can lend you some money to get by. If you plan to go to a bookstore, I can also introduce you to someone else."
She did not forget the purpose of bringing Zhang Fei here.
"Thank you for your kindness, Madam Xu." Zhang Fei shook his head and said, "But I don't want to do what you said."
Xu Zhiqian frowned slightly: "You don't want to do it?"
Zhang Fei nodded and said, "If you go to work in a bookstore, you might as well agree to go to the Dali Temple with your father."
Xu Zhiqian was immediately surprised and said, "My father wanted you to enter the Dali Temple, and... and you refused?"
Zhang Fei hummed: "You should believe this. In fact, I don't want to live in your house forever."
Xu Zhiqian said to herself, "It seems that Dad has grown old and can't even tell the difference between a gentleman and a villain."
This woman really holds a grudge! Zhang Fei didn't care and smiled, "As for setting up a stall outside, it's not impossible, but you can see that there are so many people staying there, it's not easy to do business, and good wine will not be popular if it is not well known."
He wanted to start a business, but the reality was that bookstores monopolized everything. If he went it alone, he would have to appeal through the bookstores, which meant he was controlled by others. Opening a bookstore would be even more troublesome.
Xu Zhiqian glanced at him suspiciously, feeling a little puzzled.
Any normal person would definitely choose to go to the Dali Temple first, or at least the bookstore. But this guy didn't choose any of them, and instead thought of setting up a stall in the alley.
"Madam Xu."
Suddenly, someone shouted softly.
Zhang Fei tilted his head to look, and saw an old lady carrying a vegetable basket standing three steps away, looking at Xu Zhiqian with her head tilted.
"It's Aunt Cao."
Xu Zhiqian stood up immediately.
"It's really Madam Xu. I was afraid I recognized the wrong person."
Seeing that she had recognized the right person, Aunt Cao hurried forward and took out two large melons from the basket and handed them to Xu Zhiqian, "Mrs. Xu, these melons are grown in my family and are very sweet."
"Really?" Xu Zhiqian asked with a smile, "I wonder how much this melon costs?"
Zhang Fei, who was standing aside, saw Xu Zhiqian smiling like a flower and thought, so this woman can laugh. Does that mean she is just targeting me
Aunt Cao immediately became anxious: "How can I take Madam Xu's money? If Madam Xu hadn't taught us some laws, my melon field would have been taken away by Mr. Huang."
Xu Zhiqian smiled and nodded, "Okay, I'll take it. Thank you, Auntie."
The attendant immediately stepped forward and took the two melons.
"No thanks! No thanks!" Madam Cao waved her hands and added, "After a while, my new wine will be brewed. I will send some to Madam Xu then."
Xu Zhiqian smiled and nodded, saying, "Zhiqian thanks you in advance."
"No thanks! No thanks!"
Aunt Cao waved her hands repeatedly, glanced at Zhang Fei, and said, "Okay, I'll go sell the melons first and won't bother Madam Xu anymore."
"Take care, ma'am."
As soon as Aunt Cao left, Xu Zhiqian immediately winked at Qingmei.
Qingmei chased after him immediately.
Xu Zhiqian sat down, and suddenly saw Zhang Fei staring at her. She frowned and asked, "Why are you looking at me like that?"
"ah?"
Zhang Fei was startled, then smiled and said, "I just didn't expect that Madam Xu often teaches these villagers about the law."
Xu Zhiqian said: "Is this strange? My father used to teach them legal knowledge."
"Yeah?"
"Um."
Xu Zhiqian nodded: "They don't have the money to hire you, the people of the ear. If you can understand some laws, you can protect yourself in many situations."
It turned out that when she was a child, Xu Zun was in a period of rise and was often transferred to various places to serve as an official. She followed him. Xu Zun hated the big landlords who exploited the people, but the reality was that there were many things he could do nothing about. Therefore, whenever he had free time, he would go to the countryside to personally teach the people legal knowledge, so that they would know how to protect themselves and avoid being deceived.
Xu Zhiqian was influenced by everything and also learned legal knowledge from Xu Zun. Later, when her father was not available, she went to take his place.
This is also the reason why Xu Zun did not take Xu Zhiqian to Dengzhou this time. It was because Xu Zhiqian had reached the age to get married, and Xu Zun felt that he could no longer take his daughter around. However, Xu Zhiqian was not idle either, and still insisted on explaining legal knowledge to the surrounding people.
After a while, Xu Zhiqian saw that this guy was silent and silent, and asked with a flash of eyes, "What evil idea are you planning?"
"I'm fighting....!"
Zhang Fei was startled, coughed, and asked, "Can you protect yourself in many situations? Isn't what Madam Xu said a bit exaggerated?"
Xu Zhiqian sighed softly: "It's better than not knowing anything at all."
"Not much different?"
Zhang Fei smiled and shook his head, saying, "May I ask Madam Xu, who do villagers like them usually have disputes with?"
Xu Zhiqian said: "Most of them are with the big landlords."
"That's it."
Zhang Fei said: "I dare not say anything else, but I can say a few words about the law. Knowing some laws and being proficient in laws are not the same thing. Those big landowners can hire people who are proficient in laws to plunder more land for them. Your approach can only give them extremely limited protection, which can be almost ignored."
Seeing that he was talking so logically and belittling her efforts, Xu Zhiqian snorted, "Then according to you, how can we protect them?"
Zhang Fei smiled and said, "If there is a handsome, young, promising, law-abiding, and righteous Ear Pen person protecting them, wouldn't it be better than for them to learn the law themselves?"