🔊 TTS Settings
chapter 26
Inside the City
Chang’an City
Chang’an City was a massive planned city.
A wide road starting from the Zhuque Gate in the northern center of the city stretched straight to the southern end, called Zhuque Avenue.
Based on Zhuque Avenue, the city was divided into the Left City (Zuocheng) to the east and the Right City (Youcheng) to the west, each containing fifty-four wards (fang).
Yanghui Menwei of the Chang’an City Administration led Danye to the Bosen Ward in the Right City.
“This is Bosen Ward. From now on, you will stay here. You probably don’t know anything yet, so I’ll assign you a residence. If you want a better house later, you can earn money and move.”
“Yes…”
Danye looked around curiously.
Bosen Ward was a village surrounded by walls about seven feet (roughly two meters) high.
“The gates of Bosen Ward open at the drum beat [jigu] announcing the morning, and close at the bell toll [dingduo] announcing night. This applies not only to Bosen Ward but to all the gates in the city, so be careful.”
“Morning and evening?”
“The drum is struck five times around Mao hour (5 a.m.), and the bell is struck five times around Hai hour (9 p.m.).”
The times might vary slightly depending on the season or emergencies, but generally, the drum and bell were struck five times at the set times.
“And if the gate is closed?”
“If you happen to be caught by the Xunji Officers while wandering the city, you’ll be imprisoned. If caught by the Ward Chief (Fangzheng), you’ll get scolded. Xunji Officers are officials, but the Ward Chief is a resident. In any case, entering before the gate closes is good for your longevity. Now, shall we go find your lodging?”
Yanghui Menwei led Danye to the outskirts of Bosen Ward.
When they arrived at a shabby house, he called out to the owner, and an old man appeared.
After a brief conversation, Yanghui Menwei gestured for Danye to approach and introduced him to the old man.
“This is the elder. Danye is my niece’s son on my mother’s side. Please take care of him. Danye, this is the master of the house where you’ll be staying. Show him respect.”
The old man nodded at Danye with a smile.
“I’m Danye. Nice to meet you.”
“Hoho, welcome. If Yang introduced you, you must be reliable. Follow me; I’ll show you your room.”
As the old man turned to lead the way, Yanghui Menwei gestured for Danye to go ahead.
“You’ll sleep here from today. Handle breakfast and dinner yourself. Lunch will be provided by the shop, so no worries there.”
Danye nodded and followed the old man.
The small room was cramped and smelled musty, but Danye barely noticed. His mind was filled with thoughts of reuniting with Bai Yuhua from the Administration Office.
Shortly after, Yanghui Menwei led Danye outside Bosen Ward.
“Now, the place you’ll be going to is Posi Ward in the Right City (Youcheng).”
“Right City?”
“The eastern market area is the Left City, and the western market area is the Right City. You’ll learn more about the rest later. For now, just remember Posi Ward.”
“Is Posi Ward similar to Bosen Ward?”
“Yes, but if you think it’s like Bosen Ward, you’re in for a shock.”
As they walked north along Zhuque Avenue, Yanghui Menwei turned west.
Soon, they entered a bustling street lined with extravagant buildings.
Danye’s mouth fell open. Never before had he seen so many goods spread out along the street, nor such a diverse crowd.
Not only Han Chinese, but also Turks, Tibetans, Sogdians, Persians, Arabs, and Indians…
The women passing by were all beautiful, and music floated down from tall pavilions: pipa, gonghu (a type of harp), wind instruments, flutes, drums—sounds Danye had never heard before.
Seeing Danye’s astonishment, Yanghui Menwei patted his shoulder.
“Posi Ward is very different from Bosen Ward, isn’t it?”
“Extremely…”
“Posi Ward attracts goods and people from all over the world. The area is called the Western Market (Xishi), with over forty thousand shops.”
“Forty thousand? In Posi Ward?”
“Posi Ward is just part of Xishi. There are also many other wards: Boin Ward, Jianfu Ward, Daxing Ward, Jincheng Ward, Bolong Ward, and more.”
“I see…”
“You will work in Posi Ward.”
“Uh, Elder Yang, are the people who previously left the Administration Office scattered in the Western Market as well?”
Curious about Bai Yuhua, Danye phrased the question carefully.
“Those who left? Yes, they’re spread out across various shops but will soon be reassigned to shops in the Western Market. Why, do you want to meet someone?”
“No, I just thought I might run into them while working.”
“Unless you’re doing the same type of work, that won’t happen.”
“What kind of work will I do?”
“First, learn the trade at the Yang family cloth shop.”
“A cloth shop?”
“If you’re skilled, you might later transfer to an inn, which is more profitable. You earn extra money attending to drunken customers. Cloth shops don’t offer that kind of opportunity…”
Yanghui Menwei glanced at Danye’s face. The shop he would work at belonged to his relative, who was known to be stingy.
“Oh, yes…”
Not knowing what Bai Yuhua did for work, Danye accepted this for now.
Soon, they stopped in front of a cloth shop.
“This is it. Wait here for a moment.”
Yanghui Menwei entered the shop and returned with a middle-aged man with a goat beard.
“Danye, this is Elder Yang Bu, owner of the Yang family cloth shop. Call him ‘Master Yang’. Master Yang, this is Danye I mentioned. He’s a bit naive, so please guide him.”
“Master Yang, I’m Danye.”
“Good, welcome. Work hard, and good days will come. Elder Yang will now teach you the trade, so you may leave.”
“Understood. I’ll take care of him. If any trouble arises, contact me anytime.”
After exchanging a glance with Yang Bu, Yanghui Menwei departed, leaving Danye alone.
Feeling awkward, Danye looked around as Yang Bu said:
“Follow me.”
Danye politely followed him inside the shop.
Yang Bu patiently taught Danye the cloth trade. At first, Danye learned quickly, but when tasks got more complex, his naive nature showed.
Unlike regular cloth shops, Yang’s shop handled a wide variety of goods.
While ordinary shops mostly sold cotton, Yang’s sold dyed fabrics, five-colored fabrics, silk, crepe, gauze, brocade, and more.
Additionally, they imported Persian silk, woolen cloth, and even made clothing for sale. They also sold embroidered fabrics, lace, scented fabrics, mixed silk-cotton fabrics, imported silk with Western patterns…
There were endless types, lengths, and prices to memorize.
Seeing no progress despite repeated teaching, Yang Bu eventually gave Danye a simple task: attracting customers.
“Understood? If someone who looks wealthy passes by, what do you do?”
“Invite them into the shop.”
“Correct. It’s not hard. You can’t distinguish fabrics or set prices yet, right? That’s okay. But if you cut the silk wrong, you’ll owe more than your monthly wage. Your wage is 200 coins; one bolt of silk is 800 coins. Trembling while cutting silk? Better bring customers instead.”
Yang Bu described attracting customers as if it were an effortless job.
“I’ll bring them in.”
Danye preferred this simpler task to learning complicated work. Above all, he didn’t want to stay with Master Yang, who was strict and constantly scolded him.
“Go out. Don’t come back until lunchtime. Don’t wander off elsewhere while working. If you’re not in front of the shop, Elder Yang will have you brought back.”
“Yes.”
Although Danye was irritated by the threat, he showed no emotion. He planned to follow instructions blindly, as everything seemed overwhelming.
Around Lunchtime
Feeling hungry, Danye returned to the shop.
Yang Bu glanced at him.
“Follow the left street a bit, and you’ll see Xiangmanlu. Tell them I sent you, and they’ll serve food. Go eat.”
“Yes.”
Danye bowed and hurried out.
Walking down the left street, he reached a food alley filled with restaurants and food stalls.
Seeing the restaurants reminded him of Ha Yongyue from the Administration Office.
‘Would Ha Yongyue work at a stall like this?’
‘What kind of work would he do here?’
Lost in these thoughts, he spotted the sign Xiangmanlu.
“Wow! It’s far.”
Although Master Yang said “a bit,” it had taken about fifteen minutes to walk there.
Seeing Xiangmanlu, his mouth watered, and he quickly walked inside.
Inside, a shop assistant rushed over:
“Welcome! Please sit. What would you like?”
Overwhelmed by the rapid speech, Danye blinked in confusion.
“You… uh… from the Yang family cloth shop…”
“Oh! Sent by Master Yang? Understood. I’ll bring it right away.”
The assistant quickly disappeared into the kitchen.
‘I didn’t even ask for this…’
Danye looked around at the food on other tables, making his mouth water again.
Soon, the assistant returned, placing a bowl of noodles in front of him.
“What is this?”
“Warm noodles (onmyeon).”
“For me?”
“Yes. The Yang family cloth shop always sends one bowl of warm noodles. If you want more or other dishes, you pay extra. Would you like anything else?”
“No.”
With no coins to spare, Danye shook his head.
Apparently, Master Yang had already arranged a fixed dish.
He picked up his chopsticks and began eating. The ingredients were plentiful, and it was far tastier than the mushy noodles he had at the training camp.
Hungry as he was, the seasoning was perfect, and he finished the bowl completely.
Even after drinking every drop of soup, he was still somewhat hungry. But without money, he had to leave.
Sighing at his hunger, Danye left Xiangmanlu.
‘Once I get my monthly wage, I can eat to my heart’s content.’
The thought of going a whole month hungry made him sigh again.
