Chapter 152: Master Ding

Li Shun and Liu Yin later saw that the eldest brother was really persistent, and because the eldest sister-in-law's work was settled, they agreed.

Seeing the in-laws wearing patched clothes and broken cloth shoes, personally coming to apologize, they were very moved, and only then did they recognize this in-law relationship from the bottom of their hearts.

Li Shun was also an honest man, saying to the in-laws that Yafang was your daughter when she was at your house, and if she made a mistake, you should educate her. Now that she has married into the Li family, it is my fault for not living with the Li family, and I will take good care of the child in the future.

Both families' elders scolded the two for being ignorant in front of the eldest sister-in-law and eldest brother.

Every month thereafter, Li Shun would call the eldest brother to send grain. Seeing that it was given by the in-laws, only then did the eldest sister-in-law's father accept it.

But the Zhao family in-laws always thought about the good of the in-laws in the city, and the two honest families interacted very harmoniously.

Li Xuewu rode swaying to the barbershop at the old road entrance. Before he even entered the room, he saw a queue of more than a dozen people. Damn, he wouldn't be able to finish his haircut until 12 o'clock.

He turned his head and left the barbershop, rode his bike, and hurried to the shaving stall by the road.

This trade of shaving and scraping faces had existed since ancient times and reached its peak in the Qing Dynasty, where all kinds of comfortable ways were developed.

There was a 60- or 70-year-old master here who couldn't work in a barbershop and could only carry his old stall to shave and scrape faces on the street.

The neighborhood office saw that he was old, and it was better for him to earn his own living expenses than for the public to support him, so they didn't bother him. If it were anyone else, he would have been dealt with long ago.

Li Xuewu was forced to have no other choice. He came to the stall and saw a middle-aged man in his 40s or 50s sitting on a stool getting his face shaved.

The master shaving the face saw Li Xuewu coming and asked, "Comrade, are you getting a haircut?"

Li Xuewu nodded and said, "The barbershop queue is almost to the road."

Before the master shaving the face could speak, the middle-aged man said, "Heh! Young man, you have an eye for it. See that?"

As he spoke, he pointed to himself and said, "The first time I went to see my parents-in-law, Master Zeng helped me shave my head. Master Zeng is an old master in this area."

Li Xuewu had lived half his life and never dared to underestimate old people, so he hurriedly said politely, "Thank you for your hard work."

"Sword Comes"

The master shaving the face was especially polite, talking to Li Xuewu while his hands didn't stop, lifting the hot towel, constantly scraping across the man's face, and after scraping, covering it with the hot towel, lifting the other side to continue scraping.

"Young man, wait a moment, Master Ding will be done here soon."

The middle-aged man was covered by the hot towel, but he still chattered: "Hi, there are no 'masters' anymore, they are all comrades. You, you still can't change your habit. When I was young, you went to my house to shave, and now I come out of my house to your place to shave. This is change."

Li Xuewu listened to this story of two people. Thinking about it, it was normal. For the age of these two, going back, it was the Republic of China, or even the late Qing Dynasty.

Master Zeng smiled embarrassedly and said, "Young man, don't mind it. I'm old, and my mouth is not good at calling people."

Li Xuewu smiled and said, "You are polite, it's just a form of address, nothing to care about."

During the conversation, the face of the middle-aged man surnamed Ding was shaved. Master Zeng wiped his face with a towel and helped him stand up.

"My spirits are high this morning, so I won't sleep. I'll come over in the afternoon next time."

Seeing the middle-aged man surnamed Ding stand up, Li Xuewu saw Master Ding's appearance clearly.

About 1.7 meters tall, square face, eight-character mustache, eyes very spirited, standing there with hands naturally hanging down, but as if ready to move at any time, he had an imposing manner.

Li Xuewu felt the pressure of this person's imposing manner and naturally became nervous, frowning, his hand naturally placed near the holster at his waist.

This Li Xuewu came from the battlefield, and the evil spirit on his body was particularly strong, and it hadn't dissipated after being transferred home for so long.

This evil spirit was felt by Master Ding, and even Master Zeng stood quietly, not daring to make a sound.

Master Ding was old, and the imposing manner on his body was controlled freely. He clasped his hands and performed a Han salute, saying in his mouth: "Little brother has a strong physique and great courage, not an ordinary person."

Li Xuewu didn't know how to return the salute, so he stretched out his right hand awkwardly and said, "I'm really sorry, I just came back, excuse me."

Seeing Li Xuewu reach out, Master Ding was stunned for a moment, then smiled and reached out his right hand to shake Li Xuewu's, saying: "You are good material for practicing martial arts. What is your surname? If you have time, you can come to the courtyard at No. 23 in this alley, and let's communicate."

At this time, Master Zeng smiled and introduced: "Master Ding is from a martial arts family. Old Master Ding opened a martial arts gym in the city."

Li Xuewu said politely: "My surname is Li, and I live in the courtyard at No. 95 in that alley. It's a fortune to meet a master of national martial arts today."

Master Ding waved his hand and said: "It's all old history from many years ago, don't mention it. I have something to do at home, so I'll go back first. Comrade Li, go sit when you have time, Master Zeng, see you again."

Li Xuewu and Master Zeng sent Master Ding away. Master Zeng served Li Xuewu to sit in the chair, wrapped a cloth around him, and didn't ask what hairstyle he wanted, touched his skull, and began to cut his hair with scissors.

The craftsmen in the early days were like this, not asking you what style you wanted, and the guests were accustomed to it, because no matter how rich your knowledge was, it was not as good as those who did this line every day, so few people went to the barber to ask for what hairstyle they wanted. This was the same as not being able to go to the tofu shop to say you wanted a "Pikachu" shaped tofu.

"Don't look at Master Ding dressing ordinarily now, speaking politely, in the early years he was a leader in this city of 49, going out with people in front and behind, and there were more than a dozen servants in Zhili to serve him. There were four or five courtyards in his family alone. In those years, his father was very mixed in the road, and his disciples and grandchildren were all bodyguards for foreigners, and there were countless filial piety every year."

Li Xuewu listened to this and knew it was something that happened in that chaotic era, a young dandy, fresh clothes and angry horses, a flamboyant age, very normal.

Master Zeng cut the left side and then the right side, saying: "Later the sky changed, his father was frightened and fell ill. This Master Ding was the only son in the family, but he was also a ruthless person. He scattered his wealth, drove away maids and servants, sold family property, donated what should be donated, and the courtyard your neighborhood office uses now was donated by the Ding family, as was the police station. Now only a five-entry courtyard is left, which his father bought from the powerful during the civil strife for hundreds of yellow fish."

Li Xuewu knew there was a "Crown of the East City" nearby, but didn't expect it to be in Master Ding's hands now.

"Weren't these houses divided up early? Why are they still intact in his hands?"

Master Zeng finished cutting his hair and used a scraper to scrape the hair on both sides and the fluff on his neck, his hands didn't stop, and he replied: "He donated a lot in those years, so he couldn't kill them all. In those years, his wife and children went abroad for medical treatment with his father and never came back. He was alone like a wild ghost. Now he is also a person of such age, who can do anything to him?" ===== CHAPTER 153 =====