Dreaming Back to the 90s to Help My Dad Chase Away Rivals (BL)

Chapter 102: My Suzhou Little Official

Translator: dapotaturs

Release Date: 04/01/2024

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Chapter 102: My Suzhou Little Official

The Suzhou River, Shanghai's mother river, is officially named "Wusong River." From Wujiang in Suzhou, it flows eastward, passing through Kunshan, Jiading, and finally flows into the Huangpu River.

There are a total of thirty-one bridges on the Suzhou River, and the Waibaidu Bridge is its final stop.

In 1856, the foreigner Wells built the "Wells Bridge" on the river. Foreigners and foreign vehicles were allowed to cross the bridge for free, while Chinese people had to pay taxes per capita. After a struggle by Chinese compatriots, in 1876, Wells built a wooden bridge near the original floating bridge for people to cross for free. Because it was free, it was called the "Waibaidu Bridge." In the 32nd year of Emperor Guangxu's reign, the concessionary Works Bureau built another steel bridge on the river, which is still in use today, known as the famous "Waibaidu Bridge." (Note 1)

After crossing the Waibaidu Bridge, the Suzhou River merges into the Huangpu River, and from there, the river flows into the sea, spanning thousands of miles.

If the Suzhou River is the mother of the people of Shanghai, then the Huangpu River is their soul, and the bridges on the Suzhou River, whether made of wood, stone, or steel, are fortresses in the hearts of the people of Shanghai, guarding their homeland.

Zhao Jingwen, who had been away from home for five years, finally returned to the fortress he had longed for.

But the price was heavy—his father was gone.

Zhao Jingwen's family lived near the Changshou Road Bridge on the Suzhou River in Changle Fang. Before the appearance of the Workers' New Village, apart from the mansions where the wealthy lived, ordinary Shanghainese lived in the so-called "alley neighborhoods."

Among the residential conditions, the most "rough" would be the "nong," which is the so-called shantytown. In the early years, when the Huai River flooded, people from the riverside used small boats and sampans to escape. They fled to the Suzhou River Bay in Shanghai, where the river water slowed down, so they settled there.

There was no talk of any urban planning here. People just built houses with their own wooden boards, grabbing as much space as they could. If they couldn't compete with others, they would make do with what they had. Initially, most of the people living here were manual laborers—those who emptied chamber pots, pulled carts, and carried heavy loads at the Sixteen Piers Dock...

The most numerous are the "li ," similar to Beijing's "hutongs." No one can say exactly how many "li" there are in Shanghai—Jiande Li, Mingde Li, Longchang Li... Thousands upon thousands, scattered like stars on a chessboard. Those who live here are also mostly lower-class people—small tailors, clerks, and street vendors. Or perhaps, before liberation, there were dancers, brokers, and informants. The old movie 《Street Angels》 starred Zhao Dan and Zhou Xuan, who lived in a "li." The roads between the "li" are narrow, only bicycles and carts can enter.

A slightly higher level is the "fang," such as the Huaihai Fang on Huaihai Road and the Tianzi Fang on Daming Bridge. The houses were larger, and in the early years, some even had servants' quarters. Cars can enter between the buildings, and most of the residents are middle-class or higher.

A step up from that is the "cun," although the name sounds like it's from the countryside, it's quite different. These are all standalone old Western-style houses, and row houses within the city, which later became protected buildings and celebrity residences.