Volume 1 - Chapter 2.1
For Fabian, the second day at South Port was the most enjoyable holiday he had ever had.
To a man with leisure time, South Port was definitely a heaven.
In the early morning, the harbor was a beautiful sight that could not be missed. At that time, the boats had yet to dock and the harbor workers had yet to appear. Most people on the piers, either walking, standing or sitting there, were not so rich but not poor either. They wouldn't miss this kind of free enjoyment at South Port, neither did Fabian.
The harbor was bustling in the morning.
There were many stalls selling fresh fish and shrimps.
The market was crowded with servants of rich families, ordinary housewives and restaurants' chefs, who were bargaining with the vendors.
When the sun rose and the workers showed up, the crowds on the piers dispersed.
Then it was the busiest time of a day for South Port. The stores were open and the restaurants were ready for their first customers in a day.
The breakfast in South Port wasn't expensive. Fabian counted the money in his pocket: it was quite enough for him to seek some pleasures besides the stagecoach fares back to Leila.
Thinking of that, Fabian went to a restaurant near the pier immediately.
The meal was definitely a top delicacy, for Fabian rarely had a chance to eat seafood.
After enjoying the meal, Fabian was going to glut his eyes with something interesting.
South Port had plenty of things to enjoy without spending a single penny.
Walking along the streets was one of them, but it was too early to do it before noon, when the streets became hustling and bustling.
There was another amusement in the morning – Fabian had learned from flyers given to him by a little boy on the street that several largest local silk stores were holding music and dance shows.
Fabian heard from the old man that silk stores held such shows regularly; they had pretty girls, dressed in luxurious silk, singing and dancing on the stage.
The performances were so-so, but the fancy silk clothes were really worth seeing.
A shows were free, the audience even got small gifts sometimes.
Fabian wouldn't n miss such a fun.
He spent whole morning watching the shows.
He was quite delighted though he didn't get any gifts.
After a casual lunch, the real fun at South Port was just about to begin.
Fabian had only focused on the young clerk yesterday, for he had to find a suitable boy.
He had no need to worry about his mission today.
It would be a pity to ignore those fancy goods in South Port that were rarely seen elsewhere.
These goods came from distant continents, from overseas countries; they were first gathered here and then were dispersed to different cities. South Port was the only city where you could see them all at one place.
Fabian spent more than half a day rambling here and there. He visited almost every stores on the busiest streets in South Port.
When the evening came, Fabian had someone point him to a place near the harbor.
That was a must-have in every big city.
There were shouts and cries from a narrow alley, and prostitutes in the garments and makeup were everywhere.
Fabian was extremely familiar with such a place.
He was not here for sex. The old man had told him it was easy to get disease with no cure at South Port.
He was coming for the casinos.
For a man who relied on his fingers, gambling was just a easy trick.
Fabian liked to roll the dice, it was quick, and he was quite confident with his skill. After all, he was the foreman of “gold fingers”.
In the casino, Fabian was specifically looking for those who were from overseas with strange clothes. They didn’t gamble too much, but they always made him win.
When he came out from a casino, his pockets were full with more money.
Fabian thought, it’s quite profitable to do this in South Port.
Perhaps after split and moving to South Port, he wouldn’t do the old buisiness. It would be easier to trick those foreigners’ money.
Leaving a casino didn’t mean Fabian was going to stop. He went into another.
When he came out of the alley, it was already late at night.
With the money in his pocket, Fabian did not prepare to return to the old hotel.
He found a decent one near the pier.
This hotel was much more expensive, but Fabian didn’t care about this little bit of money now.
After spending a little money in exchange for a very satisfactory enjoyment, Fabian went back to his room to rest.
The happy holiday was over.
When Fabian woke up the next day, he knew it was time to get back to work.
After breakfast, he went to the store.
When he passed a store that specialized in toys, he entered and buy a small bag of crystal glass beads with one silver coin.
He had seen little kids from rich families played with these stuff. When he was a boy, he could only play with mud balls.
Fabian thought, “This bag of glass beads can be considered as a wish come true.”
After arriving the store, Fabian walked in directly.
There were few customers inside. The boy was hanging a blanket up to the wall. The hunchbacked vice manager was staring at the boy.
Fabian was afraid to be discovered, so he dared not act rashly, pretending to look at the expensive goods.
After a while, several customers came in, looked like they were storeping for something.
The vice manager hurriedly went forward to greet the guest, the boy was helping him.
Fabian seized the opportunity. He took three glass beads out of pocket, quickly but carefully tucking them under a porcelain plate, then walked out of the store.
The next thing to do was waitting. Although he knew this was a stupid idea because he couldn’t guarantee when the expensive porcelain plate would fall down and the unfortunate one would be that boy or not, it’s still the best idea he could find.
Waiting was really nothing for golden fingers, for they often waited a long time for a chance.
Fabian sat down on a bench by the diagonal flowerbed.
Time had passed slowly, and Fabian was still staring at the store.
At South Port, if you had money in pocket, you would never feel bored even just sitting still. A couple of vendors walked past occasionally, pushing carts full of various goods.
A variety of goods were available, including those for eating as well as for playing.
Fabian took out a few silver coins and got a pile of killing-time gadgets and a handful of copper coins back.
As for food, Fabian never stopped eating till his stomach couldn’t bear it anymore.
As time went on, the sun rose above his head, and the crowds on the streets grew more.
The golden hours for the store had come.
Suddenly, Fabian heard a “bang bang bang” sound from the store. He knew the glass beads had finally worked.