Chapter 564: Elegy

"I can't live a good life."

The girl sat on the table in the tavern, wiped the dirt from the corners of her eyes, and relieved her drowsiness by the way.

Obviously, she didn't remember Lu Li and was complaining in a low voice.

Just now, Mr. Holmes invited the young lady to come and sit down, and ordered her a cup of hot coffee and bread and butter.

Ai Song En, a strange name.

"Are you a native?"

Duke asked curiously.

"Yes, sir, Irish East Ender, born in London, bred in London..."

Having said that, Ai Songen's voice gradually disappeared, and she probably didn't know why her life became so bad.

Next to him, through the conversation, Lu Li learned about the basic situation of Ai Songen. She used to live a happy life at home. It wasn't until her parents died in an accident that she realized that she was helpless——

One brother is serving in the army and has been out of touch for a long time. The other brother needs to use a weekly salary of 20 shillings to support his wife and eight children. His work is not decent and he may be laid off at any time.

"In fact, I have only left Foggy City once in my life. I picked fruit for three weeks in Essex on the outskirts of the city, and my whole body became as black as berries."

Probably because she hadn't been able to talk about her thoughts for a long time, after getting acquainted with her, this girl showed a talkative side, talking about the past endlessly.

Mr. Holmes did not interrupt, on the contrary, he liked to listen to the life experiences of the people at the bottom.

This is not done for the purpose of investigating the case, but simply to understand the other side of the city.

"Why don't you try to be a waiter, it will be decent..." Duke sighed and shook his head, which is why he has been reluctant to integrate into this era.

Wudu, a city that devours flesh and blood.

"I used to work in a cafe in the East End. From seven in the morning to eleven in the evening, although the weekly salary was only five shillings, the boss was willing to provide free meals."

Ai Songen answered Duke's question.

There was a flash of light in her eyes, and then dimmed again, "Two weeks ago, I fell ill. After I spent all my savings and came out of the hospital, I couldn't find a job and could only sleep on the street."

Without going into too much detail, Lu Li already knew about Ai Songen's next experience. As he saw now, he was forced to become a wandering warbler.

"This is not a long-term career after all." Lu Li ordered a second meal for her, and said in a deep voice, "What are your plans for the future?"

"You can go to the poorhouse to stay for a while, and slowly find a decent job." Duke said kindly.

"impossible!"

These words seemed to touch Ai Songen's sensitive nerves, and he said loudly: "Even if I starve to death by the side of the road, I will not go to that kind of place."

"Thank you for your kindness, but I won't work in an asylum, and I won't die." She sniffed and fell into a long silence.

"I can introduce you to a job."

At this moment, Holmes spoke up. He decided to save a lost soul, "There is a shortage of kitchen maids in the nearby almshouse, who can provide three meals and a separate room, and the salary may not be ideal..."

"I would."

With little hesitation, Ethon agreed to Holmes' suggestion and kept thanking her.

It seems that she does not resist the poorhouse itself, but is unwilling to become a refugee and support herself, which is her last self-esteem.

Since the few people did not lower their voices and deliberately concealed the content of the conversation, other Liu Ying who were standing at the stairs to attract customers immediately surrounded them.

Unfortunately, they didn't need a proper job, but wanted to drag Lu Li and the others to the small room upstairs. As long as they were not blind, they could tell that the three of them were very rich. The key is that sympathy can be used...

Almost at the same time, the waiter who had received a full tip rushed over with his colleagues to rescue them.

The whole scene was too chaotic, and the guests beside them laughed out loud.

In the end, the boss came forward to quell the farce. After all, the wandering warblers can attract guests indoors, and it depends on each other to take care of them.

"A roasted elbow."

The police officers responsible for secretly protecting Lu Li and the others arrived late, which made the bar fall into silence.

The night shift workers cursed bad luck secretly in their hearts. Some packed the leftover meat and wine and hurriedly opened the door to leave.

To be honest, Lu Li felt that they were right. The management almost had the word incompetence written all over their faces. Too many babies died of malnutrition, too many girls escaped from sweatshops, and too many overworked workers committed suicide by throwing themselves into canals... …

And the management class enjoys good food and wine, and turns a blind eye to the millions of underfed mouths, the millions of poor people who don't even have enough clothes to wear and nowhere to live.

Even the poor are not even qualified to make a sound, so they can only find a corner to die.

"Poverty and greed, the root of all evil..."

After stepping in and gaining a deeper understanding of the dark side of the city, Lu Li thought:

In an era full of weirdness, resentment and obsession can be turned into the power of revenge, and the anger erupted by millions of poor people, can the authorities bear it?

"These are not problems that we can solve. It depends on the joint efforts of Mr. Mayor, Mr. Members, and wealthy businessmen." Holmes sighed, feeling extremely complicated.

"Strive? Try to devise a better plan to oppress the poor."

Duke noticed that his attitude was a bit extreme, shook his head, and simply stopped talking.

For a moment, he wanted to change his position, stand in the perspective of a refugee, and vent his dissatisfaction and anger to the top.

"Let's wait for the news from Officer Wensley first. No matter what, that evil organization that preys on women must be eliminated."

Lu Li raised his head and drank the brandy in the glass, he didn't want to get himself into a deeper entanglement.

The atmosphere gradually became oppressive.

What he saw and heard these days cast a shadow over Lu Li and Duke's minds, and Holmes kept sighing and shaking his head. His personal power was limited, and he could only do his best to eradicate the evil, but he couldn't cut off the source.

"Specially targeting women?"

Ai Songen felt that she should do something for these three kind-hearted gentlemen. In fact, she had already noticed that the three of them must have a special purpose in coming to Whitechapel.

Of course, there are good and bad purposes, and Lu Li and his party are undoubtedly the former.

"That's right."

Lu Li nodded, without making too many associations.

But Ai Songen's following words made the three people in the room instantly refreshed.

"In the early hours of the morning, there were two murders behind the tavern."

Having said that, Ai Songen turned her head subconsciously and looked towards the stairs, worrying that her leaking the secret would lead to retaliation.

You know, warblers often fight for territory, and casualties are inevitable, but no matter how many casualties there are, you can't go to the police station——

Even if the police are unwilling to take the effort to pursue it.