The court lackeys of the eight-hour workday

Chapter 507 Storytelling
On the 27th day of the third month of the 26th year of the Jiajing reign.

Qilu, Laizhou Prefecture.

Inside a private room on the second floor of a tavern on the street, Wu Mingxiao ate the food absentmindedly, clearly hungry but unable to concentrate on eating.

Dozens of miles to the northeast lies Dengzhou Garrison, which he has been longing for.

He never imagined that the journey would be so smooth.

Since the incident with Dayan Hall, I haven't encountered any trouble. There have been no problems with the Japanese chasing me, the Dayan Hall's aftermath, or any other unpleasant things you might encounter while traveling the martial arts world.

Even the several established outlaw groves and territories of demonic sects that they passed through were peaceful and quiet; they didn't encounter a single villain. When they passed the gates of these sects, the gates were always tightly shut, and not even the crowing of a rooster could be heard.

It's as if... all the people from these sects have disappeared.

Thinking of this, Wu Mingxiao turned his head and glanced at it without making a sound.

Zhao Ying was sitting opposite him, coldly rocking the child in her arms. Behind her, Li Miao was sitting on the window frame facing the street, casually holding a wine pot in one hand and tucking the other hand into his pocket, listening to the storyteller outside with his eyes half-closed.

Wu Mingxiao pursed his lips.

He's young and inexperienced, but not stupid.

Leaving aside the fact that Li Miao's martial arts skills were inexplicably high and his background was unclear, he would disappear for a few days every now and then along the way, saying he had something to do. When he returned, Zhao Ying would be unusually silent for a few days, not even daring to meet Li Miao's gaze.

Thinking back to the strange situations of the demonic and outlaw sects along the way, and the faint smell of blood that drifted into his nose on the mountain breeze after the matter of the Dayan Hall was settled that day... Wu Mingxiao felt like he had a fishbone stuck in his throat.

Should I ask?
Zhao Ying, who was standing next to him, glanced at him without saying a word.

After hesitating for a while, Wu Mingxiao finally decided to speak.

If he were alone, he naturally wouldn't ask, as it would seem as if he were doubting Brother Li. But he was about to arrive at Dengzhou Garrison and meet the Vice Commissioner... Regardless of his identity, he had to find out Li Miao's purpose first.

"Brother Li, I have something to say."

Wu Mingxiao stood up.

Li Miao waved his hand without turning his head, pointed out the window, and then said nothing more.

Wu Mingxiao was puzzled, but he knew that Li Miao wouldn't make such a statement without reason, so he walked to Li Miao's side and peeked out.

The streets were bustling with people, vendors hawked their wares, and a storyteller on the street seemed to be getting excited, his face flushed and spittle flying from his mouth. As for the other places—Wu Mingxiao glanced around but couldn't figure out what Li Miao had shown him.

"plum--"

Before he could finish speaking, Wu Mingxiao froze.

Outside the window, on the street, the storyteller suddenly stood up, grabbed the gavel, and slammed it on the table three times in a row. Not satisfied with that, he threw the gavel away, and it flew into the crowd of people listening to the story.

"Hold!"

The storyteller cursed.

Logically speaking, if a storyteller does this, the audience should have been cursing long ago.

But at present, no one has raised any objections.

Instead, they all stood still, clenching their fists and pursing their lips, making the same angry expression as the storyteller.

The storyteller took a few deep breaths before slowly beginning to speak.

"Gentlemen, I don't need to explain who General Qi is."

"Since he took over as the deputy commander of Dengzhou Guard two years ago, how many Japanese pirates have he killed, and how many civilians have he saved from their clutches? Who can count them all!"

"Who among those who make a living in Dengzhou and Laizhou dares to say they haven't benefited from General Qi's influence!"

"To say he colluded with Japanese pirates—I spit on that!"

The storyteller spat a mouthful of phlegm onto the ground.

At the same time, Wu Mingxiao's expression changed drastically, and he turned to look at Li Miao in disbelief.

"Brother Li... he's right..."

Li Miao smiled. "If the other vice commissioner of Dengzhou Garrison isn't surnamed Qi, then he must be talking about your master. We've arrived just in time."

As they were talking, the storyteller outside continued.

"I don't need to explain what kind of person Commander Wang of Dengzhou Guard is! Since he took office, the Japanese pirates have become more and more rampant. When the late emperor was alive, the Japanese pirates only dared to plunder merchant ships. After he took office, the Japanese pirates even dared to plunder ashore, but I haven't seen him kill a few of them!"

"He said General Qi colluded with the Japanese pirates, ha!"

The storyteller gave a cold laugh.

"I think the one colluding with the Japanese pirates is—"

"That storyteller."

Before he could finish speaking, a voice suddenly cut out from the side.

But a middle-aged man dressed like a江湖人士 (jianghu figure, someone from the martial arts world) interrupted him at a nearby tea stall. He squinted at him and pointed towards the street in the distance.

"Disaster comes from the mouth; be careful what you say."

The storyteller was stunned for a moment, then looked in the direction the finger was pointing, and his face turned pale instantly.

At the end of the street, several soldiers were walking towards them.

Judging from the style of their clothing, they were soldiers from the nearby Dengzhou Guard, subordinates of "Lord Wang, the Commander of Dengzhou Guard" whom he had just been about to curse.

If these soldiers heard him cursing his superior officer, it would be expected that he would be beheaded in the street.

The storyteller suddenly grabbed the object on the table and was about to turn and run away, but he stopped abruptly as soon as he moved his foot... He gritted his teeth, gave the middle-aged man a look, and then returned to the table and stood still.

He took a deep breath and exhaled.

"General Qi took over as the Vice Commander of Dengzhou Guard at the age of seventeen, and is now only nineteen! In the past two years, he has risked his life more than ten times to protect the people, suffering more than seventy wounds, and has never retreated while fighting with his injuries!"

“But now, he has been framed by villains, imprisoned, and will be executed tomorrow… He has risked his life for us so many times. If I don’t even dare to speak a word of justice for him today, I might as well break my gavel and go home to farm!”

As he was speaking, the soldiers from Dengzhou Guard arrived close and their eyes swept over him.

"The real traitors who colluded with the Japanese pirates!"

"Yes!"

The storyteller mustered all his courage, trembling, struggling, and gleefully raising his finger to point at them, and roared angrily.

"Dengzhou Garrison Commander—Ugh ugh ugh!"

Before he could finish speaking, a hand suddenly covered his mouth.

It was that middle-aged martial arts man who grabbed his shoulder, turned around, and hid him in front of him.

The civilians nearby immediately became alert, and they all stood up and surrounded the two men, blocking the soldiers' view.

The soldiers didn't hear clearly, glanced at it, and continued walking forward.

After a long while, the middle-aged martial artist finally released his grip and let go of the storyteller.

The storyteller, after being covered for a while, gasped for breath and turned to glare at him, but knowing that he meant well, he couldn't get angry. He could only stomp his foot hard.

"You rascal! Mind your own business!"

"I'll go and give my life; I already owe General Qi something, and I accept that! If I don't say anything more today, how will I face General Qi in the underworld after I die!"

The middle-aged martial arts master waved his hand and lowered his voice.

“Brother, General Qi is destined for a long and healthy life, how could he die tomorrow? If you believe me, then save your life for now... and go witness the execution tomorrow.”

"Justice will always prevail in this world!"

After saying this, he patted the storyteller on the shoulder and turned to leave.

The storyteller was left standing there, speechless for a long time.

(End of this chapter)