Tang Dynasty Bandits

Chapter 2 Storyteller

"Puyang County, thirty miles away, was once a fertile land in the Central Plains."

"Once bandits arise from nowhere, the air is filled with smoke and miasma, leaving no trace of human beings."

"Without a father, a king, or any rules, he acts recklessly and yet dares to claim it is God's will."

"Fortunately, General Xue wielded his divine halberd, and the evil winds temporarily subsided."

A yellow mud road winds up the hill. A tea shed with a thatched roof is built on the flat ground beside the road. In front of the tea shed stands a paulownia screen and a high-legged table. A storyteller sits on a crescent-shaped stool, facing the table and singing a desolate ancient song.

A group of listeners picked up their bowls and drank the coarse tea, and from time to time someone cheered.

In the corner, a well-dressed middle-aged man with a broad face sat side by side with a handsome young man, listening to music with a relaxed look on their faces.

"Sir, where has this part ever appeared in Xue Family Generals?"

"Yes, yes, whether it's the old general Xue Li, Xue Rengui, or his husband, the young general Xue Na, Xue Dingshan, have they ever fought in the Central Plains?"

"No, no," the storyteller clapped his hands, "Ladies and gentlemen, please listen carefully. Today I'm not talking about the Xue family father and son from the early years of the Ming Dynasty, but about a contemporary hero of the Xue family in Hedong."

"Hero of the time? Who is he?"

The farmer was ignorant and might not even recognize the local official in his hometown, let alone guess who the storyteller was talking about.

"I'll keep you in suspense for now—in the second year of the Qianfu reign, two thieves were causing chaos in Henan Province. One was surnamed Wang, and because his face was covered with pockmarks, he was called Wang Mazi. The other was surnamed Huang, given his given name Chao, and styled Jutian. He was a failed scholar with slanted eyebrows, two teeth in a row, and a nose with three nostrils..."

In the corner, the young man tugged at the sleeve of a broad-faced middle-aged man: "Boss, have you ever seen someone with three nostrils?"

The broad-faced middle-aged man smiled leisurely: "Of course not, have you seen it?"

But then the storyteller continued, "These two thieves have gathered bandits and a bunch of ragtag soldiers. Wherever they go, they cause great suffering and devastation to the people. The people suffer from the misfortune caused by these bandits and call them 'bandits'."

The listeners all said, "So it's these two thieves. I've heard of them before."

"In order to hunt down these two thugs, the imperial court has imposed additional taxes on landowners, salt, iron, and alcohol. I'm so worried that my belt has become thinner."

"Making trouble out of nothing and disturbing the peace of the world, these two thieves, Wang and Huang, are truly despicable!"

At this time, the young man looked at the group of people with clear eyes, and there was a look of pity in his eyes.

"So, this bandit must be eradicated at all times. It's essential to eradicate him!" the storyteller suddenly shouted, "Once we eradicate this bandit, the world will be at peace again, and we can all enjoy peace and contentment once again!"

Two clapping sounds came from the direction of the broad-faced man. This man had imposing features and deep, sharp eyes. Although his square face was not beautiful, it had a heroic air.

"Well said! But when will the bandits be completely annihilated? The imperial court has sent out a hundred thousand soldiers and ten thousand elite cavalry, yet the prefectures and counties continue to fall. This is nothing but a joke."

The storyteller's face turned grim, his folding fan tightening suddenly as he cleared his throat. "This reader is mistaken! The nation has been engaged in war for two years, and only the Tianping Jiedushi, Xue Chong, has commanded the troops with divine skill, repeatedly defeating the bandits and terrifying them. He lives up to the reputation of his noble family! The fall of prefectures and counties was merely Xue Chong's bait to lure the bandits into his trap. Now, Xue Chong has contacted the various towns, laying a net of traps and ambushes on all sides. The moment of the bandits' defeat and surrender is imminent!"

When he spoke of the most enjoyable part, the audience was also infected by it and started talking about it.

"So there's such a contemporary hero among the descendants of Marshal Xue Rengui?"

"Marshal Xue Chong has become a high-ranking official of the Tang Dynasty. Now there is hope for peace in the world!"

The storyteller showed a proud look on his face: "I have been collecting the life stories of General Xue Chong and compiled them into a legend of ten thousand words. I am just waiting to tell it to you today."

The tea drinkers grew more and more interested: "Don't keep us in suspense, tell us now! We all want to hear about Marshal Xue's heroic deeds."

The broad-faced man suddenly stood up and shrugged: "Everyone, listen to me."

He suddenly interrupted the storyteller and asked, "Sir, have you ever seen the true appearance of Marshal Xue Chong?"

"That... I haven't, but I've met many of Marshal Xue's officers and learned their battle stories from them. Could it be that you understand Marshal Xue Chong better than I do?"

The man said with his hands behind his back, "Of course. Speaking of Xue Chong's deeds, no one here knows him better than an old acquaintance like me."

As soon as these words were spoken, the audience turned their gazes towards the man into curiosity.

"You said you were acquaintances of Marshal Xue Chong? Is that true?"

The broad-faced man smiled slightly and opened the package he was carrying. It was all gold, and the whole room was filled with golden air, which immediately dazzled everyone's eyes.

It was not the square gold nuggets or scattered gold leaves collected by the rich families of this dynasty, but a peculiar horseshoe shape.

"Horseshoe gold is not found in our dynasty, but only in Han tombs." The man sighed, a look of regret on his face. "This is what I seized from Xue Chong's baggage when I defeated him on the battlefield. It seems that the gold you mentioned as Marshal Xue's was actually stolen from a tomb."

The audience paled, but one scholar sneered, "With a few strings of silver, you're trying to confuse right and wrong and slander an official? You have no respect for the law! No wonder this dynasty strictly forbids merchants from participating in the imperial examinations."

"Could it be that you could be Huang Chao or Huang Jutian?"

The storyteller also smiled and said, "This gentleman is quite humorous. In this world, just because you have money doesn't mean you are right."

When everyone heard this, they all echoed and cheered.

The handsome young man next to the broad-faced man looked at the spectators whose emotions were constantly fluctuating, and felt disbelief and unwillingness from their expressions, and felt a sense of boredom.

The broad-faced man spoke loudly, "Indeed, the rich and powerful in the imperial court are not always right. These things taken from the people should eventually be returned to the people. Do you all despise this ill-gotten gains?"

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone's expressions suddenly changed, and then their eyes were filled with uncontrollable greed.

"Sir, are you serious?" A man who looked like a peddler asked cautiously, but his eyes were already filled with golden color.

"I, Huang Chao, Huang Jutian, have always been upright and have never spoken falsely."

"You...you are the Yellow Bandit...no, you are Marshal Huang of the Grass Army?"

A certain spectator showed a look of horror, and trembled as if struck by thunder.

"I will never change my name when I travel, and I will never change my surname when I sit." I am Huang Chao, Huang Jutian, Huang Chao smiled calmly.

Suddenly someone screamed in surprise, and the scene fell into chaos. Huang Chao drew his sword from its sheath, and the blade swept across like a stream of silk, shaving large chunks of horseshoe gold into thin flakes that danced all over the sky, reflecting the sunlight, a magnificent sight.

"what--"

The spectators' initial fear instantly turned into greed and fanaticism, and no one doubted the fact that Xue Chong was defeated by Huang Chao and a large amount of horseshoe gold was seized.

"One per person, no more grabbing."

Money can move people's hearts. For these poor farmers, the most direct desire for profit makes them forget their fear of bandits and their awe of Marshal Xue Chong.

"What do you think of me, Huang Chao, Huang Jutian? Am I 'a man with straight eyebrows, two teeth in a row, and three nostrils'?" Huang Chao said to everyone with a playful smile.

"Good man! Marshal Huang is handsome, surpassing even Pan An and Song Yu, and he has a kind heart. He is a truly good man."

A down-and-out scholar gave a thumbs-up in praise, and everyone echoed him.

"But this good man, Marshal, doesn't like to hear those stories about the Xue family generals, the Luo family generals, and the Qin family generals!"

"Look at it now, everyone. What's so great about the Hedong Xue family, a family of famous generals, or the military governor of the Tianping Army? Have you ever thought that if you had the same environment and opportunities as Xue Chong, you might not be worse off than him!"

As soon as the words were spoken, they were so inspiring that the villagers responded one after another.

"Xue Chong is a hypocritical man, unworthy of being a national general, but he robs graves and has lost all moral integrity. How can he compare to Marshal Huang's noble character!"

"No, he got all this dirty money from nowhere and is trying to trick you into hating and insulting Commander Xue. This is his way of buying people's hearts! Don't trust him!"

The storyteller looked flustered and shouted at the top of his lungs. He clearly admired Xue Chong greatly and couldn't accept the fact that a bag of gold could completely reverse public opinion.

After listening to the storyteller's words, a small number of people showed doubts, but most of them still showed flattering smiles to Huang Chao because they got the gold.

Seeing that the storyteller was still struggling, Huang Chao remained calm and threw out a round object from another package.

The storyteller took one look and was horrified: "You, you man, why are you bringing out a dead head to scare people?"

Huang Chao shrugged and said, "If we want to talk about the ending of Xue Chong's deeds, what else can we look at but this head? Three days ago, I cut off his head and put it here."

"You..." The storyteller pointed at Huang Chao and said, "You're playing tricks. I don't know where you got a dead head from to scare people..."

But when he looked at the head carefully, he suddenly let out a scream and fell off the crescent stool, landing on his back.

"Xue Shuai... How could it be... How could the head of the invincible Xue Shuai appear here... This can't be true, it can't be true..."

The storyteller didn't even bother to brush off the dust on his body. He pointed his finger in the direction of Huang Chao, his eyes filled with fear, and his whole body trembled like a sieve.

His behavior also confirmed the fact that Xue Chong was not only defeated three days ago, but also had his head cut off by the rebels. As for the gold, it was naturally the ill-gotten gains that Xue Chong had sent people to rob the tomb.

Huang Chao picked up a piece of horseshoe gold and scratched it directly on the storyteller's screen. Gold powder fell down and dyed the plain screen.

"The west wind blows through the courtyard, the cold and fragrant flowers make it difficult for butterflies to come. If I become the Jade Emperor in the future, I will reward the peach blossoms by letting them bloom together!"

But in a moment, Huang Chao chanted poems and painted on the screen, and in an instant he painted a field of golden autumn chrysanthemums, which was so brilliant that it was impossible to look at it directly.

"I wish to become the Green Emperor. Would you all be willing to follow me?"

Zhu Wen also said, "General Huang raised his army for the people. Today, the Tang court is corrupt. Anyone who is willing to follow the general and achieve great things will be rewarded with a thousand acres of land and be made a noble for generations."

Even if the audience was not well-informed, they could still see that this bold and forthright leader of the rebel army was a man of extraordinary talent.

However, such people ended up as failed scholars.

The villagers who received the gold foil suddenly felt their suppressed desires flood in like a shower of sweet rain, and they began to spread wildly.

Huang Chao simply gave them an opportunity.

"Let's go, follow Marshal Huang!"

"Equalize the land and kill the evil officials!"

"Shatter this unfair and muddy world, win a fortune, and embrace that delicate little girl!"

The response was like a tsunami.

Zhu Wen on the side just watched all this calmly.

"General, this is a great story." Zhu Wen said to Huang Chao in a low voice.

"This amount of troops is not worth mentioning. But I need a story like this that the people love to hear to spread the concept of the Grass Army." Huang Chao said calmly.

With Zhu Wen's intelligence, how could he not see Huang Chao's intention? A chaotic era is fertile ground for nurturing heroes, and what Huang Chao wanted to give them was blazing ambition.

But Huang Chao was obviously not testing whether he could see this, but wanted to teach him the skills of storytelling.

Life is like a play, that's all.

Xue Chong was the first high-ranking official of the Tang Empire to be killed in battle by the rebel army.

Only in this way can the value of Xue Chong's head, which they had beheaded on the battlefield three days ago, be maximized.

Zhu Wen felt deeply moved by the lower-class people whose ideas could be changed with just a few words and a piece of gold.

Even if this world is absolutely fair, it still belongs to geniuses. Strength is paramount, meaning the weak can only become pawns on the chessboard.

But after being incited, no one will think of themselves as weak.

The brave run rampant in the world, the wise play with people's hearts, and those who are both wise and brave can steal countries and become princes, or even emperors.

That's the rules of the game.

(End of this chapter)