The Republic of China: From Storyteller to God

On the storytelling stage, the story continues.

The audience was completely silent, while the guests in the back rows were sweating profusely and their hearts were pounding.

Huang Feihong sat beside Huang Zhen, also feeling somewhat uneasy.

He never expected that Liu Che would tell a story about a rebel in public.

But the militia brothers behind him listened intently, absorbed in the story, their minds captivated by Liu Che's narration.

"Flying Goose"

Aunt Thirteen, who was standing nearby, noticed his worry and comforted him in a low voice, "Since you're here, make the best of it."

Seeing her reassuring gaze, Huang Feihong glanced back at the militia brothers behind him, composed himself slightly, and then looked back at the stage.

Having already chosen to join, to hesitate and look back is certainly not the act of a hero.

If Liu Che's brothers dare to say it in public, what is there that he wouldn't dare to hear?

Huang Zhen was unaware of his unease.

At this moment, Huang Zhen and the others were completely immersed in the plot, their emotions rising and falling with the characters in the illusionary world.

When Liu Che recounted how Lü, Gu, and Huang were plotting a rebellion on a ship, only to be ambushed and caught red-handed by the court's henchmen.

Huang Zhen and the others couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat for the people in the story.

Upon hearing the story of a scholar who made a graceful entrance, swiftly and decisively eliminating all the court's henchmen, and elegantly announcing his name:

"My surname is Chen, and my given name is near the south."

The group immediately cheered and applauded.

They had never heard of the Beggar in the Snow, but they were very familiar with the name Chen Jinnan.

Gu Yanwu, Huang Zongxi, and Chen Jinnan were all senior figures in the Hongmen!

Gu Yanwu and Huang Zongxi were two of the five sages of the past.

Chen Jinnan was one of the five.

They were all renowned scholars and generals who fought against the old regime under the command of the emperor after the fall of the previous dynasty.

Hearing these familiar names felt like listening to stories from their own elders, a feeling of immense warmth and familiarity.

Behind the counter, Boss Wei had just woken up after being patted on the back by his employee.

Upon hearing the name and the cheers, he rolled his eyes and fainted again.

A dense black energy surged from his body and gathered on the stage.

Liu Che didn't hold back and inhaled it all at once.

Feeling the abundance of qi and blood in his body, Liu Che was very satisfied.

This is fear, which is also one of the seven emotions.

It's still more exciting to talk about "banned books"!

The power of the seven emotions strongly stimulates birth.

At this rate, he could be promoted to the eighth rank before he even finishes telling a book.

Suddenly, he was full of energy, and his enthusiasm for speaking grew even stronger.

"Yangzhou has been a prosperous and bustling city since ancient times. As the ancients said, there is no greater joy in life than having ten thousand strings of cash around one's waist and riding a crane down to Yangzhou..."

Soon, he began to describe how, in the Lichun Courtyard in Yangzhou, salt smugglers came to the door seeking revenge on Jia Laoliu of the Heaven and Earth Society.

He changed his tone, mimicking the shouts of salt smugglers in an aged voice: "Old Jia! This afternoon, you were spouting nonsense in the tavern by the Slender West Lake!"

They say the salt smugglers in Yangzhou are spineless, too cowardly to kill officials and rebel, and only know how to smuggle salt! They're just doing small, cowardly businesses!

You've had your fill of yellow wine, and you're shouting and yelling! If you disagree with the smugglers of Yangzhou, feel free to come find me at Mingyu Lane!

"Here we are! Jia Laoliu, you're a hero of the Heaven and Earth Society, why have you become a coward?"

He imitated these words so perfectly that Fang Shengdong, who was listening from below the stage, was furious and slammed his hand on the table.

Click!

He smashed the wooden tea table to pieces with a single slap.

As soon as Liu Che stopped speaking, the illusion vanished.

"Ah Dong!"

Huang Zhen was listening intently when he was interrupted by a slap, causing him to frown and scold him.

Fang Shengdong wasn't targeting Liu Che, but rather was angered by the salt smugglers in the story.

The illusion dissipated, and he came to his senses, quickly explaining, "I couldn't hold back because I heard those bastards from the Green Gang dare to curse us."

As he spoke, he stood up, cupped his hands in apology to Liu Che on the stage, and said, "I'm sorry, please continue."

Liu Che didn't continue, but instead gestured to him, "You broke the table, you have to pay for it to the boss!"

"That's natural."

Fang Shengdong bent down, gathered up the broken table, and strode to the back of the counter.

"How much is one of these tables?"

He asked the clerk behind the counter.

Boss Wei was still dazed. His employee patted him, and he didn't dare not answer. He quickly said, "It's probably only five cents."

Fang Shengdong took out a five-cent silver dollar from his pocket and placed it on the counter.

He then moved another table from the back row and placed it in its original position. He cupped his hands in greeting to the surrounding guests, and then cupped his hands to Liu Che before sitting back down.

Seeing this, Liu Che continued speaking.

He knew why Fang Shengdong was angry.

Most of the salt smugglers in the Yangzhou area came from the canal transport business and had backgrounds with the Green Gang.

Although the Green Gang was a folk gang, it was different from the Heaven and Earth Society.

The Heaven and Earth Society has always centered its activities around opposing the flag.

The Green Gang, which relied on the Grand Canal for its livelihood, had close ties with officials in various coastal areas and colluded with them.

The Heaven and Earth Society and the Green Gang secretly disliked each other and had many conflicts because of this.

The conflict between the salt smuggler and Jia Laoliu in the story is a microcosm of the situation.

As a member of the Hongmen, Fang Shengdong naturally believed that Jia Laoliu was right to scold him.

The Green Gang salt smugglers only knew how to smuggle salt, and compared to the Heaven and Earth Society, which plotted rebellion every few days, they were naturally incompetent.

But the salt smuggler was not convinced by being scolded and even came to Fang Shengdong's door to make a scene, which angered Fang Shengdong.

Not only Fang Shengdong was enraged, but Huang Zhen, Lin Juesheng, and other members of the Hongmen also showed a surge of blue anger.

It's clear that they all think the same way.

Sure enough, when Liu Che recounted how Mao Shiba, in the east wing, spoke out righteously, mocking the salt smugglers and defeating all six of them, they listened with great interest and cheered in unison.

Fang Shengdong felt relieved and clicked his tongue in admiration: "If I were there, I would definitely help this hero out."

Lin Juesheng chuckled and joked, "They're incredibly skilled; do they need your help?"

Huang Zhen listened and pondered at the same time.

Who could be the one to make this move?

Which senior member of the Heaven and Earth Society was it?

But he also said he wasn't a member of the Heaven and Earth Society, so he probably isn't.

Members of the Heaven and Earth Society would never dare to do something they didn't want to admit in that situation.

So who is he?

Upon further reflection, Huang Zhen had a guess in his mind.

Every storybook has a main character.

Every protagonist is invariably a person of great righteousness and integrity.

It seems that the person who made the move is the protagonist of this story.

But then he suddenly remembered that Liu Che had said before he started his lecture that this was the story of a scoundrel from a brothel who went undercover in the palace.

But the man who made the move was a burly, strong man, not some brothel scoundrel.

While I was pondering this, Liu Che had already brought up this point.

Mao Shiba and the salt smuggler exchanged insults, which amused Wei Chunhua and prompted a salt smuggler to step forward and slap him twice.

Then, a boy of about twelve or thirteen years old emerged from the side of the hall and shouted angrily at him: "How dare you hit my mother!"

You damned turtle, you rotten tortoise!

You'll be struck by lightning the moment you step out the door! You'll immediately develop festering boils on the back of your hands and palms!

May your hands rot! May your tongue rot!

Swallow the pus and blood! Let your intestines rot and break!

Huang Zhen was taken aback by this string of vulgar curses.

Is this the little rascal Liu Che is talking about?

What a petty thug!