The Taoyuan Opera Troupe had recently become famous in the southern part of Cangzhou.
It was said that the troupe sang operas excellently, with extremely wonderful stories. More importantly, they never charged silver for their performances!
People had never seen an opera troupe that neither charged nor accepted tips.
As the saying goes, “He who doesn't seize an advantage is a fool.” So as soon as the villagers in Bangzhu Village heard that the Taoyuan Opera Troupe was performing, they all put down their work and rushed to the most spacious area in the village in a hurry.
The stage looked rather shabby, but since it was a free show, no one really cared. Dozens of stools were placed on - site, and they were all occupied. Even the empty spaces around the stools were filled with people eager to watch the show!
Qi Wen lifted the curtain and glanced outside. Then he turned back to the people behind him and said, “Most of the audience has arrived. Let's start.”
With a loud “clang - clash” sound, the gong was struck hard, creating a feeling of lightning and thunder. A person in opera costume ran onto the stage, wailing in grief, “Oh, heavens! You bring lightning, thunder, and storms. Are you going to send my whole family to their deaths?”
Behind, the villagers from Dongli Town, dressed in blue opera costumes, made swimming motions. A clown in a black opera costume with a very hideous face makeup stepped onto the stage. He showed off his fists and feet while singing in an operatic voice and fought with the leading character for a long time.
This was the main villain in the opera - the evil flood dragon!
Another character started singing on the side. The gist was that due to continuous heavy rain, the water level had soared, and the flood had submerged villages and fields, resulting in great suffering for the people. All of this was because the evil flood dragon was causing trouble, and the common people were in great pain.
When the character representing the “villager” was killed by the “evil flood dragon”, there was an immediate commotion among the audience. Many villagers in Bangzhu Village shed tears on the spot. They cursed the evil flood dragon for bringing disaster to the world and called for the hero who could slay the dragon to show his might.
After much anticipation, a martial artist in red, looking imposing, made a smooth entrance onto the stage, immediately attracting cheers and applause from the crowd.
“I am Prince Xiao Jingcheng of the Great Sheng Dynasty. Which demon is causing trouble here! Take this sword!”
“So it's you, my dear younger brother, Xiao Yixuan!”
“Xiao Jingcheng, I didn't expect you to still be alive!”
The two on the stage fought back and forth, making the audience below hold their breaths. They gasped in surprise several times.
The Taoyuan Opera Troupe had performed “A Narrow Escape” the day before. By now, everyone knew the identities of the two on the stage. While watching the show, they shouted along:
“Fight! Kill the evil flood dragon quickly! Get rid of this scourge for the people!”
“This kind of villain who disrespects his elder brother, disregards human lives, and is self - centered should be eliminated!”
So when the martial artist on the stage killed the evil flood dragon, the whole audience cheered and clapped their hands in delight.
And when the other characters playing the common people stepped onto the stage, knelt down, and shouted towards the martial artist in red, the villagers watching the show below also knelt down one after another, clasping their hands together and muttering:
“May Prince Cheng protect us. May the world be at peace, the weather be favorable, and the crops have a good harvest.”
“May Prince Cheng protect my whole family from disasters and diseases and live a long life...”
Everyone had already regarded Prince Cheng as a living god!
In the distance, smoke was curling up from the mountain forest. The horses were grazing leisurely under the shade of the trees in the forest.
The other soldiers of the Dragon - Slaying Army were scattered around. Some were chopping firewood, while others were starting a fire.
The barking of dogs rang out in the forest. A dog with a mottled coat led the other dogs wandering around, patrolling their territory. From time to time, they chased after hares and pheasants to hunt for food.
At this moment, Xiao Wuchen was sitting on a tree stump, reading the military report sent from Peiyuan County.
Xiao Yixuan had led 50,000 troops there, intending to retake the city of Peiyuan County in the name of suppressing bandits. He had thought he would have to fight a fierce battle, but unexpectedly, the Dragon - Slaying Army that had occupied the county city withdrew very quickly, leaving Xiao Yixuan's troops empty - handed.
Although he had successfully regained Peiyuan County, this way of doing things made Xiao Yixuan extremely frustrated and angry. The letter said that Xiao Yixuan had cursed in his tent for half an hour, which made Xiao Wuchen show a faint smile.
This was just the beginning. He would make Xiao Yixuan know that whether in terms of strategy or battlefield command, he was always inferior to him.
A noise came from down the mountain. Someone shouted, “The opera troupe is back!”
Xiao Wuchen put away the military report in his hand and looked forward.
Sure enough, not long after, he saw Qi Wen coming back cheerfully with Zhao Hu and others.
“Your Highness!” Qi Wen trotted up to Xiao Wuchen. “We're back!”
Xiao Wuchen nodded slightly. “How was it?”
Qi Wen had a beaming smile on his face and briefly told Xiao Wuchen about the situation in Bangzhu Village. “Your Highness, you should have seen how touched everyone was after the show. Some people immediately paid homage to Your Highness and asked for your blessing.”
Xiao Wuchen nodded. “That's good.”
“We'll stay here for another two days. You should spread the news that the Dragon - Slaying Army is recruiting. Recruit as many people as you can in these two days. We'll leave after two days.”
Qi Wen and Zhao Hu immediately replied, “Yes!”
Xiao Wuchen and his men stayed in this mountain forest for another two days. On the third day, just as they were about to continue southward into Mizhou, a fierce barking of dogs came from the foot of the mountain.
A scout reported, “Your Highness, we found several sneaky people at the foot of the mountain!”
“They claim to be here to join the Dragon - Slaying Army and say they have intelligence to report to Your Highness!”
Xiao Wuchen immediately ordered the people to be brought up.
Sang Biao growled menacingly as he followed behind the few people who were tied up.
Xiao Wuchen's gaze slowly swept across the people in front of him. Their ages were different, and there was even a child who looked only eleven or twelve years old.
“Are you here to join the Dragon - Slaying Army?”
These people were Qi Zhong, Wang Suier and others who had left Guangdu County and come south specifically to join the Dragon - Slaying Army.
Qi Zhong knelt on the ground and said, “Yes, General. We're all from Guangdu County...”
He carefully explained their origins and intentions to Xiao Wuchen.
Xiao Wuchen paused for a moment. “A woman and a man found you and asked you to publicize the achievements of the Prince?”
“What did the two of them look like? Tell me in detail.”
Qi Zhong looked embarrassed. “We can't remember their faces clearly.”
But Qi Wen jumped up happily. “It's Lady Jiang! It must be Lady Jiang!”
Xiao Wuchen asked the people a few more details and confirmed that it was Jiang Mian and Mo Zhizhang. He finally let out a sigh of relief.
Looking towards the northeast, he clenched his fist tightly.
Since they had left Dongli Town, they had lost contact with Jiang Mian and others for a long time. It was only now that they got news of them again.
However, half a month had passed since they left for Guangdu County. They didn't know where Jiang Mian and others were now or if they had successfully reached the area under the jurisdiction of the Northern Sheng Emperor.