Republic of China

Chapter 345: Good Luck in the Year
Yanshi was originally the name or title of a craftsman who presented a puppet to King Mu of Zhou. The ingenuity of the craftsmanship was so exquisite that it could not be described as superb. In the words of King Mu: Can human ingenuity be as great as that of Nature?

Later, those who specialized in this art were called Yanshi, and the method they practiced was called Yanshu.

This is different from the Lu Ban technique that emerged in the Spring and Autumn Period, which can be said to be an intelligent robot made by ancient hands. It is also not the puppetry that has been explicitly recorded in the Han Dynasty. It can allow Liu Laosi to play musical instruments and sing to form an orchestra. The Yan technique is much more complicated.

If the mechanical techniques that ordinary people have heard of are still within the scope of cognition, then some things in Yanshu have gone beyond this scope.

Without talking about the distant past, let’s just say that what Zhang Linyi displayed was outrageous enough in the eyes of ordinary people.

Although the hand-rolled cannon did not make a loud noise, the paper figures shooting arrows and paper phoenixes flying in the sky could not be faked, and everyone saw them clearly.

Everyone is thinking, Zhang Linyi, you have this kind of business, why are you still setting up a stall to calculate the fortune? You would have made a fortune by performing tricks in Tianxiang Market.

Also, can your cannon fire?
The spectators covered their ears and waited for a long time but did not see Lao Zhang fire the cannon, and boos gradually began to appear in the crowd.

"Is this ok, Master Zhang?"

"Could it be that this cannon of yours is a cannon of kindness and doesn't fire at outsiders?"

"Old Zhang, go ahead and fire your cannon, don't let me look down on you!"

Amidst the boos, Zhang Linyi was so anxious that his forehead was covered with sweat. He struck box of matches one after another, and there were matchsticks everywhere on the altar and under his feet.

Call you uncle!

I don't want to fire?
But what can I do if I can’t start the fire?
It’s really evil.

Could it be that the guy on the other side did something?
And Zhao Sanyuan gradually calmed down from his astonishment.

Although the magic of Lao Deng on the opposite side is very wonderful, but when you think about it carefully, it seems to be just so-so. Apart from the fancy tricks, there is not much outstanding about it. Even Uncle Six is ​​sitting on the altar and blowing the wind without noticing it. It can be seen that his level is really not that good.

Zhao Sanyuan then pinched his fingers and a three-foot-long red cloth moved in his hands, wrapping up the smoke rising from the incense burner.

"Hey, if you don't blow me up, I'll blow you up."

As soon as Zhang Linyi looked up, he saw a red ball the size of a Cuju flying towards him. Coincidentally, this time the match finally ignited the paper fuse.

puff--

There were two muffled sounds in succession.

The black ball shot out of the mini cannon collided with the red ball, and smoke surged in an instant, blowing over Zhang Linyi's altar.

The onlookers coughed and retched repeatedly, and fled the scene. They almost vomited out their overnight meals watching the excitement.

"Ahem -- what the hell are the shells made of?"

Even Zhao Sanyuan couldn't stop retching, regretting that he should have overturned the opponent's forum earlier.

Huang Xiaoliu pinched his nose and gnashed with hatred. Who could have thought that the shell was made of Lao Niwan? He didn't know where it was rubbed off from.

The more glorious the beginning, the more miserable the ending.

Regardless of whether the wind smells good or bad, the outcome of this battle, which was not at all intense, has been decided.

Zhang Linyi and his men were overturned, but Zhao Sanyuan was as stable as a rock.

The happiest person in the whole place was Lao Liu, who earned at least 70 or 80 silver dollars from the game, and even more money at the big prize. Every spectator who placed a bet placed their bets on Zhang Linyi. After all, they all subconsciously believed that the older a gangster gets, the more evil he becomes.

The crowd gradually left the stage, cursing. Zhang Linyi wished he could find a hole to crawl into. He thought that he couldn't make a living in Nanshi anymore and had to find another place to make money.
"Master Zhang, my master would like to ask you to come and have a chat with me."

Kang Mu'ang stood beside the overturned altar, clasped his hands and bowed to Zhang Linyi with a very kind smile.

"Are you in cahoots with the guy who rang the gong? No, no, no, you all won. What else do you want? I don't have any money." Zhang Linyi dusted himself off, ready to pick up some usable things and leave.

"If Taoist Zhang insists on leaving, then my master has asked me to ask you a question. Do you know Che Baiqu from Muling Pass?"

Zhang Linyi's movements of packing up his things suddenly froze, and his expression became solemn for a moment, completely unlike the deceitful look he had before, but he quickly returned to normal and sighed slightly.

"May I ask your name, Master? There are probably not many people in the world who know my second cousin's name."

"Master Zhang, please lend me a hand and I'll know."

"Lead the way."

Zhao Sanyuan didn't care why Lao Kang brought Lao Deng to his master. He cared more about another person now.

Everything has two sides. The little emperor was in the best position to appreciate this street fight, but he was the first to be knocked down by the smoke when it ended. He was looking for his glasses on the ground when Zhao Sanyuan picked him up.

"Doesn't it look good?"

"Well, it's beautiful."

"Wonderful, right?"

"I never get tired of watching it every day, but the taste is too strong."

"You picked it, didn't you? A hundred bucks in cash is worth all the suffering I've endured."

The two followers of the young emperor came to their senses and happened to see their master being treated like a chick by Zhao Sanyuan. They were so scared that their faces turned pale, and their first reaction was to protect the emperor.

Counting the time, it has been only ten years since the fall of the Manchu flag. Although these two followers cannot be considered as masters of the imperial court, they have all mastered external martial arts and their lower body is quite stable.

One of them grabbed Zhao Sanyuan's arm, while the other tried to snatch the little emperor from the side.

Zhao Sanyuan was puzzled by the sudden fight, thinking to himself that he was helping out with good intentions, so why did they resort to physical combat? These two were both martial artists, so it would definitely take a lot of effort to fight with fists and feet.

So Zhao Sanyuan chose the most convenient and easy way.

Facing the black muzzle of the Continental rifle, one of the followers stepped on the brakes urgently. It's not that he didn't have any hot weapons, but who could have expected that the gangster would have the real weapon in his hand and dare to take it out.

Another follower was even worse, doing a backflip after a backflip, and flipped over a dozen times before falling directly into the alley.
Zhao Sanyuan's action of drawing the gun was very covert. The little emperor who was lifted up did not see it. After he was put down, he wondered why one of his followers was missing.

"Why don't you show the master your reward? Take out all the money in your hand."

The follower smiled bitterly to himself. Now he had no idea what kind of person Zhao Sanyuan was, so he didn't dare to act rashly. He could only listen to his master and take one step at a time.

There were several silver bills and a gold leaf inside and outside, which was quite a lot.

"The promised bets are not small, and the rest is for asking the master to help me look at my fortune. Just treat it as divination fee. If it's not enough, I will send someone to get it."

Zhao Sanyuan's smile suddenly became kind.

Who can go against gold?
He picked up the scattered small stool and sat down, his smile as warm as spring.

"Fortune telling, huh? Come on, let me do the fortune telling for you."

The little emperor sat down face to face very obediently, like a student attending a class for the first time.

"You just told that old man about your horoscope. What was it? You were born in the 32nd year of the Guangxu period. You have the element of Tianhe Water in the Bingwu year and the element of Tianfu in the year pillar. You have one Buddha. Just looking at the year pillar, it's pretty good." "You were born in the first month of the year and you have the element of Tianfu in the year pillar. You have one Buddha as well. Huh? That's interesting."

The little emperor sat upright, not understanding what Zhao Sanyuan was saying to himself, nor could he comprehend the meaning of every movement of his left hand. But since he could beat Zhang Linyi, he must have some skills, right?

Having learned from past experience, I will not believe any ambiguous words.

Soon, Zhao Sanyuan's expression changed subtly.

"It's a good year, it's a good month, but the days are not so good. God says you are a loser, right? Listen to my advice, think twice before doing anything, don't be too stubborn, otherwise you will either become a monk or go to jail."

The little emperor was stunned.

Spendthrift?

I'm fine.

Besides, how can you lose your home? If you have no power, no influence, and no land, you must have something to lose.

A bit inaccurate.
However, Zhao Sanyuan's brows were getting tighter and tighter. Before calculating the time column, he habitually arranged the fetal edge first, and the location of the fetal edge was very delicate.

"What happened at your home?"

Hearing the question, the little emperor was a little confused, thinking to himself, "Don't you know who I am? Zhang Linyi just knew it, how could you not know it?"
But look at Zhao Sanyuan's eyes, there is no affectation or falseness.

“There are some changes”

"That's right. It is said that people are divided into different classes. You are destined to be a first-class royal family. If I am not mistaken, you should be a bannerman. That's normal. After the Xinhai Revolution, didn't all the princes and beiles end up in trouble? You are not the only one who is unhappy."

Zhao Sanyuan didn't have any good feelings towards the Manchus, but seeing that Siyan was not very old, he was probably still blowing his nose when the previous dynasty fell. He had nothing to do with the right and wrong of the country and the interests of the family.

Since the money for divination is given openly, we have to make some money out of it.

"When reading a hexagram, I tell you the beginning before the end. You won't understand the specific reasons even if I tell you. I will only tell you the conclusion."

"You have kidney disease. The symptoms may be mild now, but they may cost you your life in the future. You are easily deceived. To put it bluntly, you will easily believe in slander. As long as the rumors are exaggerated, you will believe even if others say that farts smell good. This is not good."

The little emperor listened carefully, and his wavering heart calmed down again.

Yes, my urine has been forked since I was two years old. I remember my wet nurse said that I was frightened when I was taken away by the eunuchs in the palace. Others said that the feng shui of the palace had been messed up since the death of the Empress Dowager. In short, it was a fact that I had a minor kidney problem, and few people knew about it except those around me.

He is indeed a master!

Zhao Sanyuan lit a cigarette and could guess what was going on in Siyan's mind by looking at his expression.

I just said that you are easily influenced and trust others, and I was absolutely right.

"You have ideas and thoughts, especially since you have the power of heaven, but you also have the treachery of heaven, which shows that you only have small ideas and no foresight. You will always end up making things worse and it will be difficult to make things right. I won't say anything more about thinking twice and taking a step back, because everyone understands."

The little emperor nodded repeatedly, his trust level increased by another point, and he immediately thought of Zhang Xun and Chen Baochen in the Dingsi year.

Two damn bastards!
I shouldn't have believed them at that time and foolishly agreed to the restoration.

What is the result?

He was out of business after just a few days of activity. Later, when he was driven out of the Forbidden City by Feng Laogou, he used the black spot of the restoration as an excuse.

If we had not trusted Zhang Xun and his people at that time, we would still be living a peaceful and comfortable life in the Forbidden City. Every year, the Beiyang government allocates several million taels of silver to support the royal family, and the standards for food, clothing and other expenses are all met.

"Master, do you think I still have a chance?"

Zhao Sanyuan blew out a smoke ring and asked, "What opportunity?"

"It's an opportunity to become bigger, stronger and more glorious."

"Let's not talk about whether there is a chance or not. You must first stay away from Jianxiashui and Yangliumu. Although it may be a bit of a generalization, it will do you more good than harm. The farther away from them, the better. Otherwise, they will kill you without hesitation."

The little emperor took note of the answer without thinking. He now wanted to know the answer to the previous question more, so he was silent for a moment and then asked again.

This really amused Zhao Sanyuan, who said bluntly, "Look at what time it is now? It's already the 17th year of the Republic of China, and the president has changed a lot. Do you still want to continue to be a noble relative? Is it that the old guys in the Beiyang government can't lift their swords anymore, or that the revolutionary army in the south can't lift their guns anymore? You should take a rest now."

As he was talking, he suddenly remembered the noble relative from the Manchu Banner whom he met in the Gongyang Pavilion when he was doing the Yin-Yang with Rabbit. The thought of it made him sick.

Once you lose power and regain status, the turmoil and catastrophe that arise will be beyond imagination.

Just like what the tall and burly man said in the Zheng County prison, there were landlords in the south who were bombarded by the revolutionary army, and when they returned home they doubled their efforts to bully the common people.

If the Manchus were really allowed to restore the monarchy, just imagine how horrible that would be.

When the little emperor didn't get an answer, his face became increasingly gloomy, as wilted as an eggplant hit by frost.

Seeing his behavior, Zhao Sanyuan felt a little bit sorry for him. After all, the other party was very generous. He couldn't just leave him with no hope at all, right?
"Well, let me calculate the water in Jianxia again. Bingzi and Ziwu clash, and Ziwu combines with Tukan. Five days of birth, extension, extinction, and disaster. Six."

Zhao Sanyuan's finger counting speed became faster and faster, and he was rarely fully engaged.

It wasn't because he had enough money for divination, but because it had never been so difficult to predict someone's future in the past, and he got so stubborn that he had to figure out the reason.

". Renshen is not acceptable, the image is Geng and Gui. Guiyou is also not acceptable. Jiaxu is an indestructible image. With Jia and Bing, Jiaxu may be acceptable. Jiaxu is the fire of the mountain. He is the water under the stream. There is more than one evil star beside him."

Just when Zhao Sanyuan was absorbed in his own thoughts, he was simultaneously held down and calculated by a hand with faint scales on the back and a hand with yellow nails.

"Okay, forget it."

Mang Qingyan still had the same expressionless face as always, but his tone was particularly stern.

This was the first time that Zhao Sanyuan, as a Dingxiang disciple, had felt this. However, he had not yet completely withdrawn from the One Palm magical power, and his eyes were a little confused.

"Here, wipe it." Mang Qingyan pointed under Zhao Sanyuan's nose, and the latter subconsciously reached out and touched it.

blood.

I had a lot of nosebleeds.

There is a large area of ​​stain on the collar.

"This is what I am"

When he came to his senses, Zhao Sanyuan felt weak all over and his brain was dizzy. It was even more uncomfortable than the feeling after using the Hesummoning Ten Thousand Gods spell.

Isn’t it just to predict the fortune for this four-eyed man?
Beside Mang Qingyan, Huang Xiaoliu also had an extremely serious expression on his face.

It's not that they didn't discover the problem in advance, but the two immortals took a long time to pull their disciple's thoughts out of the magical finger. Coincidentally, the old man invited Zhang Linyi to the teahouse, Kang Muang and others accompanied him. If the two immortals hadn't noticed it, a disaster might have occurred.

Huang Xiaoliu's tone was firm, as if he wanted to engrave every word on his disciples' minds.

"Some people have great fortunes in their lifetime. If you try to spy on them, you will have to pay with your life. This is true for you and me, both immortals."

(End of this chapter)