We promised to develop a game called Candy Crush, what the hell is the Third Reich?

Chapter 187 [Two Kitchen Knives for Revolution] (5.3k words, two chapters combined)

Fang Ming couldn't win against Zhang Zuolin.

With a helpless expression, he was pulled away by Zhang Zuolin to drink, and the matter of payment had to be temporarily put aside.

on the wine table.

As the alcohol took effect, Zhang Zuolin almost made Fang Ming swear brotherhood again, which made the new viewers in the live stream exclaim "Awesome!"

Wow, they've really had their fill?

[The streamer wasn't exaggerating; they really are going to become sworn brothers.]

【Wait, didn't you notice that no one has picked up payment for the goods all day?】

What's the point of mentioning this? Given the situation, how could they possibly refuse to pay back their debts?

"That's right, we're practically sworn brothers, what's a little money difference?"

To be able to fool a warlord to this extent, you're truly one of a kind.

Watching the comments scroll by.

Fang Ming only wanted to say...

I am a modern human from Earth.

Revealing even a little bit of knowledge here would be a game-changer, easily subduing a local NPC.

However, I was also getting a little carried away at this point.

Although everything inside the virtual reality pod is simulated.

However, the near-perfect simulation caused Fang Ming to experience a dizzy, intoxicated feeling even while drinking in the game, depending on his physical condition.

Fang Ming tried his best to stay awake, holding Zhang Zuolin's hand which was resting on the table:

"Big Brother."

"That guy"

Zhang Zuolin, his face flushed from drinking, slurred and patted Fang Ming's shoulder.

Don't worry, brother!

"Even though I, Old Zhang, have cheated those Japanese!"

"But for brothers, this is absolutely true!"

As he spoke, Zhang Zuolin gave a thumbs-up.

Then Zhang Zuolin patted Fang Ming on the shoulder and said earnestly in a slightly drunken tone:

“Those Japanese dare to swagger around on our territory without even asking if I, Old Zhang, agree.”

"Don't even think about getting back a single penny of the money you owe them."

"But the payment for the goods, brother, is simple!"

"We're about to go to the capital to fight. I'll come back after I've finished fighting."

"Don't mention this batch of goods."

"Even if it's several times, dozens of times more, I, Old Zhang, can still take it."

"It all depends on your abilities, brother, how many you can bring back."

Fang Ming drank a glass of wine, waved his hand, and said with a smile:

"I can provide as much as you can eat, brother."

"Let's put it that way!"

"Even if this batch of goods were to increase tenfold, it would be a piece of cake for me."

This is not Fang Ming bragging.

Instead, when the custom mode started, the user selected assets worth tens of millions, and the equipment transported this time only cost a few hundred thousand, less than one-tenth of that amount.

If you put all your wealth into buying weapons, the quantity would be more than ten times that amount.

Hear the words.

Zhang Zuolin's smile widened even further:

"Good good!"

"With you saying that, little brother, I can rest assured!"

"Today I'm giving you a welcome feast, tomorrow I'll go to Beijing to meet Feng Guozhang and deal with that traitor Duan Qirui."

"Take whatever gold and silver he has, brother!"

“I even got two of Duan Qirui’s concubines.”

"That small amount of payment is nothing!"

Upon hearing this, Fang Ming smiled and raised his glass:

"That's right, it's nothing!!!"

With a crisp "ding," another flurry of clinking glasses filled the table.

then
Plop.

Fang Ming, completely drunk, slumped onto the table and fell asleep, plunging the live stream into darkness.

At this moment, Fang Ming and his fellow Blue Star fans were completely unaware that as Fang Ming was drunk and passed out, a drunken Zhang Zuolin nudged him:
"Brother?"

"Are you really drunk?"

After confirming that Fang Ming was fast asleep, Zhang Zuolin slowly got up, his face no longer showing any signs of drunkenness.

"Happy New Year! Happy New Year!"

Xi Shun ran in from outside:
"Handsome man."

Zhang Zuolin waved his hand:
"Give him the prepared silver dollars tomorrow."

Xi Shun was somewhat surprised:

"Really?"

Zhang Zuolin waved his hand:
"This kid comes from a wealthy family."

"What can you do with hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of equipment? Just tell them I'm going to Beijing tomorrow."

"Urge him to hurry up and send another large batch."

"His grandma's."

"Whose young master is this? How could such a fool have survived until now?"

"Luckily, I ran into you, Lao Zhang."

"If I ran into those bastards, I'd probably be dead."

Fang Ming was naturally unaware of the conversation between Zhang Zuolin and Xishun.

Because he was already drunk and had fallen into a deep sleep, the live stream room was completely dark.

You can neither see nor hear anything in the game.

However, because of the pop-up option, Fang Ming switched out of the game and waited for the in-game story to skip ahead:
"Don't worry, guys, I've just had too much to drink."

"You'll sleep for about five minutes in the game, and then it will be morning when you wake up."

Fang Ming was already used to it, and took the opportunity to chat with the viewers in the live stream:

"How about it?"

"Now you believe in my abilities, right?"

"That local warlord."

"It's easy to win them over."

However, viewers in the live stream retorted:

[What a load of rubbish! I still haven't paid you all night.]

【That's right, you tried to withdraw payment several times last night, but he kept changing the subject. You're probably in big trouble.】

[The streamer should probably check in the game right away, just in case it's been hacked?]

That's right, it might have been blocked by now; the restart button might have already been pressed.

Poor little Mingzi, he worked so hard for months, only to end up delivering supplies and ammunition.

【No? A few concubines were enough to drug you?】

Seeing the comments, Fang Ming didn't hesitate and immediately entered the game to wait.

"Just wait and see how I prove you wrong."

Just saying.

A notification popped up in the game, and Fang Ming switched back to the game. Then the screen in front of him gradually lit up.

Sunlight streamed in; the sun was already high in the sky. Fang Ming had just sat up when he bumped into something.

wow-

Silver dollars were scattered all over the floor. Fang Ming was stunned. He looked around and saw that there were quite a few silver dollars piled up in the room. Fang Ming bent down and picked up some, showing them to the live stream viewers:

"See that?!"

Just saying.

Footsteps sounded outside, and Zhang Zuolin's adjutant entered.

"Mr. Fang, you're awake."

"These silver dollars were specially ordered by the handsome man last night, so that you can see the money as soon as you wake up."

"He went to the capital this morning."

"So I didn't have time to tell you, so I had to make arrangements for myself."

As he spoke, the adjutant handed over a receipt:
"These are bank notes from the United States Freedom Federation; the money for this purchase of weapons and equipment is all in there."

Fang Ming chuckled as he lent the money. Although he didn't say anything, his smug expression was clearly a mockery of the trolls in the live stream.

"Easy to say, easy to say."

"Does my elder brother have any other instructions?"

Zhang Zuolin's adjutant spoke up:
"some."

"Actually, I mainly want to trouble you to make another trip."

"Because of this equipment, it's still quite difficult to fully arm ourselves. The commander said that after he finishes dealing with that bastard Duan Qirui, he'll let you take the full payment."

fight?

Who knows how long this fight will last?

Fang Ming then spoke up:
"That's taking too long."

"Okay, take a look and see what you're missing."

"I'm going this time."

"I bought them all at once. By the time I get back, they'll probably be almost all played."

Zhang Zuolin's adjutant showed delight:

“That’s great, Mr. Fang.”

"You've really been a huge help to us!"

Fang Ming quickly raised his hand:

"Eh!"

"One family does not speak two languages."

Zhang Zuolin's adjutant smiled:

"That's right, that's absolutely right!"

After Zhang Zuolin's adjutant left, Fang Ming clicked his tongue and said to the haters in the live stream:

"Look at this attitude."

"That's just the streamer's skill level, there's nothing we can do about it."

His smug attitude made many haters in the live stream grit their teeth.

He silently prayed that Zhang Zuolin would be defeated, so that there would be no money to pay reparations. However...

This wish is destined to be impossible to fulfill.

Because the start time in [Custom Mode] can be freely selected.

Fang Ming's side is in the 'Republic of China' in 1920.

In the custom mode storyline where the host chooses 1921 as the time, the Zhili-Anhui War has already ended, and Zhang Zuolin is one of the victors.

at this time.

The chosen time was during a live broadcast in 1921, in the studio of anchor Tian Kai.

The ancient road in western Hunan.

boom!boom!boom!boom!
The dense gunfire echoed through the mountains and forests of the Ancient Tea Horse Road. Chaos reigned on the distant road as the warlord's escorting soldiers panicked, some lying on the ground and others fleeing in all directions.

The leading officer angrily shot and killed several deserters, then commanded the other soldiers to counterattack.

Tian Kai lay prone behind a cover, firing his gun continuously, bullets whistling past his ears.

At this time.

The officer's voice rang out from below:
"First platoon, flank from the left! Third platoon, provide cover!"

Compared to the panicked warlord soldiers, Tian Kai's troops, though not exactly regular and not uniformly dressed, were actually overwhelming the better-equipped warlord soldiers.

The fierce battle lasted for nearly an hour.

After the escort officer was killed, the soldiers under the warlord's command began to flee, and the remaining truckloads of supplies were then counted by the soldiers.

Large boxes were unloaded and placed on the ground.

Tian Kai casually opened several large boxes, revealing contents such as silver dollars, opium, or gold and silver jewelry, which he then displayed to the viewers in the live stream.
"The situation in the 'Republic of China' now is really difficult."

"Warlords fought amongst themselves, and the people suffered greatly."

"If even a small warlord can plunder so much stuff, you can imagine what the situation is like in the current 'Republic of China'."

The controversy surrounding the May Fourth Movement hasn't died down yet, and it's still being discussed on player forums, but for him, the starting date is 1921.

The May Fourth Movement of 1919 was two years ago.

Following the Zhili-Anhui War of 1920, warlords sprang up like mushrooms after rain, fighting one against another.

Especially after hearing that Feng Guozhang and Zhang Zuolin were going to fight each other and had no time to deal with those minor warlords.

This drove those minor warlords even more insane.

Let alone controlling a city or a province.

Even controlling a few towns and villages allows someone to call themselves a warlord, which gives you an idea of ​​how corrupt the situation has become.

If there were a real-time map now.

Tian Kai estimated that there were no fewer than a hundred warlords in the entire "Republic of China", and that wars were raging everywhere.

After all, if someone who controls a few towns can call himself a warlord, it would be easy for such a large country like the Republic of China to gather a hundred warlords, and there might even be fewer.

As Tian Kai cleaned up the battlefield, some of the new Blue Star viewers in the live stream were puzzled by his equipment.

Is the streamer really that down on her luck?

What character did you choose at the start? Why are you in such a sorry state? Or are you just really doing badly?

[What are you waiting for, streamer? Why aren't you giving up yet?]

Please restart it as soon as possible.

Looking at the scrolling comments, Tian Kai smiled mysteriously:
"Reopen?"

"Reopening is impossible."

"Look what this is."

talking.

Tian Kai then mysteriously posted a gray story card.

The Nanchang Uprising

The Nanchang Uprising, also known as the August 1st Uprising, fired the first shot in the armed resistance against the reactionaries.

The uprising broke out in Nanchang and later moved to Guangdong. Although it suffered setbacks, it laid the foundation for the People's Army. August 1st thus became the founding day of the People's Republic of China, marking the beginning of the Party's independent creation of a revolutionary army.

The grayed-out story card clearly hasn't reached its activation time yet.

However, on the timeline of the Republic, the Nanchang Uprising took place in 1927, while Tian Kaikai's storyline takes place in 1921. How could he have obtained the story card so early?
Who exactly did you come into contact with?

It's not the core kind, is it?
Upon realizing this, the viewers on Earth in the live stream went wild.

[Wow—Holy crap? That's awesome!]

【No? How did you choose this? Did you become an initial public offering (IPO) shareholder of the "Republic"?】

[Holy crap? I got this kind of story card so early? The NPCs I interacted with must be very important!]

[Host, you can't die! You're one of the few players on the entire internet who's close to getting a guaranteed initial public offering (IPO)!]

That's right, that's right! In war, you have to be cautious! Survival is the most important thing!

[If you want to know any secrets of the "Republic" in the future, it'll depend on how well you do! You can't die in your storyline!]

As one of the viewers in the live stream said, given the current situation, Tian Kai is the most likely to get the initial public offering (IPO) shares, while the other streamers, despite having various identities, are not.

But what good are assets worth millions if you can't find the right NPC?

To this day, I haven't seen a single familiar character from the later "Republic" CG on the entire internet, and I can't even find them by searching for their features.

Meanwhile, the players on Earth have also summarized their findings based on the [Republic] timeline.

The plots involving the May Fourth Movement, the First National Congress of the Communist Party of China, the Nanchang Uprising, the Long March, and the Four Crossings of the Chishui River should be able to lead us to the later developments of the Republic.

There were simply too many people involved in the May Fourth Movement to find them all.

As for the subsequent plot events, it's unclear where they will occur, let alone how to approach them to trigger the plot cards.

And now.

There was one person who triggered the [Nanchang Uprising] storyline card, and it happened so many years in advance. How could the viewers on Earth in the live stream not be excited?

The viewers in the live stream urged Tian Kai to check out the characters in the story.

However, Tian Kai calmly cleaned up the battlefield and changed the title of his live stream. After all, he had been holding back for so many days and wanted to show off for a while.

The live stream's popularity soared rapidly due to the title "Nanchang Uprising".

Until the hype died down.

Tian Kai then followed the soldiers who had finished cleaning up the battlefield back to their garrison, which was in a small county town, to return with the spoils of war.

The mess hall had prepared the food, and a group of people were eagerly serving themselves rice.

The soldiers lined up laughing, their rough porcelain bowls clattering together, clearly showing that eating was the most important thing for soldiers, no matter where they were.

Just as Tian Kai finished serving himself a bowl of mixed grain rice and sat down, he heard someone shouting at the top of their lungs:
"Commander (Guerrilla Commander of the First Route of the Hunan-Western Hubei Aid People's Army)!"

"You haven't finished telling me what you were talking about last time!"

"After the uprising with two kitchen knives, did they actually chop up that big landlord who exploited the poor?"

Several people nearby followed up with the question:
"Yup!"

"They have dozens of guns on the other side."

"Commander, what were you thinking back then! Tell us!"

The soldiers who were squatting by the wall eating immediately perked up, putting down their seven or eight bowls at once and listening intently to the discussion in the distance.

Tian Kai looked into the distance and whispered to the viewers in the live stream:

"coming."

Tian Kai was too far away to see the scene in front of him, but he could hear faint sounds coming from ahead.
"Okay, you haven't heard enough, have you?"

The surrounding soldiers shouted in unison:

"No!!!"

Tian Kai also shouted along, but he couldn't see what was ahead.

The voice from afar said:

"Okay, then I'll continue."

What were you thinking at the time?

"So what if there are dozens of guns?"

"When you see poor people being bullied, don't you stand up for them?!"

"If you see a poor person being bullied and you cower in the shadows, then you're an accomplice!"

"Those landlords and rich people, relying on their guns, bully men and women, and drive people to their deaths. Do they really think no one dares to touch them?"

"I led my men and sneaked into the village under cover of darkness."

"Those lackeys were still playing cards and drinking, who would have thought someone would dare to come?"

"."

"."

The soldiers around him listened intently, unconsciously following the man's narration back to that exhilarating night.

Inside Tian Kai's live stream room.

Netizens on Earth were also unconsciously drawn into the story.

Who is this commander? He's incredibly powerful!

[A man with only two kitchen knives dared to take on a landlord with dozens of guns? That's a truly ruthless person!]

So, as long as you dare to think and act, you can start a business with just two kitchen knives.

[Hiss—! What's this big shot's name?]

[I haven't seen him in the CG before, could he be a hidden master?!]

Tian Kai spoke up:
"Whether it's hidden or not, I don't know. All I know for now is that our commander is called..."

the other side.

Ding Ming, who also started his career in 1921, is another example of a news anchor.

We are currently on Nanhu Lake in Jiaxing, taking a boat trip on the lake.

Ding Ming held several newspapers in his hands, all showing the latest situation in the 'Republic of China':
"Feng Guozhang is going to fight Zhang Zuolin."

"Zhang Xueliang came to power in 1928, which means that Zhang Zuolin died in 1928."

"Any brothers who started in 1928, could you check how Zhang Zuolin died?"

What's wrong with me?

"Why did so many people run away?!"

Ding Ming had only said a few words when he realized something was wrong: the number of people in the live stream had dropped by two-thirds, leaving only two thousand.

Although he's not a big streamer, this drop in popularity is just too fast!
The live stream chat provided the answer:
Someone has triggered the Nanchang Uprising storyline and gotten stuck; there's nothing that can be done about it.

Indeed, this is a major event for the Republic, and not just any ordinary one.

[The host should just stick to sharing gossip and enjoying the lake trip.]

Ding Ming was speechless as he read the comments on the screen.

good guy?
I'm so lucky to have triggered a story card of this level.

Why can't I meet someone like that?

wow-

Ding Ming shook his head and turned to a page of the newspaper:
"Let me see, Mr. Chen Duxiu has published another new article."

far away.

A rustic wooden boat glides slowly across the water. A woman sits at the bow, wearing a plain cheongsam and holding an oil-paper umbrella, the umbrella tilted slightly to cover half her face.

Only a pair of calm, water-like eyes were visible as she gazed at Ding Ming's boat and instructed the boatman to change direction.

A faint sound came from inside the cabin:
"Comrades, now comes the most crucial moment: let's discuss the last item on the agenda."

"Based on democratic principles."

(End of this chapter)