A master of comedy!

Chapter 137 Hu Sanniang

Ghost city.

On the long street, Zhou Sheng stealthily moved through the earth using his earth-遁术 (earth-遁术 is a type of magic or technique), but was surprised to sense that the ghost market, which should have been bustling and lively, was now unusually desolate.

Most shops were closed, and there were no street vendors to be found.

Squads of ghostly soldiers patrolled continuously, several times more than before. Some even stormed into shops, violently searching, smashing things, and kidnapping people from the shops.

The entire ghost town seemed to have become tense and filled with a chilling atmosphere.

Even underground, Zhou Sheng could hear the continuous wailing, pleading, and angry roars.

The ghost town seemed to have transformed into Xunyang, which had been attacked by rebels more than a hundred years ago and suffered a calamity during the war.

Zhou Sheng's eyes flashed, knowing that the general was starting to get anxious.

As Li Zicheng's sworn brother, Xiao Huchen clearly knew Ya Zi very well, even his origins.

He desperately wanted Yazi. Whether it was for his future uprising to return to the human world or to defeat the remnant spirit of the Tiger God, Yazi was an extremely crucial element.

Now that Yazi has appeared in the world, the general must have noticed it, which is why he is frantically searching the city.

Given the other party's violent and domineering nature...

Zhou Sheng's heart suddenly tightened. He thought of Juxianlou and felt worried about what kind of impact it would suffer.
Upon realizing this, he quickly fled towards the Juxianlou.

……

boom!boom!
Inside the Juxianlou, the sounds of smashing and breaking echoed continuously.

"By order of the General, conduct another thorough investigation of Juxianlou. Do not overlook any place, and search every single person carefully!"

Seemingly knowing that Juxianlou was a tough nut to crack, a large number of Yin soldiers came to search it, including a Yin general in silver armor.

The general, with a leopard-like head and piercing eyes, looked fierce and menacing. Holding a Guan Dao (a type of halberd), he stood high on the second-floor viewing platform, overlooking the entire Juxianlou.

He exuded a chilling aura, his eyes narrowed slightly like a leopard hunting its prey, radiating a dangerous presence.

"General Leopard, didn't the General personally lead a search operation the day before yesterday?"

"Are you looking for the General's belongings, or are you trying to take this opportunity to plunder the people?"

Many people feared the malevolent aura of that Yin general, but Yao Tai Feng snorted coldly, her phoenix eyes slightly raised, a hint of anger flashing across them.

These ghostly soldiers weren't really searching; they were clearly taking the opportunity to loot. They hid anything of value they saw, and almost all the costumes in the backstage area were taken.

She saw a ghostly soldier take away a white pearl peony phoenix crown. The three kingfisher feather phoenixes adorning the crown were shaking, and several of the white pearls and kingfisher feather butterflies that were fully embellished on the crown were roughly torn off.

Xiao Wu's wife, Yun Niang, immediately cried out in distress.

Yao Tai Feng felt the same heartache, but it was for Yun Niang.

She understood better than anyone how precious and cherished a female opera performer's costumes were. This white pearl peony phoenix crown was Yunniang's favorite thing when she was alive; she was so careful with it that she was afraid of dropping it if she held it in her hands or melting it if she kept it in her mouth.

Each pearl must be carefully wiped with toothpaste to ensure its luster and shine.

When performing opera in winter, the bright yellow beaded tassels hanging from the phoenix tail ears must be warmed by placing them against the heart to prevent them from looking stiff.

For opera singers, their costumes are like their lifeline, their means of making a living by traveling all over the country.

But to those ghost soldiers, it was nothing more than a valuable object. Several of them fought over it, almost tearing the phoenix crown to shreds.

Yao Tai Feng shook off Yun Niang's hand that was blocking her, stepped forward, looked up at the Yin General, and questioned him. Her pretty face was stern and fearless, and her heroic spirit was like a rainbow.

General Leopard's gaze fell on the renowned Feng family, who was famous throughout Ghost City.

Tonight, the phoenix headdress on the Jade Terrace is adorned with a red turban, red curtains, red pom-poms, a seven-star emblem, pheasant feathers, a fox tail, a red armor, red ribbons, red trousers, a red skirt, and small red stilt shoes.

With twin swords, one for the sun and one for the moon, hanging at her waist, and her hair twisted into two fiery cloud shapes and tightly bound with red silk, she was truly handsome and charming from afar, with a touch of untamed arrogance. Her beauty was as vibrant as a pomegranate flower, and her sharpness as keen as a frost-covered blade.

It is exactly the appearance of Hu Sanniang, the One-Zhang-Qing.

"So it's you, Master Feng. I must say, you look quite dashing. On stage, you were fierce and savage, but I wonder what it's like in bed?"

A hint of mockery flashed in General Leopard's eyes, and as soon as he finished speaking, his men burst into laughter.

Yao Taifeng's eyes were as cold as frost, and with a slight twitch of her two pheasant feathers, her slender fingers were already pressed on the hilt of the sword at her waist.

"General Leopard, so this is how the Great General commands his troops? I am but a humble woman, yet I have performed for the City Lord. I wonder what the City Lord would think if he knew?"

"If the general is punished by the city lord, guess who he will vent his anger on?"

Yao Tai Feng slightly raised her chin. Under the other party's ill-intentioned gaze, she did not show the usual shame, anger, or nervousness of a woman. Instead, she remained calm and composed, neither humble nor arrogant.

His words were like two drawn swords, clear and resonant, full of energy, echoing throughout the theater.

General Leopard gave her a deep look and sneered, "As expected of an actress, you have quite the sharp tongue."

"Listen carefully, everyone. The General's mansion was recently broken into by thieves, and a piece of five-colored mica was stolen. It was a birthday gift from the General to the City Lord, which is why the whole city is being searched and no place can be overlooked!"

"As the saying goes, actors are heartless and prostitutes are ruthless. Who knows if your filthy place is actually a den of thieves?"

"Keep searching. Take everything back for inspection. Anything could contain the five-colored mica!"

"promise!"

Upon hearing this, the ghost soldiers became even more unrestrained, ransacking the backstage area. They took away the exquisite silk costumes and carelessly tossed aside the rough ones, trampling on them wantonly.

They even tore down the "conservatism" on the stage.

Yao Taifeng slowly closed her eyes, and when she opened them again, her eyes were as white as frost and as bright as torches, just like Hu Sanniang raising her eyes to make her debut.

A figure blocked her way; it was none other than Master Guan.

"Tolerate."

“Xiao Feng, you are always intelligent, you should be able to sense that General Leopard is trying to provoke you into drawing your sword.”

"In our line of work, even if we break our teeth, we have to swallow our pride!"

Master Guan whispered a warning to his apprentice not to act rashly. As a seasoned veteran, he had already sensed something was amiss.

The enemy has mobilized a large army, surrounding them inside and out, clearly indicating that they are on guard against them.

Perhaps General Leopard was just looking for a reason to arrest people and was waiting for them to make their move.

"But Master, I don't want to endure it anymore."

Yao Tai Feng's eyes were firm as she looked at her master's back and said, word by word, "We don't steal or rob; we earn our living through our skills. Why should we tolerate it?"

"It is precisely because every opera singer endures that others dare to call us actors without any scruples. I agree with something Boss Long once said..."

With a clang, the twin swords, Sun and Moon, were drawn from their sheaths, their blades gleaming like the moon shining on a cold river.

"Enduring humiliation without bearing the burden, living a life of compromise just to survive, that's why our line of work is looked down upon."

"To change this mindset, let's begin with this one strike!"

……

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(End of this chapter)