Amidst the surging crowd, the two drifted along with the waves.
Wherever the smoke and dust billowed, the world was bustling.
However, Xu Xian did not understand why Xiaoqing was so excited to watch others play with a broadsword. In his eyes, those few moves were not even martial arts, at most, they were just tricks.
But this did not stop Xiaoqing from cheering along with the crowd.
Then, she pulled Bai Suzhen and Xu Xian's sleeves and went to other places to watch the fun.
Xu Xian and Bai Suzhen looked at each other and could only let her be.
They looked around and walked around the square a few times. Each of them was holding a stick of bright red candied haws, which was what Xiaoqing wanted to buy.
Bai Suzhen casually gave the candied haws to a little boy who was staring at the candied haws.
Xu Xian tasted it and felt that the taste was far inferior to the exotic fragrance in Xiaoqing's mouth.
On the contrary, Xiaoqing ate it with gusto, which made Xu Xian guess that she probably could not feel the taste!
Finally, a gong sounded and attracted everyone's attention. They began to gather around the stage, the show was about to begin.
Xiaoqing frowned and said, "So many people!" It would not be easy to squeeze through the crowd.
At this moment, a servant came up and said, "Prince Xu, come quickly, our yard master is waiting anxiously."
He led Xu Xian and the other two around the crowd to the back of the stage. Liao Qiu was busy arranging the final matters. When he saw Xu Xian, he only nodded slightly and focused on explaining the play to the actor in front of him.
Xu Xian did not want to disturb him, so he followed the servant through a small path through the stage.
This path was specially left for the guests to come and watch the show, so that they would not have to squeeze with others.
After passing through the stage, he saw that there were many private rooms in front of the stage, and many people were already seated.
When they saw Xu Xian and the other two coming over, they all cupped their hands and greeted, "President Xu", regardless of whether they knew him or not.
Xu Xian smiled and cupped his hands in return, and sat down with the two girls at a square table. This was an excellent position for watching the show.
Fresh fruits and peaches were placed on the table for everyone to eat.
Little Qing had already picked a large honey peach, and was munching on it, minding her own business.
Qing and Bai sat on Xu Xian's left and right. Although there were quite a few women present, and there was no lack of beautiful women among them, they paled in comparison to them.
Bai Suzhen inevitably gave people the feeling that she could only be viewed from afar, but Xiaoqing's words and laughter were unrestrained, her youthful and lively appearance truly stirred many people's thoughts. But looking at Xu Xian, these thoughts could only be put away.
Xiaoqing kept asking Xu Xian about the content of the show, but Xu Xian only smiled and did not answer.
She then walked past Xu Xian and whispered something to Bai Suzhen, her blue eyes glancing at Xu Xian from time to time, making Bai Suzhen look at Xu Xian with a smile.
The two girls huddled together in front of Xu Xian, whispering to each other. Their beautiful faces were smiling, and the sound of silver bells could be heard, making Xu Xian regret not cultivating the Heavenly Ear Connection.
As he sniffed, a faint fragrance wafted over, as if two different fragrances were entwined and intertwined, forming an indescribable temptation.
After waiting for a long time, the audience's appetite was whetted high, and then they heard another gong sound, and the bustling crowd immediately quietened down.
Those who were more knowledgeable knew that the show would only begin after the third gong sound.
On the stage, a few opera artists performed a few stand-up routines, such as stand-up comedy, and the finale would be at the end.
"Dong", the third gong sound finally came, and the show, finally began.
Below the stage, tens of thousands of heads were moving, and the audience was like a tide.
At this moment, however, it was silent, and only focused, watching the performance on the stage.
A plain-clothed girl dressed as Dou E was singing on the stage, her voice was clear and gentle, attracting the attention of tens of thousands of people.
With the appearance of many characters, the story slowly expanded.
Although this show was written by Xu Xian, he was a transmigrator after all, and he knew the plot of the story like the back of his hand, so he could not be as engrossed as the people around him.
Looking left and right, he found that the people around him were all engrossed, and it could be said that he was the only one who was absent-minded like him.
But on the other hand, when he thought about it, the first time he watched a movie, the first time he read a martial arts novel, he was no less engrossed than this. Although when he looked back, he found that it was not as beautiful as he remembered, it was still a precious memory.
The sky gradually became dusk, and a few noisy crows fell into the distant mountains.
There was no moon that night, and there were only a few fishing fires on the pier. Only the fire on the stage shone in everyone's eyes.
When Dou E was wronged, and the play went into sorrow, the audience felt as if they had been infected with a disease, and they were sad and miserable.
Even the lively Xiaoqing watched the development of the story intently, and Bai Suzhen's beautiful face was dyed with a layer of worry.
When Dou E was being tortured and was about to die, she sang a song that accused the heaven and earth. Even Xu Xian's attention was drawn to it. The voice of the actress on the stage was excellent and her performance was superb. Her face was full of grievance and indignation. Even Xu Xian was moved.
Suddenly, he felt a warmth in his hand. It turned out that Bai Suzhen could not help but grab his hand. Under the flickering lights, her eyes seemed to be sparkling.
Xu Xian couldn't help but bitterly smile. She was too engrossed in her role. But when she looked around, she saw that the women sitting below the stage were all crying like rain. They were suppressing their sobs and wiping their tears with handkerchiefs.
Even some of the men's eyes reddened.
The only exception was Xiaoqing, who widened her eyes and glared angrily, as if she was going to go up and beat someone up.
Xu Xian smiled bitterly and shook his head. His right hand held Bai Suzhen's jade-like hand in the palm of his palm. He only felt that the place where his hand touched was soft and cool like jade.
Bai Suzhen turned her head and looked at him. She smiled at him and calmed down a lot.
Xu Xian suddenly felt a pain on his thigh. It turned out that Xiaoqing could not control herself, and her hand was like an iron clamp.
Xu Xian had to use his left hand to pat the back of her hand. Only then did she relax a little.
Xu Xian hesitated for a moment and decided to hold it in his hand as well.
He felt that Xiaoqing's hand was slightly thinner and seemed to be more powerful. But in his hand, it was still soft and cool.
The two different smells in his hands made Xu Xian immediately forget about the stage.
The lights were dim but in the eyes of the three people, it was as bright as day. Bai Suzhen felt something from the corner of her eyes. Her jade-like face blushed and she wanted to pull her hand back. But Xu Xian held it tightly and refused to let go. So she let him do as he wished.
Xiao Qing was the same when she first realized it, but she still carefully glanced at Bai Suzhen out of the corner of her eye. She saw that Bai Suzhen was focused on the stage, and in the end, she didn't pull her hand back. Instead, she gripped Xu Xian's hand tightly, causing Xu Xian to feel a burst of pain.
When the play reached the stage, Dou E's injustice was cleared and the wicked was punished.
Everyone felt as if they had suddenly recovered from a serious illness. The joy on their faces was indescribable.
When the last line was sung, the music stopped.
The whole stage seemed to have frozen. Everyone was still immersed in the world of the song.
Finally, there was a burst of applause. Like a huge stone thrown into a calm lake, the stage was filled with thunderous cheers.
Bai Suzhen and Xiaoqing pulled their hands back at the same time. They lowered their heads and looked a little bashful. Compared to the cheers from the other tables, their table was much quieter.
Xu Xian touched his nose and tried to find a topic. "Not bad, right? I didn't make a fool of myself like Xiaoqing said."
Bai Suzhen also praised, "Hanwen, your writing is really good."
Xiaoqing also nodded and said, "Not bad." It was rare for her to praise Xu Xian.
Being praised together, Xu Xian scratched his head and felt a little embarrassed.
Then, the master of the mustard seed garden, Liao Qiu, led the actors up the stage again. He thanked the villagers for their love and said, "Do you know who composed this song?" After keeping everyone in suspense, he pointed to the audience and said, "It is the world-famous Prince Xu, Xu Xian."
After inviting Xu Xian to the stage, there was naturally a big promotion. Of course, the matter of "buying a song with a thousand dollars" could not be ignored.
What surprised Xu Xian was that, in terms of technique, his advertising methods were not inferior to the advertising companies of the future. His rambling could make everyone listen with relish.
In the end, he gave the right to speak to Xu Xian. Xu Xian looked at the dense crowd below the stage. Everyone's gaze focused on her, and she felt inexplicably uncomfortable. It was the first time for Xu Xian to speak in front of so many people, whether it was in her previous life or this life. If not for the fact that she was successful in her cultivation and was able to calm her mind, she might not have been able to speak.
Xu Xian calmed himself down and sorted out his thoughts. "Dear villagers …" When he opened his mouth, Liao Qiu was shocked. He did not expect Prince Xu's gentle appearance to be so loud.
But he did not know that when Xu Xian spoke, he naturally carried the mana of the Great Thunder Technique. It was not only loud.
When Buddha spread the Dharma, even birds and beasts stopped and called it the Golden Lotus Mouth, the Flower of Wisdom.
In reality, there was no such thing as a lotus, it was just a description of its power.
Although Xu Xian was not as good as Buddha, he had learned the ropes. On the stage, he described his experiences in Suzhou, and the hardships and difficulties of compiling the book.
At first, it was a little slow, but it slowly became more fluent. Because it was an honest speech, Yu An strengthened the power of the Great Thunder Technique. Although it was not as good as Liao Qiu's glib tongue, it was more convincing. Moreover, Xu Xian had been treating countless patients for the past few months, and had already established a good reputation, which added to his persuasiveness.
The audience was different from the silence during the opera performance. There were countless responses, sometimes even louder than Xu Xian's thunderous voice.
This surprised Liao Qiu, who was at the side, as she did not expect Xu Xian to have such a rallying power.
It was not because he had a lot of power, nor did he have a lot of wisdom.
This was not something that could be achieved with power or wisdom. It was because, "Those who love the people will be loved by the people; those who cherish the people will be cherished by the people."
Bai Suzhen looked at him, and felt proud.
This is the man that I, Bai Suzhen, chose, and loved!
Xu Xian invited all the physicians who were involved in compiling the book to the stage.
Although the group of physicians had never lacked gratitude, it was the first time in their lives that they stood on the stage and received the cheers and praises of millions of people. Their legs were weak under their robes, and no one knew what to say. They only felt dizzy.
In short, it was "too much face". Most of them could not forget this scene even when they were old, but they could not forget to say, "That year, High Duke Xu was standing beside me."
The following donations were a great success. Not only wealthy gentry, but even more commoners came up to the stage. The donations were at least a few copper coins, and at most a few taels of silver. No matter how much it was, Xu Xian would ask for their names and record them on paper.
Later on, he hired a stonemason to carve it into a giant monument, and erected it in the Ancestral Temple of the Three Emperors.
However, Xu Xian was shocked by the amount of money she received in the end. In this case, with the 15,000 taels of silver she received from selling the songs, it would not be a problem for her to finish writing the book. She would even have a lot of savings.
Liao Qiu smiled and asked, "How do you plan to use this money?"
Xu Xian replied, "Take it from the people, and use it for the people."
Liao Qiu's eyes lit up, "Take it from the people, and use it for the people."
If you become an official, it will be a blessing for the people. "
"As long as I am alive, I will not let Xu Xian become an official."
In the magistrate's office, a young man said lightly. It was Master Liang, whom Xu Xian met at the Yi Pin Pavilion.
Magistrate Chen carefully said, "Master Liang, you can't say that. The imperial examinations are for the country to select scholars …"
But Master Liang suddenly interrupted, "How do you think I compare to Pan Yu?"
Magistrate Chen was taken aback by his leap of thought, and did not know how to answer. He had seen Pan Yu when he came to Suzhou. Although he had become the Suzhou magistrate because of King Liang's promotion, he was still a marginal figure in King Liang's faction, and he did not want to be involved in factional struggles.
When Pan Yu came to Suzhou, he, as the magistrate, naturally had to go and meet him. He felt as if he was bathing in a spring breeze, and his talent and learning made him, a person with a Jinshi background, feel admiration.
It was very different from the feeling he had when facing Master Liang.
But he could not say it directly for fear of offending Master Liang, and he did not want to curry favor too much, so he said, "I really do not know how to compare."
Master Liang's eyes narrowed dangerously, and his heart was filled with anger. He had already sensed the true answer from Magistrate Chen's expression, and that was that he was not as good as Pan Yu.
But this was what he cared about the most right now.
Ever since Pan Yu entered the capital, he had always received this answer.
Originally, Liang Lian had relied on King Liang's power to do as he pleased in the capital, and he was the center of attention.
But ever since Pan Yu entered the capital, the situation slowly changed.
Liang Lian had fought with her countless times, but whether it was in terms of words, poetry, swordsmanship, martial arts, or even looks, Pan Yu was a head above Liang Lian, and had won countless praises.
He had even set up many plots and played countless evil tricks, but they were all easily seen through by Pan Yu.
But what angered him the most was that every time they met, the other would greet him with a warm smile, and call him "Master Liang". It was as if she never saw him as an enemy, or rather, did not care about him at all.
Later, King Liang even used Pan Yu to teach him a lesson.
Failure was not scary. What was scary was realizing that he was not an opponent of the same level, and that he had no power to fight back.
While he was still drinking in the Gold-Consuming Lair in the capital, Pan Yu had already brought a few guards to the south to rope in the Cao Salt Gang and obtain benefits for the family.
His main goal was the same as Pan Yu's, to rope in the Cao Salt Gang and their power. Punishing Xu Xian should have been only a secondary goal.
But unknowingly, the two of them had mistaken their priorities.
In Pan Yu's heart, coming to Jiangnan to see Xu Xian was far more important than dealing with the two gang leaders.
Liang Lian's hatred for Pan Yu made him hate Xu Xian even more.
If he was an ordinary citizen, he would have been imprisoned for framing him and taken away.
But Xu Xian had a scholarly reputation, and his name was known throughout the world. He could not do this.
Magistrate Chen saw that Master Liang's expression kept changing, and he began to regret it. So what if I complimented him? Why should I offend this hedonistic young master over such a small matter? Just as he was about to redeem himself, he heard Master Liang say, "Magistrate Chen, the Fall Quarter Examination is almost here!
Father has already made arrangements. You will be one of the examiners! "
The provincial examinations were organized by each province's administration of education, and they conferred the qualifications of a scholar.
The examiners were appointed by the court, and there were usually two examiners, one chief and one deputy.
The chief examiner had to come from the capital, but the deputy examiner could be a local official.
Magistrate Chen understood what he meant and was shocked. He said awkwardly, "Xu Xian is from Qiantang, he should return to Hangzhou for the provincial examinations."
Master Liang laughed coldly, "You don't have to worry about that, he has to take the examination in Suzhou."
At this time, the imperial examinations were very strict, and one could not take the examination wherever one wanted. There was something like a "school roll", which was controlled by each province's administration of education.
Under normal circumstances, it was impossible for Xu Xian to take the Fall Examination in Suzhou, but if he transferred his school roll to Suzhou, Xu Xian would have to take the examination in Suzhou.
Magistrate Chen frowned and said, "Your Highness, you mean to say that you want Xu Xian to fail?" If the examiner wanted a student to fail, it would be too easy.
Master Liang shook his head and grinned, "No, he will cheat in the Fall Examination. When you are patrolling, just pay more attention."
Magistrate Chen was shocked. He was trying to frame Xu Xian.
Cheating in the exam could be a big or small crime. At the very least, he would be "never hired". If it was to warn others, he could be exiled to the army.
But as the examiner, it would be easy for him to slander Xu Xian for cheating. "I, Chen Lun, was entrusted by the emperor to serve the imperial court. How could I do such a thing!" Magistrate Chen stood up abruptly, trying to look fierce but cowardly at heart.
However, Young Master Liang took out a red envelope from his sleeve and threw it on the table. "I heard that Lord Prefect has recently been blessed with a son. This gift is a small token of my appreciation. You must take care of yourself." After saying that, he actually ignored everything else and walked out by himself.
Magistrate Chen looked at the red envelope on the table, slumped back into his chair, and sighed deeply.
Ever since the conference, Xu Xian's days had been light and easy. Not only had the funding problem been completely solved, but since that day, many medical professionals had come to Suzhou to participate in the compilation of his medical book.
This allowed him to finish the medical book that he would have never been able to finish before the Fall Examination. It also saved him a lot of time to study and prepare for the provincial examinations.
His relationship with the two girls didn't seem to have changed much, but it seemed to have changed a lot.
The only thing was that his wedding date with Bai Suzhen was still far in the future.
One day, at mealtime.
Bai Suzhen suddenly said, "Hanwen, Ao Li should have almost merged with the waters and will soon arrive at Lake Tai!"
Xu Xian felt a little apologetic. These days, he had been busy with his own matters and neglected her matters.
"Sister, let's go to Cold Mountain Temple tomorrow!"
With a sweet smile, Bai Suzhen replied, "Alright!"