Chapter 241: Zhang Qiming Enters the City Lord’s Mansion
The City Lord’s Mansion was strange.
In Yangzhou, Zhang Qiming had seen many old family residences converted into parks.
They were either pavilions and terraces arranged in a well-spaced manner, with small bridges over flowing water and winding paths leading to secluded spots; or lush trees and flowers, surrounded by green bamboo, elegant and serene; or planted with various flowers of spring, summer, autumn, and winter, blooming in turn, beautiful beyond compare.
Unlike the City Lord’s Mansion, where sunflowers were planted.
It was the season for sunflowers to wither, and all the sunflowers had no flowers, only sunflower stalks standing in flower beds and roadsides, which looked very peculiar.
Secondly, the servants in the City Lord’s Mansion were all very old and very ugly.
How to say it…it gave Zhang Qiming a feeling of going to the countryside for a grand market. Or the summer two years ago, when he went to the village to help people harvest grain, the village aunts and grandmothers surrounded him to express their gratitude.
If Nangong Di beside him dressed a little more plainly and wore a straw hat, it would be perfect.
Finally, they didn’t go to any reception hall, study, or the like, but to a small courtyard.
Zhang Qiming looked up and saw four characters at the entrance of the small courtyard: “Peace and Prosperity Through Music and Dance”.
The small courtyard was about two acres in size, with a large dance floor in the middle and silk and bamboo musicians on both sides. Facing the center of the stage was a long corridor, and in the middle sat a person.
That person looked about thirty or forty years old, wearing a red robe with gold patterns, a jade and gold crown, and an ordinary face, but his eyes were rather expressive.
It was Nangong Zhao, the True Realm martial artist.
At this moment, he was sitting on a grand armchair, shaking his head and watching the people dancing in the middle of the dance floor.
That dance…Zhang Qiming only took one look and felt his eyes were blinded.
Damn, the taste of True Realm martial artists was hard to describe.
At this time, the calmness of Nangong Di, this old Jianghu hand, was evident. He glanced at Zhang Qiming and said that this was nothing, he had seen even more eye-searing things!
He said to Zhang Qiming, “Watch my eyes and act accordingly later.”
Zhang Qiming focused his eyes on his nose and his nose on his heart, silently deducing subtractions in his mind. He was not going to look at the dance in the dance floor a second time.
City Lord Nangong Zhao watched with great interest, and simply took off his red robe, changed into casual clothes, and went to the dance floor to dance with a group of elder sisters.
The dance they were dancing was called the True Person Dance, which expressed the joy of martial artists after becoming a True Person.
Zhang Qiming heard Nangong Zhao singing as he danced, his voice surprisingly deep and resonant:
“It’s good to be a True Person in martial arts, Zhoutian Qi Sea is like a cat!”
“Turning hands into clouds and covering hands with rain, eyebrows move and the city shakes!”
“A man should be like this when he achieves success, it’s not in vain to come to this world!”
“Haha~ endless wealth, endless power! Endless delicacies, endless money! Endless praises, endless gifts!”
“Endless riches and honor, endless years to live!”
“To be a man, one must be a True Person~”
Listening to this complacent song, Zhang Qiming saw Nangong Zhao leading a group of aunts as if they were doing square dancing.
Such a magical scene made Zhang Qiming a little unable to hold back.
Where the hell did this idiot come from? If Teacher Shi knew about this, he might slap him.
The Jianghu is truly shallow water with many turtles, and a small temple with strong winds.
So many True Realm martial artists in Jicheng, none of them have been so arrogant. Back then, there was a True Realm martial artist in Jicheng who didn’t pay for his meal and was publicly hung on an office building by Teacher Shi and whipped dozens of times, losing all face.
The True Realm martial artists in Jicheng and Yangzhou now not only have higher requirements for themselves, but also accept criticism from the general public.
If the True Realm martial artists in Yangzhou, Yuzhou, and Jingzhou dared to dance the True Person Dance…
That scene would be too beautiful.
✿✿✿
“Endless gifts, endless riches and honor! Who is here to give gifts today!” Nangong Zhao waved his hand, and Nangong Feng, who was not far from him, immediately shouted.
Today was the day when all the big and small forces in the city would send gifts and pay tribute to Nangong Zhao every month.
“This humble one is the second-in-command of the Golden Saber Society, today I bring overseas beauties bought from the South Sea for the City Lord!” A middle-aged man in blue clothes bowed and ran past Zhang Qiming, came to Nangong Zhao, and knelt down on one knee, saying.
“Oh? Beauties?” Nangong Zhao’s eyes lit up and he said, “Don’t tell me they are blonde and blue-eyed foreign women? They are too ugly.”
“No! Please have a look, City Lord!” The second-in-command clapped his hands, and six women dressed in exotic styles entered from outside the courtyard.
Leading the way was a woman in her fifties, with powder on her face. She bowed to the City Lord and pointed to the first woman, saying, “This one is from Siam, with dark skin, narrow eyes, and buck teeth, she is a rare woman.”
“Good!” Nangong Zhao looked at the ugly woman with dark skin and couldn’t help but say, “She is indeed a peerless beauty!”
Zhang Qiming couldn’t help but glance at the peerless beauty, and then he felt like he was struck by lightning.
“This is a Japanese…” The woman wanted to continue introducing, but was interrupted by Nangong Zhao.
“No need, leave these five women along with a peerless beauty like you!” Nangong Zhao looked at the five foreign beauties with their own characteristics, his heart was filled with joy, he waved his hand and said.
“Me?” The woman was stunned and wanted to say something, but was pulled down by the people from the Golden Saber Society.
There was no place for her to speak here.
“Good! You Golden Saber Society have put in a lot of effort this time, keep up the good work!” Nangong Zhao looked at the second-in-command in a good mood and encouraged him.
“Oh! It’s our honor to serve the City Lord!” The people from the Golden Saber Society replied with a smile.
Next came the Wind and Thunder Hall and the Whistling Wind Hall. These two, along with the Golden Saber Society, were the three largest gangs in Picheng, monopolizing the business of daily necessities.
One of them sent pearls and jade, and the other sent rare and exotic beasts, which also pleased Nangong Zhao.
After that, it was the street boss of this street, the head of that neighborhood.
People from all walks of life, from all trades and professions, would come here once a month to pay tribute to City Lord Nangong Zhao and express their submission.
It was through this monthly tribute that Nangong Zhao completed the integration of these forces.
Whoever didn’t pay tribute properly was courting death.
About half an hour later, all the parties had gone through the process.
Nangong Zhao looked at the people from all walks of life in Picheng around the dance floor and said, “I always feel like something is missing today!”
“City Lord! The monks from the Golden Buddha Temple are missing today!” At this time, Nangong Di stood out from the side and said.
In public, he had to address his nephew as City Lord.
He still knew this much.
Because he had been taught a lesson by his nephew.
“Oh!” Nangong Zhao slapped his thigh and said, “Thanks to Third Uncle’s reminder, otherwise I really wouldn’t have noticed that a few baldies were missing today.”
“The City Lord is probably unaware that the monks of the Golden Buddha Temple have all become cured meat hanging inside the Golden Buddha Temple, how can they come to pay tribute to the City Lord?” Nangong Di said.
“I know! How could I not know!” Nangong Zhao looked at Nangong Di with a smile, his tone suddenly turned cold and said, “I also know that the murderer who killed the monks of the Golden Buddha Temple is right there!”
He pointed his finger, pointing directly at Zhang Qiming!
I just realized that this part of the Yellow Millet Dream goes well with this.
