Chapter 254: Play Repair

Under Li Banfeng's pressing questions, the actor dismissed all the lingering spirits from the room and began to recount the past.

"Actually, back then, the person I wanted to marry wasn't Hong Ying; it was Zhao Xiaowan. I mentioned this, and even asked His Majesty to act as matchmaker, but Zhao Xiaowan refused."

Li Banfeng asked, "What is your identity?"

The actor raised a hand, gesturing around, "With this courtyard, and the furnishings in my home, can't you tell my identity?"

Li Banfeng shook his head. "No, I can't."

"I am a Prince! Prince Chun!" At this point, the actor raised his voice, "You should know what status a Prince holds."

Although Li Banfeng hadn't studied history in college, he had some concept of what a Prince was. "You're a Prince, and Zhao Xiaowan is a general who started as an entertainer. You wanted to marry her? How could she dare refuse?"

The actor gave a bitter smile. "It depends on the timing. Normally, she wouldn't dare refuse. I could even tie her up and bring her to the Prince's residence and take her without even giving her a formal title."

"But it was different then. At that time, we were at war, and Zhao Xiaowan was winning battle after battle. His Majesty couldn't do without her, so this matter truly had to be discussed with her properly."

"In the end, no agreement was reached. His Majesty also gave me a way out by bestowing Hong Ying upon me."

"Hong Ying came from a respectable military family. Her status was a bit lower than mine, but far superior to Zhao Xiaowan's."

"Although I wasn't pleased, Hong Ying was also a stunning beauty. More importantly, she was willing to be with me, so I accepted this marriage."

Li Banfeng nodded. "Since she was willing, and you were willing, then the marriage was settled."

"It didn't happen," Prince Chun shook his head. "At that time, Zhao Xiaowan and Hong Ying had won many battles. For some unknown reason, His Majesty recalled them both. He appointed Zhao Xiaowan as General of Valiant Cavalry and Hong Ying as General of Materiel."

"They were no longer needed to fight. General Cong Shixiang, the 'Crosscurrent General,' was sent to the front lines to take over command of the troops."

"One day, His Majesty hosted a banquet, inviting all his civil and military officials. Zhao Xiaowan and Hong Ying also attended."

"During the banquet, His Majesty ordered Zhao Xiaowan to perform. She had to put on a headdress and makeup and sing a formal opera!"

Li Banfeng frowned. "She was already a General of Valiant Cavalry. Why would he make her perform opera?"

Prince Chun looked Li Banfeng up and down, smacking his lips. "Your thinking is just like Zhao Xiaowan's. She also felt that as a general, she shouldn't be performing opera in front of all the officials."

"It was a bit humiliating, but it was His Majesty's decree, his golden words! Who would dare to utter a single 'no'?"

"But Zhao Xiaowan actually did say no. His Majesty was furious. He immediately ordered Zhao Xiaowan to be arrested and thrown into prison."

"Hong Ying pleaded on Zhao Xiaowan's behalf, so His Majesty had her arrested as well and imprisoned. That's where the marriage engagement ended."

Li Banfeng wasn't concerned about the marriage; he was more interested in the Emperor's motives. "Just for a matter of performing opera, he turned two generals into prisoners?"

Prince Chun was silent for a moment, then shook his head. "If you ask me, it wasn't just about the opera. At that time, the Ministry of War received reports that the front lines had suffered a defeat. How they were defeated, I don't know, but I overheard the Minister of War secretly cursing that Cong Shixiang was nothing but an idiot."

"His Majesty was likely already in a bad mood, and Zhao Xiaowan just happened to cross him at the wrong time, provoking his imperial wrath and landing herself in trouble!"

"Nonsense!" Li Banfeng shook his head. "He couldn't win the war, so he punished the ones who could fight? Was this Emperor insane?"

Prince Chun sighed deeply. "I also thought it was unreasonable, but upon reflection, I understood His Majesty's true intentions."

"Those who could fight were disobedient, and those who were obedient couldn't fight. His Majesty might have wanted to use this incident to discipline his officials, to warn them against becoming arrogant due to their achievements."

"Those two generals suffered terribly in prison. It's said they never even had a full meal, enduring hunger and cold, not to mention many beatings."

"Later, I heard from people in the Ministry of Justice that His Majesty intended to kill both of them, and not just kill them, but make their deaths agonizing."

"He could do whatever he wanted with his own generals, but the enemy forces from the Demonic Lands showed His Majesty no respect. The front lines were suffering defeat after defeat, and the enemy was close to reaching the capital."

"For the sake of the Great Huan's empire and its people, His Majesty had no choice but to put aside past grievances..."

Li Banfeng waved his hand. "Don't bring up the empire and its people; that has nothing to do with this."

Prince Chun pursed his lips. "In short, His Majesty released Zhao Xiaowan and Hong Ying. Hong Ying was reinstated to her original post as General of Materiel, while Zhao Xiaowan was only made a Captain."

"His Majesty ordered them both to return to the front lines, accompanying Cong Shixiang."

"Although Zhao Xiaowan was only a Captain, Hong Ying listened to her. When it came to military matters, she followed Zhao Xiaowan's every command. The two were closer than blood sisters."

"Despite Zhao Xiaowan and Hong Ying being reduced to mere skeletons from their ordeal, they remained formidable on the battlefield, winning victory after victory. All the civil and military officials were overjoyed, and the story of these two sisters spread throughout the capital."

"Zhao Xiaowan, especially, became incredibly famous. Storytellers, opera singers, street vendors, performers, and even fortune tellers on the street would recount two stories of Zhao Xiaowan's achievements before opening for business, just to attract customers."

Li Banfeng looked Prince Chun up and down. "You're a very down-to-earth Prince! You know about fortune-telling and street performances?"

Prince Chun chuckled. "I enjoy it. When I have nothing to do, I put on casual clothes and stroll around the capital. I just like to observe the common folk..."

Li Banfeng pressed his hand down. "Never mind you for now. Let's talk about Zhao Xiaowan. What happened after they won the battles?"

Prince Chun sighed deeply. "There was no 'after.' The two sisters kept winning, and the war situation was excellent. Reports from the front lines indicated that the enemy leader was even surrounded at that time."

"They were one step away from a complete victory, but who would have thought that these two sisters would turn on each other!"

"To this day, I don't know why they fought, nor can I comprehend why they struck each other with such lethal intent."

"Zhao Xiaowan died at Hong Ying's hands, and Hong Ying, gravely wounded, passed away a few days later."

Li Banfeng asked, surprised, "You don't know why they fought?"

"No," Prince Chun shook his head. "I wasn't at the battle; how could I know?"

"What happened then?"

"Later, the war was won. I don't know how it happened, but I heard His Majesty called for reinforcements. I don't know where those reinforcements came from, but after a few months of fighting, we simply won."

"After the victory, His Majesty summoned all civil and military officials and hosted a grand banquet in the palace for three days."

"I remember His Majesty was exceptionally pleased during those three days. He offered toast after toast, and the ministers drank glass after glass. Even I lost count of how much wine I consumed."

"I became drunk, and I don't know for how long. When I woke up, I found that my residence was no longer in its original location, and the people under my command were no longer as they were."

"They were no longer among the living, and they told me I wasn't either. They told me the outside world was called Prozhou, and this place was called Wuyouping. They said one could go anywhere in this place, but we couldn't go anywhere outside it."

"I said the path was right under our feet, and we should go out and see."

"They advised me, saying not to go out at all. They said that once we left Wuyouping, anyone who saw us would beat us to death."

"Years passed, and I've stayed here. I had nothing else to do but sing opera every day, performing for my subordinates."

"They listened day after day, year after year. At first, they would humor me, pretending to enjoy the performance."

"But eventually, they grew so weary of it that they didn't want to listen anymore. Even whipping them wouldn't make them listen."

"If they wouldn't listen, I'd find others. Occasionally, travelers would pass by and stop here to rest their feet, and I would sing for them at night."

"Later still, no travelers came for an entire year. My subordinates told me this area had become Old Earth, and it would be difficult to encounter a living person again."

"For a full decade, you were the only living people to come here. That girl relieving herself in my courtyard was actually not a big deal."

"I intentionally made things difficult for you simply because I wanted to keep you here to listen to me sing."

"I love singing opera, but it's excruciating to sing when there's no one to listen."

"You just wanted to keep us to listen to your opera?" Li Banfeng chuckled. "Did you want to keep us for a day, a year, or a lifetime?"

Prince Chun was quite candid. "I truly wanted to keep you for a lifetime, but you're too ruthless. It would be hard to keep you. If we fought for a few more days, I'm afraid I wouldn't have many subordinates left."

"Now that everything's out in the open, I've also given you what you wanted, this record..."

Li Banfeng took the record from behind his back and handed it to Prince Chun.

Prince Chun held the record, caressing it for a long time. "General Zhao, I truly admire you. I didn't pay much attention to how handsome you are. What truly earns my admiration is your magnificent voice."

"Every time I hear you sing a single line, I feel that half my life's cultivation has been wasted."

Li Banfeng asked, "There's one thing. I won't press you if you don't want to say, but what Daoist sect do you belong to?"

Prince Chun put away the record. "By rights, I shouldn't tell you this, but I haven't spoken this much in years, and it feels good to finally say it."

"I am a 'Drama Cultivator.' It's not as simple as loving to listen to or perform opera; I possess genuine cultivation. When I impersonated those two women just now, I used my true cultivation abilities."

"However, I had only seen those two women for the first time today, so some minor details were bound to have flaws."

"Let me put it this way: if I were to impersonate someone familiar to you, I guarantee even his own wife wouldn't recognize him."

Li Banfeng sneered, "You're just bragging!"

Prince Chun slapped the table. "How can this be bragging? The first time you recognized me, you must have realized I wasn't from the mortal realm."

"The second time we met, I was disguised as that girl's mother. Honestly, you didn't notice any flaws at first glance, did you?"

Li Banfeng nodded. He had to admit that, visually, he hadn't detected any flaws at the time.

Prince Chun said, quite pleased, "Let me tell you, not only can you not tell from the outside, but you can't tell from the inside either."

"How do you check from the inside?" Li Banfeng was curious.

"As long as our sect's cultivation is high enough, we can perfectly replicate a person's illness, injury, poisoning, or even what medication they've taken!"

Li Banfeng lowered his gaze. "That sounds too uncanny, doesn't it?"

"Why would I lie to you? You haven't seen the skilled practitioners of my sect. They can even perfectly replicate 'seed blood.' Even top-tier Divination Cultivators and Medicine Cultivators have been fooled by them!"

Perfectly replicate 'seed blood'?

Li Banfeng was skeptical. Could such uncanny techniques truly exist in this world?

At Yuezhao's Third Hospital, Xiao Zhenggong was inquiring about He Jiaqing's condition.

The attending physician's reply was the same as before: the patient's vital signs were stable, but he could not move easily.

Xiao Zhenggong dismissed the nurse and sat by He Jiaqing's bedside, sneering coldly, "How in the hell are you faking this? This huge hospital can't tell you're pretending to be sick?"

"What exactly are you doing staying in the Outer Province? Are you really here for me?"

"Things are tense these past few days, so I can't easily make a move on you. But remember this: as long as you're in the Outer Province, your life is in my hands!"