Daming: At the start of the showdown, Lao Zhu was stunned

Chapter 948: The First Cultural Performance of Ming Dynasty

It is undeniable that, apart from their "skill" in listening to music in brothels, most of these people are useless trash. After being driven to Mobei, they were able to become tribal leaders or leaders because of their origins. I think Ben Ya Shi Li and Alu Tai were annoyed by these trash on weekdays, and when they needed to leave someone behind to cover their retreat, they packed up these "talents" and sent them to the Ming Dynasty without hesitation... Zhu Xiongying made a malicious guess.

"Your Highness, are you really going to take these people away and let them perform for us?" the general of the prisoner-of-war camp asked with courage.

After listening to them singing for a few paragraphs, Zhu Xiongying took these "talents" away. The general was quite upset and reluctant. The days of guarding the border were really boring. It was enough to make people sick. Why didn't he discover these "talents" earlier?

"Haha." Zhu Xiongying was also happy to build momentum through these generals when he was asked. He smiled and said, "That's true."

"As a military supervisor, I have nothing to do on weekdays, and I don't want to be a nasty person who remembers the mistakes of soldiers behind their backs... So I have no choice but to use this method to relieve some of the worries of the Ming Dynasty."

"It's bitterly cold at the border, and the soldiers guarding here are really too tired on weekdays... I thought about finding some fun for the soldiers to pass the time after their daily training and combat. The soldiers of the Ming Dynasty are also human beings, and they also need to have fun."

"If I were to leave, I would have them put on a play for the soldiers. Generals, if you have time, please come and show your support."

"Of course, of course!" The officers' eyes lit up. This place was deserted and the military had strict rules. Now there was finally something to look forward to. The officer who asked the question said, "If His Highness wants these Tartar nobles to perform for us soldiers, then we must go."

"Let alone anything else, just watching these Tartar nobles act like actors is quite interesting!"

"Hahahaha." Everyone laughed.

Zhu Xiongying brought his personal guards to take all the "talented" people away after they washed and changed their clothes. The generals of the prisoner-of-war camp reported the matter to Chang Mao, who had no objection.

This is the benefit of having Zhu Xiongying come to Daningdusi. If he were to be placed in some other place, the commander might worry that Zhu Xiongying would put on a show and invite the entire army to watch, which would cause the soldiers to lose their morale, ruin the military atmosphere, affect the army's combat effectiveness, and lead to punishment from the court... But Chang Mao would not do that, because Zhu Xiongying is His Majesty's good grandson and also his nephew.

It was no big deal that the nephew wanted to invite the soldiers to listen to a play. Even if something really happened and the sky fell, his uncle would be there to support it.

With the actors, Fang Xiaoru and Xie Jin, the two writers, began to rewrite the scripts that had already been written, arrange the roles, and began intensive preparations for the first "cultural performance" in the Ming army.

"Your Highness, please take a look." Xie Jin placed the script in front of Zhu Xiongying. "This is the script that Brother Xizhi and I compiled."

"According to the Fifth Prince, His Royal Highness, and His Royal Highness, the scripts in the army must be able to inspire the troops and boost morale, and at the same time be down-to-earth so that the soldiers can understand and enjoy reading them, and they can also see the heart."

"Therefore, we have chosen plays related to the former Yuan Dynasty," said Xie Jin. "They emphasize the incompetence of the former Yuan Dynasty court, the miserable lives of the people, and the expulsion of the Tartar invaders by the current emperor."

Zhu Xiongying listened while flipping through the script sent by Xie Jin. When he read the last part, he shook his head and said, "Not appropriate."

"My fifth uncle once told me that no matter whether it is a play or a story, the most taboo thing is to force a sermon at the end, like an old gentleman who keeps talking non-stop."

"It seems too obvious and inferior."

"Besides, I am the grandson of the Emperor and a member of the Zhu family. The play I asked you to choreograph is a eulogy to the Emperor, almost flattering... How could the soldiers believe such corny words?"

"They will only think behind our backs that our Zhu family is shameless and flattering ourselves."

"If there is truth in it, it should be incorporated into the play so that the audience can understand it for themselves. Only in this way can it penetrate into people's hearts."

Xie Jin listened on the side, nodded repeatedly, and said: "Your Highness, what you said makes sense. I have learned a lesson."

"It's not my idea. My fifth uncle has already told me about it." Zhu Xiongying said with a smile.

"Also, we can't just have new plays. We can also include some famous plays and allusions that everyone has heard of, with some minor modifications, in this performance."

"By the way...are there any unusual behaviors among the remnants of the Yuan court?" Zhu Xiongying suddenly asked curiously.

Speaking of Gui Lichi, Xie Jin couldn't help but smile. "Haha, of course they do."

"At first, they were unwilling to cooperate."

"However, the officers in the prisoner-of-war camp have their own ways to discipline them. They first starve them for a few meals, and when the food comes, he eats more than anyone else, and even shouts that it's so delicious..."

"People who don't know etiquette and morality will forget all their grudges once they have eaten their food."

Zhu Xiongying couldn't help but laugh when he heard this. The prisoners in the prisoner camp were hungry and full, so they were naturally not as well fed as the actors under his command. If these people were really loyal ministers and generals of the Yuan Dynasty, they would not have survived to this point.

It is hard to say which is more important in their hearts today: the glory of their ancestors or a bowl of rice.

Soon, after Zhu Xiongying's comments and revisions, Xie Jin and Fang Xiaoru distributed the script to the "actors" and began to rehearse intensively. At first, these remnants of the Yuan court were reluctant, but under the coercion and inducement of food and whips, they still cooperated obediently with the performance.

In addition, in order to make the drama less deliberate, Xie Jin and Fang Xiaoru made many modifications, so that the "preaching" of the drama was deeply rooted in the repertoire and no longer just superficial. This also greatly reduced the resistance of these Mongolian "actors".

Today, the military supervisor of Daning, His Royal Highness Zhu Xiongying, set up a stage to reward everyone for their hard work in guarding the border. Zhu Xiongying specially chose this day as the day Chang Mao agreed to celebrate the previous victory. On the day of celebration, the chief officer gave out rewards and there were plays to watch. The city of Daning was really as lively as the New Year.

Brothers Chang Mao and Chang Sheng also had a rare leisure time today. Although Bayanchur and Alutai were killed in the last battle, they defeated the main force of the Tatars, forcing them to flee and hide for a short period of time. This is also a great victory that should be rewarded to the three armies... In the past few days, the two brothers have been busy with issues such as meritorious service and post-war pensions, and they didn't even have the mind to notice that Zhu Xiongying had made such a big scene.

(End of this chapter)