Devouring Evil Martial Arts, Eliminating Demons from All Heavens

Chapter 6 Yizhou, also called the Republic of China
People say that if you look at the mountain, you will die if you run to it. The town you see from the mountain is much longer than you expected if you actually walk there.

My hometown, Hailing, is basically a plain. There is only one isolated mountain in the entire city, with an altitude of only more than 50 meters.

When Chu Tianshu arrived here, it was the first time he truly experienced the feeling of walking on a mountain road.

It seemed that his stomach had been irritated while he was practicing boxing, and he was very hungry. As he walked along the way, his stomach rumbled from time to time.

As soon as we entered the town, the aroma of various foods mixed together and penetrated our noses.

Judging from the attire of the people around, it's a bit like the Republic of China era. Most of them wear patched clothes and their hair is not very long.

A large cart pulled by a donkey was parked on the side of the road. The driver rolled up his sleeves and ate a large pancake with a happy look on his face. There was also a gourd beside him.

Street vendors were hawking their wares, some selling figs, some selling bee pupae, and some selling malt candy.

There is also an iron pan set up, and peanuts and sunflower seeds fried in hot sand have the strongest aroma.

The guests on the second floor of the restaurant couldn't help but stick half of their bodies out. A young man with short hair and a suit asked for a bag of freshly roasted and sieved peanuts from the downstairs and threw down a few copper coins.

The stall owner responded enthusiastically, asked a teenager next to him to take a pack, and ran into the restaurant to deliver the goods.

"The pepper and eggplant, and the roast chicken with Litsea cubeba are here. Turn around slowly!"

The waiter in the lobby had just come out with two dishes when he saw the child running past. He quickly stepped aside and shouted, "Slow down! Don't bump into anyone."

The child had already climbed the stairs, his steps slowing down a bit.

When the waiter brought the dishes to the table, the guests at that table added one more request: "I ordered fish congee, please make the fish meat a little more tender."

"Haha, Young Master Meng has said it eight times. I've already told the master chef, so don't worry."

The waiter was familiar with the customer, so he replied a few words, wiped the sweat off his shoulders with a towel, and then saw a young man walk in.

Looking at the outfit, it looks like a dress, but it feels different from the dresses I've seen before.

But the material looks really good and it doesn’t seem cheap at first glance.

"Brother, come and sit down."

The waiter came forward and said with a smile, "Are you here to eat? We can also stay here."

Fortunately, although these people spoke with a slight accent, the general meaning could still be understood.

Chu Tianshu sat at the table. He didn't have any local currency on him, but he didn't show it on his face. He glanced at the guests at the surrounding tables and said calmly, "Two plates of roast chicken and one plate of eggplant, first."

"okay."

The waiter called out to the kitchen, "Would you like another pot of tea and a plate of fried mushrooms?"

The waiter said proudly, "You look unfamiliar. Perhaps this is your first time here, so you haven't heard of us. Our chef's skill in stir-frying mushrooms is unparalleled. He's well-known throughout the area. No one has ever gotten sick from eating his mushrooms, and he always makes them so delicious."

“People from the city often come here just to have a taste of this.”

Chu Tianshu nodded: "Then go ahead."

The dishes were served very quickly. The eggplant and roast chicken were probably prepared early in the morning. The tea also came quickly, but the fried mushrooms had not yet been served.

Chu Tianshu didn't wait, drank a sip of tea to moisten his throat, and picked up a piece of roast chicken first.

He had tried dishes like Litsea cubeba shredded chicken before, and the taste was very different from this roast chicken.

It's not just the cooking method that's different, but also because there's no MSG in this roast chicken, so it always feels a little off when you eat it.

The hand-shredded chicken I bought before was advertised as containing litsea cubeba as a natural MSG and that no other MSG was added. But now that I have made a real comparison, I know how much MSG those people actually sprinkled on it and how much cooking oil they soaked it in.

But this roast chicken is really fragrant, and the quality of the chicken itself is also good.

Chu Tianshu still had some time in his mind to savor the food, but his mouth never stopped.

The grumbling stomach finally calmed down a little as more chicken was brought in.

After eating most of the two plates of roast chicken, Chu Tianshu picked up an eggplant with chopsticks and poured himself another cup of hot tea.

The eggplant tasted so spicy that his eyebrows twitched slightly, and he quickly drank his tea.

At this time, holding the teacup and observing the people around him, he felt more relaxed.

Most of the guests did not come alone. They ate and chatted, talking about their family affairs, business in certain places, and rumors about widows.

Chu Tianshu listened over and over but didn't hear anything valuable. His eyes swept over the old shopkeeper behind the counter and he stared at him for a while.

The old shopkeeper wore a melon-shaped hat, but his hair was not long. He held a large piece of paper in his hand and read in a low voice unconsciously.

This look looks familiar.

When Grandpa Chu got older, he sometimes liked to move a small stool and sit outside the door, basking in the sun while reading old newspapers. His expression was quite similar to that of the old shopkeeper.

Chu Tianshu poured a cup of tea, walked over slowly, and said with a smile: "What are you reading, the newspaper?"

The old shopkeeper raised his head. He was not tall, with thin arms, but he had a round face, big eyes with prominent eyebrows, a slightly red nose, and looked okay.

"Yes."

The old shopkeeper smiled and said slowly in the tone of an old scholar, "Without leaving home, you can know everything about the world. If it were in ancient times, this would be the ability of Zhuge Liang."

"But now the quality of our Yizhou newspaper varies from issue to issue. Everyone has their own opinions. There are more jokes, but it's not as satisfying to read as it was in the past two years."

Chu Tianshu showed a curious expression: "I haven't read the newspaper here yet, can you let me see it too?"

"Okay."

The old shopkeeper was very straightforward. He put down the newspaper in his hand and squatted down behind the counter. "I still have a lot of old newspapers here. Since you're bored, you can take a look at them."

The newspaper was written in traditional Chinese characters, which Chu Tianshu could recognize.

He read ten lines at a glance, first skimming the new newspaper, then leaning against the counter, chatting with the old shopkeeper, and naturally started reading the old newspapers.

Eight years ago, the "Southern Yunnan Newspaper" published by the previous government was the first newspaper in the entire Yizhou. It was printed on local rough-edged paper, with vertical lead typesetting, in four-page size, and published once a day. It was mainly sold in various prefectures, departments, states, and county government offices. The price was very cheap, only "five coins" per copy.

After the previous dynasty was overthrown, each party divided the territory and governed itself. Yizhou established the Great Han Military Government, published the "Great Han Yizhou Newspaper" and the "Yizhou Ya Gazette", etc.

The contents mainly include court decrees, essay summaries, domestic current affairs summary, capital news, and news from various countries.

By reading these old newspapers, you can understand the general background and the current local situation.

The current era background of this world is indeed very familiar, and it can indeed be called the Republic of China.

But some places don’t seem to fit Chu Tianshu’s impression of the “Republic of China”.

In this world, in the late Qing Dynasty, the people were in dire straits, all sides were in turmoil, foreign enemies were watching, and people with lofty ideals had suffered for a long time from the court.

With the help of Old Master Sun, he fought again and again after repeated failures, and finally created a situation where he rose up in rebellion, and righteous men from all over the country responded with enthusiasm.

In addition, more than a dozen local officials who were originally appointed by the imperial court also changed their flags and became part of this torrent.

Various forces threatened the capital, and Old Master Sun was the first to enter the capital.

The palace was in chaos at the time. No one knew where the fire started. There were soldiers and fleeing eunuchs and palace maids everywhere, and the carriages and horses of the nobles were running in a panic.

After Old Master Sun entered the palace, he ordered his men to put out the fire, retrieve the imperial seal from the well, and lead the little emperor's hand to the throne room to show his virtue of not killing him.

Afterwards, the emperor abdicated, and the world decided on the position of president, and Old Master Sun took the position.

However, although Old Master Sun has a high reputation, he does not have enough trusted troops under his command.

He did not sit firmly on the presidency, and not long after, he died of illness while on a trip.

There are also rumors that he might have been assassinated by the royal family of the Qing Dynasty. The poor hero did not die on the battlefield, but died of deceit.

Yuan Shikai, the former Qing Dynasty governor who guarded the north, now sits on the president's throne. Under him are General Cao Bokun and others, who are powerful and have many brave generals.

While local factions nominally submit to the President, they retain a sense of independence and should not be underestimated. For example, after Old Master Sun's death, his wife and two sons took over his leadership, and now dominate the southeast. Their influence remains undiminished, and they possess enormous potential.

There was a governor named Liu in the Bashu area. Among the important officials of the previous dynasty, he was once listed as one of the Eight Horses. He was highly respected, had deep roots and was quite powerful.

The Han military government in Yizhou also had the aura of occupying land and becoming king.

However, the former Grand Commander of Yizhou was a Confucian general who originally farmed in the south of the colorful clouds. Although he was well-versed in both Eastern and Western studies and well-read in military strategies, he still cared about the hardships of the people. Overthrowing the previous dynasty was already difficult, and it would take time to farm, fight, and train the troops, so he was unwilling to start a war lightly.

Therefore, he accepted the new official position conferred by the President, resigned as the Grand Commander, and went to the capital.

After the succession of the post of governor, undercurrents began to surge within the military government, and now Yizhou's prestige is not as stable as before.

Some bandits who had been wiped out in the local area showed signs of resurgence.

Any town that is more prosperous will have its own militia, which will train and patrol constantly.

This is not safe enough. Many wealthy families will spend money like cutting their flesh and blood to hire a large number of strong men to guard their homes from places like boxing gyms and escort agencies.

The place where Chu Tianshu is now is such a typical prosperous town in Yizhou.

"Oh my god, Yuan, Cao, Sun, and Liu, right? In my hometown during the Republic of China, there seemed to be Yuan, Sun, and Liu, but was there anyone with the surname Cao..."

Chu Tianshu recalled the historical knowledge in his mind and then gave up.

You don't have to think about it so carefully.

Anyway, when he saw the full name of President Yuan, he knew that this could not be the same person in the history of his hometown. At most, they might be related to a parallel world.

The overall situation is too lofty, he doesn't need to think about it so much now, and it's useless to think about it.

The most urgent thing is to... make money!
It is said that doctors diagnose by observation, listening, questioning and palpation. Many times, just by observing a person's appearance, you can tell whether he has some problems.

As soon as Chu Tianshu entered the restaurant, he actually had a target in mind, and that was a man called Young Master Meng.

He had short hair, narrow eyes, a fat body, and sat alone at a table. He wore a black silk jacket embroidered with silver thread over his long gown. He ordered a table full of food and was obviously a very greedy person.

But he didn't eat fast. His forehead was red and his face was slightly yellow. He would breathe heavily while eating, look around, and take a break before eating again.

When Chu Tianshu walked over, he was picking fish slices from the fish porridge.

"Hey, bro, I heard that fish porridge is best enjoyed hot. Excuse me, is there any secret recipe here in Yizhou that makes it best eaten cold?"

Seeing that he had a good appearance, Young Master Meng smiled and said, "Others don't know, but I like to eat something cold."

Chu Tianshu looked him up and down deliberately: "It seems that you, old man, are also a fellow lover of delicious food. However, I know some medical skills. If I eat cold food, I will either get a stomachache or indigestion, and then I won't be able to eat more delicious food."

Young Master Meng felt the same way and couldn't help but put down his chopsticks. "Who says it's not true? My appetite has been far worse in the past two years than when I was a child. I consulted a famous old doctor, who said I have tuberculosis and told me to eat more raw water chestnuts and water caltrops to clear away heat and reduce internal heat."

"Hehe, this is exactly what I want, but it never feels good after eating it."

Chu Tianshu took the opportunity to sit nearby: "Do you mind letting me take your pulse?"

Young Master Meng readily extended his hand: "Try it."

Chu Tianshu already had a guess, and taking the pulse was just to confirm it.

Sure enough, this man didn't have tuberculosis at all, he just had worms in his stomach.

Eating raw fish or shrimp, or fruits and vegetables that are not washed thoroughly, may cause you to swallow roundworm eggs.

Although the eggs of these worms are small, the adult worms can grow very long in the human body. They mainly parasitize in the intestines and compete for nutrients. They may cause abdominal distension, indigestion, insomnia and fever, and may also cause problems such as pulmonary bronchitis.

The old doctor must have diagnosed him with bronchitis and thought it was a "fire disease tuberculosis", so he asked him to eat more things to clear away heat and reduce fire, but it ended up aggravating the symptoms.

Our ancestors were pragmatic and constantly developing their medical knowledge. In fact, as early as the Northern Song Dynasty, it was recorded in Kaibao Materia Medica that people at that time discovered a medicinal herb called "Shijunzi" which was very effective in eliminating accumulation and killing insects.

Among the various insecticide prescriptions in later generations, this is the most widely used one.

There are so many similarities between the development of Chu Tianshu's hometown and this world, so there should be similar medicinal materials and prescriptions in the local area.

Most of the time, it was limited by the times. Some medical books were not widely circulated, so even if the old doctor was famous, he did not understand this knowledge.

Chu Tianshu said: "Brother, your illness is indeed quite serious, but I have a way that will work immediately."

Young Master Meng blinked and looked me up and down. "What do you mean by immediate results? You look like someone who's studied abroad. You don't want to cut me open like those foreign doctors do, do you?"

Chu Tianshu shook his head: "Of course not, your illness is far from that level. Whoever suggested to cut open your abdomen is a quack who is harming people."

Young Master Meng was suspicious: "So you want to sell medicine?"

Young Master Meng's condition can be cured with normal medication, but Chu Tianshu doesn't know the quality of the medicinal materials in this world, so it's difficult to grasp the dosage.

Moreover, slowly treating the patient with medication would not reveal Chu Tianshu's ability, and he would not be able to collect the medical fees as quickly as possible.

"No need for medicine, just wine."

Chu Tianshu was confident and turned to the waiter and said, "Excuse me, please get me a pot of the strongest liquor in this store."

The waiter moved swiftly and turned to the wine cabinet next to the counter. After a few steps, he brought a pot of wine back to the table and went on to do other things.

Chu Tianshu sniffed the mouth of the pot and found that it was indeed strong liquor. He poured out half a cup, dipped the chopsticks in the liquor, and asked Young Master Meng to spread out his palms.

"Ok!"

Chu Tian stretched out his tongue and touched the roof of his mouth, a low sound came out of his nose, and a gleam of light appeared in his eyes.

The chopsticks dipped in liquor swept gently, like a gust of cold wind, lingering in the palm of Young Master Meng's hand, and the pen moved like a dragon.

A talisman was drawn on his left palm in the blink of an eye, and he dipped the palm in wine again, and a talisman also fell on his right palm.

Although Chu Tianshu was concentrating, his movements appeared to be very casual and quiet.

No one in the restaurant lobby noticed them, except the old shopkeeper who happened to look up from the newspaper, glanced over here, and rubbed his red nose with his fingers.

"Is that all right?"

Young Master Meng looked at the drink in his hand and was about to ask again when he discovered something strange.

The traces of alcohol left on the skin by the chopsticks should evaporate quickly.

Especially if it's strong liquor.

Normally, when Chu Tianshu paints on the other hand, the traces of the previous hand should fade away.

But now, the talismans on Young Master Meng's two hands are still intact and clearly visible.

It is said that when great calligraphers write, the soft tip of their pen can write with such force that it penetrates the back of the paper and penetrates deep into the wood.

The wine talisman imbued with telekinesis seemed to seep into the skin of the palm, becoming a natural pattern on the palm, slightly different from the surrounding skin color.

Chu Tianshu didn't answer, but only asked: "Do you know where there is a toilet nearby?"

Young Master Meng said, "There's a toilet in the backyard of this restaurant."

Chu Tianshu nodded: "That's fine."

The chopsticks in his hand were dipped in another drop of wine, and he added the final stroke to the talisman on Young Master Meng's palm.

Young Master Meng looked down twice, his expression changed, and he pressed his forearm against his stomach.

"Ouch, this..."

Because he had always had indigestion before, Young Master Meng was surprised and happy when he felt the movement in his stomach. He stood up and wanted to cover his stomach with his hands, but was afraid of ruining the marks on his hands.

Chu Tianshu said in time: "The wine stains will disappear after you are done. Before that, they cannot be wiped off, so don't worry."

Before Young Master Meng could finish his words, he hurriedly pushed the bench aside and trotted towards the backyard with an awkward step.

(End of this chapter)