A master of comedy!

Chapter 35 A Grand Applause

"Help! Help!"

"I am the county magistrate, who will save me?"

"Open the door! Open the door!!"

On the streets of Qinggu County, a figure was crawling on the ground with difficulty, calling for help and banging on the doors of houses along the street.

However, no one opened the door for him.

A long trail of blood spread across the bluestone ground.

clatter! clatter! clatter!
Footsteps slowly rose, treading on that blood-stained road, like the drumbeats of the King of Hell summoning his life.

The sky is blue and the sun is bright, the universe is bright.

Under the watchful eyes of countless people hiding behind the crack in the door, the old Huang Zhong drew his bow and nocked an arrow, his words like thunder.

"Zhang He was so frightened by this that he disarmed himself and fled to the desolate mountains."

"I was annoyed by the strategist's lack of knowledge; he said I couldn't defeat Xiahou Yuan."

Whoosh!
The arrow pierced the joint of Magistrate Zhu's right arm, causing him to scream in agony and slowing his crawling considerably.

"Don't kill me! You can't kill me! My older brother is—ah!!"

Whoosh!
Another arrow pierced his other leg, leaving him with only his left hand intact, making it impossible for him to crawl.

"Sitting on the carved saddle, I issue commands: all troops, large and small, listen to my words: draw your swords, nock your bows, tighten your armor and fasten your chains..."

Two more arrows were fired, one piercing his lower body and the other piercing his kidney.

From Shen Jinhua to Cuicui, and then to Uncle Xu, the entire tragedy stemmed from this man's lustful impulse.

Lust is a double-edged sword, yet it is always aimed at the innocent and kind-hearted.

These two arrows were for Shen Jinhua, and also for Cuicui, who was tortured to death.

Even if he dies, he should experience the most intense human pain beforehand.

Magistrate Zhu curled up on the ground, letting out heart-wrenching screams as blood continued to spread, his eyes filled with despair.

A madman, a madman who sings opera!

He never imagined that there could actually be such a reckless madman in the world!

"I'll fight you to the death!"

He struggled to grab Zhou Sheng, but a foot mercilessly stepped on his throat, turning all his words into sobs.

At that moment, the drumbeats from the distant yamen gate suddenly became more rapid, and Zhou Sheng's singing reached its peak.

"Those who advance are all credited, those who retreat—their heads are hung high on poles!!"

The powerful and majestic singing style is like a sharp arrow piercing the clouds, soaring into the sky, making people feel as if they are on an ancient battlefield, hearing the general beat the drum and the three armies shout.

Zhou Sheng intended to finish him off with one last arrow, but when he reached out, he found that the quiver on his back was empty.

All one hundred feathered arrows were fired.

Zhou Sheng's eyes were cold as knives. He chuckled lightly, then bent down and grasped the arrow that had pierced Magistrate Zhu's right arm.

Amidst the opponent's screams, it was spun out and pulled out, using whatever was available.

He drew his bow, nocked an arrow, and the cold iron arrowhead was aimed straight at Magistrate Zhu's head at his feet, only a few feet away.

Because it had just been pulled out, hot blood dripped down the arrowhead, landing right on Magistrate Zhu's forehead.

One drop, two drops, three drops...

At this moment, Magistrate Zhu completely broke down.

He trembled all over and wept bitterly.

"Ugh... Don't kill me... My elder brother is... the Judge..."

Although he was almost unable to breathe with his throat being stepped on, his strong survival instinct still allowed him to utter these words intermittently.

This is his biggest secret, and also his greatest reliance in this life.

Back then, he was just a poor scholar, dull-witted by nature, and his family was destitute. However, on his way to take the imperial examination, he came across an abandoned temple dedicated to the judge.

Thinking that he was taking shelter from the rain in the temple, he simply cleaned up the judge statue that was covered in cobwebs, and even took out the last of his wine and poured it on the ground as a tribute to the judge.

And it was this action that completely changed his fate.

That night, the judge actually came and invited him to drink and eat meat. He was so carefree that he wasn't scared at all and even chatted happily with the judge.

From then on, the judge often came to him for drinks, and the two became closer and closer.

Since he was illiterate, the judge replaced his heart with a fine one, saying it was left over from the underworld and not taken from a living person.

But he heard that the renowned scholar from the Xu family, a hundred miles away, had suddenly died in the middle of the night, apparently from a heart ailment.

With his keen intellect, he had long since become intelligent and could easily guess the connection between them.

Despite listening to the praises of the crowd and enjoying the glory that came with passing the imperial examination, he ultimately said nothing.

The heart transplant seemed to have replaced the simple, honest heart that used to clean cobwebs from the statue and offer wine to the deity. After that, he became increasingly dissatisfied and eventually asked his elder brother to transplant his wife's head as well.

Unexpectedly, this attracted a madman who performed opera.

……

With the past vivid in his mind, he revealed his last resort, hoping that the name of the judge could intimidate this madman.

It does seem to be effective.

Zhou Sheng paused slightly as he drew his bow.

A glimmer of hope immediately ignited in Magistrate Zhu's eyes.

He didn't want to die. He hadn't enjoyed enough of the riches and beauties of the world. As long as he could live, he could get his lost limbs back!
His older brother had promised him that he would help him rise through the ranks.

He's just a county magistrate, yet he can enjoy such bliss; imagine if he were a prefect, a minister, or a prime minister...

Unfortunately, his response was a thunderous string sound.

The black arrow pierced his brow in an instant, and the splattered blood and white fluid soaked the hem of Zhou Sheng's clothes.

Facing those eyes filled with resentment and bitterness, Zhou Sheng slowly grinned, revealing a set of gleaming white teeth, his laughter icy cold.

"So your elder brother is a judge. In that case, you don't even have the chance to become a ghost..."

"Don't even think about it."

……

boom!
Amidst the towering flames, there were rows of charred corpses, the most striking of which was Magistrate Zhu, dressed in his official robes.

Zhou Sheng watched the flickering flames silently.

At noon, they went on a killing spree and burned corpses in the street. Even if your elder brother is a judge, or even if you are a judge, your soul will be scattered and you will die a horrible death.

Some people don't even deserve the chance to become ghosts.

At the same time, the pale gold in his eyes gradually dissipated, and he let out a long breath, with wisps of white mist rising from his pores.

My arms were sore and aching, especially my fingers, which were bleeding from the pressure on them.

This battle was incredibly costly, and it was arguably the most thrilling and dangerous battle Zhou Sheng had ever fought since his debut. He almost died at the hands of that Taoist Xie.

But it felt so good!

He gazed at the flickering flames, as if the blood in his heart was being ignited, and an indescribable sense of exhilaration filled his mind.

It felt like every pore from head to toe was completely clear!

The disgraced actor, the heartbroken scholar, the resentful musician, the humiliated orphan girl…

Are you watching this good show?

Is there a cheer being given?
……

At the entrance of the yamen, Shi Tou finally stopped beating the drum. The moment he saw the county magistrate die, he knelt down and cried out to the heavens.

A figure stood in front of him, blocking out the sunlight.

"My benefactor—"

He had just opened his mouth when a bloodstained contract floated in front of him, the words spoken in a clear, powerful, and resonant opera style.

"Good lad! The thunderous sound of drums resounds from beneath your wrists!"

"It terrified even the jackals and tigers!"

"Take the reward money and go home. Don't you hear your seventy-year-old mother calling for her son?"

Shi Tou was shocked. He picked up the bloodstained contract and immediately recognized it as the receipt from which the landlord Li family had secretly altered the interest rate!

The blood on the contract, could it be—

He suddenly looked up at the face of Huang Zhong, which was painted with a base of red gold and outlined with silver patterns. His eyes were filled with excitement, and he kowtowed heavily.

"My benefactor, you are a divine being. I, Shi Tou, will definitely build a temple and shrine for you in the future, and my descendants will offer incense and worship you for generations to come!"

"My benefactor, you should leave now!"

After saying that, he picked up the contract and limped away.

Zhou Sheng stood quietly at the entrance of the yamen, looking up at the blood-stained plaque, his eyes burning with murderous intent.

go?
He licked his slightly chapped lips, revealing a murderous smile.

My master said that if we're going to sing, we should sing it brilliantly.

One performance of "Dingjun Mountain" isn't enough, after all, those rampant soldiers... are still around.

Five rampant soldiers, a cold altar's hegemonic army?
In the next act, let's see who's fiercer, you or me!
……

　Thank you Qian Dalai for the 10,000 reward! This is the second time you've given 10,000 rewards, brother! Thank you for your support! Thank you Guaili Luanmiao for the 1,500 reward, thank you Konggu Yuewei for the 500 reward, and thank you zhen_money for the 200 reward. Sending you love!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)