A master of comedy!

Chapter 54 Soaring Dragon (Please continue reading)
Yao... Yaotai Phoenix?

Upon hearing the name, Zhou Sheng was clearly stunned, but he quickly realized that the other party was impersonating someone else.

Female roles can also play male roles. Skilled female warrior roles or female warrior roles have a unique charm when they play male roles. Sometimes, opera troupes will even use this as a way to attract customers.

A wave of emotion washed over him.

If the other party hadn't deliberately revealed her voice, he wouldn't have noticed at first; she was acting so well.

Every gesture and glance exudes heroic spirit; his posture, singing, and martial arts are all impeccable, combining solid technique with fluid grace.

Even if he were to play Zhao Yun, he might not be able to match the other actor.

"Zhou Sheng greets Senior Sister!"

He quickly stepped forward and bowed respectfully.

Yao Taifeng paused slightly, a strange look flashing in her bright and spirited eyes, before she smiled.

"Fifth Master did give me some pointers on opera, but I never formally became his disciple. I can't accept you calling me 'senior sister'."

Zhou Sheng asked in surprise, "Aren't you my senior sister?"

He had initially guessed that Yao Tai Feng was his senior sister, and after the competition, he became even more convinced of this idea.

But to his surprise, the other party denied it outright.

Yao Taifeng nodded, then pointed to the red thread and said with a smile, "She is your senior sister."

Zhou Sheng stiffly turned his neck to look at the little red line who was sniffing the candy, with clear drool constantly dripping from the corner of her mouth.

"You... are my senior sister?"

Little Red Thread looked up, somewhat bewildered, her eyes blank, and asked, "Senior Sister? Me?"

Then her pupils gradually focused, becoming bright and spirited, and she said happily, "Could it be that you were also picked up from the latrine by Master?"

"I--"

Zhou Sheng's face darkened, and he remained silent for a long time.

Seeing that he didn't speak, Xiao Hongxian suddenly threw herself into his arms, wiped the drool from the corner of her mouth, and said somewhat dejectedly, "Junior brother, why did you also get sick and die? Is our master so unlucky for his disciples?"

He was still in a daze and didn't know what to say for a moment.

Yao Taifeng chimed in from the side, "Hongxian, from now on you'll have someone else to play with."

"I see. Well, good riddance."

Little Red Thread became happy again. Her emotions came and went quickly, which was quite strange.

Yao Taifeng smiled slightly, her bright eyes looking at Zhou Sheng. She gently bent down and helped him pick up the lantern that had been thrown on the ground.

During their previous exchange, Zhou Sheng casually tossed the lantern aside to prepare for his attack.

The light shone on that incredibly handsome face, and even though everyone knew it was a ghost, it didn't evoke any fear in anyone.

"Fifth Master said your stage name is Feng Jiao, and that once you take the stage, you will surely become famous, allowing our Juxianlou to shine with two phoenixes."

She said with a half-smile, "Boss Feng, I was just testing your skills. Please forgive me if I offended you. I'll show you the way now."

She carried a lantern and turned to walk towards the backstage area.

hiss! !

Zhou Sheng gasped instantly, his face burning. If it weren't for the corpse-driving talisman sealing his acupoints and blood, he would probably be blushing red.

Revenge, this is naked revenge!
The old man is getting revenge for the day he pretended to be asleep to trick him into telling the truth!
At your age, why are you so petty?
He hurriedly chased after her, clutching the red thread, and explained hastily, "No, my stage name isn't Feng Jiao. I mainly sing martial arts and painted-face roles, so why would I choose such a name?"

"Junior brother, maybe you're just a repressed pervert—hmm!"

Zhou Sheng immediately covered Hongxian's mouth, manually silencing her.

"Oh? So what's your stage name?"

"Hmm... Enter, enter the cloud dragon!"

Knowing he wasn't good at naming people, Zhou Sheng simply used Gongsun Sheng's nickname as his stage name. Among the 108 heroes of Liangshan, besides Lu Zhishen and Wu Song, his favorite was Gongsun Sheng, the Cloud Dragon.

He possessed both the chivalry of a chivalrous hero and the detachment of a Taoist practitioner. He also had remarkable insight, being the first to see through Song Jiang's hypocrisy by lying that he was going to visit his mother and never returning, thus ultimately dying a peaceful death.

"It seems Mr. Zhou likes Water Margin. I also often play the role of Yizhangqing. Let's rehearse together another day and sing 'Hujiazhuang' together."

Yao Taifeng paused slightly, turned around to look at Zhou Sheng, and a strange light flashed in her eyes.

Zhou Sheng immediately understood that look in his eyes. It was an unreserved passion and love for opera, and the delight of an expert meeting another expert.

Clearly, his initial attempt had already earned him Yao Taifeng's approval.

"In that case, thank you very much for your help, Ms. Feng."

"It's a low-class profession, nothing to brag about. It's just a way to make a living. I'll die a decade or so before you. Boss Zhou, just call me Aunt Feng."

Looking at her beautiful and flawless face, Zhou Sheng couldn't bring himself to call her Aunt Feng no matter what.

Soon, the two went backstage.

As soon as I entered, countless gazes swept over me.

A martial arts actor bound in protective gear, a female impersonator in a light makeup, a painted-face actor, and a clown with an upside-down gourd-shaped face...

There were also a group of musicians and tailors who helped with makeup and headgear.

A dense aura of yin energy swept over them. Although there were many lights around, they flickered with eerie blue flames, which shone on the powdered faces, making them look extremely sinister.

Before the play started, the backstage area should have been bustling with activity, but now it was eerily quiet. Zhou Sheng even saw a sense of...repression and tension in their eyes.

They're all ghosts, so are they afraid to go on stage?
Upon seeing outsiders enter the backstage area, many people's eyes flashed with a hint of bloodlust, but when they saw that the one leading the way was Yaotai Fenghou, they obediently lowered their heads and stopped asking questions.

Unlike the cramped and crowded backstage areas of ordinary opera troupes, the backstage area of ​​Juxianlou is very large, and there are even separate private rooms.

Yao Taifeng led him into a room where two figures were sitting.

One was his master, Yu Zhensheng, and the other had Cao Cao's face painted on him. He was tall, robust, and muscular.

"Master!!"

Hongxian suddenly broke free from Zhou Sheng's embrace, pounced into Yu Zhensheng's arms like a tiger, and then, amidst the old man's kind smile, stole the bag of candied fruit hidden in his chest.

Yu Zhensheng shook his head and smiled, as if he had expected this.

"Eat slowly, it's all yours, no rush..."

This was the first time Zhou Sheng had ever seen his master smile so affectionately on his usually serious face, the wrinkles on his face almost forming a flower.

No wonder he bought a bag of candied fruit at the restaurant, even though he clearly doesn't like sweets.

"Fifth Master, this must be your second apprentice. He is indeed a handsome and talented man."

The man dressed as Cao Cao spoke, his voice rough and bold, and sighed, "Fifth Master, please accept my condolences."

He had two apprentices, but they both died.

Zhou Sheng: "..."

Yu Zhensheng waved his hand, feigning sadness, and said, "This child was weak, even deficient in both yin and yang. He passed away at such a young age. There was nothing we could do. He just loved singing opera, so we came to find Master Guan to let him sing at Juxianlou for a few days."

Upon hearing the phrase "yin and yang in a state of emptiness," Yao Taifeng glanced at Zhou Sheng with some surprise.

Zhou Sheng's face was stiff. If looks could kill, he would probably be a traitorous disciple who murdered his master right now.

He holds grudges; this old man really does. He's always finding ways to get revenge.

Upon hearing this, Master Guan sighed and said, "But as you know, although my Juxianlou is located in the outer city of Xiaofengdu, not in the Ghost Market, it is still quite dangerous."

He paused, his voice carrying a hint of seriousness.

"Last year, three members of the opera troupe made mistakes on stage... and were devoured by the ghosts, leaving not even their souls behind."

"Fifth Master, even if your disciple is dead, you should at least leave him with hope of reincarnation, wouldn't you agree?"

……

　Thank you to Asian Black Donkey and Youqin's Thoughts for the 500 reward, thank you to Chinese Medicine Plantain for the 400 reward, and thank you to a scholar, noisy idiot, and book friend 20250914194627748 for the 100 reward. Sending love!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)