Operation Red Book

Shisanfang was not like this before.

When Ivy first came to Shisanfang, she was deeply attracted by the splendor inside.

In the center was a large square stage covered with a dark velvety carpet woven with gold threads.

There are five-story pavilions built around it, and the railings on each floor are carved into three intertwined dragons.

Large vermilion columns stand at the four corners of the building, looking majestic and grand.

The golden dragon emblem, which symbolizes the Chinese nation, can be seen everywhere: on the floor, on columns, on railings, on walls, on the uniforms of farmhands, on the bowls and chopsticks served...

Of course, the largest and most eye-catching golden dragon emblem is the large background on the stage.

The background board is two stories high. Even a person who is three meters tall will have to look up in amazement when pushing the door open.

The golden dragon on the emblem is coiled in a circle, with its inverted triangle head taking up half of the picture, looking lifelike and vivid.

It opened its mouth slightly, revealing two neat rows of fangs, and its breath, like auspicious clouds, spread out from its cheeks and blended with the long beard flying up and down.

Really, everyone who came in would be frightened by it, because those purple dragon eyes looked like a golden-bodied arhat who saw a devil who had committed many evil deeds, vicious and heroic...

But now, villains in mink coats occupied the boxes on every floor, scratching the golden dragon claws with the sweat on their palms.

The remaining villains filled the audience seats below, and the light shone on their bald heads and the entire Shisanfang.

They laughed, made noises, and quarreled, just like frogs in a pond on a midsummer night.

They surrounded the center stage, staring at the farce on the stage with amused eyes.

In the center of the stage stood a throne made of redwood. It was a prop used for opera performances and they must have taken it out from the prop room backstage.

The smell of sea salt in the air seemed to never dissipate. The loud shouting of the villains intensified the volatilization of salt molecules, and now the damp fishy smell was so strong that it choked the nose.

Ivy couldn't help but sneeze loudly, and looked around with disgust and hatred that was no less than the smell.

"Here comes the new guy!"

The man in the mink coat standing on the left side of the throne is obviously a lackey. He has the rat-tail hairstyle of the late Qing Dynasty, and when he smiles he looks like an old eunuch in front of Cixi's throne.

"Your Commander Zhu has long passed away! Your master now is Commander Zhao Minghua!"

The old eunuch looks like a mouse, sounds like a mouse, and moves like a mouse covered in acne.

"How did Mr. Zhu die? Did you kill him? Or did you force him to kill himself?"

"Why do you mind so much? Just recognize that you are the commander now!"

"Why? If you have the guts, bring Mr. Zhu's body here! Only after I see the body will I recognize this Commander Zhao whom I have never met before."

"Hey! Who do you think you are, little girl? Fuck you, bastard..."

"Uncle Nie, stop talking."

The young man on the throne suddenly spoke up to stop the old eunuch's insults.

His voice was pleasant enough, at least he sounded like a normal man.

Ivy stood there motionless, staring at the bronze-colored boy who slowly stood up from the throne and walked towards her step by step.

He looked very young, probably not much older than Ivy, and his skin was cracked and rough from those years of sea travel.

In Europe, where most people are 1.9 meters tall, Zhao Minghua is considered short. Of course, Ivy's 1.65 meters tall makes her a dwarf.

He had a lot of hair, but the quality was so bad that it was unbearable to look at. The frizzy hair looked like a fried mushroom, covering his forehead and back of his neck.

There are traces of the Qing Dynasty people. On the back of his hairy head, a long braid hangs down and extends all the way to the knees.

He was dressed like the other thieves, in a tattered mink coat that was dripping with water.

Let me say it one last time, it's not just Zhao Minghua, all the thieves gathered in Shisanfang, they all smell like the salt water from the Mariana Trench.

"Who are you to Zhu Yuanzhang?"

Zhao Minghua stood two steps away from Ivy and asked calmly.

Although his accent was exactly the same as Mr. Zhu's, Ivy couldn't hear any of the emotions implied in it.

She sniffed again and replied doubtfully:

"Zhu Yuanzhang is the emperor of my ancestors, from the Ming Dynasty. Didn't your ancestors tell you..."

"I'm talking about the commander of the Chinese wharf, Mr. Zhu."

"Ah?" Ivy immediately opened her round eyes wide.

"He... he, he's really called Zhu Yuanzhang?"