My Apprenticeship to Uncle Jiu: I Was a Warlord in the Republic of China

When the dishes were served, William, who had never seen the world, was dumbfounded.

Every dish on this table is delicious and tasty. Even if we include dishes like boiled beans from the British Empire, the variety may not be as good as that on this table.

Jiang Li called the waiter nearby, "Please introduce these dishes to this nobleman from England!"

The waiter smiled and introduced William, "Listen carefully, my dear. Let me tell you the names of the dishes. The dishes on the table are:

Steamed lamb, steamed bear paw, steamed deer tail, roast duck, roast chicken, roast goose, braised pork, braised duck, sauce chicken, bacon, pine flower tripe, air-dried meat, sausage, assorted Suzhou dishes, smoked chicken tripe, steamed eight-treasure pig, glutinous rice stuffed duck, canned pheasant, canned quail, braised assorted items, pheasant, rabbit breast, vegetable python, whitebait, steamed hash shrimp, braised duck shreds, braised duck kidneys, braised duck strips, mixed duck shreds, yellow heart tubes, braised white eel, braised yellow eel, black bean catfish, pot-roasted carp, stir-fried carp, stir-fried shrimp, sweet and sour pork tenderloin, soft fried chicken, assorted sausages, braised jackdaw, sesame butter rolls, and fried fresh mushrooms.

The waiter read out such a long list of dish names in one breath, and then he exhaled heavily to the side.

At this time, William was already stunned. Not to mention that he had never seen these dishes in his life, just the ability of the waiter to read out so many dishes in one breath was enough to make him drop his jaw.

Seeing that the desired effect had been achieved, Jiang Li said to him, "William, don't be surprised, just pick up your chopsticks, otherwise the dishes will get cold and taste bad!"

William lowered his chin upon hearing this, and picked up two chopsticks in each hand helplessly to start picking up the food. However, no matter how hard he tried, it was of no use, and he couldn't get the food into his mouth at all. He was so anxious that he scratched his ears and cheeks in embarrassment.

Jiang Li did not laugh at this, but asked someone to bring him a knife and fork, which was considered to be giving him enough face.

William got the knife and fork, and he finally regained some of his aristocratic bearing. But after he put the food into his mouth, that little bit of aristocratic etiquette and gentlemanly demeanor was immediately thrown away in Java.

Seeing him start eating, Jiang Li invited Han Yong to start eating too. Then the only sound on the table was the sound of the knife, fork and chopsticks hitting the plate.

After a long wait, the three of them finally stopped, but half of the food was still left on the table.

This is all thanks to Jiang Li's big appetite, otherwise, for just the two of them, there would be more than enough plates, and ten dishes would be enough for them.

Having someone help the two of them downstairs, Jiang Li said to Ah San, "Pack up these dishes, and ask the chef to make a few delicious dishes. Take them back and share them with the brothers!"

If Ah San had heard this, he would have rushed to order food immediately, but he did not move when he heard this.

Instead, he asked Jiang Li with a serious face, "Master, do you really think that the plan of dividing the world into three parts is a good one?"

After saying this, he stared at Jiang Li with his eyes wide open, and the other Taoist soldiers outside the door also pricked up their ears, waiting to hear how Jiang Li would answer.

When Jiang Li saw their expressions, he knew that it was time to reveal his attitude, otherwise he would probably lose the support of the people. After all, no one wants to follow a traitor.

Of course, those public intellectuals and banana people are not included in this list.

"Have you ever heard of the story about a sword that has no use?"

Ah San was stunned when he heard this, then shook his head, "I haven't heard of it. What does this story have to do with the question I asked?"

Jiang Li did not answer what he said, but said to himself, "It doesn't matter if you haven't heard it. I will summarize it for you."

"This story is about not having a sword in your hand and not using it are two different things!"

When everyone heard this, they seemed to have thought of something, but they still couldn't grasp the key point.

"Our situation now is the former, without a sword in hand."

"If the Japanese and British really want to invade China, we will have no way to stop them."

"So I want to forge a sword, a sword that can protect myself and the land under my feet when they come to attack."

At this point Jiang Li's fists were clenched and his eyes were wide open.

But then he lost his temper again, "We can't make this sword by ourselves. We can't make guns or cars. We can only buy them, and if we want to buy them, we have to deal with foreigners."

"So I have no objection to anything he says, because I want to learn from Goujian, the King of Yue, who slept on firewood and tasted gall. When I have enough power, no matter who comes from Japan or the West, Great Britain or Small Britain, as long as they dare to covet my land of China, I will kill them with one sword!"

"Have you got your answer now?"

After hearing Jiang Li's question, everyone came to their senses and knelt on the ground with their heads touching the ground.

"Master, if you have such great ambitions, I, Ah San, will follow you till death. I had my doubts before, and I really deserve death. Please punish me, Master!"

Several other Taoist soldiers did the same, kneeling on the ground with their heads touching the ground, without moving for a long time.

"Okay, get up. We are all passionate men. Why do we have to act like children?"

"China is now in a critical situation. It is time for us men to serve our country and save our people. If you have the energy to kowtow, why don't you go back and read more books and practice your spearmanship and horsemanship?"

As he said this, he touched his stomach and walked out of the inn.

When several Taoist soldiers saw Jiang Li leave, they stood up and came to Ah San to ask, "Brother San, what should we do now? Do we really have to go to school?"

Ah San cursed at him, "Idiot, you can read books at night, why don't you hurry up and protect the young master? If he gets hurt in the slightest, we will be held responsible even if we die a thousand times."

"To save a empire from collapse, what a broad mind and courage it takes. It is a blessing that we have cultivated for eight lifetimes to meet such a great leader in this lifetime!"

The soldier nodded in agreement, "Indeed, just thinking about it makes my blood boil!"

But he changed the subject, "We are protecting the young master, so what are you doing, Third Brother?"

Ah San knocked on his head and said, "Young Master asked me to pack the food, so of course I have to do what Young Master told me to do!"

The Taoist soldier's eyes lit up when he heard that. "Young Master just said that Third Brother, you can order a few dishes. When you finish cleaning up, order me some sweet and sour pork tenderloin. It's my favorite!"

Ah San was speechless and kicked him on the butt, "Go and protect the young master, you talk too much nonsense!"

The soldier was not angry. He went downstairs with a smile, saying as he walked, "Third brother, don't forget it!"

Back to Jiang Li, he was extremely uneasy at the moment. In the past, he thought of using secular forces to search for cultivation resources to assist in cultivation, and developing the army was only to serve cultivation.

But now that he knows the history, it might be the same as in his previous life. He can no longer just think about his own cultivation, but must spend more time on developing his power.

Otherwise, once foreign enemies invade, he will be unable to protect everything he wants to protect.

However, practicing in the Dharma-Ending Age is already difficult. If one puts most of one's energy elsewhere, one's own practice will inevitably be greatly affected.

Maybe it was really like what Uncle Jiu and I said when we first entered the sect, that we entered a mountain of treasures but came back empty-handed.