Master Yuan, start!

Xu Shichang had his own opinions and was relatively self-controlled, not saying anything outrageous. He was a serious and steady person, and could be entrusted with important matters. It was not impossible for him to be in charge of a region in the future.

Seeing that the time had come, Yuan Xiangcheng stopped provoking the two and continued to drink and eat in the box, as if today was just a gathering of good friends for a casual chat.

Seeing this, Xu Shichang had no intention of asking further questions. He just thought about what he had experienced in his life for nearly 30 years and felt that Yuan Xiangcheng's theory of thieves and robbery had some truth in it.

Just when he was about to raise his glass, he realized that his brother sitting next to him had drunk too much and had started talking nonsense, such as "Xia Qingao kill Qingyao and go to heaven in the hall".

He quickly covered Xu Shiguang's mouth and held his head on the table as he fell asleep.

Yuan Xiangcheng also heard Xu Shiguang's nonsense, but he pretended not to hear and ate his food in silence.

San Yuan Xiangcheng knew that recruiting talents could not be rushed, so he did not expect to succeed in one go. After finishing his long speech, he relaxed and listened to the storytelling voice coming from the lobby on the first floor, and was attracted there for a moment.

Although the storyteller nowadays did not have the microphone and loudspeaker of later generations, the righteous energy emanating from his dantian was not weak at all.

While sitting in the elegant seats on the second floor, you can still hear the voices from the center of the lobby on the first floor. Yuan Xiangcheng was really familiar with the Beijing dialect.

2This old Beijing dialect is exactly the same as what he heard in the short video in his previous life.

That's an authentic thing!

But just as the storyteller said, "Yuan Xiangcheng stood at the palace gate, holding a broadsword and bow, while the Korean rebels each took up a foreign rifle and shot at anyone they saw. In a moment, bullets rained down, whistling towards them."

"Bang!" The gavel slammed down.

Suddenly, Yuan Xiangcheng shouted loudly, leaped up, and threw the sword in his hand straight out like thunder. He went through the hall and took the life of the leader of the Korean rebels. The remaining rebels saw this and were not willing to be outdone. They raised their arms with guns, aimed at Xiangcheng and shot

The battle within the palace intensified. Each side was determined to kill the other. Spears and arrows flew, neither side yielded. However, Yuan Xiangcheng was fearless and unstoppable. After a fierce battle, all the Korean rebels were killed by their swords and spears. The palace was littered with broken limbs and arms, a ghostly den.

Most of the people in the hall were ordinary people with little experience. They didn't find it strange to hear Yuan Xiangcheng fighting back and forth with a dozen armed soldiers with a bow and arrow. Instead, they cheered for this plot that ignored the laws of physics and was like tearing the Japanese apart with bare hands.

But there were still a few sober people, wearing cotton robes, waiting for the storyteller to finish this paragraph, and then shouted: "Do you think I have never seen those foreign rifles? Yuan Shikai is Xiang Yu in the world, but he is not a supernatural being. How could he defeat dozens of chaotic soldiers armed with foreign rifles with just a bow?"

Yuan Xiangcheng just complained silently in his heart, but he didn't expect someone to dare to shout it out loud.

This sound made him the target of public criticism in the hall. A man in a mandarin jacket took the opportunity to curse: "You bastard, how dare you boost other people's morale and destroy your own prestige!"

The man in the cotton robe who was being scolded was naturally dissatisfied and said, "It's all nonsense. How can you say that he is destroying his own prestige? Foreign guns hit people, and one shot kills them. No matter how brave Yuan Shikai is, can he have an iron vest?"

Seeing the argument getting more intense, someone nearby stepped out to act as a peacemaker: "Both of you should cut the slack. This is just a story, don't take it seriously."

At this time, the man in the mandarin jacket who was cursing the bastard started cursing at the peacemaker again: "What do you mean by not taking it seriously? My Qing Dynasty traverses the world and was founded on cavalry and archery. The bow and arrow skills are just that invincible. Just because you don't know it doesn't mean it doesn't exist."

The people who were drinking at the same table also started to make a fuss when they heard this, saying that the Eight Banners' cavalry and archery were invincible, and that the Jurchens were invincible.

Yuan Shikai, who was watching the fun nearby, was stunned. He didn't expect that forty years after the Opium War, there were still people who thought that bows and arrows were more powerful than muskets.

It would be understandable if it were in the early Qing Dynasty. Most of the muskets at that time were hand-held guns, which could not even be considered guns. They had low accuracy, poor precision, and a short range. It took time to reload gunpowder after each shot, which was far less efficient than using a familiar bow and arrow.

But now we have entered the era of breech-loading rifles, and bows and arrows are no longer of much use.

All we can say is that it is still "our Great Qing Dynasty". The policy of keeping the people ignorant was so foolish that it is no wonder that the vigorous Boxer Rebellion, which was invulnerable to swords and guns, broke out ten years later.

In the hall, the peacemaker looked unhappy when he heard this, and simply waved his hand and stopped talking.

There was also a table sitting next to the man in the cotton robe who had just been the first to refute the storyteller's words. However, they all looked like scholars with elegant figures. When they heard such ignorant remarks as "invincible in riding and shooting", they found it unreasonable. Everyone at the table lost interest and was about to leave.

At this time, the man in the mandarin jacket saw that someone was about to leave, so he took a step forward to stop him. As soon as the man in the mandarin jacket moved, the people at his table all stood up and stopped the people at the cotton robe table from leaving.

"What are you doing? We have made great achievements, how dare you fight us?" The man in the cotton robe regretted coming out to argue, but he felt that there were many people around him, so he became a little tougher.

"Any honors? Damn it." The man in the mandarin jacket was even more furious when he heard this. "It's you scholars who keep clamoring about self-strengthening and seeking change. You've made the court invest all its money in foreign affairs, and now our monthly salaries are getting smaller and smaller."

With one punch, the man in the cotton robe was hit in the left eye. He immediately felt dizzy and fell to the ground soon.

No matter how weak and frail his friend at the same table was, the man in the cotton robe could not bear to see his friend being bullied in this way. In addition, there were poor bannermen everywhere in the late Qing Dynasty, and they all talked about the glorious deeds of their ancestors. However, if they did not have an official position, no one would take these bannermen's bragging seriously.

Therefore, they were not afraid of what the Ma Gua said about whether they were Manchus or not. A group of people wearing long gowns started fighting with a group of Manchu thugs wearing Ma Gua.

By this time, the diners around had already dispersed, fearing that they had caused trouble. In a moment, tables, stools, porcelain bowls, white butterflies, and anything else that could be touched were picked up and thrown at the enemy.

The hall immediately became a mess.

The peacemaker didn't leave, but stood by and watched the fun. However, as he watched, the fight between the two groups became more and more intense, and they even smashed all the other people's business equipment.

The man then shouted at the two groups of people: "Stop fighting each other, stop it, stop it now, stop fighting each other!"

Chapter 26 It’s all Yuan Xiangcheng’s fault

Yuan Xiangcheng was originally just watching the fun, but when he saw the situation getting more and more serious, he and Xu Shichang stood up to try to stop it.

However, the two groups of people became more and more powerful as the fight went on. Although the group of people in cotton robes shared the same hatred and were determined to avenge their friends, they were generally not as physically fit as the group of people in horse jackets.

After a fight, he was defeated step by step and was trapped in a corner, and it seemed that he had no power to fight back.

Xu Shichang looked carefully at the man lying on the ground and found that it was a good friend he had just met in Beijing recently.

They were both candidates who came to Beijing to take the imperial examinations. They knew each other because of Yuan Shikai's suppression of the Seoul Rebellion. Although they had only met for more than ten days, they felt that they had met too late.

So he spoke up to stop the two groups from fighting each other. Oh, now I should say to stop one group from beating another.

The leader in a Ma Gua looked back at Xu Shichang, but saw that he was not a familiar face and his clothes were a bit tattered, so he ignored him and continued to move forward and punch.

Yuan Xiangcheng was reluctant to intervene, but when he discovered the man being beaten was Xu Shichang's friend, he had no choice but to stop him. "You all care about the Qing Dynasty and are working for the country and its people. Why are you quarreling with each other and using sticks to hit each other? Stop it now."

Seeing Yuan Xiangcheng dressed in rich clothes, the movements of his Ma Gua slowed down, but he didn't stop. He just turned his head and asked, "Who are you and where are you from? It's none of your business if a man hits someone!"

"I am Yuan Xiangcheng!"

With just one sentence, the group of people in Ma Gua could not believe that the great hero Yuan Xiangcheng who recaptured Seoul was right next to them, and they all stopped their actions after hearing the words.

"Are you really Lord Yuan of Yuan Xiangcheng?"

"Replacement guaranteed."

"Master Yuan, we are tired of listening to this storytelling. Please tell us how you single-handedly conquered Seoul."

"Yes, yes, tell us how Lord Yuan shot down all the musketeers with a single bow. Tell us so that we brothers can learn from him."

Yuan Xiangcheng smiled bitterly and could only tell the truth.

He bowed and said to the group of people in Ma Gua that he did not rely on bows and arrows or swords, but on foreign muskets, and he did not do it alone, but led a team of hundreds of people to quell the rebellion.

At this time, the man in the cotton robe who had been beaten also woke up from his fainting. He covered his chin where he had been punched and muttered, "It is just like this. In today's world, there is no place for swords and bows and arrows."

Ma Gua was originally very happy to see Yuan Xiangcheng, but he was a little bit unbelievable when he heard what Yuan Xiangcheng said.

"Master Yuan, Western guns and cannons are inherently ingenious and ingenious, so don't trust them completely."

"Have you been bewitched by the Korean spirits, Lord Yuan? How could you be so obsessed with the Western art of musketry that you have forgotten the true ways of horseback riding and archery?"

Maybe they had enough fun fighting, or maybe they had vented their anger, or maybe after hearing Yuan Xiangcheng's words, they felt that there was a gap between their imagination and reality. The group of people in Ma Gua did not attack Yuan Xiangcheng, but just said a few harsh words.

After saying this, without waiting for Yuan Xiangcheng to reply, he glared at the man in cotton robe who had just woken up and was belittling the sword and bow and arrow, and was about to leave with a group of people behind him in a somewhat dejected manner.

Upon seeing this, Xu Shichang hurriedly pushed aside the scattered tables, chairs and benches in the hall and went to help up his classmate Er.

Seeing the fight resolved without a trace, the storyteller in the hall and the peacemaker breathed a sigh of relief.

Who would have thought that before the group of people in Ma Gua walked out of the door, they heard a burst of hurried horse hooves coming from the door, and soon they all stopped in front of the Liuliting Restaurant with a "Herod-like" sound.

The leader, holding armor and a sword, walked into the hall, glanced around, and asked loudly:

"Gong Baotun, the commander of the Right Division of the Patrol Battalion of the Infantry General's Office, is here. I heard someone is causing trouble here. Who are they?"

It turned out that the shopkeeper had already sent someone to call the soldiers. The shopkeeper knew that the Ma Gua group usually loved to stir up trouble. Now that they were contradicted, they would definitely not swallow this humiliation and might even cause trouble.

As soon as the two gangs started fighting, the Infantry Commander-in-Chief's Office received a message from the servant, and a group of more than ten people rode their horses and rushed over.

The court is currently in a turbulent time. The south has just been defeated. If there is any more trouble in the capital, they will definitely be in trouble.

Seeing that no one answered, Gong Baotun did not get angry. He looked at everyone in the hall and saw that there were obviously two groups of people in disheveled clothes. He simply waved his hand and asked his men to take all the people who were fighting to the cell.

The man in the mandarin jacket was still unconvinced and struggled while shouting, "Do you know who I am? My ancestors served the Holy Ancestor wholeheartedly, suppressing the Three Feudatories and conquering Galdan. How dare you arrest me!"

"Okay, Du Liu, you still bring up your identity as a member of the Zhenglan Banner of the Han Army. No one wants you as a real bannerman. The Han Army Banner means nothing." Gong Baotun kicked the man named Du Liu.

Find book n8.607380

He bowed and said, "I'm sorry, Master Yuan," and planned to lead his men back to the camp.

"You know me?" Yuan Xiangcheng was also curious.

"I know. A few days ago, Lord Yuan returned to Beijing through the Chongwen Gate, which I was guarding. At that time, it was my gatekeeper who checked the Lord's documents." Gong Baotun explained the whole story.

Yuan Xiangcheng was impressed when he heard this and bowed, saying, "Thank you very much, Captain Gong. Drinking and causing trouble are common. I hope Captain Gong will not make things difficult for these scholars."

"Don't worry, Lord Yuan. If they really wanted to cause trouble, they would have been sent to Shuntian Prefecture long ago. The city is under strict control now, so we will just let them stay in the barracks of the Governor's Office for a few days to cool down their anger." Gong Baotun patted his chest and made a guarantee.

After a conversation, Gong Baotun led his soldiers and escorted two groups of more than a dozen people who were fighting towards the barracks outside the city.

It was supposed to be a time for friends to get together, but after a fight, they couldn't chat, eat, or listen.

Yuan Xiangcheng felt it was a pity. He wanted to hear how the storyteller described him, but he had no choice. His place had been destroyed, so he could only wait for next time.

However, Xu Shichang was concerned about the safety of his classmate, so he apologized to Yuan Shikai, borrowed some money, and followed the main force to the barracks of the Infantry Commander's Office.

Yuan Xiangcheng could only support the half-awake Xu Shiguang and help him step by step to his rented place.

Yuan Xiangcheng was a little worried about Xu Shiguang being alone, so he stayed in the side room of the Xu brothers, half asleep and half awake from the time the moon rose in the sky to the sun rising in the east.

It was not until the next day when the sky was bright and Xu Shiguang was coughing with his mouth open and looking for water that Yuan Xiangcheng packed up and went home.

On the way, I drank a bowl of soybean milk slowly. By the time I got home, it was already noon.

Before I had time to change my clothes and get a good night's sleep, I heard a loud noise outside the door.

"Brother Yuan! Brother Yuan!" Yuan Xiangcheng recognized it as Xu Shiguang's voice.

Yuan Xiangcheng was quite surprised to see Xu Shiguang, who was not resting at home but running to his roof. Why did he come to find him instead of sobering up at home?

"Hmm?" Yuan Xiangcheng had just fetched some water at the door, intending to wash his face. Seeing the anxious look of the young steward, he jokingly asked as he poured the water, "What's wrong? What do you want from me?"

"Brother Yuan...something happened!"

"What happened?" Yuan Xiangcheng was a little puzzled. Isn't it just that your eldest brother's friend was arrested? It's not a big deal. He will be released in two days.

While thinking, he scooped up a handful of water and rubbed his face.

"Last night, those two gangs that caused trouble killed someone!"

Chapter 27 This time I have to protect

Yuan Xiangcheng had no time to pack his clothes. He hurriedly washed his face and followed Xu Shiguang to the Infantry Commander's Office.

"How did they beat someone to death? They were fine last night. Weren't they all taken away and detained?"

"My eldest brother just told me about this and asked me to come find you. He hurried back to the barracks. I heard that the yamen runners from Shuntian Prefecture have arrived!"