Chapter 909 – Who Isn’t a Little Princess? (Part Four)
After talking non-stop, my mouth felt dry.
The scholar quickly pressed on, “And then what?”
The storyteller from the common people spat out, “That’s it for what’s next.”
Just as the story reached its most captivating point, it suddenly cut off. No wonder the common people were so disgruntled.
“Cut off?”
The common person pouted, a hint of anger in his voice as he pointed at the storyteller in the room, “Didn’t you hear that old fool say it? The next chapter hasn’t been written yet. But based on the usual customs, Zhao Tian, that shameless scoundrel, surely won’t have a good ending.”
Hearing this, the scholar’s temper flared. He indignantly stated, “You mere commoner, who gave you the audacity to slander a scholar?”
Zhao Tian? Isn’t that his name?
Right in front of him, this common fellow said he wouldn’t have a good end—how could Zhao Tian just swallow this insult without a fight?
Zhao Tian exploded without warning, startling the common person.
Regaining his composure, the commoner felt a surge of anger as well.
He said, “That’s how it goes; who dares to break the rules of this trade? Unless that storyteller, Master Xiangxun, wants to stop working in Wanzhou.”
Wei Ci aimed to control public opinion, and as the initiator, he had the right to set comprehensive rules for the industry.
Besides the few rules mentioned earlier, Wei Ci also mandated that the content must be positive and uplifting.
What does “positive and uplifting” mean?
The story’s content could not involve vulgar or obscene material, and the overarching theme must reflect proper values.
The first rule was easy enough to understand, but the second became quite convoluted.
Whether the protagonist or a supporting character, a perfect ending must be unattainable when they touch on any misconduct, including but not limited to betrayal, neglect of family, favoritism, parental indifference, foolish filial piety, disrespect for elders, and lack of compassion for children.
Depending on the severity of their actions, characters had to endure varying levels of setbacks.
Zhao Tian in the story had already committed several infractions; by the industry’s rules, his ending could only be disastrous.
The common people had been eagerly following the updates for days, and their disgust for Zhao Tian had reached its peak. As the plot developed, even the tree demon and Master Liu were ensnared in crises due to Zhao Tian’s scheming. They were reveling in it, eagerly awaiting the evil character’s artistic retribution, only for it to suddenly cease.
The real Zhao Tian was furious, fuming over this offbeat Master Xiangxun daring to use his name for such lowbrow stories!
It would be one thing if it were merely a coincidence, but it was not.
In the tale, Zhao Tian clearly had a family yet lied about being unmarried, deceiving the innocent tree demon into trusting him.
In reality, Zhao Tian also had a family; he had heard of the Golden Scales Pavilion in Wanzhou, coveted it greatly, leaving his aging parents to be cared for by his already married childhood sweetheart, and along the way, he swindled an ignorant country girl out of her money after a night of passion before fleeing.
In the story, Zhao Tian came from a family of mud masons, using his parents’ hard-earned money to pretend to be a rich second-generation heir, disregarding his crippled father and blind mother.
In reality, Zhao Tian hailed from a wealthy rural household; his parents sold six sisters to fund his education, and he pretended to be the son of a wealthy gentleman among his friends.
In the narrative, Zhao Tian borrowed from a great scholar’s works to further his studies, only to double-cross him and scheme for his demise.
In reality, Zhao Tian enjoyed the benefits of the Golden Scales Pavilion, and after gaining some status, he slandered Liu Xi, hoping to trample over others to make a name for himself.
With so many similarities, how could Zhao Tian not care?
This wasn’t just some tale; it was clearly intended as a satire of him, and even his name was lifted!
The common folk were oblivious, but wouldn’t the students and scholars frequenting the Golden Scales Pavilion catch wind of it?
No wonder—
No wonder in recent days, some scholars who were friendly with him started avoiding him; the root of the problem lay here!
Zhao Tian had been inexplicably blasted by the common people. Before he could explode in anger, he already stormed off in shame.
Since Liu Xi was using this means against him, he wouldn’t hold back!
Jiang Pengji was truly wronged; she was busy enough as it was, with no time to handle a couple of insignificant shrimp!
Zhao Tian shamelessly lingered at the Golden Scales Pavilion.
To him, the cold reception from a few scholars was nothing. Liu Xi was naive to think he could counter him with such tactics.
Did things end here?
Of course not!
Master Xiangxun was the go-to author in Wanzhou, famed for penning all kinds of storybooks.
This time, he didn’t just write one story, but a series of six intertwined tales.
Aside from the tale about Zhao Tian, there were five others, each featuring an ungrateful protagonist whose despicable deeds made readers grind their teeth in irritation.
After completing the first two short stories, the curious common people pieced together the protagonists’ real-life counterparts.
Upon further investigation, they immediately exploded in fury.
Who did they think their governor was, that anyone could insult him?
Ungrateful scoundrels have the gall to stand on Wanzhou soil?
Paying kindness with ingratitude, and still having the face to argue?
Get lost!
Why don’t they just fly off on a magical monkey, huh!
Just then, the results of the testing for the topic “Repaying Kindness with Enmity” came out!
Zhao Tian and his gang realized, to their despair, that numerous scholars used their situation as examples, with biting remarks that left no room for mercy.
The situation continued to worsen—
The landlord renting out houses for folk customs: “The temple’s too small for the big Buddha; I won’t take the ten-day rent! Just get out, get out!”
The waiter at the tea house: “We’re all honest businessmen here, dealing in human affairs, not animal affairs, don’t block the way!”
The shopkeeper at the eatery: “Pardon me, esteemed guest, but the sign’s right in front; our land’s a poor mountain and treacherous waters full of troublesome folk.”
Two bulky men stood at the entrance, wielding wooden mallets, their fierce eyes glaring like beasts on the hunt.
Not to mention the tea houses and taverns, even the inclusive brothels turned them away. One particularly unlucky guy, hoping to have a good time one night, woke up the next day feeling a soreness in his behind and even found traces of blood there.
He went seeking pleasure but got his own flower plucked by an unknown scoundrel!
They underestimated how much the common folk revered Jiang Pengji and overestimated the power of public opinion.
As they watched their reputations sink like a stone, the only option left was to sneak away.
Though they departed, their story continued to circulate in Wanzhou, spreading even to Chongzhou and Hujun.
Two months later, Jiang Pengji stumbled upon this tale and was almost amused by Xu Ke’s actions.
She said to Feng Zhen, “Xiaoyu doesn’t need to get so worked up over this; they’re just a few ungrateful scholars. They insulted me, so I can just kick them out of the Golden Scales Pavilion and blacklist them for life. Why go through all this trouble?”
“Just to show a lesson to others. I didn’t take them seriously,” Feng Zhen replied with a laugh. “They’re just petty clowns, but if used well, they can serve as excellent pawns. Xiaoyu is reminding everyone that while receiving the blessings of the Golden Scales Pavilion is nothing to scoff at, those who repay kindness with enmity better think twice; can their small bodies withstand the criticism of thousands?”
