Lin Chong, leaning on his shovel, glared at Li Kui and said, "Tie Niu, what did Brother Junyi say to you again?"
Li Kui got up, dusted himself off, glared at Bao Jin, and said, "Old Lu said it's not heroic to make things difficult for you now, but don't mess with me!" With that, he sullenly went back. Lin Chong nodded slightly to Bao Jin and followed him. Bao Jin looked into the distance and saw that the windows of the dormitory building opposite were filled with Liangshan heroes, all silently peering in their direction. Although he couldn't see their eyes clearly, their hostility was obvious. Bao Jin once again clasped his hands in a fist salute towards them and gave a bitter smile.
Cheng Fengshou, pulling at the gold corner of his robe, asked, "Brother, do you have a grudge against them?"
Bao Jin sighed, "That was all decades ago."
Cheng Fengshou looked at the heroes and asked in bewilderment, "You were all just kids back then, weren't you? I've sparred with these people before, and they're all very passionate. I never expected them to be so vengeful."
Cheng Fengshou surveyed the bustling campus, both near and far, and remarked with emotion, "This will definitely be a great place in the future." He then chuckled, "Oh, they're here too." Following his gaze, I saw Xu Delong teaching the 300-meter horse stance, with Duan Tianlang and a dozen or so apprentices moving among them, constantly correcting the children's movements. Despite Duan Tianlang's usually cold demeanor, his eyes were shining with enthusiasm, and he looked incredibly energetic.
Seeing the longing look on Cheng Fengshou's face, I put my hand on his shoulder and said, "Old Cheng, you guys come too."
Cheng Fengshou was surprised that I would make such a request. He paused for a moment before saying, "The children at school are waiting for us to go back."
How many people are there?
"There are probably three or four hundred of them."
I simply said, "Come on, take it."
Cheng Fengshou looked at me and said, "Is this... appropriate?"
I said, "You deserve half the credit for Yucai's success today. What's wrong with that? Let all the children come. We provide food and lodging here and don't charge tuition."
Cheng Fengshou said excitedly, "Just based on this alone, they're sure they'll all come."
At this moment, Xiao Liu, still shaken, came over and asked, "Brother Qiang, what are we doing?"
I pointed and said, "The cafeteria is over there. It has everything you need. After you finish cooking, you can choose your dorm room. Four people can share a room, and you can stay however you like."
Xiao Liu waved his hand and shouted, "Brothers, let's get our cards on the line!" A thug leaned in and asked, "Brother Liu, who are we going to trick this time? Landlord or Texas Hold'em?"
Xiao Liu gave him a hard slap: "Cook!"
Chapter Sixty-One: I Am a Legend
Initially, the schools that nurtured talent were filled with arrogant, ruthless, and vulgar individuals.
—From Sima Qian's "Records of the Grand Historian: Basic Annals of Cultivating Talent"
The above sentence translates to: "Initially, education was supported by a group of bandits and hooligans." I regret Sima Qian's wording.
The groups of people I brought back have added even more momentum to the already bustling Yucai School.
Duan Tianlang and the heroes initially had some reservations, but after explanations, they seem to be getting along fairly well now. The friction between Cheng Fengshou and Xiao Liu is no longer a concern for me. The most pressing issue right now is the feud between Bao Jin and the heroes. Bao Jin, a factory worker, has no intention of being enemies with the heroes, but the stubborn Bao Guang Rulai Deng Yuanjue refuses to take the initiative to reconcile, which is very troublesome. Bao Jin declined Cheng Fengshou's offer to share a dormitory for mutual support and opted for a single room by himself. Understandably, in this small building, he's constantly running into people he once admired, but these same people seem to want to kill him. Bao Jin is indeed quite frustrated. He also faces a minor awkward situation regarding whether or not to eat meat. Lu Zhishen was forced to become a monk halfway through his life, and he openly indulged in drinking and eating meat, while Deng Yuanjue was a dignified and solemn master—this is absolutely not something you can see in Bao Jin. In fact, Bao Jin started eating meat as soon as he was weaned, and when he had just learned to say a complete sentence, his father's coworker poured two and a half cups of meat into his mouth with a two-qian cup, which is equivalent to half a jin.
After settling Cheng Fengshou and the others in, I finally had time to check my car. Its right-side door was completely smashed. At first, it wouldn't close; I stood behind it and kicked it for ages until I finally managed to close it. But a new problem arose: once closed, it would slam open with a whoosh whenever the car experienced even the slightest bump, which was quite frightening. Later, Tang Long found a drill and drilled a hole in the door and another in the adjacent body panel, allowing me to lock it. From then on, my car lock became a fully manual, user-friendly design.
Just then, Hu Sanniang, holding Tong Yuan's hand, hurried past me. I asked Tong Yuan in surprise, "You haven't left yet?"
Hu Sanniang then noticed me. She took off her wig and fanned herself with it, saying, "I forced my sister to stay. She'll teach those girls kung fu for a few days. You'll have to pay her a salary, okay?"
I glanced at Duan Tianlang, then at Tong Yuan, and chuckled. Tong Yuan happened to be looking in that direction too, and frowned, saying, "Why is he here too?" She then glared at me and said, "What are you laughing at? I was in a hurry to go back, but since that guy surnamed Duan is here, I'm not leaving!"
I said lazily, "Okay, there are a lot of bricks from the old wall. You can lead the kids to chop them up."
Given the current composition of the staff at Yucai School, there's enough time it would take for them to break into a fight within three days to open the door to social relations studies.
I returned to the pawnshop and happened to run into Li Shishi packing her things. I asked her where she was going, and Li Shishi stopped and said, "I was just about to tell you. I might have to go away for a while. I've taken on a film role."
I laughed and said, "You're pretty fast, what are you acting for?"
Li Shishi said, "The female lead is actually the main character; this is a drama about women."
I picked up a glass of water, took a sip, and asked, "What's your name?"
Li Shishi tossed a plastic-covered notebook over: "Read it yourself."
I casually turned to the first page, and immediately spat out all my water. Four large characters were prominently displayed: The Legend of Li Shishi!
Li Shishi snatched the script, wiped the water off it, and said reproachfully, "What's wrong with you?"
I coughed as I said, "You didn't even tell me about something this big?" I thought she was just joking about her being the female lead, but one look at her name told me it was probably true. Putting aside her temperament and appearance, just in terms of her deep understanding of the Song Dynasty, who could compare to Li Shishi herself? Any director who genuinely wanted to make a good film would have no reason not to choose her as the lead.
As Li Shishi packed her things, she said, "This is quite urgent. I just signed the contract and I have to report to the film crew tomorrow."
I picked up the script again and flipped through it, then suddenly exclaimed in surprise, "The investor is Jinting Film and Television, isn't that Jin Shaoyan's company?" I asked Li Shishi, "Have you ever met this guy?"
Li Shishi said calmly, "This is a low-budget production, so he won't visit the set in person. Actually, the reason I chose this film is because it has a small budget and a short shooting period. I was also invited to participate in 'Red Cliff'—but I didn't have enough time. I asked for the lowest possible salary, and my only requirement was that filming be completed within 10 months."
I gave a wry smile: "Wouldn't it be awkward to play myself?" Anyway, if a director were to make a film about my story, I'd think they were deliberately trying to mess with me, because I know I haven't accomplished anything particularly glorious. It would be better if the film served as a negative example for young people. As for Li Shishi, her reputation as a "famous courtesan" doesn't seem to be very good either.
Li Shishi seemed to read my mind, and smiled slightly, saying, "I've read every word of the script many times, and it's fairly faithful to the facts. I want to portray a true version of myself—Li Shishi, not entirely a..." She didn't finish her sentence, but I understood what she meant.
When I announced the news at dinner, Baozi was the first to cheer. She opened two bottles of beer and poured everyone a full glass, even Cao Chong had a small half glass. Baozi raised her glass and said, "Cousin, don't forget us when you become a star. Your sister-in-law hasn't spent much time with you while you were at home. Don't say you don't know me when you ask for my autograph."
Holding her cup, Li Shishi said emotionally, "Sister-in-law, in my eyes you are the best woman in the world. My cousin is so lucky to have you..." Li Shishi looked at Xiang Yu and the others, and wanted to say something more, but she choked up and couldn't say anything more. I knew she was sad because the time they would see each other less and less after this departure.
Baozi said with a grin, "Why are you crying? This is a good thing! Enough said, I wish you success, come on, cheers!"
Everyone at the table stood up and clinked glasses. Liu Bang and Xiang Yu both understood the meaning of this cup of wine; they silently drank it down, their blessings unspoken. Only Xiao Cao Chong took a sip, frowned, and said, "So bitter—" which made us all laugh.
Li Shishi put down her wine glass and said, "As for Xiao Xiang's academic studies, I'll leave it to you from now on..." As she spoke, her eyes swept across the table one by one, from Liu Bang to Er Sha to Ying Pangzi, then looked at me and Baozi, and finally Li Shishi's gaze returned to Cao Chong, and she said solemnly, "Xiao Xiang, from now on it all depends on your self-discipline."
We were all so ashamed that we said together, "Let's drink, let's drink..."
Suddenly, an idea struck me, and I said, "Actually, Xiao Xiang could go to our Yucai School."