Neither he nor Yang Qinglan actually drank alcohol; they only tried it occasionally as a life experience.
He sighed deeply, feeling annoyed, more annoyed than having killed someone and gained another enemy.
It seemed that by going against him, the stage became even more lively, and the Spring Emperor made his appearance.
Even in theatrical costumes and with makeup, her excellent temperament was still evident. She was calm and composed, yet always had a touch of melancholy. She was also a great beauty, no wonder she was named one of the Four Beauties by the newspapers.
Her operatic singing was equally adept at being light and heavy, and Peking Opera was handled like a piece of candy, delivered however she pleased.
The play is titled "Beating the Drum and Cursing Cao Cao," and she plays the role of Mi Heng.
"Even if you cut off my head, I'll still be famous throughout the world for cursing Cao Cao!"
The moment he opened his mouth, the cheers from the audience were so powerful they seemed to tangible, threatening to overturn the private box.
After the curtain fell, Li Changzhou applauded and asked Liu De to prepare a flower basket so he could go backstage to see her.
"Where are the clothes?"
"Is the beard not put on yet?"
"Where did the black film go?"
Backstage in the dressing room, the actresses were busy putting on their costumes and makeup.
The Spring Emperor already knew that Master Li was coming and came to greet him early.
Before she could speak, Li Changzhou quickened his pace and walked over. Before he even reached her, he smiled and clasped his hands in greeting: "Miss Wu, Li Changzhou greets you!"
Chunhuang, whose real name was Wuchun'er.
Originally, she wasn't called by this name. Wu Chun'er was a name that Sun Xiaoyun changed for her later. "Unwilling to contend for spring, letting all the flowers be jealous" means that there is no spring except for the Spring Emperor.
Seeing Li Changzhou wearing a suit but deliberately bowing, Wu Chun'er giggled. She was a little girlish, yet also generous and cheerful.
Li Changzhou turned around, took the flower basket from Liu De, handed it to the Spring Emperor, and clasped his hands in a fist salute again:
"Having lived abroad for many years, I didn't understand opera and looked down on it. Today, the Spring Emperor gave me a hard slap in the face, which broadened my horizons."
“Second Master, please don’t say that,” Wu Chun’er smiled, her face still made up, looking as beautiful as a silhouette from 1928. “If word gets out that I slap you every time we meet, I’ll be cursed to death.”
“That’s true,” Li Changzhou laughed. “It’s a small matter if I get slapped, but it’s a big deal if people are afraid to come and listen to the Spring Emperor’s opera.”
He turned to Liu De and said, "Tell all the newspapers in the city that I, Li Er, slapped myself in the face after listening to the Spring Emperor's play."
"Yes, sir!" Liu De clasped his hands together and responded loudly, just like an ancient general receiving an order.
Wu Chun'er burst into laughter again, laughing so happily that even her cheerful personality became a little embarrassed. She pulled up the sleeve of her costume to cover half of her mouth, only revealing her crescent-shaped eyes.
Liu De was so mesmerized by the sight that he didn't even put his hands down, still clasped together.
After laughing enough, Wu Chun'er took a breath and said, "Second Master, if you weren't a master and came to perform on stage with us, you would definitely be more famous than me."
“Alright.” Li Changzhou looked at her with a smile. “When I’m no longer a master, I’ll go to perform with the Spring Emperor and travel all over the world. Maybe I can even earn the titles of ‘Emperor Li,’ ‘Emperor Chang,’ or ‘Emperor Zhou.’”
Staring directly into his dark, captivating eyes, Wu Chun'er couldn't help but purse her lips and look away.
"Chun'er, it's almost your turn for the second scene!" someone shouted from afar.
Wu Chun'er glanced at Li Changzhou and bit her lip.
"Second Master, I—"
"Hurry up," Li Changzhou urged, "I'll wait for you at the front desk. Don't be late!"
Wu Chun'er pursed her lips again and smiled, "Okay! You wait for me, but if I don't see you on stage, I'll really slap you."
She proudly showed off her fair and delicate hands.
Li Changzhou laughed loudly: "Now that you say that, I don't want to go anymore, I want to get slapped!"
After Wu Chun'er left, Liu De gave a thumbs up: "Sir, you're the best!"
Li Changzhou smiled faintly.
"I heard that the eldest son of the Song family also wanted to take Chunhuang as a concubine, but after only one meeting, Chunhuang ran away overnight. If you, Second Master, could win her over, the Song family would be utterly disgraced," Liu De added.
“Actors are just putting on an act. How do you know if she smiled at Young Master Song before she ran away? Go ask someone and see what her attitude was towards that Young Master Song before.”
Liu De hesitated for a moment. Logically, he shouldn't leave Li Changzhou, but Li Changzhou's killing skills just now made him feel a little more at ease.
"Alright, I'll go ask. Second Master, please be careful."
"I'll stay backstage and not go out. Come find me here when you're better."
"I'll go right now!"
After Liu De left, Li Changzhou immediately stretched out his dog neck and searched for his Miss Yang like a lackey.
After wandering around, with its tentacle-like cane touching the ground, it quickly found it.
Sun Xiaoyun was reprimanding a group of apprentices in a corner of the backstage garden corridor, and Yang Qinglan was inside.
"...You can't win someone over with just a few words! Love is something that only comes when you've experienced more, seen more, and broadened your horizons."
As expected of a former star, he speaks like he's singing, with perfect intonation and rhythm.
“Especially you, Qinglan.”
Li Changzhou pricked up his dog ears.
"Stop showing your face in public and focus on learning opera. You have the best potential and are the smartest. You'll be able to perform on stage in two or three years. Don't think about any crooked ways, understand?"
Yang Qinglan obediently lowered her head: "I understand."
“From today onwards, you are not allowed to go to the front or see anyone. You are to stay in the back and practice your movements and voice.”
"yes."
Li Changzhou leaned against a pillar, his left hand in his pocket and his right hand holding a cane, looking over there with great interest.
They were quite far apart, and with normal eyesight, no one could possibly see who he was, but Li Changzhou could see him clearly, and Yang Qinglan also knew that he was watching.
Soon, someone came to call Sun Xiaoyun, saying that Master Liu was coming to visit.
After Sun Xiaoyun left, everyone dispersed.
"Let's see if some people still dare to buy newspapers for the Spring Emperor. Tch."
"Stop cutting me off. Do you know how to flatter people? Can you get on stage in two or three years like them? You've been studying since elementary school, and it'll still be four or five years before you get to where you are today."
"It's not that I'm not as pretty as her, and I don't know how to flatter people."
Li Changzhou watched with even more fascination, but unfortunately Yang Qinglan didn't cause trouble for these actresses. Instead, she glared at him with a look that said, "What are you looking at? Come here."
Li Changzhou walked quickly over, and Yang Qinglan also walked this way. The two met behind a large banana tree.
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