Chapter 4

In the first year of the Guangxu era, the Qing government signed unequal treaties with foreign powers, allowing foreigners to claim territories in China as their own. Foshan was no exception. Liu Yongfu, originally a leader of the Heaven and Earth Society in Guangxi and a loyalist against the Qing, was later recruited by the Qing court. Although he could not change the current situation, he maintained a peaceful and stable environment in Guangdong with his Black Flag Army. However, not long ago, Liu Yongfu received an imperial edict ordering him to lead the Black Flag Army to Annam to fight the French.

On the main warship, the black flag representing the Black Flag Army fluttered in the wind. Ye Xuan followed Huang Feihong to the high platform on the main ship and saw a middle-aged man with a slender figure, wearing a Qing official's hat and clothing, sitting majestically in the center, holding a paper fan.

Although the middle-aged man had a clear face, his eyes were sharp and full of spirit, exuding a dignified and awe-inspiring aura.

"Admiral, I am late, please forgive me!" Huang Feihong immediately bowed and apologized when he saw the middle-aged man.

"Ha ha ha, not late, not late. Feihong, I am deeply moved that you came to see me off. Come, please!" Although Liu Yongfu was a high-ranking admiral, he was not bound by formalities, laughing heartily and pointing to a large armchair beside him.

"Thank you, sir!" Huang Feihong bowed and walked to the chair to sit down, while Ye Xuan stood behind him.

Liu Yongfu also noticed Ye Xuan, but he was probably just a disciple of Huang Feihong, and such a status did not catch his attention. He merely glanced at him and ignored him.

"Time to start!"

"Begin!" Liu Yongfu waved his hand.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Clang! Clang! Clang! On the main ship, drums and gongs sounded, and two lion dancers performed a red lion, going through various postures: starting, standing, rising, advancing cautiously, scratching, welcoming, bowing, leaping, examining, sleeping, emerging from the cave, showing power, and climbing the stage. The ship was bustling with activity.

Coming from the modern era, although Ye Xuan had seen lion dancing before, the lion dancing of this era was quite different. It was only after coming to Baozhi Lin that Ye Xuan learned that lion dancing was divided into Northern and Southern styles, and Southern lion dancing was further divided into three types: the red lion representing Guan Yu, symbolizing loyalty, righteousness, and victory, and also wealth because Guan Yu was revered as the God of Wealth; the yellow lion representing Liu Bei, symbolizing benevolence and royal dignity; and the black lion representing Zhang Fei, symbolizing dominance and bravery, which was only used in competitions or challenges, while red and yellow lions were more common for festive occasions.

"Beep! System Task: Assist Huang Feihong in completing the lion dance (Task success reward: 1000 cultivation points, Task failure penalty: 500 cultivation points)."

Just as Ye Xuan was enjoying the performance, the system's voice suddenly sounded in his mind.

"What's going on? Why did the system suddenly issue a task to assist my master in the lion dance? Is something going to happen?" Looking at the lion dancers who were about to complete the final step of plucking the green, Ye Xuan suddenly had a premonition.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!—"

Firecrackers were ignited, and the lion dance reached its most important moment. As the lion stood up and was about to pluck the green, several gunshots suddenly rang out.

Bang! A bullet hit the lion's head, startling the lion dancer, who grabbed the red rope. The green, which was originally only two meters high, was suddenly pulled to the top of the mast, and the entire lion flew out.

Ye Xuan, who had just received the system task and knew that something might go wrong, clearly saw several British soldiers on a warship flying the British flag, aiming their rifles and shooting. They mistook the sound of the firecrackers for gunshots.

Swish!

Huang Feihong, who was sitting in the armchair, saw the lion fly up and immediately leaped out, grabbing the ship's rope and swinging in the air to catch the red lion that was flying in the air.

Everyone on the warship was stunned by the sudden event. However, Ye Xuan did not hesitate. When Huang Feihong leaped out, he also grabbed the rope and swung to Huang Feihong's side.

"Drum!" Huang Feihong, holding the lion's head, saw that the drummers had stopped and immediately shouted.

"Alright! Bang! Bang! Bang!—" The drums sounded loudly!

"I'll do it!" Seeing the fallen lion, Ye Xuan shouted and leaped over to grab the lion's tail and climb inside.

"Master, be careful of the foreigners' gunfire!" Ye Xuan glanced worriedly at the direction of the British warship.

"A Xuan, be careful!" Huang Feihong, seeing his disciple, felt a sense of relief.

"Yes, Master!"

Ye Xuan's eyes were determined, and he nodded firmly. Then, he took steady steps, grabbed the lion's body with both hands, and began to dance with Huang Feihong.

Huang Feihong, a master of Southern lion dancing, was known as the "Lion King of Guangdong." He had excavated, organized, and trained in traditional lion dancing, incorporating martial arts and lion dancing techniques into the existing Southern lion dancing, combining high-pile lion dancing, folk martial arts plum blossom stakes, and Southern lion dancing routines, and integrating local folk styles, making the lion dancing highly skilled, ingeniously arranged, and combining dance, martial arts, acrobatics, strength, and aesthetics.

Although Ye Xuan had only been at Baozhi Lin for a few months, he had participated in lion dancing with his fellow disciples. Although he was not particularly skilled, he was not bad. Moreover, he had been practicing horse stance for an hour every day as instructed by Huang Feihong, making his steps more stable than those of ordinary martial artists.

Huang Feihong led the way, and Ye Xuan followed behind. They danced a few postures on the ground, and then Huang Feihong stepped onto the rope tied to the mast with a light jump.

The rope was only as thick as a thumb, and although there were several, it was very difficult to stand steadily. Ye Xuan, seeing Huang Feihong leap up and stand steadily, was greatly impressed, knowing that this was due to Huang Feihong's solid foundation and excellent lightness skills. However, he did not give up. He stepped on the rope with both feet, supported the lion's body with one hand, and grabbed the rope with the other, using both hands and feet to follow Huang Feihong up.

"Can you come up?" Huang Feihong, standing on the rope, stopped and looked back at Ye Xuan, holding the lion's head.

"No problem, Master!" Despite the sweat on his face, Ye Xuan managed to smile and replied to Huang Feihong.

"Good, be careful!"

Huang Feihong nodded, supported the lion's head with both hands, and stepped on the rope, walking step by step toward the top of the mast.

Ye Xuan followed behind Huang Feihong, bending his body and back, supporting the lion's body with one hand, and grabbing the rope with the other. His face was red, and he was panting heavily, his clothes drenched in sweat, looking quite disheveled.

However, despite his disheveled appearance, Ye Xuan closely followed Huang Feihong. The months of horse stance practice finally paid off. Although the rope was only as thick as a thumb, Ye Xuan could feel the points of force and stood steadily on it.

The drumming became more intense, and Huang Feihong and Ye Xuan finally reached the top of the mast. Huang Feihong wrapped his feet around the rope, suddenly supported the lion's head with both hands, and bit the green at the top of the mast.

"Ah!—"

Just as Huang Feihong was about to pluck the green, Ye Xuan, who was supporting the lion's body with one hand, was pulled by Huang Feihong's movement, lost his balance, and fell heavily onto the deck with the green vegetables that fell from the green.

"Beep! Congratulations on completing the task of assisting Huang Feihong in the lion dance. Task success reward: 1000 cultivation points."

Just as Ye Xuan thought he had failed the task and was feeling down, the system's voice sounded in his mind again.

Huang Feihong, seeing his beloved disciple fall, was worried. He took the two red scrolls from the green, used his feet to gain momentum on the rope, and lightly landed on the deck. "A Xuan, are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Master!" Although he was quite tired, Ye Xuan lay on the deck and smiled with relief.

"Good!" Seeing that Ye Xuan was not seriously injured, Huang Feihong nodded, then threw the lion's head to the side, bent his legs, and leaped nearly a meter high, landing steadily beside Liu Yongfu.

Liu Yongfu, with a quick hand movement, caught one end of one of the red scrolls and threw the other end to Huang Feihong. Huang Feihong caught the other end, and the red scroll unfolded. Liu Yongfu looked at it and laughed heartily, seeing the four large characters written in bold strokes: "Ambition Soars to the Clouds!"

He then threw the other red scroll to Huang Feihong, who unfolded it, and Liu Yongfu laughed heartily again, seeing the four large characters: "Heroic Spirit Reaches the Heavens!"

"Ha ha ha, ha ha ha...!!!" Liu Yongfu and Huang Feihong looked at each other and then at the nearby British warship, suddenly bursting into laughter.

Although their laughter sounded bold and free, Ye Xuan could hear the underlying sense of helplessness, unwillingness, and tragedy in their laughter.

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End of the chapter.