Chapter 77 - 74: Zhong Shu

Chapter 77: Chapter 74: Zhong Shu

Zhong Shu clutched the script, his head bowed.

"I’m sorry..."

The actress snapped irritably,

"What’s the use of always saying sorry?!

Look at my lines! They’re so long, how am I supposed to memorize them?!

And the female lead’s lines are just so stupid.

Instead of wasting time apologizing, you should go back and give the script a proper rewrite!"

Hearing his female lead’s lines called "stupid" made Zhong Shu flinch.

He raised his head, looking at the actress on stage, and found a sudden burst of courage to speak.

"No, you can’t. You can’t change my script anymore!"

The actress’s gaze turned cold. She took a step forward, standing at the edge of the stage to look down on him.

"What did you say? Say that again!"

Zhong Shu’s breathing grew ragged.

"You can’t change my script anymore!"

Due to past experiences, he had a severe fear of strangers.

The actress’s expression grew even more frigid.

The male actor jumped down from the stage and approached Zhong Shu.

His tall frame seemed like that of a small giant to Zhong Shu.

Zhong Shu’s heart hammered in his chest, and his whole body trembled.

He thought his body was trembling out of fear.

In truth... he didn’t realize it was a massive adrenaline rush.

In other words, people like him were the most likely to kill someone in a fight.

The male actor jeered,

"Hey kid, do you know your voice is shaking?"

The actress doubled over with laughter.

Zhong Shu froze, then lowered his head again, unable to say another word.

"What’s all this? Why aren’t you rehearsing?"

A middle-aged woman walked in through the doorway.

The male and female actors scrambled back onto the stage.

This was the director.

The female director looked at Zhong Shu, a hint of helplessness in her eyes.

’He’s probably being bullied again.’

She knew Zhong Shu was talented, but he was just too timid.

’This kid is too kind and has far too little self-esteem. Doesn’t he know that kindness is often mistaken for weakness?’

’I can’t keep sticking up for him every time. You can’t be this soft in our line of work. If this goes on, he’ll be completely washed up.’

The director said gently,

"Zhong Shu, yesterday’s performance was a huge success, so I’m giving everyone a break.

You should use this time to relax and get some rest."

Zhong Shu was taken aback.

"But the script..."

The director smiled.

"It’s already great. No need for changes. Just go home and recenter yourself."

Zhong Shu lowered his head.

"Thank you, Director."

...

「Nightfall, Liancheng.」

Zhong Shu walked out of a convenience store, carrying a plastic bag of beer and a bag of snacks.

A few children holding flowers ran up to him.

"Mister, buy a flower!"

"I can go home and eat once I sell all my flowers."

"My third uncle almost never comes to the city. I can go see him once I sell my flowers!"

Zhong Shu became flustered.

"Okay, okay, I’ll buy them."

This happened every day.

The same group of kids, the same Zhong Shu.

In truth, Zhong Shu knew these were the children of the local flower vendors.

The stories about going home to eat after selling their flowers or their third uncle’s rare visit to the city were all lies.

They used the same excuses every day, too lazy to even come up with new ones.

Zhong Shu gave all the cash he had to the children, leaving only one little girl holding three flowers, looking at him expectantly.

Zhong Shu said, abashed,

"S-sorry, I’m out of money."

The little girl looked disappointed, then held the three flowers out to Zhong Shu.

"Then you can have them. They’ll just wilt by tomorrow anyway."

Zhong Shu watched the little girl’s retreating back and gently sniffed the flowers.

It was the first time anyone had ever given him flowers.

He was so happy.

Zhong Shu crossed the street to a nearby park, stopped at a bench, and scratched his head.

"Sorry, something held me up today."

Zhong Shu quickly opened the snack bag and handed out the pre-packaged, ready-to-eat meal from inside.

The old beggar sat up on the bench and grumbled,

"Always something, always something! You’re useless!"

Zhong Shu lowered his head.

"S-sorry..."

The old beggar held out his pinky finger toward Zhong Shu and crooked it.

"Forget it. Just don’t be so late next time. I was starving."

Zhong Shu froze for a moment, then reached out and hooked his pinky with the old beggar’s.

"Okay."

The old beggar cursed,

"You blockhead! Who the hell is making a pinky promise with you?! Give me my booze!"

"Oh, oh!"

Zhong Shu quickly hung the bag of cheap white liquor on the old beggar’s pinky.

The old beggar tipped his head back and guzzled it down.

A swig of liquor, a bite of food—his mouth was soon slick with grease.

Once he’d eaten his fill, the old beggar slapped his belly and said,

"Give me two hundred yuan. I’m gonna go find a broad."

Zhong Shu frowned.

"No, I don’t have any money!"

The old beggar eyed the flowers in Zhong Shu’s hand and sneered,

"You’ve got money for those little brats, but no money for your old man to have some fun, is that it?"

Zhong Shu shook his head forcefully.

"Even if I had it, I wouldn’t give it to you! You can’t do that sort of thing!"

The old beggar flew into a rage.

"You’re so fucking nosy!"

Zhong Shu lowered his head.

"I’m sorry..."

The old beggar stared at Zhong Shu for a long time, then suddenly burst out laughing.

"What a simpleton. How can someone like you still exist these days?"

Zhong Shu sat down beside him, his head bowed.

"I know I’m too weak."

The old beggar shook his head.

"It’s not that. You’re just too kind. You can’t bear to let people down, that’s all.

You’re lucky our country has strong laws. Otherwise, a guy like you wouldn’t have survived this long."

Zhong Shu said nothing.

The old beggar said suddenly,

"How about you give me the flowers?"

Zhong Shu handed the flowers to the old beggar. He clutched the three flowers the little girl had given him, hesitated for a moment, and then passed those over as well.

The old beggar laughed and cursed good-naturedly.

"Ha, now you’re reluctant. I won’t take them for free. I’ll give you two things."

The old beggar lifted his bedroll, revealing a long object wrapped in black cloth.

"It’s yours."

Zhong Shu smiled, overjoyed.

It was the second time he’d received a gift tonight.

Zhong Shu eagerly unwrapped the black cloth. When he saw what was inside, he froze completely.

It was a long gun.

Its entire body had a dim, dark-gold sheen.

It looked like ancient brass, faded from being held countless times and stained by sweat and gunpowder.

There were smoke-like black marks on the gun’s body that looked like a pattern.

Zhong Shu exclaimed in shock,

"This is a gun! How do you have a gun?! Private possession of firearms is illegal!"

The old beggar hurriedly smacked him on the head.

"Keep your voice down, you fool! It’s an antique! Do you understand? An antique!"

Zhong Shu examined it closely.

It was a flintlock gun, which originated in the late Middle Ages. It really did count as an antique.

Zhong Shu asked tentatively,

"An antique gun... isn’t that illegal?"

The old beggar said irritably,

"It’s not!"

Zhong Shu said,

"Then shouldn’t it be donated to a museum?"

The old beggar pondered for a moment, then chuckled.

"This gun isn’t mine. An old friend of mine who runs an antique shop lent it to my brother.

After my brother died, the gun ended up with me.

Can you do me a favor and help me return this gun to the antique shop?"

Zhong Shu nodded.

"Sure. I’m on break for the next few days anyway."

The old beggar fumbled in his pocket and pulled out an envelope.

"Give this to the antique shop owner, too.

I said I was going to give you a gift.

As long as you give both of these items to the owner, he’ll give you a treasure in return.

I’m telling you, you have to deliver the letter and the gun together!

If it weren’t for the fact that you’ve been bringing me food for a year, you’d never have gotten such a great opportunity."

Zhong Shu scratched his head.

"Alright."

He didn’t fully understand what the old beggar meant.

But when he promised someone something, he had to see it through.

Zhong Shu suddenly thought of something.

"If the antique shop owner is your good friend, I can take you to visit him."

The old beggar was silent for a moment, then muttered softly,

"No need. I won’t make it through the night."

Zhong Shu didn’t hear him clearly.

"What?"

The old beggar lay back down on the bench.

"Get lost. I need to sleep. You go get this done.

Don’t even think about keeping this gun for yourself. Hmm... then again, with your personality, I don’t need to tell you that.

Now scram, I’m sleeping!"

The old beggar had ordered him away, so Zhong Shu didn’t want to disturb him any further. He left the park, clutching the envelope and the gun.

...

PS: For those of you who like flintlock guns, here it is!

Feel free to leave a comment about what Taboo Items you’d like to see.

Even things that don’t exist in the real world, Jiang Chaosheng can find them for you.