Chapter 729: A Shoddy Production
Gao Family Village.
Gao Yiye held a thick stack of papers, reading them over and over. This stack was actually a speech, personally written for her by Li Daoxuan.
Of course, this so-called 'personal writing' was, in reality, Li Daoxuan copying and pasting from the internet, then making a few minor adjustments to key terms...
Ahem!
Gao Yiye had already memorized it thoroughly, yet she remained deeply worried about making a mistake. This time, the speech wouldn't be pre-recorded; it was a live broadcast.
Moreover, it wasn't just a trial broadcast within Gao Family Village. It was going to be simultaneously streamed to all areas under the Heavenly Lord's direct control.
As Gao Yiye made her preparations, the Gao Family Village commercial district, the Chengcheng County City God Temple, Heyang County, Qichuan Ferry, Puzhou, Dragon Gate Ferry, Sunji Town, Huanglong Mountain Prison, Han City, Fenglingdu Ferry, Dali County, Baishui County, Lintong Hot Spring Resort...
Every town where the Heavenly Lord could directly extend his influence was now ready to watch a grand live broadcast event.
In the central squares of each city, large screens had been set up. Huge crowds of common folk, having received early notification, gathered before these massive displays.
These past few days of trial broadcasts had showcased a bizarre assortment of content: footage of Gao Yiye catching thieves, the "Shi Kefa's First Legal Education Program," a documentary on the Heavenly Lord excavating the Huangqiu Terrace Tunnel, and glimpses into life at Huanglong Mountain Prison...
This chaotic and diverse array of trial broadcasts had already piqued everyone's curiosity. Each evening, the large screen would predictably light up, a pattern everyone had quickly discerned.
By now, it was a given: coming to stake out a spot in front of the screen after finishing work in the evening was always the right move.
Those who arrived early secured good positions; those who came late, well, they either had to settle for the back or pay to get a spot closer to the front.
True to schedule, the screen flickered to life, and Gao Yiye appeared on screen, smiling. "Today, I'm going to talk to you about our Gao Family Village Militia," she began. "In the past, there was a saying among our common folk: 'A good man doesn't become a soldier, and good iron isn't used for nails...'"
As she spoke, the scene on screen shifted, showing Ming soldiers burning, killing, looting, and falsely claiming credit for slaughtering innocent civilians. The audience watched, utterly incensed.
But she quickly interjected, "However, our Gao Family Village Militia in this new era is nothing like that. We are a well-organized, disciplined, and righteous militia—the people's own children-soldiers."
As she finished, the screen transitioned to images of the Gao Family Village Militia assisting the elderly and young, rushing to aid in disasters, and tirelessly helping the common folk during droughts, floods, and other calamities.
Gao Yiye declared, "Becoming a soldier and fighting battles is no longer a matter of shame; it has become a glorious mission..."
What followed was an unspoken omission of a hundred million words—highly sensitive rhetoric that would surely lead to the banning of books...
This entire speech! It was interspersed with various benefits of joining the militia, including welfare, treatment for military families, all accompanied by compelling visuals.
The audience saw the equipment used by the Gao Family Village Militia when they marched to war: all advanced flintlock rifles, capable of felling enemies from a hundred meters away.
They also saw the meals provided to the Gao Family Village Militia: every single meal included meat, each a veritable feast.
Furthermore, they witnessed militia soldiers being allocated proper, sturdy homes and lining up each month to collect their substantial military pay.
...
The common folk, encountering such a spectacle for the first time in their lives, were utterly overwhelmed by this bombardment of information, profoundly shaken.
In an instant, countless people cast aside the old saying, "A good man doesn't become a soldier, and good iron isn't used for nails," tossing it to the farthest reaches of their minds.
"So, joining the militia is *that* good?"
"I always thought it was similar to being a military household."
"Holy cow, I just realized the difference between this and a military household is like heaven and earth!"
"Military households are military households for life, generation after generation. But militia soldiers join voluntarily and can even retire after a certain number of years."
"There's no longer a rule that your descendants must also become soldiers."
"Five taels of silver for military pay, plus food and lodging—that's incredible!"
"Someone like me, without a special craft, can't earn three taels of silver as a craftsman, but I can go be a soldier! I could earn five taels, even more than a craftsman."
"I'm signing up..."—
Just as the colossal "Immortal Treasure Mirror" had ignited everyone's interest in viewing, In Puzhou City, a giant advertisement was pasted outside the Stars Performing Arts Agency, proclaiming: "On the third day of the third lunar month, the epic film 'Mu Guiying' will meet you."
No one paid much attention to the peculiar advertisement.
The third day of the third lunar month was still far off!
Everyone assumed Lao Nanfeng had simply invited a troupe to perform a stage play of 'Mu Guiying' in the Grand Theater.
Watching plays was nothing out of the ordinary, so no one took it to heart.
They had no idea that at that very moment, outside the diorama box, Li Daoxuan was on his computer, editing video footage he'd captured with a camera.
As someone with a design background, Li Daoxuan was more adept than most at composition, visual design, and scene arrangement. However, creating a film from scratch still proved quite challenging.
After a flurry of frantic operations, he was thoroughly dissatisfied with his edited version of 'Mu Guiying.'
The editing was poor, the camera angles weren't ideal, the actors' performances felt a bit over-the-top, and the action scenes featuring the Twelve Widows of Tianbo Mansion were utterly dreadful, lacking any sense of power or impact...
In short: A shoddy production! A shoddy production! Absolutely a shoddy production!
But he lacked the skill to edit the film any better.
Fine, it'll have to do.—
Days passed in a blur.
The third day of the third lunar month arrived!
With no recent battles in Puzhou, Lao Nanfeng didn't wear his armor today. Instead, he donned a dignified long gown, making himself appear quite scholarly.
He stood proudly at the entrance of his Grand Theater, a smirk of satisfaction on his face.
Then, Qiu Qianfan, the Prefect of Puzhou, approached. He waved to Lao Nanfeng and chuckled, "Commander Nan, I hear there's a new play, 'Mu Guiying,' today. I've specifically come to show my support."
Lao Nanfeng laughed. "Today's event isn't called a play, it's called a 'movie.'"
"Movie?" Qiu Qianfan wasn't particularly impressed by the new term. "What's this 'movie, movie-shmoovie' business? Never heard of it."
Lao Nanfeng explained, "It's a story of the heroine Mu Guiying, performed by a group of people inside the Immortal Treasure Mirror."
Qiu Qianfan scoffed, "In the end, it's still just a play, isn't it? Hmph! People just love coming up with new names to fool others."
Lao Nanfeng chuckled, "Alright, alright. Just go inside and watch, then you'll understand."
Qiu Qianfan shook his head and ducked inside.
Next, another crowd of spectators arrived. These patrons, here to show their support, were all long-time customers of the concerts, affluent households from Puzhou City, and numerous salt merchants passing through. Everyone was there simply to give face to Lao Nanfeng.
Not a single person realized what peculiar spectacle they were about to witness.
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