Chapter 1: The storyteller at Tongfu Inn, the release of the Beauty Ranking

"Picking up where we left off!"

"Xu Xiao led the Great Liang Iron Cavalry to annihilate the six states, and for his merits, he was enfeoffed as the Prince of Zhenbei..."

Great Ming Empire, Qixia Town, Tongfu Inn.

Su Chen sat on the high platform, speaking with eloquence.

Below the platform, over a dozen tables were surrounded by hundreds of people.

Three layers inside, three layers outside.

Everyone was listening with rapt attention, not even daring to take a deep breath.

The tiny Tongfu Inn was packed with so many people, a truly spectacular sight.

Yet, even in this extreme congestion, there remained a spacious table in the northwest corner.

This table was right next to the window, offering an excellent view.

Three benches were arranged around the table, but only two women were seated.

Two women with ethereal temperaments and jade-like faces, as if they had stepped out of a painting.

The only slight flaw was that these two beauties appeared somewhat cold and aloof.

Especially the woman sitting on the left, dressed in palace attire, her gaze like lightning, radiating an aura as cold as frost.

It was precisely because of this tangible, chilling aura that a full three-meter radius around them remained empty.

"Sister, this Su Chen really has some talent; the story he tells is even more exciting than those famous classics in circulation."

The stunning woman on the right said with a light smile.

"He does have a bit of literary talent."

The cold beauty on the left hesitated before speaking.

Proud as she was, with ambitions higher than the heavens, she looked down upon every man in the world.

Yet, the person before her had broken this rule.

If any well-informed Jianghu expert were here, they would surely recognize the identities of the two.

They were none other than the two Palace Masters of the Yihua Palace.

The Second Palace Master, Lian Xing.

The First Palace Master, Yao Yue.

A body of both immortal and demon, with peerless divine arts.

This was precisely the evaluation of Yao Yue within the Jianghu.

The two were on this trip to hunt down an expert of the Twelve Zodiacs.

They were merely passing through Qixia Town and stopped at Tongfu Inn to rest.

They never expected that this rest would last for a full half-month.

The reason was none other than Su Chen, the storyteller on the high platform.

At first, the two were merely amazed by Su Chen's appearance.

White robes and a folding fan, as handsome as jade, like a peerless noble young master.

Even compared to the world-renowned Jiang Feng, he was not the least bit inferior, perhaps even a cut above.

But over these past few days, the two had been captivated by Su Chen's literary talent.

A volume of *Snowy Blades*, exhausting all the states of the Jianghu, was even more exciting than their own personal experiences.

By comparison, those famous classics circulating on the market were not even worth mentioning.

"Two Palace... esteemed guests, your tea has arrived, please enjoy."

Bai Zhantang walked to the table, trembling with fear, set down the tray, and turned to run.

Others might not recognize Lian Xing and Yao Yue.

But as the Bandit Saint, he was well-informed and knew these two Palace Masters all too well.

They were absolutely the type in the Jianghu who would kill without blinking.

Every time he came to serve them tea, he felt like he was sitting on pins and needles, terrified of displeasing them.

Fortunately, for the past half-month, these two Palace Masters had been extremely well-behaved and had not caused any trouble.

Behind the counter.

The Proprietor, Tong Xiangyu, was clicking away on her abacus, her eyes already narrowed into slits.

Business at Tongfu Inn had never been this good.

The drink money for a single day was worth more than an entire month in the past.

All of this was thanks to her wise and martial decision to make an exception and hire Su Chen as a storyteller.

Although the main reason for hiring him initially was Su Chen's handsome appearance.

She soon discovered that compared to his immortal-like appearance, his ability to tell stories was top-tier.

Especially the *World of Snowy Blades* currently being told, which was absolutely brilliant.

"To tell the story from two sides."

"The Prince of Zhenbei returned from his travels and suddenly encountered an ambush by the Great Halberd Warriors. He was saved by a woman in white, who is none other than the number one on the Martial Arts World Beauty Ranking, Nangong Yingyue..."

On the high platform, Su Chen spoke with eloquence.

The audience below was already excited, cheering one after another!

The Jianghu is full of tropes about heroes saving beauties.

Yet Su Chen told a story of a beauty saving a hero.

Although this hero was not yet much of a hero.

But the beauty was a true beauty.

The head of the Jianghu Rouge Ranking, the number one beauty in the world!

Especially this 'Rouge Ranking', which made many people's eyes light up, feeling it was very novel.

"Rouge Ranking? First time hearing of such a ranking, interesting!"

"Could it be that all the beauties in the world have been ranked?"

"Haha, Mr. Su truly has a great idea."

"If only our Great Ming Jianghu had a Rouge Ranking too."

"Yes, yes, it would be best to compare which Jianghu's beauties are more beautiful, the Snowy Blades Jianghu or the Great Ming Jianghu."

"If our Great Ming Jianghu had a Rouge Ranking, the top spot would definitely be Lin Xianer."

"That's true, Lin Xianer is the recognized number one beauty of the Jianghu."

"Mr. Su, can Nangong's beauty compare to the legendary Lin Xianer?"

"You are putting Mr. Su in a difficult spot!"

"That's right! Mr. Su knows the Snowy Blades Jianghu inside out, but he probably knows nothing about the Great Ming Jianghu."

PS: A new book from an old author, character guaranteed, quality guaranteed, interested readers can feel free to add to their collection.