Chapter 271: A Secret Visit to Tianle Theater
Liu Zhiye, Zheng Chaoyang and others disguised themselves as ordinary people. After arriving at the overpass, they divided into several groups and started investigating secretly.

Their first stop was the fair market outside the east gate of Xiannongtan, where there were theaters such as Danqing, Xiaoxiao, Wansheng, Tianle, Zhonghua, and Xiaotaoyuan, as well as various performances such as juggling, folk art, tea sheds, and book sheds, as well as chess and book teahouses. It was a great place for people to have fun.

Teahouses, theaters and other places are great places to find people, especially Wang Baye likes to spend time in these places. In these places, the chance of finding him is relatively high.

Today is Sunday, the sky is clear and the air is fresh. There is a huge crowd of people near the overpass, with people rubbing shoulders with each other. There are all kinds of people, young and old, men and women, and it is very lively.

There are many folk artists here, so it is crowded with tourists. It is also a must-visit place for people from other places to visit Beijing for tourism or business trips. On weekdays, there are 20,000 to 30,000 people coming here every day, and the number of people doubles during holidays.

Liu Zhiye gazed at the prosperous scene before him, and his familiarity with history made him feel deeply moved.

It’s a pity that such a lively place will be closed down in the next few months, and it will take many years to see such a grand scene again.

Back then, Tianqiao had already become a popular place for Beijing citizens to relax and have fun in the early years of the Republic of China. Many street performers set up stalls and performed on the Tianqiao, making it very lively for a time.

At that time, there were not only free markets, tea gardens, theater stages, vendors, and acrobatic performances on the Tianqiao Bridge, but also gambling, prostitution, drug trafficking and other criminal places.

It can be said that the Tianqiao area is a place where all kinds of people gather. The five elements and eight crafts, all kinds of acrobatics, and hundreds of kinds of food are the true portrayal of the image of Tianqiao at that time.

After the founding of the People's Republic of China, the Tianqiao, which was once a den of filth and dirt, was no longer in existence, and it ushered in a new life. At this time, the Tianqiao was still bustling. However, after August this year, the markets in Tianqiao and other places will be banned as "black markets".

From then on, there were few people and vehicles here, and it became deserted and gradually disappeared.

However, until 66, there were still Tianle, Wanshengxuan, Tianqiao Grand Theater, Chunhuayuan, Eryouxuan, Tianqiao Book and Tea House and the Gongping Market Variety Show in the Tianqiao area, and artists were still performing.

Mr. Wang Ba is a big gangster who has been here for many years. He is familiar with all kinds of people and has extremely complicated social relations.

With his rich social experience, he can easily deal with various people. Therefore, he is extremely well-informed, and it is necessary to be cautious when investigating him.

Otherwise, if you are not careful, he will get the news in advance and disappear in the crowd.

However, Wang Baye's appearance was very obvious and easy to identify, so Liu Zhiye, Zheng Chaoyang and others started to look for him quietly.

If they really couldn't find the old guy, they would have no choice but to take the risk of asking around, even if it meant alerting the enemy.

Liu Zhiye and his companions wandered around the overpass for most of the day, exhausted, thirsty and hungry. The sun was shining brightly, so they decided to find a place to rest and satisfy their hunger.

They looked around and found many snack stands nearby, with aromas everywhere. Liu Zhiye and his friends walked over, ordered a few familiar snacks, and devoured them.

"Three big bucks to buy good flowers, cut cakes and ghost legs, a bowl of sweet porridge in the morning, then tea soup and noodle tea; cold fruit cakes and fried sweet ears, hanging oven biscuits, fork fire cakes are just sold, and hard noodles are called "bobo"; siu mai wontons are full of plates, and new flour dumplings are added..."

After finishing his snacks, Liu Zhiye burped with satisfaction, took a sip of tea from his big bowl, and praised with satisfaction: "Hey, authentic! The snacks here are amazing." While tasting the delicious snacks, he admired the surrounding environment and sighed that the snacks here were indeed very delicious.

Zheng Chaoyang swallowed the last piece of stewed meat with satisfaction. He wiped his mouth and said with a smile, "This is just the beginning. There are so many delicious foods here that you can eat something different for a week."

He is a typical foodie, and grew up in a wealthy family. He is very familiar with the area around the overpass and often comes here.

When he was lurking in the police station, in order to disguise himself, he got to know a lot of people from all walks of life here.

In addition, he would often come here to inquire about news. Sometimes there were many well-informed people on the street, and that's how he got to know Mr. Wang Ba.

"Zhiye, we'll have to work hard for a few more days. If we really can't find Master Wang Ba, then we'll have to apply for a warrant to search the entire city for him. Let's catch him first, then we can do anything else..."

Liu Zhiye thought so too. Wang Baye was just observing from the dark out of caution, and did not want to escape because he knew that he had been exposed.

Wang Baye must still be in the capital at this moment. He has been lurking for so many years and has carefully planned for so long. How could he just give up and escape? If so, their own people would not let him go.

What's more, doing so is tantamount to digging one's own grave and will surely be met with even more severe punishment.

"Okay! Now that we've eaten and drunk enough, I'll treat you to a show." Zheng Chaoyang said with a smile, leading the way.

Of course, they didn't want to go to the theater to listen to a play. Their real purpose was to visit the theater.

"Then let's go!" Liu Zhiye followed them crazily. Looking at the expressions of the two, they really looked like two senior amateurs.

While walking and dancing, he hummed the lyrics:

"This letter comes by chance.

Help Huang Zhong to succeed.

Standing at the camp gate, the three armies shouted, and the young men, young and old, listened to the root seedlings:
The first drum beats, and the war meal is made;
Two drums, tight battle robes;

Three drum beats, the sword is unsheathed;

Beat the drum four times and hand over the troops.

All advances and retreats must be subject to orders,
If you disobey the order, you will inevitably be punished.

The three armies and I are returning to the camp!
......"

"Good!" Zheng Chaoyang heard that Liu Zhiye sang Peking Opera well, and suddenly turned around and praised loudly: "Zhiye, your singing skills are amazing! Have you practiced since you were a child?"

He didn't expect that Liu Zhiye was such an all-rounder. He seemed to know a little bit about everything and performed quite well in everything.

This guy is very skilled, it can be said that no one has been able to defeat him so far.

Hao Pingchuan's skills are well-known in the action team. As the team leader, he has extraordinary skills and is the force leader in the team.

Even so, Hao Pingchuan didn't last more than a few rounds against Liu Zhiye. He was knocked down in just two or three moves, and he accepted the defeat sincerely.

Zheng Chaoyang discovered that Liu Zhiye was not only strong in martial arts, smart and meticulous, but also multi-talented, proficient in cooking, singing, songwriting, calligraphy, antique appreciation, traditional Chinese medicine, Peking Opera and other skills.

This is an all-round talent who has dabbled in a variety of fields and is able to achieve mastery.

Liu Zhiye smiled and said modestly: "Thank you for the compliment, it's purely a personal hobby, I can't compare with professionals, hahahaha..."

Zheng Chaoyang held back his gaze and said to the old Versailles Liu Zhiye, "Is that human language? I also like this, but why can't I sing it in the same way as you?"

"Besides, your hobbies are too wide-ranging, aren't they? Poetry, singing, reciting, acting, Chinese medicine, cooking, and even your calligraphy is amazing!"

"Tell me, where do you have so much time to play these?"

Liu Zhiye would naturally not admit that he had a system. Over the years, he activated many life skills, such as singing, medicine, music, chess, calligraphy and painting, appreciation, disguise (makeup), ventriloquism, planting, breeding, driving, etc.

He mastered a special skill - geomancy - from an old man in the village.

Kanyu is Fengshui. Kan means heavenly way; Yu means earthly way. It is one of the traditional Chinese culture. "Records of the Grand Historian" puts the geomancer on a par with the five elements scholar. It originally meant to look up at the sky and look down at the geography. Later generations specifically called the people who read Fengshui "Kanyu masters", so Kanyu is also called Fengshui in the Chinese folk.

Geomancy, also known as geomancy, is a mysterious art with a long history. It is an art of fortune-telling about the topography, environment, structure and orientation of houses and tombs to predict good or bad luck.

Liu Zhiye was initially very interested in Feng Shui, but later found that it was not as mysterious as depicted in movies and TV series. In fact, Feng Shui is a practical science that combines land exploration and astrology.

It is not a supernatural power, but a knowledge based on science and natural laws.

This made him a little disappointed, but perhaps he had a talent for this. After studying several professional books, his skill level quickly reached the level of mastery.

But learning this is not completely useless. Believe it or not, the newly built courtyard in the village was decorated based on this knowledge.

Well, if he were to go out and become a Feng Shui master with his current level, most people would be fooled by him and would be so confused that they would not know which way is which.

As they were talking, the two arrived at the "Tianle Theater".

It was built in 1933, with a construction area of ​​more than square meters and can accommodate more than spectators at the same time.

This theater became quite famous in later generations because it was the predecessor of the future "Deyunshe" theater.

As the two men entered the theater, a waiter came forward to greet them.

"Please come this way!" There was no more space on the first floor, so the waiter enthusiastically led Liu Zhiye and others to the second floor.

As soon as they sat down on the second floor, they heard the audience cheering in unison.

"it is good……"

It turned out that the song being sung on the stage was "Su San's Execution".
"Su San left Hongdong County and stood in front of the street. I didn't say anything about my sorrow. Gentlemen passing by, listen to me: Who can go to Nanjing and pass the letter to my Sanlang..."

(End of this chapter)