Volume 7: Doing Business with the World Chapter 214: The Daughter of the Sea
With the help of two running backs (cornerbacks) of Xiaohua's team and Xiaohua's relentless pursuit, they finally got the ball back after Yu personally carried the ball for 30 meters.
The moment Xiaohua got the ball, the two cornerbacks of the Badminton team also rushed towards her.
"roar--!!"
Xiaohua held the ball in his arms with both hands, roared fiercely, lowered his head and rushed directly towards the two cornerbacks!
The two running backs on her team ran faster than her and pushed the opposing cornerback away before Xiaohua hit anyone!
Xiaohua charges with the ball!
The linebackers (wide receivers) and ends of the feather team rushed towards Xiaohua one after another, but were blocked, tackled, and intercepted by the guards and tackles of Xiaohua's team...
Yu got up and chased after Xiaohua!
Countless spectators stood up excitedly, waving their fists and cheering desperately.
"It's about to cross the center line, stop it now!!"
"Yu, come on! Yu, come on!"
“Hana-chan rush ahh ...
Yu, who was held by the waist and dragged hard by a soldier but refused to fall, stretched out his hand and finally grabbed Xiaohua's boot laces!
Xiaohua's body swayed slightly and her steps slowed down for a moment. In an instant, she was pushed to the ground by several soldiers who rushed over with red eyes...
Yuya was hit by a sliding tackle and rolled over...
"Ball! Where is the ball!!" All the spectators stood up and nervously looked for the oval-shaped cowhide ball among the players who fell into a heap.
Edward trotted forward and signaled the players on both sides to separate. With the burden lifted from his shoulders, Xiaohua stood up as if nothing had happened, holding the ball tightly in both hands and raising it high with excitement!
For a moment, the whole audience burst into cheers.
"Little Flower Team's ball!" In the south audience seats, the dark elf ranger who had forgotten the elf manners and his human warrior friend cheered in unison.
"Well done!" In the VIP room, Prince Maurice punched hard.
"We've crossed the center line! We've crossed the center line!" The Duke's son's eyes sparkled with excitement, and he turned around and hugged the guard who came up to protect his safety.
"Yeah!" Laura jumped for joy.
Those who supported the Xiaohua team were as happy as if it were a holiday, while those who supported the Badminton team were extremely regretful.
"What a pity! We could have scored a touchdown with two more attacks!" Viscount Pope pinched his thigh regretfully.
"The two players from Xiaohua's team ran too fast. Yu was entangled by them, which gave Xiaohua the opportunity to snatch the ball. We should have kept a close eye on them." The Viscount's butler, an old gentleman in his fifties, said with regret.
"That's right. Xiaohua's speed is not enough. Instead of targeting Xiaohua, it's better to target those two. Their tactics are wrong..."
Listening to Viscount Pope discussing war ball tactics with his butler, Xiao Yun smiled even more deeply.
Viscount Pope is considered a relatively open-minded nobleman. Not only does he continue the policy of the old city lord Count Philip to position Valentine as a "free city", he also does not regard other races as heretics like other human nobles.
But no matter how open-minded he is, Viscount Pope is still a relatively traditional human aristocrat - his good upbringing prevents Viscount Pope from showing explicit disrespect to other races, but the sense of distance still exists .
During the days in the Knights' Territory, Yu and Xiaohua took turns to guard Xiao Yun's safety, and Viscount Pope always maintained a distant attitude towards them without being rude.
As for now, the Viscount's progress towards Yu suddenly increased, which was not beyond Xiao Yun's expectations.
In 1947 on Earth, Jackie Robinson, a black player, played for the Brooklyn Dodgers as a starting first baseman in the American Major League Baseball game. Before that, black players were only allowed to play in the Negro Leagues.
That same year, Robinson won the Rookie of the Year award and two years later won the National League's Most Valuable Player award.
In 1966, American woman Roberta Louise Gibb applied to register for the Boston Marathon but was rejected.
Gibb did not give up. She tried her best to dress herself up like a male athlete, hid in the bushes near the starting point of the race, and secretly participated in the race (without registering).
When people around her discovered that she was actually a woman dressed as a man while she was running, the male runners kindly protected her and prevented anyone from kicking her out; the spectators on both sides of the track cheered and screamed for her, and the news media also came to take pictures and report on her.
The following year, another female runner participated in the Boston Marathon. This female runner who registered under a male name was Katherine Schwarzer, the one who was blocked, pushed, and tried to tear off her number plate during the run. Like Barbie, Katherine was protected by male runners, ran to the finish line, and received cheers and celebrations.
Sports can eliminate racial and gender barriers!
Excellent athletes should not be discriminated against for any reason!
During the half-time break, the players of both teams went to the rest area on the sidelines to rest, and countless spectators threw hats and handkerchiefs at them.
At the end of the game, the Xiaohua team lost by three points, but like the Badminton team, they also received cheers and applause from the audience.
The host Edward announced the end of the first day of the war ball day activities. Tomorrow morning there will be a stage play, and the two teams will clash again in the afternoon. The audience cheered for a long time...
When the Snow Wolf warriors walked out of the battlefield, workers, civilians, the city's middle-class families, businessmen, professional strongmen from various tribes, and even some nobles who didn't care so much about their status, lined the streets outside the stadium to see them off.
The children who were taken care of by the soldiers ran to the soldiers affectionately, held the soldiers they knew, and proudly showed off to their families and friends...
Prince Morris, who was highly expected by Master Eddie, stayed at the Knight's Inn with great interest, but he did not try to win over Isaac Robbins. Instead, he summoned Viscount Pope to arrange a meeting for him with the players of the Little Flower Team.
Master Eddie instinctively felt that something was wrong, but he had no courage to persuade Prince Morris who was in a frenzy, and he certainly couldn't persuade him, so he could only hold his nose and accompany the prince to meet those grassland orcs -
Then Master Eddie looked constipated as he watched Prince Morris talk to the confused Xiaohua for a long time about the tactical mistakes their team made when playing.
They were really talking while holding hands. His Royal Highness, who had always been reluctant to have physical contact with others, held Xiaohua's paw, criticizing their tactics as not delicate, unrefined, or unwise, while touching Xiaohua's strong body all over...
The uneasy Xiaohua wanted to shake this guy off, but seeing that Prince Maurice was even thinner than Sal, she dared not move.
Emmmmm... Although someone took advantage of him, His Royal Highness the Prince was right to keep nagging. After all, war ball is also a ball sport and has something in common with human polo. Xiaohua and the team members, who have always been willing to listen to correct opinions, nodded repeatedly and took them to heart.
So, in addition to Xiaohua, several other soldiers were pinched on the arms, touched on the shoulders, and had their chest muscles rubbed by Prince Maurice...
After expressing his views on the tactics of the battle ball and letting these warriors go, Prince Maurice was still not satisfied and went to find Viscount Pope excitedly.
"Weber, sell these two teams to me."
As soon as he entered the door and sat down, Prince Maurice threw out a shocking bomb.
The Viscount, whose full name is Webster Byron Pope, almost dropped his teacup.
Laura was shocked.
Xiao Yun sprayed out with a "puff" sound.
"Huh?" Prince Maurice finally noticed that there were other people sitting in the living room of the guest room where Viscount Pope was staying.
When his eyes fell on Laura, the prince smiled and nodded as a greeting. When his eyes fell on Xiao Yun, Prince Morris turned to look at Viscount Pope without even stopping.
The "small and thin" Snow Wolves, who were about the same size as humans, could not attract the attention of His Royal Highness the Prince...
"Well, Your Highness, this really won't work." Viscount Pope wiped his sweat.
"What's wrong with that?" Prince Maurice was unhappy, and he puffed out his chest and said confidently, "Their playing style is too rough. I will ask the best ball sports tactician to train them to be better."
Xiao Yun: “…”
If this prince was born in modern times and was so wealthy, he would definitely be addicted to playing PS4 games and buy shares in Sony...
"These Snow Wolves only play war ball as... a hobby. In fact, they are warriors of the grassland tribe." Viscount Pope said carefully, choosing his words. "The cursed land across the inland sea is not a safe place. They have to protect their people, so they won't stay in Valentine for too long. They will return home after the exhibition game."
"What? They want to go back?!" Prince Maurice's voice suddenly became louder.
"Excuse me, Your Highness." Xiao Yun had to speak up, "Even if Xiaohua and Yu's team stays and trains well, they are only two teams after all. No matter how exciting the game is, it will become boring after watching for a long time. After all, the war ball sport invented by our Snow Wolf Tribe is not only for the Snow Wolf Tribe, but also for human warriors to be war ball players."
"If Your Highness likes this sport, why not gather human warriors in the Kingdom of Kronin to form a team? Warball supporters like you can form your own teams and compete with each other. I believe that with the vast territory and large population of the Kingdom of Kronin, your competition will definitely be more exciting than a competition involving only the Snow Wolf Tribe."
Prince Morris frowned and looked at Xiao Yun. He was not happy that someone interrupted him when he was talking to someone, but the Snow Wolf Man who did not conform to his "aesthetics" of the Snow Wolf Tribe did have a point.
Viscount Pope was very smart. He immediately realized how beneficial Xiao Yun's proposal would be to him, and said with a smile, "To be honest, Your Highness Morris, before you came, Countess Philip and I were asking Sage Ayun for advice on how to recruit warriors and select players to form a team belonging to Valentine and Bolton, so that we can compete with the two teams of the Snow Wolf Clan on the battle day next year."
Laura was not stupid either. She cleverly followed Viscount Pope's words and said, "Yes, I have already thought about it. I will let my family knights learn how to play war balls. In a head-on confrontation, my family knights are no match for the Snow Wolf Tribe, but in terms of speed, Elro will not lose to Maomao... but to Yu. He runs much faster than Yu!"
Well... Actually, they were squatting here to celebrate the distribution of gambling profits and to study the details of tomorrow night's main event, the agricultural machinery exhibition, but they couldn't bring it up -
Besides, if you form a team to compete, open your own sports betting site, etc., can you make little money?
The rules of Snow Wolf Warball are so simple and the game is so exciting and exciting, it is worth it even if you only charge admission! Who didn’t see the grand occasion today~!
Prince Maurice's expression changed slightly. The Snow Wolf Clan played war ball extremely fiercely and vigorously, but the Snow Wolf Clan's shortcomings were also quite obvious - they were too slow!
Although they can jump far enough after charging up energy and bursting into a jump, they are helpless if they are stopped during the charging and running-up period... This problem was seriously exposed during the competition!
Xiao Yun made another assist at the right time, nodded vigorously and smiled: "Polo requires excellent war horses, while war ball only needs armor and a stadium, and the cost of training a team is much lower. If there are enough teams in the Kingdom of Kronin, we can also hold a league, set up rewards and points system, and the registered teams will compete in rounds, and the top three champions, runners-up and third place winners will all receive generous bonuses. In this way, there will be enough people participating in the competition, and it will also attract more people to watch the game and support war ball."
Viscount Pope and Laura nodded at the same time. As lords, they thought more - who doesn't have unstable elements who use force to break the law in their territory? If these energetic guys were driven to the battlefield to vent their energy, the cost of governing the territory would be reduced a lot.
After all, the Snow Wolf Clan's war ball hedging is much more intense than fighting...
Prince Maurice patted the armrest and stood up excitedly: "It sounds interesting, Weber, Laura, let me join in too!"
As he spoke, the prince strode towards the two lords, and impatiently signaled with his eyes for the guards to help him move the chair over...
Master Eddie, who had accompanied His Royal Highness the Prince, was left standing awkwardly. It was not right for him to stand up and follow him, nor was it right for him to sit still...
His Royal Highness the Prince, who sat down, still didn't pay much attention to Xiao Yun, but he was indeed interested in the war ball league proposed by Xiao Yun. He enthusiastically discussed with Viscount Pope and Lola, who he thought were qualified to talk to him, how to promote war balls, how to attract people to form a team, and how to organize a league.
Xiao Yun did not feel dissatisfied with being ignored. He was happy to see this development. If Kroening attached great importance to the sport of war ball, then the friendly match between the league champion team and the Snow Wolf Tribe on War Ball Day every year would be given even more attention.
So, will it be difficult for Isaac Robbins, the organizer of Warball Day and the owner of the venue, to break into the upper echelons of Cronin?
When his eyes glanced at the embarrassed Master Eddie, Xiao Yun gave the Lamia branch manager a friendly smile of gratitude... If you hadn't brought the royal family here, relying solely on Viscount Pope and Lola's promotion, our war ball sport would not have been able to penetrate the core of Kronin so quickly!
Master Eddie responded with a stiff smile, and he was so angry that he didn't even have the energy to be angry - why was that bastard Robbins absent! He wanted to push Robbins in front of Prince Maurice! How come Viscount Pope and Countess Philip caught the prince's eye instead! !
If he gets to know Robbins through Viscount Pope and Countess Philip, then Robbins won't be important enough to offend His Royal Highness. Wow~~!!
I was so angry that my cell walls separated!
After a long conversation with the two lords, Prince Morris' attitude towards the two teams of the Snow Wolf Clan became much calmer the next day. He no longer regarded them as "toys" that he wanted to get, but rather as opponents to be explored.
After breakfast, when heading to the war ball court, the prince also pulled the Duke's son into the "war ball promotion movement"... Which noble family doesn't have a group of professional thugs and guards? Raising a team to play games is not a big deal for them!
The Duke's son was madly moved , and he went to invite the nobles in his circle...
While waiting for the performance of "The Little Mermaid" to begin on the second day of the war ball day, more than a dozen nobles who were interested in war ball and could afford it gathered in the VIP room where Prince Maurice was seated. They were enthusiastically discussing how to select players for their own war ball team, how to organize the league, how to collect tickets, and which families to invite to participate...
Even Earl Winston and his son were sitting among them - the sea people also had no shortage of warriors, so of course they were interested as well.
Thanks to the achievements of the sea people in art, the sea nobles are regarded as valuable by the human nobles, who are willing to take them out to play.
Master Eddie, who had no interest in the ball game, was awkwardly pushed into a corner and couldn't get a word in...
It was not until "The Daughter of the Sea" was staged that these nobles calmed down.
"The Little Mermaid" is a magical adaptation of the Fire Department's bedtime story "The Little Mermaid". The reason why the latter name was not used is mainly because the princess of the sea tribe is too approachable and not cool enough...
In the 3D ocean set projected by a magician hired at a high price, the little mermaid princess played by Sandra, who had done special makeup, made a brilliant appearance - her skin was painted light blue, she wore thin membrane ears made of fish skin, and she wore a long dress of magic pattern cloth in the style of a mermaid aristocrat, sitting on the reef and lip-syncing.
Well... humans can't sing the high notes of the sea people. In order to ensure the authenticity of the drama, Ariel, played by Sandra, only moved her mouth but did not make any sound. The singing came from the sound shell she wore on her chest; the sound shell was also provided by Earl Winston, and the singer of the song was a merman among the sea guests.
——Mermaids are of course divided into male and female! Winston and his son are male mermaids!
The story of "The Little Mermaid" has been changed beyond recognition in the 3.0 theater version. In order to fit the background of this world, Ariel is no longer a simple little princess who falls in love with the human prince because of saving people, but a navigator sent by her father to maintain the human shipping routes in the sea tribe area. When a fleet of a country friendly to the sea tribe gets lost at sea, the little princess Ariel will appear with her companions, singing on the sea and leading the fleet to find the correct route.
The plot of the first act shows Ariel's "career scope". She discovers that a fleet is lost, uses her singing to lead the ship to the port, and sits on the rocks outside the port and waves to the crew members who have reached the shore safely.
This simple plot quickly made Ariel win the audience's favor. At least 30% of Valentine's citizens make their livings from maritime trade-related industries, and the safety of the fleet means the safety of their jobs. When Sandra first appeared, some people called her Cinderella, but by the end of the first act, the audience had recognized the character name Ariel.
In the second act, the villain appears - the human kingdom, which is friendly with the sea nation to which Ariel belongs, wins the favor of the sea nation, but the neighboring country is not accepted by the sea nation because it once kidnapped a mermaid singer; seeing that other countries' sea routes are unobstructed, but their fleet is always suffering from the wind and waves at sea, they decide to destroy the relationship between the sea nation and the human kingdom.
So the neighboring country invited a very handsome liar, disguised as a prince of the human kingdom, to trick Ariel into falling for it...
It just so happened that the real prince of the human kingdom brought gifts to the sea people on behalf of the royal family, and the real and fake princes bumped into each other...
In a port city with a background similar to Valentine, the real and fake princes are entangled with the confused little mermaid Ariel and perform one farce after another: the fake prince tries his best to woo Ariel, the real prince tries to express the royal family's friendship to the sea people and accuses the fake prince of impersonating him, but is accused by the fake prince of ugly jealousy.
In the process of trying to clarify and fighting with the fake prince, the real prince fell in love with Ariel.
The fake prince, who was paid to set up the trap, was gradually deceived by Ariel, who was kind, brave and had a beautiful singing voice, and truly fell in love with her.
As she struggles with each other, Ariel gradually develops feelings for the real and fake princes and becomes hesitant and conflicted.
After staging several hilarious love comedies, the fake prince could no longer bear the torture of his conscience, and confessed his identity and his love for Ariel, swearing that he would change his ways just to win Ariel's love.
The real prince said that becoming the wife of a liar was a blasphemy to Ariel, and defeated the desperate fake prince with one blow.
The fake prince left, but the ending was not a happy one... When the neighboring country gave up deceiving the little mermaid princess, apologized sincerely, was willing to marry the princess to the real prince as his principal wife, and promised to fully support the real prince in inheriting the throne, the real prince hesitated between Ariel, who could not give birth to an heir for him, and the neighboring princess.
In the last scene, at the port in a storm, the real prince holds Ariel's hand and swears that although he will marry the princess of a neighboring country as his principal wife, Ariel will always be his most beloved one, and begs Ariel to be his concubine.
Ariel looked at the turbulent sea, and after a moment of silence, she suddenly pulled out a knife, stabbed herself in the leg, and jumped into the surging waves.
The real prince stood on the beach calling for help, but he didn't dare to jump into the sea.
The crew members who had been led into the port by Ariel heard the sound and rushed over, working together to rescue the pale-faced Ariel.
Ariel, who was rescued with the help of the crew, looked at the real prince, and with tears and a smile, she tactfully rejected him: "Love is the most beautiful experience in life. Thank you for letting me have a good dream during this time."
The drama is over.
Amidst the thunderous applause, the VIP room, which was filled with many people, was extremely quiet.
Prince Maurice stared expressionlessly at the actors taking their bows on the stage, with the corners of his mouth twitching slightly.
He finally understood why "The Daughter of the Mermaid", a play with a more light-hearted and interesting theme than "Cinderella" and in which at least 70% of the audience laughed out loud, was popular but not well-received, and received much less praise than "Cinderella" - this play was fundamentally "anti-art"!
No matter whether it is the elves, the sea people or the human race, all artistic expressions praise and extol love. However, "The Daughter of the Mermaid" takes a different approach, mocking and even satirizing that love is worthless!
The real prince who fell in love with Ariel in the competition because of the fake prince appeared, the sweet words he tried to use, the beautiful and moving love promises, were devalued and worthless in the summary of the mermaid princess Ariel's "a good dream"...
"Doesn't Isaac Robbins want to prove his artistic talent to others? Why is he so eager to go against those guys who play with art?" Prince Maurice, whose interest shifted to the war ball, became curious about Robbins, who was born an adventurer and was knocked away by a badminton player in person.
Xiao Yun, who provided the main framework of "The Daughter of the Sea", did not support his disciples to take an unconventional approach to gain popularity, as Prince Maurice thought...
While Prince Maurice was thinking wildly, in another VIP room, Xiao Yun was seriously brainwashing two disciples: "The plot of this story is not very reasonable, but the ideas expressed are very clear and correct. The ideas that love is enough to satisfy one's hunger, love is more important than anything else, and love can save everything are all crooked and unorthodox! They are all the whining of a bunch of guys who have nothing to do all day long and have enough food! If you really ask them to abandon everything and choose the love they praise, they will hide faster than anyone else!"
"Isaac is not married yet, and Laura, you are not ready to get married. Sooner or later, you will meet someone who makes your heart beat and who you admire. At this time, you must be as clear-headed and rational as Ariel and settle your own accounts with the other party: Is your union beneficial or harmful to your career and life pursuits?"
"Would you be like a real prince and ask the other person to sacrifice his or her career and life pursuits to fulfill your momentary impulse?"
"Teacher, I am not against true love, but I am against all those who only talk about it but do not take actions to consider and care about their partners, and only care about their own 'true love'. I don't want you to be blinded by love, and I don't want to see you hurt the person you claim to love in the name of love."
"If you are so stupid that you don't know how to respect your own ideals and life pursuits, or don't respect your partner's ideals and life pursuits, then I, your teacher, will be very disappointed." As he said this, Xiao Yun looked sternly at the two disciples, especially Laura.
Laura is gradually growing into a young girl and is in her prime. He doesn't want his students, whom he has worked so hard to teach, to be abandoned by pigs before they can make any effort to shine and earn money!
Isaac & Laura: "..."
