Storytelling was one of the few things that the villagers enjoyed that the boys possessed. Instead of being some "bourgeois" skill, the storytelling had a profound impact on all. Luo was able to capture the attention of everyone and move people with his skills,
even the village headman. Later one, the storytellings would give Luo and the narrator a break from work.
http://www.english.ccsu.edu/faculty/Doyle/Storytelling.gif
