Returning to the county opera troupe in 77

The commendation meeting was simply a stage set up in the backyard of the theater troupe, with a red banner hanging in the background that read "Commendation Meeting for Learning from Comrade Chen Xiangdong".

The entire troupe of seventy people all brought their own stools and sat crammed together in several rows. Even the doorman Hu Xiaolian, the old man Fang from the theater, and those kids like Li Zhangqing and Wu Xiaolian were all there.

Jia Dafang was the first to go on stage. He picked up the microphone and said "hello" twice. After confirming that the speaker was working properly, he raised his hand and made a downward gesture, which immediately quieted down the noisy crowd.

He nodded in satisfaction, his voice a notch louder than usual: "Comrades, today is a joyous day! Director Niu and Section Chief Yang from the county have personally come to our troupe to hold an awards ceremony for Comrade Chen Xiangdong! Let's give him a round of applause, let's make it as enthusiastic as possible!"

"Just by hearing the names of these two leaders, you can tell they are genuine public servants," Liu Dezhu whispered to Lu Meiyin and Li Zhangqing sitting next to him.

Lu Meiyin rolled her eyes at him: "You're so weird, what can you possibly tell from a name?"

Li Zhangqing looked at her uncle with a puzzled expression, only to see Liu Dezhu beaming: "The cattle and sheep have all gone into the kitchens of ordinary people."

Lu Meiyin couldn't help but burst out laughing, which made several people in the front row turn around, and she quickly lowered her head.

Li Zhangqing sniffed and looked at Liu Dezhu blankly: "Uncle, are those two directors animals?"

Liu Dezhu quickly smiled and covered Li Zhangqing's mouth with his hand, lowering his voice: "You mustn't talk nonsense."

Lu Meiyin, sitting on the other side, lowered her head, trying so hard not to laugh that she was practically convulsing.

Amidst enthusiastic applause, Director Niu, sporting a Mediterranean-style haircut, stepped onto the stage with a beaming smile: "Comrades, I'm here today on behalf of the county to honor Comrade Chen Xiangdong. Not long ago, a fire broke out at the theater troupe, and Comrade Chen Xiangdong's heroic act of twice bravely rushing into the burning building to rescue people, disregarding his own safety, has been highly praised by the leaders of Dongping County."

"This selfless and fearless spirit is something that everyone present should seriously learn from!"

As soon as he finished speaking, another round of applause erupted from the audience.

Director Niu coughed, covering his mouth. Jia Dafang, understanding the signal, gestured to the crowd below to raise his hand and press down. Once the crowd quieted down, Director Niu continued:

"After repeated deliberation, the county government has decided to award Chen Xiangdong the honorary title of 'Firefighting Hero,' along with a bonus of fifty yuan and some supplies, as encouragement!"

He took a certificate and a brown paper bag from the skinny Section Chief Yang and held them high above his head.

This immediately caused a stir among the audience.

"Wow! Fifty dollars? That's quite a lot!" Lin Datou exclaimed in surprise.

Pan Lanxiang and the actresses beside her chattered: "Look at that leather bag, it's bulging, it looks like it's stuffed with a lot of things."

"It can't all be money, can it?"

"It's all money? What are you thinking? I bet the bag is full of towels, vests or something like that as a reward."

Director Niu called out to the audience, "Now, please welcome Comrade Chen Xiangdong to the stage to receive his award!"

Chen Xiangdong walked out from behind the stage, wearing his brand-new black overalls. He bowed to Director Niu first, then turned to face the crowd and bowed again.

He accepted the certificate and leather bag from Director Niu with both hands, and Director Niu shook his hand and said, "Comrade Chen Xiangdong, keep up the good work!"

Chen Xiangdong has lived through two lifetimes, so he wasn't intimidated at all.

He held the certificate steadily, glanced at the audience, and grinned: "Thank you, Director Niu, thank you, leaders, and thank you to all the members of our troupe."

He paused, then shook the brown paper bag in his hand. "Thank you for this honor from the organization. I will definitely work hard from now on and live up to the expectations of my superiors!"

Another round of cheers erupted from the audience.

Seeing that the emotions of all the staff had been stirred up, Jia Dafang felt that the time was about right. He leaned closer to the microphone, cleared his throat, and said, "There is also some good news. After deliberation by the troupe and with the approval of higher authorities, Comrade Chen Xiangdong has officially become a permanent employee of the troupe, effective today!"

If the commendation ceremony was expected, then this news was completely unexpected.

Even Chen Xiangdong, the person involved, was stunned when he heard that he had become a permanent employee: The approval for my formal employment has been granted? I'm really a permanent employee now?

A murmur arose from the audience, a buzzing sound like a disturbed nest.

"You've been officially hired? Just like that?"

"Oh dear, so many temporary workers in our troupe have worked for years without getting promoted, and this kid's only been here a few days?"

Seeing Chen Xiangdong standing there dumbfounded on the stage, Liu Dezhu, fearing an awkward silence, suddenly stood up and clapped his hands vigorously: "This kid's gone mad! What are you standing there for? Quickly thank the leader!"

Startled by the shout, Chen Xiangdong quickly turned around and bowed again to Director Niu and Jia Dafang: "Thank you, leaders! Thank you, organization! I... I will definitely work hard and never let the organization down!"

Director Niu and Jia Dafang exchanged a smile and led the applause. The applause from the audience followed sparsely and not very enthusiastically, but Chen Xiangdong didn't care.

Throughout the morning, he heard applause countless times, seemingly more than in all his previous lives combined.

The government-affiliated position I wanted most in my past life, I've finally got it!

Even after the event ended and he returned to the woodshed, he still felt a bit dizzy and unreal. He looked down at the certificate in his hand, then weighed the brown paper bag in his hand. It was heavy, and inside was an envelope containing five ten-yuan bills, as well as a white towel and a white vest with the word "Award" printed on them in bright red.

"I'm a full-time employee now," he murmured to himself, his voice so soft it was as if he was afraid of being overheard.

He sat on the edge of the bed, looking at the certificate over and over again, unable to suppress the smile on his face.

In his previous life, he spent half his life in a theater troupe but never even got a permanent position. In this life, a sudden fire turned him into a permanent employee.

If I can be reborn, what else is impossible?

If my parents knew I'd been promoted to a permanent position, they'd be overjoyed. But I'm new here, and I've only just gotten the job, so it wouldn't be right for me to ask for leave and go home now.

We'll see if we run into any acquaintances in Maoerduogou later, and ask them to pass on a message so that the two elders can be happy too.

After carefully putting away the certificate, he clenched his fist and secretly cheered himself up: becoming a full-time employee is just the beginning of my life. Next, I want to be a drummer, I want to learn to sing opera, and I want to earn an even brighter future!

That night, the drumbeats from the woodshed continued until the early hours of the morning…

On the same night, in front of the half-open theater doors, Old Fang leaned against the door, holding his enamel cup that had never been filled with water, and stared blankly at the stars in the sky.

A gust of cold wind swept by, and Old Fang tightened his cotton-padded coat and hunched his shoulders. The wine in his enamel cup sloshed, spilling a few drops onto the back of his hand, which he didn't wipe away.

The moon was bright and the stars were few, and a gentle night breeze was blowing. On such a night, he couldn't help but recall scenes from the past.

In his youth, he often stayed up late into the night, practicing martial arts alone in the backyard, doing somersaults and twirling with his spear until the wee hours. His master would scold him, saying he was "reckless," but he would just chuckle and continue practicing the next day without fail.

Looking back now, the energy I had back then seems like a distant memory.

He looked down at his lame leg, took another swig of wine, and shook his head with a wry smile.