Returning to the county opera troupe in 77

"What should we do?"

Qin Pangzi completely panicked, and despite the freezing weather, he broke out in a cold sweat.

Buying pork from bean curd is not illegal, but buying large quantities of problematic pork and supplying it to the company canteen is another matter. If he gets caught red-handed, it's hard to say whether he can keep his secure job.

"Hide quickly!"

Chen Xiangdong pulled the cart and crawled behind a haystack. Fatty Qin hurriedly followed. The two of them frantically pulled several bundles of corn stalks from the haystack and haphazardly covered the cart.

Then, the two of them slipped behind the haystack, keeping a close watch on the three bicycles that had already reached the village entrance.

Fatty Qin squatted in the shadow of the haystack, his face ashen, his hands trembling uncontrollably.

Chen Xiangdong was much calmer than him. He just stared at the bicycles passing by the threshing ground in the distance until he saw the policeman's figure disappear into the village alley. Only then did he ask Qin Pangzi in a deep voice, "Are there any other side roads from here to the county town?"

"Yes!" Fatty Qin nodded hurriedly: "The east side of the village is all cornfields. There's a dirt road there that people use to go to work. If you go that way, it's a bit longer, but you can still get back to the county town."

"It's okay to stay a little further away, safety comes first."

Without saying a word, Chen Xiangdong tore down two more bundles of corn stalks from the haystack and piled them all on the cart.

Fatty Qin didn't understand: "Why are you carrying so many corn stalks?"

Chen Xiangdong didn't reply, but picked up the cart and walked towards the east side of the threshing ground.

Fatty Qin hurriedly followed behind. The small road in the east of the village was full of potholes, and the cart creaked and rattled as it bumped along. The two of them pulled half a cart of pork and half a cart of corn stalks, and walked straight ahead with their heads down.

Just outside the village, not far along, Chen Xiangdong, who was pulling the cart, saw in the distance a spark-like firefly floating in the darkness.

Is someone...smoking?

"There are people ahead!"

Chen Xiangdong lowered his voice and frantically winked at Fatty Qin behind him.

Fatty Qin was startled: "Who is it?"

"How would I know?" Chen Xiangdong paused, then said, "Does Teacher Qin know how to act? Play a role for me."

Qin Pangzi was suddenly dumbfounded, thinking to himself, "What kind of critical moment is this? What kind of act is this coward still in the mood to put on?"

But then, Chen Xiangdong suddenly shouted at the top of his lungs, which startled him.

"Ouch! Stop kicking! I promise I'll never skip school again! I don't want to pull the cart anymore, I want to go to school."

The final note even had a sobbing tone.

Fatty Qin immediately understood Chen Xiangdong's intention, thinking to himself that this kid was really cunning. He quickly put on airs and joined in the cursing, "Your lousy promises are going to work! Even the mules in the production team can give birth! How many times has this happened? Skipping school every other day, our doorstep is practically worn down by the teacher, it's shameful!"

"Waaah~ Don't hit me, I know I was wrong."

The two of them, one cursing and the other crying, pulled the cart straight ahead.

The man in front seemed to have had enough. He stubbed out his cigarette and walked over. Seeing the man in the white uniform, Chen Xiangdong and Fatty Qin's hearts jumped into their throats.

"Hey, fellow villager, you can't hit your child like that! There are methods to disciplining kids; you can't just hit them without guiding them!"

The white uniform standing in front of you is definitely a police officer!

Chen Xiangdong lowered his head and whimpered. Behind him, Fatty Qin, now in the act, was no longer afraid. He pushed the cart and cursed, "This good-for-nothing is so useless. He doesn't know how hard it is for the whole family to save money to support his schooling. Let him stay home and do some farm work. He'll know it's better to go to school later."

After finishing his tirade, he grinned at the police officer, showing off his big teeth, and said, "Officer, don't worry. This kid's always getting out of control if you don't discipline him for three days. But after this lesson, he'll be quiet for days. Excuse me, sir, please make way."

The police officer was both amused and exasperated: "No, you..."

Before he could even finish speaking, Fatty Qin yelled at Chen Xiangdong, who was pulling the cart with his head down, "Hurry up! The production team's livestock are waiting for their fodder!"

With the cart right in front of him, the policeman had no choice but to step aside into a cornfield to make way for them, helplessly watching the "father and son" pass by.

These days, children are all raised by their parents with big sticks. Who hasn't gone through that?

Watching their backs as they pulled the cart faster and faster, he couldn't help but shake his head and smile.

Well, as long as the child isn't seriously injured, it's their family matter. After all, hitting a child isn't illegal these days. He's a policeman; he can handle theft and murder, but he can't control a father beating his son.

Watching the flatbed truck gradually disappear around the corner, he glanced at his watch, frowned, and muttered, "It's almost six o'clock, and I haven't seen anyone escape this way... Shouldn't Captain Liu and his team have caught that old man selling pork and beans by now?"

.........

Chen Xiangdong and Fatty Qin pulled the cart without stopping for a moment until they returned to the county town half an hour later, at which point they finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"It was a close call, but we're finally back."

Fatty Qin looked up at the gradually brightening sky and couldn't help but mutter, "I'll have to find out tomorrow if they're heading for Old Xue..."

"If Old Xue gets arrested, won't he betray us?"

"No, not at all." Fatty Qin shook his head: "If Old Xue goes back in, that would be his third time in jail... That old codger keeps his mouth shut, don't worry about him."

The two talked as they walked back to the theater troupe's compound.

As soon as we entered the courtyard, the gatekeeper, Hu Xiaolian, poked his head out of the guardhouse window: "You're out of coal in the kitchen? Why are you hauling corn stalks outside?"

Fatty Qin glanced at him: "Who said this is for starting a fire? This is brought here for you to eat."

"Huh?" Hu Xiaolian took off his reading glasses, which had slipped down to the bridge of his nose. "Don't talk nonsense. Are you eating this fodder? What's wrong with you? Why are you talking so sarcastically first thing in the morning?"

Qin Pangzi ignored him, and Chen Xiangdong turned his head and winked at the old man before taking the car to the kitchen.

Hu Xiaolian stared blankly as the two walked away, and it took him a while to come to his senses. He cursed, "What did he do to deserve this? Why did he take it out on me? Serves him right! You damn fool!"

When Yu Baoliang and Li Qiufen saw that Fatty Qin had returned, they hurriedly came out of the kitchen to help unload the truck. As they listened to Fatty Qin's vivid account of what had happened that morning, they were both completely stunned.

After washing his hands, Chen Xiangdong returned to the woodshed. He had gotten up too early today and hadn't had time to practice his skills yet, so he needed to catch up quickly.

His current daily schedule is two hours of drum practice and one hour of leg stretching. Tonight he'll probably have to learn other basic skills, so tomorrow's schedule will need to be extended by another hour.

Despite the exhaustion, he thoroughly enjoyed the feeling of constantly enriching himself.

He lifted one leg and placed it on the edge of the bed, leaning forward with all his might, trying to reach his knee with his forehead, pressing his leg down little by little.

Gradually, he got used to the feeling of his hamstrings being fully stretched.