Returning to the county opera troupe in 77

It was already past ten in the morning when we returned to the theater troupe's compound from the cattle market. Fortunately, the plump Li Qiufen and the second chef Yu Baoliang had been busy all morning and had already cut up half a basket of potatoes as Qin Gang had instructed.

It's fortunate that Chen Xiangdong's physical condition is much better after his rebirth than in his previous life; otherwise, even with Qin Gang pushing the cart from behind, he would have been exhausted to the point of vomiting blood.

Chen Xiangdong cursed inwardly: This damned Fatty Qin doesn't treat me like a human being at all! A load of a thousand pounds, this is clearly a job that only animals can pull.

When the car was pulled up to the kitchen door, Chen Xiangdong's legs went weak, and he collapsed to the ground, sticking out his tongue.

Qin Gang wiped the sweat from his face with a towel. Seeing how exhausted Chen Xiangdong was, he couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed. He decided not to let Chen Xiangdong do the unloading work anymore and called over the second cook. The two of them carried sacks of food into the kitchen.

Taking the water ladle from the plump woman, Chen Xiangdong gulped it down. After being covered in sweat, nothing beats the most refreshing and relaxing drink—ice-cold water.

After resting for a long time, Chen Xiangdong finally recovered, but his calves were still cramping when he walked.

Qin Gang and Yu Baoliang had already chopped and prepared the ingredients. The plump woman heated up the large pot. There would be two main dishes for lunch: stewed radish and potatoes, and stir-fried potato shreds.

Chen Xiangdong slipped into the kitchen and looked at the two classic canteen dishes. He couldn't help but feel a gritty feeling in his teeth and muttered under his breath, "It's potato convention again."

Sole chef Yu Baoliang, aside from being shorter than Qin Gang, had an even larger waistline. Seeing Chen Xiangdong muttering to himself with a sullen face, he immediately raised an eyebrow:

"How dare you, you brat, go into the kitchen? Don't you know that the kitchen is a restricted area and unauthorized personnel are not allowed inside?"

Qin Gang, who was scooping lard from the earthenware pot, coughed and said, "It's alright, it's alright. Dongzi isn't an outsider. I'll definitely need this kid's help when I go out to haul vegetables in the future."

Upon hearing this, Chen Xiangdong's face darkened. He was about to turn and run away, never to return to this filthy kitchen, when Qin Gang called out to him:

"Hey, don't go! You put in so much effort today, you deserve a treat. This lunch will be plenty of steamed buns."

Looking back at Qin Gang's small eyes, which disappeared as soon as he smiled, Chen Xiangdong couldn't tell how much sincerity was in them. He asked with skepticism, "Really, you can eat whatever you want?"

Qin Gang: "What are you talking about, kid? Would I lie to you?"

A big pot of potatoes and radishes has been stewed and is now bubbling away.

Just as Qin Gang was about to throw the solidified grease from the ladle into the pot, Chen Xiangdong tugged at his apron.

Qin Gang turned around in surprise: "What are you doing?"

Chen Xiangdong chuckled and said, "Stir-fried potato shreds with only dried chili peppers? No scallions or other side dishes? It would be even better if it were a bit more sour; I like it a bit sour."

"What? You want to learn to cook?"

"I'd like to, but the troupe only hired me as a stagehand. Could they let me learn in the kitchen?"

Upon hearing this, the two giants of the kitchen, the head chef and the second chef, were all intrigued and turned to look at Chen Xiangdong, their thoughts unknown.

In that brief moment of distraction, the plump woman tending the fire suddenly shouted, "The pot's smoking!"

"Hey, hurry up and cook!" Qin Gang's expression changed, and he hurriedly poured the grease from the ladle into the wok. As soon as the oil melted, the chopped green onions and dried chili peppers sizzled as they were poured in.

Chen Xiangdong leaned over the stove, his eyes fixed on the pot.

After pouring the whole bowl of shredded potatoes into the large iron pot, he seized the opportunity, pretending to turn around to get something, and "accidentally" twisted his elbow, knocking over the vinegar bowl next to the stove.

With a "whoosh," half a bowl of vinegar was poured into the pot.

Qin Gang cried out "Ouch!" and stamped his feet in frustration, "You idiot! How could you spill all this vinegar?!"

Chen Xiangdong hurriedly withdrew his hand, his face full of innocence: "Oh, Teacher Qin, I didn't mean to..."

Qin Gang was so distressed that he kept clicking his tongue. He picked up a spoon to scoop it out, but the vinegar had already dispersed in the pot, so there was no way to scoop it out.

As he rummaged through the potato shreds in the pot, he muttered under his breath, "This...this...how am I supposed to eat this! It's all sour, the theater troupe will kill me!"

Chen Xiangdong pretended not to hear and contentedly took out two steaming white flour buns from the steamer, eating them with great relish.

After the shredded potatoes were cooked, he first served himself a large bowl, and then ate three steamed buns with it.

As soon as it was mealtime, the troupe members lined up at the canteen window to get their food. Hu Xiaolian took a bite of his steamed bun, picked up a piece of shredded potato with his chopsticks, and put it in his mouth. After just one chew, he let out a surprised exclamation.

At the same time, Lin Datou at the same table, Xu Erdao at the next table, Han Wenxue, and director Liu Qiaosheng all simultaneously uttered "Hmm?"

"Why does this stir-fried potato shreds taste different today than usual?"

"Did they change chefs in the kitchen? The stir-fried potato shreds are sour, spicy, and crunchy, but they don't taste like Master Qin's or Master Yu's cooking at all."

The group murmured a few words and then lowered their heads to eat. The stewed radish and potatoes were barely touched, but the stir-fried potato shreds were quickly devoured.

Hu Xiaolian walked to the food serving window and smiled at Qin Gang, "Did you improve your cooking skills today? The shredded potatoes are pretty good."

"improve?"

Upon hearing this, the head chef and the second chef exchanged bewildered glances.

There were only a few scraps of vegetables left in the pot. Each of them picked up a bite with their chopsticks. After taking a bite, their eyes lit up.

Delicious, really delicious!

Qin Gang, who personally cooked the dish, was particularly bewildered: "Isn't this how I usually cook it? Why does it taste so fresh today? What went wrong?"

The troupe has a performance tomorrow, so there's not much work to do today. After lunch, Chen Xiangdong simply went back to the woodshed and lay down on the bed to rest.

Pulling the cart this morning must have exhausted him; he'll probably need to lie down all day to recover.

Recalling Qin Gang's bewildered and clueless expression, Chen Xiangdong couldn't help but find it somewhat amusing.

After the county opera troupe disbanded in his previous life, he went to a crash course in cooking and learned cooking skills for a few months. Later, he opened a small restaurant to make a living.

When it comes to cooking skills, those two idiots in the kitchen aren't even qualified to carry his shoes.

The reason is simple: the cooking tips summarized by later culinary schools are not something every chef knows.

They don't even understand the most basic principles of using a hot pan with cold oil, simmering over low heat, and reducing the sauce over high heat. It's as if people of this era haven't eaten anything good. Anyone who can easily cook a big pot of food can become a cafeteria chef.

Since he had nothing to do in the afternoon, Chen Xiangdong simply turned the porcelain bowl and basin upside down on the bed, sat cross-legged, and used chopsticks as drumsticks to recall the rhythm Liu Dezhu had played the drum yesterday, and started banging on the bowl and basin.

At first, it was chaotic and disordered, with no discernible rhythm.

Fortunately, he is a person who likes to ponder and investigate. He tried to adjust the angle of his wrist, the weight of the hammer, and the speed of the strike, adjusting the rhythm little by little.

I kept banging away all afternoon, until my wrists started to ache.

Upon opening the system interface, he couldn't help but burst out laughing:

[Instrument Proficiency (Banggu/Cymbals): 13/100 (Able to play simple rhythms)]

From 8 to 13, the proficiency level increased by 5.

In just one afternoon, he went from being completely disorganized to being able to type out simple rhythms. That speed is simply amazing!

If I keep pushing myself like this, I'll eventually max out my proficiency. I just don't know what level I'll reach after reaching the maximum. I imagine I won't be any worse than that Lin Datou, right?

It was dinnertime again, and Chen Xiangdong headed straight for the canteen with his bowl and chopsticks. From afar, he noticed several unfamiliar faces in the canteen.

He glanced at it, then silently moved closer and saw a timid little girl following Liu Dezhu.

His padded jacket and trousers were filthy and shiny. His face was so thin that he looked like a stick, and a gust of wind could knock him over.

Chen Xiangdong's heart skipped a beat: It seems that the course of history has indeed gone astray.

This girl is named Li Zhangqing. She is Liu Dezhu's niece. Later, she entered the training class to learn opera. She is a girl with a hard life.

However, she joined the theater troupe about ten days earlier than in her previous life.

Besides the little girl, another child also surprised Chen Xiangdong.

He Jianshe, a male actor from the troupe who was chatting idly with Liu Dezhu, was also holding the hand of a girl. She was dressed similarly in dirty clothes, and her face was thin and sallow, clearly a poor child suffering from malnutrition.

He recognized the girl; she was Fu Xiaoyue, He Jianshe's niece.

Despite her seemingly gentle and delicate appearance, she is actually very hardworking. In her past life, she studied diligently in the training class and eventually became a pillar of the troupe.

He knew perfectly well that Liu Dezhu and He Jianshe had brought their relatives over in advance, hoping to give them some extra training before the selection process began, so they could get acquainted with the group members and make preparations for the upcoming selection.

Of course, among these people were some he had already guessed: Liu Guoqi, the nephew of director Liu Qiaosheng, and Han Nongyue, the granddaughter of doorman Hu Xiaolian.

As far as I can remember, the two kids joined the theater troupe around the same time as they did now.

"Wow, the cafeteria's bustling today! There are so many new little kids around."

An annoying laugh came from the entrance of the cafeteria, and Xu Erdao, with his triangular eyes and slanted eyebrows, walked over with a pigeon-toed gait.

Liu Dezhu glanced at him from afar and muttered under his breath, "Idiot."

As soon as he finished speaking, a little girl in a red cotton-padded jacket appeared behind Xu Erdao, peeking out from behind him and curiously observing the people in the cafeteria.

He Jianshe greeted her with a smile, not even looking at Xu Erdao, but asking the little girl in the red jacket with her big, bright eyes, "Little girl, who are you to Erdao?"

The girl wasn't shy at all. She blinked and smiled at He Jianshe, saying, "He's my uncle."

"My brother-in-law's daughter, her name is Wu Xiaolian."

Xu Erdao chuckled, his gaze sweeping over Li Zhangqing and the other girls.

"The troupe is recruiting trainees, which is a big event that hasn't happened in over ten years. I thought I'd bring my kid to give it a try. If we get selected, we'll be able to eat government-subsidized food, which is much better than struggling to make a living in the mountains."

Chen Xiangdong walked to the food serving window with his bowl, and couldn't help but turn back to glance at Wu Xiaolian again, wondering to himself:

"Wu Xiaolian? I've never heard of her in my past life. What the hell is this? How come it's so different from my memories of my past life? All sorts of random things are popping up?"