Returning to the county opera troupe in 77

For a time, the voices of doubt almost lifted the roof off.

Everyone, including Lu Meiyin, Pan Lanxiang, and He Jianshe, stared at Liu Dezhu, who was wearing sunglasses to hide his ugliness, as if he were a madman.

Lin Datou was so angry he laughed, yelling at Liu Dezhu, "Liu Dezhu, you can't just do nepotism like this! This kid has only been learning drums for less than two months, what can he possibly play? He probably hasn't even mastered the rhythm of a fast wind! You're asking me, someone who's been playing drums for over ten years, to give up my position to an apprentice?"

"Nonsense!"

Jia Dafang stood up, his brow furrowed, and slammed his hand on the table. "Do you think this is some childcare or child's play for Liu Dezhu? This performance is our troupe's most important show right now. You're sending an apprentice to play drums? If the performance is a complete mess, who can take responsibility? Me, or you, Liu Dezhu?"

Han Wenxue also tapped his finger on the table, making a "tap-tap" sound: "Nonsense! If our troupe sends a kid who's just learned to play the drum to participate in the performance, what will the other troupes think of us? Do we have no one else in Dongping County? Are we even dragging in apprentices to make up the numbers?"

Even Chen Xiangdong himself was somewhat hesitant. After all, it was a grand performance in Hongzhou, with the best performers from fifteen local troupes participating. He really wasn't very confident.

He turned to look at Liu Dezhu with a complicated expression: "Master, this..."

However, Liu Dezhu suddenly raised his hand, signaling him to be quiet.

Chen Xiangdong immediately shut his mouth, then saw Liu Dezhu turn his face towards the director's seat, grinning, "Commander Jia, Deputy Commander Han, don't be in such a hurry. I know better than anyone how well my apprentice plays the drums. Whether I'm practicing favoritism or not, why don't we let him play a bit for everyone to hear? If he's not good at it, I'll just take him away. What do you think?"

Upon hearing this, both Jia Dafang and Han Wenxue frowned. In their view, Liu Dezhu's recommendation of Chen Xiangdong to play the drum was far too frivolous.

Rehearsal time is very tight right now, where would we find the time to let an apprentice take up the time?

Zhu Zhengkuo, however, recalled the drumbeats he had heard in the woodshed. He was not a professionally trained opera troupe member, but he was an opera enthusiast and could tell that the rhythm of those drumbeats was indeed quite good.

"Why don't we let him give it a try?"

Zhu Zheng cleared his throat and smiled at Jia Dafang and Han Wenxue, "Anyway, it won't waste much time. Let Chen Xiangdong play a bit first and see. If it doesn't work, then forget it."

[At this point, I hope readers will remember our domain name: 20 ...

Even Zhu Zhengkuo had spoken up, so Jia Dafang had no choice but to give him face and sit down without saying anything more.

Liu Dezhu, always quick to seize an opportunity, waved to Chen Xiangdong, "What are you waiting for? Secretary Zhu has given you this chance, you'd better make the most of it! Go on!"

"Okay!"

Chen Xiangdong squeezed through the crowd with some trepidation, his palms already damp with a thin layer of sweat. When he arrived at the drum stand, he looked at Lin Datou sitting there.

Lin Datou turned his head and glanced at him, his face showing three parts disdain, three parts sarcasm, and four parts playfulness. He slowly stood up, handed over the drumsticks, and said jokingly, "Play it well and see if you can teach me a lesson."

Chen Xiangdong took the drumsticks, took a deep breath, and sat down. The familiar touch of the drumsticks immediately eased his tension a little.

With his eyes closed, he quickly went through the drum score in his mind. When he opened his eyes again, he exerted force with his wrist, and the drumsticks struck the drumhead with a "thud".

"Thump, thump-thump, clang-clang—"

As the drumbeats began, the erhu started playing, followed by cymbals, cymbals, and suonas, all playing in rhythm to begin the opening of "Ode to Qin Chuan".

The drumbeats, sometimes fast and sometimes slow, guided the entire band to play in perfect unison. Chen Xiangdong was completely immersed in the drumming, and the initial dense, rain-like sound transitioned smoothly and naturally to a gentle, varied rhythm after only a few breaths.

When it needs to be urgent, it's like a torrential downpour; when it needs to be gentle, it catches the breath steadily. Each beat is precise, and the entire opening accompaniment is so accurate that you can't find a single flaw.

Lu Meiyin and Pan Lanxiang were the first to show surprise, both turning their gazes to Chen Xiangdong, who was intently playing the drum.

The drumbeats and rhythms were perfectly synchronized!

Jia Dafang subconsciously withdrew his hand from the teacup, his eyes filled with surprise and uncertainty. It was indeed Chen Xiangdong knocking!

They had heard Liu Dezhu play the opening of "Ode to Qin Chuan" countless times, and they could tell whether the rhythm was right or wrong just by listening to it.

"This kid..."

Han Wenxue's eyes widened, and he even picked at his ears with some suspicion. After confirming several times that he was not hallucinating, he opened his mouth slightly, and a word suddenly popped into his mind—genius!

Zhu Zhengkuo didn't react as strongly as the others. He just felt that Chen Xiangdong's drumming was excellent, at least countless times better than Lin Datou's terrible drumming earlier.

He listened with a smile, his fingers tapping rhythmically on his thigh.

As the accompaniment transitioned into the climax of the opening scene, Chen Xiangdong's drumsticks struck even more forcefully, the tight rhythm of "dulu lang qiang" making everyone present feel as if they were in the center of the stage, and they couldn't help but recite their own lines.

Although Liu Dezhu couldn't see, he couldn't help but smile wider as he listened to the people around him reciting their lines.

He chuckled and muttered, "It's done!"

Standing behind the drummer with his arms crossed, Lin Datou's disdainful expression froze completely from the very beginning of the performance.

When the scene transitioned from the steady opening to the main performance, his face began to turn slightly pale.

Later, there wasn't even a trace of color left on his face; he just kept muttering, "Damn it... the old one isn't blind yet, and now a little one's come along. Is there any hope for me in this life... I'm completely lost..."

As the last drumbeat faded, the band members also stopped playing.

Chen Xiangdong put down the drumsticks, let out a long breath, and when he looked up again, he saw that the three leaders of the troupe on the director's seat had all stood up.

"good!"

Zhu Zhengkuo took the lead in clapping, and then the entire rehearsal hall erupted in thunderous cheers.

Jia Dafang and Han Wenxue were all smiles. Han Wenxue even gave him a thumbs up and seemed to say something, but his voice was completely drowned out by the applause, and Chen Xiangdong couldn't hear a single word.

An apprentice who had been learning drums for less than two months was able to play out an entire opera flawlessly, which completely overturned everyone's understanding of the situation.

Some people even wondered: Could this kid be the kind of genius often mentioned in plays?

A genius in the world of clapper drums!

Chen Xiangdong stood up, looked at the smiling faces around him, and grinned foolishly along with them.

I was still thinking to myself: I guess I've... succeeded?