Returning to the county opera troupe in 77

After leaving the troupe's compound and walking a short distance east, you'll see an old-style bungalow made of blue bricks.

The entrance is not very tall, with gray tiles on the roof. The five large red characters "State-run Food Station" on the lintel are quite old, with the edges of the paint slightly curled up.

As Chen Xiangdong entered the store, the overhead incandescent light emitted a soft buzzing sound, illuminating the meat, eggs, chicken, and several kinds of cooked food in the glass display case, which gleamed with an oily sheen.

Besides a few customers clutching small bills and picking out cooked food, there were four sales clerks standing behind the counter. One of them, a slightly plump woman with permed hair, was He Jianshe's wife, Fu Hongmei.

Everyone lived in the same compound, so naturally they all knew each other.

When Fu Hongmei saw Chen Xiangdong enter, she paused for a moment, then put down the wooden steelyard scale she was holding and waved to him with a smile: "Dongwazi? What brings you to the food station? What do you want to buy?"

What else could he possibly be doing at the food station? Buying food, of course. Chen Xiangdong had already planned it all out. Now that Han Zhengkui had just returned, it was the perfect opportunity for him to curry favor. Although becoming an apprentice couldn't be rushed, a satisfying meal would certainly be a stepping stone.

Just as Feng Zhengxiao liked to eat pig's trotters, Han Zhengkui's tastes were also well-known in his previous life. The old man preferred to gnaw on chicken heads, and three spiced braised chicken heads could make him drink half a catty of liquor.

As for Fang Zhengsheng, he's even easier to deal with; as long as there's wine, it doesn't matter whether there's food or not.

"Aunt He," Chen Xiangdong said with a smile as he approached the counter, "I'd like to buy two pig's trotters and two jin of braised chicken heads."

Upon hearing this, Fu Hongmei laughed and joked, "Wow, such a grand gesture! Pig's trotters and chicken heads—who are you entertaining?"

Chen Xiangdong quickly waved his hand with a smile: "No, no, I just had a craving. I bought some to satisfy my craving."

Fu Hongmei didn't believe him. Two braised pig's trotters, just the meat and the ration coupons alone, would cost almost two yuan. Although the chicken heads and feet and other miscellaneous cooked foods didn't require coupons, they would still add up to two yuan and fifty cents. She didn't believe that Chen Xiangdong would be willing to spend that much money just to satisfy his cravings.

She shook her head with a smile, muttering, "You even lied to me and said you were craving something," but her hands deftly chopped up the pig's trotters and packed them into two separate oil paper bags along with the chicken heads. She tied one bag in each bag and pushed them onto the counter, lowering her voice to say, "Two yuan and forty cents. I'll give you an employee discount; two yuan will do."

Chen Xiangdong immediately rubbed his hands together, somewhat embarrassed: "Aunt He, is this appropriate? I don't want to cause you any trouble later..."

Fu Hongmei smiled and waved her hand, "What's inappropriate? You saved my niece Xiaoyue, and you've always given them special treatment. We're all family, so saying anything more would be too formal."

After saying that, she picked up a rag and started wiping the counter. Seeing this, Chen Xiangdong didn't refuse anymore. He placed the money and meat coupons on the counter, thanked Fu Hongmei, picked up the two packets of cooked food wrapped in oil paper, and turned to leave…

.........

As soon as Chen Xiangdong entered the theater backstage, before he even reached Fang Zhengsheng's dormitory door, he heard laughter coming from the small room.

It sounded like someone inside was talking about something they were really proud of when they slammed their hand on the table, and the conversation and laughter came out together.

Feng Zhengxiao said, "Back when you were performing in 'Shi Qian Steals the Armor,' you flipped off the table with a 'whoosh,' so cleanly and neatly that you landed without making a sound, which stunned the audience."

Han Zhengkui beamed with pride: "Haha, that's my specialty, I can't afford to mess it up!"

Fang Zhengsheng raised an eyebrow: "Oh? I remember there was a performance in Weinan back then, and Shi Qian's hat flew off. Wasn't that an accident?"

"Huh? Really...really? Old Fang must be mistaken. How could I possibly make a mistake!" When the embarrassing incident from back then was brought up, Han Zhengkui blushed and stammered, refusing to admit it.

Just then, the door was pushed open a crack, and Chen Xiangdong peeked in with a grin, waving the oil paper package he was carrying in front of the three men.

"It's so lively here." Chen Xiangdong walked in and put the oil paper package on the table. "Master, look what I brought for you."

As he spoke, he tore open the oil paper, revealing the braised pig's trotters and braised chicken head inside.

Han Zhengkui didn't look at the braised food on the table. Instead, he frowned slightly, looked at Feng Zhengxiao and Fang Zhengsheng, and muttered, "Master? Isn't this kid learning to play the drums from Liu Dezhu? Liu Dezhu is here too?"

Upon hearing this, Feng and Fang exchanged a smile, and Fang Zhengsheng slowly said, "What? Can't you learn to play the drums and sing opera at the same time?"

Feng Zhengxiao just grinned and chuckled.

Upon hearing this, Han Zhengkui's eyes snapped open, his gaze darting between Chen Xiangdong, Feng, and Fang several times before he exclaimed in astonishment, "You two took him as your apprentice?"

Feng Zhengxiao then spoke, his tone tinged with pride: "Old Fang taught this kid the basics of martial arts, and I taught him the movements and singing style."

However, Han Zhengkui's expression changed: "Nonsense!"

He suddenly stood up from his chair, pointed at Chen Xiangdong, and said, "This kid is a good drummer. He can play a complete opera steadily in less than two months of learning! Do you know what this means? In all my years of traveling around, I have never seen a drummer with such talent."

As he spoke, he pointed at Feng and Fang, his voice strained with urgency: "No matter what he learns, the worst thing you can do is try to do two things at once! You're teaching him opera singing and stage movements, aren't you just wasting this kid's talent for drumming!"

Chen Xiangdong stared wide-eyed at the three men, about to speak, when Feng Zhengxiao burst into laughter: "Who says this kid is only good at drumming? Can't he be even more talented at opera?"

"What do you mean?"

Han Zhengkui was taken aback again, his gaze shifting from Feng Zhengxiao's face to Fang Zhengsheng's, trying to find a trace of joking on these two old faces.

Fang Zhengsheng, who was sitting calmly to the side, gestured towards Chen Xiangdong with his lip: "Kid, show your Uncle Kui how to do a high kick."

Chen Xiangdong was stunned for a moment, not expecting Fang Zhengsheng to call on him at this time. He subconsciously looked at his two masters, whose expressions clearly said six words: Show off your skills and impress him!

Without further hesitation, Chen Xiangdong took off his coat and draped it over the back of the chair before walking to the open space in front of him.

After standing still, he took a deep breath and stood on one leg. With a "whoosh," he lifted the other leg up, his foot pointing to the sky. It was a clean and decisive move. He didn't even use his hands to bend his leg. His entire leg was stretched into a straight line and remained perfectly still.

The movement was clean and precise, like cutting tofu with a knife, without any hesitation or slack.

Han Zhengkui's gaze was fixed on Chen Xiangdong's straight, upturned leg, a look of surprise on his face: "Really... you didn't use your hands?"

Chen Xiangdong maintained his upward kicking posture and laughed, "I didn't use my hands. Master Fang said that was just forcing it open, and it doesn't count as skill."

"Kid, how long have you been learning from Lao Fang and his friend?"

"More than a month."

"how long?!"

Han Zhengkui's eyes widened suddenly, and he turned to look at Feng Zhengxiao and Fang Zhengsheng. Only after they nodded in response with smiles did he stiffly turn back, staring at Chen Xiangdong as if he were looking at some monster, muttering incoherently, "How is this possible... how is this possible...?"