Returning to the county opera troupe in 77

Chen Xiangdong was holding a bowl of freshly cooked mutton soup. The steam hit his face. He blew on the soup and was about to slurp it up when he caught a glimpse of people gathering in twos and threes on the open ground in front of the stage.

"People are starting to come..."

Chen Xiangdong muttered something, blew on the soup noodles, and slurped up a big mouthful. It was so hot that his face contorted, but he couldn't bear to spit it out.

More and more villagers came to watch the play. Several old men carrying long benches chose the best seats at the front, plopped the benches down on the ground, and started smoking their pipes.

A group of teenagers rushed onto the stage, some climbing onto the edge, others peeking out from behind the side curtains, pushing and shoving each other, their laughter and playful antics filling the air.

Women with headscarves, wives leading young children, and idle men strolling by with their hands in their pockets gradually gathered from both ends of the dirt road, filling the open space in front of the stage before they knew it.

Before nightfall, all the lights converged in the same direction, and the smells of tobacco, dust, and mutton stew mingled together in the air, filling the commune's evening with a lively and joyful atmosphere.

After the entire troupe finished eating, Chen Xiangdong went to turn on the stage lights first, otherwise, in the dark, the kids might fall over.

Director Liu Qiaosheng stood behind the side curtain, carefully checking the lights, and asked Li Mancang behind him, "Mancang, has that coward Liu Dezhu come back yet?"

Li Mancang craned his neck and looked behind him for a while, then scratched his head: "I don't think I saw Master Liu..."

"That coward, it's almost seven o'clock, why isn't he back yet?" Liu Qiao cursed angrily. "If he doesn't come back soon, I'm going to tell Secretary Zhu, and he'll give that guy a good scolding."

No sooner had he finished speaking than Liu Dezhu, carrying a drum, came to the back of the side curtain and said with a grin, "Look at you, always trying to make things difficult for me. Here I am."

"So you finally decided to come back?" Liu Qiaosheng turned around and glared at him, flashing his watch at him. "Look at the time! It's already 6:30! The show's supposed to start in half an hour, and you've gone missing as the drummer. What kind of show is this?!"

"Hey!" Liu Dezhu grabbed Liu Qiaosheng's outstretched wrist, feigning surprise. "Director Liu, you've got a watch now? This one doesn't look cheap. Is it the same one Commander Jia wears?"

Upon hearing Liu Dezhu's words, Liu Qiaosheng couldn't help but smile. He let Liu Dezhu grab his wrist and examine him for a while, chuckling, "Different, different. Commander Jia's watch is a Shanghai brand, a top-of-the-line luxury watch. Mine can't compare to his, it's a gemstone watch."

Liu Dezhu clicked his tongue twice: "Gemstone Flower is good too, it must cost at least a hundred yuan, right?"

"No, no, ninety, ninety yuan." Liu Qiaosheng said modestly, but his eyes, which were practically popping out of their sockets, couldn't hide his inner pride.

There are only four people in the entire troupe who can walk.

Jia Dafang and Zhu Zhengkuo both own a Shanghai brand watch. Not counting the mechanical wall clock in the rehearsal hall, Liu Qiaosheng could be considered the third person in the watch-owning family.

"Alright, alright! Hurry up and call the drum and band over, get them ready to take their positions." Liu Qiaosheng withdrew the hand wearing the watch, turned around and walked towards the dressing room at the back, muttering to himself as he went, "I'll go see if they've all finished their makeup. They're always making me worry."

He lifted the curtain, and before entering the dressing room, he deliberately rolled up both sleeves, making the shiny silver watch on his left wrist even more conspicuous.

Watching Liu Qiaosheng enter the dressing room, Liu Dezhu curled his lip and muttered under his breath, "What a coward..."

In the audience, Li Zhangqing was sitting hand in hand with her parents, her face beaming with smiles. Her mother was also holding a four or five-year-old boy in her arms, whose features resembled Li Zhangqing's.

"Mother, here you go!"

Taking advantage of the fact that no one was paying attention, Li Zhangqing quickly pulled a wad of bills from his pocket and stuffed them into his mother Liu Derong's hand. Liu Derong took a squeeze and was startled, exclaiming in a low voice, "Oh my! Where did all this money come from? It must be more than ten yuan!"

She instinctively clutched the money tightly, her eyes darting around quickly, as if afraid of being seen.

Her father, Li Xingwang, was also taken aback. He turned his head and asked his daughter in a low voice, "This is... your salary?"

Li Zhangqing nodded with a grin: "Yes, I didn't spend a single penny; I saved it all for you guys."

This was her student allowance that she had saved up for a long time. While other students were buying hair accessories and snacks, she never spent a single penny, no matter how envious she was.

Liu Derong and Li Xingwang exchanged a glance, their faces filled with surprise.

The couple toiled in the fields all year round, and if they could save up twenty or thirty yuan, they were lucky. They never imagined that their daughter, a trainee in the county theater troupe, would earn more in a month than they made in half a year.

Liu Derong quickly put the money in his pocket, hesitated for a moment, then took out a piece of rock candy from his cotton-padded jacket pocket and stuffed it into Li Zhangqing's hand.

"mother……"

Just as Li Zhangqing was about to say something, a noise suddenly came from the stage, drawing everyone's attention.

Zhu Zhengkuo lifted the side curtain, walked a few steps to the center of the stage, waved to the audience below, and signaled everyone to be quiet.

As the noise from the crowd gradually subsided, Zhu Zhengkuo smiled at the audience: "Fellow villagers, good evening! I am Zhu Zhengkuo, the secretary of our Dongping County Drama Troupe. It is a great honor to perform for you in our Hongxing Commune. Today's performance is 'Xianglin's Wife,' but—"

Han Wenxue, who was helping to pull the curtain backstage, looked at Zhu Zhengwei in the center of the stage and couldn't help but shake his head with a smile. He thought to himself that this old Zhu really liked to show his face. He went on stage to announce the name of the play. It was originally the director Liu Qiaosheng's job, but he insisted on taking it over to show his face.

Below the stage, Chen Xiangdong and several other old men stood in the shadows beside the stage, waiting nervously.

Zhu Zheng glanced at the audience, paused for a moment, and then continued, "However, before the main play begins, to thank everyone for your continued support of our troupe, we have specially prepared a short martial arts performance for you."

He drawled out the last syllable, then turned and glanced behind the side curtain: "Shi Qian Steals the Armor!"

"What?"

"That play hasn't been performed in years!"

As soon as the words were spoken, not only did gasps of surprise ripple through the audience, but everyone in the troupe was momentarily stunned.

Han Wenxue's eyes suddenly widened, his mouth agape in shock. His hand trembled, almost causing him to loosen the curtain rope. Now, only one thought was buzzing in his mind: Has Zhu Zhenggui gone mad? He dares to touch an old play?!

Lu Meiyin, Qiao Haizhu, He Jianshe, and their group, who had already finished their makeup and were preparing to go on stage, all looked in astonishment toward the front of the stage.

As the audience erupted in cheers, Chen Xiangdong, Feng Zhengxiao, Han Zhengkui, and a few others perked up and rushed onto the stage carrying a prop beam.

Zhu Zhengguo turned and walked down, gave Han Wenxue a wink, and shouted in a low voice, "Close the curtain! Close the curtain quickly!"

Han Wenxue suddenly came to his senses, and at this moment he didn't have time to ask Zhu Zhengguo what was going on, and quickly put away the curtain.

Hu Xiaolian also took the opportunity to grab a stack of painted backdrop cardboard and squeeze onto the stage, frantically setting them up.