In the blink of an eye, it was the 20th of the twelfth lunar month, and there were only ten days left until the Lunar New Year.

That morning, Lu Fangfang, Sister Shufen, and Sister-in-law Lanying were discussing the arrangements for the farm next year when Xiuxiu burst in.

"Sister, sister, they're here! The cultural troupe has arrived by car, there are so many of them!"

Xiuxiu was very excited; it was the first time she had ever seen people from the performing arts troupe.

"Just arrived?"

"Um."

Xiuxiu nodded quickly.

"No rush, they still need to make some preparations."

Lu Fangfang got up and called to Sister Shufen and Sister-in-law Lanying, and went to the breeding shed inside.

After feeding the quails, the group carried the quail eggs laid that day onto the donkey cart outside.

They'll be right back after a short visit; no one needs to stay at the farm.

Lu Fangfang asked Lan Ying's sister-in-law to lock the gate of the breeding farm, and then called to the group, and they took a donkey cart to the regiment.

Once on the main road, we saw the women from the family compound leading their children, walking towards the compound, creating a lively scene.

"Xiao Lu, are you going to the troupe to watch their performance too?"

"Yes, Sister-in-law Manling, let's sit together later."

Lu Fangfang greeted her with a smile.

Upon arriving at the regiment, the group delivered quail eggs to the logistics department, and then went together to the auditorium.

At this moment, the auditorium was already full of people, and Sister-in-law Shuhua was leading people in making final preparations on the stage.

"Little Lu, Little Lu, come quick, come quick."

Sun Manling waved from the front seat.

Lu Fangfang pulled Xiuxiu along and quickly went over to sit down next to Sister Manling.

Looking around, the auditorium was packed with people, mostly women from the family compound, besides the soldiers.

"It's so lively today!"

"That's right, all the ladies from the family compound have come. It's almost Chinese New Year, and the relatives who came to visit have also come. Here you go, Little Lu."

Sun Manling took out two White Rabbit milk candies and handed them to Lu Fangfang.

"Thank you, sister-in-law."

Lu Fangfang didn't stand on ceremony; she gave one to Xiuxiu, then peeled it open and put it in her mouth.

No wonder she saw so many unfamiliar faces; they were people visiting relatives.

Besides that, she discovered that even Zhu Haiming had come over. Since returning home, Zhu Haiming had been staying at home and hadn't gone out. This was only the second time she had seen her.

Oh, and Xiao Ting is there too.

Lu Fangfang glanced at it a few times, then focused her attention on the stage.

"Comrades, please be quiet, please be quiet."

Standing on the stage in the auditorium, Chen Shuhua said in a deep voice, "Next, please enjoy the dance, 'Female Militia of the Grasslands'."

"Whoosh~"

"Slap, slap, slap, slap."

A round of enthusiastic applause filled the auditorium.

Soon, music filled the auditorium.

Lu Fangfang chewed on a White Rabbit milk candy and listened to the melodious flute music, feeling as if she had suddenly been transported to the grasslands.

On stage, a group of girls dressed in distinctive costumes slowly emerged from behind the curtain. Each of them carried a long spear on their back and danced gracefully to the accompaniment of music.

Lu Fangfang looked closely and discovered that the girls were carrying real guns.

She leaned back and began to admire the view intently.

Watching the members of the performing arts troupe dance, she thought about herself. She had no dance background, and even if she had joined the troupe, she probably wouldn't have been able to stay.

"Slap, slap, slap, slap, slap."

After the performance, enthusiastic applause rang out again in the auditorium.

After watching the dances of this era, I had only one feeling: heroic, spirited, and positive, quite different from the styles of later generations.

The cultural troupe's performance continued into the afternoon, and Lu Fangfang thoroughly enjoyed herself.

She went home early for dinner, and in the evening, she and Xiuxiu went to the auditorium to watch a movie.

It was late at night, and the auditorium was still a bit cold.

Lu Fangfang tightened her military overcoat and began to read intently.

The movie playing on the stage was "Lenin in 1918." She and Xiuxiu had only watched it for a short while when they saw their husbands approaching, bowing low.

"Why are you here? Are you all done?"

Lu Fangfang was somewhat surprised to see Zhuang Mingcheng.

He didn't go home for dinner that night, saying he was entertaining the cultural troupe with the political commissar.

"Here, hold onto the hot water bottle, it'll keep you warmer."

Zhuang Mingcheng took out a hot water bottle and handed it to his wife, then sat down next to her and they watched a movie together.

Lu Fangfang hugged the hot water bottle, looked at him, and smiled.

The movie continued, and soon it reached the scene that left a deep impression on her.

"There will be bread, there will be milk, there will be everything."

She muttered to herself, mimicking the characters in the movie.

Thinking back to when she first arrived more than half a year ago, there wasn't even a latrine in the house.

After working hard for more than half a year, she not only had bread and milk, but also her own child.

She touched her belly, turned to look at Zhuang Mingcheng, and then quietly took her man's hand in the dimly lit auditorium.

Zhuang Mingcheng glanced at her and held her hand tightly as well.

...

"Natasha, why isn't your mother mending your clothes?"

"My mother is gone."

Where is she?

"My mother starved to death."

"Oh, so who else is in your family?"

"There's no one left."

In the movie, Lenin suddenly falls silent when facing the little girl.

Lu Fangfang had seen it before and didn't feel much, but now she suddenly felt a pang of sadness and started to shed tears.

"Fangfang, what's wrong?"

Zhuang Mingcheng noticed something was wrong with his wife and quickly took out a handkerchief to wipe her face.

"No...it's nothing, I just have some feelings."

Lu Fangfang shook her head, took the handkerchief from her husband, and wiped herself.

She had watched this movie several times, but each time she had a different feeling. This time, she suddenly felt like crying for no reason.

...

In the movie, Lenin picks up the phone and says solemnly, "Connect to number seven."

“Felix, Edmundovich, those grain speculators arrested in your area, we must execute them immediately.”

"And this matter must be widely publicized to the people, and it must be made clear that from now on, any speculator caught creating famine will be treated as the worst enemy and executed immediately!"