Men and women were chatting animatedly at the entrance of the sales point when suddenly the loudspeaker blared: "Attention all villagers, a movie will be shown at 8 PM in the brigade's threshing ground. Attention all villagers, a movie will be shown at 8 PM in the brigade's threshing ground. Attention all villagers, watch the movie at 8 PM in the threshing ground."

As soon as the broadcast ended, the men, women, and children who had pressed the pause button erupted into a frenzy, like a floodgate bursting open. Children ran around shouting, "A movie is going to be shown! A movie is going to be shown!" The adults also discussed it enthusiastically, their faces beaming with joy.

In just a short while, the crowd dispersed, with only a few people remaining. Some were busy going home to spread the word, while others were busy preparing food to reserve a spot early in the morning. An Moxue also dispersed with the crowd.

On her way home, An Moxue couldn't understand why they were so happy about watching a movie, so she asked Aunt Ma, "Auntie, why are they all so happy?"

Aunt Ma chuckled and said, "In our rural village, a village only gets to see a movie once every year or two, and even then, it's based on the village's ranking. If the village is doing poorly, it's ranked lower. Movies can't be shown during spring planting and autumn harvest, so in the end, there might not even be any. You city folks have movie theaters where you can watch for just two cents, but we don't have those in the countryside. Even if it's only two cents, you have to go to the county to see a movie, and you have to take the bus and eat. All that adds up to how much it costs to see a movie, so basically, rural people don't go to the movies."

"That's true. How many eggs would you have to save up to earn several cents? An egg only costs three cents, and you wouldn't normally be willing to eat one."

Reaching the intersection, she parted ways with Aunt Ma and went home. An Moxue was also curious; she had only heard of open-air movies in legends, and today she was finally going to see one.

The weather is good this year, and the mosquitoes are still alive. It's a late autumn night, and I'm getting bitten so badly. So many people are watching, and we have to fight for space and seats. If you're slow, you'll end up in a corner. I heard that people from other villages will also come to watch. It can't be too wonderful just thinking about it.

An Moxue thought it was worth checking out what the legendary open-air cinema was like. As for whether to watch it or not, she hadn't been to any cinemas in Kyoto, so she was just curious now.

In the afternoon, An Moxue was reading at home when Qi Hehua and her sister came to find her. "Sister Moxue, the team leader asked us to tell you that we educated youth have already placed benches in the threshing ground to reserve our spots. There are already people watching over them. When you go to the movies tonight, just come find us. We're in a relatively good spot near the front. We're using long benches from when we eat to reserve our spots. Go early, or you might have trouble finding us later, as there are too many people."

Mo Xue nodded in agreement: "Okay, then I'll prepare some melon seeds for everyone to eat together."

"Okay, thank you in advance, Sister Moxue. We'll head back now." The two of them didn't say much more and turned to leave.

Originally intending to just go through the motions and get by, An Moxue had no choice but to take out the melon seeds that Aunt Ma had given her and start roasting them. The shells got a bit too hot, but the kernels were cooked through without burning, so they didn't look very appealing.

In the evening, An Moxue finished her dinner and was about to head to the threshing ground when Old Ma came over: "Moxue, are you leaving already?"

"Um, Uncle, is something the matter?"

"It's alright, don't leave yet. There are just a lot of people here today, including some from other villages. We have to be careful around this time of year. Especially since this place is so remote, everyone knows you're a wealthy educated youth. When you leave, make sure the doors and windows are closed, tidy up the things in the cabinets and lock them, and put away any valuables."

"Okay, Uncle, I'll go in and tidy up first, and then I'll leave."

"Okay, I'm off then. If anything comes up tonight, don't forget to call for help."

"Okay, Uncle, I understand." Then An Moxue turned around and went back into the house, tidying up the bedroom and kitchen, leaving only a few things that were presentable on the surface, and not leaving anything superfluous, putting everything into her space.

After thinking for a moment, she released the two wolf cubs from the space, added some food to their bowls, and told them to guard the house well and not forget to bite any bad people who came. The wolf cubs, whether they understood her or not, howled twice as if in response. Only then did An Moxue turn around, leave the house, lock the door, and head towards the drying ground.

When An Moxue arrived at the threshing ground, it was already crowded with people, some from the village and some from other villages, in groups of three or five, or in groups of ten or eight, laughing and joking. The young women and men, in particular, were all clearly dressed up carefully.

An Moxue looked towards the front of the drying ground and saw only a dense crowd of people. She had no choice but to walk forward and saw the educated youth sitting together in the distance.

However, it still took some time to get there. There were too many people and it was too crowded. We had to move over little by little, and it was difficult to get out again.

When Zhang Xiu saw her coming, she raised her hand and waved, "Mo Xue, over here." An Mo Xue saw her and also raised her hand and waved.

When An Moxue arrived at the place where the educated youth were, she felt like her feet weren't her own anymore, as if someone had accidentally stepped on them several times. Everyone was scrambling for space, no one wanted to give way, and there were even people rushing over.

An Moxue quickly found a stool next to Zhang Xiu and sat down, then let out a long sigh. Everyone who saw her like this asked her curiously, "What's wrong? Why are you like this?"

An Moxue replied, "Don't even mention it, it was so hard to get here. I saw you guys were just a few steps away, but I couldn't squeeze in. I finally managed to move in little by little, and I don't know who stepped on my feet several times. My feet are still numb. Why are there so many people here? Quick, I brought some sunflower seeds. Everyone, please share some. They're not very well roasted, it's my first time roasting them, so the shells are a bit burnt, but the kernels are still good. Don't mind them, everyone, please share them."

Then Zhang Xiu picked up the melon seeds that An Moxue had brought over and distributed some to everyone. After distributing them, there were still half left, which she handed to An Moxue.

Sister An looked at it and said, "Tell everyone to share. This is something I specially cooked for everyone. Just leave me a little bit."

Then An Moxue grabbed two handfuls and put them in her pocket, handing the rest to Zhang Xiu: "Sister Xiu, divide these up, I'll keep these for myself." Zhang Xiu smiled, took the melon seeds, and divided the rest up again.

People chatted and laughed, and the waiting time passed both agonizingly and quickly. Finally, it was eight o'clock, and the sky was gradually getting dark. Subtitles appeared on the screen, followed by sound. People's voices quieted down, and after two or three minutes, only whispers remained.

The movie being played is "The Scouts," which tells the story of a reconnaissance company squad led by Li Min who broke through enemy encirclements and penetrated deep behind enemy lines during a battle. Through extensive reconnaissance, they obtained crucial military intelligence, enabling the People's Army to achieve a major victory in the battle.