Chapter 861 The boy who bravely entered the darkroom

"Can minors take photos? I want to take photos too!" The little boy in the crowd saw the photo on the ID card and immediately pulled the clerk to ask. It was really new. Nowadays, let alone photos, even portraits can't be drawn so realistically. Moreover, the photos can be kept forever, which naturally has a different meaning and is very commemorative.

"Of course you can take photos, but you have to pay for it yourself. Moreover, the government office is only responsible for taking photos of ID cards. In your case, they won't take photos. However, there is a photo studio in Hanyang City. It is said that it will officially open on the New Year's Day. If you want to take photos, ask your parents to take you there." The clerk explained and promoted the photo studio.

As soon as the clerk finished speaking, the child squeezed out of the crowd and ran away. He wanted to go home to tell his parents to apply for an ID card, and by the way, he would go to see what a photo studio was.

The child ran all the way home, and before he even reached the door, he started shouting, "Dad, Mom, the government office is going to issue ID cards, and you can take photos for free, hurry up!"

As soon as he entered the yard, the child found his father chopping wood. The high pile of firewood was almost piled up to the eaves. The remaining month of winter heating and cooking all depended on this pile of firewood, and his mother was feeding the family's livestock at this time. The boy's family was well-off, with a litter of rabbits, four fat pigs, and more than a dozen free-range red-tailed black-feathered chickens.

When the two heard their child's shouting, they looked at him in surprise. The boy's father was the first to ask, "What ID card? It's almost the New Year's Day. Why do you want to get an ID card? What is that thing for?"

"The people in the government office said that the ID card is similar to the household registration, but it is personal, unlike the household registration, the whole family is together. This must be done, and it must be done before the New Year's Day." The boy immediately explained.

"Oh, does it cost money?" The hostess who was feeding the pigs also looked at her child and asked.

"No, no, I heard that the first time everyone does it, it's free, and you have to pay for it yourself. But the people in the government office said that you have to dress nicely and dress up, because you have to take pictures!

By the way, Dad, Mom, can you take me with you? I also want to see what it's like to take pictures!" The boy explained and asked expectantly.

"If you don't go, you stay at home. Your mother and I have gone. If you go, who will take care of your two sisters?" The boy's father immediately refused.

"No, I will go. It's okay for me to take my sisters with me, right?" The boy begged stubbornly.

After some discussion, based on the idea that it was a holiday and they had to go out and buy things anyway, the couple agreed to the boy's request and went out with their three children. The man in charge took the household registration book and the woman took the money. They planned to go to the government office to get their ID cards first, and then the whole family would go shopping together.

As a result, when the family of five came to the lobby of the civil affairs office, they found that there was a long queue of people applying for ID cards. At first glance, there were at least 10 to 20 people in front. Fortunately, the office prepared a lot of chairs, coal stoves and hot water for heating.

The man looked at the situation in the room, then took the household registration book and went to queue up by himself, asking his wife and three children to sit on the chairs and rest first.

But the boy was not honest. He looked around curiously in the lobby. He squeezed to the side of the ID card processing line and saw the legendary photo process.

There was a clerk sitting at the service desk. He took the household registration book and matched the information of the person applying, then wrote a form, and then gave two copper cards, asking the person to go to the room next door to take pictures and engrave words.

The boy immediately followed curiously, and saw that another room blocked by a cotton curtain was the legendary photo studio.

There was also a service desk in this room, with a total of two staff members, one was picking up movable characters and stamping the ID card, and the other was a photographer who was responsible for taking pictures.

After the man came in, he explained his purpose, and then handed over the list and two copper cards. Then the process started. The clerk who stamped the steel stamp had already started to typeset. The photographer looked at the list, then at the man in front of him, and frowned.

"Didn't the notice say that those with titles should tie their hair and wear a crown? Why did you come here with a headband?"

"Ah? My child didn't tell me. I'm just a carpenter. Although I have a title, I don't wear a crown for convenience when I work. How about I go back and put it on before I come back?" The man who came to apply for an ID card said in surprise.

He really didn't know that he had to wear a crown. After all, he didn't know what photography was. In the past, when doing documents and other things, you only needed to record the text. Who cares how you dress!

"Well, isn't this delaying things? Hey, what's the name of the new intern?"

"Wen Shan." Another person who was picking up the movable type next to him took over.

"Oh, Wen Shan, come out and clean up this person and find a crown for him to wear."

"Here they come!"

After a while, a boy of about fourteen or fifteen years old came out from the inner room, took a look at the man, and led him to the half-length mirror on the side, combed his hair again, tied his hair, found a corresponding crown to wear, and then fixed it with a hairpin. Then he led the man to sit on the chair opposite the photographer, and then reminded him.

"Sit up straight, sit up straight, don't look up, tuck your chin in a little, yes, look at the box opposite, keep the posture and don't move, okay, keep it, it will be fine in a while."

The intern named Wenshan acted as a temporary photography assistant. While telling the handler how to adjust the posture, he adjusted the fill light board next to him. At this time, the photographer had already started focusing and framing with a glass plate.

Wenshan walked to the side of the photographer, who nodded and handed the silver-plated film to Wenshan.

The boy lifted another door curtain and went into the inner room. It was dark and unlit. After Wen Shan went in, he opened another wooden door and came to the darkroom. Another photographer who had been waiting here for a long time immediately began to apply photosensitive solution to the film, and then put the wet film in a light-proof box and handed it to Wen Shan.

Wen Shan picked up the light-proof box and ran away. After all, the silver plate wet photography must be completed before the solution dries. As a result, he walked out of the darkroom and came to the inner room. As soon as he lifted the door curtain, he was hit by a child and fell to the ground.

Wen Shan was startled and looked at the light-proof box again. Fortunately, it was not broken. He immediately climbed up, holding the child in one hand and quickly handed the plate to the photographer in the other hand.

"You kid, who told you to run here? No entry is allowed here. Do you hear me? Go back to your parents, or I will catch you and not give you food."

"Tsk, isn't it just taking pictures? You can't even take a look. How stingy!" The little boy said with a pout.

"Hey, you kid, you want to learn secretly?" Wen Shan couldn't help but teasing him when he heard his words.

"Wen Shan, come on, send it to the darkroom!"

Just when Wen Shan and the kid were bickering, the photographer had finished shooting. Wen Shan didn't respond and immediately took the base plate into the inner room. As a result, the little boy wanted to sneak in again, but was caught by the photographer.

"Hey, hey, hey, whose child is this? I told you that you can't go in there, why are you still going in?"

"Why can't I go in? I'll just take a look, I won't move around!" The little boy was still quibbling.

"Is it a matter of whether you move around or not? You can't open the door at all. You can't see the light inside, you know? Once you open the door, the light from outside will shine in, and the photo will be ruined. Do you understand? So you can't go in." The photographer grabbed the back of the boy's neck and taught him a lesson, fearing that he would run in again.

"Oh, then I won't go in, I'll just look here, okay?" When the little boy heard that he was afraid of light inside, he rolled his eyes and started to negotiate again.

"Hey, kid, you're watching here. Where are your parents? Don't they care about you?" the photographer asked with a smile.

"My dad also needs to apply for an ID card. He's outside and will come in soon. I'll just watch for a while!"

"Okay, okay, then you're not allowed to move here, you can't touch things randomly, and you can't lift the door curtain. Otherwise, I'll lock you up in the small dark room. No discussion. Do you hear me?"

The boy nodded honestly. Although he promised not to touch things randomly, his eyes were looking around. He stretched his neck to look carefully at the wooden box used for taking pictures. Unfortunately, he couldn't see anything from his position.

At this moment, Wen Shan, who had just entered the inner room, came out again with the baseplate, but this time he walked out much more calmly. Apparently, the photos had been developed, so there was no need to be so anxious this time.

There are still three chapters today

(end of this chapter)