The show begins
On the evening of the eleventh day of the first lunar month, it was not completely dark yet. On the various dirt roads, large and small, leading to the village, children were running in front, laughing and playing; the old man was panting as he hurried along, leaning on a cane in one hand and carrying a stool in the other; women were chatting and eating melon seeds in groups of three or four, and the men were shouting and calling out as they moved forward. Everyone has the same destination, the village square.
The spacious square of the past has now been rearranged.
In the center of the square, there is a towering iron frame supporting the sky and the earth. Two big red lanterns are hung in front of the stage, which are particularly eye-catching in the twilight. On the pillars on both sides of the stage was a couplet that read: "Travel across the world in three or five steps, and become a million-strong army with six or seven people", with the handwriting vigorous and powerful.
The three sides of the square are covered with awnings and various foods. The owners of the stalls selling barbecue, hot and sour noodles, fried jelly, noodles, and mutton soup shouted to passers-by.
Yufeng Mahua is in the middle. At this moment, various colored mahua are neatly arranged and exude an enticing sweet fragrance.
The middle row is a grocery store, selling guns, toys, clothes, and photography.
There are various amusement facilities on the open space, including carousels, trampolines and trains. Every little face is filled with curiosity and excitement.
At 7:30 in the evening, Secretary Gou, holding a burning incense stick, solemnly lit the fuse. A burst of "crackling" firecrackers rang out, and the whole village was instantly set on fire, with a noisy sound everywhere.
The temple fair in Xiaogou Village officially opened.
On the stage, props were neatly arranged; on the left, several artists were holding erhu or banhu, humming and adjusting the timbre, waiting for the curtains to be lifted for their official appearance.
Below the stage, in the front row were a row of small stools, and white-haired old men sat in rows with their sleeves rolled up. The C position today is the sponsor, Old Lady Qin, and the stool under her butt was specially brought by Secretary Gou. At this moment, the group of old people paid no attention to anyone else and stared at the stage.
Behind the stool was a row of long benches, which were now full of people, including elderly men in their fifties and sixties, young wives holding children, and a few naughty children squirming among the benches. Qin Shengtian and Hu Yufeng were among them, and now, without putting aside their past grudges, they squeezed onto a long bench, looking forward to what was about to happen.
Further back were the young and middle-aged people, with their legs crossed and their necks stretched, eagerly waiting for the show to begin.
Vendors selling melon seeds and peanuts carried bamboo baskets and moved among the crowd, hawking their wares.
There was a faint scent of sandalwood in the air, mixed with the smell of dry tobacco.
"Dong Dong Qiang--" A burst of rapid gong and drum sounds rang out, and the crowd suddenly quieted down. As the drumstick drew an arc in the air and landed heavily on the drum, the entire stage seemed to shake.
Bao Zheng, wearing a black gauze hat, a dragon robe, and a black mask on his face, slowly walked onto the stage under the gaze of everyone. As soon as he opened his mouth, he sang in a deep voice: "Bao Zheng, the prefect of Kaifeng, enforces the law impartially and is incorruptible!" The voice seemed to penetrate the sky, and it almost made the melon seeds in people's hands fall to the ground.
Hu Yufeng and Chen Xiulian were watching with great interest, and even humming along. However, Qin Yu and Qin Ling on either side of them felt like they had needles pricked their buttocks, and were unable to sit still.
Hu Yufeng took the time to pat her granddaughter: "What's wrong with you?"
"Grandma, I don't want to watch it, I don't understand..."
Hu Yufeng was stunned for a moment, then patted her hands in understanding: "Go, go play with your sister."
Seeing Qin Ling looking at her expectantly, Chen Xiulian muttered, "When I was your age, the only opportunity to broaden my horizons was to watch a play. And this is available every year. These kids don't know how to cherish it."
But in the end, I let go.
Hu Yufeng glanced at her with amusement: "It's been a long time since we were there. Life is so good now. Children can play whatever they like. You will be happy to have some peace and quiet when you leave."
Really, life is so good nowadays. Isn’t the purpose of adults’ struggle to give children more opportunities to choose?
"Yuyu, take the money, be safe, and don't get lost."
Qin Yu didn't hesitate, took the twenty yuan, agreed happily, turned around and pulled Qin Ling to squeeze out.
When she arrived, she saw a circus performance, which was much more interesting than watching a play.
…
In front of the Mahua shed, Qin Wenli collected the money and pushed his wife: "You go to watch the show. There is no one here now. If you want to get busy, it will be after the banquet."
My wife knows that she is a real drama fan. It’s hard for her to run around. The first half is almost over. Let her enjoy herself.
The trial was just about to begin. Chen Shimei knelt in the hall. Bao Zheng slammed the gavel and said, "Chen Shimei, do you admit your guilt?" The voice was like thunder, and Chen Shimei was so frightened that he trembled all over.
Killing a treacherous man is something that women really enjoy. Yang Xiu was so excited that he went to join the crowd as soon as he got out of the shed.
As soon as the sisters Qin Yu and Qin Ling came out, they ran into Qin Shu. The siblings pulled Qin Ling excitedly towards the circus tent. Under the cover of night, the circus tent looks like a dark castle. There were colorful flags on the tent roof fluttering in the cold wind.
The next show was in ten minutes, and Qin Yu immediately took out money to buy three tickets. Qin Ling said a little uneasily: "Yu Yu, you and Xiao Shu can just watch it. I won't go." Then she stepped back.
Qin Yu grabbed her and said, "Why are you being so polite to me? How about I treat you first, and you treat me later?"
Qin Ling pursed her lips, but finally followed him in.
The tent was brightly lit and the auditorium was filled with children. The first to appear on stage were the animal trainer and a few furry puppies. Those puppies were wearing cute little clothes, could jump rope, do math, and march in line. Qin Shu's palms turned red from clapping excitedly.
Soon after, the monkey and the lion came on board one by one. As time passed, the three siblings could only watch with sweaty palms and their eyes fixed on them.
Outside the circus, Bao Zheng's singing voice was sometimes high-pitched and sometimes low, surrounding the village in the night. The audience held their breath and even the sound of cracking melon seeds could not be heard.
Suddenly, Bao Zheng shouted, "Someone, bring the guillotine!" Four yamen runners came up to the stage carrying a shiny guillotine. The guillotine flashed coldly in the light of the lantern, which made my back feel cold. At Bao Zheng's command, the guillotine fell and Chen Shimei's head fell to the ground. There was a cry of surprise from the audience, and some elderly people even covered their eyes.
After a hearty audio-visual feast, the audience was reluctant to leave for a long time.
The circus was over, but the three siblings were still reluctant to leave and kept reminiscing about the experience as they walked out.
Everyone in the Qin family decided to gather in front of the shop. After a while, the old lady, Qin Shengtian, Hu Yufeng and several children all gathered there. Because there were still people at the venue, Qin Wenli asked Hu Yufeng to take the elderly and children home to rest first. He and Yang Xiu would not close the stall until most of the people had left.
Hu Yufeng gave them a few instructions and then took her family home.
On the way back, people were talking from time to time.
"This troupe is great. Justice Bao sang so well that I was shocked!"
"That's right. I was so scared when the guillotine was cut off that I didn't even dare to open my eyes!"
"Hey, look at you, you idiot. What's there to be afraid of? They're all dummies!"
"You don't understand. The atmosphere was just right, just like the real thing. I and the women in front of me were so scared that we screamed."
Several people laughed and someone sighed:
"Our village hasn't been this lively for many years. Secretary Gou did a great job on this matter."
"Yes, I heard that the troupe earns 2,000 yuan a day. It's different when the money is in place!"
"Oh, it's so expensive? I have to go pick up my uncle and father-in-law tomorrow. I'll be in trouble if I don't watch it!"
This remark suddenly broadened everyone's thinking, and they started to compare with each other for some reason, saying that they also had many aunts and uncles who needed to watch the show, as if whoever had fewer relatives was at a disadvantage.
Hu Yufeng, who was walking in front, was also infected by this atmosphere and decided to ask Yang Jian to pick up her mother-in-law, younger sister, and sister-in-law tomorrow. Her family had paid four thousand yuan, and if more people didn't come, it would be a great loss!
…
On the twelfth day of the first lunar month, before dawn, Qin Shengtian's door creaked open. He hurried to the courtyard and stopped, coughed twice, and then shouted in a low voice, "Wenli, Wenli, get up quickly and let's go burn the first incense."
After a while, Qin Wenli came out with sleepy eyes and said dissatisfiedly: "Dad, isn't there a special day for us to perform a ritual? Why are you burning the first incense?"
"Hey, what do you know? How can performing a ritual and burning the first incense be the same thing? Hurry up, or you'll miss out."
As he said this, he walked out. After taking two steps, he saw his son still standing there in a daze. He came back cursing and pulled him back.
"Dad, my shirt is unbuttoned... Can I just walk on my own?"
The conversation between the father and son gradually faded away, and Hu Yufeng turned over and continued to sleep.
In front of the Xianwang Temple in Xiaogou Village, big red lanterns are hung high, swaying gently in the north wind like bunches of ripe persimmons.
It was clearly still the middle of the night, but the people who had gathered from all directions were all in high spirits, and their steps were hurried as if they were ready to run. Qin Shengtian felt anxious and couldn't help but quicken his pace.
As soon as you step into the temple, you will see a huge incense burner in front of the main hall in the middle. At this moment, wisps of green smoke are rising and someone is kneeling on the ground.
Qin Shengtian immediately regretted it: "I told you to hurry up, but you took your time and someone else got there first!"
Although he was muttering to himself, he kept pushing forward. When he saw an opportunity, he would kneel down and burn incense and paper, and he did not forget to signal Qin Wenli with his eyes to squeeze in.
Qin Wenli, who has no sense of tact: ...
At the Qin family's home, Hu Yufeng had no idea about the affair between the father and son. It was too late yesterday, so as soon as it got light this morning she sat in the house and made phone calls, notifying everyone one after another.
"For the family, there's a play going on in the village, you have to come. Our family is sponsoring it for two days, so you must come!"
"Oh, mother-in-law, there's an opera going on in the village. Jianjian will pick you and your family up to watch the opera later. You must come. Our family will sponsor you for two days."
"Xizi, bring your mother and the kids to watch the show later...your father? Forget about your father, he has already passed away from the world, why would he watch the show? Just cultivate his immortality!"
He called them one by one, counted on his fingers, thought for a while, and finally called his daughter's mother-in-law. My daughter is useless and always does stupid things, but the Yang family is okay, and Niu Niu is a good child, so just do it for the sake of the old people and the children!
"Mother-in-law, you just got up, right? This is what happened. There's an opera in our village, and you and your mother-in-law brought your two children to play..."
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