Year 1983: I was a carpenter in Northeast China

Unsure if they could buy movie tickets, the group didn't squeeze in to watch the Yangko dance performance. Instead, they went to retrieve their bicycles, which they had locked up somewhere.

After they met up, they went straight against the flow of people towards the movie theater.

As soon as the three bicycles turned onto the north road, it became obvious that there were fewer people.

However, there were quite a few people looking out at the movie theater entrance from a distance.

It seems that quite a few people share the same thoughts as them.

After all, although it's already February in the Gregorian calendar and the Beginning of Spring has passed, the outdoor temperature is still around minus 20 or 30 degrees Celsius. Staying there for too long will make you feel freezing, and it's definitely not as comfortable as sitting in a movie theater watching a movie.

Besides, nowadays, most people don't visit each other's homes on the first day of the Lunar New Year. And since lunch at home is eaten late, it's perfect to go back and eat after watching a movie.

"There are so many people, are there any tickets left?"

"Yeah, I wonder if there will be any tickets left for the next show."

"It's alright, let's go take a look first."

Compared to his mother and sister's worries, Xu Bei was more open-minded and took a "whatever will be" attitude.

Whether Zhou Qingwan and Liang Huihui, who were riding almost side-by-side and lagging behind, thought the same way is unknown.

However, although he said that if there were tickets, Zhou Qingwan and the others would buy them, how could he really do that? So he immediately increased the speed of pedaling.

At the same time, Liang Huihui, who was deliberately riding slowly, glanced at Xu Bei and the others ahead, and then turned the handlebars towards Zhou Qingwan.

Then, lowering her voice, she said, "Wanwan, I didn't realize you were so familiar with them."

Zhou Qingwan couldn't be honest about going to her family's house to help with tutoring for a few days, but she also didn't want her cousin to gossip when she got back, so she said softly, "It was alright. After all, my aunt helped me find the jade pendant, and I'm quite grateful."

Liang Huihui was present when the jade pendant was mentioned, and she could understand the gratitude. However, she still felt that her cousin was acting strangely, unlike her usual behavior.

"I know, when they opened their store later, we went and bought some things worth tens of yuan, which was a way of expressing our gratitude."

Zhou Qingwan pursed her lips slightly behind her scarf. "Well, we also got something. We can't just forget about the favor just because we showed our support."

"No, not at all." Liang Huihui glanced ahead again, her gaze lingering on Xu Bei, who was riding at a faster pace. She muttered in a voice only the two of them could hear, "To be honest, that kid is quite handsome. Wanwan, you're not starting to like him either, are you?"

Zhou Qingwan's face flushed red instantly.

She was incredibly grateful that it was winter, so she could cover herself with a scarf and hat; otherwise, she would have been immediately noticed.

"Sis, what nonsense are you talking about? What if someone hears us again..."

Liang Huihui giggled twice, "Okay, okay, I won't say anymore, alright?"

Xu Bei and Zhao Fengying, mother and daughter, also heard some of the sisters laughing and talking behind them, but they couldn't make out the details as they got further away.

They arrived at the movie theater first, and then Xu Bei handed the bicycle handlebars to his mother and walked quickly toward the ticket window.

From a distance, it looked like there were quite a few people gathered, but as you got closer, you'd find that they were mostly standing in twos and threes, with only two people actually queuing in front.

Therefore, it was soon Xu Bei's turn.

Zhou Qingwan and Liang Huihui had just rushed over, but they couldn't keep up with his speed.

"Comrade, do you have any five movie tickets left?"

"Yes. It's seventy-five cents in total."

"Okay."

As Xu Bei spoke, he quickly handed in the exact change.

The woman sitting at the ticket window skillfully collected money, wrote notes, and stamped tickets. Soon, five movie tickets, still covered in fresh red ink, were handed out.

As Xu Bei took the tickets, Zhou Qingwan, slightly out of breath, ran up to him and said helplessly and embarrassedly, "Brother Xu, didn't we agree that we'd buy the movie tickets..."

Facing the girl so close to him, her cheeks flushed and her breath sweet as if she had been running, Xu Bei's smile deepened. "We did agree, but I arrived early. Little Zhou, aren't we friends? We'll be seeing each other a lot more often in the future, so don't worry too much about this penny."

Zhou Qingwan bit her lip. "But..."

Just as she was about to say something, Liang Huihui caught up with them, followed by Zhao Fengying and her daughter Xu Juan, who had locked their car.

The words that were on the tip of his tongue had to be swallowed back for the time being.

Xu Bei waved the movie tickets in his hand at the group of people, "We're pretty lucky to have gotten them. Let's go stand over there and wait for a bit. The movie starts in about ten minutes."

Zhao Fengying exclaimed "Oh dear!" and smiled so broadly her eyes disappeared. "That's great! I was worried I wouldn't be able to buy it or see it."

"Yes, me too. I watched the movie 'Romance on Lushan Mountain' several times before it was released, but I still couldn't get enough of it."

Xu Juan has gained a lot of experience selling goods in the store, and her interpersonal skills are much better than before. She even asked Zhou Qingwan and the others about their situation quite naturally.

"Sister Xiaowan, Sister Huihui, are you like this too?"

Zhou Qingwan and Liang Huihui exchanged a glance, not wanting to argue about a few cents any longer, and started chatting.

"We are too. So when we heard it was being re-released after the Lunar New Year, we wanted to watch it."

"Yes, especially the female lead who changed into more than forty fashionable outfits, and she looked so good in every single one of them. I even took her stills from the show to a tailor shop to have the same outfit made."

Xu Juan immediately said enviously, "Really? You would all look especially good in them."

Who can resist sweet words? Liang Huihui couldn't stop smiling after hearing them. "They're alright, aren't they? My favorite is a purple dress. Your sister Xiaowan also made one, and it looks better on her than on me. No, I think it looks even better on the lead actress, Zhou Yun."

Zhou Qingwan was surprised that her cousin said that in front of everyone. She glanced at Xu Bei, who was a few steps away, and became even more embarrassed and annoyed. "Sis, you're teasing me again."

Xu Juan nodded very seriously, "I also think Sister Xiaowan is prettier than the female lead."

Liang Huihui pointed at Xu Juan and laughed, "Look, even that little girl said the same thing, which means I'm telling the truth."

Xu Bei wasn't just standing in the background; his mother pulled him aside to talk to him.

He listened intently to the conversations on both sides, trying to multitask.

Even when the three girls were chatting enthusiastically about clothes, they all seemed to deliberately avoid mentioning the swimsuits in the movie, as well as the groundbreaking kiss that is said to have set a precedent for kissing scenes in Chinese films.

After all, in the 1980s, when ideas and values ​​were relatively conservative, even a kiss on the cheek was unprecedented, and people were too embarrassed to talk about it in private.

About ten minutes later, a staff member wearing a green military overcoat announced that ticket checking would begin.

The group quickly followed the flow of people, had their tickets checked, and entered the movie theater.

Once they found a row of seats with plenty of empty spaces, Xu Bei, adhering to the principle of ladies first, let them go in first, while he waited in line.

Liang Huihui didn't hesitate and took the lead, followed by Zhou Qingwan and Xu Juan.

Zhao Fengying quickly pulled Xu Bei's arm and pushed him forward, while also giving him frequent winks.

So, everyone's seating arrangement changed so that Xu Bei and Zhou Qingwan were seated with Xu Juan between them.

Although they weren't sitting side-by-side, they could still chat and talk without any problems, and some people were quite satisfied...