Returning to the county opera troupe in 77

"ah--"

A heart-wrenching wail echoed from a small room in the corner of the theater.

Chen Xiangdong felt as if his two legs had been broken, with one in front of the other pressed against the ground. The intense pain made his mind go blank.

Chen Xiangdong looked up at Feng Zhengxiao, who was grinning wickedly in front of him, his face pale. He wanted nothing more than to strangle the dark-faced old man.

Just a minute ago, Feng Zhengxiao had told him that it was just a test of how far his legs could go, and he had even carefully asked, "Does it hurt?"

Feng Zhengxiao patted his chest confidently and assured him, "It won't hurt, it won't hurt. Would I lie to you, kid?"

As soon as he spread his legs and before he could even stand firmly, Feng Zhengxiao suddenly lifted his leg and hooked his ankle, the movement as fast as a rabbit kicking an eagle.

Then, without any mental preparation, Chen Xiangdong simply 'slipped' and cleaved it to the bottom with unparalleled smoothness.

A sharp pain shot straight to his head, so intense that tears streamed down his face. If looks could kill, Feng Laohei would have been torn to pieces by now.

Chen Xiangdong was trembling all over from the pain, supporting himself on the ground with both hands.

He was genuinely afraid of having his legs broken. If he had to spend the rest of his life in a wheelchair, he'd rather just die.

Feng Zhengxiao squatted down, patted him on the shoulder, and said with a smile, "See? You went down now. Isn't that much better than you dragging your feet for half a month?"

Chen Xiangdong's throat tightened: "I...I'm not broken, am I?"

Feng Zhengxiao didn't reply. He reached out and grabbed Chen Xiangdong by the back of the neck, pulled him up with a 'whoosh' like pulling up a radish.

Suddenly pulled up from the splits, Chen Xiangdong let out another scream, his legs trembling as he stood up, albeit with his legs pressed together.

"My hamstrings are all stretched now." Feng Zhengxiao patted non-existent dust off his hands and said casually, "It's just a muscle strain in my thigh, nothing serious, it'll be fine in a couple of days. Just do a split every day from now on, and the pain will gradually go away."

Chen Xiangdong's face turned green: "What? Every day?"

Old Fang limped in from outside, still carrying his enamel mug. He glanced at us and said indifferently, "Since you've already split your legs, just bear with it for a few more days. If you don't practice splits in the next few days, all this suffering will have been for nothing."

"The most painful hurdle is over. What follows is a long and arduous process." Feng Zhengxiao nodded, his expression more serious than ever as he looked at Chen Xiangdong: "Child, do you want to learn opera?"

Chen Xiangdong, who was slowly moving his legs while holding onto the table in front of him, suddenly looked up at Feng Zhengxiao in astonishment upon hearing this.

The system interface suddenly popped up at this moment:

[Feng Zhengxiao, the king of Qinqiang opera's painted-face roles, extends an invitation to you to become his apprentice. Will you accept?]

[Qinqiang opera master Fang Zhengsheng extends an invitation to you to become his apprentice. Will you accept?]

He opened his mouth, his eyes wide, and found that Feng Zhengxiao and Old Man Fang were staring straight at him.

It's like being hit on the head with a cotton candy; it doesn't hurt, but it's so sweet it feels unreal.

In his past life, he sometimes dreamed that he was standing on a stage and playing the lead role.

On stage, every appearance and every line of singing by myself drew cheers from the audience that could lift the roof off.

But it was just a dream after all; when dawn broke, the dream ended.

When I woke up, it was still the same woodshed, the same old work clothes, and the same inspection station whose name no one could remember.

Now reborn, he first became Liu Dezhu's apprentice and learned the clapper drum, and then went from a temporary worker to a permanent employee, securing a stable job and receiving government-supplied food.

Now, even figures like Feng Zhengxiao and Fang Zhengsheng, the two patriarchs of Qinqiang opera, are looking up to him, making him feel more and more like he's in a dream.

Seeing Chen Xiangdong staring blankly for a long time without responding, the light in Feng Zhengxiao and Old Man Fang's eyes gradually dimmed.

Old Fang glared angrily at Feng Zhengxiao, complaining, "What did I just say? You wanted to take on a disciple yourself, but you insisted on dragging me along. Look, you've humiliated yourself!"

Feng Zhengxiao kept his eyelids drooping and didn't say a word. Old Fang snorted and turned to leave.

Just then, a "thump" sounded behind him as he knelt down.

"Disciple Chen Xiangdong kowtows to his two masters!"

Old Fang stopped in his tracks, frozen in place. He slowly turned around and saw Chen Xiangdong kneeling upright on the ground, his eyes red-rimmed as he kowtowed three times in succession.

Feng Zhengxiao was taken aback at first, then burst into laughter at Old Man Fang: "You old rascal, that kid even kowtowed, so tell me, are you going to take him as your apprentice or not?"

Fang Zhengsheng blushed deeply, stammered for a long time, and finally simply ignored Feng Laohei's teasing, bending down to help Chen Xiangdong up: "Good boy, get up quickly. It's a new society now, those old things don't work anymore."

Chen Xiangdong was helped up, and then he heard him say, "I'll accept you as my apprentice. Kid, as long as you study opera with me diligently in the future, I promise to pass on all my skills to you."

Chen Xiangdong nodded and replied, "Master, don't worry, I will definitely study hard and never let you two down!"

Fang Zhengsheng grinned, then suddenly seemed to remember something and instructed, "Kid, don't tell anyone that we're taking you on as our apprentice, understand?"

Chen Xiangdong was stunned again. Before he could even ask "Why?", Feng Zhengxiao slapped his shoulder hard with his large hand: "Kid, we're doing this for your own good. If you associate too closely with us old fogies, we're afraid some people will have designs on you and it will affect your future."

Chen Xiangdong wanted to say something, but looking into Feng Zhengxiao's piercing eyes, he swallowed his words.

"Don't be stubborn, listen to your master! We old folks don't care anymore, but you're still young."

He understood Feng Zhengxiao's meaning: as long as the old plays remained banned...

Before the winds completely shifted, these veteran artists were still being secretly watched by some people.

Chen Xiangdong's smile never stopped until he shuffled out of the theater, his legs spread wide and he took one step at a time.

After becoming an apprentice, a new section was updated on the system interface:

[Martial Arts Proficiency (Long-Handed Martial Arts/Short-Handed Martial Arts): 3/100 (Apprentice with terrible basic skills)]

The words Feng Zhengxiao had said to him before he left still echoed in his ears: "You're too thin to carry the imposing presence of a painted-face actor. From now on, Lao Fang will teach you martial arts roles, and I'll focus on teaching you singing and movements."

This statement essentially charted a clear path for his future: not a painted-face role, nor a male dan (female impersonator), but the number one martial arts actor among all the male, female, painted-face, old, and clown roles.