The literary era since 1979

Chapter 234: The brave old Qin, restore our land

The "Viscount" flying from Shanghai to Yanjing landed smoothly at the Capital Airport. Li Xiaolin supported Li Yaotang and slowly walked down the boarding stairs, and saw a group of people standing on the tarmac.

Dialects are also included.

"Bagong!"

"Brother Ba!"

Amid the calls, Wan Jiabao was the first to walk forward.

Li Yaotang was touched but helpless: "Alas, I told you not to come to the airport to pick me up, but you guys insisted on doing this. Why bother, why bother?"

"Pak Gong, please don't say that."

Zhang Guangnian, Feng Mu and others greeted them with a smile.

Wan Jiabao asked, "Brother Ba, you are 78 this year, right?"

"Yes, seventy-eight." Li Yaotang said.

"I am seventy-two, you are seventy-eight, together we are one hundred and fifty years old, and we are still communicating. What a blessing this is, brother Ba, you make me happy, you are my true friend! Old friend!"

"Hahaha!"

The elders greet each other, and the younger ones chat with each other.

Li Xiaolin, Wan Fang and Fang Yan gathered together and chatted as they walked. "Among all your opinions, Dad's favorite is 'Lingnan Literature'. He said that this kind of literature that deeply explores national culture and regional culture is vital and worth promoting..."

"Lingnan literature is still just an empty shell, just like the previous 'pure literature', without any representative works to support it."

Fang Yan said that only after "The Grandmaster Huang Feihong" is published and Lingnan literature has a representative work to support it can it go further.

Then, Lingnan literature developed, and this literature rooted in national and regional culture had support and was able to go further.

Layer upon layer, it's like a thousand-layer cake.

"Have you ever thought about how to define this kind of literature that has its roots in ethnic and regional culture?"

Li Xiaolin asked curiously, "Or maybe give it a name that's easier to understand, like reflective literature, Lingnan literature, or pure literature?"

"Not ready yet."

Fang Yan gave a mysterious smile and said, "We'll have to wait and see."

"What are you waiting for?"

Li Xiaolin and Wan Fang looked at each other.

Fangyan smiled and said that it depends on whether "The Grandmaster Huang Feihong" can ignite the fire of Lingnan literature. Even if the fire of Lingnan literature is ignited, it depends on whether it can spread across the country and drive the exploration of local ethnic and regional culture in all parts of the country.

Let the bullets fly a little longer!

While the three were chatting animatedly, Li Yaotang and Wan Jiabao were looking at them calmly, especially Fangyan.

"Xiao Fang has made progress again."

Li Yaotang sighed.

"Yes, poetry, prose, novels..."

Wan Jiabao smiled and said, "In terms of drama, he helped a lot with Shang Yang this time and gave a lot of ideas."

"The more you say that, the more I look forward to tomorrow's show."

Li Yaotang walked slowly with a cane.

"After reading the letters you wrote to me, I have always wanted to write something. In the past, I was exhausted. I either had no idea where to start or my writing was so unbearable that I really had no idea what to do."

Wan Jiabao said: "But I am unwilling to give up. I want to write something great before I die. Otherwise, I won't do this."

"Now, isn't there a book called Shang Yang?"

Li Yaotang said a few words to comfort him.

Wan Jiabao said, "For this Shang Yang, I hope Brother Ba can help me watch it carefully, just like he did for Thunderstorm."

"Okay!"

Li Yaotang couldn't help but recall the scene when "Thunderstorm" was performed that year, which simply caused a sensation in the whole of Shanghai.

…………

The next day, night gradually fell.

The People's Art Theatre was particularly lively tonight. There was a sign at the entrance, which prominently displayed the play being performed: "Shang Yang".

Tickets for the performance were sold out early.

Fortunately, Fang Yan bought a few tickets in advance and took Fang Hong and Fang Yan to meet up with Shen Shuang, Chen Xiaoman and their family.

People gradually entered the venue with their tickets.

"Brother, why are you different from usual..."

Fang Yan looked forward and then around. There were many police officers and guards patrolling and on guard. She couldn't help but start to wonder.

"Don't ask if you shouldn't ask."

Without waiting for Fangyan to open his mouth, Fang Hong scolded him.

When Fang Yan saw that her brother also had a serious look on his face, she immediately pursed her lips and kept silent, and followed them in obediently.

There were crowds of people and a lot of noise.

Looking at the rows one by one, Fangyan can find familiar faces in the Federation of Literary and Art Circles, the Writers Association, the Publishing Bureau, and major mainstream newspapers and magazines. Almost all the audience are comrades who are related to culture.

"So many people!"

"Wow, what a show!"

Fang Hong and the others couldn't help but exclaimed.

While they were talking, they each found their seats.

Fang Yan was arranged to sit in the third row, next to Wan Fang and Li Xiaolin. On both sides were basically the main creative staff behind the drama.

Wan Jiabao, Li Yaotang, Zhou Yang, Zhang Guangnian, Feng Mu and others sat in the first row, and the seat in the middle was always empty.

After saying hello to Wan Fang and the others, Fang Yan said a few greetings to the familiar people around him, and then waited quietly for the performance to begin.

At this moment, the whole audience suddenly burst into an uproar.

The old man, Hu Muqiao and others walked slowly and calmly.

"Clap clap clap."

Waves of warm applause spread from the stage to the backstage.

"What should I do? I'm so nervous."

Song Dandan clenched her fists and her palms were sweating.

"Dantan, how about trying jogging on the spot?"

Zhu Lin relayed the method of teaching in dialect, saying that before going on stage, the actors are in a cold state and need to warm up.

For example, jogging in a big circle, jumping jacks, high leg raises...

"Really?!"

Song Dandan was surprised and delighted. She immediately did as she was told and walked around Zhu Lin in circles. "Lin'er, why did Teacher Fang only tell you about this method and not us?"

"that is!"

Jiang Wen added: "Teacher Fang favors you too much."

"Don't talk nonsense!"

Zhu Lin was anxious to clarify on Fang Yan's behalf: "I took the initiative to ask Teacher Fang for advice. You are not like me. When I am on stage, I get nervous easily. My mind goes blank, my body becomes stiff, and I often forget my lines..."

Just as Jiang Wen was about to speak, the lights dimmed.

It means that the performance is about to begin.

The originally noisy sounds in the theater became quiet in a short time, and the curtain opened with the announcer's announcement.

The first scene is about the defeat of the Qin army. When Duke Xian of Qin was dying, he called Bao Guoan, who played the role of "Duke Xiao of Qin", and Zheng Rong, who played the role of "Ying Qian", over and told his story in grief and anger.

Never forget the national hatred!

We must avenge the Qin State!
Watching Bao Guoan's performance, Fangyan seemed to see Cao Cao who dared to assassinate Dong Zhuo at night, full of passion and courage.

At this moment, Cao Aman's soul possessed!
Bao Guoan is not fighting alone!
Even though he was under tremendous pressure, Bao Guoan had performed his role without any mistakes so far, and in the third act, during the Qin Dynasty's "Longzhong Discussion", he and Lan Tianye's "Wei Yang" had a hearty rivalry that delighted the audience.

"The model of Wei is the strength of its military and wealth!" "The model of Qi is the strength of its wise rulers and officials!"

"The model of Chu, the strength of the vast mountains and rivers!"

"And these three strong ones are not fundamentally strong and are not worth emulating."

"........."

"Strongness is only temporary, not long-term. If you meet a wise ruler, you will be strong; if you meet an ordinary ruler, you will be weak; if you meet a foolish ruler, you will perish."

As the plot continued to develop, the old man looked at the blue sky and night on the left, then at Bao Guoan on the right, and finally gradually turned his gaze to Bao Guoan, especially when he said the "White Horse and Black Horse Theory".

"Yes!"

“It doesn’t matter if the cat is black or white, as long as it can catch mice, it is a good cat.”

The old man patted the armrest of his chair with great satisfaction.

Hu Muqiao noticed his look and understood what he meant. Taking advantage of the 15-minute break, he immediately went over.

"I'll take a look at what's going on with Silly Guazi."

The old man said to "let it go for a while" and "take a look."

Hu Muqiao silently kept in mind that "Shang Yang", this magnificent reform drama, would once again bring about the wind of reform.

…………

After the intermission, the show continues.

"Wei Yang" played by Lan Tianye, confronted with old clans such as Gan Long and Du Zhi in the court and refused to give in to each other.

"I have heard!"

"If the benefits are not 100, don't change the law! If the achievements are not 100, don't change the tools!"

"There is no fault in following the ancient ways, and there is no evil in following the rules!"

"Gan Long" played by Gu Wei said the words in the "Changing the Law" chapter of "The Book of Lord Shang", and vowed to uphold the old system and respect the ancient laws until death.

“There are different teachings in previous lives, so what ancient teachings are there?
If the emperors don't reconcile, what's the point of following etiquette? "

Lan Tianye's eyes were as bright as torches, and he immediately refuted.

After a dispute broke out between the reformists and conservatives in the court, the emperor moved a tree to establish Xin and Gongzi Qian cut off his nose. The fierce conflicts were like waves in a storm, with climaxes one after another.

Scene after scene, wave after wave.

It was not until Duke Xiao of Qin died and Shang Yang was torn to pieces that things gradually returned to calm. The atmosphere in the entire hall was filled with a faint sadness because of the deaths of Duke Xiao of Qin and Shang Yang, the monarch and his minister.

However, just when most of the audience thought that the film would end in such a tragedy, King Huiwen of Qin, played by Jiang Wen, faced many Qin soldiers, pointed his sword to the east, and shouted in a rough voice:
"Qin! Go east!"

"Go east! Go east!"

In this last scene, the Qin soldiers played by Chen Daoming, Zhang Guangbei and others sang in unison as they walked:

"Let us bravely fight together against the national crisis."

"We will fight until the blood is shed dry!"

"Jiujiao Lao Qin, restore our rivers and mountains."

"We will fight until the blood is shed dry!"

Then, a series of female voices were heard from the off-screen voiceover.

"In the west, there is the Great Qin, rising like the sun."

"A century of national hatred, the vicissitudes of life are hard to resolve!"

To the sound of music, female characters of the Qin State, such as Lü Lu, Zhu Lin, and Song Dandan, returned to the stage one after another and sang in unison.

"To the west lies the Qin dynasty, rising like the sun. A century of national hatred is hard to resolve!"

Hearing the phrase "a century of national hatred", Li Yaotang and others immediately thought of the century of national humiliation since the Opium War.

Then, men and women sang together, their voices thundering through the hall:
"How can there be peace and tranquility when the world is in turmoil? Qin has sharp warriors, who can compete with them?"

Listening to the passionate singing, Li Yaotang was suddenly startled:
"This part is not in The Great Qin Splitting. Who wrote this piece of music?"

"Who else can write words like this except Xiao Fang?"

Wan Jiabao smiled and said, "Brother Ba, what do you think?"

"Magnificent! Magnificent!"

Li Yaotang felt the momentum coming towards him, clapped his hands and became excited.

"This was his idea. He wrote a special lyric for it and asked a comrade named Zhao Jiping to compose the music."

Wan Jiabao smiled with satisfaction: "The song is called "The Strong Old Qin", I think it is the finishing touch!"

Li Yaotang said: "The waves behind will push the waves ahead. The future will be dominated by young people like Xiao Fang."

"Yes, it's good to be young, full of energy and creativity," Wan Jiabao said. "Every time I sit in front of the mirror, I have the urge to shatter the mirror, but I just can't do it. Alas, I'm old, old."

"Not old, not at all."

Li Yaotang comforted him: "Tolstoy wrote "Resurrection" at that age, and you wrote "Shang Yang" at this age. You still have a long time to live, and you can write a few more."

"That depends on whether there are any good blueprints."

Wan Jiabao said seriously, "It can be said that without yesterday's "The Great Qin Splitting", there would be no "Shang Yang" today."

The singing gradually came to an end, and Chen Daoming, Zhang Guangbei and other Qin soldiers faced the audience and shouted:

"Wind! Wind!"

"East wind! East wind!"

"Wind! Wind!"

"East wind! East wind!"

A murderous aura swept over.

Especially the word "east wind", which made everyone in the audience excited and couldn't help but think of "the east wind prevails over the west wind".

Li Xiaolin was greatly shocked and could not wait to ask, "Yanzi, where does this 'wind' and 'east wind' come from?"

“Of course it was created.”

Fang Yan said: "In ancient times, when fighting, people had to shout out some sounds, just like beating drums and ringing gongs. Especially in the wilderness, they had to use human voices to convey the message. Even charging soldiers had to shout out. So I discussed it with my teacher and finally decided on 'wind' or 'east wind'."

Wan Fang added: "My father's comment at the time was, 'When the wind blows, nothing is imperishable.'"

"Okay!"

Li Xiaolin could feel the Qin army's invincibility, and the audience present could also feel the Qin army's might and majesty.

The more than three-hour-long drama finally ended with such roars, leaving the audience with a feeling of emptiness after the climax.

Each of them seemed to have entered the time of the sages, and couldn't help but imagine that if the Qin army was us, then this "eastward march"...

"It's very comfortable!"

The old man's eyes sparkled, his spirits were high, and he clapped his hands.

"Snapped."

"Clap clap clap."

Gradually, the audience began to applaud spontaneously, and some even stood up while clapping, expressing their love and admiration for the drama.

More and more audience members stood up in the theater, and the applause became more and more enthusiastic, reaching its climax like a tsunami.

Until the actors finished their curtain calls and the curtain on the stage slowly drew up, the audience's applause continued.

The applause lasted for more than ten minutes, and the audience expressed their love for "Shang Yang" in this way.

"Brother Wan, congratulations on having another classic work!"

Li Yaotang also stood there, clapping his hands.

“I always wanted to write something of some quality, but I just couldn’t.”

"At the age of 72, I finally wrote something great!"

Wan Jiabao looked at the curtain that had been drawn on the stage, his eyes gleaming with hope, and he muttered:

"I want to break the glass mirror when I am crazy, give me back my youth as red as fire!"

(End of this chapter)