Chapter 407 403. Black Language
What kind of jargon is this?
Luo Yihang didn't understand at all.

Pull at Captain Zhang's sleeve and ask him to explain.

Captain Zhang was also very excited at this time.

But if the potential financier asks, I have to answer.

I whispered to Luo Yihang, "Before liberation, there was a traditional activity of the Gu Gu opera. Every year on the second day of August, there was a competition at the Yang County City God Temple Theater. That is, the opera troupes competed and performed. The Yang County City God Temple Theater was built in the fourth year of Hongwu. It faces south and has three stages on the left, middle and right. The left and right are the side stages, and the middle is the center stage. It is specially used for opera competitions."

"On the second day of August, there will be three performances in a row. They will be performed at the side stages at noon and in the afternoon. Anyone can perform. It is considered a rehearsal. Usually, only small troupes and apprentices will perform."

"The main competition will start in the evening. Famous actors from all the big opera troupes will go on stage and sing 'Chaitai Opera', which means that each troupe will sing a similar play, with similar length, structure and characters, and even similar costumes and makeup. It can even be the same play. Each troupe will sing one act, and they will compete directly on the same stage in the same scene."

"The August 2nd Chenghuang Temple performance is the largest of all the competitions and the largest of all the stage performances. It lasts from dusk to dawn."

"In such competitions, it is very important to know which team will start the match. In those days, people didn't care about the rule of law, so people would just fight to get the start. The team that beat the others would go first."

"As for Paodai Lao Wan, it means that the Lao Wan troupe is good at Paodai opera, martial arts opera, and fighting. No one can steal the show from them. The singing style is the same as Paodai Lao Wan, which means that the same troupe sings the best. In the August 2nd competition, the same troupe almost always wins."

"The "Lao" in Lao Wan doesn't refer to a long time, nor does it mean old or new, but means the eldest, the beginning, or the first. He was originally called Lao Da Wan, and later shortened to Lao Wan..."

What complicated folk customs and rules.

This is the period of time when Captain Zhang was explaining to Luo Yihang.

Grandpa Luoluo and Teacher Xu had calmed down a little and let the students go home first.

Everyone came to Captain Zhang's office and asked Grandpa Gonggong and Teacher Xu to sit on the only old sofa.

Captain Zhang and Luo Yihang moved their stools and sat opposite.

Pour some tea, sit down and start chatting.

This story can't be shortened...
-
After sitting down.

Teacher Xu couldn't help but sigh.

"I didn't expect that there were still seniors from the old Wan Zi class alive. That time, the old Wan Zi class suffered the most. I thought..."

Having said this, he quickly shut up and looked at Grandpa Gougou with an apologetic expression.

Grandpa Gonggong waved his hands and sighed, "It's okay, it's all over."

But he didn't plan to talk more, so he asked, "Who is your master, girl?"

Teacher Xu immediately replied, "Do you know Red Cherry Zhang Jinfeng?"

"I recognize him, I recognize him." Uncle Gonggong stroked his beard with satisfaction. "Zhang Jinfeng, a kid picked up by the Tongle Society, Liu Tiantai's apprentice, has a good voice, and is worthy of being in the Tongzi class. Is he still alive?"

Teacher Xu shook his head and said, "He passed away in 82."

"Alas." Uncle Gou Gou sighed. He just heard the name that had been buried in his memory, but he had been dead for forty years.

They were clearly in the same place, but they didn't know each other and had never met.

Fortunately, by this time, Grandpa Gougou had calmed down. He was old and could look at things more open-mindedly. He was even more relieved to learn that his acquaintance had lived into the eighties.

"It's a good thing to be able to save a life, a good thing."

Teacher Xu also sighed, nodded, and shook his head, as if lost in memory, and murmured: "My master was injured that time, and he never fully recovered and passed away early."

The two were speechless for a moment...

Luo Yihang was listening on the side, feeling anxious. What was going on? Why were they playing guise again? What was going on?

He turned around and looked for Captain Zhang to explain.

Director Zhang counted on his fingers and whispered, "During the Republic of China, there were many troupes of the opera. At that time, they were called "ban" or "she". There were more than 40 troupes with the same prefix, including Wan, Hai, Tian, ​​Tai, Tong, Shun, Long, Xing, Qi, Su, Jiqing, Tongtai, etc. Some of them even had branches..."

Captain Zhang has this problem. He starts telling a story from the beginning and never gets to the point even after talking for a long time.

Look, before he finished speaking, Uncle Gou Gou spoke again.

Captain Zhang hurriedly stopped talking. "Let's not talk about that. How did you become a disciple, little girl?"

Teacher Xu has gotten used to Grandpa Gou Gou calling her a girl.

This old man seemed to be of the same generation as his master. He looked similar in age as well.

I didn't mind it and replied, "I joined the troupe in 1954 and became your disciple."

"Huh?" Grandpa Luo Luo was stunned and asked hurriedly, "Was the Tongzi class still there at that time? I looked for it at the beginning, but there was no news at all."

Teacher Xu asked back: "When did you find it?"

Grandpa Gonggong replied, "It was in 1952 or 1953. I searched for more than a year."

Teacher Xu smiled bitterly and said, "That's completely off topic. Let me explain it to you in detail."

Teacher Xu took a sip of tea, cleared his throat, and recalled a long-forgotten story.

Talk it out.

"In 1950, Yang Guifang, the sixth-generation owner of Tongle Society, gathered the two troupes, Jule and Xiehe, and co-founded the Han Diao Gugu Opera Troupe. Since it was the new China, the name could not be the same as before."

"At that time, only these three classes were still there, with a total of more than ten people."

"Borrow Feng Miao's old box and start the show again."

At this point, Grandpa Gonggong suddenly interrupted her and said, "Since the show has started, I should have heard about it. Why can't I find it?"

Teacher Xu looked sad. "We reorganized the troupe in January 50, but it disbanded in August of the same year."

"Ah!" This time there were two exclamations, from Grandpa Gou Gou and Luo Yihang together.

I don’t understand. We finally reorganized the troupe, why did it break up in just half a year?

"No one is listening?" Luo Yihang asked.

Teacher Xu shook his head and said, "There are still some people listening to the opera, but it's because the old box owner, Mrs. Feng Miao, has taken back the old box, so the opera can't be performed anymore."

There is a new term, which Luo Yihang doesn't understand.

Master Gonggong understood and scolded: "Feng Miao, what does she know? I have known for a long time that she is worthless. I can't find her anyone else!"

Teacher Xu sighed again. Today she sighed more times than in the past month.

"At that time, only Feng Miao still had the old box. The others were scattered, destroyed, and gone. It was so difficult back then..."

Uncle Gonggong had no choice but to let out a long sigh.

what does it mean?

Luo Yihang talked to Captain Zhang again.

Troupe leader Zhang explained, "In the old days, opera costumes and props were very expensive. The troupe couldn't afford to buy them themselves, so they had to rent them from the box owner. These boxes were also used for sealing and unpacking of other operas."

"At the beginning, Feng Miao was the only one who still had the boxes. He had to pay rent, which was very expensive. The money the troupe earned from performing was not enough to pay for the rent. Later, when he could no longer pay the rent, Feng Miao simply stopped renting the boxes, preferring to let them rot in his hands."

Isn't this the exploitation of workers by those who control the means of production?

People like this should be put under streetlights.

Thinking of this, Luo Yihang felt inexplicably a little weak.

He hurriedly asked, "What happened next?"

At the same time, Grandpa Gonggong also asked the same question.

But Teacher Xu gave a completely unexpected answer.

(End of this chapter)