Chapter 903: Awkward Hao Li Shuwen

The suona is always a suona, no matter the time.

Even though Wang Yan had consciously moved away and even opened a window to let the sound carry out, it still affected the people here, disrupting their original rhythm.

Even if it didn't disrupt the rhythm, Wang Yan's playing was intermittent, which still affected the mood; listening to it was simply irritating.

"Big Brother, I beg you, go practice outside."

Amidst the farewells of the group and the angry stares of Hao Li Shuwen, Wang Yan finally left this rehearsal hall, found a room on his own, and began blowing against a thick score.

To be honest, Wang Yan was really playing with gusto. Since he was idle anyway, and he was still part of the performance troupe, there wasn't much else he could do these days, so practicing was just right.

"What kind of noise was that? It's you, kid, calling souls here."

A somewhat lean middle-aged man pushed the door open, looked at Wang Yan who was practicing there, and said with a smile.

This man was the political commissar of the performance troupe, named Ning Shan. Actors are people who court death, playing soldiers here.

Of course, these must be clearly distinguished; real people cannot be forced into the script, as they are two separate character settings, and the characters in the play all have complete trajectories. Otherwise, how could Wang Yan have slept with women who had similar faces but various different temperaments?

In the original development, because Liu Feng embraced Lin Lin Dingding and thus received punishment and was transferred out of the performance troupe, He He Xiaoping was completely disappointed in everyone in the troupe. So, during a goodwill performance on the plateau, He He Xiaoping refused to substitute on stage to dance, and pretended to have severe altitude sickness, which was seen through by Commissar Ning. Afterwards, Ning transferred He He Xiaoping out of the performance troupe to a field hospital to work as a nurse.

This transfer was definitely something He He Xiaoping wanted herself; after all, she was thoroughly disappointed in everyone in the performance troupe, did not want to stay and look at those people, wanted to get far away, and never see them again in this life.

But actually, even if He He Xiaoping was unwilling, Commissar Ning would still transfer He He Xiaoping away. Because He He Xiaoping did not obey management, specifically his management, and caused trouble for him at a critical juncture. If He He Xiaoping were truly sick, that would be barely acceptable, but He He Xiaoping was faking illness, which is not an objective reason.

After all, if the performance was messed up, the first person to suffer the consequences would be him, the highest leader of the performance troupe.

In such a situation, eight out of ten leaders would investigate He He Xiaoping; the remaining two might use gentler methods, which would be to pin He He Xiaoping down in the performance troupe, not let her perform anything, give her no benefits, and just let her endure it like that.

"Commissar, did I disturb you?"

"No, I was passing by and followed the sound to take a look. Besides, we are a performance troupe; if we weren't making noise, we'd be finished." Ning Shan waved his hand with a smile, made a small joke, and then asked, "You are from the Northeast and have been here for over a year; have you adapted to our Southwest?"

"I adapted long ago; it would just be better if there were a bit less rain."

"The South is all like this. If there are any problems, come find me anytime. If I can solve them, I will; if I can't, I will report upwards to ensure your parents rest peacefully in the nine springs."

"I'm just the one with many issues; they are the ones who aren't at peace. Commissar, rest assured, I am fine in every way. If there really is a problem, I certainly won't hold it in; if you don't solve it for me, I'll just stay in your office and not leave." Wang Yan said with a smile.

"Hahaha, you... alright, practice well."

"Commissar, take care." Wang Yan politely greeted him, watching Ning Shan thoughtfully close the door and leave.

This time, his identity was nothing extraordinary; his father was a martyr, and after he sacrificed himself, his mother passed away a few years later. He then joined the army, the organization took care of him, he indeed had some skills, so they transferred him to work in the performance troupe.

He was still playing the role of a filial son; his parents were alive and well in reality, yet in every world he transmigrated to, they died early. Of course, his parents' death experiences were also rich, and their identities were all sorts of things.

But speaking truly, if every world had parents, he would actually be irritated. The most important reason is that the time he experienced in the film and television worlds was too long. Staying in reality for one month meant he didn't know how long he would stay in the film and television worlds. If his parents existed the same way every time, even with his temperament, he would become very blurred between reality and other worlds; for him, that was quite dangerous.

This is also a kind of protection from the living father, a heart full of love from the living father.

As for Wei Lan in the real world and the pair of children who would be born in a few months, their influence on Wang Yan was truly too weak; he was ultimately a person with a heart of iron and stone, or perhaps a very high-level actor, enriching other people's lives on the grand stage of life, being someone who doesn't spoil the fun.

Ning Shan's good attitude towards him was, first, because of his father's reason, and second, naturally because he knew how to handle things, had a sense of propriety, got along well with people, yet wasn't conspicuous. In the absence of conflicting interests, it was hard for anyone to dislike Wang Yan; if everyone found him annoying, wouldn't all his many years have been in vain?

After practicing for a long time, finding the feeling, and recovering some of his level, the time had reached evening. Wang Yan finished his practice, washed the suona mouthpiece, returned to the previous rehearsal venue, put it back in the box, and found a place to store it properly.

These things naturally had their places; everyone tacitly agreed on the positions, and everyone put their own things in a pile. Wang Yan's pile had the most things: suonas, several flutes, a somewhat damaged violin, a melodica, and all sorts of miscellaneous instruments.

His LV1 level naturally meant he couldn't undertake goodwill performance tasks, but fortunately, he knew many things; he was a versatile player, good at substituting, capable of doing anything, but basically never needed to go on stage, serving as a layer of insurance, and also counting as someone eating the troupe's rice for free.

So his eating tools were a bit more numerous; cheap things were new, while expensive ones like the violin were discarded by others and given to him for practice. Instruments in this era were also rare things, let alone so-called elegant Western instruments like the violin, which were even rarer. Comrades who played the violin were treated like ancestors.

Wang Yan measured them one by one again and rearranged them properly. By this time, the rehearsal venue was empty; everyone had long since dispersed. In fact, after Su Su Huilan said she was practicing earlier, fewer people had already left. The performance troupe was operating normally, and all tasks were familiar; practicing on one's own was equivalent to having nothing to do.

For a player like Wang Yan, he had nothing to do every day; otherwise, he wouldn't have met Liu Feng and He He Xiaoping who just returned. Every unit has quite a few idle people, especially now before the military reform, where there were more idle people; he occupied a quota.

Immediately, Wang Da the idle person put his hands in his pockets and strolled back to the dormitory.

At this time, the dormitory stairs were all outside, connected by corridors, roughly like the teaching buildings in the South.

One room had eight people, with four beds all in bunk beds. Wang Yan, Chen Can, Zhu Ke, and others, including Liu Feng, were in this same room; it was a mix of many people from the band and the dance and song team living together.

His bed was on the lower bunk on the north side; since he arrived late, it was near the north window. Behind the window was the living quarters for the female soldiers in the troupe. Just by opening it, one could see the doors and windows of the female soldiers' dormitory behind, and vaguely see the female soldiers playing around inside through the windows where the curtains weren't drawn.

At this time, there was only Liu Feng alone in the dormitory; he was fiddling with his luggage and greeted, "You're back. You practiced seriously today."

"It's no problem if one's professional ability is poor; our attitude must be correct." Wang Yan took out his washbasin, found a pair of underwear to change in the cabinet from the cupboard, and asked casually, "Why are you the only one here? Where are the others?"

"We're having dumplings for dinner; everyone went to help in the kitchen."

"That shouldn't be; why did you, the model soldier, come back alone?"

"Are you scolding me? I came back and was busy, only just got free to pack up my things. It's been a week back and forth; I've gotten smelly. If I went to make dumplings like this, wouldn't the quartermaster scold me to death?"

Liu Feng had finished packing by now, holding a lady's small watch in his hand, rubbing the dial with his thumb, smiling cheerfully.

"Whose watch is that?"

"Lin Lin Dingding's."

"I guessed so."

"How did you guess?"

"Lin Lin Dingding is popular; I see that many people seem to have feelings for her. Wu, the propaganda cameraman, and that surnamed Zhang medic... there are several. You specifically kept the watch to create more opportunities to communicate with her, which is normal."

"Don't talk nonsense, Wang Yan. It's just that her watch is quite valuable; I was afraid it would get bumped or lost on the road, so I put it deeper. I only took it out while packing my luggage just now. Otherwise, if something unexpected happened, I wouldn't know how to explain it to Lin Lin Dingding."

"Yes, yes, you're right; I talked too much." Wang Yan responded with a smile, then said, "You've finished packing too; let's go. Let's go take a bath together; you can scrub my back."

"Alright, let's go right now; after washing, it'll be just in time for dinner."

Liu Feng was also straightforward; he stuffed the watch into the neatly folded quilt, flipped out clean clothes and put them in his basin, and the two went together to the bathhouse to bathe, scrubbing each other's backs.

Of course, during the process, Liu Feng couldn't help but praise Wang Yan's muscles; since they were in the same dormitory, everyone naturally knew about Wang Yan's good body: well-proportioned, strong, and capable of fighting.

Men always bathe quickly; besides, there were no pools here, nor a second floor, so it was naturally much faster. The two of them, including bathing, scrubbing off mud, and even washing clothes, didn't take much time in total.

After bathing, the two returned to the dormitory fresh and clean, just as the dinner bell rang.

Immediately, each took their lunch box and chopsticks and went together to the canteen.

At this time, the canteen was very lively because the performance troupe was a large unit. It wasn't just the people performing, playing music, and doing security here; there were also people from other propaganda aspects working here. However, in terms of numbers, the performers and musicians were still more numerous. As for the leaders in the troupe, naturally, they had a separate small kitchen.

The two arrived at the food serving window; Liu Feng actively asked for the boiled broken dumplings, while Wang Yan got a lunch box full of good dumplings. Not only that, he also went to the back kitchen to pour some soy sauce and broke half a head of garlic.

"Let's go; what are you staring at?"

Liu Feng shook his head: "You go ahead first; I need to have a word with the mess officer."

Wang Yan smiled, nodded to the somewhat plump mess officer standing aside with an apron tied around him, then carried his meal box to a seat and joined Chen Can and the others at a table. Everyone ate together, buzzing and humming, and having more people gathered brought warmth—physical warmth, that is.

The dumplings were stuffed with radish filling, so there was at least a little oil in them. Wang Yan swallowed several in one bite, smacked his lips to savor the flavor, and concluded that they were edible, at any rate.

"Wang Yan, pass me a clove of garlic; these dumplings taste so bland. Thirty days in a month, and we only get to make them eight times. Aiya..." Chen Can gulped down dumplings while complaining nonstop.

"It's not bad; ordinary folks can't even get this. I have vinegar here—authentic Shanxi aged Chen vinegar. My older brother came to visit us and brought it; have some." Someone naturally chimed in, pushing the vinegar bottle over as he spoke.

This man was named Wang Wang Youquan; he was nearing thirty, played the flute, had solid professional skills, held a sufficient rank, had his family stationed with the unit, and had two children.

Wang Yan smiled, kept two cloves for himself, and placed the rest on the table: "Everyone, share them out."

As he spoke, he reached for the vinegar to add a couple of drops. Since someone had offered, it would be rude to stand on ceremony.

But just then, a fragrant breeze flashed up behind him; Hao Li Shuwen slapped her hand heavily onto his shoulder, leaned over, and used her other hand to snatch the vinegar bottle.

"What's this, Chen Can? You say the dumplings aren't tasty, yet your mouth hasn't stopped moving." She picked up the bottle, thanked Wang Wang Youquan, gave Wang Yan a snort, and walked off with the vinegar; she was definitely holding a grudge.

Wang Yan was struck speechless and laughed, but said nothing.

"Hiss... that looked pretty heavy." Zhu Ke, as if he were an old sister-in-law feeling the same pain, made faces at Wang Yan: "Is she angry?"

"You're asking me? Who should I ask?"

"No, I heard she dragged you out today; you two..."

"Zhu Ke, if you keep talking nonsense, I'll tear your mouth apart."

Hao Li Shuwen was sitting right behind Wang Yan, keeping an eye on things over here; Zhu Ke's words were not deliberately hidden, after all, since young people are quite prone to stirring up trouble.

"She's angry!" Wang Yan shook his head. "It's nothing; female comrades are all like this. She'll digest it herself and be fine. Brother Quan has rich experience; isn't that right?"

Wang Wang Youquan had a simple, honest face, a mature square-shaped visage, thick eyebrows, and big eyes, bearing some resemblance to Zhu Shimao. He nodded in deep agreement: "Yes, let me tell you..." and began recounting tales about his wife...

In those years, relations between men and women were not exactly taboo, yet neither were they open. However, within this world's song-and-dance troupe, it was understandable. Moreover, Wang Yan had not said anything excessive; he had even quite politely used the term 'female comrades'; he had simply not denied it.

Hao Li Shuwen heard every word clearly; the expression on her face was spectacular, for she had no way to explain herself and felt stifled with discomfort.

If she denied it, that would precisely prove she was 'angry'; if she did not deny it, that would imply there was something between her and Wang Yan; yet if she said nothing at all, her heart felt blocked up.

Seeing the gossipy glances from Xiao Xiao Suizi, Lin Lin Dingding, and others at the same table, Hao Li Shuwen rolled her eyes, poured some vinegar into her own meal box, and said: "This vinegar was brought by Comrade Wang Wang Youquan's family; if you want some, pour it yourself, and don't pour too much—leave some for them."

Having said that, she glumly ate her dumplings. Feeling the occasional gazes falling upon her, she truly felt like tearing Wang Yan apart. Regarding such matters, no matter how willful she might be, she was still a Miss, after all, and felt somewhat embarrassed.

Fortunately, Liu Feng plopped down beside her, drawing others' attention and easing her embarrassment.

Liu Feng sat down holding an enamel mug; directly opposite him was Lin Lin Dingding, who wore a long-suffering expression over her dumplings. He pushed the enamel mug in front of Lin Lin Dingding, opened the lid, and a burst of aroma immediately wafted out.

"Didn't you say you don't like dumplings? I boiled a bowl of noodles for you on the electric stove and added a dash of sesame oil."

"Thanks." Lin Lin Dingding broke into a brilliant smile, her tone casual, and accepted the noodles to eat.

Liu Feng pulled a watch from his pocket: "The watch you asked me to repair is fixed..."

Just as before, Liu Feng recounted some of the details, indicating that he was the one who had repaired the watch.

Lin Lin Dingding admired the watch delightedly: "Liu Feng, your hands are so skillful; you can fix anything." She flashed another brilliant smile at Liu Feng.

"Hurry up and eat, or the noodles will get soggy soon." Liu Feng smiled contentedly, then lowered his head to eat his dumplings.

Hao Li Shuwen glanced at Liu Feng's meal box and exclaimed in surprise: "Yo, Liu Feng, why are all the dumplings in your box broken? You're basically eating dumpling wrappers."

"Someone has to eat the broken dumplings; it makes no difference to me what I eat."

"Xiao Suizi, you must write well in the next wall newspaper issue. What is a model soldier? This is a model soldier!"

Liu Feng laughed, not at all embarrassed, and quite naturally teased them.

Xiao Xiao Suizi had no mind to laugh; she watched Chen Can chatting idly with Wang Yan and the others across from her, then looked at the dumplings Lin Lin Dingding had set aside. She stood up and said: "Lin Dingding, if you're not going to eat these dumplings, don't waste them; I'll give them to the band members."

Saying this, regardless of others, she directly picked up Lin Lin Dingding's dumplings, walked over, and stood behind Wang Yan, placing the dumplings in front of Chen Can.

Meeting Chen Can's eyes and feeling the gazes of others falling upon her, Xiao Xiao Suizi suppressed her inner panic and said: "Didn't you always say you didn't have enough to eat? Eat it all; no leftovers allowed."

"Comrade Xiao Xiao Suizi caring for her comrades is excellent. Next time, don't care for only one comrade; care for us too; we don't have enough to eat either." Wang Yan spoke in a thoroughly annoying manner.

"Hey, don't talk nonsense." Xiao Xiao Suizi, in a bad mood, slapped Wang Yan's shoulder: "Whoever doesn't have enough to eat can just serve themselves."

Chen Can smiled and served Wang Yan two dumplings: "Eat up; just these two. If it's not enough, ask Comrade Hao Li Shuwen to share two with you."

This was what Xiao Xiao Suizi had not dared to say aloud, because she did not dare make such jokes recklessly; she tried her best not to offend anyone and was amiable to all. Hao Li Shuwen, however, was the child of high-ranking cadres; she would never speak so carelessly.

As they spoke here, Hao Li Shuwen turned her head back, her eyes radiating murderous intent.

"Can we just eat properly?"

Chen Can pursed his lips, not caring in the slightest.

Wang Yan acted as if he hadn't heard a thing, cheerfully munching on dumplings.

Xiao Xiao Suizi gave a start; Hao Li Shuwen had spoken so suddenly that she was caught off guard, and she scurried back to her seat.

The people eating at these two tables momentarily fell quiet. The silence belonged to everyone, but the embarrassment belonged solely to Hao Li Shuwen, who kept her head down dealing with her dumplings, while even more gazes fell upon her.

Fortunately, at this moment, Wang Yan, whom in her heart had already died eight hundred times, spoke up.

"Comrade He He Xiaoping, did you go to have your photo taken?"

"Huh?"

He He Xiaoping was sitting off to the side, gobbling dumplings in great mouthfuls, trying her best to minimize her presence; the silence in the air left her equally at a loss, and she had not expected Wang Yan to call her by name...