dognovel Chapter 58 The Performing Arts of the Era (Including the War of Resistance) 7
Chapter 58 The Performing Arts of the Era (Including the War of Resistance) 7
However, the few who dared to launch a final counterattack were ultimately powerless against the prevailing trend, and the outcome remained unchanged. Through negotiations, Japan signed the surrender document on December 9, 1943, and, as agreed, evacuated its soldiers and civilians from China within the stipulated time.
On the day of the evacuation, Liu Yuxi waited early near the port of Shanghai. When the Japanese commander-in-chief was about to board the ship, she placed the more than 30,000 corpses of Xiao Rizi in her spatial storage directly on the open ground of the port. The sudden appearance of the "mountain of corpses" not only frightened Xiao Rizi, but also startled the Kuomintang officials who came to "see them off".
No one could explain how these corpses suddenly appeared. Many of the Japanese soldiers on the ship, upon seeing the bodies and facing defeat and a humiliating return home, broke down in tears! The Japanese officers, unable to leave the bodies in China, had to order some soldiers to disembark and carry them back onto the ship. During the transport, they discovered that each corpse appeared as if they had just died, not stiff at all, and fresh blood was still seeping from their wounds, making it even more eerie. Furthermore, some of the soldiers were veterans who recognized some of the men, confirming that the corpses had likely died between 37 and 42.
How were these corpses preserved, how did they appear, and what was their significance? With the discovery of a small Japanese card that read, "Those who wage war will be punished by heaven!" everyone was certain that these corpses were killed by that mysterious person. As for who he was, how he preserved the corpses, and how he got them here, no one could answer those questions.
Once the Kuomintang has completely withdrawn, what follows will be several years of internal war. This war is inevitable because of differing governing philosophies. If there is no war and the Kuomintang continues to govern, then China will be America's little brother. Although it will receive economic aid and develop rapidly, militarily, it can forget about developing its own large-scale weapons of mass destruction. It will forever be at America's beck and call: "Hey, come and eat!" Democracy will be out of the question!
Liu Yuxi certainly supported the Communist Party, but after all, they were all Chinese, and she didn't want to see the domestic strife. So after sending the last batch of weapons and supplies to the Communist Party, she went to Chongqing to visit her mentor and then took a boat to Hong Kong.
She opened a theater in Hong Kong, partly for her own enjoyment. She hired some staff, including some local Cantonese opera actors. She wasn't really looking to make money from the theater; she just wanted to provide a place for people who might come to Hong Kong to work in the opera industry. Besides, her goal in this life was to learn opera. Although she knew Peking Opera, she hadn't had time to learn other opera genres yet.
She also kept in touch with her mentor, Wang Juan, through letters. She often described the daily life at the theater and the audience's reactions when she went on stage—in short, she was trying to seduce her mentor. Her mentor was married, to a man arranged by his family. She could tell they had nothing in common. Her mentor's life was comfortable enough, but she felt mentally repressed. A woman accustomed to being waited on and having seen the finer things in life couldn't adapt to the mundane realities of daily life. Of course, those blinded by love are an exception, but clearly her mentor wasn't.
The master was already married unwillingly, and on top of that, she only gave birth to a daughter. She didn't want to have any more children, but her husband's family definitely wanted a male heir, so conflicts continued.
In the end, the master still came with her daughter. Liu Yuxi arranged accommodation for them, helped them obtain Hong Kong residency, and arranged for a Filipino maid to take care of their lives. When the little girl was old enough, she would go to school, while the master would continue performing at her theater to earn money.
Throughout her life, Liu Yuxi continuously studied various opera genres. In her early years, she could only visit famous figures and masters, but after she herself became well-known, she began to exchange ideas with them.
By the 80s, she had created opera-style songs. She didn't want opera to decline for another thirty years like it had in the previous life. Opera practitioners and enthusiasts had persevered for decades.
In 84, Liu Yuxi, at the age of 60, returned to the mainland and bought the theater where her troupe used to perform. She reopened the theater. Because of the tapes that came from Hong Kong, which contained many opera songs, the number of young people interested in opera was increasing. Liu Yuxi's theater always had a good attendance rate.
Liu Yuxi also wrote some scripts with elements of Peking Opera, such as the rise and fall of a Peking Opera family, or the male and female protagonists of an anti-Japanese war drama who were born into Peking Opera families. When these scripts were made into TV series, they sparked another wave of opera popularity. People of all ages could sing a few lines of classic excerpts on the streets.
Therefore, trends can be manufactured and led. Just like modern advertising, diamonds are promoted by jewelers. In reality, diamond production is very high, and they can now be artificially manufactured. Jewelers still need to strictly control sales to maintain their high prices. Yet, once you buy one, its value depreciates, which explains everything.
And what about skincare and makeup products? To paraphrase the author's middle school chemistry teacher, "Except for Ya Shuang (a popular Chinese skincare brand), all skincare and makeup products contain chemical ingredients." If they all contain chemicals, how can they be good for the skin? What? Are you going to use preservatives on your skin while you're still alive?
After 84, Liu Yuxi settled in Beijing and often exchanged and learned from people in opera associations. She was also a member of an opera association and was over 60 years old. No one would be so proud of her.
When she was in a good mood, she would invite a group of association members to perform at her theater. Don't underestimate these veteran performers; their skill and stage presence were unmatched by any young person. Therefore, whenever she staged a play by these veterans at her theater, tickets were always hard to come by.
Throughout his life, apart from a few thrilling years in his youth, Liu Yuxi spent most of his time with opera. And some things become more and more fascinating the more you learn and understand them.
Liu Yuxi passed away in 97 after witnessing Hong Kong's return to China. And indeed, it's true! "At seventy-three or eighty-four, even the King of Hell won't take you; you'll go on your own!" Don't dismiss these as unscientific sayings; I've been to school too. But the author believes that while many ancient sayings lack scientific evidence (after all, there wasn't much science back then), the probability of most of them being true is generally accurate. If you're interested, you can look them up!