Winter Begonia, Chapter 9: The battle of the huqin mastery

Winter Begonia 《鬓边不是海棠红》Bin Bian Bu Shi Hai Tang Hong
Winter Begonia, Chapter 9: The battle of the huqin mastery

Shang Xirui played who played Zhuge Liang came on stage, Cheng Fengtai didn't recognize him and watched him for a while before he sobered up. Although he couldn't understand how to sing, Cheng Fengtai could calculate that he understood where Shang Xirui was at. Shang Xirui is like a first-class movie star, someone else does the acting and plays what's like at best, he plays what's what. When he changed his costume, he came to the stage, took a step and shook his fan, it was really like a living Kong Ming's return to life, and the three-foot stage locked the Crouching Dragon.


The stage's Crouching Dragon is a real pain in the ass for the opera play which is supposed to be a synced performance and one cannot show because that will destroy the play and the performance, the huqin played by that man still didn't follow or tune with his voice, and the tune can freely go up to 90,000 miles and down to 3,000 feet, and it really caused Shang Xirui's anger to come out. Minister Jin and a few guests who knew how to play huqin frowned. If this was going to be a play service for Cao Siling, the huqin player would have been dragged out and shot. The player had to show off his skills by playing the huqin in a very aggressive way, with all the euphemisms, so that Shang Xirui had no room to interject and sync his voice. But in good conscience, He Shaoqing's big disciple, played the string the best in the end, a section of free play was pulled down, the following people who know the play had to give him good applause. The organist, having had enough of the limelight, returns to the key and starts to play the slow part, but Shang Xirui doesn't sing anymore.

Shang Xirui turned towards the huqin master, took off his beard and said in a serious tone, "Sir, it is not allowed to be played like this."

The organist froze for a moment. Minister Jin and the others looked at the stage with interest, Cheng Fengtai was even more excited watching this part than watching the show. The organist has made a pass, but what is Shang Xirui singing now?

Shang Xirui lectured the man, "When Uncle He, your master, was alive, he used to say that the strings should follow the singer’s voice, and that the singer's voice should not be left out to dry, but help carry the tune. You want to show off that you can play your huqin, but how can you let the people on the stage sing with that speed and style of playing? If we each don't do our jobs and do our part, the play will never be performed."

Shang Xirui's reasoning was very good, but to say so in front of so many people was a disgrace to the organist. He stood up slowly, put the white handkerchief on his shoulder, and said, "You are the one to talk! Who’s selling the foul-mouthed words? You foul-mouthed son of a b8tch, but you the great Boss Shang. Don't say that, although Boss Shang doesn't know a few words, his words are literate."

Cheng Fengtai also thought that Shang Xirui was good at using idioms and he actually nodded his head in agreement below.

"I am not a genius, having followed my master's huqin for twelve years, I don't know what it means to follow your voice and what it means to carry the singer's voice." The huqin master tilted his head and said, uneasily and kindly, "I've heard Boss Shang say that he was amicable to my predecessor, and he is also known in Beiping City for his 'inappropriate civil-military-poetic chaos and six-field penetration'. If you know how to say it, why don't you take advantage of the bargains of your mastery today and show me a piece of your mastering of the huqin, so that I can see it too?" He pulled off the white handkerchief and threw it over Shang Xirui's shoulder.

Shang Xirui didn't expect him to be like this, a little remorseful that he had just spoken sharply and had provoked the drunken man, now it was hard to ride a tiger and calm the situation. He sang and did his thing on stage, even with a hundred thousand people staring at him. However, once he left the scene, he felt uncomfortable being looked at more than once, and he stood on the stage with his hands and feet frozen, his cheeks slightly burning. It is not that he can't leave the stage, but in that case, he may have to offend Minister Jin and make this meeting go downhill.

Minister Jin, however, smiled loudly and said, "In that case, let's just have a moment and take it as an extra reward to hear a huqin play from Boss Shang."

Minister Jin gave the transfer order, and Shang Xirui had nothing to say, so he turned to the stage and sat down, folded the white handkerchief twice in his lap, and was really ready to play the huqin. The opera play was set aside, and it was a regretful thing in his heart. People knew that the man playing the huqin was a madman. It was inevitable that the opera singer would have to shout at him. I was so confused that I invited him. In this way, Minister Jin was offended by the fact that he was not involved in the matter, and that he was not afraid of him when he returned to Nanjing after his official duties. But if you offend Shang Xirui, who has become so popular, you won't be able to enter the theater in the future! The drama mentioned that Shang Xirui singing is a mastery, probably his huqin play is the same thing, the people said this, the people boasted of all kinds of good things, even if there is only a chance that it is a lie. At the end, he quickly joined his ears to collude with him: "Boss Shang, you said."

Shang Xirui thought about it and said, "Call out Fan Lihua from earlier, and let her pick out a fast clapper that she is good at."

"Are you certain?"

Shang Xirui smiled lightly and said, "It's all the same."

The organist stared at him with embarrassed eyes, and said in his heart, "That ignorant child! You can't just play the entire opera with yourself, because all the masters down there know what they're doing, and you think I've played the wrong tune, so they'll have something to say when they get back to Beiping City. It was kind of me to ask you! and you should have refused."




So he asked again: "Boss, I'm here today, and I've got a lot of famous people, and I've got some people who love to play the huqin, their ears are pointy. Why don't show them the good ones?"

Shang Xirui said: ''It's all said and done. Uncle, go on."

With a nod of the opera's voice, all one can say that this one singing is crazier than the one who just played the huqin just now. Otherwise, you can say he is a young and vigorous, like a newborn calf. Shang Xirui really wanted to hit his own face, who can match this crazy energy, but also sing with no resentment!

Fan Lihua's makeup was half removed, and her headgear was all removed. Now it's too late to put it on again. She hurriedly went on stage wearing a pink Dang opera suit casually. Fortunately, her makeup was not off, and she could still see it. She whispered to Shang Xirui: "We are in an ugly match. Bandits set up soldiers to make trouble." [1] Being caught is a troublesome situation.

Shang Xirui nodded his head, and when his men moved the bowstring, the sound of the huqin poured out like water, enveloping the singers' voice in the air, which must be what he had just described as a "the strings carrying the singer’s throat"; and he followed the tune like a shadow, filling in all the imperfections of the voice making the performance beautiful. The other and Cheng Fengtai couldn't hear anything either, they just felt it was very smooth and light, while Fan Lian over there was extremely flavorful and shook his head. Cheng Fengtai asked, "How is it, good?"

Fa Lian said, "Not generally good. I can't believe it! He still has this upper hand in instrument play!"

Ten short sentences of the song really flowed by like running water. The guests stood up and clapped their hands, not knowing whether they were clapping for the voice or the huqin player. Then the whole audience turned their eyes to the huqin player and saw how he was going to bow down. The huqin master who previously cussed out, blushed and stretched his hand roughly and hugged his fist towards Shang Xirui, "I appreciate it!" He said, "I don't want the huqin either.” The huqin master parted the crowd and ran away in shame.

Shang Xirui was the star of this farce, but the crowd on stage was even happier than him. Especially that drama tune, especially the playwright who rushed to Shang Xirui to dust his clothes and hand him tea, really treating him like a living treasure that he has seen for a hundred years.

Minister Jin beckoned and called Shang Xirui down to speak, smiling, "Boss Shang, this is a good show!"

It was a word of praise, and Shang Xirui's face was hot. He stood in front of the heel with a low brow and said, "What a shame I had to disturb Minister Jin's congregation."

Minister Jin looked at him with a smile for a moment, then suddenly said with a change of subject, ''Also. Although the huqin player is at fault, it is only in his part of the group. I don't know if Boss Shang came out and stirred up the drama in the hall for the sake of it."

The crowd was stunned to hear this, never imagining that Minister Jin would say something like this to blame Shang Xirui even when the huqin player was making it hard for Shang Xirui to sing the opera story.

Shang Xirui was also dumbfounded, but quickly replied with a confident expression: "Even if the red begonia is beautiful, it needs a green leaf to match with. How can anyone perform better when one of the participants on the stage is blind to how he is making the other perform badly? It's the job of the opera to sell the strength as a group, to give it all you've got, not to cover up your shame, to fool around, to fool the seat."

Minister Jin listened, with one or two points of surprise and eight or nine points of appreciation on his face, and nodded deeply, "Good, you said it well." From the first time he saw Shang Xirui today, he felt that this man had the charm like Ning Jiulang in the play, and now that he sees him answering questions, he is really on a par with Ning Jiulang’s mentality. After a few words of admiration, he said, "If only everyone could be like you, not caring about hardships, not coveting comfort, and having the ambition to be strong without disgracing the industry, China would be strong."

Cheng Fengtai and Fan Lian exchanged a glance, not knowing whether Jin the Cripple had intentionally said or not, this sentence seemed to be said to them, choking people could not return their mouths, in the end, ginger was old and hot.

Minister Jin turned his head to the drama tune and instructed, "Let the show continue on stage while I talk to Boss Shang for a while." The play is not to be mentioned, and the waiter has to bring a chair for Shang Xirui to sit on. Minister Jin no longer had the mind to watch the drama, and just chatted with Shang Xirui, "Just now when I was watching Xue Jinlian, there were a few verse parts I've never heard before, I don't know where they came from."

Shang Xirui knew that Minister Jin was once a frequent visitor of the opera in period of Ning Jiulang's height performance, and he was extremely knowledgeable in opera, so he had some respect in his heart and said, "I added those verses myself, you heard it, is it still impressive?"




Minister Jin nodded successively: "Excellent. As I say, we might as well do it all the time from now on." He smiled again, ''You and Jiulang both have this ambition. Jiulang used to talk about changing the play, but he was timid and obeyed the rules, only to tinker here and tinker there. It wasn't until I met you that he got serious about the play. I remember a few years ago, you and Jiulang had a production of "Imperial Maiden Flower", didn't you? It is said that it is well written and sung better." As if he was saying something funny, Minister Jin smiled and said, ''I've made a big deal of Prince Qi, slandering the public and offending the Party-State. Suffice it to say, the play is really on fire."

Shang Xirui said, "It was Du Qi who wrote the book. I and Jiulang just played the part."

"Unfortunately I was in Nanjing at that time and missed out. I heard that you went to Tianjin afterward to perform in front of the emperor?" Minister Jin sighed, "And also said that the Emperor cried when you sang 'Whose family's rivers and mountains are long?'"

It was Shang Xirui's first honor to enter the forbidden kingdom on that occasion by the edict of the emperor. It was not long before the Qing dynasty was overthrown, and the imperial family still had its remaining glory. They eat the food left behind by the ancients, and by implication, they are very much in awe of the old dynasty. Therefore, I'm afraid this will also be the first honor in Shang Xirui's life. Afterward, the Xuantong Emperor complimented him to his face and gave him a clay gold fan with peonies and plums, with a poem inscribed by the Emperor and a private seal of the emperor stamped on the fan.

But Shang Xirui now looked back carefully for half a while and said, "I don't know if the emperor cried that day either. When I sang, I never looked at the emperor."

When Shang Xirui sang the opera, the Xuantong Emperor was just an "Emperor" in name. Cheng Fengtai was secretly applauding, this little showman, he's really not your average big mouth!

"Is the Imperial Maiden Flower still playing now?"

Shang Xirui replied, "The play was stopped after Jiulang left"

"Why is that?"

"Other people's don’t always don't play the way Jiulang does it."

Minister Jin was in deep silence for a long time before Fang asked, "Jiulang and you are still in contact?"

Fa Lian squinted at Cheng Fengtai and asked him to listen to people's privacy, but he didn't need to remind him that Cheng Fengtai listened the most seriously.

"Thanks to you, Jiulang is alright. It's just that his voice is collapsing and he can't sing any opera at all, and he only pushed and play chess with Prince Qi every day."

Cheng Fengtai and Fan Lian both hinted that this little showman lacked heart. Everyone in Beiping City knows that Minister Jin and Ning Jiulang had a long affair. Although this sentiment had already been recalled, Minister Jin felt uncomfortable when he spoke so bluntly about the pleasure of Ning Jiulang's living a normal life after he had said goodbye to him.

Minister Jin's face didn't change and smiled in seeming relief, "That's good. He's been singing all his life and it's time for a break." As they were talking, an attendant came over and asked Minister Jin to listen to an important call from Nanjing. Minister Jin excused himself and limped off. As soon as he left, the smile on Shang Xirui's face immediately flexed, Cheng Fengtai took him by the arm and pressed him into Minister Jin's chair, Shang Xirui ouch opened with a smile, and to his right, Fan Lian had also poured a glass of wine and waited for him long ago.

Fa Lian exasperatedly lowered his voice and smiled, “Brother Xirui, what a capable mouth you have! Count on it! Look what you've done! You made that old cripple announce us as brothers!"

He said, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry.” Shang Xirui, unaware of the situation, drank a cup of wine in vain, ate too sharply, and coughed straight up. Cheng Fengtai snapped a honey made rose from a fruit dish and put it to his mouth, which he took in with a bite of his silver teeth, before his coughing slowly stopped.




"Boss Shang, are you okay?"

"En. Yum."

"More?"

Shang Xirui, who was still a good sweet tooth like a child, looked at him and nodded straight, "Yes!"

In fact, the fruit plate is on the side coffee table, there are a handful of the sweets, and he doesn't have to get Cheng Fengtai's consent to eat it. But Shang Xirui was so restrained on the outside that he dared not move much and bluffed.

Cheng Fengtai said, "You tell us one thing about Minister Jin, and this plate is all yours to serve down and eat slowly."

"What is it?"

Cheng Fengtai smiled as he glanced at Fan Lian, who probably guessed it too, smiling lasciviously. Cheng Fengtai said, ''Look Minister Jin, three words of everything he said was about Ning Jiulang. What exactly was the situation between the two of them in the past, you tell us about it."

Shang Xirui listened and silently said, "I don't know ah."

"Why don't you know? Don't you and Ning Jiulang know each other very well?"

"This thing, I just don't know about it." Shang Xirui thought to himself, this is the most private matter of Jiulang, so he knows he can't tell you guys about it! You'll ruin Jiulang's reputation when you're at the mahjong table!

"Minister Jin is coming back, I'm going to the stage to act!"

Shang Xirui was in a hurry and suddenly stood up, and the costume was far less elaborate than Shang Xirui's own work, and the material was probably not strong enough.

"Second Master! Look at you! You are wearing someone else's clothes!"

Cheng Fengtai wasn't too late to reply, and the little playboy ripped the trim from his hand, chagrined, and ran off. Fan Lian slapped the armrest and smiled, "Brother-in-law, before you even split a peach, you broke your sleeve (became a gay man)."

Cheng Fengtai snorted at him, "What a mess." He was also a bit annoyed at heart.

Minister Jin, limping, finally came to the front, sat down as if tired and sighed, ''What is Brother Lian laughing about again? Count your happiest days today."

Fa Lian schooled his face and put on and coughed twice then put on a serious face observing the opera show.





~ Winter Begonia ~





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