Chapter 292: Ti Luo
The Beginning of Autumn has passed, and the End of Heat is just around the corner.

When the double harvest was about to end and the leaves of the jujube trees had just turned yellow, the people of Yunxi Village had already prepared a sumptuous banquet for the upcoming celebration of the village cultural activity center and rehearsed the flower drum dance.

The flower drum dance of Yunxi Village is the most famous in the whole Longwan Town.

In the old days when there was a lack of entertainment, in this village with a deep tradition of flower drum dance, everyone, young or old, could perform a few dances. In previous years, as soon as winter came, the village would be busy preparing for the flower drum dance in the first month of the lunar year. All households would spend a lot of effort to prepare food for the Spring Festival flower drum dance team to "transfer" their homes; every family would take this opportunity to boast about their good "family background".

This year is quite different. It is only August when the summer heat is at its peak, but the people of Yunxi Village, who have been working like oxen and horses for more than half a year, have already been swept up in the joyous wave of the cultural center celebrations as if possessed. Perhaps many city people do not understand the significance of the auditorium to a rural village at that time. It is often a landmark building in a village. It is not only the place where the village affairs are decided, but also involves the villagers' weddings and funerals. In other words, two of the three major events of people in that era, from birth to marriage to death, had to be completed here.

Now, with the generous support of Zhang Yunqi and others, the auditorium of Yunxi Village has been built in a grand and spacious manner and upgraded to a cultural activity center, so the celebration ceremony is even more carefree. Several village committee cadres headed by Zhang Guorui have long started the overall preparation of the village cultural center celebration, arranging buffets, various entertainment programs, sending invitations all over the world, and arranging specific matters such as receiving guests.

When it came to big events for the village collective, the most enthusiastic were the young people. They spontaneously undertook the heavy work of decorating the auditorium, moving goods and decorating the colorful gates. Some people who went out to work also calculated the time and rushed back. They could not make a lot of money, so they raised some funds, five yuan each and ten yuan each, and bought a tractor full of firecrackers and salutes. On the day of the celebration, they set off firecrackers in front of the colorful gates built in front of the cultural activity center. The sound of the firecrackers made people's ears numb.

Zhang Yunfeng also came to the village this time. This former farmhand of Yunxi Village is now a big boss in the city that the young people in the village envy, but he is still as loyal as he was when he was broke. Of course, when he came back this time, he was still inevitably surrounded by villagers asking questions like "When will you open a branch?", "Does your fish meal shop need staff now?", "By the way, have you and Xiaonan set a date for your wedding?" and other such headache-inducing and embarrassing topics.

On the day of the celebration, the most eye-catching thing was the big red list posted on the door wall of the village cultural activity center, which marked the list of funds raised and donations for the construction of the activity center. After the celebration, a monument will be erected to commemorate it. Among them, the highly famous Zhang Guoxiang and Ji Zhong donated 5000 yuan each. At the top of the list was the old man Zhang Liushun, who raised 10 yuan and donated 10 yuan.

The banquet was held in the main building auditorium. After the firecrackers and salutes were set off, in the smell of gunpowder, one dish after another, not delicate but thick and plump, was served on the round table. Zhang Yunqi was forcibly carried to the chair of the auditorium by the village cadres. Such a seat was hot on the butt. Except for his father Zhang Liushun, the others at the same table were all elderly people in the village. In the affairs of the village, these well-dressed old men were the absolute leaders and authorities.

After the banquet, all the talented people and performers of the flower and drum dance in the village gathered on the colorful gate in front of the cultural center. The women were dressed in bright colors with long ribbons tied around their waists. The old men and young men were all dressed neatly in black on top and blue on the bottom. To the melodious beats of gongs and drums, these people danced gracefully, and the road immediately became a long colorful river. Zhang Erma, a famous performer in the village, was naturally the center of the colorful river. He spoke eloquently and wittily, often giving people a feast for the ears.

After drinking, Zhang Yunqi found Ji Ling and a few other girls. When he squeezed into the lively crowd with them, he saw Zhang Erma, who had a white spot painted on his nose and was holding a cocktail, performing the ancient opera "Liu Hai Cutting Wood" with the village widow Liu Lanxing, which was performed by Hunan singers Li Guyi and Jiang Kun at the 1984 Spring Festival Gala.

"Sister Hu!"

"Hey!"

"My wife."

"what?"

"Who are you comparing me to?"

"I compare you to a cowherd, and you are no different at all."

"Then I can't compare to Luo!"

"You have more than him."

"Sister Hu, you are my wife Luo."

"Brother Liu Hai, you are my husband."

"Sister Hu, please follow me."

"Brother Hai, please lead the way." "Let's go..."

"Xingluoho..."

"Let's go..."

"Xingluoho..."

This ancient opera was sung vividly and rhythmically, and the crowd was filled with cheers. Even the little kids in the village jumped for joy, chasing after Zhang Erma's funny costume and performance. Ji Zhong and Zhang's father and mother were accompanied by Zhang Guorui and some elders in the village, standing on a dirt platform above the colorful gate, watching with great interest. His spirit-like daughter Ji Ling loved the excitement of the countryside and was among the crowd watching.

Zhang Yunqi came close to her and asked loudly: "Have you decided where to study next semester? If you don't want to go to the provincial capital, that's easy. You can eat and live in my house and sleep in Chunlan's bedroom. Of course, if you are embarrassed, I don't mind collecting some living expenses from your comrade Lao Ji."

Ji Ling curled her lips: "Stingy! Who is embarrassed?"

Chu Jian, who was standing next to him, heard it, hesitated for a moment, and suddenly said, "Ji Ling, live at my house? We can go to school together."

Zhang Yunqi was stunned for a moment.

Ji Ling's eyes were already narrowed with a smile. She suddenly took Chu Jian's hand and skipped towards the center of the turbulent crowd in the distance.

In the distance, the seven-colored ribbon stretched along the road like surging waves. Led by the "dragon head" Zhang Erma, and accompanied by the clanging of gongs and drums, the dance team with flower drums on their shoulders rose and fell, stomped their feet and turned over, drawing thunderous applause and cheers from the audience on both sides.

Zhang Yunqi picked up a piece of dogtail grass and was about to catch up with the main group, but he was somewhat surprised to see Zhang Guoxiang waving at him not far away.

Zhang Yunqi had few interactions with Zhang Guoxiang, the senior leader of the Municipal Education Bureau and Zhang Guorui's younger brother. He had only come into contact with him a few times because of the matters concerning his elder brother Zhang Yunfeng and Zhang Xiaonan. He was not quite sure what Zhang Guoxiang wanted to talk to him about at this time, but he still walked over and followed Zhang Guoxiang, who was holding his hands behind his back, to a small mound beside the road.

Zhang Guoxiang asked him, "The terrible incident that happened in your school last time didn't cause you any harm or trauma, did it?"

Zhang Yunqi replied: "Uncle, I'm fine, but the girl I injured hasn't fully recovered yet and is now recuperating in Yunxi Village."

Zhang Guoxiang nodded: "Don't worry, I will personally intervene in this matter and will definitely deal with it strictly, severely and quickly. It's not just Lin Zihao who has such bad means and has a very bad impact on the campus environment. The leadership of the No. 1 Middle School in the city also has an unshirkable responsibility for such a thing happening in the school. Now the Dean of Academic Affairs Luo Dahai has been dismissed."

Zhang Yunqi was stunned. He didn't care whether Luo Dahai was dismissed or not. He just didn't quite understand the deeper meaning of these words. He didn't know why Zhang Guoxiang was so enthusiastic to handle this matter for him.

At this time, Zhang Guoxiang said to him earnestly: "You should pay more attention to these aspects in the future. Don't compete with those rich children in the school. If there are things that cannot be solved by the education system within a reasonable range, you can come to me. Young man, you are different from them. Your vision and ideals should be far-sighted. Look at Yunxi Village now. Because of you, the world has changed a lot. You have a heavy burden on your shoulders, which is the hope of our fellow villagers for a better life."

At this point, Zhang Guoxiang patted Zhang Yunqi's shoulder heavily, and walked into the crowd with his hands behind his back. At this moment, the village's flower drum team had already moved to the threshing ground and was rushing towards the new industrial park of the Longjingyuan Canning Factory. Both sides of the Crescent River were crowded with revelers...

Zhang Yunqi stood on the small earthen slope and lit a cigarette. He looked at the jubilant village and the mountains in the heat of summer for a long time. In half a month, it would be autumn. The grass and trees turned yellow, and the melons fell. It was the harvest season.

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(End of this chapter)