Chapter 54: The Theater

Early the next morning.

The quiet courtyard of the editorial office was planted with many camphor trees, which remained verdant even in winter. The morning river breeze carried a humid touch as it rustled through the leaves.

"Rustle, rustle..."

The warm sunlight filtered through the gaps in the foliage, casting dappled shadows on the pristine white bedsheets. Cheng Kaiyan slowly awoke, gazing at the unfamiliar ceiling with a deep sense of tranquility.

He had arrived in Jiangcheng by train from the capital on the evening of the twenty-first, making it six days already.

These past few days, he had been busy revising manuscripts at the editorial office, working tirelessly until he finally finished them yesterday.

He had collected his author's fee: two thousand eight hundred and seventy-six yuan and fifty-one cents.

"There's a girl in the village named Xiaofang, so pretty and kind..."

Humming a tune to himself, Cheng Kaiyan got out of bed, opened his luggage, and retrieved a brand-new black overcoat. It was the one he and his mother had bought at the tailor's shop that day, which cost ninety-eight yuan.

Xu Yuxiu's original intention was for him to wear this black woolen overcoat during the upcoming Lunar New Year.

In any family, children always wore new clothes for the New Year, symbolizing joy and festivity.

In Xu Yuxiu's eyes, Cheng Kaiyan was still much like a child, and she practically bought him new clothes whenever he was home.

Upon learning that Cheng Kaiyan was heading to Jiangcheng to meet Liu Xiaoli, Xu Yuxiu had readily packed this brand-new, expensive New Year overcoat into his luggage.

After all, he was going to meet his future wife; he couldn't afford to lose face.

"Splash!"

Washing his face in front of the mirror, Cheng Kaiyan dried himself with a towel, applied a layer of vanishing cream to keep his skin moisturized, and then combed his hair back into a sleek pompadour.

Winter temperatures in the capital could drop below minus ten degrees Celsius, making the weather dry, cold, and windy.

Cheng Kaiyan often saw children in the hutongs with their faces and ears red and swollen from the cold, sometimes even developing thin, painful scabs on their cheeks.

Therefore, any family with a bit of refinement would keep skincare products on hand, such as vanishing cream, Baiqueting, or Yongfang pearl cream.

Having groomed his personal image, Cheng Kaiyan stepped out of the door with a light and brisk stride.

"Today, I'm finally going to see Sister Xiaoli!"

...

Cafeteria.

Cheng Kaiyan ordered a bowl of hot dry noodles and sat down with a bowl of egg wine on his left. The so-called egg wine was essentially fermented glutinous rice soup beaten with eggs.

The fermented rice grains were soft and tender, with golden egg ribbons floating throughout. Taking a bite of the noodles and a sip of the egg wine was the ultimate comfort.

"Teacher Cheng, you don't need to revise manuscripts today, yet you're up so early?"

At the entrance of the cafeteria, Chen Shanshan walked in fashionably late.

"I'm used to it. Have you eaten yet? Join me for a bite!"

"You're paying, though. You're the wealthy benefactor here."

"Deal."

"As expected of a Beijinger, you're quite generous!"

After eating their fill, the two headed straight for the floral market.

Floral markets had already emerged in the 1980s, and fresh flowers, as a decorative item for daily life, were beloved by people. In this era, flowers were perhaps more commonly seen during festivals, celebrations, or special occasions, given as gifts to friends and family.

For instance, orchids were extremely popular in the market due to their unique ornamental value and cultural connotation.

Especially in Changchun, after the clivia was designated as the city flower, it sparked a frenzy of speculation, sending prices skyrocketing. Known as "green gold bars," the market price of a prize clivia once exceeded ten thousand or even one hundred thousand yuan.

"Teacher Cheng, since you're at the floral market, why aren't you heading straight to the Song and Dance Theatre?"

Chen Shanshan asked, tilting her head as she rode her bicycle alongside him.

"To buy flowers, what else?"

"Buy flowers? Are they for the actors?"

Chen Shanshan smiled. She had attended performances several times and often saw audience members go on stage to present flowers during the shows.

The motives were simple: some hoped to gain the favor of the performers, while others wished to express their appreciation for the actors' artistry.

"Indeed."

Following Cheng Kaiyan into the floral market, she found that even in winter, there were plenty of blooms available.

The most abundant were wintersweet, followed by narcissus, camellias, and marigolds.

Cheng Kaiyan ultimately selected narcissus and camellias, wrapping them neatly in old newspaper and placing them in his bicycle basket.

The two then made their way toward the theatre, handing two admission tickets to the staff at the entrance.

Cheng Kaiyan and Chen Shanshan walked side by side into the theatre, their footsteps falling softly and quietly upon the deep brown carpet.

Upon stepping through the doors adorned with dark red velvet, the first sight to greet them was a spacious foyer where a crystal chandelier hung from the circular dome, casting a soft and warm glow that illuminated the exquisite murals and historical photographs of the theatre adorning the surrounding walls.

Rows of curved stairs led up to upholstered seats, more than half of which were already occupied.

At the very front lay a massive stage, covered by a deep blue velvet curtain embroidered with intricate golden patterns. Layered backdrops stood on either side of the stage, while dense arrays of lighting equipment hung from steel trusses overhead.

"What a gorgeous place."

Cheng Kaiyan took in the scenery and remarked.

"Of course. Can anything built by foreigners be anything less than stylish?"

Chen Shanshan pulled him along to find two seats in the fourth row, which were exceptionally soft and comfortable.

"It hasn't started yet. Too bad the theatre doesn't sell popcorn, otherwise I'd definitely want to buy some and try it."

Chen Shanshan muttered under her breath.

"This is a place to appreciate art, how could they possibly sell popcorn?"

"Looking at the program, it seems Liu Xiaoli and the others have a classical dance performance today. Their dancing is wonderful, and they're very pretty too."

"Then our timing is perfect."

Cheng Kaiyan and Chen Shanshan chatted idly while curiously taking in their surroundings.

Was this where she worked? The environment was quite nice.

...

Meanwhile, in the theatre's female dormitory.

"Are you done yet, Danping? I told you every night not to leave your feet hanging outside the quilt, and now look, you've got a stomachache, haven't you?" Liu Xiaoli folded her dance costume on the bed, walked over to the dormitory bathroom door, and asked with concern.

|"Wait for me, mm~"|

"Xiaoli, we're heading out first. Zhang Yi and I haven't eaten yet, so we'll go buy food at the cafeteria first. You guys can come over later." Her roommate, Xiao Caiyun, gave a heads-up and headed downstairs with Zhang Yi.

"Okay."

Liu Xiaoli nodded, staying behind alone to wait for Wang Danping.

After the two left, the dormitory grew quite quiet.

Liu Xiaoli sat on her bed, picked up a children's literature magazine she had bought previously, and began flipping through it aimlessly.

The first page still featured Cheng Kaiyan's piece, "The Submarine at Night." Seeing that familiar yet distant name, Liu Xiaoli lowered her gaze and thought to herself, "He shouldn't be that kind of person. Could it be that his letter hasn't arrived yet?"

A few minutes later, the younger girl was still dealing with her stomach trouble.

"Danping, I'm going downstairs to check the mailbox for letters. Hurry up and come down."

"Got it! Right away!"

Receiving her reply, Liu Xiaoli grabbed her things and turned to head downstairs. The patter of her footsteps sounded like the prelude to an execution—heavy yet laced with anticipation.

Walking up to the mailbox with its rusted door, Liu Xiaoli felt her heart sink.

Sure enough, the mailbox remained empty.

"I really brought this upon myself... A surprise? Is this his surprise? Quite a surprise indeed..."

Liu Xiaoli bit her lip. The biting morning cold turned her fair, delicate nose slightly red, and even the rims of her eyes grew warm.

"Sister Xiaoli, let's go!"

At that moment, Wang Danping rushed down from upstairs.