The Ups and Downs of the Commoners 2 Page #8

This book is the second volume of the novel "The Ups and Downs of the Commoners". It will tell you about caused by the disastrous consequences of the "Great Leap Forward" and the People's Commune Movement in China in the middle of the last century to the livelihood of the Commoners, as well as the difficult path of study of the protagonist of this book, Fang Zhengben.

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Coincidentally, just as Fang Zhengben handed in the "Stipend Application Form" and waited for the school's approval, he received a "Remittance Advice". This is the 3 yuan RMB sent to him by his aunt Paternal from Chengdu according to the previous agreement. According to the school's regulations, he took the "remittance slip" and first found the head Teacher Tang to sign it, then went to the school's general affairs office to stamp the official seal, and then borrowed money from his classmates to engrave a private seal on the street before going to the post office to withdraw the money. For Fang Zhengben, he is happy to receive a remittance of 3 yuan RMB. He calculated alone that there was 3 yuan RMB here, and if he could apply for a 3 yuan RMB stipend, his living expenses for next month would not be a problem. Who knows, when Teacher Tang announced the list of students allowed to enjoy the stipend in his class, he was not on the list. A little unwilling, he summoned up the courage to find Teacher Tang and asked, "Teacher, have I not been approved for my Stipend application?" Teacher Tang explained: "Because your father and mother are still alive, there is an older brother at home, and your family also has foreign aid. Didn't you receive a remittance of 3 yuan RMB the other day? In our class, some students have more difficult families, and one is an orphan. Therefore, this opportunity should be given to other students who are more difficult." Just like that, his application for Stipend fell through.
He don't know if Teacher Tang really doesn't understand the situation in the countryside or deliberately finds these reasons to prevaricate. In fact, at that time, all the means of production of the peasants were confiscated, they could not even find a piece of chicken feathers in their homes, everything could only be allocated by the commune, they did not have any commodities in their hands that could be traded in the market, there was no market in society for commodity trading, and they could not even find a place to sell their labor force. If there is no one in the family to receive a salary or no outside aid, even if there are many people, it is impossible to make money.  Only people in the Lianghekou, thanks to an "Ammonium Chloride Factory", so they can temporarily sell it for a few small bucks by digging tree stump.
It was Saturday again. At dinner that day, Fang Zhengben saw several high school classmates busy hanging curtains on the stage in front of the cafeteria. After a while, a long purple curtain covered the entire stage. It turned out that Xinghua Middle School had a rule that on weekends, as long as there was no homecoming holiday, school almost all will hold the Entertainment Gala. This curtain is for the upcoming Entertainment Gala.
The teacher on duty shouted at the stage: "Students! After everyone has eaten, everyone take away their own bowl and chopsticks. The weekend Entertainment Gala is being held here tonight, so everyone is welcome to come early! ”
Before the meal was finished, the master worker was busy cleaning up the bowls and basins, wiping the dining table, and then moving the table to the both sides of the canteen or behind the canteen, overlapping them high to make room for the front and middle of the canteen.
After Fang Zhengben and Wang Dingjun finished eating, took the bowls and chopsticks back to the dormitory, went to the classroom to bring their own stools, and placed them in the area that the school had long demarcated. They sit here every time they listen to a report, or watch the Entertainment Gala.
A master worker filled the gas lamp with kerosene, pressurized enough air, and lit it.. Its asbestos bulb was quickly burned to an incandescent state, shooting dazzling light all around, illuminating the entire stage.
The curtain was lifted, and two female students from the high school class appeared first. They each wore a short white satin embroidered apron, and white bloomers, green embroidered shoes, and held a piece of fabric ready for embroidery. They walked around the stage, came to the front of the stage, and sang openly: "The sun is shining in the sky, the magpies are chirping, the elder sister of the Zhang family, the younger sister of the Li family, sisters are embroidering. ...... Embroidery a Yuejin Reservoir, the beautiful scenery is praised by everyone..." This is a Sichuan ballad-singing written by a teacher and performed on the same stage as his students. Its content is singing about the  Yuejin Reservoir, depicting its infinite scenery after its completion. In this imaginative picture, it is: the blue waves ripple in the reservoir, and the numerous islands is like many stars; Boats walk on water, fish swim in water; White swans float on the water, willow branches fluttering in the wind; There are many pavilions on the island, and the fruit trees are lined up in rows; There one can see distant and near mountains, and on the hillsides are full of cattle and sheep. It's a wonderland on earth! The choreographer pulls instrument urheen accompaniment in the corner of the stage.
Their wonderful performance won a round of applause from the audience.
Next, saw two boys in the third grade of junior high school hurriedly appear from both sides of the stage, as if they didn't open their eyes when they walked, and when they reached the center of the stage, they collided face-to-face. A Crosstalk began. This is a show for written and performed by themselves in under the guidance of their teachers. The content is celebration of new things such as rural public canteens, steelmaking with native methods, deeply cultivate the land, and "High-yield Satellite Fields" since the "Great Leap Forward" movement.
Followed by a skit "Salesman", which celebrates the employees of supply and marketing cooperatives sending goods to the countryside.
Below is another Allegro "Song of the Hundred Zi", which counts the crimes of rats and praises the "Remove Four Pests Movement".
Immediately afterwards, Meng Jingyu, the entertainment committee member of their class, appeared in the center of the stage with a delicate and light posture. Her neck-length hair was particularly neatly combed today. Although she did not deliberately wear makeup, she looked particularly charming. Under the strong gas light, her neat white teeth shone like a row of pearls embedded in her mouth. One of her songs "Humiliating the Moon" (1) is even more voice like a silver bell and sings like a warbler:

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