Chapter 17: Burning the Old

Let’s start with Chen Siyu. Although she worried about Chen Xuan’ang, she was more concerned about her job, so she went to the song and dance troupe.

In Xu Li’s office, the troupe’s chief, Sun Yuejin, was also there. Seeing Chen Siyu, he knocked on the table and said, “Little girl, Xu Li praised you so much I got calluses on my ears. But you’re too young to choreograph a dance yourself. Who gave you that dance?”

Xu Li chose to be straightforward: “Bai Shan publicly doubted your age and ability, accusing you of copying someone else’s choreography. The troupe leader wants an explanation.”

The “little troublemaker,” infamous throughout the city for her bad character, made the leaders skeptical—though they liked the dance, they didn’t trust her.

Of course, even if they doubted her, she had to work hard.

Chen Siyu said, “From Swan Lake to Spartacus, and then to The Never-Wilting Flower, I love ballet. I watched so many foreign films at the Six Nations Hotel that I’m registered with the ideological committee. Though I’m small, I’ve seen a lot of ballet. From theory to technique, troupe leader, test me!”

A woman steeped in ballet for forty years—she was the troupe’s uncrowned leader.

Looking at this troupe leader Sun Yuejin, he just treats her like a little brother!

Sun Yuejin sat upright and said, “You’ve got quite a mouth on you. Let me ask you—there’s a Soviet ballet called Red Whirlwind. Have you seen it? Tell me your thoughts.”

Because it contained some erotic elements and touched on political issues, Red Whirlwind was only publicly screened at the Six Nations Hotel for three days before being pulled—quite an obscure piece. The troupe leader was deliberately testing her.

Coincidentally, the original Chen Siyu had actually watched Red Whirlwind.

People inside the troupe thought differently from those outside—they cared only about professionalism and cared almost nothing about moral propriety.

Naturally, Chen Siyu spoke openly: “Of course I’ve seen it. But I think it overly highlights Soviet men, to the point that it weakens and vilifies our own women. I feel very outraged about that.”

She added, “However, Soviet ballet suits our Eastern aesthetic better. Technically, I believe we should align more with Soviet ballet. Combining ballet with Mongolian dance would even surpass Soviet ballet.”

The troupe leader’s expression stiffened. “This girl’s got something in her.”

What she said matched several widely acknowledged criticisms of Red Whirlwind within the domestic art world.

Regarding technique, audiences did prefer Soviet ballet, so the troupe’s creations had always been moving toward Soviet styles.

But Chen Siyu was too young; the troupe leader thought that even if she had some insight, it wasn’t much.

Everything still depended on Xu Li.

So he just nodded and then said to Xu Li, “I personally agree with your idea, but Bai Shan is a national-level secondary director, so I can’t directly contradict him. Here’s what we’ll do: you and Chen Siyu produce a separate script. In any case, I want a product that satisfies the higher-ups, no matter who produces it. As for official allocation, as long as your script pleases the leaders, you can assign the position to whomever you want.”

Xu Li wanted to directly give her own director’s position to Chen Siyu, but the troupe leader vetoed that.

Instead, Chen Siyu was required to produce a separate script by herself.

This was basically unpaid labor and unfair.

But Chen Siyu quietly said yes—because fairness doesn’t exist in this world, and capable people don’t ask for fairness, only for a chance to shine.

After the leaders left, Xu Li turned back, pointed at Chen Siyu’s nose, then pulled a mesh bag from her drawer and put it into Chen Siyu’s green schoolbag, saying, “Feel free to revise it boldly. You don’t have a chance to perform on stage yet, but we’ve received orders to make a film version. When that time comes, I’ll fight for you to appear in it.”

Wow, in the 1960s, she might actually get to make a movie?

But with her legs intact, Chen Siyu’s bright future was just beginning, so she wasn’t in a hurry.

She smelled the contents Xu Li had given her and found it pleasantly fragrant, so she asked, “Xu Jie, what is this you gave me? Why does it smell so nice?”

Just then, Little B pushed the door open, fuming: “Xu Li, what do you mean? The Welfare Department clearly gave Bai Shan’s quota to me, so why did you snatch it first?”

“Bai Shan is my husband, I’m entitled to his benefits. What, is Bai Shan mad? Why doesn’t he come to me himself?” Xu Li shot back.

Little B sneered, “You’re always arguing with him, hinting we have disciplinary problems. He wants to talk to you but doesn’t dare.”

Chen Siyu understood. Since she warned Xu Li last time, Xu Li had started digging into the issue. But Xu Li was clumsy—rather than catching hard evidence, she chose to quarrel. This not only disturbed her husband but drove him away.

Xu Li was too weak, so Little B roasted her for a while; Xu Li remained silent.

Chen Siyu couldn’t hold back and said, “Teacher Xu, there’s a woman in our troupe who’s been messing in someone else’s marriage.”

Xu Li gasped, and Little B’s face turned pale. She raised her eyebrows: “And?”

“A young, unmarried girl eyed a balding man in his thirties who’d lost his hair, thinking his high salary, good treatment, and power meant she could push out his wife. But the wife reported them to the ideological committee, and the woman was sent to work on a farm,” Chen Siyu said, implying something more.

Little B curled her lips and said sarcastically, “What about the man? No punishment for him?”

“Of course, they both got sent to the farm. A pair of wild lovebirds—plenty of space out there to roll in the hay. Isn’t that just perfect?” Chen Siyu exaggerated.

Little B smiled wryly, then said, “The wife must be old and ugly and cold-hearted. If she can’t have him, she’ll ruin everything, with no regard for the bigger picture. That husband’s unlucky to have such a woman; the in-laws must hate her to death!” With that, she slammed the door and left.

Wow, Chen Siyu had lived two lifetimes but had never seen such a boldly self-righteous mistress.

Xu Li sat quietly for a while, then admitted, “They even share the same cup, and the perfume Bai Shan bought abroad—the mistress’s is three times more expensive than mine. My suspicions aren’t baseless—they’re definitely having an affair.”

Intellectuals of this era were too naive.

When it comes to affairs, evidence doesn’t help—if you suspect, you should catch them in the act!

“Teacher Xu, lovers need a time and place. If my husband cheated, I wouldn’t show it. I’d make excuses to go on ‘business trips’—which wouldn’t really be business trips—and secretly follow him. Better yet, bring people from the ideological committee and catch them red-handed,” Chen Siyu said.

Catch them in the act?

Now she was not only called petty and paranoid by her husband but also scolded by her in-laws—her mother-in-law even went crying to her own parents’ home to complain.

Her own parents felt ashamed and humiliated.

But if she could catch them red-handed, everything would be turned upside down.

Xu Li’s heart pounded as she said, “Enough of this. Here, take two tickets to a foreign film. You’ve worked hard and have to keep attending classes there, but we must also speed up the creation of The White-Haired Girl.”

Chen Siyu looked at the tickets—they were for Romeo and Juliet.

She had spent her entire life immersed in ballet, so that didn’t matter. But the piano music in the Soviet version of Romeo and Juliet was a world-class classic. Chen Xuan’ang would definitely like it, so she had to go see it with him.

Of course, she had to make a promise: “Don’t worry, Xu Jie, I’ll definitely help you deliver a satisfactory result!”

“It’s for your own sake. The entire troupe has seven director positions. Across the country, countless craft workers can only watch on with no chance. Their average age is 45—and you’re only 18!” Xu Li said.

From that day on, Chen Siyu earned a new title: the unofficial director of The White-Haired Girl.

But what about the dance troupe work? As a low-level assistant, she had to clean the performers’ makeup tables, wash their costumes, and tidy the dormitories every day. Yet she didn’t want to waste too much time and hoped to show results quickly. What could she do?

Suddenly, an idea struck her!

Worried about her younger brother, she hurried downstairs. On the stairs, she almost collided with two soldiers. Just before crashing, she twisted in midair, using the handrail to pivot and evade them.

Before they could reach out to steady her, she had already lightly leapt down to the next floor.

The two soldiers looked back simultaneously. One said, “Wow, that girl’s impressive—like she’s walking on walls and flying off eaves.”

But the other noticed Chen Siyu’s green backpack had come unstitched. Suddenly, with a thud, something fell out.

It was a round, plump object bouncing down the stairs like a ball.

Quick as a flash, the soldier grabbed it and called out, “Chen Siyu!”

Chen Siyu didn’t even look back, dashing away like a whirlwind.

The two soldiers had no choice but to chase after her.

She heard someone calling, but didn’t turn around because she was already late. Xuan’ang should have arrived at Mao Mu’s house by now. Xuan’ang was usually quiet and patient, but if he exploded, he could hurt someone.

She didn’t want those delicate pianist hands to be stained with blood.

Sanli Bridge wasn’t far from the Air Force Academy, but the buses of that era were slow as snails, so Chen Siyu didn’t take one. With her green backpack, she ran all the way and reached the place in just five minutes.

From a distance, she saw smoke billowing from a courtyard. Thin and frail, Chen Xuan’ang stood under a crooked, dead tree. The setting sun lit his faded green shirt, his body trembling slightly.

Chen Siyu stepped forward and just as her hand rested on his shoulder, the boy suddenly spun around, clenching his fists and baring his teeth.

But when he saw it was his sister, his tense nerves instantly slackened, though he kept trembling.

Chen Siyu tiptoed closer and understood immediately: “You started the fire, didn’t you? Aren’t you afraid of being seen?”

Chen Xuan’ang threw down his slingshot and nodded, then shook his head: “It’s none of your business. I did it myself.”

He had thought Mao Mu would present the evidence today, so he started the fire to burn it.

But whether the evidence burned or not, he didn’t know. His fire nearly set the entire courtyard ablaze.

After all, he was just a kid and was frightened seeing the thick smoke over the courtyard.

Besides, Chen Siyu had clearly missed their meeting.

But instead of blaming her, his first instinct was to clear her name.

Actually, even if there was evidence, Mao Mu wouldn’t give it directly to Director Guo. It was only meant as a threat; she wanted antiques and cultural relics and wouldn’t reveal them until the time was right.

Xuan’ang had acted rashly by lighting the fire.

Luckily, the damage wasn’t serious.

Seeing the smoke grow stronger, Chen Siyu tiptoed to check. Not much was burning.

Also, thanks to Wang Xiuer’s interference, no one yet suspected Chen Xuan’ang.

If they got inside in time, they could clear their names. Otherwise, in this era, even a 12-year-old could be sent to juvenile detention for arson and murder.

She noticed a public restroom nearby and went inside, tossing the slingshot into the cesspit. Then she came back, grabbed Xuan’ang, and rushed inside, coughing softly, “Sorry, leaders, I asked for leave earlier. Am I late?”