Entertainment and culture in those days started with cultural propaganda teams.

Chapter 24 Rehearsals in Progress

The rehearsal lasted from morning until noon, and no one complained of being tired or mentioned eating.

Xu Yang was indeed hungry. After his body was strengthened during the transmigration, his appetite was much greater than that of an average person, and his stomach was already starting to rumble uncontrollably.

But he didn't stop. The actors weren't complaining of being hungry, and as the director, he couldn't just give up.

Zhou Yuqin noticed the cold sweat on his forehead and clapped her hands: "Comrades, take a break first, have lunch and then continue lining up. It's Comrade Xu's first day here, we can't let him go hungry."

Li Dazhuang, engrossed in his practice, wiped the sweat from his face and said in a loud voice, "Captain Zhou, I'm not hungry, let me go through it again!"

"You're not hungry, but Xiao Xu is," Zhou Yuqin said with a smile, giving him a glare. "Go to the cafeteria, you need to eat well to have the energy to work."

Reluctantly, everyone put down their scripts and walked towards the cafeteria in twos and threes.

Tian Chunmiao skipped over to Xu Yang, her eyes sparkling: "Comrade Xu Yang, your script is so interesting!"

"I thought you were amazing when I saw you playing the harmonica last night, but I didn't know you were even better at writing scripts! Did you used to work in a performing arts troupe?"

Xu Yang shook his head, subtly changing the subject: "It's just that I like to think about these things. Your acting foundation is good. That rag-throwing action just now would have been even better if it had been a little more crisp. You need to have that 'who says women are inferior to men' spirit."

Tian Chunmiao nodded vigorously, muttering to herself as she mimicked a famous gesture, almost bumping into a pillar in the corridor.

The canteen was small, with seven or eight square tables and a sign on the wall that read "Save food".

There was a queue at the food serving window, where the head chef used a large iron ladle to scoop out one dish at a time with swift movements.

Today's dishes are braised cabbage with glass noodles and braised tofu, and the staple food is steamed buns made from white flour.

Xu Yang found an empty seat with his lunchbox, and Li Dazhuang and Chen Zhiguo sat down on either side of him, like two protectors.

"Comrade Xu Yang, I've been thinking about this. My character has a line, 'This machine is just like a person. If you treat it well, it will treat you well.' I think we could pat the machine a couple of times when I say that line. What do you think?" Chen Zhiguo pushed up his glasses, looking very serious.

Xu Yang chewed on his steamed bun and thought for a moment: "Okay, but don't pat me too hard. You're a technician, not a blacksmith. Be gentle, like you're patting an old friend on the shoulder."

Chen Zhiguo nodded thoughtfully and took out his notebook to write it down.

Xu Yang glanced at it and found that his notebook was filled with notes. Although the handwriting was not as neat as his own, every stroke was written with great care.

Li Dazhuang didn't take notes, but he had a knack for remembering everything Xu Yang said after hearing it only once, and his performances were often even better than Xu Yang had anticipated.

Xu Yang later learned that Li Dazhuang's family had been workers for three generations, and he himself had worked in a steel factory for five years before joining the propaganda team. Playing a worker was not acting for him at all; it was his true nature.

After finishing their meal and returning to the rehearsal hall, Xu Yang told everyone to rest for fifteen minutes.

He leaned against the chair by the wall, closed his eyes, and mentally reviewed the morning's rehearsal.

The pacing could be a bit tighter. A few transitions were a bit drawn out; a couple of lines of dialogue need to be cut.

The emotional climax at the end needs to be pushed to another level, so that the audience doesn't feel like it ends abruptly.

As he was thinking, he suddenly smelled a faint scent of soap.

When he opened his eyes, Tian Chunmiao was standing in front of him holding an enamel mug, steam rising from it.

"Comrade Xu Yang, have some water. I see you haven't had any water all morning, your throat must be dry." She smiled brightly, revealing a set of neat white teeth.

Xu Yang took the enamel mug and thanked him. He had just taken a sip when there was a sudden noise at the door.

Zhang Dahe led a man in his early thirties in as he walked in.

The man was wearing a gray Zhongshan suit, with two pens clipped to his pockets and a black leather notebook in his hand. He walked with his back ramrod straight, his gaze sweeping around the rehearsal hall before finally settling on Xu Yang.

"Comrade Xu Yang, come, come, let me introduce you." Zhang Dahe waved with a big smile.

"This is Officer Liu from our district's Cultural Bureau, who is specifically in charge of coordinating this performance."

"Officer Liu, this is Comrade Xu Yang whom I mentioned to you. During the recruitment assessment, he played 'Katyusha' so well that all the judges were impressed. Now he's putting on a skit he wrote himself called 'Cheer Up'."

Officer Liu stepped forward, looked Xu Yang up and down, his gaze scrutinizing but without any airs.

"Comrade Xu Yang, I've heard so much about you. Comrade He Hui mentioned you to me, saying you're a talented person. This performance is time-sensitive and demanding, so if you need anything coordinated, just let me know, and I'll do my best to cooperate."

Xu Yang stood up and shook hands with Officer Liu. The other man's hand was dry and strong, and he shook it twice before letting go.

"Thank you, Officer Liu. The rehearsals are going smoothly so far, and there are no difficulties at the moment," Xu Yang said politely.

Officer Liu nodded, opened his black leather notebook, ticked a page, and then asked, "What about props and costumes? Do we need to get any from outside?"

Xu Yang thought for a moment and said, "The props are very simple. We can just use what we have on hand during rehearsals."

"As for costumes, since we're playing factory workers, it would be best to borrow a few sets of factory work clothes, the kind that are a little oily, not too new, because it won't look realistic if they're too new."

Officer Liu quickly scribbled a few lines in his notebook, then looked up and said, "That's easy. I'll contact the textile factory in the district, and it can be delivered tomorrow. Anything else?"

Xu Yang shook his head.

"Alright, you guys continue rehearsing. I'll come back tomorrow to check on the progress." Officer Liu closed his notebook, nodded to Zhang Dahe, and turned to leave.

Zhang Dahe pulled Xu Yang aside and lowered his voice, saying, "Xiao Xu, Officer Liu doesn't usually praise people easily. The fact that he said 'I've heard so much about you' today means that you already hold a place in his heart."

"Work hard. If you do a great job in this performance, not only will our propaganda team be proud, but your future will also be bright."

Xu Yang nodded, but his mind wasn't thinking that far ahead. Right now, his biggest concern was getting the skit right.

The afternoon rehearsal went more smoothly than the morning one.

As the actors became more familiar with the script, they recited their lines fluently, moved naturally, and gradually found their rhythm in several key jokes.

In one scene, Li Dazhuang is grumbling to himself in front of a machine. His lines are written in a mix of classical and vernacular Chinese, conveying both the ruggedness of a worker and a touch of simple philosophy.

As he read, he held the enamel mug in his hand. When he read the line, "All a person does is breathe," he suddenly slammed the mug down on the table, splashing water everywhere. He didn't wipe it up, but just stared straight ahead with something indescribable in his eyes.

The rehearsal hall was silent for three seconds.

Then Zhou Yuqin started clapping. Her clapping style was unique; it was slow and deliberate, one clap at a time, each one heavy.

"Dazhuang, this part was good, exceptionally good." Her voice trembled slightly. "That's the feeling—rough yet refined, strong yet gentle. Xiao Xu's script captured it, and you portrayed it perfectly."

Li Dazhuang scratched the back of his head sheepishly, chuckled twice, and returned to his usual carefree self.

Xu Yang stood aside, looking at the group of people in the rehearsal hall, and a feeling he couldn't quite describe welled up inside him.

Before he transmigrated, when he was writing online novels, what he feared most was dealing with people. He would stay home as much as possible and avoid talking.

But after arriving here, in less than a week, he was already standing in the rehearsal hall directing a group of complete strangers, and he was doing a pretty good job of it.

Perhaps time travel changed something.

Perhaps it was influenced by certain people.