The next day.

Jay Lee Circus.

There was a babbling and clear singing voice from the backstage, which sounded like "Sifan".

This "Sifan" is a fold of opera repertoire in the Kunqu opera "The Legend of the Sea of Evil", which is written about the little nun Sekong, who was sick when she was young and was sent to Xiantao Nunnery by her parents to live.

“

He looked at us,

Let's keep our eyes on him.

He is with us, we are with him,

Two times more worry.

”

The voice is like a lark,

But the pronunciation is Wu Nong's soft language, which is somewhat incompatible with Kunqu Opera.

It's a Chinese girl who sings,

She was no more than fifteen or sixteen years old, fair-skinned, her eyes were as agile as a white rabbit, she was alert, and her hair was long and black, like a silky black satin, combed into a dignified high ponytail.

"Whew~"

She sighed.

Just then, another girl came next to her,

"Xiao Dai ~ your dad ......"

The girl who sang "Sifan" was named Li Dai, and her father Li Jie was the head of the Jie Li Circus.

The person who spoke to her was her friend Zhou Zhou.

Li Dai pursed her mouth,

"Leave him alone!"

"Poof~"

Zhou Zhou couldn't help but sneer, leaned over, teased Li Dai's high ponytail, and said in a low voice: "Why did you make your hairstyle like this again?" Uncle will definitely beat you when he sees it~"

Li Dai said: "Fight? He was reluctant! ”

Zhou Zhou laughed again,

"That's not a fight~ That's it! He's going to babble. ”

Li Dai also laughed coquettishly,

"How nice this hair is, I've seen a lot of American ghost girls make it like this. However, I don't think it'll catch on soon. Have you heard? Now there is a princess head in New York, and it is said that the princess named Annie is the favorite. ”

Zhou Zhou said curiously: "Princess Anne? It's the first time I've heard of it! Xiao Dai, you are amazing! It's all known. ”

Li Dai blushed slightly,

In fact, she didn't know what the princess's head looked like, but she had heard the guests mention it.

At that time, there were still some keywords,

What journalists,

What Lu,

What Roman holidays,

……

She knew that Rome was a beautiful city, but unfortunately she hadn't been there.

The girl couldn't help but think about it.

Zhou Zhou pinched his friend's face and whispered, "What are you doing?" What do you think? ”

Li Dai couldn't help but "Huh? "With a bang,

"I didn't ...... Didn't think about it. ”

"Alas......"

Zhou Zhou sighed,

"I know you like Peking Opera, but you also know that in the current situation in the United States, it is not easy for us to eat together."

Li Dai lowered her head,

"That's not Peking Opera, that's Kunqu Opera."

How do Zhou Zhou understand this?

In her opinion, babbling is no different from babbling and dumb mocking,

Anyway, neither makes money in the United States.

Now the economy is not very good, and even circuses and acrobatics are not profitable, let alone circuses like theirs, which have a large number of Chinese, and do not attract locals.

Fortunately, they are not Chinese workers.

Zhou Zhou heard that some Chinese workers were so oppressed that they had to form gangs.

The Chinese have formed a combat force, which should not be underestimated,

After all, China is also martial, and such a large territory is obtained by expansion, not as a gift for buying things.

Zhou Zhou asked: "Then what is Peking Opera?" ”

Speaking of this, Li Daike became interested, and flicked her sleeves with a smile,

"This is called Peking Opera!"

Jojo:???

The little girl looked confused.

Li Dai showed an expression of "children can't be taught", and sang: "The island ice wheel is beginning to turn, see the jade rabbit, and see the jade rabbit rising eastward." The ice wheel is far from the island, and the sky is very clear. When the moon is empty, it is just like Chang'e leaving the Moon Palace, and the slave is like Chang'e leaving the Moon Palace. ”

Zhou Zhou is even more confused,

"Isn't this still some kind of Kunqu opera?"

The origin of "The Drunken Concubine" may indeed be Kunqu Opera,

However, after entering Beijing during the Guangxu period, it has begun to evolve independently, until Mr. Mei Lanfang gradually becomes a full-fledged person.

So what Zhou Zhou said is not wrong,

At the beginning of the 20th century, Mei Lanfang was still a hairy boy.

Of course, Li Dai doesn't understand the history of the development of Peking Opera, and she can't tell one, two, three, four, or five in theoretical knowledge, but she only knows that the two are different types of opera.

She glared at her friend in shame,

"If you don't understand, don't ......"

As a result, before the word "nonsense" could be spoken, I heard a cheer from outside.

"Good! Well sung! ”

Someone opened the curtain and walked in.

Zhou Zhou was shocked, and then I remembered what I was doing when I came to find Xiao Dai,

"Hmm...... It's over! ”

The two girls lowered their heads in a panic.

Li Dai asked in a low voice in her hometown, "What's going on?" ”

Zhou Zhou said: "A few American ghosts came to my uncle, and my uncle asked me to call you over, but I forgot about it. ”

Li Dai's head is dizzy,

"Ah......h

Friends are good at everything, but they are too unreliable.

She cautiously raised her eyes,

I saw my father Li Jie come with three people,

Two of them were white men, one old and dignified, the other noble.

They were none other than Eliot and Wardhouse.

And one of the strangest of all,

It was an extremely young Chinese man, without beard and hair, handsome and handsome, with his own bearing.

And the strange thing is that he is wearing a well-cut Western-style suit, which is worth a lot of money at first glance, plus a pocket watch with rubies, which is full of gentlemanly taste.

Can Chinese people dress up like this in the United States?

Some are beyond recognition.

Elliot was curious,

"What are the two little girls muttering?"

He asked Lu Shi.

Lu Shi spreads his hands,

"I can only hear a rough idea. No way, they speak in tongues. ”

Elliot was stunned for a long time, laughing,

"Good, good! Professor Lu, you speak English fluently, and you can even switch between British pronunciation and American pronunciation freely, but when you meet your Chinese dialect, you actually say that you don't understand it very well, which is really unexpected. ”

Lu Shi also laughed,

"Chinese dialects are sometimes interlingual, and there is no problem."

Elliot patted him on the shoulder,

The atmosphere is relaxed.

Li Dai and Zhou Zhou looked even more stunned,

Neither of them expected that a Chinese would be able to talk and laugh so well with Americans.

Moreover, just looking at that American, the status is not low.

What's going on?

The two girls were puzzled.

Lu Shi was curious,

"Which of you just sang the "Drunken Concubine"? Forehead...... It's "The Drunken Concubine", right? ”

He actually doesn't understand Peking Opera.

For modern people, tradition is precious, but pop songs are still better.

Li Dai and Zhou Zhou glanced at each other, and at the same time aimed at Li Jie with the corner of their eyes.

The latter nodded imperceptibly.

thereupon

"It's her (me)!"

Zhou Zhou took a step back.

Li Dai's teeth were crushed, and she wanted to bite her friend hard.

Lu Shi looked at it next to him and wanted to laugh,

It's all what plastic sister flowers.

He said, "It's okay, I think you sing very well." It's just that I heard Brother Li say, you are a circus and an acrobatic troupe, how can anyone sing? Shouldn't this be a must-practice, right? ”

Li Dai raised her head and glanced at Lu Shi,

And then it went down again,

"Hmm."

Lu Shi scratched his head,

Could it be that the modern Mandarin I speak was also a dialect at the beginning of the 20th century?

But Gu Hongming has no problem listening to it......

He asked the other party, "Don't you understand what I'm saying?" ”

Li Jie looked anxiously beside him, and interjected: "No, no, no! Mr. Lu, what you said is Zhili dialect, which is very standard, how can you not understand it. ”

After speaking, Li Jie glanced at his daughter.

Li Dai said: "I can understand." ”

Wu Nong whispered.

Lu Shi said "um" and continued the topic just now: "You haven't answered me yet." ”

"Alas......"

Li Dai sighed,

Mr. Lu...... Huh......"

She raised her head and looked at Lu Shi in a daze, only then did she notice that her father addressed the other party very respectfully,

What kind of "sir" is this young man?

Lu Shi asked, "What's wrong?" ”

Li Dai hurriedly shook her head,

"No, no, I just ...... I...... Ah, by the way, why do I practice Peking Opera. Professor Lu, you have also seen it, I am sixteen...... Not...... How long can I practice acrobatics for my age? ”

She originally wanted to say her age directly,

Children of the rivers and lakes, it's normal.

However, this is not in line with etiquette in the West and the East, and it is still necessary to be cautious in the face of a "gentleman" like Lu Shi.

Lu Shi nodded,

"I understand. Sometimes I find it a little difficult to watch acrobatics. ”

Li Dai shook her head and said soberly: "Hard? I think it's hard to practice ballet, I don't know what is so elegant; The same is true of sports, why does boxing, a sport that hurts each other, exist? ”

Lu Shi was surprised,

"Huh?"

Li Jie on the side hurriedly said: "Xiao Dai! Stop it! ”

Lu Shi waved his hand and said, "It's okay, I want to hear it too." ”

Li Dai continued,

"Mr. Lu, can you easily fold the first section of your finger up? Like this......"

As she spoke, she performed a ninety degree bend.

Lu Shi said: "I understand, you are talking about talent." It is true that some people are born with the ability to bend their fingers in this way, even more easily and flexibly than I would bend them in the normal direction. It doesn't require any training, it's talent. ”

Li Dai glanced at Lu Shi and felt that Lu Shi was very keen,

She danced on her arm with the fingers of her right hand,

"This is also acrobatics~"

Lu Shi nodded,

"Yes, it is not acrobatics to put the human body to its limits. Acrobatics is the use of talent to choreograph ornamental movements, such as yours, finger dances. ”

Li Dai put down her hands and pulled her shoulders down,

"But people don't like that. That's why I want to practice singing~ But the American ghost guy doesn't like it. ”

As soon as the words fell, Eliot opened his mouth,

"'Ghost guy', this is one of the few Chinese words I can understand."

Li Jie's face changed instantly,

Zhou Zhou and Xiao Dai are not proficient in English, but they can know a rough idea from just a few words, and they are a little panicked.

Unexpectedly, Lu Shi turned around and joked to Elliot: "Ghost guy is a cute nickname." ”

Elliot laughed,

"Professor Lu, that's why I said you should come to live in the United States. It's a shame to be in the UK with your cheekiness. Of course, if you work in Whitehall in England, the thickness of your skin may not be enough. ”

Wardhouse's head is full of black lines,

￣□￣｜｜

"Why are you involved with us!?"

The trio joked,

In an instant, the tense atmosphere just now eased.

Lu Shi turned to Li Dai and said, "It's okay, I have a play that I need to perform by your circus people." ”

Li Dai looked at Lu Shi's gaze with some disbelief,

"Go home?"

Lu Shi was stunned for a moment, and reacted that the other party felt that he didn't have that strength in the United States.

"No, at Harvard," he said. ”

Li Dai doesn't know "Harvard", but she knows "University",

"Going to college acting? Peking Opera? And where is this Harvard University? ”

Lu Shi said: "I can only answer so many questions one by one. First of all, Harvard University is in Cambridge, not far from Boston, and you can take a train there. ”

Li Dai has been on the train, but only twice,

"By train!"

She was a little excited.

Lu Shi nodded, pointed at Eliot, and said, "This ghost guy is the president of Harvard University." ”

Hearing the word "ghost", Eliot nodded slightly,

"Willing to help."

Li Dai was a little surprised,

She looked at Lu Shi and began to believe in the strength of the young man in front of her.

Lu Shi also said: "Second, we should focus on drama, not Oriental Peking Opera, but Western drama. I found your circus because I needed more than a dozen Chinese actors, and Brother Li had agreed. ”

Li Dai looked at Lu Shi with a strange expression,

"Drama?"

Lu Shi knew that the other party still had doubts, so he explained: "You may not know, I am a playwright. I've written Yes! Prime Minister" and "Roman Holiday", the former is popular in London, England, and the latter is an unprecedented success in Europe. ”

So, "Roman Holiday" is a play,

Staring –

Zhou Zhou looked at his friend with a knife-like gaze.

Li Dai's face turned red,

"So, Princess Anne......"

Lu Shi was surprised,

"You know the name of the heroine in Roman Holiday?"

Li Dai: "......"

"Isn't Princess Anne a real person?"

Lu Shi thought of Margarita and explained, "Yes and no. Princess Anne has a prototype in reality. ”

Li Dai was curious: "Is the Margarita in reality also that kind of head shape?" ”

"Head shape?"

Lu Shi looked confused.

He was a little dazed by the other party's brain circuits.

Li Dai blushed,

"No, I didn't ask anything."

Lu Shi could only pretend that the other party didn't ask anything, and continued: "In short, we need actors. ”

Li Dai said: "But, the American ghost ...... Can Americans understand Chinese? ”

Lu Shi shook his head,

"What are you talking about? Of course not! I wrote Yes! The Prime Minister's and "Roman Holiday" are also created in English. ”

Hearing Lu Shi say this, Li Dai instantly fell into low pressure,

She sighed,

"Professor Lu, but my English is not good. Also, I can only speak English and can't read the script at all, so how can I perform in such a situation? ”

Lu Shi smiled,

"It doesn't matter, stumbling in English doesn't stop you from acting. I can guide you. ”

Li Dai's heart couldn't help but jump,

She wants to be an actress,

and even become a big star.

After all, acrobatics can't be performed for a lifetime, and when you reach age, many movements will inevitably not be done.

She is now sixteen years old, and she already has a lot of struggle.

Lu Shi said: "It's just that our drama is destined to only be performed in universities and cannot be on the big stage." Because there are some ...... in this drama There are some inaccuracies. ”

Li Dai was puzzled,

"What's incorrect?"

Lu Shi was silent,

I can't explain this to a little girl.

He turned around and walked to Li Jie and said, "Brother Li, your circus looks very good, and the actors here are exactly the people I need." ”

Li Jie couldn't help but glance at his daughter, and breathed a sigh of relief in his heart,

I don't know if my daughter has played a positive or negative role in persuading the other party.

He said, "Professor Lu, what about the reward?" ”

Don't want to talk about money,

But in order to survive, there is no way.

Circus so many people need to be fed.

Lu Shi said: "Don't be impatient. ”

Then he looked at Eliot,

Elliot understood, saying, "How about $100 for a show?" That's not a low price. ”

Indeed, when the car was first mass-produced, it was only $260 per car.

Li Jie on the side stepped forward,

"Of course! That's a fair price! ”

(End of chapter)