Chapter 148 – Liu Sanjie

Lu Guofu began the preliminary preparations for the movie screening, taking his time to get everything ready.

To ensure the quality of the screening this time, he hadn’t had a drop of alcohol earlier. If this had been anywhere else, there was no doubt he would’ve had at least a little, but this time, it was Zhou Yimin who’d asked for his help. To build rapport, he had to restrain himself.

He had gone through these motions countless times before, so even without anyone helping him, it didn’t take long to finish.

Once everything was ready, the villagers began to take their seats in an orderly manner. Since there were enough seats this time, there was no scrambling or fighting over spots.

At this point in time in China, for ordinary people, nothing was more exciting than watching an open-air movie.

In this era, aside from farming and domestic matters, people had little to no entertainment. So, being able to watch a lively outdoor movie on a summer night was an extravagant kind of amusement.

That was why scuffles over seating sometimes happened.

But this time, the projectionist had been invited by Zhou Yimin. The people of Zhoujiazhuang didn’t dare act out of line. No one tried to claim the front row seats—everyone just naturally avoided them.

Zhou Yimin led his whole family to the first row and sat down.

Right behind them were other elderly folks and children.

Once Lu Guofu saw that everyone had arrived, he started the film.

“Yimin,” Grandma asked, “is today’s movie Battle on Shangganling Mountain or Railway Guerrilla?”

In the countryside, there were only so many films people could see, but no matter how many times they’d watched them, their enthusiasm never faded.

Whenever a thrilling moment came up, the cheers and applause were always right on cue. With films they were extremely familiar with, people could even recite the next lines in unison.

And they never got tired of it.

Sometimes when the front got too crowded, people would run to the back to watch instead. Though the characters and subtitles were reversed, it was novel and amusing enough that they didn’t mind the trouble.

“Grandma, today we’re showing Fighting North and South. Have you seen it?” Zhou Yimin asked.

This film was also quite old. But in the countryside, the movie options were so limited that people basically had no choice.

Fighting North and South tells the story of the early days of the War of Liberation. On the East China battlefield, the People’s Liberation Army overcame a weaker position by strategically using the Great Leader’s theory of mobile warfare to defeat the enemy and achieve victory.

This kind of film aligned perfectly with the current main-theme culture, and it was the most popular genre at the time. Most importantly, the common people loved it.

The old lady smiled and nodded. “Seen it! It’s a really good one.”

Of course she had. After all, Fighting North and South had premiered back in 1952, and it had been out for seven or eight years already. By 1974, the film would be remade.

Even the three little ones, who were usually restless, now sat still like wooden statues. It seemed the allure of the movie was truly strong.

The old Party secretary said, “Yimin, you really have some pull. We tried applying in Zhoujiazhuang before, but never succeeded. If we wanted to watch a movie, we had to go to the commune.”

There were very few projectionists, so it was extremely difficult for small villages to request a screening. Unless you made some sort of special contribution, it was nearly impossible.

“It’s all because they’re doing us a favor,” Zhou Yimin said with a smile.

And it wasn’t just the people of Zhoujiazhuang—many villagers from Shangshui Village came too. No one knew how the word had gotten out.

The people of Shangshui Village were stunned.

Zhoujiazhuang had actually invited a projectionist? That was no small feat.

But when they heard the projectionist was from the Steel Factory, it made sense.

Zhoujiazhuang had a procurement agent from the Steel Factory who was personally acquainted with the projectionist, so it wasn’t that strange he’d come to screen a movie.

They couldn’t help but sigh—so it really is true that “it’s easier to get things done when you’ve got connections in high places.” Having someone in the Steel Factory made all the difference. That massive factory had everything.

And when they heard Zhoujiazhuang would have a screening once a month from now on, they almost thought it was a bluff. But once the projectionist confirmed it, the people of Shangshui Village were floored.

At this rate, Zhoujiazhuang was doing even better than Hongxing Commune!

Even Hongxing Commune couldn’t manage to bring in a projectionist once a month.

It was incredible.

Unfortunately, no one from their village worked at the Steel Factory. Or rather—unfortunately, Zhou Yimin wasn’t one of their own.

With movies to watch, Luo Dapeng and Li Youde naturally didn’t leave either.

The movie was fantastic, with intense gunfights and a touching ending. The country, the Party, and the army achieved a great victory, and everyone was elated.

When Fighting North and South ended, there was a half-hour break so people could take care of any business.

Some villagers from Shangshui couldn’t help but suggest to their village chief, “Village Chief, should we also try inviting that projectionist to screen a movie in our village?”

Village Chief Wang gave them a sidelong glance. “And what would you use to invite him?”

That one question left the speaker speechless.

Yeah! What would they use?

Shangshui Village was barely managing to stay fed, and not very well at that. They had very little to offer. They couldn’t just expect the projectionist to work for free, could they?

“Besides, that projectionist only agreed because of Zhou Yimin. Does anyone in our village have that kind of pull?” Village Chief Wang laid it out for them.

Everyone thought it over seriously and realized he was right.

The idea of inviting a projectionist to their village instantly fell apart.

The second movie came as a complete surprise to Zhou Yimin.

Liu Sanjie.

In his previous life, Zhou Yimin had seen Liu Sanjie. Was it already showing now?

The film mainly tells the story of Liu Sanjie using folk songs to resist the wealthy landlord Mo Huairen.

Liu Sanjie loved to sing mountain songs and often gave voice to the hearts of the poor, which led to her being framed by the landlord. Homeless, she drifted along the Lijiang River and was taken in by an old fisherman and his son, Ah Niu.

When word spread that Liu Sanjie had arrived, people from all over came to see her. Her long-lost brother, Liu Er, also found her. When Mo Huairen heard that she was once again rallying crowds to sing, he tried to buy her off. Failing that, he challenged her to a singing duel in an attempt to silence her…

Lu Guofu told Zhou Yimin this film had just come out this year, and it was hard for an ordinary projectionist to even get a copy.

And sure enough, the villagers of Zhoujiazhuang found this film refreshing—especially the mountain songs. They were so interesting that some people even tried to hum along, though the dialect made it difficult to keep up.

Because it was a new release, everyone thoroughly enjoyed it.

The movie went on until around 11 p.m., after which Lu Guofu stayed in the village overnight.

(End of Chapter)

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“Main-theme films” (主旋律电影) refer to movies that promote patriotic and socialist values, often highlighting national unity, historical achievements, and heroism. These films are typically supported by the government to inspire pride and loyalty among the public.