The opera is over! The audience dispersed.
Seniors in Kaifeng's literary circle left the Cuju field with solemn expressions, with mixed feelings in their hearts. Although they tried their best to deny it, they had to admit that the opera did have merit.
Seeing everyone leaving, many scribes who had not been invited approached their acquaintances to inquire.
"Scholar Qin, is it true that the Li family has established a sect?" A student from the Imperial College asked quickly when he saw a Qin Guan coming out.
Qin Guan stopped and said with a solemn expression: "Quju does indeed have the appearance of establishing a sect, but whether it is a third-generation literary school is still controversial."
"Are you really starting a sect?"
A group of imperial students were in an uproar. You must know that although Li Qingzhao has the title of the most talented woman in the Song Dynasty and has many famous works to her name, she is still three points behind her reputation as the founder of the sect.
"Scholar Qin is from the Su clan, so he naturally prefers Li Qingzhao." Some people said disapprovingly.
Qin Guan was from the Su clan, and Li Qingzhao was the leader of the younger generation of the Su clan. Everyone did not believe what Qin Guan said. After all, founding a sect was not an easy task, let alone Li Qingzhao, who was a woman. , which was even more difficult for the literary world of the Song Dynasty to accept.
"Master Zhou Bo, how do you treat operas now!" A student from the Imperial Academy asked hurriedly when he saw Bo Zhou Bangyan, the master of the Imperial Academy.
Zhou Bangyan said with a look of shame on his face: "Everyone Li is so talented, Zhou feels ashamed of himself."
Everyone asked several literary seniors one after another, and most of them were full of praise for the opera.
Everyone couldn't help but exclaimed that Quju has been recognized as the founding sect, and Li Qingzhao's status in the literary world will be infinitely higher. Not to mention that Quju is still controversial as a third-generation literary genre, which means that some people in the literary genre also agree with this point of view.
"What is the charm of opera?" Many young generation literati who have not entered it are itching to say.
Soon, when Fan Zheng and Li Qingzhao came out hand in hand, a doctor's eyes lit up and he shouted loudly: "Brother Fan, I wonder if we can get a glimpse of the Li family's opera."
Fan Zheng looked up at the expectant students and smiled slightly: "From tomorrow onwards, the opera "The Legend of Concubine Yang" will be performed twice a day at the Cuju venue, and the ticket price is one penny per person!"
"Xiangong Opera has just appeared, so I'm afraid it's not appropriate to collect money!" Li Qingzhao whispered from the side.
Fan Zheng shook his head and said: "There is nothing wrong with it. Do you know that if an oiran performs at Goulan Tingqu, the entrance fee alone will be no less than a hundred cents. To charge only one cent per person for such a wonderful opera is a reasonable price."
"Quju is not a brothel, so how can we compare it with one another?" Li Qingzhao frowned.
Qu Opera has just been questioned by the literary world. She is eager to prove the influence of Qu Opera. If it is charged, it will inevitably affect the spread of Qu Opera.
Fan Zheng shook his head and said: "If you perform for free, no matter how widely it is spread, the opera will be just a flash in the pan. But if you want the opera to be widely disseminated, charging is the most important thing."
"Ah!" Li Qingzhao looked at Fan Zheng in confusion. She didn't understand why not charging would be harmful, while charging would be beneficial to opera.
Fan Zheng asked rhetorically: "Do musicians and warriors need expenses? Do famous actors and actresses need remuneration? Also, opera cannot occupy the Cuju venue for a long time. It must have its own performance venue. These all require expenses. Only by making opera beneficial Only by making a plan can more people join in, and only then can the opera flourish."
Li Qingzhao suddenly realized that she knew that what Fan Zheng said was the right move. If the opera had no income, based on her strength alone, even if she spent all her wealth, it would not be sustainable. She could only attract more people with profit. Come and learn opera, so that opera can be spread widely.
Sure enough, when all the doctors heard that the price was only one penny, they all cheered: "Thank you, Senior Brother Fan!"
A penny is nothing to Dr. Tai. If he can witness the creation of the Li family, it will naturally be worth thousands.
Other literati are also eager to give it a try. Through word of mouth from the literary seniors just now, everyone knows that the opera "The Legend of Concubine Yang" is extremely exciting, and Li Shishi, who plays the role of Concubine Yang, is even more captivating, comparable to an oiran.
If they were in a brothel, they might not be able to get a chance to see Li Shishi even if they spent hundreds or thousands of pennies. Now, with only one penny, they can not only witness the third generation literary school, but also get a glimpse of Li Shishi, who is comparable to an oiran, so they are naturally eager to try it.
"A penny a head!"
When Cheng Yi heard this, he couldn't help but twitch the corner of his mouth. When Fan Zheng became a forensic doctor, he started with a penny of consultation fees, but now he is using the same techniques again.
He naturally understood that with the brilliance of "The Biography of Concubine Yang", even if it was priced at a hundred dollars, someone would generously donate.
And Fan Zheng directly set the ticket price at one penny, so that even ordinary people can afford it. In this way, opera will become popular among people all over the world. This is why Fan and Li asserted that opera is the third generation of literary genre. biggest reliance.
Sure enough, just as Fan Zheng had imagined, the Cuju venue was once again packed with people on the second day, even if they charged a penny.
Li Qingzhao was already very famous in Kaifeng City. In addition, the opera was the founder of the sect, and his first performance caused an uproar in the literary world.
Furthermore, the ticket price of one penny is extremely cheap in Kaifeng City, and even ordinary people can afford it. In addition to literati, there are also ordinary people rushing to come and have a look.
However, when they witnessed the wonderful performance of "The Legend of Concubine Yang" with their own eyes, they were all captivated by it. Such a large-scale and high-standard performance was far better than them spending a lot of money to go to Goulan to listen to the music. Of course, if you go to a brothel for other purposes, that is another matter. .
Especially the part about the drunken concubine became popular in Kaifeng City, and everyone rushed to sing it.
"Love and hate are in a moment..."
In the bustling city of Kaifeng, a businessman said something funny and immediately attracted everyone's attention.
"This is the drunken concubine. Although the singing below is not pleasant to the ears, the singing of Master Li in the stands is still lingering for three days." The merchant boasted proudly.
Everyone around him was immediately itching with hatred. They were just a little late and didn't get tickets, otherwise it wouldn't be this guy's turn to complain.
"You don't know, but Master Li is even more powerful than the imperial concubine Yang Guifei in history." The merchant said proudly.
Everyone was immediately itchy. Not to mention the popular opera, they could also see Li Shishi, who was comparable to an oiran. What a beautiful thing this would be and it only cost one penny.
Nowadays, people in Kaifeng are inspired by the news and are proud to watch operas. After all, they cannot understand poetry and songs, but operas that are actively sung are the most suitable culture for them.
As every opera performance became full, the opera gradually spread in Kaifeng City.
Among them, Li Shishi, who played the role of Concubine Yang Guifei, became famous instantly. Her stunning appearance and wonderful dance music are very close to the concubine Yang Guifei in history. Li Shishi crushed all the major courtesans in Kaifeng and won the title of the most beautiful woman in Kaifeng. title.
It can be said that Li Qingzhao's opera and Li Shishi's role as Concubine Yang complement each other, which makes the opera even more popular.
Countless people rushed to panic, even if they spent a lot of money, they wanted to buy a front-row ticket from others, just to catch a glimpse of Li Shishi's beauty.
"The most beautiful woman in Kaifeng!"
What really makes Li Shishi famous in Kaifeng is not just her singing and beauty, but also her legendary experience.
As Li Shishi became popular in Kaifeng City, his past was also revealed.
Master Li's life experience was quite miserable. When he was three years old, his father sent him to a Buddhist temple. The old monk believed that he was related to Buddhism and named him Master. However, something unexpected happened and his father suddenly fell seriously ill and died suddenly. Master Li immediately became an orphan. .
When she was four years old, a singer surnamed Li saw that she was a beautiful child, so she adopted her and renamed her Li Shishi. She taught her music, chess, calligraphy, painting, singing, dancing, and waiting.
If he follows the normal trajectory, Li Shishi will definitely live in the world and become a singer. However, the appearance of a person changes Li Shishi's fate. That is the evil doctor Fan Zheng.
"Back then, the evil doctor Fan Zheng became a forensic doctor, which was well known throughout the city, and his momentum was no less powerful than today's opera creation by the Li family. The evil doctor Fan Zheng transformed the Fan Building into a traditional Chinese medicine hospital, and Master Li happened to be in the Fan Building. , Fan Zheng directly removed Master Li from his humble status." In the Cuju venue, a Kaifeng citizen said with emotion that he had met Master Li in a traditional Chinese medicine hospital and knew the inside story.
"Master Li is worthy of being praised by eminent monks as a destined person. Other women have never escaped from their humble status throughout their lives, but Master Li has turned into a good person so easily." Zhao Ji looked at Master Li on the stage and sighed with emotion.
"More than that, Master Li also has a bodhisattva heart. After being rescued by the evil doctor Fan Zheng, he worked as a female nurse in a traditional Chinese medicine hospital. At that time, the evil doctor Fan Zheng discovered the method of artificial respiration to bring people back to life. Due to the criticism from the world, no one in the traditional Chinese medicine hospital dared to Using this method to save people, Master Li did not hesitate to use artificial respiration to save countless patients." The spectators on the side said with complicated expressions.
"The most beautiful woman in Kaifeng is..." Wang Shen frowned and looked at Master Li who looked like a fairy on the stage in disbelief. Who would have thought that she would sacrifice her life to save others.
"No, that's different." The people around said with respect.
Since ancient times, geishas in brothels have been despised by the world for having even a hint of red on their lips. However, Master Li also gave artificial respiration to patients. Although the lips were always touching, the world only respected Master Li without the slightest blasphemy.
In addition, artificial respiration and cardiopulmonary resuscitation have now been promoted in the Song Dynasty and have become the best first aid methods. No one can anymore accuse it of being immoral, and all these changes started with Li Shishi.
"This is the true beauty of people and beauty of heart!" Zhao Ji exclaimed.
If Master Li was just a beautiful person, Zhao Ji would only be obsessed with his appearance. However, Master Li was not only beautiful in appearance, but also had the heart of a Bodhisattva, which completely made Zhao Ji fall.
The popularity of opera exceeded everyone's expectations. Every opera performance was packed with seats. Whether they were literate literati or ordinary people who were illiterate, they all flocked to opera.
Among the people, the drunken concubine's style was popular throughout the city, and could even be heard singing on the streets. The opera could be said to be a great success.
The entire Kaifeng literary world looked at this scene in disbelief. Even if a famous piece of poetry is now available, it is only sung among literati. Even if there are more than ten famous poems and poems by Fan Zheng and Li Qingzhao, they are only popular among the public. Ordinary Kaifeng citizens come here just to see the excitement.
The influence of the opera "Yang Guifei" directly covers all the people, whether it is Hongru or Bai Ding, men, women, old and young, all praise it. Even women and children are familiar with the story of Yang Guifei and can even hum a few lines. The imperial concubine was drunk, which undoubtedly expanded the influence of opera again.
"This kind of influence can be said to be ten times that of Song Ci." A student from the Neo-Confucian lineage said helplessly.
From his heart, he has almost recognized that opera is a third-generation literary genre, and it is because opera has such a wide audience, and its popularity is enough to compare with Tang poetry and Song poetry.
Cheng Yi's face suddenly twitched. Although he scorned Quju, he had to admit that Quju was indeed unique.
"No matter how popular the opera is, it will never reach the level of elegance." Cheng Yi sneered.
A disciple sighed and said: "Master, there are rumors that opera does not abandon the rhythm, but the Li family did it deliberately. They imitated Bai Juyi so that women and children can understand it."
If someone else created the opera, they might be questioned by the Kaifeng literary circle. However, Li Qingzhao is not an ordinary person, but the most talented woman in the Song Dynasty. Her famous works through the ages are enough to put countless poets to shame.
If you say that Li Qingzhao did not understand the rhythm of flat and oblique, I am afraid no one will believe it. The only explanation is that Li Qingzhao deliberately abandoned the oblique and oblique rhythm to further develop the opera.
In addition, there is Bai Juyi in front of him, and "The Legend of Yang Guifei" is also adapted from Bai Juyi's "Song of Everlasting Sorrow", which makes this statement even more believable.
Cheng Yi suddenly looked embarrassed. He understood that if things continued like this, Li Qingzhao's opera would become popular in the world. This was an unacceptable result for the traditional Neo-Confucian school.
"No, although Quju is extremely popular, it is not without its weaknesses!" Cheng Yi snorted coldly.
"Weakness?" the disciple asked in confusion.
Cheng Yi solemnly said: "It is a crime of great disrespect!"
At present, many censors accused Fan Chunli of pretending to be a public servant and handed over the public Cuju court to Li Qingzhao to hold operas.
There were even more radical officials who impeached the opera for being immoral, and blatantly singing about the love between Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty and Concubine Yang was immoral.
Finally, Cheng Yi, the school secretary, dealt a fatal blow to opera. He openly impeached opera for using actors to play the emperor, which was a crime of disrespect, and requested the court to ban opera.
Suddenly, the government and the public were in an uproar.
No one expected that Quju, which was in the limelight, would encounter the fiercest counterattack in the literary world. You must know that although the first two impeachments were serious, they would not have much impact on Quju, and the crime of disrespect was enough to bring the limelight to the forefront. The prosperous opera was destroyed.
"Ms. sir!"
When Li Qingzhao heard the news, he felt as if he had been struck by lightning.
She did not expect that the opera would receive such fierce counterattack from the literary world.
Fan Zheng held her in his arms and comforted him: "It doesn't matter. With your husband here, you will not be wronged. The emergence of Quju is the inevitable trend and no one can stop it."
Li Qingzhao nodded heavily. Literature should not be a game played by a small number of literati, but should be shared by all. This was her original intention in creating opera.
At this moment, Fan Zheng went to court in person. This time he wanted to rectify the name of Quju.
(End of chapter)
