In 1915, a major incident occurred in the Beijing Sanle class, and Xun Huisheng, a disciple of the artist Pang Qiqi, and Shang Xiaoyun, a Danjiao actor who had the reputation of "Tong Ling Dawang" at that time, fled together in the dark.
The apprentice's escape made Master Pang Qiqi anxious like an ant on a hot pot, he searched endlessly for several days, but he did not find Xun Huisheng's shadow, and finally he had to issue a notice: as long as Xun Huisheng can return, he is willing to immediately give up the official book he wrote before.
Mr. Xun Huisheng
Xun Huisheng is a famous Danjiao performance artist in Peking Opera in China, the founder of Xun School art, and together with Cheng Yanqiu, Mei Lanfang and Shang Xiaoyun, he is known as the "Four Famous Dans".
The Four Famous Dans: Cheng Yanqiu (front) and Shang Xiaoyun (back left), Mei Lanfang (back middle), Xun Huisheng (back right)
However, behind the bright and beautiful, hidden is the unspeakable heartache, Xun Huisheng's life path is extremely bumpy, from the age of seven, he was inspired by the master Pang "devil training", living a life that is unimaginable to ordinary people.
01 Resold twice by his father, his career in drama is like walking on thin ice
Xun Huisheng was born in 1900, and at the age of seven, because his family was poor, his father Xun Fengming sold Xun Huisheng and his brother Xun Huirong to Xiao Taohong, the head of the Tianjin Zizi class, for 50 yuan.
The management of the drama team in the old society was very strict, and if there was a slight mistake, it would be beaten, and even some children would be beaten to death by the master, and the drama team would usually let the parents of the children sign an "official letter" in order not to bear the responsibility.
The so-called "official letter" is actually a deed of sale, and there is one of the most cruel provisions in the deed of sale: "Any accident that occurs during the period of studying art, including the student being killed by the master, the family members cannot take care of it." ”
If it weren't for a living, what parent would want their child to suffer this sin?
Xun Huisheng and his brother entered the drama team on the first day, they were beaten a lot, at that time to learn drama is also called "play", almost everyone has to be beaten several times a day, sometimes it is a board, sometimes it is a thug, sometimes it is a bad word, the master will take a smoking gun and stab it in the mouth until it is poked out of the blood, and even the students will be beaten if they do it right, which is called long memory.
Mei Lanfang
A few years later, Xun Huisheng, who had become a master of Peking Opera, wrote in his diary: "In the old days, although it was said that I was a master-apprentice relationship, the apprentice was the master's slave, and the master would often dip the whip into the water, and then block my mouth with cotton, so that I could not make a sound, and then beat me." ”
Xun Huisheng has a strong personality, and no matter how difficult it is, he grits his teeth and insists.
His brother Xun Huirong could not stand the continuous torture and secretly ran home from the drama team to hide. The class leader Xiao Taohong did not find Xun Huirong, so she took Xun Huisheng to the Xun family and asked to terminate the contract with them, return the two children, and return the 50 oceans previously given.
Xun Fengming had no choice but to let Xun Huisheng and Xun Huirong turn to Hua Dan Pang to worship Zi Hua Dan Pang, in exchange for seventy pieces of ocean, and the two sides agreed that "the period of study and art is seven years, during which natural disasters and man-made disasters will obey the fate of heaven, and it is not to be killed, and the search for short-sightedness has nothing to do with the master."
Poor Xun Huisheng was sold by his father twice.
Pang Qi attacked Hua Dan, also good at Qingyi and Dao Ma Dan, and was a disciple of the famous "Old Thirteen Dan" Hou Junshan, who was more demanding of his disciples than Xiao Peach.
Shang Xiaoyun
The first lesson of entering the drama team is to learn "stilt gong", which is a difficult performance technique invented by the Qing Dynasty Qin Cavity male Dan Wei Changsheng, similar to the woman's "three-inch golden lotus", the center of gravity when acting is almost on the forefoot, so that walking on the stage will appear graceful and colorful, like a weak willow wind.
At that time, the male actors who sang the opera had to tie stilts, the so-called "stilts", much higher than the high heels we wear today, from the heels up has been oblique, usually training, to tie the stilts to the feet, practice the pace and sense of balance.
Seesaw gong
Soon after, Xun Huirong ran away again, but the strong Xun Huisheng never said a word, and learned the stilt skill in continuous tempering.
Pang Qi continued to increase the difficulty after Xun Huisheng initially mastered the stilt skill, he put a stool on the table, and put bricks on the stool, so that Xun Huisheng tied the stilts and stepped on the narrowest side of the brick, not moving.
In addition to practicing stilt skills, Xun Huisheng should also often practice his eyes, because the flexibility of his eyes is an important factor in judging the skills of a drama actor. Xun Huisheng usually lit incense in the dark room, his eyes followed the incense head, and the speed must be faster and faster, as long as he did not meet the master's standards, he could not stop and rest.
Pang Qi also often let Xun Huisheng run on the ice, trained his balance ability, and smashed Xun Huisheng to the point that his nose was blue and his face was swollen, and the blood was direct, even if it was still necessary to continue training. Xun Huisheng recalled that when he was in those days, he gritted his teeth and said, "I really wanted to kill him at that time." ”
Although he hated the impersonal master to the bone, Xun Huisheng still gritted his teeth and insisted, he was the only hope of the whole family, if he could not hold on, this stormy home would completely collapse. "When a person encounters any hardships and hardships, as long as he crosses his heart, there is no mountain of flame that cannot be passed." This is Xun Huisheng's summary of his life in his later years.
Knife Ma Dan
Under the rigorous training of Pang Qi, Xun Huisheng practiced three nines in winter and three volts in summer, could wear cotton jackets in the hot summer heat, could wear single clothes in the cold days of counting nine, stepped on stilts, ran the ice rink, and his eyes were also pinched just right, and he practiced a strong skill.
Pang Qi also taught Xun Huisheng various techniques such as playing with plates, playing with buckets and braids, water sleeves, silk, fans, etc., and Xun Huisheng learned a lot.
I thought that I was skilled in art and could shine on the stage, but the humiliation suffered by performing on stage for the first time in my life made Xun Huisheng unforgettable for a lifetime.
Once Xun Huisheng wanted to star in a Qingyi play of "Three Niangs And Godsons", probably because he was too young and lacked stage performance experience, so after Xun Huisheng came on stage, he couldn't say a word nervously, it was difficult to open his mouth, stuttering, and the spectators on the stage immediately began to "cheer".
Pang qi was furious, and in order to give the visitor an explanation, he took up the stick and beat Xun Huisheng in front of everyone, and then beat him again after he returned.
How uncomfortable is it for teenage children to be beaten in front of so many people and lose their dignity?
Xun Huisheng was painfully determined, and in order to remind himself not to forget the words, he deliberately changed his name to "Xun Zi". After he grew up and became famous, Xun Huisheng, in order to remember the humiliation of the first performance, specially carved a private chapter, which was engraved with "Hebei Dongguang is my home, Xun Ci Huisheng is my name."
Since then, Xun Huisheng has overcome the tension of the stage and gradually retracted freely on the stage, as if he could be alone. Master Pang Qi believes that the apprentice has completed his studies, and it is time to take this "cash cow" out and make money for himself.
Xun Huisheng's opera appearance
Pang Qiqi took Xun Huisheng and first came to the countryside to sing, because at that time it was very popular such a bitter love drama as "Meng Jiang Girl" and "Burning Bone Plan", so Pang Qiqi asked Xun Huisheng to make a sad state when singing, so that the audience could feel empathy. Shi Niang also threatened Xun Huisheng: "If you can't sing well, don't want to eat." ”
In order to be able to eat enough and not be beaten by his master, Xun Huisheng sang very hard in every scene.
He sang "Loyalty and Filial Piety Card" to meet the tastes of the spectators, everyone called him a prodigy, xun Huisheng began to make a small name in the countryside. Pang Qiqi saw that the apprentice had become hot, so he gave him a stage name- Bai Peony according to the custom of the Zizi actor, and took him to Hebei and Shandong to sing opera, and the praise everywhere he went was overwhelming.
02 The domineering master refused to let go of the apprentice, and plotted for himself That Xun Huisheng resolutely ran away
In 1910, seeing Xun Huisheng's rise to fame, Pang Qi decided not to let him continue to sing in the small countryside, and instead followed his master Hou Junshan, the "Old Thirteenth Dan", to continue to learn Zizi.
Hou Junshan is a titan of Beijing Zizi actors, who can be controlled by wenjiao and martial arts, playing a little girl who is chuchu and moving, and also mastering the role of a rough han, and was once awarded six pins of top wear and yellow coat by Empress Dowager Cixi.
In order to get Hou Junshan's attention, Pang Qiqi specially let Xun Huisheng sing a play "Little Cow Herding", which is a very small play, but it can directly reflect the skills of the actors. Xun Huisheng's solid basic skills, especially the stilt skills known as "flying on the water", won the full hall of color and also won the favor of Hou Junshan.
Small herding cattle
At Hou Junshan's home, he cordially received this "little prodigy", and after letting Xun Huisheng sing a piece of "Loyalty and Filial Piety Card", Hou Junshan even more believed that this was a widow who could be taught and had a bright future in the future.
So he personally taught Xun Huisheng Zizi and Peking Opera, taught him his most famous "Xin An Yi" and "Huatian Mistake", and during the period of learning art with Hou Junshan, Xun Huisheng's skills improved a lot.
However, Pang inspired Xun Huisheng to learn from Hou Junshan, just to make his skills more exquisite, and then make more money for himself, this not simple purpose, led to Xun Huisheng's later farewell.
1911 was an extremely important year in Chinese history, when the Xinhai Revolution broke out, the Manchu Qing government collapsed, and the millennium imperial system was overthrown.
This year was also a crucial year in Xun Huisheng's life, because he met the friend who changed his life's fate- Shang Xiaoyun.
At that time, Pang Qi was invited to teach in the Three Music Class (later renamed ZhengLe Class) in Beijing, and Xun Huisheng also studied with him, focusing on Tsing Yi and Hua Dan of Peking Opera. In the Sanle class, he met Shang Xiaoyun and Zhao Tongshan, whose stage name was "Hibiscus Grass", and the three of them were called "Zhengle Sanjie".
Xun Huisheng and Shang Xiaoyun have the best relationship, the two were born in the same month of the same year, the birthday is only two days apart, as soon as they meet, they feel very kind, and over time they have become close friends.
Fast forward to 1915, the "seven years of learning art" agreed upon by the two sides had expired, and Xun Huisheng also made a lot of money for Pang Qi with his excellent skills, and he felt that he did not owe anything to the master, so he took the opportunity to make a request to leave the master.
Not wanting Pang Qi to hear Xun Huisheng's words, he sneered: "There is no time limit marked on the contract, if you dare to go, I will smash your leg." ”
It turned out that Xun Huisheng's father did not know the words, the two sides only verbally promised to pass the seven-year period, and there was no seven-year term on the deed of sale, because his father had no culture, he pressed the fingerprint on the deed of sale.
Hou Junshan
This is obviously a conspiracy of Pang Qiqi, who has been deceiving himself and his family since seven years ago, and now on the grounds that "there is no deadline marked on the deed of sale", he wants Xun Huisheng to make money for him for the rest of his life, Pang Qi is afraid that Xun Huisheng will escape, and even put him under house arrest.
Just when Xun Huisheng was at a loss, Shang Xiaoyun pretended to come to visit him and privately gave him a decisive idea, which had only two words: escape!
Shang Xiaoyun knew that Xun Huisheng did not have the determination to escape, so he kept advising him to gamble for the future, and if he did not run now, he would always be a cash cow inspired by Pang in the future.
Under the persuasion of Shang Xiaoyun, Xun Huisheng finally strengthened his determination, and they discussed the escape route and time together, taking advantage of the dark wind of the moon, the two people secretly climbed up the coal pile, flipped out of the wall, and hid in a hidden small broken house. This is the scene at the beginning of the article.
Pang inspired Xun Hui to look for Xun Huisheng, and Li Jiliang, the head of the Sanle class, told him: "You can't let this child out of school for the rest of your life, just let him make money for you, we have to get him back for a good discussion." ”
Under Li Jiliang's arrangement, there was a notice written by Pang Qi: As long as Xun Huisheng returned, he immediately tore up the deed of sale.
Xun Huisheng had the courage to return, even if there is no information to record the attitude of Pang Qiqi after Xun Huisheng returned, but from what happened afterwards, it can be inferred that Pang Huisheng must have threatened or scolded him.
Because the two masters and apprentices eventually went to court, the court ruled that Xun Huisheng would sing to Pang Qi for two more years before he could become a teacher.
Cheng Yanqiu
This verdict is clearly very unreasonable.
First, Pang Qiqi deceived Xun Huisheng and his family, did not implement the seven-year period of studying art into black and white, and in the case of obvious deception, also induced Xun Huisheng's father to press the mudra, and with this alone, Xun Huisheng could counter-sue Pang Huisheng for deception and immediately become a teacher.
Second, Pang Qiqi did not believe what he said, when he first wrote a notice to let Xun Huisheng return, he obviously said that he would immediately tear up the official document, and now he is in court, obviously he did not want to fulfill his promise at all, so he rebelled, from a legal point of view, he did not have any reason at all.
Third, although the laws of the old society were not perfect, pang inspired the house arrest of his apprentices, which was also illegal, and moreover, he also threatened to discount Xun Huisheng's legs, which was an act of intimidation, so how could such an impersonal master deserve to continue to let the apprentices make money for him?
However, no matter how innocent Xun Huisheng was and how reasonable the request for a teacher was, the court finally adopted a compromise approach, and Xun Huisheng had to sing to Pang Qiqi for two more years, and half of the profits from singing went to Pang Inspiration.
Behind this verdict, it is possible that Xun Huisheng was intimidated by more than one person, and if he did not accept this verdict, it was very likely that he would lose his life.
The forces represented by Pang Qi should have also bribed the court, and they wanted to squeeze the final benefits out of Xun Hui before he gave birth to a teacher.
Xun Huisheng later also said that he was holding the attitude of calming things down at that time, and only reluctantly accepted the court's judgment, and judging from the four words of "resting things and calming people", the verdict was not simple. But no matter what, with the two-year contract, he finally saw hope.
Xun Huisheng and Monk Xiaoyun
03 Conclusion
In October 1916, Xun Huisheng, who had struggled in the bitter sea for nine years, finally got rid of the heavy shackles and regained his freedom, which was also the beginning of the peak of his life.
After Xun Hui was born, because of the change of voice in adolescence (called "inverted warehouse" in the industry), it was no longer suitable for the high voice of ZiZi opera, and instead studied Peking Opera.
He successively studied with the famous Peking Opera performance artists Wang Yaoqing, Chen Delin, Qiao Huilan, Cao Xinquan and others, and his artistic style set the strengths of hundreds of families, and gained his own fans, who took the first word of his stage name "White Peony" and named it "Baishe".
Xun Huisheng later, under the leadership of the famous Wusheng Yang Xiaolou, went to the Shanghai LaoTian toad Big Stage to perform, and the first work he performed, "Flower Field Mistake", was stunning as soon as it appeared, and once became a red person who was scrambled by the owners of major theaters in Shanghai, and was listed with Yang Xiaolou, Tan Xiaopei and Shang Xiaoyun as "three small and one white".
The masterpieces of Xun school art, "Huatian Mistake", "Red Lady" and "Golden Jade Slave", have long become the essence of the national essence, enduring and timeless.
Yang Xiaolou
However, no matter when, Xun Huisheng did not forget his brother Shang Xiaoyun, who helped him escape.
If there was no Shang Xiaoyun's advice, he might always be Master's puppet.
He would also often think of the child who had been beaten up by His Master in front of many people because he could not recite words, the teenager who ran wildly in the hutongs of Beijing and wanted to escape.
No one knows how much inhuman torture he has experienced before he has a splendid future. Since ancient times, the birth of every great master has to go through a thorough cold, in order to fade the immature and green, wash away the lead, and be proud of the world.
Those days when there is no hope in the midst of suffering may be the beginning of hope, as Xun Huisheng said: "In the face of suffering, as long as people turn their hearts sideways, there is no mountain of flame that cannot be passed." ”