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In 2008, the mainland investment group went to Hong Kong to attract investment, and a folk artist named Wang Baohe was specially taken by the team to accompany him.
At the luxurious venue in Hong Kong, Wang Baohe performed a unique performance for the wealthy Hong Kong businessmen present - the Three Immortals Return to the Cave.
The strange techniques and exquisite performances won the applause of the whole house and attracted the attention of a wealthy businessman:
"I don't believe you can fool my eyes, you perform again, I must see the flaw!"
In the face of doubt, Wang Baohe smiled slightly:
"It's no problem to perform again, but if you can't see it yet, invest in my hometown Huanghua."
The rich businessman immediately said that it was no problem.
So Wang Baohe specially invited the rich merchant to come closer, and once again skillfully performed the Three Immortals Returning to the Cave.
The rich merchant opened his eyes and held his breath, only to see that Wang Baohe's fingers were dazzling at a rapid speed, but the small ball in his hand seemed to be alive, and was randomly commanded by Wang Baohe.
In the end, the rich businessman still failed to see the flaw, and he was convinced to invest 400 million yuan in Huanghua.
And this rich businessman is the son of Li Ka-shing, the richest man in Hong Kong, in other words, with 3 goals and 2 bowls, Wang Baohe won 400 million yuan of Li Ka-shing's family.
01
At the beginning of the century, the American magician David Copperfield came to China to perform, which made the Chinese audience feast with Western magic.
However, in the background communication, in the face of Wang Baohe's request to check the props, David did not dare to respond.
Wang Baohe already knew in his heart, and he smiled slightly at David and said:
"The props of our Chinese jugglers stand up to scrutiny!"
After saying that, he casually found three plastic bowls in the background and took three scrawled paper balls. Since there was no stick in his hand, he went out and folded a branch.
Then, using these simple props, Wang Baohe gave David a good "lesson", allowing him to see a set of "Chinese magic" that did not rely on props and relied on techniques.
David was amazed and gave a thumbs up to the unassuming little old man.
Of course, Wang Baohe can stand the praise of this "magic giant", because his kung fu was learned after decades of painstaking speculation and hard practice.
Wang Baohe was born in 1944 in Wuqiao, a famous acrobatic town in Cangzhou, Hebei Province.
His grandfather was the famous "Rope Unloading King" Wang Yulin, who was once famous in Beijing, known as one of the "Eight Monsters of Tianqiao".
His father, Wang Fushou, was good at bone reduction and deep-throat sewing needles, and was also an extraordinary figure in the juggling circle.
Born into an acrobatic family, it sounds beautiful, but in fact, Wang Baohe's childhood was very miserable.
In that old society, people engaged in acrobatics were "inferior", not only were they looked down upon, but their income was not guaranteed, and it was common to be hungry and bullied.
Wang Baohe died of his mother at the age of three, and from childhood he followed his grandfather and father to sell art, barely making ends meet.
In order to learn the skill of eating, Wang Baohe suffered too much.
Take the big top, split the legs, and lower the waist, whenever this time the father will light a burning incense, until the incense ash is burned out, Wang Baohe can not rest.
He often practiced sweat and tears on his face, and sometimes he couldn't stand up, not only to be beaten by his father, but also to rekindle a stick of incense and practice again.
At the age of 6, he began to sell art with his father.
At that time, there was no art, and the more "miserable" the artists were, the better they were in order to make the onlookers pay money.
They often perform in such a way:
The thin and small Wang Baoheyuan lowered his waist, propped his hands on the ground, and burned a burning incense on his back, and his father stepped on his belly and jumped and jumped.
Being stomped on the waist and abdomen by an adult of more than a hundred pounds, Wang Baohe burst into tears in pain, but this also caused onlookers to scream.
But even with such a performance, sometimes the "reward" is not enough for a meal.
02
Legend has it that during the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, there was a righteous thief named "Swallow Li San", who although he was a snitch on the beam, robbed the rich and helped the poor.
Yanzi Li San has a unique skill - bone reduction skill, with this skill, he has escaped the pursuit many times and survived the danger safely.
Nowadays, when it comes to bone reduction, many people think that it is exaggerated and do not believe that there is such a kung fu.
Not really. Wang Baohe has been practicing bone reduction since he was a child.
When he is done, he can wear three-year-old children's non-elastic clothes and stuff three wine bottles in his clothes.
Those close to him could still hear the sound of "clicking" bones. It can be seen that the bone reduction work is not deceptive.
However, after practicing more bone reduction skills, the joints of Wang Baohe's body were seriously damaged, and sometimes lifting a pot of water may cause dislocation.
But Wang Baohe is also accustomed to this kind of "accident", he directly gets started, "click" can return the dislocated arm to its original position.
"Ten years of hard training is known to no one, and once it becomes famous, the world knows."
At first, Wang Baohe performed in the "Jianghu Culture City" in Hebei, and the conditions were very simple, so he would wear a knotty hat, wear a rotten cloth shoes, and start performing on a stall.
It wasn't until 1992 that his fortunes changed.
At that time, the provincial leaders came to investigate the situation and just walked to Wang Baohe's booth. Wang Baohe, who was eating, did not care, and casually performed a "Three Immortals Returning to the Cave" that he thought was nothing.
As a result, this handicraft shocked the delegation, and from then on, it was passed on to ten or ten hundred, and Wang Baohe began to make a name for himself.
In 1999, the Hebei Provincial Art Troupe prepared to go to Hong Kong for art exchange.
Recommended by the Hebei Provincial Labor Department, Wang Baohe was also among the entourage.
Unexpectedly, in this exchange, Wang Baohe's traditional acrobatics were greatly welcomed.
During the months of the performance at the Kowloon Arts Centre in Hong Kong, Hong Kong citizens came to watch it, and the venue was full.
Wang Baohe's "Three Immortals Returning to the Cave" and "Bone Reduction Gong" even triggered a series of exclamations.
The Chief Executive of Hong Kong also watched the performance, and he was amazed and praised Wang Baohe's hands as "ghost hands".
Since then, Wang Baohe has been named "Ghost Hand King".
As Wang Baohe's reputation grew, many people saw his "Three Immortals Returning to the Cave" and were also curious about the mystery of it.
In 2004, CCTV used three high-definition cameras to simultaneously point at Mr. Wang's hand in an attempt to crack his method.
As a result, the camera slowed down many times, and I didn't see the movement of Wang Baohe's hand.
In 2007, Wang Baohe performed in the Great Hall of the People, and his superb performance made the guests marvel and stand up to applaud him.
After the performance, Wang Baohe wanted to leave the stage, and as a result, the audience could not stop, and Wang Baohe had to perform for another period.
In the end, Wang Baohe was "forced" to perform for another ten minutes before the audience "gave up".
With this skill, Wang Baohe won the title of "Eight Monsters of jianghu". In 2007, he was also named "Inheritor of the World Intangible Cultural Heritage" by the Ministry of Culture.
03
Wang Baohe once revealed on TELEVISION that the principle of "three immortals returning to the cave" is very simple, relying on two words - hand fast.
Day after day, year after year of practice, Wang Baohe's kung fu was magical and pure.
Someone beat him up for this —
Since you can "steal the ball with your fast hand", can you also "change your cards quickly"?
Even if you don't practice changing cards, don't you be able to make a lot of money by setting up a gambling game by relying on the trick of "Three Immortals Returning to the Cave"?
This is true, Wang Baohe's flexible fingers, who can guess where his ball is, really can't easily find it.
But Wang Baohe was very secretive about this. Not only did he not gamble himself, but he often advised others on the show:
"Don't gamble!"
Because you never know what kind of skills your opponent has mastered, and how many times he has practiced in order to win the bet.
For such a person, there is no other end except for the ruin of the family and the loss of money.
Such a magical skill must be passed on.
But in today's new society, the attitude towards traditional juggling is completely different.
Wang Baohe once went to the depths of the mountains of Guizhou and Yunnan to look for heirs, but with the improvement of living standards, almost no one could eat the hardships of learning art.
Just like "bone reduction", you must start practicing from an early age, and you must also endure joint misalignment, dislocation, rheumatism and other situations.
There is also "deep-throat sewing needle", a silver needle goes deep into the throat, moves back and forth with the strength of the cheeks alone, and sews the needle with the mouth closed.
For some kung fu that no one has inherited, Wang Baohe is very open-minded, he said:
"It's a new era, and it's normal to be eliminated."
Usually, when there is no INVITATION from the TV station, Wang Baohe performs in his "Ghost Hand Residence" to further carry forward folk art.
"In the past, people called us 'the lower nine streams' and 'tricksters', and there was no dignity or social status to speak of."
"It's different now, and the whole society attaches great importance to folk culture, and I am very pleased."
In order to pass on the skills as much as possible, Wang Baohe accepted apprentices, as long as he could bear hardships and was willing to learn, he did not charge a penny and taught for free.
For some people to sour his "only one move" statement, Wang Baohe smiled slightly:
"If you are not afraid of recruitment, you are afraid of a fresh move."
Moreover, his stunts are more than one trick. And for so many years, Wang Baohe has been committed to the innovation of traditional juggling, he hopes to give new things, so that traditional juggling is more in line with the tastes of modern people, so that people have always been fresh and heartfelt.
04
When I was young, I still vaguely remember the street sellers, who earned a full meal by relying on a mouth and a special skill.
With the change of society, people's attention is all attracted by TV variety shows and mobile phone short videos.
Wang Baohe, who is nearly ancient, with his excellent language skills and exquisite skills, has re-attracted people's attention and let traditional skills conquer the public again.
His contribution to and promotion of traditional culture is difficult to match.
In fact, how godly is Wang Baohe? Nor is it, but it is "Ding Ding to solve the cattle, only the hands are familiar".
But that's all, and most people can't do it.
I also wish that Mr. Wang Baohe can take care of his body, only in this way can he better pass on the traditional art and let more people have the opportunity to see his magical "ghost hand art"!