My wife and I are both time travelers.

Chapter 58 The Voice of Spring

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Both Zhou Jiye and Lin Ying had long been looking forward to the upcoming 1980s.

Because the reform and opening up in the 1980s will bring about tremendous changes in the entire society, everything they are doing now will come to a complete end then, and they will seek more suitable opportunities. What they are doing now is merely a stopgap measure, and also an accumulation of resources for what's to come.

The dinner ended smoothly amidst laughter and conversation.

After finishing their meal and cleaning up the dishes, Zhou Jiye was still somewhat reluctant to leave. Unfortunately, there wasn't much entertainment available, and his family didn't own a television. Although many people were starting to buy televisions, they were too expensive, the screens were small, and television tickets were required. Since they didn't have much money, they were hesitant to buy one and decided to wait.

"If only we had a radio..." Zhou Jiye thought to himself. They had been so busy every day that they hadn't thought about buying a radio. It was only 7:30 pm after dinner, still a long way from midnight. They couldn't just sit there doing nothing, could they?
"Would you like to listen to some music?" Fang Manxia suddenly asked Zhou Jiye and Lin Ying with a smile.

"music?"

The two were taken aback. They hadn't seen a radio in the house. Could it be that Fang Manxia had a musical instrument upstairs? Was she planning to show off her skills to them?
"You guys come with me."

Fang Manxia got up and led Zhou Jiye and Lin Ying upstairs.

She didn't stop at her bedroom on the second floor; she continued towards the third floor.

The third floor was a storage room, which Zhou Jiye and his team had never been inside. They usually only cleaned the outside.

Once outside the storage room, Fang Manxia took out a bunch of keys from her pocket, found one by the light, inserted it into the lock, and turned it to open the door.

After opening the door, she reached behind the door and turned on the light switch on the wall. The small storage room lit up, and Zhou Jiye and Lin Ying, who were standing at the door, subconsciously looked inside. They saw that the room was neat and tidy, completely different from the messy storage room they had imagined. Several wooden boxes were stacked, along with some other things.

"Xiao Zhou!" Fang Manxia called to Zhou Jiye, pointing to a wooden box in the corner and saying, "Move this box into my room, Xiao Lin, you carry this small box."

Without a word, Zhou Jiye stepped forward and lifted a large wooden box. The box was quite heavy, and it was only thanks to Zhou Jiye's strength that he was able to move it. As for the small box that Lin Ying carried, it wasn't very big, but it was also quite heavy.

The two men carried the two boxes into Fang Manxia's room on the second floor, one after the other. Once inside, Fang Manxia asked Zhou Jiye to open the large wooden box. When Zhou Jiye opened the box and saw what was inside, he was first stunned, then his face lit up with surprise.

The wooden box contained a vinyl record player. This machine was quite large, with a thick cherry wood casing that exuded the feel of decades past.

"Good heavens, Grandma, you actually have this treasure?"

Zhou Jiye was merely surprised, but Lin Ying's eyes lit up. Her eye for detail far surpassed Zhou Jiye's; she recognized it at a glance as a classic ARAGON record player.

This is an American brand that specializes in making audio-visual equipment. The brand's record players are also known as "Cut-Bone Knife" because of their unique shape. They were once one of the most popular products, and even decades later, the old machines from this brand still have considerable collectible value.

Fang Manxia's ARAGON record player is a small, home-use model. ARAGON's main products are mostly the large, bulky ones displayed in bars in the American market, so such a small player is extremely rare. Although many years have passed, this record player is very well maintained. The exterior is spotless, and the internal parts show no signs of rust. She just doesn't know if it will still work properly when plugged in.

"I bought this thing a few years ago, and then put it away in the storage room after the 1960s. I didn't take it with me when I moved here. It's amazing that it's still here when I came back. It's not easy to have it left until now." Fang Manxia said softly, touching the record player. Then she asked Zhou Jiye to take it out, found a place to put it, and then skillfully guided Zhou Jiye to install and adjust it. Finally, she plugged it in and turned it on.

A soft buzzing sound rang out. Fang Manxia stared intently at the record player for a while, and only smiled after confirming that all the parts were working properly.

"This old buddy is quite durable, it's rare that it hasn't been damaged. Xiao Lin, open the other box." Lin Ying responded and opened another small wooden box she had taken down. Inside was a thick stack of vinyl records. These records were quite old, but they were well preserved along with the record player. They were covered with paper sleeves, with a large black rooster pattern in the center of the sleeves. On either side of the rooster, there was a large character printed on each side, which together spelled out the words "EMI" (百代).

EMI Records is one of the three major record companies in Shanghai. Lin Ying looked at the old records inside with great affection; these were all rare treasures!

"Let's try one," Fang Manxia said to Lin Ying with a smile.

Lin Ying couldn't wait to take out a sheet of paper. After looking at the print, she saw that it was a copy of Zhou Xuan's "Silver Flowers Flying".

Put the record into the record player, then press the switch. The record starts spinning smoothly. Lift the stylus and gently place it on the record. The speaker first emits a faint electrical sound, mixed with some slight noise.

After a short wait, the music started playing, and Zhou Xuan's highly recognizable voice rang out.

Silver flowers fly, silver flowers fly.

Silver light pierced through the embroidered silk curtains.

Lanterns are lit to admire the snow, inside the Red Chamber. Sipping fine wine, before the peach blossoms even bloom, mandarin fish leap from the flowing water…

This is an early song by Zhou Xuan, and also one of her representative works.

Zhou Xuan, known as the "Golden Voice," was extremely popular in the 1930s and 40s. In particular, her songs "The Wandering Songstress" and "The Song of the Four Seasons" were widely sung. However, "Silver Flowers Fly" is less well-known, and neither Zhou Jiye nor Lin Ying heard it for the first time.

In the quiet night, in Fang Manxia's room, the light from the floor lamp shone, illuminating the old furniture, and melodious singing echoed, giving people a wonderful feeling.

Sitting in the chair, Fang Manxia closed her eyes slightly, her fingers tapping gently to the rhythm on the armrest, humming softly along with the song.

Lin Ying, who was standing to the side, listened intently, feeling the beauty of the song and the emotions it evoked. As for Zhou Jiye, needless to say, it was the first time he had heard this song, and at this moment he truly understood why Zhou Xuan had the title of "Golden Voice" back then.

"Silver Flowers Fly" is not long; the few minutes passed quickly. As the singing faded and the music dissipated, the record came to an end.

"It sounds so good!" Lin Ying couldn't help but exclaim.

Fang Manxia smiled and nodded, saying that she would tell Lin Ying how incredibly popular the album was when it was first released, and how it was practically impossible to find in Shanghai back then. It was also because of this album that Zhou Xuan, who had just begun to emerge, was able to firmly establish herself in the music scene, further propelling her fame to new heights.

"Grandma, have you ever met Zhou Xuan?"

"Of course I've seen it."

"What kind of person is she?" Lin Ying asked with great interest.

“Her…” Fang Manxia sighed softly, her expression filled with reminiscence: “A beautiful woman, a kind woman, a natural singer with a beautiful voice, and also a pitiful woman…”

At this point, Fang Manxia couldn't help but sigh at Zhou Xuan's tragic fate, and briefly told Zhou Jiye and the others about Zhou Xuan's life and past.

Sold off by her uncle at a young age, Zhou Xuan spent her life searching for the warmth of family and hoping to receive love from her relatives. Although she achieved great success in the music and film industries, the former was the most important thing in her heart.

Unfortunately, Zhou Xuan always encountered bad people in her life. First, she was betrayed by her relatives, and later she experienced the failure of her marriage. Her life can be described as a regrettable tragedy.

"Alright, it's the end of the year, let's not talk about these unhappy things anymore. We can talk about them slowly another time." Perhaps because Zhou Xuan's life reminded Fang Manxia of something, a hint of sadness flashed across her expression, but she quickly returned to normal.

"Xiaolin, find that Johann Strauss record inside, let's listen to some cheerful music."

Lin Ying readily agreed and took out a waltz by Johann Strauss from the box, replacing Zhou Xuan's record. As the record player was turned on again, the cheerful rhythm of the King of Waltz's masterpiece, "Voices of Spring," began to play from the speakers.

The vibrant music filled the room, instantly dispelling the sadness of Zhou Xuan's story and enlivening the atmosphere.

The three of them sat and listened for a while, when suddenly Fang Manxia asked Zhou Jiye, "Little Zhou, can you dance?"

"Dancing?" Zhou Jiye was stunned for a moment, then turned his head to look at the record player that was playing a waltz. Could it be that the old lady wanted to dance?

If it were just some random jumping around, Zhou Jiye might be able to manage, but he had absolutely no experience with such an elegant dance! Just as he was feeling a bit awkward and unsure how to respond, Lin Ying chimed in, "I know a little bit, how about we dance a little?"

"Okay!"

Fang Manxia immediately became interested and stood up.

Zhou Jiye quickly helped move the furniture in the middle of the room to the side to make room, then walked to the record player, readjusted the needle, and started playing the record from the beginning.

When the cheerful dance music started again, Lin Ying, who had taken off her coat and was wearing only a sweater, walked gracefully to Fang Manxia, ​​bowed slightly, and made an inviting gesture.

Seeing this, Fang Manxia smiled. She stood up gracefully, extended her left hand to Lin Ying, and Lin Ying took her hand, leading Fang Manxia back a step. She then put her right arm around Fang Manxia's waist, and Fang Manxia's left hand gently rested on Lin Ying's shoulder. She raised her right hand and clasped Lin Ying's left hand. Then, the two of them took a gliding step and spun around to the music, their posture extremely graceful.

Lin Ying danced the male steps, while Fang Manxia danced the female steps. Their dance moves were skillful, their steps precise and elegant. Every step and every turn was just right, like butterflies fluttering, echoing each other and creating a mesmerizing scene.

(End of this chapter)