1978: A Literary Giant Who Began His Military Service

Chapter 69 Little Tao Huimin!

At this time, in Ruian, Zhejiang, the Ruian Drama Troupe.

A young, beautiful, and very youthful face appeared on the path... Tao Huimin was only thirteen or fourteen years old at the time.

Tao came from a simple working-class family and had no access to Yue Opera, but she loved singing since she was a child.

In 1978, the Ruian Yue Opera Troupe set up a recruitment point at their primary school. 12-year-old Tao Huimin stood out from thousands of applicants and became one of the three selected, as well as the only girl to be admitted.

She thus entered the Ruian Yue Opera Troupe and became a junior student.

Back then, plays like Yue Opera and Peking Opera weren't considered outdated, and the lines to buy tickets were as long as those outside movie theaters.

That's how Tao Huimin joined the Yue Opera troupe, because being a Yue Opera actor is a promising career path nowadays.

With hope in her heart, Tao Huimin went to the bookstore entrance to queue. The thirteen-year-old girl squeezed and pushed her way through the crowd! Soon she reached the door: "Hello comrade! Could I have a copy of the People's Daily and the PLA Daily?"

Her voice was clear and sweet, with that gentle, soft quality typical of people from Jiangnan... I wonder if anyone has seen the story of Xiao Baicai in "The Case of Yang Naiwu and Xiao Baicai".

The description of Tao Huimin is "like a cabbage, green and simple, without any embellishment."

Don't even mention a thirteen-year-old cabbage... well, she's too tender. She needs to grow for another three years until she's sixteen to be at her most tender...

The bookstore clerk glanced at Tao Huimin and scoffed, "Pretty girls are always appealing." "Do you want the latest issue?"

Tao Huimin nodded.

"Alright, here's three cents in total."

The comrade took out two newspapers and handed them to Tao Huimin: "Young comrade, you're so young and you're already concerned about the war?"

"Ah? Um... My dad likes it, so I brought it for him." Tao Huimin nodded, took out three cents from her small pocket, and handed it over.

Tao Huimin took the newspaper, said thank you softly, and then walked towards home.

Saying it was bought for her father is true, but not entirely.

In fact, Tao Huimin had dreamed of joining the army since she was a child, according to the girl herself.

However, at the age of eighteen, when she was becoming a sensation in China, she did not join the army. Instead, she played the role of Yang Wufeng, the fifth daughter, in the Yue Opera "Five Daughters Paying Homage to Their Mother" with the Xiaobaihua Yue Opera Troupe.

Of course, more than a decade after her successful acting career, Tao Huimin actually joined the army.

In 96, Tao Huimin was filming the TV series "There's a Sea Beyond the Mountains," and at that time, she had some contact with the performing arts troupe. Shao Junlin, the head of the production team at the time, also greatly admired her talent and invited her to join the Nanjing Military Region Political Department's Frontline Drama Troupe.

Then Tao Huimin officially joined the front-line drama troupe and became an art troupe soldier.

Afterwards, she gradually rose to become a national first-class actress, holding the rank of senior colonel in the civilian military and enjoying the treatment of a deputy military officer. She followed the same path as Zhou Xu.

Of course, Zhou Xu's civilian and military positions are not separated at the moment, so he might be able to get a real military position... cough cough.

Tao Huimin went home.

Both my parents were factory workers. The treatment of factory workers in those days was indeed very good. Being able to get into a factory now is almost as desirable as being an employee of a state-owned enterprise in later years.

Of course, now we have a single-day weekend system, which means we only get one day off a week, on Sunday. The real two-day weekend system will not be implemented until the mid-to-late 1980s.

"Dad, this is today's *PLA Daily*, and this is the *People's Daily*!"

Tao Huimin first handed the PLA Daily to her father, and then took the People's Daily for herself.

The father took the newspaper and began to read it. "The war is over..." Tao's father, who was reading the "People's Liberation Army Daily," suddenly said to himself, "It was over in a month."

Tao Huimin picked up the newspaper and looked at it, then followed her father to look at his newspaper: "Is it really over? Then these soldiers are alright, right?"

"Yes, the wounded soldiers will receive treatment at the military hospital after the battle," Tao's father said, looking at Tao Huimin.

During the Sino-Vietnamese War, most people paid close attention to this event, which, like the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea, injected unparalleled energy into the country during this period.

After all, the fighting had been going on for so long, and morale was low. This time, not only did they repel the northern invaders, but they also boosted domestic morale and taught their disobedient allies a lesson. It was a win-win-win situation.

"That's good." Tao Huimin nodded.

She also read the newspaper.

……

Tao's father then looked at the first article on the homepage, which was about soldier Zhou Xu: "Twenty-five kills! A cultural troupe soldier fighting a bloody battle in a field hospital!!!"

"On March 4th, just before the withdrawal, the xxth Division... At this time, Comrade Zhou Xu, a frontline reporter, stepped forward..."

Tsk!
Looking at the newspaper, Mr. Tao was genuinely surprised.

One man fought a bloody battle in a field hospital, defended the hospital with two guns, and killed more than twenty enemies. Just hearing about this level of difficulty is enough to make it sound incredibly challenging.

And most importantly, he was an arts and culture soldier!

An arts and culture soldier, who wasn't originally part of a combat unit, is bravely fighting his way forward to protect the wounded soldiers behind him!

Holding the record, Tao's father traced the words "killed more than twenty enemies" with his fingertips, and felt a jolt in his heart. All the words he wanted to say finally condensed into one sentence:

"This is a true hero, one who dares to shoulder immense burdens in dire straits and conceals his sharpness in moments of vulnerability!"

"Wow!!" Tao Huimin looked over curiously again.

"Dad, what did you write?" Tao Huimin asked.

Tao's father had several brothers and sisters, but Xiao Tao was the youngest. Even at such a young age, she was still able to learn Yue Opera, which shows that she was the most beloved child in the family.

"Oh! This comrade is amazing, you should see! Young people have heroic spirit, and so do women! Women can hold up half the sky too."

She saw Zhou Xu's name: "War correspondent, three hours of bloody battle! In the end..."

Then I saw a photo published at the bottom of the newspaper. It was a photo that Zhang Lingxiao took after Zhou Xu woke up. Although it was blurry, his heroic spirit and murderous aura were still visible.

Tao Huimin, staring at the newspaper, was filled with admiration. This performing arts soldier was truly amazing! It made her feel incredibly excited!

"That's amazing!"

Xiao Tao, who had always wanted to join the army, felt her emotions reach a peak at this moment. She also wanted to perform for the troops on the front lines as an art troupe member to boost morale.

"..."

Mr. Tao nodded: "Impressive, isn't it? Huimin, when you're seventeen or eighteen, you can sign up to join the army. That young man in the newspaper is only eighteen!"

"Oh! Eighteen years old? That's only five years older than me!!? Dad, then I'll have to enlist in the army in a few years too."

Tao Huimin blinked, watching Zhou Xu's figure fighting bravely, and her admiration for soldiers grew even stronger. Of course, she also thought: I didn't know that cultural soldiers could be so amazing, and could also fight on the battlefield!

(End of this chapter)