Chapter 131: Chapter 131: Poster

“This is all I have.”

The old man handed the poster to Adrian Hawthorne. Tang Xiaonan glanced at it—they were all movie stills of the female lead, Jessica, with her charming smile and a captivating glance over her shoulder. Although the costume and makeup were a bit dated, the actress was a true beauty, far more stunning than the cookie-cutter internet celebrity faces of the future.

Tang Xiaonan remembered this version of Jessica. The actress was Cecilia Cole, a sweetheart star from Portloria in the seventies and eighties. Her ancestral home was even in Zylos Province, making her a classic southern beauty. *Three Smiles* was Cecilia Cole’s most famous work, a sensation that swept the nation back then. She was, by all accounts, an A-list star.

“Thank you, sir.”

Adrian Hawthorne thanked him gratefully and pressed a couple pounds of biscuits into the old man’s hands. The man was wearing a faded Zhongshan suit, his frame was gaunt, and his face was sallow—clear signs of malnutrition.

“Take these back. Eat them yourselves. The meat bun is more than enough for me.”

The old man refused to take them. If his family hadn’t gone without meat for months, he wouldn’t have even accepted the meat bun earlier. Adults could endure it, but the children needed the nutrition. That was the only reason he’d brazenly accepted the bun; there was no way he could take the biscuits as well.

Besides, he saw that Adrian Hawthorne was wearing patched clothes and wasn’t very sturdily built, so he figured his family wasn’t well-off either. If he accepted the biscuits, his conscience wouldn’t let him rest.

“Grandfather, I actually have a favor to ask you.”

Adrian Hawthorne was surprisingly strong, and the old man couldn’t overpower him. Just then, a middle-aged man approached, so the old man stopped resisting, afraid of making a scene.

“Old Wood, are these two your kids?” the man asked with a smile.

“They’re relatives from the countryside. They’ve never seen a movie, so I’m giving them a couple of posters to broaden their horizons a bit.”

“What’s the fun in looking at posters? Let them go inside and watch the movie. Your own relatives shouldn’t need tickets. I’ll have a word with Old Sutton at the gate. Next time they want to see something, just let them in.”

The man was very warm and even gave Tang Xiaonan a friendly pat on the head. The little girl had a cheerful and endearing look about her that made people like her.

Mr. Wood shook his head firmly. “Absolutely not. They’re not cinema employees, so they aren’t entitled to the privilege of watching movies for free. Director Hughes, I appreciate the sentiment, but I must decline.”

Director Hughes gave a resigned laugh. “Old Wood, you’re just too stubborn about your principles. You really ought to change that temper of yours. Haven’t you suffered enough all these years?”

“I’ve got one foot in the grave already. Too late to change now.”

Mr. Wood just smiled. ’This is fine,’ he thought. ’Life might be hard, but my conscience is clear before heaven, earth, and myself. When I go down below and meet my brothers in arms, I’ll be able to stand tall before them.’

’Besides, compared to my comrades who sacrificed their lives, just being alive is a gift from the heavens. It would be shameless of me to ask for anything more.’

Director Hughes shook his head and walked away. ’That Old Wood is just too stubborn and ill-tempered, and he has no idea how to be flexible. He offended someone important and got demoted again and again. An old revolutionary veteran who should be enjoying a cadre’s benefits is now reduced to watching the gate at a movie theater, earning a meager twenty-odd yuan a month to support a huge family. They can’t even afford enough vegetables and tofu to eat.’

’If only Old Wood would just bend a little, he wouldn’t have to live so miserably!’

Director Hughes sighed. ’The most I can do is help with little things. If I do too much, the old man won’t accept it, saying he can’t take advantage of the state. What a headache. He’d rather break than bend.’

Adrian Hawthorne studied Mr. Wood, who, though gaunt, stood ramrod straight. His bearing was entirely different from that of a typical old man. ’It looks like this gatekeeper has quite a story,’ he thought.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep