C81 (1/2)

The reason why we were attracted to the acrobatic group was not because of what we saw, but because Kieran told us that the acrobatic group here had a ”divine art”, and asked us if we were interested to see it.

I'm not interested in it at all, but Lin Zhishu and Da Jian definitely supported it with both hands. There was no choice, I could only endure the sleepiness and accompany them to watch it.

There were nearly a hundred people gathered in an open space at the entrance to the village, mostly children and women. The acrobats in the middle were performing: a man was riding a bicycle, carrying six people around the grounds, and from time to time there was a round of enthusiastic applause.

By the time we got there, the show was over and the people had left.

I asked Kieran, ”They also haven't collected any money nor have any admission tickets, what are they relying on to earn money?”

Kieran said that the village had to pay for it. The state assistance included the expenses of the villagers' recreational lives, which was how the folk acrobats earned their money.

While we were talking, the next program started. My interest was piqued too, the few of us squeezed into the crowd together, while Kieran stood outside the crowd, waiting for us.

Perhaps the communication was not very developed, so the acrobatics should be something the local citizens were very looking forward to. From the looks of the crowd, it seemed like a kind of infatuation.

There were even people in the crowd who were lighting lanterns, and it was unknown if everyone still remembered the look of those lanterns.

The venue was brightly lit as if it was day. The acrobats used ”gas lamps,” or gasoline, which needed to be inflated at times to let the gas out, heated through the pipes to steam, and then fired through the nozzles to give off a bright white glow, brighter than the 500-watt bulbs of the time.

I seem to have seen this kind of gas lamp only when I was very young, and now I can actually use this kind of light.

The acrobatics that followed were ordinary, mainly some of the outdated magic shows that we had, and most impressive of all, gasoline sprays. Despite this, the local women and children watched with relish.

When it came to the last program, the acrobatic group host introduced it. Next up would be the final highlight program. He said that the person's head could be turned three times.

I'm especially curious because normal people can only turn their head 180 degrees. How is it possible for special people to turn their face three times? The few of us gathered around to watch.

The performers came on, first two stout young men, each holding the performer's arm with one hand and pressing their strong forearms against the performer's back to hold the little boy in place, and then the other to twist his neck, which was even thicker and more terrifying. As he spoke, he slammed his palm against the boy's neck.

I don't think the boy felt much, then he grabbed the boy's head between his arms and twisted it to the left.

At that moment, even though I wasn't close to it, I could clearly hear the sound of bones fracturing and dislocations. There were several crisp sounds consecutively, and these sounds were exceptionally terrifying. The entire place was deathly silent.

When the man turned the boy's face back to his back and turned right again, there was the sound of breaking bones. The man then quickly turned the boy's head. Although it did not turn three times, it was at least a circle and a half. After that, the boy's head was completely detached, only his skin and flesh were still connected.

Then, he released his hand and the other two began to shake the boy's body. They could clearly feel that the boy's head no longer belonged to his body. At this moment, many people no longer looked at it because the performance had reached its end.

But I was curious, and I thought that since it was a performance, I would definitely ”save” the boy, so I continued to watch.

At this moment, the acrobatic group had already stopped their performance.

The two people holding the boy directly dragged his body into a nearby house.

As they walked very fast, the only sound that could be heard was the sound of the boy's pants dragging over the ground. His shoes had long since disappeared.

We decided to go over and see what was going on.

When he walked over, he found that it was a newly built house. There was no courtyard or door. They dragged the boy into a ”hayloft,” where there were so many cows that I assumed it was a barn.