Back to 80: My literary life.

Chapter 912: Tavern on Yulin Road
Fang Minghua doesn't think she is a romantic at heart, but she is indeed interested in Zhai Yongming's tavern.

I guess after listening to Zhao Lei's song "Chengdu", people who like folk songs will become interested in Chengdu, Yulin Road (actually there is no Yulin Road in Chengdu), and the pubs on Yulin Road.

So he decided to go to Chengdu, refund his flight ticket to Yanjing, and fly to Chengdu instead.

Song Tangtang was leading his team in the final roadshow for the listing of Shengshi Films. They were going to Huacheng. There were only Fang Minghua and the nanny at home. He said goodbye to the nanny and flew to Chengdu the next day.

After arriving at Chengdu Tianfu Airport, Fang Minghua took a taxi straight to the city center and stayed at the Kempinski Hotel not far from Yulin Road. He then called Zhai Yongming and told him that he had arrived in Chengdu and checked into the hotel.

"Are you staying at the Kempinski? It's quite close to my White Night Tavern. I'll come and pick you up." Zhai Yongming said.

"No need, just tell me the specific address and I'll come over." Fang Minghua said.

"Okay then, I'll call Liu Jiakun and ask him to come over." After Zhai Yongming told him the specific address of the bar, Fang Minghua went downstairs and left the hotel.

Fang Minghua walked along Yulin West Road, with lush trees on both sides. Behind the green shades were small pubs with their own characteristics one after another.

He soon found the tavern called "White Night".

This is an old courtyard, which retains the Western-style door with four pillars and three mountains from the Republic of China period. There is an old wall made of rammed earth from the Qing Dynasty in the courtyard, with broken tiles from the Han Dynasty interspersed in it.

Fang Minghua went in and saw that the original doors and windows of the east and west wing rooms were partially preserved. There were two loquat trees and a dead tree in the yard. The two old eucalyptus trees, which were very old, blocked out the sun and enveloped the night in green shade.

It is sunset now, and the whole courtyard is covered with a light golden color.

Fang Minghua walked across the yard and saw a woman sitting at the bar in the main hall. It was Zhai Yongming.

Zhai Yongming is older than Fang Minghua, has long curly hair and wears a plaid sweater. When he saw Fang Minghua come in, he came out of the bar and waved to him with a smile.

"The environment here is nice." Fang Minghua said with a smile as he looked at the surrounding layout.

"Is it okay? Usually friends come over to sit and have a drink. How about I make you a cocktail?" Zhai Yongming asked.

"You can?" Fang Minghua was a little surprised, thinking that the bar had a dedicated bartender.

"I've been in the United States for a few years, so I've learned a lot. You can sit down first."

Fang Minghua found an empty seat in the hall and sat down. Zhai Yongming returned to the bar and quickly started mixing drinks. Fang Minghua watched her technique, which was quite skilled.

A few minutes later, a plate was brought over with two cocktails of different colors on it.

Zhai Yongming placed a glass of blue cocktail in front of Fang Minghua and said, "Try this. It's made with whiskey and almond liqueur. It's called The Godfather."

"The Godfather? The movie 'The Godfather'?" Fang Minghua asked.

"Yes, the almond liqueur in the raw material was originally Amaretto, a famous Italian liqueur, and the Godfather is the title of the mafia leader, so people later called this cocktail the Godfather, which is very suitable for you." Zhai Yongming said with a smile.

"Why is it suitable for me?" Fang Minghua was slightly surprised.

"Because some people call you the godfather of domestic movies."

"Ah?" Fang Minghua was even more stunned.

Zhai Yongming smiled and said, "Although I am not involved in the film and television industry, I know a few young directors who are somewhat famous."

Before Fang Minghua could speak, Zhai Yongming continued, "I know Jia Zhangke. He came to Chengdu in 2000 from the "Turn of the Century: Film and Literature Seminar" and stayed in my bar for several days." "And Wang Xiaoshuai and Lou Ye. Lou Ye, a young director, has a poetic temperament. They have all come to my bar and occasionally talk about you. Some people call you teacher, but more people call you the godfather, the godfather of movies."

"These young people are talking nonsense." Fang Minghua laughed and picked up the glass of "The Godfather" and took a sip.

"How does it taste? Can you taste the feeling of Vito Corleone in The Godfather, who is in power and looks down on the world?" Zhai Yongming asked with a smile.

Fang Minghua shook his head.

"I can't tell the difference. To be honest, I think it's not as good as the Xifeng in Qin Province. Maybe some beer."

After hearing this, Zhai Yongming burst out laughing.

"Your words remind me of more than ten years ago when you came to Chengdu and Shang Zhongmin treated you to hotpot. After so many years, you seem to have not changed at all. Okay, I'll ask the waiter to change your beer."

"No, don't waste it." Fang Minghua quickly replied: "Yes, have you seen Shang Zhongmin?"

"I have seen him. He is now a wealthy boss. I almost didn't recognize him when I ran into him on the street. I have also seen Li Yawei and Hu Dong, but those were also by chance."

"Didn't I come to your tavern and sit down?" Fang Minghua asked.

"I invited them, but they didn't come. They said your White Night Tavern is a place for poets to gather. We don't write poetry anymore, so why come?"

Fang Minghua was silent for a while.

"Of course there are poets. Ouyang Jianghe sometimes comes to play, as well as He Xiaozhu, Haishang, and Hu Xudong, a teacher at Yenching University. These people also write poetry, but they are not as famous as Shang Zhongmin and others. We often talk about poetry together."

Zhai Yongming continued, "There are also writers. You must be familiar with Ma Yuan, right? He was a frequent visitor here for a while. Of course, there are also directors and young artists, so it's not lonely here either."

Fang Minghua looked around. It was only evening, but there were already many people in the tavern, and it seemed that business was quite brisk.

In fact, every city has a gathering place for young literary people like this. For example, the Xuecheng Bookstore in Xijing, in addition to holding reading salons from time to time, Lei Xuecheng also organized a small-scale poetry reading for the entertainment of amateur literature lovers.

As the two were chatting, a middle-aged man with a short haircut and a leather jacket walked into the pub. Zhai Yongming saw him and waved to him, and the man walked over with a smile.

"Minghua, let me introduce you. This is my good friend Liu Jiakun," Zhai Yongming introduced.

"Hello, Chairman Fang." Liu Jiakun hurriedly shook hands.

"Hello, Mr. Liu."

After Liu Jiakun sat down, Zhai Yongming stood up and said, "I'll ask the waiter to bring you some wine. You guys can chat slowly while I go and do something."

Soon, the waiter brought a bag of beer and the two of them drank it slowly.

"Do you come here often?" Fang Minghua looked at Zhai Yongming who was busy at the bar and asked.

"Come over and sit for a while if you have nothing to do. There are many poets and writers here. I used to be considered half a writer, haha." Liu Jiakun said with a smile.

The two chatted for a while and then got down to business.

(End of this chapter)