A widower's entertainment

Chapter 291 [Fighting Works] (Subscription Request)
Since Chen Ai Ge did not get the film adaptation rights for "Wonderful Things in the World", he naturally had to give up. He did not think of visiting the studio many times to show his sincerity, because as Lin Youcheng said, the current technology is not suitable for filming "Wonderful Things in the World".

Chen Ai Ge could see that Lin You Cheng really understood movies and would not let people shoot "Strange Things in the World" now.

It was also for this reason that Chen Ai Ge had to choose another book, and Shi Tiesheng's "Life is Like a String of Harp" was his other choice.

Of course, Chen Ai Ge still kept the story of "Wonderful Things in the World" in her heart. After all, it was a work that won the Mao Dun Literature Prize. She thought that she would find Lin Youcheng to get the film adaptation rights of this novel in the future.

But it was obvious that Chen Ai Ge would not know that it would be a long time later, and no one could say for sure. After all, Lin Youcheng did not agree to him.

When Chen Ai'ge left the courtyard in Xinghua Hutong, Lin Youcheng naturally saw her off. Looking at Chen Ai'ge's departing back, he thought to himself that if he really wanted to cooperate with Chen Ai'ge, he must take control of the script.

Even the later film "Farewell My Concubine" was able to win the Palme d'Or, it was also because of the script. The film was shot almost entirely according to the second version of the script written by screenwriter Lu Wei, with only two scenes out of 88. This is probably unique in Chen Ai'ge's films where she is keen on telling so-called stories.

Just after Lin Youcheng sent Chen Aige out, Lin Zhaole from inside the yard ran over with his short legs, raised his head, and asked innocently.

"Dad, why is it that only my eldest sister has a bicycle?"

When Lin Youcheng heard what Lin Zhaole said, he couldn't help but laugh. He wanted a bicycle even though he was not even as tall as the bicycle.

"Because your sister is in high school now and needs a bicycle to go to school."

When the new semester started, the only change was that Lin Zhaoxi had to go to Yanda High School. Fortunately, Xinghua Hutong, where the courtyard was located, was not far from Yanda High School. Although he could walk to school, Lin Youcheng still specially bought Lin Zhaoxi a Phoenix brand bicycle, which could be regarded as a gift for Lin Zhaoxi to be admitted to Yanda High School.

Although the three major items nowadays are no longer bicycles, sewing machines and radios, a Phoenix brand bicycle is still not cheap, costing 180 yuan, which is almost as much as Zhao Gensheng's two-month salary in Decheng. This is also the reason for the rising prices. The only good thing is that the ticket system has been relaxed and there is no need to look for bicycle tickets to buy one.

Lin Zhaoxi learned to ride a bicycle very quickly and got the hang of it in no time.

Several other children also clamored to learn how to ride bicycles. As the eldest sister, Lin Zhaoxi naturally would not be reluctant to let her younger siblings ride bicycles. She just reminded them to be careful in the alley.

Lin Zhaole asked again: "When I was in high school, would I also have a bicycle?"

"There will be."

When Lin Zhaole heard what Lin Youcheng said, a smile spread across his little face and he ran away happily again.

Lin Youcheng didn't know that it wasn't just Lin Zhaole who wanted the bicycle, but also Lin Zhaoqing.

Of course, Lin Zhaomei, Lin Zhaoman, and Lin Zhaohuan also had such an idea, but they were just thinking about it and did not particularly want it in their hearts, because their eldest sister could also ride a bicycle, and let them take turns sitting on the back seat for a ride, which made them very happy.

Lin Zhaoqing, however, envied Lin Zhaoxi's brand new bicycle. Although he lived close to his school, he also wanted a bicycle of his own.

After returning from outside the alley, Lin Zhaoqing ran directly to Lin Youcheng's study and told Lin Youcheng what he was thinking.

"Dad, can you buy me a bicycle?"

When Lin Youcheng heard what Lin Zhaoqing said, he looked at Lin Zhaoqing's eager expression and said, "Wait until you go to high school, then buy it."

Hearing this, Lin Zhaoqing was instantly disappointed. He was only in the second grade of junior high school this year, so he would have to wait a long time before he could have his own bicycle. He also didn't know if he could get into high school like his elder sister. Even if he could, he felt that the best result might be to be admitted to the high school department of Xinghua Middle School. The school would still be very close, and he didn't particularly need a bicycle to go to and from school.

Lin Youcheng looked at the disappointed expression on Lin Zhaoqing's face. Although he was not short of the money, he did not spoil him, especially since Lin Zhaoqing and his friends went to school together and it didn't take them long to walk, so they didn't need a bicycle at all.

"You guys go to and from school together now. The school is so close, there's no need to ride a bicycle."

"But I still have a long way to go in high school."

Lin Youcheng did not soften his heart because of Lin Zhaoqing's pitiful appearance, and he did not think there was anything pitiful about not buying a bicycle for Lin Zhaoqing. He said, "Your sister didn't buy a bicycle until she was in high school."

These words instantly blocked Lin Zhaoqing's words that he wanted to say.

That’s true. Their eldest sister didn’t have a bicycle until she was in high school, and if she hadn’t gone to Yanda High School, they might not have bought her a bicycle.

As soon as Lin Zhaoxi entered the house, she heard the conversation between Lin Zhaoqing and his father. She knew that Lin Zhaoqing also wanted a bicycle, and seeing that Lin Zhaoqing seemed disappointed, she couldn't help but say, "Zhaoqing, if you want to ride it, you can take it when the time comes. I can walk to school."

"How can this be possible! Absolutely not!"

When Lin Zhaoqing heard this, he quickly waved his hand to refuse. Although the alley was not far from Yanda High School, he naturally felt it was not good to let Lin Zhaoxi walk to and from school, so he quickly said, "No need, I can just borrow your bike to go out and play after school, big sister."

Lin Zhaoxi naturally had no objection. Obviously, Lin Youcheng knew that Lin Zhaoxi had always taken care of his younger siblings and was very sensible, so he would not fight for them or compare anything.

Lin Youcheng felt relieved when he heard Lin Zhaoqing's refusal. If Lin Zhaoqing knew that Lin Zhaoxi had a longer way to go to school, but still wanted to borrow his bicycle, then he would really have to consider what was wrong with his usual education.

Fortunately, the children are still quite sensible, just like the pomegranate tree in the yard, which is growing better and better, bearing abundant fruits, and has not grown crooked.

Lin Youcheng looked at the backs of Lin Zhaoxi and Lin Zhaoqing as they left, and saw that Lin Zhaoqing had grown taller. He thought he should buy new clothes for Lin Zhaoqing, but Lin Youcheng also knew that if he bought new clothes for Lin Zhaoqing, he would naturally have to buy new clothes for the others. After all, their conditions were so good now, and there was no need for him to let the younger ones pick up old clothes from their older brothers and sisters to wear. If one of them bought new clothes, the others would naturally have some as well. This was to treat everyone equally.

In fact, Lin Youcheng often wanted to treat his children equally. With six children, he naturally needed six bowls of water. Lin Zhaoxi had a bicycle, so naturally the other children should have one too. However, what really needed to be equal was the family property. It was not easy to divide the three courtyards among six children, so as a father, he still had to keep an eye out for suitable courtyards and prepare some for the others.

You need to wait for the right opportunity to buy a siheyuan, but you don’t need commercial housing. How about preparing some first?
These thoughts only flashed through Lin Youcheng's mind, and Lin Youcheng's eyes fell on the grid paper on the desk again.

The subsequent wealth is in the new works on the table. There is a golden house in the book.

Lin Youcheng did not agree to let Chen Ai'ge buy the film adaptation rights of "Wonderful Things in the World". It should be said that even if Chen Ai'ge offered more money now, Lin Youcheng would not sell it, not to mention that Lin Youcheng is not short of money now, and the film adaptation rights will be more valuable in the future.

However, he did think about telling Chen Ai Ge about the new novel he was preparing to write, but after considering it, Lin Youcheng decided to suppress the idea.

Because he doesn't think that this novel must be directed by Chen Ai Ge.

Lin Youcheng looked at the title of the novel on the manuscript paper - "Atonement".

That’s right, the next novel Lin Youcheng plans to write is the best-selling romance novel "Atonement".

He is well aware of how classic this story is. The original version of "Atonement" was published in 2001 and was nominated for many awards including the Booker Prize, and won many literary awards, including the Smith Literary Award, the Nationwide Book Critics Circle Humanities Award and the San Diego European Novel Award. Time magazine listed it as one of the greatest novels of all time. In addition, the film "Atonement" adapted from the novel was shortlisted for the main competition unit of the Venice Film Festival and nominated for seven Academy Awards, and also won the Golden Globe Award for Best Picture.

When Zhang Wei asked Lin Youcheng about his new work idea, he thought of the classic love novel "Atonement".

The most important thing is that this novel is not just about love, but also about humanity and war, as well as its incredible literary structure.

Although the story is about love, it is told from the perspective of another protagonist, who is thirteen years old. When he was young, a misunderstanding caused his sister to be separated from her lover. Since then, he has spent his life writing the novel "Atonement" in order to atone for his early mistakes.

Now Lin Youcheng naturally has to adapt this story to a localized form. After all, this story of redemption is quite long, from a thirteen-year-old girl to a seventy-seven-year-old writer who is about to die. The time dimension is quite long, spanning more than sixty years.

Of course, the theme structure of the whole story will not change. It will still use different historical fragments as narrative content and use diverse and complex narrative strategies to tell this story about love and redemption.

Originally the novel can be divided into three stages, and now Lin Youcheng also divides the story into three stages.

The first stage is that Lin Xue, who loves writing, is a 13-year-old daughter of a wealthy family. She is smart and imaginative. She witnessed her sister Lin Yu taking off her coat and jumping into the pool in front of the housekeeper's son Luo Yang. Later, she secretly opened the love letter Luo Yang wrote to her sister Lin Yu and was shocked by the straightforward and vulgar content. Until one night, she saw her sister and Luo Yang entangled together, and mistakenly thought that Luo Yang raped Lin Yu. It happened that her cousin was raped that night, so Lin Xue determined that Luo Yang was the criminal of this crime, which eventually led to Luo Yang's imprisonment.

The second stage is during the Anti-Japanese War, when Luo Yang and Lin Yu announced their cross-class love. In order to wash away the shame and save the country, Luo Yang resolutely joined the army, and Lin Yu followed suit. In the cruel war, the two lost their precious lives one after another. Lin Xue also fell into deep self-blame and guilt.

In the third stage, which is the last 20 pages of the novel, Lin Xue describes her feelings about atonement and self-redemption.

In Lin Youcheng's opinion, the most special thing about the novel "Atonement" is that it does not give the death of the hero and heroine at the beginning. Instead, it uses Lin Xue's mouth to write that Luo Yang joins the army after he is released from prison, and after many twists and turns, he and his sister finally get married. Lin Xue also obtains their forgiveness, and everything is happily ever after. But it is at this time that the real cruel ending is revealed, and the following content tells readers that the above comedy plot is just another creation of Lin Xue and is not true.

All of this constitutes a true novel - "Atonement". Everything is just a story arranged by Lin Xue for the peace of his soul.

The original comedy ending was just Lin Xue expressing her fantasy through the novel - the scene of Luo Yang and her sister, and her reunion with them, imagining the happy life they should have had. Although this is just her beautiful fantasy, it is her only way to atone for her sins and her beautiful yearning. She designed a unique way of atonement for herself. Since she can create pain, she can also create happiness. In the book, she reborn her sister and Luo Yang who have passed away, and let their love blossom and bear fruit.

This ending of the story, which is both real and fictional, pushes the work to an unprecedented height!
Lin Youcheng personally applauded the plot design of the novel "Atonement"!
Lin Youcheng is very clear that this novel is very suitable for adaptation into a movie, otherwise the original movie would not have been nominated for multiple Oscars. The love and humanity in it can be said to be quite profound, because the thirteen-year-old girl accused Luo Yang of being imprisoned because of ignorance or jealousy at that time, which is worth exploring. Of course, it is obvious that in the end, lies make up for lies. In the novel, the thirteen-year-old girl used the rewritten ending to achieve her atonement. She rewrote this tragedy, compensated for the regrets of reality, and completed her own "Atonement".

When Chen Ai'ge and Lin Youcheng mentioned that the film was competing for awards at the three major film festivals, Lin Youcheng thought about the story he was about to write. The love, humanity, and war in this story are undoubtedly quite moving, even shocking.

But Lin Youcheng didn't tell Chen Aige this story directly at that time.

Firstly, it is because the novel has not been written yet. Secondly, in Lin Youcheng's view, after the manuscript of his novel is completed and published, there will naturally be an answer as to which directors are willing to film this story.

It is not necessary for Chen Ai Ge to shoot the story of "Atonement".

Obviously, Lin Youcheng didn't know that when his novel was finished, the one who would snatch it away would not be the literary editor but the film director.

(End of this chapter)