A widower's entertainment

Chapter 309 [Reading Aloud of Life and Death] (Please Subscribe)
Xinghua Hutong, Beijing.

As an old friend of Lin Youcheng, Zhang Wei naturally rushed to the courtyard house as soon as he learned that Lin Youcheng was writing a new manuscript, wanting to see it.

When Zhang Wei arrived at the courtyard, Xie Shuhua was also there, sitting in a chair in the main room looking through a manuscript.

"Youcheng, is this the new manuscript she's looking at?"

Zhang Wei noticed Xie Shuhua flipping through a manuscript and couldn't help but look at Lin Youcheng to ask what he was thinking.

Lin Youcheng nodded. He wasn't surprised that Zhang Wei had come at this time. After all, he knew very well that Zhang Wei was always very serious about urging authors to submit their manuscripts. He would often ride his bicycle to the authors' homes in Beijing to ask about the progress of their manuscripts and their ideas for the next story.

Is this novel finished?

"not yet."

Zhang Wei was naturally a little surprised when he heard Lin Youcheng's words. He didn't expect that Lin Youcheng had already shown it to Xie Shuhua before he even finished writing it. He glanced at Xie Shuhua and then at Lin Youcheng. A thought seemed to flash through his mind, and he sensed that the relationship between Lin Youcheng and Xie Shuhua was unusual.

Of course, this thought only flashed through Zhang Wei's mind. In his opinion, it wouldn't be a big deal if Lin Youcheng and Xie Shuhua were together. After all, Lin Youcheng had been single for several years. He had even thought about introducing Lin Youcheng to women, but Lin Youcheng had refused before, so he didn't continue to introduce him to women. In fact, in his opinion, Lin Youcheng's situation was indeed a bit difficult. He was stuck in the middle, with six children in his family. This was an obstacle that he couldn't get around.

If Xie Shuhua and Lin Youcheng were to actually have a relationship, Zhang Wei would consider it the best thing ever.

Clearly, Zhang Wei hadn't considered that Xie Shuhua was more than ten years younger than Lin Youcheng.

This is why different people, standing at different angles, will naturally have different opinions.

Xie Shuhua looked up at Zhang Wei and saw that Zhang Wei was staring at the manuscript in his hand. She handed it over directly and said with a smile, "Director Zhang, I think you shouldn't be in such a hurry. This novel is not finished yet. You've read the beginning of the story, but you haven't read the end. You might be anxious and unable to sleep at night."

When Xie Shuhua handed him the manuscript, Zhang Wei naturally took it without hesitation and said with a smile, "I'm used to it. His previous book, 'The Time Traveler's Wife,' kept me up at night."

"And that movie, 'Atonement,' even after I finished watching it, I couldn't sleep all night!"

Hearing Zhang Wei's words, Xie Shuhua couldn't help but laugh. Without disturbing Zhang Wei, she let him look at the first part of the text, then walked to Lin Youcheng's side, looked up and asked, "How will this love story end?"

Clearly, Xie Shuhua already knew about Lin Youcheng's story, "The Reader," but she had only read the first part, only seeing the fifteen-year-old boy Jiang Xia and the thirty-six-year-old woman Yang Ju going crazy together, and then parting ways. She didn't know what kind of ending this love story would have in Lin Youcheng's writing.

When Lin Youcheng heard Xie Shuhua ask him this question, he raised an eyebrow and smiled as he asked in return, "What do you think the ending will be?"

"I hope it will be a happy ending."

Upon hearing Xie Shuhua's words, Lin Youcheng shook his head and said, "That story won't happen."

Xie Shuhua wasn't particularly disappointed, but she had already seen the separation between Jiang Xia and Yang Ju in "The Reader," and wondered what kind of future the two, with such a large age gap, would face.

"Actually, we considered another name for this story—'The Reader of Life and Death'."

"The Reader of Life and Death?"

Xie Shuhua was naturally quite startled. The name alone was extraordinary, subtly indicating that the story was about life and death.

Xie Shuhua didn't press for the ending of the story. Instead, she discussed with Lin Youcheng the story between Jiang Xia and Yang Ju in the earlier parts, whether it was desire or love.

Sitting on the other side, Zhang Wei was flipping through the story "The Reader" written by Lin Youcheng. Although it was only the first half and not yet finished, Zhang Wei was reading it very carefully. The first-person perspective allowed him to gradually witness the inner world of the fifteen-year-old boy Jiang Xia, all his desires, shame, and obsession with the scent of the thirty-six-year-old woman's body. This kind of storyline had already surprised Zhang Wei immensely.

Because Lin Youcheng's story is quite daring and very exciting.

Zhang Wei was genuinely shocked. He never expected Lin Youcheng to have such a direct side. No wonder there were rumors that the story Lin Youcheng was writing might not be made into a movie.

This plot is indeed very sensitive. If the film really wants to shoot it, it will probably have to be subtle, or it will have to be handled with other shots, or the plot will have to be changed directly.

Although he didn't know what would happen next, Zhang Wei was already quite excited. This was the first time he had seen such explicit bedroom descriptions in Lin Youcheng's manuscript, which completely surprised him. Of course, the story of a fifteen-year-old boy and a thirty-six-year-old woman also excited Zhang Wei, the literary editor. He closed the manuscript in his hands, looked at Lin Youcheng, and asked, "Youcheng, what will happen next?"

Lin Youcheng, who was talking with Xie Shuhua, turned to look at Zhang Wei when he heard Zhang Wei's question and asked, "Do you think the People's Literature magazine can publish the story mentioned earlier?"

"If *People's Literature* can't publish it, then I'll—"

Zhang Wei was surprised that Lin Youcheng would suddenly say such a thing, and quickly replied, "There won't be any problems."

Hearing Zhang Wei speak so confidently, Lin Youcheng didn't pay much attention. If it didn't work out with People's Literature, he would just submit his work to another magazine.

After all, some explicit scenes in novels like "White Deer Plain" were later published in the magazine "Contemporary," and "Ruined Capital" was later published in the magazine "October." Literary magazines and journals do not deliberately delete details from novels containing such explicit scenes.

"Youcheng, how do you plan to write the rest of the story?"

"What will happen to these two?" Lin Youcheng glanced at Xie Shuhua, then at Zhang Wei. He knew Zhang Wei was discussing the novel's plot with him as a magazine editor. After thinking for a moment, he said, "A few years later, Jiang Xia sees Yang Ju again after the victory of the Liberation War. Although he has forgotten Yang Ju, that relationship remains his sweetest memory. At that time, Jiang Xia, who had begun studying law, participated in the trial of civil war elements. It is in this story that Jiang Xia and Yang Ju meet again. However, to his surprise, he never imagined that Yang Ju had once been a female guard imprisoning revolutionary comrades and had even executed comrades. Faced with the accusations of her former colleague, Yang Ju confessed without hesitation and, because she did not want to expose her illiteracy in front of others, admitted to a serious crime that was not hers."

Hearing Lin Youcheng's words, Xie Shuhua was shocked, and Zhang Wei was equally dumbfounded.

They had never expected things to turn out this way. At this moment, they understood why Lin Youcheng's novel was initially titled "The Reader," and why Yang Ju would read the text aloud every time she and Jiang Xia studied in bed.

The most important part of this story is that Yang Ju is illiterate.

Zhang Wei was shocked, but he couldn't help asking, "Why is Yang Ju unwilling to admit that she is illiterate? You know, those crimes are quite serious."

"There was no particular reason; it was just that Yang Ju was unwilling to expose her illiteracy in front of others, perhaps because of her pride."

Clearly, Lin Youcheng's words shocked Xie Shuhua and Zhang Wei. Although they had both thought of this, they were still unsure whether it was necessary to pay such a high price to maintain that dignity.
Xie Shuhua looked at Lin Youcheng with eyes full of admiration. She had never expected that Lin Youcheng's idea would lead to such a plot, and she admired his talent from the bottom of her heart.

Zhang Wei had long known of Lin Youcheng's talent and was equally shocked, but he still asked, "What will Jiang Xia do?"

Lin Youcheng didn't answer Zhang Wei's question. Instead, he asked, "If you were fifteen years old and fell deeply in love with your middle-aged female neighbor who lived alone, and your relationship with her continued to affect you even after you broke up, but years later, still heartbroken, you suddenly discovered that she was an executioner, and your testimony could save her from life imprisonment, what would you do?"

Lin Youcheng's rhetorical question undoubtedly made Zhang Wei and Xie Shuhua fall into deep thought.

They were all literary workers, and naturally they were well aware that Lin Youcheng's question would elicit different answers from different people, just as different readers would have different interpretations of Hamlet. Given that Yang Ju would rather admit to crimes that were not hers than admit that she was illiterate, what answer would Jiang Xia give?

Zhang Wei looked at Lin Youcheng and carefully considered the story Lin Youcheng had written. He realized that the unfinished second half of the story was the most intense part of the story.

"I do not know."

Zhang Wei shook his head; he didn't know how to answer the question either.

Lin Youcheng was not surprised by Zhang Wei's answer. He had just asked casually, saying, "Jiang Xia has the ability to help Yang Ju clarify the facts, but out of condemnation of Yang Ju's crimes, and also because he himself does not want to expose his relationship with Yang Ju, he has chosen to remain silent."

Hearing Lin Youcheng's words, Xie Shuhua's heart sank. She thought that the reason Jiang Xia didn't tell the truth might be because Yang Ju wanted to protect her dignity, but she didn't expect that it would be because Jiang Xia didn't want to expose his relationship with Yang Ju.

This cold answer sent a chill down Xie Shuhua's spine.

She hadn't considered this answer, but upon closer reflection, it felt incredibly real, so real that it frightened her. She asked, "Doesn't Jiang Xia love Yang Ju?"

When Lin Youcheng heard Xie Shuhua ask this question, he smiled but did not answer. He simply said, "The answer will probably be available after the rest of the manuscript is finished."

Jiang Xia undoubtedly loved Yang Ju. It could be said that Jiang Xia knew very well that only one thing could make a soul whole, and that was love. When that boy's tearful face passed through the shadows, he transformed from a boy into a man. His love for Yang Ju never faded, from the age of fifteen until her death, and even his own.

However, Lin Youcheng has not answered Xie Shuhua's question yet, because different readers may have different opinions.

Perhaps some people will see all of Jiang Xia's inner struggles, shame, numbness, and guilt, and the subsequent sighs and incomprehension will gradually turn into unspeakable heaviness. Perhaps some people will think that Jiang Xia selfishly ran away and gave up on saving his lover.

Zhang Wei was very excited. Although he hadn't seen the rest of Lin Youcheng's story yet, he was already very excited after hearing Lin Youcheng describe the plot development. He couldn't wait to read the unfinished part of the story and was full of admiration. Lin Youcheng truly deserved to be called a genius; he could come up with such an amazing story. The angle and the plot design were simply brilliant.

"Youcheng, once you finish this manuscript, you absolutely must give it to me! Don't give it to any other editor!"

"Don't worry, there won't be any problems with our People's Literature."

Lin Youcheng did not refuse when he heard Zhang Wei's words, but just smiled and said, "Let's talk about it after the manuscript is finished."

Xie Shuhua was beginning to understand why Lin Youcheng had given this story another name: "Reading Aloud in Life and Death".

Zhang Wei nodded and said, "The beginning of this story was already quite exciting, with the love affair between a fifteen-year-old boy and a thirty-six-year-old woman. I didn't expect the later part of the story to be even sharper and more incisive. You truly live up to your reputation!"

Zhang Wei initially thought that "The Reader" might just be a love story about a couple with a large age gap, perhaps involving entanglements of love and theoretical exploration. He never expected that the story would be so unfathomable. It could be a coming-of-age story about a boy, or a woman's life and her painful choices between dignity and suffering, or even a record of the complex relationship between two people throughout their lives. It could also involve war and history. On the surface, the story is about passion, but at its core, it is a profound and tragic exploration of humanity and dignity.

Although Zhang Wei still couldn't quite understand why Yang Ju, an illiterate woman, would so stubbornly defend her dignity, especially considering that it might be in the face of death, he knew very well that this was precisely what made Lin Youcheng's story so remarkable.

"True T-M"

Just as Zhang Wei was about to exclaim "Damn awesome!", Lin Zhaole and Lin Zhaohuan, the two little guys, walked in with their schoolbags on their backs and smiles on their faces, just in time to hear Zhang Wei's unfinished curse.

"..."

Zhang Wei felt a little embarrassed and changed his words, saying, "Zhenzhen's mother is back, so I have to go back too."

When Lin Youcheng heard Zhang Wei's sudden change of tone when he heard the swear words, he smirked. He was genuinely impressed, but it was still better than the little radish heads Lin Zhaole and Lin Zhaohuan having to listen to those swear words.

(End of this chapter)