The literary era since 1979

Chapter 157 Strange Knowledge Increases Again
Having made a fortune, Fangyan was ready to reward himself.

I went to the trust store and bought some old items such as wenge, red sandalwood, and huanghuali. I put all the small and large items in the house behind Gulouyuan, one by one, giving it an antique charm.

The demolition and renovation has been basically completed, and the entire yard is no longer messy, cramped and cramped as it was before it was bought.

It is not only spacious and bright, but also looks brand new.

I even built a small garden in the backyard, which can be used to grow grapes and wisteria, and can also serve as a melon shed and orchard. It just lacks some flowers and plants, cats and dogs, and a hostess...

After walking around for a few times, I walked to the door and happened to meet the aunties wearing red armbands. "Is Teacher Xiao Fang back?"

Fangyan greeted them politely.

This group of aunties are the top fighting force in the alley, comparable to the aunties in Chaoyang. They are responsible for cleaning and public security, and are familiar with the daily lives of every household.

With them as our neighbors, the safety index has been raised by several levels.

The aunties pointed to a wall not far away and asked the artist behind them to paint on it.

"What is this drawing?"

It wasn't just the dialect, passers-by cast curious glances at him.

The aunt explained: "According to the spirit above, we strongly advocate late marriage and late childbearing, and family planning!"

"So this is ah."

Fangyan suddenly realized and remembered.

Since the first half of 82, everyone from top to bottom has been advocating late marriage and late childbirth, and it is best for a couple to have only one child.

We also vigorously promote late marriage and late childbearing in factories, schools and other units.

For example, Fang Hong and Han Yuemin, as a couple for such a long time, they should get married. Otherwise, a lot of rumors will spread. The man will be regarded as a hooligan and playing with feelings at best, or as having problems with his lifestyle at worst.

Because of this, if I don’t want to get married in my early 20s, I can only control, control, and control again!
But things are different now. Even if you have reached the age of marriage and want to get married early, you may be subjected to ideological work by the organization.

This is the opposite of how later generations advocated marriage and encouraged having more children!

"Teacher Xiao Fang, do you have a partner?"

The aunties stared at him as if he were a lump of gold.

"No, I'm still young, I'm not in a hurry."

Fangyan pursed his lips.

"That's right. Teacher Xiao Fang is young and promising. She is indeed not in a hurry to get married. If her family doesn't urge her, she can get married two or three years later."

"Yes, yes, an outstanding cadre like Xiao Fang must respond to national policies."

"That being said, you can still look for a partner first, and spend a few years together. It won't be too late to get married later."

"Teacher Xiao Fang, has your family arranged a blind date for you? If not, would you like me to introduce one to you?"

"My cousin's daughter is very pretty. Although she may be a little old, it's better to be old. She will be more caring!"

"........."

While advising others to marry later, the aunties were actively introducing potential partners to Fangyan, chattering and talking at the same time.

Fangyan couldn't stand it any longer and ran back into the house.

It was not until the sun set and the painters finished painting the slogans that the enthusiastic aunties went back to their homes.

Fangyan quietly opened the door, stuck his head out, looked around, and then pushed the bicycle out.

When I rode my bike past a wall covered with wet ink, I saw the words "Marry and have children later for the sake of revolution" written on it.

………………

The next day, the China-Japan literary exchange symposium continued.

Yesterday we talked about novels introduced to each other's countries. China plans to continue introducing the works of Yasunari Kawabata and Kenzaburo Oe.

Today, the topic is Chinese and Japanese classical literary novels.

However, as the conversation went on, the direction of the entire meeting deviated slightly, because as soon as the topic of "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" and "Journey to the West", especially "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", Suzuki Shunjiro and others immediately became emotional and did not hide their "Three Kingdoms complex".

Wu Zuxiang and other Redologists present tried to steer the topic back to Dream of the Red Chamber, but the effect was minimal and there was no ripple.

The members of the delegation had no interest at all. Although in Japan, "Dream of Red Mansions" is called "China's "The Tale of Genji", its popularity and sales are not as good as "Water Margin".

Some young reporters had never even heard of "Dream of the Red Chamber" and were whispering to each other, asking what book it was.

"A Dream of Red Mansions is one of the four great masterpieces of China."

Fangyu said seriously, "It and The Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Water Margin, and Journey to the West organize the complicated life events... into a complete building, representing the pinnacle of Chinese classical literary novels."

The signboard of "Four Great Classics" shines with golden light.

Especially the fact that it was as famous as "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" was beyond the expectations of Japanese media reporters, and they couldn't help but take it seriously.

"The Four Great Classics?"

Suzuki Shunjiro and others looked at each other in bewilderment. There was no such statement when they visited China for exchanges last time?

Not only the Japanese delegation, but also Wu Zuxiang, Zhang Guangnian and others on their side had different expressions, which were intriguing.

Fang Yan sensed that the atmosphere was a little off. Countless eyes were focused on him, and even during the meeting, they were not withdrawn.

"Brother, did I say something wrong?"

"Wrong, not really." Zhang Guangnian said with a smile: "It's just that your mention of the 'Four Great Classics' is really surprising."

"That's right, Xiao Fang, if you don't say anything, it's fine, but when you do say something, it's shocking!"

"The term 'Four Great Classics' is worth discussing."

Wu Zuxiang and others rushed forward, especially the members of the Redology Society.

Fangyan looked confused and only found out after asking.

So there is no concept of "Four Great Classics" yet!

If we really want to trace it back, we have to start from Wang Shizhen in the late Ming Dynasty. He was the first to propose the term "Four Great Books".

But these four strange books are "Records of the Grand Historian", "Zhuangzi", "Water Margin" and "Romance of the West Chamber".

Feng Menglong of the late Ming Dynasty inherited Wang Shizhen's theory of "Four Strange Books", but modified the content of the four strange books.

They were changed to "Jin Ping Mei", "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", "Water Margin" and "Journey to the West", each representing the pinnacle of the Chinese classical chapter novels in the fields of social novels, historical epics, heroic legends, and mythological novels.

This statement was more reasonable, so it was accepted and passed down until the emergence of "Dream of Red Mansions".

Compared with "Jin Ping Mei", "Dream of Red Mansions" is not inferior in terms of artistic value or writing level.

More importantly, because of its vulgar descriptions of adultery, "Jin Ping Mei" was considered a poisonous weed and was banned from publication during that decade.

"Dream of Red Mansions", like "Journey to the West", "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" and "Water Margin", was spared.

Even during special periods, the publishing house was able to publish normally, and the cumulative sales volume nationwide exceeded one million copies.

"A Dream of Red Mansions" has gradually replaced "Jin Ping Mei", but no one in the literary and art circles has formally proposed it.

Fangyan never expected that he was the first to come up with the term "Four Great Classics"!

For a time, it aroused heated discussions among the bigwigs in the literary and art circles.

"In fact, Xiao Fang's proposal for a masterpiece has also been discussed within Renwen Press," Zhang Guangnian said with a smile.

Renwen Press originally planned to publish some famous works to popularize traditional cultural knowledge and enrich people's cultural life.

The original plan was to compile the six books "Water Margin", "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", "Journey to the West", "Dream of Red Mansions", "The Scholars" and "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio" into a series of books based on the 51 era.

The entire series of books is temporarily named "Six Great Books".

"No, no, Xiao Fang's 'Masterpiece' is more appropriate and more grand in its use of words!" Zhou Ruchang shook his head.

Zhu Jiaqi said: "Compared with the other four works, Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio and The Scholars are far inferior in terms of research value and popularity, and seem to be just there to make up the numbers."

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone started talking again.

Zhang Guangnian looked at Fang Yan, the instigator, and asked meaningfully, "Xiao Fang, what do you think?"

"How about we discuss this in the meeting? Should it be the four great classics or the six great classics?"

Fangyan suggested: "How about we regard the result of the discussion as one of the achievements of this literary exchange?"

"Xiao Fang's suggestion is quite good."

Seeing that everyone present had no objection, Zhang Guangnian and Zhou Weizhi smiled at each other.

The second half of the symposium gradually deviated from the original course and focused on discussions and exchanges around the famous works.

Finally, because "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio" is "superior in its descriptions of ghosts and monsters, and penetrating in its criticisms of corruption and cruelty", it is not suitable for teenagers.

The Scholars is a satirical novel that focuses more on satirizing the imperial examination system. The subject matter is relatively narrow, and the writing is rather classical, so it is not easy to understand.

After weighing the pros and cons, these two books were eliminated.

The remaining four books were published by Renwen Press and named as the "Four Great Classics" series.

"Whoa whoa whoa whoa."

When Zhang Guangnian announced the result, Fangyan, who was clapping, noticed that Wu Zuxiang and the others were extremely excited, which was unusual.

Come to think of it, if "Dream of Red Mansions" is dubbed as one of the "Four Great Classics", its fame, sales, and attention will be significantly improved.

The Redologists present naturally treated Fang Yan, the originator of the "Four Great Classics", with a kind and special eye.

Especially when he heard Wu Zuxiang praising him for his thorough and serious study of "Dream of the Red Chamber" at the training institute.

"Mr. Wu, you are too kind."

Fangyan raised his hand.

The bigwigs smiled amiably, extended an olive branch and invited him to join the Redology Society.

Fang Yan glanced at Zhang Guangnian, who nodded secretly, so Fang Yan agreed and registered the property under Wu Zuxiang's name.

From now on, the concept of "Four Great Classics of Chinese Classical Literature" was born.

In future quiz contests, one will be asked, "Who was the first person in our country to propose the 'Four Great Classics of Classical Literature'?"

The standard answer is, “dialect”.

PS: Japan has relatively little interest in and attention to "Dream of the Red Chamber", and later wrote an outrageous suspenseful mystery novel.

"The Murder Cases in A Dream of Red Mansions", in the Grand View Garden, murders occurred continuously. Beauties such as Yingchun, Wang Xifeng, Xiangyun, Xiangling, Qingwen, Yuanyang, Daiyu and others died one after another, and Jia Baoyu suddenly became a detective and was responsible for solving the serial murders.

(End of this chapter)