The literary era since 1979

Chapter 195: A Beacon of Literature
In the 80s, it was not easy to get to Shenzhen.

A barbed wire fence is under construction across the central part of Pengcheng. It is 84.6 kilometers long and is called the Second Line Management Line, also known as the "Second Line Pass."

The four places within the management line, namely Futian, Luohu, Nanshan and Yantian, are commonly known as "neiguan".

Places outside the management line such as Bao'an and Longgang are "outside the customs", and there will be more than ten border checkpoints along the way.

Just like in later generations one needs a Hong Kong and Macau Pass to go to Hong Kong and Macao, one needs a border pass to enter and exit Pengcheng.

To go to Shekou, in addition to obtaining a permit, additional procedures are required.

Because dialects are a "special task", they are handled in a special way.

However, the procedure is still strict and requires political review by the unit, verification by the police station, and certification by the Public Security Bureau. For semi-self-employed individuals like Han Yuemin who are on unpaid leave, the application procedures are even more complicated.

It may take several months and still not be approved.

Han Yuemin had to give up the idea of ​​going to Shekou and went to Yangcheng with Fangyan first. Along the way, the carriage was bumpy and shaking.

"Sooner or later, I will go to Pengcheng to take a look."

Han Yuemin put down the empty lunch box.

Fangyan picked up the kettle and poured hot water into the lunch box. "If you really want to get in, there are ways. The Second Line is so long, there must be loopholes to drill. Maybe you can drill through the barbed wire and sneak in."

"what?"

Han Yuemin was stunned.

"just kidding."

Fang Yan drank a mouthful of oily water and said, "This is the only way. If you really want to get in, I heard that there are people selling blank passes in Yangcheng. Maybe you can..."

"Then forget it."

Han Yuemin waved his hand and said, "I haven't gotten married to your sister yet, so I'd better be honest during this period."

Fang Yan handed over the kettle, "It's up to you, brother-in-law."

Han Yuemin grinned and said, "My main purpose for this trip is to go to the Gaudi Street Market. As the saying goes, 'If you haven't been to Gaudi Street, you haven't been to Guangzhou.'"

Fang Yan nodded: "It's time to go and see if there are any good things. Then I can buy a few and bring them back as gifts."

"Clang, clang, clang."

When the train arrived at Yangcheng Station, the two men walked to the exit with their luggage and saw a particularly eye-catching sign in the dense crowd. It read "Huacheng Publishing House".

"teacher LIN!"

"Teacher Fang!"

When Lin Xianzhi saw Fangyan, he was surprised and happy, and quickly introduced him to Fan Hansheng, the editor-in-chief of Huacheng.

"This is Han Yuemin."

The dialect speaks directly of his identity.

Han Yuemin could vaguely sense that they looked up to him because of his identity as "the brother-in-law of the great writer Fang."

The whole person immediately held his head high and walked with a breeze.

I heard Fan Hansheng and Fangyan talking about literature.

"Teacher Fang, this time Huacheng was able to seize the opportunity and become one of the first journals to lead the new wave of military literature, thanks to your guidance. Otherwise, it would have been like in the past, always following behind other magazines and picking up the manuscripts they left behind."

"you flatter me."

Fangyan said that it was mainly because of the courage of "Huacheng" itself that it was able to dig up a lot of gold from the gold mountain of military literature.

"It's a pity that we at Huacheng failed to seize the two greatest gold mines, you and Li Cunbao, and missed them in vain."

Fan Hansheng and Lin Xianzhi looked at each other.

It is not surprising to Fangyan to hear that "The Garland under the Mountain" and "Operation Sword" are popular among readers in eastern Guangdong.

The national circulation of this issue of "October", because of "The Wreath under the Mountain", not only broke the editorial department's expected target of 160 million copies, but also reached the sales mark of 200 million copies.

At present, it has reached an astonishing 193 million copies.

Operation Sword had just begun to gain momentum, and with the support of the radio drama, the circulation of Contemporary was heading towards 190 million copies, or even 200 million copies.

200 million copies!
The annual circulation of "Huacheng" is only more than 370 million copies!
Nowadays, there is no one in all the major literary journals who does not want to get his manuscript. Teacher Fang, we at Huacheng are eager to make progress!

Fan Hansheng's eyes were filled with envy, and he suppressed the urge to ask for an article. Especially at times like this, he had to impress people with his sincerity.

Everyone in Huacheng held a meeting to discuss how to entertain Teacher Fang warmly and attentively.

For example, although the publishing house had a guesthouse, it was too shabby and simple, so they took the initiative to arrange for them to stay at the Yangcheng Restaurant.

"This is a hotel designated for external reception."

Lin Xianzhi said: "Whenever the Canton Fair comes, merchants from all over the world basically stay here."

Han Yuemin was very interested when he heard the word "Canton Fair", but when he learned that the spring fair had ended long ago, he couldn't help but sigh.

"Don't feel sorry."

Fangyan reminded, "The Canton Fair is held twice a year."

Lin Xianzhi said: "Yes, although the spring meeting is over, there is still an autumn meeting. You can come and take a look then."

The four people walked into Yangcheng Restaurant, and unexpectedly, the manager Lu Qiwen was standing at the lobby door and came out to greet them personally.

In fact, it was for Fangyan, the food essayist.

Fang Yan smiled and said, "Although I have never been to Yangcheng Restaurant, I know it is a time-honored brand in Cantonese cuisine. The first 'Famous Dishes Evaluation Exhibition' was held here in 57. Famous chefs from all over the country gathered together. It was really a grand event in the food industry..."

"You are indeed an expert!"

Lu Qiwen said that Yangcheng Restaurant has been studying Cantonese cuisine.

The Cantonese-style Manchu-Han banquet, the Five Dynasties Banquet of "Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties", and the traditional special banquet of Lingnan, the "Banquet of the King of Nanyue".

"Please don't say that again."

Fang Yan said: "If you keep saying that, it will bring out the glutton in my stomach."

Lu Qiwen said with a smile that he had already arranged the wine and food for the evening meal, just to welcome Fangyan.

Han Yuemin feels proud and envious when he sees that dialects are so popular. It is true that great writers can be successful wherever they go!
I secretly felt lucky that although I could not be a great writer, at least I was the brother-in-law of a great writer! I was so proud!
…………Under Lu Qiwen’s enthusiastic leadership, the four of them came to the room, and the conditions were indeed better than all the guesthouses Fang Yan had stayed in.

After Fang Yan and Han Yuemin put their luggage away, they went to the private room with Fan Hansheng and Lin Xianzhi, where they ate and chatted, still talking about literature.

However, the topic is no longer military literature, but East Guangdong literature, and the current situation of "Huacheng" and East Guangdong literary circles.

"I'm ashamed to say that."

Fan Hansheng said: "East Guangdong is very open-minded in politics and ideology, and should be more prosperous in literature and art, but the fact is that it is relatively thin, without local characteristics and no iconic works."

Fangyan asked: "Why is this?"

“The main reason is still talent.”

Lin Xianzhi sighed.

The Guangdong Army was so glorious in the past. Ouyang Shan, Qin Mu and Chen Canyun were all great figures in the literary world, but now there is a lack of successors.

Although there have been young writers such as Chen Guokai, Kong Jiesheng and Guo Xiaodong who have made their mark in scar literature, their success was short-lived and were later submerged in trends such as reflective literature.

"East Guangdong was originally at the forefront of reform, with countless stories and inspirations for reform literature creation. This should be an advantage for writers in East Guangdong, but until now, we have not waited for a writer who can take on the responsibility. It is really hard to describe."

Fan Hansheng gave an awkward smile.

"No wonder you have to go north to collect manuscripts."

Fangyan suddenly understood.

Fan Hansheng said: "This is also a helpless solution. On the one hand, readers are hungry for literature, and on the other hand, there is a serious shortage of local manuscript sources."

“There is a huge literary enthusiasm among the masses.”

Fang Yan said: "Now, all we need is a fire."

"That's right, we at Huacheng have been looking for a spark!"

Lin Xianzhi couldn't wait to get his advice.

"I think the literature of eastern Guangdong can fully utilize the geographical advantages of eastern Guangdong. In addition to going north, it can also go south."

The dialect says: "Based on the literature of eastern Guangdong, we should appropriately introduce the literature of Hong Kong."

Fan Hansheng said: "We have also held meetings to study this point, but it is only popular literature that is flourishing in Hong Kong. In the field of pure literature, to put it bluntly, it is a 'cultural desert'."

"Especially martial arts novels."

Lin Xianzhi took a sip of water and told the story.

Last year, the two publishing houses, Huacheng and Yuedong Literature and Art, jointly launched a literary supplement called Nanfeng Literary Newspaper.

It was also this newspaper that pioneered the serialization of Liang Yusheng's "The Legend of the White-Haired Witch", marking the first appearance of Hong Kong's new-school martial arts novels in a regular publication in the mainland.

Later, seeing the popularity of martial arts novels, "Wulin" followed suit and serialized "The Legend of the Condor Heroes". The first print run of 30 copies was sold out immediately, and the third and fourth issues sold over one million copies.

Soon after, Huacheng Magazine published Liang Yusheng's first martial arts novel in mainland China, Pingzong Xiaying, which was also the first single volume on martial arts themes in China. However, Huacheng magazine did not dare to serialize the novel like Wulin.

After all, if popular literature, especially martial arts novels, is published in mainstream literary journals, where is the style?
Not to mention whether the literary community would criticize Huacheng, there were many people within the editorial department who felt that it had tarnished the reputation of Huacheng.

"So, are you for it or against it?"

Dialect looks left and right.

“Of course we support it!”

Fan Hansheng said without hesitation that as long as it could make "Huacheng" better, he would definitely support it.

Lin Xianzhi said: "We originally wanted to take advantage of the 'kungfu fever' sparked by 'Shaolin Temple' and invite some martial arts-themed manuscripts to 'Huacheng', but unfortunately, we were unable to do so."

“Maybe one is a question of attitude and the other is a question of ability.”

Dialects are spoken bluntly.

"Your analysis is correct."

Lin Xianzhi said that he only mentioned "Huacheng" in the summer novel writing class, and the whole class went crazy.

Who among the serious writers would write martial arts novels?

If it is written down, can it be literature?
Vulgar! Vulgar! Vulgar beyond endurance!
Writers who can write look down on others, and those who want to write don’t have the ability to do so. Moreover, magazines such as "Wulin" and "Jin Gu Chuan Qi" are snatching up the manuscripts.

Fangyan disagreed, "It can't be called 'vulgar', but 'popular'. I think if a popular work can become a household name, it means it is loved by the masses."

"Well, that's the truth, but I just can't get over it."

"We don't expect them to change their minds," Fan Hansheng said.

Lin Xianzhi said sincerely, "Teacher Fang, you finally came to Guangdong this time, so stay for a few more days and give a good lesson to the young writers in the novel writing class."

"I'll definitely go there when I get back from Shekou!"

Fangyan nodded.

As the saying goes, one should be grateful when receiving favors, and one should be soft-hearted when eating at the expense of others. With such delicious treats, we must help Huacheng to organize the troops!

"Teacher Fang! I..."

Fan Hansheng noticed the look Lin Xian gave him, and quickly thought of a way out, picking up the wine glass: "I toast to you!"

"Let's drink together."

Fangyan saw through the situation but didn't say anything, and just cooperated to smooth things over.

The wine glasses clashed together, making a crisp sound.

Lin Xianzhi heaved a sigh of relief. Fortunately, Fan Hansheng held back in the end, otherwise all his efforts would have been wasted.

But I can also understand the editor-in-chief's feelings. Not to mention that since "October" has introduced dialects, it has become the third largest literary journal in the country after "People's Literature" and "Harvest". Just take "Contemporary", as the main battlefield of reform literature, it should have fallen into a trough with the low ebb of reform literature. Unexpectedly, because of Mr. Fang's "Operation Sword", it has forged a new path.

It emerged as a dark horse in the new wave of military literature and, together with October, carried the banner of military literature of the new era.

Thinking of this, I almost couldn't help but ask for help from Fangyan.

Not only did I want the manuscript, I also wanted him to give me some guidance like he did last time at the military literature creation symposium.

Please use this bright light to point the way for Huacheng!
(End of this chapter)