The literary era since 1979

Chapter 228 Please Ask for Help

The next day, Saturday.

As soon as Fang Yan arrived at the venue, he was approached by Wu Zuxiang.

Facing the gazes of bigwigs like Feng Qiyong and Qi Gong, he was at a loss at first.

But when he noticed the look Ling Jiefang gave him, he understood everything at once. It turned out that it was directed at the Luoxia Trilogy.

"Jiefang, tell me everything you discussed last night."

Feng Qiyong said kindly, "I thought he was bold enough to write about Emperor Kangxi, but I didn't expect you to be even bolder than him and actually thought of writing a 'Kangxi, Yongzheng and Qianlong' trilogy."

"Young people are not very courageous, but they are still young people."

Fangyan smiled.

"Haha."

This remark made Qi Gong, Wan Jiabao and others laugh.

"You ah you!"

Wan Jiabao shook his head and laughed: "It's fine if you're just too bold, but why don't you write it yourself, but instigate others to write it?"

Fangyan blinked and said, "Sir, my job is to be an editor, so I have to encourage others to write."

"Xiao Fang's words make sense!"

Qi Gong, Wan Jiabao, Wu Zuxiang and others smiled at each other.

"Besides, it was only after I communicated with Jiefang that I suddenly came up with such a bold idea."

Fang Yan said: "But I think since he has decided to write, it is better to help others achieve their goals rather than taking away their achievements."

"If Jiefang can successfully write a novel, it will indeed be a good story." Feng Qiyong changed the subject, "However, most people want to write about the prosperous Kangxi and Qianlong eras. How did you think of writing about Emperor Yongzheng?"

"I was also inspired by Dream of the Red Chamber."

"Didn't the turning point of the Cao family's decline occur at the transition between the reigns of Kangxi and Yongzheng?"

"When studying Dream of the Red Chamber, one cannot avoid the Yongzheng period."

"........."

Fangyan analyzed it carefully.

Wu Zuxiang listened and laughed, sometimes casting gratified glances at Fangyan, sometimes casting proud glances at his old friends.

"Well, you have such insights at such a young age."

Feng Qiyong instructed Ling Jiefang and Fang Yan that they must cooperate and communicate well with each other in the creation of the Kangxi, Yongzheng and Qianlong trilogy.

"Yes, Mr. Feng!"

Fangyan promised solemnly.

Then, they took their seats and continued the meeting.

The theme of today's meeting is the TV series "Dream of Red Mansions". Wang Fulin directly proposed at the meeting that CCTV should film "Dream of Red Mansions".

However, it soon encountered opposition from conservatives led by Vice President Li Xifan, who were against adapting the original work.

"The reason why Cao Xueqin chose to write Dream of the Red Chamber in the form of a novel, rather than painting, poetry or drama, is because novels are the best medium. Filming a TV series would go against Cao Xueqin's original intention and easily mislead the audience's understanding of Dream of the Red Chamber. Doing so would do more harm than good."

At one time, there were many supporters.

"I wonder if there is a possibility that the reason why there is no opera in Dream of the Red Chamber is because of the literary inquisition in the Qing Dynasty?"

Wang Fulin took out the supplement of October and said, "Just like what Teacher Fang wrote in the book, the reason why we use a narrative method that combines magic and reality is to avoid persecution such as literary inquisition."

Wu Zuxiang sat on the rostrum and asked, "Xiao Fang, what do you think?"

Fangyan knew clearly that Wu Zuxiang and Wan Jiabao firmly supported the filming of the TV series, and as a young man like him, he had to take the lead.

"These days, out of curiosity, I asked students at Shanghai Normal University and discovered an incredible phenomenon."

"That is, many college students have never read Dream of the Red Chamber. There are many reasons, but the most common one is that it is obscure, boring and difficult to get started."

"TV series are a form of entertainment that the masses love to watch. If we can make Dream of the Red Chamber into a TV series, it will be easier for the audience to know and understand it, thereby expanding the influence of Dream of the Red Chamber in the minds of the people across the country..."

When they heard that it could expand the influence of "Dream of the Red Chamber", the opposition was shaken and the supporters became even more fanatical.

The scene gradually became one-sided. After all, many literary and artistic workers these days are still committed to "creating literature and art to serve the people."

Wang Fulin, Wan Jiabao and others showed satisfied smiles and all cast admiring glances at the "pioneer general" Fangyan.

Fangyan stood upright and looked around.

Whoever dares to draw his sword and mount his horse has to be our young general!

………………

After a while, the noisy Redology conference gradually reached a consensus that the TV series of "Dream of Red Mansions" was indeed worth filming.

But soon, a new problem arose: to shoot a TV series, you need a script, so who writes the script?
Some people suggested Jiang Hesen, some recommended Liu Genglu, and some even recommended themselves.

And amidst the discussion, someone actually shouted "dialect".

When there is the first one, there will be the second and the third.

In fact, when it comes to the attainments of "Dream of the Red Chamber", many people here far surpass Fang Yan.

But when it comes to literary creation and script adaptation, looking at the whole audience, apart from giants like Wan Jiabao, Fang Yan dares to shout out shamelessly, "I want to beat ten of them!"

Instead of shouting, Fangyan kept refusing.

I'm really not being modest, you should seek help from someone else!
You guys wonder how come I, a novelist, was assigned to be the screenwriter of "Dream of the Red Chamber"?
Although the title of chief screenwriter of "Dream of Red Mansions" is very tempting, it is a hot potato!
The adaptation is good, but it doesn’t deserve much credit, because the original work is "Dream of Red Mansions"!

If the adaptation is not good, you will be criticized, because the original work is "Dream of Red Mansions"!

The problem is that a work like "Dream of Red Mansions" has been deified and can even support a group of Redologists who specialize in studying it. It is difficult to satisfy everyone. How is it possible to satisfy the four major schools of thought?
Even the 87 version of "Dream of the Red Chamber" suffered a lot of criticism and objections. Does praising you for your good adaptation still reflect our level?

This is what Redology is like. Fang Xiaojiang only needs to devote himself to adapting the script, but many Redology researchers have a lot of things to consider.

The local dialect at this moment is no different from "Benboerba". The Nine-headed Insect actually asked him to get rid of Tang Seng and his disciples!
…………

Seeing Fangyan being roasted on the fire, Wan Jiabao and Wu Zuxiang smiled at each other.

"I have been guiding Xiao Fang in his study and research on Dream of the Red Chamber. I believe no one here knows better than me how much knowledge he has. In my opinion, if he is asked to shoulder such a heavy burden, he may not be able to carry it."

"Yes, we need to add more responsibilities to young people, but we can't put all the burdens on them."

After the two of them finished speaking, Feng Qiyong also added a sentence at the right time.

"Yes, if the writing job of Dream of the Red Chamber is given to Xiao Fang, what will we old comrades do?"

"In my opinion, we should let Comrade Hesen be the chief writer."

Qi Gong made a suggestion, and the direction of the conference changed.

Fangyan, the "little darling" of the big guys, felt relieved after being rescued.

Although I can't be the screenwriter of "Dream of Red Mansions", I can still be a "consultant".

Since Wang Fulin had no experience in directing classical masterpieces, he naturally could not do it alone. Therefore, he had to seek help from experts not only in directing and screenwriting, but also in acting.

Naturally, this is not something that a few Redologists can decide.

Therefore, in order to fully support the filming of "Dream of Red Mansions", the Redology Society decided to hold another symposium in Yanjing to organize Redology scholars to discuss the casting and script.

As for the specific list of participants in the symposium, it was not determined at the meeting.

The only thing that can be confirmed is that the screenwriter of the TV series "Dream of Red Mansions" is the veteran writer Jiang Hesen.

He has written monographs on the Dream of the Red Chamber, such as Drafts on the Dream of the Red Chamber, and published novels such as The Wind Whistles and Yellow Plum Rain.

Moreover, the old comrades are highly respected and have a high status. No one dares to scold them, but it doesn't matter if they are scolded a few times.

"Whoa whoa whoa whoa."

The afternoon meeting ended with applause.

As soon as the meeting was over, Fang Yan went to a public phone and called Xie Jin.

"Yanzi, you finally called!"

"Sorry, Director Xie, I can't stop once I start this."

The two of them were talking and laughing, but Xie Jin didn't tell them the purpose of his call, and only said that it was difficult to explain over the phone.

So, they agreed to meet at Hengshan Hotel tomorrow to greet Xie Jin.

(End of this chapter)