I am a literary giant in Japan

Chapter 317: Man is not born to fail. A man can be destroyed but not defeated (owing 8)

Santiago, covered in wounds and limping, dragged the bones of a huge marlin and slowly walked towards the shore.

The eyes of those busybodies were filled with mockery and ridicule.

But when they saw the injuries on Santiago's body and his exhausted yet resolute eyes, all the laughter disappeared.

"Is this a shipwreck or a sea monster? Oh my God, hurry up, someone come and help! We can't let this interesting old guy die here!"

"What a huge marlin bone, it must be more than ten feet long. If it's still alive, it would be so shocking!"

"This old guy's boat is in tatters. I wonder what happened to him on the sea these days!"

The fishermen rushed over and did not continue to mock Santiago as they had before.

Some of them took out medicine bottles, some took out bandages, and some simply ran to the nearby free medical center to call a doctor.

When someone in the group is about to suffer a catastrophic disaster, these mixed bunch of people, both good and evil, will suddenly unite as one.

This is probably the charm of human nature!
Kitagawa Hide helped Santiago get an opportunity to see a doctor at a hospital in Los Angeles.

Seeing that there was an important person to help them, the messy fishermen immediately felt relieved and turned their attention back to the big marlin bones that Santiago brought back.

"That's my trophy, don't move it!" Santiago's voice was deep and powerful. He didn't sound like an old guy who was exhausted after several days at sea and almost died.

Kitagawa Hide asked someone to help carry the fish bones to the hospital's storage room, and he followed the medical staff and Santiago to the hospital.

Santiago limped but refused a stretcher or help from others.

He followed closely behind Kitagawa Hide, his eyes constantly wandering over the young Asian man, and finally couldn't help asking, "I don't know you, why are you helping me?"

"My friend knows you, and I guess you know her too."

Kitagawa Hide briefly described to him what Jabami Rei looked like.
"It's just a little effort."

"It's that pretty little girl." Santiago remembered the Japanese woman, who spoke very bad English and was young and pretty, like a big star.

The key point was that she was willing to listen to the nonsense he said, squatting on the ground, supporting her chin with her hands while listening to him talk, which reminded him more than once of his little daughter who died in the war in her early years.

The two chatted about Jabami Rei for a while and soon arrived at the emergency room of the hospital.

Emergency rooms in the United States are extremely expensive, and one visit can bankrupt a person.

This is a characteristic of the medical system in developed countries. They will provide very complete medical care at all levels in cities, but at the same time they will let the public know that medical resources are precious and expensive.

The same is true in Japan. No matter what illness you have, you have to go to the community hospital first. If they can't handle it, they will write a letter to recommend you to go to a higher-level hospital.

For common illnesses, it is basically impossible to skip the level of hospital treatment.

Of course, these so-called iron laws can be easily broken in the face of money.

“I don’t have the money to pay for such expensive medical expenses.”

Santiago didn't want to receive treatment at first, but the doctor said that most of his injuries came from fighting with sharks. If left untreated, it might cause serious secondary infection.

By then, perhaps limping will become an image that he will never be able to get rid of.

"Then tell me your story."

Kitagawa Hide looked at him with a smile.

Santiago was stunned for a long time, then nodded slightly and began to talk about his birth.

It's a long and boring life.

At least the doctors who were treating him almost fell asleep after listening to it.

A man who was born in the countryside, lost his parents at an early age, and was a veteran who participated in many foreign wars. He became a fisherman and worked day after day.

Without a wife, a house, or children, he is still better than a homeless person lying on the street.

They don't know what's fun about this cookie-cutter American old-man story.

Santiago himself felt that his life was boring and monotonous, but when he talked about this fishing experience, there was a gleam in his eyes.

He told Kitagawa Hide in detail how he caught the big marlin, how he fought with it for two days and two nights and finally became the winner, and how he was targeted by sharks and finally exhausted, leaving only a big fish bone and a disabled body.
This story is quite interesting, and the doctors feel that it can at least be used as a topic of conversation after dinner.

But that’s about it.

It's nothing compared to the hundreds of dollars in medical expenses that Hide Kitagawa paid for him.

Kitagawa Hide was listening with great interest. Seeing the gleam in Santiago's eyes and the words he wanted to say but couldn't, he kept nodding his head.

"Sir, can you understand? I, I don't know how to describe my feelings at that moment, but I seemed to have returned to that war-torn era at that time."

Santiago danced and gestured, repeatedly describing how he felt at the time.

Unfortunately, he was at a loss for words and couldn't express even one-tenth of the emotions he felt at the time.

“I think that’s the feeling.

Man is not born to fail. A man can be destroyed but not defeated."

Kitagawa Hideyuki is concise and to the point.

After these words were spoken, Santiago and the doctors beside him froze.

".Man is not born to fail. A man can be destroyed but not defeated."

Santiago carefully pondered over what Kitagawa Hide said, and his mind suddenly became clear.

The doctors were also amazed. They listened to the old man's nonsense for more than an hour, but Kitagawa Hide's summary at the end made them feel that this hour was completely worth it! "Doctor, please continue to help take care of this old man. I have to go back to see my wife."

Kitagawa Hide stood up. He saw that it was time for Yumeko to have lunch, so he hurriedly prepared to buy lunch and some diapers for the two little ones.

"Okay, please rest assured, Mr. Kitagawa. The medical expenses you paid are more than enough for him to rest here until his injuries are completely healed."

The doctor then stood up to see him off.

Santiago also wanted to send Kitagawa Hide away, but was pushed back to the bed by the nurse.

He had no choice but to give the unknown kind-hearted Oriental man a high military salute to express his gratitude.

Kitagawa Hide waved casually as a farewell to him.

It was not until he left that Santiago finally couldn't help asking the nurse about his background.

The nurse's eyes lit up and she smiled and replied, "His name is Kitagawa Hide, and he is the most famous writer in Japan! I heard that he was shortlisted for the Nobel Prize in Literature at the age of 25."

"Twenty-five years old? Shortlisted for the Nobel Prize in Literature?"

Santiago didn't have much education, but he knew the value of the Nobel Prize. He looked in the direction where Kitagawa Hide disappeared for a long time and couldn't come back to his senses.

October 1997, 10, Chuo-ku, Tokyo.

After his crew successfully completed several new TV series, Shunji Iwai had a two-month break.

He was originally invited by Toho and Toei to serve as the chief supervisor of "The Dancing Girl of Izu", but before he took office, he was snatched away by Hideo Onchi and Toshiro Ide.

The former is a 64-year-old veteran in the industry, and the latter is a new screenwriter and supervisor favored by Toho. This kind of midway interception is common in the film and television industry, and he didn't take it too seriously.

After all, behind this big melting pot are the major Japanese chaebols, and behind Iwai Shunji are only Kitagawa Bunyu and Mr. Kitagawa Hide.

Although Mr. Kitagawa is highly respected in Japan, he is unable to radiate his fame and benefits to everyone around him.

Shunji Iwai also plans to take this opportunity to have a good rest and then return to the film industry that he likes more.

Speaking of which, in the "Dancing Girl of Izu" series of film and television dramas, the most popular male lead in the TV series of the same name has been confirmed to be Kimura Takuya, while the female lead originally scheduled to be played by 20-year-old newcomer actress Hayase Misato seems to have suddenly announced a change.

He shook his head and observed a thirty-second silence for Hayase Misato.

In this circle, newcomers without resources are really miserable.

The duck that was caught flew away in an instant.

The weather is very good today, with plenty of sunlight. Iwai Shunji invited Dango Shiro, who has also been very relaxed recently, to go to the Japan Book City in Chuo Ward to buy books.

Originally, Mayumi Aso and Keigo Higashino were also going with us, but Mayumi called in the morning and said she had to accompany a little sister to an audition and couldn't come.

Keigo Higashino suddenly said that he was full of inspiration and wanted to write a new mystery novel. He even thought of the title: "The Devotion of Suspect X."

Anyway, the only ones who have arrived at the Japanese Book City now are him and Danki Shirou.

Because today is the release date of the latest issue of "Wenyi", and considering that small and medium-sized bookstores will definitely be packed with people, they came to the largest Japanese bookstore in the Tokyo area.

Shirou, the demon gang leader at the gate, waved his hands vigorously. Iwai Shunji hurried over and was suddenly stunned.

Readers piled up in layers, like the thousand-layer pancakes in Pizza Hut, and surrounded the entrance of the bookstore.

More than a dozen security guards were maintaining order, but they were still unable to stop these fanatical readers from rushing in.

"Damn it! Should have come sooner."

Shirou couldn't help but swear, but he immediately covered his mouth and blamed himself for a few seconds -

He is now an idol in the hearts of countless middle school boys and girls, and several of his works have influenced many young people.

He doesn't want his improper words and deeds to attract criticism, and it would be even worse if young people learn from him!
"What's going on?" Iwai Shunji had never seen such a horrific scene.

When "The Dancing Girl of Izu" and "One Hundred Years of Solitude" were released, the streets were never packed with people to this extent!

"What else can it be? Everyone is going to buy Wen Yi."

Shirou Dangi straightened his back, feeling very proud. After all, it was his teacher who caused this sensation, so it was him who caused it!

"So many people?" Iwai Shunji still found it a little unbelievable.

"Because there are still many readers coming from surrounding cities and small places."

Shirou finally managed to squeeze out from the crowd.

"It is said that the Tokyo area's "Bungei" has Kitagawa's autograph, so."

Iwai Shunji suddenly realized.

This is probably a bad idea from the Ministry of Education.

I heard that the country's economy is in a downturn and the economic index in the Tokyo area is declining. They want to use this opportunity to attract people and increase the economic income of the Tokyo area.

These politicians are worse than each other at doing their jobs, but they are more and more capable of coming up with crooked ideas!
"Then let's go in quickly. It would be a shame if we don't get the signed version!"

Iwai Shunji said this and was about to squeeze in.

Tuangui Shirou chuckled and took out two brand new "Literature" books from his pocket: "Don't worry, I bought them."

"???"

Didn’t this guy just say that we should come earlier?

Iwai Shunji rolled his eyes at him. He had no idea where this guy learned his eccentric personality and weird thinking from!
(End of this chapter)