Literary Master 1978.

Chapter 19: Yenching Literature and Art

The two of them sat on chairs on both sides of the desk. Lin Chaoyang placed the manuscript of the novel directly on the desk and said, "I have never submitted a manuscript before, so I don't know much about this. Could you please help me take a look?"

Lin Chaoyang does not think that time travel is omnipotent. It is like he cannot completely reproduce the literary works he has read. He can only piece them together based on his scattered memories and add some of his own creations.

Chen Jiangong said with a smile: "I just submitted a few more manuscripts. This is also an opportunity for me to learn."

"The Horse Shepherd?" He read softly as he looked at the title of the novel on the first page of the manuscript.

"Some time ago, the Workers' Daily published a report about Yan Jitong and Wang Boling, a couple who were college students in the 1950s."

Chen Jiangong thought about it and said, "I have some impression of them. They are the couple who gave up their overseas Chinese identities and inheritance in Brazil and resolutely stayed in China to serve the country, right?"

Lin Chaoyang nodded, "This novel was inspired by the story of this couple."

Hearing him say this, Chen Jiangong became interested, "Then we must take a closer look. Drink some water first."

Chen Jiangong pushed the teacup on the table towards Lin Chaoyang, and then started flipping through the manuscript.

Chen Jiangong was busy reading the manuscript, and Lin Chaoyang was idle, looking around the dormitory.

The boys in the Chinese Department lived in Building 32, a four-story building. The Chinese Department occupied the third and fourth floors, while the Oriental Languages ​​Department and the Western Languages ​​Department occupied the first and second floors respectively.

The boys' dormitory is a room of more than ten square meters for six people. Three double-story iron beds, a desk and two chairs are all the belongings in the dormitory.

The dormitory can be seen at a glance, and there is nothing interesting to see.

Seeing that Chen Jiangong was engrossed in reading the manuscript, Lin Chaoyang also picked up the book on the table. It was "One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich", the representative work of Soviet writer Solzhenitsyn.

The occasional noises coming from the corridor did not disturb the two people who were reading, and time passed slowly as the sun shifted.

Lin Chaoyang's novel was derived from the novel "Soul and Flesh" which he read later. Many people have never heard of this name, but many people should be familiar with the movie "The Shepherd". The movie "The Shepherd" was adapted from "Soul and Flesh".

Lin Chaoyang moved the name of the movie to the novel, and the novel was called "The Shepherd".

In another time and space, this short story was published in the early 1980s. Once published, it won the love of a large number of readers, making the author Zhang Xianliang famous in the Chinese literary world and establishing his position in the history of the development of Chinese literature in the new era.

The article of more than 17,000 words is not long. Chen Jiangong read it very carefully and it took him more than an hour to finish it.

He raised his eyes from the letter paper and saw Lin Chaoyang, who was concentrating on reading a novel opposite him, with admiration in his eyes.

He put the manuscript on the table, and the sound startled Lin Chaoyang who was reading.

Lin Chaoyang raised his head, eyes full of expectation, "Have you finished reading it?"

Chen Jiangong nodded, "I've finished reading it."

"how?"

"good very good!"

Chen Jiangong expressed his love for the novel in three short words, and as if he felt that this was still not enough to express the goodness of the novel, he added: "I can't write it better!"

Lin Chaoyang was flattered. "Thank you for the compliment. This is my first time writing a novel."

Hearing his words, Chen Jiangong smiled bitterly, mixed with a bit of envy.

“I can write such a good novel for the first time!”

Such praise made Lin Chaoyang realize that being modest was hypocrisy, so he just smiled faintly, neither arrogant nor overly modest. But in Chen Jiangong's eyes, it was a strong confidence in his own ability and the quality of his work.

It was supposed to be so. How could the son-in-law of a professor of the history department of Yan University be an ordinary person?
When we first met a few days ago, I didn't show off my talents, simply because it was not the time for me to show off my talents yet. Now that my works are released, it is like a sword being unsheathed, revealing its edge.

Chen Jiangong is the same age as the Republic. He was admitted to university at the age of 28 and is mature in thinking. He thinks that if it is true as Lin Chaoyang said that this is his first time writing a novel, then his future prospects must be limitless.

Thinking of this, he stood up impatiently and said, "Let's go!"

"Why go?"

"I'll take you to the editorial office of Yenching Literature and Art."

"Isn't it enough to just write a letter and submit an article?"

"Special matters will be handled specially." Chen Jiangong said, his face full of confidence, which was brought to him by the quality of "The Shepherd".

Lin Chaoyang reminded him, "Today is Sunday."

"I would have forgotten if you didn't tell me."

Chen Jiangong just remembered it, but his excitement was still there. As the first reader of "The Shepherd", he couldn't wait to introduce this novel to the world.

“Sometimes there are people in the editorial office on Sundays. I go there to try my luck, but no one comes back.”

How about going on weekdays?
These words could only be kept in mind. Chen Jiangong meant well, and communication methods were not well developed in that era. Everyone was used to searching and waiting, so Chen Jiangong did not think that going to the editorial office one more time was a problem.

Chen Jiangong asked Lin Chaoyang to wait for a while. He ran to the Youth League Committee and borrowed a Fei Ge brand 28 bicycle. He patted the back seat and said to Lin Chaoyang, "Let's go!"

The chic posture made Lin Chaoyang feel heroic. He got on the back seat with the manuscript in his arms.

Yenching University is outside the northwest fourth ring road, but the editorial office of Yenching Literature and Art is located at Liubukou on West Chang'an Street. A hundred years ago, this would have been right under the feet of the emperor.

It took almost an hour and a half to ride a bike for more than ten kilometers. When we arrived at Chang'an Avenue, there was a north gate on the north side of the street near the Xidan intersection. This was the compound of the Yanjing Municipal Cultural Bureau at No. 7 West Chang'an Avenue where "Yanjing Literature and Art" was located.

After entering the gate, there is a wide alley. On the east side of the alley are ancient walls built with bricks. After passing an ancient hall, go west and then north, there is another alley. Going forward, there is a building in front of you, which is the Yenching Federation of Literary and Art Circles.

It was a solitary building, the lintel looked European, but the interior was Japanese. There were various associations in the building, and the cultural community was in decline, so it looked a bit run-down.

There were nameplates hanging in front of the doors of the association offices in the building. With Chen Jiangong leading the way, the two quickly found the editorial office of Yenching Literature and Art.

Just as the two were about to knock on the door, they heard someone calling Chen Jiangong.

When I turned around, I saw a tall young woman, over 1.7 meters tall, which is rare nowadays. But although she was tall, she was well-proportioned and had a pretty and dignified appearance.

"De Ning!" Chen Jiangong called out the female comrade's name and introduced her to Lin Chaoyang.

The female comrade was called Zhang Dening, a young editor of Yenching Literature and Art, and also happened to be Chen Jiangong's editor.

"Didn't you have a rest today?" Chen Jiangong asked after greeting him.

"You came at the right time. We have a lot of manuscripts backlogged recently, and several of us are working overtime."

Zhang Dening led the two into the office, only to see several desks piled with manuscripts. Two female editors, one old and one young, were buried in the manuscripts and did not pay attention to the sound coming from the door until Zhang Dening called out.

"Old Zhou, Chen Jiangong brought his author friend here."

(End of this chapter)