Literary Master 1978.

Chapter 359 The Crown Jewel of Contemporary Chinese Literature
The day after Lin Chaoyang gave Du Feng his advice, he boarded a train heading south, with astonishing efficiency.

After serving as a military strategist, Lin Chaoyang was also very curious about what kind of situation Du Feng could create.

He didn't wait for Du Feng to come back from Guangdong, but instead waited for a letter from Li Shifei sent from Guangdong.

"Chaoyang, Lao Li sent you a letter."

Lin Chaoyang was in the yard at this time, with Xiao Dongdong riding on his neck, and he was acting as a big horse for his son.

Little Dongdong enjoyed his father's shoulder and giggled non-stop. His laughter filled the yard and the wind.

"Take a look, it's probably just about the novel, nothing serious."

Lin Chaoyang was still playing with Dongdong. Tao Yushu looked at the father and son playing, with a happy smile on his face.

Then she tore open the envelope.

"Chaoyang:
Hello! The manuscript was received on the 25th day of the twelfth lunar month. You really gave me a great surprise. I thought such a work would take at least three to five years to write, or at least two years, but I didn't expect that it would be completed in just one year.

I started reading the masterpiece on the day I received the manuscript. It took me five full days and I finished it on New Year's Eve.

It's hard to imagine that you completed such a magnificent work of more than 600,000 words in less than nine months.

After reading "Crossing the Guandong", I feel very good. This is the best novel I have read in the past ten years. Just like "The Sun Shines on the Mogan River", it is completely based on life, but it is richer, broader and more vivid than "Mogan River".

Its overall ideological and artistic value is in no way inferior to any famous work in the history of modern and contemporary literature. In many aspects it is outstanding and unrivalled in today's Chinese literary scene.

I still remember that last year you and I vowed to create a masterpiece like "One Hundred Years of Solitude".

Although people around me didn't say anything, I understood that everyone was extremely pessimistic about it. It is not easy to write such a great work.

But, my comrade Chaoyang, you really gave me a huge surprise!

No, it should be said that it brought a huge surprise to the Chinese literary world!

"Crossing the Guandong" is bound to become the brightest pearl in the crown of contemporary Chinese literature. It will give those writers who believe that they can create as long as they have ideas and imagination an unforgettable writing lesson.

Sincere congratulations on your success!

At the same time, I am also grateful for "Huacheng" and grateful that we did not miss such a good work.

In addition, I have communicated with President Su Chen and decided to publish the full text of "Crossing the Guandong" in two issues in the second and third issues of the magazine this year.

President Su Chen and I have the same opinion. We will do our best to promote "Crossing the Guandong" when it is published in "Huacheng".

I have also tried my best to persuade President Su Chen to allow me to publish the book. I will come to Beijing to discuss the matter with you in detail after the second issue is published. I will definitely live up to your expectations.

Say hello to Comrade Yushu and his family.

shake hands!"

Li Shifei's letter was not long, only a few hundred words, but the enthusiasm, joy and high affirmation of the work "Crossing the Guandong" in the letter made Tao Yushu very happy.

The novel "Crossing the Guandong" was written bit by bit by her while watching Lin Chaoyang, and no one was looking forward to the moment when this novel would blossom more than she was.

With a smile on her face, she held up the letter and shouted to Lin Chaoyang, "Old Li said the novel is well written and will be published in two issues, the second and third."

Lin Chaoyang stopped panting and asked, "Second issue? Time is a bit tight!"

It is now early February. "Huacheng" is published on the 20th of every even-monthly period. The second issue will be on the market on April 20th, which means it has been just over two months.

"Crossing the Great Wall" is different from ordinary novels. The full text is 640,000 words. Under the three-review and three-proofreading system, this amount of time is probably not enough.

"It's probably a special case." Tao Yushu took Xiao Dongdong off his neck and said, "Old Li has a high opinion of "Crossing Guandong". They are already studying the publication."

Lin Chaoyang took the letter, glanced at it briefly, and a relaxed smile appeared on his face. It seemed that the royalties issue should not be a big problem.

The couple was talking when suddenly two lively figures ran into the yard.

"Happy New Year, Uncle and Aunt!"

It turned out to be the brothers Tao Xiwen and Tao Xiwu. They ran up to the couple, bowed 90 degrees, and wished them a happy old age.

Lin Chaoyang was surprised and asked, "Hey! When did you two come back? Where are your parents?"

"Behind!" Tao Xiwen replied, and then the two brothers stared at Lin Chaoyang eagerly.

Tao Yushu laughed and scolded: "Just like your aunt!"

Lin Chaoyang didn't mind. He smiled and touched his pocket, then took out two big unity banknotes.

"One per person, don't let your mother confiscate it!"

The two brothers took the money with both hands and bowed to Lin Chaoyang excitedly, "Thank you, uncle and aunt!"

At this time, Lin Chaoyang saw Tao Yucheng and his wife carrying things in their hands and walking into the yard. His sister-in-law Zhao Li shouted at the two sons: "Why are you two running so fast?"

Lin Chaoyang winked at the brothers, then smiled and said to Tao Yucheng and his wife, "Sister-in-law, brother, when did you come back?"

Being interrupted by him, Zhao Li didn't bother to talk to her son. "I just came back today. Uncle Wu said that my parents came to your place to celebrate the New Year. It's just right that your eldest brother and I brought back some local specialties from Yunnan."

"Come in first!" Lin Chaoyang let the family of four in. The two younger ones went to Tao's father and mother as soon as they entered the house.

Tao Yushu went to pour tea and took some dried fruits and snacks. Lin Chaoyang asked Tao Yucheng, "Brother, you finally came back, why don't you stay there for a few more days?"

"It takes twelve days to go back and forth. That's long enough. Your sister-in-law has to take the child to the Children's Palace to practice piano when she comes back."

The Tao Xiwen brothers are now in primary school and have both signed up for interest classes, one learning piano and the other learning violin.

As a Haidian mother, Zhao Li has inherited the district's fine tradition of raising her children.

Tao Yucheng talked to Lin Chaoyang again about the experience of visiting his father-in-law's house. This time, the foreign goods that Lin Chaoyang brought him made him very proud.

Speaking of this matter, Zhao Li's face also lit up.

She is the daughter of a man who married far away and has not been home for several years. When she finally goes back, she naturally hopes to have a glorious time.

"It's a rare opportunity to go back home, and the most important thing is to make my family happy. It's just right that you come back today, so let's have some fun together." Lin Chaoyang said as he started to prepare meals. He was busy for most of the afternoon and prepared a large table of dishes, which made up for the regret that Tao Yucheng's family did not spend the Spring Festival in Yanjing.

A few days later, Lin Chaoyang suddenly received a foreign exchange remittance from Hong Kong's New Kunlun Pictures. The amount was not small, at 60,000 Hong Kong dollars.

Lin Chaoyang knew that this should be the red envelope that Li Hanxiang mentioned.

Ever since the success of "The Burning of the Old Summer Palace" last year, Li Hanxiang had mentioned the red envelope to Lin Chaoyang. It has been nearly half a year and the red envelope has only just arrived. Old Li is indeed a bit slow.

But after all, it was unexpected money. After receiving Li Hanxiang's call, Lin Chaoyang still expressed his gratitude to him.

The two chatted a little more about their next movie. "The Burning of the Old Summer Palace" and "The Last Emperor" were not only a huge success in Hong Kong and the mainland, but also achieved remarkable results in Southeast Asia and Japan. The box office in Japan reached 13 billion yen.

The success of the films made Li Hanxiang very proud. He has recently been planning to continue filming the story of Cixi, but there was a problem with the contract with the co-production company and the two sides are still in talks.

The main contradiction is nothing more than the distribution of interests between the two parties. The two films "The Burning of the Old Summer Palace" and "The Last Emperor" made Li Hanxiang reap the peak of box office in his directorial career, but he is not even on the list of those who made the most money.

The ones who made the most money from the success of a movie are first the distributors in various countries and regions, followed by Mr. He, the investor. Li Hanxiang and New Kunlun Pictures can only rank third, and the co-production companies are the worst off.

The full name of the co-production company is China Film Co-production Corporation, which sounds very similar to China Film, but in fact both are under the management of the Film Bureau.

This time, "The Burning of the Old Summer Palace" and "The Last Emperor" were successful, and the co-production company received the least profit, which meant it was following behind China Film Corporation.

When Li Hanxiang made a movie, the co-production company contributed both money and manpower, but in the end it received the least. No one would feel balanced about this, so the co-production company decided to change the contract.

But if the co-production company wanted to change the contract, the one who would suffer the loss would be Li Hanxiang's New Kunlun Pictures, so of course he could not agree to it.

Just like that, the people who were eating the meat did not fight, but the two who were drinking the soup and smelling the aroma started fighting.

Listening to Li Hanxiang rambling on about the grievances and hatreds with the co-production company, Lin Chaoyang responded with a few words with a smile. He knew that this time the cooperation between the two sides was doomed to fail.

Li Hanxiang's "Empress Dowager Cixi" series would also come to an end in vain, and he would turn his attention to the subject of "The Last Emperor".

After coming out of the telegraph building, Lin Chaoyang rode his bicycle home and saw Li Tuo sitting at home.

"Chaoyang, come with me to a party the day after tomorrow."

"Party? What kind of party?"

"Some writers in Beijing are going to have a gathering before the Lantern Festival. The venue is Chen Rong's home. You used to be working and rarely attended such events. Now that you are not working, you should at least attend, right? There are many acquaintances here."

Li Tuo's words made sense, and Lin Chaoyang readily agreed. He really had nothing to do recently, with no pressure to write articles, and no need to go to work, so it was okay for him to attend a party.

That morning, Lin Chaoyang rode his bicycle to Meizha Hutong. Chen Rong's family had three rooms in a large courtyard in Meizha Hutong. They were not grand, but they were spacious.

As soon as he entered the yard, Lin Chaoyang saw Liang Zuo and a pretty girl preparing to go out.

"Master!" Liang Zuo greeted Lin Chaoyang and said happily, "Li Tuo said yesterday that you could come. It's really not easy to see you."

"If you want to see me, just come to my house. If you don't want to see me, just come to my house." Lin Chaoyang joked with a smile.

Liang Zuo introduced the girl next to him to Lin Chaoyang, "This is my sister Liang Huan."

Liang Huan greeted Lin Chaoyang and looked at him curiously.

Lin Chaoyang really wanted to say "Be careful of the fat man" to the girl, but who made him the elder now?

"What are you two doing?"

"My mom asked us to go buy some food."

Liang Zuo said this and called into the house. Chen Rong came out and warmly welcomed Lin Chaoyang into the house, while Liang Zuo and his sister went out to buy groceries.

Lin Chaoyang and Chen Rong had met many times and had a relationship with Liang Zuo, so they were quite familiar with each other.

When he entered the room, he found that there were already three people sitting in the room, namely Zhang Jie, Yang Mo and Wang Meng.

Among the three, Wang Meng was most familiar with Lin Chaoyang. When she saw him, Wang Meng squinted her eyes and smiled, "Oh! Chaoyang is a rare guest. You are not often seen at gatherings like this."

Lin Chaoyang rarely appeared in such occasions. He smiled and replied, "I'm not like a big boss like you who doesn't have to work. I have to go to work during the week, and I have to do part-time writing after work. I can't spare the time!"

Wang Meng pointed at him and laughed, "You sly fellow! I don't believe that if you tell Lao Zhang that you want to be transferred to the Literary Association to be a professional writer, he will disagree!"

"Haha! Who wants to be transferred to the Literary Association to be a professional writer? Chaoyang? No need for Old Zhang to do anything, leave this to me."

The hearty voice came from far away and penetrated the door. As soon as the words fell, Song Fan walked into the room.

He is the leader of the Yanjing Writers Association. If Lin Chaoyang really wants to be transferred to the Yanjing Writers Association, he would be more than happy to do so.

"Don't listen to Lao Wang's rumors. I, a social idler, can't stand the constraints of the Cultural Association."

Lin Chaoyang responded to Song Fan with a smile, and then greeted Zhang Jie and Yang Mo. The two of them have always had the best relationship with Chen Rong, so they arrived early today.

They sat down and chatted for a while. Then the guests of the party arrived one after another. Li Guowen, Deng Youmei, Lin Jinlan, Li Tuo, Chen Jiangong...

Today’s gathering can be said to be a big gathering of the Yenching Writers Association, as all those who came are members of the Yenching Writers Association.

Lin Chaoyang saw that Deng Youmei and Lin Jinlan were here, but Wang Zengqi was not there, so he couldn't help but ask, "Why didn't Old Wang come?"

"He actually wants to come." There was a hint of gloating in Deng Youmei's words.

Lin Jinlan explained: "He was diagnosed with chronic hepatitis some time ago and is recuperating at home. It would be uncomfortable for him to come to this kind of occasion."

Wang Zengqi loves food and naturally likes to drink. Drinking is inevitable at a gathering like today. He is not feeling well and should not have come.

"Old Deng is not kind!" Lin Chaoyang teased.

"You are kind, but I haven't seen you go to visit the sick."

"Who knows if his disease is contagious?"

Lin Jinlan looked at the two of them speechlessly, "Neither of you are honest people!"

The people around also started laughing.

(End of this chapter)