1978: Female educated youth, don’t want an illiterate husband

On the morning of Lunar New Year's Eve, the aroma of dumplings filled Cheng Xuemin's courtyard. Feng's mother, wearing an apron, was busy in the kitchen, her spoon clattering against the edge of the pot as she muttered to herself:

"Xuemin, double-check your state banquet clothes, make sure they're not wrinkled! Jiayou, tighten your scarf, it's windy outside, don't get cold!"

Cheng Xuemin was adjusting his Zhongshan suit in front of the mirror, fastening the top button of the collar three times before it was completely secure.

Feng Jiayou sat to one side, her fingers nervously clutching the hem of her newly made woolen overcoat, her palms sweating. She asked:

"Xuemin, I...can I really go? It's a state banquet, all the leaders are there..."

"Why can't you go?" Cheng Xuemin walked over, straightened her scarf, and said with a smile, "This is an invitation letter from Old Wu himself. It clearly states that he invites you, my wife, to attend!"
Don't be nervous, just come with me. It'll be a good opportunity to introduce you to the leaders!

Despite saying that, Cheng Xuemin himself was actually quite apprehensive.

He had never attended a state banquet in his life, let alone brought his wife along.

Mr. Feng, the father-in-law, sat on the sofa, holding a newspaper, but his eyes kept glancing in their direction, his tone tinged with envy:

"You two better behave yourselves. You're the first in our family to attend a state banquet! Your mother and I aren't even qualified to enter a state banquet."

Teacher Gu, Feng's mother, brought out dumplings, glared at him, and said, "How dare you say that? Xue Min is only so young, and he's already a pioneer in foreign exchange earnings!"

Old Feng, you still need to climb higher and try to get me a share of the glory next year, so I can also eat at a state banquet!

When my aunt and sister-in-law heard this, their eyes lit up!
Especially my sister-in-law, Feng Jiamo!
Normally, she would definitely clamor to go with us, but she knows what's important. Today, she could only watch with envy and longing, without mentioning that she wanted to go with us.

Afterwards, the family had a lively breakfast, and Cheng Xuemin drove his car with Feng Jiayou on Chang'an Avenue.

The closer the car got to the city center, the more red lanterns appeared along the roadside. When it arrived at the gate, the guards saluted and let it pass.

Looking at the magnificent building inside, his wife, Feng Jiayou, nervously gripped Cheng Xuemin's hand tightly: "Xuemin, I... my legs are a little weak."

"It's okay, I'm here." Cheng Xuemin held her hand tightly, his heart also tightening a little.

He still doesn't expect that he, a filmmaker, would be invited to the New Year's Eve state banquet, an honor that even his father-in-law doesn't receive.

Upon entering the banquet hall, it was already bustling with activity. A red carpet stretched to the entrance, a banner reading "Happy Chinese New Year" hung on the wall, and fresh flowers and teacups were laid out on the tables.

Feng Jiayou followed behind Cheng Xuemin, not daring to look around. She felt that everyone around her had an extraordinary presence, and she, a college student at Yenching University, looked like a child who had wandered into this place by mistake.

"Xuemin! Over here!"

When Wu Lao’s voice came, Cheng Xuemin quickly pulled Feng Jiayou over. There stood Director Luo from China Film Group, Li Shuguang and Zhang Guangnian from People’s Literature Publishing House.

"Old Wu, Director Luo, Teacher Li, Teacher Zhang!" Cheng Xuemin greeted them one by one, then pulled Feng Jiayou over, "This is my wife, Feng Jiayou."

"Oh my, this is Xuemin's wife! What a perfect match!" Director Luo from China Film Group was the first to express his goodwill, nodding and smiling repeatedly. "Xuemin is a hero in our cultural sector, and you, his virtuous wife, have made an indispensable contribution!"

"Excellent, excellent! Comrade Feng Jiayou has indeed made invaluable contributions; he can be considered a great hero of our cultural sector!" Old Wu echoed, praising him repeatedly. "I've heard that if it weren't for Comrade Feng Jiayou bringing Comrade Xuemin to Yanjing, our treasure of a pioneer in foreign exchange earnings might have been buried in the mud!"

Feng Jiayou blushed instantly and quickly stepped forward to shake hands with Old Wu, expressing her flattery and trepidation!
She hadn't expected these high-ranking leaders to be so approachable, but the more approachable they were, the more nervous she became.

After taking her seat, Feng Jiayou secretly looked around and found that the room was full of people she had only seen in newspapers. Even Wang Yang, the former director of Yan Film Studio, was not here. She knew even more clearly that she was only able to come because of Cheng Xuemin.

Cheng Xuemin was more at ease, chatting with Old Wu and Director Luo about the box office of "Tai Chi" and the preparation of "Shaolin Temple," occasionally throwing in a few jokes.

Before long, the big shots from the cultural sector also entered the venue and took their seats.

Most of them were people Cheng Xuemin had dealt with before, such as Professor Mao, Professor Ding Ling, and Wang Meng.

"Xuemin, you're quite the busy man these days!" After greeting Elder Mao and the others and inviting them to sit down, Teacher Ding Ling went straight to him and said, "Well? Our literary lecture series will start after the New Year. As our specially invited lecturer, could you spare some time to give a couple of lectures to those young literary creators?"

Ding Ling is now making a comeback, taking over the establishment of the Wenjiang Institute, which recruits well-known young literary creators from all over the country and invites top domestic writers and literary giants to give lectures to these young literary creators. It is directly under the leadership of Mr. Wu and can be regarded as a national-level literary institution.

People like Mo Yan, Shi Tieshan, Jia Pingwa, Tie Ning, and Lin Weimin were among the first batch of students at the Literature Lecture Institute.

It can be said!
With its scale and the quality of its students, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call it the Whampoa Military Academy of modern Chinese literature!

And Cheng Xuemin!

As someone their age, or even younger than most of them... no, all of them.

However, Ding Ling extended a strong invitation to him, and he was hired as a special lecturer at the Wenjiang Institute.

What concept?!

Let’s put it this way!

Liu Xinwu, the current editor-in-chief of October and the direct superior of Feng's mother-in-law, was one of the first students of the Literature Institute, not a lecturer.

Therefore, Cheng Xuemin has been invited by Professor Ding Ling to give lectures to the new students of the Literature Institute after the New Year, and he will inevitably encounter many familiar faces.

We were all friends before, but now we're all teacher and student. Surprised? Unexpected, right?!
"Teacher Ding Ling, this... I'll give it a try!"

Cheng Xuemin would definitely agree happily!
Even if I'm too busy to move, I still have to go and support Teacher Ding Ling.

After all, Ding Ling is definitely one of the benefactors in his life since his debut.

"Alright, alright, we know you're busy earning US dollars for the country, so it won't take up too much of your time!"

"Anyway, just take some time to go there. I'm sure they'll enjoy listening to you even if you just say a few words!"

Teacher Ding Ling was very happy to hear this and said it repeatedly.

"Xuemin is indeed a very busy person now. It will be difficult for us at People's Literature to commission articles from you in the future!" Zhang Guangnian of People's Literature joked with Cheng Xuemin.

"That's right!" Li Shuguang nodded repeatedly, expressing his deep agreement!
Cheng Xuemin was flattered and repeatedly said that he would still write articles, but the output might not be as high as before.

Hearing that Zhang Guangnian directly poached the manuscript from Cheng Xuemin, hoping to take over the rest of the manuscripts Cheng Xuemin was writing.

It was a truly delightful meeting!
"Xuemin, I see President Zhou from Yenching University!" Feng Jiayou, who had been sitting upright, looked uneasy with her beautiful eyes, secretly glancing at the guests and leaders at the state banquet.

They even spotted President Zhou of Peking University and exclaimed with delight.

"Where?!" Cheng Xuemin nodded upon hearing this, and secretly asked his wife.

"He's coming, he's coming! Xuemin, Principal Zhou is walking this way!" Before his wife could even point, Principal Zhou seemed to have spotted Cheng Xuemin and was walking towards them, startling his wife who whispered anxiously.

"Xuemin's family is young, you two are here!" Principal Zhou had indeed come to greet Cheng Xuemin and his wife! After greeting the people he knew well, he began to look after Cheng Xuemin!

"Hello, Principal Zhou!" Cheng Xuemin quickly shook hands with him and returned the greeting.

"Hello, Principal!" Feng Jiayou greeted him in a low voice, like a mouse seeing a cat.

"Hello, hello everyone!" Principal Zhou nodded repeatedly, then said to Cheng Xuemin, "Xuemin, we haven't officially introduced you to our university circle yet!"

"It made Huaqing and the others say, 'Xuemin, you've been promoted to the lakeside and you're no longer a young professor at our Yenching University!'"

"That won't do! Since people from Tsinghua University, Beijing Normal University, and the University of Science and Technology of China are all there, let's go over and have a chat together!"

President Zhou came specifically to invite Cheng Xuemin to support Yenching University!
Cheng Xuemin was both amused and exasperated upon hearing this. He hadn't expected that the old principal, who was almost retired, would still be so combative.

Indeed, there is no first place in literature, but there is a clear second place in martial arts!
Cheng Xuemin then had no choice but to bite the bullet and follow the old principal to the university circle, where he greeted the old principals one by one and stood up for Principal Zhou.

Before we knew it, the state banquet had officially begun.

The former leader stood up to speak, mentioning the work of generating foreign exchange, and specifically named Cheng Xuemin: "This year, our cultural sector deserves special praise for generating foreign exchange. His film 'Tai Chi' earned more than 20 million US dollars overseas, setting a good example for us as pioneers in generating foreign exchange!"

The audience erupted in applause. Cheng Xuemin quickly stood up and bowed. Feng Jiayou, sitting beside him, had tears welling up in her eyes.

For the first time, she felt so directly how outstanding her man was.

This honor made her prouder than any sweet words.

During the banquet, many leaders came over to toast Cheng Xuemin and praised Feng Jiayou, saying, "Comrade Cheng, your wife looks so virtuous. No wonder you can focus on your creative work. With a virtuous wife at home, you can achieve great things outside!"

Feng Jiayou was embarrassed by the compliments and could only keep smiling. Cheng Xuemin helped her fend off a lot of drinks and whispered to comfort her, "Don't be nervous, just keep smiling and saying hello. I'll handle the talking!"

The wife, Feng Jiayou, nodded repeatedly. She immediately felt that her husband was protecting her, and after her extreme nervousness subsided, she was not so nervous anymore!
After the state banquet, Cheng Xuemin and Feng Jiayou were invited to the Central Radio and Television Auditorium to attend a New Year's Eve tea party.

This was the predecessor of the Spring Festival Gala, and the entire event was recorded and broadcast live by cameras.

Once inside the auditorium, the atmosphere became even more lively. Cameras were pointed at the entire audience, and the performers from the cultural troupe, dressed in their costumes, sat in the seats on the side.

"Xuemin, look, that's Gong Xue! And Ge You too!"

Feng Jiayou tugged at Cheng Xuemin's sleeve and pointed to the actors' area not far away. Finally, she spotted an old acquaintance!

Gong Xue, wearing a red dress, was talking to the person next to her, while Ge You, wearing a Zhongshan suit, looked a bit reserved.

Cheng Xuemin nodded, somewhat surprised by Gong Xue's appearance.

Didn't she already go south to the Shanghai Film Studio? Why is she still here at the General Political Department's Cultural Troupe and participating in tonight's tea party performance?

The Spring Festival Gala originated from a tea party where people sat together, drinking tea, eating melon seeds, chatting casually, and watching the cultural performances by the performing arts troupe.

Not long after Cheng Xuemin and his group came in, the tea party and social gathering officially began.

The first performance was the Yellow River Cantata by Gong Xue and her art troupe, which immediately brought out the atmosphere of the entire gala!
Following that, there were artistic performances from other performing arts troupes. The host, Zhao Zhongxiang, made several quick stops during the intermission, telling everyone not to be too busy.

So, without anyone noticing, he suddenly picked up a microphone and walked towards Cheng Xuemin, smiling as he said:

"Comrade Cheng, I heard you released a song in a foreign language in North America, and it's a huge hit! With all this excitement today, aren't you going to show off your skills?"

The people around him joined in the commotion, saying that with such a great artist as Cheng Xuemin around, they were all urging him to go on stage and perform a couple of songs for everyone!
Moreover, Guangzhou Pacific Company had already begun distributing Cheng Xuemin's song tapes nationwide, and many of the comrades present had listened to Cheng Xuemin's song tapes.

So, with a glance and a few words, they either asked Cheng Xuemin to go up and sing a foreign language song, or to sing "The Bloodstained Glory," "Sending Off Comrades," or "Night at the Military Port," and so on!

Startled by the commotion, Cheng Xuemin quickly stood up and waved his hand, saying, "Teacher Zhao, stop joking. With my limited skills, I wouldn't dare to embarrass myself in front of professional actors."

"Hey, don't be modest!" Zhao Zhongxiang pulled him along, dragging him forward with a smile, "Comrade Gong Xue is going to sing 'Night at the Military Port,' you can sing a duet with her later, it'll definitely sound great!"

"Sing, sing! I've never heard you sing on stage before, Xuemin!" To Cheng Xuemin's dismay, even his wife, Feng Jiayou, was joining in the commotion.

This instantly annoyed Cheng Xuemin, but unable to refuse the hospitality, he had no choice but to go on stage.

"Xuemin?!"

When Cheng Xuemin got up and went on stage, Gong Xue, who had just come up from backstage, saw him and was instantly stunned, his eyes wide with surprise and delight.

Then he learned that it was the hosts who had egged him on to sing a duet with Xuemin, which made Gong Xue feel both happy and conflicted.

Cheng Xuemin went on stage, nodded to Gong Xue, but didn't have time to ask her why she was still in Yanjing.

We can only get through this hurdle first, and ask more questions later!
As the music began, Gong Xue's voice was clear and bright, while Cheng Xuemin, though not a professional singer, had a deep and resonant voice. The two worked together surprisingly well.

When the song reached its climax, the audience clapped and tapped their feet to the beat, and even the old leader nodded and hummed along.

One song, "Night at the Naval Port," wasn't enough; then, he was egged on to sing "Sending Off Comrades-in-Arms" and "The Blood-Stained Glory."

What a mess!
Cheng Xuemin simply didn't bother going downstairs and instead co-hosted the party with Zhao Zhongxiang.

While taking a sip of water, Cheng Xuemin suddenly had an idea. He pulled Zhao Zhongxiang aside and whispered, "Teacher Zhao, could we have some interaction with the audience at this tea party?"

"Interact? How do we interact?" Zhao Zhongxiang was stunned.

“We’ll publish the CCTV’s landline number so that viewers across the country can call in to request programs. If they want to hear a song, the troupe members can sing it. Giving the audience the choice will make things more lively and show that we are close to the people,” Cheng Xuemin explained.

Zhao Zhongxiang's eyes lit up, and he quickly went to find the person in charge at the front desk.

Upon hearing this, the person in charge immediately approved the idea: "Great idea! Let's do it this way! Quickly put the phone on the screen and tell the troupe members to be on high alert. Whatever the audience requests, we'll perform!"

Soon, the station's landline number appeared on the television screen. Zhao Zhongxiang said into the microphone, "Dear viewers, you can now call the number on the screen to request the songs and programs you want to hear. Our actors are ready and waiting to perform for you!"

A few minutes later, the phone rang. The first audience member who came in was clearly very nervous and excited, repeatedly asking if they could request songs. "Can I really request songs?"
After receiving repeated confirmation from the operator, the person immediately requested that Comrade Gong Xue and Comrade Cheng Xuemin sing "The Blood-Stained Glory". When the message reached Cheng Xuemin, he was dumbfounded and miserable!

This is what happens when you bring it on yourself!

He and Gong Xue had already sung it once, and now the audience is requesting it online, so he can't refuse to sing it!
……

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