Rebirth 2004: A lone figure in the literary world

Chapter 173: Death Struggle (First Update)
[…In summary, “Qin Xin Jian Dan” is a collective account. The initiator is a well-known senior literary critic in China. The participants include the author and several other colleagues engaged in literary criticism…]

[And "a young teacher from a certain university" is only the registrant of this account and the author of the article. This article is the product of collective participation and should never be attributed to a single person...]

[…The author highly appreciates Zhang Chao’s broad mind and generosity, but it is obviously not rigorous for him to award 10 yuan to this “young college teacher”. The author calls on Zhang Chao to disclose his identity.]

[…If our creative rights cannot be protected, the author and several other colleagues involved will consider taking legal action to protect their rights.]

[In this bright and clear world, there is no place for villains to cause trouble! 】

Although this article was not signed with Chang Lihua's real name, it was published on her blog named "Gorgeous Literature".

As soon as the article came out, the world was in an uproar!

Originally, the onlookers thought that "Qin Xin Jian Dan" was an ordinary reader who came from the "grassroots", so they had a natural sense of closeness. But it turned out that he was actually a "celestial dragon" in the literary world, and the anger of being fooled reached its peak.

Even the Southern Metropolis Daily, which had already broken with Zhang Chao, couldn't help but use this headline: "The biggest scandal in the literary world since the new century!"

Although Chang Lihua did not mention any names, based on the writers' disclosures about the seminar hosted by Bai Ye in early March, it is easy to guess who this "domestic well-known senior in the literary criticism circle" is.

Bai Ye's phone had never been so busy before, ringing from morning till night. He could not help but mute it for the whole afternoon, and when he checked it after get off work, he saw more than 30 missed calls and more than 100 text messages.

He didn't have time to look through them all, since they were mostly reporters. If they wanted to talk to him about something serious, they would call his office landline.

Bai Ye also tried to call Chang Lihua, but no one answered. He called other people, but the call was also busy.

I turned on the computer and logged into QQ. The "Literary Criticism Family" group, which originally had more than 200 people, now has only a few dozen people left. No one posted any messages in the group, and it was dead silent.

A sentence suddenly popped up in his mind: "Its rise is rapid, and its fall is sudden."

In just a few days, the "Zhang Bai dispute" turned into a one-sided beating by Zhang Chao. Zhang Chao did "no longer defend himself", but this result was more painful than being scolded by Zhang Chao in person with the dirtiest words for a whole day and night.

Also, is this really a “result”?

Bai Ye was worried that if the situation continued to develop, his reputation might really be ruined. After thinking it over, he picked up the phone and dialed the number of the Writers Association office.

"The Writers Association is no longer coordinating this matter. Should I talk to Zhang Chao myself? Isn't this nonsense? What can I discuss with him?"

In less than 5 minutes, Bai Ye hung up the phone angrily.

His bottom line is not to show weakness or give in to Zhang Chao in person. If the Writers Association is willing to mediate, he can use official language on his blog or in the media to smooth things over.

Bai Ye thought for a long time and called Yanda again...

Zhang Chao has not been idle these days - the TV series "The Cliff" is finally going to be completed after being delayed for one and a half months and overspending by 1 million.

Zhang Chao, one of the main creators, went to Harbin specifically to avoid the foreseeable human disturbances.

Unlike the previous version of "The Cliff" in which Zhou Yi's identity was exposed and he eventually sacrificed himself, the last scene of this version of "The Cliff" is that the male protagonist Zhou Yi escapes from the pursuit of the spy chief Gao Bin and disappears in the heavy snow in Harbin.

And in the previous scenes, the important character Ji Liankui was not shot.

These are the two plots that Zhang Chao specifically told Quan Yongxian to stick to, so that Zheng Xiaolong would not be like director Liu Jin in his previous life, who ignored the script and directly killed people in order to elevate the characters.

Although Quan Yongxian didn't understand why Zhang Chao had to make such a special statement, as a screenwriter on the set, he still paid special attention to it. Fortunately, Director Zheng Xiaolong had no intention of changing these two plots. Zhang Chao's worries turned out to be unfounded.

This leaves enough suspense and foreshadowing for the sequel of "Cliff". Judging from the director, the leading actors and the investment, this version of "Cliff" will definitely be more successful. By then, the filming of the sequel will be imminent. When director Zheng Xiaolong shouted the last word "CUT!", the whole set cheered and everyone breathed a sigh of relief. The assistant director specially took out a string of firecrackers and crackled them.

Zheng Xiaolong, along with several main actors, assistant director, and two screenwriters Quan Yongxian and Zhang Chao who were still on the scene, expressed their gratitude to the cameramen, lighting staff, stagehands, extras and other staff.

After the wrap party, Zhang Chao did not return to Yanjing with Song Jia, but stayed in Harbin for a few days.

In March, the ice and snow in Harbin melted and spring came. There was no need to wrap up like a penguin and walk with difficulty. With Song Jia, a Harbin native, as a tour guide, although the Ice and Snow World and the Ice and Snow Art Museum were no longer accessible, the Sophia Cathedral, Gogol Street, and Volga Manor were still worth visiting.

During this period, the impact of the "Zhang Bai dispute" continued to expand, and the launch of the "account gate" completely tilted the balance of public opinion towards Zhang Chao.

Bai Ye was so scolded by netizens that he had to close his blog.

Chang Lihua and others made public the chat records and various screenshots, and directly pointed out that "Feng Zheng" was the person who received the award.

Feng Zheng remained silent and did not respond to any speculation.

Chang Lihua, Hong Yu, Yang Li, and a writer who had no direct conflict with Zhang Chao before, demanded that Xinlang Blog and Zhang Chao disclose the identity of the award recipients, take back the 10 yuan prize money and redistribute it.

Vice chairmen of the Writers Association Tie Ning and Wang Meng also appeared in front of the media, calling on the general public to pay more attention to literature and less to scandals, and firmly stated that Zhang Chao's novels "are not pornographic, violent, or dark," and are rare masterpieces of the new century!
With the statements made by Tie and Wang, more writers with a keen sense of smell heard the news and began to participate more actively in the "Zhang Bai dispute", and proposed a major discussion on "literature and literary criticism".

Even Li Juan, who had already hidden on the grassland, was "picked out" by reporters from the herdsmen's spring pasture and recounted what happened on that magical afternoon of March 3.

The development of the situation made all Bai Ye’s efforts seem like a last-ditch struggle.

Even in the 80s, no literary event could arouse such widespread national attention.

Finally, Yang Yi, director of the Institute of Literature of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, could not help it. He found Bai Ye and had a long talk with him, asking him to find Zhang Chao as soon as possible to eliminate the adverse effects of this incident.

Bai Ye was helpless when he heard this: "There are at least a hundred people in the literary circle of Yanjing City looking for Zhang Chao, but no one has caught him..."

……

"Is this the reason why you stay in Harbin and don't want to leave?" Song Jia glanced at the news and asked lazily.

"The main reason is that if I go back to Yanjing now, it will not only be difficult for me, but also for many classmates and teachers." Zhang Chao replied lazily: "It's better to stay in Harbin for a few more days."

"We've already visited all the attractions we can take you to. If you want to go anywhere else, you'll have to leave the city."

"Isn't there one place we haven't been to yet?"

"…What evil ideas are you planning again!"

"What? I mean - your home."

"…Are you serious?"

"Now that we are here, we have enough time anyway."

Song Jia looked at the man next to him, as if it was the first day he met him.

(End of this chapter)