Literary Master 1983

Chapter 257 The Question of Faith
This trip was incredibly impactful for Ma Shitu!
His apprentices, whom he took on cheaply, are now famous throughout the country and are known to everyone. From tea drinkers in teahouses to bridge match winners, no one has not read Yu Qie's novels.

Now, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call him a "half-literary master"!

"I never expected that!"

Ma Shitu thought to himself.

From Shanghai to Sichuan and Chongqing, Ma Shitu traversed most of the Yangtze River, passing through developed southern cities in China. Many years earlier, Ma Shitu had taken the opposite route, heading straight for Shanghai, and fifty years later, he returned in the same way.

Although the yen loan needs to be renegotiated temporarily, the dam construction is a certainty—it has already been approved by the representatives through a vote. In fact, the renegotiated agreement has actually prevented some losses.

It might need to be fixed sooner rather than later!

Ma Shitu enjoyed listening to people chat, and he had been listening to these kinds of stories for the past few days. His ship was currently passing through the Three Gorges, so naturally, everyone was talking about the Three Gorges.

The Three Gorges is a famous scenic spot on the Yangtze River. It was already well-known during the Three Kingdoms period, and it became even more famous during the Tang Dynasty because the poet Li Bai wrote a poem about it.

This place has existed for tens of thousands of years and has never changed.

When talking about the Three Gorges, a passenger on the ship said, "A dam is going to be built here in the future. I don't know where it is, but it will definitely be in this section. Countless reefs will be destroyed. We have to hurry up and see the Three Gorges. The beautiful scenery that Li Bai wrote about, with monkeys on both banks and a cry that sounded like a ghost's wail that could be heard far and wide... will never be the same again."

Some people asked, "Why is the government blasting rocks to build a dam? This place is so beautiful! It's such a waste to blast it."

"The reason for blowing up the reefs is to make this area navigable. By doing so, Sichuan and Chongqing will be connected with Shanghai, and the entire Yangtze River will be connected."

"Is it not possible to resume flights now? What are we on?"

"The navigation system refers to large inland river vessels weighing several thousand tons, which have a deep draft and are prone to encountering hidden reefs, so it's naturally different from ours."

That's how it is!
Ma Shitu nodded and couldn't help but add:

“In the past, people from Sichuan faced a life-threatening journey when setting off from the Three Gorges, so this was called ‘leaving Sichuan.’ There is an old saying: ‘If you don’t leave Sichuan when you’re young, you won’t return to Sichuan when you’re old.’ This not only means that Sichuan is a fun place, but also that the journey from Sichuan to Sichuan by waterway passes through the Three Gorges, which is a deadly road, a road that can take your life!”

"Oh no? What do we do then?!"

Another tourist said:

"Blow it up! The reef is blown up, the dam is built, the water level is raised, and navigation becomes possible. Yu Qie has a novel called 'Returning to One's Roots' that talks about this—if that dam hadn't been built, how could Old Zhao have started over with Old Liu's ashes? Wouldn't that have been suicide? He'd probably have gone with Old Liu!"

"Yu Qie also wrote about dams? I've finished reading 'Fallen Leaves Return to Their Roots,' and he didn't write about that!"

"Then you must not have read it carefully. It is very clear in the novel that Yu Qie first assumed that the dam was completed before the story began."

"..."

I didn't expect there would be people here who have read Yu Qie's novels.

Ma Shitu and Yu Qie were both from Wanxian, a place very close to Hubei Province. Historically, after leaving Sichuan, Ma Shitu and his first wife, Liu Yiqing, worked as underground Communist Party members in Hubei Province.

Liu Yiqing was a well-bred young lady from a wealthy family in Jiangsu Province. She was eloquent and articulate. Sensing the extreme danger of revolutionary work, she always worked against the clock. Even after becoming pregnant, Liu Yiqing continued to fight on the front lines, becoming a key figure in developing her own network. After being betrayed and murdered by the Kuomintang, her remains were eventually buried in her mentor's martyrs' cemetery.

Therefore, when Ma Shitu passed by his mentor, he made a special stop and traveled the last leg of the journey by car. He brought a bouquet of flowers to visit his deceased wife. For this, Ma Shitu refused the company of his superiors and other colleagues, insisting on visiting alone.

Unexpectedly, in the martyrs' cemetery, they saw a group of primary school students who came to lay flowers.

The tomb where Liu Yiqing is located has long been filled with flowers.

Ma Shitu found it very strange: Goodness, how do these little kids know her?
The elementary school students asked him, "Who are you? Why should we answer your questions?"

“I am Ma… I am Ma Qianmu.” Ma Shitu used his real name. “The people who are offering you flowers are my wife who has been dead for a long time.”

"Oh, we are students who wrote to Buffett. In our letter, we asked him, 'In this society where everyone is focused on money, what should we do when we grow up?'"

Ma Shitu asked curiously, "What did he reply to you?"

"He asked us to read the novel 'Children of Heaven,' so the school organized a movie screening and a reading of the novel for us."

Yu Qie's novel is indeed suitable. The education department has already made it a required extracurricular reading, and an excerpt will be included in the next round of textbook revisions.

This novel was also included as a question in this year's college entrance examination.

But what does this have to do with his deceased wife!
"Then what are you doing here? You should be at the movie theater or the library!"

"Because Buffett recently told us that we should have some faith, he suggested that we come here to take a look."

Why would Buffett suggest this?
Ma Shitu was a little confused.

Fortunately, the Chinese teacher leading the group of elementary school students recognized Ma Shitu: "You are the husband of martyr Liu Yiqing, right?"

"I'm."

"We heard that it was because Yu Qie wrote a novel, and after Ba Jin read it, he suggested that the children learn from the spirit of martyr Liu, so we decided to come here for a visit."

So that’s it!
Ma Shitu was both surprised and moved: What novel has Yu Qie written now?

I should have stayed a little longer, to soak up some literary inspiration.

Ma Shitu temporarily filled in as a primary school teacher, giving these students a Chinese language lesson and analyzing what made Yu Qie's novels so good... This lasted for several hours.

After seeing the elementary school students off, Ma Shitu stroked the uneven tombstone of his deceased wife, remaining silent for a long time before finally saying:
“I agree with something my apprentice said: as long as a person is remembered, they are not completely dead. This is why I wrote a lot about you when I got older.”

"However, the underground party novel I wrote based on this, 'The Heroic Song of Qingjiang,' did not have a particularly large impact. I feel very sorry for you. Compared to my students, I am far inferior to them. Especially that Yu Qie, if he could make a move, who in the world wouldn't know you?"

“I gave that flag to Yu Qie. He deserved it, he should take it.”

Is there anything else to say?
Ma Shitu didn't know either.

After thinking it over, he remembered the passengers on the ship who were talking about "Returning to One's Roots" and the elementary school students who came to visit. Ma Shitu said, "I met you in the first half of my life, and now I have a good apprentice. I have nothing to regret... I have written down all the popular novels that are currently popular, mainly those written by Yu Qie. I will read them to you in the future."

Are you really not regretful at all?

There are still some.

When Ma Shitu's first wife, Liu Yiqing, sacrificed her life, it caused a great sensation within the Party, with leaders writing articles to mourn her—but by the time of Yuqie, many ordinary people no longer knew about it.

Sigh, isn't it just because I'm not good enough?
We both wrote novels as keepsakes, but Yu Qie's works are so well-known that even elementary school students know them, while mine... sigh.

Thinking of this, Ma Shitu felt a great sense of urgency and immediately returned to Wanxian. He wrapped up the flag from Zhazidong Prison, found a reliable friend, and took it to the capital.

He also wrote a long letter to Yu Qie, recounting his experiences as an underground party member, and sent it to Shanghai.

... "What a long letter!"

At Ba Jin's home, Li Xiaolin delivered Ma Shitu's letter to Yu Qie. Ma Shitu sent the letter directly to the magazine "Harvest".

Li Xiaolin said, "He must know you're here with me."

"Of course he knows. The last time I wrote 'Happy Hunting' was right here. He could find out with just a little inquiry."

How could Old Ma write letters?
Yu Qie had a feeling about this, so he opened the letter and read it quickly: sure enough, it talked about Ma Shitu's past as an underground party member. This letter just solved Yu Qie's current question: how did Yu Zecheng view the women he encountered in "Lurking"?

To state the conclusion first, all three of these people are indispensable; in a sense, they are one person.

Zuo Lan, a well-bred young lady, is almost perfect and serves as Yu Zecheng's guide; Cui Ping, a revolutionary comrade-in-arms, is real and reliable and Yu Zecheng's companion; and then there is Wan Qiu, who is not described in many words, but serves as the conclusion to what came before.

Wanqiu is a young lady from a petty-bourgeois family. When Wanqiu was in despair, Yu Zecheng recruited her into the new underground party, just as Zuo Lan had recruited Yu Zecheng. The torch was passed on here, and Yu Zecheng completed the switch from "the lost" to "the guide".

These three are indispensable because they represent different stages in life; they are also the same person because they are inverted versions of Yu Zecheng himself.

Yu Zecheng's monologues to these three women also clearly have symbolic meaning: Yu Zecheng's cognition has undergone a complete transformation.

The entire story structure of the TV series is as intricate as a spy drama, with many details.

After Yu Qie figured out the matter, he naturally became bolder in writing.

He can hint in many plot points that the three female protagonists are actually a real revolutionary female martyr, separated from each other by different experiences and personalities.

The novel "Lurking" was perfect for him, as it was both a part of his teacher's experience and an answer to Ba Jin's "question of faith".

Wait a minute, Yu Zecheng's surname is also "Yu"!

In the 1980s, extremely long novels were not popular; a novel exceeding 300,000 words was considered extravagant. Yu Qie spent three weeks writing the novel, totaling approximately 360,000 words, which is equivalent to nearly 20,000 words per day.

I wrote this at Mr. Ba's home the week before.

Ba Jin specially reserved several tea tables and a large horizontal table in the first-floor hall for Yu Qie to use as reception areas. If anyone disturbed Yu Qie, Ba Jin would directly reprimand them. He greatly admired Yu Qie's novel and even felt a pang of jealousy towards Ma Shitu—"One should take on disciples like Yu Qie!"

How could I possibly be jealous of Ma Shitu?
While writing his memoirs (he also enjoyed writing memoirs), Ba Jin unconsciously scribbled on the paper:

Yu Qie wrote a novel specifically for his teacher, and such a high-quality novel at that. Who else in the world could do that?
It's gone, it's gone.

Should I take on a disciple like Ma Shitu, make him my last disciple, and teach him to play bridge (even though I don't really like playing cards)?

It's difficult to find someone like Yu Qie; where can you find such a person?

Am I qualified to be Yu Qie's father-in-law?

Oh dear, Li Xiaolin is already married.

It's gone, it's gone, impossible, absolutely impossible!
Buffett is a bit depressed.

Ba Jin's granddaughter, Duanduan, came home and saw Yu Qie writing a novel.

"Brother Yu, you've come to my house! I want some candy, will you take me to buy some?"

Ba Lao said, "Yu Qie is writing something. Duanduan, wait until he finishes writing before you go find him."

"But Yu Qie writes novels very quickly. He writes novels faster than I can copy books, and it doesn't waste any time."

Ba Jin actually scolded his granddaughter: "How could you doubt Uncle Yu's great character? He's just too talented."

Li Xiaolin wanted to help Yu Qie solicit a review article. Having learned that Yu Qie was in Shanghai, several editors and professors from *Shanghai Literature and Art* and the Shanghai Drama Academy wanted to invite him to give a lecture, and they sought help from Li Xiaolin.

Old Ba said, "Don't let any irrelevant people disturb Yu Qie."

No, I'm a celebrity in Shanghai's arts and culture circle, okay? Even professors and famous editors are considered nobody!
Cartoonist Zhang Leping came to chat with Ba Jin. He knocked on the door; this was an old friend of Ba Jin's. At least Ba Jin didn't scold Zhang Leping. However, Ba Jin, sitting in his wheelchair, personally came out to greet Zhang Leping.

The scene was too beautiful to imagine.

Zhang Leping was terrified: "Li Yaotang, what's wrong with you?"

"Let's go outside to talk, so as not to disturb Yu Qie, he's writing a novel."

"Didn't you say you couldn't understand his novels? Last time, when 'Happy Hunting' came out, you said you couldn't understand it either."

Ba Jin said in a deep voice, "I can understand this. It is precisely because I can understand it that I do not want to disturb him."

"Fine, I can't argue with you!"

Zhang Leping had no choice but to comply.

The two old friends were having a lively conversation on the balcony in the courtyard. The September sun in Shanghai was scorching, and Zhang Leping was soon wilting. But when he looked at Ba Jin, he was even more wilted than Zhang Leping!
You're treating me like a Japanese person?
"I'm leaving!" Zhang Leping said. "I'll come back after Yu Qie finishes writing his novel."

"May you have a safe journey!" said Old Ba.

Li Xiaolin realized that her father's mood was not right and advised Yu Qie to find a good place to finish writing the rest of his novel: "Teacher Yu, if you keep writing novels like this, my father may become seriously ill!"

"why?"

Li Xiaolin said, "He's never been one to admit defeat. Seeing you write tens of thousands of words a day breaks his heart. And the fact that you're writing the novel for your teacher makes him even more upset."

Having no other choice, I had to find another place to write.

Since the housing market in Shanghai hasn't been fully opened up yet, he couldn't immediately buy a satisfactory house. After thinking it over, he decided to first go to live in the staff dormitory arranged by the Shanghai Film Studio.

Although it's staff dormitory, the conditions are quite good. Hot water, sofa, and coffee table are provided—and perhaps because of it, there's even a television.

This is great.

The novel "Lurking" is too long to be serialized all at once; it will have to be divided into at least three or four parts. He first handed over the part he had written to Li Xiaolin.

No. 675 Julu Road, the office of Harvest Magazine.

Yu Zecheng paid a visit, saying little but handing the manuscript to Li Xiaolin. This section happened to describe Zuo Lan's death and Yu Zecheng's preparation to join the underground Communist Party. Yu Zecheng found Zuo Lan's belongings, an article titled "Serve the People." Yu Zecheng missed Zuo Lan terribly; he read the article over and over again, hoping to find Zuo Lan's image within it.

"Death is inevitable for everyone. It may be as weighty as Mount Tai or as light as a feather."

(End of this chapter)