Literary Master 1983

Chapter 322 Learning from Comrade Yu Qie

As a result, Yu Qie could see the female reporter Shao Qi from the time he washed up in the morning until he went to bed at night.

When he was writing, Shao Qi would wait outside; when he went to New York to attend a seminar for Chinese writers, Shao Qi would come along. Shao Qi also wanted to interview writers at literary salons held among Latin American writers, which made some other writers who valued their privacy uncomfortable.

Hey! Reporters aren't welcome here!
Shao Qi treated Yu Qie as a KPI; she was unwilling to accept that this "Chinese calling card" figure was actually more influential when filmed by Chinese Americans!
If Chinese journalists, who came later, are naturally behind Western journalists in terms of creative skills, then they can only draw closer together through blood ties. After all, they are photographing a Chinese writer. She can understand the heart of a Chinese writer better than American journalists.

Shao Qi seized the opportunity to talk to Yu Qie about her family affairs and tried to become good friends with Yu Qie.

Is this behavior useful?
Liu Xiangcheng observed this and commented, "Actually, it's not very useful. We are journalists, and journalists are generally considered to be above ordinary writers; however, top writers are far above journalists. Due to the huge gap in their power of discourse, we can't be friends."

“Why?” Shao Qi said, “Yu Qie is a sincere person. Unlike many of you Americans, he doesn’t look down on others once he becomes famous.”

Liu Xiangcheng shook his head: "You still don't understand. This situation is like the relationship between God and a priest. God certainly doesn't need to thank the priest for recounting His deeds. On the contrary, the priest appears noble because he repeats what God has said."

“Now, even one of Márquez’s Tom, Dick, or Harry (Carmen) makes reporters wait for ages; there’s a thick barrier between us. You know Márquez is an easy person to get along with, but he’s still wary of you; he knows never to get too close to reporters. He never trusts us.”

These words did not scare Shao Qi away.

Shao Qi insisted on chatting casually with Yu Qie, and she could sense that Yu Qie was becoming more and more relaxed.

Only in this way could Shao Qi write reports that were no less impressive than those of Western journalists.

Yu Qie will not appear in the 1987 Spring Festival Gala, which is unfair to 1986, as there would be no "Ice-Breaking Journey" without him. She doesn't know what the writers from Taiwan were thinking, but Liu Shahe was a lucky one who stumbled upon the role, while Qian Zhongshu was brought on at the last minute. The others did nothing; only Yu Qie took the lead in promoting this event.

Within Xinhua Publishing House, there were several different versions of articles commenting on this matter, each representing a different characterization. The extent of Yu Qie's contribution also varied.

The more you learn about the truth, the more you realize that it was almost entirely Yu Qie who accomplished this.

Many people believe that the journey to thaw the ice was inevitable, beginning with Yu Guangzhong's poem "Nostalgia" written in 1971. However, the truth is that "Nostalgia" was only one percent of the story; the remaining ninety-nine percent involved a few careless agents who bought a complete set of "Lurking" in Hong Kong and were arrested at the airport—making all the secrecy a joke.

Veterans began to complain, newspapers couldn't resist pirating Yu Qie's novels, and scholars publicly declared themselves fans of Yu Qie's books, asking him to be arrested... These incidents occurred intensively over several months, eventually breaking down the blockade like a flood.

She wanted a news clip where, as Chinese viewers hear "Happy New Year, 1987!" and recall the major events of the past year, there is a Yuqie face on screen.

One day, Shao Qi and Yu Qie talked about their life plans.

She told Yu Qie, "After this matter is resolved, I still want to go to Yugoslavia to work as a journalist..."

"Yugoslavia?" Yuche was taken aback by the name and asked, "Aren't you studying Serbian?"

“Serbia was a member state of Yugoslavia!” Shao Qi said with a smile.

She saw Yu Qie's eyes suddenly tremble, as if she had remembered something of great importance. She stood up and walked around the desk, then suddenly grabbed her hand and said, "Don't go to this place. This place is not good."

Shao Qi said, "You said this place is too far? It is very far, but there are so few people in the whole country who learn Serbian. I'm using the country's money, and now that they need me, how can I not go?"

Yu Qie added, “I’ve seen documentaries about this place. There are a lot of ethnic conflicts here, and it’s prone to civil war. It might not be as bad as Colombia in the future. You know how dangerous it was for me in Colombia.”

Shao Qi laughed instead: "We Chinese journalists always cite Western news, that's how it is. When the war in Afghanistan broke out, we cited Soviet news; when the Chilean protests broke out, we cited Chilean news; or news from neighboring Argentina... We shouldn't do that, it makes foreigners look down on us."

"Professor Yu, your experience in Colombia makes us journalists even more willing to go abroad, and even to the most dangerous places. The year before last, our Xinhua News Agency only had three journalists in Africa, and those selected all cried their eyes out. This year, we have eighteen! We are all learning from you!"

Learn from Comrade Yu!

Shao Qi said with a smile.

This slogan, which originated on the Laoshan front in 84, now evoked a complex expression in Yu Qie. The greater the achievement, the greater the responsibility; the greater the responsibility, the greater the need for further achievements to solve problems.

He gripped Shao Qi's hand tightly again and said, "You must read my novels in the future, and you must read them carefully."

Next, Yu Qie found a bullet casing.

"These are the two I left behind after I shot them. Colombian President Betancur took one. Take this back with you. Latin Americans consider it a symbol of good luck—similar to the Chinese saying, 'Those who survive a great calamity are destined for good fortune.' I wish you success in your journalism career."

After that, Yu Qie's attitude towards Shao Qi clearly changed. He didn't mind Shao Qi filming his daily life, and sometimes he would even share some interesting stories with him.

The two became friends.

Liu Xiangcheng realized something was terribly wrong. "I was here first," he thought, "how did things turn out like this?" A writer, once he becomes a great writer, finds it difficult to make new friends. Because he doesn't know what kind of character these friends possess.
Everyone who tries to get close to him will desperately act gentle, kind, and upright... and then betray the writer to get a lot of royalties.

Just think about how Gong Xue was condemned by everyone, and how all the newspapers went crazy reporting on her "involvement in a hooligan case" to know how crazy people can be when it comes to profit.

Why would Yu Qie trust Shao Qi, the reporter?
Can he read people's minds?
Liu Xiangcheng also followed Shao Qi's example, making a show of himself in front of Yu Qie every day.

He maintained an image of being an "elderly person older than Yu Qie," neither too close nor too distant. Getting too close would make him seem obsequious, while staying too far away would prevent him from getting insider information.

To the rest of the film crew, they all became Yu Qie's friends, just like his older sister and brother.

Because there really is this phenomenon of "one person attaining enlightenment, the whole family ascending to heaven" in Latin America, Márquez's brother became the curator of the Márquez Museum... Some prominent Chinese Americans even thought that Shao Qi and Liu Xiangcheng were distant relatives whom Yu Qie came to seek refuge with.

Sometimes Harper's people would come looking for Yu Qie, and if they couldn't find him, they would contact the two of them directly: "Where is Mr. Yu?"

They must know.

Gong Xue once suspected that Shao Qi was an admirer of Yu Qie, and had come to chase after her idol using public funds. Yu Qie said, "Shao Qi had just given birth not long before coming to the United States. She is a mother."

She's a mother? Yet she volunteered to come to Colombia and the United States?

Gong Xue's attitude towards Shao Qi changed drastically. She frequently visited Shao Qi to chat. Gong Xue was a great beauty, and women admired her looks, so the two quickly became friends. Then Shao Qi learned about the story between Gong Xue and Yu Qie. She sighed, "Neither of you is wrong, but it just makes me uncomfortable. Why do you need a man to save you? This can't become love. You're making Yu Qie feel awkward too. Instead of getting caught up in this romance, you should focus on your career."

“You are a movie actor, so you should go back to acting and prove yourself with your skills; Teacher Yu... How brilliant was Teacher Yu's career? He died for the Chinese people, and people can't bear to blame him.”

Gong Xue thought this made sense, and in the last week of November, she boarded a plane back to China.

CCTV is preparing to film a TV series called "The Way Out". Xie Jin will be the director.

The TV series has only just been approved, but the money sponsored by wealthy Chinese businessmen is already enough to produce two more TV series. This is a TV series scheduled to be broadcast in Southeast Asian countries, and it is a different type of mainstream drama.

Xie Jin strongly invited Gong Xue to play the role.

Before arriving, Gong Xue was slandered by many newspapers as an accomplice to a rape offender. After arriving, she cleared her name. Some people still believed that Gong Xue was involved in the "hooliganism case," but intimidated by Yu Qie's prestige, they dared not say such things again.

The second person to leave was Hu Houxuan.

After the final draft and typesetting of "Metro" were completed, Hu Houxuan had finished his work. Yu Qie decided to personally donate $50,000 to Hu Houxuan, but Hu Houxuan refused and then talked about his dream of a "World Oracle Bone Inscription Congress":

"I hope that one day I can invite hundreds of scholars from all over the world who study ancient scripts to see how well oracle bone script has developed. Although it appeared later than the cuneiform script of Central Asia, it is the most mature of all ancient scripts."

"It was too mature, even precocious, which is why it was able to naturally become modern Chinese characters. Even now that the computer age has arrived, it can still be used. It's like our nation; many people come and go, but we are still here."

Hu Houxuan's eyes reddened as she spoke. "Your novel is published in the United States. Does that mean Oracle Bone Script will become popular in the science fiction era? I should be thanking you."

Yu Qie felt that Hu Houxuan, Mo Madi, Liu Xiangcheng... these people all seemed to be converging on his side, using his influence to build their own careers.

Although they succeeded at another point in time, they now firmly believe that without Yuqie, they would have had a hard time taking that final step to the top.

How much does it cost to organize a "World Oracle Congress"?

A few tens of thousands of US dollars is definitely not enough. This matter requires inviting many experts from all over the world to hold a conference at Yinxu in Anyang, covering airfare, accommodation, and subsidies... Only the government or a large company can afford this.

Yu Qie can offer even more money; to be honest, he has earned an astronomical sum in the past two years.

But Hu Houxuan refused:
“I only played a minor role in your novel. I shouldn’t have taken so much money.”

Hu Houxuan's request was to join the organization. Two members were present, Yu Qie and Shao Qi, who acted as introducers. At seventy-five years old, after making outstanding achievements in ancient writing, Hu Houxuan chose faith. He didn't do this during his academic highs or lows, but rather after seeing through everything.

He was one of the oldest new members in the country that year.

When the news reached Aurora University, it was approved by the branch meeting and then directly approved by higher authorities.

After returning to Aurora University, Hu Houxuan quickly went north to Anyang, Hebei Province, to serve as the chairman of the National Conference on Ancient Chinese Characters, his second term as chairman. He then became the president of the National Symposium on Shang History and a director of other folk associations for ancient Chinese characters…

The Chengdu-based poetry journal *Stars* is holding a vote to select the "Top Ten Modern Poets." This is a major literary event for modern poetry, and to generate buzz, *Stars* is plastering advertisements everywhere and sending people to give presentations.

In Anyang, Liu Shahe, the founder of the original "Stars" poetry journal, and Ma Shitu, the president of the "Chinese Poetry Society," both came. In their later years, both men studied "oracle bone script" and published related academic works, treating the study of oracle bone script as a hobby.

Of course, compared to a master like Hu Houxuan, he is far inferior.

The three met and chatted for a while.

Hu Houxuan was the oldest among them. After Ma Shitu became familiar with him, he naturally called him "Brother Hu". Hu Houxuan said seriously, "Teacher Ma, you can't call me Brother Hu".

"Then what do you want me to call out?" Ma Shitu asked.

“Yu Qie and I are colleagues. He helped me a lot, and I am very grateful to him. So you can’t be my brother Ma; you are his teacher.”

"It's alright, we can each talk our own way. I'll call you brother, and you can call me teacher."

Ma Shitu was joking. He loved joking so much that he messed it up this time, and Hu Houxuan was so angry that her face turned black.

Hu Houxuan was a pure scholar, a very traditional and old-fashioned intellectual.

When Yu Qie and Hu Houxuan were together, they hardly did anything outside of work (because there was always a film crew). This initially gave Hu Houxuan a very good impression of Ma Shitu, but after meeting him, he thought Ma Shitu was acting strangely and never called him "Teacher Ma" again.

Ma Shitu, however, had not yet realized how serious the matter was, and even dragged Hu Houxuan to play bridge.

He heard that Hu Houxuan was going to hold the World Oracle Bone Script Congress, but he was short of money, so he had to play bridge and get sponsorships. I'll help you practice your sponsorship-getting skills.

Hu Houxuan was furious and said to Ma Shitu, "You are not at all as good as your disciple Yu Qie. How did you end up with such a disciple!"

Ma Shitu immediately burst into laughter: "I don't have many strengths, but I'm good at finding wives and disciples. You're right, I should learn from Comrade Yu Qie, I've been too lazy."

Liu Shahe didn't understand why Ma Shitu was happy after being scolded.

It is unclear why Empress Hu was so enraged.

Why can't we each have our own perspective? Isn't that better?

He asked Ma Shitu, "You call him 'brother,' and he calls you 'teacher.' Is there a problem with that?"

“No problem!” Ma Shitu couldn’t help but chuckle. “Liu Shahe, you’re different from the others. Don’t waste your energy on personal relationships. Just focus on studying oracle bone script and organizing the ‘Ten Modern Poets.’ If anyone bullies you, remember to come to me. If you feel that coming to me won’t work, then go to Yu Qie.”

(End of this chapter)