Literary Master 1983

Chapter 353 There is no God in Anyang
In fact, without Yu Qie, there would have been no Harper sponsorship, and without Harper, the number of foreign scholars would have been reduced by more than half.

This conference now has scholars from the UK, the US, Italy, France, Japan and other countries, all of whom are top universities in their respective countries. Without a world-class publishing house to coordinate, it would be impossible to mobilize so many people.

There are very few foreign researchers who are genuinely interested in Eastern scripts; they are all paid to do things and speak for money.

"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!"

There were three people who stood up to oppose Yu Qie; all of them were researchers from the Yin Ruins Research Institute in Anyang.

They didn't believe that an American bookseller could completely follow Yu Che's lead and revolve solely around him.

This is not only because of their limited knowledge, but also because in China, the status of publishers and writers has always been unbalanced.

Even if you are the Monkey King, you still need a publishing house to provide you with pulp and publish your book.

Not to mention American booksellers across the ocean?
it's out of the question!

Why are you afraid of Yuqie?

One researcher boldly said.

"He can't control the Americans, and the Americans won't listen to him! Besides, if he can force everyone to take sides today, he can demand that the results of the discussion be attributed to him tomorrow. What's the point of us then? Will we even be able to hold the conference next year?"

Once those words were spoken, things could no longer be resolved amicably.

Zhou Gucheng sighed and shook his head, while Hu Houxuan said, "We discussed the matter of 'recovering the oracle bone fragments' at the conference last night. We brought it up to hear everyone's opinions, and I personally completely agree with Yu Qie."

"If you have any different opinions, feel free to ask me. Let's not resort to personal attacks."

Hu Houxuan still wanted to try to persuade him again.

Unfortunately, Yu Qie had already refused. He said, "I hate this kind of 'damaging friendship' argument the most. If you're not willing to speak up in your own territory, how can you speak up in New York, Tokyo... or on someone else's turf?"

When he mentioned developed cities abroad, the researchers all looked on with longing.

Yu Qie suddenly understood!
Nowadays, there are very few international exchange projects, and the government is very supportive of them.

Many researchers are eager to receive stipends and improve their professional status through overseas visits, as this is in their own best interest. Therefore, they crave to establish personal relationships with foreign professors and are almost unlikely to proactively criticize these foreigners.

Yu Qie then became that kind of sabotage element.

Benefit!

In the end, it all comes down to these two words.

In Tokyo in 84, poet Jiang Haicheng made a complete fool of himself. Because he was short of money at the time, supporting both his ex-wife and new wife, he had to make multiple trips to Japan to collect his allowance. This patriotic writer, who had once written "Dayanhe is my nanny," described a Japanese izakaya (Japanese pub) as paradise on earth in his writing.

Yu Qie stepped forward and looked at the group of people, saying, "You're not still dreaming about visiting the United States in the future, are you?"

These people were all stunned.

Yu Qie wasn't angry. Instead, he stated coldly, as if stating a fact, "I can't say anything else, but it's impossible to go to the United States through this conference. That's what I said."

Chen Dongjie, the editor of "October," recorded this incident.

He wrote in his factual report that evening:
Several local researchers got into a heated argument with Yu Che, questioning his influence over Harper. The situation quickly escalated, and attempts by others to intervene were futile.

Zhou Gucheng is a senior figure. After he spoke, I suspected that the opponents regretted their decision, but Yu Qie was unwilling to let them off the hook.

Have they seen "The East Wind Prevails Over the West Wind"?

I have seen it; that documentary changed my understanding of America.

As for Yu Qie's influence, it's like looking at flowers in a dream. I know a lot about him in China, but abroad... I always hear exaggerated rumors, but I still don't quite believe them.

I've watched "The East Wind Prevails Over the West Wind" many times, but I still can't believe it.

……

As soon as one night passed, everyone quickly saw Harper's attitude.

The story of "The East Wind Prevails Over the West Wind" has been repeated.

Harper immediately issued a statement:

Those three individuals must leave the conference within 24 hours, or Harper will quickly withdraw his funding. They will also be barred from sponsoring future Oracle conferences.

The three researchers were surprised by the swift opposition and sought the help of the vice president of the Oracle Research Lab (later upgraded to an institute) to mediate. They even hired a translator and tried their best to explain in English: "The Oracle Conference should be an academic event. Our purpose is noble; we are here for friendship. Scholarship is pure and should not be manipulated or influenced by one or two people!"

They were greeted by an American executive who spoke fluent Chinese.
“Academic discussions are never simple. As I understand it, Mr. Hu is the one who actually implements the plan, while Mr. Yu is the founder. They both agreed, so why would we oppose them?”

This is wrong!

Isn't it said that Americans are particularly particular about rules and regulations? And when conducting research, aren't they also very attentive to procedures and the rights of researchers?
Are you American?

One researcher said, "Yu Qie has no rules! Don't you understand? Those guys added an agenda item to the conference at the last minute... Although it looks like a democratic vote, it's actually their one-man show. We can't oppose them! Only you can oppose them!"

The executive said, “You’re wrong. Mr. Yu has rules, and his words are the rules. It’s you who don’t follow the rules! You can’t come to me, because what is God’s will be given to God, and what is Caesar’s will be given to Caesar.”

This is a proverb from the New Testament of the Bible, which here marks the boundary between religious and secular power.

What utter bullshit about God and Caesar!

The researcher, unable to understand, angrily retorted, "We are an atheist country; there is no God in Anyang."

The executive laughed: "But you have a living 'Caesar'!"

They were naturally turned away and then regretted it deeply.

These Americans actually used Caesar to describe Yuche.

Who was Caesar?

What a tyrant! He can't listen to anyone's opinion! They're spoiling Yu Qie like this!

In developed countries' publishing markets, there often emerges "nanny-like" service teams that cater specifically to eccentric geniuses. Just like Carmen's company in Spain, writers can handle anything from doing laundry and buying first-class tickets to dealing with assassination orders from small governments.

They are always right as long as their books sell well.

Such a nakedly profit-driven principle would only be implemented more directly by a seasoned veteran of capitalism like Harper.

After hearing Yu Qie express his dissatisfaction, the Chinese executive distanced himself from the matter: "Simply put, we do things entirely according to Mr. Yu's ideas, and we do not want Mr. Yu to feel uncomfortable in any way."

This matter alarmed local officials in Anyang, because the withdrawal of US dollars is a major event, even if it is only one thousand or ten thousand US dollars.

Moreover, Harper sponsored at least $500,000 in total.

First, a phone call came, hoping that Lord Yu Qie would be magnanimous, but Yu Qie refused. Then, two comrades were sent to persuade him.

Yu Qie used writing a novel as an excuse to refuse to see anyone.

The officials didn't think Yu Qie was putting on airs. They just wondered, why would anyone be foolish enough to oppose the God of Wealth?
Anyang did indeed have a glorious history, more than three thousand years ago. The Shang Dynasty is long gone!

Anyang is now a small place. The oracle bone inscriptions from the Yin Ruins are its greatest cultural asset.

Considering the incredibly slow pace of the excavation at Yinxu, which might take a hundred years—enough to support several generations of archaeologists—why offend the people who pay you?
They were completely baffled, so they went to find Hu Houxuan, only to find him drafting a document—"Proposal for the Return of Oracle Bone Inscriptions".

This is truly infuriating!
"Old Hu! It's one thing for Yu Qie to be young and easily offended! But you're a seasoned veteran. So many museums abroad have a few pieces of oracle bone script in their collections. Why did you get so impulsive!"

Hu Houxuan immediately retorted angrily, "Whether you can or not is a different matter from whether you want to! You're all so young, it's you who are truly broken!"

The official was also thoroughly berated and rendered speechless.

This shows a lack of understanding of Empress Hu.

After Hu Houxuan achieved the status of a master of oracle bone script in China, he began writing articles and engaging in debates. In his youth, he was also a "cultural wolf warrior," with numerous achievements in this field.

After the liberation, there was a popular saying in China for a period of time that the Shang Dynasty and the Western Roman Empire were extremely similar.

This is a remnant of a group of archaeological theories from the Republican era. At that time, some people believed that the Chinese were descendants of "ancient Babylonians" and tried to find a foreign ancestor.

According to Professor Wu Ze of East China Normal University's "A Comprehensive History of China," the Roman Emperor Nero enjoyed having slaves fight each other and with wild beasts such as lions and tigers, and relished the gruesome sight of slaves being beaten to death. Emperor Di Xin (King Zhou of Shang) of the Shang Dynasty was similar, enjoying having his ministers fight each other to the death.

Such things do happen, but the underlying logic is different.

Nero was simply enjoying himself, while King Zhou was punishing disobedient ministers. One was pure barbarity, the other used barbarity to maintain order.

The former view evolved further to the point that the Shang Dynasty was extremely primitive and lacked basic humanistic and moral concepts. The Shang Dynasty's writing system, social organization, and agricultural techniques were all very backward.

Hu Houxuan, however, strongly opposed this doctrine.

He argues that there is no evidence to suggest that King Zhou was more indiscriminate in killing than other rulers of his time. Perhaps King Zhou was a reformist but ultimately incapable ruler of changing the course of events… This viewpoint is open to debate.

However, it is certain that the Shang Dynasty made significant progress in various aspects of development.

Therefore, the quotient is greater than or equal to that of Rome.

King Zhou was a human, while Nero was a humanoid.

That's what Hu Houxuan meant.

Hu Houxuan thus began the debate, criticizing Wu Ze, who was also in Shanghai, saying: "Wu's knowledge of oracle bone studies is too poor. He often fails to distinguish right from wrong when faced with absurd interpretations, and can only copy them from one source to another, thus perpetuating the error."

"A historical perspective without accurate historical materials is merely a baseless fantasy."

He believed that Wu, who was also a professor, was spouting nonsense and talking rubbish.

Unable to withstand the pressure, Wu Ze had no choice but to revise the book three years after its publication, essentially admitting defeat. This became a dark chapter in Wu Ze's academic career.

Thirty years later, when Hu Houxuan was interviewed again, it was discovered that she was still paying attention to what happened back then. She was very clear about what Wu Ze had changed and what he hadn't changed, and she spoke about it in great detail.

Therefore, how could Empress Hu possibly "use the resources of oracle bones to win the favor of foreign powers"?

He is also a vengeful person.

So, the god of wealth at the conference demanded oracle bone inscriptions; the organizers of the conference also demanded oracle bone inscriptions. Everyone could only watch as they proceeded.

Knowing that the situation was beyond repair, the officials went to the three local researchers and said, "Go apologize to Yu Qie; maybe there'll be a chance."

The researcher felt it was very unfair; why was everyone speaking up for Yu Qie?
He didn't even show his face. From Hu Houxuan to Zhou Gucheng, from those unprincipled American sponsors... they all distanced themselves from him. There's simply no law or order here.

The researchers, instead, urged the officials not to be intimidated: "I will write letters, I will report them. If they offend foreign professors by asking for oracle bone fragments in their speeches, they will be the sinners of our academic community!"

"Today's favorable situation did not come easily."

That's what they said, and it sounded very tough, but one of the three turned out to be a traitor, and one of them went to apologize to Yu Qie.

Chen Dongjie witnessed this event firsthand. At the time, Chen Dongjie was having dinner with Yu Qie.

Upon hearing that this person had come to apologize, Yu Qie asked for the person's name and immediately said, "I forgive you."

The man asked, "Do I still have a chance to go to America?"

Yu Qie shook his head: "Impossible. After all, you publicly opposed me and Professor Hu. Whether you can go to the United States is up to us to write recommendation letters. How could I possibly write a recommendation letter for you?"

What kind of forgiveness is this?

Oh, I've forgiven halfway, not completely.

Does that mean the other two won't be able to attend meetings in their hometowns? That's too domineering!

And it turned out to be true!
The next morning, the three opponents left the hotel and arrived at the meeting venue, but only the one who had admitted his mistake the night before was allowed in.

The other two spots have been cancelled.

Harper also had something to say: "Our sponsorship agreement contains provisions on this matter... We have the right to decide who can come and who cannot come, and we reserve the right to withdraw our investment at any time."

"Of course, all of this is reasonable and legal."

The two could only rage in vain.

"This is not fair! This is not fair!"

"Yu Qie was insulting you Americans, yet you're protecting him! I'm your friend!"

Yu Qie actually fired them!
Allowances, job titles, and appliance purchasing services... all of these have left them!
The two researchers then seemed to wake from a dream, first muttering to themselves in disbelief, and then, like the one who had admitted his mistake, asked someone to apologize to Yu Qie.

They couldn't get into the scene, so they had to ask someone else to handle it.

Yu Qie asked Hu Houxuan for his opinion: "Professor Hu, do you think we should forgive them?"

After listening, Empress Hu did not answer, but asked the other members of the meeting: "Should we forgive them?"

The crowd looked at each other for a while, and in the end, no one spoke up for the two people.

In his factual report, Chen Dongjie wrote: Yu Qie did not "forgive and forget," and some people believe that after "Candlelight Night Talk," Yu Qie is no longer the young man who would cause a huge uproar at Yenching University for publishing and distorting the novel.

I don't think he's changed. The only change is that he has a more dignified way of handling things, and many people are willing to serve him.

This minor incident was not significant and received little media coverage, but it frequently appeared in subsequent memoirs.

Because Yu Qie did not have the habit of writing diaries or memoirs, others who wanted to study what he was doing at different times often pieced it together from snippets of other writers' writings.

This is also one of the joys of studying "Yu Xue".

For the next three days, the conference turned into an open discussion for all scholars from home and abroad, and everyone was captivated by the charm of oracle bone script.

(End of this chapter)