Literary Master 1983

Chapter 424 Joint Security Area (Part 3)
The soldiers used moisture-proof cloths to make makeshift mops and wiped every inch of the cat-ear-shaped cave walls with rainwater; the reconnaissance platoon cleverly transformed captured Vietnamese helmets into flower pots and planted wild camellias as flowers... On a position that the two sides had fiercely fought over, Yu Qie was invited to write an inscription, but he declined, saying, "My calligraphy is not good, and I'm afraid it will make me a laughing stock."

Commander Qin, whom I had interviewed before, said, "If you don't write it, who will?"

Behind him were the hopeful eyes of thousands of soldiers in the entire regiment.

Xianyun Qiang from Military Pictorial also said, "Teacher Yu, many writers have come to the front lines to offer their condolences, but if we were to say who our closest friend is, it would have to be you."

"why?"

"Because you came to us when we were in our most difficult time, back when there weren't as many condolence activities as there are today; now we feel very honored as we are about to leave Laoshan and return to social production! We are extremely fortunate that you are still here."

Yu Qie is not the kind of person who is fussy and indecisive.

So Yu Qie wrote on a simple wooden board: "I am for China".

It was written quite well, not crooked or messy at all. When Xianyun Qiang saw it, he laughed and said, "I knew a great writer couldn't write calligraphy."

"Look, isn't this well-written? What do you all think?"

Xianyun forcefully held up the wooden board that Yu Qie had written on and displayed it to all the soldiers behind him.

Then, he asked loudly, "Is Teacher Yu's writing good?"

Amidst the bustling battleground, a voice suddenly rose from afar, overwhelming everything else: "Good!"

"it is good!"

"it is good!!!"

The three cries, each louder than the last, resounded through the heavens. Even the ancient, unchanging bamboo forest, which even explosives couldn't destroy, seemed to be startled, swaying in the wind.

The atmosphere on the Vietnamese positions 300 meters away was one of sorrow.

Vietnam was once a rice exporter, but years of war and a shortage of able-bodied men for production plunged it into extreme poverty and famine. They even held celebrations, but all they received were canned green beans and moldy cassava from the Soviet Union. In contrast, the aroma wafting from the steaming cured meat in our army's mess hall was mouthwatering…

Some Vietnamese soldiers couldn't resist picking up the "China-Vietnam Friendship" cans, propping them up with bamboo poles, and shaking them frantically—only to find that they were completely empty.

Suddenly, a voice came from somewhere, "Hey comrade from the North, give me some food!"

The sound was hoarse and grating, like sandpaper scraping against a stone. Upon hearing it, the soldiers didn't hesitate to use bamboo baskets to deliver compressed biscuits and luncheon meat. The Vietnamese commanders and soldiers watched everything unfold, turning a blind eye and even encouraging their troops to cross the line and come to the Chinese side!
Late at night, the soldiers began to sing. In the valleys of southern Xinjiang, sound travels easily, especially since the Laoshan Mountains where they were located were full of huge natural caves, so their songs of longing for home carried far and wide.

"Young sailor,"

Sleeping with one's head resting on the waves
A sweet smile appeared on her face in her dream;
Sea breeze, you blow gently.
The waves gently rock.

......"

They were actually singing "Night at the Military Port"!
"Why would soldiers on the front lines of Laoshan sing this song?" Yu Qie asked in surprise.

"Because this song was featured on the Spring Festival Gala, so many people have heard it!" Gong Xue said from the side.

“There could be another interpretation,” Gu Yue said.

"What explanation?"

"In my opinion, these people from the cat-ear cave are very similar to the sailors in the South China Sea! They are both far from home and under extreme mental stress!"

Yu Qie couldn't help but think of Lu Yingmo, the island sailor who had written to him before. As far as he knew, that man later became a writer of some renown.

The soldiers who fought in Laoshan have produced even more talented individuals, including dozens of generals! There have also been many writers, such as Zhou Daxin and Xu Guixiang, who have emerged as prominent figures in the literary world, achieving considerable success in military literature!
As for those who transferred to civilian jobs or went into business, there were even more.

The ten-year border conflict between the two mountains and the various military literatures related to it constituted a unique cultural phenomenon of the 1980s. During these years, military literature reached its peak, boasting a large readership and receiving long-term promotion from the government through propaganda.

Writers who have achieved success in military literature have naturally benefited from this favorable wind. Now, Yu Qie has plucked the biggest jewel in this crown.

There's "The Fiancée's Letter", "The Battle of Laoshan", and finally, "Joint Security Area".

What exactly happened during the ten years of the Vietnam War?
People in the future will only need to read his novels.

Gu Yue said, "No wonder you're so famous! You're more famous than any male actor! You have so many fans, all of them literate and disciplined soldiers... I envy you! You truly have friends all over the world!"

Yu Qie waved his hand and said, "I have no intention of using this to enhance my resume. The organization needs me, and I'm happy to do so myself."

"Well said!" Gu Yue raised her glass to Yu Qie and said, "I'm not toasting you as a character actor; just consider me an ordinary friend."

Given Gu Yue's appearance, how could Yu Qie dare to actually let him toast?
Even if Gu Yue herself doesn't mind, she's afraid others will.

"You...oh!"

Seeing that Yu Qie was unwilling, and instead downed a drink in front of him, Gu Yue had no choice but to follow suit and drink it all in one gulp. He then explained why he wanted to toast Yu Qie: it turned out that before becoming a character actor, Gu Yue was the head of the cultural section of the propaganda department of the Yunnan Military Region. He had met countless writers and read countless novels.

But this was the first time he had ever met a creator as popular as Yu Qie.

Yu Qie said modestly, "Teacher Gu Yue is also very popular. Your words are more effective than stimulants."

Why is Gu Yue so popular?

Everyone around him knew, and he knew it himself.

In the late 70s, Gu Yue, who was still a junior clerk, was discovered to have a "unusual" appearance. He received help from a benefactor and became a character actor, dedicating his life to his acting career.

However, while being a character actor is glamorous and can lead to instant success, it also has many drawbacks. He is not allowed to play other roles, cannot accept advertising contracts, and his acting skills are not recognized within the industry.

Gu Yue often felt very painful and used alcohol to numb herself.

Therefore, Gu Yue slowly shook her head and said, "I thought I was an excellent actress. I used my identity to participate in the film auditions of some big directors, but I was rejected by a few words! Some production companies also look down on me! They think my acting skills are too bad! I have been acting for many years, but in terms of honors, I am far inferior to Comrade Gong Xue!"

Gong Xue blushed instantly, unsure why she had been brought up. Just as she was about to explain, Gu Yue waved her hand and continued speaking to Yu Qie:
“I know why I’m popular! It’s because of him! But you’re different, you’re only popular because of yourself, because you’re Yu Qie!”

Besides Yu Qie, the delegation also included writer Wei Wei and others; comrades from song and dance troupes, film studios, and television stations came to the Laoshan front. Some of them had arrived last month, while others rushed to Laoshan overnight at the organization's call after the agreement was signed, to give a final performance for the departing soldiers.

The Writers' Association and the Song and Dance Troupe each sent representatives to perform. The Writers' Association was represented by Yu Qie, while the Song and Dance Troupe was represented by a young woman.

Yu Qie and she sang "The Moon on the Fifteenth". "The moon on the fifteenth shines on my hometown, shines on the border."

In the quiet of the night, you miss me, and so do I.

……

Yu Qie's singing wasn't as good as the original singer's, nor as good as the female comrade he collaborated with, but his voice still moved the soldiers deeply. As Xian Yunqiang said, among these artists who came to offer their condolences, none had participated in the war more fully than Yu Qie.

After the performance, Yu Qie wrote the final chapter of his novel "Joint Security Zone" at the camp. Unsurprisingly, this is another of his representative works.

"Boom!"

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. Gong Xue stood in the doorway and asked, "Teacher Yu, may I come in?"

"can."

"Writing a novel again?" Gong Xue asked, sitting on the edge of the bed. "Are you sober now? Or can't you sleep?"

“Neither!” Yu Qie shook his head. “I need to show this novel to the Vietnamese before I leave, and I also owe a friend a promise.”

The friend Yu Qie was referring to was Old Tang, who had sacrificed his life.

While the novel *Joint Security Zone* certainly celebrates camaraderie on the front lines, Bui Hue might not have thought so after reading it. Given Vietnam's genuine cultural affinity with the interior, this book may become a banned book in Vietnam a few years from now, once this wave of peace has passed.

Yu Qie was about to use this story to kill someone else. He would lie and say that the inspiration for the story came from the group of Vietnamese soldiers who would occasionally come down the mountain to probe the area opposite the Fourth Company of the outpost.

Yes, they did not have any illicit dealings with Chinese people.

In this wave of surrenders by Vietnamese frontline soldiers, only these people were the most ungrateful, resisting to the very end! And for that reason, they too would suffer Yu Qie's thunderous wrath.

Once this book was published, their resistance was seen as fake, their will as a joke; the whole world knew that they were colluding with the Chinese.

Given the ruthlessness of the General Political Department of Vietnam, those people are unlikely to get away with anything.

—Yu Qie wrote the last word, looked up, and found Gong Xue sitting quietly a meter away from him, asleep. As soon as he got up, Gong Xue woke up.

"Teacher Yu, have you finally finished writing?"

As Gong Xue asked the question, she unconsciously scratched the red marks on her leg.

"Well, it's done."

Yu Qie turned the lamp around and shone it on Gong Xue, discovering that her legs and arms were covered with mosquito bite marks.

Gong Xue was at a loss, feeling somewhat embarrassed. "I saw you drink a lot of alcohol and still trying to write your novel... Comrade Gu Yue said that one year he drank heavily like you and still tried to write, and almost died from overwork... So, I came to supervise you, but I ended up falling asleep first..."

"Oh, you're so thoughtful," Yu Qie said with a smile.

Seeing this, Gong Xue grinned as well. She said, "Do you remember Yu Shuqing? She went to Australia, started from scratch there, and went back to university. One year she wrote to me saying she was having a hard time there and asked if I could ask you for help?"

"Why would an Australian like her come to me for help? She's no longer one of my comrades."

“I think so too. Yu Shuqing may have heard of you abroad. She wants to become a Chinese-Australian female singer and appear on programs on Australian-funded television stations… The only two times she appeared on television, she talked about you!”

"And then what happened?"

"Then... she told us everything about you, and the TV station, seeing that she had nothing to report on, stopped inviting her to appear on TV."

An Australian-funded television station? A Chinese-Australian singer?
Yu Shuqing did indeed become a soprano later on, and I never expected that she would still have some connection with me in this time and space.

This Australian television station is most likely owned by media mogul Rupert Murdoch, who loves to ride the coattails of trending topics and will stop at nothing to boost ratings. It's not surprising that he squeezed every last drop of information out of Yu Shuqing before immediately discarding her.

That's why Yu Shuqing needed to contact herself through Gong Xue.

Having seen much of the capitalist world, she naturally assumed that Gong Xue had already won her over as a great writer. However, the opposite was true; several years passed, and Gong Xue was still waiting.

Gong Xue seemed to have just realized this as well, and suddenly fell silent.

The two remained silent for a moment, both realizing that someone had to break the silence.

Yu Qie said, "Xie Jin told me that you live like an ascetic, shaking your head no matter who pursues you. Gong Xue, you're not young anymore, are you really going to live like this forever?"

Gong Xue felt wronged, and suddenly, tears started streaming down her face: "I did it willingly! Why is Director Xie saying bad things about me?"

“He didn’t say anything bad about you; it was just an objective description. He might have been worried about you and was giving me some pointers,” Yu Qie said.

"Alright!" Gong Xue wiped away her tears, took a deep breath, and said, "I've waited for several years already, so a few more won't make a difference. I know this isn't right, and I can't let it affect your reputation—even Australians would let her appear on TV for Yu from China. Maybe I should have run away back then and married my distant Chinese cousin, and that would have been the end of it. Perhaps, decades later, when I see you visiting the United States… you'll be incredibly successful by then! My heart will still skip a beat, not because you'll be so much better then, but because I'll still be the same as before!"

"Don't assume that my crying means I'm really sad. Okay, I am sad, but it's still better than being with other people. I'd rather just live like this, what do you think?"

"Teacher Yu, I'm already like this whether you like it or not."

After speaking, Gong Xue neither punched Yu Qie nor made a scene. She spoke these words with suppressed emotions and as much calm as possible, although tears were constantly glistening in her eyes.

On the contrary, Yu Qie was somewhat unable to keep up.

It's hardest to accept the kindness of a beautiful woman, alright! Yu Qie said, "I need to ask Zhang Li for forgiveness and find a suitable opportunity to talk to her about this."

What if she hurts you badly?

"Even if she beats me to death, I'll just have to take it!" Yu Qie sighed.

Yu Qie persuaded Gong Xue to leave, gave her an answer, and breathed a sigh of relief.

Another task has been completed.

The following day, the novel "Joint Security Zone" was first shown to Xian Yunqiang and others to expedite its release. Then, machines were found at the Xinhua Printing Factory in Yunnan Province to print approximately two thousand copies, which were distributed free of charge to the soldiers on the front lines.

Three days later, the novel was immediately snapped up, becoming a highly sought-after commodity.

(End of this chapter)