Exciting 1979!

Chapter 278 What?! Taiwan already knows?!

Zhou Huimin returned to her room, opened a drawer, and found it full of tapes and letters, all evidence of her affair with Amin.

However, Amin hasn't replied to his last letter yet, and his replies are becoming increasingly perfunctory, as if he's in a rush.

Does he have a girlfriend?
Given his age, appearance, achievements, and past dating experience, it's perfectly normal for him to have a girlfriend.

Little Amin hugged her long legs, feeling somewhat depressed.

Just then, Mom called out from outside, "Oh dear, I almost forgot! I helped Uncle Gui receive a package from the mainland today, and I haven't given it to him yet."

"Where is it? Let me see."

Zhou Huimin picked it up. Although the address wasn't Peking University, but a place in Shanghai, the notebook was definitely Amin's.

Hmph, you write to him quite frequently, I've seen it several times, but he's your pen pal.

Ah Min thought sourly that she had known all along that Uncle Gui was literate and had been lying to herself all along. However, she did not know the specific relationship between Uncle Gui and Ah Ming, and only thought that Ah Ming was a descendant of Uncle Gui's relatives in the mainland.

"Mom, I'll deliver it for Uncle Gui."

"Oh dear, it's so late. Tomorrow will be the same."

"It's okay, I'm not sleepy anyway!" After saying that, Amin rushed out and stood between two buildings, just in time to see the fireworks soaring into the sky around her, as beautiful and dazzling as a teenage girl.

~
Liu Bin didn't know what the relationship was between Gui Bo and Wei Ming. Although he had a bold guess, it was too bold for him to say, and he never inquired about it. He understood the rules of the underworld.

After handing the newspaper to Lao Gui, he changed his clothes and prepared to go to McDonald's for his night shift.

McDonald's is open 24/7 and 365 days a year. Liu Bin is working the night shift during this Spring Festival. Although there isn't much work, he gets double the pay, and he's just doing nothing anyway.

"Uncle Ghost, I'm leaving."

"Yes, work hard and strive to become the store manager as soon as possible."

As soon as he left, Gui Bo immediately started reading the article. Just from the title, he knew it was about Sun Tzu's novel, a name he already knew from their previous correspondence.

As for the author, Cai Shengsan, he was also quite a figure. He was once a close confidant of Chiang Kai-shek and insisted on staying behind to fight guerrilla warfare after the Kuomintang was defeated and withdrew.

Fighting guerrilla warfare? You can't possibly be a match for us!

Sure enough, he was captured soon and sent to Lushun, where he became a "schoolmate" of Puyi and others.

He was among the last group to be granted amnesty in 75 and went to Hong Kong to settle down. Shen Zui recently visited Hong Kong, and the two even had afternoon tea together.

So he was able to see "The Right Path of the World is Full of Vicissitudes" because of Shen Zui, and "Harvest" was sent to him by Shen Zui.

Within their circle, Shen was the most enthusiastic in promoting the novel, harassing every outstanding graduate of Gongdelin. If the novel could be published without criticism, he also wanted to write something and earn some royalties; after all, who doesn't dream of becoming a writer?

Moreover, he had so many stories to tell. Even in Gongdelin, he didn't stay idle. In order to hear more gossip, he was willing to work more, asking his fellow students about gossip and digging up stories while working.

He even dared to gossip behind Boss Dai's back about whether Hu Die and Zhang Shaoshuai had a past relationship. Hu Die immediately told Boss Dai and gave him a good scolding.

This gossipy spirit is commendable, but in terms of writing skills, Cai Shengsan is not bad either.

To support himself, Cai Shengsan, who settled in Hong Kong, began writing for several Hong Kong media outlets and also opened a column in the neutral newspaper "Xinbao," writing daily current affairs commentary. His articles were also published in Hong Kong, Taipei, San Francisco, and Australia, among other countries and regions, and he persisted for five years.

Because he had worked for the Kuomintang and lived in mainland China, and practiced the motto of "not being manipulated by anyone, but belonging only to the truth," and devoted his life to upholding the great cause of the Chinese nation and working for the reunification of the motherland, Tsai Ing-wen's articles were very influential and were frequently seen by high-level officials on both sides.

After reading the incomplete novel in the magazine sent by Shen Zui, Cai Shengsan, unsure of what to write for his column the next day, decided to share some thoughts on the novel.

"I recently read half of a good book, 'The Right Path of the World is Full of Vicissitudes.' It's not that the book is half good and half bad, but it's only half written, so let's call it half a good book for now."

"The author of this book, Wei Ming, has risen to fame in mainland China in recent years. He writes novels, plays, composes songs, and is hailed as a role model for young people. He has been praised by official media many times. At the young age of 20, he has already achieved remarkable results."

"Even though I am isolated overseas, I have heard his name and seen his works more than once. The last time I heard his name was because of the song 'The Same Song'. I feel that my colleagues in Hong Kong can learn from him."

"It must be admitted that he is a great creative talent. However, with a population of one billion on the mainland, it is not uncommon for one or two geniuses to emerge. I have heard that there are also people with special abilities there."

"Since I haven't finished reading this novel yet, it would be unfair to evaluate and summarize it based solely on what I've read so far. Therefore, I won't discuss the novel itself today. I'll only talk about how this novel was allowed to be published and became a current hot topic. It's truly commendable that it wasn't harassed for advocating for the KMT soldiers."

“I also have some friends on the island, and they certainly don’t see this kind of atmosphere. Not long ago, Wen Ruian and Fang E from the Shenzhou Poetry Society were imprisoned simply because of a few books in their homes…”

Cai Shengsan had previously commented on this matter in his column. Wen Ruian is the martial arts novelist who wrote Fantastic Four... no, The Four Great Constables, and he is also in his twenties.

His father was once a subordinate of Marshal Ye Jianying, and later went to Southeast Asia and settled in Malaysia. Wen Ruian read his father's collection of chivalrous books from a young age, and even had a rudimentary understanding of martial arts, combining theory with practice.

Later, Wen Ruian went to Taiwan to study at university and officially began writing martial arts novels. At a young age, he founded Shenzhou Publishing House and later established the "Shenzhou Poetry Society" with the aim of "reviving Chinese culture and promoting national spirit".

Last year, Wen Ruian was imprisoned for several months after works by Ba Jin, Cao Xueqin, Shen Congwen, and others, as well as some Yunnan Baiyao, were found in his poetry society. He was then expelled from Taiwan.

Using Wei Ming-hsin as an opportunity, Tsai Sheng-san began to criticize the increasingly harsh and insecure cultural trend in Taiwan.

This is one of the advantages of being in Hong Kong. In the end, Cai Shengsan returned to Wei Minghe's work itself.

"Although I haven't finished reading 'The Right Path of the World is Full of Vicissitudes,' I was fortunate enough to read his collection of short stories, 'Ferocious Animals,' which vividly depicts cattle, horses, sheep, and donkeys. It is quite spiritual and interesting, both fierce and tender. As the saying goes, 'When the youth are strong, the nation is strong.' I hope that there can be more such talented young people on the island to jointly revitalize China."

Finally, they even added a valuable comment~
After reading it, Lao Gui nodded in satisfaction. "He truly lives up to his reputation as Wei Senhao's eldest grandson!"
At the same time, he was also itching to read the novel that Cai Shengsan had suggested, saying that it was based on him and his elder brother, and he wondered what it would be like.

As the saying goes, when you're sleepy, someone will bring you a pillow.

dong dong dong~
"Uncle Ghost, are you asleep? There's a package for you, from the mainland."

Old Ghost immediately opened the door: "Amin, you're still awake? Thank you so much."

He reached for the package, but Amin dodged him, saying, "Let me open it for you."

"I'll dismantle it tomorrow, you should go home and get some sleep." Old Ghost snatched it away, "Here you go."

Amin pouted: "Uncle Ghost, I can't sleep."

"Can't sleep? Read the newspaper," the old man immediately tossed her the copy of the "Newspaper" he had just read. "Here, take it and read it."

Amin was about to retort, but she glanced at the newspaper and seemed to see the name "Wei Ming" on it. Before she could look at it closely, the door was already closed.

"Hmph." Zhou Huimin took the newspaper home and flipped through it for a while before finally finding the article about Cai Shengsan.

She never used to read political columns like this, but this time she read it with great interest and didn't want to finish it, simply because it contained the names of her pen pals. It turned out that Hong Kong intellectuals were paying attention to him, and his influence was greater than she had imagined.

After the pride and joy came frustration: "They didn't even tell me they published a new novel. Do they think I'm useless? Ugh, I really want to read it, what should I do?"

That was a bit of a lie. She still felt a bit disconnected from those mainland stories, but she devoured another mainland writer's book, "The Battle of Qin Terracotta Warriors and His Love," by Wei Kuangren.

On the other side, Lao Gui opened the package and the first thing he saw was "Harvest" magazine. He flipped through the table of contents and sure enough, there was that novel. Then he went to look at the letter.

Wei Ming first talked about the No. 2 residence in Jueyuan.

Old Fei helped him run around to the relevant departments, and just as he had predicted, it wasn't so easy to get the house in his hands with just this land deed. He also needed his great-aunt's handwritten authorization letter, and it would be best if he could also get proof of her identity from a Chinese organization in the United States.

Of course, if she could personally return to China, these would all be trivial matters.

But will she come back?

Old Gui shook his head and said, "Let me write her another letter about this."

Wei Ming then explained Shen Zui's situation, including his transformation from a war criminal to a general who revolted last year, and his trip to Hong Kong to visit relatives.

After putting away Wei Ming's letter, Lao Gui began to concentrate on reading "The Right Path of the World is Full of Vicissitudes" while listening to the fireworks outside.

I thought reading would help me sleep, but I didn't expect to become more and more energetic the more I read. My grandson is truly amazing; he writes so well, so wonderfully!

Jiang Limin may embody the shadows and deeds of many famous figures from the Republic of China era, but the one most similar to him is definitely Wei Senhao.

Jiang Lizhong in the book also made Lao Gui miss his brother, with whom he had a love-hate relationship.

Unlike in the book, their father passed away early. Wei Muchun was more than ten years older than him, and his sister was also ten years older than him. They were like father and mother, with the elder brother acting as a father and the elder sister as a mother.

Tsai Sheng-san's articles can be found in both Taiwan and the United States. I wonder if his older brother and sister will see them and become curious about this novel that seems to be telling their own family story?
Old Gui never revealed to his elder brother that he had such a promising grandson; he only knew about Liberation and Peace.

~
Beitou Villa District, Taipei.

Located in northern Taipei, this area boasts beautiful scenery and is a renowned hot spring resort. The great calligrapher Yu Youren lived here, as did Zhang Xueliang, who was confined to this area. Many other literati and scholars who migrated south also chose to reside here, finding solace in the natural landscape.

After retiring, Wei Muchun also chose to live here, living alone with his three wives and several servants in a place filled with birdsong and fragrant flowers, resembling a villa in a scenic area.

There wasn't much of a festive atmosphere in the villa; it was rather quiet, except for the hot spring pool in the backyard, which was still warm.

Wei Muchun was soaking in the hot spring, with his youngest but also 50-year-old third wife, Lin Xi, reading a novel to him.

Lin Xi was holding a copy of "Harvest" magazine and was reading "The Right Path of the World is Full of Vicissitudes," and she had already read to the end, obviously having seen it earlier than Lao Gui.

"That's all?" Wei Muchun asked.

Lin Xi shook her head regretfully: "The next episode will be two months away."

Wei Muchun felt a sense of loss. Although he had personally experienced the period of history described in the novel and knew exactly how it unfolded and what the outcome was, the charm of the novel lay in the fact that even if you knew the result and the process, you could still be captivated by the characters and the twists and turns.

In particular, one of the male protagonists, Jiang Lizhong, is based on himself.

Afterwards, Lin Xi helped Wei Muchun wipe his body and returned to the bedroom to rest.

Taiwan still has a concubine system, which will not be abolished until 85. Lin Xi was essentially a concubine, but Wei Muchun and her two older sisters treated her well, not only for her but also for her entire family.

The only regret might be that she didn't have a child.

There was a small bookshelf next to the bed. Lin Xi put the magazine "Harvest" back on it. On it, she could still see "Huacheng", which published "Mom, Love Me Again", and Wei Ming's collection of essays "Ferocious Animals".

Although it was New Year's Eve, the villa was very quiet because there were no children at home and the Wei family was keeping their doors closed to guests, so Wei Muchun went to bed early.

However, Lin Xi believed that things would be very different when Lingling arrived tomorrow.

~
Wei Muchun went to bed early, hoping to return to Gouzi Village in his dreams, to see the river where his father used to take him fishing when he was a child, the plum blossom stakes where he was taught kung fu, and the Medicine King Temple where he learned pharmacology from his grandfather.

Meanwhile, in the real Gouzitun village, the Wei family was having a lively time.

As soon as Wei Ming and Wei Hong got home, Old Wei set off firecrackers.

Then they started eating New Year's Eve dinner. Wei Ming heard from Qi Delong that his mother was still making New Year's Eve dinner, so he asked him to bring his parents and Qi Dongqiang over.

He was incredibly curious. Qi Dongqiang was saved by this butterfly effect; nothing like this had happened in his previous life, nor did he have this child.

Everyone spent New Year's Eve listening to the radio. The radio broadcasts showed that the situation in the motherland was getting better and better, and the Wei family's life had also been getting better and better over the past year.

Old Wei is practically a local in the capital. He makes friends with all sorts of people, and he has no idea what kind of stuff he's acquired. But Wei Ming knows for sure that at its peak, it was worth at least 100 million yuan.

Meanwhile, Uncle Ping An became the de facto ruler of the newly established Founder Group, and his career took off.

Then there's Xiao Hong, who not only scored high enough to get into Peking University's Department of Mathematics, but also became the president of the Rubik's Cube Club, taking on an official position for the first time, and everyone respectfully calls her "Sister Hong".

Even though Xizi and Lele have their own representative works in the past year and have established themselves in performance and music.

Needless to say, Wei Ming's long novel, which he had been working on for a year, brought a breath of fresh air to the domestic literary scene.

It has sparked heated discussions among critics and readers alike. As long as the next two installments don't fall short, it will undoubtedly be a heavyweight work worthy of being written into literary history.

His love life is also quite exciting. He has established relationships with both Nan Gongxue and Bei Zhulin. He is very happy to have such two beautiful older sisters. If he can continue to maintain the status quo, that would be even better.

To celebrate the bumper harvest of 1980, Lao Wei took out the Moutai that Wei Ming had given him and drank it freely.

"Kexiu, you just had surgery, so don't drink anything. Eat more vegetables," Old Wei said.

Qi Kexiu's empty wine glass, which he had just picked up, suddenly filled with tears. These days were just too hard!
Just as he was about to cry, Lao Wei picked up another bottle of Moutai and placed it at Fan Chunhua's place: "Take this bottle back and drink it slowly after Kexiu recovers."

Qi Kexiu immediately wiped away his tears: "Brother, I offer you tea instead of wine to wish you great success in Yanjing."

Old Wei laughed heartily and looked up at the sky, saying, "Of course we'll make great strides! Your sister-in-law and I are planning to expand our business. If we need more manpower, we'll have Chunhua come and help us. And Xiaolong, study hard and try to get into Yanjing University. If you don't pass the exam, come and deliver food to your uncle."

Qi Kexiu asked expectantly, "What about me? What about me?"

Old Wei thought for a moment and said, "How about I give you my position as the honorary principal of the village school?"

Qi Kexiu: "..."

After finishing their meal and drinks, everyone was reluctant to leave, so Qi Delong and Xizi set off another string of firecrackers.

Unfortunately, there was no electricity or television. Wei Ming couldn't help but think of Zhu Lin and Gong Xue, who were spending the Spring Festival with their families in Beijing and Shanghai respectively. They both had televisions at home, and he wondered what they were doing.

Although there is no official Spring Festival Gala at this time, some celebratory activities will be broadcast on television, which is better than listening to the radio.

Later, Wei Ming came up with an idea: since there was no Spring Festival Gala, everyone should create their own programs to entertain themselves and others.

At first, everyone was a little embarrassed, so Wei Ming asked Lele to start by singing "Only Mother is Good in the World".

This time, Lü Xiaoyan burst into tears again, thinking of that script again, and then sang "Little Grass".

Wei Ming isn't good at singing, but he sang "A Man's Declaration," unfortunately without Masashi Sada's guitar.

So everyone took turns singing, and Xiao Hong even performed a Rubik's Cube solving trick in ten seconds. Time easily passed midnight, and it was the first day of the Lunar New Year. Then everyone went home to wait for dawn.

~
On the first day of the Lunar New Year, Wei Lingling and her mother Lin Ni visited the Wei Mansion to pay their respects. The villa was luxurious and occupied a huge area. In addition to Wei Muchun's former high official position, another reason was that he later started doing business and achieved remarkable commercial success. He was involved in the plastics and aluminum industries, and his companies were spread throughout Southeast Asia.

Wei Muchun is not only Wei Lingling's uncle, but also her aunt's husband, and Lin Xi is her aunt.

Because Wei Muchun's two sons had died in battle and he himself was injured and unable to have more children, Wei Lingling was practically raised and pampered by him as his only daughter.

When Wei Lingling and her mother arrived, a middle-aged man with glasses had just left. He was a high-ranking official in charge of intelligence on the island and also Wei Muchun's student. He had come to pay his respects early in the morning. The two had a teacher-student relationship as well as a father-son relationship, and he was considered Wei Muchun's representative in the officialdom.

Wei Muchun understood that Wei Ming should thank him.

Knowing that Wei Muchun missed his homeland and cared about the situation across the Taiwan Strait, this student would often send him some illegal publications from the other side of the strait that he had seized or actively collected.

For example, People's Daily or People's Literature, etc.

Starting last year, a young author named Wei Ming caught Wei Muchun's attention.

Because in his article he said his hometown was a rural area in North China called "Gouzitun", and his surname was Wei!
It was an essay about a father and mother. Although the "father" was not named, his age was mentioned: he was born in 1942. That matched up!
Wei Muchun was certain that only one child with the surname Wei was born in Gouzitun in 1942, because he, like the principal, had the habit of keeping a diary and was certain that his eldest nephew was born in 42, while his second brother was in Shanghai dealing with the Japanese and the Kuomintang.

Since then, Wei Muchun has been paying attention to this writer, and more and more of his articles have convinced him that he is the descendant of the second brother.

Not long ago, one of Wei Muchun's students confiscated several copies of "Harvest" magazine from some young people who were traveling in Hong Kong. That's how Wei Muchun came to like "The Right Path of the World is Full of Vicissitudes".

"Uncle."

"Brother-in-law."

Happy New Year!

Afterwards, he paid New Year's greetings to the First Madam and the Second Madam, who were both over 70 years old.

Wei Muchun was very happy to see Lingling, and then took out a bunch of keys for her.

"Lingling, you're graduating from university this year. This is a gift for you."

Wei Lingling: "What is this?"

Her aunt, Lin Xi, said directly, "This is an apartment in Yipin Building, a gift from your uncle."

The Tomson Riviera is a high-end residential building in Taipei. Movie star Hsu Feng and her husband lived here after they got married. They later developed a community called "Tomson Riviera" in Shanghai. I don't know if it originated from here. Many other dignitaries also live there.

Before Wei Lingling could express her gratitude, Wei Muchun added, "I heard you've now changed your citizenship to American."

Upon hearing this, Wei Lingling's mother, Lin Ni, was shocked and looked at her daughter in surprise.

Wei Lingling was about to explain when Wei Muchun interrupted her directly, without getting angry: "It's good. In the future, Taiwanese citizens won't have much status in the world. Having an American identity will make everything easier, such as going to the mainland."

"What would I do there?" Wei Lingling pouted, thinking of her stubborn father who was determined to go back home.

Wei Muchun said seriously, "Of course we have to go. That's where our roots are. It's a pity I can't go back, otherwise I would fly back immediately. Lingling, you must go back for your uncle if you have the chance~"

(End of this chapter)