Exciting 1979!

Chapter 363 Half of the Chinese Literature Goes Global!
Seeing Wei Ping'an's disappointed expression, Lao Gui used smoke to cover up his own bitterness.

Ping An is someone who wants to pursue a career in government. Before his identity is confirmed and before he can live in the sunlight, there are some things he can only keep to himself. After all, he is a ghost who cannot be seen by others.

“Ping An,” Old Ghost patted Wei Ping An on the shoulder and gave him a final word of advice, “I’m glad that you and Jie Fang can help each other in Yanjing. Although I haven’t met your brother yet, you can tell what a person will be like at three years old. Jie Fang is not as steady as you, nor as successful. He must have troubled you a lot in the past. Now that Xiao Ming is capable, remember to ask him for help if you need anything. Don’t think it’s a hassle. Just treat him like your own nephew.”

Wei Pingan patted Lao Gui's hand, which was covered in scars and calluses, and laughed, "I've always treated him like my own nephew. Jiefang is also my own brother."

Old Ghost smiled with satisfaction, stood up and said, "Then I'll head back now; it wouldn't be good if someone saw me."

"Is everything okay?"

"Better safe than sorry," the old ghost said firmly.

He booked a room but didn't use it, so he left it for Liu Rulong and Gong Ying, who have been frequently booking rooms lately.

They can rent a hotel room, which saves their parents from having to rent one. The rented apartment is too small, and it's not very convenient for two generations to live together. They are considering renting a place on their own, since their income is not low.

Gong Ying was embarrassed and said no, no, afraid that Wei Ming would find out and tell her sister. But A Long smiled and accepted it, saying that her sister and he were not innocent, so what was there to be afraid of?

"Let me see you out." Wei Ming told Uncle Ping'an and Xiao Hong to go back first, and he saw Old Ghost out.

"I'd also like to trouble you to deliver a letter to Amin for me." Wei Ming took out an envelope, which he had just written in front of Gong Ying, saying it was for Aunt Xia Meng.

Old Ghost smiled with satisfaction: "I was also thinking of reminding you to give her a call. This letter is enough. That little girl talks about you every time she sees me. She's obsessed with you."

Wei Ming felt a pang of unease upon hearing this, so early the next morning he actually called Aunt Xia Meng to inquire about the situation of "Seven Days of Wrongly Written Love".

"It's already finished filming," Xia Meng said, still in her pajamas. "Are you in Hong Kong?"

"Yeah, I'm leaving soon, just stopping here for a short while," Wei Ming asked. "When is the movie showing?"

“We’re already in contact with distributors, and it’ll probably be released in December,” Xia Meng said with a smile. “Should I send you an invitation to Hong Kong then?”

That's exactly what Wei Ming wanted to hear: "Thank you, Auntie. If the box office is good, let's continue to work together."

“I’ve seen the finished film, and I feel that breaking even shouldn’t be a problem,” Xia Meng said confidently with a smile. “And even if the box office is bad, it’s not your fault. I hope we can work together again.”

She spoke very sincerely. When filming "Heroes Have Always Been Young," she somewhat underestimated this young man from mainland China. But when filming "Seven Days of Wrong Love," she realized just how capable this young man was.

While both are screenwriters, this guy surnamed Cha is far inferior.

While Wei Ming and Lao Gui were on the phone, Wei Lingling also received a call from Wei Ming, who asked where he lived.

After giving the address, Lao Gui said, "He's probably leaving soon."

“I’ll call and ask. Also,” Wei Lingling said, “I’ll send my mom over to you later. Should I send her to your house or directly to Holiland?”

"Hey, hey, why did you bring her here?" Old Ghost asked nervously.

"If I don't give it to you, who else should I give it to? I have work to do, and you two are a married couple, so you should support each other."

Old Gui wanted to say that what relationship did "Wei Dangui" have with his "Wei Senhao" marriage, but in the end he was too embarrassed to deny it.

"You can bring it over, I'll wait for her at home."

~
After Wei Ming ended his call with Xia Meng, he was packing up to leave when the phone rang again.

"Auntie, what's the matter?"

"The Transformers project is over 80% complete. I was going to show you a half-finished product, but I heard I'm leaving soon."

"What's so interesting about a half-finished product? But I didn't expect the progress to be so fast."

Wei Lingling: "I listened to advice and went to Japan to find two experts as soon as the project started."

“Then I’ll go take a look next time I come,” Wei Ming said. “I’ll also design the later characters for you. I should be able to come to Hong Kong again this year.”

Hearing him say that, Wei Lingling felt relieved: "Also, I'm planning to collaborate with your Madman Comics team to develop a series of historical cat dolls. What do you think?"

Wei Ming: "Although the popularity of 'Madman Comics' hasn't peaked yet, toy development takes time. I think it's fine. You can contact Ah Long for specific cooperation."

Finally, Wei Ming said, "My uncle is here too, would you like to have a chat?"

Wei Ming handed the phone to Uncle Ping An, who was looking on expectantly.

"Lingling, how have you been lately?" Wei Ping'an started with a series of pleasantries before asking about his aunt in San Francisco, wanting to know her specific address so he could visit her if he ever went to the United States on a business trip.

Yesterday I talked to my uncle about my mother. My uncle and my mother are not that close, but he said that my mother is close to my aunt, so perhaps she can provide more accurate information.

He also realized why he had a share of Jueyuan No. 2 in Shanghai; it turned out that his aunt was doing it for his mother's sake.

Wei Lingling didn't refuse and readily told him.

Wei Ming had finished getting ready and called Wei Hong and A Long to get up.

~
Zhou Huimin also got up and then saw her mother craning her neck to look down from the balcony.

"Mom, what's wrong?"

Mrs. Zhou: "Old Ghost is still with that woman!"

Vivian Chow: "That might be true love."

"Why don't you go over and say hello?" Zhou's mother urged, "and find out what's going on."

“Alright,” Zhou Huimin said, “I’ll take the day off this morning and make sure I find out everything clearly.”

One sentence extinguished Zhou's mother's gossipy heart. She said seriously, "Go, go, go. Eat your meal and go to school. Don't think that just because you're a little famous you don't have to study."

Amin stuck out her tongue and obediently ate her breakfast.

However, when the mother and daughter went downstairs, they happened to run into Old Ghost and that woman coming out, and now they had no choice but to ask.

"Ah Gui, what's this gentleman's name? Aren't you going to introduce him?"

Lin Ni stepped forward and said, "Sister-in-law, you can just call me Ghost Sister-in-law."

Mrs. Zhou was surprised; it really was that old man's young wife!

Zhou Huimin asked, "Auntie, are you Aunt Ling's mother?"

Lin Ni was surprised: "You called my daughter aunt? And then you called me auntie?"

She has a small brain capacity, and things are a bit chaotic right now.

Old Ghost nodded: "Yes, yes, that's all for now, we're leaving."

Amin usually rides her bicycle by herself, so Lao Gui only needs to give Zhou's mother a ride. But today, she seemed to be fleeing in a panic.

However, he returned halfway through his escape and handed a letter to Amin.

"That kid gave it to you, now you're gone."

Mrs. Zhou stared at the letter in Amin's hand. Amin quickly stuffed it into her bag, got on her bicycle, and said, "Mom, I'm off now, bye!"

On her way to school, Zhou Huimin couldn't resist opening the letter.

"Amin, it's like seeing you in person after reading this letter. I'm so sorry we didn't get to meet. How are you? Is there anything you're struggling with in your studies that you'd like to talk to me about? You must have sent a letter to Yenching University, but because of this trip abroad, I probably missed it..."

Wei Ming didn't say anything substantial; he just chatted with Amin about everyday things. Amin thought this was fine, and it would be even better if they could chat about everyday things every day.

When will Ah Ming be able to stay in Hong Kong permanently, or go to the mainland on his own?

At this time, Wei Ming and his group had already boarded a flight to Yanjing.

After Ah Long and his wife dropped them off, Gong Ying went home to catch up on sleep; in fact, they had only just fallen asleep.

However, Ah Long was full of energy and went to work at Madman Comics again.

Then I received bad news.

Cartoonist Zhao Rude came over to report to him: "Brother Long, people from Yulang International contacted me yesterday. They wanted to poach me, but I firmly refused!"

A glint flashed in Ah Long's glasses. He stood up and patted Zhao Rude: "You did a great job. Ah De, come out here. I have something to announce to everyone."

Zhao Rude came out with Liu Rulong somewhat nervously. He clapped his hands to signal everyone to stop what they were doing: "Our boss just came back from Frankfurt and brought some American and Japanese comics with him. We'll put a bookshelf here for everyone to study. Remember, what you should learn is the technique and style, not imitate the stories."

Zhao Rude was somewhat disappointed. He had thought he would get a raise and more responsibilities, but this was all he got.

In the episodes preceding "Storm Riders," the most enthusiastic response, besides "Qin's Moon," was "Happy Ghost," which he was in charge of, even surpassing Niu Lao's "Riki-Oh: The Story of Ricky."

“There’s one more thing,” Ah Long said. “It’s not a big deal, really. Langning Toy Factory has decided to collaborate with us to launch the Historical Cat series of dolls. The licensing fee is HK$10 for three years.”

Upon hearing the price of HK$10, the comic book apprentices, all from impoverished backgrounds, gaped in astonishment.

Ah Long: "In addition, the company can get a certain percentage of the revenue from each toy sold. As the chief writer, you can get a portion of both the 10 yuan licensing fee and the sales revenue the company receives. So let's congratulate Brother Rong. Remember to check your account tomorrow and remember to file your taxes."

It was supposed to be paid next month along with the salary, but because of Wong Yuk-long poaching employees, Ah Long decided to pay it in advance. Xie Zhirong, the chief writer of "History Cat," is Shangguan Xiaowei's eldest disciple and Ma Rongcheng's senior brother. He is a kind and down-to-earth person, and everyone is curious about how much Xie Zhirong will get.

Liu Rulong continued, "Behind our Madman Comics is Wei Ming, who wields immense power and has an international influence comparable to that of Mr. Jin Yong. He just dominated the German Book Fair, selling hundreds of copyrights. This means that our comics have countless possibilities: toys, movies, animation, games, and even overseas publishing. All of these will come true in the future!"

Ah Long's voice was calm, yet incredibly persuasive. Although the young cartoonists' eyes were tired, they were clearly inspired; their eyes shone with light.

He continued, "However, there is one principle: you must be a member of Kuangren Comics. As long as you are in Kuangren Comics, you will not lose a single penny of your rights. Let's all strive for this. Xiao Wen, please bring your work in."

This issue's new work is "Storm Riders". The next issue will have a price increase and more content, and will also feature "Fight Back to School". Ah Long will also have a chat with Gan Xiaowen.

Gan Xiaowen has completed two chapters. While drawing this story, he gained a lot of insights into character design and story structure, especially the character Cao Dahua who lives off a woman. Wei Ming's writing of Cao Dahua is simply brilliant and outstanding!
The next day, everyone at Madman Comics was concerned about how much of a share of the profits Xie Zhirong had received.

Xie Zhirong just laughed and said, "I'm treating everyone to dinner today. You can choose whatever you like."

Later, it was his two junior apprentices, Ma Wing-shing and Fung Chi-ming, who found out that he received 25,000 yuan. In other words, the creators received half, while the screenwriters and the lead writer each received 25,000 yuan.

Twenty-five thousand, that's equivalent to their annual salary!
Of course, Boss Ming and Boss Long were very generous with the bonus, but 25,000 was not a small amount, not to mention that the toys would continue to generate income when they went public.

"Brother Rong, you could retire on just one film!" Feng Zhiming said enviously.

He's still young, and the company hasn't assigned him any projects yet. He just draws small things like four-panel comics or helps his senior colleagues. Now he desperately wants a project that he can write himself.

Xie Zhirong chuckled sheepishly: "We'll have to see if they renew the contract in three years. If the toys don't sell well, we might have nothing left in three years. Actually, I'm more optimistic about Xiao Ma's 'Storm Riders.' You can see how much the two bosses value this work. Although the fourth issue has only just been released, I've heard the kids in the neighborhood talking about Xiong Ba."

In the first episode of "Storm Riders", the adult versions of Storm Riders did not appear, but the popular Lord Conqueror, who had both martial prowess and beautiful women, was quite popular.

Ma Rongcheng waved his hand: "I still need to practice. I can't compare to Boss Long. He manages all the affairs of the company and also has to keep an eye on every painting we make, but he paints his own 'Qin's Moon' so fast and well. He is simply a role model for us."

Xie Zhirong also became a fan of Long: "That's right, and he can still squeeze out time to learn Japanese manga techniques. I really don't know how he manages his time."

Xie Zhirong's share of the profits could not be kept secret in the end, and Zhao Rude eventually found out. From then on, he became even more devoted to Kuangren Comics. When Yulang International recruited him, they did not offer such a high price, and they still treated him as an apprentice.

But without "Happy Ghost," the show that made him famous, wouldn't he just be an apprentice?

~
On the other hand, when Wei Ming and his group landed at the Capital International Airport that day, they were actually welcomed by the Publishing Bureau. They didn't need to take a taxi themselves; their unit picked them up directly.

Deputy Director Liu personally gave verbal praise to him and Wei Ming, and promised that the copyright fee rightfully belonging to Wei Ming would be transferred to him soon.

Of course, the transactions were conducted in US dollars, British pounds, French francs, German marks, Japanese yen, and Vietnamese dong. To save Wei Ming the trouble of calculations, they were all converted into Chinese yuan.

It should be around 150 million before tax.

Wei Ming didn't play the noble card with the publishing bureau; he sincerely thanked the leaders. If you had refused, they might have actually felt comfortable not giving it to you.

After all, this amount of money was far too much. In 1981, whether you were a scientist or a writer, who could earn such a large sum of money at once? Even Nian Guangjiu, who sold melon seeds, claimed to have a million-dollar fortune, but that was accumulated over several years.

Wei Ming's performance accounted for about one-third of the Chinese delegation's total sales. If it weren't for his remarkable sales performance in the last two days, which boosted the sales of other works, he could have accounted for half of the literature exports.

His influence in promoting products even created several literary figures who became millionaires.

If Mr. Mao Dun were alive, he would probably sigh with emotion, for the royalties he earned from all his writing and salary in his life were not as much as Wei Ming earned from this trip to Frankfurt.

Of course, Mr. Mao Dun has passed away, but Mr. Ba is still alive. When he heard his old friend from Beijing talk about this in Shanghai, he could only sigh that the younger generation surpasses the older one.

I heard that this guy kissed a foreign girl goodbye for half an hour in Germany!
As one of the few older generation intellectuals with a clean romantic history, Ba Jin truly admired this kind of young person who dared to think and act.

However, once home, Uncle Ping An reminded his nephew, "You made too much of a splash in Germany this time, and you earned so much money all at once. It might attract envy and people will find fault with you. So it's better to keep a low profile these days."

It's easy to find fault with Wei Ming, since he's not afraid of being wronged.

Wei Hong nodded, agreeing that her brother was indeed easy to attack.

They were walking towards the Overseas Chinese Apartment at the moment, and when they got home, Wei Ming would take him back by motorcycle.

Wei Ping'an continued, "It's a pity you're too young, otherwise you could have followed Mr. Mao Dun's example and set up a prize with a large sum of money to silence the public."

Wei Ming is only 21 years old. If a Wei Ming XX Award were established, it would probably bring even more controversy. However, given his current rate of development, by the time he turns 30, probably no one will say anything.

Ten years later, Wei Ming estimated that he would be fearless.

When I got home, I was surprised to find Xu Shufen there too.

"Mom, you're back!" Wei Ming and Wei Hong exclaimed in surprise, then asked where their father had gone.

“Ping An, you’re here too. Please have a seat,” Xu Shufen said. “Your dad is at the Beijing Zoo. Gangdan is being cared for there temporarily. Your grandma and your aunt are here too. They’re at Tuanjiehu with Yunyun.”

Wei Ming was also planning to go to Tuanjiehu, so he said, "Mom, don't save me dinner tonight. I'm going to see my uncle off. There are sausages I bought in Germany in this bag, several flavors."

Wei Hong quickly replied, "It was bought with my money!"

Xu Shufen said happily, "My Xiaohong can earn money now! That's amazing!"

"I made tens of thousands of dollars, in US dollars!" Wei Hong would have to tell Lao Wei and her classmates about it later.

With Wei Ming around, Wei Hong's achievements seemed less impressive, but her Rubik's Cube solving encyclopedia was actually quite eye-catching in the entire book fair.

Not only did they sign contracts with multiple book distributors on the spot, but they also sold translation licenses for several major countries, including England, France, and Japan.

Wei Ping'an assumed that Wei Ming was not eating at home because he wanted to eat at his house. He used Wei Ming's home phone to call home and asked Lü Xiaoyan to prepare a sumptuous dinner.

As a result, Lü Xiaoyan bought pork knuckle, pig's head meat, roast chicken and other hearty dishes, but Wei Ming only exchanged a few words with Aunt Xiaoyan about the situation of "King of Fairy Tales" before leaving.

Lü Xiaoyan first gave Wei Ming a large bag of reader letters. The second issue had only been out for a week, and they had already received so many. Some of them were for "Black Cat Detective," and a large proportion of them were for "Calabash Brothers."

After the release of the second installment of "Calabash Brothers", its appeal to young readers increased significantly, since the main storyline was now very clear: to save Grandpa.

On the contrary, after "Catch One Ear," the Black Cat Detective remained the top domestic fairy tale, but young readers' enthusiasm for reading it declined compared to the two issues before "Catch One Ear."

Lü Xiaoyan laughed and said, "Your 'Calabash Brothers' is also very successful. The feedback from young readers has surpassed that of 'The Magic Cube Building,' which has made Xiao Zheng very anxious. He is eager to write a work that can surpass yours and wants to ask you if you have any ideas."

Wei Ming thought for a moment: "I can write about cats, and he can write about mice."

"Write about mice?" Lü Xiaoyan said disdainfully, "Would anyone like mice as the main character?"

Xizi shouted out, "Mickey Mouse!"

Wei Ming laughed and said, "Look, even Xizi knows this, so if Haozi writes well, he can also become an international star. You can ask Lao Zheng to consider this direction."

As Lü Xiaoyan was considering the feasibility of this matter, Wei Ming said again, "Aunt, Uncle, then I'll be leaving now."

Wei Ping'an asked in surprise, "Aren't you eating here?"

"Oh, I still have some business to attend to."

Wei Ping'an said meaningfully, "You need to be well-fed to have the energy to handle things."

Lü Xiaoyan also said, "That's right, it doesn't matter if we eat a little more."

Wei Pingan: "And I have something else I want to tell you."

"What's the matter?"

"Have a seat," Wei Ping'an pressed Wei Ming down, "When do you have time to come with me to the Beijing Film Studio? I want to see some of Hu Die's old movies."

"Which movie is Hu Die in?" Wei Ming asked. "She has many works, dozens of them."

"Wow, so many?" Wei Ping'an was a little surprised. Did anyone watch all of these films made in that era?
Wei Ming laughed and said, "Otherwise, we should call her the Queen of Movies. Besides, because of the passage of time, many things about her have not been preserved."

Hearing this, Wei Ping'an felt a chill run down his spine.

Wei Ming added, "Moreover, her works should be checked at the China Film Archive. The Shanghai Film Studio may also have some of them. There's no chance of finding the Beijing Film Studio."

"Why are you so obsessed with Hu Die?" Lü Xiaoyan warned, sounding the alarm bells.

Wei Pingan: I'll talk to you tonight.

Wei Ming didn't ask any more questions and agreed to go to the film archive with him when he had time. Wei Ming also wanted to see some old movies, and his current reputation was enough to make him receive VIP treatment at the archive.

In less than half an hour, Wei Ming finished his meal. Everyone wanted to see him off, but Xi Zi, seeing that everyone had left, hogging the plate of braised pork knuckle, said, "I won't see him off. I'm too famous, and I'll easily attract attention."

Lu Xiaoyan pretended to twist his ear, and this rising star finally abandoned the braised pork knuckle and went downstairs to see the guest off.

However, just as Xizi said, people strolling downstairs, cooling off, and gossiping would gather around Xizi as soon as they saw him. The young girls who were the same age as Xizi or a little older were like fangirls, and it was an honor to be able to say a few words to him.

Xizi moved freely among the flowers, completely at ease.

Wei Ming and Wei Ping'an were both a little embarrassed to look at the child, wondering who he took after.

Wei Ming rode his brand-new Harley motorcycle through the darkness of Yanjing and soon arrived at Tuanjiehu, but the room lights were off.

Is Sister Xue living at the Beijing Film Studio?
Wei Ming went upstairs, opened the door, and turned on the light. Sure enough, no one was there, but there were three notes on the coffee table.
……

(Guaranteed minimum today!)

(End of this chapter)