Writer 1978: I Need to Give the Literary World a Lesson

Chapter 118 French publishers take the initiative to contact

If the content in Le Figaro was meant to help French readers understand China, then for French publishers, it represented the potential for publishing.

The Left Bank of Paris, also known as the Latin Quarter on the left bank of the Seine, is home to numerous colleges and cultural and educational institutions, creating a rich cultural atmosphere that has attracted a large number of intellectuals over time.

The intellectual middle class began to move to the neighborhood, and major publishing houses, bookstores, and coffee shops gathered here, where countless intellectuals held coffee and discussed academic matters.

The cafes here are famous, hence the lyric, "Coffee on the Left Bank of the Seine."

Inside the café, a fair-skinned Frenchman wearily sipped his coffee, listening intently to the conversation. The newspaper in his hand indicated that the most talked-about guest in the French literary world had arrived in Marseille.

The young face in the newspaper has recently appeared in several media outlets. The article in Le Figaro has given everyone a new understanding of him—a realist writer from the East.

The group of realist writers from the East is very famous in the West, and another realist writer who is very popular with French readers is Lu Xun.

His name is Massey Dani, an editor at Flammarion Publishing House. His daily job is to find books that can be published and make the publishing house profitable, but he is not doing well.

His weary body and wrinkled suit showed that, compared to other languid Frenchmen, he had made considerable efforts. But his mood, like the gloomy weather over Paris that day, was not promising.

After wiping the bread stains from the corner of his mouth and finishing his last cup of coffee, Massey Dani got up and walked to the street, muttering to himself, "I think I should have a good talk with this young man from the East."

Given this young man's media attention, if the book that Perec held up in front of the media could be published, it would definitely have a market in France.

"Liu, let me help you publish it in France!"

Marcel Danny tightened his tie, a confident smile spreading across his face. Entering the editorial department, he didn't go to his own workstation first, but instead knocked directly on the editor-in-chief's office door.

"I'm going to Marseille to take leave," said Dani Marseille confidently. "I want to meet an author whose book is sure to be popular in France."

Looking at Danny's excited face, the editor-in-chief's lips curled into a mocking smile: "Danny, are you going to find Yimin Liu?"

“How do you know?” Massey Danny retorted loudly.

"Because an editor had already gone to Marseille before you. Danny, why are you always one step behind? You always act as if you have a brilliant idea and decide to act after careful consideration, but every time someone beats you to it by a second."

The editor-in-chief stood up and shouted, telling Marseille Dani that many publishing houses in the 5th arrondissement of Paris had already taken action, and he was only now realizing it.

"Danny, you just stay here and wait for that poor idiot to crash into your workstation!" The editor-in-chief's almost roaring tone turned the confidence on Marcel Danny's face into despair.

In Marseille, Liu Yimin strolled along the coast with Ba Jin and some of his old friends, the stench of dead fish from the Mediterranean hitting his nostrils. They passed the fish market, watching housewives prepare breakfast for their families.

Among them were Ba Jin's Chinese friends, French friends, and members of the Sino-French Friendship Association.

After talking for a long time, the group returned to the hotel.

This is a very modern hotel. When they first arrived, the delegation members were still figuring out how to open the room door. Liu Yimin pretended not to know how to open it, but after a "correct" attempt, he finally opened the door.

When Xu Chi woke up the next morning, he complained, "Why isn't anyone polishing our shoes? In Nice, if we leave our shoes outside, someone will come and polish them!"

Looking at his leather shoes, Luo Sun smiled and said, "Perhaps customs vary from place to place. The Marseilles don't polish them, so it seems we'll have to do it ourselves!"

Seeing Liu Yimin wearing clean leather shoes, Luo Sun couldn't help but ask, "Yimin, your shoes are so well polished. You're from the Fourth Field Army, right?"

"Yeah, the Frunze Military Academy standard, let me see if I can see my reflection in it?" Xu Chi made a gesture of lying on his leather shoes to look at his reflection, which made everyone burst into laughter.

Liu Yimin pointed to the shoe-shining machine next to him and said with a smile, "I'm just a corn cob husker, how would I know how to shine shoes? That's a shoe-shining machine, I'll teach you how to use it."

After teaching them, Liu Yimin returned to his room, where many newspaper articles soliciting articles were laid out on the table. Their schedule was public knowledge; finding their address was as simple as asking around.

To Liu Yimin, these letters of invitation to write were like neat stacks of francs, which he could exchange for foreign exchange certificates to buy scarce goods back home. Unfortunately, there wasn't enough time.

The greatest pain in the world is having an opportunity to make money, but not having enough time to do so!

"Yimin, how many requests for articles did you receive today?" Xu Chi asked as he walked in.

"Not many, just these few!"

Liu Yimin spread a stack of commission letters on the table, making Xu Chi's eyelids twitch. He glanced at Liu Yimin helplessly, thinking, "This isn't much."

I thought he was just a nobody in the delegation, but now he's become the second male lead.

"The hotel rooms in Marseille are really nice, much better than the guesthouse at our embassy," Xu Chi said sourly, before preparing to leave.

The hotel was modern in both its facilities and services. Liu Yimin looked it over and found that it met at least the standards of a three-star hotel in later generations. The only problem was that the bed was a bit big for one person.

"Comrade Xu, let's discuss this. I'll write a few more drafts, and you can help translate them. How about we split the royalties 50/50?" Liu Yimin suddenly put his arm around Xu Chi's shoulder and asked.

"Yimin, what's with all this money stuff? We're not here to make money!" Xu Chi said sternly.

Liu Yimin casually mentioned, "Well, since that's the case, I heard that when our delegation goes back, we can buy some industrial supplies duty-free at the Overseas Personnel Service Department, but we'll have to use foreign exchange certificates. Lao Xu, do you have a color TV? A refrigerator? A washing machine? With that, we won't need to wash by hand!"

Upon hearing this, Xu Chi turned around and said enthusiastically, "Yi Min, what I mean is, forget about money. The most important thing for us is to promote our country's literature. If we can also earn some foreign exchange for the country, that would be an even greater contribution to the country."

You write, I translate!

"Comrade Xu, that's right. Earning some foreign exchange, even if it's little, is still something. Maybe our country can use this foreign exchange to buy some industrial parts and achieve technological innovation. Today, apart from Mr. Ba Jin going to see his friends, we'll rest at the hotel and try to write an article."

The French newspaper *Le Prof.* has set a rate of at least 100 francs per thousand words. We're going to Lyon in a few days, so we'll have time to collect our payment. Old Xu, keep it up! At your level, your family should have a color TV by now!

The French newspaper Le Profú is the largest local newspaper in France, and it is located in Lyon, their next stop.

Xu Chi was very pleased with Liu Yimin's words. Yes, he should have set his sights on a color TV long ago! A tax-free color TV could save him a lot of money. A color TV wasn't just an improvement in quality of life, but also a symbol of status. Immediately, Xu Chi urged Liu Yimin to start writing the article; he couldn't wait to brush up on his French.

Li Xiaolin and Ba Jin left the hotel. After having breakfast, Liu Yimin locked himself in his room and started writing.

That evening, a letter from a publishing house arrived at the hotel reception. A hotel employee called Liu Yimin, with a Frenchman in a suit standing nearby.

"Hello, Yimin Liu, I'm an editor at Youfeng Publishing House in Paris. My name is Erland, you can call me Ed. May I invite you for a cup of coffee?"

The coffee shop was on the third floor of the hotel. Liu Yimin could only understand simple French, and couldn't understand anything more difficult. He asked Ed if he knew English, and after Ed nodded, Liu Yimin went to the coffee shop on the third floor.

"Yimin Liu, I'm so glad to finally meet you. I've been seeing your news in the newspapers these past few days. I have deep respect for your literary talent, and the French literary world regards you as a representative writer of the next generation of Chinese writers."

In the coffee shop, Liu Yimin ordered a cup of hand-ground coffee and sat opposite Ed, listening to him shower Ed with compliments.

Finally, Liu Yimin frowned and couldn't help but interrupt, "Ed, I like to be straightforward. Just say what you want to say."

"Liu, don't you Chinese like to exchange pleasantries first?" A hint of surprise flashed across Ed's face.

Liu Yimin said, "Chinese people like to exchange pleasantries with their friends. Our pleasantries are to find out how our friends are doing."

"I believe we will become friends, because I am the messenger of money. Liu, to be frank, I have always had a good impression of China, and I want Chinese literature to have further development opportunities in France. Therefore, I would like to sign a publishing contract with you for 'The Brave Old Man and His Dog,' and we will pay you royalties according to French standards."

For you, the royalties from France are a huge sum of money.

"The Brave Old Man and His Dog" is the title translated by the French.

Ed was like a hypocritical businessman who made money while also flaunting his influence and making Liu Yimin thank him.

“Ed, if that’s how you put it, then we have nothing to talk about!” Liu Yimin got up to leave.

Ed quickly stopped Liu Yimin; this young man's behavior was indeed different from that of many Chinese people.

“We can pay you 25 francs per thousand words for publication and provide translation services free of charge,” Ed said hastily.

"and then?"

Ed spread his hands and said excitedly, "Liu, isn't 25 francs a thousand words enough? You can get at least 2000 francs."

"Ed, this coffee is on me. I'm going back to my room to rest now." Liu Yimin said as he stood up, preparing to take out his money.

“No, no, no, it was my invitation. You can think about it again!” Ed said.

"Thank you for the coffee, it's delicious, but there wasn't enough sugar in it today."

Liu Yimin hurried down the second floor and bumped into Ba Jin and Li Xiaolin, who were returning. Li Xiaolin looked at the third floor with a puzzled expression and asked, "Yimin, you must be rich, going up for coffee?"

The coffee on the third floor isn't cheap. The delegation members smell coffee every day, but none of them have the wallet to afford to go up there for a treat. Liu Yimin just said he'd pay, but he was just saying it; I thought he really meant it!

“No, the French people from the publishing house contacted me, wanting to publish my book in France!” Liu Yimin explained in detail.

Li Xiaolin said with delight, "That's great! What? You don't want to?"

“Of course I’m willing, but these Frenchmen are treating me like a German!” Liu Yimin said with a smile as he walked over to Ba Jin.

"What do you mean?" Li Xiaolin was confused until Liu Yimin explained it to her, and then she understood that it meant the French wanted to trick him!

However, Li Xiaolin felt that 2000 francs was not a small amount. In China, it was practically impossible to earn that much from publishing a novella.

The rest of the delegation also felt that Liu Yimin should agree. Xu Chi calculated that 2000 francs could buy a refrigerator, color TV, and washing machine for the whole family.

Liu Yimin explained the current publishing policy in France to them, which included royalties in addition to basic royalties. Royalties are typically 10-14% of the price per copy, but this Frenchman only mentioned basic royalties, refusing to discuss royalties.

"These foreign devils are really despicable, thinking we know nothing!" Luo Sun said angrily.

Xu Chi said, "If Yimin hadn't told us, we wouldn't have known. So, all things considered, Yimin has indeed suffered a huge loss! But we are Chinese, and publishing abroad is not easy in itself."

Ba Jin said, "That's how these booksellers are. You can only negotiate money with them if you can make money. The price of the first book is often hard to negotiate. But if you really manage to reach an agreement, it's a good thing for our domestic literature and also a good thing for foreign exchange."

"Publishing abroad is not easy, especially since we've only just begun to expand overseas. But we can't just grovel to make money!"

"Yimin, do you want to make money while standing up?" Li Xiaolin was amused by Liu Yimin's words.

Amidst everyone's laughter, Liu Yimin nodded.

Ba Jin patted Liu Yimin on the shoulder: "Sometimes, you have to be firm in negotiations. Don't rush for one opportunity. This is a cultural exchange, and the door to exchange has been opened. I believe that soon these foreign booksellers will take the initiative to come to China."

After everyone dispersed, Liu Yimin found Xu Chi with the manuscript. Xu Chi flipped through a few pages and couldn't help but ask, "You kid, how can you be so fast?"

"Comrade Xu, you need to earn francs as soon as possible, we're going back to China soon!"

"Understood, I'll stay up all night translating!" Old Xu put on his glasses and urged Liu Yimin to leave, as he was about to begin translating.

Aside from the first translation, Liu Yimin did not approach Ba Jin again. Firstly, it would have been too much of a burden on the elderly man's health; secondly, Liu Yimin felt embarrassed to keep all the money, but of course, Ba Jin wouldn't accept the translation fees.

That evening, the effects of a cup of coffee became apparent; Liu Yimin couldn't fall asleep in bed. Thinking of this, he called the front desk and asked them to send Xu Chi a steaming cup of coffee.

(End of this chapter)