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

Chapter 171 Cao Yu Loses His Temper
With the departure of several production teams from the Beijing People's Art Theatre, along with their directors, the theatre was suddenly more than half empty. In the following months, theatrical performances were reduced, while performances by several units from the Yanjing Peking Opera Troupe and opera troupe at the Capital Theatre increased significantly.

Liu Yimin also ran into Wang Zengqi of the Yanjing Peking Opera Troupe, who was directing the troupe members as they entered the venue. Upon seeing Liu Yimin, Wang Zengqi hurriedly came over to greet him, saying, "Yimin, are you free later? I'd like to treat you to a meal to thank you."

"Thank me for what?"

"Are you pretending not to know about the publication of 'The Novice'? Zhou Yanru told me that you provided her with the information, otherwise she wouldn't have come to me. If she hadn't gone, my novel wouldn't have had any chance of being published."

Wang Zengqi was all smiles and spoke with great enthusiasm, occasionally letting out a sigh as he spoke.

"Oh, this!" Liu Yimin suddenly realized. "I'm glad you don't mind me being nosy!"

"Not at all, I'd be happy if my novel could be published."

"When will it be published?" Liu Yimin asked with a smile.

"It will be published next month. I've spent several months revising it, changing all of Zhou Yanru's suggestions and the parts I personally felt were not good." Wang Zengqi specifically mentioned the points he had revised and sought Liu Yimin's opinion.

Liu Yimin readily agreed, and added, "Comrade Lao Wang, you used to work at Yanjing Literature and Art Publishing House, so feel free to take the novel once you've finished writing it!"

With a hint of insecurity, Wang Zengqi said, "I'm practically an old hand at Yenching Literature and Art, I've been here for thirty years now. I can attend some seminars, but when it comes to publishing, I still feel a bit uneasy."

Just then, a member of a Peking Opera troupe walked by and muttered, "A screenwriter who doesn't think about writing scripts all day but thinks about writing novels. Hey, how interesting. His stuff can actually be published."

Wang Zengqi was pressed close to the face by the person next to him and looked at Liu Yimin awkwardly. It was precisely the gossip among many comrades in the Peking Opera troupe that had delayed Wang Zengqi's submission of his work.

Liu Yimin encouraged him, "Comrades' opinions are bound to be somewhat biased. After all, Peking Opera scripts and novels are two different things, so it's normal for them not to understand. But you have to have confidence, Comrade Lao Wang. Maybe you'll become a great novelist next!"

"Stop making fun of me. You still haven't said whether you're alright or not."

"It's just bad timing today. I have to go to Teacher Wan's house tonight. I'll treat you to dinner another day!"

After exchanging a few more words, Wang Zengqi went off to attend to his work with a regretful expression.

That evening, at the Muxidi apartment building. Liu Yimin followed Cao Yu inside. Li Yuru was wearing an apron and cooking, and there were some dried fruits on the living room table. Li Yuru chatted with Liu Yimin while cooking.

Upon learning that Liu Yimin was going to Tibet for research, Li Yuru asked worriedly, "You'll be going alone, and you won't be used to the food and lodging. How can that be? Your teacher went to Inner Mongolia a couple of years ago, and he was so grateful to Xiao Fang for taking care of him along the way. Even so, he lost a lot of weight when he came back from Inner Mongolia."

“Master’s wife, I’m young and can take care of myself. Besides, there are the local comrades; they won’t really leave me alone in the snow area,” Liu Yimin said casually.

Cao Yu, who was standing nearby, was about to say something in agreement when there was a knock at the door. Cao Yu stood up and said with a smile, "It must be someone."

Liu Yimin rushed to the door and opened it. Two men, around forty or fifty years old, stood outside. They wore glasses and had a scholarly air about them; they didn't look like they were from the United Front Work Department, but rather like they were from the Writers' Association.

"Hello, you must be Comrade Liu Yimin?"

The two men outside the door sized up Liu Yimin. One of them spoke first with a smile, his expression amiable, his voice unhurried and gentle, tinged with a hint of joy. It was impossible to discern this without careful observation.

"I am. Are you two comrades from the United Front Work Department?"

Seeing Liu Yimin nod to confirm their identities, the smiles on their faces widened even more. The one who spoke first took the initiative to extend his hand and greet them, saying, "I am the head of the Seventh Bureau in charge of Tibetan affairs. You can call me Lao Wang. This is Lao Li, who is in charge of ethnic affairs."

"Hello, hello!" After exchanging pleasantries, Liu Yimin stepped aside to let the two of them in first.

"Dean Cao, I apologize for disturbing you. Comrade Wu gave us instructions before we arrived."

"Sit down, please sit down," Cao Yu said with a smile, pointing to the seats on the sofa.

After the two sat down, Li Yuru and Liu Yimin began serving the dishes. Once seated, Cao Yu spoke first:

"I suggested this play to my colleagues in the Ministry of Culture and the United Front Work Department. Please feel free to speak your mind. Yimin is not only a writer, but also a mature playwright now. In my opinion, his ability to write play scripts has surpassed that of many professional playwrights."

Traveling to other places for research is a significant undertaking. When I went to Inner Mongolia for research years ago, I couldn't have done without Comrade Wu's help. You can also share your opinions.”

Liu Yimin smiled kindly at the two men, who then began a more formal conversation: "Comrade Yimin, we are confident in your creative abilities, and you are also Dean Cao's student. Dean Cao has made great contributions to our country's drama cause."

Cao Yu said with dissatisfaction, "Don't flatter me. Besides, Yimin became a writer first, and then he became my student. The way you put it makes it sound like all of Yimin's abilities were taught by me."

Seeing Cao Yu's slight dissatisfaction, the two quickly changed the subject: "After receiving Comrade Wu's instructions, we immediately sent letters to the relevant departments in Sichuan Province requesting their assistance. I believe that by the time we set off, all aspects of the work will be well done."

Furthermore, we hope that our content creation will reflect the spirit of national unity.

“This is the central theme of the play, and the comrades in the United Front Work Department don’t need to worry about this!” Liu Yimin said.

"In addition, we also want to..."

The two talked a lot, even starting to interfere with the specific creative process. Cao Yu got angry: "If that's the case, then you can just find someone to create it. You don't need to talk to us! I think you know more than professional screenwriters. We should learn from you."

Cao Yu's barbed words made the two men lose face, but when faced with Cao Yu, they could only say that it was the leader's order.

"Why didn't Comrade Wu tell me this back then? I only asked you for assistance. Assistance means that you can't interfere with the professional creative process. If you keep changing a good script, what's the point of having us?"

"Dean Cao, you've misunderstood. We also wanted to create an excellent tribute drama so that people of all ethnic groups could watch it!"

"You're already putting pressure on us before we've even started creating anything? What if we're not satisfied with the script and you just abandon us? What if it's not good enough? Fine, I think you shouldn't help us anymore. If we're not satisfied with the script, we at the Beijing People's Art Theatre will stage it ourselves, and we'll cover the expenses. We won't spend a single penny of your money!"

Cao Yu had revised his scripts so many times that he no longer recognized them. In the past, everything revolved around individual vision; now, with the rise of free creation, a group of people were already interfering. How could he not be angry? He couldn't let his students repeat the same mistakes he had suffered!

"Dean Cao, this isn't about money!"

"You all know that creation isn't just about money. You can't just give orders and expect a good work. Screenwriters are people; they have their own creative ideas, which you can't change just by scribbling on them. I'd like to ask, is this your opinion or Comrade Wu's opinion?"

The two hesitated and didn't say anything until they finally said that it was decided in a meeting.

Cao Yu pointed to the phone in the room and told them to call Comrade Wu. If this was the intention of their entire department, then the Beijing People's Art Theatre would not play along.

The two exchanged a glance. This was how it always was when they wrote these kinds of scripts, so why did they suddenly get angry this time?

Seeing that they weren't calling, Cao Yu picked up the phone and made a call. After a while, he hung up and said, "You can go back now. You just need to do what you're supposed to do. You don't need to worry about the scriptwriting."

"When will we begin our journey to Sichuan Province? That way we can offer our assistance!"

"Comrade Liu Yimin will tell you the specific time after the summer vacation." Cao Yu's tone softened considerably, but it still carried a hint of coldness.

The two had just left when the phone rang again. It was Xia Yan on the other end: "Old Wan, it's rare to see you get angry like this. Old Wu just called me and we exchanged some opinions. He said you must have misunderstood. I want to make it clear to you that the Beijing People's Art Theatre is in charge of creative work, and we won't interfere. The funding and subsidies will be entirely provided by the Ministry of Culture."

"No matter what happens, they didn't spend much money."

Xia Yan's words were simple: "He who eats another's food must obey his orders." In this script, the Beijing People's Art Theatre, the Ministry of Culture, and the United Front Work Department were the clients, while Liu Yimin was the contractor. Among the clients, the Ministry of Culture and the Beijing People's Art Theatre held a dominant position in the creative process; one provided the research funding, and the other provided the script royalties. Those who paid more naturally had more say. This division made things much clearer.

After hanging up the phone, Li Yuru said, "If you don't want to write it, then don't write it. There's no need to get so angry."

“Some people are overstepping their bounds. Yimin, the Ministry of Culture is allocating 500 yuan this time, plus a daily allowance of 2 yuan, and royalties will be paid separately. Don’t let what just happened affect you. It’s normal that some comrades haven’t quite come to terms with it.”

Cao Yu said amiably, and seeing that the food hadn't been touched much, he called to Li Yuru and Liu Yimin to start eating. The two who had just been scolded hadn't even touched their chopsticks.

Five hundred yuan is a lot, but it's also a little; it depends on how you look at it. There's nothing we can do about it now, but it's definitely enough for his expenses.

"Once you arrive, you must respect the local customs and traditions, avoid arrogance and complacency, be careful in everything you do, and be mindful not to offend any ethnic sentiments," Cao Yu instructed.

Li Yuru also expressed her concerns, saying that she had heard the local people were fierce and that she should be careful.

"Don't worry, teacher and teacher's wife. I'm young. Going out more and broadening my horizons will be good for me. I will pay attention to everything."

After Liu Yimin expressed his opinion, Cao Yu finally felt relieved. Of course, he also felt a heavy weight on his shoulders; it would be impossible for him not to feel pressure.

A few days after seeing Zhu Lin off, Cao Yu was seen off on his plane. This playwright, hailed as the "Shakespeare of the East," was finally going to England to meet the Shakespeare of the West.

The sparse high-rise buildings in Yanjing couldn't block the midsummer sun. Walking on the street, the sun shone on Liu Yimin without any shade, giving him a headache.

"Yimin, over here!" Zhang Mengzhao, Huang Zumo, and Xu Sangchu from Shanghai Film Studio waved to Liu Yimin from afar.

After walking over, Liu Yimin joked, "Editor Zhang, you came to see me during the hottest time of the year last year, and you did it again this year. We seem to have a special connection with this blazing sun!"

Zhang Mengzhao was also sweating profusely, and the two of them exchanged sweat intimately.

"Director Xu and Director Huang, let's not shake hands. Editor Zhang can be our representative; my hands are sticky."

"Yimin, come on, let's find a cool place to sit for a while. Sorry to disturb your afternoon nap." Xu Sangchu led Liu Yimin to the pavilion in the middle of Weiming Lake, which was surrounded by lush green trees and embraced the peninsula.

There were few people around at noon, and it was very quiet. The wind on the lake swept over the water, dispelling some of the summer heat and making us feel much cooler.

"Is there something important that the three of you have come together today?" Liu Yimin asked.

"Something's wrong. The film 'Romance on Lushan Mountain' has been edited and is being reviewed by the Film Bureau, but there are a lot of objections. Some people haven't even seen it, yet they're already attacking it, saying that compared to the novel, it has added a lot of plots without any political stance, and even included marriage with Taiwan. Isn't that slander?"

Xu Sangchu said angrily.

Liu Yimin said, "That's right, why don't the factory just show it to them once and let them see?"

"If that were really the case, it would be simple. I think they all have ulterior motives," Zhang Mengzhao sneered.

All three were anxious, but Huang Zumo was the most anxious. He had staked half his life's reputation on this movie, hoping it would make him famous!
Xu Sangchu was anxious because he didn't want a good film to be buried. Investing 70 yuan in filming was a small matter. In the past, even with large investments, some films still failed to pass the censorship every year.

"It's no use you coming to me. I'm not the Buddha you should be worshipping!" Liu Yimin said helplessly.

Xu Sangchu asked Liu Yimin directly, "I heard that you have a good relationship with Elder Xia Yan?"

Liu Yimin immediately said warily, "Director Xu, we do have a relationship. We've chatted a few times. It's not that we're particularly close, it's just that I'm looking out for a junior."

"Don't try to dodge my questions. At the last Film Association meeting, Elder Xia specifically asked you to speak. This isn't just about being a junior." Xu Sangchu swallowed hard and continued earnestly, "This isn't just about us; it's also about your hard work!"

No, my hard work has already been paid for! Liu Yimin has no worries about the future of this movie; it will definitely be released eventually.

"Yimin, we're going to see Comrade Xia Yan. Director Xu wants you to come with us. Comrade Xia Yan let you speak at the last meeting, which proves that he's optimistic about this. We just need to ask him to say a few words."

Huang Zumo added eagerly.

(End of this chapter)