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

Chapter 174 The Beidaihe Appointment of "Poetry Journal"

The script for "Romance on Lushan Mountain" passed the review meeting without any major issues. In addition to the Ministry of Culture, the comrades from the United Front Work Department also gave the film high praise and hoped that it would be released as soon as possible.

Xu Sangchu handed the film over to China Film Group, which was responsible for selling the copies of "Romance on Lushan Mountain" to its various subsidiaries. Unfortunately, the money from selling the copies had nothing to do with Xu Sangchu; their films were bought up by China Film Group at a uniform price, which could be considered a form of centralized purchasing and distribution in the film industry.

Before returning to Shanghai, Xu Sangchu, Zhang Mengzhao, and Huang Zumo from Shanghai Film Studio visited Liu Yimin at Yenching University to express their gratitude and to further strengthen their cooperative relationship.

"Yimin, you must come to the Shanghai Film Studio when you have time. We'll treat you to a meal," Huang Zumo said happily.

At the screening meeting, he, the director, was also highly praised by everyone. The leader pointed to the film and said, "Everyone says that Xie Jin from the Shanghai Film Studio is a great director, but I think Huang Zumo is quite good as a director too!"

A single word of encouragement made Huang Zumo feel elated for days, and even now, seeing Liu Yimin, he still feels a bit smug.

Xu Sangchu nodded, agreeing with Huang Zumo's words.

"I'll definitely go and enjoy the breeze along the Huangpu River when I have time. When exactly will it be released?" Liu Yimin asked.

"It will be released in August, barring any unforeseen circumstances, on August 10th," Zhang Mengzhao said.

"Okay, maybe I'll be able to watch this movie in Sichuan Province then," Liu Yimin joked.

"You're going to Sichuan Province?"

"Yes, there's a field trip in Sichuan Province!"

Huang Zumo perked up, pulling the others to sit down, insisting on knowing exactly what the content was and whether it could be adapted into a film script. Xu Sangchu looked at his director and smiled helplessly.

"This is a historical drama depicting the resistance of various ethnic groups against foreign aggression. In those past days, our country and nation's struggle transcended geographical boundaries and ethnic groups, with many heroic figures emerging from every ethnic group. Teacher Wan reminded me to write this play, so I felt a lot of pressure."

Liu Yimin explained it to them in detail, and Huang Zumo looked at Xu Sangchu with shining eyes: "Director Xu, I think this would be very exciting if it were adapted into a movie script."

Xu Sangchu laughed: "Old Huang, you really never forget about making movies. But you're right, Comrade Yimin, when you finish writing the script for the play, you can give it to us for reference. If possible, we'd also appreciate it if you could adapt it and try to make another classic movie."

"No trouble at all, we'll talk about it later!" Liu Yimin said happily.

After seeing the three off, Liu Yimin sent "The Kite Runner" directly to Li Xiaolin.

In the last few days before summer vacation, the exams for the Chinese Department of Yenching University were almost over. In the dormitory, several people were discussing their summer vacation plans. Liu Zhenyun and two others made a firm decision with high spirits: they must write a short story for publication before the start of the semester.

Holding the report card in his hand, Liu Yimin said, "The grades of all four of us in our dorm have been very stable this year!"

"Stability is paramount, and you're still number one in terms of stability!" Liu Zhenyun said with a smile.

Li Xueqin also said, "Yimin, your theoretical course grades are the best; none of our theoretical course grades are as good as yours."

Liu Yimin chuckled as he put away his report card: "There's nothing I can do about it. The professors just had to ask me questions that covered all my areas of knowledge!"

Liu Yimin originally planned to set off for Sichuan Province as soon as the holiday started, but Zou Huofan of Poetry Journal stopped him and invited him to participate in the Poetry Journal's Youth Poetry Gathering. As soon as the news of the first Youth Poetry Gathering was published, it immediately caused a sensation in the poetry world.

All eyes, those of poets and readers alike, were focused on the editorial department of *Poetry Journal*. Editor-in-Chief Yan Chen attached great importance to it, preparing to lead this year's *Poetry Journal* editorial team to great success.

"Old Zou, I have things to do during the summer vacation, so I really can't attend your 'Youth Poetry Recital'. If I'm free, I'll definitely attend," Liu Yimin explained immediately, looking at the enthusiastic Zou Huofan.

“Oh dear, what’s the point of you not coming? The Youth Poetry Festival is full of young poets who are very representative of the current poetry scene. As a representative of young writers and a winner of the Young and Middle-aged Poetry Award, you’re not participating. This Youth Poetry Festival has no significance.”

Zou Huofan grabbed Liu Yimin and continued relentlessly.

Liu Yimin explained a few words to him, and after he understood, Zou Huofan let go of Liu Yimin's hand, but still said, "Then lend us a few days. We're going to Beidaihe. How about it? We'll release your conscripts when we come back from the trip."

Liu Yimin nodded, as long as he wasn't allowed to attend the so-called "poetry creator training class," he should relax after working so hard for so long.

He hasn't been to Beidaihe yet!

"It's good that you agreed. Don't blame me for arresting you. I really had no choice. Everyone is watching now. If the first 'Youth Poetry Festival' is a flop, how can we hold it in the future? We'll be a laughing stock among our peers." Zou Huofan explained his good intentions.

Liu Yimin grasped Zou Huofan's hand: "Old Zou, we have a relationship, and I understand your good intentions."

A simple word of comfort warmed Zou Huofan's heart, and he wished he could tell Liu Yimin all about the difficulties that had recently been overcome in organizing the "Youth Poetry Festival".

"Yimin, your words warm my heart. Now I can safely conscript your men. If anything happens in the future, I'll still need to conscript your men."

"Old Zou, you've got me cornered!"

Zou Huofan said with no small amount of pride, "This is a summary of my decades of struggle experience as an old revolutionary."

Zou Huofan left satisfied, leaving behind the specific time for his trip to Beidaihe, where they would meet at the entrance of the Poetry Journal.

After the holiday started, before anyone else had left the dormitory, Liu Yimin returned to the courtyard house. The bamboo he had "borrowed" from the park was growing beautifully, and the crabapple and ginkgo trees in the courtyard were growing extremely lushly.

The henna flowers planted by Zhu Lin bloomed profusely, but unfortunately Liu Yimin had no intention of using them to coat his nails.

In the courtyard, Liu Yimin turned on the tape recorder, listened to music, and read a book under the veranda.

When Liu Yimin arrived at the editorial office of Poetry Journal wearing a short-sleeved shirt, there were already quite a few people standing at the entrance. Several editors came up to greet him when they saw him.

Zou Huofan came over and said, "Yimin, you're here pretty early. I thought you'd be a little later. Let's leave right away." He then pointed to the camera around Liu Yimin's neck and asked, "Is this thing any good? Why does it look so small?"

Liu Yimin smiled and raised his camera, saying, "It's definitely more effective than the Writers' Association. I need to take some nice pictures of Beidaihe."

"Don't just take pictures of the scenery, take pictures of people too!"

Zou Huofan led Liu Yimin to the center of the crowd, where a group of young poets all turned their attention to Liu Yimin.

"Comrades, this is Comrade Liu Yimin, the Comrade Liu Yimin you've all been wanting to meet. Comrade Liu Yimin's schedule is rather tight, so he can only stay with us for about two days. After that, he has to go to Sichuan Province for field research." A commotion arose around them. Liu Yimin looked at Zou Huofan and frowned, saying, "Old Zou, there's no need to explain so clearly."

Zou Huofan said with a smile, "I'm just trying to provoke them. Our Poetry Journal puts a lot of effort into organizing poetry gatherings to solicit manuscripts. These people need to be provoked by you, otherwise they won't be willing to write properly."

Zou Huofan patted Liu Yimin on the shoulder, signaling him to relax, and then looked at the others: "Everyone must learn more from Comrade Liu Yimin. Our Poetry Journal will invite famous poets such as Ai Qing and Huang Yongyu to be your teachers, to give you special guidance in writing, and strive to create excellent works."

There were a total of sixteen or seventeen young poets participating in the "Youth Poetry Festival" this time, some from other places and some from Beijing. Shu Ting and Gu Cheng were among them.

After Zou Huofan finished speaking, Gu Cheng took an apple out of his bag and handed it to Liu Yimin, and then to the others.

Looking at Gu Cheng, Liu Yimin said "thank you." He couldn't reconcile the blushing young man in front of him with the cold-blooded poet who would later cruelly kill his wife after his dream of a three-person world was shattered.

Gu Cheng, Shu Ting, Jiang He, and several others had connections with "Today" magazine, so they were the closest among this group.

Some of the poets from other places received instructions from their superiors before they arrived in Yanjing, explicitly forbidding them from having any contact with underground publications.

But on the surface, everything appears harmonious.

Today, the men are all wearing short-sleeved shirts and trousers, while the women are wearing either shirts and skirts or trousers.

After a while, Ai Qing and several other veteran poets arrived. Ai Qing smiled and shook Liu Yimin's hand, saying, "I knew it! How could the Poetry Journal not invite you? I heard you're going to Sichuan. You'd better take a good look at Dujiangyan."

"If I have the chance, I would certainly like to go and see for myself. To see the wisdom of our ancestors and to see what kind of nourishment could sustain tens of millions of people in Sichuan Province," Liu Yimin said with a smile.

After a few jokes, the group boarded a bus to Beidaihe under the direction of the Poetry Journal editorial department.

Beidaihe, a river that has appeared repeatedly throughout the history of New China, has witnessed many major events in the history of New China.

The fact that the great man swam in Beidaihe and wrote the poem "Beidaihe: Waves Washing Sand" added even more charm to this river.

After taking a bus to the train station, boarding the train and going through a lot of travel, and then taking another bus after getting off the train, we finally arrived in Beidaihe after several trips.

Liu Yimin sat next to Ai Qing and chatted with her the whole way, leaving many of the young poets at the poetry gathering with no opportunity to speak to him.

Ai Qing enthusiastically told Liu Yimin about the local customs and culture of Sichuan Province: "Don't go to Sichuan when you're young, and don't leave Sichuan when you're old. Yimin, do you know what that means?"

Liu Yimin smiled and explained it to him. Ai Qing was taken aback: "You've done a lot of research! Sichuan Province is a place of abundant resources and prosperous people. The Shu Road has been a strategic point connecting the inside and outside of Sichuan since ancient times, so the people here..."

"How about the two of us go to Sichuan Province together?"

Ai Qing was quite tempted, but still said, "Don't even think about conscripting an old man like me. You won't be idle once you get to Sichuan Province. Someone has already written to me, just waiting for you to come to Sichuan!"

"You mean I've walked right into an ambush?"

"It's an encirclement, but not a war of annihilation; it's a welcome banquet!"

"That's good!" Liu Yimin said with a smile.

When they arrived in Beidaihe, Liu Yimin was a little tired from the long journey, but the salty sea breeze blowing from the beach immediately revitalized him.

Beidaihe is a great location; the ocean next to it acts as a natural air conditioner, with no sweltering heat in summer and no severe cold in winter.

After arriving at the guesthouse and putting down their luggage, a group of people rushed to the beach. Zou Huofan shouted, "You can swim, but those who can't swim shouldn't go in; just touch the water."

Liu Yimin changed into shorts and a vest and went to the shore. He couldn't swim, so he could only wad in the water lightly. Fortunately, many other people there couldn't swim either, so Liu Yimin wasn't embarrassed.

Zou Huofan asked with a smile, "Yimin, you've never learned to swim?"

"My swimming instructor hasn't arrived yet." Liu Yimin whistled a not-so-pleasant tune as he stepped onto the fine sand.

Zou Huofan leaned closer and said, "Yimin, seeing this scene, don't you want to compose a poem?"

"I really want to!" Liu Yimin looked at the rolling white waves, his eyes deep and unfathomable.

Zou Huofan took out a small notebook from his pocket and prompted, "What would you like to recite?"

Several people behind her also gathered around. Ai Qing pricked up her ears and heard Liu Yimin slowly open his mouth.

"Big waves, big waves"

Big fish in big waves

There are small fish inside the big fish.

As Zou Huofan was writing, he suddenly felt something was wrong. He looked up abruptly and saw Liu Yimin looking at him with a grin. Zou Huofan laughed and scolded, "Hey, Yimin, you little rascal."

Ai Qing, who was standing next to her, also blushed from holding back her laughter. After a while, she burst out laughing: "Yi Min, the Zhang Zongchang you're talking about is a famous poet-warlord."

Liu Yimin's teasing made the atmosphere on the beach even more lively.

After enjoying the sea breeze for a while, Liu Yimin lay down on the beach in a "B" shape, with his feet and calves in the water. Occasionally, waves would come, but by this point they had lost their power and could only wash over Liu Yimin's thighs before moving on.

Jiang He ran to Liu Yimin's side, lay down, and said, "Comrade Liu Yimin, I have long admired your name, but it's a pity we haven't been able to meet. When 'Today' invited you, it was quite early, and I hadn't arrived yet. You never went to 'Today' again after that, otherwise we could have met."

Liu Yimin tilted his head to look at him, smiled politely, and said, "So we've met now?"

Jiang He also smiled, but there was a hint of unease in his smile. After a while, he asked again, "Comrade Yimin, is there some misunderstanding between you and Comrade Beidao and the others?"

Liu Yimin remained outwardly calm, but grinned and said, "Why do you ask that? I only met with Bei Dao and the others once, and we haven't been in contact since."

(End of this chapter)