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

Chapter 345 Xu Chi: The translation is a bit difficult
Inside the courtyard, the hot pot was steaming, and the aroma of meat and the flavorful broth whetted everyone's appetite.

The mice in the house were restless and eager to get out, becoming Sanhua's dinner as soon as they poked their heads out. Sanhua picked up a mouse with her mouth, swished it a couple of times on the brick floor, and then wolfed it down.

Liu Zhenyun looked at Liu Yimin gratefully, and Lu Yao and Jiang Zilong exchanged a smile after seeing this.

Lu Yao said, "Are you old classmates using the tactic of luring the enemy deep into our territory?"

"Comrade Lu Yao, Comrade Jiang Zilong, you are both familiar faces in magazines, and I usually can't get an appointment with you."

Jiang Zilong waved his hand and said, "I agree. What about Comrade Lu Yao?"

"Since Zilong has agreed, I can't be too coy. I agree too!" Lu Yao stuffed a large chopstick of mutton into his mouth, his lips covered in oil.

Liu Yimin took a plate of tofu from the kitchen and poured it into the copper pot: "After eating pickled vegetables and tofu, even the emperor can't compare to me. This is especially delicious tofu, everyone should try it."

"Haha, I prefer raw tofu," Jiang Zilong said.

"Then I'll go make you a plate!"

"No, no, no, no, Yimin, that's not necessary!" Jiang Zilong quickly called out.

Lu Yao asked Liu Yimin about American literature, wanting to understand the mainstream literary thought in the United States today.

"The United States is different from us. Its literary history is too short, and it's a multi-ethnic country. This multi-ethnicity leads to a wide variety of literary ideas. Currently, American literature mainly consists of non-fiction, Black literature, and Afro literature!"

“What is nonfiction?” Liu Zhenyun asked.

"Nonfiction literally means truth, and it's actually a form of news reporting. Zhenyun, you can learn from it. They believe that ordinary reporting cannot express the bizarre aspects of social events, so they focus on using novelistic techniques to depict sensational social events."

Black literature primarily emerged after World War II, while Asian literature, due to the large Asian population in the United States, saw the rise of many writers within the Asian community who emphasized their individuality and had a profound impact on American literature.

As Liu Yimin recounted his story, the three gained a deeper understanding of American literature.

They chatted until late at night before Liu Zhenyun, Lu Yao, and Jiang Zilong finally left, staggering.

After closing the door, Liu Yimin and Zhu Lin cleaned the yard and kitchen before returning to their room to sleep.

In the bedroom, Zhu Lin hooked her arm around Liu Yimin's neck and whispered, "Teacher Liu, do you still remember the first time?"

“It’s raining outside.” Liu Yimin hugged Zhu Lin and said with a smile.

Time really flies.

Time flies, and it was April 15th in the blink of an eye. The Lu Xun Literary Prize for Novella was officially announced. Liu Yimin, Lu Yao, and Jiang Zilong walked into the award ceremony together, accompanied by Cui Daoyi, Xu Yi, and several other editors.

Upon arriving at the venue, Li Cunbao, the author of "Garland at the Foot of the Mountain," approached Liu Yimin, grasped his hand, and said, "Comrade Liu Yimin, thank you. If it weren't for that lesson you gave at the Yanjing Military Region, I don't know when this novel would have been published."

"Comrade Li Cunbao, this is your own achievement, don't try to pin it on me, hahaha. You wrote it very well, the leaders of the General Political Department even praised you in front of me," Liu Yimin said with a smile.

Many familiar faces have won awards before, including Wang Meng's "It's Hard to Meet Again," Wang Anyi's "Passing By," and Wei Junyi, president of People's Literature Publishing House, for "Baptism."

"Yimin, you look even more energetic than I have in the past few months. I heard about your work at the Beijing People's Art Theatre. You did a great job!" Wang Meng patted Liu Yimin on the shoulder.

Liu Yimin knew he was referring to the "Miller feud," so he said, "Sigh, what a mess this is!" Wang Anyi took the initiative to walk over to Liu Yimin and ask him about his experience in the United States, as she would be going to the International Writing Center at the University of Iowa for an exchange program in the fall.

The young Wang Anyi was considered quite beautiful among writers, her delicate face showing both anticipation and trepidation.

"Comrade Liu Yimin, Ms. Nie Hualing mentioned you in her letter a few days ago, saying that you are 'doing things with ease' in the United States."

"Handling it over with ease? It seems Ms. Nie Hualing has a high opinion of me. I thought she was going to talk about causing a ruckus in heaven. Actually, going to America is quite simple. You have to be brave enough to communicate with Americans and give them a strong rebuttal for their mistakes. A considerable number of Americans are bullies who prey on the weak and fear the strong. The less you dare to fight back against them, the more smug they become."

We must argue with them logically and with evidence. Furthermore, we must view bourgeois ideology dialectically, and avoid immediately falling into its ideological vortex.

As everyone was chatting animatedly, the awards ceremony officially began.

Liu Yimin gave a brief speech on the topic of how to write in the new era.

"When I first received the award, I proposed reform literature. Now reform literature is on the rise. Everyone can focus on the contradictions and conflicts of reform, and the impact of social development on people after reform. Reform is still an inescapable topic for realist writing. Since we can't get rid of it, we should write about it bravely."

Comrade Lu Yao's "Life" is very well written; our battlefield is not only in the cities, but also in the countryside!

After Liu Yimin stepped down, Wei Junyi sat down and whispered, "Yimin, I'd like to learn from the O. Henry Prize and compile the winning novella stories into a collection for publication. What do you think?"

"This is a good thing, it saves everyone from having to buy them one by one!" Liu Yimin said.

"I'm talking to my colleagues at the publishing house. Some of them don't understand, but I think we should institutionalize the publication of anthologies of literary award-winning works." After saying a few words, Wei Junyi made the decision. She will go to the Writers Association later to discuss cooperation.

After receiving the award, Lu Yao took everyone to dinner. Cui Daoyi and Xu Yi were busy vying for the author's attention, so only Lu Yao and Jiang Zilong ate together.

"Let's go eat at the courtyard house. We're having roasted lamb skewers today; the restaurant hasn't made them as well as we'd like." Liu Yimin pulled Lu Yao and Jiang Zilong back into the courtyard.

After receiving such a small bonus, and having a few meals at restaurants, Lu Yao will be going back home naked again.

Lu Yao was a little sad that only 90 copies of the film "Life" were sold. However, the film studio had invested less money, and in fact, they earned more than they did with "Triumph at Midnight".

Not long after the manuscript of "Beloved" was sent to Xu Chi, Xu Chi took the manuscript and his wife Chen Song to Yanjing.

"Comrade Xu, why did you rush here?" Liu Yimin asked, puzzled.

Xu Chi said helplessly, "I think this manuscript will be difficult to translate!"

"You can't do it?" Liu Yimin blurted out without thinking.

Xu Chi glared angrily at Liu Yimin: "I meant that translating it is difficult; the novel is too complicated."

If Liu Yimin hadn't been familiar with Xu Chi, he might have even wondered if Xu Chi had learned the capitalist trick of "adding money."

"Is this difficult?"

"You make it sound so easy. I was completely engrossed in this novel, but I forced myself to translate it for a whole day, and I still didn't manage to translate much."

(End of this chapter)