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

Chapter 498, "A Longing for Hometown," has been included in the middle school Chinese textbook.

Xinhua News Agency has set the end date for this project at the end of the year, so Liu Yimin still has enough time to work on it and to cultivate these journalism graduate students' understanding of international communication.

Liu Yimin revised the research materials that Li Liangrong had gathered, and then held a meeting with them to give a detailed explanation.

"Alright, everyone, go back to work. If you have any questions, feel free to ask me." Liu Yimin smiled and closed the documents.

Yan Zhen asked Liu Yimin if he still wanted to teach the last two periods in the afternoon. Liu Yimin replied, "I'll do it myself, otherwise the students won't recognize me."

Yan Zhen breathed a sigh of relief: "Many students from other departments are asking if you're giving a lecture today. If they see it's me, they'll probably get yelled at."

The students all wanted to hear Liu Yimin talk about his trip to Singapore. Before class, Liu Yimin went to Yan Jiayan's office and told him that Chen Liren would be coming to Beijing on May 10 and suggested that the ceremony be held on the 11th.

"Okay, I'll go tell Principal Ding. Lu Yao is your friend, right?"

"What's wrong, Professor Yan?"

"It's nothing. The first part of 'Ordinary World' is very well written. There aren't many writers like this who are willing to delve into the land to think and write. Your review is also very good. I recently discussed this with several professors, and we were all thinking about how the academic community would view Lu Yao's 'Ordinary World' without your literary review."

Lu Yao's "Ordinary World" was written in February, but the actual publication schedule was not until May.

"It's definitely more negative than positive," Yan Jiayan said definitively. He and several professors believed that it was precisely because of Liu Yimin that the academic and literary circles did not criticize "Ordinary World" too much.

“I think ‘Ordinary World’ deserves a wider audience. Lu Yao’s works are rooted in the soil, but they are not ‘rustic’. They can give people hope and strength. This is the kind of work we need.”

Yan Jiayan said, "He wrote about the countryside, but the countryside he depicted was materially poor, yet overall it was vibrant and uplifting. Next time there's an opportunity, you should also let him appear on your 'Youth Night Talk' program; many young people might want to hear it."

As class was about to start, Liu Yimin and Yan Jiayan left the Chinese Department at the same time.

Upon arriving at the teaching building, the large classroom was already surrounded by a dense crowd of students. The students, who were pushing their way forward, suddenly turned around and saw the helpless Liu Yimin.

"Stop pushing! Stop pushing! Professor Liu hasn't gone in yet! Professor Liu hasn't gone in yet! What the hell are you listening to?!" a student couldn't help but curse.

Liu Yimin said with a smile, "Classmate, don't swear. They're trying to squeeze in, but when they find I'm not there, they still have to make way for me."

However, the student's voice quickly had an effect, with students constantly calling out to them to make way for Professor Liu.

Seeing the path that had been cleared ahead, Liu Yimin smiled and said, "Students, please don't push."

"You can't hear it unless you're pushing."

"The content you want to hear has already been recorded on 'Youth Night Talk,' and you can listen to it when the next episode airs."

The students calmed down considerably upon hearing this, but they were still unwilling to let the live lesson go.

Liu Yimin entered through the back door and saw the words "Welcome Professor Liu back from Singapore!" written in large characters on the blackboard.

Students were sitting on the steps, and Liu Yimin finally managed to squeeze to the front: "Thank you so much for your welcome, everyone is so enthusiastic."

"Professor Liu, how did you persuade those writers on the island in Singapore?" Kong Qingdong, a third-year student, hurriedly stood up and asked.

After he sat down, curious voices rose and fell among the other students. Liu Yimin waved to everyone, and the room quickly quieted down.

"Classmates, I will slowly tell you what's going on." Liu Yimin asked someone to open the window; there were too many people, and it was a bit stuffy standing on the stage.

Liu Yimin tried to speak louder so that the students outside could hear him.

"Persuasion is simple: present the facts and reason, and also appeal to emotions. Sometimes, emotional appeal is more effective than reasoning. Once the atmosphere is right, they will let go of their reservations."

"Professor Liu, were they punished after they returned to the island?"

"Based on the information I've received so far, there isn't any. Do you know what this means? It means that we all want to come together. But we can't let our guard down against 'TD' ideology on the island. These are all problems we need to solve."

Liu Yimin lectured for two consecutive periods without a break, and almost no students left voluntarily. Fortunately, Liu Yimin had a strong bladder; if it had been any other senior professor, they probably would have been bursting with bladder water by now.

The bell rang, signaling the end of get out of class, and the students finally snapped out of their daze. Liu Yimin closed his book and said, "Finally, I'd like to recommend a book to everyone, called 'Ordinary World.' We can think about where individuals should go in the tide of reform, and how young people who are feeling lost should strive."

Seeing that the students were still unwilling to leave, Liu Yimin said helplessly, "Students, let's go now, otherwise we won't be able to get any food later."

The students slowly got up after hearing this, with the outermost students leaving first. Because there were so many people, it took almost twenty minutes for the classroom to become spacious.

Liu Yimin quickly walked to the restroom, gave a final shiver, and left the teaching building feeling comfortable.

Yan Jiayan was waiting for Liu Yimin in front of the teaching building. When he saw him, he quickly walked over and said, "There are so many students."

"Professor Yan, what are you waiting for me for?"

"This is the donation ceremony program that the school office compiled this afternoon. What do you think?" Yan Jiayan handed a piece of paper to Liu Yimin.

Liu Yimin reviewed the process, which included inviting leaders from the education department to attend, and having the president of Yenching University, Chen Liren, and Liu Yimin speak. In addition, the students were organized to sing the "Graduation Song".

"Professor Yan, I have no objections. The school office did a good job organizing it." Liu Yimin paused after speaking, then realized there was still one person he hadn't invited: "Let's invite the manager of Quanjude as well, after all, his money was the first donation for the scholarship."

Yan Jiayan also realized what was going on and quickly said, "Of course, of course. If we don't invite them, it will make them feel bad. They'll think that Yanda University is greedy and forgets its principles for profit."

"That's all, Professor Yan, I'll be going now," Liu Yimin said, patting his clothes. "Okay, let the department know if anything comes up."

The following day, Liu Yimin attended a symposium on the film "The Sons of Overseas Chinese" organized by the Film Bureau, which was also attended by the director and director of the Fujian Provincial Film Studio.

The Film Bureau mainly emphasized the importance of film production and announced the official start of filming for "The Overseas Chinese Son".

Liu Yimin made a brief speech, and the Film Bureau read out the telegram sent by Zhongqiao Film Bureau.

"Comrades, the overseas Chinese and the people of Southeast Asia are all waiting for 'The Sons of Overseas Chinese.' The comrades from the August First Film Studio and the Fujian Film Studio must work closely together to present the content of Comrade Liu Yimin's script in a true and vivid way." Xia Yan pounded the table heavily.

The two major film studios quickly responded, stating that they would follow the arrangements and would definitely produce excellent works.

After leaving the Film Bureau, Li Jun shook hands with Liu Yimin to say goodbye and then led the director from Fujian Film Studio directly to Zheng Tingji's home.

Liu Peiran watched their departing figures and said, "Old Li has had a tough time this time too. Traveling across the ocean to Yunnan Province is physically demanding for a director."

"Then we'll need Director Liu and the comrades from Fujian Film Studio to do a good job in logistical support."

Two million of the five million US dollars in filming funding provided by Southeast Asia has been received, and the necessary equipment is already in the procurement process.

Inside the study, Liu Yimin stared at the draft of "When Will the Veterans on the Island See Their Parents Again? Sons Long for Mothers, Mothers Long for Sons, Their Graves Are Separated by Heaven and Earth!" Sitting opposite him were Ye Shengtao and another middle school Chinese language editor from the People's Education Press.

Ye Shengtao and his colleagues came to this place to adapt the article so that it would be suitable for publication in textbooks.

Ye Shengtao was the first president of the People's Education Press. Although he is no longer the president, he has long been involved in the review and approval of textbooks.

"Mr. Ye, how about changing the name to 'Looking Across the Sea' or 'Nostalgia for My Hometown'?" Liu Yimin asked.

The first thing to change in this article is the title; this writing style is certainly not suitable as a textbook title.

“How about ‘Nostalgia for My Hometown’? It sounds more lyrical,” Ye Shengtao said with a smile.

He had been observing Liu Yimin ever since he entered the study. He had heard of Liu Yimin before, but unfortunately the two had never met.

He wasn't supposed to come this time; he insisted on coming.

“Okay, I will revise the entire text to make it more formal and correct any inappropriate language. What do you think needs to be changed?” Liu Yimin asked.

Ye Shengtao suggested that Liu Yimin make the connection between the story of "dividing the land for food" and the final national righteousness more natural, from Liu Yimin's personal perspective: "For example, 'When I heard it from my friend, I burst into tears,' which would then lead to the following text. Adding your perspective would make it feel more real to the students."

Students are students after all; their comprehension abilities are limited, and there are many things they don't understand.

After Liu Yimin joined, just as Ye Shengtao said, it added a touch of authenticity, making the subsequent output feel like a complete outpouring of Liu Yimin's personal emotions.

"Professor Ye, you truly deserve the praise of your years of experience compiling textbooks; your insights are spot on," Liu Yimin complimented.

"Haha, it's all learned through practice. We're all educators, and we all know we can't look at things from our own perspective; we have to look at them from the students' perspective. What content is suitable for students? What content is suitable for educating students? These are all questions that require knowledge."

The editor next to him chimed in, "We plan to include this article in the first year of junior high school and, through the ministry, promote it to the Chinese language textbooks of various provinces."

Several of Liu Yimin's articles have appeared in Chinese textbooks for all grades in junior high and high school. The poem "Ideal" is currently being memorized by second-year high school students.

"Moreover, the key texts are examined so that our students understand from a young age that people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait will always be compatriots," Ye Shengtao said.

Liu Yimin felt energized when he thought about how the examiners were scratching their heads trying to find a way to answer the questions, and how the students were looking around trying to figure out how to solve the problems.

Ye Shengtao's main purpose in visiting Liu Yimin was to chat with him; the text "Nostalgia for My Hometown" was secondary.

"I'm getting old, and I always want to talk to you young people, so please don't bother me." Ye Shengtao leaned on his cane.

"Mr. Ye, I also enjoy communicating with senior figures like you the most. I always learn something new every time."

Ye Shengtao discussed Liu Yimin's guiding principles for compiling university textbooks at the Institute of Literature and thought his approach was very correct.

"Textbooks are the foundation of students' learning; in fact, the type of textbooks can influence the type of students they produce, especially in this complex era of public opinion. With reform and opening up, and the clash of various viewpoints, we must uphold the bottom line of textbooks even more." Ye Shengtao said this to Liu Yimin, and also to the textbook editor standing beside him.

Ye Shengtao even suggested that Liu Yimin should participate more in the compilation and review of primary and secondary school Chinese textbooks in the future.

"Yimin, the work of compiling and approving textbooks is not complicated. The current textbooks are based on the existing ones and will not be changed much in the reform. Approval is even simpler; it's just a matter of checking if the content is appropriate." Ye Shengtao explained to him the key work being done in the current compilation of primary and secondary school textbooks.

Ye Shengtao became more and more enthusiastic as he spoke. At first, he thought Liu Yimin could join, but in the end, he felt that Liu Yimin had to join.

How bad could someone who dares to uphold their principles when writing university textbooks be when writing primary and secondary school textbooks?

Currently, primary and secondary school Chinese textbooks are beginning to introduce foreign articles or stories of foreign celebrities. Although Ye Shengtao felt this was not a bad thing, once the door is opened, the future is uncertain.

"Yimin, what do you think?" Ye Shengtao asked Liu Yimin.

"If the People's Education Press is willing to hire me to compile Chinese language textbooks for primary and secondary schools, I will do my best."

(End of this chapter)