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

Chapter 508 Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Animation Association
The ceremony for upgrading the institute was very simple. Dai Jianye and several others who came for training eagerly took photos next to the new sign.

"Mr. Shen, Mr. Liu, shall we take a picture together?" Liang Yong'an suddenly said while taking the picture.

Seeing the expectant looks in their eyes, Liu Yimin looked at Xia Yan and said, "Old Shen, shall we take a picture?"

"Okay, let's take a picture." Xia Yan tugged at her short-sleeved shirt, tidied her hair a few times, and happily walked into the middle of the crowd.

Liu Yimin stood next to Xia Yan, and the other members of the Institute of Literature and Art stood in order next to or behind the two of them, with Yan Jiayan and Ding Shisun helping to form the queue.

"Comrades, let's have a smile, and shout in unison, 'Go, Institute of Literature and Art!'" said a teacher from the school's publicity department, holding up a camera.

Liu Yimin said with a smile, "I'll count to three, two, one, and everyone count together!"

"Go, Institute of Literature and Art!"

Click! A teacher from the school's publicity department pressed the camera shutter, successfully capturing the moment.

After Ding Shisun left, Xia Yan went into Liu Yimin's office again and explained to him the significance of the Institute of Literature's upgrade.

"This is what I suggested to my superiors. The Institute of Literature is under the Chinese Department, which is ultimately a bit low-level. In the future, with a higher level, it will have a greater influence. I have seen the Institute of Literature's accounts now, and the funds are enough to be partially self-sufficient."

“Paying for the cost of training teachers is not a problem, but achieving true self-sufficiency is still a long way off.” Liu Yimin explained to Xia Yan the income and expenditure of several projects, including the “Youth Night Talk” program in cooperation with China National Radio.

Xia Yan nodded in satisfaction after hearing this. He had never interfered with the management of the Institute of Literature and Art since its establishment. He really didn't expect Liu Yimin to be able to manage the Institute of Literature and Art to be the way it is now.

“When we decided to establish the Institute of Literature, your teacher talked to me, saying that you didn’t have much management experience and was afraid you would mess up the project. At the time, I said that he was just being overly concerned and underestimated you, but now I see he was right. Young people should just go for it.” Xia Yan had a look on his face that said, “I understand you.”

"Thank you for your trust, Mr. Shen and the higher-ups."

"Don't give me that official talk, kid!" Xia Yan chuckled.

“Mr. Shen, it’s true that you trust me. You’ve never interfered with the more than 200,000 yuan in funding each year,” Liu Yimin said.

Xia Yan said, "I don't have the energy for that anymore. Sigh, I'm already doing well enough managing the film business. The Institute of Literature and Art has made great contributions to the film industry. Now the Beijing Film Studio is even starting to write its own martial arts scripts and train martial arts directors."

Speaking of movies, Xia Yan changed the subject: "Didn't you go to Saihanba recently? How's the filming progress there?"

"It was well-made. The director is Huang Zumo, the same director as 'Romance on Lushan Mountain.' We talked many times before filming started, and he had a deep understanding of my filming ideas. Wang Yang and I went to watch for two days, and we basically didn't have to interfere. He was able to film it all by himself. The actors were also good; they were from the Shanghai Dramatic Arts Troupe, and their basic skills were excellent."

Xia Yan nodded and said that Liu Yimin should know what he was doing. Finally, he brought up the last thing he had come for: the issue of script royalties.

"Wang Yang told me that our script royalties are far lower than those abroad. I heard from Wang Yang that the contract you signed with the foreign film company was a box office revenue sharing contract? Aren't they usually profit-sharing contracts?" Xia Yan asked curiously.

Liu Yimin shifted his position, leaning closer, and said, "Old Shen, capitalism is born for profit; it's like it wants to stuff itself to death while others starve. A contract is a contract, but it's a long shot for an individual to try and play the game with an entire company or even the Hollywood entertainment system. It's far too easy for them to turn a blockbuster movie into a loss on paper."

There are multiple companies within companies, and multiple contracts within contracts. If they claim losses later, even if you shout your innocence, it won't help. Therefore, directly sharing revenue based on box office receipts can largely prevent them from playing tricks.

Hollywood has far too many tricks up its sleeve when it comes to revenue sharing. Back then, "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" was one of the highest-grossing films of the year, but it ended up losing more than $100 million.

"I see. How much of the box office revenue do you get?"

0.5 percent.

Xia Yan did the math in his head, and when the numbers came out, he gasped: "You've really made a lot of money, kid!"

"And incidentally, it earns some foreign exchange for the country."

Xia Yan rolled her eyes at Liu Yimin, her mind churning with thoughts, unsure of what to say.

After a long while, Xia Yan finally spoke: "Wang Yang talked about the huge difference in script fees. He proposed that for movies that can earn foreign exchange, we should give you a larger share."

As soon as Wang Yang returned from Saihanba, he talked to Xia Yan about this matter. However, Wang Yang also had a hunch that since China Film Group earned more, the money should be paid by China Film Group.

"We discussed it and agreed to pay $20,000 in script fees for the movie 'Fearless,' to be paid by the film studio, but actually by China Film Group. Yimin, the domestic system is still in the exploratory stage, and the revenue sharing is also in the experimental stage. This is the highest amount we can pay, so you have to understand."

"Mr. Shen, I know. When I was writing the script for 'Fearless,' I thought I would only get a few thousand dollars. Now it's more than 20,000 US dollars, which is far beyond my expectations. If I had only thought about how China Film Group could make tens of millions of dollars at the box office while I only got a few thousand, I would have felt unbalanced. How could I have written a good script if I felt unbalanced?"

Xia Yan patted Liu Yimin on the shoulder and looked at him with appreciation: "Good. If you weigh the gains and losses too much, you won't do a good job. The same goes for the Institute of Literature."

Seeing that his time at the Institute of Literature and Art was almost up, Xia Yan got up to say goodbye to Liu Yimin, and before leaving, he once again encouraged him to keep up the good work.

As the car disappeared around the corner, Liu Yimin turned around and took another look at the newly hung sign, unconsciously straightening his chest.

"What? Do you find the Chinese Literature Department sign a bit of an eyesore?" Yan Jiayan walked up to Liu Yimin without anyone noticing.

"It is indeed a bit old," Liu Yimin said with a grin. After years of exposure to wind, sun, and rain, the white paint at the bottom of the Chinese Department's sign had long since yellowed and peeled off.

Yan Jiayan crossed his arms and looked at it for a while: "It is indeed a bit of a mismatch. This also shows that your Institute of Literature and Art is an emerging young force!"

"We are hermit crabs."

Liu Yimin instructed Yan Jiayan to have the finance department take stock of the Chinese Literature Department's assets occupied by the Institute of Literature Research, and to properly account for them, so that they wouldn't become a mess later.

Yan Jiayan nodded and said, "That's fast. It's only been a few years since we were established, and we've already become two departments. You've really moved fast, you're now at the same level as me."

"I will always be your soldier. We've been promoted, but compared to a large department like the Chinese Literature Department, we're still far behind!"

"Don't be modest. We're now at the second-level departments of Yan University." Yan Jiayan patted Liu Yimin on the shoulder.

When Liu Yimin entered the Institute of Literature and Art, Dai Jianye and his entourage stood up and applauded to congratulate him.

"Alright, everyone stop making a fuss. Let's go out to eat at a restaurant for lunch, it's on me. Eat as much as you want." Liu Yimin took out a wad of cash from his wallet and handed it to Yan Zhen, asking him to take them to eat.

There are more than twenty people in the Institute of Literature and Art, including the training teachers and the journalism graduate students who are doing research with Liu Yimin.

Liu Yimin gave Yan Zhen three hundred yuan and told him to spend as much as he wanted: "If it's not enough, you can pay for it first and then I'll reimburse you."

Immediately, applause erupted in the office, and Dai Jianye exclaimed, "Professor Liu is the best professor Yenching University has ever had for its students!"

“We can be even bolder, let’s go nationwide,” Yi Zhongtian said with a smile.

Yan Zhen said, "Following Teacher Liu, I've lived a life of luxury."

"Alright, stop singing my praises." Liu Yimin gestured for everyone to keep their voices down, so the Chinese Literature Department wouldn't think that only the Institute of Literature was showing off.

Liang Yong'an said, "Teacher Liu, we will always miss you after our training is over."

"Miss me? Don't be. If you cause trouble in the future, please delete this part of your experience at the Institute of Literature."

"Hahaha."

At 12 o'clock, Liu Yimin got up and left. Yan Zhen and Dai Jianye discussed where to eat. They had tried several restaurants around the area. This time, they finally had 300 yuan that had fallen from the sky, so they had to find a good place to eat.

Wu Zuxiang nudged Liu Yimin on the shoulder and said, "This teacher has become a student again, and his lively spirit has returned."

"Professor Wu, they are teachers, but they are not very old."

Wang Yao said with a smile, "In the blink of an eye, a year has come to an end. To be honest, I'm a little reluctant to leave. I wonder how good the next batch of teachers who will come for training will be?"

"Alright, Professor Wang, no matter what, we have to train them properly. We are teachers of teachers," Liu Yimin said with a smile.

When Liu Yimin returned to the courtyard house, Zhu Lin was already there, chatting with Liu Yu and Liu Lin. "Teacher Liu, why are you so happy?" Zhu Lin asked.

"Our institute has been upgraded."

"You got a promotion?"

“Yes, it doesn’t really matter whether it’s mentioned or not. It’s fine as long as it’s under the Chinese Department, but if it’s promoted to a second-level institute of Yenching University, things will be much easier to handle,” Liu Yimin said with a smile.

Zhu Lin carried Liu Yu to Liu Yimin's side: "Congratulations, Director Liu. Your university, Yanda, is a vice-ministerial level university. Your position as a second-level director is quite a good match for your position as a third-level professor."

"Mom, what is a Level 2 institute?" Liu Lin ran over and hugged Zhu Lin's leg to ask.

Zhu Lin patiently explained to the two, but they still couldn't understand. Finally, Zhu Lin simply said, "It's like your relationship with your father. Your father is the first generation, and you are his sons, the second generation."

"Is Dad's research institute the son of the school?"

Liu Yimin flicked Liu Yu's head: "Pretty much, but your explanation is a bit inelegant."

"Xiaoyu is right, the Ministry of Education is like the grandfather, and the Ministry of Culture is like the grandmother," Zhu Lin joked.

Liu Yimin shook his head and didn't say anything more, assuming that Zhu Lin was talking nonsense.

After Ximei finished cooking, Liu Yimin carried Liu Lin into the house to eat.

"Did Mom and Dad reply? When are you coming over for summer vacation?" Zhu Lin scooped a spoonful of meat gravy and poured it over the noodles.

Liu Yimin said, "Around July 5th, the exact time hasn't been decided yet. I'll pick you up when you arrive."

“Okay, our play premieres on the 5th, and I’m busy. Please remember to apologize to my parents for me,” Zhu Lin said.

"Don't worry about your bookish manner, your parents won't find fault with you."

After lunch, Zhu Lin went for a nap. Liu Yimin felt restless because of the heat and couldn't sleep, so he went to the study for a while and continued writing a few more installments of "Rainbow Cat and Blue Rabbit Seven Heroes".

After getting sleepy, I didn't go back to my room. Instead, I grabbed a sheet, covered myself with it, and lay down on the rocking chair to sleep for a while. I was afraid of catching a cold from the air conditioning if I didn't cover myself with the sheet.

In the afternoon, Liu Yimin returned to the Institute of Literature and Art. Everyone was eating with their mouths full of oil. Yan Zhen handed the remaining twenty yuan to Liu Yimin.

"Sure, that saves me money." Liu Yimin said with a smile.

Dai Jianye patted his round belly and let out a burp: "Teacher Liu, I really can't eat anymore, otherwise I would have made sure you spent all three hundred yuan."

"Alright, everyone tidy up properly. Go to the restroom if you need to. I'll be giving a lecture in a bit," Liu Yimin said.

The training was about to end, and Liu Yimin needed to quickly give them a few more lessons. Liu Yimin looked at Yan Zhen beside him and asked if the final exam papers had been printed.

"Teacher Liu, it's printed. There won't be any mistakes on tomorrow's exam. By the day after tomorrow, most students will be on holiday and going home," Yan Zhen said.

Liu Yimin said, "Thank you for your hard work."

"It's not hard work, it's not hard work."

“Once you’re in graduate school, you’ll still be in charge of this office at the Institute of Literature, so I won’t need to find anyone else.”

"Alright, since I'll be a graduate student under you anyway, and I'm the senior student, I should naturally take on more responsibility."

Seeing that Yan Zhen spoke sincerely, Liu Yimin nodded and told him not to always do everything himself, but to learn more about management.

When everyone returned, Liu Yimin took out the lecture notes from his bag and began to talk to them about "colonial literature".

“You journalism students should also come and listen. This will benefit your future interviewing and news writing. Journalists need to be both ‘broad’ and ‘specialized.’ They need to have their own areas of expertise in terms of topics and news fields, and they also need to be well-versed in knowledge, so that they can readily draw upon it,” Liu Yimin said.

Journalism students immediately brought over stools, pens in hand, ready to take notes.

"Colonial literature refers to literature created by writers from the mother country or the colony during the colonial period. It usually views the contradictions and conflicts that occurred in the colony from the perspective of the mother country. Postcolonial literature mainly discusses the literature, culture and thought after the colony gained independence."

After these places were colonized, their languages ​​and cultures were reshaped. For example, Spanish is spoken in South America, and English is spoken in Southeast Asia, particularly in the Philippines. After the colonial power left, most colonies would reshape their own cultures to gain cultural identity and independence. Of course, some would also "recognize the enemy as their father" and act as dutiful descendants.

Dai Jianye asked curiously, "Do countries like Vietnam and South Korea, which have abolished Chinese characters, count?"

"They certainly don't count. This is a cultural identity influenced by the soft power of Chinese culture. It's an action they've taken to break free from the influence of Chinese culture."

"Our institute studies Western cultural aggression. Does that mean that Chinese cultural aggression is being carried out by them?" Yi Zhongtian asked.

Liu Yimin said, "No, it's the attraction of culture. They were all attracted by Chinese culture. Aggression is forced and goes against the will of the other party."

"Our ancestors were truly amazing. Confucian culture spread far and wide across the oceans. It's just that it's relatively far from the West, otherwise it would have been part of the Chinese cultural sphere." Liang Yong'an said with a hint of regret.

"Don't be disappointed. We will strive to do what our ancestors couldn't. As long as we are strong enough, we will naturally attract them."

Seeing that they seemed a little skeptical, Liu Yimin continued to encourage them: "Back in the day, our ancestors were so powerful. Wherever the sun and moon shone and wherever rivers flowed, it was all Han territory. We can't let them down! We've risen from the bottom more than once or twice."

Liu Yimin talked to them for an entire afternoon and even handed them several related novels, asking them to take a closer look.

"How are everyone's training course papers coming along?" Liu Yimin asked.

Everyone reported on their progress, and the progress should be completed by mid-July. The paper is an important indicator for evaluating their training performance.

As July arrived, Yenching University was on holiday, and only the staff of the Institute of Literature and Art remained in the entire office building.

"What? People from the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Japan Animation Association want to see me?" Liu Yimin asked.

"Yes, Comrade Yimin, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs accompanied the Animation Association representatives on their trip to China this time, mainly for exchanges and cooperation between the two sides in the field of animation," the foreign affairs official said on the other end of the phone.

"They specifically wanted to see me alone? Wasn't it a group meeting?"

"During the group meeting, they said they greatly admired your literary and fairy tale writing skills and wanted to meet you."

"Okay, I'll definitely attend the day after tomorrow." Liu Yimin hung up the phone. These Japanese have been having quite a few animation-related exchange activities lately.

After hanging up the phone, Liu Yimin called Xia Yan again to ask. Xia Yan knew about it and would be participating as well.

Xia Yan had someone send Liu Yimin a document containing information about the person in charge of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' cultural affairs and Osamu Tezuka, the president of the Japan Animation Association and the author of "Astro Boy".

The Japan Animation Association was founded in 1978 with the aim of promoting animation, especially international animation collaborations.

On July 2nd, Liu Yimin met Osamu Tezuka in the conference room of the Film Bureau. He was wearing a hat and a suit, and his appearance and features made him look like a Japanese man.

Osamu Tezuka was already quite old, but upon seeing Liu Yimin, he proactively extended his hand: "Mr. Liu, I've long admired your name. I've read all your works in Japan, and they're exceptionally well-written."

"Well, welcome Mr. Osamu Tezuka to China. I hope this visit will promote cultural cooperation between our two countries," Liu Yimin said politely.

Liu Yimin also saw a familiar face in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' team: Xiao Meihezi, a former international student at Yenching University.

Xiao Meihezi's appearance was quite different from before. She was dressed in a business suit and had slightly heavy makeup on her face. When she saw Liu Yimin, she said happily, "Mr. Liu, it's been many years since we last met. When I saw your work in Japan, it reminded me of the wonderful times we had on the Yenching University campus."

(End of this chapter)