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

Chapter 511 A Solo Pilgrimage: A Heart-stirring Friendship

Seeing that Liu Fuqing was a bit depressed, Liu Yimin chuckled and said, "Dad, you're getting old, don't worry about so much. In the end, you're the one who has to make the decisions on important matters, aren't you?"

“That’s true. Your mother makes the decisions on small matters, but she still has to ask me for advice on big ones.” Liu Fuqing straightened his back again.

But the more he thought about it, the more uneasy he felt. It seemed like nothing major was happening at home anymore. His two eldest sons were already married, and he couldn't get involved in what they were doing.

The young people were basically in charge of things in the production brigade, so he didn't need to worry about anything. Aside from deciding when to plant and harvest, there didn't seem to be any major issues at home.

With the arrival of Liu Fuqing and Yang Xiuyun, the courtyard became much livelier. The following evening, Zhu's father and mother arrived at the courtyard with some gifts. The four in-laws chatted warmly as soon as they met.

Zhu's father took out a cigarette from his pocket and offered it to Liu Fuqing, but Liu Fuqing didn't smoke it. Instead, he tucked the cigarette behind his ear.

“My dear in-law, I also brought you some tobacco leaves. This is grown where I’m from. If you don’t like the cigarettes from the factory, you can roll them in paper and smoke them. This is good stuff, it’s strong.” Liu Fuqing chuckled.

Zhu's father thanked Liu Fuqing. He admitted that he wasn't used to such a strong inhalation, but he accepted it nonetheless.

Yang Xiuyun and Zhu's mother huddled together, discussing Liu Yu and Liu Lin's recent situation, including whether they had grown taller or gained weight.

When the food was ready, Zhu Lin came back and chatted and ate with everyone. However, she had a performance that evening, so she only ate some light food.

"Father-in-laws, Liu Yu and Liu Lin miss you very much. With you here, the two little ones will have a lot of fun this summer vacation," Zhu's mother said with a smile.

Yang Xiuyun looked at Liu Yu, who was eating with his head down, with affection: "We miss them very much back in our hometown. Our eldest son's An'an often goes back to visit us, but we still can't help missing these two. If only Yanjing were closer to our Ruxian County."

Father Zhu smiled and said, "When technology advances and trains run faster, it will be easier to come here. My dear in-laws, how was your wheat harvest this year?"

"The harvest is alright, but there was a bit of drought in the first half of the year, so the harvest wasn't as good as last year, but it's enough to eat and we can still make some money from selling them." Liu Fuqing explained his family's situation in detail.

The Liu family only had the elderly couple left in the Maiji Brigade household registration. They were only allocated three mu of land in total. They couldn't stay idle and reclaimed a lot of wasteland, which amounted to seven or eight mu. However, this land was not very good; it was either far away or on a mountain slope.

“You two don’t need to farm so much land at home, just enough to eat is fine.” Zhu’s father patted Liu Fuqing’s hand, feeling that the hand was too rough.

Liu Fuqing took a puff of his pipe: "Hey, we're still young, we should keep working. We've worked our whole lives, we can't stay idle. Everyone's rushing forward now, so the two of us can't be idle either. People in the brigade are either working in the brigade's factory or working hard to reclaim wasteland and farm. These days, the more you do, the more you earn. Rural people work from dawn till dusk."

“We two are the most fortunate,” Yang Xiuyun replied.

Liu Yimin took out mosquito coils from the house, lit them in the yard, sprinkled some floral water, placed the electric fan next to him, and lay comfortably in the rocking chair, listening to their conversation.

Zhu's father was curious about the current situation in the countryside, and Liu Fuqing, as the team leader, was quite knowledgeable about rural areas and spoke freely about everything he knew.

Liu Yu and Liu Lin sat in Yang Xiuyun's or Zhu's mother's laps. By the time Zhu Lin returned from his performance, the two little ones had already been sleeping in her arms for quite a while.

Zhu's mother and Yang Xiuyun had known for a long time that they were asleep, but they just couldn't bear to put them down.

"Mom, we need to wake them up to go to the toilet, otherwise they'll wet the bed tonight," Zhu Lin said.

Zhu's mother said, "Call them slowly, don't scare them."

The two of them swayed around for a while and finally woke them up from their sleep. They carried them to the toilet to urinate and then put them on the bed.

Mr. Zhu said, "Father-in-law, we're leaving now, please don't see us off."

They escorted Mr. and Mrs. Zhu to the door. The moonlight was so bright that they could see the road clearly without turning on the lights.

Because it had just rained, the croaking of frogs could be heard intermittently in the surrounding area. This was still in the city; once you got to the western suburbs, the air was filled with the chorus of frogs.

Zhu Lin and Liu Yimin waited in the room for half an hour before receiving a call from Zhu's father that he had arrived home safely. Only then did they turn over and go to sleep.

Liu Yimin hugged Zhu Lin and said in a cheeky tone, "Are you tired? Let me help you relax and act as your stress reliever."

"Teacher Liu, come on!" Zhu Lin quickly took off her pajamas.

Liu Yimin said in a low voice, "Let the storm rage on!"

"Don't make too much noise, it would be embarrassing if people outside heard it."

"Don't worry, when this house was renovated, the materials used for the doors and windows were specially designed to ensure sound insulation."

Tonight's storm lasted a little shorter than yesterday's, and the rain stopped and the sky cleared up soon afterward.

Seeing Zhu Lin's gaze, Liu Yimin shrank back slightly: "I'm a little tired today too, let's go to sleep."

Zhu Lin hummed in agreement, turned over and closed her eyes. After a while, she said, "Teacher Liu, you've done a great job."

"Of course." Liu Yimin moved closer and put his arm around Zhu Lin's waist.

The next day, Zhu Lin woke up feeling refreshed, while Liu Yimin felt a little dizzy and decided to stay in bed for a while longer.

Liu Yu and Liu Lin had already woken up and were pestering Yang Xiuyun and Liu Fuqing to catch cicadas from the trees for them to play with.

Liu Fuqing made a tool for catching cicadas. He tied a hair to the end of a bamboo pole, gently slipped it over the cicada's body, and then pulled it to catch the cicada by binding it with the hair.

Unfortunately, she was unlucky and couldn't catch it. Frustrated, Liu Yu turned and grabbed Liu Fuqing's hand: "Grandpa, I want to ride a big horse!"

"Alright, alright, come ride the big horse." Liu Fuqing put the bamboo pole aside.

After brushing his teeth, Zhu Lin said, "Dad, don't always spoil them. They're always getting into trouble."

"I didn't get used to it, I didn't get used to it. Yimin played with it when he was a kid too," Liu Fuqing said nonchalantly.

Liu Yimin didn't wake up until nine o'clock. After having breakfast, he took the document he had written and went to the Ministry of Culture.

After reading Liu Yimin's report, Xia Yan said, "These Japanese dare to come to you openly? They're lawless! Under the guise of exchange, they're doing espionage."

"The Japanese say they want to cooperate with the Institute of Literature and Art, spouting lofty ideals, but in reality they just want to find some sycophantic intellectuals. It's easy to dodge a spear in the open, but hard to guard against a hidden arrow. We know this, and they know it too, but if they make any move, they'll easily be blamed for disrupting exchanges."

Liu Yimin wrote this down to warn other departments to be vigilant when communicating with each other.

"That's incredibly audacious. The US is at least a foundation, yet they dare to use the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' name directly." Xia Yan angrily slammed his fist on the table.

"Mr. Shen, don't be angry. Getting angry is pointless. Besides, exchanges are unavoidable, and to some extent, bribery is also unavoidable. We understand this and are taking precautions. In addition, we should invite some Japanese people to China, especially those who can face history squarely, to promote our culture in Japan. Of course, the most important thing is to let our cultural products and literary works go abroad. Passive defense is not as good as active defense; we should take the initiative to go out from time to time," Liu Yimin said.

"I understand. I will submit this document. As for what you said, our department will consider it. Inviting is not a problem. The most important thing is to reach out. Apart from your work, there are very few others who have gone out into the world," Xia Yan said helplessly.

At this point, Xia Yan recalled a letter Ba Jin had written to him recently: "Old Ba said that you submitted a manuscript to Harvest, and he thought it was very well written. It is warm and full of traditional Chinese art of friendship and marriage. Based on realism, it uses a dual narrative technique. He thinks it is a rare masterpiece."

"You've seen it?"

"Where would I see it? I'm not your teacher, you wouldn't have brought it to me to see. I just heard him say it, I don't know the specifics," Xia Yan said sourly.

"Hey, Teacher Wan didn't look at it either."

"Didn't Lao Wan look at it either?" Xia Yan felt much better in an instant.

Liu Yimin briefly explained the content to Xia Yan, who said, "An old man walks from Shanghai to Beijing to visit an old friend, more than a thousand kilometers. Your idea is very bold. This distance of more than a thousand kilometers will arouse the curiosity of countless readers."

"I simply connected the events that happened during the old man's journey from Shanghai to Beijing to visit his friend with his family background. I wanted to express the preciousness of friendship and family, and that when we put ourselves outside of life, we can better discover the true meaning of life, the regrets of life, and make up for those regrets through reflection."

"I can't wait to see it. From what you've said, it must be incredibly moving if it were made into a movie." Xia Yan couldn't help but stand up.

"There are only a few days left until the publication of this issue of Harvest. Please be patient and wait," Liu Yimin said.

Xia Yan didn't want to wait any longer: "I'll send Xiaolin a telegram and ask her to send me a sample copy so I can study it carefully."

“Since you’ve asked, Senior Sister Xiaolin certainly won’t refuse,” Liu Yimin said.

“I believe this novel will also make a name for itself internationally. Yimin, when do you plan to make it into a movie?” Xia Yan asked with great certainty.

Liu Yimin said, "At least let's wait until 'Hachiko' is finished filming. If the film studio doesn't approve, I'll have to convince them."

"Haha, this will turn out to be a heartwarming movie. If no one is willing to make it, come to me and I'll definitely find someone for you."

After Liu Yimin left, Xia Yan immediately sent a telegram to Li Xiaolin in Shanghai, asking her to send a sample copy of the magazine by airmail.

After sending the telegram, Xia Yan returned to his office and fell into deep thought as he looked at the situation report written by Liu Yimin.

Xia Yan didn't have a good impression of the Japanese, but this was a crucial time for reform and opening up and going global, so building good relationships, attracting investment, and developing the economy were of paramount importance.

His brow furrowed and then relaxed. Half an hour later, Xia Yan picked up the phone: "Commander, I have something to report."

In the courtyard house, the two elderly people would take the two little ones out for a walk every day. Afraid of getting lost, they usually didn't go far, just stayed in the alley.

Sometimes when they wanted to go out to buy things, they would ask Ximei to take them. Liu Yu and Liu Lin would magically switch the little trinkets in their hands back and forth.

Zhu Lin offered them money, but they refused; the two of them had a considerable amount of money they usually sent back home.

Zhu Lin would send money, clothes, and nutritional supplements every now and then, but since the two of them were in the brigade, they didn't spend much money at all.

Liu Yimin didn't go out this summer vacation, so he would occasionally visit the Institute of Literature to check on Dai Jianye and the others.

Several senior professors, including Wu Zuxiang and Wang Yao, would also go, mainly to guide their thesis writing.

"Professor Wu, your lecture on 'Dream of the Red Chamber' is like a magnet, drawing the audience to our 'Youth Night Talk' program," Liu Yimin praised.

Wu Zuxiang said modestly, "I was forced into this role by you." Then he sighed, "It's a pity that Lao He is no longer here, otherwise the two of us could have a match."

The "Old He" that Wu Zuxiang mentioned refers to He Qifang, a professor at Yenching University. Ever since Yenching University started offering a course on "Dream of the Red Chamber" after the founding of the People's Republic of China, the two have been constantly debating, sometimes even discussing it all night long.

"Living long has its advantages. I, Wu Zuxiang, became a master because I lived a long life. If Lao He had lived a long life, everyone would agree with Lao He's views now."

“Old Wu, don’t be modest. You two were both masters back then,” Wang Yao said.

By mid-July, Dai Jianye and his team had almost finished their papers, and all that remained was grading.

The subsequent comprehensive evaluation is also a huge undertaking, and Liu Yimin will have to work on it for a while longer.

On July 15th, Harvest magazine officially published Liu Yimin's "A Pilgrimage of One," with the cover reading, "From Shanghai to Beijing, a spiritual journey of over a thousand kilometers, this is a pilgrimage of one!"

Liu Yimin hadn't published any purely literary works like this for a while, which immediately attracted readers' attention.

Works like "The Nanyang Overseas Chinese Mechanics" move readers more through touching historical narratives.

Less than half a day after the article was published in Harvest, Cao Yu called Liu Yimin to share his insights.

“I don’t have many friends in my life. Old Buffett is a good friend of mine. The trip from Shanghai to Beijing is really fitting. I want to go there myself, to immerse myself both physically and mentally, and experience the grassroots level of China again,” Cao Yu sighed.

Liu Yimin laughed and said, "Teacher, please don't. If you really leave, your wife will scold me and say that I encouraged you to leave."

"Haha, walking over a thousand kilometers, what a spirit! What a friendship!" Cao Yu exclaimed three times, "Awesome!"
“We believe that such friendships certainly exist in this world. Especially at the very end, friends and family become the thoughts of the elderly before they close their eyes. In addition, as time goes by and friends pass away, those who are still alive become even more precious,” Liu Yimin said.

"Yes, we are all so insignificant in the face of time. No one can stop time. Lao She, Yan Bing, and others, they left just like that. Now, among my old friends in Beijing, Lao Shen is one I can still talk to. Brother Ba is far away in Shanghai. It's easy to talk to him, but we only see each other once every few months."

The next day, the Literary Gazette published a commentary entitled "A Pilgrimage of One: What a Great Friendship This Is."

Other newspapers also published their own commentaries. Shanghai newspapers published a commentary by Ba Jin entitled "Walking a Thousand Kilometers, Looking Back on Most of My Life, Discovering the True Meaning of Life."

Besides Ba Jin's commentary, literary newspapers in Shanghai and the Southern Media Group published very active reviews, even more so than those in Yenching.

Among a sea of ​​literary reviews, Liu Yimin discovered an article written by Zhu's father.

Zhu Lin was also a little incredulous when she saw it; it was truly the first time a young woman had ever been in a sedan chair.

"I understand, Teacher Liu. It must have been written by my dad because of his privilege of seeing the manuscript in advance. There were few comments and submissions when it was first published, so it was easy for him to be chosen."

"Are you underestimating our dad?" Liu Yimin joked.

(End of this chapter)