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

Chapter 526 Director Liu's Crown Car (Seeking Monthly Tickets)

When Li Jun returned from Saihanba after filming "The Most Beautiful Youth," he looked exactly like Huang Zumo now.

Li Jun had more sunburn on his face, while Huang Zumo had more frostbite, with one or two patches on each cheek that were red from the cold.

"Director Huang, thank you for your hard work. Comrade Jiao Huang, thank you for your hard work too." Liu Yimin shook hands with the two men in turn.

Liu Peiran and others were still sitting in the film studio's conference room.

At the Saihanba Forest Farm, Jiao Huang received injections and took medicine, and his cold was almost completely cured. However, fearing that he might infect the two children at the courtyard house, Liu Yimin rode his motorcycle to the film studio to see them.

Jiao Huang, wearing a mask, quickly waved his hand and said, "It's not hard work. It's Director Huang and the other crew members who have worked hard. They have prepared everything for me. I just need to act."

“Without the main character, it loses its soul, and you are the soul of the story,” Liu Yimin said with a smile.

Liu Peiran smiled and looked at Jiao Huang: "Comrade Jiao Huang, you'll have to come to the August First Film Studio again if there are any productions. I think your look is very suitable for playing ancient emperors, especially emperors with great talent and ambition."

"Really?" Jiao Huang looked at Liu Peiran with surprise: "Director Liu, if the August First Film Studio needs us, we will do anything, even die for you."

"What are you talking about dying a thousand deaths? We're all doing our part for the country's performing arts!" Liu Peiran pulled Huang Zumo and Jiao Huang to sit down, and he looked at some of the footage Huang Zumo had shot through the equipment.

"Comrade Huang Zumo directed well, Comrade Jiao Huang acted well, and our dog's performance was also excellent," said another deputy director of the August First Film Studio.

A hint of pride flashed across Jiao Huang's face: "I have to say, I developed a deep bond with Lao Ba after filming with him for several months. During breaks, Lao Ba would wag its tail and follow me around. When filming ended, I was really going to miss it."

“Comrade Jiao Huang, you’ll be staying at the August First Film Studio for a while longer. During this time, you can spend some more time with Lao Ba,” Liu Yimin said with a smile.

Jiao Huang has finished filming his movie, but he still has to do the dubbing work.

After exchanging pleasantries, the editor came in from outside. Liu Yimin and Huang Zumo began to explain the overall editing concept to him. Huang Zumo would also be at the August First Film Studio constantly monitoring the editing work.

“I shot a lot of scenes this time, but the overall length is around 130 minutes. If necessary, it can be reduced to 110 minutes. Reduce the number of establishing shots and retain more close-ups to ensure the integrity of the storyline. Use warm and gentle music.” Huang Zumo handed his notes to the editor.

The editor glanced at it and said confidently, "Director Huang, Comrade Yimin, factory leaders, rest assured, I will definitely edit out the first version within twenty days."

"Yi Min, Lao Huang, and Yang Sen are the best editors at our August First Film Studio. They have edited many classic works. I believe that under Yang Sen's editing, the film 'Hachiko: A Dog' will definitely win the favor of the audience."

Liu Peiran recounted to them one by one the classic films that Yang Sen had edited. Upon hearing Liu Peiran's introduction, editor Yang Sen unconsciously straightened his back even more.

Yang Sen joined the August First Film Studio in 51 and was one of the studio's founding members. He edited "The Story of Liubao" and later participated in the editing of "The Great Battle - The Three Major Campaigns".

After the meeting, Liu Peiran pulled Liu Yimin into his office and inquired about the progress of writing the script for "The Founding Ceremony of the People's Republic of China." Liu Peiran wasn't urging him to hurry up, but rather wanted to subtly gauge whether Liu Yimin's attitude had changed.

After Liu Peiran returned from the last meeting at the General Political Department, many people called him, urging him to carefully consider the script.

"The script is already about five thousand words long, Director Liu. Don't worry, my attitude remains the same. The more people call me, the more I'll write it."

Hearing Liu Yimin's resolute voice, Liu Peiran felt relieved: "Write, just keep writing, Yimin, the factory's support for you hasn't changed."

Liu Peiran seemed to be acting like a lone loyalist. Liu Yimin patted his hand and said emotionally, "Director Liu, I believe you will be proud of this decision. When you look back, you will thank yourself for making that decision."

Liu Peiran was very pleased, but waved her hand and said, "Thank you or not, as long as it feels right at this stage, that's enough."

Liu Yimin inquired about the progress of the film "The Overseas Chinese Sons and Daughters," and judging from the timeline, it should be almost finished filming.

"Director Li Jun called back, saying that filming at an old site on the Burma Road was extremely difficult, and there was even an accident where the car overturned into a ditch, but the driver was unharmed. Old Li joked that this was a real battlefield scene."

From Liu Peiran's words, one can sense the difficulties Li Jun faced during filming. When the rainy season arrived in Yunnan Province, they didn't need to set up sets; they could still create challenging scenes based solely on the actual weather conditions.

"It must have been tough on the director and actors," Liu Yimin said.

"That's nothing. Old Li is an experienced director; he's had plenty of tougher scenes than this. He probably won't be back until mid-November. In his telegram, Old Li thanked you for this opportunity."

Upon learning of the immense success of the stage play "The Overseas Chinese Sons," he was certain the film adaptation would be equally impressive. The Fuzhou Chamber of Commerce in Southeast Asia was also extremely concerned about the progress, frequently inquiring about it. Furthermore, they sent a large amount of supplies to the cast and crew and increased their filming allowance.

Liu Yimin said with a smile, "I don't know if it will be popular elsewhere, but it will definitely be popular in Southeast Asia."

"Old Li wants to revise the 'Song of the Qiongya Overseas Chinese Returning Home Service Corps' and use it as the theme song for this movie. What do you think?"

The anthem of the Qiongya Overseas Chinese Homecoming Service Corps tells the story of Hainan, which is far from representing all overseas Chinese. If it were revised, it would be more suitable for the movie "The Overseas Chinese Sons and Daughters".

"I have no objection. Let Lao Li finish revising it and find someone to sing it." Liu Yimin stood up, preparing to leave Liu Peiran's office.

Liu Peiran stood up at the same time, smiling as she handed over the important task of adapting the song to Liu Yimin: "You are the screenwriter, so it's perfect for you to do the adaptation."

"Liu Chang, you old fox." Liu Yimin patted Liu Peiran on the shoulder with a smile.

"So you're agreeing to this?"

"How could I refuse?" Liu Yimin said.

After leaving Liu Peiran's office, Jiao Huang and Huang Zumo stood chatting in the hallway, actually waiting for Liu Yimin.

Upon seeing this, Liu Peiran said, "Yimin, I apologize for the rudeness. I'll leave it here."

"Factory Manager Liu, please wait."

Liu Peiran turned back, and Liu Yimin went downstairs. Huang Zumo and Jiao Huang immediately surrounded him.

"Let's go, I'll find a place to treat you to a meal," Liu Yimin said with a smile.

They found a small restaurant opposite the August 1st Film Studio, where Huang Zumo and Jiao Huang enjoyed a hearty meal. They hadn't had such a sumptuous meal in Saihanba for a long time.

"Delicious, delicious, really delicious." Jiao Huang picked up a piece of tender fish and put it in his bowl. "Comrade Yimin, you should try it too. This pastry you bought from outside is also quite good."

"Is it really that delicious? Even better than Sachima made with real dog meat? Can this fish be better than the shad from Nanjing and the whitefish from the Songhua River?" Liu Yimin asked with a smile.

"Different flavors, different flavors!"

Huang Zumo said with a smile, "To be honest, your Sachima is really good. When we go back, we'll detour to Tianjin to buy some and take it home."

After having eaten and drunk their fill, Huang Zumo asked Liu Yimin if his book "The Pilgrimage of One Man" had the potential to be adapted into a film.

"I think Yimin is right, it's similar to 'Hachiko: A Dog'. What do you think?"

"Of course I think it's possible."

Upon hearing this, Huang Zumo looked at Liu Yimin with longing eyes, the meaning of which was self-evident. Jiao Huang, standing beside him, was eating fish with his head down, seemingly indifferent, but in reality, his ear was almost touching Liu Yimin's mouth.

"Director Huang, don't rush, wait a bit. Right now, people aren't optimistic about this type of movie. But once 'Hachi: A Dog' is released, people will come to us."

Although Huang Zumo didn't get a definite answer from Liu Yimin, the word "us" at the end reassured him.

Jiao, who was picking up the fish with her chopsticks, accidentally dropped the fish onto the table. She quickly covered the smile on her face with her chopsticks.

After finishing their meal, the two said goodbye to Liu Yimin and returned to the guesthouse of the August First Film Studio. On the way, they chatted and laughed, excitedly looking back and waving to Liu Yimin from time to time.

Huang Zumo exclaimed, "What is a benefactor? Yimin is my benefactor. Without 'Romance on Lushan Mountain,' no one would know me. Without the next script, I would only have 'Romance on Lushan Mountain.' I hope 'Hachiko' will allow the film industry to recognize me, Huang Zumo, again."

"Director Huang, I have confidence in our film, and I also have confidence in Comrade Liu Yimin," Jiao Huang said slowly.

Jiao Huang not only has an imperial air about him, but his voice is also very unique, giving people a sense of trust and confidence.

Back in the courtyard, Zhu Lin was holding Liu Yu and Liu Lin, watching TV. It was the Shanghai Animation Film Studio's "Calabash Brothers".

Liu Yimin walked over and rubbed Liu Yu's face: "Can you understand it?"

"Hehehe, Dad, the gourd can breathe fire."

Liu Lin gritted his teeth and said, "We couldn't save them again."

"If you don't understand it, then don't read it." Liu Yimin rubbed Liu Lin's head. The story of the Calabash Brothers trying to save their grandfather but failing is like someone trapped in a maze, unable to find their way out, or even a horror story.

"Want to see!"

"Look, look, you can't understand it anyway, so it's better that you can't understand it," Liu Yimin said with a smile.

After watching cartoons with the two little ones for a while, Liu Yimin became drowsy, with only the snake demon's smug laughter ringing in his ears.

Once the two little ones were dozing off, Zhu Lin immediately turned off the TV and prepared for bed. After putting them on the bed in the bedroom, the two children immediately perked up, looked around, and called out, "Auntie Ximei!"

Ximei hasn't returned from the National Day holiday yet. Where can we find Aunt Ximei for them?

No matter how Zhu Lin tried to coax them, they wouldn't go to sleep. The two of them tossed and turned in bed, driving Liu Yimin crazy.

Liu Yimin hugged Liu Yu and said earnestly, "My dear girl, go to sleep quickly. Aunt Ximei will be back tomorrow."

Seeing that nothing was going on, Zhu Lin spread his hands and asked, "Teacher Liu, what should we do?"

"How about this, you take them to sleep in Ximei's room tonight. Maybe changing beds will make things much better." Liu Yimin racked his brains before finally coming up with this idea.

"alright."

Zhu Lin was about to carry the two of them over when he said, "How about we let Ximei rest less and pay her more wages in the future?"

"Forget it, let them get used to it gradually. Ximei is young, and young people need to have their own lives. She's not an old woman who has no other activities besides earning money to support the family," Liu Yimin said helplessly.

When they were taken to the next room, the two little ones were still playfully staring at each other. Around one o'clock, they finally drifted off to sleep in bed.

Liu Yimin slept soundly, while Zhu Lin woke up the next day with dark circles under her eyes. The two little ones were fast asleep.

Zhu Lin gritted his teeth and said, "I think it's just that he doesn't want to sleep. He wasn't like this the day before yesterday."

“Alright, let’s eat first. After you finish eating, you can take a nap. Mom was here the day before yesterday,” Liu Yimin said.

Mr. and Mrs. Zhu were planning to spend their holiday here when a relative suddenly passed away, and the two of them had to travel a long distance to attend the funeral.

After the two little ones woke up, Liu Yimin and Zhu Lin took them shopping and to the park during the day, exhausting them so much that they could fall asleep while walking, and they stopped making a fuss at night.

Liu Yimin said smugly to Zhu Lin, "What do you think of Teacher Liu's move?"

"It's good, but I'm so tired I can barely keep my eyes open," Zhu Lin said weakly.

You can't catch a wolf without risking your cub!

"You're killing a thousand enemies while losing eight hundred of your own."

"Whether it's bad or not, at least I can get a good night's sleep." While Liu Yimin was washing the two little ones' feet, they had already fallen asleep.

The next day, Ximei returned home and waited at the door until ten o'clock before knocking on it. Ximei thought they had moved.

“Ximei, don’t you have the key?” Liu Yimin asked.

Xi Mei said helplessly, "Professor Liu, I was afraid of losing it when I left, so I left it in the room."

"I see."

"This is what you are doing?"

Zhu Lin smiled and recounted what had happened. After hearing this, Xi Mei said, "Sister Lin, Professor Liu, I can come back in the evenings when I'm on break."

"No need, no need. You rest. We can't spoil them. If they do this again, I'll take them running all the way to Yenching University."

Zhu Lin slapped Liu Yimin: "We haven't even gone halfway, and I'll have to ride on your shoulders and make you carry me back."

On October 5th, Liu Yimin walked into the Ministry of Culture. Xia Yan greeted Liu Yimin with a smile and said he had some good news to tell him, leaving Liu Yimin completely bewildered.

"Old Shen, are you going to promote me?" Liu Yimin joked.

Xia Yan gestured for Liu Yimin to sit down: "You little rascal, you're so glib. Aren't you good enough yet? Want to improve further?"

"Who doesn't want to improve? Ideally, they should be running forward."

"You're quite the career-obsessed guy, but this makes you happier than if you were made the director. I recently heard you're asking someone to buy you a car?" Xia Yan asked.

"You know all this? You personally found it for me? You know, now that we have two children, it's too cold in winter, we have to think about them," Liu Yimin said.

"Yes, having a car is better. Besides, money lying around is no money if you don't use it. But this time, you won't have to spend any money. The ministry will provide you with a car."

"Provide me with a car? I'm not high enough rank, am I? Besides, everyone knows our Ministry of Culture is poor; even those of higher rank than me don't have cars."

Generally speaking, this is a common practice at the provincial or ministerial level, but it's impossible at Yenching University. If we're talking about civil servants and public sector employees, apart from Liu Yimin, the rest of the staff at the Institute of Literature and Art are essentially public sector employees.

Few people in the Ministry of Culture have a company car, and Xia Yan is one of the very few.

“You may not be enough, but your contribution is great. Last time we met at Zhonghai, Gang Gong said that you donated all your bonuses, and he wouldn’t let you donate in vain. This car is your compensation.”

"You've earned so much foreign exchange for the country; you're a major contributor to foreign exchange earnings. From that perspective alone, you deserve a reward. Export companies receive tax rebates for their foreign exchange earnings, but you're not exporting goods; you're exporting ideas and culture," Xia Yanchong explained to Liu Yimin.

Even so, Liu Yimin was still feeling dizzy from listening.

"What? You don't want to?"

"Actually, I still prefer to have my own car. No one would say anything if I drove it anywhere," Liu Yimin said.

Xia Yan tapped the table: "You think differently from others. If it were anyone else, they'd be fighting tooth and nail for it."

"Teacher Wan just spoke to me, saying that public opinion is a fearsome thing, and that repeated slander can destroy a person!"

"You can drive it for now, for work or daily life. Once you have a car, this one will be used as an official reception vehicle for the Institute of Literature and Art," Xia Yan said.

"Okay, I'll pay for the gas and repairs myself; I won't take advantage of anyone."

Xia Yan said with a smile, "You can decide for yourself. The department is committed to rewarding merit and punishing wrongdoing."

Xia Yan picked up the phone and made a call, asking his secretary to take Liu Yimin to see the car.

As he left the office, the secretary congratulated Liu Yimin, saying that many people had been eyeing the two Crown cars since they arrived at the ministry.

"Crown?" Liu Yimin was dumbfounded again. The Crown is a C-class car.

“Yes, a crown! Professor Liu, your status in the literary world deserves a crown; even a Santana falls short,” the secretary flattered.

The secretary led Liu Yimin to the garage and introduced him to the two brand-new Crown cars.

Brand new car, without a single scratch.

Liu Yimin climbed inside and tried it out. He was a little rusty at first with a manual transmission, but he got the hang of it after a while. He put it in neutral and pressed the accelerator; the engine's roar was acceptable.

If being provided with a car was a privilege beyond one's rank, then being provided with a Crown was even more extraordinary. Previously, the only two Crowns were used by the ministry for hospitality purposes; the leaders either drove their old cars or Santanas.

"Professor Liu, can you drive?"

"Ah, I learned a little from the school bus drivers," Liu Yimin said vaguely.

"So you'll choose this one?"

"Aren't these two the same?"

"No, they're all brand new, and the mileage is still on them."

Liu Yimin said, "Then let's take this one!"

Liu Yimin turned off the engine and got out of the car. He leaned close to his secretary's ear and said, "Secretary Huang, is this car legitimate?"

Secretary Huang chuckled awkwardly: "Professor Liu, you're joking. You've already gotten your hands on this car, whether it's proper or not."

“I got my hands on it, and it seemed suspicious, didn’t it?” Liu Yimin made a “sneaking into the country” gesture: “Hmm?”

Secretary Huang didn't say it outright, but patted Liu Yimin on the shoulder and said, "Oh dear, the ministry also spent some money."

P.S.: I'm posting one chapter first. There's still one chapter left to finish. I'll post it again after I finish writing it.

(End of this chapter)