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

Chapter 560 US Media: Don't Believe the Story of "House of Cards"
As they boarded the plane, the group couldn't hide their excitement, but it wasn't long before they began to feel tired.

The journey from China to Colombia, where Márquez lived, was a long one, taking more than thirty hours.

They needed to fly to the United States first, and then transfer there to reach Venezuela. Márquez's birthplace is Colombia, but unfortunately, Colombia is politically unstable, with gangs wielding more power than the government.

In his later years, Márquez rarely returned to Colombia, and his life was mainly spent in Mexico City, Mexico.

Therefore, it is impossible for Márquez to hold this important reception in Colombia. If something were to happen to the Chinese delegation in Colombia, the entire South American continent would be questioned by the international community.

After arriving in the United States, Liu Yimin and his team will travel to Venezuela with the representative of People's Literature Publishing House in the US. Before their departure, Wei Junyi, the president of the publishing house, repeatedly asked Liu Yimin to help them obtain the publishing rights for Márquez's works in China.

Liu Yimin promised to do his best to help, but he couldn't guarantee whether things would succeed.

After a brief stopover in Shanghai, the plane took off again for its direct flight to the United States. Bored during the journey, Liu Yimin started a conversation by telling the story of Che Guevara, the South American hero.

Che Guevara is a familiar figure to many. Flags bearing his image often fly among left-wing protesters in the West, and he has become a symbol of counterculture.

Che Guevara, an Argentinian, was a representative figure of American heroic romanticism. He traveled along the mountains of South America, visiting Argentina, Chile, Peru, Colombia, and Venezuela, gaining a firsthand understanding of the poverty and suffering caused by colonization in the Americas.

He later met Castro, and together they became the main founders and leaders of the Cuban Revolution and the Republic of Cuba. In the mid-1960s, he left Cuba to lead the Third World's anti-imperialist guerrilla war, first to Congo and then to Bolivia, and was eventually betrayed and killed by the Americans.

Cao Yu said, "These internationalists are truly admirable. In the history of anti-colonial wars in South America, besides Che Guevara, there are many other heroes, such as Bolívar, who led the army to achieve independence for six South American countries."

"Besides their aggressive nature, the Spanish also possess a spirit of exploration and adventure. Their arrival in the Americas and their interaction with the local population fostered a romantic sense of heroism. Once South Americans reach a certain level of maturity, they develop a romantic, heroic spirit of saving the world," Liu Yimin said with a smile.

Many countries gained independence through anti-colonial and wars of liberation, but few of the leaders who rose through the ranks of national independence wars were passionate about and actively supported the international cause of liberation.

Acheng interjected, "Is our country's support for the Third World revolutions also a form of this kind of romantic heroism?"

The lively conversation immediately stopped as soon as Acheng finished speaking. Acheng rubbed his head and asked, "Did I say something wrong?"

Acheng's words left the others speechless for a moment. After a while, Liu Yimin said:

"On the one hand, there is competition; on the other hand, our country has experienced the suffering of colonial aggression and the pain of resisting colonial aggression. We have suffered as much as you have suffered and felt as much as you have felt, which is why we want to help them achieve national independence. Furthermore, we are pragmatic, not like Che Guevara."

"Yimin, a land that produced international heroes, is ironically unable to escape the quagmire of suffering," Qian Zhongshu said, shaking his head with a regretful expression.

"Therefore, Márquez insisted that his literature was realism, and compared with the realities of Latin America, what he wrote in his books was still too conservative. On the one hand, Latin America was internally divided, and on the other hand, the remnants of the colonial era had not been completely eliminated."

More importantly, they are too far from God and too close to America.

The United States cannot allow a powerful nation to emerge from its backyard. Whether or not such a powerful nation takes action, it already poses a threat to the US.

As the plane flew over the Pacific Ocean, after discussing Che Guevara, Ah Cheng began to vividly recount his past stories, his rich expressions and language relieving much of the boredom of the journey.

Upon reaching the middle of the Pacific Ocean, everyone was somewhat tired and wanted to lean back in their seats to rest for a while. Liu Yimin looked at Cao Yu and asked softly, "Teacher, how are you feeling?"

"It's alright, my body can handle it!" Cao Yu smiled with relief.

Liu Yimin pulled his hat down, leaned back in his chair, and closed his eyes. Before the plane landed in San Francisco, the group didn't engage in any further lengthy discussions.

The news that China would send a delegation of writers at the invitation of Gabriel García Márquez has caused a sensation not only in China and South America, but also in many media outlets in the United States and Europe, who are curious to see what kind of sparks this literary collision will ignite.

After they disembarked in San Francisco, they were surrounded by countless reporters from the US and the West. The consulate's car did not give them a chance to be interviewed and took them directly to the consulate.

After a two-hour rest, they will once again board a plane and fly to South America.

The current Consul General, Zhao Xixin, warmly greeted them at the door, but did not disturb them too much: "Dean Wan, Comrade Zhongshu, Comrade Yimin, and all members of the delegation, you have had a long journey. You can rest in your rooms for two hours before taking a flight to South America."

"Consul, I apologize for disturbing you," Cao Yu said wearily.

"You're welcome, this is exactly what we should be doing."

As Zhao Xixin escorted everyone to the rest room, he deliberately stopped next to Liu Yimin and whispered, "Comrade Liu Yimin, congratulations! House of Cards has been published. It caused a sensation throughout the United States and became a sensation in Europe in less than a week."

"It's already been published?"

"It's only been a little over half a month since it was published, and now many Americans, especially young people, are enjoying 'House of Cards' immensely. There are also many Americans who criticize you for deliberately attacking Western political systems. In comparison, you're essentially spreading communist ideology among young Americans." Zhao Xixin had someone deliver a copy of "The Paris Review" to Liu Yimin.

Cao Yu and Qian Zhongshu asked curiously, "What is this?"

"Comrade Yimin's newly published work in the United States, 'House of Cards,' exposes the shady dealings and corruption within American political parties and is very popular in the US," Zhao Xixin explained simply.

Zhao Xixin's words aroused the curiosity of all the delegation members. Li Zhun, Wang Zengqi, Ma Shitu and others couldn't wait to see it, but unfortunately most of them did not understand English.

As Qian Zhongshu prepared to read, Liu Yimin said, "There will be plenty of time on the plane, you should rest."

“Zhongshu, Yimin makes a good point. Let’s rest for a while.” Cao Yu was curious, but he agreed with Liu Yimin’s suggestion. Both of them were getting on in years, and without proper rest, they often felt their hearts pounding.

Qian Zhongshu laughed and said, "I'll flip through it first. I'm curious and can't sleep. Half an hour of reading, followed by an hour and a half of rest, will be enough!"

Liu Yimin could only hand the Paris Review to Qian Zhongshu, who then went into the room to read it by himself.

Cao Yu looked at the others and said, "Comrades, take a rest. Although you are young, you are not made of iron."

"Dean Wan, we're going to rest now," Wang Zengqi said immediately.

Liu Yimin went into the room and fell asleep in less than ten minutes. An hour and a half later, they were woken up by the consulate staff. After sleeping for a while, everyone felt much better.

When Qian Zhongshu came out of the room, Liu Yimin noticed that his eyes were bloodshot and subconsciously asked, "You didn't sleep, did you?"

"I didn't sleep! How could I sleep at my age? I was just looking at the screen and the time came. Yimin, putting aside the content for now, your English writing has improved a lot. You don't need a translator anymore. I, the translator, am basically unemployed!" Qian Zhongshu exclaimed in amazement.

The consulate staff had prepared a light meal for everyone when a middle-aged man wearing glasses rushed over. He was Zhao Zhongnan, a staff member of the People's Literature Publishing House in the United States. Zhao Zhongnan stood in front of everyone and introduced himself: "Dean Wan, Professor Qian, Professor Liu, comrades, I hope you can help me a lot on this trip."

Cao Yu pointed to the seat: "Comrade Zhongnan, have you eaten yet?"

"I've already eaten!"

"Have you eaten? Sit down and rest for a while, we'll set off soon."

After finishing their meal, the group headed to the airport. On the way, Qian Zhongshu asked the embassy car to stop for a moment and bought a few American newspapers from the side of the road.

Once on the plane, Qian Zhongshu kept looking for news articles in the newspaper. Zhao Zhongnan asked curiously, "Professor Qian, what are you looking for?"

"I'm looking at what Americans think of Yi Min's 'House of Cards'."

Zhao Zhongnan laughed and said, "Just ask me. I've been in the United States for the past few months, and I know all too well what's happening in the American literary world."

"Comrade Zhongnan, could you please tell us about it?" Cao Yu asked curiously.

Zhao Zhongnan skillfully pulled out his notebook: "Since its publication, this work has immediately sparked a heated discussion in American newspapers. There are two main viewpoints. The first is approval, believing that Americans should seriously reflect on their political system. This includes newspapers such as Time Magazine, USA Today, and The Denver Post."

The second view is that *House of Cards* exaggerates the darkness of American politics, and its stories could easily make Americans doubt their own democratic values. In particular, *The Washington Post* urged Americans not to believe any detail in the book. Those who overly trust the book are easily drawn into an anti-heroic narrative, which is detrimental to America's development.

Anti-heroism refers to the creation of villains with heroic qualities. Villains who should be condemned win the sympathy of readers or viewers through their own characteristics, which is a questioning of traditional morality and idealism.

Liu Yimin gave a mocking smile: "Don't they really like anti-heroic literature and glorify individualism? What? Now that it's our turn to write, they say don't believe it?"

Liu Yimin's "House of Cards" is not the American TV series "House of Cards". It is more based on the original book "House of Cards". The original book is by a British author who once served as Thatcher's advisor.

Qian Zhongshu laughed and said, "Now it's the Americans' turn to say don't believe it! I spent two hours reading it and still haven't finished. The story is captivating, especially the vivid descriptions of darkness and evil. Regardless of whether it's exaggerated or not, it's already a victory for an Easterner to write such a work."

"Let me see." Cao Yu opened *The Paris Review* and began to read. Qian Zhongshu pulled the book to the middle: "Let's read it together. Look, your student has kept this from you so well!"

“Zhongshu, don’t try to sow discord. I’m the kind of person who doesn’t interfere much with Yimin’s writing.” Cao Yu glanced at Liu Yimin, the meaning in his eyes was self-evident.

Of course, Cao Yu also understood that Liu Yimin had many works, so it was impossible to ask for his opinion on every single one.

Wang Zengqi turned his head from the front row and asked, "Comrade Yimin, could you tell us what you wrote?"

"Let's wait until we get off the plane!" Liu Yimin said in a low voice, and distributed the newspapers that Qian Zhongshu had just bought to everyone.

Wang Zengqi rubbed his temples in exasperation when he saw the English letters on the newspaper. Although he had received a good education in his youth, his English was terrible.

He often says that his biggest regret is that he doesn't understand English, especially the novels he translated into English.

However, Ma Shitu, who was standing next to him, knew English and took the initiative to take on the responsibility of translation.

Cao Yu hadn't read the beginning, so he had to start from the start. Qian Zhongshu read for two hours. So when the two of them read together, Qian Zhongshu felt like ants were crawling all over him, constantly complaining that Cao Yu read too slowly.

“Zhongshu, look how anxious you are. You were anxious when you were young, and you’re still anxious now. Yimin’s book is profound and extensive. How can you understand it after reading it only once?” Cao Yu couldn’t help but tease Qian Zhongshu when he saw his anxious appearance.

Qian Zhongshu glared at Cao Yu: "Profound and extensive? I can't understand it after just one reading? I really don't know if you're praising your student or belittling me, the vice president of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences."

"A vice dean is still a vice dean after all!"

Seeing that Cao Yu was deliberately making fun of him, Qian Zhongshu said in a huff, "I'm going to sleep now. Wake me up when you get to page 164."

Cao Yu gave Liu Yimin a sly smile, and their banter sounded like they were back on the Tsinghua University campus in their youth.

When flying from San Francisco to Venezuela, the plane has to transit in Panama before it can reach Venezuela.

The plane stopped in Panama, and Qian Zhongshu immediately woke up, glancing blankly at the time for a moment: "Jiabao, why didn't you wake me?"

“Zhongshu, you should get some more sleep. Otherwise, when we get back to China, your sister-in-law, Xiao Yang, will ask me about your health, and I won’t know how to answer her.” Cao Yu patted Qian Zhongshu on the shoulder.

"Where did you see?"

"Wait for you. Look, I just dozed off for a bit too."

During the long journey, a copy of The Paris Review and a few American newspapers became what kept everyone entertained.

Once the plane takes off again, you'll be able to see the Panama Canal, which separates North and South America. From the plane, the Panama Canal appears as a narrow passage. Initially, at a lower altitude, you can also see the ships on the canal.

At that time, the Panama Canal was still operated by the Americans, and it was not until 1999 that the canal returned to the Panamanians.

"If this river were in the hands of the Panamanians, they could live off it for the rest of their lives!" Cao Yu exclaimed.

Qian Zhongshu said, "Even if we relied on the Panamanians, this river might not have been able to be excavated. Of course, imperialists are all profit-driven and certainly not helping out of kindness. Once this canal is in the hands of the Americans, the Panamanians can no longer be considered independent."

Cao Yu opened the Paris Review: "If you want to understand American imperialism and Western politics, let's read this article!"

Wang Zengqi, Acheng, and others in the front row glanced at Cao Yu and Qian Zhongshu, who were still full of energy, and marveled at how vigorous these old comrades truly were.

Ah Cheng, in particular, was so sleepy he could barely keep his eyes open. Among the group, he was the only one going abroad for the first time, and the fact that he was about to meet Márquez made him even more excited.

But now, he's trapped like a worm, while Ma Shitu next to him is in much better spirits.

Ma Shitu said, "Young man, you still need to practice. Look at Comrade Yimin, flying across continents and oceans is commonplace for him, and he's already used to it."

(End of this chapter)