1978: A Literary Giant Who Began His Military Service

Chapter 104 First-Class Merit in Literature and Art!
Two days later, Zhou Xu received a letter, which was from the magazine "Harvest"!

It's worth noting that when "Garland at the Foot of the Mountain" was popular, he never received any requests for additional writing assignments.

Now that "Lurking" is popular, he has finally received a letter from "Harvest".

The reason why Harvest is so great is because of the people behind it.

It was founded by Ba Jin and has held a prominent position in the South since its inception, with even greater influence than People's Literature in the South.

Zhou Xu was most interested in Harvest magazine because the person behind it was the legendary Ba Jin.

Although it may sound strange, these older writers achieved a very high status in the literary world because they lived in a more idealistic era.

Modern writers, unless they are like Jia Pingwa and Wang Zengqi, who not only wrote works that influenced an era but also achieved great success in a genre, can catch up with their predecessors.

For example, Jia Pingwa writes rural literature, capturing the vastness of the Loess Plateau and the weight of history! Wang Zengqi writes delicate, prose-like novels, following the style of Shen Congwen.

Thus, the two of them barely managed to catch up with their predecessors.

As the saying goes, "circumstances create heroes."

Ba Jin was one of those people. Among Lu Xun, Guo Moruo, Mao Dun, Ba Jin, Lao She, and Cao Xueqin, he was not the highest, but as one of the surviving masters, he was already a giant.

The letter was written by Ba Jin's daughter, Li Xiaolin. In the letter, she not only praised the success of Zhou Xu's novels "Lurking" and "Garland Under the Mountain," but also marveled at his achievements as a military writer.

He also expressed some of his views on the ideological and intellectual discussions sparked in China by the love story in "Lurking".

She felt that being more open-minded and giving the protagonist more space would be a good idea.

She also mentioned Ba Jin's attitude towards the novel: "Lurking" largely showcases the selfless dedication of our underground workers, and makes people realize that countless heroes, like Yu Zecheng, lie in hiding and remain unknown!

Ba Jin was one of the Five Elders of Sichuan.

Of course, most of the writers at the beginning of the century made significant contributions to the War of Resistance against Japan.

Zhou Xu felt a little excited as he read the letter about Ba Jin. He thought that some critics, like Feng Mu, might be indifferent because of their forward-thinking perspectives.

But! Ba Jin was different.

Ba Jin, Mao Dun, and other such figures are people he has heard about since childhood. Aren't they classics enough?

Of course, aside from being moved, Li Xiaolin in the letter also asked Zhou Xu for the manuscript. After all, no one gets up early for nothing, and these editors contacted him about the manuscript!

Zhou Xu didn't agree, but instead pondered what ideas he might have!
He turned to the next page and finally saw the matter he was most concerned about: "Regarding the payment for the manuscript, if you can give me the manuscript within these few months and publish it after May, I will give you the highest payment of ten yuan per thousand words according to the new standard."

The royalty standards established in 80 not only restored royalties based on print runs, but also raised the basic royalty for original works to 3 to 10 yuan per thousand words, and for translated works to 2 to 7 yuan per thousand words!
In other words, Li Xiaolin is going to pay him ten yuan per thousand words? If that's the rate, Zhou Xu would be very happy.

……

Two more days passed.

Xiong Jiayuan told Zhou Xu about his song practice, and Zhou Xu went over to take a look and found that it was indeed quite good.

For the past two weeks, Xiong Jiayuan has been diligently practicing this song.

Apart from Xiong Jiayuan, the entire song and dance troupe was also busy with their respective competitions, and the most miserable among them were the members of the instrumental ensemble.

She not only had to practice the song "When That Day Comes" with Xiong Jiayuan, but also practice other competition songs with the others.

They arrived at the song and dance troupe.

Zhou Xu greeted the group of people: "Hello, comrades."

Xiong Jiayuan immediately gave up his seat and said to the group of band members, "Let Comrade Zhou Xu explain his creative process for this song to everyone!"

At this moment, a group of people burst into applause, and Zhou Xu smiled and nodded: "The creative process behind this song is actually very simple..."

He's just a Monday morning quarterback.

He's an original author, so whatever nonsense he spouts, some great scholar will write scriptures for him.

Besides, he really did go to the battlefield, so it's not entirely nonsense.

"How should I put it? Actually, we've all been to the front lines to perform for the troops. I remember when I came down from the battlefield, I kept thinking about one question: If war really comes again one day, will I still be as selfless as I am now?"

Zhou Xu smiled slightly, then turned his firm gaze to everyone: "I'm sure you all know my answer—if that day really comes, I will still forge ahead!"

"And the 'When That Day Comes' sung in this song today refers to the day when every one of us soldiers is ready to rush to the battlefield!"

Zhou Xu spoke with great passion, and everyone who listened was also filled with enthusiasm.

After all, the man in front of them was a real veteran who had come from the battlefield. While other creators might boast about their battlefield experiences, Zhou Xu was not exaggerating at all.

"Wow! Teacher Zhou Xu is amazing!" The little octopus's eyes sparkled.

Tao Huimin nodded, looking at Zhou Xu with excitement and admiration.

Of course, everyone in this group had expressions of envy, admiration, and worship.

Xiong Jiayuan clapped his hands, immediately settling the group down, and said with a smile:
"Everyone has heard what Comrade Zhou Xu said, and I think everyone understands it. So when you play this song, you must have the urgency of going to the battlefield immediately."

"Ready, set, go!!"

Xiong Jiayuan waved his hand, and a group of musicians began to play together, with harmonies following behind. Xiong Jiayuan then joined in singing: "When that day comes..."

Soon, the song ended, and Xiong Jiayuan quickly walked over to Zhou Xu: "Comrade Zhou Xu, are you satisfied with this?"

Zhou Xu immediately nodded: "Of course I'm satisfied, what could I possibly be dissatisfied with?"

For the past month, Zhou Xu has been practicing with the members of the performing arts troupe. Apart from Xiong Jiayuan, everyone else also hopes to win an award, so their desire to perform and practice is very strong.

-

May.

Regimental Commander Qian Yunhua suddenly summoned Zhou Xu to his office, and Zhou Xu rushed in as fast as he could; "Reporting, Regimental Commander!"

"...Alright, no need for salutes. I'm here to tell you something: your application for the First-Class Merit in Literature and Art has been approved."

Upon hearing these words, Zhou Xu's excitement was instantly ignited.

The main reason why Li Cunbao did not receive the first-class merit award for literature and art was that he did not apply for it.

However, Zhou Xu's superiors applied for the project for him, and in addition to "Garland Under the Mountain", he also had "Lurking" to support him. Both works were almost undoubtedly hits!

How popular is it?
One book sold over a million copies, and the two books sold nearly three million copies, which aroused widespread attention in China for the soldiers and heroes. Newspapers and literary magazines across the country almost never stopped discussing them.

Even now, the plot of "Lurking" is still being discussed in newspapers.

This level of discussion has already reached tens of millions of people, almost the vast majority of people who are interested in literature now.

This already meets the criteria for awarding a first-class merit in literature and art: "outstanding achievements, significant contributions and influence".

For example, Fan Zhendong was awarded a first-class merit for achieving China's "zero breakthrough" in the table tennis event at the Military World Games.

Therefore, it is not surprising at all that Zhou Xu was awarded a first-class merit in literature and art.

The evaluation of the first-class merit in literature and art seems to be simpler than during wartime. Although it may not have the same prestige as the first-class merit during wartime, it is still a first-class merit.

The previous downgrade was not intentional on the part of the regiment headquarters; it was simply because a full year had passed since the last first-class merit award, so it was approved all at once.

"Thank you for your guidance, Commander." Zhou Xu immediately saluted.

Hearing this, Qian Yunhua just smiled and said, "Why thank me? Hey! Every bit of your contribution was done in perfect accordance with the procedures."

Zhou Xu himself felt the same way.

For a low-ranking soldier like him, only those who excel in every single aspect have the opportunity for a promotion; otherwise…

Even so, he still felt that having a good leader was also a factor.

"Tomorrow is Sunday, right? We can hold your awards ceremony at the dance studio while we're on holiday and showing a movie," Qian Yunhua thought to himself.

Zhou Xu left only after listening to him finish speaking.

However, the fact that he has been awarded a first-class merit is not yet widely known.

Zhou Xu went back to his room and tidied up the manuscript again.

the next day.

A group of people were washing clothes outside, while others had gone to play basketball. Zhang Fangfang knocked on the door of Zhou Xu's archives room: "Teacher Zhou, they're playing basketball outside. Would you like to come and take a look?"

"Basketball?" Zhou Xu nodded.

Outside, the song and dance troupe and the drama troupe were divided into two teams, and the five strongest people selected were having a small competition.

In general, when it comes to small team competitions like this, the concept of collective honor is not just something to be discussed in a simple way.

Zhou Xu arrived at the song and dance troupe: "Hey? Li Ziqiang! Let me do it?"

"Teacher Zhou, do you know how to play ball?"

"Of course I'll fight!" Otherwise, what's the point of Zhou Xu being 1.8 meters tall?
Zhou Xu picked up the basketball: "When does it start?"

"Shall we begin now?"

"..."

"I must say, Han Rong, you're really clever! You managed to call Teacher Zhou Xu over, so we can watch him play basketball again!"

"I think that although Professor Zhou is a literary scholar, he is much more physically robust than others."

"Hahaha!!" Zhang Fangfang laughed and patted the other person's back.

Zhou Xu glanced over there. Was this just inviting trouble? People would be eyeing him and trying to crash into him.

After playing basketball for a while, the dance troupe was barely in the lead.

They were already shouting, "Meet at the dance studio to watch a movie! The group leader has something to say later!"

(End of this chapter)