I am not a literary giant

Chapter 110 The Weapon of Criticism

"Your novel 'Wild Grasses' was published in the Yangtze River Magazine, it's over 3 words long!" Lin Feng said.

When he mentioned "more than 3 words," his eyes widened. Lin Feng's surprise was something that no one except Wang Zixu could quite understand—magazine space was limited, and for Wang Zixu, as a newcomer, to occupy more than 3 words in his first appearance in a magazine was no exaggeration to describe as a "feat."

It's worth noting that when "Spirit and Flesh" was first published, the magazine editors struggled for days over its word count. However, upon publication, "Spirit and Flesh" received widespread acclaim, winning an award for outstanding short story and later being adapted into the well-known film "The Herdsman"—and "Spirit and Flesh" is less than 20,000 words long.

Lin Feng paused for a moment, then said, "The news hasn't spread yet. Once it does, there will definitely be a lot of people vying to be your recommender. Just tell them then, 'I've already been your recommender,' okay?"

Prince nodded: "Of course, didn't we agree on that a month ago?"

Lin Feng smiled憨厚ly. Wang Zixu was referring to the promise they had casually made while squatting in front of the flowerbed in the park. He was pleased that Wang Zixu remembered their agreement, which meant that they were both good people and kept their word.

Zhang Cangnian raised his voice and asked, "What kind of magazine is *The Yangtze River*? Do you think the Writers' Association has to fight over it to recruit people?"

Lin Feng replied, "Yangtze River can be said to be the most prestigious literary journal in the province. The membership standard of the Writers Association is that you can be recommended for membership if you have published more than 10 words in the journal. If it is a core journal, the word count can be reduced to 3 words. Brother Wang has met the standard with just one novel. That's really impressive."

Zhang Cangnian was overjoyed: "Director Gou, you truly have an eye for talent! Not only is Xiao Diao being poached by the Writers' Association, but now Wang Zixu is also being snatched up. Our unit has a thriving literary atmosphere!"

He was a spectator, enjoying the spectacle, completely oblivious to the fact that Gou Yingbiao's features were distorted beyond recognition. Whether Gou Yingbiao had a "keen eye" for talent or not, he knew perfectly well. Yet, he still had to smile and agree to maintain a composed demeanor.

Wang Zixu completely ignored Gou Yingbiao's expression and instead inquired about Lin Feng: "Has your work made it to the final round?"

Lin Feng said, "They're in. But... Lin Luo is in too."

He spoke the second half of his sentence in a volume only Wang Zixu could hear. After he finished speaking, he patted Wang Zixu on the shoulder and said, "It's a pity you didn't make it into the essay competition this time, but 'Yangtze River' isn't bad compared to the rankings in the literary conference, so you can consider it a loss on one front and a gain on another."

In front of others, Wang Zixu felt awkward revealing to Lin Feng that his article had been selected as a special contribution to Nanjing University, so he changed the subject, asking, "Aren't you hot wearing such a thick suit?"

Lin Feng smiled sheepishly, "For such a big event today, even if we don't get a good ranking, we should at least dress presentably to project an impressive image. Actually, you should dress better too; there are quite a few celebrities coming today, and it would be great to leave a good impression."

Wang Zixu said, "I don't care. I don't need to meet those celebrities, and even if I did, we might not have any further contact."

Lin Feng didn't try to persuade him. He had other things to do, and after saying goodbye to the others, he was about to leave. Before leaving, Song Yinglian mustered up his courage and said:

"Teacher Lin, our Xiao Diao has also made it to the third round. Could you recommend her for the Writers' Association?"

"Why!"

Diao Yiwen let out a short, sharp sound. It was too late to stop Song Yinglian; he had already spoken. Diao Yiwen covered half her face, her expression pained.

Lin Feng turned around, glanced at Diao Yiwen in surprise, and then smiled, "You've made it to the third round? I've heard. It's quite an achievement for someone your age, but there's a word count requirement for joining the Writers' Association. Just getting into tenth place isn't enough. Write more and publish more in the future, and you'll have a chance to join."

Song Yinglian, feeling rebuffed, looked somewhat embarrassed. Diao Yiwen glared at him reproachfully from the side. Lin Feng had just explained all the requirements for joining the Writers' Association; wasn't he just making things difficult for him?

Lin Feng took a couple of steps, then suddenly remembered something and turned back to Wang Zixu, saying, "The Yangtze River magazine doesn't send back sample copies to authors whose articles are published. You can buy a copy as a souvenir when you have time. They have them at the bookstore over there."

After Lin Feng left, no one spoke for a long time under the pergola. Gou Yingbiao had only just begun his critique of Wang Zixu, getting to the point about his "lack of talent," when Lin Feng's arrival completely interrupted him, making it impossible to continue his argument. With Gou Yingbiao silent, the others were even more speechless, left only to stare blankly.

Zhang Cangnian rarely experienced such amusement. Only an old comrade like him, nearing retirement, had the right to remain silent at times like this. He patted Wang Zixu's chest and said, "Little Wang, you've been featured in *The Yangtze River*, but why don't you seem excited at all?"

Wang Zixu said, "There's nothing to be excited about. It's just that one article was published. I'm already this old, it's about time I published one."

Zhang Cangnian patted him on the shoulder and said, "That's good." Then he turned to Gou Yingbiao and said, "Director Gou, didn't we just say we should encourage the younger comrades to attend literary gatherings more often? How about we send Wang Zixu to the bookstore to buy a copy of 'The Yangtze River' to motivate the colleagues in the unit?"

Gou Yingbiao couldn't refuse, especially since he couldn't say anything to Wang Zixu right now. The more he looked at him, the more annoyed he became. He waved his hand dismissively, signaling them to leave.

This was exactly what Prince Xu wanted. He found Gou Yingbiao quite annoying, so he turned and left without even saying goodbye.

After walking ten meters, I turned around and found that Diao Yiwen's campaign team was also following behind me.

He smiled, not paying any attention, and walked straight towards the newsstand.

Not far behind, Song Yinglian whispered, "Xiao Diao, are you planning to go with him and take a look?"

Diao Yiwen nodded: "I was originally planning to go to the newsstand too."

Guo Ranran whispered, "I also think we should go and see. Wasn't he always getting rejected? How come he suddenly got published in 'Yangtze River'? Maybe there's some misunderstanding."

Diao Yiwen didn't respond, but silently followed behind Wang Zixu. Guo Ranran wasn't stubborn; that was just her personality. She could be unsuccessful in her own life, but Wang Zixu's life had to fail, otherwise she wouldn't be able to live a good life.

Song Yinglian said in a low voice, "What has he been doing all these days? Why did he suddenly buy such an expensive car?"

Guo Ranran asked, "What kind of car?"

"Didn't you see? He drives an Audi; you can't get one for less than three or four hundred thousand."

"So expensive?"

"What do you think?"

Guo Ranran stared blankly for a long time, then suddenly felt very discouraged. Song Yinglian, on the other hand, was deep in thought. He didn't care whether Wang Zixu climbed the Yangtze River or the Yellow River; what he really envied was that car.

For a moment, the three of them harbored their own secrets.

The bookstore kiosks and bookshop stalls at the literary fair were located side by side. Several bookstores in the city jointly contracted the area, which was covered with blue colored plastic tiles in the center of the square to create a shed area of ​​more than 200 square meters. The walls were made of transparent plastic and equipped with four temporary air conditioners, making it the most densely populated area in the square.

Four doors lead to the east, west, south, and north. Pushing aside the curtains, one is greeted by a maze of bookshelves reaching two meters high. Several "book pillars" spiral upwards, displaying a wide variety of books, from classics to historical texts, ancient and modern, Chinese and foreign. The bookshelves, varying in height and layered, create a winding and secluded atmosphere, filling the room with the subtle fragrance of ink.

Wang Zixu wandered through the forest of books and finally found the newspapers. After searching through a bunch of magazines for a long time, he finally found "Yangtze River". Just as he was about to reach for it, Guo Ranran suddenly appeared from the side and snatched it away first.

"Let me see."

She flipped through the magazine roughly for what felt like ages, finally finding the story "Wild Grasses" on the first page after the table of contents. The small words "Prince Xu" at the bottom confirmed her defeat. Her eyes widened in fury, and she clenched her fists tightly.

Wang Zixu hesitated, then bent down to look for other copies of "Yangtze River" that hadn't been crumpled. Just as Lin Feng said, this magazine is worth commemorating.

Just then, he suddenly noticed a copy of "Literary and Art Circles" magazine. On the cover were the words "The Little Prince's Love Letter to the World." He smiled knowingly and pulled it out of the bookshelf.

Just then, a familiar voice, which I hadn't heard in a long time, rang in my ears:

"Prince Xu? What a coincidence, you're here too?"

Prince Xu looked up and saw Ning Chunyan.

(End of this chapter)