I am not a literary giant

Chapter 133 Meeting but Not Recognizing Each Other

The newspaper was handed to Old Wang, but he didn't take it. The shadow of old memories was still haunting him, and he was sulking.

Prince Xu poked him with a rolled-up newspaper: "Take a look."

"What kind of cunt is that?"

You'll see when you see it.

"I'm too lazy to look at it, you summarize it."

Prince Xu said impatiently, "Take a look!"

This newspaper was local news from Xihe, and the content was rather unremarkable. The front page simply reported the successful conclusion of the Xihe Literary Festival, with Wang Zixu winning a mere first place. A photo of Wang Zixu receiving his award was also displayed on the masthead.

A day has passed since the Xihe Literary Gathering, but Wang Zixu is certain that the old man has no idea his son won first place. He's never been interested in such trivial matters, nor does he have any connections in the field. If Wang Zixu hadn't mentioned it, the old man probably would never have known.

But winning the award wasn't important. Even if he won the Nobel Prize in Literature, the old man wouldn't understand what was so great about that stuff. He mainly wanted to show him the prize money printed in small black letters in the newspaper: 10 RMB.

With this bonus as a prelude, the old man can be easily intimidated. Then, it is only natural to tell him that he used the bonus and his housing provident fund to buy a second-hand house near the city hospital.

He had inspected that house; it was located near a hospital, with heavy pedestrian and vehicular traffic, which would be unbearable for ordinary working people, but just right for an older comrade like Wang Jianguo.

Moreover, this house isn't afraid of depreciation. It's next to a hospital, which will create accommodation needs. If Old Wang moves out later, he can rent it out, or entrust it to a sub-landlord if he's too lazy to manage it. In short, he won't lose money. Even if Comrade Wang Jianguo objects, he'll still buy it. If Wen Ai's business fails in the future, at least he'll have real estate that can appreciate in value.

Although Old Wang believed that housing prices would inevitably collapse, deep down he really wanted a house of his own. Wang Zixu came specifically to tell him this, wanting to give him a big surprise.

However, today Comrade Wang Jianguo was acting strangely, his temper was particularly bad. Wang Zixu asked him to read the newspaper, but he refused, turning the pleasant surprise into a stalemate. Just as the two were locked in this tug-of-war, a head popped out from the stairwell behind them—it was their neighbor, Old Zhang.

"Old Wang! Your son's here!"

The gloom on Old Wang's face vanished in an instant, and he turned around to greet Old Zhang as if nothing had happened.

Old Zhang's face was beaming with a genuine smile, just like on his wedding day. Wang Zixu didn't understand what made him so happy, but fortunately, he soon found out the reason.

Old Zhang swung his arm and said in a commanding tone, "We just happened to run into each other. Old Wang, you and your son must have dinner at my house tonight."

After saying that, he added, "Don't refuse! Last Dragon Boat Festival you kept me from being alone at home, so I have to invite you back today no matter what."

Wang Jianguo turned to look at Wang Zixu: "His son and daughter came back to see him today."

"Yes, my son and daughter finally came home today, I'm so happy! I'm not like you, your son is right here with you, it's easy for him to come back and visit. For my family, it's like celebrating the New Year when our children come home."

Wang Jianguo laughed and said, "But your children are successful; they're making a lot of money outside."

"Sigh, what's the point of making so much money? Even though my son drives a 40 yuan Mercedes and my daughter drives a 30 yuan BMW, what's the use if they don't drive them back to see their old man? Look at your son, even though he rides an electric scooter every day, he comes to see you every few days. I envy you!"

Wang Jianguo laughed and said, "It's already great to have a car worth three or four hundred thousand yuan; I'm actually envious!"

"Sigh, what's there to envy? I've already settled down in Donghai! The house, with a down payment of 240 million, was just completed last month. I'll be living in Donghai from now on! I'll definitely be coming back less and less."

Wang Jianguo, breathing rapidly, asked, "What does your son do for a living? How does he earn so much?"

"He works in book promotion. With the economic downturn these past few years, he doesn't earn much anymore. A few years ago, he was making a fortune! Back then, whenever a book was published in China, they'd send him a copy, otherwise it wouldn't sell!"

Old Zhang's Versailles-style technique wasn't top-notch, but it was incredibly effective for Wang Jianguo. He uttered a doubtful voice: "Making this...making this kind of thing can make this much money?"

"That's definitely not something everyone can earn; only the top tier can. Let me tell you, there's not a single writer in the entire country he doesn't know. He's even had dinner with Mo Yan and Yu Hua!"

Wang Jianguo didn't know who Mo Yan or Yu Hua were, or what their abilities were, but he understood that the down payment was 340 million yuan. He swallowed hard and asked again, "And what about your daughter?"

"Let's go upstairs and talk."

Comrade Wang Jianguo cast a pleading look his way, wanting Wang Zixu to come upstairs with him.

Prince Xu roughly understood what was going on.

Comrade Wang is usually so boastful, always bringing up his son in front of Lao Zhang. Now that Lao Zhang's children have come to settle scores, it's time to settle the score. I reckon Comrade Wang Jianguo had already taken a full combo from them before they arrived, leaving him with very low health, which is why he was so agitated earlier. Now he's taken another Versailles combo, which knocked him into the air, leaving him completely bewildered.

The tactic of comparing children to others always works on parents.

Wang Zixu pointed to his wrist: "I have to go home and finish my manuscript. There's not enough time, so I won't go."

"What manuscript are you rushing to finish? Work materials?"

Wang Zixu lowered his voice slightly: "Novel."

Wang Jianguo's face immediately darkened. Old Zhang, who was standing next to him, leaned over and said, "Young Wang writes too? Hey, Old Wang, why didn't you tell me that Young Wang writes as well?"

Wang Jianguo remained silent, his face dark. In his mind, writing this "filthy rubbish" was a complete waste of time; he should be spending that time figuring out what the leaders liked. Besides, the other man's son had already boasted so much; bringing up his own writing was just asking for trouble.

Old Zhang stepped in to smooth things over, saying, "If it's inconvenient for Xiao Wang, it's fine if you don't eat. It would be nice to come to my house for a visit. You two spent the Dragon Boat Festival with me last time, and I would feel bad if I didn't invite you to my house."

Having said all that, Prince Xu had no choice but to agree.

Before following Old Zhang upstairs, Old Zhang stretched out his hand and, without turning his head, quickly pointed behind him:

"That's my son's car."

Wang Zixu glanced back, and the Mercedes-Benz emblem flashed coldly.

Old Zhang tried to appear nonchalant, but his slouching gait betrayed his smugness. Comrade Wang Jianguo, like a younger brother, chimed in with a timely, boisterous jab: "This car costs 400,000?"

"Yes, does it look like it?"

"Similar. Very similar."

Wang Jianguo wore an undisguised expression of envy on his face, clicking his tongue in amazement.

Wang Zixu felt sorry for Comrade Wang Jianguo in his heart, and also thought he was too humble. It was just a Mercedes, a mere car. What was there to envy?

He's spent enough this month to buy three of these cars.

Unfortunately, this is something that can't be discussed.

The prince feigned surprise, greatly satisfying Old Zhang's vanity. He then took the newspaper and went upstairs, walking last.

Upon entering Old Zhang's house, Wang Zixu looked around. Compared to the brand-new Mercedes-Benz, Old Zhang's house was rather cramped, after all, it was an old neighborhood. The original house layout was very conservative, but the decoration was quite grand. The television was a curved screen, and the sofa placed in the center of the living room exuded the air of a nouveau riche.

Lao Zhangchong and Wang Jianguo said, "Zhang Wei didn't sleep well yesterday. He was sleeping in his room. I went to wake him up."

Zhang Wei is the name of Lao Zhang's son.

Wang Jianguo hurriedly said that if the child wanted to rest, he should be allowed to rest and there was no need to wake him. But Old Zhang insisted on showing off and went into the bedroom.

The prince felt a strong urge to urinate, so he threw the newspaper on the coffee table and went to the bathroom door. Just as he grasped the doorknob, the door opened automatically, and the next second, he almost bumped into a woman.

The woman had long eyelashes and a quiet, gentle appearance, but her clothing style was in stark contrast. She wore a red beret, a white chiffon long-sleeved top, and a skirt so short it seemed to disappear. She smelled of sunflowers.

The worst part was that she was very tall. Prince Xu was already quite tall at nearly 1.8 meters, and this girl was at least 1.76 meters, only one size smaller than him. So when their eyes met, they stared straight at each other.

At this moment, Old Zhang also came out with Zhang Wei and called out, "Xi Xi, this is your father's friend, this is your Uncle Wang, and this is Xiao Wang. Say hello to them."

Wang Zixu looked at the girl, "Zhang Xixi?"

Old Zhang has a knack for naming things.

Zhang Xixi didn't greet him, but just stared at him. Wang Zixu quickly stepped aside, and Zhang Xixi strode past him. It's as if some magical change had occurred to Old Zhang's genes; her 1.76-meter height looked like 1.2 meters of legs.

Old Wang was surprised that his old friend had such a beautiful daughter. He said dryly, "This child is really beautiful and has a good temperament. She looks like she's going to be involved in the arts."

"You're wrong about that. She's not in the arts. She originally went to a second-tier university, but then she took the postgraduate entrance exam and got into Nanjing University. She's a hard-working and studious girl, and now she's preparing to find an administrative job at Nanjing University. For a girl, stability is good."

Just then, Old Zhang's son, Zhang Wei, came out of the bedroom yawning. He had long hair, tied in a small braid, and a small tuft of beard under his nose. This made him look more artistic, but Old Comrade Wang Jianguo wasn't too fond of this strange attire.

"Dad, do we have guests?"

Old Zhang introduced, "This is Old Wang, your Uncle Wang. He's my neighbor who lives in the basement downstairs. They spent the Dragon Boat Festival with me before, so I invited them upstairs today for a get-together."

Comrade Wang Jianguo awkwardly rubbed his hands and smiled apologetically. Before, he had been living a life of debauchery and didn't think much of living in a basement, but now, when people introduced him, the words "living in the basement downstairs" sounded particularly jarring.

Old Zhang then pointed to Wang Zixu and introduced him, "This is Xiao Wang, whom I mentioned to you. He's a government employee and knows the officialdom in Xihe like the back of his hand. Xiao Wei, didn't you want to cover the Xihe Literary Gathering? You might be able to get in touch with him."

When Zhang Wei heard the words "public sector employee," he knew that Lao Zhang was talking nonsense. He just hummed and hawed twice indifferently as a greeting.

Wang Jianguo's smile became even more unsightly.

Although Lao Zhang was telling the truth, and even exaggerating a bit, when faced with such a huge disparity in strength, there was no need for deliberate humiliation; the truth had already become the sharpest knife to wound. Comrade Wang Jianguo was becoming more and more like a silent gourd, constantly smiling, bowing, and responding, essentially becoming a social escort.

Prince Xu sighed and went into the bathroom to relieve himself.

While urinating, he stared at the toilet, wishing that he could keep urinating indefinitely so he wouldn't have to go out and face that embarrassing situation.

However, even the longest-lasting love has its end, and no matter how much urine he accumulated, it couldn't help him escape detection. Wang Zixu returned to the living room, and as he sat down, Zhang Wei and Zhang Xixi were chatting animatedly. He happened to overhear the last part of Zhang Wei's sentence:

"...So I still want to interview this year's winner, but unfortunately I haven't been able to get an appointment."

Zhang Xixi said, "They asked you to come back and help promote our hometown, but they didn't even give you their phone number?"

Zhang Wei said, "They gave it to me. The Culture and Tourism Bureau gave me their company's phone number. I contacted them, but they were very rude and said they didn't know anything about it."

Zhang Xixi said, "Was it that person who instructed their unit to say that?"

Zhang Wei said, "It's possible."

Zhang Xixi said, "That person just won an award and already acts so arrogant? They're not even giving you face, brother?"

Zhang Wei scoffed. Zhang Xixi, quick-witted as ever, retorted, "Then why are you so eager to promote someone else? Just write a random article and call it a day."

Zhang Wei said, "That won't do. Actually, our public account originated in Xihe. After all, our family is from Xihe. This time, it's rare for the leaders to attach so much importance to it. This is an opportunity. We should do our best this time and make a real promotional effect. Even if we don't make the local leaders remember this favor, it would be good to leave a good impression on them."

Old Zhang commented with a deep expression, "Xiao Wei's idea is right, Xi Xi, you need to take a broader perspective. One should not forget one's roots and should have a sense of belonging to one's hometown. Besides, how do you know you won't need these connections in the future? Let alone joining some association in the future, even if your father is hospitalized, a phone call or some connections can help arrange a bed."

The more Wang Zixu listened, the more uneasy he felt.

Why does he feel like this is talking about me?

But is this really talking about me?

I'm not arrogant at all, and nobody's asked to interview me.

Besides, I'm a grown man, sitting right in front of you, don't you recognize me?

The first thing Wang Zixu didn't know was that since he won the award, he had been inundated with interview requests.

However, he's been so heartbroken these past two days because of his wife's passing that he hasn't been answering calls from strangers. Some of the calls have gone to his workplace.

That's right, Gou Yingbiao answered them all.

The second thing he didn't know was that he only went on stage that day to accept an award and do a brief interview. He was dressed casually that day, and under the bright lights, his face was somewhat distorted. His most widely circulated photos are even more disastrously out of focus; even he himself has to rely on his body language to identify himself.

Wang Zixu turned to his father and whispered, "Are they talking about the literary gathering?"

Wang Jianguo glanced at him: "Shut up, listen carefully, and study hard."

(End of this chapter)