I am not a literary giant

Chapter 85 Yong Ye (Thanks to Alliance Leader ptik)

Ning Chunyan quickly waved his hand and said, "No, no, I was just helping him copy the book. He has already written it well enough. It is a perfect blend of inner and outer beauty, and it has won unanimous praise from my family. I don't need to make any changes."

A glint flashed in Li Tingfang's eyes: "Mr. Ning also thinks it's good?"

Ning Chunyan said, "My dad said he doesn't seem like a new author at all; he must have practiced in private."

Lin Feng intensified his technique: "My brother is indeed well-trained. He's read a lot of books. It's not just that he's practiced; he's put in a lot of hard work."

Li Tingfang leaned back in her recliner. She knew Lin Feng's character and abilities perfectly well. Lin Feng was a self-taught amateur, and rather honest and kind-hearted. He praised everyone he met, but she didn't take him too seriously, only saying:

"To acquire amazing skills, one must put in hard work. But even the most amazing skills are only at the level of technique. To condense them into the Dao, one also needs a true soul and an untamed spirit. This is why I believe you will ultimately surpass Shen Qingfeng."

"Shen Qingfeng overemphasizes refinement to the point of becoming pretentious. Too much pretense makes one no different from a bandit. To paraphrase Confucius: 'When substance prevails over refinement, it becomes rustic; when refinement prevails over substance, it becomes pedantic. Only when substance and refinement are in perfect balance can one be a gentleman.' I hope that the Prince Xu you mentioned is a gentleman of both substance and refinement."

The saying "If literature prevails over substance, then it is all pretentious" comes from the Analects of Confucius, Book VI, Chapter 26. It doesn't mean that all pretentious people are worthless; "pretentious" here means "fake." Li Tingfang's main point is that Shen Qingfeng is a very fake person.

Lin Feng said, "Teacher, Brother Zixu is indeed a gentleman."

"My point is not whether he is a gentleman or not."

"But he really is. He would never be like Lin Luo, running off to fool around with Shen Qingfeng. How should I put it? He has some integrity."

"...Okay, okay, stop pressing it."

Ning Chunyan listened from the side and chuckled to herself. She mainly felt that the word "gentleman" and Wang Zixu seemed so mismatched.

The moment we met, he said he had a wife, practically wearing his fear of infidelity on his face. Yes, he certainly seemed like a gentleman. But if you're truly celibate, why don't you dare look at me? Even if he is a gentleman, he's a gentleman with lustful thoughts but no courage.

Of course, if Prince Xu knew what she was thinking, he would surely defend himself amidst shame and anger: A gentleman judges by actions, not intentions. Self-discipline and returning to propriety is benevolence. What does "self-discipline" mean? If you can control yourself, you're a gentleman; if you can't, you're a petty person. Even if self-discipline is difficult, it's mainly because of your great charm. Feelings arise from actions but are restrained by propriety; that's feeling first, then propriety. Even Confucius wouldn't blame me, so why shouldn't I be a gentleman?

Thinking of this, Ning Chunyan laughed even harder. That guy was hilarious. Of course, Ning Chunyan's fantasies about Prince Xu weren't entirely accurate; her narcissism played a significant role in them.

Li Tingfang berated Lin Feng, saying, "Stop criticizing others. Have you been properly polishing your new manuscript? If you could get published in *Yangtze River* even once, there would be far fewer dissenting voices in our association. Why would we be so troubled by that scoundrel Shen Qingfeng's affair?"

Lin Feng was sweating profusely, looking timid and hesitant. Li Tingfang, her temper flaring, began to berate the members of the Xihe Writers Association, counting them on her fingers:

"The two gems of Xihe have both gone to the East Sea, that's fine then. In the vice-chairmanship, there's you and Shen Qingfeng. Shen Qingfeng is hard to mention, and you're practically unremarkable. Finally, a promising young talent emerged, Lin Luo, but he's just a lecherous scoundrel who went off to fool around with Shen Qingfeng..."

Li Tingfang was old and virtuous, but she wasn't the kind of kind-faced old lady everyone imagined. As a woman who admired Lu Zhishen, her early writing style could only be described as straightforward and direct.

Back then, her insults were vivid, expressive, and full of emotion; even the most mundane creatures were considered insignificant. But as she aged and her hormones subsided, she became less prone to anger. Towards those she disliked, she would only address them in a relatively gentler way, calling them "rats" or "bandits."

Fortunately, most of those who were qualified to argue with her back then are dead, and those who are still alive can no longer argue with her.

Ning Chunyan watched helplessly as everything unfolded. Once the old lady had calmed down a bit, she spoke:

"Teacher, I've been planning to start a magazine lately..."

Li Tingfang waved her hand and said, "I know, I've heard about it. It takes courage to still be willing to work in print media these days."

Ning Chunyan smiled shyly: "It all depends on human effort. Some things always need to be done by someone."

Li Tingfang nodded and said, "Commendable courage. Have you chosen a location for your magazine's headquarters yet?"

"Not yet, it's only confirmed to be in the East China Sea."

"Should we do nationwide distribution?"

"We are currently raising funds. If we have enough funds, we would like to do a nationwide distribution."

Li Tingfang said, "You can handle it. As long as you have enough funds, you don't need to worry about any procedural issues. Just come to me if you have any problems."

This statement carries immense weight. Li Tingfang rarely makes such promises, so for her to say "don't worry about it" means she will utilize her highest-level connections and networks. And if she's willing to use those connections, and she says it's no problem, then there absolutely won't be any problems.

Ning Chunyan nodded and thanked him repeatedly.

"Professor Li, I have another request. Could you please write a preface for the inaugural issue of my magazine?"

Li Tingfang said, "Xiaochun, it's not that I'm stingy with my words and unwilling to help you, but I have someone more suitable to write your inaugural message. I recommend Teacher Yu Qing to undertake this glorious mission."

Ning Chunyan was startled and sat up straight. Yu Qing and Li Tingfang were of the same generation. Yu Qing was also the kind of person who could be written into the history of contemporary Chinese literature, and his part was quite extensive. He was an indispensable figure in modern and contemporary Chinese literature.

What's even better is that he's a true long-selling author, not only incredibly popular back then but also still quite popular among young people today. In fact, when Ning Chunyan wanted to start this magazine, he was the first person she wanted to contact, but unfortunately, given her status, she couldn't get in touch with him at all.

"Could you please ask Teacher Yu Qing for me?"

Li Tingfang smiled and said, "Of course. However, he's a rather serious person. You'd better compile the first issue and show it to him in its entirety. After he reads it, he might write a very long message for you, and he might even submit it for publication. If you just make a verbal request, he might just write a perfunctory sentence and that's it."

Ning Chunyan immediately broke out in a sweat: "Before I show it to Teacher Yu, could I let you take a look first?"

She had already made up her mind to publish the Little Prince's article in the magazine. She didn't know what Teacher Yu Qing would think if he saw the Little Prince's article published so openly, or if he would write something sarcastic in a fit of anger.

Given the current literary climate, The Little Prince is considered too low-brow to be considered highbrow.

Li Tingfang, unaware of her thoughts, still smiled and said, "You can look at it, but it's your magazine after all. I'll only glance at it at most. Don't expect me to help you choose articles."

After saying that, she added, "The selection and editing of a magazine represents the personal interests of the editor. You could say that the editor-in-chief is the soul of the magazine. A few writers with a strong personality might boost the magazine's sales, but what truly keeps readers engaged is its soul. You must never lose your soul."

Ning Chunyan nodded solemnly and smiled shyly.

……

Lin Feng and Ning Chunyan said goodbye to their teacher together. They went out together and chatted about magazines and the Writers' Association, but they didn't go into too much detail.

The two had very little in common, and their conversation inevitably veered towards business pleasantries. Being both sentimental people who disliked perfunctory formalities, they inevitably fell into an awkward silence.

Unfortunately, the two were going quite a distance apart, and they couldn't walk together or talk things out. Just as they were in a dilemma, Lin Feng suddenly had a flash of inspiration and pointed to a street corner not far away, saying:

"Ning Cai Nu, do you know? Brother Zixu's wife works at that flower shop over there."

Upon hearing this, Ning Chunyan immediately became interested: "How did you know?"

Lin Feng said, "Brother Zixu told me about it last time. He mentioned that his wife works at this flower shop and that he and I had met once and chatted for a long time. Unfortunately, I've been too busy with worldly affairs to remember this. I don't know if he mentioned it to his wife later. Speaking of which, I should go and say hello to her so as not to leave a bad impression."

Ning Chunyan said, "You are truly a refined gentleman, and you have considered everything very thoroughly."

Raymond Lam smiled shyly.

After saying that, she suddenly had an idea: "How about I go with you to take a look?"

(End of this chapter)