1978 Synthetic Writers

Chapter 268: Make the Decision for Jin Kailai

The magazine "October" was printed at the best printing house in China - Xinhua Printing House.

Xinhua Printing Factory is a national key book and periodical printing factory, located a little south of Xizhimen.

Factory director Miao Wenmin, wearing a gray Zhongshan suit, was walking quickly into the workshop, with workshop director Xie Jiuqiang beside him.

"How could this happen? Why would all the female workers quit?" Miao Wenmin was so anxious that his face turned red. He couldn't help but criticize, "Old Xie, how do you do your job?!"

Xie Jiuqiang also looked innocent, "Director, you really can't blame me. If you want to blame someone, blame October."

Only then did Miao Wenmin hear from Xie Jiuqiang the whole story as to why the female workers quit their jobs.

Ultimately, the blame lies with the novel "The Wreath under the Mountain" published in the fourth issue of "October" in 81.

As the popularity of "October" grew, "The Garland under the Mountain" caused an increasing sensation among readers.

After the novel caused a nationwide sensation, the prickly character Jin Kailai unexpectedly gained the love of countless people.

The character of Jin Kailai is representative in the public's mind and is also the character that is most easily empathized with.

He and Zhao Mengsheng are two completely opposite types of people.

But it was this person who sacrificed himself not to blow up a bunker or block an eye, but to cut sugarcane.

And because of this problem, he is not considered a hero at the end of the novel.

When the female workers in the printing factory heard about the reprint of "October", they took action to protest, hoping to threaten the author to agree to change Jin Kailai's ending.

"Isn't this nonsense?" Miao Wenmin scratched the back of his head angrily.

Since the establishment of Xinhua Printing Factory, there has never been such a bad incident.

And the source of all this is actually a novel?
Unheard of!

Miao Wenmin came to the workshop and took a look inside. All the female workers in charge of typesetting were sitting quietly in the workshop. When they saw him come in, a group of them stood up immediately.

"The factory director is here!"

The female workers cheered and immediately surrounded Miao Wenmin.

"Director, you have to make the decision for us!"

"It's not for us, it's for Comrade Jin Kailai."

"Yes, let's make the decision for Comrade Jin Kailai!"

"."

The female workers were talking to each other.

"Everyone, be quiet, everyone, be quiet!"

Miao Wenmin raised his arm, and the chattering female workers quieted down and looked at him in unison.

Miao Wenmin coughed lightly. He had just criticized Xie Jiuqiang, but he didn't dare to show his displeasure to the workers. Now he gently advised:
"I've heard about what happened, so please don't get emotional or act on impulse.

First, finish the typesetting work at hand. Other workshops are still waiting for you to typeset. Comrades of October are still waiting for our factory to ship the books. Readers across the country are still waiting to read the books printed by our factory."

Miao Wenmin spoke eloquently, but the female workers did not buy it.

"no!"

"Jin Kailai's ending must be rewritten!"

"We want to see Comrade Jiang Xian!"

It was the height of summer, and the female workers in the workshop were shoulder to shoulder surrounding Miao Wenmin, shouting slogans like a tidal wave.

Miao Wenmin just felt his head buzzing and sweat on his forehead. It was no use even though he had shouted until his voice was hoarse trying to persuade her.

He was completely out of ideas, so he had to tell Xie Jiuqiang, "Go contact the comrades at October, tell them about our situation, and ask them if they can discuss it with Comrade Jiang Xian."

The news soon reached Jiang Xian.

After hearing the whole story of the Xinhua Printing Factory from Zhang Shouren, he was at a loss whether to laugh or cry.

This is sweet "pain".

The female workers loved the character of Jin Kailai so much that they even took action to fight for him to be eligible for commendation and to get a better ending, proving that the novel "The Garland under the Mountain" was indeed a hit and deeply rooted in the hearts of the people and readers.

"Lao Zhang, how about this? I'll go meet the female workers myself," Jiang Xian suggested.

"You?" Zhang Shouren joked, "I'm afraid they will eat you."

"They are workers, not tigers. Why would they eat me?"

"Okay, I'll go with you."

Jiang Xian asked for a location and planned to ride his bike there, but as soon as the Xinhua Printing Factory heard that he was coming, the factory's truck drove over to pick him up.

After getting on the bus, introduce each other.

"Writer Jiang, no, savior Jiang!"

Jiang Xian shook hands with the factory director Miao Wenmin. He could clearly notice that Miao Wenmin's palms were full of sweat.

Miao Wenmin was really anxious, and the situation was urgent. If the female workers refused to work, then this would be a case of workers being persecuted.

A key unit like theirs must not allow such things to happen.

"Don't worry, Director Miao, I'm here to solve the problem." Jiang Xian patted his hands and said comfortingly.

Miao Wenmin then let go of his hand and exhaled, "I feel relieved with your words."

We took a car to the Xinhua Printing Factory, a little south of Xizhimen.

Jiang Xian was accompanied by Zhang Shouren, Jin Shaoxian, and several editors of October.

Young Master Jin comforted Miao Wenmin first, "Don't worry, Director Miao, our Jiang Xian is known for his eloquence. He can even convince Feng Mu, the secretary of the Party Committee of the China Writers Association."

Miao Wenmin was also engaged in cultural work, so he naturally knew Feng Mu. He felt relieved when he heard the words.

Several people went in together, and Miao Wenmin first introduced their identities.

"Comrades, this is Comrade Jiang Xian."

"Jiang Xian?"

Glancing at Jiang Xian's figure, a group of female workers in charge of typesetting immediately surrounded him.

They asked fiercely:

"Are you Jiang Xian?"

"What did Jin Kailai do wrong?"

"Yes, what did Jin Kailai do wrong? Why don't you reward Jin Kailai for his meritorious service!"

Jiang Xian was also at a loss whether to laugh or cry.

While I had a slight headache, I also felt relieved. After all, to some extent, the novel "The Wreath" did resonate with a large number of readers.

He explained to the female workers: "Jin Kailai is a fictional character. There is still a gap between literary creation and real life."

However, this simple statement still could not satisfy the female workers.

The female workers were clamoring, one after another, and strongly demanded that Jiang Xian rewrite the ending for Jin Kailai.

"Even if he died, Jin Kailai should at least be awarded a first-class merit!"

"Yes, award him first-class merit!"

Jiang Xian tried his best to explain to the female workers:
"Comrades, you should know that there are indeed people like Jin Kailai in real life, and some unfair and unreasonable things will happen. In addition to forming a sharp contrast between characters, the setting of the characters also has a greater aspect, which is to connect with the real society.

There is always a shadow under the sun, which is the most basic reality that novels should reflect."

After Jiang Xian finished speaking, several female workers' eyes flickered, as if they were convinced by his words.

But there are still several female workers who will not give up:

"Comrade Jiang Xian, we ask you to rewrite Jin Kailai's ending!"

"Jin Kailai should be awarded first-class merit."

"If you don't agree, we won't do the typeset work!"

Jiang Xian opened his mouth and spoke a few more words, but still failed to convince the female workers.

Finally, he managed to escape with the help of Miao Wenmin, and his clothes were almost torn by the female workers.

"The comrades are so enthusiastic," Jiang Xian wiped his sweat.

Jin Shaoxian was also still frightened. "Jiang Xian, I would rather follow you to persuade Comrade Feng Mu a hundred or a thousand times than come here to negotiate with these female workers once."

He felt the helplessness that Miao Wenmin had felt before.

If there weren't a few machines blocking the way, Jiang Xian would probably have been skinned alive by these female workers today.

Miao Wenmin smiled bitterly. This matter was so serious that even if the author was invited over, it couldn't be resolved.

However, Jiang Xian's call was effective. At least there were fewer female workers who refused to give in, and only a few stubborn ones were left.

A few days later, the higher authorities intervened and the female workers resumed their work and started printing the second edition of the fourth issue of October 81.

More and more readers resonate with the novel "The Garland under the Mountain". At the same time, the voice of the cultural community has never stopped.

Before it was published, "The Wreath" had already won the reputation of being a "masterpiece" of modern military novels, as well as literary reviews from literary critic Feng Mu.

After the novel was published, the Wenhui Daily, far away in Shanghai, first published a review report on "The Wreath under the Mountain" written by Zhang Shouren.

He believes that "The Garland under the Mountain" is written in a simple style and with deep emotions. What's more difficult is that a novella of 80,000 to 90,000 words can actually bring seven or eight characters to life.

Except for the few people who have written the most.

Characters like Liang Sanxi's mother and wife are also portrayed as brilliant, noble and great.

After the war, Zhao Mengsheng discovered that Liang Sanxi's mother was actually Aunt Liang who had helped raise him when he was born during the liberation.

In the past, she fed the people's army with millet and milk, and today she is dedicating her own flesh and blood to the motherland.

In addition to Zhang Shouren's review report, literary review articles on "Wreath" were also published one after another.

A chorus of praise.

Zhang Shouren saw Yan Gang’s literary reviews in the Literary Gazette.

Yan Gang believes that the characters portrayed by Jiang Xian are all beautiful in soul. Although the novel describes the harshness of war and the sacrifice of soldiers, it does not bring sadness to people but inspires them.

In addition to him, Zhang Shouren also saw a literary review by Li Tuo.

Since Li Tuo turned to the study of literary criticism, his reputation in the criticism circle has been rising steadily.

He pointed out that the novel "The Wreath" has both a strong sense of reality and a certain sense of depth, and it truly and touchingly depicts the truth of the battlefield and the rich minds of commanders and fighters.

Among the numerous review articles, the most noteworthy one is the literary review "On 'The Wreath under the Mountain'" written by Comrade Liu Baiyu.

Comrade Liu Baiyu is the Minister of the Cultural Department of the General Political Department. The weight of this literary review is no less than that of Feng Mu, and it is certainly eye-catching.

In his article, he mentioned that the key to the success of "The Wreath" lies in its profound, accurate and sharp revelation of contradictions and its clever handling of internal contradictions.

It neither avoided contradictions, achieved the purpose of criticizing unhealthy tendencies, nor lost the correct, advanced, and bright orientation, praising the leadership, the people's heroes, and the close relationship between the military and the people.
The most crucial part is the sentence "It is conducive to the construction of 'four modernizations'."

Liu Baiyu's words completely set the tone for the novel "Wreath".

You know, before publication, the editors of October magazine were already prepared to burn the manuscript if it failed to be published.

Within just a few months of its publication, "The Wreath" achieved such great success that Jiang Xian planned to invite Zhang Shouren, Jin Shaoxian, and the editors of "October" to dinner together.

The people at October had originally waited until The Wreath won the award before having this meal, but now seeing that The Wreath had caused such a sensation among readers, they no longer refused.

In the evening, Zhang Zhongye packed up his manuscript and prepared to go to an appointment. Before leaving, he found Liu Xinwu sitting quietly at the table alone.

He pondered for a moment, then went over and knocked on the table.

"Comrade Xinwu, let's go over and have a gathering together."

Liu Xinwu looked up at him and smiled, "No, I'm not in the mood to eat today."

Zhang Zhongye knew that there was a grudge between him and Jiang Xian, and wanted to try to reconcile them.

"If there is anything, just talk it out. When scholars argue, they argue over an idea."

"You really wronged me."

Liu Xinwu smiled bitterly, "I'm not that petty, it's just something that happened today."

Seeing him dejected, Zhang Zhonge couldn't help but become curious. After questioning him for a long time, Liu Xinwu slowly told him the whole story.

When he was reviewing manuscripts today, a middle-aged woman suddenly rushed into the editorial office and asked who the editor was.

Liu Xinwu stopped her, said that he was her, and asked what was the matter.

Unexpectedly, the old lady took half a step back, then knelt down in front of him, tears streaming down her face, and kept expressing her gratitude.

Liu Xinwu's mind went blank at that moment, and he quickly helped her up. The old lady then explained that she had walked to Beijing for four days and more, just to thank the editorial department of "October".

She said that her son, like Jin Kailai, was a hero who could not be recognized and whose deeds could not be praised. It was the novel "The Wreath under the Mountain" that wrote about her son's deeds.
At this point, Liu Xinwu was also infected by the old lady's emotions, and tears flowed uncontrollably from his eyes.

"I should kneel down to this lady and thank her for sacrificing her flesh and blood to the motherland."

Zhang Zhonge sighed and patted him on the back.

Liu Xinwu raised his head and said, "Comrade Zhonge, this time, I really admire Jiang Xian and his novel."

Zhang Zhongye also sighed at this moment.

Characters like Jin Kailai and Liang Sanxi are so real, and there are too many such fighters in China.

Zhang Zhonge remembered that he had received a letter a few days ago from the widow of a company commander.

She said that her husband's story was exactly the same as Liang Sanxi's. His "suicide note" was a long list of debts with the date and amount of the loan marked on it. He also instructed in the note that if the pension was not enough, the family's pigs should be sold.

The paper was wrinkled, and I wondered if it was because it was soaked by the tears shed by this female comrade when she wrote the letter.

The meal was scheduled at Quanjude.

Jiang Xian and the editors of October drank and talked about literature.

I don't know.

Because of him, the Maotai Distillery thousands of miles away was suddenly criticized by its superiors.

(

Reunions twelve times a year.

It’s just the right time, and tonight is the best.

Wish you all a happy Mid-Autumn Festival! )

(End of this chapter)