1978 Synthetic Writers

Chapter 590: Following the old path of "Fu Lei's Family Letters"?

"Zhiyin" magazine?

Fan Yong thought for a while, then glanced at the information on the magazine cover.

This is a publication from Wuhan, the city on the Yangtze River.

As is customary, domestic newspapers and magazines must have a supervising authority.

The publication is managed by the HUB Provincial Federation.

Overall, Fan Yong felt that "Zhiyin" should be a popular publication.

In recent years, with the growing popularity of magazines like "Story Club," a massive wave of popular publications has swept the country.

In addition, cultural institutions have become responsible for their own profits and losses in publishing journals.

Without financial support, publications had to find their own way to survive, so they came up with all sorts of strange tricks. Many of the original serious publications, or rather, pure literary publications, were transformed into popular publications that were easier to expand circulation.

What are popular publications?
It's roughly the kind of publication that features a lot of popular literature, including gore, violence, murder, revenge, and bizarre romances.

As an insider, Fan Yong knew very well that almost every popular magazine had made a lot of money in recent years, and the editors of various popular magazines he knew were all smiles every day.

What makes *Zhiyin* special is that it is slightly more refined than popular publications, at least in Fan Yong's opinion.

Fan Yong inquired around and discovered that this publication was actually one of the top-selling popular magazines in terms of circulation. It had only been published for two years, but its monthly circulation was already quite good, around 50 copies!

This surpasses many top-tier literary publications!

Therefore, Fan Yong had some concerns.

If this publication has a decent circulation, then these articles in it could very well lead the public to have negative assumptions about "The Little Prince" and Jiang Xian.

After all, the phrase "Jiang Xian's lover" appeared in this article.

"lover".

That's not a compliment.

This is especially true for Jiang Xian.

Jiang Xian and Zhu Lin were a model couple admired by people all over the country. They were the "Royal Brother" and "Queen of the Women's Kingdom" who appeared together on the screen in "Journey to the West".

These two people, one a renowned writer and the other a famous actor, are both public figures.

At this time, it would be easy for Jiang Xian to attract attention if he were to have a lover. With such a large circulation of "Zhiyin" magazine, what would the outside world think of Jiang Xian as a writer if this were not curbed?
Even if we take a step back, Fan Yong and Jiang Xian are not related, so there's no need for Fan Yong to consider his feelings.

But The Little Prince is a work by Jiang Xian.

"The Little Prince" is also a novel that Sanlian is preparing to publish.

If an author's reputation is affected, will the work not be implicated?
People are prone to the emotion of "loving someone because of them, and hating someone because of them." If, in the eyes of readers, Jiang Xian is a "Chen Shimei" who is unfaithful in love, then what right does he have to teach children how to love someone in "The Little Prince"?
Many parents like to overanalyze things.

Ultimately, "The Little Prince" is a children's novel, meant for children.

But as a parent, wouldn't you have these concerns:
Jiang Xian himself doesn't understand love. His own values ​​are completely warped, yet he's teaching children?
Wouldn't that lead to bad behavior?
The most realistic example is "Fu Lei's Family Letters," which was once a publishing legend. Many people are particularly fond of "Fu Lei's Family Letters," feeling that every word is sincere and every sentence is heartfelt. It is a model of parent-child communication and a treasure trove of life wisdom.

Later, after hearing about some of Fu Lei's outrageous deeds and seeing Zhang Ailing's revelations about Fu Lei in her famous essay "Yin Baoyan's Visit to the Flower Pavilion," I found it difficult to accept "Fu Lei's Family Letters."

After all, an author's character flaws are like stains, inevitably leading people to question the work.

Although time has passed, each of Fu Lei's outrageous deeds is enough to make people look at this translation master with a different perspective.

Even amidst the tide of pursuing freedom and liberation, some of his actions clearly went against the tide, even appearing somewhat arbitrary and lacking the necessary tolerance and understanding.

Such a personal image undoubtedly casts a complex shadow over "Fu Lei's Family Letters".

This led to the removal of "Fu Lei's Family Letters" from textbooks. Many parents were overjoyed, while many others angrily denounced it as their most hated text, saying that even Fu Cong himself didn't want to read it because he found it verbose and hypocritical. Moreover, the thought that Fu Lei, a scoundrel who abused his children, was a serial adulterer, and had an extremely terrifying desire for control, could actually write family letters full of "fatherly love" was both far-fetched and disgusting.

Well, it's questionable whether Fu Cong himself was unwilling to see this, but what he said later wasn't too wrong.

In short, a writer's reputation is always related to the work itself.

If Jiang Xian's own love is not "pure" enough, then wouldn't one feel nauseous reading "The Little Prince" just because it's written by Jiang Xian?

Fan Yong quickly found Shen Changwen and expressed his concerns. Shen Changwen took it very seriously upon hearing this.

"This is no small matter. Let's talk to Comrade Jiang Xian right away."

Jiang Xian quickly received a call from Sanlian Bookstore. The caller introduced himself as Shen Changwen, the general manager of Sanlian Bookstore.

Jiang Xian was naturally familiar with Sanlian Bookstore.

In later Beijing, if you walk west along Cui Mansion Alley from Longfusi Building, you will see a bookstore covering nearly 2,000 square meters called Sanlian Taofen Bookstore.

Jiang Xian visited the place several times in later generations.

It must be said that the store's interior decoration is very elegant, and even in later years, this bookstore has always been packed with people, living up to its legendary status in an era dominated by e-books.

Well, to put it bluntly, it became popular because it became a popular spot for internet celebrities to take photos.

If you go there on the weekend, you'll see a bunch of girls dressed in Hanfu, JK, or Lolita fashion sitting together, holding up their phones and covering their faces to take pictures.

Of course, there are quite a few who actually read books.

Because of this store, you can open any new book you want, take any drinks you want, and read for as long as you like.

So many elderly men wearing reading glasses would go there on weekends, either standing in the philosophy section flipping through books like "Being and Time" or standing in the classics section flipping through "Dream of the Red Chamber".

The stairs are never quiet either; usually, a dozen or so young people sit in a row, like a string of human candied hawthorns, even more lively than a train station during the Spring Festival travel rush.

In addition, the store often holds a book club every Thursday.

Almost every month, a famous writer comes over for a chat.

Jiang Xian remembered that time in the past when he listened to Yu Hua talk about "To Live". That was also the first time he met Yu Hua in person.

That day, more than 300 people squeezed into a venue meant for 200, listening to Yu Hua talk for a long time about the tear-jerking novel "To Live" with a lighthearted attitude. It was only because he was the author that people criticized him for not understanding the sadness of "To Live" with his frivolous attitude. When the show ended, an old lady even held Yu Hua's hand and kept wiping away tears. Anyway, it was just as exciting as a celebrity meet-and-greet.

Of course, although it's called a bookstore, Sanlian is actually a large publishing group, and it was involved in a major scandal in the early 2000s.

It is said that several private bookstores raised objections to the then general manager of Sanlian Bookstore.

Subsequently, a group of well-known writers and scholars, including Yang Jiang, Chen Pingyuan, Chen Lemin, Xu Jilin, Ge Zhaoguang, Zi Zhongyun, and Shao Yanxiang, seemed to respond in kind, writing articles one after another to recall the old "Sanlian" newspaper, which can be regarded as expressing their views and concerns about the "Sanlian Incident" in another way.

The matter dragged on for several months before the general manager was finally announced to be transferred, much to the delight and celebration of the literary community.

As a result, some time passed.

People were horrified to discover that this guy had gone back to being a leader at Xinhua Bookstore.

Of course, this is a story.

At present, Sanlian Bookstore is still relatively inconspicuous compared to publishing giants such as Writers Publishing House and People's Literature Publishing House.

Jiang Xian doesn't need to think too much.

The connection between Sanlian and Feng Mu is due to the publication of "The Little Prince". The reason for choosing Sanlian was Feng Mu's idea. Since Feng Mu had spoken, how could he not listen?
"It's hard to explain over the phone. Please take some time when you're free so we can visit you in person and sit down to talk." Shen Changwen's attitude on the phone was very humble.

Jiang Xian didn't put on airs. "There's no need for you to visit. I'll take some time to visit your Sanlian Bookstore myself."

"Oh dear, that's too much trouble."

"No trouble, no trouble."

"Then we are truly honored to have your humble abode."

After exchanging pleasantries for a while, Shen Changwen and Jiang Xian finally agreed on a time.

After quickly handling his business, Jiang Xian got into Xu Chenhui's car and arrived at the People's Publishing House, inside the Sanlian Bookstore, which was not as large as it would be in later years.

"Comrade Jiang Xian, hello, hello."

Shen Changwen recognized Jiang Xian, shook his hand and led him into the office, introducing him to the editors of Sanlian Bookstore.

"This is editor Fan Yong, who once organized the publication of 'Fu Lei's Family Letters,' and he is also in charge of the publication of your 'The Little Prince.'"

"This is Comrade Jiang Xian."

The two shook hands and greeted each other.

“I know about ‘Fu Lei’s Family Letters.’ It’s a publishing miracle in the industry. It turns out you were the one who organized its publication,” Jiang Xian said.

Whether Fu Lei was a good person or not is a matter of much debate among later generations, but the publication of "Fu Lei's Family Letters" has always been a great legend in the publishing industry.

This story begins in 79, when Lou Shiyi, the deputy director and deputy editor-in-chief of People's Literature Publishing House, made a special trip to Shanghai to attend the burial ceremony of Fu Lei and his wife held by the Shanghai Federation of Literary and Art Circles.

Lou Shiyi was a close friend of Fu Lei, and had a close relationship with Fu Lei's family before the liberation.

At that time, Lou Shiyi was engaged in underground work and often went to Fu Lei's house to take refuge.

Therefore, Lou Shiyi specially traveled from Beijing to Shanghai.

At this time, Fu Cong, who had been abroad for more than 20 years, also returned from overseas.

At this moment, the Fu Cong that Lou Shiyi saw had transformed from a vibrant and immature young man into a mature and composed middle-aged man. After more than twenty years, Lou Shiyi felt an indescribable sense of emotion upon seeing the son of his old friend.

Lou Shiyi attended the burial ceremony of Fu Lei and his wife and was returning to Beijing. Unexpectedly, Fu Cong was also on the same flight to Beijing, so the two met and reminisced during the journey.

Fu Cong briefly talked about his personal experiences of mourning and celebrating abroad over the past 20 years, and his feelings about returning to China today. Naturally, the two also talked about Fu Lei and his wife.

Lou Shiyi knew that Fu Lei was not only an excellent literary translator, but also wrote many literary and social commentaries, as well as beautiful prose works. Although the number may not be large, they were distinctive in terms of thought, theory, and art. They were never collected into a book during his lifetime. Lou Shiyi felt that they should not be allowed to be lost in the future, but should be collected, organized, edited, and published. This would also be a valuable asset.

During their conversation, the two discussed the many letters Fu Lei had written to Fu Cong over the years, often exceeding ten thousand words.

Fu Cong told Lou Shiyi that those letters are still well preserved.

Lou Shiyi had a very deep impression of these letters.

One spring, he had a holiday and traveled to the south. He passed through Shanghai and stayed at Fu Lei's house. The two talked late into the night. Fu Lei told him about his son Fu Cong, who was studying abroad, and showed Lou Shiyi a letter that Fu Cong had sent home. He also asked Lou Shiyi to read a long reply that he had written but had not yet sent.

Lou Shiyi only saw a few letters, but they left a very deep impression on him.

Therefore, after learning on the plane that Fu Cong had kept these letters, Lou Shiyi, a writer and publisher, keenly sensed their value and recommended them to Fan Yong.

Soon, Fan Yong went to Fu Min's residence in the capital to find him. Fu Min was still living at the school at the time and did not know who Fan Yong was, but he was very happy when he heard that he wanted to publish these letters.

Well, it's worth mentioning here that Fan Yong's status was not low, because in Fu Min's recollection, Fan Yong went to see him in a car.

Therefore, Fu Min realized that Fan Yong was no ordinary person, and from then on, Fu Min went to see Fan Yong herself, no longer daring to let Fan Yong visit her.

Later, Fan Yong strongly advocated for the publication of "Fu Lei's Family Letters". At that time, some people felt that Fu Cong's identity was problematic. Fan Yong said that Fu Cong had already performed in Beijing, so what problem could there be?

Finally, the publication of "Fu Lei's Family Letters" was achieved, and upon publication, it created a publishing miracle, selling millions of copies, and even many years later, it maintained a sales rate of 10 copies every 3 years.

Everyone was surprised by this. Even Fu Min, before the book was published and distributed, never expected it to have such a large circulation, such a great impact, and such strong vitality. She just felt that the letters were very touching.

"We have all read your 'The Little Prince'."

Fan Yong sat down and chatted with Jiang Xuan about the novel. "It's so well written! I never imagined that a children's literature work could be so profound and so moving!"

"You're too kind," Jiang Xian said modestly, as was his habit.

"Well, I don't know how you created such a novel, or how you have such a rich imagination."

After a few perfunctory words, Fan took out the magazine "Zhiyin" and said, "However, I saw some bad articles, and I felt it was necessary to show them to you."

(End of this chapter)