Literary Master 1983

Chapter 88: Yu Qie in Their Eyes Across the Country (I)

The article said: Fellow countrymen, comrades, and friends! Thirty million compatriots in Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan! Fellow countrymen at home and abroad who care about the motherland!

The Laoshan Campaign has become the fastest and most significant victory since the Chinese self-defense counterattack entered the stalemate stage. While you are reading this article, the border defense troops are advancing to Balihe East Mountain and Zheyin Mountain! We are about to usher in a new triumph!

The strategic advantage gained from this battle is enough to keep the enemy firmly outside the country, and they cannot and dare not get any closer to our southern gate!
At Hill 211, where the battle was most intense, the soldiers climbed to the main peak and shouted "Long live the victory" after the victory! At this time, someone shouted the slogan "We are together". They held hands and repeated this sentence several times.

This is a novel written by the young writer Yu Qie last summer, "Letter from the Fiancée". The novel reflects the story of soldiers uniting as one in the face of desperate situations and defeating the invading enemy. The author appeals to the people of the whole country, asking us to care about the soldiers on the front line!
What’s even more legendary is that he personally went up the north slope of Hill 211 and shot dead the enemy who came to spread reactionary propaganda! According to the recollections of the war photographer who accompanied him, Yu Qie accurately shot the cowardly rat, strode back to the headquarters with his head held high, and participated in the subsequent combat oath-taking meeting…

It can be said that the hero is brave and heroic. He mounts his horse to fight the mad Hu people and dismounts to write military orders. His horse is as fast as Lu and his bow is as loud as thunder!

We will win, we will definitely win, because we have such writers, we have such an army, we have such people, and we are together forever!
----

This report spread across the country like a whirlwind. Reading it makes one's heart beat faster and one's back sweat.

After reading the report, a leader immediately called for a symposium for the literary and art circles and invited Zhu Muzhi.

"Do you understand this cotangent?"

"I'm learning...Yu Qie is a top student at Yanda University and has written many novels."

"Yan Da, aren't you also from Yan Da?"

Zhu Muzhi smiled and said, "So I am asking his teachers and classmates about him. I think this is reliable information."

"Brother Zhu, I have checked his identity. His family has been loyal for generations and can undoubtedly withstand the test of time. But now he is a rural teacher. He originally had the most scars to write about... However, from this morning till now, I have read many of his novels and found that what he writes is different from what others write!"

"What's different?"

"He doesn't have that kind of lifeless, melancholy feeling. I don't understand literature, but many people understand it better than me. Last year, someone talked about 'subject theory' and 'literary alienation' in a speech - I felt very puzzled. In my opinion, their novels are nothing special, but they are eager to talk about things that are difficult to understand! I realized that young people are not like this..."

Zhu Muzhi said: "Yu Qie is a young genius. His teachers and classmates said that he has talents in many aspects..."

"What a athlete, what a hero!"

Zhu Muzhi echoed: "Yes!"

This leader rarely loses his temper and does not easily express his opinions. Last year, when he found someone talking about something "incomprehensible", he did not get angry immediately, but found an opportunity to refute it later.

But he has now expressed his attitude: "What kind of writers do we need for our cultural undertakings? I believe that they are never selected, nor do they form cliques by boasting, but they come from the people - have you seen the soldiers on Hill 211 holding hands?"

"——We are together, we are together!" He still spoke with excitement, as if he heard the shouts at that time, "This is exactly the kind of writer we need, and it was the people who chose him."

"I personally hope that he can get more development."

Zhu Muzhi certainly hopes so: "Young people are like the sun at eight or nine o'clock, full of vigor and vitality, and naturally not as lifeless as those who are dull and listless."

------

In Chengdu, Ma Shi Tu had just finished tending to a bodhi tree he had planted, and then sat in his study, facing the broad afternoon sun, and began to write a letter. He wrote to Qian Zhongshu of Yenching University.

Ma Shi Tu lives in an old and run-down house in the northwest of Chengdu, which doesn't even have an elevator. Many people are surprised when they visit Ma Shi Tu's house for the first time because it is too simple.

But Ma Shi Tu cared more about the area of ​​the desk, the light from the windowsill, and the fate of his "disciple" - although Yu Qi didn't know this yet.

Last year, after settling in Chengdu, Ma Shi Tu decided to find some fun for himself when he was old. He didn't know how long he could live, so after searching for a long time, he chose to raise a Bodhi tree.

In traditional culture, Bodhi means enlightenment and wisdom, and Bodhi seeds mean endless life and a new beginning.

Ma Shi Tu was an optimistic and open-minded person. He felt that the Bodhi tree could express his aspirations. Even if he died, his things would be passed down.

Ma Shi Tu's daughter Ma Wanmei came back from her hometown and asked, "Dad, a friend sent you some oranges from Wanxian. Do you want to eat some?"

"I am writing a letter. Please don't worry and give it to me."

"Who is this letter to?"

"An old friend of mine asked me before if I really had an apprentice. I saw that he obviously liked someone else and wanted to snatch her from me... Of course, that's impossible. I can't let her go."

"Dad, how is your Bodhi tree doing? Can I help you?"

"You don't have to come. It's growing on its own. It just needs water and sunlight."

After thinking about it, Ma Shi Tu picked up his pen and wrote: "Brother Mocun, I used to study at Southwest Associated University, and you were a teacher. I had the best relationship with your 'Su Province Gang' and talked with you the most."

"In 38, parts of the country fell, the Yellow River embankment at Huayuankou was dug up, houses collapsed in the flooded area, and people were starving everywhere... I joined the organization at that time, but I didn't know what to do? I didn't know what I would face."

"In 41, due to a traitor's betrayal, my wife died and my first daughter disappeared. She was not found until years later... The organization asked me to take the entrance exam to Southwest Associated University to go undercover, and I really got in on my own merit. I thought people from Southwest Associated University should speak out for the country and not become slaves of a conquered nation, but some people didn't like me..."

"They said, why do you want to refute others? You and Mr. Wen Yiduo have become close friends regardless of age difference. You give speeches everywhere all day long. You are making trouble and being different... People in the literature department should just study and write novels, not mess around... I thought, yes, I am so miserable, I am not young anymore, why don't I learn my lesson?"

"What if I'm exposed? What if I'm retaliated against?"

"But I can't control myself. I read the 'Outline of National History' written by Mr. Qian Mu... I know he thought our country was doomed, our nation was doomed, and we would all become slaves of a conquered nation. He wrote this because he hoped that our children in the future, after becoming slaves of the Japanese, would still be able to read these 'Outlines of National History' and know how glorious we were in the past!"

"Later, Japanese planes came to bomb, and teachers and students could not afford to eat. We finally shared the same hatred and shared the hard times. But fortunately, I realized it earlier than most people."

"You said you like Yu Qie very much and asked me if I have ever accepted him as my disciple... I have never been a disciple of Mr. Wen Yiduo. He has no disciples and I have no master. We are both teachers and friends. It is the same with Yu Qie. Don't try to break up the relationship between us."

"If Yu Qie doesn't despise me as a fellow countryman whose literary level is not high, I can pretend... Yu Qie and I are very similar, and I really admire him. One day, he was questioned by several people and felt embarrassed. I thought of my time at Southwest Associated University. How similar we were."

"Mr. Wen Yiduo took care of me; now it's my turn to be Wen Yiduo."

At this time, Ma Shi Tu had almost finished writing the letter. He thought about it, ran to the Bodhi tree and picked a few Bodhi fruits, wanting to use the relationship between the Bodhi tree and the fruits to remind Qian Zhongshu that he had a special relationship with Yu Qie.

(End of this chapter)