Tokyo: The life of a literary giant begins with home self-defense!

Chapter 40 Non-stop editing

When Longchuan Che was painting plum blossoms at home, a black sedan stopped in front of a courtyard.

The courtyard is near the foot of Mount Fuji. Unlike the adobe tile walls of Ryukawa Tetsu's small house, the courtyard is made of wood and has a pleasant landscape. The bamboo corridor at the entrance and the stone lanterns made by craftsmen all indicate that this courtyard is of great value.

Taro Ono stamped his feet after getting off the car, shaking off a few snowflakes on his shoulders.

"It's snowing again."

Taro Ono looked up at the clear sky. One or two snowflakes were falling. It seemed that there was an unusually heavy snowfall this winter.

Is it to coincide with the birth of "Snow Country"?

This thought came to the man's mind, and then he burst out laughing.

The man straightened his clothes and buttoned the second button of his suit.

He took two steps forward and nodded to the servant who had been waiting there.

"Is the teacher awake?"

"I've been waking up very early lately."

Following the man in the haori, we walked inside, and the scenery in the courtyard changed with every step.

The carefully arranged bamboo forest and the clean water that makes an ethereal sound.

Trees, vegetation, water pipes.

Water bowls, fences, stone lanterns.

Each enclosed area is a tiny natural landscape.

It can be called a change of scenery, or a new world with each step.

The Zen-like landscape ends at a gateway painted with vine patterns.

The servant walked Ono Taro here, bowed to the man and left.

After confirming once again that his attire was fine, Ono Taro walked forward and called out softly.

"teacher."

His tone was respectful, and he half-bowed when he spoke even when no one was looking.

After three or five seconds, no one responded, and Ono Taro opened the paper door and went in.

It was a little dark inside.

The only source of light came from a bamboo curtain pulled up at one corner.

Through the bamboo curtain, you can see the snow-covered Mount Fuji in the distance, as well as the snowflakes bending the pine and cypress trees in the courtyard.

An old man wearing a black Monzuki haori sat quietly beside the bamboo curtain.

It was he who did not respond to Ono Taro just now, but Ono did not dare to blame him. He walked to the seat next to the old man and sat down quietly. The cold wind blowing from Mount Fuji made him feel a little cold.

"Dong dong dong".

A disembodied sound came from the frightened deer in the courtyard, and the old man slowly turned around after a quarter of an hour or two.

"Didn't you say you would never see an old piece of wood like me again? Why are you so shameless to come and see me again?"

The old man had a loud voice, which was totally unlike what his gaunt figure could produce. Ono Taro felt embarrassed when he heard it, and he put his hands on his thighs and lowered his head slightly.

The atmosphere was a little awkward as soon as they met, and when Ono Taro was wondering if he had come to the wrong place today, the paper door was opened again.

"Grandpa, is Mr. Ono here today?"

Like a little girl who accidentally broke in, the girl with a flat chest wearing a small furisode looked inside and said a little embarrassedly.

"Oops, I seem to be bothering you."

The somewhat awkward atmosphere was swept away, and Ono Taro nodded gratefully to the girl with a cunning look in her eyes.

"Xia Zi, long time no see."

The only person who could come in like this and not make the old man angry was probably this quiet-looking granddaughter.

The girl has a quiet and peaceful temperament, and her eyes are incredibly clear.

She chuckled and walked over to the two of them, tilting her head to look at the solemn old man.

"The old man is still arrogant?"

The girl's tone was cheerful, and when Ono Taro heard this name, his expression froze.

His teacher is very strict about rules, and this kind of disrespectful title must be...

"My friend left?"

The wrinkles on the old man's face bloomed like old chrysanthemums, which made Ono Taro, who didn't see the other person smile once a year, curl his lips.

What kind of person is the one in charge of the Five Regents? He is definitely a slave to his granddaughter.

"Let's go. She said she found a boyfriend and asked me to go with her to see him tomorrow." The girl sat down next to the two men and moved the tea table next to them to pour two cups of tea for them.

The tea was Gyokuro from Kyoto. The light green tea soup brought a hint of warmth. The old man took a sip of tea before looking at the student who came to visit him for no reason.

"Did he curse the people in the Ministry of Education again, or did his manuscript offend another minister?"

The old man's tone was neither salty nor bland, and could even be described as a bit sarcastic.

Taro Ono touched his nose and took out a manuscript from the briefcase behind him.

"what is this?"

"A writer's manuscript."

"I know it's a manuscript. Why are you giving it to me?"

The old man put down his teacup in a bad mood. He didn't usually write novels but liked to study literature. Couldn't he recognize that the line of twenty words was a manuscript?

"It's very interesting, I want you to take a look at it first."

Taro Ono gritted his teeth and handed the manuscript forward.

If the manuscript "Snow Country" wants to have a great enough influence in the future, it must be recognized by the old man in front of it.

"No, I haven't helped anyone read manuscripts for a long time."

The old man didn't even glance at the snow-white manuscript. Someone of his status and position would not easily help others read manuscripts.

Taro Ono looked at Natsuko Imamura as if asking for help. The girl smiled and picked up the manuscript aside.

"After passing through the long county tunnel, you will reach the Snow Country..."

The first sentence at the beginning made the girl raise her eyebrows.

"You won't let me see it. You're just delivering it to me."

The girl had a subtle look on her face. When the two people next to her looked at her curiously, she coughed lightly and recited each word.

The girl spoke clearly, and the old man, who had originally said he didn't want to read it, finally listened to the 21,000 words in the rhythm of the other person reading the story.

"Is this gone?"

The story came to an abrupt end when Komako picked up the shamisen. The old man was stunned for a moment, then picked up the snow-white manuscript and flipped through it.

No literature lover can watch a good work slip away from their eyes.

The old man picked up the other person's briefcase and searched it several times.

Suddenly I felt like in a novel, slapping the face of someone who looked down on me.

Ono Taro puffed out his chest and said in a tone that said, "You're not ignoring me."

"No, that's all."

The old man curled his lips and said, "How dare you bring out such an unfinished work and embarrass yourself."

Then he stood up, patted his butt, and walked away leisurely.

As the room gradually grew quiet, Natsuko Imamura touched the manuscript with her bandaged hand.

"Mr. Ono thinks highly of this writer?"

The old man has not been involved in the literary world for many years. As his last student, Ono Taro's manuscript today was obviously not just for him to take a look.

In Japan, literati have a high status.

The status here is not an empty name with a referential meaning.

Rather, every manuscript has the potential to guide and influence society.

This kind of influence from the pen is likely to affect the interests of some people.

Taro Ono once publicly challenged the Ministry of Education over an article that reflected government corruption.

The most likely reason I came here today is to find a backer for the author of this article "Snow Country".

"It's just insurance."

Taro Ono sighed and said, "Snow Country" did not have the flavor of critical literature.

But as for writers, when their brains get excited one day, they don’t know what they will write.

Taro Ono doesn't care what happens to Ryukawa Toru in the future, but he at least wants to protect him until he can really write representative works of mono no aware culture with his pen.

"Being an author is also a high-risk profession."

Thinking of those authors who failed halfway due to lack of restraint, Taro Ono shook his head and stood up to chase in the direction the old man left.

The stubborn old man's name is Kujo Fujitaka.

The head of the Kujo family, one of the five regent families in Japan.

(End of this chapter)