My 1978 Hotel

Chapter 114 Poetry Meeting
"Are we not late?"

Huang Xiaoli and Wu Xiaofeng couldn't wait to ask as soon as they got off the motorcycle.

"No, I just came back a short while ago."

Li Feng asked Wu Shengnan to park the motorcycle in the yard to prevent it from being bumped by the little kid. If the little kid's curiosity caused something to break, it would be a troublesome matter. After all, motorcycle parts are not cheap, and the families in the dam are not rich, so it is better to take precautions.

After parking the motorcycle, Wu Shengnan and Xu Qingqing greeted each other and joined the discussion.

"Comrade Li Feng, your poetry is so well written and so profound."

Cao Qingping was one of the few writers who had appeared in provincial publications. He was quite excited and shook Li Feng's hand.

"Teacher Cao, you are too kind."

"No, no, no, Comrade Li Feng, I truly admire you. Although this poem is only two short sentences, it magically combines the most common phenomena in life: darkness, eyes, and light. This seemingly contradictory turn of events contains a wonderful rationality. This poem is truly fascinating."

“Yes, this poem is really well written.”

Yang Qingfeng sighed. "I didn't expect Comrade Li Feng to have such profound attainments in modern poetry."

"Director Yang, I'm a bit abrupt in coming here."

Wu Chuan said, "Our work wasn't quite up to par before. Communication was even worse than when we were students."

"Teacher Wu, you flatter me too much."

Good boy, how come everyone is praising themselves in the blink of an eye? A generation, Li Feng knew that this poem was very good, one of the representative works of Misty Poetry, and one of Gu Cheng's famous works. This poem is extremely famous in later generations. The two sentences are endowed with extremely many meanings, and different people have different opinions.

"Comrade Li Feng, you are too modest."

Cao Qingping said, "Director Yang, I don't think we need to discuss anything else today. This poem alone is enough for us to explore."

"Yes."

Yang Qingfeng nodded. This poem was so good. He didn't feel much when he read it at first, but when he savored it carefully, he found that it contained a great charm. Not to mention them, who were semi-educated people, even writers in the region or even the provincial capital would find it worth holding a seminar when they came across such a good poem.

"Is it really that good?"

Huang Xiaoli and Wu Xiaofeng looked at each other and asked Wu Shengnan in a low voice. Although they liked literature very much, their understanding was not as deep as Wu Shengnan, a member of the literature club, and they were not as good as the writers and cultural center directors who were talking.

Could it be that they were too superficial? Wu Shengnan smiled bitterly and shook her head. While she thought Li Feng's poems were well-written, she hadn't analyzed them in depth. She simply thought they were good poems, but she didn't particularly understand the specific merits or depth of their writing. "I don't quite understand them either, but I think it's a good idea to listen to Teacher Cao and the others."

"That's true."

After all, they are all writers who publish articles in newspapers and magazines. They must have a point in their words. All you need to do is listen carefully. Compared to Xu Qingqing and the others, Director Yang was more touched. He had just expressed his opinion.

He gave this poem a high evaluation and briefly introduced some of the writing techniques and the overall presentation of the poem's intentions. Hearing Wu Shengnan and the other two whispering, Xu Qingqing leaned in and whispered back what Director Yang had just said.

"Teacher Li is truly amazing. You can see how the overall imagery of this poem is primarily focused on the image of the eyes. In the vast darkness, the eyes are the only light, but our experience tells us that eyes are transparent, whereas the eyes in the poem are black."

Xu Qingqing looked at the three people with a certain amount of pride. "You understand, these aren't just ordinary eyes; they represent the poet's inner feelings, and they represent the most profound paradigm."

"Ah, so this is what eyes mean?"

Huang Xiaoli and Wu Xiaofeng suddenly understood, and Wu Shengnan nodded slightly. "So, then, the black eyes and the night both have a specific meaning?"

"Of course, Director Yang just said that the black eyes represent the poet's heart-wrenching trauma. They are the sedimentation of Scars and a reflection on the darkness. Similarly, the black eyes also make the night seem so heavy and terrifying."

"Ah, that's it."

Wu Xiaofeng and Huang Xiaoli sighed, so that's how it is. They really can't compare to these writers and literature lovers, their thoughts are so profound.

"I understand a little."

Wu Shengnan glanced at Li Feng. She had investigated Li Feng's background and had some knowledge of it. If she was not mistaken, Li Feng might have some similar experiences to the female protagonist in "Scars" and the male protagonist in "The Pig Farmer".

He must have experienced unimaginable pain over the past decade or so. Perhaps this was the darkness for him. "How difficult it is to find light in such a deep darkness."

"Yes."

Xu Qingqing nodded. "Shengnan, you're right. It's so rare, so brave, to cry out in such a dark night, searching for the light..." Xu Qingqing grew increasingly excited, and Wu Shengnan also became excited.

"What I admire most is the title, 'A Generation'. Director Yang and Teacher Wu, although Teacher Cao didn't mention it just now, as I understand it, this generation refers to us in the past." After Xu Qingqing finished speaking, the look in Li Feng's eyes became brighter.

"Maybe it's not just us."

Wu Shengnan said, "Li Feng, perhaps Teacher Cao, and Teacher Wu are all in there. This is an era, two or even three generations."

"Makes sense."

Xu Qingqing quickly wrote it down. "Wow, Li Feng hadn't expected this guy to understand so much. Of course, Li Feng knew that he must have learned a lot from his generation. Cao Qingping and Wu Chuan both expressed their thoughts one after another."

"Comrade Li Feng's poem is also worth learning from in terms of its creative techniques."

Cao Qingping said, "The artist's imagery is particularly ingenious, employing images closely related to everyday life, skillfully combining them to express his profound understanding of society, life, and the world. He also uses simpler, clearer vocabulary and sentences to express his thoughts, avoiding obscurity or pretentious writing."

"These are just some of my simple thoughts, please feel free to correct me."

"Teacher Cao said it very well."

Wu Chuan continued. "Let me share my thoughts. I think this poem also has something to say about its aesthetics. In particular, its aesthetic principles are entirely new. It avoids direct expression of emotion and abandons literal description of scenes, instead using imagery and metaphor... to express a rejection of darkness and a yearning for and pursuit of light."

"The poem's ideological content is highly condensed and artistically refined, a power and capacity that is difficult to express in novels, essays, etc."

Wow, Li Feng looked at Cao Qingping and Wu Chuan in surprise. These two must have scored full marks in reading comprehension. Li Feng actually knew these words. Similar words appeared in the comments of a generation. Unexpectedly, these two teachers analyzed them so quickly.

This level is not low, which is a bit surprising. Li Feng didn't know what to say for a moment. "The two teachers are too flattering." Modestly, Li Feng did not deny their thoughts. This moment surprised Xu Qingqing and others even more.

I didn't expect that there were so many hidden meanings in just two lines of poetry. It was amazing. Qin Guosheng, Zhao Guodong, Xu Qingqing and Wu Shengnan were all full of admiration. As for Huang Xiaoli and Wu Xiaofeng, they were even more moved.

As expected, they are not even a bit inferior to the young literary people who are writers and literature lovers. It turns out that this poem contains so much content and is so profound in thought.

"so amazing."

Wu Xiaofeng couldn't help but sigh, and Huang Xiaoli nodded as she listened. "No wonder Poetry Magazine wants to publish this poem." "Poetry Magazine wants to publish this poem?"

Good thing! Although Huang Xiaoli's voice was not loud, Xu Qingqing, who was not far away from her, still heard it clearly. "Really?" Xu Qingqing shouted, and everyone heard it. Poetry Magazine was going to publish this poem.

Everyone looked at Li Feng, especially the deputy director of the cultural center, Yang Qingfeng, and writers Cao Qingping and Wu Chuan. They knew about Poetry Magazine, which was truly one of the top poetry magazines.

“Not this one.”

As soon as Li Feng said this, everyone looked at him with a hint of shock.

"Isn't it this one?"

Huang Xiaoli and the others really forgot that Li Feng had sent them "Facing the Sea with Spring Flowers Blooming" at that time. This poem is more straightforward. If there was no story about Li Feng and the outbreak of "Scars", I'm afraid the poetry magazine would not have sent them another letter.

Facing the sea, spring flowers are blooming. Although this poem is not as meaningful as those in "A Generation of People", when people understand the background of writing this poem, they will look at it differently.

"Comrade Li Feng, I believe things will get better in the future."

"Yes, Comrade Li Feng, just like what this poem says, we must believe that tomorrow will be better and that light will always come." Cao Qingping and Wu Chuan looked at Li Feng with a hint of admiration in their eyes. He was a warrior who had gone through life and death. No wonder he could write such a profound poem for a generation.

Not to mention this moment, not only Yang Qingfeng, Cao Qingping and others, but even Wu Shengnan had a hint of admiration. How desperate must one be to choose to jump into the river? After experiencing all this, Li Feng still faced everything bravely, pursuing the light in the darkness.

My goodness, Li Feng felt that Xu Qingqing's eyes were so hot that they could burn someone to death. Others were also full of admiration, with a hint of emotion, which made Li Feng laugh and cry. Damn, it was all the fault of the system. It had to come up with such a poem. In order to publish it, Li Feng had to make his life experience more tragic, and commit suicide by jumping into the river. This kind of nonsense is now blamed on him.

"Everyone, don't worry. The incident has passed. At this moment, the boat has already passed through thousands of mountains."

"Yes, the boat has sailed through thousands of mountains, and things will get better and better in the future."

"Yes."

Everyone talked about it, and even chatted about the old man who had just returned to work. Now the night has broken through the curtain, the dawn is at hand, and the light is not far away. It is no exaggeration to say that the boat has passed through thousands of mountains.

At this moment, Li Feng was reborn, at least that's what others thought, which is even more admirable.

Li Dong was speechless. Why did it get darker the more he described it? Forget it. Fortunately, it was almost twelve o'clock. Li Feng asked everyone to sit down and went to cook.

"Almost forgot."

Wu Shengnan, Huang Xiaoli, and Wu Xiaofeng had brought some food. Huang Xiaoli's husband, a projectionist, had plenty of tickets, pheasants, and rabbits, and she'd even brought a preserved pheasant. Wu Xiaofeng's family, with someone like her being the deputy secretary of a commune or the director of a revolutionary committee, usually had some food supplies. Wu Shengnan, not to mention her father, her mother was also the director of the neighborhood office, so she'd brought some food.

"You are too polite."

They were all good stuff, more than ten eggs, two handfuls of vermicelli, and a cured pheasant. This guy didn't even need pork. With this chicken, plus fish, shrimp, eggs, and vermicelli, the meal was so delicious that it was enough to satisfy the writers' exchange group.

The provincial leaders were here, and Li Feng quickly called back Zhang Wenjuan, who had come back from part-time work, as well as the two maids, Daya and Erya, to cook. Fortunately, the kitchen had been renovated a few days ago, and there were two iron pots, one big and one small.

You can cook rice and stir-fry vegetables at the same time, which is much more convenient than using one pot in the past.

"Chicken stewed with mushrooms."

Add vermicelli and the taste is amazing. Scrambled eggs with leeks and some green peppers are also very delicious. The mixed fish pot is even more fragrant. Stir-fry a river shrimp and deep-fry the crucian carp and braise it.

"Wow, it's so rich."

The large wooden basin was filled with a large bowl of white rice, and there was also a table full of meat dishes, including fish, meat, chicken and eggs. Li Feng also specially took two bottles of wine.

"Forget about the wine."

Yang Qingfeng waved his hands repeatedly. "I have to go back to the Cultural Center this afternoon, so forget about the wine."

"Okay, let's have some drinks."

Li Feng went to make some drinks and asked everyone to try the orange powder. It was quite useful and tasted good, especially these days. There were not many opportunities to drink orange soda. This product of later technology tasted ten times better than the orange soda of today.

"It's delicious."

Everyone admired Li Feng's writing style and talent, but also felt a little envious. Li Feng had so many readers and lacked nothing at home, even more like a city dweller than a city dweller. But this was what he deserved. The hardships were over, and the boat had sailed through the mountains. What was next was a bright future.

"Everyone, please feel free."

Director Yang, Teacher Cao, Teacher Wu... Public Security Wu... Everyone, pick up your chopsticks and eat more vegetables.

Nowadays, people don't hesitate to eat when eating. Besides, the food was so good that even Xu Qingqing, who was a bit of a fangirl, finished two large bowls of rice. "It smells so good."

"With a little lard."

The rice crust was crispy and fragrant. After eating the rice, another piece of rice soaked in small fish soup was delicious. Li Feng couldn't help but have another piece. Yang Qingfeng and others were so satisfied with the meal that they felt embarrassed when they gave the food coupons and vegetable money.

"Teacher Li, I came too hastily. I'll make it up to you when I get back."

"Director Yang, what are you talking about? I really shouldn't have asked for these."

"Teacher Li, you must take it, otherwise I will be too embarrassed to come here again." Yang Qingfeng said.

"OK then."

Five yuan for ten kilograms of food coupons is not bad, it's quite a lot. After all, it's still difficult to get one kilogram of food coupons per person for lunch. As for the dishes, although there are fish and meat, five yuan is enough.

"Ding bell."

"Hey, An Jun, why are you here?"

"There's a telegram for you."

"Telegram, mine?"

Li Feng was a little confused. Yang Qingfeng saw Li Feng's expression change. "Teacher Li, is there something wrong?"

"Nothing. The Shanghai Wenhui Daily sent me a telegram."

"Shanghai Wenhui Daily?"

Yang Qingfeng exclaimed in surprise, and Cao Qingping, Wu Chuan and others who were not far away heard it clearly. Everyone in the Shanghai Wenhui Daily was shocked and looked at Li Feng. Could it be... ?
(End of this chapter)