Writer 1978: I Need to Give the Literary World a Lesson

Chapter 113 Before Departure: Explanations
In the Friendship Store, Liu Yimin took out a suit and placed it in front of him, then held up the tie around his neck and asked Zhu Lin which color would look good with it.

"I think they all look good," Zhu Lin said softly from the side.

"Haha, I know, which one looks the best?" Liu Yimin asked in front of the mirror.

Zhu Lin thought for a moment and said, "The one with blue stripes looks the best. It looks young and natural, and it suits your age."

"That's it!"

He bought another pair of black leather shoes, along with a tie, spending 30 yuan of foreign exchange certificates. He went up to the third floor to look for a suitcase; in those days, there were no wheeled or trolley suitcases.

The counter and the shelves behind it were filled with hard-sided suitcases. Liu Yimin picked one up and felt its weight; it was quite heavy. With luggage and books inside, it wouldn't be easy to carry.

However, there weren't many good options, so Liu Yimin could only choose two brown hard leather suitcases, each about 26 inches in size. The suitcases had two mechanical buckles and a belt buckle on each side of the handle.

The two hard-sided suitcases cost 120 yuan, and Cao Yu gave him 200 yuan in foreign exchange certificates. In the end, he only had 50 yuan left.

During his visit to the Friendship Store, Liu Yimin bought twenty folding fans as gifts, with pictures of landscapes, lotus flowers, bamboo, or characters painted on them.

After doing the math, he realized that 200 yuan was far more than he could spend on gifts! For Ba Jin, 200 yuan was simply not enough!
"Comrade Liu Yimin, do you think France is the same as here?" Zhu Lin asked on the way back.

“It’s definitely different, otherwise it wouldn’t be called Paris, France, but Paris, China!” Liu Yimin laughed.

"When will you come back?"

"It should be around the 15th of next month."

Zhu Lin nodded, remaining silent. As she pedaled her bicycle, she kept staring at Liu Yimin's retreating figure, lost in thought. As they neared the Beijing People's Art Theatre, she suddenly rode ahead and said, "I have a Seagull camera at home. How about you take some more photos in Paris?"

"Great!" Liu Yimin wanted to buy a camera, but the foreign exchange certificates Cao Yu gave him were obviously not enough.

"I have plenty of film too. I'll come back after I'm done shooting and see what France looks like!" After riding for a while, he added, "When will your book be available in bookstores? I'd like to buy a copy to keep."

I'll bring you one in a bit.

Zhu Lin squinted and smiled, "Comrade Liu Yimin, that's exactly what I meant. I'll bring one to my dad later, and he'll definitely be happy to see it."

Liu Yimin turned to look at Zhu Lin, who was smiling broadly, and slowly he also learned to joke.

"We have all of them, and they even come with Teacher Wan's autograph."

"middle!"

Liu Yimin:
Liu Yimin handed the remaining foreign exchange certificates to Cao Yu, then took out an envelope containing RMB. Upon seeing it, Cao Yu said with a stern face, "I don't need this, you can keep it."

"Teacher, you have to accept this money!"

Cao Yu thought for a moment and then said, "You can keep the foreign exchange certificates. I don't need them, and I have more at home."

Liu Yimin kept the remaining foreign exchange certificates, but gave the RMB equivalent of 200 foreign exchange certificates to Cao Yu: "How can a teacher give money to a student? You keep it, I don't need the money. I've already received the basic royalties for the standalone book, and the Writers' Association also gave me a clothing allowance and a gift allowance."

"Alright, find a place to change into your suit, we'll eat at home today."

"it is good!"

"Let the makeup artist take a look at you!" Liu Yimin found the film crew's dressing room, changed into a suit, and wore a Chinese sweater and long trousers underneath. Otherwise, he would have been unbearably cold. The makeup artist tidied Liu Yimin's hair, and he showed off in front of the mirror. Suddenly, he was dressed in a fitted outfit, making him look much more upright.

As Liu Yimin entered the rehearsal hall, a group of actors from the Beijing People's Art Theatre gave him a thumbs-up. Lan Tianye joked, "Yimin, with your looks, you should come to our Beijing People's Art Theatre as an actor."

Yang Lixin stood to the side, carefully examining the fabric of Liu Yimin's clothes. Liu Yimin smiled and said, "Teacher Lan, I won't come and compete with Comrade Lixin for my job!"

"Hahaha!"

Looking at the radiant Liu Yimin, Zhu Lin couldn't help but clench his hands.

"You have to send me a copy of that standalone book, it has to be signed by both you and Jiabao Gong," Lan Tianye said in a low voice.

"It's been saved for you!"

On April 10th, the China Youth Daily officially published the "Vote for Representatives of Contemporary Chinese Young Writers." Looking at the names on the list, Liu Yimin felt that the China Youth Daily had pulled off a big move this time.

Writers under the age of thirty who have written two novels or poems and are somewhat well-known are all listed.

This issue of the newspaper sparked heated discussion upon its publication, or rather, debate. But for a newspaper, controversy is essential for sales and influence.

Universities, writers' groups, magazines, and local literary federations and writers' associations are all discussing the list in the newspaper. Those whose names are on it are happy, as it's at least a form of recognition; those whose names aren't are disheartened.

Cao Yu published another book review in the "Drama Monthly" magazine, titled "An Analysis of the Literary Value of 'Wolf Smoke in Beiping'". The title was just a change of name from "Donkey Water", but as long as it was associated with Cao Yu, no one would think it was just a change of name without any change of content.

Inside the editorial office of People's Literature and Art, Zhang Guangnian looked at the comments and said with a smile, "Old Wan couldn't hold back after all!"

"With Yimin about to go abroad, Elder Wan obviously doesn't want Yimin to be distracted by this matter. In addition, the Beijing People's Art Theatre does have plans to adapt it into a play, and everyone from the director to the directors and actors is very optimistic about it. Several directors at the Beijing People's Art Theatre are fighting over the directorship of the play, and even Comrade Shan Zun has joined in the competition."

Cui Daoyi said.

“I’m also really looking forward to it. The length and depth of this story are enough to support a stage play,” Zhang Guangnian said.

While everyone was discussing it, Liu Yimin clearly had no interest in paying attention to any of that. With their departure imminent, the Writers' Association and the Federation of Literary and Art Circles began providing them with basic training, covering etiquette for traveling abroad and how to handle difficult situations.

Besides Ba Jin and his daughter Li Xiaolin, the delegation included three members of the Writers' Association and Liu Yimin. The training was, of course, only for these four.

They were Luo Sun, Gao Xingjian, and Xu Chi, with Gao Xingjian serving as the translator.

"We should try not to comment on events happening in France, and the discussion should be limited to literary issues. If foreign journalists have questions, we have arranged for them to ask Mr. Ba Jin."

"You must take good care of Mr. Ba Jin when you go out. He is a national treasure and cannot be allowed to have any problems."

When the training ended, Xia Yan came in to meet them.

"Comrade Liu Yimin, you're young, that's good. Young people are like fresh water, they are hope. You should learn a lot from Lao Ba," Xia Yan said with a smile.

Xia Yan, whose novel "The Bonded Laborer" is very famous, once served as a high-ranking official in the Ministry of Culture and is now in charge of film association affairs.

Once Ba Jin and Li Xiaolin arrived, they boarded a plane and flew to Paris.

(End of this chapter)