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

Chapter 165 Zhu Lin's Domineering CEO Confession

Liu Yimin put down his farm tools and walked slowly toward the gate. The gate had been repainted by workers Liu Yimin had hired recently, and its bright vermilion color was unique in Nanluoguxiang.

Outside the gate, Zhu Lin stood at the door and kept gently knocking on the door. When no one came out, she knocked louder and louder, accompanied by a few soft calls: "Teacher Liu, are you home? Teacher Liu? It's me, Zhu Lin!"

He shook his aching arms, then peered intently through the crack in the door, looking as if he were trying to steal something.

With a click, the bolt on the wooden door came down. Then, with a creak, the main gate of the courtyard house opened.

Liu Yimin saw Zhu Lin wearing a floral print long dress, as if it had been specially made by a tailor. It fit her perfectly, with a corset that clung tightly to her waist, making her neck appear long, and revealing half of her forearm.

The floral dress made her skin appear even whiter, and the strap of her handbag clung tightly to the dress from her left shoulder to her waist, perfectly outlining Zhu Lin's figure. A spring breeze blew by, and the hem of her skirt swayed continuously in the wind.

Zhu Lin patted his chest and said, "Teacher Liu, I knew you were home!"

Liu Yimin looked her over; her forehead was covered in beads of sweat, and the fine hairs on her face shimmered in the sunlight as the sweat glistened. "What happened to you?"

Zhu Lin smiled and pointed to the side: "This is a potted asparagus fern, and this is a miniature rockery I made from stones I picked up. What do you think? Isn't it beautiful?"

As Liu Yimin squatted down to examine the item, Zhu Lin, hands on her hips with a smug look, heard Liu Yimin exclaim "Eh?" and quickly squatted down, asking nervously, "What, you don't like it?"

"Not bad, it seems you've put a lot of thought into it!" Liu Yimin said with a smile, pointing at the artificial hill.

"No, I've just been paying more attention lately! My dad sometimes likes to play with these kinds of things in his study. Even though he's a science and engineering professor, he's surprisingly interested in this kind of thing!"

Liu Yimin gave her a wary look: "You didn't move everything from Professor Zhu's study to my place, did you?"

Zhu Lin stammered without saying anything, and started carrying the asparagus fern and the artificial rockery inside. His arms were really strong!
Liu Yimin tried to help, but she refused: "Teacher Liu, I can put it in your study. I also brought some flower seeds. I think we can plant some flowers at the corner of the corridor between the second and third courtyards. It will be convenient for you to read there in the future."

Following behind Zhu Lin, a fragrant breeze wafted over, and Liu Yimin wrinkled his nose. "They used a lot of face cream today!"

In the study, Zhu Lin tidied up the desk, cleaned it, and placed the asparagus fern and the rockery bonsai near the window. He patted the dust off his hands and said, "The study looks much better now!"

Liu Yimin said with a smile, "You've arranged the study so nicely, what if I mess it up?"

“Easy, I’ll come and help you organize things often from now on.” Zhu Lin nodded smugly after looking at his work. He then took out the latest issue of “Poetry Journal” from his bag and handed it to Liu Yimin.

"In the latest issue of *Poetry Journal*, Mr. Liu, your poem was featured on the front page. The journal even added a special comment: 'Comrade Liu Yimin's youthful lyrical poetry.' Many people are buying it; I queued for a long time to finally get my hands on one."

The line outside the bookstore was filled with middle school and university students; unlike before, there were practically no middle-aged readers.

As Zhu Lin showed Liu Yimin the poem "Just Right," she excitedly recounted what she had witnessed at the bookstore entrance. A young man, after receiving a copy of "Poetry Journal," stood beside her, read it, and then left, blushing.

Some girls would stuff the Poetry Journal into their bags without even glancing at it, and then run off laughing from the bookstore entrance. Once they were in a secluded spot, they would excitedly open the magazine and begin reciting poems softly.

The old version of "Ideal" was best enjoyed when recited aloud, while the new version of "Just Right" is best appreciated when recited softly. Coupled with the shyness on her face and the inexplicable smile on her lips, it's clear that the song has completely touched the hearts of young men and women.

Four, five, or six young people huddled together, discussing the poem in hushed tones, oblivious to anyone walking by.

It's usually a group of boys and a group of girls; it's rare to see boys and girls walking together.

In the past, it was popular to copy poems. Often, one person would buy a copybook, and the others would copy their favorite poems into their own notebooks.

Now, after seeing the poem "Just Right," copying it is no longer enough for them. Everyone wants to have a copy of "Poetry Journal" to read, and then keep it as a souvenir.

"Why is Zhu Lin listed as an author?" someone asked.

"Maybe they were written together!"

"Nonsense! Does Comrade Liu Yimin really need to co-write a poem with someone else? Do you believe that? I certainly don't!"

"I don't believe it either!"

"I absolutely don't believe it!"

After arguing for a while, they calmed down. The group began to think, but after a long time, they still couldn't come up with any ideas.

I tried to scratch my head, but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't reach my head.

"Will it be"

"No, no, definitely not!"

"How about we write a letter to Comrade Liu Yimin and ask him about it?"

"How could I ask if I wouldn't write it?"

"I'm not writing either!"

After the group dispersed, they ran back to their rooms, spread the Poetry Journal on the table, and took out their pens and notebooks.
After hearing the sales figures and reports of supply shortages in various regions from the publishing house, Zou Huofan took a while to come to his senses and said, "Young people's poems are still popular. If they have money, they will really buy them to read!"

Editor-in-Chief Yan Chen approached Zou Huofan and made generous arrangements for a reprint. In Yan Chen's words, it's not easy for Poetry Journal's sales to surge like this, so we have to seize the opportunity.

The paper quota for *Poetry Journal* is less than that of other literary magazines, after all, it's poetry, while others are fiction, with each piece being several thousand or tens of thousands of words. It used to be enough, but now the quota has become a shackle, tightly strangling *Poetry Journal*.

Left with no other choice, Yan Chen began to seek help from other units, asking them to borrow paper for printing!

"If you don't use it all, what's wrong with lending us some?"

"Fine, I'll lend it to you, but why are you being so irritating?"

"Isn't what you're saying the truth?"

With Yan Chen and Zou Huofan's influence extended, the sister organization naturally had to comply. After receiving the paper, Poetry Journal quickly arranged for a reprint.

"Old Zou, hurry up and contact Comrade Liu Yimin to see if he has any suitable articles to prepare for our next issue!"

Yan Chen pointed to the stacks of readers' letters and said with a smile, "Send all of these to him. I heard that People's Literature and Art Magazine has already sent all of his readers' letters!"

Zou Huofan nodded and prepared to find someone to deliver it to Liu Yimin together.

In early spring in Beijing, the temperature has started to rise, but it's still chilly indoors.

Sitting under the covered walkway in the courtyard, feeling the warmth of the sun, Liu Yimin said with a smile, "This isn't my poem, it's ours." "I didn't do anything, I'm embarrassed to have my name on it!" Zhu Lin said shyly.

"You've got people here! Besides, why did you even bother queuing up to buy it? The sample copy of 'Poetry Journal' has already been delivered!"

“That’s different!” Zhu Lin said directly, his tone stubborn.

After saying that, Zhu Lin took out flower seeds from his bag, found a hoe, and prepared to plant the flowers.

"I'll loosen the soil!" Liu Yimin quickly took the hoe and said.

Zhu Lin deftly dodged the question and said with a smile, "Teacher Liu, you're busy writing, don't tire yourself out with this little task! I see you're writing a novel on your desk, I'm waiting to read it!"

Liu Yimin pounded his hard chest: "How could loosening some soil tire me out?"

There are only fields that are over-cultivated, not oxen that die from exhaustion; that's simply not the case.

Zhu Lin brought chrysanthemums and balsam flowers. Balsam flowers are also known as henna, and the history of using balsam flowers to wrap fingernails in China can be traced back to the Tang Dynasty. The balsam flowers are crushed and divided into several parts. Then, they are wrapped with leaves or cloth and placed on the fingernails overnight. The next day, the nails will turn red.

After finishing their work, the two returned to the second courtyard to wash their hands. Liu Yimin heard the noise at the main gate of the courtyard and ran over.

Upon opening the door, Zou Huofan and Lao Ma appeared before them.

Before Zou Huofan could speak, Old Ma shouted loudly, "Little thief, what are you doing in the yard? Let me see if you're hiding someone?"

Liu Yimin quickly grabbed Old Ma and said, "Uncle Ma, I was planting flowers in the back, I didn't hear you."

Zou Huofan said, "We knocked on the door for a long time. The old lady next door said she saw someone go in this morning, which is why she didn't leave. Otherwise, we would have left long ago. These are all readers' letters. I'll carry them in for you!"

"I'll do it, I'll do it!" Liu Yimin said with a smile.

Zhu Lin also came out of the courtyard and quickly offered to help. When Old Ma saw Zhu Lin, his eyes darted around, and he looked at Liu Yimin, raising an eyebrow at him.

Seeing his frivolous behavior, Liu Yimin turned his head away and ignored him. Old Ma chuckled, "Master Ma was right after all!"
Zou Huofan introduced Zhu Lin to Lao Ma, saying he was from the Beijing People's Art Theatre.

After the four of them carried the things inside, Zou Huofan's eyes darted around the table: "Yimin, we've been getting so many letters from readers lately. Young people really are content with just love, youth is truly wonderful!"

Liu Yimin glanced at the envelopes and placed them on the envelope rack. Zhu Lin looked at them and was startled to see so many. He felt fortunate that he had received a reply to his letter; otherwise, his fate would have been the same as these letters piled on the wall, gathering dust.

After obtaining Liu Yimin's permission, she opened a few letters and began to read them. Upon seeing the title of one of the letters, her eyes narrowed: "What a coincidence, Comrade Liu Yimin, you've opened my letter."

He silently recited a line of poetry: "You say it's such a coincidence, I say, everything is just right!" His eyes subtly shifted; there was a hidden meaning in the letter, along with a photograph. He glanced at it furtively and decided to bury the letter away.

Zou Huofan's eyes finally locked onto a lone manuscript on the table: "Yimin, is this the manuscript for our Poetry Journal?"

Liu Yimin was speechless. Was this blatant extortion?

"I just wrote this for fun, I didn't plan to submit it. If you like it, you can take it and earn some royalties."

This was written by a group of girls that Liu Yimin brought to Zhu Lin that day. After they finished copying it, they threw the original manuscript on the desk.

Upon hearing this, Zou Huofan perked up, sat down at his desk, and began to examine the document carefully.

While living a busy life in Yanjing
[Perhaps Alaskan cod are leaping out of the water]
The newly emerged seals became the Inuit people's dinner.
】

Zhu Lin chimed in, "Editor Zou, I think it's perfectly fine to publish this. It's much better than some of those pointless whining posts. 'The house is smoking, it's not that the food is cooked, it's that the house is on fire.' If those can be published, this definitely can too."

Zou Huofan turned to look at Zhu Lin and joked, "Young comrade, you're right!"

After a moment of silence, Zou Huofan said, "It's missing a title. With a title, it has a theme, and it'll be perfect. Also, what you've written is both romantic and cruel. The beginning is romantic, and the end is cruel—the contrast is strong, but for the reader, the emotional experience is completely different!"

"Let's call it 'The World.' The purpose of writing this is to encourage everyone to bravely pursue their dreams while they are young. In the process of pursuing dreams, there are not only flowers, but also pain. Romance and cruelty coexist; this is reality."

"The Ideal and the World, yes, they are of the same lineage."

"Since it's going to be published, I'll revise it again and add a few more lines!"

Zou Huofan immediately agreed and asked Liu Yimin to start revising. Liu Yimin added several scenes to the original text and adjusted some scenes using parallelism, making it easy to read aloud.

Finally, the payment for the article in "The World" increased by 14 yuan!

“But in any case, young man, you need to see all of this for yourself. It’s so enthusiastic, so vibrant!” Zou Huofan felt like he had found a treasure, and that the trip was truly worthwhile.

Zou Huofan put the manuscript into his bag: "We're currently discussing raising the manuscript fee standard. Once it's raised, we'll still settle your payment according to the highest standard."

"You can't decide this standard, I understand, I understand!"

A poem costs a little over twenty yuan, which Zou Huofan probably felt was too little for Liu Yimin, his voice carrying a hint of apology.

After Old Ma finished walking around the courtyard, the two prepared to leave.

Old Ma, with his hands behind his back, said with a smile, "If it were before, when I saw you go out, I would first call you 'Master' and then ask if you wanted to do monthly taxi services. If you did, I would have enough money for food and drinks for the whole month."

Liu Yimin smiled and invited them to stay for dinner, but the two refused and rode away side by side on their pedicab.

Back in her study, Zhu Lin stared blankly at the stacks of reader letters. Snapping out of her reverie, she took a deep breath; her heart pounded at the thought of what she was about to say.

After mentally preparing herself, Zhu Lin quietly walked to Liu Yimin's side and whispered, "Teacher Liu?"

"Hmm?" Liu Yimin looked up at her.

"I"

"what happened to you?"

"Can our revolutionary friendship be elevated to a higher level?"

"Ok?"

Zhu Lin hesitated for a moment, then suddenly looked up and said firmly, "I want you to be my Geng Hua!"

(End of this chapter)