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

Chapter 192 Poetry Battle
Inside the breakfast shop, Cui Daoyi paused for a moment upon hearing Liu Yimin's words, but did not stop stirring the tofu pudding. He smiled and said, "I'll talk to him when I get back. It's a normal thing. There's no rule that an author can only work with one publisher."

However, Cui Daoyi still asked how the Commercial Press had approached him.

Liu Yimin briefly explained the situation to Cui Daoyi, who looked surprised: "The publishing editors at the Commercial Press are really something else!"

Cui Daoyi didn't say anything more, but his mind was in turmoil. He thought he was a dedicated editor, but he didn't expect that young people nowadays were even more dedicated than him. A sense of professional crisis rose in his heart.

"Yes, when I got to my doorstep, I saw the editor from the Commercial Press sweating profusely, and I was very moved. How could I not give it to them? Besides, I had been in contact with other people from their company before."

Liu Yimin finished the millet porridge at the bottom of the bowl in one gulp.

"Haha, that's how it should be. It's like playing basketball. If you don't defend tightly in front and the other person makes a shot, who can you blame? You can only blame yourself! But that editor at the Commercial Press is really cunning. I only found out you were back after seeing the newspaper."

Cui Daoyi added, "It seems that from now on, I'll have to work closely with Harvest to keep a close watch on things."

"Senior brother, I'm your own junior brother, there's no need to be so vigilant," Liu Yimin said with a smile.

Cui Daoyi said happily, "Then it's settled, Wolf-Slaying Hero!"

After saying that, he handed the newspaper to Liu Yimin with a smile. It turned out that the news about interviewing Liu Yimin about his heroic deeds had been published. Liu Yimin glanced at it and his face twitched at the contents.

Fortunately, the reporter listened to everything he said and included Zhuoma, Suozhelang, and the captain in his writing.

After folding the newspaper and returning it to Cui Daoyi, Liu Yimin rubbed his temples and said, "Sigh, there's nothing a propaganda comrade wouldn't dare to write."

"Haha, I think it's very well written, and the typical example it sets is very prominent. I know it's not easy to do field research, but I didn't expect you to encounter something like this. To be honest, I admire you. Don't let my tall stature fool you; if I encountered a wolf, I might not dare to shoot."

Cui Daoyi and Liu Yimin got up and walked onto the street. Cui Daoyi pointed to the editorial office and Liu Yimin's courtyard house: "Look how good this location is. The editorial office is right outside the door. We can't do anything that's far away, and submitting manuscripts is no exception!"
"Come on, let's go to the editorial office. Old Zhang misses you a lot!"

"Let's go, you've already dragged me out, there's no way I can go back to sleep. How's Lao Zhang's health lately?" Liu Yimin rode his bicycle and followed Cui Daoyi toward the editorial department.

The streets are now filled with commuters, and a few girls in floral dresses are interspersed among the sea of ​​blue bicycles. The fashion trend of "Romance on Lushan Mountain" has swept through Beijing, and if you spend enough time on the streets, you can see all sorts of "Zhou Yun" characters.

Overall, however, the majority of the workers were still in blue overalls. Tea cups hung from the handlebars of their bicycles as they loudly joked and chatted with their companions, discussing what good movies they had recently watched.

Some young workers had their partners or wives sitting in front of or behind them on their bicycles, while people around them whistled and cheered. The girl sat sideways behind him, blushing, and gently patted her partner's shoulder, signaling him to ride faster and get away from the group of coworkers teasing her.

Sunlight streamed down at the end of the road, creating a vibrant and lively scene.

Cui Daoyi remarked with emotion, "When I first started working, there weren't nearly as many bicycles on the streets. Young men and women would squeeze onto buses, and those who lived nearby could simply walk. Now, look at the roads, everyone's riding bicycles."

"Times are changing!"

"Yes, it's developing! Taking a walk on the street in the morning can make you feel much happier. Look how happy the young people are on their way to work."

People who start working now are all smiles, while those who start working later are drooping their heads and looking sleepy.

In the blink of an eye, the two arrived at the editorial office of *People's Literature and Art*, the sound of bicycle brakes and locking mechanisms filling the air. Upon seeing Liu Yimin and Cui Daoyi, they greeted them warmly.

The two sat in the editorial office for a while before Zhang Guangnian entered.

Upon seeing Liu Yimin, he walked straight towards him, raising his voice several times: "Look who's here! Our wolf-hunting hero is here!"

Inside the editorial office, those who had read the newspaper burst into laughter.

"Our Comrade Liu Yimin is so young, but he shows no mercy when it comes to hunting wolves!"

"Confucius, with a sword at his waist, was skilled in both literature and martial arts!"

"Yi Min is not only handsome, but also a first-rate marksman. Just like the newspaper said, Liu Yi Min, Liu Yi Min, is wholeheartedly dedicated to the people!"

"That's right, look how handsome he is. In the old days, Pan An and Song Yu wouldn't stand a chance."

Liu Yimin smiled and looked at the editor who was praising him, saying, "Comrade Lao Wang, you have a good eye. I'll submit my manuscripts to you from now on."

"Hahaha, then Old Cui will surely kill me."

Inside the editorial office, laughter filled the air. Once everyone had calmed down, Cui Daoyi and Liu Yimin went into Zhang Guangnian's office and chatted about some interesting things happening in the literary world.

Zhang Guangnian drew back the curtains and opened the window, letting in fresh air from outside.

"Yimin, I heard you also went to the 'Youth Poetry Gathering' of the Poetry Journal?" Zhang Guangnian asked, leaning against the window.

“I went there and spent two days in Beidaihe. After I came back, I went to Sichuan Province.”

"how do you feel?"

"Beidaihe has beautiful scenery and a great temperature. It's a great place to relax and recuperate." Liu Yimin wondered why Zhang Guangnian suddenly brought up Beidaihe.

Cui Daoyi interjected, "There used to be a sanatorium in Beidaihe where writers could recuperate. Unfortunately, it was occupied by a local instrument factory. The Writers Association sent people to negotiate, but the factory insisted on paying several hundred thousand yuan to move out of the sanatorium. The Writers Association held many meetings about this."

Zhang Guangnian waved his hand, stopping Cui Daoyi from continuing: "Fortunately, we've gotten a courtyard back. Yimin, if you ever want to go to the Beidaihe Creative Home, just tell the Writers Association. There are people there who will take care of your food and lodging."

The original Writers' Association sanatorium covered nine acres, but now only one building remains. The Writers' Association is racking its brains over this; how could they possibly afford the hundreds of thousands of yuan in relocation costs? They are an organization that lives off government funding, not a profit-making entity. Even if their subordinate magazines are very profitable, they can't earn enough to buy the building in a short time, and besides, it's uncertain whether they'll even make a profit.

It wasn't until 84 years later, with the help of the State Planning Commission and the Ministry of Finance, that the Writers' Association was able to resolve the issue of the 900,000 yuan needed to buy the apartment.

Liu Yimin laughed and said, "Okay, if I want to go on field trips again, I'll definitely stay at our Writers' Association's place!"

Zhang Guangnian glanced at Liu Yimin, implying that he hoped Liu was genuinely going on a field trip. "The poetry scene is quite lively right now. Ai Qing really stirred up a hornet's nest in Beidaihe. Did you know that?"

Liu Yimin honestly said, "At that time, Mr. Ai Qing showed me this piece that he originally intended to talk about in the writing class."

"It seems you're not surprised by the current controversies in the poetry world!"

"I expected it, but I haven't read the specific articles discussing the debate. That's normal; everyone has their own opinions," Liu Yimin said with a faint smile.

"Yes, everyone has their own opinion. Comrade Ai Qing is also feeling wronged. Young people are so energetic, and some even say they want to send Mr. Ai Qing's poems to the crematorium so that he can sing his own 'pastoral songs of the times.' Tell me, how can you say that? Just because we are at peace now, do those poems of national salvation no longer fit the present era?"

"An argument is an argument, but what do you mean by saying all this?"

Zhang Guangnian was very angry, and then said, "Mr. Ai Qing is very aggrieved. He told people that he only made a few criticisms and suggested that poetry should be written in a way that everyone can understand, but he was asked to be sent to the crematorium and was called a 'tyrant' in the poetry world, as if he had never done anything good."

Liu Yimin smiled and said, "When I first came to Yanjing, a senior told me that the literary world is turbulent, with all sorts of winds blowing, and sometimes even black winds. Right now, everyone has their own reasons, and I think the argument will never end."

These strong words came from Huang Xiang, the founder of an underground magazine, who later lived in the United States with his wife.

From their perspective, Ai Qing, you are a leader of the Writers' Association and a senior figure in poetry. You have a big mouth and can crush us with a single word. This is suppression, this is "tyrannical" behavior.

And so the anger in my heart erupted like a volcano.
However, Ai Qing's article criticized Bei Dao's poetry while also affirming some of his own. This indicates that at the time, he still wanted to find a relatively neutral perspective to evaluate the new poets' works.

Of course, is there any so-called suppression of young people based on their status? As Secretary Yu Liang said, "Subjectively, there may not be, but objectively, it may exist. After all, no one can separate opinions from individuals for evaluation."

You think that way, but others may not think that way.

"You didn't stand up and take the lead, which made their voices grow weaker!"

Liu Yimin said, "I pay far more attention to literary works such as novels than to the poetry scene. A person's energy is always limited, but the truth becomes clearer through debate. I believe that things will eventually settle down."

Old Zhang probably wanted Liu Yimin to say a few words, but Liu Yimin hadn't figured things out yet and didn't blindly respond.

After chatting about some light topics, Zhang Guangnian said to Liu Yimin as he saw him off, "Old Cui is waiting for your manuscript!"

After Liu Yimin came out, he thought of Lu Yao and asked, "How is Lu Yao's novel coming along? I remember he said it would be finished within three months."

"Hey, listen to his bragging. I wrote to him a few days ago and he said he'd give me three more months, and he'd torn up the last draft." Cui Daoyi then pointed to the author who was revising the manuscript and said, "I originally wanted Lu Yao to come and revise the manuscript, since there's a subsidy, so he could make a living. Guess what he said?"

"How to say?"

"In his letter, he said he would definitely finish it within three months, but he hasn't finished writing it in three months and is too ashamed to come and see you. You know, Lu Yao has quite a strong sense of pride." Cui Daoyi was both amused and exasperated. He originally wanted to find a good creative environment for Lu Yao and provide him with subsidies so he wouldn't have to worry about anything, but he never expected him to be so stubborn.

"If it were anyone else, they would have packed their bags and run over long ago. Who would be like him!"

Liu Yimin said calmly, "People who mature early are often late bloomers, proud people are also impatient, and people with strong self-esteem are often insecure."

"Yimin, you're a philosopher!" Cui Daoyi chuckled, punching Liu Yimin in the chest.

"Senior brother, you have to take good care of your author. Good steel is easily broken. You should advise him to balance work and rest and not be so obsessive. Tell him to learn from the people who edit manuscripts. They've been living here editing for years and their attitude is amazing!"

While Feng Jicai was lying in bed upstairs thinking about a story, he suddenly sneezed, touched his nose, looked around for a long time, and found no one talking about him, so he closed his eyes again and went to dream about it.

“Alright, I’ll write him another letter another day!” Cui Daoyi waved his hand, and only after Liu Yimin disappeared into the corridor did he turn around and return to the editor’s office.

Not long after he sat down, Li Shu, an editor from the publishing house, came rushing in. Seeing Cui Daoyi, he hurriedly asked, "Didn't you say Comrade Liu Yimin was coming?"

"gone!"

Li Shu slapped his forehead in regret and sat down on the stool in front of Cui Daoyi's desk with a sigh: "I still want to talk to Comrade Liu Yimin about the publication of 'The Kite Runner.' Old Cui, do you know about it?"

"do not know!"

"It's such a pity that 'The Kite Runner' wasn't published in your People's Literature and Art magazine. I heard that 'Harvest' has the highest circulation. If you had gotten it, you would have had the top spot among literary magazines! What happened to you? Why didn't you get it?"

Cui Daoyi said helplessly, "That's Harvest magazine! I heard that Mr. Ba Jin regarded Yimin as half a student!"

Li Shuyue got more and more excited as he spoke: "What's wrong with Mr. Ba Jin? Why don't you, Old Cui, dare to fight with Mr. Ba Jin!"

Seeing Cui Daoyi's unpleasant expression, Li Shu said again, "I need to hurry up and find Comrade Liu Yimin to finalize the publication of the standalone book. Do you want to come with me?"

Cui Daoyi, suppressing a laugh, asked, "So soon?"

"Isn't that right? Those guys from the Commercial Press are eyeing us like hawks. If we're too late, we might get robbed!"

Cui Daoyi took a sip of tea and said leisurely, "Then you don't need to go!"

"What's wrong? Old Cui, you didn't get the publication rights, and now you won't let me get the copyright? We've been comrades for so many years!" Li Shu's voice was loud, but he didn't seem angry at all; his eyes were full of smugness.

Cui Daoyi could no longer suppress his laughter and said happily, "Because you're already too late!"

"Huh?" Li Shu hadn't even reacted yet!
Cui Daoyi slammed his hand on the table: "Old Li, what's wrong with you? The Commercial Press got it a few days ago, and you're still here babbling on and on. You're the only one who knows how to babble. Where were you all this time?"

At this moment, Cui Daoyi was overjoyed, even more so than if he had received the manuscript. The dynamic between the two mischievous friends had instantly reversed.

(End of this chapter)