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

Chapter 268 Triumph at Midnight

Li Lanyong wasn't in the dormitory at Yenching University; he had a class in the Economics Department that afternoon. Liu Zhenyun and a few others were discussing their papers in the dormitory when Liu Yimin walked in, and all of them turned to look at him.

"Oh, isn't this Professor Liu?" Li Xueqin said first.

Liu Zhenyun said with a stern face, "Could you please call me Professor Liu Yimin? People who don't know better might think you're calling me!"

Chen Dazhi: "Hahaha!"

Liu Yimin tossed a few White Rabbit candies to each of them and said with a smile, "Xueqin, you're so happy, you must have passed the postgraduate entrance exam!"

After hearing this, Li Xueqin let out a wail and fell silent, his face drooping with dejection.

Liu Yimin glanced at their papers a few times and then sat down on his bed.

"I tried to meet Professor Feng Qiyong through students at Renmin University a while ago, but unfortunately I couldn't," Li Xueqin said, rubbing his aching temples.

“Didn’t Ye Junyuan, a senior from the class of ’77, take the entrance exam for Professor Feng Qiyong’s graduate program? You can try to find him, but we still have to look at the written exam results. You should pass the written exam first,” Liu Yimin said.

Feng Qiyong is a professor in the Chinese Department of Renmin University and enjoys considerable international renown. Like Wu Zuxiang, his main research area is "Dream of the Red Chamber," and he also studies ancient literature.

The system of recommending postgraduate students without examination in China was only established in 1985. At that time, everyone who wanted to pursue postgraduate studies, whether it was a master's or doctoral degree, had to take an exam.

Liu Yimin was no exception; even if it was just a formality, he still had to make the trip.

This year, Cao Yu is only admitting one graduate student to Yenching University, and that's Liu Yimin. If anyone dares to apply at the same time as Liu Yimin and try their luck, they should check if their family's ancestral graves are on fire.

Even wisps of smoke are not good; it has to catch fire!
It was quite difficult for Li Xueqin to get into Professor Feng Qiyong's graduate program, as there were many applicants but few openings.

He was probably the busiest person in the dorm besides Liu Yimin, as he was preparing for the postgraduate entrance exam while also working on his thesis.

"Yimin, you don't have class today, what are you doing here?" Chen Dazhi asked.

"I've come to find Lan Yong!"

In the dormitory, Li Lanyong ran back from the classroom, shivering: "It's getting colder and colder. Oh, Yimin, you're here?"

"I came here specifically to see you." Liu Yimin reached into his bag.

"Is the novel finished?"

Liu Yimin didn't say anything, but smiled and handed the manuscript to Li Lanyong: "I just finished writing it, so I'm giving you my opinion. After you read it, I'll submit it."

Li Lanyong smiled and took the book, then sat on the bed, ready to read it. The other three immediately surrounded him, all wanting to read it together.

A novel of 100,000 words would take at least two hours for four people to finish reading.

"Triumph at Midnight" tells the story of Tong Chuan and Jiang Man, two educated youths in the Great Northern Wilderness, who eventually come together after experiencing the trials of life and the battlefield.

Tong Chuan was sentenced to two years in prison for accidentally shooting and injuring someone during recruit training. In response, he wrote a heartless letter to Jiang Man.

Under her mother's repeated urging, Jiang Man finally got together with a military officer named Lin Dalin. Just as they were about to get married, Tong Chuan was released from prison and returned, and the marriage did not take place.

Tong Chuan was transferred from the Yanjing military unit to the front lines, where he ended up under the command of officer Lin Dalin. The two fought side by side on the battlefield, and Lin Dalin was eventually killed in action.

After Lin Dalin's death in battle, Jiang Man joined the army and became the head nurse of a field hospital, where she met Tong Chuan on the battlefield.

Tong Chuan led his men to defend the high ground. Due to the enemy's attack, he was blinded in both eyes, and Jiang Man guarded him day and night.
Because it was originally a TV series from 1986, a lot of the content involved events from the mid-1980s.

Liu Yimin deleted and rewrote anything that did not conform to the situation in the early 1980s.

The text focuses less on events outside the battlefield and more on the pre-battle preparations and the battlefield itself, providing a realistic depiction of everything from the fighting to the soldiers' lives during their leisure time.

Finally, the soldiers lined up beside the tombstones in the martyrs' cemetery, fired shots to bid farewell to the martyrs, and the green hills buried their loyal bones, while the earth sang a mournful song.

The words "Our fallen comrades, we will always be together!" echoed through the valley.

Several hours later, Liu Yimin faintly heard sobbing on the upper bunk, followed by comforting words from Liu Zhenyun and others.

Liu Yimin quickly jumped off the upper bunk. When Li Lanyong saw the final scene at the martyrs' cemetery, he completely broke down and buried his head in the blanket, crying.

About half an hour later, Li Lanyong finally calmed down, wiped away the tears from the corners of his eyes, stood up and said to Liu Yimin, "Yimin, it's well written, some parts are very realistic!"

Then, putting on his hat, he prepared to leave the dormitory. Liu Zhenyun asked him what he was doing, and Li Lanyong smiled and turned back to him, saying, "It's time to go to work at the south gate!"

After Li Lanyong left, Li Xueqin said, "The last part is so moving that it makes listeners heartbroken and brings tears to their eyes!"

After Li Lanyong left, the four of them went to the canteen for lunch. Liu Yimin brought a portion of food for Li Lanyong in a lunchbox, as he was in a hurry to get to work and probably hadn't eaten yet.

Li Lanyong stood at the gatehouse of the South Gate. The northwest wind was too strong, and his empty left sleeve, which he had stuffed into his pocket, kept being blown out by the wind. He repeatedly stuffed his left sleeve into his pocket with his right hand.

"Lan Yong, hurry up and come inside to eat!" Liu Yimin said, handing him the lunchbox.

Upon hearing this, the gatekeeper inside the guardhouse came out and said, "Lan Yong, you haven't eaten yet? Go inside and eat, I'll stand here for a while!"

Inside the gatehouse, Li Lanyong was eating when he told Liu Yimin about the front lines: "If my comrades read this novel, they would definitely envy Tong Chuan!"

"why?"

"Because there are so few female comrades like Jiang Man, on the battlefield, comrades received breakup letters like snowflakes. I was lucky; I didn't have a boyfriend, so I didn't receive any breakup letters!"

Li Lanyong smiled calmly at Liu Yimin.

After Li Lanyong finished eating, Liu Yimin handed him a cigarette. After smoking three cigarettes, Li Lanyong seemed to feel much better.

Liu Yimin left the south gate of Yenching University and rode his bicycle to the Overseas Chinese Apartment. He took off his coat and hung it on the hanger before entering the study.

There was a letter in the study, from home. Liu Yimin wrote to Liu Fuqing and Yang Xiuyun, telling them that Zhu Lin would be visiting during the winter vacation.

The two elders were extremely busy, hauling bricks to build another brick house, decorating it nicely, and just waiting for Zhu Lin to come over.

Liu Yimin looked at the two elders' letter, smiled, picked up his pen, and wrote a reply.

The next day, early in the morning, Liu Yimin put "Triumphant at Midnight" into the mailbox and mailed it out.

If I don't send it out soon, Li Xiaolin, my senior colleague from Harvest magazine, will write again to ask, "Have you eaten? Are you alright? Have you written anything?"

In Jiaxing, Zhejiang Province, Yu Hua sent the letter and his manuscript to Liu Yimin and waited anxiously for a reply, becoming somewhat absent-minded at work.

When his colleagues asked him, he wouldn't say anything.

Seeing his hair getting longer and longer, his parents took him to the barbershop and gave him a short haircut. On the way home, Yu Hua kicked at the pebbles on the street in dissatisfaction, but when he saw a pebble hit its target precisely, he immediately chuckled.

"Why haven't we seen the postman at our house lately?" Mr. Yu asked.

Yu Hua's cheerful demeanor vanished instantly, and she said anxiously, "They're probably helping to recommend a magazine, that's why they haven't replied yet!"

“It’s been almost a month!” Mr. Yu said.

“Dad, it’s perfectly normal that you don’t understand literature!” Yu Hua said stubbornly.

Actually, he was getting more and more uneasy. It didn't matter if he didn't believe it or couldn't get a recommendation, but he just wanted to get his manuscript back. How could he submit his manuscript without it?
He was already cursing inwardly, thinking that Liu Yimin was stupid and didn't know how to appreciate his novel.

Seeing that his son was still being stubborn, Mr. Yu didn't say anything more, but instead took Yu Hua home.

As I passed by the door, I saw the poodle standing there, disheveled in the wind. After a careful comparison, I was quite satisfied; it finally didn't look like the dog anymore.

Despite cursing under his breath, Yu Hua returned to his room and immediately wrote another extremely sincere letter, subtly suggesting at the end that if all else failed, he would give him the manuscript.

After finishing writing, I slipped out of the house when my parents weren't looking, rode my bicycle, and dropped the letter into the mailbox at the post office.

After silently praying several times, I turned and left, nodding and smiling confidently at every acquaintance I encountered.

In Yanjing, at Muxidi, Liu Yimin and Zhu Lin were invited by Li Yuru to have dinner.

"Master's wife, don't bother, there's already plenty of food on the table!" Liu Yimin said with a smile.

Li Yuru turned around and said, "There's one last dish. You thought it was just the two of you? Wan Fang is also there!"

Liu Yimin asked with a smile, "What day is it today? It's so lavish!"

“It doesn’t matter what special occasion it is, we can have a gathering on any ordinary day!” Li Yuru said.

Cao Yu sat on the sofa watching TV and asked Liu Yimin with a smile when he would be able to see "The Flames of War in Beiping" on TV.

"Then we'll have to wait until next year, probably at least until April or May!" Liu Yimin said with a smile.

The filming cycle for TV series is longer than that for movies. From editing to review and broadcast, Liu Yimin estimates that it will take four or five months.

"What a pity!" Li Yuru said from the kitchen. She had nothing to do at home and usually passed the time by watching TV, but she was tired of all the dramas currently airing.

"The women's volleyball team will play against Xiao Rizi tomorrow, Coach's wife, you can watch!" Liu Yimin said with a smile.

“Okay, I don’t understand these matches, but I can tell who won, hahaha.” Li Yuru laughed a few times.

Wan Fang walked in from outside and said, "Aunt Li, what are you laughing at? Why are you so happy?"

"We're discussing the women's volleyball match!"

During the meal, the group chatted happily about the recent matches. Li Yuru watched almost the entire match and talked about it enthusiastically.

After Li Yuru finished speaking, she asked Zhu Lin how the rehearsals for "Button" were going and asked Zhu Lin for tickets so that she could definitely go and watch it.

Wan Fang said, "Senior Sister, I should have one too!"

"Yes, I'm overjoyed that my senior sister is willing to go!"

Cao Yu chuckled and said, "Little Zhu, don't worry about the sales figures!"

The sales for the first show are absolutely guaranteed; the enthusiasm for the new drama far exceeds expectations.

After dinner, while Zhu Lin was chatting with his teacher's wife and Wan Fang, Cao Yu called Liu Yimin into the study and inquired about the progress of the research project.

"Teacher, it's only been a short time! I've only just started!" Liu Yimin said helplessly.

"It's not that I'm rushing you, but I saw Lao Shen a couple of days ago, and he specifically asked about this matter, saying that the higher-ups are taking it very seriously!"

Liu Yimin said, "Then I'll do it as soon as possible!"

After leaving Muxidi, Liu Yimin took Zhu Lin back home. They cuddled together in the cold wind for a while before Liu Yimin rode his bicycle back to the Overseas Chinese Apartment.

Fortunately, the Overseas Chinese Apartment was close to Muxidi and Zhu Lin's home, so I arrived home in no time.

The following morning, because of the Women's Volleyball World Cup, Liu Zhenyun and his colleagues invited Liu Yimin to the cafeteria to watch the live broadcast of the match with everyone.

Several canteens at Yenching University broadcast the match live on television, and the international student dormitories have a dedicated TV room. Several international students have also invited Liu Yimin.

But he still went to the cafeteria to watch the women's volleyball match, so that he could share his joy of victory with the Chinese people.

What do those foreign devils know!
Besides Chinese students, international students are the most interested in this competition. The athletes are competing on the field, and the students from both countries are competing privately, with neither side wanting to lose.

In the afternoon, students from Yenching University were scattered in several canteens watching the live broadcast, bringing their own small stools. Liu Yimin even brought sunflower seeds and peanuts, while Li Lanyong, Liu Zhenyun, and a few others sat next to him.

The TV screen was so small that people in the back could barely see it, and the winner could only be determined by the voices of the students in the front row.

Clapping and cheering means we've scored; shaking our heads in regret means the other team has scored.

The students in the front row watch TV, while the students in the back row listen to the sound.

"Yimin, who do you think will win?" Liu Zhenyun asked with a smile.

Liu Yimin cracked open a sunflower seed: "That goes without saying, it's definitely us!"

"Hey! Lang Ping scored again!"

前两场都是中国胜，比分分别为15:8、15:7。学生们欢呼不止，可是接下来的两场，日本扭转了颓势，打出了12:15、7:15。

In the final match, everyone held their breath. Even Liu Yimin, who knew the result in advance, stopped eating sunflower seeds.

Especially towards the end, everyone's heart was in their throat. Liu Zhenyun silently swallowed his saliva, while the students in the back row, unaware of the news, kept asking.

随着最后一球拦网成功，电视里面传来了解说激动地声音：“17-15！中国队胜利啦！队员们都跑到一起！中国队以3-2胜了日本队，以7战7胜的优异成绩，夺得了本届世界杯比赛的冠军！”

Cheers erupted inside the cafeteria, and students ran outside with their stools in hand. Every now and then, the sound of someone excitedly slamming a stool could be heard.

The cafeterias exploded one after another like bombs, causing an uproar throughout Yanda University.

Students waved the national flag high and walked through the campus, spreading the good news of the victory. They even carried chess pieces into the campus and shouted to everyone: "The women's volleyball team has won the World Cup!"

(End of this chapter)