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

Chapter 611 Professor Liu Goes Mad When His Child Goes to School
The familiar hawking cries immediately drew everyone's attention, and people pulled out their money to buy an ice pop or a bottle of mineral water.

As soon as Liu Yimin got out of the car, a bottle of ice water was shoved into his hand: "Hmm?"

"Professor Liu, it's hot, have some water to relieve your fatigue." Liang Sanhulu smiled and rolled up the corner of his clothes to wipe the sweat from his forehead.

"You wouldn't even give it to me yourself, yet you're giving it to me?" Liu Yimin tried to stuff the water into his styrofoam box, but he easily dodged it.

Liang Sanhulu revealed a simple and honest smile: "How could that be? I will definitely drink it, but it's just too hot, and I can't keep drinking. Do you think I'm that stingy?"

"Why are you still doing this now?" Liu Yimin asked.

"Oh, it's just a side thing. I had nothing to do today, and I heard it was your script, so I had to come and join in the fun. Usually, it's just the shop staff who come, but today I'll go in and watch the play after I finish selling my things." Liang Sanhulu wiped the sweat from his forehead again.

"Okay, I heard you've made a fortune now? Three stores?" Liu Yimin asked curiously.

"Compared to you, I'm just a drop in the ocean, nothing at all. But compared to others, I'm a millionaire," Liang Sanhulu said proudly.

"Wow, Liang Hulu is amazing! He turned a street vendor into a millionaire in just a few years. Is he going to sell candied hawthorns all over the country in the future?" an old audience member teased. They had practically watched Liang Hulu grow his business.

"The whole country? Hey, in the future, I'm going to sell candied hawthorns all the way to Newark, all the way to the heavens!" Liang Sanhulu boasted.

"Newwalk?"

"America, back then, my great-grandfather ate my candied hawthorns without paying. Where is the money? It was all stolen by those imperialist bastards. I have to get the money back for my great-grandfather!"

"Hahaha!"

Everyone was amused by Liang Sanhulu, and Liu Yimin patted him on the shoulder before heading inside.

Liang Sanhu ran a few steps and stopped Liu Yimin: "Professor Liu, Professor Liu, don't go, I have something I want to ask you to do."

"What's up? You're not asking me to sell it in America for you, are you? I don't have that kind of ability."

"No, no, my wife gave birth to a boy, and I'd like you to help me choose a name."

"A name, let me think." Liu Yimin immediately became interested, and after thinking for half a minute, he came up with an idea: "Your surname is Liang, and it's autumn now. Spring blossoms and autumn fruits, so let's call you Liang Qiushi. Autumn fruits mean harvest."

"Okay, okay, thank you so much!" Liang Sanhulu said excitedly.

"You're welcome."

Upstairs, Ouyang Shanzun and Yu Shizhi looked down at everything below. Yu Shizhi joked, "Yimin is really popular at our Beijing People's Art Theatre!"

"Yes, the actors like it, the audience likes it, and the readers like it too."

Liu Yimin went up and talked with the two for a while. Zhu Lin and Xia Chun were making their final preparations, and Liu Yimin didn't go backstage because he was afraid of disturbing Zhu Lin's rhythm.

Among the audience members watching the performance today were many people from the diplomatic service, and the Foreign Affairs College also selected thirty students to come and watch the performance.

The Foreign Affairs University has not officially started classes yet. Most of these people are master's students who stayed on campus or outstanding students or activists who came to the school in advance after receiving the news.

Just before the show was about to start, Liu Yimin saw Zhang Guangnian walk in, stood up, smiled, and pointed to his seat, which was right next to his.

"Yimin, you're here pretty early."

"It's not very early, I just arrived. Are you going back after returning from Beidaihe?"

"No, no, it's getting cold, I'd better stay home." Zhang Guangnian chuckled.

After sitting down, Zhang Guangnian asked again, "Shall we start soon?"

"We'll start once you get here," Liu Yimin grinned.

“Okay, let’s begin!” Zhang Guangnian replied jokingly.

As the opening bell rang, before the curtain was even drawn, gunshots and screams could be heard all around the theater.

"What you see now is the streets of Austria in 1938. Nazi German troops occupied Austria and were frantically hunting down Austrian people."
The desperate Austrians now understood that no one but God could save them. Just a month earlier, British Prime Minister Chamberlain had declared that Austria could not rely on aid from other major powers when Germany occupied it.

The United States made its position clear to Germany, stating that Washington fully understands Germany's plans to reshape the European landscape.

The French government also stated that it had no intention of interfering in Austrian affairs.

Thus, a monster, tolerated by European and American countries, emerged.

Amidst the intense gunfire, the announcer, in a detached voice, transported everyone to the streets of Austria in March 1938.

On stage, countless Squid People scattered and fled like frightened birds. To depict the madness of the German army and the helplessness of the Squid People, Xia Chun and Zhu Lin deliberately used aerial wire work.

German soldiers hovered above the stage, their bullets like divine judgment.

Wire work was still a rarity in Chinese theaters and hadn't been officially introduced. Zhu Lin spent some time with the cast of "Journey to the West," where wire work was first used.

So when Zhu Lin was directing the film, he suggested using wire work, an idea that surprised both the actors and Xia Chun.

Wire work is a new thing; can it be used on a stage? Is it safe? These are all unknowns.

However, the Beijing People's Art Theatre was currently exploring new forms of theatrical expression, and Zhu Lin still tried his best to persuade everyone. As a result, the Beijing People's Art Theatre spent a lot of money to buy the wire rigging equipment used in the "Journey to the West" production.

Seeing Zhu Lin and Xia Chun use it, the other directors thought it was great, and that the Beijing People's Art Theatre would have more performance options available in the future.

The audience, witnessing such a scene for the first time, erupted in thunderous applause after a brief silence. Seeing the audience's enthusiastic reaction, Zhu Lin couldn't help but smile.

Zhang Guangnian exclaimed, "My God, so fresh! So fresh!"

After the narration ended, the performance quickly moved into its main theme. The reason for the long narration was that the director was worried the audience wouldn't understand the world background of the story.

On stage, Yang Lixin sat in his room, unable to calm himself as he listened to the screams outside. When the panicked Japanese ran to the Chinese embassy and asked to go to China, Yang Lixin hesitated for a long time before finally stamping the seal.

"God!" The squid-like man still couldn't believe his eyes when he received the visa, frantically asking God, "Is this really real?"

This scene was added by the directing team to perfectly match the title "God's Visa".

All the audience members stared at Yang Lixin, and then a thunderous applause erupted as the stamp was put on.

This play is one of the longest produced by the Beijing People's Art Theatre in recent years, lasting a full 140 minutes. Audience members held their urine, afraid to go to the restroom, lest they miss a classic scene.

After the performance, all the stage lights shone on Yang Lixin. His face showed pity, helplessness, and anger.

He received a telegram from China at this time, ordering him to return home to participate in the war against Japan. His anger was not due to the transfer order, but because the Japanese invasion was intensifying.

Though my life has been misled by the Confucian scholar's cap, why should I hesitate to give up this head?

Today I return home with righteous indignation; tomorrow I will die on the battlefield to serve my country.

"Great!" Zhang Guangnian clapped and cheered wildly, as if he were seeing his younger self.

"Bravo!" The audience below the stage stood up and cheered.

This content was also added after the play was adapted, since the Beijing People's Art Theatre's plays are aimed at domestic audiences.

After all the actors took their bows, the announcer said again: "Today, we also have a special group of audience members. They are our China's future diplomats. Please welcome the outstanding students from the Foreign Affairs University."

Students from the China Foreign Affairs University, all dressed in white shirts and carrying the university's flag, rushed onto the stage chanting the university's motto:
Stand firm on your position! Understand the policies! Be familiar with the procedures! Strictly adhere to discipline!

After being called three times, the students from the School of Foreign Languages ​​straightened their formation and began the chorus:

The wind is howling, the horses are neighing.

As soon as the song began, two streams of tears flowed down Zhang Guangnian's face. Zhang Guangnian looked at Liu Yimin, who quickly shook his head and said, "It wasn't me, I didn't know about this part."

Zhang Guangnian sang with tears streaming down his face, his hands involuntarily tapping out the rhythm.

When Zhang Guangnian wrote "The Yellow River Cantata," he never imagined that the song would be passed down for so many years.

After the song, the students from the School of Foreign Languages ​​recited in unison on stage: "We are students of the School of Foreign Languages, and we will go to the battlefield of diplomacy in the future. Please rest assured, Party, nation, and people, we are people's diplomats, and we will do our utmost to safeguard the interests of the country and the people!"

The students from the Foreign Affairs College brought the play to a climax, while Liu Yimin handed Zhang Guangnian a handkerchief. When Liu Yimin came out from backstage after visiting the actors, Zhang Guangnian was still sitting in the front row, his eyes red-rimmed.

Liu Yimin helped Zhang Guangnian up, and only turned back to the Beijing People's Art Theatre after seeing him get into the car.

Xia Chun and Zhu Lin stood smiling at the door. Their collaboration had been a great success, and it was foreseeable that a huge crowd would be coming.

"Director Xia, Director Zhu, you did a great job! When the students from the Foreign Languages ​​Department sang at the end, Comrade Zhang Guangnian instantly burst into tears!"

Xia Chun said, "The School of Foreign Languages ​​proposed to buy group tickets. This idea came from them, as they wanted to give the students a lesson in patriotism."

"The wire work is really appealing!"

"You should praise Comrade Xiao Zhu for this; it was all her idea."

The three of them stood there talking for twenty minutes before parting ways. On the way back, Zhu Lin slightly raised his smooth chin, his face full of arrogance.

Back home, Yang Xiuyun asked curiously, "Linlin, what happened to your chin?"

"Haha, Mom, she's fine. She probably just has a neck problem," Liu Yimin joked.

Seeing this, Yang Xiuyun instructed Liu Yimin to massage Zhu Lin, and then took out the schoolbags she had made: "These are schoolbags I made for the two little ones. How can they go to school without their own schoolbags?"

"Mom, when did you make this?" Liu Yimin gently stroked the fabric of the bag. Liu Yu's schoolbag was embroidered with lotus flowers and the words "Xiao Yu".

Liu Lin's schoolbag was embroidered with a tiger and the name "Liu Lin".

“Your mother started making it in Beidaihe, and it’s just finished. I wrote these characters, and they’re not very good,” Liu Fuqing explained.

"Thank you, Mother."

Liu Yimin and Zhu Lin had originally planned to go out and buy schoolbags, but now they don't need to. The schoolbags are made of white canvas and adorned with embroidered flowers, making them look very exquisite.

However, judging from the child's personality, it probably won't be long before the backpack is covered in a layer of black leather.

September 1st finally arrived, and Liu Yimin and Zhu Lin got up early to help the two pack their things.

At seven o'clock, the two little ones excitedly got up to get ready. Liu Yimin chuckled to himself, thinking that going to school was such a wonderful thing.

The two were wearing short sleeves and shorts. Yang Xiuyun braided Liu Yu's hair, while Liu Lin had his head shaved.

During the meal, Zhu Lin kept instructing the two little ones to raise their hands and call for the teacher if they needed anything.

"If the teacher can't solve it, then you should ask the teacher to talk to your father," Zhu Lin instructed.

The two seemed to understand, but not quite. Just before getting on the bus, Zhu Lin gave Liu Yimin a package containing clothes, in case the two little ones wet their pants.

"Don't worry, I'll bring them back at noon," Liu Yimin comforted Zhu Lin, whose eyes were slightly red.

"Okay, Teacher Liu, drive carefully," Zhu Lin said in a low voice.

As Liu Yimin drove away, he saw Zhu Lin secretly wiping away tears in the rearview mirror. Zhu Lin had originally wanted to take them home herself, but Liu Yimin stopped her. With the two little ones crying, Zhu Lin felt sorry for them and simply carried them home.

Along the way, the two little ones gazed curiously at the scenery outside the car window, and Liu Yimin kept giving them instructions.

"Dad talks so much." Liu Yu clung to the car window, pressing her face against the glass.

Liu Yimin was also quite apprehensive, wondering how the two would perform on their first day of school.

Today was also the start of the new semester at Yenching University. Countless new students and senior students who came to pick up the new students were gathered at the gate. Liu Yimin had to go around a small gate before he was able to get in smoothly.

As the car approached Weixiu Garden, Liu Yimin sensed something was wrong, and heart-wrenching cries echoed throughout the room.

"Dad, why are they crying?" Liu Lin asked.

After stopping the car, Liu Yimin picked Liu Lin up and said, "Be brave, don't cry. Take good care of your sister when you go to school!"

"Okay," Liu Lin readily agreed.

Liu Yimin held the two of them's hands and walked cautiously toward the kindergarten.

Goodness, this journey was more tiring than turning over the floor on my first night!

When they arrived at the school gate, the kindergarten teacher warmly took the two little ones' hands and led them inside.

But to the two little ones, this was an incredibly terrifying thing, their pupils dilating: "Daddy, Daddy!"

"I'm here, I'm here! This is the teacher, Teacher Li!"

The two then calmed down: "Teacher Li."

"Good boy, Liu Yu and Liu Lin, right? Let's go to class. Lots of kids are here... uh, they're all in class." Teacher Li winked at Liu Yimin.

"Let's go."

Hearing the crying, Liu Yimin hesitated and said, "Teacher, should I bring them over after they stop crying?"

"It's alright," Teacher Li said.

Liu Yimin helped the two to their seats, held their hands, and said, "Dad is upstairs next door. You can stay here and have class with the teacher. Dad will come to pick you up at noon, okay?"

When Liu Yimin tried to leave, the two little ones finally realized what was happening and hugged Liu Yimin's legs, crying, "Daddy, we want Mommy, we want Aunt Ximei."

"Don't cry, don't cry. Aunt Ximei is home. You'll see her when you go back at noon. You'll be going to school here. I'll buy you candy and toys after class." Liu Yimin quickly wiped away the tears from the corners of their eyes.

Teacher Li tried to comfort them, and Liu Yimin spent half an hour coaxing them with candy and toys.

The other kindergarten teachers all came to the new students' class to comfort the children. Teacher Li said, "Don't worry, Professor Liu, we'll come to you if we need anything."

Liu Yimin left the kindergarten amidst tears, his heart pounding with anxiety. Back in his office, after greeting the new trainees, he went inside.

Looking at the documents on the table, Liu Yimin had no mood to make any corrections. He was in a bad mood, and the words on the documents seemed to be crying out in crooked and messy strokes.

Yan Zhen pushed the door open and said, "Teacher, did Liu Yu and Liu Lin go to school today? Should I go and check on them? The children were crying on the way here."

"It's okay, it's okay, no need, it's no use you going." Liu Yimin quickly waved his hand: "If something happens, the kindergarten will call me."

An hour later, just when Liu Yimin thought everything was calm, a phone call shattered the peace.

"Professor Liu, Professor Liu, your little Yu has wet his pants. Do you have any clean clothes?"

"Yes, yes, yes, I'll go get it right away!"

When I finally got back to my office, another phone call came in: "It's bad, Professor Liu, Liu Lin has also peed."

"Professor Liu, Professor Liu?"

"almost there."

"Professor Liu, Professor Liu?"

"Two minutes!"

"Professor Liu, Professor Liu?"

"."

"Professor Liu!"

"Huh? What's wrong?" Liu Yimin quickly stood up, and only breathed a sigh of relief when he saw it was Yan Jiayan.

"Professor Yan, I thought it was kindergarten again," Liu Yimin said weakly.

"Haha, now you know how tough it is for kids on their first day of school, right? The real hardship is yet to come, even though it's just a short walk." Yan Jiayan said with the air of someone who'd been there.

(End of this chapter)