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

Chapter 89 Reform and Opening Up (Seeking Monthly Tickets)
Seeing that the group still seemed unenthusiastic, Zhang Manling added, "Have you heard Aesop's Fables? The tortoise and the hare had a race, and in the end, the tortoise won!"

Aesop's Fables were introduced to China during the Ming Dynasty through missionaries, but people who didn't have much reading experience back then really didn't know about them.

“Comrade Zhang Manling, in the tortoise and the hare race, the tortoise won because the hare was asleep. Except for the mornings when I saw Liu Yimin sleeping in, he works even harder than us the rest of the time. How can he catch up with us!” Li Xueqin said.

Neither Liu Zhenyun nor Chen Dazhi had read Aesop's Fables, so they naturally didn't know why the tortoise won. They only understood after Li Xueqin explained it to them.

After hearing this, Zhang Manling finally let out a long breath and plopped down on the stool, saying, "I'll sit down and calm down before I go!"

Liu Yimin followed Cao Yu to the professor's office. Cao Yu turned around and asked with a smile, "Hey kid, when did you recognize me?"

"When I came out of the Beijing People's Art Theatre yesterday, I saw the photos on the wall and that's when I noticed them!" Liu Yimin answered honestly while pouring tea for Cao Yu.

"Not bad, you've got a knack for it! Show me all the manuscripts you've written recently. 'Mr. Donkey' is definitely suitable for adaptation into a stage play, and although 'Hachiko' sells well, the story would be too thin for an adaptation."

Cao Yu accepted the tea offered by Liu Yimin and said, "Consider this cup your offering to your teacher."

"Teacher, I'll brew you a good cup of tea myself another day!" Liu Yimin said with a smile.

"Whether it's tea or not doesn't matter. Let me show you the manuscript first. You're planning to write it as a four-act play? You've just finished the first act, which is actually quite fast. The first act is also well-polished, but your understanding of the stage is a bit shallow," Cao Yu commented.

"I went to see a play yesterday because I wanted to experience the stage, which is what Teacher Yang Hui taught me."

Cao Yu sighed, "Professor Yang, it seems he really put his heart into teaching you, but unfortunately I got to reap the rewards. I'm often at the Beijing People's Art Theatre, so remember to ask me anything you don't understand. You can also attend rehearsals as an audience member and see how they refine their craft. Being my student, you should feel the pressure; so many people are watching you!"

"The students will definitely work hard," Liu Yimin declared.

As Cao Yu's student, Liu Yimin had already felt the pressure. If he couldn't write a good script, he wouldn't dare follow in his footsteps. When someone remarked that his teacher had already created "Thunderstorm" when he was as young as Liu Yimin, Liu Yimin was left speechless.

"Don't be so polite, you weren't like this last night!" Cao Yu said with a laugh.

Then he saw the manuscript of "The Flames of War in Beiping" under the script. After reading it patiently, Liu Yimin explained the general plot and theme to him.

Cao Yu's eyes slowly brightened, and after reading the manuscript again, he said, "Write this novel well, make it profound and substantial, especially the awakening of consciousness and personal choices of various social characters during that era and the national crisis. The survival, sorrow, and resilience of ordinary people reflect the sorrow of the entire era and the resilience of our entire nation."

Your approach to storytelling from the grassroots aligns with the popular view of history, which emphasizes the creation of history by the masses. I believe that adapting it into a stage play would be even more successful than "Mr. Donkey," as its story is grand enough and its audience has a stronger capacity for empathy.

After Cao Yu gave specific guidance on the writing of "Wolf Smoke Over Beiping," he left with peace of mind, feeling somewhat fortunate that he had arrived earlier.

Seeing Liu Yimin reminded him of when he was creating "Thunderstorm".

On December 22, the Third Plenary Session of the 12th CPC Central Committee concluded, and news of the country's reform and opening up policy spread rapidly throughout the country. Everyone was discussing what exactly the reform and opening up policy was all about.

Even the college students, who are usually the most enthusiastic about political discussions, were confused for a moment, and groups of people were gathering all over the school to discuss it.

"Reform domestically and open up to the outside world! Reform the domestic system and some policies that are not suitable for the current situation, and open the country's doors to the outside world to do business with foreigners," Liu Yimin said to the few people in the dormitory.

It wasn't just people in the dormitory talking to Liu Yimin; the foreigners also talked to him, saying that given China's influence in third-world countries, such a significant change would have a huge impact on their own countries.

Time quickly came to 1979, and on the first day of the new year, China and the United States formally established diplomatic relations.

Li Congren, an American student, celebrated with Liu Yimin, along with other students from Xiao Rizi and Eastern Europe. For them, this meant that their relationship with China would be even closer in the future.

"Liu, what do you think about what you said last time about creative works transcending national boundaries? With the establishment of diplomatic relations between our two countries, cultural exchanges will definitely become more frequent. I believe that with your talent, you will definitely win the hearts of American readers."

Li Congren asked excitedly.

"What do you think of the story of a white man and a black man redeeming each other in the 1950s and 60s?" Liu Yimin asked.

"Redemption?"

"It's about black people who were discriminated against by white people, and one day they became friends!"

Li Congren sat to one side and said he would think about it.

Xiao Meihezi extended her hand and said, "Vice President, on this joyous day, how about we dance a song?"

"He Zi, let me teach you a Chinese song! From now on, when our Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press gets together, we all need to know how to sing Chinese songs. This is 'Toast Song,' and I'll teach everyone to sing it first!"

Liu Yimin is tone-deaf, but fortunately, the group of international students can't really tell.

When Yu Jiajia stood exhausted in front of Liu Yimin, he had no idea what she had gone through in Saihanba. The delicate-skinned girl had chilblains on her hands and her face was chapped.

"What are you doing?"

"Comrade Liu Yimin, don't worry about that. This trip was definitely worthwhile. I wrote an investigative report, which was approved by the editor-in-chief. I stayed there for half a month and spent a week on the mountaintop. I personally experienced the hardships there."

Yu Jiajia's eyes lit up when she talked about the report!
"Since the novel was written, the Saihanba Forest Farm has frequently received a lot of letters of concern, some of which even contained money, saying that they wanted to improve the lives of the forest farm workers. The forest farm had no choice but to pay the postage out of its own pocket to send them back."

Yu Jiajia found it funny when she recalled the look of amusement and exasperation on the faces of the forest farm leaders when they told her this! They were also a little overwhelmed by the attention they had received from so many people all of a sudden.

"This is a small gift made for you by the comrades in the Saihanba Forest Farm. They asked me to give it to you and also to tell you that they thank you for the White Rabbit milk candy!"

Yu Jiajia carefully took out a wooden box from her handbag, on which were written the words "Presented to Comrade Liu Yimin by the workers of Saihanba Forest Farm"!

(End of this chapter)