Literary Master 1918: Starting with New Youth

The following day, September 26th.

Yanjing is still Yanjing, and life is still just as miserable.

After finishing breakfast at home, Yang Zizhen reluctantly picked up her schoolbag and walked out of the courtyard with empty eyes.

If we were to rank the seven days of the week, Thursday would have to be at the bottom. After three days of classes, I'm already exhausted, and today I have to get up early and endure another day before the agonizing Friday arrives. It's practically the most severe torture of our time!

Not to mention the incredibly boring daily commute to school; even the roadside vendors were always the same, and after a while, they all became familiar faces. The initial excitement of coming to Beijing from Hunan had long been worn away by the monotonous daily routine.

This is boring...

If only I could have a rickshaw to pick me up, that would be so cool...

I had to walk twenty miles every day, supposedly to toughen my body, but when I got to school I didn't even have the energy to study...

As Yang Zizhen was thinking this, she keenly noticed that something was amiss on the street. The rickshaw pullers, who should have been busy at this time, were instead leisurely standing or squatting beside their rickshaws, holding newspapers in their hands.

He wasn't surprised that the rickshaw pullers could read, because many of the rickshaw pullers in Beijing were former Manchus who lived a comfortable life. Even if they were idle playboys, they would still know a few words. What surprised him was why they didn't work.

You know, in the past, when these rickshaw drivers saw him, they would take the initiative to ask if he needed a ride.

He observed his surroundings more closely and noticed that not only the drivers, but also the diners eating breakfast by the roadside were reading newspapers while drinking porridge, and occasionally whispering to each other, seemingly discussing something.

Has something big happened recently?

How could he, as a student, not know that!

"Yang Zizhen! This!"

A woman's voice came from not far away.

Just as Yang Zizhen was about to approach the rickshaw driver to see what newspaper he was reading, her expression immediately froze. She pretended not to have heard anything and walked forward with her head down.

Ma Yu quickly followed, blocking the way, and slightly tilted her head:

"What's wrong with you?"

"Not familiar with..."

Yang Zizhen answered with a constipated expression.

Niang Xipi!

A while ago, Ma Yu handed him a letter with a shy expression. He thought his spring had arrived and was overjoyed on the spot. It turned out that she wanted him to pass it on to that man who was superior to him in the literary world!

In short, he had been feeling extremely frustrated these past few days. The more he thought about it after sending the letter, the angrier he became. He didn't have any worldly thoughts about his deskmate, but this was just too humiliating!

What do they take him for? A two-headed dragon that Wu Zhu interacts with book fans?

So the two deskmates hadn't spoken for several days. As a future literary giant destined to replace Wu Zhu, he should keep his distance from these ignorant fellows.

"You're a grown man, why are you acting like a little girl, always sulking and getting angry?"

"They won't give me a reason no matter what I ask, it's unbelievable..."

Ma Yu showed a disgusted expression.

She had no idea what Yang Zizhen was thinking, and it wasn't really a coincidence that they just happened to run into each other on their way to school...

Under Yang Zizhen's furtive glances, she hugged her schoolbag to her chest, unbuttoned it, rummaged through it, and finally pulled out a letter from between the pages of a book, handing it to Yang Zizhen a second time.

"Thank you so much for delivering my letter last time. I've already received Zhu Junzi's reply! He must be a very busy person. I'm afraid he won't receive it if I mail it to him, so I'd like to ask you to make another trip for this reply. Please don't peek at it!"

"You! How could you do this!... "

Yang Zizhen was so angry that she spoke.

Ever since Wu Zhu left the Yang family, he's been like a ghost that won't leave!

Are you afraid that one stab won't kill them, so you'll have to finish them off with another?

Seeing her usually helpful deskmate with a purse-colored face, remaining silent for a long time, Ma Yu took out her small wallet:

"If you deliver this letter for me, I'll treat you to some snacks!"

"make a deal."

Yang Zizhen didn't understand what a bottom line was, so she snatched the letter away and patted her chest to guarantee that it would be delivered.

Ma Yu took out a silver coin, which Yang Zizhen readily accepted, becoming a slave to sugar-coated bullets.

Ideals and dignity were all thrown to the winds.

Because she gave so much...

......

The two started talking and walked towards the school together, gradually realizing that something was wrong.

Pedestrians on the street were all holding newspapers, engrossed in reading them. Some didn't even look where they were going. Surprisingly, when they bumped into others, there was no argument. After apologizing, they picked up their newspapers again.

"What happened? Has he been possessed by a demon?"

"I don't know... They seem to be reading the *Beijing Dialect Daily*. Could it be some important current event?"

"Buy a copy and see for yourself. I remember there's a newsstand up ahead!"

The two jogged to the newsstand and found it even more crowded, with people dressed in all sorts of different clothes huddled together, as if they were fighting over something.

"Look, take a look! The latest issue of *Camel Xiangzi* in the *Beijing Daily* is in high demand, is it sold out yet?"

The vendors shouted their wares loudly.

Yang Zizhen and Ma Yu finally figured it out: a new novel had been published, and judging from the looks of it, it was selling quite well!

That can only mean one thing—this novel called "Camel Xiangzi" must be of very good quality!

As a devoted novel enthusiast, how could I miss the opportunity to appreciate it!

Going to school? Even a dog wouldn't go!

"A story about a camel? That's so interesting, I'd like to see what it's like!"

After Yang Zizhen finished humming, she took out five coins and squeezed into the crowd.

Like a fish swimming through the crowd, he kept his eyes fixed on the ever-thinning pile of newspapers, using his strong physique to withstand countless elbows from the vendors, and finally squeezed to the innermost layer to hand over the money.

"Two copies of the *Beijing Dialect Daily*, please!"

"Okay! Make sure you hold on tight, don't let them take it away!"

The newspaper vendor was already extremely busy. He snatched the money from his hand and deftly pulled out two newspapers with his other hand, stuffing them into his hand.

Yang Zizhen held the newspaper to her chest and pushed her way through the crowd, panting heavily. By the time she finally broke through the barriers, the newspaper was crumpled.

He handed one to Ma Yu:

"This tabloid is selling like hotcakes, it's so hard to get one, here you go."

Ma Yu took the newspaper, flipped directly to the literary supplement, and was surprised to find a whole page filled with stories from "Rickshaw Boy." Just the length of the article alone guaranteed it wouldn't be bad.

She and Yang Zizhen walked one in front of the other, neither of them speaking, focused on reading the contents of the newspaper.

We're going to introduce Xiangzi, not Camel, because "Camel" is just a nickname; so let's talk about Xiangzi first, and casually mention the connection between Camel and Xiangzi, and that's it.

I knew it! What novel features a camel as the main character? It's not a fairy tale.

The two then read on.

The story of the rickshaw puller... is quite interesting.

Most novels nowadays depict rural life, revolution, or intellectuals, and very few feature protagonists as low-level laborers in big cities, let alone rickshaw pullers who are ubiquitous in Beijing. This is enough to prove how unique the author's vision is.

It should be noted that even in the magazine "New Youth," only on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month this year, in the first issue of the fourth volume, did Shen Yinmo and Hu Shi each write short poems about rickshaw pullers.

One describes appearance, the other describes dialogue.

In particular, the lines "You're too young, I won't ride in your car. If I did, my heart would be filled with sorrow," and the reply "I haven't had any business all day, I'm cold and hungry. Your kindness can't fill my empty stomach," vividly portray the plight of these people.

But this new version of "Rickshaw Boy" is even better. From the very first glance, you can feel the strong flavor of Beijing, naturally creating a sense of immersion. Not to mention, the lack of ornate language lowers the reading threshold, no wonder it's so popular.

Of course, as a novel, the most important thing is the plot.

No amount of trying to salvage a terrible plot will change that.

The two read patiently, and soon became engrossed in it. They even squatted down at the foot of the Drum Tower, with the blazing sun overhead and beads of sweat gradually appearing on their cheeks.

From buying a rickshaw, being conscripted, and escaping with a camel, to returning to the rickshaw factory to save money, and then being humiliated by the Yang family and leaving in anger...

These plot points alone infuriated the two of them! They couldn't help but start worrying about Xiangzi's future.

Then we come to Volume Six, where Xiangzi is tricked into bed by Hu Niu.

The descriptions weren't exactly explicit, but Ma Yu still blushed deeply, covering her eyes with one hand, leaving only a small slit, as if that would lessen her guilt.

In contrast, Yang Zizhen actually brought that passage close to her eyes to watch it!

"..."

Ma Yu was speechless. However, the author, "Yanjing Ke," had a unique way of portraying Hu Niu, and such a character is rarely seen in novels, both domestic and international.

The character of Tiger Girl in the novel is more like a "wicked woman." The author's portrayal of her in terms of appearance and speech is different from the delicate women that the public is familiar with, and she is completely unlike a young lady from a wealthy family.

Not to mention, Ma Yu always felt that this Tiger Girl was somewhat...sexually repressed.

She shook her head and looked at the last paragraph.

Xiangzi came to Professor Chen's house to pull a rickshaw for a month, and even fell into a ditch for Professor Chen. Fortunately, Professor Chen didn't blame him, and kind-hearted Aunt Gao also helped him. It seems that working for the Chen family is better than working for Master Liu...

Moreover, Aunt Gao suggested to Xiangzi that he could lend out his money or deposit it in the bank, which seemed better than keeping it in his own hands. But Xiangzi bought a sealed jar and put all his money in it...

As a loyal reader of the novel, Ma Yu almost immediately guessed that the author would definitely make some changes to the "silent gourd jar" next.

Seeing that Tiger Girl also came at the end, she must urgently need money. When will Xiangzi ever be able to buy a rickshaw...?

Today's edition of "Camel Xiangzi" has come to an end. I must say it was indeed very well written, with vivid prose and a solid plot. The description of Xiangzi eating tofu in the fourth volume made her hungry just reading it.

She carefully folded this issue of the Beijing Daily and put it in her schoolbag, deciding to get up early the next day to catch up on the new issue.

Upon seeing the books in her schoolbag, she glanced at the sky and suddenly stood up:

"Oh no! I skipped class!"

Yang Zizhen, standing to the side, seemed completely unconcerned. She tucked the newspaper under her arm, stood up, put her hands on her hips, and laughed heartily.

"Hahaha!"

"Wu Zhu! You finally have a worthy opponent. Let's see how you handle this!"

Ma Yu was exasperated and decided to ignore this guy, so she hailed a donkey cart...