Literary Master 1918: Starting with New Youth

After saying goodbye to Liang Shouming, Wu Zhu first went home to change his clothes, and then took a rickshaw to Zhonggu Hutong.

I thought it would be difficult to get Huaijin to come out so late, but when Ma Yuzhao heard the purpose of the visit, he didn't intend to stop me at all.

They even specifically mentioned that if the conversation went on late, one could rest in the guest room of the Ma family's house...

Ma Yu is bold at heart. He had previously respected Wu Zhu too much, and was caught off guard, which led to his poor performance.

She's been reflecting on herself these past few days, and today she went out much more boldly—

Without blushing or skipping, and without lowering her head, she hopped and skipped beside Wu Zhu, truly resembling a junior sister.

As soon as the two stepped out, she giggled and said:

"Sir, you've come so late, you must be delivering a reply to me!"

"Smart. This time I'm going to reply verbally. What do you think?"

"OK!"

The two discussed it and bought some roasted chestnuts to warm themselves up before strolling through the streets.

The night in Yanjing is quiet and deserted, with hardly anyone around, making it a perfect place for a heart-to-heart talk.

Wu Zhuqing cleared his throat and, recalling his memories, said:

"A worldview, in essence, is your fundamental view of the nature, existence, and laws of the world."

"To put it simply, it's like an invisible pair of glasses. The ones you're wearing now make you feel sorry for Xiangzi and pathetic for Kong Yiji. That's your worldview."

"As you read more books and experience more things in the future, your lenses will become clearer and you will naturally see more clearly. There is no need to rush."

Ma Yu nodded with her eyebrows curving upwards, her eyes filled with admiration.

It is an admiration for knowledge, not romantic love.

At school, the lecturers didn't teach her these things, not even her father knew them; he only knew how to preach grand principles!

The atmosphere became increasingly relaxed, and the two wandered around Zhonggu Hutong, neither wanting to go home anytime soon.

Wu Zhu organized his thoughts for a moment, then spoke again:

"As for your views on Kong Yiji, I am pleasantly surprised... Like the author of 'Das Kapital' whom I recommended to you, when he was sorting out his early worldview, he said, 'Philosophers have only interpreted the world in various ways. The point is to change it.' It is already very impressive that you were able to realize this in advance."

"But 'Das Kapital' is like a book written in heaven! I looked it up in the English dictionary, and all those words like 'surplus,' 'labor,' and 'goods' left me completely bewildered. I was stuck on the very beginning!"

Whenever "Das Kapital" is mentioned, Ma Yu loses her spirits and her face falls.

After all, "Capital" is a culmination of political economy, and coupled with the language barrier, it is indeed very difficult for a high school student to read.

It could even be said that reading is difficult for domestic academics as well.

It directly inherits from classical political economy, not only redefining "commodity," "capital," and "value," but also introducing original terms such as "surplus value" and "labor power commodity." Coupled with its dialectical logic, it's truly impossible to understand without a thorough study.

Seeing Huaijin's annoyed expression, Wu Zhu smiled:

"When I first read it, I was also completely confused. The language problem was one, but more importantly, I couldn't keep up with the ideas... However, I thought about the translation for a long time."

"What?"

Ma Yu stood sideways to face Wu Zhu, walking like a crab, looking up expectantly with her eyes wide open.

"I am indeed determined to translate this book, not for fame, but simply to alleviate the suffering of the world."

"Such a powerful tool for dissecting the ways of the world should not be shelved because of language issues."

"However, translation will inevitably take a lot of effort, and the first draft will certainly be rough. If you don't mind, I will send you each section I translate."

"Firstly, you are one of my earliest readers and like-minded people; secondly, you understand English and can help me proofread for errors."

"This kind of serious academic work is a hundred times more tedious than discussing novels, don't you think?"

Wu Zhu raised an eyebrow.

Ma Yu blurted out, as eagerly as if she were answering a question in class:

"I'm not afraid! I couldn't be happier!"

"Alright, but you can't go back on your word."

"It's a deal!"

Wu Zhu was overjoyed to have gotten free labor.

The two strolled around for a while, and as night deepened, the chestnuts had long since gone cold.

The young men and women talked about literature, current events, and campus anecdotes, their ideas sparking but not in a dramatic way. Both sides carefully expressed their opinions, afraid of making a bad impression on the other.

He walked her to her doorstep, and she waved to him:

"Sir, we look forward to your next visit!"

"it is good."

......

The next day.

Taking Mr. Climbing Weng's advice into account, if I don't exercise, I won't be able to outrun anyone if I get into a fight or get beaten up.

So Wu Zhu got up early, ate a simple light breakfast, and went to the Red Building playground.

Based on experience, fighting is far too risky, so if trouble comes up, you have to run fast.

Therefore, you need to practice running skills!

He jogged around the track at a pace of six or seven minutes per kilometer. Before he had even finished three laps, his lung fibers felt like they were being torn apart, and every step he took was accompanied by intense pain.

His decadent life in his study left him practically incapable of physical activity.

If it weren't for Mr. Pa Weng's reminder, this would probably have caused health problems in the long run.

"Huffing and puffing—"

By the fifth lap, Wu Zhu was thinking of giving up and deciding not to run this step at all, as it was just too much to bear.

They said all time travelers would have a system, but where is his system?!

Although it was a day off, as the sun rose higher, the playground became more crowded, with people busy with their own things, stretching or exercising, creating a vibrant atmosphere.

More and more people overtook Wu Zhu, even looping him several times. When they passed by him, they deliberately teased him, making him angry and speed up to chase after them, eventually exhausting themselves.

"What a coincidence, Brother Wu, what brings you here to train?"

A familiar tone suddenly rang out beside me.

Upon hearing this voice, Wu Zhu lost all will to continue and immediately stopped, clinging to Brother Li, panting heavily.

"I was thinking... to practice running now, so that if I got into a verbal fight with someone and got beaten up, I could run faster. But I'm too weak, so I'm not running anymore. I guess I'll just have to take the beating..."

"That won't do. Young people should be strong. Come on, let me pull you along."

Without saying a word, Brother Li pulled Wu Zhu and started circling around.

The sun was high overhead, and Wu Zhu was drenched in sweat, his physical strength completely exhausted.

On the contrary, Brother Li, who was holding his hand, seemed to be handling things with ease.

Is this the difference between people...?

After running about eight laps, Brother Li gradually slowed down.

Wu Zhu finally caught his breath, found a tree to lean against, and the result of being pulled so hard was—

My stomach was churning, and my heart was pounding like a drum, "thump thump thump," as if it would burst out of my chest at any moment, as if I would collapse to the ground at any instant.

Brother Li jogged two more laps before returning to Wu Zhu's resting place. He sat down and wiped the sweat from his brow with his sleeve.

"Brother Wu, you certainly haven't read my article 'A Study of Physical Education,' and you don't understand the importance of exercise. That's why your body is so weak!"

"No way, how could I not have seen it... I can recite it from memory, don't you believe me..."

Wu Zhu waved his hand weakly.

"Since Brother Wu has already read it, then he is not responding to the call, which is unacceptable."

"No, that won't do. I admit my mistake. I'll definitely train more often in the future."

"That's more like it! Brother Wu, could you tell me your thoughts on my article?"

Brother Li asked tentatively.

He actually wanted to hear other people's opinions on his article. This article, "A Study of Sports," was mostly praised, but as he read more books at Yenching University, he believed that there must be problems with it.

Wu Zhu is the most troublesome person in the entire Yanda University. If you want to get scolded, you can't go wrong with him!

As expected, Wu Zhu sat up straight upon hearing this request:

"You really want to hear it?"

"Absolutely no exaggeration."

"Then let me make it clear beforehand, you're not allowed to get angry."

"Now that we've found Brother Wu, we must listen attentively."

With this guarantee, Wu Zhu dared to agree.

"Actually, I agree with most of your points wholeheartedly, except for a few points where I disagree. Let's pick the most important one..."

"You believe that the Chinese people are 'physically weak' because sports are underdeveloped, and that the reason for the underdevelopment of sports is that 'external forces are insufficient to move their hearts, and they do not know the true meaning of sports.' In my opinion, this is biased."

Wu Zhu slowly presented his viewpoint.

Brother Li pondered for a moment, then frowned:

How do you know?

"Didn't Mr. Shouchang say that man is the sum total of social relations? That is to say, man is shaped by production and life... For example, is a farmer toiling in the fields, barely able to eat, weak or strong? Doesn't that depend on how many full meals he can have?"

"Exercise is always good for the body, and it is precisely because of physical weakness that it is even more important to participate in physical exercise."

"If we lived in poverty like my father and brothers, even if we wanted to participate in sports, we wouldn't have the strength or time! This isn't about whether we realized the importance of sports or not. Materialism also says that the spirit cannot exist independently of material conditions. When my father and brothers were still being exploited by the landlord in the north of the village, they didn't even have the strength to work. How could they possibly be willing to spend their energy on sports?"

Wu Zhu spoke from the bottom of his heart, explaining the principles.

Brother Li frowned and fell into deep thought.

After a long while, he exhaled a breath of stale air, his eyes brightening:

"Brother Wu, what you say makes sense!"

"Yes, how could I possibly listen to someone who doesn't have enough to eat or wear and struggles to make ends meet when I talk about 'building a strong sporting nation'?"

"His body is dictated by his job. Without changing the way he's exploited at work, he can't regain control over his body!"

"My empty talk is somewhat idealistic."

Criticism and self-criticism.

Wu Zhu rubbed his aching legs and nodded, saying:

"It's not about that. It's an honor that you agree with my point of view."

"But I think that precisely because of this physical issue, if an individual can consciously exercise, their spirit of resistance will be even more evident."

"If we are to truly promote sports throughout the country and have everyone train to strengthen the nation, we probably need to change the working environment first... Otherwise, sports will only be a pastime for the elite aristocracy, or a means to train strong lackeys."

Brother Li nodded emphatically:

"That makes sense. Treating only the symptom, not just the cause, won't work; you have to get to the root of the problem! Is this the principle discussed in those books Mr. Shouchang recommended earlier?"

"That's right. I've only skimmed through it myself, but I'm deeply impressed by its immense power. You'll definitely benefit from learning it..."

"Then I should take a look more."