Literary Master 1918: Starting with New Youth

Chapter 84 Money Pouch

The next day was the Beginning of Winter.

The Yenching University Journalism Research Association started its class on time. Unlike last time, today's lecturer was the very busy Shao Zhenqing.

He was in charge of the Beijing Daily and also taught classes; he was practically a superman!

Moreover, his deeds were so outstanding that the students attending the meeting admired him greatly, listened quietly, and no one spoke out to disrupt the order.

"Journalists must be perceptive about news, but what does 'perceptive' mean?"

"In my view, firstly, it is the ability to detect the extraordinary in the ordinary; secondly, it is the ability to discern the essence beneath the complex appearances. Both are indispensable."

"To get the news, you can't just sit in the classroom; you have to get out of your study, go into the streets, listen to the words of ordinary people, and observe the actions of peddlers and vendors, rather than receiving secondhand information and making your own conclusions behind closed doors."

"Remember, interviewing is not about looking down on others with arrogance, nor is it about seeking novelty or prying into their lives; it requires a respectful attitude."

Shao Zhenqing has a clear voice with a slight Jiangzhe accent.

He paused for a moment, giving himself time to take notes.

This time, Wu Zhuxue behaved himself. He prepared a notebook before class and copied everything into it, regardless of whether he understood it or not.

Shao Zhenqing glanced around the audience and saw Wu Zhuchao listening most attentively, feeling a sense of agreement. He cleared his throat and said, "However, I'm only talking about principles. Who can answer the question of how to listen and observe specifically?"

The students seemed to be deep in thought, and soon they all raised their hands.

To avoid appearing too abrupt, Wu Zhu also raised his hand in a similar manner.

Based on my past life's school experience, teachers usually call on students who didn't raise their hands.

When Shao Zhenqing saw Wu Zhu raise his hand, he was extremely pleased: "Wu Zhu, you have always had unique insights. Since you raised your hand, it means you have a new idea. Please stand up and share it with everyone."

All eyes turned to them.

"Huh? Me?"

Kuretake has a sense of absurdity, like a husky mixed in with a pack of wolves, only to be shot dead by a hunter.

Why do you always focus your attention on him?

"Brother Wu, since you raised your hand, you must have something on your mind. Don't be shy."

"That's right! Everyone really enjoys listening to you talk."

The students around him started urging him on.

Wu Zhu had no choice but to stand up, ponder for a moment, and said, "No one has the right to speak without investigation. I think Mr. Shao is absolutely right, and perhaps I can add a few points here."

"In addition to having an equal attitude, you also need a suitable methodology when conducting interviews. For example, you cannot treat ordinary people as a vague whole. Workers, rickshaw pullers, street vendors, and farmers have different ways of working and living conditions, so their concerns about society are also different. The starting point for talking to them will naturally be different."

"When we ask workers, we can inquire about their wages; when we ask vendors, we can inquire about the exorbitant taxes and levies, and so on."

Clap, clap, clap! Shao Zhenqing led the applause, and the students followed suit, giving him the most enthusiastic applause.

"Any further insights?"

"some."

After the classroom quieted down, Wu Zhu spoke again: "When reporters listen, they should not only listen to the interviewees' complaints, but also pay attention to their silences. Because in these silences, there may be things that they cannot face directly, or things that they cannot see clearly, and reporters have a responsibility to record them."

"Therefore, this requires a lot of patience and a basic understanding of sociology, to summarize personal experiences and understand them within the context of society. Only reports written in this way can transcend simple sympathy and provoke deeper reflection among the public."

This time, before Shao Zhenqing could even take the lead, the students had already expressed their agreement.

Brother Li and Gao Shangde, who were standing nearby, gave them an "impressive" look, indicating that they had learned it.

Shao Zhenqing's admiration deepened, and he invited Wu Zhu to sit down: "A very insightful observation! Wu Zhu's remarks mean that journalists are not merely recorders, but also need the ability to 'see through things with discerning eyes.' This is not something that can be achieved overnight; you can gradually understand it through practice."

He paused, then continued, "After you've had your initial theoretical study, I will invite you to intern at a newspaper and participate in frontline news gathering and editing work to enhance your journalistic skills. Later, our research group will try to start a newspaper so you can practice during your regular classes!"

"good!"

The students cheered upon hearing the good news.

Shao Zhenqing smiled and waited for the crowd to quiet down. Taking advantage of the remaining class time, he used his own experience as examples to explain some interviewing techniques.

For example, his nighttime visit to Duan Qirui last year...

As get out of class was about to end, he glanced at the clock on the wall and earnestly instructed: "Journalism may seem like a skill, but in reality, it tests a practitioner's courage, conscience, and knowledge. I encourage you all to strive together."

That's all for today, get out of class dismissed.

The students in the audience stood up and bowed to show their respect for the lecturer, and then dispersed or went to talk to Shao Zhenqing.

Wu Zhu sat for a while and was just about to leave when Shao Zhenqing stopped him.

"Sir, what's wrong?"

"When I came today, I saw you and Brother Shouchang engrossed in discussing something. What kind of knowledge could make you two so absorbed?"

Shao Zhenqing asked questions while tidying up his lecture notes.

Wu Zhu, being quite perceptive, quickly stepped forward to help erase the blackboard, then turned back to explain, "We were trying to translate some passages on Western economics, and Mr. Shouchang happens to be knowledgeable about it, so we asked him to discuss it together."

"No wonder! I knew you were a Chinese literature student, not only are you a great writer, but you also have such a broad perspective. I didn't know you read all these kinds of books. Impressive!"

"You flatter me, sir. I am unworthy of such praise."

Wu Zhu put the pen back in his breast pocket, feeling quite pleased with himself for being praised.

Shao Zhenqing chuckled: "We have an agreement. You'll be writing for the Beijing Daily in the future. You can write anything you want, whether it's opinion pieces, essays, or novels. Don't go back on your word."

He lost several jars of fine wine on his opening day in order to get Wu Zhu to write for the Beijing Daily, but after waiting for so long, there has been no sign of him.

After all, he felt obligated to help someone who had paid for his work, so Wu Zhu said somewhat embarrassedly, "Next time, next time when I have a suitable piece of writing, I will submit it to your newspaper. At that time, please don't look down on my writing, thinking it's not good enough for a prestigious publication."

"No, we can't hope for that. Although the Beijing Daily is small, we hope to provide a place for the true voice."

"Then I'm relieved."

""

Half an hour later, at the corner of Zhonggu Hutong.

The wonton stand, steaming with white vapor, looked especially tempting on a winter evening.

As soon as Wu Zhu arrived by rickshaw, he saw that Huai Jin had been waiting for a long time. The tip of Huai Jin's nose was red from the cold. When he saw him, he immediately smiled and his eyes crinkled.

Today, Huaijin wore a fitted coat and a light gray scarf around her neck. She looked very stylish. Good-looking people look good in anything!

The reason Huaijin was asked to wait here was because he had sent a message directly through Ma Yuzhao. If they went to his home to discuss things at this hour, he would definitely have to eat a meal, which would make everyone uncomfortable, and then what would they talk about?

"Two bowls of shredded chicken wontons."

Wu Zhu tossed a sentence to the vendor and strode forward: "Have you been waiting long?"

Ma Yu sniffed her reddened nose: "I arrived a little earlier than you, sir."

It's obvious that they're lying.

Wu Zhu smiled, not exposing her, and invited Huai Jin to sit down: "I'll treat you to wontons, you don't mind, do you?"

"It's alright, I come here often too. The wonton soup here is very delicious."

Ma Yu glanced at the square Eight Immortals table, pondered for a moment about where to sit, and finally plopped down on the same bench as Wu Zhu.

The two were standing so close for the first time, which caught Wu Zhu off guard, causing him to shrink back to the side. But Ma Yu didn't seem to care at all.

"Gentlemen, the wontons are here!"

The vendor placed the steaming hot wontons in front of the two people at their table, then turned back to attend to his own business.

Ma Yu didn't rush to pick up her spoon, but asked with bright eyes, "Sir, have you seen the latest episode of 'The Bao Family'?"

"Of course I've seen it."

"What do you think of the plot? My dad said the author is criticizing Uncle Huang, that is, Huang Kan. Did you notice?"

How could Wu Zhu not see it?

But we certainly can't admit to the intention. What if Huaijin finds out his pseudonym later? Wouldn't he know that he's petty?

So he put down his spoon and said with a serious face, "The author may have had this idea, but that is ultimately just our speculation. In my opinion, the good thing about 'The Bao Family' is that it is a mirror that reveals the true nature of traditional Chinese culture, exposing a corner of the dirty stuff in traditional Chinese culture. There is no need to delve into the rest of the meaning."

Ma Yu nodded to indicate that she understood, picked up a spoon and sipped the soup slowly. Since she didn't bring a hair clip, her hair kept falling into the bowl, so she had to use one hand to brush it away.

Wu Zhu rummaged in her pocket for a moment, then pulled out a hair clip and handed it to her: "I bought this on the way here; it's a gift for you."

It wasn't bought on the street; I specifically went to the jewelry store to order it, and it cost him three silver dollars...

The design is rather masculine, focusing on functionality. There are no patterns or beads, and apart from the material, everything else is quite ordinary.

Ma Yu has only given her a bookmark so far, how could she dare to accept any other gift: "Ah? This is too precious, I can't accept it."

"Take it, I can't return it. If you don't want it, I'll have to give it to someone else."

"No! I'll take it, I'll bring it back to you next time!"

After a bit of tugging, Ma Yu accepted the gift, immediately put the hair clip in her hair, gave Wu Zhu a smile, and shook her head smugly, like a girl next door showing off her toys.

A gentle breeze blew by, and Wu Zhuxin's heart skipped a beat.

Seemingly realizing his lapse in composure, he then pulled out the translated manuscript and pretended nothing had happened: "I recently finished translating the preface. Take a look at it first; you don't need to understand it right away."

Ma Yu threw down the spoon, not even bothering to wipe her mouth, and hurriedly took the manuscript, carefully reading it in the dim sunlight.

Her eyebrows furrowed and relaxed at times, but they were mostly furrowed.

A moment later, she puffed out her cheeks, looked up, somewhat discouraged, and handed back the translation manuscript with a defeated look in her eyes: "I recognize every single word, but there are many paragraphs that, when put together, I have no idea what they mean... Am I stupid? I've wasted your hard work."

Seeing her confused expression, Wu Zhu encouraged her, "The concepts of Western economics are very different from what we are familiar with, but that's not your problem..."

In the future, after I finish translating each section, I will try to append it to the end of the translation in simpler language. Perhaps this will help you overcome this hurdle. What do you think?

"Very good!"

Hearing these words, Ma Yu was both touched and happy. She took something out of her pocket and handed it over.

It was a red silk purse about the size of a fist, with a simple design and somewhat rough workmanship. It was clearly handmade by Huaijin, because there were needle marks on her fingertips, indicating that she had been pricked quite a bit while sewing.

"Sir, you gave me such an expensive gift. I... I made it myself, and it's very rough, almost embarrassing to show it to you. But please don't mind, I'll make it up to you later!"

Ma Yu handed the money pouch forward, afraid that Wu Zhu wouldn't accept it.

Wu Zhu could not possibly refuse, but he couldn't be in such a hurry. He pretended to accept the money pouch calmly, his voice gentle: "How could I possibly dislike it? I like it very much, thank you."

"Uh-huh!

'