A Literary Life Starting from the First Year of High School

March 18th, Saturday.

"Shubai! There's a package for you downstairs, it's a pretty big box, your dad carried it up!"

Lin Shubai turned over, reached for his watch on the bedside table, and glanced at it—8:15. It was Saturday, no school, and he had planned to sleep until 9:00, but the words "quite a big box" woke him up.

The sample copy of "Four Generations Under One Roof" has arrived.

He received a text message from Wang Shouyi a few days ago saying that the sample book had been sent and to check for receipt. It finally arrived today.

In the living room, Lin Jianguo was squatting on the floor unpacking a cardboard box. After taking out the book, he saw a beige cover with silhouettes of three generations of the Qi family standing in a row. Lin Jianguo flipped the book over to look at the spine, then flipped it back to look at the cover, and then looked up at Lin Shubai.

"Is this the book you wrote?"

"Um."

Lin Jianguo handed the book over, and Lin Shubai took it. It was heavy, heavier than Charlotte's Web and The Little Prince combined.

Lin Shubai turned to the first page, which was a preface, with a name signed below the title—Han Mo.

Wang Shouyi had told him before that a well-known writer had written a preface for "Four Generations Under One Roof," but he never expected it to be Han Mo.

Han Mo, in his fifties, is a writer from Beijing. He started out writing realistic novels and has won many domestic literary awards. His works are known for their depth and profundity, and he holds a high position in literary circles.

Foreword: A National Epic in Xiaoyangquan Hutong

韩墨

The sound of cannons at Lugou Bridge shattered the tranquility of Beiping and destroyed the serenity that had lasted for a thousand years in this ancient city.

When the invaders' iron hooves trampled through the streets and alleys, and when the shadow of national subjugation shrouded the land of Yan and Zhao, Lin Shubai, with his profound pen, fixed his gaze on the inconspicuous Xiaoyangquan Hutong in the northwest corner, and used millions of words to create a national epic spanning eight years of occupation—"Four Generations Under One Roof".

This work, without descriptions of battlefields filled with the smoke of gunpowder or narratives of heroic figures, fully depicts the suffering and perseverance, decline and awakening of a nation through the joys and sorrows of ordinary people.

Xiaoyangquan Hutong is small, so small that you can hear the neighbors chatting and smell the smoke from their stoves; yet it is also very large, encompassing all sorts of people and becoming a microcosm of the fallen Beiping.

Here you'll find the everyday life of four generations of the Qi family, the transformation of a wealthy poet from a detached scholar to a revolutionary, the despicable and shameless behavior of people like Guan Xiaohe and Da Chibao, and the righteous perseverance of working-class people like Xiao Cui and Sun Qi.

Lin Shubai uses the rise and fall of the Qi family across four generations as the main thread, employing a radial narrative to intertwine the underlying themes of national conflict with the overt themes of family ethics. Each character becomes a footnote to the era. Of the fifty-six named protagonists, nineteen perished during the eight years of suffering. Their life and death are a microcosm of the experiences of thirty million Chinese compatriots during the war, and every joy and sorrow is etched with the scars of the nation.

Every character in the book faces a choice of fate in a chaotic world, which also highlights the complexity and brilliance of human nature.

Grandpa Qi clung to his family ideal of "four generations living under one roof." Amidst the sounds of gunfire, his first thought was for food and salted vegetables, believing that peace would come after three months. His numbness and compromise were a true reflection of the national character of the old era.

The eldest grandson, Qi Ruixuan, was caught in the dilemma of "loyalty to the country and filial piety to the country." As the pillar of the family, he chose to stay in Beiping and compromise. He upheld his conscience in forbearance and protected the dignity of his family and the nation with silent resistance. His struggle was the spiritual dilemma of a generation of intellectuals.

The third brother, Qi Ruiquan, resolutely left home, growing from a passionate young man into a mature revolutionary. His decisiveness was the spark that ignited national awakening.

Qian Moyin was originally a leisurely scholar who devoted himself to poetry and painting, but he was awakened in the face of the tragic death of his family members. He moved from personal revenge to national liberation, and completed the spiritual sublimation of a scholar.

Guan Xiaohe's sophisticated selfishness and Da Chibao's tyrannical greed serve as mirror images of national scum, and their tragic ends are the heaviest condemnation of those who lack conscience.

Lin Shubai's pen is both gentle and sharp. He writes about the everyday life of Beiping, the human relationships in the hutongs, the meals on the Qi family's table, and the greetings between neighbors, bringing the warmth and weight of this ancient city to life on the page. He also writes about the cruelty of war, the atrocities of the invaders, and the hunger, humiliation, bewilderment, and resistance of the people in the occupied areas. Every word is heartbreaking, and every sentence is full of emotion.

The charm of this work lies not in its grand historical narrative, but in its delicate and profound approach of "seeing the big picture from small details"—it dissects the "small cell" of Xiaoyangquan Hutong, allowing us to see the fate of the entire nation through the joys and sorrows of individual families; it does not shy away from the weaknesses of the national character, nor does it hesitate to praise the brilliance of humanity, conveying the enduring strength of the nation through criticism and reflection.

This work is not only a classic of modern novels, but also a precious national memory. It makes us understand that the suffering of a nation is never a forgotten past. The conscience that persevered in the darkness, the courage to rise up in dire straits, the love for home and country, and the yearning for peace are forever our nation's most precious spiritual wealth.

Today, the smoke of war has long since dissipated, and Beiping has long since become the capital. The smoke from Xiaoyangquan Hutong still rises, but the spiritual power embodied in "Four Generations Under One Roof" has never faded.

When we open this book, we read not only a history of occupation and the fate of a group of ordinary people, but also a spiritual enlightenment about national integrity and patriotism. It reminds us that without a country, there is no home, and the dignity of the nation needs to be upheld by everyone; it warns us that only by remembering the suffering can we cherish the peace we have now; it inspires us to inherit the spirit of our ancestors and keep moving forward on the road to national rejuvenation.

May every reader understand the profound history of Beiping, the resilience of the nation, and the glimmer of light and strength of ordinary people in turbulent times through this work; may the suffering and perseverance engraved in these words become spiritual nourishment on our journey forward, forever illuminating our path to protect our country and embark on a brighter future.

Lin Shubai hadn't expected Han Mo to write such a long preface. He had originally thought that a so-called "preface by a famous author" would just be a few hundred words of polite remarks like "this book is worth reading." But Han Mo's preface was practically an endorsement of the book with his entire reputation.

He returned to his room and placed "Four Generations Under One Roof" on the bookshelf.

He picked up his phone and sent a text message to Wang Shouyi: "Professor Wang, I saw the preface. Thank you for helping me contact Professor Han Mo."

A few minutes later, Wang Shouyi replied: "It was Han Mo who offered to write it. He said, 'I should write a preface for this book.'"

Lin Shubai stared at the message, stunned. "He offered to write it himself? Not commissioned by the publisher?"

He thought for a moment, then sent another message: "What did he say?"

Wang Shouyi replied, "He said, 'This young man wrote what I wanted to write but couldn't.'"