Writer 1979: Writing for the People

The official notification of acceptance of the manuscript from Yanhe was given to the postman on May 16, but it was not delivered to Zhangjia Village until five or six days later.

That evening, after receiving the reply from the village's representatives meeting, Xu Lu immediately opened it without hesitation.

To be honest, he himself wasn't very confident about submitting the article.

After all, neither "Receiving the Precepts" nor "My Distant Qingping Bay" conforms to the current mainstream of the literary world.

He himself was well aware of this.

He simply refused to follow the crowd and, like Lin Xiaocong, raised the banner of "narrative of suffering," so he preferred to "go against the current" and write something new.

After seeing the official notification of acceptance, his anxiety, which had been building for several days, finally subsided.

It's good that the manuscript was approved!

Following the official acceptance notice, there was a long message written by Lu Yao, but Xu Lu, who was eager to share the good news of the acceptance with Li Xiuzhi, had no time to read it.

He quickened his pace and hurried towards his cave dwelling.

At home, Zhang Qiaoqiao and Li Xiuzhi were still chatting. Xu Lu didn't understand how they had so much to talk about and were always together.

However, seeing that the two were chatting happily, he felt quite good about it.

"Xiuzhi, my manuscript was approved! My manuscript was approved!"

Xu Lu, upon entering the cave dwelling, excitedly spoke to Li Xiuzhi, who also looked delighted.

She knew how much effort Xu Lu had put into these two articles. During the most difficult and tiring period in April, he would sit under the kerosene lamp and write articles until late at night every day after work.

Moreover, she always found the stories he told particularly interesting, so she thought it was quite normal for his articles to be accepted.

Overjoyed, Xu Lu ran up to Li Xiuzhi, picked her up, and spun her around in circles.

At this moment, the only way for him to become a full-time writer for the provincial writers' association and return to the city with Li Xiuzhi is through his writing and gradually build his reputation.

Now, he has two short stories to be published in Yanhe, how could he not be happy?

As for Li Xiuzhi, who was being held by Xu Lu, her face quickly turned red after a brief moment of surprise. This was probably the most intimate gesture the two had made since they got married.

Zhang Qiaoqiao, who had already heard that Xu Lu had submitted articles to "Yanhe", was also filled with disbelief.

  

Although she and Xu Lu had a good relationship, it was still "Yanhe" after all!

The best publication in the province!

According to their school's teachers, those who can publish articles in that publication are all great writers.

Now, such a great writer is standing right next to her, and he is none other than "Uncle Xu," whom she knows very well. How could she accept this so quickly?

As Xu Lu gradually calmed down and realized what he was doing, he quickly put Li Xiuzhi down. Noticing her blushing face, he avoided her gaze.

I've really embarrassed myself this time!

"Cough, Qiaoqiao, what did you just say?"

Xu Lu started talking to Zhang Qiaoqiao to divert her attention.

"Uncle Xu, I was talking about the journal you submitted to, *Yanhe*, is it that really, really amazing *Yanhe*?"

Completely absorbed in her surprise, Zhang Qiaoqiao didn't notice what the two had just done.

Besides, aren't Uncle Xu and Aunt Li husband and wife? There's nothing wrong with them hugging!

"Yes, it's the most influential magazine in Shaanxi Province!"

"It really is that family! Uncle Xu, you're amazing!"

Which issue is your article in? When will it be published? I definitely want to buy a copy from the commune!

Zhang Qiaoqiao looked on with curiosity, and Xu Lu smiled after listening.

"It should be the episode on June 1st!"

The magazine publisher should send me a few sample copies later; I'll send you one!

"Thank you, Uncle Xu! Uncle Xu is the best!"

Zhang Qiaoqiao chattered on and on, and only when she realized it was getting late did she hurriedly leave. Fortunately, the two families lived not far apart, so Xu Lu felt at ease letting her go home alone.

As Zhang Qiaoqiao left, the cave dwelling immediately fell silent. In the past, this wouldn't have been a big deal.

But because of what happened earlier, the atmosphere is obviously a bit awkward right now!

"Ahem... The editor from Yanhe even wrote me a letter..."

After a while, Xu Lu took the initiative to break the silence.

"Really? What does it say on it?"

Li Xiuzhi's heart was still pounding and she hadn't completely calmed down, but she didn't want the atmosphere to be too awkward, so she pretended to be calm and continued the conversation.

"It's nothing, just telling me to stick to my ideas and keep creating."

The letter contained a lot of content, but it can be summarized in just one sentence. However, it is clear that the sender really appreciates these two articles, otherwise they would not have written such a long paragraph.

Xu Lu was somewhat surprised when he noticed that the person who wrote to him was Lu Yao. He hadn't expected that he would be able to make contact with this future great writer so quickly.

I don't know if I'll ever have the chance to meet him again!

When he watched "Ordinary World" back then, the scene where Tian Xiaoxia was swept away by the flood still left a deep impression on him!

After finishing reading the letter, Xu Lu couldn't find any other topics to talk about for a while, so he could only go to bed as usual, and Li Xiuzhi followed suit and lay down on the bed.

Neither of them is destined to sleep well tonight!

……

Time quickly passed, and it was time to go to work the next day. As Xu Lu was walking, someone suddenly reached out and put their arm around his shoulder. He turned around and saw that it was none other than Zhang Dameng.

"Old Xu, did your article really get published in that journal called 'Yanhe'? Will we be able to see it there at the beginning of next month?"

Yesterday, Zhang Dameng was both surprised and happy to hear the news his daughter Zhang Qiaoqiao brought back. He was educated, although not highly educated, but he knew that not everyone could get their articles published in provincial journals.

Except for Lin Xiaocong!

I don't know what kind of luck this guy had, but he actually got his article published in a provincial journal. It's just that kind of garbage article, I don't know who would want to read it.

That's why I rushed over to confirm with Xu Lu, just to avoid any misunderstandings.

"It's too much!"

Xu Lu nodded with a smile, and Zhang Dameng's lips immediately curled up upon hearing this.

After a while, when they arrived at the field, before everyone had started working, he suddenly spoke loudly.

"Old Xu, how are you so amazing? You actually got two articles published in Yanhe!"

Wow, that's amazing!

I remember this "Yanhe" magazine being much better than that "Shaanxi Youth" magazine, right?

The next second, everyone turned to look at them!