The Fourth Outstanding Person of Huangpu Military Academy

"That's great."

"But the writing is a bit crude. The writer's skills are still a bit lacking. I said that last time."

Chen Tianheng: "It doesn't matter if the writing is rough, as long as it's enjoyable."

As soon as Shen Yanbing saw Chen Tianheng walk in, her head started to hurt.

This headache has lasted for two months.

He was originally the editor-in-chief of Xiaoshuo Monthly, and Chen Duxiu asked him to be the editor-in-chief of Gushihui. Gushihui is Gushihui, and Mao Dun initially thought it was a more popular novel than Xiaoshuo Monthly.

Then, after receiving the detailed outline from Chen Tianheng... Is this still a novel? Is this still literature?

But Chen Tianheng behaved like a typical ruthless businessman. The main articles must be of this template; the accepted submissions should not be too abstruse or "literary"; not only must the text be in vernacular, but the use of uncommon characters must be restricted and even obscure words and allusions must be banned; short stories should be the main focus, but long serials should also be available;... His words were all about concepts such as sales, audience, stickiness, etc., which confused Mao Dun.

Mao Dun vowed never to publish anything in Story Club again, not even under a pen name, and would simply continue to work as editor-in-chief.

"Tianheng, you're young, but you act like a shrewd businessman," Mao Dun said. "You run the United Reading Group. I can't say much about other things, but you're definitely making money."

Chen Tianheng: "Last month, the Fourth Congress of the Communist International adopted the 'General Statement on the Eastern Question,' which emphasized that the Chinese Communist Party should compromise with the Kuomintang and certain local leaders to form a united front. In particular, they considered it essential that all Communist Party members join the Kuomintang. The reason for this decision is also mentioned in the general statement. They believe we have a 'poor constitution,' which translates to being incompetent, with few people committed to practical work and many engaged in empty talk. We lack people who can actually run the workers' movement, those who can lead the peasant movement, those who can structure social organizations, and those who can handle economic management. ... Therefore, I'd like to find a few more people to strengthen the management team of the United Reading Group."

Mao Dun: "Are you still looking for it?"

"We're a group company. We'll have more than one magazine like Story Club in the future, and our business won't be limited to magazines. Of course, we need more people. Old Shen, didn't you bring a few more people over from the Commercial Press?"

Mao Dun shook his head. "Didn't United Reading focus on making money? The staff should be streamlined and efficient. That's why I didn't hire anyone. Mr. Zhongfu said he wanted to keep Jiang Xianyun at the Commercial Press to gain experience."

Chen Tianheng: "Then let's go to the Commercial Press again."

……

The Commercial Press not only publishes books, but also magazines. Fiction Monthly, where Mao Dun once worked, is a magazine under the Commercial Press. Besides Fiction Monthly, the Commercial Press's more famous magazine is Eastern Magazine.

The Commercial Press has its own library called "Hanfenlou", which is currently the largest library in Shanghai, even larger than the Fudan University Library. Its collection of rare and unique ancient books is far ahead of the rest of the country. It even has 21 volumes of the Yongle Encyclopedia, second only to the Russian State Library (52 volumes).

Therefore, the two work places that Chen Duxiu prepared for Jiang Xianyun and Chen Tianheng included the Commercial Press, where there was also a sea of ​​books.

At the Commercial Press, Chen Tianheng and Mao Dun visited the editorial office of Fiction Monthly to reminisce about the past and, by the way, recruited an old friend. This Yang Shizhou was not an editor; he had previously worked in purchasing and distribution.

"Xiao Liao, help me send this batch of books back to Hanfenlou." An old editor shouted, and the apprentice in the corner responded with a "Hey".

Chen Tianheng: "Are you, Chen Yun?"

"Chen was my previous surname, so you can call me Chen Yun or Liao Chen Yun." The apprentice, who was about the same age as Chen Tianheng, answered.

Chen Yun lost his father at the age of two and his mother at the age of four. Since his father's relatives were basically gone, Chen Yun and his sister Chen Xing were raised by their grandmother. When they were a little older, they were adopted by their uncle Liao Wenguang and their name was changed to Liao Chenyun.

Chen Tianheng turned to Mao Dun and said, "Old Shen, I want to recruit another person."

Chapter 11

Fudan University Library.

"Director Chen, I've finished reading the manuscript."

When Chen Wangdao arrived at the library, Chen Tianheng took a stack of manuscripts from under his desk and handed them to him. They were the translation of Capital, a handwritten manuscript of twenty or thirty pages.

"I've been translating for half a year, and I've only finished less than one-tenth of the book. It's such a huge undertaking," Chen Wangdao said, taking his manuscript. "Qixiu has joined the translation effort, but we don't know when we'll be able to finish it. Is there a bookmark here?"

Chen Tianheng: "When I saw that page, I found a small question and marked it with a bookmark. Director Chen, this Wan-mao-in is not 'Wan Maoyin', it should be Wang Maoyin."

Chen Wangdao: "Oh?"

The manuscript was a translation of the first volume of Capital, "Money and Commodity Circulation," which included a passage that read, "...Wan Mao-in submitted a memorial to the Emperor (Xianfeng) advocating the secret conversion of official notes into redeemable banknotes. In the ministerial review report of April 1854, he was severely reprimanded. Whether he was flogged for this is unknown."

This is the only Chinese name mentioned in the entire "Das Kapital".

Chen Tianheng: "Wang Maoyin, courtesy name Chunnian, was a Jinshi in 1832. He was promoted to Censor in the first year of Emperor Xianfeng's reign. In the fourth year of Emperor Xianfeng's reign, he was appointed Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue and concurrently in charge of the affairs of the Money and Law Hall. This matches the passage in the book. As for Wan Maoyin, there is no such person among the high-ranking officials of the Qing Dynasty at that time."

Chen Wangdao nodded. "Great! I'll revise it when I get back. Tianheng, I'm surprised you're so familiar with Qing history..."

"Hey, I just happened to see it. ... Director Chen, there are a lot of people borrowing books right now. How about we talk about it in detail tonight?"

Chen Wangdao looked around the reading room. It was bustling with people. There were probably forty or fifty girls waiting to return their books.

"Okay. See you later."

The first Chinese translator of The Communist Manifesto was now translating Capital. This massive project was finally completed by Chen Qixiu and Guo Dali over a decade later.

Now Chen Wangdao is the deputy director of the liberal arts department and a professor of Chinese at Fudan University. In fact, it was Chen Duxiu who asked Chen Wangdao to help Chen Tianheng get a part-time job as a librarian at Fudan University.

……

"Hey classmate, you're not from Fudan University, are you?"

After opening the library card and looking at the name, Chen Tianheng looked up and said something to the girl.

"Ah, I, I'm from a common girls' school. No, I used to be from a common girls' school. Now I'm auditing classes at Shanghai University and Fudan University. No, as long as you have a library card, you can borrow books, right?"

"Of course," Chen Tianheng opened the library card and registered, "It's a shame that the Civilian Girls' School has closed down."

The Pingmin Girls' School, the first women's school run by the Communist Party of China, was established last year on Fudeli Road, South Chengdu Road. Last month, due to funding constraints at the Party Central Committee, it had to close. Li Dazhao and Chen Duxiu arranged for the girls there to audit classes at Shanghai University and Fudan University.

(In fact, there are only about 60 students in total)

"I went to Changsha from my hometown to study. Later, Zhounan Girls' School started teaching the Three Obediences and Four Virtues. I dropped out and came to Shanghai. After half a year, the school closed down. But I still wanted to study."

"You have borrowed a few novels." Chen Tianheng looked at the borrowing record on the library card.

"Yes, yes. But I mainly borrow books for study."

Name: Ding Ling

In September 1922, he borrowed The Lady of the Camellias. In October, he borrowed Masterpieces of Dugineff.

Tugennev is Turgenev.

"You've read the novels of Alexandre Dumas fils and Tu... Duginef, Ding Ling. What differences do you find between their styles?"

"The story of the Lady of the Camellias is very tempting to read. Du Gennev's novel is not as good. I prefer the Lady of the Camellias. Of course, this is my personal feeling when reading these two books, and it may not be correct."

Chen Tianheng: "From a literary and artistic perspective, Alexandre Dumas's novels and plays represent the transition period from Romanticism to Realism in French literature. 'La Dame aux Camélias' is considered the beginning of French Realist drama. However, from the perspective of the average reader, the most profound impression left by Alexandre Dumas's novels is the twists and turns of the plots. You're quite right. Alexandre Dumas's novels share common characteristics and are all very captivating."

Ding Ling: "Sometimes I also want to write articles in this way, and I have tried it."

"Are you starting to write a novel now?"

Chen Tianheng was happy.

"But maybe it's because my life is too ordinary, without any twists or turns, so I always feel it's not good when I write about it."

Chen Tianheng: "I happen to know a boss named Shen. He's hiring someone to write a novel. He has a famous writer create an outline for a novel, and then hires a smaller, lesser-known author to flesh out the outline and publish it. Are you interested in writing a novel based on an outline?"

"Outline? How do you flesh out a novel from an outline?"

Chen Tianheng: "For example, there's a section like this in the outline. It's titled 'Battle,' followed by 'Tang San vs. Golden Crocodile.' The backgrounds and combat power levels of the two characters, Tang San and the Golden Crocodile, are introduced and set up at the beginning of the outline. Then it says 'Tang San wins,' and the outline also stipulates: 500 words for this battle section. This is a detailed outline, which not only contains the plot of the entire novel, but also something like... something like a blueprint of a building."

After listening to Chen Tianheng's words, Ding Ling pondered for a moment: "It seems quite simple! Will I get a fee for writing it like this?"

Chen Tianheng: "There is a fee for the manuscript. As long as Boss Shen accepts the manuscript, the fee is 5 cents per thousand words."

"Fifty cents per thousand words?! Doesn't that mean one dollar for two thousand words?!" Ding Ling exclaimed in surprise, "Boss Shen is paying so much?"

Chen Tianheng thought, you would be so happy that you would jump for joy if it was 50 cents per thousand words. In fact, the lowest remuneration for newspapers and magazines is 1 to 2 yuan per thousand words. Zhang Henshui's novels are 10 yuan per thousand words, and Lu Xun's royalties start from 6 yuan per thousand words, and the highest is 20.

"Do you want to write to this Boss Shen?"

"Right, right, right. I'm not bragging. For just fifty cents a thousand words, I can write until Boss Shen goes bankrupt!"

Chen Tianheng gave Shen Yanbing the address of the Story Club editorial office and said to Ding Ling, "Let's meet up after get off work at five o'clock to chat. I happen to know a little bit about it..."

"No, no, I'll go find him there while we're still at work."

While the other girls in the reading room looked at her like a fool, Ding Ling ran out of the reading room like a whirlwind.

What's there to talk about with a librarian? Wouldn't it be more useful to talk directly to Boss Shen?

……

Walking on the Fudan campus after get off work, Chen Tianheng was still wondering whether letting Ding Ling become an assembly line typist for fast food literature, no, pre-prepared meal literature, would lead her astray in the future.

"Chinese culture is not just ugly, it's despicable!"

In an open space on the campus, next to the newly planted saplings, an old man in an old gown stood on a bench he brought and gave a speech to passers-by.

"What is the root of modern Western culture? It is scientific academic thought."

"It's industry and agriculture that's looking to make progress."

"It is a democratic political society and organization. These three treasures weave together today's world civilization."

"From ancient times to the present, Chinese culture has been dominated by officialdom. This ideology is openly enshrined in officialdom laws and taught in rural schools. The only thing scholars and officials care about is which type of officialdom is relatively 'better'."

"Eminent officials claim to 'put the people first.' What a joke! This so-called people-centered ideology simply means hoping for good officials—from the emperor to the seventh-rank 'parents' officials, down to the humblest gentry and village officials—who can rule for the people. Even today, many Chinese people believe that officials 'ruling for the people' is 'democracy.' Ridiculous!"

"We must make extra efforts to adopt Western culture and accept it wholeheartedly. All our systems must be based on the West, and we must start by emulating only Western culture!"

"What we need to do is not to improve Chinese culture, but to destroy it!"

"The sooner they perish, the sooner 400 million Chinese people can be saved!"

His passionate tone and rich body language really attracted many passing students. Look at the cardboard frame brought by the man in the long gown. It reads "He Chonglun: New Democratic Politician" and "Complete Learning from the West is China's Way Out."

However, students do not necessarily agree with what Changshan Ge said.

"Professor He, superstitious religions are not uncommon in the West. Excessive luxury is not uncommon among Westerners. Traditional Chinese culture condemns immoral marriages and wealthy families, but they are not uncommon in the West. Are you advocating for the wholesale acceptance of Western things?"

"Religion and superstition in the West are two different things. Luxury and debauchery are not unacceptable in the West. As for the affairs of wealthy families, wealthy families in the West pursue progress, while China is a trapped beast." Brother Changshan refuted one by one.

Chen Tianheng couldn't help but retort, "Mr. He, judging from your self-introduction on the board and your speech just now, you've never been abroad, and you don't even know foreign languages. Do you understand the West? Do you know what the government and society in Western countries are like, and what life is like for the people? Do you know which countries there are in the West?"

"I don't know what the Western world is like, but I know China."

……

The man in the long gown's words opened Chen Tianheng's eyes.

The Three-Body Problem is a modern history of interstellar China, and Liu Cixin is not deceiving me.

"Speeches like this were more common on university campuses a few years ago."

"When the New Culture Movement first took off, campuses were full of vibrant thought, with various currents of thought emerging one after another, making it incredibly difficult to keep up. Unfortunately, after the May Fourth Movement, the Beiyang government introduced a civil service system, recruiting civil servants from university graduates, and the student protests largely subsided."

"But the good news is that the remaining half who haven't given up have basically joined the revolution."

Chen Wangdao and Chen Tianheng met on campus, not far from the venue where Brother Changshan was giving his speech.

Chen Tianheng: "Director Chen, how did you and Mr. Zhongfu fall out?"

When Chen Tianheng first arrived in Shanghai, Chen Duxiu and Chen Wangdao were still good friends, with Chen Wangdao even enthusiastically helping him find a part-time job at the Fudan University Library. But now the two have broken up.

Chen Wang said: "This is an adult matter... Oh no, in short, this is a matter between the two of us and has nothing to do with others."

Chen Tianheng: "I'm going back to Hunan in two months. Mao Runzhi, the Hunan Provincial Party Secretary, has been working on the peasant movement and needs help. Mr. Zhongfu isn't very enthusiastic about these things, and he certainly won't leave Shanghai, but the peasant movement needs people. So... Director Chen, could you spare some time to go to Hunan? With you joining us, our team will be a little stronger."

Chen Wangdao was unable to answer Chen Tianheng for a moment.

Not only did he break up with Chen Duxiu, he even wanted to quit the party now.

Chapter 12

Chen Wangdao and Chen Duxiu had a conflict in 1921, before the First National Congress of the Communist Party of China was held. The dispute was over an expenditure issue for New Youth.

After this conflict was barely resolved, Chen Duxiu and Chen Wangdao often argued with each other when they met or had meetings. A while ago, Chen Duxiu believed that Chen Wangdao wanted to seize his power, so he wrote an article that severely criticized Chen Wangdao and announced it to the world (the entire party), which completely caused the two to part ways.

Did Chen Wangdao intend to seize power from Chen Duxiu? Chen Tianheng didn't know this. He hadn't read about it in his history books before, and even after traveling back in time, he still hadn't found the answer.

Maybe the answer to this question is not important.

In short, the current Party Central Committee is obsessed with studying Marxist-Leninist theory, translating works (which is understandable), and then studying the theory over and over again. Studying theory is like collecting scriptures, and the process of collecting scriptures is inevitably accompanied by debates, which are endless and easily lead to anger.

Mao Zedong and his Hunan Provincial Committee were probably the only ones in the Party who were working hard to get things done. Chen Tianheng and Jiang Xianyun, who had come to Shanghai from Hunan, had also organized a joint reading group during their six months in Shanghai.

While United Reading Group was intended to generate revenue, Chen Tianheng also wanted to encourage the current Central Committee to do more and accumulate experience in various fields. This goal hasn't been successful yet, as Chen Duxiu didn't incorporate the United Reading Group into the Party's assets; it remained a company under his name.

His early intellectual, literary temperament may have also left a deep impression on his opponents. During the KMT-CCP ​​cooperation and the Northern Expedition, Chiang Kai-shek and other senior KMT officials saw that the central leadership, led by Chen Duxiu, was too literary. And as everyone knows, gangsters have a strong advantage over literary people.

This stereotype was solidified in Chiang Kai-shek's eyes. It was the same in 1927, 1937, and even in the Chongqing negotiations in 1945, he still believed that the Communist Party was just a mob led by a group of intellectuals.

What, Chen Duxiu is gone, Qu Qiubai is gone, and now Mao Zedong is in charge?

(Chiang slaps the poem "沁园春·雪" on the table, making a loud noise) "Isn't Mao Runzhi also a scholar?!!"

In two or three years, what, four field armies?

……

"I can go anywhere, as long as I'm doing revolution. However, I'm currently the First Secretary of the Shanghai Municipal Party Committee."