1980 My literary era

September is approaching, and the crew of "Farewell My Concubine" returned after having performed for nearly two months. Han Zhuangzhuang specially brought Lin Weimin some local specialties from Yangcheng.

He and Chen Xiaoer hardly took any rest before joining the crew of "Latent" directly.

Fortunately, there are no big scenes in "Latent", so the crew directly chose to shoot in Yanjing.

On a free weekend, Lin Weimin came to No. 26 Yonghegong Street.

"Tiesheng! Tiesheng!"

Lin Weimin was carrying a fish in his left hand and a piece of beef in his right hand.

Shi Tiesheng's wheelchair appeared at the door after he shouted for a long time. As soon as he saw the thing in his hand, his face broke into a smile.

Because work has become busier this year, Lin Weimin's visits to Shi's house have obviously become less frequent.

But every time he comes, he will never come empty-handed. Shi Tiesheng is a carnivore.

Handing the things to Father Shi, Shi Lan was at home today. While waiting for dinner, she surrounded Lin Weimin and asked questions.

"Brother Lin, how far is the filming of "Dream of Red Mansions" now?"

"The script hasn't been finished yet."

"Ah, why are you so slow?"

"There is nothing we can do, people across the country are paying attention to it!"

"Then what do you do as a consultant?"

"I will be responsible for holding the meeting and saying a few words."

"It's so simple, so I can do it too?"

At this point in the conversation, Shi Tiesheng couldn't help but laugh, "You are so old, you don't have any brains at all. Ability is the cause, and the consultant is the effect. Don't get it wrong."

Shi Lan rolled his eyes at his brother unhappily and asked: "What about "Latent"? I heard Zhuang Zhuang said before that he still wants to act in it!"

"The filming of "Latent" has started in Yanjing. If you want to see the excitement, I will take you to see it next time when I have time."

Shi Lan was a little excited. At her age, she was naturally most interested in these things.

After struggling with Lin Weimin for a while, Father Shi asked Shi Lan to help cook, and she stood up reluctantly.

After Shi Lan left, Shi Tiesheng asked Lin Weimin to push him around the yard.

It's already the beginning of autumn, and the sun is still a little bit scorching after ten o'clock.

Lin Weimin pushed Shi Tiesheng under the jujube tree to block some sunlight.

"It's okay, it's good to get more sunshine. It's September soon, then October, November, and the year is coming to an end again."

At the end of summer, autumn comes, and autumn passes and winter comes.

The city of Yanjing has distinct four seasons throughout the year, but the best days are only in the months of May, June, September and October.

For Shi Tiesheng, who is suffering from illness, winter and summer are the most difficult days.

Now that the scorching summer is about to pass, the days to come can finally feel more comfortable, but the good times don't last long, and winter has arrived again.

"It's really fast. We were still in Yantai at this time last month!"

The last PEN meeting was Shi Tiesheng's first trip since he fell ill, and it was a profound memory for him.

Being surrounded by readers on the train, speaking at exchange meetings, wandering around the streets and alleys of Yantai, and being all-powerful on the basketball court.

The half month he spent in Yantai was the most vivid time he had spent in the past few years.

"Yu Hua also wrote me a letter." Shi Tiesheng said.

"He wrote to you? What's the matter?" Lin Weimin asked.

"It's nothing, just gossiping, caring about my body, and asking me what works I wrote."

"He, if he wasn't tied to the rope of writing, he would be just a wandering ghost!"

During the PEN Conference, Lin Weimin became familiar with Cheng Zhongshi, and now he can always say one or two Shaanxi dialects from time to time.

During the PEN conference, Yu Hua was as active as a little male dog in heat. Shi Tiesheng couldn't help laughing when he thought of that image. He felt that Lin Weimin's description was a bit...accurate.

When the two were walking in the yard, many neighbors were paying attention to them.

To be precise, he was paying attention to Lin Weimin.

Lin Weimin is an old friend of Shi Tiesheng. He has come to the courtyard countless times a year. Naturally, everyone knows him. Several neighbors are quite familiar with him. Everyone knows that Lin Weimin is a screenwriter and a writer. He has written many As for Shao's novels, they are quite famous.

Over the past year, Lin Weimin's reputation has grown. At the beginning of the year, "Cliff" became a hit, and recently, the "Dream of Red Mansions" Advisory Committee became popular again.

Everyone looked at him a little differently, with a hint of looking at a "big shot".

Shi Tiesheng noticed these glances and said helplessly: "It's better to go back to the house."

"good."

After entering the house, Shi Lan, who was cooking, came over and turned on the table fan on the desk.

Since last year, Shi Tiesheng's articles have been published one after another in journals. Each article can cost as little as tens of dollars or as much as hundreds of dollars. The income is much more substantial than when he worked in a street factory.

The family's financial conditions have improved, and Shi's father specially bought him this fan at the beginning of summer.

On hot summer days, it was most difficult for him to sit at his desk all day long.

"It's not that hot." Shi Tiesheng said.

"I'm not blowing it for you!"

Shi Tiesheng was silent and looked at Lin Weimin with a bit of resentment in his eyes.

After a few minutes, the meal was ready.

Father Shi turned the table fan in a direction and shook his head just enough to blow all four people around the dinner table.

There were three dishes for lunch, stewed beef and radish, roasted carp with tofu, and stir-fried eggs and cucumbers. In this day and age, nothing could be more sumptuous.

Even with the fan blowing, just eating can make you sweat.

After eating, Shi Lan went to wash the dishes. Lin Weimin and Shi Tiesheng occupied the fan to relieve sweat, like two teenagers.

"Don't blow straight!" Father Shi warned.

The two of them moved aside, and the wind from the table fan blew on them from time to time, so they didn't waste time chatting.

Speaking of what he has written recently, Lin Weimin naturally mentioned his "Lover" which was rejected by "People's Literature".

When he was in Yantai, Shi Tiesheng had read the manuscript of "Lover", and he naturally understood the content and style of "Lover".

He laughed, not surprised at all.

Hearing that the manuscript had been acquired by "Contemporary", Shi Tiesheng couldn't help but joked: "Is this considered a back door?"

"That's bullshit!" Lin Weimin laughed and cursed.

After joking, Shi Tiesheng said seriously: "Actually, "Lover" is really well written. It's a bit... how should I put it? It's not just foreign style, I think there is a broad realm in it."

Lin Weimin's creation of "Lover" was based on the movies he had seen in later generations. The overall tone is a bit of decadence and laziness of old Shanghai.

But the difference is that in the novel, the love between Guo Yudao and Jane is free from the stereotype of a man obsessed with a woman.

Their brief encounter resulted in a love that was as gorgeous and beautiful as sparks.

Even after being separated for several years, they still love each other deeply. At the same time, they have not given up the motivation to live, and they are still living well in their own worlds.

But they all understand that in this world, they still have someone they love the most.

This kind of sober love is different from the love between man and woman in traditional Chinese literature. It is full of regrets and free and easy.

"You can't love, but love is love after all, and it will never change." Lin Weimin said quietly.

Shi Tiesheng clapped his hands and said, "As a writer of novels, you are the best at summarizing it! Yes, that's how it feels."

To paraphrase Li Haigen’s words: It’s love!

After chatting about "Lover", Lin Weimin naturally asked about Shi Tiesheng's recent creative situation.

Shi Tiesheng rolled his wheelchair and showed off his latest achievement - "Grandma's Star".

It is in the same vein as "Autumn Memories" and "My Distant Qingping Bay". Perhaps because of his physical defects, Shi Tiesheng can always feel more deeply and movingly than others when he misses the good things that have passed away.

Lin Weimin put aside the sentimentality he was immersed in the article and said with a smile: "You always write articles with this kind of emotion. It's no wonder that more and more people come to see you."

Since Shi Tiesheng became famous for "My Distant Qingping Bay" last year, he has had a lot of troubles in his life.

Young men come to him to talk about football games and long-distance running; girls share with him the pain of lovelornness and the desire for love; schools come to him to give speeches and share their lives; students come to him to ask for advice on writing, and even old classmates who have not seen each other for many years have children. He gives names.

Because his articles so deeply touched the minds of ordinary people, everyone couldn't help but regard him as an intimate, a guide, and even a spiritual mentor.

Shi Tiesheng said helplessly: "How about I write less."

Lin Weimin put the manuscript away, "Did our "Contemporary" publish this manuscript?"

"Okay." Shi Tiesheng did not hesitate.

It was already three or four o'clock in the afternoon when he came out of Shi Tiesheng's house. He rode his motorcycle in a circle on the street and ran to Muxidi.

We had lunch at Shi Tiesheng's house, and dinner hadn't been served yet.

"Teacher! Master!"

The old couple were at home today. Lin Weimin called for someone first when he came in, and came to eat with his hands empty. He was not embarrassed at all and felt at ease.

After dinner, I sat on the sofa, watched TV, and chatted with Mr. Wan.

Speaking of "Death of a Salesman" that Renyi is currently rehearsing, the crew is very efficient in preparing for rehearsals. This drama is even faster than "Horse Trapper".

Mr. Arthur Miller came near June. Three months later, the Chinese version of "Death of a Salesman" was about to be released to the audience. Lin Weimin was also looking forward to it.

"Horse Rider" is a play that was rehearsed earlier than "Death of a Salesman". Because many people followed the crew of "Farewell My Concubine" to perform in other places, the performance was postponed for a period of time. They had to wait until "Death of a Salesman" After the performance.

"By the way, Mr. Miller asked about you a few days ago." Mr. Wan said.

"Ask me? What is he looking for me for?" Lin Weimin was curious.

"I didn't say anything. You should go to Renyi when you have time. In a few days, Mr. Miller will leave for the United States." Mr. Wan warned.

"good."

Since organizing the PEN Club last month, Lin Weimin has rarely appeared in people's art.

The next evening, Lin Weimin appeared at the rehearsal venue of Renyi.

"Mr. Miller!"

"Lin, you are finally here."

Arthur Miller was very happy to see Lin Weimin and gave him a hug.

On the stage, the actors were performing. The two of them said hello and started watching while holding hands.

While watching the performance on the stage, Arthur Miller said, "Lin, I'm going back to the United States in a while."

Lin Weimin nodded, "I heard what the teacher said."

"Time flies so fast. In the blink of an eye, I have been in China for three months..."

After sighing for a while, Arthur Miller finally got down to business.

"Lin, I plan to bring "Farewell My Concubine" to the United States. What do you think?"

"Take it to the United States?"

Lin Weimin's first reaction was that Arthur Miller wanted to invite Renyi to perform in the United States, but then he was amused by his own idea.

An actor who speaks Chinese is performing a Chinese drama. Can Laomi understand it? The language alone is a problem.

Since this method is not feasible, there may be only one left.

Arthur Miller nodded and said: "Yes, just like "Death of a Salesman" came to China, I will bring "Farewell My Concubine" to Broadway in the United States! I believe that he will be loved by the American people. Favorite."

After speaking, he looked at Lin Weimin expectantly, "How was it? Are you interested?"