Reborn Bao Guowei, I really didn’t want to be a great writer!

Chapter 355: The Chrysanthemum and the Sword and Liao Yaquan

1930 9 Month 1 Day.

This was supposed to be the first day of school, but for Bao Guowei and Zhang Nianyue, school courses are no longer very important.

Needless to say, Bao Guowei had already been specially recruited by Peking University and did not have to worry about further studies. As long as he completed his high school courses safely, he could enter Peking University.

Even participated as a university lecturer.

Bao Guowei is naturally looking forward to life at Peking University.

In fact, Bao Guowei could already go to Peking University, but this would have to wait until all the issues in the south were resolved.

Zhang Taiyan's condition is getting better and better, mainly because the technology of allicin has become more and more mature. Taking the latest high-concentration allicin has greatly controlled Zhang Taiyan's condition.

No one in the Zhang family dared to relax, but after all, the situation was not as tense as before.

That night, in the study, Bao Guowei and Zhang Nianyue were both writing at their desks.

The former was naturally preparing her latest work, while the latter was practicing the "five-year college entrance examination and three-year simulation" prepared for her by Bao Guowei.

Bao Guowei took out from his memory the admission questions of Peking University and Tsinghua University during this period, as well as the joint entrance examination questions of various schools, and made a hodgepodge.

Zhang Nianyue was able to successfully enter university by using the strategy of solving a large number of questions.

But this is just the icing on the cake. Zhang Nianyue is not stupid, and she has Zhang Taiyan's excellent genes. When it comes to studying, as long as she is willing to put in the effort, she can always surpass ordinary people.

In the study room, one could occasionally hear Zhang Nianyue mumbling while doing his homework.

"This question looks a bit difficult, but I'm not afraid."

"If Bao Guowei knew that I couldn't solve the problem he asked, wouldn't it be embarrassing?"

"It's all Bao Guowei's fault. He asked me to organize a women's association. Now I can't answer several questions. He should be held primarily responsible."

Such things made Bao Guowei feel a little amused and helpless when he heard them.

Coming back to his senses, he turned his gaze to his desk and continued to write "The Chrysanthemum and the Sword".

For this book, the main difficulty lies in adaptation.

In fact, in many previous speeches, Bao Guowei has already expressed the relevant content and theme of the work "The Chrysanthemum and the Sword".

So it doesn't seem so abrupt that I suddenly wrote this work now.

The original book was published by American cultural anthropologist Ruth Benedict in 1946.

In fact, the main purpose was to help the US government formulate its policy toward Japan after the end of World War II.

The "shame culture" of Japanese society mentioned in the book accurately summarizes the contradictory character traits of the Japanese people.

But if Bao Guowei were to write it, he naturally couldn't just copy others.

Nowadays, Bao Guowei has gradually changed his reputation of "plagiarism" to "adaptation".

First of all, the original work takes World War II as its main research background, so it must be modified here.

To suit today's situation, he changed the background to include the actions and policies of the Japanese since the beginning of the Sino-Japanese War, as well as various events in the country.

There are still many deficiencies in the original work, and Bao Guowei will improve and adapt it according to the information after 46 years.

Especially for the inheritance of Japanese culture, the evolution of characters, class society, etc.

These are all very important contents.

This is obviously a big project.

But Bao Guowei still has plenty of time.

He had already contacted all the major booksellers and would publish the book immediately after it was written.

As for the issue of serialization, the next part of "The Legend of the Condor Heroes" has been urged for several months.

Even some famous figures in later generations sent letters asking Bao Guowei if he could publish the next part of his novel as soon as possible.

After seeing the signature, Bao Guowei almost fainted.

Then I thought that after finishing "The Chrysanthemum and the Sword", I might start preparing for the next martial arts novel.

"The Chrysanthemum and the Sword" has been written on and off for more than half a month, and there is about another half a month to go. Bao Guowei hopes that all Chinese people can see this work before Xiao Liuzi releases a statement.

Just as Bao Guowei was typing away, there was a sudden knock on the door.

"Mister and Miss, would you like some snacks?"

By hearing the delicate voice, I knew it was Liao Yaquan.

Instead of leaving these people, she started to attack them in Zhang's house.

According to her, she will have no income in the future and will rely entirely on Zhang Nianyue for her studies, so she has to do what she can.

Zhang Nianyue couldn't persuade her, so she let her do as she pleased.

Standing up from the table, Zhang Nianyue immediately opened the door and greeted him.

The moment she opened the door and saw Liao Yaquan, Zhang Nianyue was stunned for a moment, but soon smiled and said.

"It's Yaquan. It's so late. Just take a rest. We will come by ourselves."

Liao Yaquan lowered his head and said, "Mr. Bingwen and Sister Nianyue are both busy, so I was thinking if I could help out. It's okay, these are some snacks from my hometown, you guys can enjoy them.

I can also help you find some books or something."

When Zhang Nianyue saw the other party's shy expression and thought of Liao Yaquan's life experience, she couldn't help feeling a little sad.

It is really difficult for Liao Yaquan, a girl, to lose her parents and have no one to rely on at this age.

I shouldn't have doubted her. Maybe Bao Guowei was wrong. Why didn't Liao Yaquan look like a spy?

How could there be such a weak spy?
Zhang Nianyue smiled, gently stroked the other person's hair and said.

"I'll eat two to see how good you are at cooking. You can give some to Bao Guowei to try, too. He's a very picky eater."

Bao Guowei is famous for his picky taste, and there are very few foods that he can say are delicious.

Zhang Nianyue was often puzzled because Bao Guowei did not come from a good family and was not a playboy.

Why does everything taste bad?
Liao Yaquan took small steps, holding a wooden tray in his arms. Whether intentionally or unintentionally, the wooden tray squeezed the two balls into an arc and walked towards Bao Guowei.

Bao Guowei howled in his heart.

"Liao Yaquan, you dare to seduce me in front of my fiancée!"

He restrained himself very much. After looking at it five or six times, he tried hard not to look at it anymore.

Bao Guowei lowered his head and typed on the keyboard, when a fragrant breeze blew towards him.

To be honest, he didn't like this strong aroma very much, it made him want to sneeze.

Then Liao Yaquan's timid voice was heard.

"Sir, please try my hometown cuisine."

"Ah."

Bao Guowei nodded, looked up, and almost couldn't hold it in.

The transparent and plump thing on this plate is not the Japanese snack "Daifuku" or something else?
This Japanese woman is bullying the Chinese people today because she doesn't understand the Japanese food culture.

Much of Japan's food culture was originally passed down from the Sui and Tang dynasties.

If you don’t know, at first glance this “Da Fu” really looks like a specialty snack from some place.

Moreover, this "Da Fu" contains fruit fillings, and the skin is a bit like ice skin, which is indeed very suitable for the appetite of Chinese people. Especially in the Jiangnan area, most people love this kind of snack.

Presumably, when Liao Yaquan was in Nanjing, he often used this trick to seduce those in power in the National Government, right?

A beauty is a feast for the eyes. Eat the meal first, and then eat the beauty together.

At this time, Zhang Nianyue's amazing voice came from the compartment next to him.

"Hmm~ Yaquan, your dim sum is amazing, so delicious, you can open a shop."

Liao Yaquan smiled and said to the person next to her: "Sister likes it. I will make it for her from now on."

Bao Guowei had a strange look on his face. Why were these two getting along so well?

He didn't think Liao Yaquan would poison her, it was meaningless.

After taking a bite, he nodded and said.

"Yes, Yaquan, you have a talent for this."

After receiving the praise, Liao Yaquan smiled, but it was unclear whether it was true or false.

She watched from the side for a while, and as if she had mustered up a lot of courage, she asked Bao Guowei.

"Sir, are you almost done with this book? Can I take a look at it?"

Liao Yaquan's words were not at all abrupt, but she sounded like a curious female student.

Bao Guowei was stunned for a moment, then turned his head and stared at the other person.

This sight made Liao Yaquan feel scared. She didn’t know where she went wrong.

Like a frightened little bird, he waved his hands and said.

"Ah! I was too rash, sorry Mr. Bingwen"

After this performance, even Bao Guowei had to admire her, as she portrayed the role of a weak and shy female student to perfection.

Since the other party was like this, Bao Guowei naturally had to cooperate.

He quickly comforted her, "Don't panic, there's nothing wrong with that."

After saying that, Bao Guowei handed the partially written manuscript on the desk to Liao Yaquan.

Liao Yaquan took the manuscript and kept apologizing.

"I'm so sorry, Mr. Bingwen."

This polite look made her look like a frightened schoolgirl, but in Bao Guowei's opinion, she looked more like a Japanese.

Liao Yaquan then sat down next to Bao Guowei and began to read the book "The Chrysanthemum and the Sword" attentively.

In fact, when Liao Yaquan first heard that this book "The Chrysanthemum and the Sword" was written about Japanese people, he was a little surprised.

It is really unbelievable that Bao Guowei has never been to Japan, but he wants to write a book about the Japanese.

So I became more and more curious about what Bao Guowei wrote in this book, especially when all the books he has published are excellent.

The content of this book made Liao Yaquan even more curious.

Today I finally have the chance to take a peek at its true appearance.

Liao Yaquan suppressed his inner excitement and frowned tightly, like a student pondering the deeper meaning of something.

But after just a few minutes, Liao Yaquan became more and more frightened, so much so that his hands began to tremble slightly.

Even though she had received professional training, she was only a seventeen-year-old girl. Faced with this magical power that seemed to see through people's hearts, she was completely unable to suppress her fear and shock.

Especially some sentences in the manuscript made her feel as if they were talking about the people in her hometown, including Liao Yaquan herself.

"The Japanese 'shame culture' is a unique kind of inflated yet suppressed self-esteem. This is related to the size and geographical location of the Japanese island nation, as well as the Japanese people's high self-esteem and was fully demonstrated in the wars since the First Sino-Japanese War."

"On the one hand, the Japanese cultivate physical pleasures, but on the other hand, they stipulate that people should not indulge in pleasures. People's lives have become very contradictory."

"The Japanese are not so flexible - if they fail, if someone shows them a way, they will go on with all their heart, even if it is in the opposite direction of the original. But if no one shows them the way, then they will just commit suicide."

In just a few opening chapters, Bao Guowei gave an extremely detailed explanation and analysis of the various extreme phenomena that have occurred in Japan over the years.

Even Liao Yaquan himself was not aware of many of the cases and data.

Moreover, how was Bao Guowei able to know Japan so well without having been there?
This person's knowledge of Japan is simply terrifying!
For a moment, in the cool night, sweat actually broke out on Liao Yaquan's forehead.

"Yaquan? Yaquan? Yaquan, what's wrong with you!"

Bao Guowei's shouting woke Liao Yaquan from her shock. She realized her loss of composure, came to her senses immediately, and lifted her hair.

An apologetic smile appeared on his face.

"Nothing, nothing. I just saw Mr. Bingwen's work and was fascinated for a while. I was thinking about something."

"So that's how it is. It seems like Yaquan has a unique understanding?"

Liao Yaquan recovered quickly. She then said with a shy expression, "That's not the case. I just think Mr. Bingwen is really knowledgeable. He can even talk about things far away in Japan so clearly."

She posed her question without leaving any trace.

Bao Guowei naturally used the same rhetoric.

"It's nothing more than reading more foreign papers and books."

"These books and papers..." Liao Yaquan was very conflicted and seemed to be hesitant to speak.

Seeing how uncomfortable she was, Bao Guowei naturally didn't mind continuing to arouse her curiosity.

“This is naturally a secret channel different from others.”

This sentence was like a bullet, hitting Liao Yaquan's heart. She was eager to know the follow-up.

But Liao Yaquan understood that if he continued asking, he would only make himself suspected.

Then he showed an expression of admiration on his face and said, "You are worthy of being Mr. Bingwen. I think this work will definitely sell well like before."

The next morning, Liao Yaquan got up early and cleaned the yard with the servants in the mansion.

From the housekeeper to the cook in the Zhang residence, everyone praised this beautiful and kind-hearted female student.

"Yaquan, take a rest. You are sweating so much. A beautiful girl like you should enjoy yourself."

An old lady took the broom from Liao Yaquan's hand and said with concern.

Liao Yaquan stopped and a bright smile appeared on her face.

"Grandma, you don't have to worry about me. I have been doing these jobs since I was a child."

At this moment, there was a sudden knock on the door.

Liao Yaquan smiled and said, "Grandma, you are busy. I will go open the door."

"Good, good, what a good child!" the old lady sighed.

Liao Yaquan opened the door and saw a foreign man with a high nose and curly hair.

This man was wearing a suit, with a straight figure and a straight back. It was obvious that he had a military background.

Liao Yaquan was stunned for a moment and asked, "Sir, who are you?"

The foreigner took off his hat, bowed deeply, and spoke in broken Chinese.

"Ma'am, may I ask if Mr. Bao lives here now?"

(End of this chapter)