The literary era since 1979

Chapter 12: Circulation (Please read!)
Night, Liu's house.

There was sweet potato porridge and salted radish on the table.

Liu Jianjun wiped his mouth, stood up and said, "Dad, Mom, I'm done eating. I'm going back to my room first."

"You wait a moment."

Liu Dongfang patted the bench and asked him to sit down. "I saw you brought back this journal from Fang's house. Is it the "Yanjing Literature and Art" where Yan Zi's novel was published?"

"Yes." Liu Jianjun nodded.

"Bring it here for me to see." Liu Dongfang said.

"Dad, I haven't finished reading it yet. I'll give it to you after I finish reading it." Liu Jianjun didn't even turn the page. "It's just okay, that's all."

"No way? That's Yanjing Literature and Art."

Liu Dongfang frowned.

"Not all works that can be published in Yenching Literature and Art are good. Let me tell you this, if we use Yanzi's novels as the selection criteria, your son's works can also be published."

Liu Jianjun boasted.

“Is it so easy to publish now?”

Liu Dongfang was skeptical.

"Dad, you don't know how scarce literary works are right now. There's a guy in my cram school who scored over 70 points in Chinese in the college entrance examination, but only 28 points in composition. He was able to publish his novel. I guess Yanzi's situation is the same as his. It's purely a blind cat catching a dead mouse."

Liu Jianjun said disdainfully: "Let him win once."

"Really?"

Liu Dongfang's eyebrows became more relaxed.

"Dad, we all know what Yan Zi is like. Do you think this kid has the potential to be a writer?"

"That's right. Before he went to the countryside, I didn't realize he had this talent."

"Take a look."

Liu Jianjun said, "If you still don't believe me, I will submit the poems and novels I have written over the years to Yenching Literature and Art, Contemporary Literature, and People's Literature."

"Will it work? People's Literature and Contemporary Journals are of higher quality than Yenching Literature and Art, and their standards are definitely higher."

Liu Dongfang knows his son's capabilities very well.

"Why not!"

Liu Jianjun said in an unhappy tone: "You underestimate your son. Yan Zi can do it, so why can't I do it?"

Liu Dongfang rolled his eyes. "It's up to you, but I remind you that writing is writing. Regardless of whether it can be published or not, don't distract your attention. The college entrance examination is the most important event in your life!"

"Don't worry, Dad. I have my bearings."

Liu Jianjun waved his hands and returned to the room impatiently.

Then I flipped through The Horse Wrangler, and my first impression was—

Nothing more.

Reading further, I saw the love between Xu Lingjun and Xiuzhi, who fell in love after marriage, Xu Lingjun resolutely rejected his billionaire father, and Xu Lingjun returned to be a rural teacher. The pages turned faster and faster.

“It’s not literary.”

“It’s not realistic…”

"Fake! The ending is too fake! I don't believe that anyone can refuse such an opportunity. Except for fools, there are also crazy people."

Liu Jianjun wrote paragraph after paragraph of negative reviews on the blank space of the paper. They were so densely packed that they were completely disparaging.

"Huh, that's it?"

He smiled coldly, threw down his pen, and thought to himself, I can do it too!
…………

The next day, early in the morning.

These days, workers basically work from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., with no weekends off and the only day off being Sunday.

Su Ya took out the bedding and hung it on the clothesline. She saw Fang Yan yawning and carrying a washbasin to the sink in the yard.

While patting, he asked, "Yanzi, what were you thinking when you wrote "The Horse Herder"?"

"What do you think?"

Dialect squeezes the shriveled tube of toothpaste.

Su Ya said: "It's about the love story between Xu Lingjun and Xiuzhi. The story is so strong. I watched it 4 times and almost cried."

"For a novel, the first thing is to tell a good story. If the story is not told well, everything else is in vain."

Put toothpaste on the toothbrush.

"It's written so realistically. Is this true or did you make it up?" Su Ya couldn't help but wonder, "Is there really such a pure and clean love like the one between Xu Lingjun and Xiuzhi?"

"Of course not."

Suddenly, Liu Jianjun's voice came from behind.

"How do you know there isn't one?"

Su Ya turned her head and glared.

Liu Jianjun laughed and said, "How can there be such a beautiful love in life? Yanzi wrote it too idealistically, too abstractly, not like the scars, which are so real, so deep, and written into people's hearts."

Fangyan retorted: "You have never been to the countryside, so how do you know that scar novels are not fictional or even exaggerated?"

"Yes, without investigation, there is no right to speak."

Su Ya nodded.

"This this……"

Liu Jianjun couldn't think of how to refute for a moment.

"All novels are fictional, it's just a matter of more or less." Fang Yan didn't even look at him.

Liu Jianjun was speechless and said with his neck stiff, "I am not as good at talking as you are. I can't beat you in an argument."

"Hey, you don't have to leave even if you can't convince me."

Fangyan was amused and asked, "Where are you going?"

"I, I go to cram school!" said Liu Jianjun.

Su Ya frowned and said, "Didn't we agree to discuss "The Horse Wrangler" at Yanzi's house today? How could you break the appointment!"

"I can't do anything about it. My parents are keeping a close eye on me while I'm studying. I can't even breathe. I'm sorry. I'm sorry."

Liu Jianjun clasped his hands together and expressed his deep apologies.

"But……"

Su Ya was in a dilemma.

"Yanzi, don't you have another novel to write? Next time, next time for sure." Liu Jianjun pretended to apologize, "I'm sorry, Yanzi." "It's okay, go ahead."

Fang Yan looked at Su Ya and advised: "We should also understand Jianjun's difficulties. After all, he failed the exam three times. The pressure he endured is beyond our imagination. Otherwise, he would not have a bright future."

Liu Jianjun's smile froze and his heart ached.

Failing the college entrance examination three times is like a thorn in my heart!

He glared at his "good brother" and said with a forced smile: "That's right, I must pass the college entrance examination next year. Time is not waiting for me."

"Study hard, I believe you won't fail again."

Fangyan's eyes were full of teasing.

"Ahahaha, thanks for your good wishes. I'm leaving first."

Liu Jianjun couldn't stay there any longer and ran out.

Are you unhappy about this?

There will be times in the future when you, this thief, will be unhappy!
Fangyan felt that he had avenged himself for last night's incident and started brushing his teeth happily.

Su Ya went straight to his house and discussed "The Shepherd" with Fang Hong. The most talked about topic was love.

After washing up, Fangyan found that he couldn't get a word in at all.

They are all masters with full marks in reading comprehension, and some even understand The Horse Herder better than I do, which is exactly what the saying goes -

He is just a novelist, what does he know about "The Horse Shepherd"!
"Yanzi, please give me a few more copies. I will take them to the factory tomorrow and let them all read the novel written by my brother."

Fang Hong smiled brightly: "What a great write-up."

"Yeah, how come you write so well?"

Su Ya sighed, "Fortunately, I didn't listen to Sister Hong and submit my poem to Yanjing Literature and Art. I think it would be rejected."

Fang Hong said, "Xiaoya, what you said is wrong. You haven't even tried it, so how do you know it will be rejected? Right, Yanzi?"

Fang Yan smiled and said, “The most important thing in writing is confidence.”

Fang Hong smiled and said, "How about this, when Yan Zi returns to the city, I'll show you your poems and give you some suggestions."

"Forget it. It's too much trouble for him."

A trace of confusion flashed across Su Ya's face.

Fang Hong encouraged: "No, no, you don't know, Yan Zi not only understands novels, but also poetry, and the job she is looking for is..."

"Cough cough."

Fang Yan felt that his sister was trying to match him up with Su Ya.

Although it is indeed attractive to make up for the regrets of the previous life, he doesn't want to talk about any crappy love now, he just wants to get a job in the government!
Zhou Yanru said that she would discuss the matter with Li Qingquan and Wang Meng during the National Congress of Writers and Artists, but she didn’t know how the discussion went.

After the opening ceremony of the Fourth National Congress of Literature and Art, national associations such as the Artists Association, Writers Association, Dramatists Association, Music Association, Film Association, Chinese Musicians Association, and Dance Association held their own congresses one after another.

On November 11, it was the Writers Association’s turn.

All literary delegations from various places attended the meeting and took advantage of the breaks in the meeting to chat, smoke and drink water.

The corridor gradually became noisy and lively.

"What's so lively?"

Lu Yao saw a group of people surrounding Wang Meng, and saw him holding a stack of journals and distributing them to the people around them one by one with Zhou Yanru.

Jia Pingwa exhaled a puff of cigarette. "The editors of Yenching Literature and Art want critics and editors from other publishing houses to comment on this issue of the work."

"Yanjing Literature and Art, why does it sound so familiar?"

Lu Yao thought about it carefully and slapped his forehead, "Oh, right, isn't the novel of Xiao Fang, the one we met on the train, published in this issue? I told you to read it when it comes out."

"There is such a person, Fang, Fangyan."

Jia Pingwa recalled and remembered it too.

"Let's go get some copies."

Lu Yao moved closer and squeezed in from the outside of the crowd.

After a lot of effort, I finally got two books.

"Oh my god, it's quite popular."

Lu Yao took a quick look and flipped through the catalog to look for novels written in dialect. He was surprised to find that "The Shepherd" was listed as the first novel.

"It's on the front page." Jia Pingwa said in surprise.

"It seems that Yenching Literature and Art attaches great importance to it."

Lu Yao became more and more interested in "The Shepherd".

"Scar literature again?"

Jia Pingwa took a quick look and was surprised and a little disdainful.

"Don't jump to conclusions yet, watch it first."

Lu Yao looked down, and the more he looked down, the more solemn his expression became.

At this moment, Mo Shen and other members of the Shaanxi-North delegation came over and saw them holding the magazine without saying a word.

"What are you looking at?"

"Remember the young comrade I met on the train?" Lu Yao saw them nodding, "His novel has been published."

Mo Shen asked, "How's the writing? Is it good?"

Jia Pingwa said: "It's not a question of whether he is good or not, he is really that kind of person, a very rare one."

"What do you mean?"

Everyone looked at the two in confusion, and Lu Yao explained: "It looks like a Scar novel, but it doesn't look like one. I see a kind of striving power in it, which is completely different from Scar's."

"No way? Real or fake?"

"Have you finished reading it? Show it to me if you have!"

"Show it to Teacher Hu, too."

"Is this novel so magical? Give it to me after you finish reading it. I must read it carefully."

Hu Cai, Mo Shen and others circulated the book and applauded it.

Topics about "life", "going abroad" and "love" sparked discussions among the public, especially Ai Qing's poem.

This "person-to-person" phenomenon is not unique to the Shaanxi-Northern Shaanxi delegation. Among delegations from Yanjing, Tianjin, Shanghai, western Shanxi, and eastern Shandong, all over the country, there has been a trend of reading and discussing "The Shepherd". Word of mouth spreads from one person to ten, and from ten to a hundred, and it continues to spread.

Gradually, the news also reached the ears of Ai Qing and others.

(End of this chapter)