The literary era since 1979

Chapter 27: Ba Lao's Test of Writing
"Clap clap clap."

Accompanied by warm applause, the winners went on stage to receive their awards.

According to the order of ranking, dialects come second.

Just like the Golden Rooster and Hundred Flowers award ceremonies have award speeches, this conference also has them, and each person has a special award speech.

When it was his turn, Ding Ling stood up from the podium and read out:
“A writer who dares to break out of the framework of scar literature.”

"A writer who is good at reflecting on various scars to find the power to move forward, a writer who has set off a climax of 'reflection' in the literary and artistic circles and has been praised by the whole country, Comrade Fangyan."

"He said it well in an interview with Literary Gazette: no matter what you write, it should always give people strength. Our works should not make people feel depressed, but should inspire them. The hymn of humanity should be a hymn of courage to face life."

"Whoa whoa whoa whoa."

In an instant, the applause was thunderous like a tide.

Fangyan took the certificate and prize. Even though it was just a notebook and a ballpoint pen without any prize money, he was already satisfied.

The winning works will not only be included in the "1979 National Excellent Short Story Selection Award-winning Works" published by Shanghai Literature and Art Publishing House, but will also be rushed by major film studios to be made into movies.

The royalties are the most important thing.

As soon as the award ceremony ended, the crowd did not disperse immediately. Representatives from film studios and TV stations sitting in the back rows rushed to the front.

All the authors who were chosen were surrounded by people.

"Is Teacher Fang here?"

“Did you see where the author of The Horse Wrangler went?”

"You were here just now, how come you disappeared in the blink of an eye?"

"Hey, your Emei Film Studio is also interested in The Horse Wrangler?"

"........."

While the major film studios were looking for dialects among the crowd, he had already been called by Wang Meng to a small corner of the venue.

"Mr. Ba, he is the author of The Horse Herder, and he is also a newcomer in the editorial department of Yanjing Literature and Art. He speaks in a dialect."

"Hello, Mr. Ba."

Even though Fangyan was used to big scenes, he couldn't help feeling nervous.

The person in front of us is a very important figure in the Chinese literary world. Among Lu, Guo, Mao, Ba, Lao, Cao, and Aidin, Zhao, he ranks fourth.

"Don't be so restrained, be more casual."

Li Yaotang said kindly, "During the literary congress, Brother Ai and I watched The Shepherd. We all wanted to meet you at the time, but I didn't expect that I would be the first one. Xiao Fang, you are so young."

"It's my honor to meet you."

The dialect was neither humble nor arrogant, and he smiled.

The two started chatting, talking about everything from Ai Qing's poems, to the creation of "The Shepherd", to reflecting on literature.

"Mr. Ba, can you sign an autograph for me?"

Fangyan happened to have a notebook and a pen as prizes in his hand.

Li Yaotang nodded and said as he wrote: "Literature is a collective cause and collective wisdom. Every writer has a share, and every generation has made their own contribution. Now if this cause is to shine, the key lies in you young writers."

"Go through fire and water, Ba Lao."

Fangyan took the pen and paper but did not open them immediately.

"Don't you want to open it and see what I wrote?"

Li Yaotang looked at him with great satisfaction.

"No, that won't do. Don't be disrespectful."

Without waiting for Fangyan to speak, Wang Meng reminded him.

"It doesn't matter, it doesn't matter."

Li Yaotang encouraged: "Open it and take a look."

Fang Yan met their gazes and opened the title page. In addition to his signature, there was actually a sentence of encouragement:
“Put aside your worries, don’t be timid, think boldly, write diligently, and write out all the best things in your heart.”

"Harvest has decided to introduce more fresh blood starting this year and publish a large number of works by young writers from across the country. Would you like to write an article for Harvest?"

Li Yaotang stared at him straight.

"You want to ask me to write an article?"

Fang Yan and Wang Meng looked at each other in disbelief.

The status and grade of "Harvest" in literary journals are comparable to "Contemporary", far higher than "Yenching Literature and Art", and second only to "People's Literature". Being able to publish a novel in "Harvest" is like the status of a celebrity in the entertainment industry, jumping from the second line to the first line.

"Yes, I wonder if you, a young man, have the courage to take it on?" Li Yaotang kept smiling.

"Mr. Ba is testing you."

Wang Meng smiled and said, "Do you have this confidence?"

"Put aside your worries, don't be timid, think boldly, and write diligently. Isn't this what Ba Lao wrote to me?"

The dialect is serious yet has a hint of humor.

"Okay, I look forward to your submission."

Li Yaotang patted his arm.

Fangyan smiled at him with a firm look in his eyes.

Just as they were about to part, Li Yaotang seemed to remember something, "Look at me, I'm old and have a bad memory. There's one more thing. On my way to Beijing, I happened to meet comrades from the Shanghai Film Studio. They came here specifically for your film The Shepherd. When they heard that I was going to meet you at the conference, they begged me to introduce you to them." "No problem."

Even if Fang Yan wasn't doing it for his sake, he would still wait for the people from the film studio to come to him, "How about I meet them now?"

"Well, that's fine too."

Li Yaotang pointed in a direction, "Right over there, sitting in the last row, the leader is Xie Jin."

"Xie Jin?!"

Fangyan was surprised, hey, a famous director!

In today’s film industry, you may not know who Spielberg is, but you will definitely know who Xie Jin is!

Together with Xie Tieli in the north, they are known as the "Two Xies of the North and the South"!
He is the absolute representative of the third generation of directors. He directed "Garland on the Mountain", "Furong Town", and "The Shepherd".

"Teacher Fang."

Xie Jin brought a group of people from Shanghai Film Studio to say hello.

"Director Xie, please don't call me that. You should just call me Xiao Fang, or my nickname, 'Yan Zi'."

Fangyan waved his hand.

"Well, Yanzi, it's almost evening now, how about we find a place to sit down and talk while eating?"

Xie Jin extended an invitation.

Fang Yan said: "Sure."

Xie Jin said, "I came to Yanjing this time, and what I want to eat is Peking duck. Let's go to Quanjude. What do you think?"

"To be honest, I am greedy too."

The straightforwardness of the dialect made everyone present burst into laughter.

In February of this year, Quanjude Roast Duck Restaurant resumed business, and until now, even though the prices are high, business is still booming.

Fangyan stood at the door, and the following thought flashed through his mind:

Leader, Colon!
Even though there was no drool around my lips, I still wiped it subconsciously.

"please."

"please."

A group of people came to the private room and sat around the table.

Fangyan opened the menu and saw that a roast duck cost 8 to 10 yuan, half a duck cost 4 to 5 yuan, a large bowl of duck bone soup cost 6 cents, a medium bowl cost 4 cents, and a portion of scallion sauce cost 2 cents...

In other words, ordering a roast duck, a big bowl of duck bone soup, and a plate of scallion sauce would cost the most expensive one 10 yuan.

"Let's serve two first, and order more if there's less."

Xie Jin smiled and asked, "How is Yanzi's alcohol tolerance?"

Fangyan raised the corner of his mouth and said, "You can drink a little."

"Then let's have a bottle of Tongzhou Laojiao. Roast duck and wine go well together. The more you drink, the better it tastes."

Xie Jin returned the menu to the waiter.

It seems that Shanghai Film Studio is determined to get "The Shepherd".

Fangyan raised his eyebrows. Tongzhou Laojiao is considered a famous wine from Yanjing. It is 2 yuan more expensive than Moutai now. It is a huge expense!

"The duck will take a while to roast."

Xie Jin said, "Why don't we chat for a while?"

Fang Yan said bluntly, "Mr. Ba has already told me that Director Xie came to Beijing this time in the hope that I can hand over The Shepherd to your Shanghai Film Studio to shoot, right?"

"Yes, the factory gave me this job."

Xie Jin nodded.

Fang Yan asked: "If I hand over The Shepherd to Shanghai Film Studio, will you, Director Xie, be in charge of the directing?"

"It should be me."

Xie Jin said firmly: "Even if it's not the case, if Yan Zi specifically asks me to be the director, I will never let you down and will actively strive for it from the studio!"

"I feel relieved that Director Xie is here to film."

Fangyan changed the subject: "So, what about the screenwriter?"

Xie Jin said that according to the rules of Shanghai Film Studio, general script adaptations are handed over to professional screenwriters in the studio, either alone or in collaboration with several people. However, he also emphasized that for works that are highly valued by the studio, such as "The Shepherd", big names in the screenwriting industry will also be invited to contribute.

For example, the famous screenwriter Lee Joon who won the Hundred Flowers Award.

"What if I want to write the script myself?"

Fangyan knocked on the table.

“You’re going to write the script for The Horse Herder?”

Xie Jin was greatly surprised.

"Yes, it's my own novel, and I hope to adapt it into a script myself!"

The dialect tone is full of unquestionableness.

If you find someone else, then my script would have been written in vain!

(End of this chapter)