Traveling back to 1977

Chapter 400 The incident came to light
Chen Fan led Jiang Lili upstairs, took out his drawing board from the bookshelf, turned around and handed it to her, smiling, "This drawing board is for you."

Jiang Lili's eyes shone as she happily accepted the drawing, her fingers gently caressing the canvas.

Two seconds later, she looked up at Chen Fan, her expression hesitant again, "Then, what about you?"

Chen Fan smiled and said, "Have you forgotten that I made this drawing board myself? I'll just make a new one in a few days."

Jiang Lili smiled sweetly, "Thank you."

"No need for polite words. You helped me copy hundreds of thousands of words of manuscript, and I didn't even say thank you."

Chen Fan rolled up his sleeves and took out a canvas strap from the cabinet under his desk. "The old bag was a bit torn. I made this new one myself a few days ago. You can use it to replace the old bag."

The original bag was made of homespun cloth, and it became loose and flimsy in less than six months. A few days ago, I went to the prefectural committee to buy agricultural machinery parts and bought a piece of canvas to make her a new bag. I also wrapped the key parts with leather, so it's definitely sturdy and durable.

Jiang Lili put down her drawing board, took the canvas with both hands, and looked at the hand-sewn canvas strip with surprise in her eyes. This craftsmanship? It's already much better than mine!
She looked up at Chen Fan, pursed her lips, and said softly, "Whether I have the opportunity to design clothes in the future or not, I will cherish this easel. It is my favorite gift."

Chen Fan feigned surprise as he looked at her, "Oh, isn't cake your favorite gift?"

Jiang Lili blushed instantly, puffed out her cheeks angrily, and glared at him fiercely.

What an oblivious guy!
Unfortunately, his glare had no effect whatsoever. Chen Fan grinned nonchalantly and said, "Put on the new bag. There were some tools in the original bag, so move them over there too."

Jiang Lili pouted, then happily got to work.

First, remove the old cloth bag and put the drawing board and easel into the compartments of the new bag. Then take out all the tools from the old bag, including paintbrushes, drawing paper, erasers, clips, pencil sharpeners, etc. Some of these items are new and some are old; the new ones are obviously newly bought.

I put all the items into the small compartments outside the new bag, organizing them neatly.

Then she found a stack of sketching papers, about the size of a textbook, inside the drawing bag.

I stole a glance at Chen Fan and saw him taking out stacks of manuscripts from his drawer. They were all copies that I had helped him make, and they could be sent away at any time.

Jiang Lili looked away, her eyes darting around slightly as she quietly flipped through the sketches he had drawn.

Most of these sketches are very simple, depicting scenes commonly found in the village.

There are flowers, trees, crops in the fields, fruits and vegetables in the garden, a stove in the kitchen, a water vat and a clay pottery rack in the corner, as well as Duoduo, Qiuqiu, a mare, a foal and two lambs. Of course, there is also Gungun and its two babies, Chen Fan's new house, the distant woods, the long river embankment, ...

When she turned to the last page, Jiang Lili's gaze suddenly stopped.

The last one was actually of myself?
On the A16 paper is a half-length portrait of Jiang Lili. Compared to other sketches that simply capture the essence of the scene with a few strokes, this portrait is significantly more complex.

From the hair to the eyelashes, from the facial features to the eyes, every part has been meticulously depicted. Even every strand of hair and every eyelash is lifelike, and there seems to be a radiance in the eyes.

Such skill in painting is beyond description; even the term "meticulous carving" is insufficient to describe its exquisite detail.

Holding the painting in her hands, Jiang Lili felt her heart pounding rapidly, her face burning hot as if it could catch fire at any moment, to the point that she felt a little dizzy.

After a long while, she suddenly came to her senses, panting heavily. She glanced at Chen Fan in a panic, and hurriedly stuffed her portrait to the bottom.

Hearing the noise, Chen Fan turned to look at her, his eyes full of curiosity. "What's wrong with you?"

Everything was fine just now, so why is your face suddenly as red as a boiled crab?
Jiang Lili's eyes darted around nervously, and she didn't dare to look at him at all. "N-nothing."

Chen Fan frowned slightly, his eyes full of suspicion, his gaze sweeping over her before finally settling on the drawing in her hand.

Now he finally understood.

Well, the truth came out, and the "victim" caught them red-handed!

However, Chen Fan's skin was already thicker than a city wall. He immediately coughed and opened his palm to her, "These are my practice assignments. I forgot to put them away. The other sketches are fine, but you have to return the last one to me."

Jiang Lili's blush deepened, and she unconsciously hugged the sketch to her chest, pouting as she said, "No."

This guy, it's one thing to secretly draw himself, but when he was discovered, he actually had the nerve to ask for it back. How can anyone do that?

Chen Fan chuckled twice and said casually, "Let me explain. That drawing was actually one I made when I first learned to sketch. My skills weren't good back then, so I kept it to work on slowly. When I've finished it, I'll give it to you, okay?"

He wasn't lying. The first time he learned to draw a sketch, he returned to the yard and saw Jiang Lili working there. He couldn't resist taking a pen and drawing a simple sketch.

However, after finishing the drawing, I felt that it was not good enough. So I found another piece of paper, first drew an outline, and then gradually refined it until it finally turned out like this.

I originally wanted to finish the drawing before she left, but she found it beforehand.

Jiang Lili looked at him with suspicion in her eyes, "Really?"

He paused for a moment, then realized something was amiss, and quickly shook his head, saying, "I mean, you can draw something else, why..."

At this point, she couldn't help but lower her voice, "You want to draw me?"

Chen Fan said with an air of seriousness, "Because there were only the two of us in the courtyard at the time. If we wanted to practice figure drawing, of course we had to draw you. Why would we draw myself?"

Jiang Lili felt a little dizzy. How could someone secretly draw someone else's portrait and be so self-righteous about it?
She puffed out her cheeks and murmured, "You should have told me first."

Chen Fan chuckled and said, "I definitely couldn't have said that at the time. What I wanted was that natural state. If I had told you beforehand, even if you had agreed, your actions and expressions wouldn't have been so natural. You have to understand that learning to paint requires not only being able to depict the form but also the spirit. I did this so that I could paint it better."

He paused for a moment, then said, "Look, aren't we friends? I wouldn't dare draw anyone else but you, right? Of course, I can only draw you."

Jiang Lili tilted her head, feeling that something was wrong, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it.

Chen Fan stood up and said with a smile, "Okay, I'll teach you how to draw now. Once you've learned how to draw, you'll understand the ins and outs."

Jiang Lili blinked, hesitated for a moment, and then said, "Okay."

Chen Fan coughed lightly, put his hands behind his back, and said, "First, set up the stand and put the drawing board on it."

Without hesitation, Jiang Lili put down the sketch and went to get the stand.

Chen Fan immediately pulled out the bottom painting with lightning speed.

Jiang Lili looked at him, then looked at him with a mixture of amusement and exasperation, "What are you doing?"

After receiving the artwork, Chen Fan checked it to make sure he hadn't taken the wrong one. Then, he calmly took out a sketchbook, tucked the artwork inside, and said with a smile, "It's not finished yet. I'll give it to you when it's done."

Jiang Lili blushed, feeling both annoyed and amused. Was it really necessary to resort to such a diversionary tactic just for a single drawing?
Thinking about how her portrait was gradually created in his hands, a wave of shyness washed over her, and she suddenly felt a little lost.

Chen Fan stuffed the sketchbook into the drawer, locked it, pulled out the key and put it in his pocket, then walked out with his hands behind his back and smiled smugly, "Come on, Teacher Chen's teaching time officially begins!"

Jiang Lili glared at him helplessly, but unfortunately, he was too thick-skinned and remained unmoved, so she had no choice but to give up and set up the easel as Chen Fan instructed.

Adjusting the easel, fixing the canvas, ...

Chen Fan unleashed his full teaching aura, focusing solely on her, explaining everything about art, both inside and outside the field, from the basics to the advanced.

Hearing Chen Fan's voice, Jiang Lili unconsciously forgot her earlier shyness and focused intently on learning painting from scratch, gradually getting the hang of it.

Before they knew it, half a day had passed. It wasn't until Huang Ying came up to call them for dinner that Jiang Lili snapped out of her studies.

When there are outsiders present, Jiang Lili habitually puts on a facade, keeping her head down and quietly packing her things as usual.

While tidying up the sketches, she couldn't help but feel a tremor in her heart. She first glanced at Huang Ying, who was waiting at the door, and found that she wasn't paying attention to them. Then she glared fiercely at Chen Fan to show her protest.

Unfortunately, the person was too shameless, and the protest was ineffective.

Chen Fan was smiling smugly when he saw Jiang Lili about to carry her drawing board on her shoulder. He immediately said, "No need to take it down. This is the best view. You can practice drawing here from now on."

Huang Ying also said at the door, "Yes, yes, don't take it out. Otherwise, if the team members see it, my parents will ask me again if I've been learning to paint."

As she spoke, her face fell. "We were studying together and everything was fine, but they insisted on comparing everything. We chose different paths, so when the brigade organizes selection exams later, the exam questions will definitely be different too. What's the point of all this comparison?"

Chen Fan nodded in agreement, "Yeah, it really doesn't make any sense."

The key point is that drawing isn't tested in the college entrance exam.

Huang Ying turned to look at him, her eyes suddenly lighting up. She smiled and said, "Teacher Chen, why don't you go and talk to my parents for me?"

Chen Fan shrugged. "It's no big deal for me to go and say something, but the key question is, do you think it will make any difference?"

Huang Ying's face immediately fell, and she shook her head irritably. "Ugh, I don't want to think about it anymore." Then she ran downstairs. "You guys should come down and eat quickly, or the food will get cold."

Chen Fan looked back at Jiang Lili, who had already put away her sketchbook bag and walked out quickly before turning around and going downstairs.

Starting a few days ago, Huang Ying and the others stopped cooking at the educated youth settlement downstairs and started using the kitchen here instead.

After all, we spend all day studying here, and constantly running back and forth is quite a waste of time.

The three-room house is next to the main building, with the dining room connected by a covered corridor. The kitchen is in the middle, which is not only larger but also has more functional areas. It has a water storage tank and even a relatively large fish pond. Other facilities such as cabinets, shelves, and sinks are all available, making cooking much more convenient than in the kitchen at the educated youth settlement.

Further inside, next to the panda enclosure, is the bathroom.

The weather is gradually getting cooler, so it's estimated that it won't be long before it's put into use.

The restaurant was quite large, and since there were several of them, they didn't need a large round table for their meal. So they didn't bring out the dining table and just sat at the octagonal table by the window.

The four girls sat on either side, while Chen Fan naturally sat alone on one side.

At his seat, bowls and chopsticks were already set out, along with a pot of rice wine that was being heated.

The traditional method of warming wine involves placing a basin of hot water underneath, with charcoal underneath to heat the water, and then placing the wine pot inside the hot water.

However, this method was rather cumbersome, and the bottle had to be wiped every time wine was poured. So Chen Fan learned from the way Zhejiang restaurants in later generations did it, the difference being that they used small candles to heat the wine pot, while he used burning charcoal.

The effect is also okay.

Chen Fan took a sip of wine to moisten his throat, and just as he picked up a piece of meat, he heard Huang Ying ask, "Teacher Chen, you said you would submit articles frequently in the future. Does that mean you're submitting them to other magazines?"

Chen Fan nodded, and after swallowing what was in his mouth, he smiled and said, "There are quite a few literary magazines across the country, not just the one in this province called 'Jiangnan Literature'."

Yang Ju immediately said, "I know there are People's Literature and Beijing Literature and Art magazines. These magazines are available at Xinhua Bookstore."

He then smiled sheepishly, "I don't know anything else."

Then, out of curiosity, she asked, "What other magazines are there?"

Chen Fan stretched out his left hand and started counting on his fingers, "There are many, such as 'China Youth,' 'Harvest,' and 'Sprout.' These are all excellent magazines. 'Harvest,' for example, is a serious literary magazine founded by Mr. Ba Jin, and it has a very high influence throughout the country."

Yang Ju looked as if she had stumbled upon a whole new world, her eyes widening in surprise. "I didn't know there were so many magazines!"

After a pause, she asked, puzzled, "Then why don't you see them in Xinhua Bookstore?"

Jiang Lili, Huang Ying, and Liu Dan also stared longingly at Chen Fan, forgetting to eat.

Here's a little-known fact: before 1950, all newspapers and periodicals in the country handled their own distribution. That is, until that year, when second-rate newspapers and the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications signed an important document, the "Agreement on Newspaper Distribution."

From then on, the distribution of second-rate newspapers was handled by the post office.

Following this example, newspapers and periodicals across the country began to follow suit. That year, the post office signed agreements with more than 30 periodicals to be responsible for their distribution.

By the end of 1952, or more precisely, on December 28, the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications and the General Administration of Publications issued a "Joint Decision on Improving the Distribution of Publications," deciding to transfer all magazines originally distributed by bookstores to the post office, and the periodical distribution department of Xinhua Bookstore was also merged with the post office.

With this, the "postal and mail delivery integration" system was officially implemented nationwide.

From then on, newspapers and magazines could be purchased at both the post office and Xinhua Bookstore.

As for other bookstores, most of them no longer sell newspapers and magazines.

Unless it's a special journal related to a specialized bookstore, that is, a professional academic journal.

Under normal circumstances, Xinhua Bookstore does not stock such periodicals. If you want to buy them, you can only go to a professional bookstore or order them through the post office.

Therefore, regular magazines are generally available at Xinhua bookstores.

Chen Fan often went to Xinhua Bookstore, so he naturally knew what kind of books were available there.

Hearing Yang Ju's words, he smiled slightly and said, "That's because these magazines haven't resumed publication yet!"

BJ Literature (renamed BJ Literature in 1980) resumed publication in 1973, making it one of the earliest resumed publications in the country. People's Literature also resumed publication in January 1976. Both of these were available in Xinhua bookstores.

As for other literary magazines, only some publications established by provincial literary federations, such as "Jiangnan Literature and Art," have resumed publication.

Therefore, the relaunch of "Jiangnan Literature" this year is neither too early nor too late, but just right in the middle.

Early examples include "Zhejiang Literature and Art," which resumed publication in May 1975 and was renamed back to its former name "Donghai" in 1978, and later called "Taste."

A little later, like "Shanghai Literature," only recently resumed publication and changed its name to "Shanghai Art and Literature."

As for the other two books, "Flower City" and "Dianchi Lake", which became famous in later generations.

Sorry, it wasn't even launched yet at that time.

This includes publications that have not yet resumed publication, such as *China Youth*, *Harvest*, and *Sprout*, as well as publications that have not yet been launched, such as *October*, *Contemporary*, and *Fiction World*...

Chen Fan said he had no idea when they would appear.

He only enhanced his mental strength, which allowed him to recall many things, but recalling things he didn't know was useless.

I don't know, that's all!

Anyway, the current literary journals are already enough for him to make a fortune.

As soon as he finished speaking, Huang Ying asked impatiently, "So you're going to submit your work to People's Literature and Beijing Literature?"

Chen Fan took a sip of his drink and said with a smile, "More than that."

As he spoke, he held up his fingers, “What about ‘Zhejiang Literature and Art,’ ‘Shanghai Literature and Art,’ ‘Yangtze River Literature and Art,’ ‘Heilongjiang Literature and Art,’ ‘Songjiang Literature and Art,’ ‘Xiangjiang Literature and Art,’…”

He counted more than a dozen, then laughed and said, "These are all like 'Jiangnan Literature,' the best provincial literary journals in the province, and they solicit and distribute manuscripts nationwide. Since they are soliciting manuscripts, I can submit my work too."

After he finished speaking, the four girls stared at him blankly.

Submitting articles to more than a dozen magazines across the country—is that something a human being would do?
After a two-second pause, Huang Ying suddenly burst out laughing, "Hehehehe..."

Jiang Lili looked at her in surprise, as if asking, "What are you laughing at?"
After laughing twice more, Huang Ying finally stopped, grinning as she said, "I was thinking, what if all of Professor Chen's submissions were accepted, and then readers all over the country saw that no matter which magazine they bought, it contained Professor Chen's articles? Wouldn't that be quite a shock?"

Hearing this, Jiang Lili, Yang Ju, and Liu Dan couldn't help but laugh.

Chen Fan, however, frowned deeply. "This is indeed a troublesome matter."

It's no exaggeration to say that, given the current writing level of "literary youths," he could completely crush them in every aspect.

For example, Lu Yao founded a grassroots literary newspaper called "Shanhua" in the place where he was sent to work in the countryside. Later, he also created a "Shanhua Writers Group". From Cao Guxi to Lu Yao, then to Shi Tiesheng, Tao Zheng, and also Wen Pin, Hai Bo, Yuan Cun, etc., they were all members of this group.

But back then... actually, just a few years ago, how should I put it regarding their creative level?

Cao Guxi, the head of the county communications group at the time, commented on Hai Bo, saying that "his level was pitifully low at the time, and his first poem published in 'Shanhua' was almost 'made' by a few editors."

That's how down-to-earth we are!
Even so, young writers who emerged from "Mountain Flowers" are still highly sought-after contributors to major newspapers and magazines. Many young writers from other places even travel there to learn writing from them.

Chen Fan, on the other hand, used the writing style of later generations, which put him far ahead of them in terms of technique. Coupled with his honed writing skills and rich literary background, there was almost no possibility of his manuscript being rejected!
If, as Huang Ying said, his articles and his name are in more than a dozen of the best national and local literary journals, then something big is about to happen.

The four girls were laughing when they noticed Chen Fan's furrowed brows, so they unconsciously stopped laughing.

Jiang Lili thought for a moment and whispered, "How about you bet less?"

Chen Fan looked at her, then suddenly had a flash of inspiration and said with a smile, "No need."

He picked up his chopsticks again and laughed, "Using my real name is too high-profile and doesn't suit my low-key personality. From today onwards, except for the novel 'On the Fields of Hope,' I will use a pen name for all my other articles!"

I can use one pen name for one magazine, and ten pen names for ten magazines. As long as the author information is not published, no one except the editor will know who I am!

I can still submit my articles and earn money as usual; there's been no impact whatsoever.

I'm just that kind of low-key person, perfect!

(End of this chapter)