Traveling back to 1977

Chapter 512 Obeying Orders

Buffett also likes to wear vests.

His real name was Li Yaotang, courtesy name Feigan. In addition to Ba Jin, he also published articles under the pen names Wang Wenhui, Ouyang Jingrong, Huang Shuhui, and Yu Yi.

I was born in Chengdu, but my ancestral home is Jiaxing, Zhejiang. I now live in Shanghai and am a key member of the Shanghai Writers Association, as well as the editor-in-chief of three magazines under the Shanghai Writers Association.

However, neither "Mengya" nor "Shouhuo" has resumed publication yet; only "Shanghai Literature and Art" is being edited and published.

Therefore, Chen Fan's submission under a pseudonym also ended up in Ba Jin's hands.

Chen Fan's new home was very close to Ba Jin's home, only 1.2 kilometers away. He rode his bicycle at breakneck speed, and Jiang Tiantian was still immersed in the shock of those two words when they arrived at the place.

The car came to a stop, and Jiang Tiantian jumped out of the back seat, looking at the gate with reverence. "Is this Mr. Ba's house?"

Chen Fan pulled the car over to the side of the road and rang the doorbell. "You'll see the true god soon, still can't believe it?"

In today's arts and culture circles—yes, the arts and culture circles, not just the literary circles—among living figures, Ba Jin firmly holds the second position.

The first is Mr. Shen Yanbing.

There was originally another person whose literary achievements surpassed the other two, but he was caught in a huge turmoil at the time and died in depression a few months later, so he was overlooked.

As an ordinary literature enthusiast, Jiang Tiantian was incredibly excited to be meeting the second most important figure in the national literary and art circles.

She couldn't even remember how she got to the living room and sat down.

Chen Fan sighed in admiration that such a master lived in a place almost the same size as his own house. He then took out a letter of introduction from Chairman He of the Jiangnan Writers Association from his pocket and presented it with both hands.
"Dear Mr. Ba, this is a letter from Chairman He of our Jiangnan Writers Association branch."

He not only asked Chairman He for a letter of introduction, but also for a work permit that allowed him to travel by plane. Chairman He even scolded him on the phone for not knowing the rules, saying that he went to Shanghai to see Ba ​​Jin without taking him along, and then he hung up on him.

Mr. Ba took it and glanced at it. A few seconds later, he put it aside and looked at him with a smile. “I heard you came to Shanghai on the 15th and have been waiting for you to come. If you hadn’t written to me the day before yesterday saying you were coming, I would have gone to find you.”

Chen Fan's eyes widened. "How did you know?"

After he came to Shanghai, he never contacted any writers, let alone informed the local writers' association. How could Ba Jin, who was so busy, know so much about his whereabouts?
Old Ba laughed heartily, tilting his head back. "The first night you stayed at the Health Bureau's guesthouse, the deputy director in charge of publicity at the Health Bureau was a member of the Shanghai Writers Association. He told me about your trip to Shanghai the next day. But because you were on a business trip representing the production team and had other tasks to complete, we didn't bother you. But as soon as the task was finished, you ran off without even saying goodbye. He's still talking about it today, saying you're a shameless little fellow."

Chen Fan chuckled awkwardly, "I was afraid of causing trouble for the health bureau, so I changed places to stay once I found a suitable guesthouse."

He paused for a moment, then asked curiously, "Does he know I'm Chen Dong?"

Chen Fan is Chen Fan, and Chen Dong is Chen Dong; no one outside the editorial department of *Shanghai Literature and Art* magazine would know this. When an author uses a pen name, the editorial department assumes the author doesn't want to reveal their identity and automatically keeps it confidential, not actively disclosing it. How did he know?

Old Ba smiled and shook his head. "He didn't know, but he said Chen Fan from Jiangnan was coming, so I knew it myself."

She looked at him with a half-smile, "You'd rather stay in an expensive room at the Jinjiang Hotel than stay in a free room at the Cultural Guesthouse, is there some kind of prejudice in your heart?"

Chen Fan clicked his tongue. As expected of a big shot, he speaks his mind without holding back.

I also learned that the Jinjiang Hotel should have members of the Writers Association.

This is an intelligence agency!

He quickly smiled and said, "No, no, it's just that I have personal matters to deal with, so I wouldn't dare to bother you or take advantage of public resources."

If this statement were made decades later, it would clearly be considered a hoax, but at this time, it is the most perfectly legitimate reason.

Mr. Ba believed him and nodded with a serious expression. "I am very happy that you can think this way and do this."

Then she smiled at him and said, "But next time you come, you can come directly to me. I have plenty of rooms here, so you don't need to stay in a guesthouse."

Chen Fan looked a little embarrassed and rubbed his hands together. "I don't need to now. I just bought a house not far from here, right across from Young Master Sun's old residence."

Upon hearing this, Ba Jin was taken aback for a moment, then burst into laughter. "I was only 5% sure before, but now that you've said it, I'm 9%. Otherwise, where did you get the royalties to buy the house? The houses there aren't cheap!"

Chen Fan blinked in confusion. What kind of confidence?
Ba Jin looked at him with a half-smile, "This year, the national literary scene has gradually begun to recover, but you are the only one who has caught my eye. When I saw the May issue of the revived 'Jiangnan Literature' magazine, I exclaimed that it was indeed a land of outstanding talents, producing a new talent with remarkable literary skills."

Then, in October, magazines across the country resumed publication, and surprisingly, each one featured a newcomer in a leading role.

He leaned forward and smiled at Chen Fan, "Chen Dong, do you know Potato, Tomato, Crow, Squid, Hua Youming, and others?"

Chen Fan, "Ha, ha, hahaha..."

His hands were clenched tightly, and his smile looked very stiff.

Sitting next to him, Jiang Tiantian's lips parted slightly as she turned her head to look at him blankly. Potatoes, tomatoes? And crows? And what the heck is Hua Youming?

Is it a case of "after the darkest hour comes the dawn"?

No, how many pen names do you have?!

Chen Fan gave her a reassuring look and smiled at Elder Ba, saying, "It's all about learning from our seniors, nothing to mention."

If Chairman He can guess his pseudonym by his writing style, then Mr. Buffett can certainly do it too.

But it's alright, we can still hold on.

As long as this matter remains undisclosed, his pseudonym will remain valid.

It's enough to fool the average reader!

Ba Jin let out a long breath, his doubts resolved. His interest soared, and he began to chatter on and on about his previously published works with Chen Fan.

As a literary giant, one can see that Chen Fan's articles are somewhat immature and have much room for improvement. However, we should not only focus on the shortcomings but also on the highlights, so as to promote the progress of new generations of writers.

He said to Chen Fan, "One of the characteristics of your articles that I like most is that whether they are educated youth sent to the countryside, cadres stationed in rural areas, students who are lagging behind in their studies, or children of wealthy families who have fallen on hard times, they always have hope in their hearts and never feel sorry for themselves when they are living in the countryside. This is very rare."

After catching his breath and taking a sip of tea, Ba Jin continued, "The events of the past few years are finally over, which is a great thing. We draw inspiration from life for our literary creations, and this event will undoubtedly become one of the core themes of literary creation in the coming years."

However, I am very worried about one thing: many people who have experienced this have suffered trauma, so when they write, they will inevitably bring some emotion into their writing. When that emotion is expressed in words, it will be particularly heavy and biased.

As he spoke, he looked up at Chen Fan with a hint of satisfaction on his face. "I was initially worried that this kind of somber tone would affect a generation. But your work has given me a fresh perspective and shown me the direction for the development of this kind of realistic literature."

Of course, we should objectively depict everything that happened in those years, but what about after that? Shouldn't we reflect on it, use it as a mirror to prevent such a situation from happening again? And further still, through this reflection, create a better future?!" Chen Fan listened and nodded, and after Ba Jin finished speaking, he instinctively blurted out, "Yes, reflective literature is more meaningful than scar literature."

Ba Jin's eyes lit up immediately. "Scars? Reflection?"

He muttered to himself, but his eyes grew brighter and brighter. Finally, he clapped his hands and exclaimed, “Your summary is excellent and very valuable. Our creative work should not stop at the scars, but should go further and reflect on them!”

Chen Fan was immediately dumbfounded.

What did I say?

Will this blow away all of the "scar literature" genre?

He couldn't help but glance at Jiang Tiantian; Lu Xinhua was her classmate.

When Jiang Tiantian saw his gaze, she thought he was asking her to express her opinion, and her heart started pounding wildly.

I'm facing Buffett, you know. Do I even have the right to speak?

However, this was a rare opportunity. From the moment I entered until now, apart from the initial greeting, Mr. B hadn't spoken to me. If I had the chance to speak... Oh my god, I was so nervous.

But when she thought of Chen Fan's eyes, a surge of courage welled up inside her.

Moreover, I do have the right to speak on this matter.

He immediately took a deep breath and said softly, "I...I have firsthand experience with this."

As soon as she opened her mouth, she attracted the attention of Ba Jin and Chen Fan.

Although Chen Fan found it strange that she would speak up, he certainly wouldn't stop her from saying it.

I brought her here today to introduce her to Mr. Buffett.

As a freshman in the Chinese Department of Fudan University, getting to know literary giants from the very beginning will only stimulate her ambition in literature, which can only be beneficial and not harmful.

At this moment, she actually had the courage to speak, which made Chen Fangao take another look at her.

Mr. Ba watched her with great interest, and instead of interrupting her, he raised his hand to signal her to continue.

Seeing Ba Lao's signal, Jiang Tiantian instinctively turned to look at Chen Fan. Seeing his affirmative gaze and the smile on his face, she immediately calmed down.

Although I was still a little nervous, it no longer affected my ability to speak normally.

She coughed lightly, gathered her thoughts, and continued, "Actually, our family had a similar experience. When we were going through all that, especially when my 14-year-old sister had to go to the countryside, we were really terrified and helpless. It felt like the whole world had turned dark."

But even in darkness, the world isn't all darkness. The villagers and factory workers my father had helped before—they all extended a helping hand. These hands, like lamps, illuminated the darkness and showed us the light…”

She suddenly stopped and turned to look at Chen Fan.

If the help of others is a lamp, then he is the bright moon in the sky, illuminating the whole world!

After being stunned for several seconds, Chen Fan became a little anxious when he saw that she still didn't speak, and couldn't help but glance at Ba Jin.

But then he noticed that the old man was deep in thought with his eyes downcast, so he pursed his lips and remained silent.

Seeing his expression, Jiang Tiantian immediately snapped out of her daze, her blood rushing to her head and her face turning bright red.

Fortunately, Buffett wasn't looking at her. She quickly took a deep breath, calmed herself down, and continued to share her insights.

After she finished speaking, Ba Jin raised his head and nodded with a serious expression. "Young lady, your idea makes a lot of sense and has great creative value. If you can turn your own experiences into stories through literature, they will definitely have great reading value."

One can live in darkness, but one cannot only see darkness; instead, one should yearn for light. This was not only the action of our revolutionary predecessors, but also a guiding principle for us, the creators of literature and art.

Chen Fan heard this and kept a sentence stuck in his throat, realizing he had almost buried Gu Cheng alive.

Comrade Gu is most famous for that one sentence; if he were to say it, it would be gone!

Seeing that Ba Lao actually affirmed her, Jiang Tiantian's blood rushed to her head again, and her pretty face turned so red that it seemed like it was about to bleed.

But now you don't have to worry about being misunderstood.

Chen Fan chuckled, "What a coincidence! She's a freshman in the Chinese Department at Fudan University, and she'll be pursuing a career in literature. I'll need your help looking after her when she's studying and living in Shanghai."

Old Ba looked at him with a half-smile, "Would you not have come to see me today if it weren't for this little girl?!"

Upon hearing this, Jiang Tiantian wished she could disappear into a crack in the ground.

Does Buffett ever make jokes?!
Chen Fan immediately shook his head seriously, "That's definitely not it. If it weren't for helping them get to school, I would have come to visit you long ago!"

His tone was so sincere, even more so than when Zheng Yaoxian said he was a member of the Communist Party.

However, Buffett did not believe it.

He chuckled twice and said to Jiang Tiantian, "Your school has a few members in the Writers' Association. I'll put in a good word with them. On Sundays when you don't have classes or student activities, you can come to the Shanghai Literature and Art magazine office and learn from some of the editors how to read and write articles."

Jiang Tiantian jumped up and bowed deeply to Elder Ba, saying, "Thank you."

Ba Jin waved his hand, gesturing for her to sit down, and then said softly, "Literature needs fresh blood. It has been barren for more than a decade. The old have grown old, but the new have not grown up."

He looked at Chen Fan as he spoke, “Currently, we only have Chen Fan as a promising young man, but that’s far from enough. What we hope for is a flourishing of diverse talents, a continuous stream of new people joining us, and better creative ideas. Only then can the path of literature go further and further, and Chinese culture become better and better. I hope you will become one of them.”

Jiang Tiantian felt her body trembling with excitement. She nodded vigorously, "I will definitely keep your teachings in mind and do my part for literature."

Ba Jin smiled and turned to Chen Fan, "How about coming to the Writers' Association tomorrow to exchange ideas with the local writers?"

Chen Fan chuckled dryly. "I just asked you to look after the newbie, how did it turn into a deal? This doesn't seem like the demeanor of a big shot."

However, Buffett has already made his stance clear and even made a direct request, so what else can he say?
He nodded decisively, "I just wanted to learn from the writers in Shanghai. I'll follow your instructions."

(End of this chapter)