Traveling back to 1977

Chapter 733 Selecting Courses
The next morning, Chen Fan carried the gifts he had made himself... a jar of fine old yellow wine, several bundles of braised meat, and some improved tobacco leaves, bundled into two large bags, and took his two sisters with him to Jiangda University across the lake.

Jiangda University had not yet started classes, and just like the last time I came, it was quiet everywhere. The bare trees, stripped of their leaves, swayed in the wind, exuding a sense of desolation.

Jiang Lili sat behind Chen Fan, her face showing some trepidation. "Xiao Fan, is Professor Xu strict? Will he be angry if we go over there?"

Chen Fan hummed twice and laughed, "You can rest assured about that. The more learned a person is, the more broad-minded they are. When you go to wish him a Happy New Year, he will not only not be angry, but will be very happy."

Only he would dare to say that. Try someone else.
Do you really think it's so easy to become a master of Chinese studies?

At this moment, Jiang Tiantian also chimed in, "Xiao Fan is right. When Mr. Jiang Tianshu lectured us at school, he was very kind and always answered our questions."

Therefore, those who truly pursue scholarship are unlikely to be of poor character.

Jiang Tianshu is not well-known among the general public, but like Professor Xu, he is a prominent figure in the field of Chinese studies. He was a student of the renowned Chen Yinque, who entrusted him with his mantle when Chen Yinque passed away.

Scholars in Chinese classical studies have praised him, saying that Chen Yinque was the man to whom Chinese culture was entrusted, and Jiang Tianshu was the man to whom Chen Yinque was entrusted.

In academics, he focused on the "Chu Ci" and published "Collected Essays on Chu Ci" and "Annotations on Chu Ci" in the 80s. In his later years, he devoted himself to organizing the works of his mentor Chen Yinque. In 81, he published "Collected Works of Chen Yinque" and in 97, he published "Chronological Compilation of Mr. Chen Yinque".

Today, Jiang Tianshu is a senior professor at Fudan University, and since last year he has been tasked with recruiting graduate students. Famous scholars such as Shu Jingnan, Han Zhaoqi, and Che Xilun have all been his students.

He also taught undergraduate classes at the university, and Jiang Tiantian had attended many of his classes, so it's normal that they knew each other.

Chen Fan glanced at Jiang Tiantian in the rearview mirror, hesitated for a few seconds, but still didn't say anything about recommending her to become Jiang Tianshu's apprentice.

Mr. Jiang was highly regarded for both his scholarship and his character, making him a rare and exceptional teacher. However, it is a pity that Jiang Tiantian may not be a particularly outstanding student.

She has some literary talent and cultivation, but that's about it. She should be able to enter the National Writers Association smoothly in the future, but she probably won't be able to write any masterpieces. She can't compare with a master like Chen Fan at all.

Moreover, Chen Fan's assessment of her situation indicated that she didn't need to find a famous teacher.

In any case, the publishing house's signboard will definitely feature him, not the magazine's editor-in-chief.

In the time it takes to say a few words, Chen Fan arrived at Professor Xu's dormitory again.

He got out of the car and waited for the two women to get out as well before he stepped forward with his things.

Jiang Lili knocked on the door first, and the same nanny from last time answered.

Upon seeing that it was Chen Fan, she invited him in without saying a word.

After placing the gifts in the living room, Chen Fan led the two sisters into the study and said with a smile, "Teacher, Happy New Year!"

Professor Xu turned around and saw two more people behind Chen Fan. He immediately took off his nearsighted glasses and put on his reading glasses. Then he exclaimed "Oh!" and said with a smile, "You brought two young ladies with you. Let me guess, one of them should be your little wife Jiang Lili, and the other is Jiang Tiantian, who wrote the timeless poem, right?"

Upon hearing this, the two sisters couldn't help but show joy on their faces. They quickly stepped forward, bowed respectfully, and greeted her, "Happy New Year, Teacher Xu!"

Since the new millennium, most people have referred to the Gregorian New Year's Day as the New Year, while the first day of the lunar calendar is called the Spring Festival.

However, before this, the older generation almost always called the Lunar New Year "Guo Nian" (passing the year), and the New Year's Day was called Yuan Dan (New Year's Day).

Seeing the two sisters' well-behaved appearance, Professor Xu laughed heartily, even happier than when his daughter-in-law came to visit years ago.

He first gestured for the two sisters to sit down on the chairs opposite him, then waved to Chen Fan, "What are you standing there for? Say hello."

Chen Fan's expression stiffened slightly. He turned around, took the tray from the nanny, and stepped forward to offer her a teacup. "Please have some tea, comrades."

The two sisters gave him a reproachful look, then blushed and took the teacup.

Professor Xu also glanced at his precious student, giving him a look that said, "You'll understand."

Then he asked Jiang Tiantian, "After writing that little poem, have you written any new works?"

Upon hearing this, Jiang Tiantian blushed and lowered her head involuntarily, whispering, "I'm sorry to disappoint you, teacher, I didn't write any new works."

Professor Xu didn't seem to mind, and simply chuckled softly, "It's alright if you don't have any. You're still young, and you'll have many more opportunities in the future. The important thing now is to study more and fully absorb the nourishment of literature."

Where does nourishment come from? It comes from books and from life. Read more books and observe life more often; you'll surely have moments of sudden inspiration. Write those down, then use that inspiration as a core to expand and develop it, incorporating the thoughts and ideas you want to express…

He spoke at length for more than ten minutes.

Chen Fan, who was listening nearby, was quite indignant.

Back then, when Mr. Xu was lecturing me, he just threw a book list at me and then asked me about my reading experience without any logic. I couldn't just give a vague answer; I had to give a detailed explanation.

Looking at it now, it's almost like being taught writing step by step, with solid, practical content—the kind of thing you have to pay to learn in a correspondence literature course.

Who exactly is your student?
After talking with Jiang Tiantian, Old Xu looked at Jiang Lili and asked, "Young lady, how long have you known Xiao Fan?"

Jiang Lili blushed and lowered her head. "It's been two years."

Old Xu nodded gently, "Two years is not a short time. How old are you this year?"

Jiang Lili struggled to lift her head. "I'm exactly twenty this year."

The sound was so faint that if Old Xu hadn't been able to hear it, he probably wouldn't have been able to hear it at all.

Old Xu did the math and said, "You've reached the age. In another year, Xiao Fan will also reach the legal age and be able to get married. I'll be your witness then."

Jiang Lili was overjoyed and immediately straightened up, her eyes crinkling into crescent moons with laughter. "Thank you, teacher."

Jiang Tiantian stood to the side, feeling a mix of sweetness and bitterness, her eyes filled with envy as she looked at her younger sister.

A few seconds later, she snapped back to reality, took a deep breath, composed herself, and her face now showed only blessings.

Chen Fan smiled silently to the side, but he had also noticed the change in Jiang Tiantian's expression earlier, and a strange light flashed in his eyes when he lowered his head. After chatting with Jiang Lili for a while, asking about her major and giving her a few pointers, Professor Xu finally turned his gaze to Chen Fan, "Your new research topic has been published in more than a dozen papers by scholars all over the country. When will you publish your second paper for me?"

Chen Fan's face stiffened slightly. Why was the teacher showing favoritism?
However, considering the time difference, almost two months have passed, and this approach of interpreting culture through the lens of cultural relics is indeed not difficult for him, so there is nothing to argue about.

He could only sigh silently, "I'll give it to you in a few days."

Hearing this, Old Xu nodded in satisfaction. "You have a foundation, but a foundation alone is not enough. You must conduct research to flexibly apply the knowledge you have acquired, so that you can transform dead knowledge points into living learning outcomes."

There are already quite a few papers on this topic. You should keep up the good work and produce a high-quality paper. Don't let yourself become a laughingstock, a failure like Zhong Yong (a child prodigy who failed to live up to his early promise).

Chen Fan forced a smile and said, "I understand, I get it."

The two sisters trembled with fear. Just moments ago, Teacher Xu had been so kind and caring towards them, but in the blink of an eye, she turned into a strict teacher towards Xiao Fan, even urging her to hand in her homework. How terrifying!

At this point, Professor Xu asked again, "I remember you said before that you wanted to write a realistic novel, mainly showing the social changes of the past few decades. How much have you written?"

Chen Fan muttered to himself, having just written a name.

But without any fear on his face, he said confidently, "I have completed the outline and detailed outline, as well as the character settings, and written a few chapters of the beginning. If all goes well and it does not affect the writing of the thesis, I should be able to finish the manuscript around August."

Professor Xu nodded in satisfaction and said, “Learning is like rowing against the current; if you don’t advance, you fall behind. Look at Mr. Ba; even during the New Year, he insisted on writing every day. I heard he has already written the ninth chapter of ‘Random Thoughts.’ You should take Mr. Ba as your role model and always be careful not to slack off.”

Chen Fan raised an eyebrow slightly. So even Ba Jin doesn't celebrate the New Year?
Of course, he didn't forget to respond to the teacher, immediately nodding and saying, "I will definitely study and write more this year, and I won't slack off."

Professor Xu smiled and looked at him, asking, "Have you decided when you'll be coming to teach at Jiang University?"

Upon hearing this, Jiang Tiantian and Jiang Lili turned their heads to look at Chen Fan sitting to the side, their eyes filled with disbelief.

Why haven't I heard Xiao Fan mention this before?

Oh my god, is it true that Xiao Fan is going to teach at Jiang University?

Heaven help us, this generation of people, worked their hardest to get into university, especially those who entered key universities. They are known as the "chosen ones" by society, something to be proud of.

But now Xiao Fan wants to become a university teacher... This is hard to judge.

Chen Fan found it inexplicably funny to see the two of them looking like that.

He quickly coughed, turned to Professor Xu, and said seriously, "Professor, I want to go out for a trip in the first half of the year. On the one hand, it's to gather material, and on the other hand, it's to focus on writing, try to publish more professional papers, and finish that realistic novel."

"I'll come and register when school starts in September, what do you think?"

Professor Xu nodded slightly. "It's fine to report in the second half of the year. Anyway, the teachers are still here in the first half of the year, so it won't have much impact on the students' studies. The new students will enroll in September, so it's not a bad idea for you to come in and take over then."

After a pause, he asked Chen Fan, "Have you thought about what courses you want to teach? There aren't many courses offered by the Chinese department at the university right now. They mainly include Introduction to Literature, Classical Chinese Literature, Modern Chinese Literature, Contemporary Chinese Literature, Foreign Literature, and so on."

Your strength lies in your well-rounded academic performance; you have a good grasp of all subjects, giving you a wide range of choices. Which courses you choose depends on your own selection process.

Chen Fan frowned slightly and said, "Does the teacher have any suggestions?"

Professor Xu thought for a moment and said to him, "Don't you have any courses that interest you?"

Chen Fan's eyes darted around, and he suddenly remembered a course in the Chinese Literature Department of his later life. He asked, "How about I give a lecture on folklore?"

As early as 1922, Peking University established the editorial department of the weekly magazine "Folk Songs", marking the formal establishment of folklore as an academic category in my country.

In 1928, still at Peking University, Yuan Xingpei established the first folklore teaching and research office in the country, further promoting the development of folklore studies.

Back then, Jiangnan University and Peking University were equally matched, one in the south and one in the north. Since Peking University started offering folklore studies, Jiangnan University followed suit.

Therefore, the Chinese Department at Jiangnan University also has a course called "Folklore," which is included in the required courses for Chinese Language and Literature majors.

Chen Fan chose this course because it wasn't too boring. In addition to the knowledge in the textbook, he could also search for folk customs information and add it in at will.

Writing papers on folklore in the future will be quite easy and simple.

Upon hearing that Chen Fan had chosen folklore as his course, Professor Xu frowned slightly, then relaxed and nodded, saying, "Okay, I'll register you after the semester starts. You should also prepare the syllabus yourself, so as not to mislead your students."

In fact, he would prefer that the student choose a more orthodox subject, whether it be ancient literature or modern literature, or even subjects like phonology or philology.

Such a major is closer to the core of Chinese studies, and if the research is successful, the academic status will be higher.

Take himself as an example. He studies the works of the Hundred Schools of Thought, which gives him a higher status than scholars who study ordinary texts.

There's also Jiang Tianshu, whom I mentioned before. His research on the "Chu Ci" is extraordinary, belonging to the top research category in the field of Chinese studies, and his status is naturally different.

In comparison, folklore studies are at a slightly lower level. Even if research results are produced, they don't attract much attention, unlike the "Chu Ci" and "Zhuangzi," where each commentary is the focus of the entire academic community. They are simply incomparable.

However, Professor Xu did not insist.

On the one hand, his request for Chen Fan to teach part-time at the school was not for him to become a teacher, but rather to allow him to keep a low profile for a while after his recent surge in popularity, so as not to attract too much attention and become a target.

On the other hand, Chen Fan pioneered a new path of studying culture through cultural relics. He is not simply a folklorist. In terms of academic achievements, as long as he does not abandon his previous path, he will not be inferior to anyone in the academic world.

Since there aren't many negative impacts, and he chose folklore, let him teach it.

Chen Fan selected his teaching subjects, thinking that he would brush up on his folklore knowledge before the start of the new school year.

If one cannot offer any original insights, one cannot truly demonstrate the prowess of the new generation of literary leaders.

If he doesn't achieve good results, it will be a slap in the face, and he can't afford to lose face like that.

(End of this chapter)