1978 Synthetic Writers

Chapter 41 I have a friend

"Happy New Year, Comrade!"

"Who are you?"

Jiang Xian stared at a child standing at the door of his house. He was wearing a torn coat and holding a stack of New Year pictures in his hands.

"Please ask the God of Wealth?"

"."

Jiang Xian took out a dime from his pocket and gave it to him. The child took out a New Year picture and stuffed it into his hands, then bowed and left.

Jiang Xian turned around and asked, "Mom, do we need to pick up my sister and her family?"

His sister is Jiang Qin, who is three years older than him. She met his brother-in-law when she went to the countryside to work in a production team eight years ago, and has since married and moved to Shanghai.

"No need to go. Your father has been waiting at the station with Jiang Ke since early in the morning. Come and give me a hand." Rao Yuemei was rolling noodles under the kitchen shed.

I was busy cooking with smoke rising from the fire when suddenly there was a bustle under the dark and narrow doorway.

A woman wearing a dark green windbreaker and carrying a large bag quickly rushed through the yellow smoke coming out of the short chimney.

"mom!"

"Oh my girl."

Rao Yuemei's tears flowed away.

These days, transportation and correspondence are very slow.

The family was separated by two places and they only had the chance to see each other during the Chinese New Year.

Jiang Xian went to greet his brother-in-law Bian Huawei, who was wearing a Zhongshan suit and glasses, a typical intellectual, and was shivering in the cold wind.

"You must have been tired from the journey, brother-in-law."

"Jiang Xian, I heard that you are a famous writer now?" Bian Huawei enthusiastically put his arm around him, "I also read your "Chess King", it was amazing."

"Come in, come in."

Before the adults had even gone in, Jiang Qin's two sons ran into the house.

“Big TV!”

"Mom, I want to watch TV!"

"television?"

Jiang Qin wiped her fluttering eyes and took a glance at the 12-inch TV in the room. She was so shocked that her mouth couldn't close.

"When did our family buy a TV?!"

"It was your brother's idea. He earned some money from writing articles and used it to buy a TV for the family."

Jiang Qin turned her head to look at her brother, her eyes full of disbelief.

"Why are you so awesome?"

"Good luck, good luck." Jiang Xian scratched his head embarrassedly, then took out two red envelopes from his pocket and gave them New Year's money to his two nephews.

Eight people squeezed into the house to have lunch. The TV was on, replaying the New Year's Eve programs, and it was very lively.

Bian Huawei picked up a piece of clear and bright Chinese cabbage with chopsticks and stuffed it into his mouth. "Every year when I come to Beijing, I like this mustard pile the most."

Jiang Guoqing filled three cups of wine and asked, "Is Hua Wei still in his original unit?"

"He's gone, Dad." Jiang Qin was a little angry. "Hua Wei would carve steel plates after get off work every day to increase his income, but he was reported in a letter of denunciation, saying that his side job affected his main job. He wrote a letter of apology and was transferred to a small unit in the editorial department of Revolutionary Story Club."

"It's now called "Story Club". The name was just changed this month." Bian Huawei smiled awkwardly.

Jiang Xian, who had a piece of cabbage in his mouth, shuddered.

What will?

It couldn’t really be the toilet paper reading material he thought it was!
It is said that "Story Club" is not so bad nowadays. It was originally a missionary reading material. At that time, there were many "illiterate" people among the people. Those who could understand "Story Club" were considered "high-level intellectuals" at that time.

After changing its name in 79, Story Club was reborn and began to move towards its own unique path of "popular" literature, becoming bigger and stronger and moving towards glory.

Pay attention, at that time it means "popular", not "rustic".

For example, can you believe that Jin Yong once submitted a manuscript to "Story Club"?

The key point is that his manuscript was rejected. Can you believe it?!

It is difficult to find accommodation in the capital. Guesthouses do not provide accommodation for ordinary people and all hotels are fully booked.

In 80, individual entrepreneurs began to open "air-raid shelter" hotels. As the name suggests, the hotels were opened in air-raid shelters, and quickly more than of them were opened in the capital.

If you really can't get used to living there, you can only spend half the night in the bathhouse, enduring the smoky air.

Fortunately, Jiang's father had asked a friend to help Jiang Qin's family find a place to live, saving them from wandering around. "Hand over the New Year's money!" As soon as she returned to her room, Jiang Qin handed over the red envelopes to her two sons.

Pull out a little.

Wow, Jiang Xian actually gave each of them a huge sum of ten yuan!

"Hua Wei, do you know how much money Jiang Xian gave them?"

"How many?"

"Ten dollars!"

Ten yuan is almost a quarter of Jiang Qin’s salary!

Bian Huawei looked at the money and smiled, "Your brother is really different from before."

"I am much more sensible than before."

Jiang Qin put the money away with a happy look on her face. "I remember when he was sick and unemployed, I was so worried every day that I couldn't sleep. As his sister, I was away from home and couldn't help him at all. I didn't expect that after just a few months, everything would be fine."

"I say you are just worrying about nothing. Young people have their own abilities and a broad world to explore. There is a lot they can do!"

"That's because my brother is capable. Why don't you try someone else?"

Bian Huawei lit a cigarette and said, "I didn't expect Jiang Xian to have such talent. I read The Chess King over and over again. If you hadn't told me, I would never have thought that this Jiang Xian was actually your brother Jiang Xian."

"Go to sleep."

"Qinqin, what do you think about Jiang Xian and I going to ask for an article?"

"A manuscript request?"

"I am an editor now, and he is a writer now. As the brother-in-law, shouldn't I be on the same front with my brother-in-law?"

"Don't!" Jiang Qin waved her hands. "How can your little magazine compare with Beijing Literature and Art? Stop hindering my Jiang Xian's future."

"That's right." Bian Huawei chuckled, "Go to sleep, and visit the Summer Palace tomorrow."

On the other side, Jiang Xian sat at the table and thought for a long time.

He plans to do something with Story Club.

In his previous life, he wrote online articles.

Online literature is very different from traditional literature.

If you ask him to write "The Chess King", he definitely won't be able to do it, and even if he did, it won't be worth reading.

But the story will be different.
What the story club cares more about is imagination, curiosity, and storytelling, and it does not pay much attention to style and word choice.

The next day.

The Summer Palace in the western suburbs was full of tourists. Jiang Xian's family took a group photo, and Jiang Qin took her two sons and Jiang Ke to the Kunming Lake Ice Rink to skate.

Jiang Xian and Bian Huawei walked together.

"Brother-in-law, what kind of manuscripts does your magazine accept?"

"No, your sister just told me not to harm you." Bian Huawei said with a smile.

"It's not that I want to invest. I know a lot of author friends who used to work with me on underground literature, and now they all want to get on the market."

Bian Huawei glanced at him and said, "We accept works with strong storytelling, which ordinary people can understand and are willing to listen to. Even though you are a great writer, it is possible that we don't want what you write."

Jiang Xian nodded and thought for a moment, "Don't tell me, I did hear a story from a friend before."

"Oh?" Bian Huawei was a little curious, "Can we chat?"

Jiang Xian nodded, and the two of them strolled along the lakeside, talking as they walked.

The sun shines obliquely through the holes of the Seventeen-Arch Bridge. The Zhichun Pavilion is covered with light white snow, and laughter can be heard from Kunming Lake.

"This story is very interesting!" Bian Huawei was a little shocked.

Anecdotes are always eye-catching, and this story is actually based on a strange case from the old dynasties.

"What's your friend's name?"

Jiang Xian pondered for a moment.

".Chen Qi."

"Can you ask him to try to write this story?"

"Okay, I'll ask for you later."

(End of this chapter)