1979: My fiancée is a goddess

Chapter 405 Sudden Bad News

After finishing the letter to Zhao Ruixue, Cheng Kaiyan wrote another one to Qingshui, asking about her health and whether she was getting enough rest and meals.

After tidying up and affixing the stamps, Cheng Kaiyan pushed the cart out the door.

Arrived at Wangfujing Street.

It was nine o'clock, and the post office had just opened for business.

"Dear Comrade, this letter is addressed to Tokyo, Japan..."

Cheng Kaiyan entered the room, placed the letter on the front desk, and spoke to the staff.

“Sending it abroad isn’t cheap. Let me check what the price is in Japan… Airmail costs eight yuan and takes about three days to arrive. By sea it costs five yuan and takes about seven days.”

Behind the counter sat a short-haired young woman in a dark green uniform. She glanced at him, feeling that he looked somewhat familiar, but didn't think much of it as she looked down at the documents and spoke without looking up.

"Send it by airmail."

This wasn't the first time Cheng Kaiyan had sent letters. Before he finished writing his academic paper, he and Professor Ansel exchanged seven or eight letters back and forth.

"Okay, please register your information."

The woman tore off a form and handed it over. When she looked up, her eyes met Cheng Kaiyan's, and she saw the young man's face clearly.

She stared blankly, mouth agape, and asked, somewhat excitedly:
"Hey hey hey...aren't you Cheng Kaiyan, the one who appeared on the news yesterday?!"

"Is that you, Cheng Kaiyan, the famous writer from Beijing?!"

"..."

Cheng Kaiyan slapped her forehead. Oh well, now she's really famous.

"Don't deny it! I've been reading the newspapers these past two days, and I even watched the news yesterday!"

Seeing that he remained silent, the female comrade immediately looked left and right and exclaimed, "Comrades, come quick, look who this is! The great writer Cheng Kaiyan!"

"What?! Teacher Cheng Kaiyan?!"

"A great writer! Even a great writer is sending letters?"

"Mr. Cheng Kaiyan, my wife is a big fan of your books. Could you please sign an autograph for me?"

The entire post office gradually became restless.

Not only the post office staff, but also the people who came early in the morning to mail letters and deposit money all turned their heads and cast excited glances at them.

Cheng Kaiyan felt like they were looking at a giant panda, or even rarer than that!
Cheng Kaiyan felt a chill run down her spine. She was about to run away when the woman at the counter grabbed her. "Why are you running? Teacher Cheng, you haven't registered yet. Aren't you going to send the letter?"

So Cheng Kaiyan ultimately stayed, because the letter was important.

Moreover, there aren't many people at the post office in the morning, only about thirty.

After spending more than ten minutes dealing with the group, Cheng Kaiyan lowered her head, shielded the crowd in front of her, and made her escape.

……

Finally, the two letters were mailed.

Zhao Ruixue's international airmail will take about three or four days to arrive.

Shimizu-nee's letter was simply stuffed into the mailbox, and it took seven, eight, or even ten days to be delivered.

After mailing the letter, I finally felt calmer and better.

On the surface, Cheng Kaiyan appears to be amiable to everyone and has a calm demeanor in her dealings with others.

But there are always some people and some things that can touch his heartstrings.

Zhao Ruixue is clearly such a person.

He felt somewhat indebted to this girl, especially after reading her work titled "Salt and Snow".

He could roughly guess what kind of subject the girl's work was about.

Therefore, as long as it doesn't involve matters of principle, he is still willing to make concessions and give Zhao Ruixue some psychological comfort.

Tell her in advance, but not too obviously or directly, that you will be coming to Japan soon.

……

Riding her bicycle in the spring breeze, Cheng Kaiyan wandered aimlessly through the streets.

I stopped when I passed a newsstand.

I bought a newspaper to read the latest news and comments about myself, and then I bought two bottles of yogurt.

He squatted on the curb, drinking while watching the news.

The news of this award has been a hot topic across the country since it was published and broadcast in the People's Daily and on CCTV News yesterday.

This morning, new newspaper commentaries were published, mostly discussing Cheng Kaiyan's epic life story. From this day forward, Cheng Kaiyan has truly secured her place in the literary world of the 1980s, achieving great success.

Cheng Kaiyan was quite happy, but thinking about her experience at the post office earlier, she wasn't so happy anymore.

"Hey……"

He sighed deeply, "Perhaps this is the trouble of being a celebrity? We can only wait for the hype to die down."

"Guru Guru~"

She finished both bottles of yogurt in one go, but unfortunately, being out in public, Cheng Kaiyan was too embarrassed to lick the bottle caps or scrape the cups, wasting a lot of yogurt.

"Ding ding ding..."

This minor regret vanished along with the wheels beneath my feet and the crisp sound of bells in the wind.

In the blink of an eye, we arrived at the teacher's house.

My mother went to school today. I heard that the Education Bureau is having a meeting today and she won't be back until tonight.

Cheng Kaiyan planned to come over and freeload lunch.

The old man and Aunt Yao Cheng were naturally very happy. As soon as he arrived, they happily gave him fruit and snacks.

"Do you two still treat me like a child?"

Cheng Kaiyan peeled a banana for the old man and said, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

"How old are you? Unmarried people are all children."

The old man waved his hand dismissively. In his eyes, Cheng Kaiyan was just a child. Then, his tone shifted, and he solemnly warned, "Judging from yesterday's interview, you are not allowed to speak carelessly next time, do you hear me?"

"oh oh."

Cheng Kaiyan nodded obediently.

“Ba Jin and Yan Bing previously said they wanted you to join the Writers Association and take over from us old men, but judging from your performance in yesterday’s TV interview, maybe you should just give up?”

The old man looked at the young man in front of him and spoke in a manner that was half questioning and half instructing.

In his view, literature should often be literature, and should not be casually mixed with politics or official positions.

Joining the Writers' Association is no problem, and receiving some subsidies is no problem either.

But being a cadre or leader in the National Writers Association is a different story; after all, the Writers Association is still a unit within the system.

If you're not cut out for it, it's best not to go.

Moreover, Cheng Kaiyan is so young and at the peak of her creative career. Wouldn't it be a waste of time and effort for her to take a position in the Writers' Association?

"I will do whatever you instruct me to do, teacher."

Cheng Kaiyan answered without hesitation.

"Ah."

Ye Shengtao nodded in satisfaction, then thought for a moment and comforted him, "You are still young, there's no rush."

The father and son chatted for a while about the major national events that had occurred in the past few months, as well as Cheng Kaiyan's creative work during this period.

Time slips away amidst the radiant beauty of sunshine and spring blossoms.

Eleven o'clock noon.

"Kaiyan, come in and help Auntie chop the vegetables. Today I'm making you a big braised pig's trotter! It'll be a good treat for you!"

"okay!"

Aunt Yao Cheng returned with some groceries, and Cheng Kaiyan thoughtfully went into the kitchen to help cook.

"Boom boom boom..."

Before long, the roar of a car engine suddenly came from outside the courtyard wall.

"Mr. Ye Shengtao! Mr. Ye!"

"Something happened!"

A guard wearing a black Zhongshan suit and a red-starred cap, carrying a gun, ran in, panting.

"What's going on?! What major incident has occurred?"

Old Master Ye frowned and said in a deep voice.