1979: The child's mother is a celestial being.

Chapter 17 Interview
"Mom and Dad, would you like to come and stay with us in Jiangcheng for a while?"

After the Spring Festival, Chen Fusheng, along with his wife's family, visited her relatives on her side of the family again. By the time they finished visiting all the relatives, it was already the sixth day of the first lunar month, and it was time for them to consider returning home.

“We’d like to go too, but your dad and I haven’t retired yet, and we’re about to go back to work. Let’s wait until Xiaoli is about to give birth before we take leave to come over.”

"What about your brother and sister-in-law?" Chen Fusheng knew they couldn't go, but he still had to ask politely.

"The banks are about to reopen. Although your sister-in-law doesn't have a job, she has to take care of two young children, so she can't travel far either."

"Where's my little sister?" Chen Fusheng finally looked at his sister-in-law, who looked interested.

"I want to go, but I have to go back to school in a week."

"Little sister, you're taking the college entrance exam this year, right?"

"Yes, I'm a junior in high school, and I'll be taking the college entrance exam this June."

The reason why my sister-in-law could take the college entrance examination after finishing the second year of high school is that high school in my country is still a two-year system. It was not until the reform in 1983 that it became a three-year system.

Are you interested in applying to Jiangcheng University?

"I'd like to, but I'm afraid my grades aren't good enough to pass the exam."

"Don't be discouraged too early. You still have six months to work hard. You must give it your all. No matter which university you apply to in the future, having good grades will always give you more options."

"Okay, thank you, brother-in-law. I'll come to Jiangcheng to visit after I finish my college entrance exam."

"You are welcome to come anytime."

After confirming that only two plane tickets were needed, Chen Fusheng and his father-in-law visited Lu Wenhai with gifts.

"Comrade Fusheng, are you and your wife going back so early? Why not stay in Harbin for a few more days?"

"I've been living here for over a month and have gained almost ten pounds. It's time to go back to work and lose some weight."

"Haha, it seems your father-in-law's family has pretty good food."

After exchanging a few jokes, Lu Wenhai went into his study and made two phone calls.

The key point is that less than two hours after those two phone calls were made, a young man delivered the two plane tickets that Chen Fusheng had come to ask for.

Only then did Chen Fusheng 'remember' that the seemingly kind old man in front of him was actually a deputy director-level cadre.

These are two plane tickets for a direct flight from Harbin to Jiangcheng. The date on the tickets is February 25th. Today is February 22nd, which is three days from now.

"Comrade Fusheng, come visit Harbin more often when you have time. Since you're Old Liu's son-in-law, you're also a son-in-law of Harbin, and our 'Northern Literature' magazine is like your maternal home. So, if you have any good manuscripts in the future, remember to think of your maternal home, okay? Hahahaha..."

At the dinner table, after several rounds of drinks and dishes, Lu Wenhai's face was flushed, and he spoke more casually.

Chen Fusheng's drinking capacity was naturally no match for these seasoned veterans, but fortunately, his father-in-law was there to shield him, so he was still able to hold on for the time being.

This drinking session also led to an interview with Chen Fusheng.

Because of the influence of "Bullfighting," Chen Fusheng's pen name has gained a certain degree of recognition both in literary circles and among readers.

Therefore, Northern Literature wanted to interview Chen Fusheng in advance, hoping to capitalize on the popularity of his name and advertise their next issue.

Undoubtedly, Chen Fusheng's second novel, "Above the Cliff," will also be published in the next issue of "Northern Literature."

The next day.

Chen Fusheng had just finished breakfast when he heard that reporters had come to his door.

I quickly tidied myself up and came out for the interview.

"Hello, Comrade Fusheng, I am Shen Lin, a reporter from the Harbin Daily. This is my partner, Zhou Hua. May I interview you?"

Chen Fusheng thought to himself, "Since you've all come to my house, isn't this just asking unnecessary questions?"

However, he replied very politely, "Of course."

"Okay, shall we officially begin the interview then?" "No problem." Chen Fusheng subconsciously straightened his back a little when he saw Zhou Hua turn on the camera.

Chen Fusheng was certain that this reporter, Shen, had done her homework before coming.

What? You're asking him why he's so sure?
Nonsense, Shen Lin had already taken out his notebook, and Chen Fusheng caught a glimpse of it and saw that there were quite a few questions on it.

"Comrade Fusheng, is this your home?"

The first question from the other party made Chen Fusheng want to complain.

But thinking that this might be the style of journalists in this era, Chen Fusheng held back.

"No, this is my wife's family home."

"Comrade Fusheng, you're married?"

"Yes, I am already married."

"But you look quite young, may I ask your age?"

I'm 23 this year.

Where is your loved one?

"What do you want to ask me about my partner? Their age?"

"Yes."

She is 20 years old.

"When did you get married?"

"Last year's National Day."

"..."

After a bunch of 'census' questions were asked, the conversation finally turned to the novel.

"Comrade Fusheng, you are a university English teacher, why do you want to write novels?"

"Comrade reporter, let me correct you. I'm just a teaching assistant at a university. As for why I wanted to write novels, there are actually many reasons..." Once Chen Fusheng got going, he was willing to talk more with the reporter. However, on some issues, he was just rambling. For example, he gave many reasons for his writing, but he missed the most important one: his wife's pregnancy gave him a lot of motivation.

As for why I don't say anything, it's because I don't want this kind of private matter to be overly scrutinized by the outside world, so as to avoid being disturbed.

"Since its release, your novel 'Bullfight' has been loved by many readers across the country. Did you expect this result beforehand?"

"Bullfighting is my debut novel. Although I am confident in my work, I really didn't expect it to be so popular with so many readers. I am very grateful!" Chen Fusheng said sincerely.

"I am also a reader of 'Bullfighting'. From what I understand, many readers have had some questions or doubts after reading your work. Before coming here, I summarized some frequently asked questions. I hope you can answer them?"

"Well, you ask."

"Your novel doesn't seem to explain the fate of Niu Er and his ox. On behalf of the readers, I'd like to ask, what was their final ending?"

"Well... I don't know either. Maybe Niu Er and his 'Jiu'er' will be able to live normal lives with the help of the Eighth Route Army. Maybe their lives will not change at all. Maybe they will have other stories... I'll leave these to the readers to think for themselves. As for the ending now, I think I have told all the stories I wanted to tell, so it should stop here."

Shen Lin nodded, and after asking the remaining questions one by one, he finally brought up "Cliff Walkers".

"I heard that your second novel, Comrade Fusheng, is set in Harbin and has already been submitted to 'Northern Literature', is that right?"

The interview had been going on for over half an hour, and Chen Fusheng's patience was wearing thin, so he took the initiative to introduce himself:

"The popularity of 'Bullfighting' gave me a certain degree of fame, so one day, Editor-in-Chief Lu of 'Northern Literature' personally came to my door to commission me to write a piece. At first, I was not sure if I could write it, so I did not agree directly, but I did not refuse either."

"Later, after visiting some of Harbin's iconic buildings and attractions and learning about their history, I gradually got some inspiration and created a spy thriller novel called 'Above the Cliff'."

"This novel is set in Harbin in the 1930s. It tells the story of four Chinese agents who have returned from studying in the Soviet Union and are tasked with carrying out a secret operation codenamed 'Utra.' They are betrayed by a traitor, pursued by the enemy, and ultimately achieve the mission's success through bloodshed and sacrifice. It is confirmed that it will be published in the next issue of 'Northern Literature' magazine. We hope that all readers will support it."

(End of this chapter)