The Rise of the Writers of the Republic of China

(Thank you for reminding me that there was no railway from Jiujiang to Wuhan in 1927. Lao Wang checked it carefully and it has been changed to take the Zhejiang-Jiangxi line to Hangzhou.)

In the city of Hangzhou, a rickshaw quickly rushed to the pier.

Zhang Leyi felt indescribably happy, like a bird out of the cage, running towards the free and vast sky. When passing by a bookstore, she thought that taking a boat would be boring, so she quickly called out, "Stop here, I'll go buy some books."

The coachman stood guard outside the bookstore, staring at Zhang Leyi, for fear that the woman would run away without paying the fare.

"Boss, are there any good new books recently?" Zhang Leyi walked into the store and asked.

The bookstore owner smiled and said, "What kind of book does Miss want to read? A novel for entertainment, a foreign masterpiece, or a new literary work?"

"Anything is fine." Zhang Leyi was not picky.

The owner of the bookstore said: "Coincidentally, our store has just bought a set of 'Literary Research Association Series'. There are more than ten volumes, and they are all rough editions."

A rough-edged book is the kind of book with rough edges, not crudely made, but deliberately made. This kind of book requires readers to buy it back and cut it by themselves, which has a different kind of intimacy. Lu Xun is a fan and advocate of rough-edged books.

Zhang Leyi looked up and found that there were both foreign and foreign works in the series. For example, Xia Mianzun's translation of the famous foreign work "Brocade Quilt", and Lao She's "Lao Zhang's Philosophy". She is most delighted that Zhou Hexuan's "Goddess" is also included in the list.

"Is this kind of book easy to sell?" Zhang Leyi asked.

The bookstore owner said with a smile: "It's not as easy to sell as a popular novel, but it's better than a long stream of water, and it will always be sold out. Today's progressive young people like it very much, and they can sell several copies every day."

Zhang Leyi asked again: "Is this "Goddess" good?"

"I don't quite understand it," the bookstore owner said, shaking his head. "This book is weird, and the preface doesn't match the words. But the sales volume is not bad. The teachers and students at the school say it's a masterpiece. As for I don't know where Qi is, but it feels similar to "Liao Zhai".

"Then I'll buy this one." Zhang Leyi smiled.

Zhang Leyi went to the pier by car. She bought a first-class cabin with independent rooms and berths.

After the merchant ship set sail, Zhang Leyi opened "Goddess" and read it carefully. She could understand the metaphors in it, but she didn't like this kind of book very much, it was too uncomfortable to read. This is no longer cruelty, but punishment, like a sharp sword, stabbing your heart fiercely.

Zhang Leyi only read one-third of the 200,000-word novel, and couldn't help but close the pages, feeling like she was sweating all over.

"Don't watch it, don't watch it." Zhang Leyi said to herself.

She said she didn't want to read it, but she didn't feel flustered in her heart. Zhang Leyi went out of the cabin to relax for a while, and couldn't help but go back to the room to open the book.

It's not just Zhang Leyi, many readers can't bear to watch "Goddess" at the moment, but they can't resist the urge to finish it.

Since the publication of "Goddess", "Novel Monthly" has continuously increased its serial length in response to readers' requests. From the initial publication of more than 10,000 words per issue, to the direct publication of 40,000 words, the serialization was finally completed last month.

Then there is the publication of collections, not individual books, but listed as "Literary Research Society Series".

The "Literary Research Series" is a series of books, published by the Commercial Press, and a batch is published every year, including various excellent works from home and abroad, and those that can be selected for inclusion are all high-quality works.

After all, "Novel Monthly" is a magazine. Although it has a large circulation, its audience is limited. Many people don't know that there is a work called "Goddess". Until now it has been placed in the bookstore, "Goddess" has attracted people's attention again, and various book reviews in the newspapers are overwhelming.

...

Guangzhou.

The second floor of the Bell Tower of Sun Yat-sen University.

Lu Xun sat in the room smoking one cigarette after another. He wanted to write something, but his throat was full of grief and indignation. Half an hour later, the manuscript paper in front of him was still blank, only the thick smoke lingered in the room.

Xu Guangping pushed the door open and entered, just about to speak, but was choked by the smoke and coughed repeatedly. She hurried in and opened the window, and reprimanded, "You smoke so much again, and you don't pay attention to your body!"

"I feel irritable." Lu Xun sighed.

Lu Xun came to Guangzhou at the beginning of the year and served as the dean and dean of the Department of Literature of Sun Yat-sen University. There is a saying that he lived with Xu Guangping after he came to Guangzhou, but this is not the case. He lived with Xu Guangping's father, and Xu Guangping rented with a female worker next door.

But it is true that the two often visit each other.

Xu Guangping knew what was on his mind, and comforted him: "The situation is like this, you and I are just teachers, no matter how much you think about it, it's useless."

"Alas," Lu Xun laughed at himself helplessly, "you are a scholar who is useless, and I can only watch with my eyes open when the reactionaries want to kill people. I dare not even write an article to scold me, or I will be arrested tomorrow."

Lu Xun wrote an article, and it was published two days before the headmaster purges the party. The title is "Celebrating the Restoration of Shanghai and Nanjing". The full text mentions three issues: first, the victory of the Northern Expedition was won by the blood of patriotic youths; second, do not be blindly optimistic and be wary of someone stealing the fruits of the revolution;

It is amazing to say that Lu Xun quoted Lenin's original words in the article, and even bluntly said that "in the dark area, the work of counter-revolutionaries (harmonious) revolutionaries is also going on silently." This kind of practice was not arrested as a red element. It is probably because he is too famous and he is only a writer. Those people are not convenient to kill.

But Lu Xun would never dare to write an article again, and saving his life was the most important thing.

"Didn't you go to the bookstore? You'll be back so soon." Lu Xun asked, changing the subject.

"I saw Mr. Zhou's novel as soon as I arrived at the bookstore. I didn't even read it, so I just bought it." Xu Guangping took out "Goddess" from his bag as he spoke.

Lu Xun is not a member of the Literature Research Association, and he doesn't usually read "Novel Monthly". He smiled and said, "It's not another martial arts novel, is it?"

Xu Guangping handed the book to Lu Xun and said, "Probably not, take a look."

Lu Xun looked down, and saw on the cover that it read: A masterpiece of realistic magicism, a new chapter by Mr. Zhou Hexuan.

"You read it first, I'll cook, and my dad will be back soon." Xu Guangping said.

Lu Xun slowly opened the book, and frowned after reading a few pages. After patiently reading the first 30,000 words, he threw the book away, feeling more and more irritable.

Xu Guangping worked in the kitchen for a long time. When he returned to his room, he saw Lu Xun smoking a cigarette again looking up at the ceiling. He asked strangely, "What's the matter, aren't you reading a novel?"

"It doesn't matter if you don't read this novel, but your heart, liver, spleen, stomach and kidneys will hurt everywhere." Lu Xun smiled wryly.

Xu Guangping asked: "Is it not well written?"

"On the contrary, the writing is excellent," Lu Xun said, "That Mr. Zhou has a thorough understanding of society."

Xu Guangping asked, "What is written in the book?"

Lu Xun said leisurely: "Eating people!"