Chapter 573 A matter of life and death
Apart from the fact that we were eating Western food, it was actually quite nice to listen to rock music at Maxim's.
After Cui Jian and the band left the stage, another wave of young people came up.
Someone at the table next to Lin Weimin was introducing the young guys who had just come on stage. One could tell right away that they were definitely rock music fans.
"Taiwan's Rolling Stone Records has set up a company in mainland China called Magic Rock Culture. These guys are the first batch of singers they signed. They are all very talented, especially the one named Dou Wei, the one with a pretty face. He can play a lot of instruments and can play a few in every performance. He's so cool!"
Following the words of the man at the next table, Lin Weimin looked towards the stage and saw the thin, handsome young man on the stage.
Dou Wei, Zhang Chu and He Yong, the three masters of Magic Rock.
A concert at the Hong Kong Hung Hom Stadium in 1994 made the trio famous across Taiwan, Mainland China and Hong Kong.
But now the three of them are still just unknown rock stars, and they haven’t even released a cassette.
After introducing himself, Zhang Chu, who has a bit of overbite, said: "Today I will bring you a few new songs that we will release soon. The first one is "Sister". I hope you like it!"
The song begins with a flute solo, played by Dou Wei who is next to Zhang Chu. As soon as the prelude sounds, the audience can sense that this song has a different temperament from the rock and roll that is popular in Yanjing City now.
“It hasn’t snowed this winter.
Standing on the road without blinking
My heartbeat is still gentle
You should praise me for being obedient today.
..."
On the way back, Tao Huimin was driving and she didn't drink.
Tao Huimin was driving while humming the song she just heard. Lin Weimin smiled and asked, "You like it so much. When they release an album in the future, buy a few more copies."
"This kind of music is too annoying. It's okay to listen to it occasionally, but it gets annoying if you listen to it for a long time."
Lin Weimin thought to himself that in a few years, he wouldn’t be able to hear it even if he wanted to.
The next day, people went back to work as usual. There were only a few days left before the Spring Festival, and a lazy style was evident throughout the Guowen Publishing House.
At this time, no leader would be so blind as to assign work to everyone.
The soldiers can take some time off, but the leaders cannot.
In another month and a half, it will be the 40th anniversary of the founding of Guowen Society.
Chinese people consider birthdays that start with the tenth day as big birthdays, and the same applies to companies.
The 40th anniversary of its founding is a big day that Guowen Publishing House naturally has to celebrate properly. Especially in the past decade, Guowen Publishing House has been developing rapidly and has firmly sat in the top position in the domestic literary field with an unshakable status. It has cultivated a group of backbone forces in the domestic literary world and published a number of classic works that are widely loved by readers.
On the 30th anniversary, Lin Weimin had just joined the unit and was still a small fry, but now he sits in the top leadership position of the Guowen Society, discussing the arrangements for the anniversary celebration activities with everyone.
There is still more than a month left until the anniversary celebration, which seems like a long time, but because we need to contact all parties who are going to attend the event, we must make some preparations in advance.
The meeting was almost over and everyone dispersed.
Lin Weimin and Cheng Zaochun were walking together, and they were talking about the sales of Liang Fengyi's three novels.
There are very few works by writers from Hong Kong, Taiwan and other places introduced into China nowadays, and popular works are even rarer. Liang Fengyi's financial novels are original, and this time Guowen Publishing House has set a precedent.
Now it has been a month since the novel was released for sale, and bookstores across the country have already received feedback.
The first print run of the three novels "Drunken Red Dust", "The Oiran" and "The Dream of the Rich" are all 50,000 copies. Over the past month, the sales in bookstores across the country have been good, and it is estimated that this batch of novels can be digested in three to four months.
This sales performance is certainly not comparable to that of best-selling works such as "White Deer Plain" and "Not One Less", but it is already at an upper-middle level among the many literary works published by Guowen Publishing House every year.
If it were published in the future, it would probably be on the bestseller list.
"Judging from this trend, it shouldn't be a problem for these novels to sell 200,000 or 300,000 copies. I think we can start discussing with Ms. Liang about introducing her other works," said Lin Weimin.
Cheng Zaochun nodded. "You can communicate with her. Since she has already gained fame and market share, I think the sales of her future works will not be bad. This cooperation can be regarded as a happy ending for everyone."
The publication of Liang Fengyi's works had some political overtones, and Guowen Publishing House was even prepared to lose money. Now, not only did it not lose money, but it looks like it will become a series of best-selling works. Cheng Zaochun is naturally happy.
On the afternoon of the 28th day of the twelfth lunar month, Lin Weimin left work early and went to the People's Art Theatre to pick up Tao Huimin, and then went to the train station to pick up Tao's father and mother.
After waiting for half an hour at the train station, Tao's father and mother got off the train carrying large and small bags. Lin Weimin hurried to take the things and put them in the trunk.
"Aren't you allowed to bring things? Why are you bringing so many?" Tao Huimin complained.
"They are all local specialties from our home. You can't buy them in Yanjing," said Tao's mother.
After driving all the way back home and putting everything away, Lin Weimin let Tao's father and mother rest for a while.
It was just evening, and he and Tao Huimin started to cook dinner.
Tao's mother couldn't help but come to help, and sent Lin Weimin to the living room to chat with Tao's father.
Tao's parents had already known about Lin Weimin's promotion, and they were extremely proud that their son-in-law could become the editor-in-chief of a national publishing house like Guowen Publishing House at the age of thirty.
When Tao's father chatted with Lin Weimin, the main topic was also about his work.
In the kitchen, Tao's mother stared at Tao Huimin's belly and asked, "Why is your belly still not moving?"
"Mom, we just got married." Tao Huimin felt a little embarrassed when her mother stared at her.
"What do you mean you just got married? It's been two years. You're already 26 and he's already 32."
Tao Huimin's eyes turned, and she said, "Then if we give birth to a child, there will be no one to help take care of it!"
"Am I not a human being?" Tao's mother was dissatisfied with her daughter for ignoring her.
"You've been in Ruian for only a month or two."
Tao's mother couldn't help but slap Tao Huimin, "You've fallen into a happy nest and you're not satisfied!"
"If you can stay in Yanjing and help me take care of the child, I will give birth to the child." Tao Huimin stated the conditions.
Tao's mother was so angry that she chopped the kitchen knife a few times, but considering her future grandson, she compromised after hesitating for a moment.
"Okay, if you give birth to me, I will take care of it!"
"What about Dad?" Tao Huimin asked.
"You are such a grown man, and you won't starve to death."
Tao Huimin looked at her mother deeply. It seemed that having a child was indeed the top priority in her mother's mind, and her father's life or death was completely unimportant.
"I'm going to tell my dad what you said!"
"Go ahead and learn!" Tao's mother sneered, "Your father is eager to learn!"
Of course, Tao's mother's "longing" refers to the matter of having a child. To have a grandson, not to mention sacrificing a spouse, even sacrificing a daughter would not be a problem.
"Yes, yes, Dad. Actually, Huimin and I have been thinking about this issue recently."
Lin Weimin was chatting with Tao's father in the living room, and the topic gradually shifted.
"Don't worry about taking care of the child. Huimin's mother is retired now and can come to help you take care of the child." said Tao's father.
"Just hire a babysitter when the time comes."
"How can a babysitter be as trustworthy as one's own family?"
…
As soon as Mr. and Mrs. Tao entered the house, they started urging the baby to give birth, which shows how anxious they were.
At night, Lin Weimin and his wife were lying in bed, and Tao Huimin recited to Lin Weimin the words she had said to her mother.
"I've already told my mother that if she comes to Yanjing to take care of me and the baby, I will give birth!"
"Just give birth!"
After saying that, he looked at Tao Huimin. They had been together for so many years, and Tao Huimin knew what Lin Weimin meant with just one look.
She has a delicate forehead and beautiful eyebrows, and her eyes are full of affection.
Mr. Lin is a trustworthy gentleman. Since his wife has promised on his behalf, he absolutely cannot break the promise.
This is a matter of life and death, we must hurry!
The next day, before Lin Weimin and his wife got up, Tao's father and mother began to clean the house. The couple was awakened by the noise and saw the two old people busying around, so they got up helplessly.
I was working in the morning when Han Dingbang came with his little granddaughter.
The family knew about the arrival of Mr. and Mrs. Tao early in the morning. Today, Han Zhuangzhuang and Yin Geli were at work, so Han Dingbang came alone with his granddaughter.
At lunch, Lin Weimin discussed with Han Dingbang that they should have the New Year's Eve dinner at Shizhu Courtyard this year. Han Dingbang readily agreed and said with emotion: "It has been many years since our family has been so lively!"
"It's more lively when there are more people, the better!" Tao's father also said happily.
On the afternoon of the 30th day of the twelfth lunar month, eight people from the two families of Lin Weimin and Han Zhuangzhuang gathered in the courtyard where they lived, and prepared the New Year's Eve dinner in a lively manner.
After working for a while, Tao's father and Han Dingbang started smoking at the door of the house, expressing their feelings about the changes in the country over the years.
As it got dark in the evening, the sound of firecrackers immediately increased, as if someone had given an order. Looking towards the distant sky, there were still people setting off fireworks. They were obviously the people who had become rich first.
When the clock struck eight, the food and wine were served on the table, which was placed in front of the TV. The opening animation of the Spring Festival Gala had just begun playing on the screen.
The New Year’s Eve dinner has begun!
Each of the eight people had a cup in front of them. Some of the men had wine in their cups, while the women and children had drinks in their cups.
Little Nannan didn't like drinking the Arctic Ocean in her cup. She was curious about why the color of the adults' cups was different from hers, so she came to Han Dingbang's legs and begged for a taste.
The little girl was just learning to speak, "Yaya (grandpa), Tangtang (taste)."
Several adults were amused by her childish words. Lin Weimin said with a smile: "I can't give you this to drink."
As he spoke, he stood up and picked up a bottle of orange-flavored Fanta soda from the ground, which he bought at the Friendship Store.
Starting this year, the Friendship Store began to issue night tickets and New Year's Fair invitations from time to time, allowing ordinary citizens to enter and shop during specific periods of time.
"This is orange flavored, my daughter will definitely like it!"
The little girl held the glass bottle with her two chubby little hands and said to Lin Weimin, "Uncle, open it!"
Everyone burst into laughter again, filled with joy.
(End of this chapter)
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