Chapter 268
The magazine published two of her articles on two separate pages. She felt uneasy when she received the samples, fearing that she was unworthy of the position and would be ridiculed.
I waited until I had published three issues with great trepidation, and then I received a flood of letters from readers. The response was surprisingly overwhelming. Of course, there were some criticisms, but most of them were praise.
She was so happy that she couldn't sleep for several days. The child was also so excited because of his mother's excitement that his cicada pupae became even more excited.
One day, she was sitting by the river again, admiring the lotus flowers. It happened to be the weekend, and the students from the city had returned. One girl said to another, "Have you read 'White Fox Pillow'? It's my favorite. This author is very popular recently."
"I know her name is 'Zhen Li'. It's a very unique name. Many of my classmates have been discussing her writings and writing letters to her. Her writing is really good and unique."
"And that illustration, she also drew it. It's so interesting, a girl resting her head on the nine tails of a nine-tailed fox."
"Yeah, it's really interesting. And that coffee cup with two little rabbits lying inside, looking like they're melting in the candy, is such a creative idea. No wonder the magazine dedicated two sections to her work."
She listened in disbelief. It seemed she was truly famous.
There were so many letters from readers that she could only pick and choose. She was delighted by many of the things she wrote about; it felt so good to be understood and appreciated. Even more remarkable, some people's insights were even more profound than her own, deeply moving her.
However, not long after, another magazine published two consecutive issues of one person's critical comments on her "Axe Sound and Candle Shadow".
Even without reading the content of the pen, Wang Jiazhi knew from the pen name that it was the kind of self-righteous, sensationalist, and annoying man. You can tell when a man curses and when a woman curses.
Politics and history seem to be sensitive areas for many men. They only believe in and stick to their own stubborn ideas. If other people's interpretations and opinions on these two items are different from theirs, it is tantamount to touching their taboos, which is no different from killing their parents.
To this kind of people, her other romance novels were nothing more than idle childish fantasies, so childish and boring that they wouldn't even bother to litigate. But this one, about its perspective on historical figures, was viewed by many self-righteous men as something written by men, and only men qualified to judge. Clearly, her pen name indicated the author must be a woman. So, a woman daring to meddle with history and portray historical figures they considered unorthodox was sheer treachery, a henchman crowing at dawn. A grown man, speaking in a pretentious tone, then criticizing her for being a woman.
There is a sentence in it: The author writes about Emperor Taizong of Song, who was a traitor and a disaster to the country and the people, so charmingly that I am deeply worried that the author's view on choosing a spouse needs to be corrected.
He also said: Women in seclusion only know the shortness of breath and long emotions of children. It is a sin to write official history into a pretentious love story.
Wang Jiazhi knew this kind of person, knowing clearly that you didn't mean it, but also knowing clearly that you did, would feign ignorance, deliberately looking for excuses to insult you. It was simply because her recent work was a hit, and he wanted to capitalize on the buzz. If he wrote a compliment, it would inevitably undermine his sense of superiority. This kind of grandstanding would attract attention while projecting a sense of masculinity. It was shameless and ridiculous.
Not long after, someone started a literary lawsuit with that person. The magazine published articles by both of them at the same time.
Someone refuted that person and said: Sir, you said that the author portrayed the infamous Emperor Taizong of Song as a charming and perfect man, and listed the following points.
The author writes that Emperor Taizong of Song was skilled in scheming and manipulating people. If he wasn't good at scheming and winning people's hearts, how could he have killed the emperor and seized the throne? And how could he have won the people's support and ascended the throne after killing the emperor and seizing the throne? If he was a drunkard who didn't understand military affairs and wasn't good at scheming, how could he have become emperor with the sound of an axe and the shadow of a candle?
The author describes Emperor Taizong as diligent in his government. Although the history of the Song Dynasty has altered some of his deeds, his diligence is undeniable, and the author simply wrote it truthfully. He rose early and went to bed late, ate only two meals a day, and personally handled everything. How could he not be exhausted and haggard? How could he have looked radiant?
The author describes Emperor Taizong of Song, tormented by an arrow wound, distracted by government affairs. Someone commented that the author's description of the pain was overly sentimental, suggesting a certain sympathy. I didn't sense any sympathy; I simply felt the author was rationalizing the story based on the context. If the wound was so severe, if it could have tormented him for the rest of his life, to the point where it was recorded in history books, then of course, when it flared up, he would sweat profusely and suffer unbearable pain. Could it have been just an itch, or could he have remained calm and composed during the flare-up?
The author describes Emperor Taizong's fondness for poetry and calligraphy, his desire to have his calligraphy swarmed among his ministers, and his tendency to have his own calligraphy printed on coins for the public to admire. Some view this behavior as childish, while others deem it pretentious and overreaching. The author simply writes truthfully, leaving the reader's interpretation to their own. Perhaps the author finds this narcissistic and vain behavior endearing and charming, seeing a reflection of himself in Emperor Taizong and narcissistically believing himself to be charming.
The author describes the unbearable grief of Emperor Taizong of Song in his later years, the loss of his son, and the horror of killing his loved ones. This is not praise, but merely a statement of fact. Could it be that you, instead of grieving over the death of your son, rejoiced, and murdered your brothers, younger brothers, and nephews without feeling any guilt or fear? If you believe that killing a loved one, with a sense of guilt and fear, is a form of glorification, then I beg to ask what kind of wicked and heartless person you are.
Wang Jiazhi couldn't help laughing when she read this.
It then goes on to say: The Prime Minister advocated women's liberation and equality between men and women during his lifetime. The repeated mention of women and choosing a husband in your article has nothing to do with the main idea of the article, and the disrespectful words towards women are unknown. I wonder what your intention is.
When she read this sentence, she felt lost.
Then he continued: "Mr. Yu mentioned a view on choosing a spouse that is irrelevant to the article. The author's view on choosing a spouse needs to be corrected. I believe that the author based his work on historical facts and was not influenced by personal feelings, and his values are not problematic. However, Mr. Yu considers the criticisms in the article to be fascinating, which seems to be a case of mistaking black for white. I am deeply concerned about Mr. Yu's view on choosing a spouse. A man's view on choosing a spouse is as black and white as a sow versus Xi Shi. Given Mr. Yu's tendency to confuse right and wrong, he probably sees a sow as Xi Shi and Xi Shi as a sow when choosing a spouse. I hope that Mr. Yu's preference is for sows, so that he can choose Xi Shi as his spouse. Otherwise, he might choose a sow as his spouse. How tragic!"
After reading this, Wang Jiazhi rolled over in bed, and the child was startled and kept shivering.
As the next issue of "Axe Sound and Candle Shadow" continued to be serialized, the literary dispute between the two people continued to heat up. But the other person was obviously already angry and embarrassed by the insults, and his words were very unpleasant.
He retorted: "Looking at the grammar of your writing, you should be able to read and write in a way that understands human language. Since you can write in a way that understands human language, you should also be able to listen to and read human language. Why does it seem like you can't understand human language now?"
The author's writing is extremely clear, but judging by Mr. Wang's writing, it seems he doesn't understand human language. If he truly doesn't understand human language, then he shouldn't have come out and commented on it, thereby highlighting his misfortune of not understanding human language. If he does understand human language, then deliberately writing as if he doesn't understand human language is self-deprecating and humiliating, just to attract attention. While leaving a name in history and leaving a bad name for eternity are both well-known, it's better not to join in the frenzy of the latter.
When she read the first part, she couldn't help laughing, but when she read the second part, she felt very sad.
The serialization of "The Sound of Axe and the Shadow of Candle" has ended. Because the writing style is different from previous historical articles, more people have objections, but most people still say it is very good.
Wang Jiazhi doesn't particularly like the character of Emperor Taizong of Song, so she disagrees with the accusation that she deliberately portrays him in a good light. She simply writes about all the historical figures that interest her as human beings. Those perfect ancient figures, as brilliant as the sun and the moon, are like gods, devoid of human attributes and lacking in drama. She prefers to write about complex individuals who have both good and bad reputations.
There were a lot of letters from readers, and surprisingly, they all praised her. Some even wrote very long letters and sent dried flower cards.
This finally put her mind at ease after being worried for many days.
In fact, there are many people who are capable of standing before the public, but many of them are buried throughout their lives, without the opportunity to become famous, while those who are incapable are pushed into the public eye. That is why there is the saying that virtue does not match position.
But as long as you step into the public eye and become famous, you're bound to be noticed and dug up. Everyone will tell you how good you are; even if you're completely worthless, people will still point out your flaws. There are always those who want to stand out from the crowd. If someone is incredibly good, they'll insist on finding faults, and if they can't, they'll fabricate the good points as bad. Or, for example, if someone has nothing good at all, but someone pushes them to become famous, people will criticize them, and some will say that since they're famous, they must have some good qualities. She's thankful that, as it stands, she's not the latter.
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