"What's wrong with you?" The man held the phone far away from his ear. "Why are you here so late at night? Are you drunk?"
"I didn't drink, your foot-washing maid did," Chu Li said, holding her phone, barefoot, hanging outside the window and stepping on a tile on the roof, which made a creaking sound. "For four or five days, I couldn't find her. On the fifth day, I prayed to the gods and finally she showed up and told me that I would submit the manuscript tonight. Then she continued to be nowhere to be found. When I remembered to look for her, I found that she was saying goodnight to her fans on Weibo. Finally, she disappeared without a trace, without a trace!"
"And then?" The man on the other end of the phone sneered, "You didn't call me just to hear me say 'I told you so' again."
"Yes, didn't I just say that? I'm here to repay you a favor."
"What favor?"
"Have you forgotten how you boarded the plane smoothly that day? After I rummaged through my boxes and drawers to find my ID card, as the sun was setting, it was someone who stood at the door of his house and swore that he owed me a favor. At that time, there seemed to be light in his eyes, and it seemed as if he was stepping on colorful clouds, wearing the cape of a great hero..."
The man held the phone, and the smile on his lips became clearer... He sat on the window sill with his long legs stretched out, and a low voice that seemed to vibrate from his chest sounded lazy: "Oh, who is it?"
On the other end of the phone, the girl's two white legs were hanging outside the window, swaying. Hearing the man's laughter on the other end of the phone, her fingers paused for a moment, and she felt that the laughter was very close, as if she could feel the man's breath... Is the sound transmission effect of mobile phones now too good? Her cheeks flushed slightly, and she took the phone off her ear. Her cool fingertips carefully pinched her earlobe, which was a little hot. She put the phone on her knees, pressed the hands-free button, and cleared her throat: "Who else could it be? Don't lie, Ergou is an eyewitness dog."
"...Banana Man, you——"
"...Don't talk to me in the same tone as my mother, who was teaching me to wear autumn pants. I'm scared!"
Chu Li lifted up a tile with his big toe and retracted his foot. The tile snapped with a clear sound. Chu Li thought, this is probably what is called climbing up to the roof to remove the tiles?
"Teacher Zhechuan, due to the sweet opposite sex attraction, Queen Xu seems to listen to you. Even if she doesn't listen to you, she won't ignore you. So could you please tag her in the QQ group and ask her what's going on? The agency is pushing me hard for a reason. The Luo River Divine Book will be released in October. It's already mid-to-late July, and our cover artist is still playing the role of a missing person, appearing and disappearing like a ghost, and not afraid of boiling water... We asked for the complete manuscript to be submitted to the printing factory for proofing before mid-August!"
"Change."
The man's tone sounded nonchalant and decisive.
Chu Li was silent for a moment, and said in a desperate tone: "But Lao Miao has already made the official announcement. If you don't believe me, go to Weibo and check it out. It's been forwarded 6,000 times. It's as if the whole world knows that you're going to collaborate with Niangniang to produce "Luohe Divine Book" - the leaders of the company are very happy now. After Xu Jiang and Cheng Xin signed a contract with our company, the official Weibo of "Moonlight" hasn't been so lively for a long time."
Chu Li: “……………………and I haven’t felt so desperate in a long time.”
Chu Li: "Do you know what it means to be in a situation where you can't get off a tiger? That's me now."
As Chu Li was talking, he poked at his phone with his mellow fingertips… absentmindedly, he sent a message to Mr. L on his phone to ask him what he was doing, and at the same time, he continued to persevere in checking whether the Goddess of the Moon was online - of course she was still not online. In fact, Chu Li even suspected that he had been blocked.
At this moment, after hearing Chu Li's request, there was silence on the other end of the phone.
Chu Li picked up the phone curiously and put it close to her ear. She was about to ask where Chu Chuan was and whether he had fallen asleep... After a long time, she finally heard a slight rustling sound from the other end of the phone. Chu Li called out "Teacher", and then felt the phone next to her ear vibrate. She screamed "Ah" and took the phone away from her ear in shock!
After taking a closer look, it turned out that a new message suddenly popped up in the group of four people I had just opened:
[Hikawa: @波 Cocoon How is the draft going? I took a look at the rough draft and it seems very good. I look forward to the final draft! 】
Chu Li picked up the phone, then put it down again. After thinking for a while, he said sincerely, "...Thank you, teacher."
Chu Chuan: "Have you knelt down?"
First ceremony black question mark face.
Zhuochuan: "You have to kneel down to thank me."
Chu Li: "..."
The man was sitting by the window, teasing the girl happily. He hadn't had time to think about how she was speechless when the sound of a car engine rang out from the far distance outside the house. His smile faded slightly, and his brown eyes sank in the night. His eyes flickered darkly for a moment. He paused and then put on the same lazy tone as before: "I'll do it for you. Whether it will succeed depends on luck. Don't make a fuss all day long. I'm your author, not your man. I don't have to clean up your mess every day."
"Just speak properly, where does the 'tiantian' come from?"
Zhao Chuan looked at his phone and thought to himself, it's really "Tiantian". From the time you, a fool, started working until now, how much have I helped you, both known and unknown?... Hmm, when I think about it this way, it seems that I am really as kind-hearted as Guanyin Bodhisattva. Don't worship the gods during the New Year this year, just burn incense and worship me.
Just as he was thinking about this, he heard the sound of conversation and footsteps in the corridor outside. At the same time as the person outside knocked on the door and pushed it open, the man said "hang up" to the girl on the other end of the phone and hung up the phone. He put down the phone and remained sitting on the window sill without moving, looking at the middle-aged man who walked in from outside.
The person who came had a pair of brown eyes exactly like him.
...In fact, his eyes and facial features are surprisingly similar, but the wrinkles on both sides of his nose have deepened due to his age, making his appearance more serious and stable - he wears a fitted shirt and suit pants, and after a day's work, the shirt is still wrinkle-free, and the belt is tied around his waist without any care, just like a standard veteran cadre...
Day Gu Xuan.
Vice Chairman of S Province Writers Association, born in 1966, worked at People's Daily, C City, S Province in 1987, joined the Chinese Writers Association in 1998, and became Vice Chairman of S Province Writers Association in 2001, and a member of the 10th National Committee of the Chinese Writers Association. His representative works include Red Eagle, Sunset on the Battlefield, When the National Anthem Sounds, and Years Like Songs.
——When he stood there, looking at Zhuchuan silently, Zhuchuan always felt like he was looking into a magic mirror of several decades later.
It has always been like this.
It has been like this for nearly twenty-seven years.
"...Every time I see you, I will give up the idea that I might not be your biological child." Leaning against the window, the man tilted his head and raised the corners of his lips slightly, "Dad."
"What are you doing sitting by the window? Be careful not to fall down. Come down." Zhuo Guxuan obviously didn't bother to pay attention to his son's teasing. "Who are you talking to on the phone? It's rare for me to hear you talk seriously."
Zhuo Chuan wanted to say, "I'm not a three-year-old child or a cat that climbs high. How can I fall out of the window?" Helplessly, he could only push up his long legs and put his hands in his trouser pockets to answer his father's question: "The editor of Yuanyue Publishing House called me and said that there was a problem with the cover of "Luohe Divine Book"..."
Zhu Guxuan waved his hand and interrupted Zhu Chuan: "Old Xia called me a few days ago and told me about this. He asked me to find a calligrapher to write a piece of calligraphy for you, which will be the cover of your new book."
Chu Chuan: “…I don’t even know about this.”
Asking a calligrapher to write a title for a novel that is mainly aimed at readers between the ages of 13 and 30! This is an impulse to fuck with the style of the genre, right? Is it okay?
Zhuo Guxuan said in a low and solemn voice: "I found it for you, and I have already written the letter and sent it off - if it is done, there is nothing else to say, but I will come to you if it is not done!"
Zhuchuan Erzhang was confused and a little bewildered: "...Should I say: Thank you, Dad?"
"Forget it," Zhuo Guxuan said as he turned and walked out. "Your mother asked me to ask you to go downstairs to drink some sugar water and to check on you. She also told us not to quarrel. I have completed the above tasks. Come down."
Zhuchuan: “…”
The man stuffed his phone into his trouser pocket and restrained his usual frivolity and arrogance in front of his father. He lowered his eyes and even sneered when his father mentioned "no quarreling"... He followed his father downstairs, and halfway down, the person walking in front suddenly stopped -
Zhuo Guxuan turned around and said to his son behind him, "I thought you still wouldn't come to this Writers Association meeting."
Zhuo Chuan: "Surprised or not? Unexpected or not?"
Zhuo Guxuan seemed too lazy to pay attention to his scolding tone: "I'm curious, what made you change your mind?"
"..." Zhuchuan thought for a moment, "I am the editor."
"You edit?"
"She told me that people can escape for a while, but they can't hide forever - if you don't like it, do it. If you can't do it, die. The winner is the king and the loser is the enemy. There is no such thing as mediocrity."
Upon hearing this, Zhuan Guxuan looked at his son who was standing on a slightly higher step. His brown eyes, which were the same as his, but a little cloudy due to his age, stared at the young man behind him without any hesitation, and he did not hide the slight surprise in his eyes...
But it was only for a moment.
He was silent for a moment, and when he spoke again, his voice was smooth as a rock: "You think you're going to the battlefield just to hold a writers' association meeting? It's your seniors, your teachers, who watched you grow up wearing open-crotch pants—"
"My mom said I've never worn open-crotch pants."
"Shut up - when you sit there among so many people, who will know who you are... and you think you are a piece of cake? The meaning of the doctrine of the mean is profound and complicated, do you understand?"
As Zhuo Guxuan spoke, he turned around and continued walking forward. Zhuo Chuan had obviously guessed that he would react like this, and it was completely expected. He pursed his lips nonchalantly.
Just when I thought the matter was over, I didn't expect that amid the sound of slippers clacking on the stairs, the middle-aged man walking in front of me suddenly added: "But your editor is right... Congratulations, after all these years, you finally met an editor who can teach you how to be a good man."
Zhuchuan: “…………………………………………ah?”
A mentor and a helpful friend?
who?
A banana?
This black humor is amazing. Old man, are you trying to transform yourself into a Lu Xun-type writer?
Zhu Chuan scratched his ears, his whole body was in a daze of "excuse me". He was so immersed in the role that he almost forgot that this was the first time since he was fifteen that he and his father did not quarrel every time they met. This maintained the precious and rare relationship of their Zhu family for more than ten years.
A peaceful night.
…
Three days later.
City G.
The Writers Association Conference of Zhechuan was being prepared and would begin that evening, but Chu Li was already in dire straits - it all started on Wednesday afternoon when Chief Editor Xia personally sent a piece of calligraphy as the title for the cover of "The Divine Book of Luo River". The old gentleman who wrote the title was a serious calligrapher, a veteran artist in the calligraphy circle of S Province. Chu Li's hands were shaking when he unfolded the title, wondering how much the hell this was worth?
Later, I learned that this old-school artist-type guy was a close friend of Chuan Chuan's father, and he didn't want a penny for this letter, which made me even more panicked.
How much is Chu Chuan's father's face worth? !
Yuanyue Society shamelessly went to Zhu Guxuan to ask for his calligraphy. It seems that when he said he wanted to do a good job on "Luohe Divine Book", he was not just talking: just this one piece of calligraphy could publish an 800-word long Weibo post with the positive energy title of "New Literature and Old Schools Coexisting in Harmony"...
The readers will be even happier. Like Chu Li, they certainly don’t know what is so good about this calligraphy. But they will soon know, like Chu Li, that this calligraphy is the work of a calligrapher recognized by a formal calligraphy association, which can be found on Baidu. Then they will kneel down in silence to show their respect, and finally hand over their wallets obediently…
"I'll ask the graphic designer to scan the documents right away..." Chu Li held the calligraphy and painting carefully.
"Well, that's fine," said Editor-in-Chief Xia. "Since you asked for such a good cover title, when we design the cover, we know that the title must be large. A large title is intuitive and can attract readers. The picture you asked for is not the focus... By the way, where is the cover background picture you asked for? Open it and let me see what it looks like."
“………………”
Chu Li was dumbfounded.
I didn't realize how the topic changed so quickly.
Carefully placing the inscription aside to avoid it being damaged when Teacher Xia beat her, Chu Li took a deep breath, then trembled under the teacher's questioning gaze and said, "The artist only showed me one of the sketches of one of the people, and then I couldn't contact her. I wanted to change the person, but the legal department said that the contract has been finalized and the deposit has been paid. The official Weibo of Moonlight magazine has also officially announced this cooperation..."
At the end, Chu Li wanted to kneel down and kowtow to Teacher Xia.
Teacher Xia fell silent.
Then that day, Chu Li witnessed what it was like for an educated old man to fuck someone, and experienced it personally, including three of his teammates: A Xiang, Lao Miao, and Yu Yao.
...Speaking of which, Yu Yao is really pitiful. She didn't commit any mistakes, but she was busy following her men around everywhere to shoot Emma.
Teacher Xia criticized the inefficiency of the editorial department of Moonlight magazine, and finally left with a sentence: "If you don't get the finished illustrations this week, don't do this book." After that, he walked away... Watching Teacher Xia's back as he left, Chu Li asked Yu Yao quietly: "What is it like to lead a group of mentally retarded subordinates?"
Yu Yao: "To be honest, although I know this is inevitable, sometimes I really want to drag you to fill the sea."
Chu Li: "..."
Chu Li quietly pulled out a chair and sat down, preparing to urge Empress Zhu to submit her manuscript for the hundredth time. Unexpectedly, as soon as she sat down, she saw Empress Zhu's portrait shaking, and she sent a huge offline drawing file.
At that time, Chu Li thought that he was hallucinating because of Teacher Xia's scolding.
It seems that Zhuchuan's urging for submission is useful? With a heartbroken heart, Chuli clicked on the file...
Then I was so scared that I almost sat on the floor.
——The picture that Niangniang sent to me is a finished draft. It has been outlined, colored, and the background has been made. The overall color structure of the picture has also been adjusted. The completion rate is perfect and it is a very beautiful finished draft.
The young man in white sat upright on a rock, lowering his head to wipe his long sword; behind him, a tall and burly man with white hair and red eyes stood behind him, holding his sleeves, wanting to say something but stopping himself; behind the two men, leaves and flowers were falling, the sky was blue, and a beast totem could be vaguely seen in the clouds, which was exactly the beast head described by the white-haired and red-eyed man in the text...
The whole painting has a perfect artistic conception. The characters are not only delicate and handsome, but also have dramatic expressions in their eyes. In Chu Li's impression, there are only a handful of domestic painters who can achieve "drama in the characters' eyes".
——Honestly, just looking at the pictures, the three thousand dollars is worth it, and it is enough to make people suddenly understand why this JuJu has so many fans despite all the troubles she has.
The painting is really good.
But at this moment Chu Li was not happy at all. She could even say that she was more frightened than surprised... She called Ah Xiang over, and then the two of them stared at the painting in a daze.
First, the overall structure of this painting is right-facing, so the title can only be placed on the left side of the picture;
Secondly, because the composition is biased to the right, there is no possibility of a double-page spread, and all the layout styles that I had thought of before had to be redone;
Third, redraw it. Not to mention that there is only one picture now, and there is no draft yet. And according to the way the Queen of the Coil evaporates every now and then, it is impossible to make it to the print in mid-August and the October Book Fair. If they can't make it to the Book Fair, Teacher Xia will twist their heads off and throw them into the recycling station.
Finally, there was not much space left for a title on the entire image, which meant that the book title had to be smaller than expected—
So here comes the problem.
The bigger the calligraphy is, the more majestic and beautiful it looks.
Moreover, Teacher Xia had just set a flag about five minutes ago. His original words were: We have asked for such a good title, so when we design the cover, we will know that the title must be big. A big title is intuitive and can attract readers. The picture you arranged is not the focus.
Chu Li was silent for a moment, then said, “……………………………………Really, in this situation, I choose death.”
Ah Xiang also spoke faintly: "……………………Take me with you to the underworld, don't leave me alone to suffer in the hell of the human world."
…
That evening.
City C.
The S Province Writers Association Conference was successfully held. Mr. Zhuo Guxuan, the father of Zhuo Chuan, delivered an important speech at the conference on the difference between modern and traditional literary works. He emphasized the importance of mutual integration and tolerance between the two under the changing times. He stressed that modern literature should not just please readers, but should be created based on in-depth research and the basic principle of "using literature to convey the truth"...
While Mr. Zha Guxuan was speaking, his son Zha Chuan, a popular modern novelist who had listened to his words for more than ten years and was fascinated by them, sat shoulder to shoulder with his fellow sufferer Jiang Yucheng, listening to his teachings.
Jiang Yucheng nudged Zhaochuan with his shoulder: "I didn't expect you to come. Aren't you determined not to come even if you're beaten to death?"
Zhuochuan leaned back against the chair, his expression indifferent: "Escape is shameful and useless."
Jiang Yucheng smiled and said, "I haven't had any arguments with your dad in the past two days."
Chu Chuan: "No, we have a tacit understanding that we can avoid dialogue if we can. After trying to forget that the other person is in the same industry as us, the father-son relationship is still harmonious."
Jiang Yucheng: "..."
Looking at the man sitting next to him, stretching his legs and lifting his chair to move forward in a nonchalant manner, he looked indifferent. Although he would occasionally frown and show resistance in his eyes when he heard words like "a novel should not be based on pleasing the reader as the first element"...
But overall, it is much better than the last time he attended the Writers Association meeting a few years ago.
Jiang Yucheng moved his lips and was about to ask what kind of magical oral liquid Zhuchuan had taken to be so calm and peaceful, but at this moment he saw the man fiddling with his phone under the table -
Zhuochuan opened Q, and then saw someone's dozen or so continuous bombardments.
[The Monkey's Navy: "Picture"]
[The Monkey’s hired navy: You took the trouble to send me this picture. Is it pretty? I think it is pretty. It is the protagonist in my mind. ]
[The monkey hired a navy: But it was useless. ]
[The water army hired by the monkey: right composition, can’t be flipped horizontally, not enough space for the title, and the commercial image used as the cover is being drawn as a promotional poster - I only saw this picture twice, the first time was a line drawing of one of the two characters, and the second time was a 100% completed draft! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ]
[The navy hired by the monkey: Damn you, are there any illustrators who don’t let the editor read their manuscripts? ? ? ! ! ! ! ! ]
[The naval forces hired by Monkey: Teacher Xia just said that the book title should be big and powerful, and then he sent me a picture with a title that he had written but he didn’t even know where to put the author’s name? ! ! ]
[The Monkey’s hired navy: I’m going crazy, seriously, my hairline has gone up one millimeter.]
[The Monkey’s hired naval forces: But the picture is indeed beautiful, maybe the Queen of the Moon truly loves you—the degree of completion and care of the thousands of dollars of publishing cover drafts is on the same level as the tens of thousands of dollars of film, television and game commercial drafts. I feel like I’m in two completely different worlds right now.]
[The Monkey's hired naval forces: I'm so angry. Why are there people in this world who are talented but have no character and make me hate them so much!!!]
The man raised the corners of his lips.
【Zhuchuan: You are complimenting her. 】
[The monkey's hired navy: Hey, are you here? ]
[The navy hired by the monkey: Isn't it a meeting? ]
[The Monkey's hired naval officer: I really didn't exaggerate her. Do you think this kind of person is sick? If she has the ability, why not just draw a picture that everyone will like? What is she doing? 】
[The Monkey's hired trolls: Ergou canned food is almost sold out. I searched the title on Taobao and found the next one. One can of it is enough for me to eat steamed buns for two months for lunch… I can't afford it, so go buy it yourself.]
After complaining to the other party, he started to grumble about his daily life... Thinking of her holding her phone and searching for canned food, her eyes widened when she saw the price, and she silently closed the page and hesitated -
The smile on the man's lips widened.
At the same time, he caught a glimpse of a familiar Q avatar out of the corner of his eye. Jiang Yucheng stretched his neck and asked, "Little Monkey is looking for you?"
"Tsk," Zhuchuan suddenly turned his phone to the side, "What are you looking at? What are you looking at? You don't have an editor to talk to you..."
"No, let me see what he said. He was smiling so happily..."
"No."
"Take a look."
"You go."
"Oops..."
【The Chinese Writers Network once published a report, Is Internet literature literature? What kind of literature is Internet literature? ——People have different opinions on this. Because some works called "Internet literature" are indeed still a little far from the quality and appearance of "literature", that is, they are not up to the height and precision of "literature" (*Original text excerpted from the Chinese Writers Network)... Mr. Zhao Chuan, seat 2, row 3, and Mr. Jiang Yucheng, seat 3, row 3, remained silent during the meeting, what were you two doing? 】
On the stage, teacher Zhao Guxuan's sudden call of the name made the two young men who were having a great time below freeze in their tracks.
Zhuchuan cleared his throat, snatched his phone from Jiang Yucheng's hand, kicked him under the table, and then stuffed the phone back into his pocket.
In front of all the senior colleagues, the two of them put away the stern look on their faces, sat up straight, lowered their heads, and looked honestly and repentant, like two elementary school students who were called out for making trouble in class.
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