N-M Chapter 51 A good wife
Chapter 51 A good wife
I went upstairs and entered the house.
The landline phone hanging on the living room wall rang at just the right moment.
Yu Zhen gestured for the three women to make themselves at home, then stepped forward and picked up the phone.
The call was from Xiao Wu, the editor at the publishing house, asking how he felt after the college entrance exam, whether he was going to go back to work, or whether he was going to take a few days off, or whether he had something more important to do, and whether he might not be able to return to the publishing house for the next ten days or half a month.
Tut tut...
Listen carefully to what is said but not what is implied.
Editor Xiao Wu's tone on the phone was as friendly as ever, but it was quite obvious from the pauses and rhythms in his words that he swallowed back many of the things he was about to say.
As people often say, they don't mean what they say.
This is most likely the current state of Editor Wu.
Obviously, it couldn't be clearer that Editor Wu was relaying a message for the editorial leadership, subtly trying to find out what was going on!
In North America, five publishers suddenly appeared, all vying to sign the overseas rights to Yu Zhen's next science fiction sequel.
As this matter continues to ferment and spread, it has caused an undercurrent of unrest not only in Shanghai's literary circles.
The entire domestic literary circle is closely following the developments with a mix of complex emotions.
The publishing house has been getting a lot of calls lately, with people wanting to hear any juicy gossip or rumors.
What kind of rumor is it?!
For example, could the five publishers from North America be interested in delving deeper into the Chinese literary scene, gathering other types of Chinese stories besides science fiction, and trying to get them into the North American book market? They could cast a few lines first, and if any works catch their eye, they might become very popular with the American audience!
After all, it's about earning foreign exchange for the country!
They often receive millions of dollars in royalties...!!!
Writers can also generate foreign exchange for the country. Such a wonderful thing, gaining both fame and fortune, who wouldn't want to be the second, the third... or even the Nth?
Given the chance, anyone who jumps into this lucrative opportunity would be so happy they'd wake up laughing in their dreams.
The capitalist world is indeed one where everything revolves around money, and money is the sole measure of worth.
What else can Yu's two science fiction stories offer besides their rich imagination, exciting plots, and novel and interesting technological concepts?
The writing is terrible.
It has absolutely no ideological or educational significance, and is completely devoid of any educational value.
As for the level of literary achievement...
That's even further behind the average level of the domestic literary scene, isn't it?
Look around, the number of people suffering from sour grapes like this in literary circles is increasing day by day.
It is under such complex and contradictory psychological impact.
In literary circles like those in Beijing, Shaanxi, and Sichuan, where there is a rich literary heritage, the people in those circles all have a "want and want" attitude, a twisted desire to reach for the heavens.
Out of respect for editor Xiao Wu, Yu Zhen didn't expose the sour grapes' tricks behind the scenes.
I chatted casually with Editor Wu for a few minutes, but not too much. I mentioned that I didn't know much about the arrival of the five North American publishers, and that we would discuss everything else after I had spoken with the publishers. Then I hung up the phone.
By this time, the three women had finished touring the various parts of the room.
To be honest, the Gong sisters were the ones whose emotions fluctuated the most. Gong Ying's emotional shocks today need no further explanation, and Gong Xue was also quite uneasy and somewhat restless.
To put it simply, before this, Gong Xue only regarded Yu Zhen as an ordinary friend with whom she had a lot in common and could talk to easily.
Well, to be honest a little bit, they are definitely a little bit better than ordinary friends.
To put it simply, we met by chance when I went home two months ago, and we felt we got along very well and were quite compatible.
Urban young women all yearn for free love and to find their Prince Charming through their own efforts. Since both are unmarried, they plan to give it a try and see if things can naturally progress to a deeper friendship.
Before that, she had only heard Yu Zhen introduce himself, saying that he was a young writer who had just entered the industry and worked at a literary publishing house, while also actively preparing for the college entrance examination in the summer.
In short, a sunny, cheerful, and positive image of a returned educated youth was very appealing to her.
Before today, Gong Xue was genuinely unaware that Yu Zhen, this young writer, was actually the same Yu Zhen who had recently become a household name in China.
This is a bit of a mouthful, and it takes some thought to say.
The reason I didn't associate Yu Zhen with the then-famous writer Yu Zhen before is that...
Aside from never having seen what the real writer Yu looks like.
The popular saying about the writer Yu is that he is a weathered, aging man, a former educated youth, nearing thirty.
He was able to submit 25 rich and diverse works to "Story Club" magazine in one go.
In any case, it definitely shouldn't be someone who looks like a young person.
In addition, after Yu Zhen settled down in Shanghai, he had no worries about food and drink, and his dishes were oily. Unlike the grueling winter in the rural Qinxi, his body was rapidly repairing and evolving towards perfection. He was like a young man who was getting more and more youthful as he lived, as if he was aging in reverse.
Even though she's 23 years old, she's a standard post-23.
Judging from his current appearance, after living in the big city for half a year, he has become more and more youthful and energetic. If you said he was 18 years old and had just come of age, a lot of people would believe it without a doubt.
It is this kind of preconceived notion that, just like with his own sister, he never realized that this other is the same as that other.
Her being able to return home today wasn't because she had nothing better to do.
The filming wasn't finished yet, so she took a special leave to go home, just so that the two of them could meet up as soon as Yu Zhen finished his college entrance exam, chat, and express their concern for each other's studies.
She has to rush back to the film set that night.
Who would have thought that when my sister and I went downstairs, we would suddenly hear Yu Zhen's second self-introduction, and we would realize that this Yu was the same Yu as that Yu, and that Yu Zhen was indeed the famous writer Yu who was known far and wide.
This is the result...
It's quite abrupt, isn't it?
"Wow, Mr. Yu, all those unopened envelopes in your room, are they all letters from readers?!"
After visiting the "Dragon's Nest," Gong Ying couldn't help but exclaim in amazement.
She was quite good at adjusting herself and quickly put aside the distracting thoughts of having been completely defeated by her competitor, Selena von.
He didn't even bother thinking about anything else. At this moment, he looked at Yu Zhen with an eager expression, his eyes hinting that he was just waiting for Yu Zhen to say something like, "Do you want to help me open the reader's letter?"
As the saying goes, a wise person doesn't fall in love.
Once you fall in love, your IQ really drops to zero.
At this moment, Gong Ying's only thought was to do her best to help Yu Zhen and do what she could to make sure she wasn't completely useless in the eyes of the great writer Yu.
Yu Zhen could easily see through the girl's mindset.
He waved his hand. "You're curious about what readers will write in their letters, aren't you? Haha, since you're curious, just go and find out for yourself! ~~"
Gong Ying immediately cheered, "Writer Yu, are you serious? You really want me to help you open readers' letters? Then I certainly won't be polite!~~"
Seeing her younger sister happily burying herself in the pile of letters, Gong Xue simply put aside her apprehension and picked up an unopened reader's letter, jokingly saying, "Perfect, I'll experience the life of a great writer too. Hopefully, it won't interfere with your work!"
Selena Feng, standing by, offered timely assistance, "How could that be? What Writer Yu needs most right now is a trustworthy and capable wife. He's overjoyed that you sisters are willing to help him!"
Gong Ying had already opened and read through a reader's letter when she heard Selena's words, and immediately blurted out without thinking:
"Writer Yu, if you really need a capable wife, just ask me! I can absolutely be your capable wife, really, really. If I can't manage alone, there's my second sister, right? The two of us sisters can be your capable wives, Writer Yu, and we can absolutely meet any of your needs..."
Hearing her sister's increasingly nonsensical words, Gong Xue's ears turned bright red with embarrassment, and she desperately wanted to rush over and cover her sister's mouth.
This brat, what kind of nonsense is she spouting?!
Yu Zhen coughed violently, choking on his saliva: "Mom, Gong, should we believe you or not?!"