Wenhao 1979, starting with contributing to Story Club

Chapter 11 Revealing One's Identity

"Editor-in-Chief Ru, I am 23 years old this year, born in the Year of the Monkey. My identity should be that of an educated youth sent to the countryside during the Cultural Revolution, but due to some events last winter, I can't remember many things. I don't even remember my parents at all, nor do I remember what happened before last winter..."

Yu Zhen suddenly dropped a bombshell, leaving everyone at the dinner table completely stunned.

He mysteriously transmigrated to the late 1970s, and the question of his identity remains a major concern.

Previously, in the rural areas of Northwest China, he could pretend to have amnesia and get away with it.

After all, rural areas are small, and one's social circle is limited to a radius of ten or five miles. If one is determined to settle down in the countryside and become a farmer, continuing to pretend to have amnesia can perfectly cover everything up.

No one will take it seriously and try to find out who he really is.

Now things are different. I've already come to Shanghai, and I've taken a steady first step in settling down in this big city.

However, if they want to take advantage of this invitation to Shanghai and stay in the city, they need to get more external help. The first problem to solve is undoubtedly to have a legitimate identity that is justifiable on the surface.

Bringing up such questions out of the blue at the dinner table is quite abrupt.

After all, it was the first time everyone had met, and no one was really familiar with anyone else.

They were complete strangers to each other.

But precisely because of this, he used the opportunity to directly address his identity issue and reveal his amnesia from last winter. This timing of revealing his identity was the most appropriate and reasonable.

To some extent, this also provided the most fundamental psychological motivation for his behavior of submitting 25 high-quality works to "Story Club".

A virtuous person is open and magnanimous, while a petty person is always anxious and worried.

If you keep hiding it, or wait until you've made a name for yourself before bringing up this question, it's bound to give people the unpleasant feeling that you've been deeply schemed against and used.

Now is the time when everyone's relationship is still so-so.

Although the sudden revelation of his identity might seem abrupt, people are more surprised than anything else and tend to perceive him as sincere and honest.

This act of revealing one's identity actually attracts more people's closeness and concern, and subconsciously creates a habitual perception that if there is any way to help, one will definitely do so.

Sure enough, after a brief moment of bewilderment...

At the dinner table, the focus of everyone's conversation naturally shifted to their concern about Yu Zhen's past and identity. Everyone was eager to find out what had happened to him.

Fortunately, similar scenes had already played out countless times last winter.

He has repeatedly and painfully recalled his past to local villagers in Northwest China, commune police officers, and even to cultural center staff from the county who came to learn from him after he gained some fame in poetry circles.

Together with the three editors-in-chief and a trainee editor named Xiao Wu, we relived the "painful past" and evoked many sighs and reflections.

Finally, Yu Zhen, seeing that he had already gained some ground, awkwardly laughed and said:

"We met for the first time because of our literary creation. I am truly sorry that I did not talk to you about literature, but instead poured out my life story to you. Please forgive me for making you laugh."

The matter concerning me is such that the police haven't come to a conclusion yet, so it's best not to make it a public scandal.

So please keep this a secret and don't tell anyone.

Actually, it's really hard to explain to you all that I suddenly developed creative abilities in my brain after I suffered partial amnesia last winter.

I really shouldn't have carelessly shared my background with everyone, causing you all trouble.

"Xiao Yu, please don't blame yourself like that!"

"That's right. Your willingness to be honest with us about these private topics shows your trust in us. How is that causing any trouble?"

"Yes, yes, Xiao Yu, don't put too much pressure on yourself. Since we've become connected through your literary creations, and we're sharing this meal today, from now on, Shanghai Literature and Art Publishing House will be like your second home..."

The three editors-in-chief took turns expressing their strong support.

Xiao Wu, the intern editor, wasn't in a position to express any opinion, but at that moment, he was deeply moved.

For a fleeting moment, Editor Xiao Wu almost blurted out that she wanted to take Yu Zhen home. She was an only child, and she was so impulsive that she wanted to "catch" a son-in-law to solve Yu Zhen's identity problem.

After the issue of their background was made clear, the pace of conversation at the dinner table was noticeably less driven by self-interest than before.

The three editors were originally eager to divide up the 25 articles.

In addition, several of the works selected by Harvest had no problems with their storytelling, but Li Xiaoli wanted to refine them further and offered some suggestions for improvement on the literary quality and intellectual depth of the works, asking Yu Zhen to revise the manuscripts.

Now, she's a little unsure about the timing.

Ru Zhijuan now shares the same concerns and would like to offer some suggestions for revising the manuscripts, striving to make the selected articles more in line with the style of the journal "Shanghai Literature".

But now, after hearing Yu Zhen reveal his identity and talk about his creative abilities, and after being mysteriously injured and suffering partial amnesia, those stories naturally came to mind. The implication is that even if the manuscript is revised according to the requirements, it is not certain that it can be revised better.

Moreover, after hearing Yu Zhen reveal his identity.

How could they still bear to exploit them like this?

On the contrary, there was no such problem with He Chengwei, the editor-in-chief of "Story Club".

All 25 articles met the standards of "Story Club".

Without the interference of the two sister journals, the only thing he wanted to discuss when he urgently invited Yu Zhen to Shanghai was to coordinate the publication order and timing of the articles, and whether it was possible to establish a long-term and stable column contributor relationship after meeting Yu Zhen in person. If it worked out, his next step was to apply for the bimonthly "Story Club" to be changed to a monthly, or even a semi-monthly, publication.

"Xiao Yu, after the local villagers revived you last winter, did you go to the hospital for a brain examination?"

Also, throughout the entire winter after you woke up, did you experience any discomfort in your head?

Here's what I'll do: I'll try to find someone to help you contact a specialist hospital in Shanghai so you can get the necessary tests done.

"Our health is the foundation of everything. Let's not rush to finalize your novel manuscript. We can discuss everything further after your medical check-up. What do you think?"

"Editor-in-Chief He is right. Xiao Yu, you should settle in and get a full medical check-up at the hospital first!"

"Yes, yes, let's do a physical exam first. We'll also mobilize our friends and family to urge the relevant departments in Shaanxi Province to conduct a more comprehensive and in-depth verification of your status as an educated youth. How could such a talented and promising young man become a missing person so easily? The local police in Shaanxi Province are too irresponsible..."

Three influential editors-in-chief of literary journals in Shanghai have all expressed their willingness to help Yu Zhen resolve his identity issue.

Yu Zhen felt a sudden unease; he was feeling guilty!