[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-1987-my-era":3,"chapter-1987-my-era-1987-my-era-chapter-53":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","1987: My Era",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2259213,4409,"Chapter 53: The Joke","1987-my-era-chapter-53",53,"\u003Cp>Chen Xiaomi wandered in a daze, not knowing how she had returned to Jingcheng.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fortunately, the “royalty” matter gave her an excellent excuse to explain away her failure.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Editor-in-Chief’s office.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Editor-in-Chief Zhou Mingwei asked slowly: “Did ‘Shouhuo’ really open a slot for December?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Xiaomi answered: “I saw it with my own eyes.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhou Mingwei fell silent for a long time, then comforted her: “This isn’t your fault—even if I went, I couldn’t have done anything better. It’s just a pity.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How could it not be a pity?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Like ‘People’s Literature’, ‘Shouhuo’ is a national-level literary journal; for the southern leader to make such a bold move, how exceptional must the novel ‘To Live’ really be?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even a fool could figure it out!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhou Mingwei gripped his fountain pen and asked curiously: “I heard this ‘Shiyue’ is your fellow townsman—what’s he like? How old is he?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though they were fellow townspeople, that bastard wouldn’t care a bit about such ties; I was stupid to think I could play the hometown card.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And now I’ve turned myself into a joke.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For some reason, Chen Xiaomi shook her head: “He asked me to keep it secret.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhou Mingwei asked sharply: “Do you know him?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Xiaomi nodded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing this, Zhou Mingwei felt even more regretful: “Ah, if it weren’t for the royalty issue, with your connection, ‘To Live’ would never have gone to another publisher.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Xiaomi stayed silent, saying nothing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only she knew that unless Zijin helped resolve this grudge, she and Li Heng would never see eye to eye.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Would she ask Zijin for help?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The answer was certainly not.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because she couldn’t bring herself to beg, because her pride wouldn’t allow it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even if Li Heng had risen beyond recognition, as a daughter of the Chen family, she would never bend her knees to please him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing her persistent gloom, Zhou Mingwei mistakenly thought she was upset, and said gently:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Go rest for a while. Remember to keep in touch with Shiyue—maybe one day a collaboration will come.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Xiaomi murmured a vague “Okay” and left.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing her emerge from the office, Zhou Chunlan immediately stepped forward with a feigned concern:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Xiaomi, you’re back? I heard you didn’t get ‘To Live’? So all that excitement was for nothing?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hearing this, Chen Xiaomi wanted to slap her—but with so many people watching, she held back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She sighed: “‘To Live’ is written too well—‘Shouhuo’ offered royalty terms. I couldn’t do anything.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The nearby Miss Liao asked in surprise: “What royalty terms? You don’t mean they pay a percentage based on print runs?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Xiaomi nodded: “Exactly that.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The entire editorial department was stunned—including even the most senior editor, Uncle Dai.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Uncle Dai, who had seen much in his time, wiped his reading glasses and remarked: “If that’s true, the whole industry’s turning upside down. No wonder Xiao Chen came back empty-handed—no one could’ve done better.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Xiaomi glanced at Uncle Dai with gratitude.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shanghai, ‘Shouhuo’ Magazine.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Editor-in-Chief, here’s the proof copy for February. Please review.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Shouhuo’ is a bimonthly; the proofreader brought the upcoming issue for the editor’s approval.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Editor-in-Chief Liao flipped through it casually, then set it aside: “There’s still time before publication. Wait a bit.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The proofreader was baffled—wait? Didn’t they always finalize the layout by now?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Editor-in-Chief Liao sensed her subordinate’s confusion and explained: “Editor Zou just signed a new manuscript. The Master has high hopes for it. Come back tomorrow afternoon.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Whose manuscript could possibly earn Master Ba’s personal endorsement? The proofreader was even more confused.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Evening self-study has three sessions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The first two are math class, but Teacher Pan usually just walks around the classroom, then sits on the podium, letting students study or solve problems on their own.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He doesn’t care whether you’re reviewing math or another subject—as long as you’re studying.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Perhaps because many students in Class 204 once complained about his teaching style, Teacher Pan rarely initiates conversation with students—unless someone raises their hand to ask a question, then he leaves his seat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He is extremely patient; no matter how difficult the problem, if a student doesn’t understand, he will teach it again and again, in different ways, calmly and steadily, spending an entire class period with you until you get it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because of this, Teacher Pan is still quite popular among the girls.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But boys rarely ask him questions—when they truly don’t understand, they usually turn to Liu Yejiang, Zou Ai, or Liu Li first; only if those three can’t help do they finally ask Li Heng.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It’s almost like a hierarchy…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They don’t bother him unless the problem is truly hard, afraid that if Li Heng solves it in seconds, they’ll feel embarrassed and worry about their self-confidence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After the second evening session ended, Teacher Pan hadn’t left yet—he was still discussing a parabola problem with Chen Lijun.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he taught, Teacher Pan suddenly turned to Li Heng: “Li Heng, take a look at this problem.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang Zhiyong had just brought over a pack of tofu skin with chili paste to torment him; Li Heng bit into half a piece, then took the scratch paper with his right hand and glanced at it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He thought to himself: Should he pretend not to know, to spare the teacher’s face?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Or should he write out the solution?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Teacher Pan seemed to sense his hesitation and smiled gently: “Write down your method—let’s see how it differs from ours.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Teacher Pan had no choice—no matter how he taught Chen Lijun, she still didn’t get it; now he wondered if his own solution method was too complicated.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hearing this, Li Heng no longer held back—he drew two auxiliary lines and solved the problem in moments.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Teacher Pan took the paper, analyzed it carefully, then handed it to Chen Lijun: “This method is simpler than mine. Take a look.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Lijun studied the solution twice, then blushed and said: “Teacher, I think I finally understand.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that, many students nearby burst out laughing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seriously!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The teacher spent half a class trying and failing to teach it, yet after two glances at Li Heng’s solution, she instantly got it—this was a blatant slap in the face…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fortunately, Teacher Pan had been humiliated so many times he was used to it—he didn’t care at all, picked up his book, and left the classroom smiling.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After the teacher left, Sun Manning directly asked Chen Lijun: “Why didn’t you just ask Li Heng this problem?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Lijun stared blankly upward, thinking for a moment, then smiled with sleepy eyes: “Back in second year, I asked him a question—he explained the whole solution in under a minute.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My brain couldn’t keep up, but I didn’t want to look stupid, so when he asked if I understood, I just nodded and said ‘yes, yes, yes’—and I never dared ask him another question since.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everyone found Chen Lijun’s naturally clueless, endearing charm hilarious—luckily, she wasn’t truly stupid; aside from math, she did well in all other subjects.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>PS: The neighbor’s dog is too noisy—what to do?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1177,"2026-06-19T15:27:33.982Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","788f07edf18a1632a0259d193c6ae6217f937c4ce20661fa3849fac17787e378","1987-my-era-chapter-54","1987-my-era-chapter-52",713,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002F1987-my-era-cover.jpg"]