Chapter 127: The Brave One Swaps for the Black Cat (3500 Monthly Tickets Bonus)

Wei Anping announced: “This year, we’re spending New Year’s at our hometown, Gouzitun!”

Xi Zi and Le Le looked puzzled; they had only heard their father mention it but had never been there.

Xi Zi asked first: “Is it fun there?”

Wei Anping said: “It’s super fun—you can poke wasp nests, pick watermelons in the fields, and fish in the river—all things I did as a kid!”

Le Le calmly replied: “Watermelons only grow in summer, and the river’s frozen now—how are we supposed to fish?”

Le Le had always been smart; Wei Ming chuckled: “You’re right, picking watermelons and fishing are summer activities, but winter has its own fun—like taking the hunting dogs to catch rabbits and wild chickens in the fields, or drilling a hole in the ice and fishing through it.”

Hearing this, Xi Zi’s eyes lit up—he wanted to try it!

It wasn’t just Wei Ming boasting; for a city kid of this era who’d barely traveled, the countryside was basically a giant amusement park.

But Le Le whispered: “Why catch bunnies? They’re so cute.”

Wei Ming patted her head: “You’ve never tasted your aunt’s spicy rabbit head.”

Saying this, both Wei Ming and Wei Anping swallowed hard—they were already eager to get home.

“Alright, listen up,” Lu Xiaoyan said, “I’ve got good news too—Teacher Gu called me today and said they’ve found a recording studio—Le Le can go tomorrow!”

Then Lu Xiaoyan explained the recording details to Wei Ming in full.

“Besides Le Le, Teacher Gu also picked three other child singers—each will sing one song, and the last one will be a group duet. The recording venue and equipment are provided by the Central TV’s Galaxy Youth Arts Troupe, and they’ll even supply a backing band. They’ve already picked these songs—they might use them in future performances.”

These songs were indeed perfect for the Youth Arts Troupe.

Wei Ming wasn’t part of the cultural troupe system; if these songs weren’t useful to them, private recording would cost a fortune—and you wouldn’t make any money from it.

This was already a great outcome—you’d even get connected to CCTV, and even if you paid yourself, they’d still use your songs whenever they wanted.

Hearing Le Le would record tomorrow, Lu Xiaoyan suggested everyone clap for her.

Then she glanced dismissively at Xi Zi: “Still thinking about spicy rabbit head? You look like a rabbit head yourself.”

Lu Xiaoyan asked Wei Ming: “Can you go tomorrow?”

Wei Ming shook his head regretfully: “I can’t—I’m on my last day at work. I’ve got to see out my final shift.”

But Teacher Gu was there, and she fully understood his musical intent; with such an excellent music producer, Wei Ming had zero worries.

Then Wei Ming told Lu Xiaoyan: “I’ve also contacted Pacific Audio in Guangzhou—if they’re interested in these songs, there’s a chance they’ll release them on cassette tapes.”

Lu Xiaoyan glanced at the family’s tape recorder: “That’s perfect—now we can listen to Le Le’s songs anytime we want!”

Le Le, the little warm jacket, chimed in: “Mom, whenever you want to hear my songs, I’ll sing them for you!”

Lu Xiaoyan immediately kissed her twice—her baby was so good.

After dinner, Wei Anping put the kids to bed, while Lu Xiaoyan and Wei Ming chatted in the living room about the creation of “Black Cat Inspector.”

“I love ‘Black Cat Inspector.’ I’m sure kids will love it too—how did you come up with this story?”

“I’ve had this idea for a while. When I patrolled Yan Nan Garden, I always saw lots of cats fighting mice—it seemed like a great story, so I created the concept of a forest guardian and mouse exterminator.”

Wei Ming said: “But I want to turn this series into an animal science-themed story. Science isn’t my strength, so I often browse books like ‘100,000 Whys’ at the library to fill the gaps.”

It was true—he wanted to write it well, didn’t want to waste such a great topic, so he prepared thoroughly before putting pen to paper.

Zhu Zhixiang’s original was like an appendix—later it dragged in aliens, and the battlefield turned into outer space; it felt like the author just gave up.

Dai Ti Lang’s animated version, due to internal and external studio pressures, was abruptly canceled after five episodes, leaving only the four words “Stay tuned for next time”—a promise that never came.

Hearing Wei Ming’s concept, Lu Xiaoyan sighed: “If you write it like this, the novel will be very long!”

Wei Ming nodded: “When the magazine stops letting me serialize it, I’ll just publish it as books—one volume at a time. I’ve got enough stories for dozens.”

There were plenty of interesting animal stories; Wei Ming already had at least a dozen outlines—even one per month would last over a year.

Lu Xiaoyan paused, then said: “I think this story fits better with our ‘Children’s Literature’ readership, while ‘The Brave’s Game’ suits the teen audience of ‘Youth Literature.’”

Wei Ming thought about it—he agreed: “Should we swap them? The March issue hasn’t been laid out yet?” This idea was bold; Lu Xiaoyan thought for a moment: “Leave the manuscript with me—I’ll talk to the new editor tomorrow. If he agrees, I’ll mail ‘The Brave’s Game’ to ‘Youth Literature’ in Shanghai; if not, I’ll send ‘Black Cat Inspector’ instead.”

Wei Ming nodded in agreement.

The next day, while Wei Ming was at Peking University, Lu Xiaoyan returned to the magazine office and mailed the original manuscript and illustrations of “The Brave’s Game” to “Youth Literature” in Shanghai, keeping “Black Cat Inspector” for “Children’s Literature.” According to Xiao Ming’s plan, they wouldn’t run out of manuscripts for at least two years.

As the manuscript of “The Brave’s Game” set off for Shanghai, Gong Ying had just returned to Shanghai after more than twenty hours of travel.

Snow-sister had considered saying goodbye to Wei Ming and comforting him in person about his heartbreak, but her unit had booked her ticket and left no time for a visit to Peking University, so she gave up.

This time back in Shanghai, she wouldn’t return to Beijing anytime soon—after the New Year, she’d head straight to the northwest to experience life and wait for her scenes to shoot; she didn’t know when she’d see Wei Ming again.

“Mom!”

Gong Ying had surprised them—she hadn’t told anyone she was coming, leaving her parents and siblings stunned.

Her mother Zhuang Che, seeing her return so early, sighed: “Are you leaving again in a few days? Are we not going to spend New Year’s together this year?”

Last year was the same—she came back ten days before New Year’s, stayed a few days, then returned to Beijing, only to break her wrist soon after. Her family was far away in Shanghai; she didn’t tell them at first, and only revealed the truth after recovering, making her mother cry for days.

But Gong Ying laughed: “No, this time I’m staying home for New Year’s—I’ll leave after the holiday.”

!

Gong’s father was surprised: “Did your unit actually do something nice this time?”

Gong Ying shook her head and asked: “Have you heard that Director Xie Jin is directing ‘The Herdsman’?”

Her older brother: “Of course—Shanghai Film and Beijing Film Studios are both fighting over it!”

Her younger sister Gong Ying suddenly jumped in: “Is that the ‘The Herdsman’ written by Wei Ming the writer?”

Gong Ying used to tease her sister about Wei the writer, but after the whole country learned Wei Ming was only eighteen, she’d learned restraint—she realized she’d been matchmaking wrongly.

Not even with her sister—let alone herself.

Gong Ying nodded: “I’ve been chosen as the lead actress.”

“Ah!”

The whole family was stunned—including her brother and sister-in-law. As Shanghai locals, they knew Director Xie Jin’s power well; Chen Chong, now a superstar, had emerged from his films.

After shock came joy—they even saw in this a chance for Gong Ying to stay in Shanghai. If this film succeeded, Shanghai Film Studio would surely find a way to keep such a talented actress—then the whole family could reunite!

And Gong Ying, knowing her sister and Wei the writer were old acquaintances, looked uncertain. When her sister returned to the room with her, she couldn’t help asking: “Sis, was it the director who picked you—or the original author?”

Gong Ying felt a flicker of panic but answered calmly: “Wei Ming recommended me; Director Xie chose me.”

Gong Ying: I knew it—there was definitely something to do with that little writer! Oh, he’s a big writer elsewhere, but here he’s just a little~

That little writer really looks out for my sister—but he’s eight years younger!

Seeing her sister’s amused expression, Gong Ying added: “Alright, let me rest—I have to report to Shanghai Film Studio this afternoon to meet Director Xie.”

Actually, there was no need to rush—but she was worried. She and Director Xie had only a verbal agreement, not written down. So many actresses were eyeing the female lead—she feared delays would cost her the role, so she rushed back to Shanghai and to Shanghai Film Studio to lock it in.

“Sis, can I come with you?” Gong Ying begged.

She had some interest in acting too, besides drawing.

“Fine, come with me—but don’t say anything stupid.”

Before leaving, Gong Ying noticed her nephew staring at her luggage—he loved rummaging through things. She thought of something and, while her sister wasn’t looking, slipped her diary into her handbag.

This wasn’t Gong Ying’s first visit to Shanghai Film Studio—but every time before, she’d failed. This time, she felt like a prodigal daughter returning in glory—her spirits soared.

Gong Ying told her sister: “I heard Pan Hong has followed her husband Mi Jia Shan to Emei Studio, and Chen Chong wants to take the entrance exam for the Foreign Languages University and study abroad—so now the most valued young actress at Shanghai Film Studio is Zhang Yu—she’s the lead in ‘Lushan Love’ and ‘Night Rain on the Ba Mountains.’”

Both films hadn’t been released yet, so Zhang Yu was only highly regarded—not yet a true star—she was a rising actress waiting to explode.

Gong Ying, like a gossip expert, explained Shanghai Film Studio’s current scene to her sister—implying that if her sister joined, she had a great chance of becoming the new top star!

Gong Ying barely paid attention to any of that—she just wanted this chance to return to Shanghai and reunite with her family.

Of course, that was her old thought. Now, Beijing seemed to have something worth staying for.

As she thought this, a middle-aged man suddenly walked toward them.

When he stood in front of Gong Ying and studied her carefully, he exclaimed in delight: “Comrade, hello, hello—you’re an actress, right? Do you want to act in films?!”

(End of chapter)