[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-rising-in-1979":3,"chapter-rising-in-1979-rising-in-1979-chapter-13":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Rising in 1979",{"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},2260721,4412,"Chapter 13: Hello, Shu Ge","rising-in-1979-chapter-13",13,"\u003Cp>Liu Zhenyun saw Wei Ming talking with two international students, and from this distance he could tell they weren’t speaking Chinese!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though he was the provincial top scorer, they didn’t test English that year, so his English level was still stuck at memorizing vocabulary—he’d never even imagined holding a conversation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Wei Ming spoke so fluently, it felt like he’d just returned from abroad.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Oh no, is he from the History Department or the Foreign Languages Department?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Could he possibly be an international student too?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But how could Wei Uncle explain it? The warm, rustic aura clinging to him didn’t seem like that of someone with overseas connections.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Zhenyun straightened his hair, preparing to go over and chat, when two girls from his class called out to stop him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Little Liu, what are you doing? The editorial team’s waiting for us to deliver supplies!” said Zhang Manling, the senior girl in class.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yeah, yeah, don’t keep everyone waiting,” added Dai Jinhua, a girl in her early twenties.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Under their urging, Liu Zhenyun pushed his bicycle piled high with printing paper, forced to miss another chance to speak with Wei Ming.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He hadn’t felt this uneasy even when he hadn’t seen his junior sister these past few days.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Both international students were American; under Wei Ming’s recommendation, the Black and White Duo decided to head to the big dining hall too.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They didn’t yet have Chinese names, and they thought Wei Ming seemed especially scholarly, so they asked him to pick some for them—with Chinese characteristics.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Ming looked at Old White, then at Old Black.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’ll be Li Bai, and you’ll be Li Kui.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Ming explained; Li Kui was satisfied, but Li Bai shook his head: “There are already two Lis named Bai among the international students—our professors have to call them Li Xiaobai and Li Dabai to tell them apart.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So Wei Ming came up with another: “Li Aiguo”—it sounded unmistakably Chinese.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Aiguo and Li Kui bought tickets on the spot; since they had no seats, they stood at the back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because it was an animated film, besides naive college students, many teachers had brought their children, and classmates generously gave up front seats to the little ones.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After settling into the front row, Xi Le and his sister spotted their neighbor’s Shu Ge—Xi Zi waved across a few people: “Hello, Shu Ge!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Six-year-old Pu Shu rolled his eyes coldly: You think you can match me in English? My dad’s an international student.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Are you ok?” Pu Shu replied.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Damn, it was all in English—he was that good! Xi Zi instantly felt outclassed and had to look up at the lights to hide his embarrassment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When the lights dimmed and the screen lit up, the children finally quieted down.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everyone was already familiar with the story of Nezha Conquers the Sea; this film was China’s first color widescreen animated feature, completed by Meiyingchang over thirteen months.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though its runtime was short—only sixty-five minutes—it was remarkably efficient for animation, completed in just over a year.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The reason it moved so fast was Meiyingchang’s system of concentrating resources for major projects—making this film didn’t require consideration of cost or profit.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The upside was perfectionism: everything produced became timeless art.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The downside? If the state stopped funding and demanded self-sufficiency, the studio would collapse.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Inherited traditions don’t have to remain unchanged; compared to ancient mythological versions, Meiyingchang stripped much of Nezha’s “naughty brat” vibe, making his actions more reasonable and more sympathetic.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the theme of “rebelling against paternal authority and challenging power” was still too deep for children.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When Nezha punished the Dragon King’s third prince for the people’s sake, the children cheered wildly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But when Nezha slashed his own throat, removed his bones to return to his father, and melted his flesh to return to his mother, Le Le covered his eyes, unable to watch, while Xi Zi’s eyes burned red with fury.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This scene later became the logo of a rock band, symbolizing rock’s spirit of rebellion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After the screening ended and they walked out of the dining hall, Xi Zi remained furious, as if he wanted to fight his father right then and there.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So if you want harmonious father-son relations, you’re better off watching the gentle, heartwarming “Nezha: The Rise of the Devil Child.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But it would be over a decade before the first 3D animated masterpiece, “Toy Story”—right now, 2D animation ruled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Aiguo and Li Kui came over to chat with Wei Ming too; they thought the visuals were amazing, full of imagination, a different kind of beauty from Disney—but because of the language barrier, they hadn’t fully understood the story, and planned to rewatch it in two years.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They also invited Wei Ming to visit their Shaoyuan international student dorm when he had time, and gave him their English names.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Except for resident students, Chinese students couldn’t enter Shaoyuan without permission—they had to ask the gatekeeper to call someone to come get them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>By the time Wei Ming dropped Xi Le and Le Le off at home, Wei Anping and his wife had already given up—both wore expressions of utter indifference. Wei Anping suddenly remembered something and pulled out an envelope to hand him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Huh?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Ming opened it and found several cards and photos.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The photos were from a few days ago in Dazhalan, mostly featuring Wei Jiefang—they’d just been developed and could be mailed back with a letter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And the cards?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’re becoming a writer now, so I got you a library card—five of them.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Ming’s face lit up—he’d been worried about not being able to borrow books, forced to stand and read in the library.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Thank you, Uncle!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Anping waved it off: “Don’t mention it. Just focus on your writing—produce something impressive, so I can help you get your position made permanent.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thinking of this, he couldn’t help but feel proud: he’d once feared being reprimanded for meddling in this job matter—but if Wei Ming became a slightly famous writer, wouldn’t he be seen as recruiting talent for Peking University?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not only no fault, but actual merit!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Back in the dorm, it was already late; Wei Ming lay down, and Mei Wenhua ran over from the water room.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Wei Ming, I’ve submitted my manuscript to ‘Weiminghu’!” He was showing off.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Ming’s flat “oh” was the harshest blow possible.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Mei Wenhua choked back internal injury, then asked: “I wrote poetry—have you finished your short story yet?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Ming rolled over to face him: “I’ll probably finish tomorrow.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Don’t forget to submit it—send it to ‘Shouhuo’!” Mei Wenhua worried he didn’t know the address, so he shoved his own copy of ‘Shouhuo’ into Wei Ming’s hands, telling him to bring it tomorrow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Ming was deeply moved: “Wenhua, you’re truly a good person. By the way, let’s have lunch tomorrow—I got my fee: 20 yuan.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Mei Wenhua: “...”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhao Debiao pushed the door open: “Hehe, just waiting for you to say it!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The next day offered half a day off; Wei Ming found a classroom and focused to finish the ending of his educated youth novel “Lu Wu Lu Liu,” correcting typos.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Over fifty pages of letter paper, thick and heavy—about forty thousand characters, a novella, the perfect length for film adaptation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He didn’t absolutely need ‘Shouhuo’—what mattered was getting accepted, getting paid, real money!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So he added at the end: “If not accepted, please forward to the neighboring ‘Gushihui’ editorial office.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Both seemed to be under Mudu Cultural Publishing—they’d both resumed publication this year; ‘Shouhuo’ was prestigious, but ‘Gushihui’ surely wouldn’t look down on it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Time waits for no one—head to the post office now!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He’d already asked Feng Ge: he knew Changzheng Dining Hall; past a narrow alley beside it lay a street called “Tiger’s Den,” where the post office, stationery, clothing, and daily goods were all located.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the post office, he mailed his letter first; the clerk, clearly an artsy youth, blurted out: “For ‘Shouhuo’? Submission?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yeah.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The clerk’s expression was sardonic, as if to say: Young man, you don’t know how deep the water is.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Coincidentally, Liu Zhenyun was also at the post office; seeing Wei Ming, he was ecstatic.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He and Xiao Wei really were fated to cross paths!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When he heard Wei Ming was submitting to ‘Shouhuo,’ his heart grew complicated—he thought Xiao Wei was immature, overreaching, too ambitious! (Note 1)\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even a Chinese literature major like me only dares submit to ‘Weiminghu,’ a student journal that doesn’t pay—how easy is it to earn manuscript fees?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As the clerk took the letter, Liu Zhenyun stepped forward to greet him and discuss literary views.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that moment, Wei Ming handed over another form and his ID: “Could you also withdraw some money?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The clerk took it lazily, then suddenly raised his voice: “Manuscript fee slip!?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Zhenyun froze mid-step.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(One more update at midnight—Monday: three updates. This new week is crucial for ranking—please support with reads and monthly votes; it truly matters—I beg you, or2~)\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1508,"2026-06-19T16:30:57.111Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","ecb7db2a4bd66cc3769e9cb6131a0dcb4f675292d94fd8ffcfe335e0318dc25e","rising-in-1979-chapter-14","rising-in-1979-chapter-12",509,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Frising-in-1979-cover.jpg"]