Chapter 163: Days of Living (Guaranteed 1 update, seeking monthly votes!)

"Writer Wei, welcome, welcome." Liao Mingzu, the General Manager of Pacific Audio & Video, came out personally to welcome Wei Lin.

If there were any music charts at this time, "On the Fields of Hope" had effectively become the hottest song on the mainland, surpassing "Country Love," "Camel Bells," and others.

It was no wonder Liao Mingzu valued Wei Lin so much; he was still counting on Wei Lin to create more brilliance and write more good songs.

However, when he asked about Wei Lin's recent creative work, Wei Lin indicated that he had been busy preparing a new full-length novel.

"This is a novel set during the War of Resistance, and a large portion of the story takes place in Guangzhou, so I came here this time to seek inspiration."

Although Liao Mingzu felt it was a pity, he thought it was reasonable; the few songs he had written previously were clearly meant to accompany "The Spring of the Sheep-Herding Class."

However, his attitude did not change much. He still needed Wei Lin because several singers, including Zhu Fengbo, wanted to challenge "On the Fields of Hope" in their new albums, which required Wei Lin's nod. Of course, Wei Lin could also earn a little extra money from this.

Although the money was small, he could earn money every time someone covered his songs.

"Then, is there anything Writer Wei needs help with?" Manager Liao asked enthusiastically.

Wei Lin: "If you could help me find a knowledgeable tour guide to take me around the former site of the Whampoa Military Academy, that would be great."

"That's no problem." Liao Mingzu agreed immediately, then took Wei Lin to tour the Pacific Company.

It was mainly the high-end recording studio and the cassette production workshop. The recording studio could be used for large symphony orchestra recordings. One point Liao Mingzu was not very satisfied with regarding "The Spring of the Sheep-Herding Class" was that the recording conditions for those five songs by Wei Lin were a bit poor.

Here, Wei Lin also heard a familiar melody.

"'Morning on Campus'?"

Liao Mingzu said in surprise: "Writer Wei, have you heard of it? Oh, that's right, you know Teacher Gu."

"That's right, she is my guide in music," Wei Lin laughed, "I heard the demo of this song last year."

Liao Mingzu said: "We have brought in two talented singers, Wang Jieshi and Xie Lisi, to sing this song. We plan to release an album once we gather a few more songs in the future."

Wei Lin nodded: "They sing quite well."

These two were the music sales kings of this era, one man and one woman, but they were not a couple; they were a bit like that Phoenix Legend.

Their cassette tape seemed to be called "When Shall We Meet Again," and it also had millions of genuine sales.

After accompanying Wei Lin around the company, it was almost dinner time. Liao Mingzu called two company managers to accompany Wei Lin for a meal.

If he were just a lyricist, he wouldn't have received such high-level treatment, but Wei Lin was also a highly popular writer, and the two managers were very happy to get to know someone like Wei Lin.

The place for dinner was the Beiyuan Restaurant near Yuexiu Park.

Wei Lin had rarely come to Guangzhou before, but he had heard of Beiyuan Restaurant and Nanyuan Restaurant.

Nanyuan Restaurant was famous for its steamed dishes, and its Buddha Jumps Over the Wall was a masterpiece, while Beiyuan Restaurant was known for its mountain delicacies, seafood, and rich dried goods.

As for the dishes on the menu, Wei Lin had eaten at many large restaurants in Beijing, but he had never seen any of these, and the prices were high; he felt one meal would cost dozens of yuan.

Things like "Scallop Net Shatin," "Golden Cup and Silver Basin," "Flower Sculpture Chicken in Clay Pot," and "Duck of a Hundred Flowers Blooming"—the names all carried the flavor of capitalism, and every dish was prepared with great refinement.

Take this Duck of a Hundred Flowers Blooming, for example; it was made by pairing fried duck with crab roe, goose gizzard, shrimp paste, squid, and other ingredients. Not to mention the richness of these ingredients, just being able to find crab roe in winter was already very rare.

Liao Mingzu was worried that seeing such fancy food, Wei Lin, a writer from the capital, might have some thoughts. He explained: "Because Guangzhou often has to receive Hong Kong businessmen and foreign guests, the surface work is a bit too much."

These delicacies could be said to have fully achieved color, fragrance, and taste, and were visually very enjoyable.

Wei Lin laughed: "I heard from some friends of different generations that restaurants in Beijing used to be this refined, but later, after the public-private partnership, they all became public canteens, and they weren't so particular anymore. Although old brands are starting to recover now, the old masters have either passed away or retired, and it's impossible to reach the level of those years in a short time. It's a pity."

Seeing that Wei Lin was not repulsed and was even talking freely about the ways of northern and southern cuisine, Liao Mingzu couldn't help but ask: "Oh, Writer Wei, are you also a foodie?"

Wei Lin laughed even more happily: "A lot of my royalties are spent in the major restaurants of the capital."

Liao Mingzu: "Then shall we pick up our chopsticks?"

"Manager Liao, please."

Everyone chatted about music while eating. Liao Mingzu didn't expect Wei Lin to be so knowledgeable about Hong Kong and Taiwan music. It seemed he really liked music and often secretly listened to those illegal cassette tapes. It would be a pity if he didn't continue writing songs.

Although the income from writing songs was not high, Manager Liao's emotional investment was truly in place. He ate delicacies, lived in the Bai Yun Hotel—before the White Swan Hotel of the Huo family, the Bai Yun Hotel was considered one of the most luxurious foreign-related hotels in Guangzhou.

Although Wei Lin's room was not on the top floor, it was quite high. Standing by the window and looking north, the vast green Bai Yun Mountain was in full view. Manager Liao said that Wei Lin could stay as long as he wanted, and any expenses at the hotel could be directly put on the bill.

This Bai Yun Hotel was a partner hotel of Pacific Audio & Video, and when dealers from all over the country came at the beginning of the year, they were arranged to stay here.

This was the first time Wei Lin had lived in a modernized room since his rebirth: a soft large bed, bright lamps, hot water, a bathtub, and a toilet—everything was available.

Wei Lin, who was drinking cola while soaking in the bath, became even more determined to buy a house in the Overseas Chinese Apartments; he also wanted to live a modernized life!

In fact, he still had new songs on hand, and Manager Liao's hospitality today moved him, but Wei Lin still decided to leave them for Hong Kong singers.

They not only paid high fees but also had copyright, and if sales were high, there was a share. Pacific Audio & Video really couldn't compare to this, and he was counting on saving enough money to buy a house as soon as possible.

The next day, after Wei Lin finished breakfast at the hotel and came down to the lobby, the receptionist told him that someone was waiting for him.

Wei Lin knew this should be the tour guide Manager Liao had arranged for him. He walked to the waiting area and stood in front of a young man with glasses and messy hair like a chicken nest.

"Hello, I am Wei Lin."

The other party stood up quickly and said somewhat embarrassedly: "Writer Wei, hello, I am your tour guide for today. My name is Chen Pingyuan, but actually, I am not a professional tour guide."

Wei Lin: "I can tell, you were just looking at your notes."

!

Chen Pingyuan said embarrassedly: "However, I know quite a bit about the Whampoa Military Academy, so you can rest assured. And I study literature, so we should have quite a few common topics."

Then he reintroduced himself: Chen Pingyuan, from Chaozhou, a junior student in the Chinese Department of Sun Yat-sen University, one of the first batch of university students after the resumption of the college entrance examination, knowledgeable, and considered outstanding among his peers.

"Then how did they find you?"

"Pacific Company found our school. Originally, they had scheduled a female student from the Chinese Department who had been a tour guide, but she suddenly felt unwell today and couldn't come, so they called me to fill in temporarily," Chen Pingyuan scratched his head, "I was sleeping at the time, it was indeed a bit sudden."

He didn't expect it to be like this. Wei Lin asked presumptuously: "Then do they pay?"

"Do I pay you?" Chen Pingyuan hesitated, and his hand began to reach into his bag.

Wei Lin: "I mean, do they pay you."

"No money. Being able to tour with Writer Wei, I think this is a very good learning opportunity, how could I still accept money." Chen Pingyuan felt that if he spent a few days with Wei Lin, he might even have his graduation thesis, and he would truly be willing to pay money himself.

Subsequently, Wei Lin and the other person left the hotel and got into a taxi heading to the Whampoa Military Academy.

On the way, the two talked happily about literature. Wei Lin even suggested: "Have you considered taking the postgraduate entrance exam for the Chinese Department at Peking University?"

"Ah, me?" Chen Pingyuan said in a dilemma, "I haven't thought about it. I previously wanted to study for a master's degree at my own school."

Wei Lin nodded. If you don't come for a master's degree, you have to come for a doctorate; if you don't come, you won't have a wife.

This Brother Chen would also be an academic master in the future, a professor at Peking University, and he was the husband of Xia Xiaohong, a student of the '77 Chinese Department who had eaten with Wei Lin.

The Whampoa Military Academy was located on Changzhou Island in the HP District of Guangzhou. Mr. Sun Yat-sen had launched two major projects in Guangzhou at the same time: one was the Whampoa Military Academy, and the other was the National Guangdong University, which was later renamed "Sun Yat-sen University" after Mr. Sun passed away.

So if Sun Yat-sen University was Chen Pingyuan's alma mater, then the Whampoa Military Academy was his aunt's school; he had been here more than once.

"Actually, the Whampoa Military Academy was in Guangzhou for less than three years. After the April 12th Incident, it moved to Wuhan, and less than half a year later, because of the Ning-Han cooperation, it moved to Nanjing, and finally, because of the War of Resistance, it moved to Chengdu."

Chengdu was too far, so Wei Lin wouldn't make another trip. He planned to visit the three school sites in Guangzhou, Wuhan, and Nanjing.

The Whampoa Military Academy had one term every half year. Wei Lin remembered that his Great-Grandfather was in the sixth term of Whampoa, entering in 1927, which meant he was first in Guangzhou and then went to Wuhan. He should not have directly participated in the April 12th Incident of 1927.

And at that time, his Grandfather Wei Senhao was still a little baby, more than ten years younger than his Great-Grandfather. At that time, his Great-Great-Grandfather had already passed away, so it was no exaggeration to say that the elder brother was like a father, but they were always fighting and couldn't take him with them.

Because his Grandfather had always stayed in his hometown in Hebei, when the July 7th Incident occurred, he happened to be 13 years old in Beijing. After witnessing the shamelessness of the Japanese army trampling on the mountains and rivers, he resolutely joined our army.

Later, his Grandfather followed his Great-Aunt to the Magic City to engage in underground work. From that time on, the confrontation and conflict between the brothers officially began.

But Wei Lin certainly couldn't write it like this; the entry was too slow, and the level of his Grandfather in our army was quite different from his Great-Grandfather's level in the Nationalist army.

Therefore, when creating the novel, Wei Lin needed to erase some of the age gap between the two brothers so that they could experience those magnificent and treacherous years of the 1920s together.

Following Chen Pingyuan's introduction to the Whampoa Military Academy, Wei Lin took photos while thinking about how to write the opening of this novel...

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 164 =====