[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-rising-in-1979":3,"chapter-rising-in-1979-rising-in-1979-chapter-174":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},2260882,4412,"Chapter 174: The Era of Foreign Exchange Vouchers Has Arrived! (Guaranteed Second Update)","rising-in-1979-chapter-174",174,"\u003Cp>Wei Ming thought, what’s there to disagree about? Even though turning it into a picture book adds another person to split the money, picture books sell for far more than plain text books, and they make a fortune overseas!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Besides, he’d originally written this book as a breakup fee—so even if Melinda took it all, it wouldn’t matter, as long as she got his pen name “mrwhy” out there.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So at noon, Wei Ming immediately went to the post office and sent Melinda a telegram with just two letters: “ok.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Good news came in quick succession: early the next morning, Wang BaiRong, director of Meiyingchang, called Wei Ming to say BBC had already wired the first payment for “The Legend of the Heavenly Book.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The first installment is a full two hundred thousand pounds! We Meiyingchang has finally made a big name for ourselves among all the national animation studios!” Wang BaiRong said, barely hiding his excitement.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hearing this, Wei Ming was momentarily stunned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Butterfly effect?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In his past life, this collaboration never happened—there wasn’t even a single penny paid, not even a deposit. But back then, Meiyingchang had already launched the project and couldn’t stop, so they had to push forward on their own.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even though his version of the script was more commercial and had more jokes, the basic framework was still the same—could that alone have changed BBC’s mind?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But regardless, it was still good news—a valuable opportunity for domestic animation to reach the world.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Ming asked: “What about my royalty?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang BaiRong said: “You’re at Peking University now, right?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yes.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Good, wait there—I’ll bring it to you personally. We’ll talk more then,” Wang BaiRong chuckled. “Almost forgot to tell you—I’m in Beijing for a meeting and brought the payment with me.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Ming left class early that morning and arranged to meet Wang BaiRong at the Changzheng cafeteria.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Over here!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As soon as Wei Ming walked in, Wang BaiRong waved at him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Ordered yet?” Wei Ming asked as he sat down.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Not yet—you pick. I don’t know what to eat,” Wang said, looking uneasy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The food here probably didn’t suit Wang BaiRong’s Shanghai tastes, so Wei Ming picked two dishes for him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that moment, Wang BaiRong handed Wei Ming a thick envelope.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Ming didn’t hesitate—he opened it right away and saw two kinds of currency inside.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“These are… foreign exchange vouchers?” Wei Ming held up six hundred-yuan notes, the rest were tens.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Foreign exchange vouchers had only just debuted on April 1st, becoming a super currency in China. Though officially they exchanged one-to-one with RMB, in reality their purchasing power far exceeded that of RMB.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Foreign exchange vouchers were quasi-currency, far more useful than the old remittance vouchers used as ration coupons. Soon, Friendship Stores would gradually open to Chinese citizens holding them—anyone with foreign exchange vouchers was a big shot.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And officially, if you left China, you could exchange any remaining vouchers back into foreign currency at the official rate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“That’s right—six hundred in foreign exchange vouchers, plus one thousand RMB,” Wang BaiRong smiled. “Don’t look down on it—so many people in the studio want these vouchers, but the top brass only gave us a tiny amount; most have to be turned in.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Ming nodded, not objecting—he’d already learned one truth: if you wanted to earn foreign currency, it was better to deal directly with people overseas.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What intrigued him more was why BBC had agreed to the collaboration.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Didn’t you give up more to make the deal happen?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No, no, absolutely not—it’s exactly as we originally agreed: Asia’s rights go to us, everything outside Asia goes to BBC.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even though BBC got the lion’s share, they also bore nearly all production costs—it was fair.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang BaiRong added: “I heard from the translator that BBC was initially hesitant, worried foreigners wouldn’t understand the story. But then The Times ran an article—apparently written by a British student about his experience studying in China—that highlighted how wildly popular your novel was in China, calling it a Chinese-style Prometheus tale.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Ming froze mid-bite.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang BaiRong smiled: “Apparently that article went viral. Maybe that’s why.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now Wei Ming couldn’t even focus on his meal—had Melinda been so busy with this that she hadn’t contacted him all this time?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He wanted to send her another telegram the moment he finished eating.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But in the end, Wei Ming chose to write a letter—letters carried warmth; telegrams didn’t.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Yang, director of Beiyingchang, thought the same way—he wrote a long, heartfelt letter to Miss Xia Meng, earnestly proposing a cross-strait collaboration on the film “Heroes Born in Youth,” detailing the story—and of course, its author, Wei Ming.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xia Meng remembered Wei Ming—after all, good-looking boys left a strong impression. She wondered if his friend’s father was still involved.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xia Meng had already established Qingniao Film Company for some time, but hadn’t yet found a project she was satisfied with.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Personally, she preferred deep, artistic films—but much of the company’s funding came from the Ho family, and she didn’t want investors to lose money; martial arts films were simply more profitable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“‘Heroes Born in Youth’? That name sounds familiar.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xia Meng suddenly remembered something and called her housekeeper: “Are the newspapers from a while back still around?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yes, I was planning to sell them in a few days.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xia Meng: “Find them for me.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After rummaging through the pile, Xia Meng pulled out the “New Evening News.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She’d only paid attention to the political and economic sections back then, never reading the serialized novel—she hadn’t expected the young writer had sent his story to Hong Kong.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To simultaneously win over readers in both mainland and Hong Kong newspapers meant the story had real merit—so Xia Meng began reading from the first issue.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Leaving the Changzheng cafeteria, Wei Ming looked at the foreign exchange vouchers in his hand. He had nothing urgent to buy, so he’d keep them for now.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His current cash flow had already exceeded twelve thousand yuan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When he returned to the South Gate, he saw Liu Rulong’s bicycle—when he got to the dorm, sure enough, the kid was waiting for him, and he even had a suitcase with him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What’s going on? Going somewhere?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yeah,” Liu Rulong said. “We’ve finished part of the content. I’m heading to Shijiazhuang to meet face-to-face with Hebei Fine Arts Publishing House. If they accept our art style, we’ll keep going.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because Liu Rulong’s grandfather Yang Songqiao had always collaborated with Hebei Fine Arts, they had some connections there.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As for why he wanted to go himself: first, he feared the manuscript might get lost; second, he wanted to personally convince them if they had doubts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Ming looked at the ten black-and-white pages.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Excellent! This is a deep-water bomb for today’s serial comic market!” Wei Ming praised.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At current market rates, ten pages meant one hundred yuan—less than a week’s work.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though the pace of earning felt slow to Wei Ming now, once the team matured and entered bigger markets, the financial potential was limitless!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With some time left, Wei Ming rode his motorcycle to the train station to see Rulong off.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Call me before you come back—I’ll pick you up at the station, and we’ll go out and spend some money.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That evening, eating in the faculty cafeteria, Wei Ming saw Uncle Anping with Lele and joined them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Since his wife and son moved to the northwest, Uncle Anping had stopped cooking and just took Lele to the cafeteria, occasionally eating out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Uncle Anping first asked about Wei Ming’s studies, then brought up housing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“We’re still inquiring about the Overseas Chinese Apartments, but I’ve got another good piece of news about housing.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What’s that?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Rumors say Beijing will pilot commercial housing—anyone with money can buy an apartment.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Ming knew this—there was a pilot project with two buildings in Tuanjiehu, happening this year. In his past life, he’d known some of the first residents of Tuanjiehu.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tuanjiehu had both advantages and disadvantages for Wei Ming.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The disadvantage was distance—it was in Chaoyang’s East Third Ring; even by motorcycle it took over half an hour. He still wanted to live closer to Peking University.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The advantage was the apartments were small—probably half the size of those in the Overseas Chinese Apartments. Even if the price per square meter was the same, his current funds would be enough to buy one outright.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Ming nodded: “It’s a backup option—if nothing else works, I can grab one now. After ‘Black Cat Detective,’ too many kids wrote me letters—my dorm is overflowing.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even if he didn’t live there, storing letters was fine.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Besides “Black Cat Detective,” yesterday the “Youth Literature” publishing house sent Wei Ming a huge package containing all the letters from young readers who’d read the three-part serialization of “The Game of the Brave.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Feng Ge’s bed was now completely covered in Wei Ming’s letters—many of them even had the newly issued monkey stamps.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he stepped out of the cafeteria, a light drizzle began to fall.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Uncle Anping murmured involuntarily: “Rain falls thickly during Qingming… Tomorrow is Qingming. I wonder if your dad, so busy, will forget to visit the graves.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Don’t worry—he remembers every year. It’s important to him.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But this year was different.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The next day, Wei Jiefang visited the graves of his grandparents and Anping’s parents, looking at the joint tomb of his parents, Wei Senhao and Fan Erxiu, his emotions complicated.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His father was still alive—that was good. Better to live poorly than die well—but his poor mother had never enjoyed a single moment of happiness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After visiting the graves, Xiao Hong returned home.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She was in good spirits—she’d taken the senior high school mock exam and still ranked first in her grade, though her lead over second place was narrower, barely holding on.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then the school assigned her to attend classes with the senior science class.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This year’s college entrance exam introduced a “preliminary exam” system: a unified test in May, and only those who passed could take the official exam in July. It was said half the candidates would be eliminated.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The principal told her her score on this preliminary exam would determine whether she could take the 1980 college entrance exam.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So she had to boost her grades in this month and a half—hmm, Peking University, I’m definitely getting in!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Peking University.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Ming had just mailed the script for “The Ox and Ox Two” to Wu Tianming at Xiyingchang when he received a package from Hong Kong.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Ha! Ah Min, my little treasure, sent me a package back!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(Please vote for monthly tickets!)\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1777,"2026-06-19T16:30:57.111Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","f29b7185d9ff7ba60833dce4afa1d8ea7ebd8d84785117ddcc6fa15af466f3b1","rising-in-1979-chapter-175","rising-in-1979-chapter-173",509,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Frising-in-1979-cover.jpg"]