Chapter 11: The National Essay Contest of "Shanghai Literature"

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Lin Junsheng walked out of the post office, clutching the 113 yuan he had just exchanged.

A few coins made a faint clinking sound in his palm, like the small flicker of joy in his heart.

It had been a long time since he had actually held cash, especially after living in an era where mobile payments had become the norm in his previous life.

How many people still carried wallets when they went out?

With a phone, payment was quick and convenient.

He had not chosen to deposit the money in a bank. There would not have been much point in putting such a small sum into a passbook.

Instead, he slipped it into his pocket, savoring the solid reassurance of its weight.

Not far from the post office stood a bookstore.

The town had a middle school, after all. Otherwise, there would have been no bookstore.

As soon as Lin Junsheng entered, he saw a young woman smiling warmly at him. She was wearing a red floral dress that fell just below her knees, along with an elegant headband.

She was Liu Jingjing, the younger daughter of Liu Chuangen. Her lively, adorable appearance made it hard not to look at her a few extra times.

“What a coincidence!”

“You’re… the one who helped deliver a calf last time. I remember you.” Liu Jingjing blinked.

Lin Junsheng smiled faintly. “Really? I didn’t expect you to remember me.”

“Of course I remember! It hasn’t even been that long. I made such a fool of myself in front of you last time, so naturally I’d remember. Are you here to buy books too?”

Curious, Liu Jingjing raised the magazine in her hand. It was called *Shanghai Literature*.

Lin Junsheng’s gaze fell unconsciously upon it.

This was the very issue in which his story *The Chess King* had been published, under the pen name “Rainy Night, Carrying a Blade but No Umbrella.”

He secretly congratulated himself for not using his real name. Otherwise, it would have been troublesome if Liu Jingjing discovered his identity.

In a small village like this, keeping a low profile was the wisest course.

As the saying went, “The poor are ignored in the bustling city, while the rich gain distant relatives even in the deepest mountains.”

It also spared him a great deal of trouble.

Seeing that Lin Junsheng kept staring at the magazine in her hand, Liu Jingjing could not help asking, “Do you read this magazine too?”

Lin Junsheng quickly gathered his thoughts and shook his head casually. “Oh, no. I’m just looking to see whether they have any books on animal husbandry. I’d like to take one home and study it.”

At his words, surprise flickered in her bright eyes.

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She blurted out, “I didn’t realize people in your line of work had to keep learning new things. I thought you all relied on experience passed down from one generation to the next.”

Lin Junsheng’s lips curved into a modest smile. “Experience is certainly important, but learning is indispensable as well. Times are changing, so we have to keep up with them.”

“I really underestimated you.” Liu Jingjing gave a soft laugh.

She had not expected this seemingly ordinary village veterinarian to possess such profound thoughts and such an ambitious, enterprising spirit.

Sure enough, whether one was a people’s teacher or a village veterinarian, there was a bright future ahead.

Lin Junsheng waved his hand, his smile touched with self-mockery. “Not at all. I only received a middle-school education. I never even went to college.”

Curious, Liu Jingjing pressed him further. “Why didn’t you take the national college entrance examination?”

Her eyes were filled with questions, as if she wanted to learn more about his story.

Lin Junsheng gave a bitter laugh. “I did take it a few times, but I never passed. Maybe I’m just too stupid.”

He spoke lightly, but a fleeting trace of sadness crossed his eyes.

It soon disappeared, however, and his smile returned, as though he were reminding himself that the past was past and what mattered was looking ahead.

His mathematics scores had been twenty or thirty points every time. What chance did he have?

Changing the subject, Lin Junsheng asked, “You came back from Shanghai. Are you planning to work here?”

Liu Jingjing nodded. “I’m an English teacher at the county high school, but I haven’t started there yet. I won’t begin until next term.”

At that time, university graduates could still be assigned jobs; the system would only be gradually abolished in 1993.

Liu Jingjing had probably returned because she had no connections in Shanghai. Otherwise, she would not have come back home.

At this point in time, being able to establish permanent residence in Shanghai would have made life much easier in the years to come.

Lin Junsheng nodded in understanding.

Coming home was not so bad. Becoming a teacher was a fine choice for a young woman.

“It’s already May, after all. The high schools will be on holiday soon.”

Then Lin Junsheng asked, “By the way, did you come to the bookstore just to buy a magazine?”

Liu Jingjing suddenly remembered something and spoke excitedly. “I saw *Shanghai Literature* just now. There’s a nationwide writing contest in it, and the prize is a thousand yuan!”

Her voice was brimming with excitement and anticipation, as though she were sharing the most wonderful news in the world.

Lin Junsheng froze.

A thousand yuan!

To him, that was practically an astronomical sum.

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Shock and disbelief flickered in his eyes, as though he suspected he had heard incorrectly.

It was a thousand yuan. The combined annual wages of the three people in his family amounted to only around six hundred yuan.

In the cities, the customary marriage gifts were known as “three valuables and one sound”: a watch, a bicycle, a sewing machine, and a radio.

Even all four together cost less than a thousand yuan.

For rural families like theirs, being able to offer a bicycle as a betrothal gift was already an enormous expense.

After all, the only electrical appliance in their home was a flashlight, and it used an oversized battery that ran out quickly.

There were many watch brands. The best known included Shanghai, Seagull, and Plum Blossom. The expensive ones cost several hundred yuan, while the cheaper models were just over thirty.

Phoenix and Forever bicycles cost only a little more than a hundred yuan.

Butterfly and Flying Saucer sewing machines were priced at roughly the same level as bicycles.

A tape recorder cost around two hundred yuan. At that time, China and Japan had recently established diplomatic relations, and the first foreign-brand household appliances to enter the mainland came mostly from Japan—Panasonic, Sharp, Hitachi, Sanyo, and others.

People in the area simply called tape recorders “Sanyos,” and playing a tape recorder was referred to as “playing a Sanyo.”

For Lin Junsheng, a thousand yuan was truly a fortune, enough to ease many of the difficulties pressing upon him.

It was just a pity that the issue in which he had published *The Chess King* did not contain a writing contest. He would have to submit something for the next issue.

Lin Junsheng turned toward Liu Jingjing, curiosity flashing in his eyes. “Can you write novels?”

Liu Jingjing smiled faintly and shook her head. “I can write essays and poems for submission, but as for novels, I’ve never tried. Still, the prize is quite substantial. I have nothing much to do at home right now, so I might as well write one and give it a try.”

Lin Junsheng praised her. “I really envy educated people like you. You can make money by writing.”

Liu Jingjing smiled modestly. “It’s not really worth much. It’s just a hobby. I might earn a little spending money to buy some clothes and things.”

Lin Junsheng nodded tactfully. “All right, I won’t keep you. I’ll buy my books and head home.”

Liu Jingjing nodded as well. “Okay. I’m going to find my father first.”

With that, she turned and walked away.

Lin Junsheng was filled with gratitude. Fortunately, he had run into Liu Jingjing today.

*Shanghai Literature* had mailed him this issue, but he had been too busy these past two days to read it.

Once he got home, he would take a look at the contest requirements.