Liang Xiaosheng: Write a book for the post-80s students I have taught

"When my students come to Beijing, I ask them whether the house is bought or rented, I suggest that they buy it, I will ask how much area it is very specific, and in my impression the bottom line is 120 square meters." 120 square meters may be 12 million in Beijing, and it is not necessarily particularly good, but they can be achieved (in provincial capitals). I think that's life. ”

The famous writer Liang Xiaosheng recently talked about his judgment on whether a student's life is happy, lies in what kind of house he lives in, and bluntly said that other aspects of life are carried out on this material basis.

Then he asked, "Is there a point that is considered vulgar, not romantic, not passionate?" ”

In March 2022, Liang Xiaosheng's another novel, Chinese Tao Li, was published by Writers Publishing House. Featuring the 80s generation as the protagonist, the book depicts in a realistic way the story of several students of the Chinese department of a university who studied, fell in love, worked, drifted north, and finally returned to their hometowns, took root in their hometowns, and established a family. The novel involves many social issues that are of great concern to current readers, such as north drift, housing prices, the second generation of officials, the decline of the Chinese department, etc., which more truly reflects the life experience and living conditions of the 80s generation.

Write a book for a student who has taught

"In fact, it is always a thought for me to write a book for the post-80s students, that is, for the students I have taught." Liang Xiaosheng, who was in his early 70s, appeared energetically in the conference room of the Writers Publishing House. He confessed that writing "Chinese Tao Li" is to complete this idea, and he has a sense of closeness in narrative, because he can "empathize" from the perspective of the characters.

Since 2002, Liang Xiaosheng has been a professor in the Department of Chinese at Beijing Language and Culture University. He talked about the enrollment situation of the Chinese department, and he seemed a little worried. "In 2002, we had nearly 10 boys or more in our class. They all came for the word 'Chinese', and you can't stop their passion and want to run a publication. At that time, the Publication of Beiyu was still doing well, and it also attracted students from surrounding universities to submit articles... Sometimes we attend classes with more than 200 people, and the students around us also come. ”

However, since about six or seven years ago, there have been fewer and fewer boys in the Chinese department, and at least there are only two or three boys in a class. "Boys are so few that if they are very introverted and don't speak, then in fact the voices you hear are all the views of people of the same gender, which is a pity for the discussion itself."

On the one hand, boys are becoming more and more rare, and on the other hand, girls are "in cao ying's heart in Han". In Liang Xiaosheng's view, the girls in the Chinese Department are all admitted to the Chinese out of helplessness because they are "unable to compete with boys to gain an advantage in science". When they were studying for graduate school, they were eager to "change their bodies" and quickly jumped out.

"I often laugh bitterly with my peers and say that I can't make Chinese profession a 'basket' and put anything in it." Liang Xiaosheng sighed. He stressed that literature not only cultivates our souls, but also Chinese cognitive ability is also a kind of professional ability. With this kind of professional ability, how to test and apply this ability in society, in this process Chinese the confusion faced by graduates of the department and their thinking, which is the topic that "Chinese Tao Li" tries to explore.

There is no right or wrong in where to live, only pros and cons

The generally low salary income of graduates of Chinese departments is also a real problem. Just like in the novel, Liang Xiaosheng can especially substitute for the boy's perspective, he said: "Girls choose not to choose us, even if people don't say it, they will think about how much money he makes, so it makes sense to think, because you have to support your family." ”

In the novel, the male protagonist Li Xiaodong graduated from the Chinese department, and worked in the provincial television station, advertising company, local television station and other work units, and worked as a cleaner for a while for the provincial city hukou. After graduating from graduate school, the heroine Xu Ran only did a short-term job as a star economic assistant, returned to Linquan and was admitted as a civil servant and became the leader of the retired veteran cadre service office.

When they were in Beijing that year, the two rented a semi-basement of more than 30 square meters in the Huilongguan community, with a monthly rent of 1500 yuan. At that time, the room in Beijing was in the take-off stage, and the house price of the school district house was more than 20,000 square meters, and the ordinary wage floor was difficult to reach.

In the novel, the father of the protagonist Li Xiaodong once said: "Man is an animal that pursues happiness, but first of all, he must understand what the meaning of happiness is." Where the happiness index of life is a little higher, where is the blessed land for us ordinary people. For the protagonist to finally choose to leave Beijing, abandon the provincial city, and return to his hometown Linquan to live, Liang Xiaosheng believes that "there is not necessarily right or wrong, it is just a pro and con, a trade-off." ”

Liang Xiaosheng said that among his students, all of whom have returned to their original hometowns, their lives are now relatively moist. In the local area, you can buy a large house with less money, and you will soon become the backbone of the work. It is more difficult to stay in Beijing, "so excellent girls, they could not have been in Beijing, change a place, other aspects of the advantages will be presented." ”

In Liang Xiaosheng's view, this peace of mind is my hometown. Life needs to be planned, but "beijing must be placed there in the life plan, and Beijing is one of my plans. ”

One of the highlights of the novel is the story of Li Xiaodong and Xu Ran, two young people who met, fell in love, entered the marriage hall and joined hands for a lifetime. "I'm reluctant to rely on love clues and love content to prop up a book, but I sometimes get complacent, and although I'm in my 70s, I can write about young people's love." Liang Xiaosheng said.

Fan Weineng performed the "House Heart Kindness" of professors in the department of Chinese

Wang Wenqi, the second generation of officials and the son of cadres in the novel, is a character that Liang Xiaosheng likes very much. This man's mind is flexible, his hands and eyes are clear, he is righteous and loose, and many of the problems that make the cold disciples helpless are almost solved in his place.

Talking about the relationship between Wang Wenqi and the protagonist Li Xiaodong, Liang Xiaosheng said: "Between two men, if they are young and middle and high school classmates, go to college and be together, or the same major, hobbies, and humor, how good can they be? Girls have girlfriends, boys we call 'handles', the former young men can give up their lives for this friendship. ”

He also admitted that the children of cadres like Wang Wenqi have no shortage of friends who drink meat and have fun, but inner friends like Li Xiaodong are precious. In fact, as people get older and "the sum of social relations grows bigger and bigger," they suddenly find that "fewer and fewer people care about themselves, or who care about themselves." ”

Whether it is the past of the Chinese department in the first half of the novel, or the second half of the system of writing about the experience of north drift, returning to his hometown and taking root, and Xu Ran's work in the system of "transferring to the second field of life and death" at the retired old cadres, Liang Xiaosheng's narrative has a relaxed and witty and even absurd tone. At the end of the novel, he himself also appeared on the scene of "playing soy sauce", writing that the writer Liang Xiaosheng went to Linquan to hold a lecture, and the lecture ticket could not be sent out, and Xu Ran was even more dismissive of it: "If I talk about literature and life, it will definitely be better than that Liang Xiaosheng." ”

"When I finished writing 'The World of Man', I was relatively relaxed, so I wrote a book that was not so heavy to write and could relax a little, otherwise people thought I was a person who didn't know how much trouble and how heavy it was," Liang Xiaosheng said. A little humor is hidden between the lines, which is his favorite state in life.

According to him, Professor Wang Ermiao of the department of Chinese in the book is based on himself, and the courses that Wang Ermiao teaches in the Chinese department in the book are also the contents of his own classes in Beiyu. Like "The World of Man", "Chinese Tao Li" currently has plans for film and television adaptation.

"I've found someone to play Mr. Wang." Liang Xiaosheng said with great interest. "I like Fan Wei, I haven't met him, but I appreciate his performance more. His whole facial expression, especially when he squinted his eyes and smiled slightly, seemed to have a state of benevolence, and this state I think is the homely benevolence that Mr. Wang should have. ”

Nandu reporter Huang Qian