Chapter 25: The Call for Submissions from Harvest Magazine

Lin Xiaowan’s wedding date had already been set. Although Li Aimei worried that her son might not have the means to take a wife in the future, her daughter’s marriage was now a foregone conclusion. Life, after all, had to be taken one step at a time; one focuses on the matter at hand and leaves the rest for later.

These past few days, Li Aimei had been quite busy, carefully reaching out to every relative to ensure this joy was shared with them. Her sister-in-law Lin Huijuan’s family was, naturally, an indispensable part of the circle, along with other relatives—distant or near, connected by blood or marriage—all of whom she notified of the good news. Only her own maternal family had, through the passage of time and the shifts of human affairs, gradually faded into a blurred shadow in her memory. After her parents passed away, the once-lively family ties had cooled, strained by disputes over borrowed money. Li Aimei sighed, deciding it was best not to disturb those on her side of the family.

"Look, isn't this rabbit adorable?" Lin Junwan squatted down, gently extending her hand to touch the soft, fine rabbit fur.

Seeing this, Li Aimei quickly cautioned, "Don't just touch it! If you mess up the fur of these treasures, they won't fetch a good price. They’re worth 80 yuan a jin."

"Can rabbit fur really sell for 80 yuan a jin?" Lin Junwan’s eyes widened in surprise, as if she couldn't believe the value. She only earned about 200 yuan a year. Raising two rabbits and shearing them would yield more than her entire year's income.

"Your brother said so; would he lie to you?" Li Aimei’s words carried a touch of pride, as if her son’s insight were the absolute truth for the household.

Lin Junwan’s mind began to race. "Then I’ll ask Yonggang to raise a few; maybe it could help supplement our household income."

At this, a bitter smile flashed across Li Aimei’s face. "Your brother said that these Angora rabbits aren't cheap—they cost 45 yuan each."

"So expensive?" Lin Junwan couldn't help but gasp, looking at her mother with confusion. "We don't have that kind of money."

"True, there's no spare money at home." Li Aimei sighed, a trace of hidden anxiety in her tone. But her eyes brightened immediately after. "However, your brother is capable. He helped the old party secretary’s family resolve several difficult problems, and the secretary was so pleased that he gave our family two Angora rabbits as a token of gratitude."

Lin Junwan was even more curious. "Why is the old party secretary so generous? These Angora rabbits are like gold nuggets."

Li Aimei explained with a smile, "It’s because these rabbits are delicate; the slightest carelessness and something could go wrong. Your brother has a knack for this. The old secretary knows that with him around, these rabbits will grow their fur steadily and sell for a good price." Her words were filled with praise for her son.

It was a pity, though, about his leg.

Lin Junsheng was handsome and possessed great skill; he wouldn't have been a worry if not for that accident. Every girl in the village had once wanted to court him, but after he was left with a limp, they all stopped paying him any mind. Li Aimei beamed with pride whenever she spoke of her son.

Lin Junsheng sat at a makeshift desk, brows furrowed, contemplating his next novel. He was mapping out his creative plans. Among the "Three Kings" series by A Cheng, *The Chess King* had already brought him significant profit. A manuscript fee of nearly a thousand yuan was undoubtedly a massive fortune in this era, filling him with anticipation for his writing career. While there had been no news yet regarding *The Tree King*, he had submitted it to the *Shanghai Literature* novella competition and believed it was only a matter of time. As for the final piece, *The King of Children*, he intended to take his time and not rush.

Lin Junsheng had visited the town bookstore yesterday, hoping to hear news of the latest writing competitions from the owner. Regrettably, he hadn't bumped into Liu Chuangen's beautiful daughter, Liu Jingjing. He was curious about the girl with the scholarly air—he wondered if her writing was as fresh and refined as she was, and if she had finished her manuscript yet.

Inside the bookstore, the familiar scent of ink wafted from the wooden shelves. After exchanging pleasantries with the owner, Lin Junsheng went straight to the point, asking about recent literary competitions. The owner, a warm-hearted man, listed several ongoing events and specifically pointed out a prestigious magazine with a generous prize: *Harvest*. Unlike the monthly *Shanghai Literature*, *Harvest* was a prominent bimonthly publication focused on novellas and novels. Works and authors featured there were highly renowned. Yu Hua was a regular contributor, having published *To Live*, *Cries in the Drizzle*, *Chronicle of a Blood Merchant*, and *Brothers* there. Su Tong, Jia Pingwa, Lu Yao, Shi Tiesheng, Mo Yan, Wang Shuo, and Chi Zijian had all graced its pages.

The prize for *Harvest*'s current novella competition was 2,000 yuan. Shanghai was certainly wealthy—the prizes were much higher than those in Beijing. Winning would not only erase his family's debt but also allow him to start saving for his leg treatment.

Although writing provided income, accumulating the tens of thousands of yuan needed for his medical care was a drop in the bucket. His aunt, Lin Huijuan, and uncle, Liu Guo'an, worked in a hospital and could help him gather information, but they couldn't afford the exorbitant costs. Even with their combined monthly salary of over 100 yuan, which was considered high in their small county, they were powerless against such a massive medical bill.

If Lin Junsheng wanted to change his fate, he had to carve out his own niche in literature. He needed to make a name for himself first. The standard manuscript rate of 10 yuan per thousand words was fixed, but if he could write a quality script and win a competition, making money would be much easier.

Writing scripts was difficult, especially since he wasn't an established professional and hadn't yet made a name for himself. Selling the script for *The Chess King* was already a stroke of luck. The editors at *Shanghai Literature* usually handled their own revisions and rarely entrusted them to outside authors who didn't understand the craft. Submitting to various magazine competitions was currently his fastest way to earn money.

Lin Junsheng looked at the copy of *Harvest* he had bought, which detailed the requirements for the competition. Writing a high-quality novella was no small feat. *Shanghai Literature* favored the "root-seeking" literature of A Cheng, but it was a local publication. *Harvest*, however, was a national magazine. Authors like Yu Hua, Mo Yan, and Lu Yao focused on works with a distinct sense of the era, and the magazine currently favored "reflection literature." After all, Ba Jin was the founder of *Harvest*, and works like his *Random Thoughts*, Ji Xianlin’s *Memories of the Cowshed*, and Feng Jicai’s *Ten Years of One Hundred People* were indicative of this trend.

Lin Junsheng decided to write a piece of reflection literature for the competition. He recalled the recently released films *Hibiscus Town* and *Evening Rain*, which were both adaptations of novels. He decided to write *The River Without Navigation Marks*, which he remembered as a 1983 film produced by the Xi'an Film Studio. He prepared to turn that story into a novel.