Chapter 5 5. The Distressed Writer

Jerry's father is a children's book author.In Jarry's opinion, being a writer is the most boring job, sitting at home all day, trying to write things that are more difficult than composition.Dad's clothes are always stretched at the elbow first.Moreover, my father regards his home as a studio, and he does not allow others to come in and out when he writes. Sometimes he is not happy when he speaks loudly: "Hey, can you be quiet?" For him to write a book, it is enough for him to be quiet, why should others be quiet?There is no sound in this home, so there is no atmosphere!

It seems that my father's talent is not very good, and he writes very hard.I am tired of writing during the day, but I can’t sleep at night. It is said that I will stay awake all night without taking sleeping pills. Swallow pills, and often go to the hospital. Jia Li never accompanied his father to the hospital, and father and son rarely appeared together on other occasions.He is always a little uncomfortable going out with his father.Dad is very humble to outsiders. For example, he always thanked Wu Jiamu's mother horizontally and vertically, which made her unable to bear it. She always bent down and said, "You're welcome." Once, Dad asked Jia Li to accompany him Going to grandma's house, the station was crowded with people, and when others rushed up, he backed away and said, "Let them get on first!"

Dad was like an old gentleman with gold-rimmed glasses. Dad has a hand disease, the reason is that the shoulders do not cooperate, it is said that he has frozen shoulder, every time he writes too much, his hands become numb, Dad is very anxious, so he often practices wall-climbing movements, standing on tiptoe, raising his hands on the wall.Once I practiced so hard that I held my hands with my arms folded there, and my hands didn't follow the instructions. "Jerry, come on!" Jarry helped put Dad's hand off the wall and couldn't help but say, "Dad, your hand will be better if you write less!"

"What do you know!" Dad frowned and shook his arms that had recovered, "Career comes first!" Forget it, how interesting is writing a book, building a warship or tracking unidentified alien flying objects is a big undertaking! Jia Li talked back in his heart, but he didn't dare to reveal the slightest.At home, Dad is not very polite to his own people.Jia Li heard him call, "Wife, where are my leather shoes?" Mom really agreed, as if wife was an honorific title.And my father didn't even say thank you when he put on the leather shoes, so my mother wasn't angry.For my younger sister, my father always calls her weird names, sometimes "Snow White", sometimes "Little Pig Stephen", and I don't even think about her being fourteen years old!As for Jarry, there is no way to mention it. He always said to Jarry: "It's time to grow some brains!" It seemed that Jarry was an idiot!

In October, Dad published a new book called "Shanghai Youth". The cover looked very old, very old-fashioned, and it was about the relationship between a brother and sister.Thank goodness he didn't write about the twins, otherwise Jarry's classmates would have laughed at him.There are only 2,000 copies of the book printed, and Dad bought 200 copies himself. No wonder this book can’t be found in bookstores, and no one in Jiali’s school knows about it. Dad is very sad, but it suits Jiali mind. The response to the book was mediocre, and my father was very unwilling.He took out two copies and handed them to Jiali and Jammeh, saying, "Read them carefully, and tell me what you think next week. Remember, this is important homework and must be completed."

Jia Mei read the book very seriously, and even asked when she encountered new words, but after reading for a long time, she dozed off, and Jia Li also read it. Sure enough, this book was not pleasant.The elder brother in it is just a wooden man, a big fool, fortunately he is still a good student with excellent academic performance, so he is not worthy at all; She is one of her own, but she has no sense of proportion, betraying her brother to other boys. A week later, Dad came to collect the homework with hope. "Have you finished reading?" "finish watching." "How do you feel?" Dad smiled, "Jamme said first."

Jia Mei had already had several sweet sleeps after reading that book, but she was obedient and said with a smile, "It's pretty good!" "What's so good about it? Let's talk about it in detail!" Jamie mumbled for a long time, then said, "It's all good anyway, it looks pretty strong." "Oh!" Dad was very satisfied, waved his hand, and let her pass the homework. When it was Jiali's turn, he was cruel and told the truth: "I don't think the writing is quite like a real person." Dad immediately became serious: "I didn't write about you, how do you know it's not true?"

"This..." Jia Li is not that stupid, he doesn't want to be famous like this, if his father writes about him, he still doesn't want to.Unless something big happens in the future, such as a book like "The Biography of Jia Li", "I didn't say that he is not like me, but that boys generally don't admire their sisters, and he always wants to help them!" "anything else?" "The literary and art committee member in that class asked him for help. If he can do it, he shouldn't refuse." "why?" "Because that literary and art committee member is very good-looking and soft-spoken, how can he be ashamed, he really likes to work hard for her!"

Dad's face darkened all of a sudden: "Why are you so complicated! I've already noticed that girls are pretty, and they should be very simple in the first grade of junior high school." Jia Li knew that he had done something stupid, and his father was very stubborn and would pursue it.So, he repeatedly evaded and said, "No, no, that's not what I meant." "Then who said that?" "A classmate, yes, a good classmate. I lent him the book to read." Jia Li was quick to wit. Dad's face softened, he probably felt that the prestige was still there, and he brushed back the previous opinion with one sentence: "He is too arrogant! By the way, what's his name?"

"Name? Oh, it's called, it's called Long Chuanzheng." "Long Chuanzheng?" Dad muttered, "The name is not ordinary." Jia Li never expected that this matter was still moving forward, and he couldn't cover it. Two days later, my father solemnly called Jiali to the study, handed him a copy of "Shanghai Youth", and said: "This book is given to Long Chuanzheng, and he will give some detailed comments after reading the book." ." "This, isn't this too arrogant?" Jarry waved his hands desperately. "Oh, sometimes you need a kind of vigor." Dad insisted.

Jia Li had no choice but to come to Lu Zhisheng with the book: "Put the book here with you!" "Okay, what is a friend!" Lu Zhisheng seemed to have made a great sacrifice. "Then, it's up to you to give advice." "No, no, I'm an outsider to this kind of thing. You're the son of a writer, you just need to lie to daddy with some nonsense." There was no way, Jia Li could only take the place of the dead ghost for the damn Dragon Legend, and read the book carefully again. Two days later, Dad called him to the study again. Dad looked very sincere, and even kindly asked him if he wanted to drink water. "What did Long Chuanzheng say again?" "It's still an old saying, and it's not very accurate," Jarry said. "It doesn't matter, you have to tell me exactly, that classmate of yours still has some level." "Uh, don't dare to be that!" "Why do you want to be humble on his behalf." Dad said, "Just tell me." Jia Li had no worries and was treated as a VIP, so he talked endlessly.Why is the situation different now? Many people in the class have brand-name shoes, and there are six of them owning Aihua’s miniature tape recorder. So in the book, the arrogant boy likes to show off and wear blue sneakers, and everyone will laugh; Yes, it is rare for a brother to want his sister to help him wholeheartedly; no matter how good the sister is, the brother does not want to rely on it. This is the truth.As for the male and female students, they don't know how to blush when they say a word, girls nowadays are very generous... After hearing this, Dad tried his best to write it down in the notebook, and nodded frequently, looking very sincere.Jia Li couldn't help thinking that even if Jia Lao wasn't his father, he would enjoy dealing with him. For a long time, Dad didn't mention the story of the dragon, and Jia Li was glad that he forgot about that person. One day, Dad received the manuscript fee, a thick wad of money, Jia Mei cheered, and pestered Dad to buy her a computer. Dad said: "Well, both of you have commented on the book, and you should be awarded. Buy a computer and an English typewriter, and you two can share it!" The younger sister said: "Brother didn't raise any opinions, he just acted as Long Chuanzheng's mouthpiece. Hey, what does Long Chuanzheng look like? Why don't I know him?" This girl is so talkative. Dad got the reminder and immediately said: "Long Chuanzheng, please come to the house to meet and let Wu Jiamu's mother cook a few more dishes. He still inspires me. I want to thank him." "Well, he, he's afraid to be embarrassed." "It's okay, I'll ask your homeroom teacher to invite him!" Dad said, "Then he won't refuse!" "No, that's not what it means, he, he didn't come to school, it was an operation." Jia Li suddenly thought. "Surgery?" Dad became excited, "Why didn't you say it earlier, I'll go to his house to see!" Jarry panicked even more, and could only say, "No, he starts school tomorrow. I'll just call him." Dad said: "Well, I will invite him after school tomorrow." What else can Jarry say, all roads are blocked.He can only listen to his father telling Wu Jiamu's mother, buy chicken and fish tomorrow, green onions and ginger... Alas, if you make a wrong step, you will make a wrong step. Jia Li couldn't move other reinforcements. If the Three Musketeers still existed, they would be safe.That guy who speaks foreign words must be more than enough to be a dragon, but now there are only two swordsmen left. Jia Li went to beg Lu Zhisheng, but he refused desperately: "No, your father knows me!" "You can say that Dragon Legend is your alias." "Why do I take such an alias." Lu Zhisheng said very conceitedly, "Like some kind of boss." "You go, my dad will treat you to a banquet, there are big fish and big meat, treat you as a big guest, don't be ungrateful." "Then..." Lu Zhisheng scratched his scalp, "What if he wants to talk about that book?" "You can intervene! Be flexible and be as tactful as possible." Jia Li said, "Besides, you remember, Long Chuanzheng has just had a knife, and also, he is very afraid of embarrassment, besides, he should have a younger sister, so I have a say in this..." "Jerry, I really admire you—how can you remember every lie you tell so clearly!" Jia Li's heart that had just warmed up was half cold again.Especially before departure, the actor of Dragon Legend made a request in a very sophisticated manner: "My friend, let us help each other, here, please correct me for this argumentative essay, I must at least be good!" " At this time, let alone changing an argumentative essay, even if he said he would be a slave to "Long Chuanzheng" for a day, Jia Li could only nod in agreement. After school in the afternoon, Jia Li pushed the chubby "Long Chuanzheng" into the house and said to his father, "He's here." Dad greeted him with a smile: "Oh! Hello!" Suddenly, he was stunned, and looked at the other party as if probing, "You, aren't you Lu, what are you Lu?" "This is one of my pseudonyms." He panicked and changed his pseudonym into a pseudonym. "Oh, you wrote a lot of articles? Yes, yes, where are they posted?" Dad was always serious. "Post? Post what? Oh, how many points do you think the article gets? I dare not take it as general!" Jia Li was so anxious that he was sweating, and said quickly: "Dad, he is modest, and he never refuses to say how many articles he has written!" "Young people are awesome!" Dad nodded kindly. Lu Zhisheng knew it was a good word, so he nodded smartly and said, "Yes, yes!" Wu Jiamu's mother was busy putting dishes on the table, and at the same time she was full of praise for Lu Zhisheng, saying that he was full of heaven and well-rounded, and that he was blessed at first glance, and that he had bright eyes and was extremely intelligent.Lu Zhisheng took all the photos and sat there with an airs like a big shot, Jia Li wished he could kick him. "Is your wound better?" the writer asked. "What kind of wound? I've never been injured, and I don't have any scars on my body!" Lu Zhisheng was so overjoyed that he forgot that Long Chuanzheng should have just fired a knife. Dad gave Jerry a quick look. After dinner, my father poured a glass of soda for "Long Chuanzheng". The fat man ate many restaurants with his father, so he had a lot of experience: "This soda is a brand name, with flavor. I like to use fruit juice, what? Coconut juice, pre-season juice, at least oranges, anyway, I have tried high-end mineral water, it’s almost like cold boiled water, it’s a scam.” In short, the fat man talked so much during this meal that Jiali's father couldn't even say a word.Jia Li stepped on him quietly, but he got carried away and said, "What are you doing, what are you doing, eating is also a science!" Dad finally didn't say anything.After the fat man had had enough bragging and was full, his father said, "I heard that you are very accurate about boys' psychology. Can you talk about this issue?" "Well," that fake Long Chuanzheng's expression changed, "I, I have to go home right away, it's getting late!" Jia Li followed "Long Chuanzheng" out, threw the argumentative paper back to him, and said, "You idiot, go and correct it yourself!" At this time, Lu Zhisheng regained his self-knowledge, didn't say anything, smiled with a salivating face, picked up the homework book, and left. When Jia Li returned home, he was in a panic, thinking about getting under the covers as soon as possible, and muddling through.Unexpectedly, as soon as the door slammed, Dad came up to him with a gloomy face, looked at him firmly and said, "Are you kidding me? Tomorrow I will go to your school to find the real Long Chuanzheng!" The real Dragon Legend just couldn't sleep well all night, and had two nightmares in a row.In the morning, he brushed his teeth restlessly, and saw that his father was already looking for leather shoes. "Then, I don't want to pretend anymore!" Jia Li bit the bullet and said while spitting toothpaste foam, "Dragon Legend is exactly me." Dad took a look at him, and slowly took off his leather shoes without making a sound or showing any expression. A few days passed with anxiety. On Sunday evening, Dad came back with a big bag of cooked meat and fish, and the aroma filled the room.He moved those delicacies into the study for the first time, and told Jia Mei not to disturb.Jia Li was lying in the hut to avoid the wind, when he suddenly heard his father call him. Jia Li walked into his father's room anxiously, and seeing his father taking out several cans of orange juice from his bag, busy as if nothing had happened, Jia Li doubted his ears.It just so happened that the writer finished his work, slammed the door tightly, then held out his hand to Jia Li, and said kindly: "Student Long Chuanzheng, nice to meet you!" Oh, totally like an underground party meet!