In the cold winter, on a sunny day, the servant sent a business card to novelist Kimura Heigoro, "Hokuto Publishing House Miyako Konno". At that time, Kimura was in the living room chatting with a reporter from the literature, art and science department of a newspaper and an editor from a first-rate publishing house.Kimura took the business card and glanced at it, then showed it to the two guests present. "Do you know this publishing house?" The editor of the publishing house looked at it for a while and said: "have no idea." He handed the card to another guest.

The reporter from the literature and art department of the newspaper was not familiar with the situation of the publishing house, so he kept silent and returned the business card to Kimura. "What kind of person is it?" Kimura asked the maid. "A woman of twenty-seven or eight years old, wearing a kimono." The maid seemed to want to say something more, but because there were guests, she swallowed her words again. "I haven't heard of it, it's a small publishing house anyway." To see or not to see, Kimura did not express his opinion, and started smoking again.

"address?" The editor of the publishing house took a look at the business card, but the characters were too small to read clearly.Kimura picked up the business card and read to him again: "The name card reads: Chiyoda Masao Fujimi Town." "Is there such a small publishing house in that area?" The editor of the publishing house tilted his head and said, "Anyway, if a woman is the president, it might be run by a husband and wife." He spoke in a dismissive tone, exhaling a puff of smoke. "Really? Recently, is there such a publishing house?" The novelist said in an admiring tone.

"Come here without anyone's introduction," said the editor. "It seems that she wants to ask you to let them publish the book. She knows it won't work, but maybe she wants to hook up with you first." "Maybe so." "That's impossible. You haven't given us the manuscript yet, and we're in trouble. Please don't distract yourself too much." "Don't worry. I have never dealt with them, and I don't know their details. Besides, I don't want to publish a book from an unknown publishing house." "That's true. Still, she's a wonderful woman. To try her luck out of the blue."

The master made no comment, and the maid waited in bewilderment. "Then, we shall take our leave." The two visitors had already finished their work and were chatting, so they took this opportunity to stand up. "Really." The novelist nodded. "Come again some other day. Please please please," said the editor of the publishing house. "Then, I'll pick up the manuscript the day after tomorrow. Please don't delay any longer. We're going to publish it in the Science, Literature and Art column. It's enough if you have it." The reporter from the Science, Literature and Art Department of the newspaper said, "It's going to be typeset the day after tomorrow, and time is tight."

"Got it, got it," Kimura said. The two visitors stood up, took their coats and left. Kimura Heigoro always received guests in his study.It was a room with the size of ten mats, and there was a yard in front of it.It has been fifteen years since Kimura moved here, so the courtyard is quite charming, but the house has become old. Kimura's table should be placed in a bright place.There is a large ceramic brazier next to it, and an iron pot is always hung on it.Although there is another library, Kimura's side is full of books that are currently in use, as well as books that Kimura is too lazy to put in the library even though he has no longer read them.

Kimura was not in the mood to start the next step, so he decided to meet the female president who was visiting for the first time.At the same time, he also had a curiosity to see what kind of person this woman was. "Please come in that guest." Kimura said. However, the maid was about to retreat, but Kimura stopped her again. "Hey, wait a minute." Kimura thought to himself, this female president has never met, so it is difficult to receive. "Did she come alone?" Generally speaking, the president of the publishing house always brings his subordinates down, so Kimura specifically asked.He doesn't like too many visitors.

"Yes, she came alone," said the maid, changing her expression, "she is very beautiful." "yes?" Kimura turned his face away and coughed. Kimura is almost sixty years old, but he is not old yet. He is fat and strong, with a round face and a ruddy complexion.He is already a great writer, but he doesn't have many works, so he doesn't usually accept drafts. Just as Kimura was grabbing a cigarette, the maid opened the partition. "Hello!" Came the female guest's voice. "Please come in." Kimura deliberately didn't look back, and quickly put a fanzine in his hand on the table, and read it:

"When we met tonight, the look of pride disappeared from her eyes, and her eyes evoke the deep and clear light of a person who has grown up through suffering. He thought: If she had a gentle heart at that time, the relationship between the two of them There will not be a five-year gap between them, and the situation is obviously very different from today. However, five years, in terms of time and space, made him and her take different paths in life..." This article doesn't appeal to Kimura at all.The corners of his eyes flickered brightly.Kimura didn't want to continue reading his and her fate in the fanzine.

After reading the appropriate place, Kimura Heigoro raised his head. He froze, indeed, he was surprised.The woman sitting in front of me looked more like a geisha than the female president of a publishing house. Her hair was tied up casually, but her wide-opened pair of big black eyes and her slightly elongated face left a vivid impression on people.Clothes are elegant and unrestrained, with loose belts matching it, especially the gorgeous and harmonious short coat, which is dazzling.Judging from her clothing and hobbies, she is obviously a woman of geisha background. "I'm meeting you for the first time. I'm Konno from Beidou Publishing House, who just sent you a business card."

She stared intently at Kimura's face and said hello.Its posture is quite sophisticated.Kimura couldn't help feeling flustered, not knowing where to turn his gaze. "I'm sorry I should take the liberty of calling here in the midst of your busy schedule." She greeted her as usual, but with grace and affection. "Nothing, nothing." Kimura couldn't help but put the cigarette in his mouth, looking for matches.At this time, Konno Miyako took out a golden pocket lighter from her belt, lit it with a click, moved forward while sitting, leaned forward, held out the lighter, and said: "Please, sir." "thanks." Kimura thanked him and lit his cigarette, but found the match beside the table.He made a fool of himself and felt embarrassed. "No, no, I..." After hearing what Miyako Konno said, Kimura Heigoro couldn't help stammering.As expected, the purpose of Konno's visit was to ask Kimura to write a book for her publishing house. "I don't write many works, and the sales are not good. You'd better ask some popular writer to write them." It's not exactly Kimura's humility either.Kimura Heigoro is a writer similar to private novels. His unique style and profound analysis of life occupy a special position in the literary world.Sometimes, he also wrote serial novels in newspapers, but they did not meet the public's taste and insisted on his unique style.Because of this, Kimura's readers are relatively stable, but not as popular as popular writers. For serial novels, he writes at most three articles a month, and he writes slowly, too lazy to write.He was one of those people who liked to spend his days drinking in taverns and traveling whenever time and health allowed. However, it is not difficult for Kimura to understand why Miyako Konno asked him to write a book.Because the first-rate publishing houses are scrambling to get the works of popular authors, and no-name publishing houses can't intervene.So, let's look for a writer like him who has status even though his market is not very good. "Yes. I know that very well." Konno Miyako nodded slightly.A pair of watery black eyes were still fixed on Kimura's face.Konno's face was sharp, with a cute mouth and a slightly longer lower lip, which was enough to charm men. "You make a lot of sense. However, our publishing house has just been established, and we haven't made any achievements in publishing. No matter which writer visits us, they will ignore us. As long as it is Mr. Kimura's manuscript, it doesn't matter what content it is , if we can publish a copy of it, our publishing house will be worth a hundred times." Miyako Konno's words are not all flattery. Kimura Heigoro is an old writer of "pure" literature, and it does make sense. Only then did Kimura look up at Miyako's face from the front. "Did you interview anyone before you came to me?" After all, he is a writer, and Kimura has insight into the other party's psychology. "yes." Konno Miyako lowered her eyes a little, and frankly mentioned the names of three or four writers she had interviewed.They are all red-hot writers. "Have they all received you?" The faces of the writers listed by Konno floated before Kimura's eyes. "No, even though I handed over my business card, they wouldn't let me in, and I was turned away." "That's too sinful. As long as they see you, they will definitely agree to contribute to you." "what about this?" "Seeing a beauty like you, no one can bear to refuse." "Sir, you can joke." Miyako smiled and looked up at Kimura.A pair of round and black eyes are extremely bright. "Submit the manuscript right away, and I can't do it," Kimura couldn't help but said, avoiding the other party's gaze, "I don't write much, and I promised him a long time ago." "Of course, I also know that I can't get Mr.'s manuscript right away. It doesn't matter when I give it." "yes." Kimura took another puff of his cigarette, feeling a little dazed. From the tone of the female president, she had expected that she would not be able to get Kimura's manuscript immediately.But why didn't she make a strong request - Kimura couldn't help feeling disappointed. "Understood, I will take it to heart." "please." Konno Miyako pulled the square bundle to her side and opened it, took out three books, and said: "Sir, this is a book published by our agency. Please have a look and use it as a reference." "Really," Kimura picked up the top book from the books handed over by her tender white fingers and said, "The binding is pretty good." Kimura took out the book from the bookcase and looked at the binding and contents.This is a collection of essays by the critic Junichiro Nogami, about 220 to 30 pages in size, with travel notes and essays. "Have you known Nogami-kun?" Kimura and Junichiro Nogami are drinking buddies. "No, this is what I asked him to write." "It's not easy to ask Nogami-kun to agree." Junichiro Nogami is a famous critic who loves to criticize others.In the past, his books were basically published from certain first-class publishing houses. "Is he also overwhelmed by your charm?" Nogami's long white hair and childish face appeared in Kimura's mind.I thought, Nogami likes to go to restaurants, so seeing a woman like Konno Miyako becomes weak.Kimura couldn't help but smile. The other was written by a columnist for a certain newspaper.He is currently active as a TV commentary, commentary on current events in magazines, hosting symposiums, and writing essays.Maybe this is why she came to visit. The last one is the work of a female writer, with a total of seven short stories, who is famous for her simple style. Each writer has its own characteristics, but Kimura speculates that these books will not sell well.However, to finally be able to publish a book written by such a person, this female president is indeed capable. To be honest, the binding is also really good. "A beautiful book." Kimura praised it frankly, thinking that the binding is elegant, not inferior to first-rate publishing houses. "Thank you," Miyako Konno said with her head slightly lowered. "Tofu, our bookbinding has been well received by all parties. Mr. Nogami is also very happy." "Really, I don't know any of these painters who are in charge of binding. Who did you find?" "I found it myself. I found painters who fit the author's characteristics and asked them to paint." "Ah, in this respect, you are really capable." "Where, where. We're just starting out, so we're working our ass off to get some good books out." "Excuse me," Kimura asked a question that was already on his lips, "How many people are working in your agency?" "Sir, I'm too embarrassed to say this question." I saw a blush under Konno Miyako's beautiful eyebrows. "What's the matter? At the beginning, every family is small." "We are pitifully small." "So there are five or six staff?" "No, not that much...my husband and wife and my cousin who ran errands for us." "yes." Kimura understood.There are many small publishing houses in the area of ​​Kanda, and I heard that some of them are run by only a couple.Kimura has always only dealt with first-rate publishing houses, so it is almost unbelievable.Now, one of them appeared in front of my eyes. The main work of the publishing house is to solicit manuscripts and deal with printing houses, bookbinding houses, and consignment stores.So, to exaggerate a bit, it only needs two or three people and a telephone to operate. Of course, Kimura had long guessed that the female president was not single, and thought inwardly that maybe there was a sponsor behind her, and she was just pretending to be a single woman on the surface.This is guessed based on her fashionable attire. However, once she made it clear that she has a husband, Kimura has a new interest: what kind of person is her husband?Generally speaking, the husband should be the president of the company, but they choose the wife to hold this position. "Please allow me to take the liberty to ask another question, is your husband very experienced in publishing?" Kimura tried. "No, he has no experience." "So, is that you?" "No, I'm also an amateur. If I work in a magazine and get to know the writers well, it will be easy. But I'm a complete beginner, so it's difficult." "Really? But, how did you come up with such a business? I heard that publishing houses, like those restaurants in Ginza, are booming and declining, with a strong metabolism, so it is difficult to operate." "Yes, I am also very aware of this, but there are some reasons why I made up my mind to do this unfamiliar job." She lowered her big eyes. Kimura judged that the other party was willing to tell the reason, so he actively urged her to say it. "This, I only tell you sir. Please keep it secret and don't tell it." "Understood, I won't say anything." Having her trust, Kimura felt very comfortable. "Honestly, my husband is a poet..." "Ah, is it a poet?" "No, I can't talk about being a poet, but I like writing poems very much. How to say it, I can't get it out yet, but he himself is studying it seriously." Kimura looked at the business card, and indeed he had never heard of a poet named Konno. He thought, maybe he published it under a pseudonym, so he asked: "What's his name?" "No, let me tell you, you don't know, I'm never allowed to mention him to others before he can make something famous." Kimura knew that many unknown writers were writing novels seriously.However, hearing that there are still people studying poetry desperately, he felt as if he had returned to a century ago.From the end of the Taisho period to the beginning of the Showa period, there were indeed such unknown poets. "As for me," Miyako Konno continued, "I'm trying to make my husband do what he's dreamed of." "What does it mean?" "My husband's only wish is to publish a collection of his own poems. Although he is not in good health, he is motivated to learn poetry." "Ah, isn't he in good health?" "Yes, the lungs have been troubled." After all, Kimura is a novelist, and immediately imagined: a man who is recuperating at home and writing poems tirelessly.Judging from this woman's age, he might be thirty-seven or eight years old.Long hair, thin face, and pale skin came to mind.Even the furnishings of the room seemed to be visible. "Hey, then you have to worry about it," Kimura said, "So, you are actually doing it alone!" "Yes," said Miyako Konno, raising her black eyes again, "I want to do my best. Now that it's established, I want to turn it into a decent publishing house—this is my wish." "Why set up a publishing house?" "As I said just now, my husband is writing poetry. I hope to compile it into a volume and publish it. But ordinary publishing houses will not pay attention to it." "Well, that's why you set up a publishing house for that purpose?" Kimura Heigoro couldn't help sighing. At first glance, this woman seemed to be a geisha, but she loved her husband deeply.Speaking of which, many women in Huajie and Liuxiang have a deep love for men.Although I don't know the background of Miyako Konno, but judging from the demeanor of the woman sitting in front of me, maybe she is also this type of woman. In today's society, there is such a happy man who has such a beautiful wife, but he writes poems according to his hobbies while recuperating at home. This wife set up a publishing house to publish a collection of poems for him.Throughout the year, Kimura, who couldn't live without his desk, couldn't help but envy him, and suddenly felt that his desk was too bleak. "Besides, my husband likes books, so he advocates starting a publishing house if he wants to start a business. As you said just now, it is really difficult. However, I want to try my best to realize his dream." Heiwuro Kimura thought to himself: Nowadays, this is rare.However, he suddenly had a question, where did this woman raise so much money?No matter how small the scale is, the capital required to set up a publishing house is considerable.Books and periodicals, after being handed over to the consignment store, can only be recovered after half a year, and the funds cannot be turned around. Maybe she, or her husband, has some land in the country?Did you sell these lands as capital to set up a publishing house? Although he guessed this way, he didn't dare to ask the question directly, so Kimura asked politely: "Excuse me for asking a question, are you from Tokyo?" "No, why are you asking that question?" Konno Miyako narrowed her eyes and asked. "I always think you have a bit of a temper." "It's not enough for people from Tokyo. Unfortunately, I'm from Shinshu." "Where is Xinzhou?" Kimura likes to travel and has a general understanding of the situation in various places, so he asked this question. "Do you know? It's not far west of Shiojiri." "I've been to that area once. So, is it the horse-washing side?" "You are so familiar. It is about 30 minutes by bus from Shiojiri to the north of Saiba. It is a village in the mountains." How did she come to Tokyo from the mountains of Shinshu?What kind of life path has she been through until today?Kimura is most interested in her origin.Also, how did she get married to this husband? Kimura Heigoro was in high spirits, so when Miyako Konno made the following request, she readily agreed. "Mr. Kimura, I came to visit rashly today. Please write the manuscript. If you can't get the manuscript immediately, please allow me to make another rash request, okay?" "what is the matter?" "Do you know Mr. Aonuma Tejiro?" "Very familiar." "Oh. Then, can you please introduce me to Mr. Aonuma?" Aonuma Tejiro is one of the popular writers today, specializing in writing so-called love novels, and his pornographic works are extremely popular.Yes, his works must be selling well. These days, every popular author's works have a considerable number of circulations, and the introductions of the best-sellers in the newspapers always mention their works.However, Kimura himself has never enjoyed such an honor. "Ok." Kimura then turned to the desk, took out his business card from the drawer, put on his reading glasses, squinted at Miyako Konno's name, and wrote a regular introduction. "is this okay?" Kimura handed it to Konno after finishing writing. "Oh, thank you so much. I have gained a lot from coming to you." She put Kimura's business card in her slender hand and nodded her thanks. After Konno left, Kimura Heigoro was still sitting at the table in a daze.Suddenly, he felt that the room became deserted.It was not until later that Kimura found out that Miyako Konno had not come to ask him to write a manuscript.Her goal is a popular writer, because she was worried about being rejected, so she came to ask Kimura to bridge. However, even though he knew he was being used, Kimura didn't complain.When saying goodbye, Konno Miyako asked Kimura if he could come again.Kimura said, you are welcome.Although he didn't know when Konno would come, Kimura hoped that she would come. In the yard, camellias are in full bloom. —About ten days later. Kimura Heiwuro participated in a gathering in the literary world.It was a banquet. At the banquet, Kimura accidentally found the tall and tall Aonuma Tejiro wearing a double-breasted suit, standing in the crowd with a glass of wine in his hand, talking and laughing happily. Kimura thought of Miyako Konno who had been here last time.After that, Miyako Konno didn't say anything, and Aonuma didn't call.Kimura wanted to take this opportunity to learn about their meeting, so he approached Aonuma. Kimura poked Aonuma's shoulder with his finger. "ah." Aonuma Tejiro nodded when he saw Kimura's face.Long hair hung down his bright forehead.Aonuma Tejiro is forty-five years old this year.He is a famous playboy in the literary world, and there are many women who love his works. "Hello," Kimura whispered, "A few days ago, I introduced you to a female president of a publishing house." "Yes, I've been here, I've been here," Aonuma smiled and nodded. "So, what's up, is it settled?" "Yes, Mr. Kimura introduced it. She insisted, so I had no choice but to agree to write a copy for her." After Aonuma Tejiro finished speaking, he immediately started chatting with the person just now.But the panic that flashed across Aonuma's face did not escape Kimura's eyes. So that's the case——Based on Aonuma's expression, Kimura has realized something.

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