I’m Really a Superstar

Back at home.

After getting stuck in traffic for most of the journey, the minibus finally arrived at its destination.

Zhang Ye was so eager that when the vehicle came to a stop, he immediately jumped out after taking his luggage. He said with a smile, “I’m finally home.”

Then the villa’s door flew open!

Pop!

Pop!

Pop!

Confetti and streamers cascaded!

A group of people rushed out cheering!

Zhang Ye was startled. “Whoa, what’s with this!”

His daughter.

His cousins.

Old Wu’s relatives.

His relatives.

Even Chenchen and Yang Shu were among them!

His three sisters screamed, “Brother, you’re so awesome!”

His eldest younger sister popped a party popper. “We warmly welcome our brother back home!”

Wu Mo belly laughed. “Have you checked the international celebrity rankings yet? You’re on it! You’ve gotten onto the rankings!”

“Little Ye,” his mother-in-law said excitedly, “you’ve really done our family proud this time!”

His mother strode up to him. “Where’s the medal?”

Zhang Ye said, “It’s with Old Ha.”

His second sister exclaimed, “I want to see the medal too! I want to see it too!”

“Let Little Ye into the house first!” his father said loudly.

“Daddy!” His daughter ran over to him.

Zhang Ye smiled so broadly his eyes disappeared. He lowered himself and picked his daughter up. “Did you miss Daddy?”

Sisi nodded. “Yes! Daddy, where’s my present?”

Zhang Ye chuckled and said, “It’s in the suitcase. I’ll get it for you in a bit.”

His first and second uncle also asked to see the Nobel Peace Prize medal and insisted on taking a picture with it.

Ha Qiqi carefully handed it to them. “Slowly, handle it carefully.”

At this moment, Wu Zeqing walked out with a smile. She said to the studio staff, “Come on in. I’ve already made some food. Eat before you all go.”

Zhang Zuo hurriedly waved his hands. “No, no.”

Little Wang also said quickly, “Sister-in-law, don’t stand on ceremony with us.”

Wu Zeqing smiled and said, “Little Ye has won an award, and every one of you has been working hard behind the scenes to make it happen. Come in and have something to eat.”

Zhang Ye also spoke. “Yeah, come in and let’s eat together.”

The studio staff finally relented and went inside the villa.

The celebratory feast was already prepared. There were three tables in all, and it was clear that the entire family had been waiting for him to come back. However, when Zhang Ye arrived, it felt as though he was no longer the star of the show. That honor belonged to the Nobel Prize medal. His family did not care about eating and began taking turns taking pictures with it. His mother refused to let go of the medal and made them take over twenty pictures of her with it. After taking pictures with the medal, they all started posting it onto their Weibo or Moments. It was a very boisterous scene.

“This is the Nobel Prize medal!”

“It’s so beautiful!”

“Haha, 70 people have already liked my post.”

“Uncle, are you done taking pictures yet? Take another one for me.”

“Wait a while, I’ll be done soon.”

“Aiyo, let’s start eating first.”

“Ah, right, let’s eat.”

The celebratory feast began.

His family members were all very happy, happy to the point of being thrilled. Although Zhang Ye had won a lot of honors in the past, it was very different this time. This was China’s first ever Nobel Prize, and it was even the most prestigious Nobel Peace Prize.

Ring, ring, ring.

Old Wu’s cell phone rang.

A moment later, Wu Zeqing handed the phone to him. “It’s for you.”

Zhang Ye was taking a sip at this second. “Who is it? I’ll take it later, we’re eating.”

Wu Zeqing smiled and said, “It’s the minister of the Central Publicity Department.”

It fell silent in the house.

Zhang Ye was also taken aback. He took the phone and said: “Hello?”

On the other end of the line, he heard a middle-aged man laughing. “Teacher Zhang, congratulations.”

Zhang Ye laughed and said: “Leader, I respond to anyone calling me teacher but you.”

The middle-aged man also laughed. “Come now! You’re the first ever Chinese Nobel Prize laureate. Of course you’re deserving of the title ‘teacher’ in front of anybody. Let me congratulate you on behalf of the Central Publicity Department and thank you as well.”

Zhang Ye said: “You’re being too generous with your words. It’s me that should be thanking the country for cultivating and supporting me.”

Following, another few calls came.

Some of them called Zhang Ye’s cell phone.

While others called Wu Zeqing’s cell phone to look for him.

From the military.

From the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

From the Chinese Academy of Engineering.

From Central TV.

The calls were all made personally by the key leaders of the various official departments. They were all calling to offer an official congratulation rather than a personal one.

Finally, there was even an email.

Ha Qiqi suddenly shouted, “Director Zhang, there’s an email!”

Zhang Ye asked, “Who is it from? Read it to me.”

Ha Qiqi quickly came over, looking awe-inspired. “I’m afraid you better look at this yourself.”

Zhang Ye was taken back. “Eh?”

He opened the email.

The contents looked just like a regular congratulatory message.

But when they reached the end of the message, everyone gasped.

The email was from—the General Office of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China ¹ !

Zhang Ye wiped his sweat and looked towards Old Wu. “Do I need to reply to this?”

The studio staff all vomited blood. They shouted, “Of course you have to! You most definitely need to do that!”

His mother was fuming and kicked her son. “This is no ordinary congratulatory message! You don’t even intend to reply to Central? Do you want to die?!”

Zhang Ye said nervously, “I was asking precisely because I didn’t know!”

Wu Zeqing smiled. “Yes, it’s better to reply.”

Zhang Ye asked, “What should I write then?”

Wu Zeqing said, “You can reply however you want.”

His father-in-law repeatedly reminded, “Don’t you dare reply however you want, hear that!”

Zhang Ye rolled his eyes and said, “Dad, with my literary flair, how bad do you think it could get?”

Wu Changhe curled his lips. “This is not about having a literary flair or not. When you reply to Central, there are rules to abide by, and you have to be formal about it. With that Beijing slang of yours, it would surely give Central a shock.”

Everyone laughed.

Zhang Ye just had to prove him wrong. “Formal? I got it.” He turned around and asked Old Wu, “Where did we keep the four treasures? I’ll write a reply to them right away.”

Wu Zeqing smiled. “Calligraphy?”

Zhang Ye grunted an affirmative.

In turn, Wu Zeqing said to her nephew, “Little Mo, go to the study on the second floor and bring the items for your Uncle.”

“Alright.” Wu Mo immediately went to get them.

Very quickly, the four treasures were brought down.

Everyone was very curious about what Zhang Ye would write, so they all made some space for him.

Sisi was blinking her big eyes and asking, “Sister Chenchen, what is Daddy doing?”

Chenchen pulled her by her little hand and walked outside. “Stay away, your daddy is trying to act cool again.”

Grinding the inkstone.

Picking up the brush.

A beautiful semi-cursive was written onto the paper.

Everyone was amazed by it. No one had expected that Zhang Ye would actually reply with a poem.

…

” Hymn ² ”

A vast expanse of rolling peaks and rivers and grasslands,

Countless dense villages, roosters crowing and dogs barking,

Connected to an originally wild Asian land,

An arid wind whistles across a wilderness of weeds,

Low, dark clouds gather overhead the eastbound, gurgling stream,

An untold number of years buried in somber forests.

They quietly embrace me—

The never-ending stories tell of never-ending disasters; silence

Is love, or an aerie of eagles flying high,

Or dried-up eyes expecting a gush of hot tears to stream

When the steadfast gray ranks are crawling across the distant horizon;

I have too many words, my feelings too long-standing.

I want to use the desolate deserts, rugged paths, and mule carts,

I want to use canoes, wildflowers on hills, and rainy weather,

I want to use e’rything to hug you, you.

The population I see e’rywhere, oh,

People living and working in disgrace, people stooping,

I want to embrace each one of you with my bloody hands.

Because you have risen up, one peoples.

This is like the centuries-old, enduring wind,

This is like the endless groans and chilliness

Coming from the dilapidated eaves,

It sings atop a withered canopy of trees;

It has blown past barren swampland, reeds, and chirping insects,

This is like the sound of ravens flying overhead.

When I passed by, lingering on the road,

I was lingering for the history of disgrace

Among vast rivers and mountains, still waiting,

Waiting, as we had suffered too silently for too long,

But now we have risen up, one peoples,

But now we have risen up, a nation.

…

He signed off on it.

And put away the brush.

His feelings.

His anger.

His pride.

It was all contained within.

Zhang Ye said, “Send the reply.”

Ha Qiqi took a picture of the calligraphy piece in a daze and sent the reply.

Wu Mo suddenly looked at Zhang Ye.

A lot of people in the house also looked at Zhang Ye.

Zhang Ye asked Old Wu, “Will this reply do?”

Wu Zeqing smiled. She held her husband’s hand. “There’s no reply better than this.”

…

On the same night.

People’s Daily published Zhang Ye’s reply!

Xinhua News, Youth Daily, and many other mainstream media outlets also published Zhang Ye’s reply prominently on the front page of their newspapers. It was headlined:

—”We have risen up, a nation!”