“千萬富翁”陳廷一

總想寫寫他，他是個大家。

在當代文學界，陳廷一被譽為我國傳記文學的扛鼎作家，在傳記文學界素有“南葉北陳”之稱：上海的葉永烈以寫北京的“四人幫”蜚聲文壇，而北京的陳廷一則以寫上海的“宋氏三姊妹”聞名遐邇。梅潔先生10年前在《新聞出版報》上發表文章道是在當代中國“讀傳記文學，不讀陳廷一不行；寫傳記文學史，不寫陳廷一不可。”

早在1998年的深秋，在陳廷一的力作《皇天后土》研討會上筆者采訪了他，他幽默地說，我的作品算起來還不到1000萬字，等超越1000萬大關，我請你寫我好不好?我說我的標題就叫《千萬富翁陳廷一》，他不置可否地笑了。

時隔六年后的2004年，北京西單中國圖書大廈舉辦傳記文學展銷，全國五家出版社出版了陳廷一的17部傳記文學作品，其中人民出版社推出了他的《宋氏三姊妹》《毛氏三兄弟》等六部。

有了六年之約，我來到陳廷一位于北京南城的家，進了他的書齋。書齋一側有面偌大的山墻，山墻被設計成他作品的珍藏柜，四周則是他一生43部出版作品樣本。每一部樣本展放一格，是分年限擺放的。從第一部作品《許世友傳奇》到最新人民文學社出版的《山西首富》，每一本都頃注了他的心血，背后都有一個塵封鮮活的故事。在眾星捧月般的書籍中間，放著各類獎杯和獲獎證書。

一

人們品味成功時，往往只贊美鮮花的俏麗而忽視當初所經過的風雨霜雪。

陳廷一出生在中原大地一個貧困農民的家庭里。這里兩千年前曾誕生過道家鼻祖老子，所以陳廷一自稱為“老子故里人”。他從記事起沒吃過一頓飽飯，他說他是吃地瓜干長大的血性男兒。

為了讓兒子成才，父親去世后，母親卻做出了一個驚人的抉擇——哪怕要飯也要供兒子上學!于是陳廷一以第一名的成績升入了高中。但就在陳廷一興高采烈地準備進入大學的時刻，“文革”一聲悶雷把他的大學夢擊得粉碎。

就在上大學無門的情況下，陳廷一毅然穿上了綠軍裝，來到了北國邊防長白山下的一個白樺林哨所，開始了他的軍人之旅和槍桿詩的寫作。

來到長白山腳下哨所的陳廷一才20多歲，血氣方剛，他愛看小說，愛讀傳記，但從沒有做過當作家的夢。不過白樺林的邊防哨所，山清水秀，天藍云白，水清得像面鏡子，空氣清鮮得讓你留戀。每到夜幕降臨，就會想入非非：“頭枕邊疆的云月，腳踩長白的大地……”，槍桿詩就這樣從他的心中淌流出來了，后來居然變成了鉛字在大江南北傳開，這對于年輕人是多么大的鼓舞啊!后來，他的散文《哨所》在《吉林文藝》發表了，不久他的小說《鐵騎怒火》又發表了，就這樣，作家夢在他腦中閃現。不久，一張大紅喜報寄到了哨所，陳廷一被聘為《吉林文藝》編輯部工農兵編輯，當這只鳳凰要飛出山溝的那天清晨，全連哨兵列隊山涯敲鑼打鼓地歡送他，陳廷一流淚了，不過那是喜慶的淚。

陳廷一在爾后的歲月里開始寫自己身邊的人和事，后來開始了人物傳記的寫作。憑著他的智慧，當年在“活人不能立傳”的時候，他寫出了《許世友傳奇》三部曲，發行100萬冊之多，一炮走紅。

二

“文革”后期，身著軍裝的陳廷一，終于圓了大學夢，進入吉林大學中文系。接著，他寫出了《孫中山大傳》（上、下冊）《宋慶齡全傳》《宋美齡全傳》《宋藹齡全傳》《宋子文大傳》《孔祥熙大傳》《蔣介石大傳》《宋氏三姊妹之父——宋查理大傳》，還有《民國四大家族秘笈》等。在中國現代史上，他寫出了《毛氏三兄弟》《賀氏三姊妹》《許世友外傳》上、下冊、《許世友夫人田普傳》《青年鄧小平》《陳氏兄弟》《張氏父子》等。從這千萬字的書目中，我們不難看出陳廷一對歷史的博學和研究的精細。

1993年日本一家電視臺來華采訪，無意中發現北京好幾家大書店里都擺出了陳廷一的“宋氏家族人物傳記”專著，于是他們臨時改變動意，原本請史學專家錄制的節目，卻把陳廷一請上了臺。這樣一來他那“史學專家”美名更加名聲在外了!

陳廷一學史寫史有兩種情況：一是他從實地采訪中獲得，二是從資料里獲得。如《許世友傳奇》，資料庫里找不到關于他的多少記載，他只好邁開雙腳去許世友家鄉大別山腹地采訪，為了寫好許世友，凡是許世友去過的地方他幾乎都走了一遍。

當年陳廷一在寫處女作《許世友傳奇》時還是一位熱血青年，他為了重走長征路，有三個春節行走在長征路上，餓了啃干糧，渴了飲山泉。一路下來人瘦了一圈，掉20多斤肉，然而卻換來了厚厚的幾十本采風日記。

1987年4月20日，人民大會堂云南廳燈火輝煌。這是一個隆重的紀念日子，由中國青年出版社和河北作協聯合召開的陳廷一《許世友傳奇》作品研討會在這里拉開了序幕，陳廷一主講了“歷八年艱辛繪將軍風采”的創作之路，他的重走長征路引起了與會者震驚，老作家王愿堅、劉白羽、魏巍都先后發言，盛贊后生的勇氣。

1992年在信陽召開全國老區作品研討會，陳廷一又重到許世友的家鄉訪問。那天下著毛毛細雨，陳廷一攜帶他的新作《許世友傳奇》，佇立在將軍的墳墓前行三鞠躬禮，此時多日不見太陽的天空云開日出，河南省文聯主席傅開沛直嚷許將軍顯靈了!當陳廷一從大別山返回向李德生講述這段“紅色迷信”時，李德生將軍笑著說：“你走長征路寫許世友，老許感動了!”說得在場的同志都笑逐顏開。

三

否認平庸，才是創作成熟的標志；超越自己，才能行走在時代的前頭。

常聽到人說陳廷一的人物傳記是小說型傳記，好讀好看，包括許世友將軍夫人田普在作品研討會上也如是說，尤其是他的后期作品，如《許世友傳奇》之后的《許世友外傳》，《宋美齡全傳》之后的《宋慶齡全傳》《小家大國之父》《孫中山大傳》《山西首富》等。

說起作品魅力，它不光體現在文章的字句上，更重要體現在創作理念上。按照陳廷一的話說，書出了十本二十本，如果沒有新意，再出也就沒有什么意義了，說穿了可多得一頂“文字泥水匠”桂冠。他把自己的想法向恩師、現任山大博士生導師、中國著名詩人吳辛教授匯報，這位導師對學生提出了“再爬一個坡，你就到了高處”的要求。為了悟這個“爬坡”，陳廷一曾輟筆兩年多。他記住吳辛教授說過的一句話：“文到高處忘自我。”在沉寂兩年后，他終于又推出了長篇報告文學《皇天后土》。

這是一部中國國情問題的長篇報告文學。作品一鳴驚人，被國土資源部系統稱之為“開天斧作”。一位副部長看了看稿，提筆寫道：“縱觀人類發展史，無非是一部土地持續利用史。一要吃飯，二要建設，兩者既對立又統一。有建設用地就有文明和粗野之分。文明標示進步，粗野孕育危機。展示文明，批判粗野，歷來是我們的責任。作者在緊緊張張的寫作這部作品之前的采訪中，曾遭到歹徒的劫持，場面是驚心動魄的，但作者沒有退卻，相反更激勵了他，我被作者這種‘用生命擁抱創作，用創作燃燒生命’的精神所感動。”

1998年8月，由中國通俗文藝研究會與國土資源部聯合舉辦《皇天后土》作品研討會。就在這一年，陳廷一成為享受國務院特殊津貼的專家。

在談到下一部作品時，陳廷一先說保密，最后還是告訴了我們：《警告人類》。我們期待他明年的新作會再次給人們一個驚喜!

在結束對陳廷一的采訪時，我們覺得人的成功在陳廷一這里體現更多的則是他的勤奮。他的作品代表著他的人格，他的人格融進了他的作品。

鏈接：

陳廷一出生于河南新縣許洼村，“文革”中參軍，軍旅生涯18年，當過參謀、指導員。業余時間愛好文學創作，發表不少散文、小說。由中國青年出版社出版的《許世友傳奇》，一版和再版發行了20多萬冊。

后來掛軍銜進了吉大作家班深造，從此明確了自己創作選材上的定位，寫出了《孫中山大傳》《毛氏三兄弟》等革命歷史題材的傳記作品。

近年來陳廷一又把關注點從個體轉到國家的大命運上來。他在轉業到地方任《國土資源》報記者中獲得的大量素材，寫出了《皇天后土》及《21世紀誰來養活中國》等一系列關注資源、民生的作品。

Prolific Biographer

By Wei Xinmin

Beijing-based Chen Tingyi and Shanghai-Based Ye Yonglie are China’s two most outstanding biographers of today. A scholar commented ten years ago in an influential publication that Chen’s biographies were a must for the readers who wanted to know about Chinese biographies and that Chen was indispensable in the history of biographers. The commentator’s words still ring true today.

As early as in the autumn of 1998， I met Chen at a forum on his latest book and asked for an interview. He joked， what about come to see me and write abut me when I have produced more than 10 million words??I relied in the same joking way， what do you think of the title for my story: Chen the multi-millionaire??He smiled noncommittally.

At an exhibition of biographies held at China Books Tower in Beijing in 2004， 17 biographies by Chen Tingyi were on display. They were launched by five publishers.

Since the 6-year-old agreement still held good， I visited the prolific biographer at his house in the southern Beijing last year. Along a wall of his study stood a bookcase where 43 copies of biographies he had written were proudly on display.

His own story is probably no less colorful than those he has written for famed ones in the Chinese history. Born into a poverty-stricken rural family in central China， Chen doesn remember he ever had a good meal as a kid. After the death of his father， his mother made a big decision: she wanted her son to become somebody through education even if she would have to be a beggar.

Chen was number one student when he went to senior high school. But his college dream was shattered in 1966 when the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976) broke out. He joined the army and became a soldier in a forest area in the northeastern China. In his early 20s， the young soldier was fascinated by the picturesque scenery around the barracks. He began to write poems. Pretty soon， his poems and a short story appeared in a literary magazine in Jilin Province. He began to dream of becoming a writer. Unexpectedly， his prayer was answered. He became an editor for Jilin Art and Literature.

In the later period of the Cultural Revolution， he was enrolled into the Chinese Department of Jilin University. His college dream finally came true.

His first biography is about Xu Shiyou， a legendary senior general of the People’s Liberation Army. More than one million copies of Chen’s trilogy about the hero were printed. The trilogy broke the taboo in the then China that no writer should produce a biography for a living person.And the big success made a nationwide name for the young biographer.

The success came with hard work. It was when he was doing researches for his first book that Chen Tingyi established two principles for his career: for materials， he goes to where history happened and he reads about his subjects extensively. He applied the two principles to his first book. In those years， very little information about the legendary general was formed in data banks. In order to find more about the hot-blooded general and his past， the hot-blooded young Chen traced the Long March step by step over years. For three Spring Festivals， he was on the road doing his own Long March. He lost more than 10 kg but what he saw and learned were recorded in dozens of notebooks. He went to the general’s home village in the Dabie Mountains. In fact， Chen visited almost all places where Xu had once lived. It took the biographer a good 8 years to complete the Legends of Xu Shiyou.

Since then Chen has authored multi-volume biographies on big names in the modern Chinese history such as Dr. Sun Yat-sen， Madam Song Qingling， Chiang Kai-shik， Mao Zedong， and Deng Xiaoping.

In 1993， a Japanese TV sent a group to produce a program on Chinese history. They had planned to have a historian appear in their program. But when the TV reporters visited major bookstores in Beijing and spotted biographies on the Song Family by Chen Tingyi， they decided to change their plan. They turned their camera toward the biographer.

Readers say that Chen’s biographies read like novels. This is particularly true of his later works. This results from his understanding of the genre， history and reality. For him， the appeal of a biography does not lie in sophisticated words or phrases. It originates from a philosophy of creative writing. Chen believes that writing loses meaning when a writer， even if he has produced 20 books， can continue to turn out something new.

In order to produce something new that catches the readers?imagination， Chen Tingyi was silent for two years before he launched his tour de force Land， a lengthy reportage and discussion on what land means to the Chinese civilization from the past to the future.

This is a truthful report on the national realities. People in the Ministry of Land and Resources compared the book as in axe that cuts the sky open?

Chen is brave. He never withdraws himself from writing about history and those that shaped history. What he learns from history and reality inspires him. Before he began writing Land， he was kidnapped. The nerve-wracking experience did not deter him but urged him on.

When we finished the interview， Chen let on that his new book will come out in 2005. I feel that Chen’s success comes largely from his hard work. His biographies represent his personality and his personality fuses into his works.

(Translated by David)