2022年1月30日，我收到一張照片，照片上看到賀敬之老先生坐在人民大會堂“2022年春節(jié)團拜會”現(xiàn)場。于是，晚上我便撥打了他的電話，賀老告訴我，他是坐在輪椅上去參加的。我說，您已經(jīng)98歲了，了不起啊，可謂百歲詩翁了。賀老聽后笑了，那笑聲讓我又想起了難忘的往事……

很多年前的一天，賀老突然出現(xiàn)在我的生活里，這讓我大吃一驚！我不敢相信，更不會想到詩壇大家、歌劇《白毛女》作者賀敬之打來電話。他在電話里直接問道：“你是周孟賢同志嗎？”我說：“是的。請問您是哪位？”“我是賀敬之?！本o接著賀老對我說：“看了你的抒情長詩《大鳥引我溯長江》，我非常高興，非常激動！我發(fā)現(xiàn)你的長詩和我的思想感情完全一致，知音！我們要見個面，你到北京來，到我家來，我們好好暢談！”聽到這番話，我滿臉的驚詫瞬間變成了滿心的驚喜！

交談中，我得知了原委：2005 年9月1日的《文藝報》發(fā)表了我創(chuàng)作的那首 1500 行的抒情長詩《大鳥引我溯長江》，詩中寫了孔子、孟子、屈原、李白、杜甫、蘇東坡、曹雪芹、魯迅等近80位歷史文化名人，賀老看后打聽到我的宅電，這才從北京打電話給我。

自此之后，激動的我天天期盼著和賀老見面暢談的日子趕緊到來。這一天終于到來：2008年4月初，老作家沈先生告訴我，本月下旬賀老來杭，他邀我見面暢談。我心想，我要向這位大詩人當(dāng)面請教有關(guān)詩歌創(chuàng)作的方方面面。

4月27日是個難忘的日子。我一早便驅(qū)車趕往杭州。一路上， 我不住地將目光“踮”過青山綠水，“踮”到西湖，“踮”到靈隱路白樂橋一號。同時，遙想心儀已久的大詩人該是何種模樣，遙想歷史上的王屋山人魏萬，當(dāng)年為拜訪李白自帶干糧，跋山涉水，行程三千里，終于寫下讓李白感動不已的“仙人東方生，浩蕩弄云海，沛然乘天游，獨往失所在……揮手杭越間，樟亭望潮還，濤卷海門石，云橫天際山”一詩，詩中寫到了吳越之地，也正是我與賀老相聚之地。

當(dāng)我下車快步走向賀老時，居然情不自禁地背誦起他的詩，并在心里自語：正是賀老的詩作影響了年少時愛詩的我，誰知今天的腳步竟然真的邁向了這位大家，是誰的安排？是詩神繆斯？當(dāng)我面對“中國作家協(xié)會創(chuàng)作之家”幾個大字后，撥通了記在腦海里的賀老的電話號碼，當(dāng)我和賀老得以相見并緊緊握住賀老雙手又緊緊擁抱時，時間是 9 點零 5 分。

一臉慈祥、滿面親和的賀老，頭發(fā)雖有點兒花白卻較為濃密，整齊地分梳在左右兩邊，那飽滿的臉龐，那淡淡的眉毛，那親切的目光，那肉鼓鼓 、厚篤篤的耳垂，那充滿文氣的舉止以及那輕言輕語的儀態(tài)，都顯得他本人非常溫文爾雅，看起來很有福氣。他衣著樸素得像是一位常見的社區(qū)老人，但他的氣質(zhì)、他的修養(yǎng)乃至他充滿智慧的作品告訴我，他是一個杰出的文壇大家！

賀老穿一件偏灰加淡藍色小點的羊毛衫，內(nèi)穿一件淡黃色襯衣。我接過一杯綠茶，隨后坐在了沙發(fā)上。賀老坐在椅子上，和我挨得很近。他的背后是窗戶，窗外是山，是水，是綠樹，是用色彩點染春天大地的紅花……

賀老把椅子向我這邊挪了挪，微笑著說：“今天，咱們放開來談，想談什么就談什么?！笔堑模覀兊慕徽劮浅ｋS意，非常輕松，也非常廣泛，更多的時候謙虛的賀老反而要我多講講。于是，我把對中國詩壇、長詩和短詩、評論和評獎、做人和作詩的想法、關(guān)注、思考以及個人追求的使命目標(biāo)，都直率地“抖”給了賀老。我還講到，古往今來中國詩壇從不缺短詩但似乎缺長詩，不缺優(yōu)秀的短詩，而缺少優(yōu)秀的長詩，應(yīng)該多多關(guān)注和關(guān)愛長詩，畢竟史詩性的作品——《清明上河圖》式的作品，是由長詩（詩人）來完成的。我認(rèn)為，優(yōu)秀的長詩還是太少了。這里我說的“優(yōu)秀”，主要指的是關(guān)注時代、關(guān)注現(xiàn)實且厚重大氣、時代感強的作品， 即思想性和藝術(shù)性高度統(tǒng)一的作品。我覺得中國詩人應(yīng)銘記一句古詩 ：“天意君須會，人間要好詩?！?/p>

安靜的賀老不住地點頭，認(rèn)真而又親切地說：“好，說下去！”

這時，窗外休憩在大樹上的小鳥正一個勁兒地歡叫著。

理智告訴我：須少講，讓賀老多說！我把話題扯到了他人生的最初經(jīng)歷。賀老娓娓道來：在飽嘗戰(zhàn)爭之苦的歲月里，他告別了家鄉(xiāng)山東賀家窯，告別了父母，告別了三間茅草房，轉(zhuǎn)身投奔革命，在一輛黑壓壓擠滿人的列車上，14歲的他爬上車頂……

猶記得，那時窗外的樹枝在風(fēng)中歡舞著。

專注聆聽的我，想到了當(dāng)年僅21歲的賀敬之創(chuàng)作完成了《白毛女》（丁毅續(xù)寫結(jié)束處），這是一個繞不開的話題。我問賀老那年是在什么情況下開始創(chuàng)作的？

賀老告訴我，在他創(chuàng)作《白毛女》之前，有人寫過但并沒有得到認(rèn)可。誰來寫？經(jīng)過考察和研究，最后領(lǐng)導(dǎo)相中了賀敬之。小小年紀(jì)的賀敬之經(jīng)過艱苦勞作、反復(fù)推敲、深入思考和多次修改，終于完成了《白毛女》的創(chuàng)作，作品生動地表現(xiàn)了那個時代的深刻主題，并在演出中獲得巨大成功，在老百姓中產(chǎn)生強烈反響，成為中國新歌劇發(fā)展的里程碑。

回憶中， 賀老講到了當(dāng)年自己和著名美術(shù)家華君武掄起大刀上舞臺充當(dāng)群眾演員的故事，還講到了他和丁玲、公木、李季、侯唯動、于蘭、王昆、郭蘭英等一起交談、一同散步的往事……

這時，我們的話題又回到了詩歌創(chuàng)作上，我們興致勃勃地暢所欲言。我講了自己長期以來把主要精力放在抒情長詩的創(chuàng)作上，并先后在《詩刊》《中國作家》等報刊上發(fā)表《海中舟的敘說》《你在歷史的深處》等數(shù)十首（部）長詩。說到這里，我趕緊剎住車，請賀老多多指教。

賀老喝了一口茶，微微一笑說：“看了你的1500行抒情長詩《大鳥引我溯長江》，深感全詩感情很真摯， 很深沉， 所以我對此很感動。你的長詩有著大思想、大奔放、大胸襟……相信你以后會寫出更多更好的作品?！钡玫娇隙ê?，我緊緊地握著他的手說：“謝謝賀老的鼓勵！懇請賀老多多批評指教！”賀老笑了笑，接著談到他對詩創(chuàng)作的見解，“詩不要意象疊加，不要形象太多，形象太多就模糊了”。賀老還談到他的主張，即“詩還是要表現(xiàn)現(xiàn)實，要準(zhǔn)確表現(xiàn)現(xiàn)實，從內(nèi)容到形式，讓社會認(rèn)同”。我細細咀嚼著這些語重心長的話。

這時，賀老的夫人、著名詩人柯巖走了過來，笑著問起我關(guān)于創(chuàng)作、工作、生活和家庭的情況，還問到我的《大鳥引我溯長江》，怎么會寫這部長詩？我喝了一口水，把內(nèi)心深處的想法向賀老夫婦作了匯報：“幾十年來，我堅持寫長詩，力主用浪漫主義和現(xiàn)實主義的手法創(chuàng)作抒情長詩來記錄一個時代，心想著今天就讓我試著寫一寫吧！”而令我始料不及的是，《大鳥引我溯長江》在《文藝報》發(fā)表后，受到白樺、黎煥頤、賈漫、楊光治、駱寒超和李元洛等眾多著名詩人、詩評家的好評， 面對“中國詩壇有周孟賢的長詩，從遠的說，是《離騷》的回響;從近的說，是賀敬之、郭小川長詩的持續(xù)”這樣的評價，我深感汗顏，更覺得這是對我的莫大鞭策！

接著， 我們?nèi)苏劻水?dāng)今詩壇之現(xiàn)狀， 談了詩人應(yīng)有的品格和擔(dān)當(dāng)精神。儒雅的賀老一邊為我倒茶水，一邊將椅子再次向我挪近。當(dāng)和熙的春風(fēng)又一次吹進窗內(nèi)， 賀老笑瞇瞇地送了我?guī)妆緯?，柯巖大姐也送了我一箱書。我激動不已，連連致謝！

這時，我一看時間，已是14點10分了，賀老該休息了。天哪，我沒想到和賀老竟一次談了5小時零5分鐘！我立即起身告辭，賀老對我說：“我從來沒有像今天談得那么多，也從來沒有跟別人談得那么久。”我對賀老說：“謝謝您！謝謝您！難忘！多保重！”賀老拉著我的手囑咐道：“你到北京來，到我家暢談?！?我點了點頭，心中隨即涌出一句古語贈予他——德厚者流光。

我緊握著他的雙手，繼而又緊緊地擁抱了他。

他轉(zhuǎn)過身向前走去。我久久地、癡癡地凝視著賀老厚實的背影，一個在文壇有口皆碑、德藝雙馨的大家的背影，一個走進中國文學(xué)史的背影……

A Five-Hour Inspiring Conversation with

Master Poet He Jingzhi

By? Zhou Mengxian

On January 30， 2022 I received a picture of the 98-year-old He Jingzhi， a poet and playwright who was present at the Chinese Lunar New Year reception at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. That night I made a call to Mr. He， who told me that he attended the event in his wheelchair. I responded by respectfully calling him “a remarkable centenarian poet”. Hearing that， the venerable man gave a hearty laugh， which brought back my memorable moments with him.

One day， many years ago， I got a surprise phone call from Mr. He， the very man who composed great poems and wrote the popular Chinese opera The White-Haired Girl. He told me that he was thrilled after reading my long lyric poem， which powerfully resonated with him and would like to invite me for a talk at his home in Beijing. His words filled me with joy.

From the following conversation， I learned the story behind his call. My 1500-line lyric poem that depicted around 80 notable historical figures was published on the September 1， 2005 issue of Wenyi Bao （Chinese Literature and Art Gazette）. After reading it， he called me from Beijing.

In subsequent days， I found myself literally counting down the days. In early April 2008， Mr. He extended a welcome to me for a talk during his stay in Hangzhou later that month. Quite excited， I thought to myself that I would avail myself of the opportunity to seek guidance from Mr. He on poetry.

April 27 was an unforgettable day in my life. Early in the morning， I drove to Hangzhou. Along the way， I couldn’t help but imagine how the revered poet would look like. I found myself reciting silently Mr. He’s poem. With all that in mind， I marched towards the Writers House of the China Writers Association. At five past nine， I finally met the master poet. I excitedly held his hand and hugged him tightly.

Mr. He was kind and amiable with gray but thick hair neatly combed to both sides. His plump face， light eyebrows， friendly eyes， fleshy earlobes， and polite manner， all spoke of a cultured and blessed man. Though dressed modestly like an ordinary senior citizen， he could be easily identified as a great man of letters by his temperamental traits， his moral cultivation， and his works of wisdom. He wore a pale yellow shirt and a grayish sweater with light blue dots. He handed me a cup of green tea and I sat down on the sofa. He sat on a chair， close to me. Behind him were windows through which I saw hills， with green trees and red flowers that brightened up the spring.

Smiling warmly， Mr. He encouraged me to talk freely. And so we pursued the ensuing conversation lightheartedly， with me doing most of the talking. I honestly shared with him my thoughts on poetry in China， long poems and short ones， poetry criticism and awards， personal goals and missions， and what makes a decent man and a good poem. I also mentioned that China， from ancient to modern times， has seen large numbers of great short poems， but without an adequate supply of extraordinary long ones. The latter， I believed， deserves more attention and support as outstanding epic poems all fall into that category. Extraordinary long poems， in my view， are those whose subject matter mainly concerns the development of the society， grand in style and profound in meaning. In other words， they represent a perfect combination of literary and artistic values of poetry. As Chinese poets， we should always keep in mind that the public actually needs great poems.

Mr. He listened attentively， nodding his head from time to time， and encouraged me to continue. However， I was sensible enough to refrain from talking， so I diverted the topic to his early life. And thus， his personal stories unfolded right in front of me. At the age of 14， he left the war-torn hometown in Shandong province， his beloved parents and their three shabby thatched cottages. He climbed atop a crowded train on a journey of defending the motherland against Japanese aggression.

Even now， I could still remember how the branches outside the windows were dancing in the wind. Mr. He’s narration reminded me of The White-Haired Girl， the opera he wrote when he was only 21， so I asked him what had inspired him.

He said he was not the first one to try， but the previous version was not good enough. Young as he was， he decided to take on the challenging assignment. His laborious efforts eventually paid off and his work， vibrantly expressing topical themes， was well received by the public as a milestone in the history of Chinese opera.

He also recalled the day he and Hua Junwu （1915-2010）， a famous Chinese cartoonist， danced together sword-in-hand on the stage as extras and the unforgettable casual conversations he had with his friends in the literary and art circles.

Coming back to poetry， both of us went in a more eloquent way. I told him that for years I devoted myself to writing long lyric poems and got dozens of them published， on which I then solicited guidance from him.

Taking a sip of his tea， he said that he was deeply touched by my 1500-line poem featuring intense and sincere emotions and that he was confident I would produce more and better poems. Then he continued with his perceptions of poetry such as his disapproval of an overuse of imagery and his endorsement for the role of poetry in reconstructing reality. His remarks set me thinking.

At that moment， Ke Yan， He’s wife and a noted Chinese poet， came along and asked me about my work， my life， my family and in particular， the reason I wrote the 1500-line poem. After sipping at my tea， I revealed to them my inner thoughts. For decades， I kept writing long poems and was a strong advocate for lyric ones. So I gave it a try and wrote the poem in question. To my amazement， after it came out， the poem garnered many positive reviews from quite a few well-known poets and poetry critics， which gave me great encouragement.

The three of us， then， talked about the present situation in poetry and the integrity and responsibilities of the poet. After a while， the couple gave me many books as a gift. Their precious present， together with the amiable gentleness of their smile， filled my heart with excitement and gratefulness.

At ten past two， I knew it was time to say goodbye. I did not know how time flew when all the while I was completely immersed in the 5-hour-5-minute conversation. Prior to my departure， I expressed my appreciation again to Mr. He who cordially invited me to his home in Beijing for another long talk. Nodding my head， I could not help but think of a saying that “the great influence of a man exemplifies his virtuous character”.

I held his hand tightly and gave him a big hug. Then， Mr. He stepped toward his room. I stood there， gazing at his receding figure， a man known in the literary world as much for his moral integrity as for his professional accomplishments.