In fact, when I returned to Lao Dong Newspaper in July 1999, researcher Nguyen Dac Xuan - Head of the Lao Dong Newspaper Representative Office in the Central - Central Highlands - had retired for several months. Unlike my colleagues at the same time, I did not have the opportunity to witness him working at the newspaper as a permanent reporter in Hue and then as Office Chief, to know how he worked, what was different from the post-graduate.
It was not until later that I had the opportunity to get close, interact and work with him as a reporter and researcher in Hue and a post-graduate with a retired senior with the agency. But I will never forget that it was my first interview with him in the early 2000s of the last century, related to a hot cultural event in Hue, which was of interest to readers nationwide at that time.
It is unforgettable that contrary to usual, not me - the interviewer but he - the interviewer - had prepared a camera to record the entire meeting. Not only that, at the beginning of the interview, he also turned on the recorder, clearly stating the basic idea "there are many hours, every day, I - researcher Nguyen Dac Xuan - answered an interview with journalist Hoang Van Minh, a reporter of Lao Dong Newspaper in Hue with the content...". And just like that, his recorder and camera ran throughout the work. Almost always with strangers or acquaintances, he does it. And that is a very meticulous and careful way of working, integrated from the habits of a journalist and researcher after many years, making those who are not used to it feel very shocked, even uncomfortable.
Working a lot with seniors, I learned a very interesting experience that they often tend to encourage children to do things like me. As writer Vinh Quyen - Head of the Office of Lao Dong Newspaper in the Central region - after researcher Nguyen Dac Xuan encouraged me to write. Or the poet Ngo Mai Phong - the "hijacent" of the Northeast region of Lao Dong - encouraged me to write poetry. Former writer Hoang Phu Ngoc Tuong encouraged me to pursue a career as a writer. Even the late painter Buu Chi, in many coffee shops, advised me to practice painting.
As for Mr. Xuan, every time he talks, he warns about the role and position of a permanent reporter. He said: Unlike at the news agency, reporters can do everything, in every field they have to have news, but the whole story is trivial. Therefore, to know the face, know the name of the king, the article should live longer than current events, reporters must read, study, and become experts in local culture and history. He also said: Being a Lao Dong reporter is not less good than other reporters. In particular, he emphasized: Journalists are not used to pronounce pen names. Just sign the newspaper to be confirmed and responsible for what you write.
That was not only his advice but also his philosophy of recruiting reporters in the early days of the establishment of the Central Office. He traveled all the way to Phu Yen to invite journalist Bao Chan from Phu Yen Newspaper to Lao Dong; to Quang Tri, to Cua Viet Magazine by writer Hoang Phu Ngoc Tuong to "assign" journalist Lam Chi Cong to the Central Office. Thanks to that, he laid the foundation, creating a "golden generation" for the Lao Dong Newspaper Office in the Central - Central Highlands with talented writers such as Tran Dang (old Quang Ngai), Lam Chi Cong (Quang Tri), Bao Chan (Khanh Hoa), Dang Ba Tien (Dak Lak), the late journalist Nguyen Thinh (Gia Lai) and Khac Dung (old Lam Dong) ...
With the profession of journalism in particular and work in general, he is a "lucrative" person, strict and serious to the extreme. Remembering a year from Da Nang, I brought a Newspaper's Tet gift to Hue to visit him. He asked: "How are you doing these days?". I happily read some poems by Nha Ca: "From a long journey, the bell of greatness in the world/ Change the name of the writer to become a journalist...". After listening, he was very serious and said: "Do you have to change your surname to Rang Minh? In any case, being a journalist must be on par with the books, how to live without being ashamed of your heart and children".
My situation at that time must have been the same as that of journalist Tran Dang many years ago. That year, journalist Tran Dang from Quang Ngai went to Da Nang to hold an office meeting. As soon as he arrived, Office Chief Nguyen Dac Xuan asked: "What means of transport do you have to go here?". Journalist Tran Dang jokingly replied: "Yes by bus of the Ministry of Transport" (ie by boat). Therefore, Tran Dang was instructed by him for a while about journalism being proactive and not allowed to bother public authorities, especially the Ministry of Transport.
Writer and researcher Nguyen Dac Xuan has had a huge career in Hue culture and the Nguyen Dynasty. My short stories about him to Lao Dong Newspaper are the story of more than 25 years ago - when paper newspapers were still popular, electronic newspapers were still elementary and new. Therefore, if today's young reporters finish listening to it and say it is a fairy tale, it is hard to believe, it is not uncommon.
