One day I was so excited about one of my illustrations that I called my then-partner and said, "This is the perfect opportunity for us. If we're going to do this right, we're going to have to quit and do it full-time." There was silence on the other end of the line, then he said he needed to think about it. And then, there is no then. He said he couldn't quit his stable job, felt it was too risky and decided to quit. You can hardly imagine that when I organized the first illustration exhibition, I was the only one, and I was working part-time. From the content update of the official account to the publicity of the exhibition, from the collection of works to the collection of manuscripts, from the exhibition planning to the on-site construction, from the invitation of guests to the on-site event organization, I was in charge of it all by myself. Because of my lack of experience, I once moved to 2 am in order to catch up on an article for a public account. The next day, I got up early and went to work again. After two months of intense preparation, on August 24, 2016, the first BIBF Pineapple Circles International Illustration Exhibition was launched in Beijing New National Exhibition. The 166-square-meter booth was bustling with visitors stopping to take photos.

For the public, illustration is definitely new and interesting. In order to follow the whole exhibition, I asked for 5 days annual leave, and none of my colleagues knew what I was doing. I have "partially visible" permissions on Moments for everything related to it. During the days of the exhibition, what impressed me most was that several presidents or editors of publishing houses came to the curator of the exhibition and said that they had been looking for illustrators. Leaders of China Children's and Children's Press, the top institutions in the industry, invited me to give editors training and introduce the current situation of the illustration industry. I can't describe my inner feeling at that time. A low-level employee who had worked in a publishing house for 10 years was suddenly invited by the industry seniors I had looked up to for a long time. They even regarded me as an "expert" in the field of illustration. I find it all so surreal, but it's especially exciting that so many people in the industry see the value in illustration itself. The four-day book fair ended with 300,000 visitors. On the day of the withdrawal, I looked at the exhibition hall which was being demolished and had mixed feelings. On the way home, I had a good cry. Doing an exhibition by myself is a miracle. I don't know how I managed to do it. At that moment, I felt a little regret. How much I hoped to get an opportunity to grow up in the company. After all, I have a deep affection for the unit where I have worked for 10 years. But that seems like an extravagant hope.