Chapter 74
Chapter 74
The entire population of Nanshan City was around thirty to forty thousand, but among them, no more than eight thousand were literate. In other words, one out of every three literate people had bought Shen Lang's book. Of course, this statistic wasn't entirely accurate, as illiterate people had also purchased the book.
He had originally intended to piggyback on the excitement of Zhu Wenhua's new release, but he ended up selling several times more copies!
This was only the beginning. By evening, many women began to arrive, secretly buying the book. A line even formed at the Spring Breeze Courtyard, and the Joyful Red Pavilion had to hand out numbered tickets to manage the customers. Shen Lang's book was a sensational hit. No matter how well-written a book was, for it to have such an impact was something an ordinary person could never imagine.
Deng Xian couldn't comprehend this phenomenon. This was purely the result of a chain reaction, thanks to Shen Lang's scheme to leverage the book's promotional effect hitting the mark.
*'Who am I? Where am I? What in the world just happened?'*
Moreover, this phenomenon wouldn't be confined to Nanshan City. Later, when the fame of Shen Lang's book spread, Deng Xian planned to supply it to the four surrounding commanderies and over twenty cities. When that time came, how many more copies would this book sell? Only the heavens knew.
* * *
Zhu Wenhua was in a separate villa, away from the main estate, sipping wine with a pleased expression. If the book sold well today, his fame would rise another level. The feeling of wielding influence in the literary world was immensely pleasant. Beside him, several other scholars were desperately flattering him.
The fame he had gained through his books was so great that he was the acknowledged leader of Nanshan City's young scholars. There were always sycophants by his side. As he hailed from a prestigious noble family and had plenty of money, scholars from ordinary backgrounds enjoyed following him around, feasting and drinking greedily. He even went so far as to select four lackeys to accompany him. The first to always speak up was the talented scholar Wang Shimin.
"Did everyone see the spectacle today? The book sold so well that the price of paper in Nanshan City is going to rise!"
"Young Master Zhu's new book will shatter previous sales records."
"Look at the young ladies from prominent families lining up. How many women are madly devoted to Brother Zhu?"
"You're all only seeing the surface, not the essence. The key is that Brother Zhu's new book is so good that one will be so engrossed they'll forget the taste of meat for three months."
"I'd even bet on it. No one will be able to surpass the sales record set by Brother Zhu for the next fifty years."
"If Miss Zhang Chunhua saw a scene like today's, she would have no choice but to give her heart."
"Isn't that obvious? Can you find even one person in this area with talent comparable to Young Master Zhu's?"
"One person? Don't be ridiculous. If you can find someone with even half his talent, I'll slaughter my own chicken to make a dish to go with our drinks. Even if not for a dish, I'll treat you all to a meal."
Zhu Wenhua listened to the flattery from those around him without saying a word, but he was inwardly pleased. However, a scholar must maintain his composure. After listening to dozens of their compliments, Zhu Wenhua said calmly,
"You exaggerate, you exaggerate..."
Just then, a knock was heard from outside.
"Who is it?"
"It's Zheng Changnian."
It was the owner of the Jade Pavilion Bookstore, and his voice sounded urgent. Zhu Wenhua frowned.
*'Zheng Changnian doesn't know his place. Why is his tone so disrespectful?'*
A scholar beside him immediately spoke up.
"Manager Zheng, that's too much. What kind of tone is that to use with Young Master Zhu? Aren't you afraid he'll stop publishing his books at your store?"
Zhu Wenhua smiled and said,
"It's not that serious. Open the door."
A servant boy immediately went and opened the door. Zheng Changnian rushed into the villa, his expression quite complicated. Judging by his face, it seemed he had something to say but couldn't bring himself to speak. Zhu Wenhua asked calmly,
"What is it? There's nothing more to discuss about selling a limited quantity each day. In this world, the rarer something is, the more precious it's considered. The more they stomp their feet in frustration at not being able to buy the book, the more they'll want it. You understand that principle without me having to say it, don't you?"
"Of course, of course."
"How many copies did your bookstore sell today? How long did it take to sell out?"
"Two hundred copies were sold in less than two hours. That's three times faster than the previous volume sold. Across all of Nanshan City, total sales for today are likely around 530 copies."
One of the scholars exclaimed in amazement.
"My goodness! And this is with a limited daily quantity. If all the printed copies were released at once, I can't imagine how many would sell. The thought alone is staggering."
Zhu Wenhua waved his hand, signaling for calm, and said,
"Manager Zheng, weren't sales like these expected? Why did you come all this way to report it?"
Zheng Changnian's expression turned strange as he spoke in a low voice.
"However... another book sold over three thousand copies today."
*'Over three thousand copies?!'*
Zheng Changnian spoke in a trembling voice, and everyone who heard him was stunned. Zhu Wenhua shot to his feet and said,
"That's impossible!"
It was absurd. How many literate people were there in Nanshan City? Aside from the Four Books and Five Classics, no fictional book had ever sold more than eight hundred copies in Nanshan City. But over three thousand copies? That was as impossible as the sun rising in the west and the sea flowing backward. It was a sales figure that simply couldn't be reached.
"Didn't the author's side buy them back?"
a scholar beside him asked. Such a situation was possible. Sometimes, a young master from a wealthy family would publish a book and hire people to buy it to boost his fame and sales figures.
Zheng Changnian shook his head.
"They weren't bought back. The sales are all real. Hordes of people bought them as if they were snatching them up. Not only the literate, but also the illiterate bought them."
Zhu Wenhua said in a cold voice,
"What book is it?"
Zheng Changnian placed the book on the table. The scholars present were instantly captivated by the cover.
*''. My heavens. A cover like this, with a title like that... it makes you want to buy it on sight.*
But when Zhu Wenhua saw the cover, his expression changed drastically.
"Isn't this the book by that talentless hack, Shen Lang?"
"It is."
For a moment, Zhu Wenhua's face was about to turn livid. He had seen Shen Lang's book before. He had initially read it with a condescending attitude, disparaging more than half of its content as he went.
Despite that, Zhu Wenhua knew deep down that the literary quality of Shen Lang's book was very high. But what did that matter? The main buyers of novels were women in their boudoirs. They loved stories of love and revenge among the children of powerful families, and those who wrote to their tastes were called talented scholars and beauties.
Shen Lang's book, from the very beginning, did not cater to the tastes of the primary consumers of novels. So how could it have sold so many copies? Over three thousand copies! There had to be a trick. Shen Lang must have spent his own money to buy back many copies and create fake sales numbers!
"Young Master Zhu, please calm down and read this book with an open mind."
Zhu Wenhua sighed and began to read. He still had his condescending blinders on. One page, two pages, ten pages, thirty pages... he read for a full two hours.
After quickly reading the first volume of *Boundless Wind and Moon*, Zhu Wenhua closed his eyes. His chest heaved up and down relentlessly. When he opened his eyes again, Zhu Wenhua threw the book to the floor and said in a cold voice,
"Has there ever been such a degenerate book? It's utterly vulgar and crude, a book that grabs attention with completely lewd writing and illustrations. These are the tactics of a commoner."
He then picked up the book from the floor, flipped it open randomly, and read the most risqué passage.
"What is this? Using prose one can't bear to look at to stimulate the basest and most vulgar desires in people's hearts. This book has no literary value whatsoever, and its quality is so low it makes one shudder. Even putting that aside, the author is extremely immoral. To write such a book, not only disgracing scholars but also attempting to corrupt public morals."
Just then, a scholar suddenly said,
"Everyone, look at this. Doesn't the face of the man on the bottom of this cover look familiar?"
"Yes, it does seem familiar. And there are some dots drawn on this man's buttocks. Do you know what they are?"
"Perhaps... it's stained with feces?"
"Well now, this man's face is so familiar, I feel like I've seen it somewhere, but I can't recall where."
Hearing this, everyone instinctively looked at Zhu Wenhua. Ah, that's where they'd seen it. Zhu Wenhua's complexion had changed instantly during their conversation, but lost in thought, they hadn't noticed.
The man's name in the book was Zhu Wenshan, and he was the descendant of a fallen noble. Zhu Wenhua never considered himself a fallen noble—on the contrary, he thought himself quite distinguished—so he hadn't felt that the man in the book resembled him. But only after the others pointed it out did he hastily flip through the book, looking at the text and illustrations.
This was a disaster! Zhu Wenshan in the book was indeed a reflection of him. Zhu Wenshan was of noble birth, had lost his fief, and came from a fallen family. He used his literary talent to deceive naive young girls, not only swindling them of their money but also taking advantage of their bodies. In the end, to live a life of wealth and splendor, he became Master Ximen's male concubine, engaging in intimate affairs almost daily.
Furthermore, Shen Lang used extremely nauseating vocabulary in the book. "Stirring the feces." "Master Ximen came to find Zhu Wenshan again to stir the feces."
*'This is going too far!'*
Do you know what's most important to get by in this world? It's making a good impression on people.
*'Shen Lang, you bastard, you're trying to ruin my reputation! This is a grudge worthy of a life-and-death struggle!'*
Zhu Wenhua ground his teeth.
"Brothers, please call everyone you can. We must go to the City Lord's Manor together and demand justice for this grievance. As scholars, must we not sweep away this filth and establish righteous virtue? Let us restore a scholarly atmosphere as clear as the sky for the scholars of Nanshan City."
Zheng Changnian immediately understood his intention. Zhu Wenhua intended to gather a large crowd, cause a commotion, and pressure the City Lord into banning Shen Lang's book. Hearing this, several scholars' faces lit up.
*'Another windfall!'*
Whenever they did something like this, Zhu Wenhua would pay them according to the number of people, and the more people they brought, the more money he gave.
Two hours later, a crowd of one or two hundred scholars had gathered behind Zhu Wenhua, and they marched in a long, imposing line toward the City Lord's Manor.
"Shen Lang, I will make sure your book has no place in our Nanshan City, or even in the entire Yangwu and Nu River Commanderies. You're mistaken if you think your book is selling well. I'll have it banned immediately!"
* * *
Before Li Fang, the Lord of Nanshan City, lay two books. One was Zhu Wenhua's *Dream of the Mandarin Ducks*, and the other was Shen Lang's *Boundless Wind and Moon*. He first read the second volume of *Dream of the Mandarin Ducks*. He hadn't wanted to, but it was a book his daughter and wife were both reading, and since his wife often spoke of its story under the covers, he had no choice.
After finishing the book, City Lord Li Fang was full of admiration and praise.
*'Zhu Wenhua is truly remarkable.'*
The book not only discussed the love between a man and a woman but also touched upon wars between nations. Not just the prose, but the entire structure of the story was exceptionally brilliant.
*'He truly lives up to his reputation as the great talent of Nanshan City. No wonder the women are so madly infatuated with him.'*
Next, Li Fang picked up Shen Lang's *Boundless Wind and Moon*. The moment he saw the cover, he frowned.
*'How utterly vulgar.'*
After reading the title, his impression of the book worsened. It seemed like a low-brow name designed to pander to the masses.
The City Lord turned the first page with a sense of disdain. After reading the first paragraph, his frown smoothed out. After reading the first page, his spirits lifted. And then, though he wanted to stop, he found he couldn't put the book down.