Chapter 44 of 100

Chapter 44

16 min read4,041 words

Donggua sipped her rich coffee while reviewing *Hui Ming*. She spent half an hour reading it, and even after finishing the coffee, she still held the cup to her lips, forgetting to put it back on the table.

The remnants of the coffee stained her thin lips, making the slight curve in the middle more pronounced.

Unable to contain herself, she slapped the table and exclaimed, "Brilliant!"

"The writing is smooth, the plot tight, the main storyline clear, and the characters vividly portrayed. The author is very experienced. This can't be a new writer," she marveled. She was well aware of the common flaws of new writers, who often wrote what they considered to be masterpieces but were actually terrible, and were completely incomprehensible.

Just like Li Yelang from Huandao Book Alliance, who had a similar reaction after reading *Hui Ming*. However, Donggua had read 100,000 words in one go, and the feeling was even more pronounced. She immediately searched for "San Pang" but found no useful information. Adding the book title to the search, she quickly discovered that the author was publishing simultaneously on both platforms.

Moreover, the editor-in-chief of Huandao Book Alliance, Ye Lang, had immediately recommended the book for the new book section. The book had already gained some popularity, and its divine status was established.

What was most infuriating was that the author "San Pang" had uploaded 4,000 more words to Huandao Book Alliance than to Dian Nang Chinese Network. What was San Pang up to?

With her keen insight, Donggua immediately felt that *Hui Ming* would become a landmark novel in 2004. It seemed that San Pang was very confident in his work, publishing simultaneously on both platforms to maximize his benefits.

The online literature circle was small, and the initial batch of people mostly knew each other.

Donggua and Li Yelang were acquainted, and she had even met him once. She had a strong impression of him, a typical scholar with noble qualities, but he was very concerned about his reputation and had a thin skin. Although he had immediately recognized the potential of the book, he hadn't signed it right away, leaving room for her to try to secure it.

However, it now seemed that Dian Nang Chinese Network was at a disadvantage. San Pang's heart was clearly leaning towards Huandao Book Alliance, as evidenced by the additional 4,000 words uploaded there.

Thinking about this, Donggua became very angry. The book had been released during the National Day holiday, and she had only just seen it, missing the best opportunity. The editor who had reviewed the book for inclusion had rated it as having almost no potential, giving it only two stars. Even with poor judgment, the book should have been rated at least three stars, which might have allowed her to notice it earlier.

The thought of losing such a masterpiece, which could open the door to a new genre of historical fiction and lead to the rise of a new type of literature, made Donggua furious. Her delicate image was immediately lost, and she couldn't help but call the editor, Baxi, who had reviewed the book.

"Hello, who is this?" Baxi's voice came through.

"I'm the editor-in-chief of Group Four, Donggua. Wasn't it you who reviewed *Hui Ming* for inclusion?" Donggua tried to keep her voice calm.

When Baxi heard it was the beautiful editor-in-chief Donggua, he was almost paralyzed. She was a goddess, only 19 years old and already an editor-in-chief, while he, at 22, had just graduated and was only an editor. He had always drooled over her from a distance, and now she was calling him. He was almost in a daze.

Lost in his thoughts, he replied, "Oh, there was such a book, a historical fiction. In the era of popular fantasy, writing such a messy book is bound to fail."

"You don't need to come to work tomorrow. You pighead, you don't deserve to be an editor." Donggua almost shouted, she was so angry. Without any discernment, an editor would only harm others. Missing two such works as *Hui Ming* could be the key to the competition between Dian Nang Chinese Network and Huandao Book Alliance.

Baxi's ears almost went deaf. To hear every word clearly, he had his ear pressed to the phone. He scratched his ear, feeling like he was sleepwalking. The book was indeed only a two-star level.

He immediately became nervous. With the influence of the beautiful editor-in-chief Donggua on the chief editor, getting fired was a matter of minutes. He quickly called back, but Donggua, still angry, hung up immediately.

Donggua was really infuriated by this self-important editor. If he couldn't handle the situation, he should at least have marked it for the editor-in-chief to verify quickly.

After several attempts, Baxi gave up. He was scared. This was his first job after graduating, and he had just settled in Jiangdu. What would he do if he lost his job? And he really loved this job.

Feeling dejected, he opened his computer, found *Hui Ming*, and read it from beginning to end twice, thinking deeply. He suddenly realized that the book was so engaging that he could read it twice, which meant it was a very readable book.

Many online literature works were not worth a second read, and even the first read required skipping large sections.

He quickly wrote a long text message: "I was really wrong, my eyes were blind, but I really love this job. I read this novel twice, and it is indeed a rare good book. Please, Editor-in-Chief, give me another chance."

Donggua still didn't reply.

After hanging up with Baxi, Donggua was still angry and even more worried about missing the book.

Currently, Dian Nang Chinese Network was raising funds, but several major investors were still watching, believing that online literature was of poor quality, written by jobless troublemakers, and mostly copied from abroad, making it difficult to produce any true masterpieces.

If *Hui Ming*, a native historical fiction, became a hit, it might add weight to the fundraising efforts.

This indicated that more and more capable authors were joining the original online literature scene.

"Little Donggua, you haven't finished work yet? Who made you so angry?" Donggua was still angry and hadn't noticed that the editor, Xiaomi, had returned.

Donggua pouted, "Why are you back? Weren't you out on a date with your boyfriend?"

"I forgot my phone charger, so I came back to get it. Haven't you eaten yet? Want to join us? You know Sun Bin, right?" Xiaomi pinched Donggua's cute cheek and smiled.

Donggua stuck out her tongue, "I'm not going to be a third wheel. You go enjoy your date. I'll read a couple more books and then leave."

Xiaomi was also an editor under Donggua, and they were good friends, often joking and playing around. They worked together very well.

After Xiaomi left, Donggua slumped in her chair, thinking about how to secure *Hui Ming*. She didn't have a good plan yet, but decided to discuss it with the chief editor the next day. She sent a short message to *Hui Ming*:

"Congratulations, your work *Hui Ming* has met the conditions for signing. Please contact Editor-in-Chief Donggua as soon as possible. Contact QQ: 213215217."

Donggua left her own contact QQ, fearing that the signing editor might mess things up. San Pang was definitely not an easy person to deal with, and he needed to be treated with respect.

He had absolute confidence in his work, indicating that he was a very confident, even somewhat arrogant, person.

Donggua frowned, deep in thought.

...

Ha, Liu Meng, in his sleep, smiled, probably dreaming of something pleasant. The little girl looked at him and giggled.

Shaking his head, he finally woke up. Liu Meng got up, grinning and wiping the drool, "Sorry, I fell asleep. I didn't disturb you, did I?"

"Not at all, not at all," Zhou Shiyuan, without looking at Liu Meng, replied, focused on her homework.

His legs were numb, and as he tried to stand, he cried out in pain. He touched his hair and found a small tuft tied to the back of the chair with a thin thread. He yanked it out, pulling a small clump of hair. Liu Meng was furious, looking at Zhou Shiyuan, who was still pretending to be innocent, and said, "Zhou Shiyuan, you've gone too far."

Hehe, the little girl laughed nervously, not responding.

On her desk was a large mirror, and Liu Meng saw himself, his face covered in colorful patterns, forming a small story. He was immediately angry.

The little girl was too mischievous.

Seeing Liu Meng's angry face in the mirror, the little girl was a bit scared, thinking she might have gone too far. She stammered, "We... we have a gentleman's agreement, you can't do anything rash."

Good! You still remember the gentleman's agreement. Liu Meng, furious, grabbed the little girl and slapped her bottom twice, making a crisp sound.

The little girl, who had never been hit like this before, was both angry and embarrassed, pointing at Liu Meng, unable to speak from shame and anger.

At 11 years old, still in the early stages of development, her small bottom was very elastic, with the unique freshness of a young girl.

After hitting her, Liu Meng's anger subsided. Seeing the little girl about to cry, he quickly thought, if she started crying and Shuoyun Ting found out, she would surely blame him and might even fire him.

He needed to calm the little girl down.

"Hmph, you're so mischievous. I'm your teacher, and you keep tricking me. If your mother finds out, she'll be very sad. You're not a good girl. This time, I'll let it go, but don't do it again," Liu Meng lectured, pointing at the little girl's nose, his hand trembling with anger.

The little girl was intimidated. She realized she was in the wrong and deserved punishment. She held back her tears and whispered, "I'm sorry, I won't do it again."

Liu Meng breathed a sigh of relief. After all, she was just a little girl, easy to persuade. He quickly gave her a sweet talk, wiping away the tears from her eyes with a tissue and said sternly, "Alright, we have a gentleman's agreement. I won't tell your mother. Have you finished your homework?"

"Long ago," the little girl, seeing Liu Meng's softened attitude, immediately became defiant.

Liu Meng's forehead almost broke out in a cold sweat. Checking the time, he quickly ran back to his dormitory.

Zhou Shiyuan watched Liu Meng leave, clenching her small fists, her face determined. She touched her still tingling bottom and said fiercely, "Hmph, big bad guy, I won't give in. I will take revenge for this bottom-slapping..."

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