Chapter 49

As the New Year's Day approached, the young men and women of Yanjing City gathered at the Temple of Heaven for the New Year's Eve activities. When the 11-meter-wide beam of light from the China Millennium Monument pierced the night sky, and the deep, pleasant bell sounds of the Great Bell Temple rang out, 2017 replaced 2016 and arrived in the world!

Busy workers were delivering goods to bookstores of all sizes in every city. They had already delivered to most of the city yesterday, and they just needed to cover the remaining bookstores today.

Major chain bookstores and the People's University Press had collaborations, and with the good online pre-sale performance, the physical distribution was also timely and comprehensive. Now everyone believed that "I, Robot" would be a bestseller, but no one knew where its journey would end.

The traces of last night's revelry were still visible in the early morning of Yanjing City. The pleasant weather made everyone smile, but outside several bookstores in the city, a few people were discussing something.

Xinhua Bookstore is the most densely distributed chain bookstore in the country, with its presence even in small cities and towns, bringing knowledge to children all over the country.

A cold wind blew, and the young man wearing a scarf and gloves shivered slightly, then stomped his feet and started discussing.

"Didn't they say they would open at nine in the morning? I've been waiting for ten minutes, and no one has come. What are they doing inside?"

"Yeah, I thought I was late. If I didn't hate e-reading, I would have bought the e-version online. How much longer do I have to wait?"

"Bro, what book are you here to buy?" Zheng Yucheng looked at the few people in front of him; they were so agitated that steam was rising from their heads, like a scene from a martial arts novel.

"I was dragged here by my girlfriend. She wants to read 'The Best of Us.' What's the point of reading such a sappy and melodramatic romance novel? Are you guys here to buy this book too?"

Xiao Liuxiao shook his head and explained, "We are all sci-fi enthusiasts. We're here specifically to buy 'I, Robot,' which is being released nationwide today. We think a larger bookstore might have more stock and won't sell out."

The young man who came with his girlfriend was extremely surprised, "Worried about a sci-fi novel selling out? You guys are really overthinking it. No one will be competing with you for it."

Zheng Yucheng shrugged, "Let's hope so."

"Look, the door is finally opening. Let's line up and go in. My legs are numb!" Xiao Liuxiao kicked his legs, eager to get inside.

The bookstore staff, who were dusting with a feather duster, looked surprised at the crowd outside. When was the last time there was a queue at the bookstore?

It was probably after the TV series "Step by Step in the Smoke" became popular, and TV enthusiasts came to buy the original novel. But that was based on the popularity of the TV series. How could such a situation happen normally?

"Is there any new novel adaptation or TV series being broadcast recently? Or did some celebrity release an autobiography or photo book to make money?"

Another cashier, who was turning on the computer, pouted, "I don't think so. The recent movies and TV shows aren't very good. I'll buy a book to read at home tonight to pass the time."

"Braving the cold wind to buy books, these readers are really loyal. I see so many posters for 'The Best of Us 2.' Could they be here to buy those?"

"But there are so many boys outside. Do boys read such books?"

"Maybe they're buying for their girlfriends. Who knows? Anyway, it's a good thing. Let's sell a few more copies. Working on New Year's Day is really annoying."

"Maybe they're here to buy 'Sword and Magic.' My brother loves that novel. He chases updates on his phone every day and has bought several sets to keep at home. Web novels sell really well."

"Exactly. In December, 'The Dragon Tribe 3' sold 450,000 copies. Fantasy novels are terrifying!"

"The sales of 'The Dragon Tribe' get better with each book. The first one sold over a million copies, the second one over two million, and the third one sold 1.5 million copies on its first release. Unfortunately, it was released in October, so it won't make the annual bestseller list."

"In just three months, it sold 2.15 million copies. That's scary! Next time, they should release it in January or February."

"The system just finished the statistics. The best-selling book of December wasn't 'The Dragon Tribe 3,' but 'And Then There Were None,' which sold 800,000 copies in a month. No wonder it's a five-star bestseller, it's really impressive."

The cashier, after organizing the change, added, "Actually, I had a feeling. Many of the customers I served were buying 'And Then There Were None.'"

The staff slowly started their work, but Zheng Yucheng and Xiao Liuxiao, who had been waiting outside for a long time, were getting impatient. The door was open, but what were those barriers for?

Just as they were about to lose their temper, the staff moved the barriers and explained, "Sorry, we just cleaned the floor, and it's a bit slippery. We'll start business once it dries. We apologize for the inconvenience."

Zheng Yucheng didn't have time for this. He quickly stepped inside and looked around, "Literature, management, social sciences, personality, lifestyle, special offers, children's books, educational aids. What is this? Where are the sci-fi novels? Are they in children's books, literature, or social sciences? Do I have to search each one?"

Row after row of neatly arranged bookshelves stood under the bright lights. Xiao Liuxiao almost gave up. He had never been to this bookstore before, and the books were everywhere. He had no idea where "I, Robot" was hidden.

For bookstores, the most prominent positions are always reserved for bestsellers, especially those by authors who have proven their worth. They have large posters for promotion, and the books are displayed in various shapes.

But for unknown authors, even with new releases, they can only stay in the dense bookshelves, waiting for readers to discover them, waiting for someone with a keen eye.

Although the People's University Press is a giant in the publishing industry, it couldn't allocate enough resources to "I, Robot." In this era, even the best wine can go unnoticed if it's in a deep alley. Whoever has the best promotional posters and the most prominent positions in the bookstore will have good sales.

Books like "Sword and Magic," "The Dragon Tribe," "The Best of Us," and "And Then There Were None" almost monopolized the promotional positions in the bookstore, and they were also in the most prominent spots on the shelves.

In comparison, "I, Robot" was like a neglected child, suffering from malnutrition. Zheng Yucheng and Xiao Liuxiao searched for a while but found nothing, so they had to ask the staff.

"Excuse me, where are the sci-fi novels? I want to buy a copy of 'I, Robot.'"

"Me too, I want two copies."

The staff member frowned. Is there such a book?

But she didn't show it and pointed to the stairs, "Sci-fi novels are on the second floor. Follow the signs under the popular novels section. They're not on the first floor."

Zheng Yucheng couldn't help but sigh. This was the current state of sci-fi novels. They were in a remote location, and you had to go upstairs to find them. Novels that girls love, like palace intrigue and CEO romance, could be found on the first floor, and even the physical versions of web novels were downstairs.

As a newly released book, "I, Robot" had to be found on the second floor, which was quite frustrating.

However, what surprised the cashier was that the customers who lined up to enter the store were all searching for "I, Robot," and very few were asking about other books.

"I want a copy of 'I, Robot.' Do you still have stock?"

"Is the new book on sale? If I buy two books, I get a 20% discount. Can I settle these two 'I, Robot' together?"

"Can't you give it a more prominent position? I have to climb to the second floor to find it."

"Excuse me, the copies of 'I, Robot' on the shelf are sold out. Do you have any more in the warehouse?"

The staff member was slightly surprised. The person in charge of arranging the books thought that stacking five copies of "I, Robot" on the shelf would be enough, but they sold out in just a few minutes, and there was no time to restock.

He quickly checked the computer and said, "Don't worry, we have plenty of stock. We'll bring them from the warehouse right away. How many do you want?"

"I want one."

"Two would be more cost-effective. I'll get one for my roommate."

"I want one too!"

...

Thus, the staff member responsible for restocking the shelves was almost exhausted by the morning. Every time he received a restocking request, he had to push a cart upstairs, and now another order came in.

"Zhang Jun, can't you just bring a hundred copies at once? Give it a dedicated display. Am I supposed to run back and forth without getting tired?"

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Today, I got my finger caught in the door, and the blood turned purple. So I'm taking it easy today and only updating one chapter. I still have 14 chapters in reserve, which will last until my finger heals. I'll update normally tomorrow.

I hope you can understand. The pain is really bad. Can you give me some recommendation tickets to comfort me? =￣ω￣=

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