Chapter 62

Why not compromise?

After all, it's just a difference of three thousand yuan. He didn't really value this money much. If he could just bear it a little, he could save himself a lot of trouble. Why insist on a matter of principle?

Han Xin also endured the humiliation of crawling between someone's legs, which led to his great achievements. Otherwise, this military genius would have died in prison long ago. Once he became successful, he could come back and deal with this person, or even appear magnanimous and appoint him to a minor position, then secretly settle the score. Wouldn't that resolve the frustration in his heart?

Moreover, this wasn't even a matter of such humiliation. At most, it was a bit of the unwritten rules that every newcomer in the industry would encounter.

Zhu Zhengting couldn't understand this logic, which is why he was so convinced that Lin Mu had given in after seeing the text message.

He was almost driven mad. After working in the industry for so long, this was the first time he encountered such an unbridled and difficult author.

"What does he gain? If he goes down in flames, which martial arts magazine would dare to accept him? By offending both *Wuxia* and *Wuxia Story*, he has cut off his path to fame. Just for one issue's payment, how can he be so naive!"

Looking at the video that reappeared in the book group, Zhu Zhengting felt cold all over, his head almost dizzy.

...

After sending the video to several book groups and forums, Lin Mu took a sip of tea from his teacup and sighed in relief.

The inner frustration indeed eased a lot.

The remaining work didn't need to be done by him. The countless authors and readers who were paying attention to this matter would take care of it.

Yes, everything was a setup.

From the verbal abuse of Zhu Zhengting, to the "regretful slip of the tongue" in the author group, to the apology text message to Zhu Zhengting, and finally to obtaining the final video evidence!

The verbal abuse of Zhu Zhengting made him lose his composure, but in the author group, it was casually dismissed as "a couple of complaints." This was the only lie Lin Mu told.

Just this point alone, the public's perception of the matter was already completely predictable.

To put it bluntly, Lin Mu was like the strategist Jia Xu, who would use any means to survive; to put it nicely, he was like the official Ximen in Zhang Shimin's *Jin Mei Ping*, who would stop at nothing to get what he wanted...

Logic seemed to be the least useful thing. No one cared, and those with power and money could trample it at will.

But logic was also incredibly solid, existing in the hearts of every author and reader who contributed. No matter how much power Zhu Zhengting had, he couldn't twist "logic"!

What is logic?

In this matter, from the public's perspective, Lin Mu brought great benefits to the magazine, but was unreasonably suppressed by Zhu Zhengting. Just for "a couple of complaints," he was directly docked one issue's payment, and other payments were delayed.

Docking money and delaying payments are things that any worker, including authors, detests!

Pressuring and suppressing the authors one likes is the most despised behavior by readers of martial arts novels. How is this different from the villains in the novels!

A single cunning plan directly put *Wuxia Story* on the hot seat. Lin Mu could be said to have gone to the extreme of "losing his mind"!

It can be foreseen that *Wuxia Story* will deny everything, even with the most absurd reasons, to avoid the claim that the magazine arbitrarily manipulates authors' payments. Lin Mu's payment doesn't need to worry about whether it will be recovered.

And *Wuxia* will seize this opportunity to spread the word, aiming to make the contributing authors wary and develop a bad impression of *Wuxia Story*.

The annual sales champion, which could have been a significant boost for *Wuxia Story* next year, is about to be reduced to its original state just because of offending Lin Mu!

The means don't matter, just like the fight with Wang Peng earlier, only victory is sought.

This is Lin Mu's way of doing things...

...

"Lin Mu! I beg you! Just issue a statement saying it was all a misunderstanding! *Wuxia Story* has done you a favor, helping you gain fame and make money, getting you through the initial stage. How can you bear to see it fall from grace?" Lin Shuiqing pleaded in the video.

Lin Mu sneered, "Done me a favor? Helped me gain fame and make money? I don't feel comfortable hearing that. I gained fame and made money because of my writing, my effort. The magazine also made money through me, several times or even dozens of times more than my payment. This is a win-win situation. How did it become a great favor from the magazine?"

In his previous life, he liked Na-zi because of this.

If I succeed, it's because of my effort, and what does it have to do with your leadership? You also make money from me, and you still have the nerve to ask me to thank you at the end?

I'm tired of typing, did you ever bring me water or call a little girl to scratch my itch?

Lin Shuiqing tried to persuade him for a long time, but seeing it was useless, he smiled bitterly, "What can I say to you? You've cut off two magazines and dealt *Wuxia Story* such a heavy blow. I've worked hard for half my life to get to this position. Lin Mu, can you bear to see me, like those young people, go job hunting again?"

Hearing this, Lin Mu couldn't remain as tough. Lin Shuiqing had always been supportive of his publication opportunities, and even though it was part of his job, Lin Mu had always remembered this favor.

"Rest assured, as long as nothing major happens, *Wuxia Story* will only return to its original state. You are still an indispensable part of the magazine. I do feel a bit guilty about this trouble. If there's a chance, I'll treat you to drinks and apologize!"

Neither of them mentioned the possibility of Lin Mu changing his statement, as it was impossible.

On the computer, Zhu Zhengting, hiding outside the camera range, listened to their conversation, his face alternating between red and white, his fists clenched so hard they ached. He wished this was just a nightmare and regretted why he had suppressed Lin Mu in the first place.

"Why did I offend such a reckless young author who doesn't play by the rules?"

Feeling like the top figure in the industry, with a prestigious status in short and medium-length martial arts novels, Zhu Zhengting suddenly felt as if everything was a dream.

At this moment, Zhu Zhengting truly regretted it. If he could, he would even apologize to Lin Mu to make everything calm down, but Lin Mu's attitude had already made it clear that this was just a fantasy.

"Mutual destruction! Mutual destruction! Lin Mu, if you won't let me off, I'll see how you can go on without the support of two magazines!"

...

The New Year is approaching, where will the path lead?

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