Chapter 72

In the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, after Cao Cao issued a proclamation to denounce Dong Zhuo, he quickly gathered a group of generals under his command. Among the first to join him were his kinsmen Cao Ren, Cao Hong, Xiahou Dun, and Xiahou Yuan. Anyone might envy your talent, but your relatives will never think that way. They support each other, and although it may not alleviate poverty, when you are truly in need, you will always receive help from your family. When the elders discover that there is a promising talent among their descendants, they will come forward to help without much prompting, offering money and effort. As soon as Cao Cao demonstrated his ability and reputation as a regional leader, his family immediately aligned with him, providing full support. Lin Mu is in a similar situation now. Those who went home to fetch ingredients spread the news to more people, bringing even more enthusiastic support from relatives. Even the poorest relatives, whose families had sick elders, contributed a hundred yuan to Lin Mu's mother, asking her to buy something to show their goodwill. Despite this, Lin Mu's home was already filled with various items: freshly cleaned free-range roosters, ham, beef, a small jar of honey... The most abundant were fruits, with apples and oranges of the season filling the tables in Lin Mu's home. Lin Mu's mother repeatedly said that there was already enough, but the relatives, seeing so many ingredients, still smiled and placed their prepared gifts in Lin Mu's home. Standing beside them, Lin Mu felt a wave of emotion. He could sense that these neighbors and relatives were not seeking any future rewards from Lin Mu, but were genuinely happy for his family, proud that a promising young man had emerged among their descendants. The elders and Lin Mu's father also smiled, smoking and chatting with the men who had come, enjoying this rare moment of happiness. The children from each family also came with their parents, led by Lin Ye and Lin Lin, each holding an apple to watch the computer in the side room. After more than an hour, the crowd gradually dispersed, but a few sisters-in-law and aunts stayed to help prepare the meal. "Mom, actually, there's no need to prepare so much. I asked, and the person is coming alone after a long journey. A simple, light meal will do," Lin Mu said, seeing everyone bustling about. The sister-in-law from the second eldest aunt's family gave Lin Mu a look: "Great writer, don't you say anything. This is the custom. Go to the living room and watch TV with your father. Don't worry about cooking." "Exactly!" "Lin Mu is still young and doesn't understand much." "What's there to understand? Little Mu just needs to focus on his studies and writing. We'll take care of these things for him!" ... The person arrived quickly. Lin Mu hadn't been sitting in the small store on the street for long when he saw a minivan pulling up. A man in his forties, wearing round-framed glasses, got out of the car, looking around curiously. Seeing Lin Mu approach, he was somewhat surprised, and his curiosity grew. "I'm Wang Yang, the manuscript editor for Storytelling. Are you... Lin Mu, the author of One Page Book?" the middle-aged man asked hesitantly. Lin Mu smiled: "How could you get my detailed address from Martial Arts Stories but not my detailed information?" The middle-aged man, Wang Yang, laughed: "Indeed, you are perceptive. It seems I made the right decision coming here!" On the way back, Lin Mu learned more about the man. As he had expected, the man had come for his next book. "I told our boss that someone who could write a martial arts system as rigorous as Liancheng Jue must have a far-sighted mind. The next book wouldn't be conceived only after Liancheng Jue was finished. Our boss decided to send me here right after the New Year's Eve dinner to discuss this collaboration." At the dinner table, the elders, Lin Mu's father, and a few other respected elders from the village accompanied them. Lin Mu's mother and the other sisters-in-law and aunts, after serving the dishes, went to the east bedroom to watch TV, but were actually eavesdropping on the conversation in the main room. Lin Mu's father raised a glass of wine and asked cautiously: "Our child is inexperienced. Editor Wang, could you be more specific about the collaboration?" Wang Yang, though refined, was very generous at the table, finishing his drink in one go. Seeing that Lin Mu's elders still had doubts, he took out his briefcase. A stack of cash, totaling 50,000 yuan, was placed on the table. Wang Yang slapped the money in front of Lin Mu's father: "Let me put it this way! For our first collaboration, regardless of what Lin Mu's next book is like or when it will be completed, this 50,000 yuan is a gift from Storytelling to the author of our first collaboration. As for the specific royalties, we can discuss that after we see the manuscript. How about that?!" 50,000 yuan? A gift? The elders couldn't help but draw in a breath of cold air. Lin Mu's mother and the others, who were eavesdropping in the other room, looked at each other in disbelief. They had expected the magazine to offer Lin Mu generous treatment and that the person would come during the New Year, showing how much they valued him. But the idea of a 50,000 yuan gift was too much for their fragile hearts! After all, a young laborer in the village, working hard outside for a year, waking up early and going to bed late, sweating all day, eating and living poorly, could save at most 40,000 to 50,000 yuan. But Wang Yang, without even seeing Lin Mu's new book, had directly taken out 50,000 yuan, which truly shocked them. Lin Mu smiled: "I just had a falling out with Martial Arts Stories. You should know the reason. I thought no magazine would accept me anymore..." "Little Mu, what happened?" This was the first time Lin Mu had mentioned this to his family. Lin Mu's father, sensing something was wrong, asked urgently. Wang Yang patted Lin Mu's father's arm to reassure him: "I thought it was something serious. Ha ha, over the years, Zhu Zhengting has been the perennial second place. Cheng Xiong has many excellent authors and is willing to spend money. Lin Mu, have you ever thought about why their sales have only fluctuated around a few ten thousand copies for so many years?" Lin Mu shook his head, signaling for him to continue. Wang Yang took a sip of white wine and chuckled: "They treat established authors generously but completely ignore new authors! How can such short-sightedness bring vitality to the magazine?" "You must understand that the writing style of established authors is already set, at best maintaining the magazine's mid-to-high sales. The ones who can truly revolutionize the magazine's sales are the new authors, whose creativity is unrestricted and boundless!"