The literary era since 1979

Just as Fangyan was accepting the hospitality of Suzuki Shunjiro, the Kadokawa Bookstore building in Chiyoda Ward was brightly lit.

As the vice president, Kadokawa Toshihiko hurriedly knocked on the door of the president's office and brought the long-awaited good news.

"Brother, Yuhikaku called and said Fangyan-kun arrived in Tokyo today!"

"Snapped!"

Kadokawa Haruki slammed the table and stood up. "Where is he now?"

Kadokawa Toshihiko's face was full of excitement: "I think he is with Vice President Suzuki. Maybe he is discussing the signing event for Love Letter."

"Most of Fangyanjun's book signing events are held in our branches across the country. We must make proper arrangements and absolutely no mistakes can be made!"

Haruki Kadokawa is the current head of the Kadokawa family. He took over the baton from his predecessor, Kadokawa Minayoshi, in the 70s and became the president of Kadokawa Shoten. By collaborating with the master of the orthodox school, Seishi Yokomizo, he launched the Seishi Yokomizo series of mystery novels, which immediately made Kadokawa Shoten stand out in the Japanese publishing industry. Later, he took advantage of the rise of the orthodox and social mystery schools and gradually became a leader in the publishing industry.

"Hi Yi!"

Kadokawa Toshihiko bowed slightly.

"This time, it's all thanks to Brother Suzuki and his team. Otherwise, it's hard to say who will win the signing event for Love Letter."

Haruki Kadokawa grinned.

Kadokawa Koyomi sincerely said: "Kadokawa Bookstore can be what it is today, all thanks to the wise leadership of big brother!"

"Ha ha!"

Haruki Kadokawa smiled more and more proudly. Not only was he passionate about literature and good at business, he was also a movie lover and even tried his hand at being a director. It was precisely because of his expertise in movies that in the late 70s, when Kadokawa Bookstore needed to find new business growth points, he decisively entered the film field, founded Kadokawa Pictures, and launched a series of film adaptations of popular novels to maximize profits.

In particular, he created the concept of "idol movies" and shot a series of idol-centered movies for contracted artists such as Yakushimaru Hiroko, Harada Tomoyo, and Watanabe Noriko at a low cost, such as "Sailor Suit and Machine Gun" and "The Girl Who Leapt Through Time"...

They immediately gained favor among young people, successfully creating the "Kadokawa Three Girls", and the idol movies they shot also achieved great box office success.

At present, "Love Letter" has not only broken the silence of the Japanese literary world, giving rise to the so-called "dialect phenomenon", but has also caused a great earthquake among the Japanese teenage readership. The unprecedented "pure love novel" theme has caused the sales of "Love Letter" to grow at a terrifying rate.

So far, it has broken the record of the fastest novel sales of 150 million copies held by Fang Yan’s own "The Ring"!
Kadokawa Pictures naturally does not want to miss out on a "masterpiece" like this that touches the hearts of millions of young people, and wants to make it into an idol movie!
"But brother, Fang Yan-kun has always been working with Shochiku."

Kadokawa Lehiko reminded: "This time, "Midnight Ring" is like this, and the previous "The Village Postman" is also like this."

"That's why we have to make good use of this "Love Letter" book signing event to build a good relationship with Fang Yanjun."

There was a gleam in Kadokawa Haruki's eyes.

"I'm afraid Shochiku has already set his sights on Love Letter."

Kadokawa Leyi said in embarrassment: "By then, even if Fangyan-kun agrees, Shochiku will probably not let us get it easily."

Kadokawa Haruki said in a serious tone: "No matter what the price is, or what the conditions are, we must get Love Letter before Shochiku. As long as we have this first cooperation with Fangyan-kun, we can have the second and third time."

It is hard for Kadokawa Kojihiko to disagree that Kadokawa Shoten's performance in all aspects has begun to stagnate or even decline.

The main businesses such as book publishing and bookstore chains have gradually declined due to the fierce competition in the publishing industry and the decline of the orthodox and social mystery novels that were regarded as the profit pillars. The idol movies that Kadokawa Pictures was proud of have also turned from a blue ocean to a red ocean because other film companies followed suit. The "Kadokawa Three Girls" that had invested a lot of resources in cultivating have also slowly become outdated.

After searching for a long time, the person who can help Kadokawa Bookstore break the dilemma is none other than Fangyan! Fangyan is not only a master of mystery novels, he not only created the "forensic reasoning flow", but also introduced the reasoning principles that have become the criterion of the new orthodox school. You should know that the new orthodox school is now the "top stream" in the Japanese mystery world and is highly sought after and loved by young people.

But he is also a world-class Oscar-level screenwriter. Not to mention the box office success of "The Village Postman" in Japan, the recently released "Baby Smart Star" and "Police Stories" in Japan alone have earned 25.8 billion yen and 19.7 billion yen respectively.

"Kadokawa Pictures wants to develop from a single idol movie to a diversified genre, and Fangyanjun is definitely an indispensable force!"

Kadokawa Haruki said: "If Kadokawa Bookstore wants to get rid of its dependence on the orthodox and social schools, we also need Fangyan-kun to help us!"

"Actually, big brother, I think there are other new ways out besides writing detective novels!"

Kadokawa Lehiko thought it over again and again before speaking out.

Kadokawa Haruki said unhappily, "Are you planning to bring up your two-dimensional comics and light novels again?"

Kadokawa Lehiko nodded and said, "Brother, according to our market research, the current publishing market has shown a trend of becoming younger. For example, the main consumers of new orthodox novels are young readers. If we can enter the comics and animations that young people like..."

"do not talk!"

Kadokawa Haruki's face turned pale.

"Brother, times have changed."

Kadokawa Koyomi still firmly believes that the next golden window for the Japanese publishing industry lies in the two-dimensional comics and light novels that young people like.

"Those are just new, passing hobbies for you young people."

There was disdain in Kadokawa Haruki's tone.

"But……"

Kadokawa Kojihiko opened his mouth with a smile.

"enough!"

Haruki Kadokawa interrupted rudely, saying that Kadokawa Bookstore is a family business with a long history. Since its establishment, it has published either academic monographs or popular publications based on classic literature. If Kadokawa Bookstore publishes things like comics and light novels that are not serious and cannot be put on the table, it will not only be laughed at by its peers and become a laughing stock, but it will also tarnish the brand and reputation that Kadokawa Bookstore has accumulated over the years.

"Ah~"

Kadokawa Koyomi sighed deeply, feeling depressed and aggrieved.

"Don't mention this unrealistic idea in front of me again. I don't want it to destroy the relationship between us brothers."

Haruki Kadokawa patted his brother's shoulder, and then kindly asked him to represent him to attend the premiere of "The Ring".

"I?"

Kadokawa Kojihiko was stunned. He was the head of Kadokawa's book publishing business, but not in charge of Kadokawa Pictures.

"Yes, it's you."

Kadokawa Haruki encouraged him, "Fangyan-kun will definitely attend the premiere. If I show up, Shochiku will definitely be on guard, but if it's you, these old guys will let down their guard. You must seize this opportunity and find a way to get close to Fangyan-kun." (End of this chapter)