Rebirth 08: Equipment God

Chapter 281 The Goddess of Kyoto University, Applying to Debut!
On Monday morning, Zhai Da resumed his daily campus life.

The only difference is that the cheating methods used inside and outside the school have started to take effect. Jiang Xiaobai arranged for him and Lu Wei to be exempt from attending seven or eight courses each, and three examination courses were also made "exempt from attending + exempt from examination", which is equivalent to giving away credits for free.

The pressure is reduced by half.

As it turns out, Zhai Da's approach at the end of last semester was correct. The school also needs to observe. If the students underperformed in the first semester, they should probably be talked to and strictly managed in the second semester.

Zhai Da and Lu Wei delivered perfect scores, especially Zhai Da, who proved that even though he didn't attend many classes, took more than ten days off at the end of the semester, received an award on TV, and even wrote a new book, he was still "skilled to the bone" and lived up to the school motto.

So, in the new semester, it will only be easier and more convenient to give the green light.

As a result, he went from having to attend 8 a.m. to only having two or three classes a day, sometimes even more relaxed than his classmates in the second semester of their freshman year.

In the noisy classroom, Zhai Da closed the "Electrical and Electronic Technology" book. This course was only covered in the second semester of the sophomore year for this major, but that didn't stop the sect's holy son from adding it to his shopping cart.

Unlike ordinary students, he had the opportunity and desire for practical experience, so he could apply what he learned immediately. In fact, he had first contact with Xu Xuejun, but not in such a systematic way.

While listening and learning, some ideas for modifying the Polaroid camera popped into my head, but I suppressed the urge in the end. This piece of equipment is too important; it would be a loss if it were "weakened."

I don't know when this problem will be solved.
Zhai Da packed up his books and headed towards a classroom on the top floor, as he was going to class with Lu Wei in the next period. However, he received a phone call before getting on the elevator, so he simply took the stairs instead.

The call was from Editor-in-Chief Lou En; it was for work.

Both sides are old acquaintances. Lou En now only makes phone calls when it's convenient for Zhai Da. There might even be a Harbin Institute of Technology class schedule posted in Phoenix Media's office.

We know exactly when get out of class ends.

"Congratulations, Mr. Zhai! The sales figures from the weekend are in! You've become the fastest novelist in China to break the million-sales mark, in just 27 days!"

Zhai Da smiled and asked, "Is it accurate? Is it a calculated figure or a projected figure?"

Many small bookstores don't have a point-of-sale system, making it difficult to collect data. They only know that the previous batch of books has sold out when the customer places another order. Therefore, the data that can be calculated is always behind the actual data, but the industry only recognizes the former.

"The calculated figures and the estimated figures are both close to 110 million, which is a major piece of good news."

To draw a comparison, it took four or five months for "The Long Road of Lü" to sell over a million copies.

The second book's meteoric rise is a result of a continuation of the success of the debut novel, an explosive increase in the author's fame, a wide sales network, and a bold print run. This new record in the industry is quite significant.

Lou En sounded quite pleased; middle age is the time to give it your all. As Zhai Da took off, he clung to the landing gear.
"I'd also like to trouble you, Teacher Zhai, to announce this on your blog and Weibo. I'll have the graphic designer make a poster to announce the good news and send it to your email before I leave work."

Times have changed. In the past, such honors could only be added to the cover during the next reprint, but now that the internet age has arrived, they can be announced to the public immediately, further stimulating the market.

Everyone has a herd mentality; when a brand becomes famous, people who weren't originally part of the target audience will buy a copy to give it a try.

Taking the opportunity of announcing the good news, Lou En tentatively suggested that Zhai Da organize a "book signing tour" to visit major cities across the country once a week.

All-inclusive package: flight and hotel included. Visa on arrival, departure immediately! Starting from Harbin, we'll head south!
This line of thinking is correct, and now is the perfect time to capitalize on this trend.

But Zhai Da refused, fearing it would shorten his lifespan.

Given its nationwide popularity, the growth that book signings can actually drive is already quite small; it's just that's all the author can do.

A full-time writer will do his best, but Zhai Da has multiple identities. He'd be willing to double his sales with each signing, but selling one or two thousand copies at a signing is more important to him!

Lou En was somewhat disappointed.

Before hanging up, the editor-in-chief brought up another matter: "By the way, Professor Zhai, the final edition of 'The Past of Dongyang' has undergone significant changes compared to the first edition, and the quality has improved by more than one level!"

"At the morning meeting just now, the vote was officially passed and we will accept this submission. Your mysterious friend can now be revealed. Phoenix Media will publish his work."

More than half a month has passed since Zhai Da anonymously submitted the final version of "The Past of Dongyang" to them, but this is the response speed that a typical writer should have.

Zhai Da laughed and said, "That's great. By the way, how many copies of 'The Past of Dongyang' are you planning to print for the first time?"

Lou En took a sip of strong tea and said calmly, "It's not decided yet, but new authors usually start with around a thousand copies to test the waters. The initial print run of 'The Long Road of Lü' was 1 copies because you already had a certain level of buzz."

Zhai Daxin understood the topic's popularity.

"Then you might need to adjust it up a bit, as this author also generates quite a bit of buzz."

"Oh? Could it be an already famous writer?"

Zhai Daxin said that was not the case. The other party was also somewhat famous online. Of course, the most important thing was that the "heading" was quite special and had a selling point.

The goddess of Beijing!

Although these four words are currently only used internally by Peking University, they are nonetheless a hot topic and attract social attention, not much less than their own "top scorer in the college entrance examination" back then.

If this still doesn't convince you, then her father's name is Lu Zetao. I wonder if that would be a pleasant surprise?
"I'll give you your number to 'him' in a bit, and he'll contact you himself."

After hanging up the phone, Zhai Da shared the good news with Xiao Lu. ————

Lu Siwen, who was taking a class at Peking University, jumped up in the corridor.

Her long dress was fluffy like a jellyfish, and her neat short hair bounced up and down like a small mushroom.

"yeah!!"

This stunning scene of youthful energy attracted the attention of many Peking University students.

Over the phone, Zhai Da's voice carried a hint of emotion: "Congratulations, our little Lu is finally going to have her debut work."

It was actually good enough long ago, but the wait was worthwhile. "The Story of Dongyang" has been revised to a stunning degree.

In Zhai Da's own rating system, he would probably give him 17 points.

Lu Siwen's face was full of a happy smile: "Thank you, Zhai!"

"Why thank me? It's your own achievement."

"You encouraged me not to write, you personally taught me the skills, and you even provided special learning methods. In short, it's all yours!"

As she spoke, Lu Siwen jumped up and down again.

"I'm going to have a published work!"

She always liked to express her excitement in this way, which is probably where her high school nickname came from.

After hanging up the phone, the "Goddess of Peking University," disregarding her class and under the stares of everyone, ran to a secluded corner, repeatedly smoothing her chest with her delicate hands. After a long while, she dialed the number of Editor-in-Chief Lou En.

Uncle Lou

Lou En smiled quite kindly; after all, this was the daughter of his sugar daddy.

"Siwen~ It's been so long! What made you decide to contact me?"

Lu Siwen took a deep breath and said, "I am... the author of 'The Past of Dongyang'."

Lou En:
There was a long silence on the other end of the phone, long enough for Lu Siwen to feel anxious.

Finally, Lou En's still-friendly laughter rang out: "Siwen is so funny, huh? Trying to make your uncle laugh, isn't she?"

What a joke!
How could Lu Zetao have given birth to such a talented writer? Would Darwin agree?!
Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

The publication of "The Past of Dongyang" will be put on the agenda. In addition, Zhai Da also suggested that Lu Siwen follow his example and register a blog and a microblog to generate buzz before publication.

To some extent, once Lu Siwen officially enters the writing industry, she will be able to share some of the resources that Zhai Da has accumulated, such as recommendations, connections with Xinglang, collaborations between the two, and some industry contacts.

Of course, they can also inherit Lu Zetao's resources to some extent; for example, the level of attention given to Lou En will definitely increase.

Initially, Lu Zetao helped Zhai Da, and now he can help Xiao Lu.

This might not have been something Lu Zetao could have foreseen, but this handsome old man certainly has great wisdom in dealing with people; flowers always bloom in unexpected corners.

The cooperative relationship between Zhai Da and Lu Siwen will not diminish due to the change in their identities; on the contrary, it will become stronger.

The young woman who once stayed behind the scenes, quietly helping Zhai Dawei establish his writer status, managing his blog and Weibo, and running errands for him, is now finally stepping into the spotlight.

Step forward Step forward
09 may indeed have been a year of harvest, not only for him, but also for those around him.

Lu Wei's "Sensitivity Speculation" is also nearing completion.

Fan Junwei, as a "Chinese boxer," will soon be able to fight overseas.

Wu Yue, well, it seems that 'Brother Yue' has stepped into the limelight, but of course, we need to redefine 'in the limelight'.

Thinking of Wu Yue, Zhai Da checked the equipment location in the system. The guy was in Nangang District, seemingly in a residential building. Zhai Da sent him a message asking how he was doing.

Wu Yue simply replied, "Everything is going according to plan."

So Zhai Da sent a text message: Call me in a critical moment, I have a big one.

Wu Yue: Okay, okay.

Zhai Da curled his lip. Don't believe me?

(End of this chapter)