Honkai Impact 3rd: Join Anti-Entropy at the start and dominate the entertainment industry.

On the surface, eight percent doesn't seem like much, but with the huge sales of "The King's Avatar," eight percent of the revenue is quite considerable.

Moreover, generally speaking, only top-tier authors can receive an 8% royalty share, and those top authors usually have at least seven or eight books under their belts. Bai Qianqu's share can be considered an exception.

The rest of the contract remained largely unchanged. Bai Qianqu quickly checked it and, finding no problems, signed the electronic contract and sent it back to Raven.

Raven was very happy to see the new contract successfully signed. The fact that Thousand Swords was still willing to sign a contract with World Serpent meant that he had no plans to switch jobs at the moment.

Raven has recently heard a lot of rumors that many publishing houses are eyeing Qianjian and want to poach him.

She was also very cautious, and out of caution, she hurriedly signed a new contract with Bai Qianqu as soon as she returned to work after the New Year.

The main reason is to stabilize Qianjian and prevent him from being poached by someone else.

An 8% cut is something other companies might not be able to afford.

He had just finished his call with Raven when Bai Qianqu's phone rang again. He glanced at it; it was an unknown number, so he hung up.

"Could my personal information have been leaked? Why are I receiving calls from unknown numbers?"

Just as Bai Qianqu was muttering to herself, the unfamiliar number called again.

This time he didn't hang up, but picked up the phone. A mature woman's voice came from the other end.

"Hello, are you Teacher Qianjian?"

When the other party called him by his pen name, Bai Qianqu knew that the other party had not dialed the wrong number, and he frowned.

It seems my number was indeed leaked, but I don't know from which side.

However, he wasn't surprised. Secrets can't stay hidden forever; his information would be discovered sooner or later, which was to be expected.

So he readily admitted, "Yes, I am Qian Jian."

"That's great, Mr. Qianjian. I'm Zhang Yucheng, the person in charge of the magazine 'Linyi'."

The other person's tone was very gentle, and you could tell at a glance that they were an experienced person who frequently dealt with others.

Bai Qianqu has been in this world for quite some time, so she naturally knows about "Lin Yi," which is a leading publisher in the magazine industry. Almost everyone who reads short stories has bought "Lin Yi."

After introducing herself, Zhang Yucheng saw that the other party did not react, so she continued, "Teacher Qianjian, it's like this, I have read your latest work, 'The Gift of the Magi,' and I greatly admire your writing skills. I hope to have the opportunity to cooperate with you. We are willing to offer you a satisfactory and generous offer, which is definitely no worse than that of World Serpent."

The Gift of the Magi became a huge hit, and its unexpected and surprising ending sparked a craze among writers.

This type of ending is now also known as the "Thousand Swords ending," and it can be said to be deeply associated with the Thousand Swords series.

As long as this writing style exists, the name Qianjian will never disappear.

Since the last meeting, Zhang Yucheng has been determined to poach Qian Jian and has used many connections to finally find Qian Jian's contact information.

It's not fair to say that the World Snakes aren't well protected; it's just that money can make the devil dance, especially when it's just a way to contact someone.

However, after receiving the news, Zhang Yucheng did not let anyone else know. She also knew how sought-after the Thousand Swords were, and she wanted to strike first!

Seeing that the other party wanted to poach her, Bai Qianqu shrugged and refused: "Sorry, I don't plan to switch jobs at the moment."

I've been having a good time working with World Snake. They even gave me a raise on my contract share just now. Plus, my novel, "The King's Avatar," is still being serialized with World Snake, so there's no need for me to risk offending my old employer.

Moreover, although Lin Yi is a large publication, it is still just a magazine publisher, and it is only really good at short stories.

I'm aiming to write both long and short stories, so Lin Yi is clearly not a good place for me.

From both a moral and logical standpoint, it's more sensible for me to stay in the World Snake.

Hearing Bai Qianqu's answer, Zhang Yucheng was somewhat disappointed, but this was within expectations. She couldn't expect Bai Qianqu to agree as soon as she started asking, could she?

She didn't intend to poach Qian Jian with just one phone call. After all, poaching talent requires a gradual approach and cannot be rushed.

“Oh, that’s a real pity. But our sincerity remains unchanged. We’d love to welcome you anytime you wish to come.” Zhang Yucheng changed the subject. “However, there’s one more thing. Our magazine, Lin Yi, is planning to launch a short story competition. We’ll be inviting over forty short story authors from around the world to participate. This competition isn’t limited to any platform, so you’re one of the invitees. Would you be interested?”

"A short story competition?" Bai Qianqu recalled the short story award he had participated in before. It seemed that many publishing houses had organized it together, and he had won a prize of one million yuan.

Zhang Yucheng nodded with a smile: "Yes, this event is led by our 'Linyi' magazine and co-organized by several other magazines and publishing houses. Those invited to participate in our event are all outstanding writers in the field of short stories, so the event is highly professional. Moreover, all writers who participate in our event will receive a prize of 100,000 yuan. In addition, the top three works will receive additional prizes: one million for third place, two million for second place, and five million for first place!"

Bai Qianqu was immediately moved.

Can you really earn a guaranteed 100,000 yuan by writing a short story?

Is there really such a good thing?

And there are extra bonuses for those who finish in the top three?

As expected of a leading publisher in the magazine industry, they certainly have deep pockets!

A short story is really not difficult to write; it's much simpler than a novel.

I haven't even started writing "Ghost Blows Out the Light" yet, but there's no rush. In the new year, I can start by writing a short story and earn some money to get off to a good start!

The title of "Thousand Swords Ending" has already appeared, so I'll just have to take advantage of the hype and give it a boost!

This writing model will be completely established!

Bai Qianqu had already made a suitable choice in his mind, and a satisfied smile appeared on his lips.

Chapter 302 Troika

Seeing that Qian Jian hadn't replied yet, Zhang Yucheng assumed that the other party wasn't interested again. Just as she was about to say something, Qian Jian spoke up: "What are the rules for your event?"

Hearing Qian Jian ask this question, Zhang Yucheng smiled, knowing that the other party was finally interested.

If you're interested, things will be easy!

She quickly said, "For this event, we have adopted a brand new set of rules. All the works by the forty-odd authors will be anonymous. This means that readers can only see the works but will not know who the authors are. The final vote will also be conducted by the readers. We, the organizers, will not interfere in any way."

"There are no restrictions on the subject matter of short stories, only on the word count. The total word count must not exceed 10,000 words, whereas previously it was no more than 20,000 words. However, I think we can try to shorten the word count this year, since shorter short stories are often more engaging."

Zhang Yucheng paused for a moment, then continued, "Furthermore, for this event, we also plan to collaborate with Weike, with both parties working together on promotion. This kind of online promotion will definitely have a greater impact than before."

Bai Qianqu appeared to be deep in thought.

"Lin Yi" does indeed have a very wide readership; their magazine has far more readers than other magazines. With this collaboration with Weike, the number of readers attracted will definitely be astonishing.

"To be honest, this event is the first time that anonymity has been used. This is to minimize the impact of the author's fame on the work. In the future, this model may be similar to music charts and will be held on a long-term basis. We will also launch a short story chart."

"That's the current arrangement. Would you like to participate?"

Bai Qianqu did not give a direct answer. He said, "I'll think about it."

Of course, although he was considering it, he had already decided to participate, but he wanted to gather more information before making a decision.

“Okay,” Zhang Yucheng knew what Bai Qianqu was thinking and didn’t insist. “You can add this number as a contact. If you have an answer, please call this number as soon as possible to let me know. Our event will be held around May, and the deadline will be a month earlier.”

"Okay, I see."

Zhang Yucheng hung up the phone. Although Qian Jian did not agree directly, she believed that he would eventually agree, since Qian Jian's tone just now clearly showed that he was interested.

Originally, Qianjian was not planned to be invited to this event; this was a decision she made at the last minute.

This is also to test Qianjian's strength once again.

If the opponent can achieve a mid-level ranking, it proves that they are not just lucky, but truly have the ability!

I'll do whatever it takes to poach him!

After ending the call, Bai Qianqu seemed to be deep in thought. He went online to check and sure enough, he saw the event that Zhang Yucheng had mentioned.

A total of forty-five short story writers were invited!

Submit your work anonymously!

Each reader has three votes!

The final ranking will be based on the number of reader votes!

And only at that time will the author's name for each work be displayed.

The rules of this event are very novel, and they have aroused the interest of many readers as soon as they were released.

On the same day that Bai Qianqu agreed to participate, "Lin Yi" announced the event, and the comment section was buzzing with excitement.

"If the author's name is hidden, then how can we readers know who wrote this work?"

"Now that's interesting! Stripped of the filter of being a top-tier author, it's all about raw talent!"

"Yes, top authors have so many fans. In terms of fan voting alone, smaller authors can't compete at all. I think this event is great. Competition should be fair. We're not in the entertainment industry, so why are we focusing on idol effects?"

"That's right, and this competition is a collaboration between Lin Yi magazine and Weike, which will definitely bring fresh blood to our short story community! I'm really looking forward to the start of this competition!"

"It's a pity we have to wait until May, but it seems the list of invited authors has already been released."

"I've already read it, and most of them are very famous writers. It seems that Lin Yi magazine attaches great importance to this competition."

"Holy crap, what am I seeing? Isn't that Qian Jian? He was also invited to participate in this competition?"

Everyone was a little surprised, but after thinking about it, they felt it was nothing.

"After all, Qian Jian was the champion of the last short story competition, and he also published a masterpiece, 'The Gift of the Magi,' during the Chinese New Year. It's normal for him to participate in this competition."

"Qian Jian's reputation in the short story field is on the rise, and the number of readers of his short stories is also increasing. He probably wants to cultivate this field more deeply, right?"

"That should be the case. However, the overall level of the authors participating in this competition has improved a lot. The forty-odd authors invited by 'Lin Yi' have all been carefully selected. It will probably not be so easy for Qian Jian to get a good ranking this time."

“That’s not necessarily true,” someone disagreed. “I think Qian Jian’s skill is probably not much worse than those so-called great writers. He just doesn’t have as many works yet, and his reputation in short stories and even the literary world isn’t as great as those veteran writers. Look at the works he’s published, which one isn’t a masterpiece? Which one is inferior to those great writers?”

Upon reflection, everyone realized that this was indeed the case, and they increasingly understood why "Lin Yi" had invited Qian Jian.

It's likely that "Lin Yi" chose to invite Qian Jian because they recognized his abilities, allowing him to compete on the same stage with those big-name writers.

However, just a few days later, something surprising came out.

Lin Yi held an event, while another magazine called Reader also held an event at the same time!

The first to learn of this news was naturally Lin Yi. They had originally planned to invite Yang Yagang, but he directly refused!

Who is Yang Yagang?

One of the three most recognized best short story writers in China!

It is hailed as one of the three pillars of the short story genre!

The original meaning of "three horses pulling a chariot" refers to a chariot pulled by three horses. In ancient armies, there were no cavalry, only chariots, which were pulled by two horses. Therefore, the number of horses pulling the chariot was used to distinguish status.

The chariot of the commander-in-chief was different from others; it was drawn by three horses and was called a "three-horse chariot," a symbol of the commander. This was a privilege reserved for emperors, so the term "three-horse chariot" also carries the connotation of being the best and most luxurious.

Chapter 303 The Rising Star Dies on the Yangtze River

In the realm of short stories, this naturally refers to the top three.

Yang Yagang's ability to become one of them naturally indicates his extremely high status.