I am not a literary giant

The Little Prince: [Since your ears are red because of me, please don't show my name on your face again. If people find out that a noble, elegant, and refined literary girl like you has been corrupted by me, I'm afraid I'll be dragged out and hung on a telephone pole.]

Qiu Ge chuckled to herself: [What era are we living in? It's not like before; utility poles aren't used like that anymore.]

The Little Prince: [I'm still afraid. That era has passed, but the telephone poles in people's hearts remain. In this era, don't be too refined. If you're inherently vulgar, low-class, and lawless, people won't care. But if you're known for your refinement, people will hold you to saintly standards, and one wrong move and you'll be hung on a telephone pole.]

Autumn Song: [Baseness is the passport of the base, nobility is the epitaph of the noble. It has always been so.]

The Little Prince: [It has always been this way.]

Qiu Ge: [But don't worry, if you get hung up, I'll definitely be hung next to you. With a beautiful woman like me by your side, you can rest in peace.]

The Little Prince: [A thief hangs next to Jesus, and a rogue hangs next to a beautiful woman. Hmm, they're quite a match.]

Autumn Song: [They're quite a good match.]

The Little Prince: [What kind of meeting are you having?]

Qiu Ge: [I'm giving a lecture to a group of online writers. I'm teaching them how to create characters. But I don't think they need it at all.]

The Little Prince: Why wouldn't I need it?

Qiu Ge: [Because online novels only require emotion and speed. Online novels aren't about meticulous craftsmanship; if you just churn out 20,000 words a day, even a fool could make money.]

The Little Prince asked, "Then why should you be the one to teach them?"

Qiu Ge: [I don't know, it's the leadership's arrangement. Maybe they think they need some cultural enrichment. Anyway, I feel like they're looking at me like I'm an idiot.]

The Little Prince: [Those were really mean.]

Qiu Ge: [It's okay, I'll treat them like fools too. We're even.]

Wang Zixu looked up. A gust of wind swept by, rustling the fallen leaves on the ground. The heat in his heart dissipated slightly. In the distance, where the sun blazed fiercely, the heat still distorted his vision. He saw an old man in a t-shirt walking by in the heatwave, looking like a tiny dot.

In this tiny world, everyone strives for recognition, yet disdains to recognize others, which is why life is so exhausting. Whether lying down or standing, life is still life, and there's no need to criticize how others live.

Prince Xu thought to himself: My thoughts are almost saintly.

The Little Prince: [About 92 percent of writers believe they are the only ones who are right, and that all other writers are terribly wrong and incompetent. So you don't need to blame yourself.]

Qiu Ge: [How do you have such detailed data?]

The Little Prince: [This is what Haruki Murakami said. He might be talking nonsense.]

Qiu Ge: [Okay.]

The Little Prince: [I'd love to hear how Ms. Qiuge teaches.]

Qiu Ge: [Alright! Now it's my turn to teach you properly!]

Qiu Ge told him that her best method for creating characters was contrast.

The beautiful are made to be wicked, while the ugly are made to be noble—this classical contrast is outdated, Hugo has overused it, but she takes the contrast a step further.

Those who charge ahead are scorned behind their backs; those who fight their whole lives die poor, sick, and old; those who are romantic and passionate suffer betrayal; those who are devoted to the Way have their ideals shattered; those who have everything can have more, while those who have nothing will always have nothing; revolutionaries fall on the eve of victory, while rebels live out their lives in mediocrity.

After listening, Prince Xu said, "It's good. But it's more heroic than compassionate."

Qiu Ge was a little unconvinced and said, "Then how did you create the character, my little prince teacher?"

Wang Zixu said, "Write closely about the characters."

Qiu Ge laughed and said, "That's exactly what my high school Chinese teacher said."

Wang Zixu said that means your high school Chinese teacher was quite good. What I mean by writing closely to the characters is to do it to the extreme. You will completely become that character, not as a god playing with their life, but immersing yourself in their perspective to observe the whole world.

At its most extreme, you can even feel this person beside you, every smile and gesture so lifelike. He will react to your every action, and his words seem to embody his entire life experience.

Qiu Ge listened with rapt attention, yet also with a hint of worry: "Won't this cause a mental breakdown?"

"You've heard of Darwin, haven't you?" Prince Xu said. "Humans have branched out into countless evolutionary paths throughout their long evolutionary history, and the genes of these ancestors are all latent in human genes. Therefore, as a higher animal, humans are the most flexible and adaptable. Humans should be able to become any creature, and also become anyone."

Qiu Ge said, "Your madness is captivating."

Wang Zixu then uttered some witty and romantic words to her, making Qiu Ge feel intoxicated, infatuated, and happy all at once. However, Wang Zixu didn't actually enjoy flirting with her. She had spent a lot of money on the order. Taking money to solve problems was Wang Zixu's service philosophy.

Before he knew it, it was time to meet Raymond Lam. Wang Zixu said goodbye to Qiu Ge and went to "Xin Rong Ji", where he soon met Raymond Lam.

He had been sitting outside for over an hour, his face flushed red from the sun. Lin Feng greeted him, asked about what had happened that morning, and then went with him to the Writers' Association.

"Actually, you have to be a little shameless within the system," Lin Feng said. "The more shameless you are, the more successful you get, and once you climb the ranks, you'll have respect. The more you care about your reputation, the less respect you have. In the end, only you feel respectable, while everyone else thinks you're a disgrace."

Wang Zixu nodded: "I've known that before. But I don't think that kind of life is cool."

Lin Feng laughed heartily: "I really envy you, that scholarly spirit. Life has already bent me low. But don't quit your job!"

Wang Zixu said, "I have no plans to resign for the time being."

Lin Feng said, "Why would you quit your job? You could be earning a salary and doing creative work, wouldn't that be better? Do you think those people you mentioned today are indifferent? They have their pride too, but do you think they'll quit? No way. They're all doing it, but you, the one who spoke out for justice, are the one who quit. That would be truly strange."

Prince Xu nodded: "I was indeed too concerned about what others thought of me before."

Lin Feng whispered, "Besides, it's a government-affiliated job, and the management isn't that strict. You can do some side hustles and earn some extra money. The job is easy, and many people would envy that. You can't make life miserable for yourself."

Prince Xu nodded: "Thank you, Brother Lin. I've thought it through now."

When the two arrived at the Writers' Association, Lin Feng rushed upstairs, walked through a rather old-fashioned corridor, and came to a door with a sign that read "Xihe Literature and Art Editorial Department". They pushed the door open and went inside.

"Go! Hahaha..."

Cheerful sounds came from inside the room. Two large buttocks were sitting at the table; of course, Wang Zixu could only see one of them. Facing him was a bespectacled, refined-looking boy, while the one with his back to him had thinning hair. After seeing the two of them enter, the bespectacled, refined-looking boy patted the balding man on the shoulder, and the two of them tacitly put away the chessboard.

"Hey, Mr. Lin!" The balding man jumped off the table and walked over with a big smile. "What a rare guest! What brings you here?"

"Wood Rain Forest Wind".

Raymond Lam told a really lame joke, which made Prince Suk-hsu shudder.

The balding man laughed and said, "It's almost time to get off work, so we were just joking around. This is the new girl, Xiao Ai."

Lin Feng said, "It's okay, Lao Chen. I've always been aware of and admire your work style."

The bespectacled, well-mannered boy next to me quickly said, "I'll go get some water," and then slipped away.

Lin Feng introduced Wang Zixu: "This is Lao Chen, Chen Qiaosheng, the only designated editor of 'Xihe Literature'."

Chen Qiaosheng waved his hand: "I'm not the only editor now, isn't Xiao Ai here?"

Lin Feng added, "This is my friend Wang Zixu. He is very talented. I came here today to ask him about things."

Chen Qiaosheng's expression changed. Lin Feng tried to explain tactfully that Wang Zixu's submission hadn't been accepted. Chen Qiaosheng scratched his head and said:

Are you sure you didn't reject the manuscript?

Prince Xu shook his head.

Chen Qiaosheng said, "If there's no rejection, then it's been approved."

Wang Zixu said, "But my article wasn't published either."

Chen Qiaosheng glanced at him and walked to a table. Several newspapers were piled up on the table, forming a small hill, and it was unclear what other miscellaneous items were placed there.

He reached out and flipped the newspaper to the ground, revealing stacks of manuscript paper on the table.

Chen Qiaosheng patted one of the stacks and said, "This stack is the ones that have passed the test and are in line."

Chen Qiaosheng slapped the paper onto another stack and said, "This stack is the ones I haven't had time to look at yet; they're still under review."

Prince Xu looked up and saw that both stacks of manuscripts were equally tall, their sheer number inspiring awe.

Chen Qiaosheng said, "If nothing unexpected happens, your manuscript is in one of these two stacks. Go find it yourself."

Wang Zixu and Lin Feng exchanged a glance, both feeling that it was easier to move a mountain than to shake the original manuscript.

Chen Qiaosheng said, "You can carry them to the ground and rummage through them, just don't mix up the two piles."

Prince Xu sighed, and suddenly, he saw a small leg sticking out like a scabbard from the office doorway.

Her calves were shapely and strong, and she wore a lake-blue high heel with a long, pointed heel. Her instep was snow-white, and the shape of her veins seemed quite familiar to Wang Zixu.

Perhaps noticing Wang Zixu's gaze, the woman hiding outside the door stopped hiding, turned around and jumped out, her hands behind her back, radiating youthful energy.

"Hey! The one who's married! What a coincidence! I never thought I'd run into her here!"

Prince Xu saw Ning Chunyan's smiling face.