It was just a love letter; I'm really no great writer!

15:00.

After reviewing the manuscripts in the email, Tao Jin opened the bookshelf.

Two novels were placed at the top of his bookshelf—"Reborn" and "Dragon Raja".

These two books are the two new books with the best sales figures this month.

But he rejected them all... and then another editor picked them up.

At first, he didn't take it seriously.

Seeing the soaring popularity of his two new books, he regretted his decision.

"Am I blind?!"

Actually, he had no choice but to work hard. Since the emergence of "White Night Walking", online literature has experienced a huge boom, and he has to review thousands of manuscripts every day.

Most submissions are rejected after just reading the title, synopsis, and the first 300 words.

Sometimes he didn't understand what the difference was between his job as an editor and that of Akaishi.

Only a small number of manuscripts were readable, and suggestions for signing a contract or making revisions were given.

This is like finding gold in shit...

Therefore, he might easily miss works with perfunctory titles and weak synopses, such as "Reborn" and "Dragon Raja"...

"Dragon Raja" will be available tonight, and he specially came to place a pre-order.

The newly released paid chapters, with four chapters released in quick succession, demonstrate the company's sincere commitment.

Despite the controversy, readers still read it despite their dislike.

"Over 1200 orders in one hour, and a minimum of 6000 orders on the first day!"

Based on his experience as a veteran editor, Tao Jin quickly assessed the potential of "Dragon Raja".

"Although it didn't break 10,000 subscriptions on its first day like 'Reborn,' it still reached 10,000 subscriptions... As long as it stays stable and doesn't collapse, Tingyu will definitely have a place among the twelve kings of light novels this year."

What a missed opportunity!

It's a pity... Two potential superstars have both been handed over to others.

Of course, his position as editor-in-chief was unshakeable.

After all, his trump card is "carrying a knife in the rain without an umbrella," and he is the only author of the highest caliber, with one book selling 300,000 copies per month and another selling 200,000 copies per month.

Like a supreme demon king standing at the pinnacle of online literature, with all his ministers bowing down.

Challenge me!

……

Friday morning, Chinese class.

Lu Ran opened the End Data Network to check the daily first-order rankings, and his book was ranked second.

The number of subscribers for "Dragon Raja" within 24 hours was 6688, a rather auspicious number...

To put it simply, with 6,000 subscribers and 4,000 words a day, the monthly income would be around 14,000 yuan.

This is an enormous sum of money for a high school student.

But Lu Ran was not satisfied.

To put it another way, with 200,000 average daily subscriptions for "The Legend of the Condor Heroes," if you update 4,000 words a day, you'll have over 500,000 pure subscriptions a month.

Of course, there are many reasons for such a large gap.

The most important reason is that "The Legend of the Condor Heroes" has a huge fan base of established authors, while "Dragon Raja" is a work by a new author and receives too little recommendation and exposure.

Secondly, "White Night" stole the crab of popular literature, and "The Eagle Shooting the Condor Heroes" swallowed it whole, leaving the remaining traffic to be frantically divided up.

Furthermore, Dragon Raja updates too infrequently and too slowly, which doesn't match the fast-paced, exciting rhythm of online novels.

I've come up with all the excuses, hmm...

Lu Ran looked at the work that overshadowed his own—"Reborn," with 12422 first-day subscriptions, by the author Tropical Fish.

Lu Ran is also following this book; it's indeed well-written.

The textbook template for rebirth novels: the male protagonist is reborn after a car accident, back to after graduating high school, confesses his love but is rejected, and then starts a business and becomes rich.

What's rare is that, amidst a sea of ​​urban harem novels, the author has stuck to pure love, like a breath of fresh air.

Of course, Dragon Raja also insists on pure love, but it's like a mudslide—whose online novel male protagonist could be so unlucky?

The editor, who doesn't dye his hair, sent a congratulatory message: "Excellent results! Keep up the pace! Keep it up! You have a chance to be among this year's Twelve Heavenly Kings!"

"OK," Lu Ran replied.

He glanced at the comments section and noticed that fewer readers were joining in the fun after the book was released, resulting in fewer negative reviews and more discussions about the plot.

If things continue like this, it's only a matter of time before their grades take off...

"By the way, we have a group for top readers with 10,000 subscribers. Why don't you join?" Bu Ran sent another group invitation.

"I haven't reached 10,000 subscriptions yet."

"It's alright. As a newbie, it's good for you to learn from the experts," Bu Ran said tactfully.

...Is this because you think I didn't write it satisfyingly enough?

Lu Ran joined the group of top readers with 10,000 subscribers. He originally intended to stay silent, but the big shots welcomed him quite warmly.

Two days, three directors: "Welcome to Listening to Rain Giant!"

Meng Ru Shen Kun: "Group status -1".

Dancing Toad: "Congratulations! You've ordered a top-tier product from the giant! Platinum quality!"

Dongtu Soybeans: "Showing off our photos!"

Tropical fish: "Welcome!"

Lu Ran quickly sent a 500 yuan red envelope. This group included half of the online novel world—and half? That's like carrying a knife but no umbrella on a rainy night.

Feng Huo (Lucky Hand King): "Haha, thanks, boss!"

The authors immediately followed suit.

Listening to the Rain: "You're too kind, everyone. I'm just here to learn from you."

The Talking Banana: "Don't listen to other people's opinions, just write according to your own ideas. I'm following your writing; it's top-notch."

Several other authors have also expressed their opinions.

Lu Ran thanked everyone individually, chatted in the group for a while, and gained a better understanding of the current state of online literature.

In the past, only a few online novels would be published each year with tens of thousands of subscriptions.

However, with the popularization of the writing style brought by "White Night", starting in May, the number of subscriptions surged to 10,000, more than all the previous 10,000 subscriptions combined.

Everyone is exploring the boundaries and new ways of writing online novels, and the discussion is very active.

After exchanging pleasantries, Lu Ran left the group and noticed that his contact had received a new friend request.

—Tropical fish.

The other established authors, valuing their status, wouldn't proactively add a new writer.

After passing.

The tropical fish has been taken offline.

Lu Ran didn't mind; after all, those who write online novels are bound to have some social anxiety.

……

After class at noon, I went to the cafeteria for lunch as usual.

I went out of the school gate to pick up a package, got my Hasselblad in hand, and took a bunch of pictures of the flowers and plants.

"Master, Master!"

The child who ran over excitedly was none other than his apprentice, Xiao Shengke.

"Shh, keep it low-key," Lu Ran said.

"You've already stirred up the poetry world, and you call this being low-key..." Xiao Shengke chuckled inwardly. "Master, I've read all the books you told me to read. This is my reading report."

Lu Ran took the phone and walked towards the pavilion: "Not bad, you have a good understanding, that's it."

Xiao Shengke asked excitedly, "Can I start writing now?"

"Hmm, what kind of subject matter do you want to write about?" Lu Ran asked.

"A rebirth novel!" Xiao Shengke said. "I recently read that book called 'Reborn,' and it got me so excited! I want to write one too!"

"Tell me your idea."

"The opening pacing needs to be fast, so the male lead gets hit by a truck and dies at the beginning, then is reborn before the college entrance exam, memorizes lottery numbers, and becomes incredibly rich!" Xiao Shengke said smugly, then cautiously asked, "Master, do you think this is okay?"

"...Absolutely not." Lu Ran shook his head.

"Others get into car accidents, and you get hit by a truck; others go back to before they graduated high school, and you go back to before you took the college entrance exam; others start businesses, and you buy lottery tickets..."

"There's nothing original at all. While beginners should start by imitating, you've gone too far with this borrowing."

"Novels focus on substance rather than surface meaning; have you been reading all these books for nothing?"

Xiao Shengke, who had been lectured, blushed and lowered his head.

"Besides, rebirth stories require life experience, otherwise it's hard to write them well." Lu Ran pondered, "How about this, you start by practicing with the subject you're most familiar with."

"Learn by doing, and do by learning. Once you finish writing one, you'll know how to write a novel."

"What can I write?" Xiao Shengke asked nervously and expectantly.

"Xianxia," Lu Ran said. "Don't you like watching The Legend of the Condor Heroes? Take the martial arts from Wuxia, change them into various immortal techniques, and that's Xianxia. I'll write a set of realm charts for you."

"Alchemy, level up, fight monsters, change maps, keep repeating the cycle. You just need to write out each level up and you're done."

Holding the "Qi Refining, Foundation Building, Core Formation, Nascent Soul Transformation" incantation, Xiao Shengke pondered his master's words and left as if possessed by a demon.

"Why does it feel like teaching people to write books is more tiring?" Lu Ran chuckled, carrying the Hasselblad back to the classroom.

His other apprentice, Li Xingping, didn't come looking for him; perhaps it was just a passing fancy?

This further highlights the hardship of creation and the rarity of Xiao Shengke's perseverance.

The air conditioning in the classroom was on full blast at noon.

As soon as you enter the classroom, you can feel the coolness washing over your trouser legs.

Lu Ran didn't sleep well on the sofa last night, so he planned to take a good nap during his lunch break. He just took out his U-shaped pillow.

"Ran-ge~" Zheng Yue said shyly, "I've finished writing my love letter, do you think it's okay? I'm planning to deliver it after school today, will you come with me?"

The letter paper Lu Ran bought has been sitting in the drawer for two days, and it's still blank.

Several times he picked up his pen, but he didn't know what to write to Zhao Yishuang—how could he understand the word "love"? No matter how he wrote it, it didn't feel right.

Looking at Zheng Yue's face, which was full of girlish longing, Lu Ran pondered for a moment before looking at the love letter.

His words were clumsy, but his emotions were genuine.

Ok……

If I were a girl, I would be a little touched.

No way...

Could this guy actually find a girlfriend?!

Just then, class monitor Pan Jinwen walked into the classroom with a smile, waving a printed sheet of paper: "Let's change seats! Let's change seats!"

Holy crap!

"Why did you suddenly change seats?"

"The end of the semester is approaching and classes will be reassigned. This is probably the last time we'll change seats..."

The classroom erupted in chaos as many students swarmed around the podium to check the latest seating chart.

"No—!" Zheng Yue's face changed, and she let out a mournful cry: "My Ran-ge!"