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

If it were any other girl, she might have thought that Lu Ran was taking advantage of her vulnerability.

However, Xia Liang's brain circuits are different from those of ordinary people.

"I understand, I understand~" Xia Liang smiled and took out her phone.

Ding! You've received a 200 yuan red envelope.

Lu Ran was dumbfounded: "?"

"Not satisfied?" Xia Liang gritted her teeth. "Don't go too far! Fine, I'll fight you to the death..."

"It seems you know nothing about me." Lu Ran approached step by step.

The two were in a Sisyphe bookstore, the air filled with the aroma of coffee.

They were sandwiched between two bookshelves. The girl's slender and graceful figure was hidden under her blue and white school uniform. Her delicate white neck and full breasts spoke volumes about the turbulent emotions within her.

The boy reached out and pinned the girl against the wall, looking into her bright, summer-like eyes.

"you……"

Xia Liang's eyes widened, her teeth chattering. "More money?"

She puffed out her cheeks, "I don't have much pocket money either, at most another fifty!"

"Do I owe you fifty?" Lu Ran raised an eyebrow.

"What are you going to do?" Xia Liang asked curiously, touching the delicate skin on her arm.

"I want... you to stop pursuing the matter of Zhao Yishuang leaving the club," Lu Ran said softly. "You've realized it too, haven't you? Running a club isn't easy; everyone makes mistakes."

"But she can't just stay silent and say nothing..." Xia Liang pouted.

"Then I'll go tell everyone that under President Xia's brilliant leadership, this issue of the magazine has been monopolized by scalpers!" Lu Ran shouted at the top of his lungs.

Xia Liang chuckled and patted his chest: "No way, that's so embarrassing."

"See?" Lu Ran shrugged.

"Lu Ran," Xia Liang said softly, "Actually, I could pretty much guess... her accounts were in deficit back then, right? I should have noticed earlier, then I wouldn't have had to put all the burden on her shoulders."

"You found out?" Lu Ran asked in surprise.

"I'm not stupid!"

"Hard to say."

"Hmph, what she couldn't do, I'm determined to do." Xia Liang proudly raised her face, then smiled sweetly again, "Luckily, you helped me~"

Afterwards, Lu Ran contacted his uncle Li Kangze in a quiet corner of the mall.

This matter doesn't seem difficult to handle.

The solution is to increase printing. Once the supply is no longer scarce, naturally no one will buy the books hoarded by scalpers at high prices.

But Li Kangze's words stunned Lu Ran: "Have you ever thought that it's not scalpers, but pirates?"

"Piracy only requires a very low cost to replicate the content of your magazine. If you mass-produce copies and increase the price, piracy will become even more difficult to eradicate."

"Based on my observation, your magazine, compared to other publications, is more like a kind of idol merchandise..."

"Many students don't mind paying a higher premium for their idols; in your young people's terms, it's called the fan economy."

Hearing his uncle's words, Lu Ran suddenly felt a chill.

That's it!

The same applies to toilet seats used by celebrities, stockings worn by female anchors, and anime figurines... They talk a lot about benevolence and love, but all they care about is business.

The adult world is so dirty.

He was at a loss: "What should we do now?"

If we don't enlarge the prints, the scalpers will benefit; if we do enlarge them, the genuine products can't compete with the pirated ones.

Li Kangze pondered: "This problem is really difficult to solve."

"Ultimately, we have to rely on the supervision of relevant departments. Our company has just formed a legal team, so we will report it first and see if we can find out the scalper piracy gang."

"However, we still need to increase the print count, since you are the legitimate owners and the rights are in your hands."

After thanking his uncle, Lu Ran put away his phone and briefly explained the situation to Xia Liang, who was waiting beside him.

"It's so complicated." Xia Liang was a little disappointed.

"A blessing in disguise," Lu Ran comforted her. "Looking at it from another angle, scalpers have also helped us open up a broader market."

"Hmph." Xia Liang wrinkled her nose. "I won't thank bad people."

The two were preoccupied with the magazine, so they grabbed a quick bowl of braised pork intestine noodles at the mall and went home.

On the one hand, expanding printing can greatly combat scalpers, and by improving anti-counterfeiting measures, retail prices can be appropriately increased to ensure profits.

On the other hand, one can report it to the National Copyright Administration and request local copyright administrative departments to crack down on pirated products and purify the market environment.

Two-pronged!

……

Friday morning, the sky was overcast.

Lu Ran and Zuo Hanzhi sat facing each other at the dining table, eating the coriander beef noodles made by Teacher Xiaotian. The soup was rich and bright, and the beef was cut into very large and thin slices, tender and chewy.

Zuo Hanzhi doesn't like beef, so she picked it all out and gave it to Lu Ran.

Lu Ran gazed out the damp window, thinking that if it rained, today's game might have to be postponed...

Buzz, the phone lit up, and Li Kangze sent two pieces of good news:

One reason is that the People's Publishing House has taken a liking to "To Live" and wants to publish it separately.

This is no ordinary publishing house; it is one of the top publishing houses in China, possessing the most authoritative position nationwide.

Apart from ancient books and translations of foreign literature, only top-tier writers in contemporary literature, such as Jia Tu and Ning Ning, can receive this honor.

This can be described as a significant stepping stone to literary divinity.

The copyright of "Living" was naturally handed over to Lingran Studio for operation. Lu Ran only needed to sign his name, and the distribution channels would take care of it.

Lu Ran chuckled; "To Live" had finally made its move.

A book this healing should not be known to only me—

During the review of the third issue of the pictorial, Li Xingping and Di Lingyan were both moved to tears. They protested to Lu Ran, saying that they had previously thought Fugui deserved it, but now they felt heartbroken for him.

That's absolutely right. Leave the sadness to the readers and keep the joy for yourself.

The second piece of good news is that there has been progress in tracking down the scalper trafficking gang.

—It's related to an organization called Lu Ran Fan Club.

According to investigations, groups called "Lu Ran Supporters Clubs" have recently emerged in various middle schools in Huaicheng and the provincial capital. Their core doctrine is to like Lu Ran's love letters, poems, and novels, and to buy grains to support him.

Whenever the magazine was freshly printed, it would be snapped up by the group's members.

It is preliminarily assumed that the gang that monopolizes, produces, and sells pirated goods is hiding in this loose and widespread group.

Investigations revealed that there were indeed low-quality pirated magazines on the market, with prices even higher than the genuine ones.

"???"

Lu Ran fainted.

What's going on? A girl band's performance became a huge hit, and I ended up debuting as an idol?

He underestimated his influence in the Huaicheng area.

Regardless of Huaicheng No.1 Middle School, 70% of the girls in other schools have a great admiration for this romantic and melancholic poet.

Yes, a poet heartbroken over a breakup, how pitiful...

So they all went to buy his serialized novel "To Live" in Huaizhong Pictorial, and cried their eyes out. Then they shared it with their friends, feeling both love and hate for him.

I love him, I love his talent, though words cannot express my deep affection.

I hate him, I hate his cold and heartless writing.

"What's wrong?" Zuo Hanzhi asked.

"Hanzhi, have you heard of... uh, my fan club?" Lu Ran asked with a serious expression.

"Hmm." Zuo Hanzhi nodded. "I heard He Tingting mention that she is the head of Class Six of our Huaizhong Lu Ran Fan Club."

"...It's so embarrassing for you to just read it out loud." Lu Ran covered his face.

Tian Luojiao was quite interested: "What?! Lu Ran already has a fan club?"

"Yeah," Zuo Hanzhi said calmly. "He Tingting invited me to join, and even asked if I had any of Lu Ran's relics."

"What the hell is a relic...?" Lu Ran was speechless.

"I don't know, I didn't agree to join." Zuo Hanzhi took a sip of soup.

"Well done. We need to be especially careful with organizations of dubious origin." Lu Ran gave a thumbs up.

"Then He Tingting treated me like your sacred relic." Zuo Hanzhi frowned, seemingly finding it hard to understand.

Lu Ran: ...

These mourners are really abstract.

He Tingting, is it? How dare you pollute the white paper branch? I'll teach you a lesson.

After breakfast, Lu Ran picked up the long-handled umbrella.

He led Zuo Hanzhi out and carefully instructed her, "Hanzhi, if He Tingting tries to talk to you in the future, just pretend you didn't hear her."

"Oh." Zuo Hanzhi nodded seriously. "Don't worry, I've kept all the love letters you gave me very well."

"No...no need to..."

Lu Ran suddenly realized that as a poet, his love letters would be repeatedly studied by later generations.

sad.

Click.

The keypad door opposite opened and closed smoothly.

Xia Liang and Li Xingping ran out laughing.

They all wore bouncy ponytails, exuding youthful energy.

The temperature dropped sharply today, and everyone was wearing color-blocked jackets over their school uniform short-sleeved shirts—one orange and one blue—making them look bright and colorful.

Li Xingping's school trousers were slightly rolled up at the hem, paired with white lace-trimmed socks and black leather shoes, giving her a very youthful look.

Xia Liang wore a pair of splints, her clean, lotus-like toes long and neat, her arches full and round like the moon, faintly visible under the hem of her pants, languid and charming.

Good morning, Hanzhi.

Xia Liang took Zuo Hanzhi's hand and they happily headed to the elevator.

Good morning...

Li Xingping took small steps to Lu Ran's side, greeted him softly, her heart pounding.

In the morning, Lu Ran always gives the impression of not having woken up properly, with droopy eyelids, as if he is pondering the ultimate mysteries of the universe.

Thin, tightly pursed lips, always ready to capture the poetry that flows between heaven and earth.

And those deep, clear black and white eyes, how could he be so captivating...

"morning."

Lu Ran asked casually, "Star Aquarius, did you know I even have a fan club?"

Li Xingping tightened her pretty face, not letting the joy of speaking to him show: "I know~"

Oops! I accidentally let down my rising intonation.

"Why didn't you tell me sooner?" Lu Ran asked Li Xingping with a puzzled look as he entered the elevator.

"I only found out recently."

Li Xingping stood to his left, tilting her head so that he could see her right cheek clearly. Her eyes, as clear as autumn water, were smiling: "I heard that Lu Ran's fan club has three rules."

First, we must not disturb Lu Ran;

"Secondly, we must absolutely not disturb Lu Ran;"

"Third, you must like at least one of Lu Ran's works, and you are strictly prohibited from maliciously slandering Lu Ran."

What kind of fight club?

Lu Ran's vision went black.

With such a huge commotion, I was completely unaware of it.

"Lu Ran's fan club?"

Xia Liang proudly puffed out her chest, pointed to her chin with her index finger, and squinted her crescent-shaped eyes.

"Hehe, I created it~"