"Old Zhuang, congratulations! When your masterpiece 'Life's Bitter Journey' makes the list tomorrow, we'll have to have a good drink!"
Zhou Wenhao offered his congratulations with a bittersweet feeling, while putting on an act of genuine happiness for his old friend—thanks to his excellent acting skills.
Zhuang Qiu, on the other end of the phone, obviously didn't consider all that. He was a literary master, while Zhou Wenhao was merely the president of a modern poetry society; their levels were fundamentally different.
So when Zhuang Qiu heard Zhou's congratulations, he laughed heartily:
"Of course, of course, Lao Zhou. Speaking of which, I owe you a lot for this matter. If you hadn't asked me for help, that kid surnamed Xu wouldn't have gotten involved with me."
Logically speaking, this shouldn't be a glorious thing, but who would have thought that misfortune would turn into a blessing in disguise? Now, many people in the industry support me, so it's been a great gain for me.”
Zhou Wenhao continued, with a sour tone:
"It has to be Master Zhuang. You already have a lot of popularity in the industry, which is why everyone trusts and supports you. We'll wait for the release of this year's list of masterpieces."
Brother Zhuang, your popularity must be even higher now. You might even be vying for the position of president of the Literary Association, which would be quite remarkable.
"Hey, you can't say things like that. I'm still far from the president's level. Really, I'd be more than satisfied with just being a vice president!"
Zhuang Qiu, surprisingly not yet overconfident, quickly lowered the gear by half a level and said again:
"Moreover, I didn't intend to do anything using my position as vice president. I just wanted to see if I could push 'Life's Journey' a little further."
Making the annual list of masterpieces should be a sure thing, but if it could make the ten-year list, the situation would be different. So, it's always good to strive for it if possible.
"Yes, yes, yes..."
Zhou Wenhao nodded repeatedly in agreement.
"Alright, Lao Zhou, I got another call. Let's talk again."
Zhuang Qiu wasn't just saying that; in fact, he received a lot of calls today, far exceeding the usual number.
He understood perfectly why this was happening; it was simply because the list of best works of the year was about to be released, and his 'Life's Journey' was practically guaranteed a spot.
Everyone is taking advantage of the fact that the list hasn't been released yet to make some preparations in advance, which is considered a "timely help".
However, if you offer congratulations after the list has already been released, it's merely icing on the cake, and the two are far from meaningful.
Master Zhuang himself was certainly aware of this, but why wouldn't he be happy to accept congratulations from others?
Everyone wants to carry a sedan chair, especially since they're all from literary circles; the more connections you make, the greater the benefits...
"Heh, once the list of the year's best works is released tomorrow, that kid named Xu Lu will have no chance to make a comeback!"
When the phone finally stopped ringing, Zhuang Qiu suddenly laughed:
"You, a mere director, dare to offend me? Now I'll show you just how terrifying the power of a literary master can be!"
What kind of world belongs to the young? Hmph, who knows about the future, but for now, it's still us old guys who call the shots!
...
Meanwhile, online discussions are gradually converging:
"It seems that in this battle between a young director and a literary master, the literary master has gained the upper hand!"
"Yes, although Director Xu is very talented, his foundation is still relatively shallow and cannot be compared with Master Zhuang."
"He probably knew this himself, otherwise why didn't he dare to show his face later?"
It's a pity he found out too late. He shouldn't have offended Master Zhuang at that lecture party, now…
"If you ask me, since we've already offended them, it's better to be straightforward than to suddenly become a coward!"
...
"A bachelor? Haha, of course you think being a bachelor is okay. But he has to make a living in the film and television industry, how can he be a bachelor?"
"There's no way around it. The literary field is naturally of a higher level than the entertainment field, which is why Master Zhuang is so fearless."
"That's right, look at those people in the literary circle, they're all supporting Master Zhuang."
But surprisingly, directors within the industry have turned against them and started helping outsiders.
"The dust has settled! After all, tomorrow is the day the 'Annual Masterpieces List' will be released, which is no small matter."
Once Master Zhuang's "Life's Bitter Journey" makes the list, Director Xu Lu will have no chance to turn things around.
...
Chen Xiao is an online novelist who is signed to write on Shuqie Novel Network. His performance has been quite good in recent years.
Oh, right, the only time his grades dropped was the period when 'Divine Condor' descended from the sky.
At the time, this martial arts novel, which appeared out of nowhere, swept up most of the website's traffic, which was terrifying.
But this has both advantages and disadvantages.
The downside was obvious: during that period, almost all authors on Shuqie.com experienced a decline in traffic.
Chen Xiao was no exception. Seeing his manuscript fees drop every day, he almost considered using the outline escape method to run away.
However, after a period of time, the benefits of this event also became apparent.
Because at the time, 'The Condor Heroes' not only garnered a huge amount of traffic within the site, but also brought in a lot of traffic from outside.
So when the book's popularity gradually subsided, other authors on the website naturally benefited from the influx of external traffic.
"Even so, I still don't want another phenomenon like 'The Return of the Condor Heroes' to appear; it's just too mentally taxing!"
Thinking of this, Chen Xiao muttered something to himself.
His hand moved the mouse, and he unconsciously clicked on an author he was following.
The next moment, Chen Xiao felt his heart pound violently.
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