In a parallel world, Yuanlang Xiangjiang.

It’s three o’clock in the night.

In a small and cramped public housing unit, this was the home of Zhong Daqiang, a comrade-in-arms of Wang Xiaobao's original father.

The current housing price in Central is about 3,000 yuan per square meter, and it is slightly cheaper in remote areas.

But with Zhong Daqiang's current wealth, he can only live in public housing with his family.

In a public housing unit that was not even as big as a room in his hometown, comrade Zhong Daqiang and his family of six were squeezed together.

The area of ​​public housing is generally not large. This house is only 38 square meters, but it is divided into three bedrooms and a living room.

One room is where Zhong Daqiang and his wife live, one room is where Zhong Chuhong and her two sisters live, and the smallest room is where Zhong Chujie lives.

Now with the arrival of Wang Xiaobao, the situation has become even more crowded, as he has to share a room with Zhong Chujie.

Fortunately, the original body's father once blocked bullets for his comrades, and that was a life-and-death friendship.

Zhong Daqiang's family had no complaints about Wang Xiaobao's arrival.

Zhong Daqiang even said that he wanted to marry his eldest daughter to him.

“Hoohoo.”

On the lower bunk of the iron bunk bed, eight-year-old Zhong Chujie was sleeping soundly.

"Oh my god, this novel is so good. I never thought people in later generations would be so talented."

Wang Xiaobao, who was sleeping on the upper bunk, hid under the quilt, his eyes red as he stayed up late reading a novel.

The first novel he read was called "Zhu Xian"! The magnificent Shenzhou continent, the world of cultivation, the opposition between good and evil, and the protagonists and supporting characters with distinct personalities . All of this brought Wang Xiaobao a brand new experience.

It was just like when Su Qing first came into contact with online novels. Staying up late to read was a basic practice.

"Such an amazing novel, won't it take Hong Kong by storm?"

At this time, Wang Xiaobao was even more confident about the future.

He took out the stationery and pen he had bought during the day from his personal space, and hid under the quilt to copy the text of "Zhu Xian".

[Book Title]: Zhu Xian [Author Name]: Lao Wang Next Door [Introduction]: There are no gods in this world, but since ancient times, humans have seen the surroundings He casually gave himself a pen name "Lao Wang Next Door", and Wang Xiaobao began his literary plagiarism career.

Relying on the light of the mobile phone, I copied every stroke.

Fortunately, he practiced martial arts and his physical fitness is much stronger than that of ordinary people.

Otherwise, not to mention whether your hands will be sore, your eyes might even go blind.

But the conditions are poor now and Wang Xiaobao has no choice but to do so.

Even though Wang Sheng asked Su Qingzhong to transfer one hundred taels of gold to him, he dared not use it, for fear that he would be chopped to pieces on the spot.

Time passed quickly and the sky gradually brightened.

Wang Xiaobao copied from a little after one in the morning until half past six in the morning before he finished copying the third chapter, "Grand Ambition", totaling 13,000 words.

At the end of the story, the protagonist Zhang Xiaofan was slapped on the back and passed out, and there was nothing else after that.

"Brother Wang, I didn't expect you to be this kind of person."

At this moment, a crisp sound came from under the bed, waking Wang Xiaobao up.

He quickly put his phone into his personal space; he couldn't let anyone find it.

Then, he lifted the quilt and took a look.

A pretty girl stood beside the bed, her hands on her hips.

The girl's name is Zhong Chuhong, she is sixteen years old this year and is the eldest daughter of Zhong Daqiang, a comrade-in-arms of the original father.

She was wearing a simple pink dress, with a graceful figure and skin as white as snow, and her beautiful eyes glared at him with disdain.

"Ah, Hongmei, please tell me clearly, what kind of person am I?"

Wang Xiaobao was a little confused. How had he offended her?

"Tell me, were you hiding under the quilt and doing something bad just now?"

Zhong Chuhong pointed her slender finger at him and said viciously.

"Do something bad? What bad thing can I do?"

Wang Xiaobao was even more innocent. Can writing a novel be considered a bad thing? "Ahem, Xiaohong, shut up."

At this time, the father Zhong Daqiang coughed awkwardly and stopped the girl.

Even if Wang Xiaobao was hiding in bed and drawing a map, it was not something an unmarried girl could say out loud.

So does she still want to keep her reputation? Will she get married in the future? "Uncle Zhong, Sister Hong, I stayed up late to write the beginning of a novel and plan to submit it to Jin Yong's Ming Pao."

Wang Xiaobao jumped off the bed, proudly raised the manuscript in his hand, and said to Zhong Daqiang.

"Writing a novel? Just you?"

Zhong Chuhong rolled her eyes at him, her face full of disbelief.

"Why, Hongmei, you don't believe it?"

Wang Xiaobao smiled and said, "How about we make a bet?"

"What bet?"

Cherie Chung asked.

"If my novel is serialized in a newspaper and I get paid for it."

Wang Xiaobao smiled and said, "Even if I win."

"impossible."

Cherie Chung didn't believe it at all.

"What if I win?"

Wang Xiaobao asked.

"Humph, if you win, I won't say anything about you anymore."

It’s no wonder that Cherie Chung has always been targeting Wang Xiaobao. The main reason is that as soon as this guy came, her father said he wanted to marry her to him.

It was said that it was to repay the kindness of Wang Xiaobao's father who saved Zhong Daqiang's life, and it would be a further strengthening of the relationship.

When the girl heard about this, she was stunned and refused to agree to it.

"If I win, you'll marry me, how about that?"

Wang Xiaobao said.

"Hmph, wait until you win."

Zhong Chuhong's pretty face turned red with embarrassment, and she ran away with a cold snort.

"Xiao Bao, you can also write novels? That would be great. If you become famous by writing books like Jin Yong, you can marry Ah Hong."

Zhong Daqiang was happy to see this happen, and patted him on the shoulder and encouraged him.

"Okay, Uncle Zhong, I will try my best to pursue Hongmei."

Wang Xiaobao nodded. Who doesn’t like beautiful women?

After brushing his teeth, washing his face and eating breakfast, he left the Zhong family.

I took a bus to Ming Pao Building, looked at the surrounding high-rise buildings and the people coming in and out, and couldn't help but sigh.

This is where I, Wang Xiaobao, rise to prominence!

Walking into the front desk of the building, Wang Xiaobao asked the beautiful lady at the front desk, "Excuse me, which office is Mr. Jin Yong?"

"Excuse me, what can I do for you? Do you have an appointment?"

The receptionist took out the appointment book and asked.

"I have written a very good novel and would like to ask Mr. Jin Yong for some advice."

Wang Xiaobao replied confidently, showing the manuscript he had finished in the middle of the night.

"Novel? Please register and leave the manuscript here. We will submit it to Mr. Jin Yong for your review."

The receptionist was not surprised and gave a routine reply.

"I want to hand it over to Mr. Jin Yong in person!"

"Sir, this is not in compliance with our company's regulations."

"That's fine."

After the negotiations failed, Wang Xiaobao had to leave in disappointment.

He knew that if he placed the manuscript at the front desk, it would most likely be thrown into the trash.

He just couldn't believe that such an excellent novel like "Zhu Xian" would not be able to find a newspaper or magazine willing to serialize it.

Soon, Wang Xiaobao found another newspaper, Oriental Daily.

This newspaper was founded in 1969. In the early days, there were only more than 10 staff members, and the paper output was one double-sided, and sales were not good.

In early 1970s, a famous writer was hired to write dog sutras. Sales increased, the number of newspapers increased to 1.5 pages, and after a year and a half, sales exceeded 80,000 copies.

Last autumn, the content of the supplement was purified and its sales exceeded 100,000 copies, causing Ming Pao to retreat step by step.

The sales of Oriental Daily also dropped from 100,000 copies to 80,000 copies, which was a dismal performance.

As soon as Wang Xiaobao arrived at Oriental Daily, he said to the front desk: "Go and inform your editor-in-chief. I have a novel that is no less than Jin Yong's The Legend of the Condor Heroes. It can turn the tide for your Oriental Daily and make its sales surpass Ming Pao."

As soon as these words were spoken, the receptionist was shocked on the spot.

The person who dares to compare himself with Jin Yong's "The Legend of the Condor Heroes" is extremely arrogant.

She did not dare to delay and quickly brought Wang Xiaobao to the Oriental Daily's chief editor Zhou.

Soon, Wang Xiaobao met Editor-in-Chief Zhou in the office.

This is a middle-aged man in his forties, tall and thin, with sharp eyes, giving him a very shrewd look.

Ever since the boss Dongfang Ma ran away, Chief Editor Zhou has become the actual person in charge of the newspaper.

"You said that your work can rival The Legend of the Condor Heroes and can also turn things around for our newspaper?"

Editor-in-Chief Zhou looked Wang Xiaobao up and down, with the word "disbelief" written all over his face.

"Well, no matter how much you say, seeing is believing."

"Editor-in-Chief Zhou, why don't you come and see for yourself to know if I am exaggerating or not."

Wang Xiaobao took out the first three chapters of "Zhu Xian" and handed it over.

These days, he has inquired about some news.

There are numerous newspapers of all sizes in Hong Kong, but the top ones he could choose from were only Ming Pao and Oriental Daily.

Since Ming Pao rejected his manuscript, he was determined to get it from Oriental Daily.

"Oh? Okay, let me take a look first."

Editor-in-Chief Zhou took the manuscript and began to read "Zhu Xian" with a skeptical look on his face.

His brows first furrowed slightly, and he was a little displeased with the description of gods in the introduction.

But soon, his brows gradually relaxed, mixed with a hint of barely perceptible excitement.

With his literary accomplishment, he could see the potential of this novel at a glance.

I'm not exaggerating when I say it's no less than The Legend of the Condor Heroes! "Well, the subject matter is indeed quite interesting, and it's somewhat similar to The Legend of Sword and Fairy."

"However, it is still a little unlikely that you can overwhelm the hot Wesley in Nifang and turn the tide."

After quickly reading these 13,000-plus words, Chief Editor Zhou forced himself to suppress his desire to read the subsequent content and pretended not to be very satisfied.

An old hand like him naturally understands the skills of negotiation.

Only by devaluing the work can we lower the price!

"Editor Zhou, please give me a price."

Wang Xiaobao spoke.

Whether a book is good or not is not up to one person to decide.

Only market feedback is the sole criterion for testing quality.

"How about 20 for a thousand words?"

Editor-in-Chief Zhou quoted a price.

"Hmm? Goodbye!"

Wang Xiaobao snatched the manuscript from him and turned away.

At this price, are you trying to please a beggar?

He had inquired and found out that Ni Kuang was paid 80 yuan per thousand words in Ming Pao.

Besides, Jin Yong was notoriously stingy. According to the normal market price, Nikuang could get at least one hundred to two hundred yuan per thousand words.

Wang Xiaobao believes that the quality and audience of "Zhu Xian" are no worse than those of Nikon's Wesley series.

The price offered by Editor-in-Chief Zhou was too low and he couldn't accept it.

"Hey, don't go. How about 30 for a thousand words?"

"forty!"

"Fifty!"

Seeing that Wang Xiaobao was turning around to leave, Editor-in-Chief Zhou was unwilling to let this big fish get away, and hurriedly grabbed him.

But after quoting the price several times, Wang Xiaobao still refused to give in.

"How much do you want?"

Finally, Chief Editor Zhou had no choice but to let him name his own price.

"One hundred and fifty yuan per thousand words!"

Seeing this, Wang Xiaobao finally spoke.

"Scared, why don't you go and rob?"

"Nikong only charges 80 per thousand words, and you're asking for 150?"

"Impossible, this is absolutely impossible!"

Editor-in-Chief Zhou jumped three feet high on the spot as if his tail was stepped on.

"The most I can offer is 80 per thousand words. I won't agree to a price higher than that."

After calming down, Editor-in-Chief Zhou gave a bottom price.

"No, one hundred and fifty cents per thousand words, not a cent less."

Wang Xiaobao shook his head, not moved at all.

"Mr. Wang, you don't know that the water in the newspaper office is very deep. The average author only gets 20 or 30 yuan for a thousand words."

"A famous writer like Jin Yong only gets 100 or 200 per thousand words, and Ni Kuang only gets 80 per thousand words."

"You are just a newcomer. Your work has not been tested by the market. It is not certain that anyone will buy it. Our newspaper will have to take a big risk."

"Eighty dollars per thousand words is not a low price. We should stop while we are ahead!"

Seeing this, Editor-in-Chief Zhou tried to persuade him earnestly, saying that he really didn't want to miss this article.

Otherwise, given his temper, the newcomer is asking for too much, so just get as far away from me as possible.

"How about this, let's each take a step back."

"For the first 100,000 words, let's calculate it based on your calculation of 80 per 1,000 words."

"After 100,000 words, let's see the market response and then discuss the price. What do you think?"

Wang Xiaobao thought about it. Although he thought Zhu Xian was of good quality, it was in another time and space after all.

It may become a hit, or readers may not buy it. It's hard to say.

"Oh? Sure. Let's do as you say. How many words do you expect to write for this work?"

When Editor Zhou heard this, he accepted his statement in his heart and asked calmly.

"As for the word count, it's probably around one million words."

The entire Zhu Xian has more than 1.2 million words, but Wang Xiaobao just started writing it at this time, so of course this cannot be said.

"About a million? Sure, let's have a pleasant cooperation!"

When Editor-in-Chief Zhou heard this, he thought that the number of words was not too many, as several of Jin Yong’s works had about the same number of words.

So, the cooperation was agreed upon very quickly and the contract was signed on the spot.

After signing the contract, Wang Xiaobao also received the royalties for the first 13,000 words.

One thousand and forty dollars! At that time in Hong Kong, the average salary was only three or four hundred dollars a month.

There are even fewer in the mainland, and it’s considered good to earn 30 to 50 yuan a month.

Wang Xiaobao does not expect to get rich from his writings; he just needs an obvious way to make money and establish his own fame.

If you are short of money, the worst that can happen is that you ask your father for some gold and then exchange it for money.

With the first payment of royalties, Wang Xiaobao went to the mall and bought a gift for each member of Zhong Daqiang's family.

"You bought this for me?"

Holding the beautiful dress that Wang Xiaobao had just bought, Cherie Chung was surprised but a little shy at the same time.

"Okay, okay, I said Xiao Bao is capable. 80 yuan for every 1,000 words. If you write 10,000 words a day, that's 800 yuan."

Zhong Xiaoqiang patted his shoulder happily and cried with joy: "This is more than what I earn in a month."

After everyone was happy, Wang Xiaobao opened the chat group and announced the good news to his father and group members:

"Dad, and brothers, I got my first payment for my writing!"

Well, I have set up a book club. There is a link after each chapter. You can join the group directly by clicking on it.

(End of this chapter)