It's another busy day.
The students from the Imperial College and the Shanhe Academy once again had a tit-for-tat argument at Wenqing Bookstore.
At present, very few people from Shanhe Academy pass the imperial examinations and become Jinshi, so there is no conflict of interest with the Imperial College for the time being.
However, Shanhe Academy's performance in the examinations for the scholar and juren made the people in the Imperial College realize that Shanhe Academy would be its biggest competitor in the future.
Students with household registration in the capital region of the Imperial College were basically sent to various academies in the capital region.
Shanhe Academy is stealing students from other academies, which is creating enmity.
As a member of the academy, we must stand up to the so-called friendship between classmates and teachers and students and criticize Shanhe Academy no matter what.
It doesn't matter whether you win or not.
But you must have the attitude.
How can a scholar not have a sense of righteousness?
Shanhe Academy used high scholarships as bait to snatch students from other academies in a despicable manner, which aroused public anger.
Fight him!
Since no one had the courage to attack Shanhe Academy, Wenqing Bookstore became the default battlefield.
They quarreled every day, making Wenqing Bookstore look like a vegetable market.
The shopkeeper didn't care, and neither did the other students.
Those who want to buy books buy books, and those who want to watch the fun watch the fun. Everyone does not interfere with each other and coexists harmoniously.
The backyard of Wenqing Bookstore has a quiet environment, isolated from the quarrels in the bookstore lobby.
Gu Jiu sat in the flower hall, looking through the manuscripts sent by his subordinates.
Gu Hun was a little nervous and felt uneasy.
Huang Qubing glanced at him and smiled silently.
When Gu Jiu opened the bookstore, Huang Qubing realized the opportunity there and took the initiative to take on the task of publishing and distribution.
Gu Hun took the lead and took on the task of the content department.
What is the Content Department?
Creating new, best-selling vernacular novels and legendary novels is the main task of the content department.
The content department was established two years ago. From the initial three people, it has grown to eight people now. It successfully created the legendary novel "Qilang's Ten Battles with the Flower Thief", which is a best-seller across the country and has become a hit.
As a result, Gu Hun secured his position as the head of the content department.
Gu Jiu picked up the pen and circled the content in the manuscript with the red tip of the pen.
She said with a stern face, "It's the same old problem. The sentences are long-winded and the wording is artificial. It's not very pleasant to read.
The reason why "Qi Lang's Ten Battles with the Flower Thief" is so popular across China is because the story is well-received and the plot is well-organized. This is a leisurely reading material, so it does not need profound moral principles or too many flowery words that will detract from the reading pleasure.
Qilang is a cheerful and passionate young man. His words and actions should not be gloomy. Sanniang's life is pitiful, but she never gave up hope and always lived a positive life. What kind of nonsense did you write in this draft? Sanniang has become a sickly and delicate woman. It's ridiculous!
Gu Jiu threw the manuscript away, and Gu Hun trembled all over.
Gu Jiu took a deep breath. "This manuscript is not good. I told you last time, this person is not good. He is a down-and-out writer who thinks he is noble. I asked him to write the manuscript according to the outline, but he mixed it with his own opinions. Since he refuses to write according to the outline, I will fire him and replace him with someone else."
Gu Hun gave an awkward smile. "I gave him a job out of friendship, but he refused to do it properly. I've done my best. I'll fire him tomorrow."
Gu Jiu looked towards Gu Hun.
Gu Jiu also knew the person Gu Hun was talking about.
His surname is Zhao, and he can barely be considered a member of the Gu family. However, his family fell into poverty, so he went to a bookstore to write legendary novels just to make a living and solve the problem of food and clothing.
However, I had too many ideas, all of which were inappropriate. I also refused to follow the outline and was obsessed with mixing in my own ideas, hoping to show off my talent.
Please, this is a legendary novel, a recreational reading material, used to make money.
Gu Jiu nodded and said, "If you are not comfortable speaking up, I will have someone handle this matter."
Gu Hun agreed, "Second sister, here's a second draft. I was worried that Lao Zhao wouldn't write it well, so I asked someone to write a second draft privately. Second sister, would you like to take a look?"
Gu Jiu stretched out his hand, and Gu Hun quickly took out the second draft.
The second draft was obviously written in accordance with the outline requirements. Some individual parts still need to be revised, but it is generally qualified.
Gu Jiu nodded secretly, "This draft is good, basically meets the requirements. Who wrote it?"
"The new writer we hired last year is named Yang, and he's a scholar."
Gu Jiu laughed, "This Young Master Yang is quite good, we can focus on him in the future. However, the style of "Qi Lang's Ten Battles with the Flower Thief" needs to be unified, and the wording and sentence structure and narrative style should be similar to the previous twelve chapters.
Go tell Young Master Yang that if he can revise this manuscript to resemble the style of the previous twelve chapters, I will use his manuscript and give him a generous fee based on the number of words. If he cannot revise it, I will have to find someone else to revise it. He will only receive the fee for the first draft."
Gu Hun immediately said, "I'll go ask him right now."
After saying that, he hurried out of the flower hall.
Huang Qubing smiled and said, "It will be published and released in less than ten days, and the manuscript is not finalized yet. Is there still time?"
Gu Jiu smiled and said, "Of course there's still time. The illustrations have been drawn, and the workshop is rushing to print the color version. You know that the most difficult part of this book is not the content, but the color illustrations."
Color printing is extremely difficult these days.
If you are not careful, the picture will become a blur.
The hardcover edition of "Qi Lang's Ten Battles with the Flower Thief," published by Wenqing Bookstore, contained no more than 50,000 words per chapter, yet it fetched three taels of silver. And buyers flocked to it.
Why?
This is because the colorful illustrations are so detailed, brightly colored, and evenly colored that every character's expression and smile are clearly visible.
Its clarity is almost as good as the color prints of fashion magazines in Gu Jiu's previous life.
It's just that exquisite.
Such clear illustrations, with the color printing technology of the time, were something that people of this era had never seen before the hardcover edition of "Qi Lang Ten Battles with the Flower Thief" came out. It was unimaginable.
The portrait can be drawn so realistically and clearly, as if there really is such a person who flew into the book and turned into a colorful illustration.
Many bookstores used to publish illustrated storybooks or romance novels. They were generally printed in black and white, with blurry lines and a completely abstract aesthetic. You had to rely on your imagination to determine what the characters looked like.
A few bookstores have published color illustrations, but the color matching is a mess. When printed, the colors are blurred together and are completely unreadable.
Until Gu Jiu, who directly recruited people from the Shaofu Jiangzuojian with high salaries, spared no expense to study color printing technology, and with the little inspiration she gave to the craftsmen, it took more than two years to finally master the color printing technology.
However, even though the technology has been overcome, color printing is still time-consuming and labor-intensive.
First, you have to find someone to draw the draft, then adjust the color according to the draft, make a template, and print it in color using special paper.
For example, for red, first print out all the red lines needed for one thousand sheets of manuscript paper, and then print green.
Very troublesome!
But it is already the best that current color printing technology can achieve.
It is troublesome and the printing speed is slow, but the effect is very good.
It is almost catching up with the color inkjet printing of later generations.
Gu Jiu also thought about making a template, harmonizing all the colors, and printing them together.
It’s a pity that the effect is not satisfactory, the clarity is not achieved, and the colors are often blurred.
Current technology can only print in color.
Huang Qubing breathed a sigh of relief. As long as the illustrations were printed, everything else would be easy.
Gu Jiu added, "After the completion of 'Qi Lang's Ten Battles with the Flower Thief', it's time to prepare for a new book. Here's an outline for the new book, take a look at it first."
Gu Jiu took out a piece of manuscript paper and handed it to Huang Qubing.
Huang Qubing picked up the manuscript paper and first exclaimed "Huh".
"Will you write the next book about a scholar?"
Gu Jiu took a sip of tea and said, "To be more precise, it's a story about a talented scholar and a beautiful female ghost. Isn't it very attractive to scholars and women in seclusion?"
"It's actually a female ghost. Is this going to be a weird novel?"
"Wrong! I already said it was a talented man and a beautiful woman."
"But from what I've read in this synopsis, it's a strange story novel."
Gu Jiu rolled his eyes. "It's clearly a love story between a talented scholar and a female ghost. You're blind, so you can't see it."
Huang Qubing's mouth twitched; he was actually being personally attacked.
"Okay, let's just treat it as a love story between a talented scholar and a female ghost. Are you sure there's a market for it?"
Gu Jiu chuckled coldly, "Last time I asked you to analyze target customers, what did you learn?"
"Are they all sour scholars?" Huang Qubing said disdainfully.
Gu Jiu sneered, "To be precise, 50% of our customers are frustrated scholars, 30% are secluded women. The remaining 10% are trendy people like you, and the remaining 10% is negligible."
The protagonist of this new book is a down-and-out scholar. Doesn't it resonate with frustrated scholars? He encounters a female ghost, endures a series of injustices, relies on her to escape, and ultimately successfully passes the imperial examination, earns the admiration of a noble, and marries a beautiful woman. After reading this, are readers satisfied? So satisfied, they wish they could be the down-and-out scholar themselves.
The female ghost is a man of love and loyalty. She was betrayed in life, but after death, she is loved and cherished by a talented scholar. She successfully seeks revenge and helps him achieve fame and fortune. Isn't this touching? The women in the inner chambers will probably need to prepare two extra handkerchiefs and cry bitterly for the female ghost. The story also includes various twists and turns in the story, striving to capture the hearts of every reader.
Huang Qubing opened his mouth wide, "Madam is truly a cunning businessman!"
Gu Jiu sneered, "What did you just say about me?"
Huang Qubing shook his head repeatedly, "I didn't say anything. I was saying that Madam's control over people's hearts is truly amazing. I admire you! Is the hardcover edition still three taels of silver? Do you want to raise the price?"
Gu Jiu laughed, "You are the real profiteer."
"Ha ha……"
Huang Qubing smiled awkwardly.
He had no idea before that selling books could make so much money.
And the money earned is particularly high-end.
A bookseller is unlike any other businessman.
In the eyes of the world, a bookseller is almost half a scholar.
Can it be called business when scholars sell books? It is simply an insult to books.
Huang Qubing muttered again, "Isn't this story a bit cliché?"
Gu Jiu smiled. "There are no clichéd stories, only clichéd writing styles. Isn't the story of 'Qi Lang's Ten Battles with the Flower Thief' clichéd? Since childhood, people have probably heard at least three versions of similar stories about heroes saving beauties.
But why did "Qi Lang's Ten Battles with the Flower Thief" become a bestseller right after it was published? Because our story is exciting enough, the writing style is novel enough, the foreshadowing is plentiful, and the plot is thrilling enough.
"Abandon all unnecessary descriptions and flowery rhetoric. Just tell the story well and make it engaging. Isn't it a good story that people want to read?"
Huang Qubing was stunned when he heard this.
Gu Jiu paused, took a sip of tea, and continued, "Plus the exquisite color illustrations and the wonderful story, you will like it too."
Huang Qubing chuckled, "I do like it. Especially Miss San..."
It was difficult to continue the rest of the conversation. Huang Qubing consciously stopped the topic.
"Even you, who are well-informed, like to read it. How can scholars with relatively secluded lives and those women in the boudoir not like it?"
"I like it, I definitely like it. My mother is obsessed with Sanniang now, and she keeps urging me to collect her illustrations. She even asked me to secretly ask you if it's possible to enlarge her illustrations to adult size so they can be hung on the wall."
Gu Jiu smiled and said, "After the story of 'Qi Lang's Ten Battles with the Flower Thief' is finished, I will consider publishing a collector's edition. Twenty people will be drawn to receive life-size portraits of Sanniang and Qi Lang."
"Great! I'll order one set first. I'll buy one for both Sanniang and Qilang."
"We need to hold a lottery!" Gu Jiu said seriously.
"I'll give you one hundred taels."
"We have to hold a lottery!" Gu Jiu emphasized again.
Huang Qubing gritted his teeth and said, "I'll give you five hundred taels."
"want……"
"Eight hundred taels, no more."
Gu Jiu narrowed his eyes and smiled, "I'll reluctantly consider it."
Huang Qubing: “…”
Gu Jiu is a swindler! He even cheats his own people.
After all, he is one of the shareholders of the bookstore, so how could he not have any privileges?
It turns out that he, as a shareholder, is just free labor.
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