Chapter 068: The Laws of Nature

When snow blankets the campus, it is enchantingly beautiful. After the snow melts, the cold is so biting that fingers turn numb.

But contrary to the chill in the air, Zhang Tan’s heart burns with excitement.

It has been a week since the inaugural issue of “Legend of Today and Antiquity: Wuxia Edition” was released, and sales have been impressive, with a flood of readers supporting its purchase. The featured novel, “The Four Great Constables Shake the East,” is equally popular, receiving great acclaim and attention through daily phone calls and letters.

Yet, this is not the main point.

The real highlight is that Wang Conglun called. The editorial team of “Wuxia Edition,” who assisted Zhang Tan’s novel, connected him with a publishing house—Fresh Culture Publishing in Taiwan.

“A Taiwanese publisher?” Zhang Tan was surprised.

He hadn’t considered the possibility of working with a Taiwanese publisher, but on reflection, it made sense. The wuxia trend was largely driven by Hong Kong and Taiwan, where many renowned writers emerged, and naturally, publishers specializing in wuxia novels followed. On the mainland, wuxia literature is still in its infancy; there is only one magazine dedicated to the genre, “Legend of Today and Antiquity: Wuxia Edition,” and no specialized publishers. Most mainland wuxia novels are pirated versions of works by famous writers from Hong Kong and Taiwan.

“Fresh Culture is a newly established publishing house in Taiwan, but they also have a web portal called FreshNet Literature, with a sizable readership in the region. They publish in traditional Chinese, and since we’ve commissioned manuscripts from FreshNet before, we have connections there and recommended your novel,” Wang Conglun explained over the phone.

“Alright, let’s sit down and discuss the details,” Zhang Tan replied, understanding the situation.

Compared to the uncertain readership in the mainland, traditional Chinese publications reach Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Chinese-speaking communities, cultivated by countless famed wuxia authors, boasting a substantial audience. Publishing in traditional Chinese first not only guarantees a baseline in sales but also allows them to gauge the prospects for simplified Chinese publication based on sales performance.

Due to the inconvenience of travel between the mainland and Taiwan, they couldn’t meet for tea and negotiations. Instead, the manager at Fresh Culture contacted Zhang Tan directly via email and phone. It was a bit troublesome, requiring Zhang Tan to visit the internet café in Shuangdun Town from time to time, but the outcome was quite satisfactory.

With Wang Conglun’s mediation, Zhang Tan reached an agreement with Fresh Culture for traditional Chinese publication.

The 160,000-word “The Four Great Constables Shake the East” would pay royalties based on sales: for up to six thousand copies, ten percent of sales revenue; for sales exceeding six thousand copies, thirteen percent.

This was a newcomer’s rate.

Zhang Tan didn’t bargain much—his work hadn’t been validated by the market, and no publisher would offer him the rate reserved for established authors.

As long as “The Four Great Constables Shake the East” sells well, the next book will secure better terms.

In Taiwan, a book sells for about 160 New Taiwan dollars, roughly over forty yuan in RMB. Six thousand copies would amount to 240,000 NTD; at thirteen percent, the royalties would be over 30,000 yuan. With the current market size in Taiwan, a well-written novel that appeals to the masses should easily sell six thousand copies.

Yet, selling over ten thousand copies is much harder.

Zhang Tan had been reborn a bit late—wuxia was nearing the end of its golden era. In the 1960s and 70s, a wuxia novel could sell so well that paper shortages were common in Hong Kong and Taiwan, but now, things are very different. Though wuxia adaptations in film and television remain popular, book sales have noticeably shrunk.

When the era of online literature arrives, wuxia novels will face even greater challenges and might exit the main stage entirely.

Fortunately, for the next few years, Zhang Tan can still catch the tailwind and earn royalties. Once wuxia declines, he isn’t worried; as long as he has built a reputation and holds classics in hand, making money will be easy. Before his rebirth, newcomers writing wuxia were starving, but masters like Huang Yi and Wen Rui’an were still busy earning through their wuxia works.

“Besides, I definitely plan to pursue film and TV adaptations—that’s where the real fame and fortune lie.”

This is called sacrificing small gains for long-term rewards.

...

After sending the contract, “The Four Great Constables Shake the East” was officially authorized for publication by Fresh Culture.

The process from publication to sales would not be brief, so for now, Zhang Tan couldn’t see how much he would earn, and he felt a bit anxious. If the book fails to sell, it would be embarrassing.

But worry wouldn’t help. Zhang Tan could only calm himself and continue being a quiet, handsome young man.

Time flew.

The temperature truly dropped; waking up after sleeping at one’s desk leaves the whole body shivering from the cold. Well, Zhang Tan had fallen asleep in math class, and despite Luo Jinsong’s booming voice, he slept soundly.

Luo Jinsong had stopped bothering Zhang Tan—as long as he didn’t disturb others in class, he could do whatever he liked, even skip class, without consequence.

Still, Zhang Tan considered listening attentively to improve his math grades.

But it was tough—those diagrams, lines, and functions were just as mysterious to him across two lifetimes. He didn’t think he was stupid; his talent simply didn’t lie in logic or abstract subjects. Math, physics, chemistry—all three were equally dreadful. In math class, minding his own business was easier; if he tried to listen seriously, he’d inevitably fall into a trance.

Especially after last night’s burst of inspiration, writing until one in the morning...

He woke up just as class ended.

Stretching lazily, Zhang Tan was about to get up and move his numb limbs when Cao Yuchuan pulled him back, “How much have you written of ‘The Four Great Constables Meet in the Capital’? Hurry up and let me see.”

“Not much, and besides, I type directly on my laptop, so you can’t see it anyway,” Zhang Tan replied with a wave.

His novel had caused a stir in the magazine, and it was even more popular in the classroom. His classmates were eager to know more about his story. More than half the class had read the content in “Wuxia Edition” and were clamoring for the sequel, forcing Zhang Tan to share his manuscript.

But “The Four Great Constables Meet in the Capital” couldn’t be shared in advance—it was all on the computer.

This era didn’t allow reading e-books on mobile phones yet; e-book capable MP4 players hadn’t appeared.

“What’s the main story in ‘Meet in the Capital’?” Cao Yuchuan persisted, switching to asking about the plot.

“It’s about the stories of the four constables.”

“What kind of stories?”

“Cases solved, showing off, romance.”

“Come on, that’s way too vague.”

Just then, Gao Jie turned her head, her face stern as she looked at Zhang Tan, “You slept through another class.”

Gao Jie cared about Zhang Tan, a concern mixed with friendship and the vague affection of a girl toward a boy.

Having lived through it, Zhang Tan understood. Yet he felt somewhat uneasy about a young girl’s concern—she was underage, after all. So he never responded to such feelings, keeping it strictly within the bounds of classmates.

After thinking a moment, Zhang Tan nodded seriously, “Yes.”

“Why don’t you pay attention in class?”

“It’s not that I don’t want to; it’s just impossible to go against the laws of nature.”

Gao Jie frowned and asked in confusion, “What laws of nature?”

Zhang Tan replied solemnly, “The law of nature is: whenever I attend math class, my brain creates a compulsion to sleep. This impulse is transmitted through my nerves and quickly dominates my consciousness, so I doze off.”

“How funny, I actually follow the law of nature too,” Cao Yuchuan chimed in quietly.