Chapter Thirty-Eight: Huaxia Publishing House

With negotiations reaching an impasse, Changhong Publishing House could only wait for the arrival of the other two publishers. The three were to bid together, and judging from Pi Jianzhou’s attitude, the highest offer would win.

During this time, Changhong Publishing House began discussing the publishing price for "Ghost Blows Out the Light" with Liao Yuan.

“We have a consistent signing standard for new authors,” explained one of the editors. “We price per volume. As long as the work is outstanding, we usually start at seven thousand yuan per volume. Each volume is about seventy thousand characters, roughly one hundred yuan per thousand characters.”

He continued, “'Ghost Blows Out the Light' has already been published, so its novelty is reduced, but given its influence online, we’re willing to increase the price by twenty percent, making it eight thousand four hundred yuan per volume. If you have no objections, we can start drafting the contract right away.”

Liao Yuan laughed.

With a rate of eight thousand four hundred per volume and each volume at seventy thousand characters, his two-million-character novel would earn him about two hundred and forty thousand yuan in total.

Liao Yuan couldn’t help but laugh in disbelief and turned to look at Lai Yibai.

Lai Yibai, having done the math, was astonished. “Isn’t that… too low?”

The editor shrugged. “Low? For a new author, that’s actually a pretty good price.”

Shaking her head, Lai Yibai replied, “Do you know how much just the audio rights for this novel sold for at our station? One and a half million! Compared to that, your offer is outrageously low.”

The editor looked surprised; he clearly hadn’t expected "Ghost Blows Out the Light" to fetch such a high price.

At that moment, Hou Jie spoke. “Xiao Liu, re-evaluate, please. I’ve listened to parts of 'Ghost Blows Out the Light'—the writing and the story both withstand scrutiny. It’s a rare, pioneering work in the tomb-raiding genre. Your price does seem a bit low.”

“Is that so?” The editor thought for a moment, tapped away at his laptop, checked some references, then spoke again. “Alright, since Editor Hou has spoken, we’ll revise our price—this is our final offer: twenty thousand yuan per volume. Liao Yuan, what do you think?”

Twenty thousand per volume, with two million characters totaling twenty-eight volumes, would bring Liao Yuan about five hundred seventy thousand yuan.

Lai Yibai felt awkward as she looked at Liao Yuan, almost guilty. In her mind, "Ghost Blows Out the Light" was worth much more. Aside from the one and a half million in audio rights, Liao Yuan’s monthly income from narrating the novel at the station was around sixty thousand yuan.

Now, publishing the entire set would barely amount to Liao Yuan’s monthly earnings.

No wonder Pi Jianzhou refused to sign with them.

Just then, sounds came from outside. Two middle-aged men in white shirts, carrying briefcases, changed into slippers at the door and entered the sitting room.

Pi Jianzhou, who had been putting on airs, immediately stood up and welcomed them with a smile. “Editor Hu, you finally made it! I’ve been waiting, the tea’s gone cold. Let me brew a fresh pot, so you and your friend can taste the fine leaves I just acquired.”

His attitude towards these newcomers was a world apart from how he treated Changhong Publishing House, which left Hou Jie and the others uncomfortable.

“Thank you, Mr. Pi, I’ll gladly accept your hospitality and try your tea,” said the bespectacled man in the white shirt, smiling.

He glanced around the room, nodded slightly when he saw Hou Jie. The latter smiled back—Editor Hu of Huaxia Publishing House was renowned, with far more connections in the industry. Hou Jie dared not be disrespectful.

The man’s gaze shifted.

When he saw Liao Yuan, who was fiddling with his fingers, he looked puzzled. The next moment, he seemed startled, stood up, and walked over to Liao Yuan, politely asking, “May I know your name, sir?”

The atmosphere was a little lonely.

Everyone looked at Liao Yuan, including Pi Jianzhou who was brewing tea.

“My name is Liao Yuan,” he replied.

The man’s face lit up. “It really is Mr. Liao! I never thought I’d meet you here on the outskirts of the city. Wonderful! Xiao Li, Xiao Li!”

His assistant hurried over. “Editor Hu, what can I do for you?”

“Hurry, take a photo—I must have a picture with Mr. Liao!” Editor Hu stood beside Liao Yuan, beaming.

The assistant quickly pulled out his phone and snapped a photo of Liao Yuan and Editor Hu.

“What’s happening here?” Pi Jianzhou asked, confused, as he finished brewing the tea.

Editor Hu laughed heartily. “Mr. Pi, you’re truly my lucky star! I’ve been searching high and low for Mr. Liao, but could never get his contact information. I came to Donghai specifically for him, and now, thanks to fate, I meet him here ahead of schedule!”

Pi Jianzhou managed a smile, but inwardly, he was bewildered.

Specifically for Mr. Liao?

So what am I? Just background?

Editor Hu shook hands with Liao Yuan again, smiling. “Mr. Liao, I am Hu Fangyong, chief editor in charge of publishing at Huaxia Publishing House. Do you remember me?”

Huaxia Publishing House? It sounded familiar.

Liao Yuan studied Hu Fangyong closely, then shook his head, puzzled. “Have we met?”

Hu Fangyong sighed. “You’re a busy man, Mr. Liao. I’ve sent you private messages on Weibo many times, but never received a reply. If you don’t believe me, check your Weibo messages.”

Liao Yuan took out his phone and opened the private message page on Weibo.

Seeing the endless list of messages, Hu Fangyong realized it wasn’t that Liao Yuan didn’t remember—it was that he’d never seen the messages.

“If you follow me and set messages to friends only, you won’t get so many. Otherwise, your inbox is overwhelming,” Hu Fangyong said enthusiastically, pulling out his own phone to follow Liao Yuan.

Liao Yuan then saw the messages from Hu Fangyong:

“Mr. Liao, I am Hu Fangyong, chief editor of Huaxia Publishing House. I am interested in publishing your work 'Ghost Blows Out the Light.'”

“Mr. Liao, I want to publish 'Ghost Blows Out the Light.' Please reply if you see this.”

“Mr. Liao…”

Liao Yuan finally remembered seeing these messages not long ago.

In fact, besides Huaxia Publishing House, many official publisher accounts on Weibo had left him messages, mostly requesting cooperation on publishing.

Liao Yuan hadn’t paid much attention to these, preferring real-world connections over online ones. Moreover, he had asked Lai Yibai to find a publisher for him, but it seemed those she found were less reliable than the ones messaging him online.

The sitting room grew even quieter as Hu Fangyong’s excitement filled the air.

Hou Jie watched, swallowed hard, feeling a chill run through his veins, as if something vital was rapidly slipping away.

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PS: Four chapters finished, though the time span is a bit long... Fell asleep at the desk in between. Ahem, please vote for recommendations!