Reborn Bao Guowei, I really didn’t want to be a great writer!

Chapter 51 Red Rose Magazine

Today is the thirteenth day of the first lunar month.

The streets in West Lake North District are still very lively. Compared with the messy streets in Nancheng, it is cleaner and tidier. There are also fewer shouts and arguments on the streets. After all, the young masters and wives in suits and cheongsam here don't have to rush to work. .

Zheng Xinchen wrapped his cotton gown tightly and rearranged the black scarf around his neck.

"Boss, it's the same as before. Come to a bowl of Pian'erchuan. Don't add any spiciness!"

He specially emphasized the last sentence, for fear that the other party would forget it.

When the stall owner saw it was him, he immediately smiled on his face, threw the white cloth over his shoulders, and started working with his hands, but he kept talking.

"Hey, Chief Editor Zheng, look at what you said, how could I forget your taste!"

Not long after, he served Zheng Xinchen a bowl of hot noodle soup from the pot, with toppings consisting of pickled vegetables, bamboo shoots, and diced lean meat. The lean meat was naturally less, but the toppings were enough. A full floor.

While preparing the dishes and chopsticks, the boss asked.

"Why hasn't the magazine started work this year?"

Zheng Xinchen couldn't wait any longer. He picked up the chopsticks and sucked them quickly while answering.

"Nowadays, there are still fewer people reading novels in Hangzhou, and the efficiency of the branches brought here by the headquarters is really poor."

After a pause, he viciously chewed a piece of bamboo shoot into pieces and continued.

"If we don't have good articles, our magazine branch will close down."

There was no emotion in his words, he had obviously accepted the reality.

"You're being humble. You've always had good things going on. What kind of rumors were there in your magazine a few years ago?"

"The Legend of Jianghu Qixia, written by Pingjiang Buxiaosheng, has now been completed. This gentleman is studying Chinese martial arts." Zheng Xinchen raised his head and replied.

"Yes, yes." The boss nodded repeatedly, rubbed his hands and said with a smile. "I heard it read by a scholar in the courtyard before. It was very enjoyable. It's a pity that he doesn't write much now."

“But such a manuscript is hard to come by!”

Zheng Xinchen sighed, and then ate very quickly. He quickly drank all the soup at the bottom of the bowl, exhaled a long breath, and even his glasses were covered with white mist.

He stood up and wrapped his scarf around it, then asked.

"How much? Is it still the same?"

"It's increased a bit, now it's 7 cents. You know, the prices of everything have been increasing over the years." The boss bowed his back in embarrassment, fearing that the other party would be dissatisfied.

"People's livelihood is so difficult!" Zheng Xinchen sighed, and then placed two nickel coins with a face value of 5 cents on the table.

"keep the change."

"Hey, Chief Editor Zheng, why did you do this?" The boss behind him bowed and thanked him repeatedly, just for the extra few cents, and he didn't forget to shout loudly at the other person's back. “Congratulations to the magazine for great sales this year!”

Zheng Xinchen, who was walking away, waved his hand in response, and then walked into the door of Red Rose Magazine.

As soon as I walked into the magazine, I saw dust on the floor and a somewhat gray office. It had only been a year.

Zheng Xinchen couldn't help but sigh in his heart as he muttered.

"There are many types of flowers, and there are many red flowers. There is no better flower than a rose for its rich color and fragrance that is appreciated by both refined and popular people."

I think the magazine originally named "Red Magazine" was renamed "Red Rose" because of this sentence.

This also set the tone of the magazine’s style as “non-party, non-political, and entertaining for the people”.

How about going back to Shanghai?

This idea popped into Zheng Xinchen's head, but he felt a little unwilling to do so. "Red Rose" originally came to Hangzhou because there were so many newspapers and magazines in Shanghai and planned to open up a new market. Now it is going back in despair?

He was not reconciled.

But the sales in Hangzhou are really ugly, especially after the completion of the first domestic martial arts novel "The Legend of Jianghu", the popularity of "Red Rose" began to decline.

There are many followers of martial arts novels, but Pingjiang Buxiaosheng has practiced both martial arts and martial arts since he was a child. In martial arts, he has discussed and exchanged with various famous masters. In Yuwen, he graduated from Hosei University and even studied in Japan.

Who has his literary background and can write such a legendary masterpiece as "The Legend of Jianghu"?

At least in Zheng Xinchen's current review, most of the manuscripts cannot escape the talent and beauty, and often lack the heroic spirit of "chivalry".

"Hi!" With a sigh, Zheng Xinchen sat in front of his desk. There was a stack of manuscripts on it, which should have been delivered years ago.

He didn't even want to go see it before the New Year. Without him, he just wanted to stay in a good mood and celebrate the New Year.

There is also a piece of paper on the table, which shows the sales volume of "Red Rose" in Hangzhou a year ago. It couldn't even sell 500 copies. The magazine is not a charity. If it continues like this, it will definitely close down!

You must know that the "Liangyou" magazine in Shanghai has a sales volume of more than 4, and "Novel Monthly" has a major influence in the domestic literary world.

Today’s magazines can’t even afford a fraction of others’ prices, right?

Thinking of this, Zheng Xinchen took a long breath, and then comforted himself. “Don’t be angry, don’t be angry, anger is of no use.”

"I'd better read the manuscript!"

He patted his face and looked at the manuscript in front of him with a firmer look.

Maybe there is something to read in these manuscripts?

With this motivation, after dawdling for an hour, he finally started to read the manuscript.

Half an hour later, he sighed, threw another manuscript into the wastebasket, and said to himself.

"Why don't you go home and take a nap?"

In fact, the magazine's scheduled start time was after the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, so he was just acting on a whim today.

As soon as he reached the door, he poured a cup of tea, then returned and stared at the stack of manuscripts again and again.

"How about we take a look again?"

This time he didn't read them in order and rummaged through the manuscripts at will. But after reading several articles, he was still a little discouraged.

"It's really nothing new."

He couldn't help but curse.

At this time, he caught a glimpse of a corner inside the manuscript, revealing very smart and thin brushstrokes on the half-sheet, and his eyes lit up.

Just like the marking teachers of later generations, the editors of this period also had a special liking for authors with beautiful handwriting.

Even if the content isn’t great, at least it’s comfortable to watch, right?

Then he pulled out the manuscript and said to himself.

"This is the last one."

"The book is called "The Legend of the Condor Heroes"?"

"It's quite interesting."

Who knew that once he saw it, he would never be able to take his eyes away from the manuscript. The plot was like a magic spell that attracted him firmly.

He was sucking water crazily like a fish that was about to die of thirst. He read every word, not even wanting to miss a single punctuation mark.

"The Taoist walked so fast that in the blink of an eye he was more than ten feet away, but he was not running at full speed. Such lightness of skill is really rare."

The story ends abruptly here.

"Gone?"

"Is this gone?"

"That's it? What about the follow-up plot?"

Zheng Xinchen slapped the table and stood up, as if the author was right in front of him. His face, which was originally pale from the cold, was now very rosy.

It took him a long time to calm down.

"Okay! Okay! Okay! This is the manuscript!"

After saying this three times, he immediately put on his coat, carefully packed the manuscript into an envelope, and then rushed out the door.

The next morning, he appeared one after another at the doorsteps of the key members of the "Red Rose" magazine. In this era, telephones were still a luxury. Even if the magazine had one, personal homes rarely had wiring. So it’s better to come directly to the door.

"Wen Zhao! Wen Zhao! Open the door quickly, I know you are at home!"

"Shao Shiyun, don't eat, look, look, look, there is an excellent manuscript here!"

"Follow me to the magazine office now!"

"What kind of vacation? You've been off for almost a month, and you're still taking a break, so why are you doing charity work for a magazine?"

"The next issue of the magazine will be out soon!"

"What? There was no manuscript, but now we have it. With this article, the rest is not important."

"The novel is called "The Legend of the Condor Heroes"!"

(End of this chapter)