Chapter 56: Negotiations with the Publishing House

His first reaction was sheer incomprehension.

After all, the physical book market was currently in a slump; foot traffic was declining, and internal competition was fierce. Previously, a book had to sell over thirty thousand copies to be considered a bestseller, yet nowadays, the industry actually labeled a published book that sold ten thousand copies as a bestseller.

This clearly showed how severely physical market traffic had plummeted.

At present, only the absolute top-tier authors remained unaffected.

Many authors who originally followed the traditional publishing route had begun writing web novels in secret.

As for Jiang He, who was making the transition from the far more lucrative web novel sphere into the physical publishing domain, Ning Fengyun viewed it as nothing short of a rebellious and upside-down move.

Compared to web novels, the writing style for physical books was vastly different. Could Jiang He possibly handle it?

"Has he been provoked by that Shen Qingliang?"

Ning Fengyun was just preparing to give Chen Jiang a stern word of advice when his gaze fell upon the file Chen Jiang had sent him—

*Ghost Blows Out the Light: The City of the Jue Jue*

"Should I see how well it's written first?" he thought to himself.

Clicking on the file, Ning Fengyun began to read carefully.

As he read on, his expression gradually shifted from one of initial calmness to sheer astonishment.

In the end, he was completely dumbfounded.

Could suspense themes even be written this way? Tomb-robbing style?

Such a brilliant idea, yet no one had ever thought of it before!

To think that this Jiang He wasn't biting off more than he could chew; the man genuinely possessed the strength to back it up!

"Such an imaginative mind. He truly lives up to his reputation as the author who wrote *Lord of the Mysteries*," he praised with a click of his tongue.

After a moment of hesitation, Ning Fengyun typed out a reply: [Do you need my help contacting a publishing house?]

[Chen Jiang]: That was precisely my intention. Sorry to trouble you, Uncle Ning.

[Chen Jiang]: However, I would like to self-publish the book. Please make that point crystal clear to the publishing house.

[Ning Fengyun]: No problem.

...

In the afternoon, Chen Jiang received Ning Fengyun's reply: he had helped contact a local publishing house in Shenzhen that specialized in suspense themes.

[Netherworld Publishing House]

That name certainly carried a distinct suspenseful flavor.

[Ning Fengyun]: I sent your manuscript to their editor-in-chief to read. The moment they saw the content and noticed your intention to self-publish, they agreed immediately.

[Ning Fengyun]: Let me know whenever you have time to drop by and discuss the publishing details with them.

[Chen Jiang]: I have time right now.

Ning Fengyun sent over the address of the publishing house.

Chen Jiang drove over according to the location provided.

***

At the publishing house, he met their editor-in-chief.

"Hello, Mr. Jiang He." The editor-in-chief of Netherworld Publishing House was a man in his thirties.

"I've long heard President Ning mention that you aren't old, but I never expected you to be so young. Mr. Jiang He is truly talented and refined at such a young age!"

Chen Jiang smiled faintly: "You flatter me, Editor-in-Chief Wang."

The two men sat down on the sofa in the office and began discussing the publishing matters concerning *Ghost Blows Out the Light: The City of the Jue Jue*.

"This book is actually written exceptionally well. If you are willing, Mr. Jiang He, we can offer our highest-tier contract to help publish this work." Editor-in-Chief Wang clearly valued the book a great deal.

"No, Editor-in-Chief Wang, thank you for your kind offer," Chen Jiang declined tactfully.

"I'm actually not short on money myself; I'm doing this purely for my dream."

"What a pity." Editor-in-Chief Wang looked somewhat disappointed, but he didn't press the matter further.

In recent years, their publishing house had gradually fallen into decline.

Publishing houses focusing on realistic themes were doing fine; their core audience remained intact, and their traffic hadn't suffered much.

However, their own publishing house specialized in suspense themes, and over the years, due to the onslaught of web novels, their traffic had plummeted and never recovered.

It had been a long time since he had encountered such a novel and original concept. Although Chen Jiang was unwilling to enter into a revenue-sharing agreement with them, being able to publish this novel under his name was already more than enough.

As long as the traffic was stimulated and the publishing house gained fame afterward, with more book submissions coming in, things would definitely turn around for the better.

Listening to Editor-in-Chief Wang's introduction of the various publishing fees, Chen Jiang nodded: "Alright, I can accept this price."

"Then shall we print forty thousand copies first to test the waters? We can always order subsequent print runs based on sales later," Editor-in-Chief Wang suggested.

"Very well, let's do as you say," Chen Jiang said with a smile.

After final negotiations, the overall service fee—excluding printing costs—came to around fifty thousand yuan.

Subsequent printings of the books would require additional funding.

The initial print run of forty thousand copies required an extra printing fee of one hundred and fifty thousand yuan.

Altogether, it came to over two hundred thousand RMB.

Chen Jiang transferred the deposit first and bade farewell to Editor-in-Chief Wang: "I'll be heading back now."

"Why don't you stay for dinner? It's getting late," Editor-in-Chief Wang urged him to stay.

"No, thank you. My family has saved dinner for me," Chen Jiang shook his head.

Leaving the publishing house, it was already past five o'clock.

The setting sun hung low, and the horizon seemed to burn with raging flames, resembling a remarkably vivid and colossal painting.

Chen Jiang drove directly back home.

Just as he steered his car into the underground parking garage, Yi Yunxue sent him a message:

[Dinner is ready!]

[Chen Jiang]: Great, coming right up!

When he arrived at Yi Yunxue's apartment, she was just carrying a bowl of soup out from the kitchen. Seeing Chen Jiang, she gave a gentle smile: "Go wash your hands and get ready to eat. I have good news to tell you."

***

"What good news?" Chen Jiang asked with a hint of curiosity after washing his hands.

"Our company's new business license has been approved! From now on, it's called Mengqi Culture Co., Ltd.!" Yi Yunxue announced with excitement.

"We'll need to change the company sign, right?" Chen Jiang asked.

"I had someone make a new one some time ago. We'll replace it tomorrow," Yi Yunxue replied.

...

At ten o'clock the next morning, the Mengqi Studio sign was officially replaced with "Mengqi Culture Co., Ltd."

"Since our company's establishment at the beginning of this year, in just four short months, we have already achieved remarkable results. All of this is thanks to our Director Chen, and of course, it could not have been achieved without the collective efforts of everyone here. I hope everyone will continue to forge ahead and strive to create even greater brilliance!"

After delivering a symbolic speech, Yi Yunxue, amidst the witness of all the company employees, cut the ribbon.

Chen Jiang, along with several male employees, put up the new sign.

Everyone broke into warm applause.

Then, everyone returned to their respective workstations and went back to work busily.

"I'm heading back first," Chen Jiang said to Yi Yunxue.

"Alright," Yi Yunxue nodded.

Taking the elevator down to the first floor, just as Chen Jiang stepped out of the elevator doors, he suddenly caught sight of Tang Xaxia walking toward him.

"Chen Jiang?" Tang Xaxia evidently noticed him as well.

"Tang Xaxia? Are you here to see Yunxue?" Chen Jiang asked curiously.

"Yeah. Are you heading back?" Tang Xaxia asked.

"Yes," Chen Jiang nodded. Just as he was about to say goodbye and leave, he suddenly seemed to remember something:

"Right, there's something I wanted to ask you."

"What is it?" Tang Xaxia asked, puzzled.

"Do you know when Yunxue's birthday is?" Chen Jiang asked after a brief hesitation.

Hearing this, Tang Xaxia was stunned for a moment. Once it registered, a knowing, matchmaker-like smile bloomed across her face as she joked, "Write a song for me, and I'll tell you."

Hearing her words, a flash of hesitation crossed Chen Jiang's face.

Seeing this, Tang Xaxia hurriedly waved her hands in explanation, "I'm just joking. I wouldn't even be able to handle the level of songs you write. Sister Yunxue's birthday is the eighth day of the sixth lunar month."

"I'm not sure about the date on her ID card, but she and I celebrated her birthday together last year."

"Thank you," Chen Jiang expressed his gratitude. "Actually, I do happen to have a song that I feel would suit you quite well."

"Huh?" Tang Xaxia was taken aback for a moment:

"You really do?"