1978 Synthetic Writers

Chapter 226: Being Tricked

"Mr. Jiang Xian, it seems too hasty to talk about things here. Why don't we find a place to have a drink first?" Oda said with a smile.

"I'm sorry, our delegation has its own foreign affairs disciplines and is not allowed to go out casually."

"OK then."

Oda Masaki sat down and waved his hand. The assistant beside him handed him a cigar. He took a sip and motioned the assistant to hand one to Jiang Xian. "This kind of tobacco should be rare in China. Manila and Cuban cigars are world-famous, but I only smoke cigars produced in Panama."

Jiang Xian waved his hand to indicate that he didn't need it.

At the same time, he was also secretly observing Oda Masaki. This person felt completely different from the publishing houses he had come into contact with in China. Chinese publishing houses would even discuss works with him, and Oda Masaki looked like a publisher.

"Aren't you here to discuss publishing? Let's get straight to the point."

Oda Masaki smiled, with a hint of shrewdness in his small eyes, "I heard that Tokuma Bookstore is going to publish Mr. Jiang Xian's novel, but unfortunately the royalties they offer don't seem to be enough to satisfy Mr. Jiang Xian."

"How did you know?" Jiang Xian looked at him puzzledly.

“We have mutual exchanges in the industry.”

Oda Masaki did not give a clear answer, but just evaded the question and quickly changed the subject.

"Our company's editor has read Mr. Jiang Xian's novel and gave it a very high evaluation. Why don't you hand over the publishing rights of this novel to our Fuso Publishing House?

We, Fusosha, are backed by the Fuji Sankei Group and are very strong, with sufficient advantages in publishing, marketing resources and channels."

Fuji Sankei Group is a subsidiary of Fuji Group, which is also called Furong Group. It is one of the four major groups that control more than 60% of Japan's economic lifeline. Its subsidiaries include: Fuji Bank, Fuji Camera, Fuji Elevator, Fuji Electric, Hitachi, Nissan, Yamaha, and Fuji Xerox Printers.
"If we were to publish your novel, its sales and influence would be unmatched by Tokuma Shoten."

Oda Masaki said proudly, "We are also willing to give you a price that satisfies you."

"Satisfactory price?"

Oda Masaki dusted off his cigarette ashes and looked at Jiang Xian with a smile, "We are willing to offer you a 10% royalty."

10%?

Chen Xiru became excited as he listened to this. A few days ago, the talent from Tokuma Shoten was only willing to give Jiang Xian 3%, but Fusosha offered the highest royalty rate right away.

He half opened his lips, waiting for Jiang Xian to speak and then agree on his behalf.

"."

Jiang Xian also looked incredulous. He was silent for a while before he said, "10%? Are you sure it's this number? If I remember correctly, this should be the highest royalty rate in Japan."

"of course."

Oda Masaki smiled enthusiastically: "You have no idea how I felt after reading this novel. You wrote it so well. This novel really moved me."

"Really? Thank you." Jiang Xian seemed very excited and showed a strong willingness to cooperate, but he was not in a hurry to agree.

"The conditions you offer are indeed very attractive, but I still need to discuss it with my wife in China before making a decision. Give me two days to consider it, and then we can confirm the cooperation."

"completely fine."

Oda Masaki shook hands with Jiang Xian, then got up, left the hotel and got into the car.

"Director Oda, are we really offering this Chinese writer a 10% royalty rate?" asked the assistant.

"idiot."

Oda Masaki no longer concealed the contempt on his face, rubbed his tie, and cursed unceremoniously, "It is because there are too many idiots like you that the Yamato nation has lost all its face!"

"Hi!" The assistant immediately lowered his head.

Masaki Oda smoked another cigar.

He is certainly right wing.

Nowadays, Japanese publishing houses will not have a clear right-wing stance. Fusosha was only later exposed to have a strong right-wing color within it, because it was involved in Japanese textbooks that distorted the history of S2. Well, not long ago, Brother Xiao Zhan appeared on the cover of their magazine, and the fans were so proud.

"The left-wingers are such idiots. Tokuma Shoten actually wants to introduce Chinese literature to Japan. Damn, how can China's inferior literature pollute the thoughts of our Yamato people!" Oda Masaki looked disdainful.

He set a trap for Jiang Xian.

Oda Masaki's face was full of arrogance as he explained his brilliant plan, "Those Chinese are so poor that they can't even afford to wear pants. As long as we give them a 10% royalty rate, they will definitely give us the publishing rights. At that time, I will pay them 1000% of the royalties in advance based on the first print run of 10 copies."

The rule in the Japanese publishing industry is that if the first print run is less than 1000 copies, it will be calculated as 1000 copies.

In other words, the actual printing volume of Fusosha's first print run could be much lower than 1000 copies.

"After signing the contract, if we do a worse job of editing and publishing, the book won't sell and the first print run will be small, we will suffer almost no loss, while this guy won't make any money at all."

The royalties received by the writer = the royalty rate, the price of the book, and the number of copies printed multiplied together.

As long as Fusosha's first print run is low enough, the 10% royalties that seem to be very high for Jiang Xian will actually bring him far less income than the 3% given by Tokuma Shoten.

The more Oda Masaki thought about it, the more proud he became.

They are a publishing house, and it is very easy for them to deal with a writer.

Moreover, the publication of a novel will attract the attention of the publishing industry. If a foreign writer has poor sales performance in Japan, his works will lose appeal in the Japanese market in the future.

Japanese publishing houses are very practical and will always use data and surveys to speak their mind. The number of translated books by foreign writers in Japan will generally not exceed five, because many publishers will immediately lose interest in them if the sales of one of their books drop.

Masaki Oda couldn't help but think that if Japanese publishers want to introduce Chinese literary works in the future, they will definitely pay attention to the case of Jiang Xian's book during market research.

Therefore, the failure of this book will, to a certain extent, dampen the enthusiasm of Japanese publishers for Chinese literature and the spread of Chinese literary works in Japan.

Oda Masaki had it all planned out. Not only was this matter well-planned, but he, as the agent, was personally involved. Judging from Jiang Xian's feedback today, this Chinese man has basically fallen into his hands.

Oda rubbed his half-moon-shaped hair with pride, and felt that it was a sure thing, so he stopped worrying about it, looked at the assistant, and showed a shameless smile, "What time is it?"

"Eight o'clock." The assistant answered with his head down.

"Let's find a place to eat something."

Oda Masaki tapped his thighs rhythmically and looked at his assistant, "Is Mrs. Akiko home today?"

A trace of struggle flashed across the assistant's face, and he nodded blankly.

"Then let's go to your house and eat." said Masaki Oda.

"Agent." The assistant looked pale.

"Hey, why are you doing this?"

Oda Masaki patted his thigh, "It's not the first time."

Seeing that the assistant was still hesitating, his face darkened.

"Ito-kun, you don't want to lose this job, do you?"

The next day, I took the Shinkansen to Hiroshima and returned to Tokyo. The visit was about to end.

After a day's rest, the delegation was allowed to go out in the evening. The younger generation and some comrades in the delegation went out to buy some gifts to bring back home.

It was cold in Japan in November. The street shopping malls were lit with colorful lights, and neon tubes formed various animated patterns, a bit like the style of vaporwave. There was a lot of traffic in the middle of the road, and trendy music echoed on both sides of the road.

Men in suits stood on the roadside waving large amounts of cash to hail taxis, and there were many young Japanese girls, with their thighs exposed and wearing only stockings at most, laughing and joking on the street.

"Aren't their legs cold?" Li Xiaolin stared at their legs in surprise.

Jiang Xian also watched carefully, "How could they not be cold? Look, their knees are all red from the cold."

"Why do you have to dress like this?"

"Some school rules in Japan require girls to wear short skirts." Jiang Xian explained, "Not only short skirts, but also the length of girls' skirts, the color of their underwear, the color of their hair, and the time they go out are all regulated by the school rules.

Women here have little status, unlike in our country where women hold up half the sky."

Wu Qing rolled his eyes. "What a ridiculous country."

Everyone didn't have much foreign currency in their hands, it was all saved from food expenses and pocket money, so no matter what they bought, they had to plan carefully.

Most people's attention is on snacks, such as Meiji milk chocolate, three flavors of delicious bars, and Fujiya candy.
The packaging is simple and stylish, and the design is very high-end. It is perfect as a small gift to take home.

Jiang Xian's family has many women, so he mainly chose gifts for the women in the family. He chose some skin care products in a skin care store, including SK-II Facial Treatment Essence. Those who have a partner should know this, it's the magic water.

The SK-II brand was born in Japan and has been around for a long time. It claims to be a skin care product developed by Japanese skin experts using cutting-edge technology, specifically for the skin types of Asian women. It was later acquired by Procter & Gamble of the United States.

For ladies, it is more suitable for oily skin, but I don’t recommend spending money on it for dry skin.

I asked the salesperson, and found out that a 75 ml bottle costs more than 1 yen, which is about 8 US dollars, or about 75 yuan in RMB. In today's China, it is definitely something that only gods can afford.

"Is it so expensive just to apply it on your face?!" Wan Fang was dumbfounded.

"Let's go, who can afford this?" She hurriedly pulled Jiang Xian away. After what happened at the last writers' meeting, Wan Fang no longer had any grudges against Jiang Xian.

Jiang Xian not only pushed her away, but also started to pay. He said to Chen Xiru, "Tell her I want three bottles. And ask her if there are any promotions for me."

Wan Fang was stunned, "Where did you get so much money?"

Chen Xiru didn't ask, obviously he knew the inside story of the money.

The three bottles of magic water came in gift packages, and I spent a full 5 yen on them.

Under Wan Fang's incredulous gaze, Jiang Xian handed 5 yen to the salesperson.

Carrying the things, Jiang Xian entered the electronic products area. Without Chen Xiru's translation, he could see familiar brands.

"Nintendo is releasing a handheld game console now?"

Jiang Xian leaned over to take a look at the handheld game console. The LCD screen looked like a calculator, with Game & Watch written on the upper left corner. There were five buttons in total: left and right keys and ABT.

There is just one thing worth complaining about, a handheld game console can only play one game.

Jiang Xian bought one for Jiang Ke.

As soon as I turned my head, I was immediately attracted by the Sony music.

The SONY section is quite crowded, with people buying new SONY products released in February this year.

——Walkman, which means portable player.

Even on the streets of Japan, you can see trendy young people in Tokyo using Walkmans, with half of the player sticking out of their pockets and headphones on their heads. It is a trendy item that has gained explosive word of mouth and is popular all over the world.

After purchasing one, he went around and around and got two sets of Gamma Katz for his father and Zhu's father. They have the classic black background with red circles paint, good waist strength and line protection, and can be used by both large and small fish. When he has nothing to do, he can carry them on his back to the Jinshui River to go fishing.

Jiang Xian was the busiest person in the delegation. He wandered around and bought a Mayumi hat for his sister-in-law Zhu Hong, and a Du Qiu windbreaker for himself. These are the most fashionable items in the country nowadays. He finally spent most of the foreign exchange he had.

Chen Xiru didn't buy anything and helped Jiang Xian carry things the whole time.

"Old Chen, what do you want to buy?"

Jiang Xian wanted to do a favor. He had troubled Chen Xiru a lot in Tokyo during this period, so he exchanged the Japanese yen he had with Chen Xiru for RMB.

Chen Xiru refused for a while, but finally accepted his kindness and bought a pair of Lige leather shoes.

Lige's leather shoes would look a bit rustic in later times, and the soles are a bit hard, but they are just right for people today, and are more suitable for the flat and wide feet of Oriental people.

With the remaining money, Jiang Xian simply treated Li Xiaolin and the others to some street-style oden. Although everyone agreed that it didn't taste as good as braised pork, they still found it very fresh and kept expressing their gratitude to Jiang Xian.

In addition to snacks, Mao magazines are also very common on the streets of Japan. If there weren't so many people, Jiang Xian would have liked to buy two as souvenirs. The Japanese read Mao magazines just like most people in later generations read porn movies. They delete the porn movies after watching them, and throw away the Mao magazines after reading them. Many Japanese children like to pick up these discarded Mao magazines under the bridge and then squat on the ground to read them together.

After returning to the hotel, Jiang Xian had just put his things away when he received a call from the front desk.

On the other side, Oda Masaki came to the New Otani Hotel with a greasy face, and this time he brought the contract with him.

Today he planned to make a concerted effort to completely get rid of Jiang Xian, the little character who had angered the right wing in Japan.

After saying something to the front desk, Jiang Xian quickly went downstairs.

"Mr. Jiang Xian, the delegation's schedule is very tight."

"It's been quite busy. I went to Hiroshima yesterday. I didn't expect the city to be rebuilt so quickly."

Hearing Jiang Xian's words, Oda Masaki's calm emotions suddenly went out of control. He gritted his teeth and lost his dignity. "This is the speed of Japan's redevelopment. Even the United States will be shocked by it!"

Actually, he was not wrong. At present, Japan is the world's manufacturing machine. "Made in Japan" is everywhere in the world. Japanese businessmen are so rich that they buy up American assets every day. The most exaggerated thing is that Mitsubishi actually bought the Rockefeller Center in Manhattan, New York! This is a landmark in the United States. Those who like Spider-Man should be familiar with it. It often appears in the film.

The American magazine Time even published a cover with a Japanese plane dropping cars and home appliances on the United States, with the title "Tora! Tora! Tora!"

"Are you used to the food these days?" Oda Masaki changed the subject, trying to calm down his frustrated emotions a little.

"Your dishes have too many raw ingredients. I always get diarrhea after eating them."

Xiaotian secretly despised Jiang Xian's poor taste and said politely, "Maybe your stomach is not used to it."

Jiang Xian nodded and complained, "Japanese food is not as delicate as Chinese food. We Chinese have more delicate stomachs."

The veins on Oda Masaki's forehead jumped and he almost jumped up. It was obvious that you inferior people could not eat high-quality ingredients. He took a deep breath and endured it for the time being.

"Have you discussed the publication with Madam?"

He asked impatiently: "We have brought the contract. If you and your wife have no objection, we can sign it today."

Oda Masaki handed over the pen, and there was a hint of cunning in his eyes as he looked at Jiang Xian, which was the anticipatory joy before waiting for the prey to fall into the net.

"."

Jiang Xian picked up the contract, glanced at it, and put it back on the table.

"I'm so sorry Mr. Oda, I really want to cooperate with Fusosha, but Tokuma Shoten has offered me good conditions, and I have already given them the publishing rights."

"What did you say!!!"

Oda Masaki's eyes were even wider than the day when Akiko woke up in bed and found him having sex with Ito.

He was completely dumbfounded.

"You gave the publishing rights to Tokuma Shoten?"

"Speaking of which, I have to thank Mr. Oda. If Fusosha hadn't been willing to offer me such a high royalty rate, Tokuma Shoten probably wouldn't have agreed to raise the royalty rate."

Jiang Xian said this and smiled at him.

"thank you."

"Cough cough cough cough."

Oda Masaki held his chest with his hands.

He really hated the feeling of being a help to others.

"Can I ask what royalty rate Tokuma Shoten offered you?"

"Of course, of course."

Jiang Xian took out a pack of Zhonghua cigarettes from his pocket slowly, took out a cigarette and handed it to Oda Masaki, "Give me a Huazi."

Oda Masaki waved his hands to indicate that he didn't want it. How could he smoke a cigarette at this moment? He was so angry that he was about to smoke.

Jiang Xian took a long breath, his posture very comfortable, "Fusosha gave me 10%, and Tokuma Shoten also gave me 10%."

He laughed and said with a sincere thank you: "The first time I proposed to Tokuma Shoten to increase the royalty rate, they were unwilling to accept my opinion. Thanks to you, Mr. Oda, otherwise I would not have the opportunity to get such a high tax rate from them."

Oda Masaki's face twitched slightly. Given the glory of the samurai in his heart, this was a huge humiliation for him.

And it’s all so bizarre.

Not only did it not develop in the way he had planned, it also seemed like he was being tricked.

Oda Masaki had some vague guesses. Did Jiang Xian see through his plan long ago? Did he never intend to give him the publishing rights from the beginning?

Impossible, impossible!

Oda Masaki wiped the sweat from his forehead.

He can accept his failure, but he cannot accept his complete failure.

He bleeds the finest blood! How could he be played around by this guy like a monkey?
Oda Masaki was no longer in the mood to sit with Jiang Xian, so he said goodbye with a sullen face, left the hotel and got into the car.

He slammed the car door shut, bit his back teeth, frowned, and scratched the middle area of ​​his bald forehead, wondering where he had gone wrong.

But even if I scratch my head, I won't be able to come up with the answer.

Jiang Xian went to Haruki Murakami's bar last night and had a few drinks with Nobuo Higashino from Tokuma Shoten.

Murakami is a cat lover and has a cat named "Peter Cat", so this bar is also called "Peter Cat".

The location is quite good, located in Sendagaya, Shibuya district, which is the center of Tokyo.

The bar was very busy and jazz music was playing.

Before Nobuo Higashino arrived, Jiang Xian and Chen Xiru sat in the corner and chatted with Murakami for a while.

When Haruki Murakami learned that he was going to negotiate publishing matters with Tokuma Shoten, he was extremely envious.

"Why do you have this kind of service here?" Jiang Xian pointed to a busy booth not far away, where a woman in kimono was pouring sake and dancing with a fan.

The most important thing is that she is white.

It’s really the opposite of Tiangang.

Murakami said that the waitress was brought by the people at that table themselves. He introduced that a large number of white girls flocked to Japan to work as geishas and waitresses.

A white girl working in Tokyo earns $40 an hour, but this is not her main source of income. Rich Japanese like to spend a lot of money when tipping, and they can receive thousands of dollars in tips in just a few hours.

You don't have to pay for these expenses yourself. Just record them as business expenses and the company behind them will reimburse you in the end.

"The most legendary story is that a white girl got an apartment, a Porsche convertible, and Mitsubishi stock worth $20 in one night." Nobuo Higashino's voice came from the side.

I don't know when he was sitting next to me. He not only speaks Chinese, but also fluent English.

After a few pleasantries, Murakami brought a glass of sake to Nobuo Higashino, and Jiang Xian talked to him about publishing.

"Mr. Jiang Xian, we have discussed internally at Tokuma Shoten these past two days. Our president is willing to increase your royalty rate to 5%. This is our greatest sincerity. What do you think?"

“You have no sincerity.”

Jiang Xian took a sip of sake and said, "Fuso Publishing is willing to give me a 10% royalty rate."

"What? 10%? Fuso Society?"

Nobuo Higashino's expression became strange.

Why did Fusosha come to join in the fun, and even offered a 10% royalty rate? !
Seeing his suspicious face, Jiang Xian smiled and said, "You can find out by asking. Why would I lie to you?"

Nobuo Higashino frowned.

He was very eager for this opportunity to publish Jiang Xian's works.

The president of Tokuma Shoten, Yasuyoshi Tokuma, is an extreme leftist who hates S2's actions very much and has deep feelings for China. He once published a magazine called "China" in Japan at a loss and even invested in co-producing movies with China despite the box office collapse. He is very supportive of Tokuma Shoten publishing some excellent Chinese literary works.

The president is a weather vane, and the people under him will naturally follow his instructions. However, as a pure businessman, Nobuo Higashino will definitely do his best to fight for the interests of the company.

He was very optimistic about Jiang Xian's novel and could be said to be completely conquered by it. Having been engaged in the publishing industry for so long, he understood that Chinese novels might not easily be accepted in Japan, but he had great confidence that the novel would become a best-seller in Japan.

The so-called stunning beauty is probably the feeling you get after reading this novel.

Nobuo Higashino didn't understand why Fusosha was so decisive in offering 10%. Perhaps it was because, like him, it saw the value hidden in the novel.

Seeing Jiang Xian tasting sake with great satisfaction at this moment, it was obvious that he was very satisfied with the conditions of Fuso Society.

"You didn't sign a contract with Fusosha, right?" Higashino Nobuo confirmed.

"No, I am ready to sign, but I want to ask Tokuma Shoten's opinion before signing. After all, I have some connections with you guys. You are co-producing a movie with the Beijing Film Studio, and I happen to be a member of the Beijing Film Studio."

Jiang Xian's words sounded so nice and were very kind.

There was nothing much to say about Nobuo Higashino. He would never allow the novel "Copper Coin Street" to slip away from his hands.

"10%. We can only ask for a royalty rate that is equal to that of Fusosha. This is already the highest standard for famous artists. We can't offer any higher."

Jiang Xian pretended to hesitate. "The conditions you two companies offer are almost the same. It's really hard for me to make a decision. Let me make one more request. I'm about to return to China. I hope Tokuma Shoten can directly prepay me part of the royalties from the first print."

Nobuo Higashino agreed after a little thought. The money would be sent to Jiang Xian sooner or later, so it was not a difficult thing.

"Then let's have a pleasant cooperation." Jiang Xian raised his glass.

Higashino Nobuo touched him and breathed a sigh of relief, "It's a pleasure to work with you."

After the two sides discussed the matter, Tokuma Shoten and Jiang Xian signed the contract neatly the next morning, with the first print run of 1000 copies and a royalty of 10%.

Tokuma Shoten had not yet set a price for the book, but had already paid Jiang Xian an advance of the lowest amount of 1000 yen, for a total of yen.

On the 15th day of November, the delegation returned to the capital by plane.

As soon as we got off the plane, the trouble started.

Jiang Xian had to pay customs duties for the items he purchased that exceeded the tax-free amount, including his income in Japan, which also had to be taxed and the source had to be explained.

Jiang Xian had paid attention to these things in advance. He reported the entire process of the publication of "Bronze Coin Street" at Tokuma Shoten to Group Leader Ba Jin, and his contact with the publishing house was also approved by Ba Jin. He wrote an application, and Ba Jin signed for his approval. He also wrote detailed reports and kept all the procedural certificates throughout the publishing process.

So if anyone dared to say that he had violated foreign affairs discipline, he would slam the stack of documents into his face.

Publishing was also quite troublesome. Jiang Xian bought a lot of foreign English original works in Japan. Fortunately, they were all reported in advance, so the review did not take long.

The delegation walked out of the passage carrying their luggage, where comrades from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and reporters were already waiting.

They stopped, smiled and waved, and the comrades from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs smiled and applauded at them. The flash lights of mainstream media such as People's X Newspaper and Guangming X Newspaper started clicking.

There were also primary school students wearing red scarves who came up to present flowers.

Taking into account the delegation's fatigue from the long journey, the comrades from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not hold a press conference. They simply answered a few questions and then dispersed on the spot.

Jiang Xian was carrying a lot of bags, and there were too many things, all of which were quite expensive, so he didn't want to take the bus.

He habitually took out a thick stack of RMB from his pocket on the roadside, waved it at the taxi for a while, and then slapped his forehead.

Ouch, this is a bad habit I brought from Japan.

(End of this chapter)