My book friend Long Aotian

Chapter 1 It's broken! The water meter is going to be checked!
The ninth day of the fifth month, the sixth year of the Qingtian reign.

Jiangbei Road, Huazhou, Linxian.

It is now midnight, the sky is dark and windy, and the good people have already gone to bed. A mysterious man in a cloak appears on Kaiming Street. He is hurrying on like a ghost, his footsteps are light and silent, and only his shadow sways in the moonlight.

The man walked through the streets and alleys, skillfully avoiding patrollers and night watchmen, and even without disturbing the birds perched on the branches or the guarding dogs, and finally stopped in front of a house.

Knock on the door.

Dongdong, Dongdongdong, two long and three short.

repeat three times.

There was the sound of a door being pushed open and footsteps coming from inside, and then a ray of light came through the gap between the double doors. Someone came in with a coat and a light, and whispered to confirm the identity of the night visitor: "Who is it?"

The mysterious man who knocked on the door was silent for a moment, then replied, "Battle Through the Heavens."

A moment later, an excited response came from inside the door: "Martial Universe!"

The mysterious man asked again: "What is Tiancan Potato?"

The person inside answered immediately, speaking very quickly, as if he had recited the answer thousands of times: "A Sichuan snack, cut raw potatoes with a wave knife, blanch them in light salt water, stir-fry them in a pan, add salt, five-spice powder, pepper, cumin, chili, chopped green onion, coriander, chili pepper, mix well and serve, very moist."

To this world, this is undoubtedly the most confidential code. Moreover, in such a long speech, even the slightest pause or change in tone would reveal something.

The mysterious person who came to visit confirmed that the contact code was correct and that the contact person was not being held hostage or forced, so he said in a deep voice: "Submit the manuscript."

The door opened in response, and a wealthy man in a half-worn coat and holding a lantern was waiting inside. When he saw the mysterious man, he was cheered up and a smile mixed with admiration and closeness appeared on his face.

He bowed deeply, with full courtesy and a respectful tone, as if he was welcoming a great writer.

"Meet Mr. Tyrant!"

"..."

Hearing this powerful name, the mysterious man's body trembled, and even the corners of his cloak trembled.

Even though I have heard it many times, a subtle feeling of shame still uncontrollably wells up in my heart.

It's like when your family finds out the pen name you use when writing online, this information quickly spreads to all your social circles in real life like quantum resonance. From then on, during festivals and family and friends gatherings, no matter if they are elderly, kind and honest people, or naughty and mischievous children who are a generation younger than you, your ID full of near-future cyber-abstract fun-lovingness has become the only way they call you.

——Don’t call me by my pen name. Don’t call me that. Don’t call me the great writer. Please just call me by my nickname!
The mysterious man known as "Mr. Tyrant" seemed to roll his eyes and wanted to say something, but he still sighed silently. After all, this was not a book club meeting.

But the scene where the chapter is uploaded.

He pulled out a thick, bound stack of papers from under his cloak and handed it over.

The man immediately dropped the lantern and took the manuscript paper with both hands.

The official's signature shop is Chen's Bookshop, which has been in business in the county for more than ten years. As a bookstore owner, he is a well-versed writer and has rich experience. He can determine the thickness of the manuscript by pressing hard with his fingers.

"Good fellow!" the official cried in his heart, "God has opened his eyes!"

The bookstore owner surnamed Chen has been collaborating with "Mr. Batian" on publishing a book for several months, and he has a love-hate relationship with "Mr. Batian".

What I love is that his stories are amazing and his creative ideas are so wild and imaginative that people can't help but applaud when reading them.

What I hate is that this guy is so lazy and no matter how much I coax or beg him, he always refuses to write more. Sometimes he even delays submitting his manuscripts. If you push him too hard, he will be subjected to verbal violence and mental humiliation that ordinary people can hardly imagine.

Who would have thought that this time not only the manuscript was submitted on time, but the number of words was far more than before!

Good news came out of the blue. The man's eyes suddenly widened and his face became like a palette of colors - about three parts of surprise, two parts of disbelief, three parts of suspicion as if falling into a dream, and ninety-two parts of great.

Later generations wrote a poem to testify to this: Who said the author was thin and short, the old thief could actually write a huge number of words!
The pleasantly surprised official squatted on the ground holding the manuscript, leaning over to the dim light of the lantern, and began to read the latest chapters impatiently.

——I remember the last update was last time. Not only was it short, but there was also a big chapter break at the end. He was upset for a whole month. He lost his appetite and felt like ants were crawling on his body.

Today is finally a good day!

As he was reading, he complained that the book was too slow and even asked the author to give him a spoiler.

"Mr. Batian, I really can't wait any longer. I've been waiting for the update for a month and I'm so tired of it. Now I can finally take a look at it——"

Under the light, his expression was so sincere, full of curiosity and respect for literature.

The questions he asked embodied the two supreme themes of humanity: "love" and "career".

He winked and asked, "Sir, may I ask, was the drugged heroine Zhitong forced to be with Long Zhantian who came to rescue her... hehehehehe... and was the Shen family, who were rich and unkind, rampant and hateful, and dared to snatch Long Zhantian's woman, wiped out in this volume?"

When "Mr. Batian" heard this, his body shook again.

It's like your family members not only know your pen name, but also go to read your writing. Not only do they read it, but they also don't understand it. Not only do they not understand it, but they also don't hesitate to ask questions and pull you aside to ask some questions that are obviously not suitable for children, and interrogate you with a serious face - what kind of thoughts and feelings did you express here?

How the hell do I know I’m just padding the word count!

——Don’t ask, don’t ask. Just ask me when I’m getting married!

The feeling of shame surged up in his heart again. This feeling was really unspeakable to outsiders. "Mr. Tyrant" could only maintain the aloofness of a great writer and said calmly: "You can read it yourself, but don't miss the main thing. This time, remember to reprint and sell it to surrounding towns to open up more channels!"

When it came to business, the official finally came to his senses. He carefully put away the manuscript, stood up, and looked solemn.

"Don't worry, Mr. Batian. I have an appointment with you, so I will do my best to let more people see your masterpiece. To be honest, I personally took people to Jianzhou to sell it ten days ago. According to your instructions, I talked about the book first, then tried it out, gave away the first thirty chapters for free, and then sold the rest of the content. Your book is selling like crazy!"

Hearing this, "Mr. Batian" let out a faint sigh.

This sigh contained a sense of loss, confusion, and dissatisfaction.

——What shit, this kind of book that is full of sloppy writing all the time, I wouldn’t even read it in my previous life, how come it’s selling so well?
It shows that the readers of this other world have poor taste!

The official thought that Mr. Batian was not satisfied with the subscription results, so he immediately promised: "Don't worry, sir. Everything is difficult at the beginning. Now the book has been written into the fourth volume. Our business is constantly expanding. Your... well, readership is constantly increasing. Sooner or later, we will be able to sell books to the capital!"

Yes, yes, yes, if you have the guts, just sell yourself to the emperor directly. It would be a good story if he recognized my writing style during the palace examination and made me a Grand Secretary.

Mr. Tyrant refused to accept the offer and said coldly, "If you have nothing else to do, I'll leave first."

"Please stay." The man thought of another thing, "One more thing... Sir, you must be careful recently. I have heard some bad news..."

The cloaked man just turned around, and immediately turned his head alertly after hearing this: "Oh? What's that sound?"

The official showed an indignant look: "Sir, your masterpieces sell very well, and everyone loves to read them. But there are always some sanctimonious and jealous people in this world. They envy your brilliant writing skills, but they can't write anything themselves, so they slander and insult you, saying that the books you wrote are all..."

When he said this, he looked embarrassed and couldn't continue.

Mr. Tyrant was silent for a moment, then said calmly, "I understand. They are all garbage, right? Thoughtless, superficial, vulgar, corrupting children, vile, fabricated, nonsense. The supporting characters are all morons and full of hostility. They write well-educated children from famous and wealthy families as despicable, dark and evil bullies. How can there be such bad people in the world..."

The official broke out in a cold sweat and whispered, "So you all know it, sir. But don't worry, that's just a small number of people shouting. Most people really like to watch it..."

The cloaked man was silent for a moment, then said calmly, "He didn't say anything wrong."

It is indeed the case.

It is extremely vulgar and full of violence, it corrupts children, is immoral and has no value at all.

He knew what he was writing about.

When the official heard his tone, his "editor radar" started to move, detecting a high-energy reaction of "the damn author wants to be a eunuch", and he immediately became anxious.

Firstly, he was afraid that this cash cow that he had worked so hard to grow would fall, and secondly, he also loved reading "Legend of the Imperial Battle of Heaven"... It was more exciting than any other storybook he had read on the market!
So he immediately advised: "Sir, why bother with those poor scholars? They are so pretentious, talking about love and romance, loyal ministers and filial sons all day long, or singing songs to express their aspirations and writing articles to convey their truths. Can the rough people understand them? What's more, they don't even bother to write for the peasants to read."

He had signed a contract with Mr. Batian for several months and had a rough idea of ​​the great writer's mind. He was a mysterious figure who not only liked to make money, but also hoped that "more people could see the stories he wrote", so he started his persuasion from here.

"In the past few months, I have hired storytellers and sold the books in the market. I have also chatted with some people and asked them why they like the stories so that I can sell them in a targeted manner."

This official is a bookseller who has been working in this county for many years. When talking about business, he is very knowledgeable: "Most of these people are businessmen in the market. They say that they work hard all day and get together to listen to the stories you write. The protagonist in the book started out in poverty and was even bullied by the powerful, just like everyone else. But once he gets the opportunity, he can rise straight up and defeat all those who dare to invade and bully him, so that his family can live a good life. Such stories are exciting!"

"Everyone was very excited after listening to the story. The grievances and hardships they had endured during the day were no longer so painful. After listening to the story, they could go to sleep and have a sweet dream, imagining that they could be as omnipotent as Long Zhantian. Although they had to grit their teeth and survive the next day, they could still continue to listen to the story the next night. This was also a thought."

He finished his speech in one breath and said sincerely, "Sir, I can't say anything profound, but there must be many people who love to read your stories. Why bother with the nonsense of those poor scholars? To be fair, your stories are giving some poor peasants a breath of fresh air, and giving them a place to vent their daily frustrations, so that they won't commit crimes or hurt others or themselves. This is a great merit."

"Mr. Tyrant" sneered, "Using such fake things? Is this considered a merit?"

The official said as if it was a matter of course: "Of course, fake things are better than nothing."

"Mr. Tyrant" was silent again. After a moment, he let out a long sigh: "Anything else?"

"That's what I'm talking about."

The official nodded and said, "Though those writers are poor and mean, they have connections and are loud. They are clamoring to have your works banned, confiscated and sealed... Although my shop is small, I have some connections. They can't do anything to my shop, so they might try to cut off the source of the book. After all, you are the author. As long as you are arrested, the source of the book will naturally be cut off."

Mr. Tyrant thought for a moment and said, "I see. They can't touch me."

"It's better to be careful." The official advised, "Sir, you still have to be more careful..."

Before he finished speaking, he saw Mr. Batian suddenly turn around and look at the sky.

The dark night suddenly became bright.

But then a cannon shot rushed into the sky and exploded in the sky, emitting light in the night sky, which was clearly visible, and also made Mr. Tyrant's face hidden under the hood of his cloak bright for a moment.

Unfortunately, he turned around and looked up at the sky at this moment. Only the stars, the moon and the night wind could see the stunning beauty with sword-like eyebrows and starry eyes that appeared under the shining night sky, otherwise the official would have cried out in surprise.

Because of this face, almost all the people in Lin County recognized him; because of this person, almost all the people in Huazhou knew him; because of his name, almost everyone in the martial arts world and official circles of Jiangbei Dao had heard of him!
The author who hides under the cloak and writes the mysterious and exciting novel "Legend of Huangji Zhantian" under the pen name "Long Batian" is none other than Li Bailong, a martial arts champion of Jiangbei Road in the Southern Dynasty, a great talent who ranked first on the top three lists in the palace sword test, a peerless genius who is regarded by the Jiangbei martial arts world as the leading figure in twenty years, and known as the "Perfect Moon" in the martial arts world!
As the signal gun exploded, shouts of killing followed, and huge waves of noise rang out in all directions.

"All the third shift of Lin County Yamen runners are here!"

"Don't let the old thief Batian get away!"

He is clearly a promising young hero who is admired by the world, but he is ambushed and besieged by the government because he writes cool novels under a pseudonym. Under the watchful eyes of the stars, the moon and the night wind, the young hero has only one thought in his mind.

——It’s broken! The water meter needs to be checked!

A new work.

I haven’t written a book for a few years. I’m going to open this book to get back in shape. Please forgive me if my writing is not good.



(End of this chapter)