Back to 1997, I became the originator of online literature

Chapter 336: The Legend of Xiao Qiao, Running Wild on the Road to Absurdity

On the weekly recommendation list on the Qidian homepage, Cao Sheng also saw Xue Hong's "The Rogue's Rise Again".

I also saw Yun Tiankong's "Lucky Swordsman".

Yun Tiankong has started writing novels too?
Looking at these once-popular pen names and works of literary giants from the original timeline, Cao Sheng felt a mix of emotions.

It's as if I can see the golden age of online literature approaching.

Before his rebirth, many of these great authors had faded into obscurity, and many new readers of online novels had never even heard of them.

But in the golden age a few years after the birth of online literature, these great authors became like flag bearers, constantly pioneering new themes and leading the development of the entire industry. In an era dominated by traditional literature, they carved out a niche for themselves, paving a path to fame and fortune for countless frustrated young people.

Before his rebirth, Cao Sheng had pondered this question many times: If the online literature industry didn't exist, would someone like him have had the chance to make a living through writing? Would he have had the opportunity to earn over ten thousand yuan a month? Would he?

The answer is obvious.

Although Xuehong, Yuntiankong, and others did not start online literature, they pioneered the era of paid online literature reading.

Among them, Xue Hong was the first writer to earn over a million yuan a year. His income inspired countless writers and attracted many people to join the online literature industry.

Yun Tiankong was one of the first masters known for his fast hand speed.

When paid online novel reading first started, the top authors who could make money were all very fast, with daily updates of 10,000 words being almost standard.

Because at that time, the total number of readers willing to pay for subscriptions was very small. Even for works by top authors, the number of subscribers per chapter was very limited. If the number of words updated each day was not high enough, then they would definitely not earn much money.

The most popular players during this period, such as Xuehong, Yuntiankong, and Sanshao, all had incredibly fast typing speeds.

The author, Tang Jia San Shao, was praised by Qidian as the Schumacher of the online literature circle. Not only could he maintain a daily update of 10,000 words for ten years, but he could also prepare new books while maintaining this daily update. On the same day that each book was completed, he could publish a new book and continue to maintain a daily update of 10,000 words, which he himself called a seamless transition.

Yun Tiankong's daily update of 10,000 words is the norm. In addition to this, he can often update in bursts, and his bursts often involve updating 20,000 to 30,000 words a day.

As the first writer to earn over a million yuan a year, Xue Hong's writing speed is even more astonishing. It is said that his highest record is 90,000 words a day, and writing 10,000 words a day is also his basic skill.

When he releases a large number of new chapters, many readers say they can't finish reading all of them that day.

These masters are far beyond the reach of many of their peers.

During this period, most writers were just starting out and many had only just learned to type online. How to write a novel was already a huge challenge. Typing a few thousand words a day on the computer was already exhausting. Under these circumstances, established writers like Xuehong, Yuntiankong, and Sanshao started competing on typing speed. Their update speed made it impossible for those with poor typing skills to even think about competing.

As the first generation of top authors in the era of paid reading, they ushered in the era of rapid updates.

This forced later aspiring writers to desperately improve their typing speed.

Authors like Tomato, Chen Dong, and Jing Guan, who later became renowned writers, were almost all able to consistently write 10,000 words a day.

Since then, very few writers who have become legendary have slow typing speeds.

Because those who became gods before them all had such fast hand speeds and the advantage of being the first to act, it was almost impossible for newcomers to catch up if their hand speeds couldn't keep up.

Which of the following has the slowest hand speed: potato, divine machine, or false speech?

Then there's the Hawks, who debuted even later. They're even more prolific in terms of writing speed, producing five to six million words a year, which is routine for them.

In front of the computer.

When Cao Sheng saw the works of Xue Hong, Yun Tiankong, and others, his mind was filled with a flood of memories, recalling many past events.

I also felt a lot of pressure.

He knew that with the entry of Xue Hong, Yun Tiankong, and others into the industry, his advantage in hand speed would be lost.

His remaining advantages are probably only the first-mover advantage and the creative advantage inherent in reborn individuals.

However, in the online literature industry, it's always been a case of the new generation pushing the old one aside, with the old one being swept away and left to die on the beach.

First-mover advantage is sometimes completely useless.

Readers appreciate the quality and update speed of the current works more.

And what about the advantages in creativity?
Do Xuehong and others lack creativity?
The key point is that Cao Sheng's creative competition is not limited to the few top writers from the original timeline, but also includes all writers in the entire industry.

Those writers may not be particularly strong in other areas, but they can contribute a lot of creative ideas to the masters.

This could negate many of Cao Sheng's creative advantages.

Thinking about all this, he opened the outline of "The Romance of Chinese Martial Arts" on his computer.

Looking at the four characters "The Romance of Chinese Martial Arts", he suddenly chuckled.

This subject matter is entirely new to online literature today.

Chinese martial arts...

Following the martial arts genre, the Yang Shen genre is entirely new, and each one is more powerful than the last. In the original timeline, the book "Yang Shen" helped Shenji achieve an unprecedented eight-consecutive-monthly ticket championship on Qidian.

Therefore, even when competing with writers across the entire industry in terms of creativity, this reborn individual still possesses a creative advantage.

……

When Cao Sheng was preparing the outline for "The Romance of Chinese Martial Arts".

For several days in a row, Huang Qingya has been diligently preparing the outline for her new book, "The Story of Xiao Qiao".

Based on the plot that Cao Sheng had helped her come up with, she searched online for various materials about "Romance of the Three Kingdoms".

For example, the birth and death dates of Sun Jian.

When she found out that Sun Jian died at the age of 37, Sun Ce died at the age of 17, and Sun Ce died at the age of 26, her eyes lit up considerably.

This means that when Sun Jian died, Da Qiao was probably around 17 years old, and Xiao Qiao was probably around 15 years old.

In ancient times, many girls got married at the age of 12 or 3.

Therefore, two or three years before Sun Jian's death, Xiao Qiao should have reached the age where she could get married.

According to the plot that Cao Sheng helped come up with—Sun Jian had feelings for Xiao Qiao, and Xiao Qiao plotted to cause Sun Jian's death in battle; in terms of timing, the timing could be arranged perfectly.

Sun Ce died at the age of 26. At that time, Xiao Qiao was probably 20-22 years old, in the prime of her life. Logically, she could have easily captivated Sun Quan.

The key issue is that Huang Qingya cannot find the birth years of Da Qiao and Xiao Qiao.

This gave her enough room to maneuver.

She could easily set a suitable birth year for the two sisters based on the needs of the plot.

It is entirely possible to accommodate the three generations of monarchs in the Sun family, and in terms of age, it is a good match for Xiao Qiao.

For example, we could set it up so that when Sun Jian met Xiao Qiao, she had just turned 12 and was just beginning to show her potential. Although she was still quite young and inexperienced, she was already a beauty in the making, making her unforgettable to Sun Jian at first sight.

When Sun Ce met Xiao Qiao, she was about 16 or 7 years old. In ancient times, she was already a fully grown young woman, radiating charm. Even though Sun Ce had married her older sister Da Qiao, he still couldn't suppress his desire for Xiao Qiao.

When Sun Ce died and Sun Quan ascended to the throne, Xiao Qiao was just over 20 years old, which was a mature age in ancient times. It is entirely understandable that Sun Quan could not resist her charm.

Huang Qingya was very happy to find this information.

Her mind was completely opened. She even wanted Lü Bu to fall in love with Xiao Qiao as well.

She thought it could be set up as follows: After Lu Bu got Diao Chan, he happened to hear that there were two Qiao sisters in Jiangdong, whose beauty was no less than Diao Chan's. This aroused Lu Bu's curiosity. Not long after, he saw Xiao Qiao's portrait. Just like Duan Yu when he first saw the portrait of the fairy sister, he was captivated by Xiao Qiao in the painting.

Furthermore, Lü Bu harbored a secret—despite Diao Chan's beauty, he harbored resentment towards her because she had once been possessed by Dong Zhuo and was not pure. In contrast, Xiao Qiao in the portrait appeared so young, seemingly somewhat naive yet exceptionally pure.

Because he loved Xiao Qiao, Lü Bu led his army south after killing Dong Zhuo, hoping to rely on his martial prowess to fight his way to Jiangdong to find Xiao Qiao. As a result, he died on his way south in Xiapi.

You could also set it up so that when Lü Bu died, he looked towards Jiangdong with tears in his eyes, and before he died, the smiling face of Xiao Qiao's portrait appeared in his mind.

With her mind opened, Huang Qingya thought of Cao Cao's three sons—no! She thought of Cao Cao's four sons—Cao Ang, Cao Pi, Cao Zhi, and Cao Chong.

She wondered if Cao Cao's four sons could also be connected to Xiao Qiao.

For example, when Cao Ang died, was he thinking of Xiao Qiao?

For example, before and after Cao Pi ascended the throne, he also had designs on Xiao Qiao, whose beauty was renowned throughout the land.
For example, could Cao Zhi's "Ode to the Goddess of the Luo River" be changed to say that it was written for Xiao Qiao?

For example, the reason why Cao Chong died young at the age of 13 was... that at the age of 13, he casually mentioned to his brother Cao Pi that he liked Xiao Qiao? And then Cao Pi, out of jealousy, plotted to kill him?
……

While thinking about these things, Huang Qingya searched for information about Cao Cao's sons online. As she searched, she suddenly noticed that Cao Cao had another son who was quite brave and capable.

Online information shows that before Cao Zhang reached adulthood, he enjoyed fighting tigers and possessed extraordinary strength.

This made Huang Qingya wonder: Could Cao Zhang give the tiger skin he obtained after killing the tiger to Xiao Qiao?

When she noticed that the information said that Cao Zhang was appointed as the General of the Northern Central Army and the General of the Valiant Cavalry, leading troops to conquer the Wuhuan and subjugate Kebineng of the Xianbei in Liaodong, Huang Qingya couldn't help but wonder: If such a capable guy also liked Xiao Qiao, would he compete with Cao Pi for the throne of Wei for Xiao Qiao?

……

About a week later.

When Huang Qingya brought the outline of "The Story of Xiao Qiao" to the school again to ask Cao Sheng for help and advice.

In the teacher's dormitory that Cao Sheng rented, Cao Sheng was stunned after reading her recently revised outline.

He thought he had been quite bold in giving her the advice he had given her last time.

I never expected that once her mind was opened, she would become so bold.

In her new outline, she set up a unique color scheme for the Three Kingdoms period.

Diao Chan, Zhen Mi, Da Qiao, Xiao Qiao, and others were all on the list, not only ranked, but their portraits were also circulated in the world.

Cao Cao, Liu Biao, Liu Bei, Sun Jian, Sun Ce, Cao Ang, Cao Pi, and many others all saw the portraits of the beautiful women in this exquisite coloring book.

"I think this setting can reasonably explain why so many celebrities have a crush on Xiao Qiao. What do you think?"

When Cao Sheng asked Huang Qingya why she set up an absolute color spectrum, Huang Qingya smiled and replied as follows.

Cao Sheng gave her a thumbs up.

This is the first time I've discovered that she has a real talent for writing online novels.

However, he still felt that the outline was a bit too outrageous.

Sun Jian died because of Xiao Qiao.

Sun Ce died because of Xiao Qiao.

Zhou Yu died because of Xiao Qiao.

That's all.

The deaths of Cao Cao's eldest son Cao Ang, Lü Bu, Cao Chong, and even Guan Yu can all be attributed to Xiao Qiao.

Even Cao Zhi and Cao Zhang's struggle for the throne of Wei was all for Xiao Qiao.
Isn't that going too far?

"What's wrong? Do you think my revised outline is okay?"

Huang Qingya sat next to Cao Sheng and asked him for his opinion with some trepidation.

Cao Sheng nodded with mixed feelings, and replied with some emotion, "Not bad! It was really fun!"

Huang Qingya was pleasantly surprised, "Really?"

Cao Sheng nodded again.

Judging solely from the plot arrangement, he did find it quite enjoyable.

Aside from being a bit outrageous.

Huang Qingya smiled broadly, happily hooking her arm around his, and said in a light tone, "What suggestions do you have? Give me some more advice! Like, who else could I make fall for Xiao Qiao?"

Cao Sheng was surprised, "So many people like her, and you still think it's not enough? You want to add more people?"

Huang Qingya chuckled, "She's a beauty! Since her stunning beauty is known throughout the world, it's normal that she has a lot of admirers. Quickly help me think of which other celebrities we can arrange to like her! Hurry up!"

Cao Sheng: "..."

After a moment of silence, Cao Sheng thought for her and laughed, "Since your outline already sets up that Guan Yu's death is also because of Xiao Qiao, why not arrange for Lü Meng, who killed Guan Yu, to also like Xiao Qiao? For example, Guan Yu proposes marriage to the widowed Xiao Qiao in Eastern Wu, which arouses the jealousy of Lü Meng, who also wants to marry Xiao Qiao. Then, Lü Meng comes up with a plan to cross the river in disguise, lead troops into Jingzhou, and kill Guan Yu?"

Huang Qingya was surprised. She frowned and thought for a moment, then smiled and nodded repeatedly, saying, "This is good! Writing it this way can indirectly show that even though Xiao Qiao is older, she is still charming and can still make the famous general Lü Meng risk his life to assassinate Guan Yu for her. Very good! Very good! Anything else? Darling, can you help me think of someone else who can like Xiao Qiao?"

Cao Sheng: "..."

Isn't this enough?
Cao Sheng felt that Huang Qingya was going to take an extreme approach this time. The plot of this book, "The Legend of Xiao Qiao," was simply running wild on the road to absurdity.

Is the intention to portray Xiao Qiao as the most charming beauty in history?

"Think quickly! Help me think, darling!"

To urge Cao Sheng on, Huang Qingya got up, put her arms around Cao Sheng's neck, and used a coquettish tone.

Cao Sheng chuckled to himself, thinking: I'd like to see how people will evaluate your book, "The Biography of Xiao Qiao," after it's published.

Since she wanted something even more outrageous, Cao Sheng came up with another one for her.

Do you know Deng Ai?

"Who? What love?" Huang Qingya was a little confused, clearly not knowing Deng Ai.

Cao Sheng: "Towards the end of Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Deng Ai and Zhong Hui led their troops to attack the capital of Shu. Deng Ai was the first to enter, and it can be said that Shu was destroyed by him."

Huang Qingya looked surprised, nodded, and frowned as she asked, "You mean this Deng Ai can also like Xiao Qiao?"

Cao Sheng smiled. "Historically, Deng Ai had a stutter, you know?"

Huang Qingya nodded.

Cao Sheng: "You can set it up like this: Deng Ai's stuttering problem is because when he was young, he saw Xiao Qiao by chance. For example, the beautiful Xiao Qiao saw Deng Ai on the road and asked the young Deng Ai for directions. Deng Ai was stunned by her beauty and answered her question in a stutter, pointing out the way to her, but from then on he had a stuttering problem."

(End of this chapter)