Back to 1997, I became the originator of online literature

Chapter 387 Proposes Implementing a Fee System

Is Cao Sheng's new book really that good?

Looking at these posts in the book review section, Mr. Zhu had a myriad of thoughts swirling in his mind.

He had just heard Jin Qiaoyin's report that Cao Sheng was unwilling to sign a long-term contract with their website. Under these circumstances, he secretly hoped that the quality of Cao Sheng's new book would not be very good.

Because in that case, they would no longer be able to exclusively serialize Cao Sheng's new book for free, but the loss wouldn't be too great.

Although reason told him that with Cao Sheng's level of expertise, even if the quality of his new book wasn't great, it wouldn't be too bad, and given the large number of fans Cao Sheng had accumulated over the years, the book's various metrics wouldn't be too bad.

However, he still hoped that Cao Sheng's new book would be of slightly lower quality.

For example: the subject matter is not so novel, the writing style is not innovative, and it has started to rely on old material, etc.

but……

The posts in the book review section, written in traditional Chinese characters, all praised the quality of Cao Sheng's new book.

Is this book, "The Romance of Chinese Martial Arts," really that good?
Or are book fans just sycophantically praising Cao Sheng? Are they going against their conscience to extol him?

Or perhaps Taiwanese readers are saying this on purpose to provoke mainland book fans?

Or perhaps these posts were all orchestrated by Cao Sheng's paid trolls to promote his new book?
He considered all the possibilities.

At this moment, Jin Qiaoyin cautiously asked, "President Zhu, what do you think... why don't you call President Cao yourself and talk to him? Maybe he'll give you face and be willing to sign a contract with us for a few more years?"

Mr. Zhu looked up at her, frowned and pondered for a moment, then nodded slightly and smiled, "Alright! Since you can't persuade him, I'll call him myself and see if he'll actually give me that kind of face!"

Jin Qiaoyin was delighted and quickly said, "Okay! Okay! Then I'll go out first, Mr. Zhu, you're busy."

Mr. Zhu nodded slightly.

Kim Hyo-eun turned and quickly left the office.

Mr. Zhu looked away and glanced at his phone.

He did not immediately pick up his phone to call Cao Sheng.

Because at this moment, his feelings were particularly complicated.

He practically watched Cao Sheng rise to power.

Back when he was in the United States, he thought about replicating American literary websites in China.

After returning to China, because the internet was not widespread and the number of netizens was small at the time, he did not take immediate action, but instead invested in advertising companies and other fields.

Once the internet in China began to take off and the number of netizens increased significantly, he immediately invested in and launched the first literary website in mainland China – Rongshu.com.

He started this website with two initial intentions.

Firstly, it's about his literary dream; he wants to run a business with a literary atmosphere and reduce his commercialism.

Secondly, he believes that the internet is the future trend, and that publishing literary and artistic works online will be an inevitable trend in the future, just like in the United States.

He personally participated in the design of the Banyan Tree website.

I want this place to be a gathering place for all literature lovers.

The goal is to attract well-known writers in real life to publish their works on the website.

He thought so and did it.

The website's initial development was entirely under his control. Through his and the editors' efforts, they successfully attracted a group of traditional and emerging writers to reside on the site and publish their works.

They also invited some celebrities to publish short literary works such as diaries, travelogues, and poems on their website.

but……

The good times didn't last long. The newly established website, Rongshuxia, was soon joined by the outlier, Zhongyuan Yidianhui.

While others write short stories, romance novels, poems, diaries, and travelogues, Cao Sheng wrote a book called "I Want to Become an Immortal".

How could the young banyan tree withstand such trampling?

A year? Or how long?

The entire website gradually took on the shape of that kid.

More and more authors are jumping on the bandwagon to write long novels and fantasy novels.

The traditional and emerging writers that the website had painstakingly recruited were gradually driven to despair by that kid, resulting in reduced output and even a halt to updates.

And then what?
That kid only writes long novels. The shortest one, "Living with a Flight Attendant," would be considered a long novel even in the traditional genre.

Over time, the website became a haven for long novels, and short story writers lost their presence. As a result, the website had to change its style and start making long novels its main category.

In just two or three years, that kid has already firmly secured his position as the number one in the industry.

He completed 800 million words.

He had never even heard of such a vigorous young man before, let alone seen him, yet he had encountered him.

This was originally a good thing.

But now that kid is unwilling to sign a long-term contract with them anymore. Are they going to keep all the company shares for him?
Are there any better websites in the industry besides ours?
If he won't cooperate with us, who else can he cooperate with?

He suspected that some website had paid a considerable price to poach the kid, offering him conditions that the kid couldn't refuse.

Otherwise, he really couldn't understand why Cao Sheng was unwilling to sign a long-term contract with them again.

Although he knew he probably couldn't keep Cao Sheng, he still picked up his phone and dialed Cao Sheng's number, just to give it a try.

Maybe things aren't as I suspect?

Maybe I can persuade him?

As he dialed the number, two thoughts flashed through his mind.

However, although the call went through, Cao Sheng did not answer it.

Is it during class?
The thought that the kid was still a student made Mr. Zhu feel even more conflicted.

They even thought other authors were useless, that out of so many people, their works couldn't even compare to those of a single student.

If those authors had any self-respect, why would he have to beg Cao Sheng like this?

……

evening.

He dialed Cao Sheng's number again, and this time Cao Sheng finally answered.

Even though he had various opinions about Cao Sheng, the moment the call connected, President Zhu immediately put on a hearty smile. "Brother Cao! Long time no see! How have you been lately? I heard you published a new book? Impressive! You are truly amazing! Not only are all your works of such high quality, but you are also so prolific. To be honest, you have shown me what true talent looks like! Haha."

Having already eaten dinner, Cao Sheng returned to his rented teacher's dormitory. Upon hearing this, he chuckled slightly. "President Zhu is too kind to me! I only have the advantage of being a first mover. In a few years, when there are more people writing novels, I believe more and more authors will be able to surpass my achievements. Hehe, so I'm taking advantage of the fact that there aren't too many people writing novels yet, and I'm making the most of the time to write a few more books!"

He was speaking from the heart.

To Mr. Zhu, however, it sounded like modesty.

"You're too modest! You're the first person to publish a novel like this online. You could say you pioneered the entire industry. It's not just about being the first to market! Why didn't anyone else publish a novel like this first? Right?"

Cao Sheng smiled, having just brewed himself a pot of tea. He picked up the teapot and poured himself a small cup. "Don't flatter me! You're calling me at this hour because you have something to tell me, right? Just say it!"

General Manager Zhu: "..."

After a few seconds of hesitation, General Manager Zhu said, "Brother Cao, I heard from your editor Jin Qiaoyin that... you're not planning to sign an exclusive serialization deal with us for your new book?" Cao Sheng: "..."

If I tell you to just say it, then you really will!

Cao Sheng, somewhat surprised, remained calm, knowing he would have to face this problem sooner or later.

"Well, I can't sign an exclusive contract with you anymore. If you don't mind, I can publish the free portion of this new book on your website."

Mr. Zhu: "Hmm? What do you mean? The free parts can be published on our website? From what you're saying... there are non-free parts to your book published online?"

Cao Sheng hummed in agreement.

He didn't think it needed to be kept secret.

In this current era, no one understands the online novel pricing system better than him.

Therefore, he is not worried that some websites will launch this system ahead of schedule.

Moreover, he didn't believe that President Zhu had the courage to be the first to introduce a fee system.

The concept of paid reading wasn't unthinkable after the emergence of online literature; it's likely that every owner of a website that focuses on original novels considered this possibility.

But why was only the starting point in the original timeline bold enough to be the first to introduce this system?

The reasons are certainly multifaceted.

For example, Qidian had already burned through the investments of several founders, and if it didn't find a way to make a profit, the website would have to go out of business.

For example, although Qidian didn't have much profitability at the time, the website had many excellent works and its readership was among the top three in the industry, so it had the potential to try paid reading.

For example, other websites either haven't run out of funds and haven't reached the end of their rope, or they lack the courage to implement a paid system.

For example, there's the cautionary tale of Longkong. Longkong was formed by merging several small websites and once enjoyed immense popularity, attracting a large number of readers and authors. However, in order to make a profit, Longkong reached an agreement with publishers that once a work recommended by Longkong was published, its serialization on Longkong would be suspended.

Longkong did make some money by taking this path, but his business visibly declined, and many readers left disappointed.

This makes other website owners feel that charging for online articles is tantamount to cutting themselves off from readers, and that they will soon be abandoned by readers, causing the website to decline quickly. It is not a sustainable way to make money.

Therefore, when the original Time and Space Start was the first to introduce a paid system, no other website immediately followed suit.

Basically, everyone is waiting to see how Qidian dies.

Even the founders of Qidian later revealed that when Qidian first launched its paid subscription system, no one was confident or sure about it.

It's just that there's no other way out, so we have to bite the bullet and take a gamble.

Furthermore, after winning the gamble, they took their profits and sold Qidian to Shanda within a few years, because at that time they still didn't have much confidence in Qidian's future.

"This……"

Mr. Zhu on the other end of the phone was at a loss for words.

Is Cao Sheng planning to charge for his new book online?

Famous works from ancient and modern times, both Chinese and foreign, dare not be made available for paid online reading. How dare this kid? What gives him the right?
Then, a sense of curiosity arose in his heart.

"Brother Cao! Which website is so bold? Also, how do they plan to charge? Could you tell me in detail?"

Cao Sheng: "I'm sorry, Mr. Zhu, this is a trade secret, I can't tell you, I'm sorry!"

General Manager Zhu: "..."

Mr. Zhu: "I see, I understand! I have another question... How long is the free portion of your new book? And from what word do you start charging?"

Cao Sheng guessed that what he wanted to ask was—how many words of this new book could be serialized for free on their website.

"Around 20 words!"

Cao Sheng said.

Mr. Zhu: "The free portion is around 20 words?"

Cao Sheng hummed in agreement.

……

The two chatted for a while longer before ending the call.

Cao Sheng picked up the cup of tea he had just poured and slowly sipped it, thinking to himself: Since I've already told President Zhu about the online publication of my new book, I might as well tell Qidian as well! Let them be prepared, and at the same time, prepare to launch the paid reading system.

After finishing his small cup of tea, he put it down and dialed Baojianfeng's number.

As soon as the call connected, I heard a greeting from Baojianfeng on my phone.

"Good evening, Mr. Cao! What brings you here to call me today? Is there anything you need? If so, please let me know!"

Cao Sheng: "Here's the thing, there's something I need to tell you in advance. My new book will be published simultaneously on Qidian and Rongshu in a while. You don't mind, do you?"

Magic City.

Bao Jianfeng, who had just taken off his trousers and was about to go into the bathroom to take a shower, paused for a moment.

Immediately, a look of surprise appeared on his face.

He had long wanted Cao Sheng's work to be serialized on Qidian.

He made countless phone calls to Cao Sheng because of this.

Today, Cao Sheng actually called to say that his new book would be serialized on two websites, including Qidian.

It's a bit of a shame that this isn't an exclusive publication.

But he believes another website is even more regrettable.

For Qidian, this is pure profit, absolutely fantastic news.

It's worth noting that the name "Zhongyuan Yidianhui" has long been a golden brand in the industry. Even if it's not an exclusive publication, it will definitely be big news in the industry when Zhongyuan Yidianhui serializes a new book on Qidian.

It will attract countless readers and authors to Qidian to read books and publish their works.

There are so many benefits.

"Really? Mr. Cao! You...you keep your word? You're not lying to me this time, are you? You're really going to serialize your new book on Qidian?"

Cao Sheng hummed in agreement.

Bao Jianfeng was beaming with excitement. “Great! Great! Welcome, welcome! A warm welcome! Mr. Cao, you’ve finally published your work on Qidian! We’ve been waiting for this for ages. Some people in the company have even started to doubt whether you’re a major shareholder. It’s true.”

Cao Sheng smiled wryly.

"Don't worry! I won't go back on my word!"

After a pause, Cao Sheng added, "Oh, right, there's something else I wanted to tell you, and I hope you'll agree."

Baojianfeng: "Please speak, please speak!"

Cao Sheng: "Hmm, I think Qidian can try paid reading. For example, when my new book reaches about 200,000 words on Qidian, the subsequent content can be paid for, for example, 2 cents per thousand words. The money earned can be split between the website and the author, either 20/80 or 30/70."

Furthermore, after introducing this fee system, the website can select outstanding works from across the entire site to sign contracts, securing exclusive online distribution rights for these works. Then, these signed works can be promoted through various recommendation slots on Qidian, and the most popular works can be put up for sale each week…”

Over the phone, Cao Sheng briefly explained to Bao Jianfeng the fee system pioneered by the original Time and Space Starting Point.

From the moment he began explaining the system, Bao Jianfeng on the other end of the phone fell silent and listened attentively.

(End of this chapter)