Training the Heavens

Chapter 261: Making Money on the Boat
Today is an era of booming popular literature in Europe and the United States. France has Alexandre Dumas and his "The Count of Monte Cristo", and Britain has Stevenson and his "Treasure Island", which describe stories of treasure hunting and adventure.

Zhang Xingjiu brought out the culmination of Hollywood's work, "Pirates of the Caribbean", and instantly attracted these adventurers from Europe to the Far East. If you talk to them about Oxford and Cambridge, they may find it boring, but if you talk to them about treasure and adventure, they will immediately no longer be sleepy.

Everyone held their breath and listened with wide eyes as Zhang Xingjiu told the story of Jack Sparrow's adventures. They were deeply attracted by the magical magic, the glittering treasures and the unique customs and culture of the Caribbean.

They drank drink after drink, completely immersed in this magical story, and were reluctant to leave until the bar closed. "Mr. Zhang, can you tell me a little more? Did Jack escape Barbossa's pursuit? If I don't know this, I'm afraid I won't be able to sleep tonight."

Zhang Xingjiu could only assure them, "Everyone, we still have a long journey ahead of us. If the story ends in one day, the days afterward will be too boring. Tomorrow night, we will continue our gathering at the bar, and I will continue telling this story, okay?"

"Okay, it's settled. I'll treat you to drinks tomorrow night!" Bernard reluctantly let Zhang Xingjiu leave.

Through this magical story, Zhang Xingjiu quickly became the most popular guest on the entire passenger ship. Even the captain would come here every night to listen to him tell about the thrilling adventures of his predecessors.

He also upgraded Zhang Xingjiu's cabin, allowing him to stay in first class without paying extra. "These cabins are empty anyway. If you can get a good rest and tell more beautiful stories, that would be great."

The life of a passenger ship captain is naturally not as interesting as Jack Sparrow's. He plans to remember these stories well so that he can show them off to other guests when he goes to sea again in the future.

Unfortunately, his dream was shattered after only three days. When Zhang Xingjiu came to the bar again and started telling stories, Bernard was already waiting there with paper and pen, ready to take notes.

"Mr. Zhang, this story is truly fascinating. Compared to yours, Mr. Stevenson's Treasure Island is simply too bland. Stories like this deserve to be read by more readers, so I'm taking the liberty of recommending myself as the recorder. When I return to London, I'll take this story to a publisher. They'll surely be willing to buy it, and this will make your study abroad in Paris much easier."

At first, Zhang Xingjiu only intended to use this story to kill time on the boring journey and improve his status on the ship. After hearing what Bernard said, he realized that this might also be a good opportunity to make money.

As soon as Bernard finished speaking, the other foreigner immediately raised his hand and said, "I'm a lawyer. I can draft a contract for you two to ensure that the money reaches Mr. Zhang."

"That's great! I'll pay you according to the market price." Bernard immediately urged him to draw up a contract.

As the lawyer was writing the contract, he said, "I'll be staying in Hong Kong for a while. If this story isn't finished by the time I get there, I won't be able to hear the ending. If it can be published, I can avoid this regret."

"Me too. My journey will end in Manila. Unfortunately, even if the book is successfully published, it is still difficult to buy it in Manila. I can only ask my friends to help mail me a few copies."

"Ha, such a good story! Unless the publisher is a fool, he will definitely pay a high price for the copyright. Oh, and I can also bring this story to Italy. Maybe they will like it too."

"Perhaps France can also do this. How about this? We each make a copy and ask the lawyer to witness it. Then, when we get ashore, we'll send it to the publisher in our home country." Zhang Xingjiu also said generously, "Bernard, and all the gentlemen, if it is successfully published, I will also pay you a fee. Please ask the lawyer to note this as well."

He doesn't have time to run around to different countries selling copyrights, so these people saved him a lot of trouble.

With their interests at stake, these people listened to the story with even greater concentration. By the time they reached Xiangjiang, some of those who had to disembark kept looking back, repeatedly begging Zhang Xingjiu to reveal a little about the follow-up content. Did Will Turner actually marry Elizabeth? Could Jack Sparrow escape from the realm of the dead controlled by Davy Jones?
After the ship had finished refueling with coal and water and was leaving Hong Kong, another group of people were attracted by this story and became regulars of the bar. Now the owner of the bar wants to worship Zhang Xingjiu as the God of Wealth. Since he came, the sales of alcohol have more than tripled, so every time Zhang Xingjiu can get his free alcohol and snacks.

When they arrived in Mumbai, a new group of customers came to the bar, including a Londoner whose family was in the publishing business. He gave Zhang Xingjiu a brief introduction to the current royalties in the UK.

Originally, the royalties for European authors were very meager. Shakespeare could only get eight pounds for a play, and Milton only ten pounds for a work.

With the popularization of newspapers, the development of printing technology, the increase in literacy rate and the growth of the urban middle class, people's demand for excellent works became stronger and stronger, and writers finally became a specialized profession.

Scott became the first person in Europe to make a fortune from writing. He could earn an astonishing income of 10,000 pounds every year from his novels.

Balzac's first novel, Clotilde of Lusignan, earned him 2000 francs in royalties, which was not enough to support his life, so he often inserted advertisements into his novels to earn income.

After the 60s, some later practices gradually took shape, such as extending the copyright period to the author's lifetime plus years after his death, the gradual rise of the royalty system, etc. It seems that there is no essential difference from the publishing industry in later generations.

Hugo's contract with his French publisher, Pierre-Jules Etzel, gave him about 20% of the income; Zola's first novel, The Confession of Claude, received a 10% royalty.

Based on this, Zhang Xingjiu can probably get 10% to 20% of the royalties. If "Pirates of the Caribbean" can be as popular as "The Count of Monte Cristo", Zhang Xingjiu's annual income will be very considerable.

When "The Count of Monte Cristo" was at its peak, Dumas could earn 20 francs a year. He used the money to buy a piece of land in the suburbs of Paris at the time, and then built a castle on the flat ground, which was built exactly according to the Castle of Monte Cristo in the book.

After it was built, he held parties here all day long and lived a life of debauchery for many years before he spent all the royalties from "The Count of Monte Cristo".

Zhang Xingjiu deliberately controlled the pace of the story and only finished telling the first four stories the day before he arrived at the port of Marseille. As for whether he would continue to tell the rest, it depended on how much money the publishing house would pay.

(End of this chapter)