I am a literary giant in Europe

Chapter 586 Jonathan's Gift
After the August 15th shooting incident in 2005, things were calm.

Liu Jin seemed to be frightened and did not continue to provoke Xiao Rizi's sensitive nerve.

And even ordinary people seem to be afraid!

After all, following the shooting, the whole world condemned this act of violence.

The problem is, even in my daily life, I'm still feeling down!

Who was it that fired that shot? If you're going to fire, at least take him down!
They didn't manage to kill Liu Jin, and they ended up getting themselves into a lot of trouble.

As a result, they became more cautious about their daily lives after that.

Let's keep to ourselves and not interfere with each other!

At the same time, Sony and Columbia also showed a very positive attitude, wanting to cooperate with Liu Jin.

Although no agreement has been reached yet, there are signs that the conflict can be resolved peacefully.

Never underestimate the value of everyday life.

Just like the 'forbearance' principle they uphold, they can endure everything that is intolerable in the world.

They will lower your guard and, like venomous snakes, strike you with their most fatal blow.

For example, Liu Jin's "Ghee" at the opening ceremony yesterday gave Xiao Rizi an opportunity.

Of course, they also knew they couldn't do anything to Liu Jin.

But they still fueled the flames, trying to smear Liu Jin.

He is a writer and a public figure.

In Europe, where everything revolves around "political correctness," it is a major event if a public figure is labeled a "racist."

Just look at what happened to Bob Vylan, the lead singer of the British punk rap band Bob Vylan, twenty years later—how tragic it was!

However, Little Life overestimated Europe's, or rather the Western world's, understanding of 'political correctness'.

Do Chinese people discriminate against Indians?

Discrimination is nothing!

Just like how Indians discriminate against Chinese people, nobody really cares.

The key question is: who can bring in the benefits?

Liu Jin satisfied the cultural needs of Europeans and brought substantial profits to major publishing houses.

And Indra...

A publisher is satisfied with sales of 200,000 to 300,000 copies, but an author can bring you sales of a million or even close to ten million copies, while also boosting your market value... It's obvious who to choose.

Therefore, driven by the desire for a better life, some celebrities did indeed come forward to criticize Liu Jin.

But soon after, even more people stood up to defend Liu Jin.

Especially since Les Misérables had been completed and published by Hachette Publishing Group, any information that was detrimental to Liu Jin's reputation was to be suppressed.

So, as soon as voices criticizing Liu Jin emerged, Arnaud Lagardère, CEO of the Hachette Publishing Group, acted decisively. Hachette-Filibertch Newspaper and Magazine Publishing Company, a subsidiary of Hachette, was the first to publish an article about Liu Jin.

Liu Jinchu recounted his experiences from the moment he arrived in France.

People can't forget the warmth that *Amélie* brought them, nor the awe that *The Father Trapped in Time* evoked. They can't forget the emergence of *The Old Man and the Sea*, nor the spiritual enjoyment brought by *Pirates of the Caribbean* and other works. And *The Hunchback of Notre Dame* made all French people proud!
The proud Gallic rooster will worship a Chinese person because of a book.

How unimaginable!

On May 20th, M6, which had just finished criticizing Liu Jin, aired an interview with Melissa in Cannes.

This guy is so rich, yet he's willing to ride in a second-hand yacht.

So much so that some people called on Beneteau to give Liu Jin a brand new Anhai Shi, otherwise it would be a disservice to Liu Jin's reputation.

Crucially, Beneteau Yachts also responded.

"We will contact Mr. Amos and build him the world's most comfortable yacht according to his requirements, so that he can create in peace on the yacht..."

This made Liu Jin a little embarrassed!

Um, are you giving them away for free?

……

Let's go back to May 19th.

After Liu Jin went to sea, he stayed on the ship reading newspapers and then writing.

I have a general understanding of the reason.

It's nothing serious!
Do Europeans care if Chinese people discriminate against Indians?
Unless you're Black, in most cases no one will really care.

As for the criticisms in the newspapers, they were like scratching an itch through a boot—completely useless.

Besides a few tabloids...

The only newspaper that actually launched the attack was The Sun.

Liu Jin went up to the deck and asked Melissa, "I don't think I've offended The Sun, have I?"

Melissa glanced at the newspaper and said casually, "The Sun has always been like this, always trying to make a sensational statement..."

However, although you didn't offend The Sun, you did offend their boss's wife.

"what?"

Liu Jin was stunned.

"You forgot that Ms. Zhang Ziyi was the first judge invited to this year's Cannes Film Festival."

As a result, the Ministry of Culture suggested inviting you to be a judge... I remember that Ms. Zhang and Ms. Deng were very close.

So, is it to stand up for your best friend?
Are they that close?

Melissa laughed and said, "News Corp. and Little Life have a very close partnership."

"If you put it that way, then I understand!"

In fact, America has a good relationship with many media moguls and her family.

There's no way around it, we're living comfortably with money!

But News Corp., and Mr. Murdoch...

Tsk tsk tsk!
Liu Jin decided that he would have to be more careful in the future.

In the afternoon, under the gentle sea breeze, Liu Jin wrote more than 10,000 words, then finished work and prepared to go home.

Melissa and the photographer also enjoyed a rare, leisurely afternoon.

That damn cameraman!

The atmosphere would probably be better without him.

Liu Jin and Melissa exchanged a glance, and in their hearts, they both silently cursed the cameraman.

In the evening, the yacht entered the dock.

Liu Jin and Melissa said goodbye at the dock. He felt Melissa slip something into his pocket. He reached in and felt it; it was a card.

Looking into Melissa's big, watery eyes, he immediately understood! He made a phone call gesture, then rented a scooter at the pier and sped off along the seaside promenade.

"This guy is really dashing."

The cameraman said with no small amount of envy.

"How to say?"

"He doesn't seem like a billionaire at all."

"What's that like?"

"It seems to be...it seems to be Reidia, who lives a carefree life..."

"Reitia is a woman!"

"What gives you the right to say that Reitia is a woman, or a man?"

That's what it says in the book.

"Is what the book says correct? Only Reitia herself can decide her gender; she can even be a yacht."

"Fou (crazy person, lunatic)!"

Melissa suddenly felt that she could no longer communicate normally with the other person.

……

"Mera, is something the matter?"

Liu Jin returned the scooter to the hotel's rental office.

They're all owned by the same person; they have offices in various hotels in Cannes.

As soon as I entered the lobby, I received a call from Mela.

"Guess who called me this afternoon?"

"Who?"

"Jonathan Karp!"

"Who is that?"

"The editor-in-chief of Pocket Publishing, well, it's a publishing house under Simon & Schuster, and also the one that's responsible for Indra Sinha."

What do they want from you?

"You forgot about the Assassin's Creed, the Ezio trilogy?"

We haven't announced this work to the public yet, and we don't know how they got the news. They seem interested in distributing the English version of the book.

"The Ezio trilogy was originally in English!"

"Yes, it's because it's an English version that I haven't been able to publish it until now."

I need to find someone to translate it into French, damn it! Why didn't you write it in French? Otherwise, I could have published it in the first half of the year.

Hmm, that seems to be the case!

"How's the translation going?"

"The first part is finished, the second part is half translated and is expected to be completed in August, and the third part will be completed by the end of the year."

Additionally, the first installment will be released in July.

"Ha, looks like we're about to make a fortune again!"

Liu Jin joked.

Mela said irritably on the phone, "What did Jonathan say?"

"Let's see what their terms are... First, ask them if they're interested in publishing 'The Black Swan' and 'Midnight in Barcelona'."

We've never worked together before, and this is a huge book right off the bat..."

“I understand, I will discuss this with him.”

Mela paused for a moment after saying this.

"However, he sent me a gift via email."

"what gift?"

"It's a recording of Indra Sinha referring to you as chingchong in a private conversation."

"He did it?"

"No, it's one of his writers, a friend of Indra."

The man recorded his conversation with Indra... He said it was also a gift from Simon and Schuster to you.

Liu Jin, silent!

He thought for a moment and said, "Mera, be careful when dealing with him!"

"Yes, I know."

"And this gift..."

"Ignore it!"

After a moment's hesitation, Liu Jin made his decision.

He cannot get involved in this matter.

Even if the recording is released, it shouldn't be related to him.

His silence suggests the gift wasn't valuable enough... If Jonathan were smart, he would know what to do.

As for Simon & Schuster?

We can cooperate!

After all, this is one of America's six major universities.

Even though Liu Jin already has cooperative relationships with the other three major powers, having another partner would only benefit him.

He won't refuse!
However, we must be wary.

Given the cautionary tale of Bei Dongdan and Mr. Hong's future questionable actions, we must be extremely careful...

Liu Jin didn't think that this Mr. Jonathan Karp was much more noble than Boss Hong, and might even be more despicable.

This can be seen from his ruthless betrayal of Indra in order to win over Liu Jin.

Since his rebirth in 2025, Liu Jin has been extra careful and cautious when cooperating with these foreigners.

Of course, Mela is not included!
He hung up the phone and prepared to return to his room to rest.

But before he could even step into the elevator, the phone rang again.

Why are you so busy?
Liu Jin couldn't help but curse under his breath, then glanced at the caller ID, paused for a moment, and then answered the phone.

……

(End of this chapter)