Have you ever been a celebrity? Why are you writing about entertainment?

Chapter 158 Manage Your Readers!
"This kid might be able to help online literature go global."

Seeing so many foreigners interested in Yu Wei's novels, Qi Luo'an was quite surprised. It seemed these people were really looking for something big...

Of course, they were only interested in Yu Wei as a person; the novel was just a way for them to learn about Yu Wei.

If you want to understand Yu Wei, reading his novels is indeed the best way. The character design of the protagonist in an online novel is a certain reflection of the author's personality.

They are not entirely equivalent, but their values ​​are basically aligned. Take Yu Wei's "Celebrity Ratings" as an example.

A system that allows users to point fingers and criticize others, clearly intended to attack the Chinese entertainment industry, was somehow turned into a farcical piece of writing by him.

This shows that Yu Wei is not very aggressive. What drives him to do things is not competitiveness, but simply fun. If it's interesting, he'll try it; if it's not, he'll just give up.

Although the protagonist Qi Luoan is modeled after Yu Wei, she sometimes pushes the plot forward according to her own way of thinking, displaying a rebellious streak...

It's perfectly feasible to understand an author through a novel; the only question is whether foreigners can comprehend it. This has nothing to do with translation, but rather with cultural differences.

People in fantasy worlds who cultivate immortality and practice qi might be watchable, but entertainment-themed content is basically impossible to export because it's too localized and self-indulgent.

Foreigners haven't even heard of the songs, let alone any sense of immersion or enjoyment. Even if they did search for and listen to them, they probably wouldn't like Chinese music.

Do you really think the whole universe speaks Chinese? If you can't understand the lyrics and only look at the melody, Chinese songs don't have much of an advantage.

"rely on you!"

Qi Luoan patted Yu Wei on the shoulder with a serious expression, "Only your entertainment has the potential to go international, because people don't care about the plot."

Yu Wei wasn't happy to hear this. He could have just said that his novel had nothing to offer and that he didn't care about the plot. Who wouldn't care about a good plot?
Sometimes, there's no need to be subtle about things that everyone knows the truth...

After the film festival ended, they should have had a celebration banquet, but since their return tickets were already arranged, they decided to celebrate back home.

The next morning, Yu Wei got up on time. This was their short film team's last morning in Leuven.

Just as he was preparing to leave in a hurry, without taking a single cloud with him, Qi Luoan, dressed neatly, knocked on his door.

"On your last morning, why don't you go out for a stroll?" Qi Luo'an seemed afraid he wouldn't agree, so she coaxed him further, "You might never have the chance to come to a place like Belgium again, so let's leave a memento."

Since they arrived, they seem to be very busy every day and haven't had a proper chance to go shopping. She just wants to leave behind some memories that belong only to them before she leaves.

Half an hour is enough; it won't take much effort.

"Sounds good."

If I just leave like this, it really feels like I've wasted my trip. Coming all this way to pick up an award and going back home, it looks more like a business trip.

After tidying up briefly, the two of them went out aimlessly.

Before leaving, Qi Luoan finally changed back to his rebellious style, wearing a loose off-white knit sweater with light black high-waisted trousers, which looked like piano keys.

Yu Weidu suspected that she dressed like that on purpose... she wanted to get flung, didn't she?

The two walked along the stone path in the morning light toward the market square. When they passed St. Peter's Church, Qi Luoan stopped and looked up to take a picture of the silhouette of the Gothic spire in the morning light.

Yu Wei was so focused on the little priest during his last visit that he didn't even think to take a picture as a souvenir—typical otaku thinking.

"Come and look at the camera."

The stained glass windows of the church shimmered with vibrant colors in the rising sun. Qi Luoan pulled him to stand where the light and shadow intersected, and took their first photo together with his phone.

She smiled and tilted her head to lean against his shoulder; he looked slightly stiff, but the corners of his mouth turned up.

The two looked quite good on camera. Qi Luoan held the phone and looked at it again and again, even becoming somewhat reluctant to put it down.

"Do you also dream of becoming a photographer?"

"No, I just like this one... So why did you say 'also'?"

Yu Wei smiled and didn't say anything. Isn't it normal for the young lady to want to be a photographer?
After passing through the arched alleyways of the old town, the two had breakfast at a small shop in a corner, where the aroma of baking wafted through the air.

Qi Luoan ordered a waffle drizzled with chocolate sauce, but Yu Wei didn't like it and chose a croissant and coffee instead.

"How tasteless! They don't even eat Belgium's signature desserts."

"I tried it the first time, but it's not as good as a scallion pancake."

He noticed that Qi Luoan had chocolate sauce on the corner of her mouth when she took a bite, and he instinctively reached for a tissue to wipe it off for her, but hesitated for a moment and then put it down.

It wasn't that Yu Wei was being reserved; it was mainly because this guy was a bit of a pervert, and he was afraid Qi Luo'an would lick his hand...

As she passed by a bookstore window, Qi Luoan pointed to the cartoon cow on the cover of a Dutch picture book and laughed; passing by the KU Leuven library, she raised her camera to capture the vines on the brick wall and the slanted shadows cast by the sculptures.

In front of a window of a house adorned with flowers, she had Yu Wei squat down to tie his shoelaces, while she secretly took a picture of his profile alongside the blooming hydrangeas behind him.

The two walked and stopped, and before they knew it, they had circled back to the hotel. The sun was getting hotter, and it was time for them to pack up and go home.

"Thank you for bringing me out. I had a lot of fun."

Actually, it's not that the introverted guy doesn't want to go out, it's just that he can't find anyone to go with. Qi Luoan's invitation coincided with his thoughts.

She's probably the only one who can understand me so perfectly...

"You just thank me without saying anything in return?"

Qi Luoan was just saying it casually, but unexpectedly Yu Wei actually took out a stack of postcards from his bag and started looking through them.

Yu Wei bought this on a whim when they passed by the bookstore earlier, saying he wanted to take it back as a souvenir.

"Give it to you."

Qi Luoan reluctantly accepted the small card he was handed over. He had bought it himself, and it cost less than ten yuan.

You can give it away, but only one?
She didn't know what to say for a moment. Oh well, it's good enough that she got something. This was the first time Yu Wei had ever given her something in a proper way.

The card featured a relief of the Leuven City Hall on the front and artistic lettering in ornate French on the back; it looked quite exquisite and would make a nice keepsake. The two returned to their rooms to pack their belongings. Qi Luo'an carefully stuffed his personal items into his suitcase, a strange feeling gradually rising within him.

If it's just a perfunctory postcard, then why did Yu Wei choose to...?

She seems to have discovered the key point.

Qi Luoan picked up the postcard and examined it carefully. The landscape painting on the front was nothing special, but she turned it over and used a photo translator to identify the artistic lettering on the back.

The translation that popped up on the screen made her hold her breath.

"Before the bells tolled, you had already taken away my morning."

……

The morning light at Brussels Airport shines through the glass dome onto the smooth floor.

The arrival of Yu Wei's team caused a subtle commotion. Several European-looking travelers whispered among themselves, their phone cameras discreetly turning towards them.

To be precise, the main focus was on filming Yu Wei. Last night, the local entertainment headlines published the latest news: the song "Castle in the Sky" has become a well-known work among the locals.

Yu Wei has also made a name for himself in the European art scene. Who says there are no musicians in the East? This piece is the best proof.

"Your postcard..."

Qi Luoan hesitated all the way before finally deciding to ask, her heart pounding with excitement from keeping it bottled up inside.

"You lost it?"

"No, no." She subconsciously leaned closer to Yu Wei and whispered, "Do you know what that string of French means?"

He spent a long time picking and choosing this one, and it's obvious that he chose it based on this text, since Yu Wei does know some French.

Qi Luoan wanted to hear him say it himself.

"do not know."

Yu Wei knew immediately that she had already investigated and knew what she wanted to do. Both of them were aware of this, but that was precisely why he could not go along with her wishes.

You want to hear it, huh? I'm not going to tell you.

Qi Luo'an seemed to have guessed that Yu Wei would give this answer. If he didn't want to say, then so be it. It was enough to know what he was thinking.

Yu Wei insisted that he didn't know her, and there was really nothing that could be done. Who knew whether he actually knew her or not? It was a comprehensive, all-around, three-dimensional protection.

After boarding, in economy class, the team occupied the two middle rows, and the trophy box was securely placed under the seatbelt of Yu Weilin's empty seat.

Then came the much-anticipated writing segment. Yu Wei's hands are still a bit sore from playing the piano, so she probably can't write as much as last time.

The preliminary rounds of "Top Idol" have temporarily come to an end, and he is currently writing the plot for the theatrical release of "Kung Fu Jungle".

The film's box office performance was mediocre, but it unexpectedly became popular after being streamed online, mainly because the character of Feng Yuxiu was so well-developed.

He was engrossed in writing when Qi Luo'an casually asked, "So, have you thought about my second novel?"

The last time she asked this question was eight or nine days ago. Recently, Yu Wei has been busy preparing for the performance, so she didn't want to bother him. Now she can finally ask.

A plagiarist's novel, with over forty chapters in one work, and that's without any spoilers—that's torture...

Qi Luoan had no idea how she had managed to write all this in the past few days. She kept repeating the same things over and over, which made even readers who weren't interested in the plot and were just discussing it a little tired of it.

Everyone thought she was Yu Wei, so the comments section was full of people telling her to stop updating and go prepare for her farewell performance. But she's not going to play the piano, so why stop updating?

"Manage your readers, you melancholic mushroom!"

Yu Wei almost burst out laughing when he heard this. He knew those words all too well and dared not say them carelessly.

"Keep writing suspense."

After thinking it over, he decided to let Qi Luoan continue writing in this genre. He had only copied one suspense novel, and it would be too fast to switch tracks now. He would write a few more to let readers get used to it.

It's not too late to write about new topics once everyone gets used to it.

"OK."

Qi Luoan thought so too. Although she didn't know what Yu Wei wanted to write, from the perspective of reader acceptance, continuing to write suspense was the most appropriate.

Her book, "Data on Failures," was initially based on suspense, so it would be awkward to switch styles abruptly.

"Last time I wrote about two authors, what will I write about this time?"

"Let's write two stories about high-IQ academic achievers."

Yu Wei decided to continue exploiting Keigo Higashino's works. Compared to "Malice," "The Devotion of Suspect X" is a genuine suspense novel with a more complex plot.

"You even understand top students?"

Qi Luo'an certainly believed in Yu Wei's artistic talent, but she couldn't say anything about his academic talent...

It's worth mentioning that before boarding this morning, the Film Association sent a message saying that there were media and fans at the airport to greet them.

An hour before the flight landed, the team members were inevitably a little nervous.

They can be said to have fulfilled their mission and returned with a full harvest, but the grand scene of welcoming them at the airport was something that no one had ever seen before, let alone participated in personally.

Yu Wei opened the trophy box in advance and wiped it clean. With this thing in hand, what was there to be afraid of when the media came to pick him up at the airport?

I'm going to show you something amazing.

(End of this chapter)