Courtyard House: Drunk and tipsy, the whole courtyard exposed at the start.

In 1961, Ming Pao was still in its difficult early stages, with a daily circulation of about 2 copies, barely managing to stay afloat.

The true state of the editorial department at that time:

According to a former Ming Pao employee, "Mr. Cha was really having a tough time back then. When he was tired from work in the afternoon, he would order a cup of coffee, which he would drink with his wife."

"At that time, Ms. Jin lived in Tsim Sha Tsui. When she got off work late at night, the Star Ferry had already stopped running, so she had to take a small electric boat, commonly known as a 'wa-la-la' boat, to cross the harbor. The boat would only depart when there were six people on board, and the fare was cheaper. If she wanted to depart immediately, she would need to charter the boat for three dollars. The couple preferred to wait in the cool night wind rather than charter the boat to cross the harbor."

Newspapers and magazines are already struggling to survive these days, and now some random newcomer has popped up and is trying to take a slice of the pie...

These days are getting harder and harder.

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At 4:30 pm, Teacher Jin looked up from the pile of manuscript papers.

He said to his wife, "Shall we go get a cup of coffee?"

At a corner tea restaurant, the two of them shared a drink.

The owner was used to it—Mr. Cha would only order one drink at a time, drink it, add water, drink it again, and then get up.

Nobody asked why.

Everyone knows Wan Chai in 1961.

As for the newly released "Liancheng Jue" in "Wuxia World"?

The world is vast, and the sudden appearance of a new work won't change much; people will still live their lives as before.

Not long after Teacher Jin left, a young man in an old suit strode into number 399.

He had a brown paper bag tucked under his arm, containing the first few chapters of "The Iron-Clad Hero," which he had just finished writing. It would be serialized next month, and he wanted to show it to Lao Jin so he could think about it.

The receptionist didn't look up: "Mr. Yue Chuan, just put the manuscript on the table."

The young man put the paper bag down.

I went to the finance department and got HKD 630.

This is his third month's payment for writing for Ming Pao.

What he didn't know was that a month later, someone would offer him HK$800 to write a serial for another newspaper.

800 to 630, is there even a question?

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On the same day, at Shau Kei Wan Police Station.

Superintendent Hale held the copy of "The Asia Magazine" in his hand, his brow furrowed deeply.

He was seconded from London and had been in Hong Kong for seven years, rising to the rank of detective inspector. In those seven years, he handled over two hundred cases, large and small, and boasted that he had seen all sorts of strange things.

I never imagined I would read a British fairy tale in Hong Kong.

And it's a new fairy tale.

And it was written by a Chinese person.

He flipped through the magazine three times. The cover design was simple, with a bilingual (Chinese and English) title—

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone;

"Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone";

"J.K. Zhang is wearing."

Turning the pages, you'll find English on the left and Chinese on the right. The English is natural and fluent, with a perfect touch of classic fairy tale language—not the kind of translated tone, but the authentic, native-speaker style that only a true native speaker could write.

Superintendent Hale remained silent for a long time.

His daughter, Katie, will turn eight next month. In her last letter, she complained that there were no English children's books to read in Hong Kong and asked him to send them from England. He asked someone to buy three books, which will take six weeks to ship across the ocean, and Katie has almost worn the spines out of shape from reading them.

He folded the magazine and stuffed it into the inner pocket of his police uniform.

At 3 p.m., he passed by Shau Kei Wan Main Street and looked up at the "Mixue Ice Cream" sign.

His subordinate, patrol officer Ah Long, approached him: "Sir, is there something going on?"

Superintendent Hale shook his head.

He was startled by his own absurd thought: how could a milk tea shop owner and a writer of British fairy tales be the same person?

"Go in and order me a set meal, the kind I usually eat, with extra cream and chocolate."

"Yesh sir!"

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The rest is just waiting for the two newspapers and magazines to become popular.

It wouldn't be considered a viral sensation, but it certainly generated some temporary buzz (traffic).

Both magazines have editors-in-chief and chief editors. Zhang Yaoyang only needs to provide the novel manuscript. He is neither knowledgeable nor professional in other matters, so there is no need for him to get involved.

So I focused my attention on Beijing. It's only been a month since school started, you can't expect me to take leave every day, right?

So after school today, I went to pick up Mu Wanqing.

As for He Yushui?

It's too far, and the girl hasn't even confessed her feelings yet, so why is Zhang Dabiao in such a hurry?

In name only, Mu Wanqing is his official girlfriend!

Everyone knows they're dating!

Zhang Dabiao's school is in Baiduizi, and Mu Wanqing's school is at No. 17 Qianhai West Street, Xicheng District. It's only a half-hour bike ride away.

This is to prevent them from riding at full speed, and to prevent Zhang Dabiao from daring to finish in a quarter of an hour!

Then, amidst the envious and jealous gazes of his classmates, he rode his bicycle home with Mu Wanqing on the back.

As for Zhang Dabiao's own bicycle, it was naturally kept in his "little nest".

I rode my bike all the way from Baiduizi, and then we each rode our bikes back together...

Am I here to show off that I have a bicycle?

Is it tacky or not?

However, after driving Mu Wanqing home twice, Mu Wanqing was reported. Not only that, Zhang Dabiao also got into a fight with the boys in his class at the school gate.

The reason was that in 1961, the Beijing Art Academy, like all other colleges and universities, implemented the strict student management regulations that were uniform throughout the country—dating was strictly prohibited during school. If discovered, the consequences ranged from a warning to expulsion.

This is explicitly prohibited and written into the rules. "No dating" is a black-and-white, high-voltage line.

Specific regulations include: dating is strictly prohibited during school; any intimate behavior on campus (holding hands, walking alone, excessive closeness, etc.) is strictly prohibited; exchanging romantic information through letters, notes, or other means is strictly prohibited; and romantic relationships cannot be established before graduation and job assignment.

Punishment tiers: First offense: Class/League meeting, criticism and education, order to write a self-criticism; Repeat offenders: Discipline within the Youth League, school-wide public criticism;

Serious circumstances/causing significant impact: expulsion from school or expulsion from student status (real cases exist).

In 1961, during the later period of the "Three Years of Natural Disasters," the country emphasized being "both red and expert," and university students were considered valuable talents cultivated by the country. Dating was regarded as an act that "distracted one's energy, affected one's studies, and corrupted one's mind."

Moreover, the music performance major at the Beijing Art Academy had more female students and was more strictly managed. It was established in 1960, and 1961 was a time when the school was cracking down on bad habits.

Furthermore, Mu Wanqing was exceptionally beautiful, possessing a natural allure unlike anything seen in this era, which naturally drew attention.

The class's Youth League secretary and class monitor repeatedly "expressed" their desire to get closer, study and progress together, and become lifelong partners—school rules forbid it, but there are still quite a few secret couples. How can feelings be resisted?

But they were rejected outright by Mu Wanqing.

Everyone thought the woman was just shy, playing hard to get, like the proverb "a man pursuing a woman is as difficult as climbing a mountain, but a woman pursuing a man is as easy as piercing a thin veil."

I'm currently pondering how to pursue Mu Wanqing. Should I invite her boating at Beihai Park? Or go to Lao Mo Restaurant? Or go see a play...?

These past two days, I've seen Mu Wanqing being picked up from school by some slovenly guy, riding her bike!

Mu Wanqing was still blushing as she leaned against him.

And he keeps slamming on the brakes all the time?!

I'm RTM!

They feel like they've been cheated on, like they've been cuckolded!

On the third day, when Zhang Dabiao came to pick up Mu Wanqing from school, a group of male college students rushed out of the school gate!

"Let go of that girl, let me handle this!"