My Years as a Copyist in Taiwan

In just three days, bookstores all over the island went crazy.

The business owners who were previously threatened by Golden Crown have now piled up "Those Years" in the most conspicuous display at the entrance, even more prominently than when Auntie's new book was first published.

Shi Yituo, the distribution manager of Kingcrown, called each of them to hold them accountable, but the bosses responded perfunctorily.

"Oh, Manager Shi, it's not that I'm being disrespectful, but the students specifically asked for it. We can't just let the money slip by, can we? You should also urge Auntie on your side to write something that young people like to read."

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At Golden Crown Publishing House, the cold air from the air conditioner did nothing to calm Manager Shi Yituo down; beads of sweat dripped down his face because his boss and his wife were sitting behind him.

So even though every call yielded the same answer, Manager Shi never gave up and stubbornly kept dialing.

"Alright, stop hitting them. They're all money-grubbing bastards!" The auntie called out to Manager Shi, trying to sound calm. Her accent was dry and lacked the pleasant, soft, Taiwanese accent of the locals.

Manager Shi reluctantly put down the phone and turned to look at his bread and butter.

The aunt took the handwritten book sales statistics from the owner of Kingcrown Bookstore. She lost her grip on the ivory pen and it clattered onto the mahogany coffee table.

"Four days, 100,000 copies! Love letters? I think this is utterly heretical!" the aunt shouted angrily.

For so many years, the romance novel market in Taiwan has always been her domain. When did it become the place of a mere greenhorn to rise to prominence as the number one romance novelist in Taiwan?!

The literary standing I've built up over the past two decades cannot, absolutely cannot, be easily taken away by a new author who just appears out of nowhere!

Seeing his "soulmate" so heartbroken, the owner of Golden Crown quickly and gently comforted her:

"Dear XX, reader preferences change, that's normal. Didn't some books become short-lived bestsellers a few years ago, only to disappear without a trace?"

The boss personally poured a glass of water, returned to the aunt's side, and continued to coax her while handing her the water:

"Your readership is so strong; those young girls are just looking for something new. Once this hype dies down, they'll all come back to your stories. These next few days—Manager Shi, increase the promotional efforts for the new book and arrange a few book signings!"

"Okay! I'll start arranging it right away!" Manager Shi, who was just looking for an excuse to leave, hurriedly ran out upon hearing his boss's order.

The aunt slowly loosened the sales chart that had been crumpled in her hand, leaned weakly on the boss's shoulder, her eyes welling up with tears, filled with resentment but unable to find a way out.

She dared not crack down any further, because this year, the authorities were investigating and punishing "market manipulation," and had already arrested several high-ranking officials and businessmen involved in the scheme.

Meanwhile, the editorial department of Jiuge Publishing House was overwhelmed with letters.

Yi'an's fingertips were red from opening so many letters. The envelopes were all different, and the letter paper was even more varied: official letterhead with the school letterhead, flowered stationery covered with little hearts, and even exercise books! But without exception, every single letter contained a receipt for the books she bought.

"Editor Gao! Two more sacks have arrived! The distributor in Kaohsiung said the submissions there are piling up; they'll do a preliminary screening first, then send them all over!"

Editor Gao was also squatting on the ground, opening the letters. His notebook was filled with dense writing, and he was overjoyed: "Including today's submissions, we've already surpassed 30,000! And today is only the 1st! 30,000 submissions means at least 30,000 copies sold! And that doesn't even include those who bought the book but didn't submit it!"

The president went up to the second floor and saw letters all over the floor. He laughed jokingly because at that moment, Editor-in-Chief Gao was sitting proudly at his desk, holding the phone and calling the printing factory again and again to ask for more print runs.

"Print another 100,000 copies! No, 150,000! The printing press is working through the night! Money is no object!"

After hanging up the phone, Editor Gao grinned, revealing a set of white teeth: "President, half of the 150,000 additional copies printed have already been pre-ordered!"

The president walked to the pile of letters, picked one up at random, opened it, and looked at the naive yet sincere words inside, murmuring:

"Tell me, how come this child's brain works at such a young age?"

"Writing a book is impressive enough, but to come up with something like this is amazing. Others sell books by selling stories, but he manages to tie the readers' anxieties to the book and sell them, and the readers are still willing to pay for it."

He flicked his cigarette ash and exclaimed sincerely, "I think it's such a waste to use this brain only for writing books. If he were to go into business or publishing, within ten years, all the publishers on the island would have to make way for him. This isn't just a new writer; this is a born businessman!"

Editor Gao nodded in deep agreement. Seeing that the president's cigarette had burned out, he leaned to the side and offered him another, boasting smugly, "This kid's already started writing his second novel!"

Zhao Wen, who was copying his second novel, had just finished selecting today's ten confessions and put down his pen to rub his wrist.

Looking at the setting sun outside the window, Wenchao Gong was full of pride: this campaign could boost sales by at least 200,000 copies, and with word-of-mouth spreading naturally, breaking 500,000 copies by the end of November was a sure thing.

This is only the first step.

Once the confession booklet is printed, the gimmick of "Mr. Snail's handwritten reply" will spread far and wide, and sales will likely rise even further.

Haha, trying to suppress newcomers through distribution channels? I don't even need to compete with you for resources.

What I'm relying on is a 40-year-ahead understanding of human nature. Your suppression will only become the best free publicity for "You Are the Apple of My Eye"!

Every day after school, a group of boys and girls would gather in front of Tainan's largest newsstand, chattering away like a modern-day offline gathering of online forum users.

A girl in a school uniform, holding up the books she had just bought, said blushing, "I think Ko Ching-teng is just like our class monitor! He's always arguing with me too. Last time I forgot my umbrella, he secretly gave it to me and ran off!"

The boy next to me scratched his head: "I stayed up all night watching it last night, and I cried during the graduation part. I also liked a girl in junior high, but I never dared to tell her until graduation."

"Don't ever mention Auntie to me again!" A girl with glasses rolled her eyes. "All her female characters do is cry and make a scene; they have no brains at all, acting like they're going to die for a guy. Unlike Shen Jiayi, who's independent and clear-headed—that's a normal girl!"

Many passersby originally only intended to buy a newspaper, but after hearing the children's discussion, they would casually flip through "You Are the Apple of My Eye" and then buy a copy... The newsstand owner restocked three times today, but it still wasn't enough to meet demand.

Within four days of its release, "Those Years" sold 100,000 copies.

Within a week of its release, it sold over 200,000 copies.

Within a month of its release, it sold a staggering 7 copies and was reprinted seven times.

Meanwhile, "Burn, Flame Bird!", which was released at the same time, had an initial print run of 20 copies, but only sold less than 12 copies.

Sales were four times lower.

The United Daily News and Jiuge Magazine were close allies, and their front page featured a photo: on the left, readers crowded around a newsstand, and on the right, a dusty copy of "Burn, Flame Bird!" The headline boldly proclaimed: "A Day's Threat, Eternal Defeat—The End of the Era of Roaring Romance Novels."

They also wrote in their comments: "In the face of absolute market power and profits, any monopoly or threat is utterly insignificant. Readers voted with their feet, choosing the stories they truly enjoyed."