I turned reality into a romantic comedy

"Yes, I stayed up a little late last night because I was writing an article, and when I woke up it was already this late, so I rushed over here."

"Is there anything you'd like to eat, Wenjun?"

"I haven't decided yet, but I'm not particularly hungry right now. Junqian, come with me to look at the new books first."

If this were a scene from a typical romantic comedy in anime, Zhu Wenyun would probably have added a sound effect of her stomach growling with hunger after saying that to indicate it was a lie. But reality obviously doesn't have such special effects, so Chen Junqian had no choice but to follow her into the vicinity of the bookstore counter in the mall.

"Speaking of which, how's the draft? Last time you only said it was finished."

"Yes, and then I submitted the manuscript to the editor's email. The feedback seems to be pretty good, so now I'm making revisions and submitting a more complete outline."

Speaking of her manuscript, Zhu Wenyun unconsciously yawned again. It seems that she has been quite tired from being busy with this matter recently. After all, even though under Chen Junqian's guidance, she has gradually overcome her procrastination problem of having a thousand words in her heart but not being able to write a single word, her rigorous attitude towards words and works has not changed.

At least in Chen Junqian's view, Zhu Wenyun had a bit of a perfectionist mentality when it came to writing. After all, he had never seen a single draft of Zhu Wenyun's work. He just didn't know whether this pursuit of perfection was Zhu Wenyun's personal writing habit or just an attitude he held towards him alone.

Which magazine did you submit to?

"Fireworks, but the only problem now is that the editor seems to think I'm planning to write a long emotional story, so she's tacitly agreed to my approach of starting the first chapter from elementary school. But she also suggested that I could start directly from middle school and weave past events into the memories... But I haven't even been to middle school myself."

"The audience for 'Fireworks' is indeed mostly middle school students, but Wen Yun could also elevate the male and female protagonists in the story a bit. As long as it's not written too childishly, it shouldn't feel out of place."

"Yes, that's what I think too. After all, I don't think the story between you and me is childish at all. It's more than enough for a middle school student, and we're about to start middle school anyway."

In fact, among the three in Guoning, Zhu Wenyun was the one who was born the earliest and was also the most mature in both physiology and psychology. After all, she read a lot of books, and her reading volume was higher than that of Lin Mu and Xu Youwei combined.

In Chen Junqian's mind, Xu Youwei was not so much precocious as she was suddenly forced to mature at a certain point. But she was still a child at heart, and her thoughts and actions were like that most of the time. Otherwise, Lin Mu would not have complained that she could split into two forms with the Tiger Talisman.

Mu Mu... well, Mu Mu doesn't need to be mentioned.

As she spoke, Xu Youwei's fingers, which had been brushing across the bookshelf, paused briefly over a particular book before pulling it out.

It's Yu Hua's "To Live".

"Has Junqian read any of Yu Hua's works?"

"I've read some, but not many. However, this one you have is one of them. Why are you suddenly interested in Yu Hua, Wenjun?"

"Because I've been reading another of his books recently, 'Chronicle of a Blood Merchant'."

As she spoke, Zhu Wenyun changed the subject again, quite unusually taking the initiative to talk to Chen Junqian about animated films.

"Although Junqian always says I've never watched cartoons, I have watched some of them here and there before. I remember you said you still have a toy sword from Rainbow Cat and Blue Rabbit Seven Swordsmen at home, right? I've watched that one."

"Then, a couple of days ago, while I was cooking at home, I suddenly remembered that I had watched a show called 'Little Chef Fu Gui' before. Although the recipes and cooking skills in it are not very useful for reference, and the dishes will not become delicious just by saying 'golden yellow'."

"However, I actually really like the plots of both of these films, and when I took out the DVDs to watch them again, I found that the credits for the opening theme songs of both films included a literary consultant, and that consultant was Yu Hua."

"Although I later looked up information online and found out that he was probably just a figurehead, I still suddenly became interested in reading his books, so I borrowed another copy of 'Chronicle of a Blood Merchant' from the library."

Faced with Zhu Wenyun, who could rekindle her interest in traditional literature by watching an animated film, Chen Junqian felt a little speechless for a moment. After all, when he watched these films back then, he didn't care about the production credits at all. At most, he would learn to sing a couple of lines of his favorite songs and copy down the lyrics.

For example, regarding the two animated films mentioned by the other party, Chen Junqian had previously memorized the lyrics from their theme songs: "A man with courage travels the world with a sword" and "Being a person is like scallions mixed with tofu, traveling the world with integrity."

By the way, Mu Mu, who also loves watching Rainbow Cat and Blue Rabbit Seven Heroes, actually prefers the ending theme song. I guess next time the two of them go to karaoke together, he'll hear her continue singing off-key, "My heart is filled with thoughts of him, though my dreams are filled with countless falling flowers."

"I've also read 'Chronicle of a Blood Merchant.' May I ask where you are on your reading list, or have you already finished it?"

"It's about halfway done. I haven't had much time lately, and I'm reading very slowly. It's like when I was reading Mark Twain and Maupassant's short story collections a couple of months ago. Sometimes I get a bit confused if I don't understand the historical context, so I'm looking it up as I read."

As she spoke, Zhu Wenyun put the book back on the shelf:

"Okay, I've decided what to eat. Let's go!"

Following the other person, they went down from the bookstore on the second floor of the mall back to the first floor. Chen Junqian saw Zhu Wenyun walk into a bakery next door, and then a short while later she came out holding a huge loaf of bread that looked like a chicken leg, skewered on a bamboo stick.

Of course, it only looks like a chicken leg. This thing is filled with pure red bean paste. Chen Junqian had eaten it before. Back then, it sold for one yuan each. He just didn't know if the price had gone up now. According to the previous price, it could definitely be called the king of cost-effectiveness.

However, the price probably hasn't increased. After all, she's already passed Wenyun's selection process and they've known each other for so long. Chen Junqian knows her personality very well, and anything with a lower cost-performance ratio than Xiaomantou is never within her consideration.

"Actually, imagination can be very helpful when it comes to eating."

Holding up the large chicken leg bread in front of Chen Junqian, Zhu Wenyun took a bite first, and then started chatting with him about the books they hadn't finished talking about earlier.

"Junqian should know which part I'm referring to, right?"

"If it's 'Chronicle of a Blood Merchant,' then the most likely part Wen Yun is referring to is the scene where Xu Sanguan stir-fries braised pork."

"You guessed right, Junqian really did see it."

Zhu Wenyun never gets tired of this little game of question and answer with Chen Junqian.

"I probably watched that part three or four times. When the whole family was so hungry that they could only eat two meals of corn porridge a day, Xu Sanguan treated his three sons to a meal of braised pork that he cooked with his mouth on New Year's Day. Although it was just drawing a picture to satisfy hunger, he drew it really well. Yu Hua's writing was also very good. Even reading it made me hungry."

"But now that I think about it, I've always liked eating this kind of bread, which is kind of like this behavior, and at least I can actually get something to eat here, ahhh—"

Zhu Wenyun didn't know if Chen Junqian was aware of the true meaning behind her roundabout words, but he would understand after seeing his published manuscript in a while, since she had written much more directly there.

Of course, she hoped he would take her away, because she didn't eat much and was easy to feed. She could imagine what she didn't have as something she did, what she ate a little as a lot, and what she had as something real as something merely an appearance. If he really gave her a lot, wow, that would practically fill her entire world.

----------------------------------

The afternoon temperature showed no signs of dropping, to the point that Chen Junqian wished for a good, heavy rain to at least cool things down.

Fortunately, there are still places like libraries in this world where two people can cool off both physically and mentally. Just like when they first met, Chen Junqian and Zhu Wenyun spent the entire afternoon in the library. When the sun had set a little and the sunlight was not as intense as it was at noon, they decided to stroll home together.

Of course, it was Zhu Wenyun's home.

After all, if going once can consistently contribute to the progress of the two achievements of feeding play and making love-filled bento boxes, then we must work hard when they are still children, because in a few years, it certainly won't be as convenient as it is now.

Zhu Wenyun's grandmother had just gone out on some errands, but she should be back soon, because the TV in the room was still on, and it was replaying "Boys and Girls Rush Forward," a large-scale outdoor obstacle course reality show that Anhui TV broadcasts regularly at noon every day.

In fact, various local TV stations have similar programs, but since Guoning belongs to Anhui Province, Chen Junqian naturally watched the local ones the most when he was a child. Moreover, the recording location was Hefei, and he even went to see it twice during his university years.

Summer can indeed make people lose their appetite, so today Chen Junqian and Zhu Wenyun simply made some cold noodles. After setting aside a portion for Grandma Zhu on the stove, the two of them took their bowls and sat down in front of the TV in the room, watching the program on the screen amidst the background noise of the electric fan humming in oscillating mode.

Perhaps because she often watches these kinds of shows with her grandmother, or perhaps because she simply likes this kind of outdoor obstacle course reality show that is still very novel at the time, it is clear that Zhu Wenyun is quite interested. Every time she sees the contestants falling into the water from various obstacles in all sorts of bizarre ways, she can't help but smile.

"Oh, I also have some chilled plum juice in my fridge, made by my grandma herself, it's so delicious."

During a break in an advertisement, Zhu Wenyun seemed to suddenly remember this matter. After putting the bowl aside, she went to the refrigerator and poured two glasses of ice-cold plum juice.

"for you."

After taking a bite, Chen Junqian gave it a thumbs-up, praising it highly.

"It really tastes good, even better than what you buy outside."

"Yes, I think so too. When Grandma comes back, I'll ask her how she does it. I'll have her teach me first, and then I'll teach her... I'll make it for you to drink later."

Whether it was simply because she was with Chen Junqian, or it was just her personality, Zhu Wenyun spoke as if she had no psychological burden or shyness whatsoever. She said it as if she were just casually saying, "Let's have cold noodles tonight," not even in the form of a question, but as a direct and straightforward statement, giving Chen Junqian no chance to shake his head in denial.

However, Chen Junqian himself had already gotten used to Zhu Wenyun's personality. After all, just two months ago, she was the girl who hugged him and asked him to praise her while the reporters were still there. It was fortunate that the segment was not broadcast, otherwise, it might have been dug up again by some girl who was still subscribing to "Happy Detective" and aspired to be a detective.

"Okay, but I won't drink your plum juice for nothing. So, Wenjun, is there anything you'd like me to make?"

In response to Chen Junqian's question, Zhu Wenyun simply looked at the contestant on the TV screen who had made it to the final round and was just one step away from winning the grand prize of home appliances, before turning to him and saying:

“I’d like to see you participate in this show in the future, if it’s still airing then, and when the host asks you why you’re here, you can say it’s because of this promise between the two of us, how about that?”

"Okay."

Chen Junqian nodded without hesitation, then took his cup and clinked it with Zhu Wenyun's cup in a ceremonial gesture.

In the height of summer, plum soup is served in a white porcelain bowl, with crushed ice making a clattering sound against the sides.

On a sweltering summer day, when all that existed in Zhu Wenyun's room was an electric fan, she made a small wish for him:

“Junqian will definitely win... so I want you to win me a big air conditioner.”

Chapter 33: Even in Reality, There Are Paths to Success (Part 2)

Near the end of summer vacation, Chen Junqian went to his sister's house again and happened to find her reading in her room.

Although he always says that the only strictly female rooms he has ever been to are Lin Mu and Xu Youwei's (Zhu Wenyun lives with her grandmother), this is not entirely accurate. The main reason is that Chen Junqian himself doesn't really categorize his sister as a female friend, but rather as a relative.

So not only could Xu Youwei and Lin Mu not be successfully locked in, even Chen Junqian himself and the shameless system in his mind that was so enthusiastic about younger sister characters had not officially recognized Chen Xi as a female lead with the suitability for romantic comedy.

However, precisely because of this, Chen Junqian found it quite easy to get along with his sister. After all, aside from the initial slight regret that he could have taken advantage of the system if she had also been included in it, his mindset eventually returned to normal. At least when speaking and acting, he wouldn't suddenly have some whimsical idea about how to achieve a certain accomplishment here, but could instead focus all his attention on the specific interactions.

"Hmm? Brother's here. Do you want some salt soda? Dad brought back a lot yesterday, it's all in the fridge."

Upon seeing Chen Junqian arrive, Chen Xi temporarily placed the book she was holding on the desk, skipped over to him, and pointed to the refrigerator next to her.

Today, only Chen Xi was at home. Although her aunt, who is a teacher, was theoretically on vacation during the summer vacation, she also ran a tutoring class to earn extra money, so she was basically still working. Her uncle, on the other hand, had been running around doing business for the startup of Three Fierce Xu and had gotten several shades darker from the sun.

The salt soda that Chen Xi just mentioned was something the other person bought specifically to drink. Staying outside all the time in the summer can easily lead to heatstroke and loss of salt and water, which is why such a magical drink as salt soda exists.

However, Chen Junqian wasn't interested in this rather strange-tasting drink, nor did he have the habit of using it to spit someone out, so he simply shook his head and refused:

"I just need water."

"Okay, then I'll pour some water for my brother."

Watching his younger sister run to the cabinet next to him to get a disposable paper cup, Chen Junqian subconsciously thought for a while about the criteria for the system to include female protagonists, namely, 'possessing adaptability to romantic comedy', which appears in the conditions for achieving each achievement.

In fact, the system itself had also talked to him about this issue. In the context of the real-world stage, female protagonists with the adaptability to romantic comedy are quite rare. So even among the four people it currently includes, Lin Mu, Xu Youwei, and Zhu Wenyun only have a B level of adaptability to romantic comedy, while Shen Nianqiu only has a B- level.

The so-called romantic comedy adaptability is determined by comprehensively considering five aspects: appearance, ability, speech, personality, and actions. In fact, if the appearance adaptability of the first four female protagonists hadn't dragged down their scores, their overall romantic comedy adaptability score might not have even reached B.

Especially Shen Nianqiu, if Chen Junqian remembered correctly, his older sister's adaptability in terms of personality, actions, and speech was D, C, and C+ respectively.

So, in terms of personality compatibility alone, Shen Nianqiu is probably completely unsuitable to be the female lead in a romantic comedy, but Chen Junqian hasn't truly realized this yet.

After all, although the system is terrible, it is still quite rigorous in its scoring.

On the other hand, the fact that the younger sister hasn't been included yet actually shows that she's just a perfectly normal child. Rather, it suggests that there aren't that many female protagonists in reality who are suited for romantic comedies. If they were everywhere, reality would have already become a world of romantic comedies.

With a touch of emotion, he took the cooled boiled water from his sister's hand, and then she leaned directly against his back:

"Brother, did you go on vacation to Hebei last month?"

"Yes, I went to Shanhaiguan, Qinhuangdao, and Beidaihe. I even have some photos here. Let me show you."

As he spoke, Chen Junqian took out his phone from his pocket and showed his sister the photos he had taken in Shanhaiguan last month.

"Shanhaiguan, the First Pass Under Heaven... Isn't this the place where Wu Sangui surrendered to the Qing army? But he later rebelled again. I wonder what he was thinking."

It must be said that the story of the Marquis of Pingxi who risked everything for a woman is indeed quite widely circulated, even elementary school students like Chen Xi know it.

Although Chen Xi is no ordinary elementary school student, at least according to Chen Junqian's observation, if we only consider the amount of history reading, this child has read more books than Zhu Wenyun.

"Yes, this is it."

Because of his sister's question, Chen Junqian recalled a historical joke about Wu Sangui that he had heard from a history classmate in his previous life, so he casually mentioned it:

"The tour guide there also told us a joke, saying that after Wu Sangui died, he met the emperor in the underworld, and the emperor asked him:

'Minister Wu, how is the rebel leader (Li Zicheng)?'

Wu Sangui replied:

'It has been quelled by my wrath!'

The emperor then asked, "How is that Western bandit (Zhang Xianzhong) doing?"

Wu Sangui then said, "It has already been pacified by me!"

The emperor finally asked, "And what about the Jurchens?"

Wu Sangui replied, "I died of illness while on my way to conquer the Jurchens!"

The emperor couldn't help but exclaim, "Excellent! My dear minister, you truly deserve to be called the most loyal subject of our Great Ming Dynasty!"

"That's a really good joke. I initially thought only the Soviet Union would have jokes like that."

"Because history sometimes has very contrasting and hellish events. If we really want to talk about it, many people and dynasties have things to talk about. Although many of them are indeed modified from the Soviet jokes you mentioned, Xixi, history is often a cycle. Otherwise, there wouldn't be the saying that the only lesson mankind can learn from history is that mankind cannot learn from history."

While flipping through photos in his phone's album with his sister, Chen Junqian asked her again:

"Does Xixi have any particular travel destination she'd like to visit right now?"

"As for me, I still want to go to Xi'an and visit the Shaanxi History Museum. Besides, my brother gave me a Terracotta Warrior model, so if I go there someday, I'll bring one back for him too... or it would be even better if my brother came with me."

When the topic of history, antiques, and museums came up, Chen Xi straightened up from her brother's back, ran to her room, and took out the book she had been reading:

"I've been looking at this recently."

Chen Junqian took it and saw that it was indeed the first book of Ya She, which was published in the first half of this year. Just like "Dragon Raja", which was also serialized in "Manke Novel Illustration", it was one of the most popular fantasy works among primary and secondary school students during this period. However, the former is closer to Western fantasy, while the latter incorporates historical themes, making it a relatively fresh theme on the market.

Actually, when I was chatting with Zhu Wenyun a couple of days ago, Chen Junqian also recommended this book to her. After all, if she really intends to start a serialization career in "Fireworks", considering the target audience, "The Silent Shop" has a lot of merits, especially for teenage girls.

In Chen Junqian's eyes, before the inexplicable time-travel development and the abrupt start of BL, the story of Ya She was quite good. He had liked it for a while when he was in elementary and middle school, and the girl in front of him seemed to feel the same way.

However, looking back now, we can see that even the first book in the series did contribute classic female-oriented novel tropes such as falling in love with Huo Qubing, falling in love with Xiang Yu, and falling in love with Chen Ajiao's witchcraft doll. Oh, and there's also the part about Zhu Yuanzhang being able to unify the country because he overheard the guidance of a mermaid candle. It seems that at that time, he only focused on the historical parts.