CH 26

The middle-aged Grand Academician laughed, "What if he comes up with new poetry next month? Are we going to keep postponing?"

The elderly Grand Academician looked at the young Grand Academician. The young Grand Academician was from Qing Kingdom, while Fang Yun was from Jing Kingdom. The two nations had been at war for many years, and it was hard to believe that the young Grand Academician had no ulterior motives.

"If he comes up with new poetry next month, we'll publish as many as he has." The young Grand Academician said calmly.

The two Grand Academicians exchanged a glance, both with a sense of helplessness. The young Grand Academician's name was Qu Zhengxiang, and he was a disciple of the Half-Sage. He couldn't risk offending anyone over such a small matter.

As they were about to agree, a commotion was heard outside.

The elderly Grand Academician was initially displeased and impatiently waved his sleeve. The door to the Review Hall was opened by an invisible force.

"Who's making noise!" A loud voice echoed in the Path of the Saints Review Institute.

A clerk came running excitedly, holding a page of paper. "The Town Poem is out! It's urgent!" he shouted as he ran.

All three Grand Academicians looked pleased, forgetting their previous unhappiness.

Any Town Poem was extremely rare, and if this poet focused on writing border poems, they could create a legendary War Poetry that would greatly benefit the human race.

There were only a few War Poems that Talented Scholars like Fang Yun could use. Every new one added to their strength.

Qu Zhengxiang was even happier. With this Town Poem, no one would care when the poem "End of the Year" was published, and his pressure would be greatly reduced.

"May the human race be blessed!" The elderly Grand Academician said, reaching out to the clerk with a wave of his hand. The page of paper flew to him like an arrow, and he read the poem aloud.

When he got to the line "The rooster crows at the thatched cottage, the people's footprints on the board bridge are frosty," the three of them were suddenly amazed.

All three were knowledgeable Grand Academicians, and they could see the beauty of the poem in every word. They subconsciously compared it to their own works and found that they were either not as well-matched, not as beautiful in scenery, or lacked depth.

They then compared it to famous poems, and the same was true. The words were not inferior, but the imagery was not as good. And those with good imagery did not reach the level of perfect word matching.

The middle-aged Grand Academician was excited, "Excellent! This is an unprecedented masterpiece! It's worthy of being the Town Poem. The beauty of the words is rare in the world today!"

Qu Zhengxiang exclaimed, "The poetic talent in this poem is reminiscent of Tao Yuanming. I'm far from his level. I wonder which famous poet from which country wrote it?"

The elderly Grand Academician continued reading, and when he got to the end, he suddenly put down the poem page, his expression slightly strange, not answering Qu Zhengxiang's question.

The middle-aged Grand Academician was puzzled and asked the poem page to fly over. After examining it carefully, he remained silent with the same strange expression.

Qu Zhengxiang hesitated for a moment, then took the poem and examined it closely, his face turning red.

The six characters "Jing Kingdom, Ji County, Fang Yun" were extremely conspicuous.

The Town Poem had to be published in the next issue of the Path of the Saints, and the poem "Spring Dawn," which won first place in the county exam, also had to be published. Even if Qu Zhengxiang's Half-Sage teacher came in person, he could not change the fact that Fang Yun's two poems would be published in the Path of the Saints.

Qu Zhengxiang could no longer sit still and stood up. "I'm feeling unwell and resigning from my position as a Path of the Saints editor next month. Please find someone to replace me in a timely manner. Goodbye." He said, then left.After Qu Zhengxiang left, the elderly Grand Academician sighed, "Qu Zhengxiang is young and talented, rising quickly to become an Imperial Scholar before he's even thirty, just behind the Four Great Talents. Now there's a young genius who's surpassed him, which might be a good thing for him."

"But Fang Yun is from Jing Kingdom, which might not be a good thing for him."

"Hmph! He's already a Grand Academician, yet he's still making things difficult for a young scholar over a small matter. He only sees Jing Kingdom and not the human race. This is not a good thing for him, but it's a great thing for the human race! However, he's also clever. If he continues to make things difficult for Fang Yun, it may shake his courage to write and hinder his path to becoming a Great Scholar."

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The middle-aged Grand Academician chuckled bitterly and said, "Let's not talk about him. Let's talk about Fang Yun. His poem 'End of the Year' will also be published next month. Three poems shining together, which has never happened before. Even the pastoral saint Tao Yuanming only had two poems published at the same time, and at his peak, he had six poems published in a row, appearing in six consecutive issues of The Path of the Saints. He was considered unbeatable in poetry, but this Fang Yun, who is just a Child Scholar, is not inferior to Tao Yuanming at all. He's simply a little monster."

"This child is too extraordinary. I'm afraid his brilliance will be too dazzling and hinder his growth."

The middle-aged Grand Academician said, "I still have a page here that you haven't read. It says that Fang Yun was injured before the county exam, but he was lucky enough to meet a mysterious master who gave him guidance. The next day, he took the exam despite his injuries and even wrote a poem for the local county magistrate, who wrote one for him in return. The two poems are not the key, but the identity of that master is."

"Then I can rest assured. Anyone who can teach such a student must be a Great Scholar at the very least, even if it's not surprising for Chen Guanhai or Chen Jing to do so."

"Unfortunately, Fang Yun is still young and only a Child Scholar. If he were an Imperial Scholar, he might even surpass the 'Poetry King' among the Four Great Talents."

"It's too early to say now. Poetry and prose do not make a saint, and heavenly talent is revealed through one's writing. Throughout history, no one has become a saint through poetry alone, even Tao Yuanming relied on his prose and political strategies. However, if this child can focus and forget about fame, his achievements will definitely surpass ours."

"Regardless, I want to meet him."

"Who doesn't?"

They laughed at each other.

In Dayuan Prefecture, Fang Yun discussed with the lady of the house and decided to start teaching at the Fang family's school in five days.

In the afternoon, Fang Yun gathered Liang Yuan and the hired employees to discuss the development direction of the bookstore.

Liang Yuan and the others made conventional suggestions, but Fang Yun did not reject them. Instead, he improved on their suggestions and was very specific, such as how to advertise, market, and select target customers.

Liang Yuan and the others were stunned by what they heard, but they were experienced people who immediately recognized the feasibility of Fang Yun's ideas, which were even revolutionary. They took note of them and followed them according to the existing conditions.

Finally, Fang Yun decided to focus on selling popular novels in the bookstore.

However, popular novels were declining in popularity, and bookstores that specialized in them didn't make much money. Although others had concerns, they couldn't refute their boss and could only listen.

Fang Yun asked them to make at least 50,000 hard paper bookmarks immediately, with the words "Three Flavors Bookstore" written on them, and design a logo. He also wanted to write quotes, maxims, and famous literary works on the bookmarks to be given away with new books in the future.

This seemingly ordinary design shocked Liang Yuan and the employees."Boss, could it be that you have the Seven Wonders of the World Heart? Your poetry is so good, and you're so good at business. If you didn't go into business through literature, other businessmen would be killed by you."

"Yes, your marketing skills are just too amazing. Upon closer inspection, it's not that surprising, but we just can't come up with it."

Fang Yun smiled and said, "You guys should read some popular novels first. Within five days, I will come up with a manuscript for a novel and have it printed. Let's print ten thousand copies first."

An old man hurriedly said, "Boss, you don't know this business. Publishing a book cannot be so smooth. There is only one 'Wen Bao' and one 'Sheng Kan' in the world. Why don't others go into publishing? It's because the Holy Academy does not allow it. The Holy Academy allows publishing, but it must go through the review of the Literary Academy. If you want to sell your book in Jiangzhou, you have to go through the Jiangzhou Literary Academy's review. If you want to sell it in Jing Kingdom, you have to get permission from the 'Jing Kingdom Academy.' If you want to sell it in the Ten Kingdoms, you must get the approval of the Holy Academy. Five days is far from enough, it will take at least fifteen days, and printing also takes time. Without a month, the store won't have any books."

"Shouldn't this kind of thing be the responsibility of the 'Wen Hui Yuan' of the State Literary Academy?"

"Yes."

"Then there is no problem. After I finish writing the book, I'll go visit the Zhou Zhubu of the State Literary Academy, let him take a look at the manuscript, and ask him to write a preface. I should be able to print the book within five days."

"Ah? You know Zhou Zhubu? And you can even ask him to write a preface? Then there's no problem. He just happens to be in charge of the Wen Hui Yuan, and there won't be any problems." The old man said enviously, straightening his back unconsciously.

The others' eyes lit up, as if they had seen hope. Since the new boss knows Zhou Zhubu, then San Wei Bookstore might really be able to grow.

"I'll go home and write the book. I should finish it before dinner tomorrow, and then go visit Zhou Zhubu."

Fang Yun stood up to leave, and Lian Yuan surprisedly reached out to stop him. "What did you say? You haven't finished writing your book yet? Don't tell me you haven't even started writing."

"I'm writing a medium-length popular novel, probably around twenty to thirty thousand words. I should be able to finish it in five days. Worst case, I'll just stay up all night."

"A novel written in two days?" Everyone looked at Fang Yun with suspicion.

"I have a draft in my mind, and the content is all there. Okay, you guys go and get busy."

Fang Yun and Yang Yuhuan left together, buying some paper and candles on the way, as well as a book introducing novelists, and returned home.

At this time, Jiang Pozzi and Fang Daniu had already cleaned up Fang Yun's east wing room. Fang Yun and Fang Daniu would live here, while Yang Yuhuan and Jiang Pozzi would live in the west wing room.

Fang Yun took a glance at the little fox, which was placed in a bamboo basket, covered with a blanket, still unconscious.

There was a faint exotic fragrance in the room, making people feel refreshed and energetic.

"Could it be that the fragrance of the fox can clear one's mind?"

Fang Yun dismissed this thought and then began reading the newly purchased book, 'The Stone Furnace Pavilion Notes.' This book was written by one of the hundred novelists, but novelists had declined and never produced a Half-Sage, so they gradually faded away. Fang Yun first put this book into the 'Rare Books World,' then began reading, because reading in the 'Rare Books World' was several times faster than usual. When studying the classics of all the Saints, reading too fast wasn't good, but checking information was more convenient in the 'Rare Books World.'In just half a quarter of an hour, Fang Yun had sorted out the general outline of this world's popular novels. Just like in Tang Dynasty on Earth, there were only supernatural novels here, and the first monument in novels, "Tang Legend Novels," had not yet appeared.

In later generations, Yuan, Song, and Ming Dynasty novels were greatly influenced by Tang Legend Novels. It can be said that Tang Legend Novels is the ancestor of Ming and Qing Dynasty novels, among which "Liaozhai Zhiyi" and "San Yan Er Pai" almost completely inherited the style and form of Tang Legend Novels.