Chapter Thirty: Fame

As the sales of "Stories of the Ming Dynasty" soared higher and higher, Zhou Xuan's pen name, "Zhou Zixuan," began to be mentioned, and soon became widely known at an astonishing speed.

In Jiangnan, at Zhongzhou Publishing House, inside the chief editor's office.

Yang Lun, the chief editor in his fifties, was steeping a pot of tea as he read the February sales report for "Novel Monthly."

"Novel Monthly" is published once a month, officially distributed to bookstores and magazine stands nationwide on the 31st of the previous month, followed by a long month of sales.

Its sales are usually stable, with monthly figures ranging from 340,000 to 370,000 copies, placing it around tenth among monthly magazines in the country.

The first few days of the month are usually the peak sales period, when about 250,000 to 260,000 copies are sold in the first five days, with the remaining 100,000 or so slowly sold during the rest of the month.

But this month's figures were different, bringing both joy and surprise to Yang Lun.

"Eh? It broke through 300,000 copies, reaching an unexpected 330,000? That's almost a whole month's sales in just five days," Yang Lun muttered in disbelief as he looked at the report.

This was only five days' sales—something felt off to him.

He knew all the articles published in February; they were solid but not particularly outstanding. How could sales have increased so much? Was it a miscalculation? The more he thought about it, the more likely that seemed.

Unable to figure it out, Yang Lun picked up the phone. "Hello, Old Chen, have you seen the sales report for this month's 'Novel Monthly'?"

"What? You haven't seen it yet? What's going on down there? Even if the early reports can only give an estimate, they shouldn't be so careless. Is everyone slacking off after the New Year? This attitude won't do." As chief editor, Yang Lun always demanded diligence and precision from his staff, so he was particularly concerned.

"Alright! I'll wait for your update. Make sure to handle this seriously—use it as an example for post-holiday discipline. It must be criticized!"

After the call, Yang Lun stopped working and waited quietly. He was confident Old Chen would call back within ten minutes.

Sure enough, a few minutes later, Old Chen replied. Yang Lun was very satisfied with his promptness; the matter had been investigated in just a few minutes.

Now he was eager to see which staff member had been so careless, causing such a data discrepancy.

"What! No statistical error!" But the outcome was entirely unexpected—there was not a single mistake in the sales figures.

However, Old Chen sounded a little annoyed and didn’t reveal the reason directly. Instead, he told Yang Lun to look at yesterday’s South China Evening News.

"This Old Chen, he even hung up on me!" Yang Lun grew more curious—what could possibly have caused such a surge in sales for "Novel Monthly"?

He finally found yesterday’s South China Evening News and impatiently flipped to the front page.

"People nationwide celebrate Spring Festival, local festivities captured." That wasn’t it; he quickly turned to page two.

"A Dark Horse in the Spring Festival Book Market—Six Months in the Industry, First Novel Breaks Weekly Sales Records..."

Could it be this? Yang Lun started to read.

"In the Spring Festival book market, 'Stories of the Ming Dynasty' has just been released for a week, yet it has achieved a sales miracle. On its first day, sales exceeded 12,000 copies; the second day saw over 25,000 sold; even on Lunar New Year's Eve, when everyone was busy with holiday preparations, more than 21,000 copies were sold.

The following days saw sales grow even more rapidly. 'Stories of the Ming Dynasty' galloped through the Spring Festival book market like a dark horse. Yesterday’s sales reached a staggering 76,000 copies, bringing the weekly total to almost 290,000.

The publisher, Xiling Publishing House, initially printed 100,000 copies, then 300,000 more, and now has ordered another 600,000. The total print run has reached an astonishing one million copies, setting a new record for new books printed within a month.

With the book’s popularity, its reputation has soared. Many readers claim they’ve never read such a captivating historical novel.

The author, Zhou Zixuan, is a new name; none of the writers we’ve previously known. Zhou Zixuan’s first publication was the science fiction story 'Resurrection' in 'Science Fiction World.' Its ingenious plot and imaginative flair attracted a large following among sci-fi readers.

We also discovered that Zhou Zixuan’s romance novel, 'Love Under the Hawthorn Tree,' began serialization in 'Novel Monthly' this January. Its delicate prose and vivid depiction of a unique era have captivated many readers born in the sixties.

Moreover, in the last two or three months, Zhou Zixuan has published numerous articles nationwide across various magazines and newspapers—novels, essays, spanning sci-fi, romance, martial arts, and history.

Such a prolific writer, excelling in so many genres, has sparked intense curiosity: who exactly is Zhou Zixuan?"

At this point, Yang Lun finally understood why "Novel Monthly" had become so hot—it was all thanks to "Stories of the Ming Dynasty."

Seeing the book’s phenomenal sales, Yang Lun was filled with regret for not signing it when he had the chance. Nearly 300,000 copies sold in a week—he hadn't seen such a promising book in a long time.

Witnessing the popularity of Zhou Zixuan’s works, and the magazine’s sales boost thanks to the serialization of "Love Under the Hawthorn Tree," Yang Lun immediately thought about publishing the novel. He grabbed the newspaper and sales report, heading straight for the publisher’s office.

Yet the storm Zhou Xuan had stirred was far from over; South China Evening News was only the beginning.

The day after their report, on February 6th, the first day back at work after the holiday, many newspapers across the country reprinted South China Evening News’s coverage of "Stories of the Ming Dynasty."

In Rongcheng, the New City Express published an article titled "Come See, History Can Be This Fascinating," detailing the readability and explosive sales of "Stories of the Ming Dynasty."

Even Shuimu Years Forum, one of the earliest campus BBS sites in the country, saw a post introducing "Stories of the Ming Dynasty," which was pinned by the moderator. Within days, over five hundred people had commented, ninety percent of whom declared it a must-buy.

Because Zhou Xuan had submitted manuscripts to many magazines, it was almost inevitable that his address might leak. But all people knew was that Zhou Zixuan was in NC County, Rongzhou City, S Province—nothing more specific.

On the first day after the holiday, Zhou Xuan received several phone calls. Publishers who had previously been hesitant about his submission, "Spring Breeze, Ten Miles, Not as Good as You," suddenly changed their minds and now wanted to publish his novel.

Publishers were also eyeing "Love Under the Hawthorn Tree," including Zhongzhou Publishing House, where the serialization was ongoing.

Just as Zhou Xuan was pondering how to publish "Love Under the Hawthorn Tree" and "Spring Breeze, Ten Miles, Not as Good as You," Wei Xiyue called with news: the long-feared challenge from historians had finally arrived.