Chapter 113 The Count of Monte Cristo

Chapter 113 The Count of Monte Cristo

Chapter 113 The Count of Monte Cristo

There are many different opinions about the reasons for Wang Zixu and Zhang Qian's breakup. The official explanation is that the two had "incompatible personalities." In fact, the two could not agree on the more specific reasons, so they each insisted on their own opinions.

Zhang Qian said that Wang Zixu "did not strive for progress" and was obsessed with writing novels, neglecting his life, social life and Zhang Qian. This made Zhang Qian very anxious. She saw that her limited future would be infinitely dragged down by Wang Zixu, not to mention that she had already found that she had better choices.

Wang Zixu did not agree with her view. However, he was very secretive about why he did not try his best to save the relationship. In the end, the two only reached a consensus on "incompatibility of personalities", which became the final reason for the breakup that was made public.

In fact, what Wang Zixu never said was that the real reason for their breakup and his disappointment in Zhang Qian was her narrow-mindedness and shallowness.

Zhang Qian is incredibly narrow-minded and shallow.

As a civil servant who graduated from undergraduate university and works in the Propaganda Department, she did not know that the three sworn brothers in Peach Garden were Liu Bei, Guan Yu, and Zhang Fei, that Shakespeare was a person's name, that Copenhagen is a place name, that the moon's light comes from reflected sunlight, and that two iron balls of different weights will fall to the ground at the same time if they are released at the same time.

Wang Zixu was very surprised when he found out that she was so shallow - although Zhang Qian's school was not very famous, she graduated from an undergraduate school after all. How could she not even know such knowledge?

As he got to know her better, he realized that Zhang Qian was knowledgeable. But her knowledge was limited to the knowledge that was instilled in her. She would never take the initiative to explore knowledge beyond the boundaries. She was knowledgeable, but not cultured.

In fact, being uneducated doesn't matter. It doesn't matter if you don't know this knowledge. What Wang Zixu can't stand is her lack of desire for knowledge. She is extremely lacking in curiosity.

Whenever Wang Zixu wanted to talk about the thousand-year romance between Liu Bei, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, she would change the subject with an annoyed look and talk about bags and perfume brands. She did not think that the three people who died two thousand years ago had any impact on her life, nor did she think that not knowing these three people was something to be ashamed of.

After learning about the final fate of the three brothers Liu, Guan, and Zhang, she sneered at them and did not understand why Wang Zixu had to sell her this failed story. In her world, being poor and failing was the only shame.

In addition, she had no interest in Wang Zixu's hobbies. Or rather, she hated all of Wang Zixu's hobbies that had nothing to do with her. When Wang Zixu was writing, she would endlessly distract him with irrelevant trivia. She did not allow Wang Zixu to enter her non-existent inner world.

She has no sense of humor, and she doesn't enjoy language. The only things that make her laugh are when someone gets an advantage or someone else gets into trouble. Her language is surprisingly boring, and she tries to put a price on everything, even a newborn baby, and tries to calculate how much money he will make in the future.

Before Wang Zixu realized her extremely narrow-minded inner self, her appearance was flawless. Even in the harshest environment, she would dress herself up to look radiant. Only by living with her could one know her true face.

What really made Wang Zixu break up with her was a casual chat. Wang Zixu suddenly mentioned that there is a profession called "gunman" in the world. Big-name writers can make a lot of money by recruiting a group of people to write for them, opening a studio, and letting others write novels for them.

It was when talking about writing that Zhang Qian's eyes sparkled for the first time.

"Why don't you do this?" Zhang Qian said, "This is a good idea. Wouldn't it make more money than writing and submitting articles by yourself?"

When Wang Zixu heard her say this, he was immediately shocked: "Don't you think it's immoral to do this?"

Zhang Qian said: "What's immoral about it?"

"Once a piece of writing is written, it should belong to the person who wrote it. Isn't it an insult to literature to hire a ghostwriter? You are a civil servant after all. How can you promote such an unethical business?"

Zhang Qian's face darkened: "Your writing and submitting articles is not a legitimate business, okay? Starting a company to write novels in bulk and make money, this is a legitimate business!"

Wang Zixu felt like he was talking to someone from another world. The two argued for a long time before he understood her point of view.

The reason why Zhang Qian believes that hiring a ghostwriter to open a studio is a legitimate way of life is because it conforms to the most basic operating logic of capital - division of labor, organization, and orderly expansion.

This is undoubtedly the most reliable and easy way to make money through writing, so this is a legitimate way to make a living. At least it can purchase five insurances and one fund in the form of a unit.

On the contrary, making money by writing and contributing articles is not only time-consuming and laborious, with unstable returns, but also comes without any social insurances or housing fund.

If we follow what Wang Zixu said, every time we write we are "emptying our own soul" - there is not much that can be emptied from the human soul, once it is emptied it is gone - and it is unsustainable.

With such high input and such low output, it is not sustainable. The idea of ​​"making money through writing" is the most ridiculous delusion in the world. If this is not the most dishonest way to make a living, then what else is it?

Wang Zixu was speechless because even if he was unwilling, he had to agree that part of what Zhang Qian said was right.

Because there was a person in history who made a fortune by hiring ghostwriters and opening a studio, and also won fame before and after his death.

This person is Alexandre Dumas.

Dumas made money by hiring ghostwriters to publish novels under his name. There are thousands of novels under his name, most of which were ghostwritten. Therefore, he was called the "director of the novel factory."

During his lifetime, he called himself the "Count of Monte Cristo" and spent a huge amount of money to build himself a "Castle of Monte Cristo", which was always full of guests. He had countless mistresses, who gave birth to countless illegitimate children for him, and Dumas fils was one of them. In 2002, his remains were moved and buried in the Pantheon of France, a treatment only given to celebrities who made great contributions to French history.

As a male, he has fame, status, power, women, glory... He has everything that other males envy.

But Wang Zixu believes that what truly makes Dumas shine forever in history are only the few works he wrote himself, and definitely not the "products" produced by other ghostwriters.

Wang Zixu was only in his twenties at the time, and unlike now, he was still somewhat arrogant. The fundamental reason why he disdained the studio was that he believed that he would shine sooner or later.

He believes that in this world, there are some stories that only he can tell, and some special comfort deep in the soul that only he can provide. How can a ghostwriter replace him?

Moreover, from the reader's point of view, ghostwriting is a hateful fraud. Before he became an author, he was a loyal and enthusiastic reader. He looked down on anyone who asked for a ghostwriter, including Alexandre Dumas.

But Zhang Qian didn't think so. The world can still function without Wang Zixu's works, but Wang Zixu is nothing without money. She didn't think ghostwriting was a big sin.

The way she looks at literature is no different from the way she looks at a piece of clothing or a bag - ghostwriting is nothing more than OEM, as long as she doesn't sell me fake goods.

This was the core disagreement between the two people, so they eventually parted ways.

After parting ways, they each realized what they had insisted on - Zhang Qian was obsessed with money, so she became rich; Wang Zixu believed that some things could not be changed by poverty, so he remained poor.

But just after the breakup, Wang Zixu felt like a person who had been drowning for a long time and regained his air. He was very comfortable for a while. During this period, Zhang Qian also looked for him several times, but once he was free, he no longer missed the days of being kidnapped, so he did not say a word to Zhang Qian.

This is where things get messed up.

Many years later, Wang Zixu has been polished by society and his personality has become much more mellow.

He often thinks back to those days. He feels that he could have handled many things better, such as breaking up with Zhang Qian.

He didn't think that they shouldn't have broken up in the first place, but he was the one who proposed the breakup first, and he didn't think of a way out, and he underestimated how destructive a jealous woman could be.

Although they finally broke up peacefully, in fact, it was no different from him dumping Zhang Qian - Zhang Qian gave him a chance to win back the relationship, but he didn't try, which was just a waste of Zhang Qian's face. So Zhang Qian was furious and kept this grudge in her heart.

Later, Zhang Qian emphasized her superior conditions on various occasions; she asked her new boyfriend to arrange a romantic confession scene that shocked the entire people of Xihe, and humiliated Wang Zixu with 999 roses and luxury cars... All of this was actually revenge for the humiliation she felt at the beginning.

At first, Wang Zixu tried to explain to others that it was not Zhang Qian who dumped him, and they just broke up peacefully. But once his words reached Zhang Qian's ears, she would retaliate against him even more severely, making him miserable.

Later, Wang Zixu learned to be smart and kept silent. As he acquiesced, everyone gradually thought that Zhang Qian had dumped him. He also kept silent about the public's misunderstanding.

With his submissive compromise, Zhang Qian finally stopped. Except for kicking out his manuscript last time. Of course, she insisted that it was for Wang Zixu's own good.

In short, Zhang Qian is someone Wang Zixu cannot afford to offend but can afford to avoid. Just like now in the lobby of the Plaza Hotel, Wang Zixu looked at Zhang Qian and could only reveal an awkward but polite gentle smile, not daring to offend her in the slightest.

"Say something?" Zhang Qian said with her arms folded.

Wang Zixu stretched out his hands and said, "Sorry, I have something to do."

Zhang Qian said, "You're here to see Ning Chunyan, right?"

Wang Zixu said, "No. I have something important to do."

Zhang Qian asked, "Aren't you looking for Ning Chunyan for serious business?"

Wang Zixu said, "I have something important to correct now."

The lady at the front desk put down the phone and said, "Professor Zhong said yes."

Wang Zixu asked, "Which room is he in?"

The front desk said, "Room 608."

Wang Zixu said: "Thank you."

Zhang Qian called out "Wait a minute" from behind, but Wang Zixu ignored her and ran away.

A friend said quietly, "Your ex-boyfriend, well, he has quite a personality." Zhang Qian was getting irritated and ignored her, venting all her anger on the receptionist:

"Who told you to tell him the room number? This person doesn't have an invitation, so how can you let him in so easily?"

The receptionist said innocently, "But Professor Zhong did say he was a guest."

"Which Professor Zhong?"

"Professor Zhong Junmin from Nanjing University."

"Nanjing University?"

Zhang Qian frowned. She didn't understand why Wang Zixu was associated with Nanjing University again. From what she knew, Wang Zixu should have no connection with Nanjing University at all.

She turned to her best friend and asked, "How did Wang Zixu know Professor Zhong? Do you have any clue?"

The friend twirled her temples with her fingers: "I'm not familiar with Professor Zhong, how would I know?"

“But you’re from the Education Department!”

My best friend rolled her eyes and said, "You think the Education Department is too omnipotent. There are so many universities in Donghai. Do I have to know the professors in every school? Besides, with the scale of Nanjing University, they don't even need to pay attention to me."

After that, she continued, "You don't have to be surprised. You are making progress and your ex-boyfriend is also making progress. It's just that they are connected and have a relationship."

Zhang Qian frowned: "It's impossible that his family conditions have any connections."

She knew Wang Zixu's family inside and out. The Wang family had been poor for three generations, and even if they dug up all the way from Wang Zixu's generation to the ancestral grave, they still couldn't find a great figure.

If he had any qualifications, would he have been trampled on like this for so many years without saying a word? He lived to 30 and did nothing, so it is impossible for him to suddenly have connections. This is not common sense.

As Wang Zixu ran upstairs from one end, Li Tingfang, who was wearing Hanfu, and Minister Guo Jingzong of the Propaganda Department came out from the elevator entrance at the other end. They chatted as they walked:
"...Then we need to pay attention to the guests present. Are they all checked in?"

Minister Guo said: "There were only a few who did not check in due to special circumstances, such as Chen Qingluo, who said she had a room in Xihe and did not want to stay in a hotel, so we did not ask her to check in, but only informed her of the time."

Li Tingfang's expression became serious. "You must keep an eye on Chen Qingluo. Her personality is very unpredictable. It would be best to arrange a specialist to keep a close eye on her and make sure she attends the meeting on time."

Guo Jingzong said: "I'll arrange it later."

Li Tingfang laughed and said, "These scholars are sometimes very lovely, but sometimes very hateful. It can be said that they are used to being disorganized and undisciplined, and each one has a stronger personality than the other."

Guo Jingzong thought to himself that you are the one with the most personality. Who would put up a banner that says "murder and arson" in the square? But he still said:

"Got it, Mr. Li. We will coordinate this award ceremony properly."

The two walked out of the hall, and Guo Jingzong saw Zhang Qian and waved, "Xiao Zhang, are you busy? I have something to arrange."

Zhang Qian restrained her expression, trotted over and said, "Please go ahead."

"The Xihe Literature and Art Special Issue that entered the first three rounds of this literary conference has been printed, and a portion of it will be sent to the hotel soon. Please arrange for someone to be responsible for delivering the special issue to the hands of the guest teachers we invited, and deliver it point-to-point."

Zhang Qian nodded respectfully: "Okay."

The top ten manuscripts in the third round are eligible to be published in the annual special issue of Xihe Literature and Art. Such a special issue will be compiled for each literary gathering.

Generally, the sales of this special issue are very high. Not only each unit has a copy, but also guests attending the conference will be given a copy, and many will be given away for free to the public or tourists, just to let more people feel the talents of the proud men and women of this literary gathering.

When arranging work, Zhang Qian's best friend deliberately stayed away to avoid suspicion. As soon as the leader left, the special issue was delivered to the hotel front desk. Her best friend also came up and took a copy and said:

"This is the top ten of this literary competition? It's quite thick."

Zhang Qian counted them and said, "Yes, they are all very good at talking. One article has tens of thousands of words, and ten of them add up to a hundred thousand words. It must be thick."

After counting, she called someone to send the special issue. Of course, she didn't have to do this herself. While she was sitting on the sofa waiting, her best friend suddenly pulled her sleeve and handed the magazine to her.

"Look, look, this author."

That was the last novel shortlisted for the third round in the special issue. The words "Nanjing University Specially Invited Manuscript" were printed on the header of the novel. The moment Zhang Qian saw the author's name on the right side of the title, her pupils dilated and the blood in her body seemed to freeze and stop flowing.

She stopped breathing for a moment, and after repeatedly confirming that she had not read it wrongly, she snatched the manuscript from her bestie's hand, laughed dryly, and turned around and said in a tone of doubt about life:
"Wang Zixu?"

She turned to ask her best friend for her opinion, but her best friend laughed and said, "It's the same name as your ex-boyfriend!"

Zhang Qian's expression was far from smiling. Soon, the smile on her friend's face also disappeared.

"Is this written by your ex-boyfriend?" asked her bestie. "Didn't they say he was eliminated in the qualifying round?"

Zhang Qian shook her head blankly, she didn't know what was going on.

The most optimistic thought was that maybe it was just like what my best friend said, they just had the same name. But could such a coincidence happen in the world? Besides, Wang Zixu just said that he was going to look for Zhong Junmin from Nanjing University.

My bestie frowned and asked, "Is your ex-boyfriend from Nanjing University?"

Zhang Qian shook her head: "No. He is from Beijing Institute of Technology."

My best friend breathed a sigh of relief: "Then it can't be him. It says here, Special Invitation to Write for Nanjing University."

Zhang Qian’s brows were still furrowed. “But he said he was going to find Professor Zhong. Professor Zhong is the person in charge of this special invitation.”

My best friend asked, "So is he really related to Professor Zhong?"

"It can't be related?"

The bestie covered her face with a magazine: "Or is it a relationship?"

Zhang Qian suddenly had an idea: "Oh, right, he is related to Ning Chunyan! Ning Chunyan is from Nanjing University!"

The bestie clapped her hands and said, "Look, we've found the problem!"

Zhang Qian frowned: "Is his relationship with Ning Chunyan so good? It doesn't seem like it?"

My best friend snickered: "If that's the case, then I can only say that Ning Chunyan has a poor eye for men."

Zhang Qian felt a little sour. She hadn't thought about it that way, but what her best friend said was indeed a possibility.

She didn't care that Wang Zixu had a new lover. It was a long time before they started dating, and she didn't have any feelings for him anymore. The sourness in her heart was just pure jealousy.

In the past, she felt that her boyfriend was richer and more prestigious than Wang Zixu, so she had a psychological advantage, but she still knew that she was no match for Ning Chunyan. After the psychological advantage was gone, she felt for the first time how suffocating this feeling was. No ex could tolerate the ex's new love being better than them.

Zhang Qian shook her head: "No, Wang Zixu has nothing to do with Nanjing University. It is impossible for him to be included in the invited manuscript. Moreover, even if he is included, he can only be included in this special issue once at most, and he will not get anything."

Her best friend stared at her suspiciously: "You rejected his manuscript when he was shortlisted. Now that he's in the top ten, won't you make a fuss about you rejecting his manuscript?"

Zhang Qian sneered, "You think too much. What's the matter with the top ten? Do you remember who was in the top ten of last year's literary competition? No one will remember except the champion.

"He used all his connections just to get a spot in the top ten. He is short-sighted. Even if he gets featured in the special issue, so what? It's just to satisfy his boring dream of being a writer and to satisfy his addiction to being a writer."

Her best friend said, "Tsk tsk, now that I think about it, Ning Chunyan is pretty pitiful."

She turned around and asked, "But if he makes it into the top ten, he'll have a chance to be selected. What if he really wins a prize?"

Zhang Qian pursed her lips and said, "Do you think those judges are just for show? The final review of this literary conference is a cross-examination, and the ranking is calculated based on the total score, and the highest and lowest scores must be removed.

"He can find one or two connections to get into the third round, which is fine for his own amusement, and he can go back to his small unit to show off. But can he find connections that are even higher than the sky?"

(End of this chapter)