Rebirth of the Godly Prodigal

Tang Jinghui carefully asked, “Then… if you’re satisfied, what should we do?”

Hong Dali touched his chin. “En, how do you guys ensure that the authors don’t quit halfway? Also commonly referred to as eunuch ¹ ?”

Tang Jinghui respectfully replied, “Normally, the method we use is the severance method. Meaning that we pay them for every thousand characters that they write. We will disregard the result of their novels, but just pay them according to the number of characters. The normal rate we are using now is 30 yuan for every thousand characters, and this is already slightly above average pay. If I offer this rate to them, it shouldn’t be a problem.”

“Ah, this is a good method.” Hong Dali immediately decided. “If their style of writing satisfies me, I will offer them a hundred yuan for every thousand characters.”

Oh my god, he hasn’t even read their novel but already decided to offer them such a high rate as long as their style of writing satisfies him? If the authors write 10,000 characters per day, that will earn them a thousand yuan in a single day—that means 30,000 yuan per month. That would definitely be the highest salary ever in the history of online authors!

Hearing the high rate that Hong Dali offered, Tang Jinghui broke out in sweat and reported: “These authors might write in the style you are looking for, but the performance of their novels are quite average. I reckon that 30 yuan for every thousand characters is already enough for them…”

Hong Dali was puzzled and asked, “What has the performance of their novels got to do with me? It’s just simply that I prefer this kind of novels. Since this is what I like, then I should pay them well to help them focus on their novels and not constantly paused their work, or totally quit after writing halfway. Just settle on the rate of a hundred yuan per thousand characters! If I’m satisfied with their novels, I will increase the rate!”

“Yes, yes.” Tang Jinghui secretly thought to himself: This is really the infamous prodigal. Just because he’s happy, he offers a rate of a hundred yuan per thousand characters, and will even increase the rate if he’s satisfied. That will mean a monthly income of tens of thousands, which is even more than what I’m earning. This makes me feel like becoming an author too.” Although that was what he was thinking, he couldn’t say that out loud. Instead, he said, “OK, I got it. En, the kind of authors that you are looking for, I know five of them.” Saying so, he took out a laptop from beside him. “Their pen names are: Dark Dragon of the Universe, Drunk Venom, Ultimate Sky Limit, Treasure Slayer, and Smile of the Vagrant.”

Yep, these authors are the ones I’m seeking. Just looking at their names, one can tell that they are filled with a murderous aura.

Hong Dali asked, “Then, what about their current works? Show them to me.”

Tang Jinghui replied, ” OK.”

Hong Dali looked at the laptop’s screen and said, “Ah, not bad. The story that this Dark Dragon of the Universe creates is filled with imagination. His words are simple, straightforward, and hot-blooded. I like it!” Although this was what he said, in his heart, he was utterly delighted. His style of writing is quite similar to that of the famous author Chen Dong from my previous life! I have found a treasure. I have something to look forward to reading now.

“O… OK…” Tang Jinghui wiped off his cold sweat. “Then how about the rest?”

“I’m looking at the quality of writing first, be patient.” Hong Dali opened up the novels of the other authors. He started reading from the first chapters and commended as he did so: “This is more like it, this kind of novel is more interesting. This is the way to do it, kill their entire family if they dare to scold me! Yep, correct, this is the effect I want, dominance! These are online novels, after all. How will they be welcomed if their story isn’t domineering! Yep, I like this novel from Ultimate Sky Limit, just eat those that they don’t like, awesome!

“Hahaha, the way this Dark Dragon of the Universe writes is quite interesting; one will be tempted to read the second chapter after the first one. His style of writing is also very hot-blooded. Look at this Drunk Venom. Look at how the main character retaliates—The tide changes with time, never look down on a young man just because he is poor. Awesome, this is the kind of effect I’m looking for. If one can’t feel invigorated from reading online novels, then what is the point of reading them at all?

“Look at this novel from Treasure Slayer, the flow of his story is nicely crafted. Every part of the story is connected to one another. What’s rarer is that his words are comfortable to read. This is what I call grasping the essence of online novels. The words don’t need to be elegant, as long as they are not tiring to look at and smooth to read, this kind of writing style is what I deem good.”

“This Smile of the Vagrant is not bad too… competition within the academy, good!”

Tang Jinghui was sweating bullets as he heard on. This young master’s taste is really different from a normal person. The literate works in this world have always sought elegance and magnificence, using various idioms just to express a single sentence. But to Hong Dali, these kinds of authors whose words are not beautifully crafted are what he admires. However, disregarding his true thoughts, he still had to agree with him on the outside. “Yep, Young Master’s comments make sense. Then, these few novels… should we really pay them at a rate of a hundred yuan per thousand characters? That will exceed our budget.”

Hong Dali immediately decided. “Yes, pay them at a rate of a hundred yuan per thousand characters! Ask their editors to inform them. I only have two conditions. Firstly, they’re not allowed to pause in between. Secondly, the story must be filled with content, not filled with meaningless words! As for the money, I will transfer three million over to the company for current usage.”

Tang Jinghui hurriedly took note of these two conditions. This was all money! As long as he could make this Young Master happy, money was not a problem at all! At this point, Hong Dali continued, “Oh right, there’s this novel called ‘Evil Spirit.’ I quite liked the story. Contact the author and offer him the rate of a hundred yuan per thousand characters too!”

“O… OK…”

…

Tianjing City, villa by Hong Lake in the southwest, villa no. 16.

“Damn it, I wonder what kind of dog shit luck this prodigal Hong Dali has got. He actually managed to create an artist with a value of more than 20 million yuan overnight.” Hong Anbao angrily lay on the sofa and scolded. “Why is he so fortunate, actually managing to get ahold of such a talent? How come I have never met such a good chance before!?”

“Just a lowly artist, there’s a limit to how much she can be worth.” Hong Anbao’s father, Hong Jianye, held a cup of red wine, one leg resting upon the other, and said, “What I’m more concerned with is that recently, I heard that Hong Weiguo bought quite a few pieces of land in the fourth loop. Anbao, what do you think of his actions?”

Hong Anbao scorned. “What use does that useless piece of land have? He only bought it because of that prodigal Hong Dali.” Saying this, Hong Anbao laughed. “Dad, after I sold away those estates, I have expanded my factory. The sales performance almost doubled during this period, and quite a number of buyers came to buy from my factory. I reckon that if I can expand it again before the family meeting and do some public relations, the sales performance can continue to double. If I’m lucky, this year’s profit might reach 40 plus million yuan!”

“Haha, good job!” Hong Jianye laughed loudly. “A profit of 40 plus million in a single year, this performance can rank amongst the top few in your generation. Not counting that business freak Mu Yuxi, I reckon that you can be ranked amongst the top three. Those elders will definitely allocate more resources to you and groom you. When that time comes, you can perform to the best of your abilities, hehe.”

Hong Anbao laughed loudly too and said, “Haha, that’s for sure. So what if Hong Dali has a good birthplace? He’s still a useless person who only knows how to squander.”

“Right.” Hong Jianye gave a cold smile. “Hong Weiguo might be a business genius, but it’s unfortunate that he doesn’t have someone capable of succeeding him. When the time comes and he becomes an elder, at least 90% of his estates will be taken back by the Hong family. What’s left will sooner or later be squandered away by that prodigal Dali. He is not a threat. Work hard and show off during the family meeting, Hong Weiguo’s money will become ours in the future!”

“I got it, Dad. Haha!”