Chapter 8 Kyoto University Press
Seeing that Liu Hongmin was unhappy, Zou Shifang quickly said, "You have to understand us. Weiming Lake is just starting out and has a huge funding gap. If we pay you according to other people's remuneration standards, Weiming Lake simply can't afford it."
"That can't reduce my royalties!" Liu Hongmin said dissatisfiedly: "No matter what, that's also the income from my labor."
Liu Zhenyun said, "I was wondering what was wrong! Those of us who don't write well can get six or seven yuan per thousand words, but Hongmin's writing is no worse than ours, so why is it only three and a half yuan!"
Zou Shifang looked at him speechlessly and said, "Don't make trouble at this time."
Liu Zhenyun pretended not to notice Zou Shifang's look and continued, "Hongmin's novel can at least get 7 yuan per thousand words, which means he can get at least 200 yuan in royalties."
Ge Chaoguang was shocked when he heard this. "Is writing novels so profitable?"
Liu Hongmin squinted at Zou Shifang and said, "Whatever money you made, it was all taken away by others."
Zou Shifang glared at Liu Zhenyun. "The novel you wrote is not worth six or seven yuan per thousand words. The school gave you some subsidies because they saw that you had a hard time. If we follow the standards outside the school, it would be good if you can get five yuan per thousand words."
"Even if it's a penny more, it's still my money!" Liu Hongmin said unhappily, "You deducted so much money from me, don't you feel guilty?"
Zou Shifang smiled and said, "We know this is unfair to you, so we contacted Beijing University Press to see if we can publish a separate volume for Famous Throughout the World."
"We at Kyoto University also have a publishing house?"
Liu Zhenyun asked curiously.
"It existed before, but was later abolished." Zou Shifang explained: "The school is now applying for restoration, and it is said that the progress is very good. It will be re-established next year at the latest. In order to publish books as soon as possible after the re-establishment, they are now accepting manuscripts."
The three nodded. During that special period, too many departments were abolished. As the nation's top university, Kyoto University had too many abolished departments to count. Now Kyoto University has been restoring these departments, hoping to return to the state before the special period.
Liu Hongmin's mind was moved. If Shao Bao could really publish a single volume, that would be great. Although the remuneration was still fixed, the remuneration for publishing a single volume would at least not be lower than the remuneration for "Unnamed Lake".
"The results of it?"
Zou Shifang took credit and said, "They have agreed and will send someone to talk to you soon."
Sure enough, within two days, Li Huanfang, an editor sent by the Peking University Press, which had not yet been established, came to Liu Hongmin's dormitory to discuss with him the publication of a single volume.
"Mr. Liu, the royalties for monographs are generally the same as those for magazines. However, Weiming Lake has already told us about your situation, so our publishing house has decided to give you six yuan per thousand words. But we also have a condition, and I hope you can agree to it."
"What conditions?" Liu Hongmin frowned slightly. If Peking University Press proposed any excessive conditions, he would definitely not agree to them.
Li Huanfang said, "It's like this. We heard that you are going to write the second part of Young Justice Bao. So, we hope that you can sign all the subsequent single volumes of Young Justice Bao to us."
Liu Hongmin asked tentatively: "You want to sign both movies at the same time?" "Not just the second movie, we want to sign all the sequels of Young Justice Bao."
"The manuscript fee is six yuan per thousand words?"
"Of course not. We will pay for the next one based on the performance of the previous one."
Liu Hongmin nodded. This was more like it. He could accept the idea of paying based on performance. However, he had to make one thing clear: "What is the upper limit of the remuneration you can give? If Shao Bao's performance is particularly good, can you give more than the upper limit?"
"I'm afraid this won't work."
"Then I can't agree to sign all the sequels to you." Liu Hongmin said: "If there are fewer copies, I will accept a lower royalty. But if the results are particularly good, there is a cap on your royalties, which is unfair to me. Since you want me to take the risk, you have to give me the possibility of high returns."
Li Huanfang was silent for a while, "There are regulations on the standard of manuscript fees."
Liu Hongmin said, "How about this, we sign one by one, and I can give you priority in signing. If the royalties are the same, Beijing University Press has priority in signing. But if others pay more than you, don't blame me for giving less to others to publish."
Hearing Liu Hongmin's firm words, Li Huanfang did not try to persuade him any further.
"I'll go back and report. If the higher-ups agree, I'll come back to sign the contract with you tomorrow."
Liu Hongmin had no objection and sent him out of the dormitory.
The fee for writing "Famous" was 460 yuan per thousand words, so he could get about yuan. He still had more than yuan left from the fee for "Unnamed Lake", which added up to nearly yuan. In this era, yuan was not a small amount, enough for him to live in Beijing for several years. If he wrote a few more sequels, he might be able to save enough money to buy a house, and a courtyard house.
Thinking of this, Liu Hongmin instantly became motivated. As long as he bought a courtyard house, even if he waited for it to appreciate in value for 30 years, it would be enough for him to use for a lifetime.
In the evening of the next day, Li Huanfang found Liu Hongmin again and the two signed the contract.
"The manuscript fee is 460 yuan. Here is the receipt. Because Beijing University Press has not yet resumed operations, we cannot give you the money for the time being. According to our estimate, the publishing house will be almost established after the winter vacation. You can take this receipt to collect the money then."
Still a blank check!
Liu Hongmin joked in his heart and put the list away. In this era, this kind of thing is very common, so there is no need to worry about being cheated.
After seeing Li Huanfang off, Liu Hongmin immediately devoted himself to preparing for the exam.
After the final exams were completed, Liu Hongmin immediately packed his luggage and boarded the train home. Train tickets were not easy to buy these days, but all tickets leaving Beijing were purchased by Beijing University.
There was no direct train from Beijing to Hanhai, so Liu Hongmin had to get off at Checheng and change to the Hanhai Line. He used his student ID to buy a ticket, but he could only buy a ticket for three days later. Liu Hongmin had no choice but to stay in the guesthouse at Checheng Railway Station for two days. Taking this opportunity, he took out the outline of "Blood Altar" and began to write the manuscript.
The story of "Blood Altar" unfolds from the academy. One of the two real murderers, Chang Yu, appears at the beginning. She is a peddler selling gouache. Bao Zheng's mother often buys gouache from her and asks her to deliver it to her door many times, so Bao Zheng not only knows her, but also has a good relationship with her.
(End of this chapter)
