British writer

Sweden,

Stockholm,

Swedish Academy.

Permanent Secretary Carl David Af Wilson is sitting behind his desk, leisurely drinking black tea imported from England.

In front of him was a not-so-long list of candidates for the Nobel Prize in Literature, mainly from the two Nordic countries of Denmark and Norway.

At the end of the list is a handwritten name——

Leo Tolstoy.

"Huh~"

Wilson exhaled,

He walked to the window, opened it, and let the cool breeze blow in.

It was already afternoon, and the thin layer of snow covering the yellow-green grass outside had almost melted.

Entering mid-April, the long snow season in Northern Europe is coming to an end.

At this time, someone pushed the door open and came in.

An old voice sounded: "Karl."

Wilson turned around,

I saw an old man standing at the door. He was Siclas Theodor Odner, the eleventh member of the Swedish Academy.

Wilson smiled and said hello,

"Old Klaas, why are you here? You just came back from Germany, why don't you take a little rest?"

Odena smiled bitterly and said, "How can I rest?"

He traveled and communicated in Western Europe and realized that the 20th century was a new century, and everything was developing and changing rapidly.

There are sample essays like "The Country Teacher" as a platform for the Verne Science Fiction Award,

There are popular tabloids like "The Mirror" that are killing everyone,

There are all-around writers like Lu,

…

After all, it seemed that everything was related to Lu Shi.

Oudna's wry smile deepened.

He walked to the desk, glanced at the list, and asked, "What? Are you still worried about the Nobel Prize in Literature?"

Wilson spread his hands,

"What's there to worry about? Now, the Literature Prize is destined to go to Mr. Tolstoy. The only task I have to complete now is to write comments to other people who will inevitably lose the election and tell them the reasons for their failure."

Oldner stared closely at the list;

"Actually, Mr. Ibsen's plays are very good, and "A Doll's House" is very good."

Wilson was helpless,

"It's a pity that he met Lu Shi and Tolstoy."

Of these two people, one is really capable of causing trouble and the other is really powerful.

Wilson returned to the table, picked up the pen, and said while writing: "Actually, I even thought of the reasons. Ibsen once said, 'If you want to fully understand me, you must first understand Norway.' No. Of course it is difficult to win awards if you have an international perspective.”

Ordner: "..."

Completely speechless.

Wilson chuckled and said: "I know~I know~it seems too strong to say this. But I think Mr. Ibsen is willing to accept it happily. Who wants his opponent to be Mr. Tolstoy?"

Odena was stunned for a while, then laughed loudly,

The Swedish Academy is now completely on its knees and even wants to change the first Nobel Prize for Literature into the Tolstoy Prize for Literature.

All members of the Faculty of Arts implement one word:

Ruined.

After Wilson finished writing his comments, he took the ribbon and tied it carefully. At the same time, he heated the fire paint with the small metal pot next to it.

A faint scent of rosin wafted through the room.

Odena didn't like the strange smell and leaned against the window.

"Karl, do you think why I came to you?"

Wilson squinted his eyes to one side of the table,

There was the "Daily Times" from the day before yesterday, with the first page open, "Fake!" Fake! Fake! 》The corner of the page moved with the wind, making a soft and crisp sound.

He said: "Based on my understanding of Lu Shi, he will definitely fight back."

Oudna nodded,

"Correct! That kid will definitely retaliate!"

He took out a stack of paper that he had with him, waved it in front of Wilson, and introduced: "I had someone take the telegram. Come, you can sort it out with me."

Wilson put paint on the paper where he was writing the comments, and pressed part of it down to hold down the red ribbon.

Then, he found the Nobel Committee's seal and stamped it.

Then he said: "Close the window first."

Odner waited a moment for the smell of rosin to dissipate before closing the window.

The two began to sort out the telegram.

Because there is a word limit for long messages, an article needs to be cut into several paragraphs, and the order is still messy.

They have to put them in order like they would do college entrance examination questions.

It took a few minutes for the article to be restored.

Odena looked at the title of the article and was stunned for a long time, then suddenly laughed wildly,

He was out of breath and said: "Hahaha...ha...still..."Mirror" is cruel enough to directly name it...hahaha...it can actually call it "FAKE NEWS!""

As long as you are a normal person, you can realize that this is a reference to "Fake!" Fake! Fake! "Counterattack.

The two of them read the article together,

"There is no need to hide the true sales volume of "Mirror". Combine the data of printing volume and inventory storage. See the figure below for details:"

"On the contrary, it is a well-known major newspaper, and the data fluctuations are questionable. See the picture below for details:"

"The data fraud of this well-known broadsheet can not only be analyzed from fluctuations and changes, but also estimated from the sales proportion of this well-known broadsheet in London. See the figure below for details:"

…

It's all "See the picture below for details".

The two looked at each other.

After a while, Wilson said: "What kind of inexplicable thing is this! Picture? Where did the picture come from?"

Of course, the telegram contains no pictures and no truth.

The two of them looked lonely.

Odena couldn't help but blush, and whispered: "If I had known this, I wouldn't have let the people in London send telegrams. It's a waste of so much money..."

His flesh ached terribly.

At this time, there was a knock on the door suddenly.

The clerk's voice sounded outside the door: "Mr. Ordner, there is your telegram. It's from London."

Odena frowned and muttered: "I only asked them to pay attention to the Mirror's response to the Daily Times and the article signed by Lu. Why is there...um...could it be that Lu published an article?"

Wilson said: "Did you forget that there was another article in the Daily Times!? The one by Luser!?"

He walked over and opened the door, leaving a message:

"Don't forget, Lu Shi is a man who will retaliate for his anger!"

Click——

The door is opened.

The clerk handed over a stack of paper and said apologetically: "Mr. Wilson, the message is too long and the content has been cut into multiple pieces. This is the only way."

Wilson waved his hand,

"It's okay, we'll sort it out."

The clerk saluted respectfully and then left.

Wilson returned to his desk with the telegram and sorted it out with Odener.

Soon, his movements stopped.

Ordner looked up;

"Karl, you can't bully me, an old comrade, to make me work more."

Wilson certainly did not have such boring thoughts, he was just attracted by the telegram.

He said: "Old Klass, look."

Ordner moved closer;

Half a minute later, he showed an expression of disbelief and said: "I actually criticized Charles Dickens in the UK. This...does this mean I don't want to live anymore?"

Wilson shook his head,

"No, I don't think this is criticism, but more like ridicule. If you look at this paragraph carefully, the overall atmosphere is humorous."

As he said, the writing style is indeed relaxed:

——

Charles Dickens, author of "David Copperfield", "A Tale of Two Cities", "Oliver Twist", "The Great Expectation" and other works, is the greatest writer in British history.

But it cannot be denied that his writing is complicated and lengthy;

"Great Expectations" in particular, although well written, is soporific.

Because he can't write?

of course not!

There is only one real reason:

draft! fee!

Dickens charged royalties based on the number of chapters in the series, so in order to fill the required length of each serialization, the number of words had to be increased.

——

Wilson thought of Luser's article——

"Are all novels suitable for serialization?" Some profound thoughts on "The Lord of the Rings".

He said: "This is talking about the disadvantages of serialization."

Oudna was puzzled;

"Why don't I find Mr. Dickens's writing complicated and lengthy?"

Wilson asked back: "Old Claes, you have to consider your age. When you read "Great Expectations", did you read the single book or the serial?"

Ordner got it a little bit;

"I read the serials. You mean, the serials can help people develop a passion for reading."

Wilson continued: "You also have to consider your academic qualifications. As a top student at Uppsala University, it is not difficult for you to understand the words of Jiqu Naiya, but it is a challenge; coupled with your If your native language is not English, the language barrier will naturally make you more tolerant of tedious English writing.”

Odner was completely convinced.

He looked at the message,

"So, Lu Shi also thinks there are drawbacks to serialization?"

Wilson shook his head,

"It's hard to say. Lu Shi can always come up with new tricks. We'd better sort it out and then judge."

…

Cambridge,

King's College.

School Superintendent Spencer Cavendish holds today's copy of the Mirror like a treasure.

This newspaper was hard-earned.

Because the printing volume of the Mirror was limited, the newspaper first supplied it to London, and the University of Cambridge, which was far away in Cambridge, was naturally unable to purchase it.

This incident caused the students in Cambridge to fall out immediately and even go on strike.

Cavendish was helpless,

As a backbone of the Conservative Party, he personally went to seek help from Wodehouse of the Liberal Party.

Of course, I didn’t go there as a leader of the Conservative Party, but as the Chancellor of Cambridge University.

The reason for persuasion is: "Why can't education be poor if you are poor! How can you not sell newspapers to universities everywhere?"

Wodehouse really couldn't refuse.

"Mirror" then went to universities across the UK.

From Oxford University to Cambridge University,

From the University of Bristol to the University of Sheffield,

From Trinity College Dublin to the University of St Andrews,

…

Whether it is a classical university or a red brick university, each school can purchase 200 copies of the Mirror every day.

But even so, it's still not enough for the students to grab.

Cavendish had no choice but to deposit all the newspapers in the college libraries so that students could borrow them to read.

Who would have thought that ideals are full and reality is skinny?

After the students borrowed the newspaper, they decided on the spot not to return it and paid a fine of ten times the original price of the newspaper.

Cavendish had no choice but to change the library's fines model, which was to pay according to the number of days. For every day that the borrowed items were not returned, a fine of ten times the original price of the newspaper would have to be paid.

It turned out to be of no use at all.

the reason is simple,

There are too many aristocratic students at Cambridge University!

A copy of the "Mirror" is only three pence, and thirty pence a day is nothing to them.

They simply turned the fine into permanent rent.

Cavendish had no choice but to force the Mirror to be borrowed, but it could only be read in the reading room and not taken out of the library. Only then was the matter completely resolved.

But this regulation also brings side effects:

It’s hard for faculty and staff to borrow books.

Today's students always talk about "teachers and students are equal" but say "the school provides human rights".

They couldn't lend out the "Mirror" themselves, and naturally they couldn't ask the professors to lend out the "Mirror". Once they found out, they would start gathering and making a fuss.

The "Mirror" in Cavendish's hand was obtained with great difficulty by the back door.

He read it carefully and murmured: "It's amazing...it's really amazing!"

Opposite him, Professor Montague James also agreed: "Well, Lu is indeed amazing."

Cavendish was surprised;

"You, a Bible student and writer, are also interested in this?"

As he spoke, he pointed to the pie chart on the newspaper.

In the political core of London, namely the Palace of Westminster, Whitehall, and Downing Street, officeholders have begun to use bar charts.

This kind of chart is very intuitive.

Use the column height to reflect the differences in the data.

For example, the article on the front page today, "FAKE NEWS!" ", using a bar chart to clearly analyze the sales fraud of a well-known newspaper,

The well-known broadsheet has announced that its daily sales have exceeded 100,000 dozens of times.

But in reality, you can count them on two hands.

What really surprised Cavendish was the introduction of line charts and pie charts. One can reflect changes in data trends, and the other can reflect the proportion of a certain part to the whole.

These two kinds of graphs can make complex data intuitive.

In the future, business officers will definitely use it frequently.

Who would have thought that such an efficient charting tool would be introduced by a tabloid newspaper?

Cavendish said: "Professor Lu is indeed a strange person."

Although "Mirror" was not the result of one person's efforts, he instinctively attributed the introduction of charts to Lu Shi.

Except for the Chinese guy, don't think about it.

Opposite him, James shook his head,

"Mr. Superintendent, what I want to say is this article, "Is serialization really not suitable for writing novels?" Sexual Trickery and Mystery Works.”

Cavendish's eyes widened;

"You mean, Lu is teaching writers how to write books again? Last time it was a narrative trick, this time it's a serialization?"

James nodded,

"I'm afraid so."

He pointed to a part of the article,

"There are still many parts of this article that I can't chew on. Currently, I can only understand the two parts of 'Dahe Novel' and 'Inside-Out Expansion'."

Cavendish leaned over and realized that the other party was referring to the "Big River Novel" part.

He asked curiously: "What is a 'Dahe Novel'?"

James explains: "The River Novel is a form in French literature, specifically referring to long works with multi-volume continuity and historical significance. Because it emphasizes the length of time and the vastness of the background, it has a huge capacity and It uses historical changes as the basic clue and will not collapse due to the length of the writing.”

There are many such novels,

In modern times, East Asia has even given rise to the term "river drama", which is derived from the French "roman-fleuve", which is a river novel.

For example, "One-Eyed Dragon Masamune" is familiar.

Cavendish understood;

"So, this kind of work is very suitable for serialization, because as long as you create according to the process of history, you will not lack inspiration and it will be difficult to be inconsistent."

He asked again: "What about 'inside-out expansion'?"

James pointed to the article,

"You'd better read the original text."

He held out the newspaper.

Cavendish read it carefully and concluded: "First consider the outline of the story, then expand each part from it, then expand it into subtext, then convert the subtext into a first draft, and finally rewrite the first draft to reach the final draft. "

James said: "Professor Lu believes that this is the most stable and conservative way of writing, but it is also the least wasteful of writing power."

Cavendish chuckled,

"This method is quite stupid. And as far as I know, many writers create this way."

James nodded,

"It's really stupid, and geniuses will definitely look down upon it. But it can ensure the quality of the work."

Cavendish asked curiously: "Do you think Professor Lu used this method?"

James: "..."

Wordless silence is the best answer.

After a while, he said: "Professor Lu is such a generous person, and he is teaching people how to write books without reservation. As long as you can thoroughly understand the methods mentioned in this article, the series will be long and guaranteed to not collapse. It’s not that difficult.”

With that said, James looked at Cavendish,

"Mr. Chancellor, do we have the opportunity to invite Professor Lu to give a lecture in Cambridge again? I always feel that there is something endless in him."

Cavendish's head is full of black lines,

￣□￣｜｜

I thought in my heart that I wanted to squeeze Lu Shi out of him...

He said: "Let's wait until the serialization of "Lord of the Rings" ends."

James was puzzled: "Why? Do you think there will be problems with the serialization of "Lord of the Rings"? Professor Lu will eat books?"

He looked at the article "Serial, is it really not suitable for writing a novel?" 》,

It’s impossible no matter how you think about it!

Cavendish shook his head,

"No, Professor Lu may be quite busy recently. Let him rest at least~"