British writer

The sun was setting.

The Fleet River is glowing with lingling waves and is ruddy.

On Fleet Street, the offices of the only two newspapers were in a hurry, namely The Scotsman and the Manchester Guardian.

Newsboys surrounded the gates of the offices of The Scotsman,

"Is it out of stock?!"

"Come on, I've taken ten copies of the Scotchman today. Damn it! Damn it!"

"Hey! Don't you all have estimated sales?!"

"How do you estimate this!?"

...

It's really impossible to predict,

After all, even the editor-in-chief of The Scotsman didn't expect his newspaper to sell so well.

In the office, Cooper was in a state of madness, his hair was pulled up in locks, and he looked like an afro + dreadlocks.

He commands all around:

"You all give me action! How's the printing in Edinburgh?"

No one answered.

Cooper slapped the table,

"I'm asking you something!"

boom--

There was a loud bang from the table.

Finally someone timidly spoke up: "Editor-in-Chief, the printing factory over there at the headquarters is rushing to work. I just sent a telegram saying that the printing presses over there were all smoked, but I barely managed to produce 2,000 yuan in the morning. Multiple copies. Look..."

Cooper's face darkened,

"What are you looking at? Say something quickly!"

The man quickly replied: "Is it still necessary for someone to deliver the newspaper?"

Everyone looked at the sky outside,

From Edinburgh to London, I'm catching a train all the way, and the newspaper will probably be delivered in the early morning,

At that time, can it still be sold?

this is a problem.

Cooper lowered his head and pondered for a moment, gritted his teeth, and said, "Take a telegram to the headquarters, leave 500 copies in Edinburgh, and send all the others to London. It should be no problem to sell it in the most prosperous area."

There is no doubt that The Scotsman has its roots in Scotland,

But because of Lu Shi, Cooper had ambitions,

He now wants to focus his business on London,

If the headquarters and printing factory of the newspaper can be relocated to Fleet Street in the future, the printing and transportation costs will be greatly reduced, and it will also attract the attention of those gentlemen in Whitehall, Downing Street, and the Palace of Westminster to advertise and sponsor All easier.

And it's not just Cooper who has this idea,

Scott of the "Manchester Guardian" is going to change the registration to "The Guardian", and the headquarters will also be moved to Fleet Street.

Cooper pushed back: "I know you're worried about getting those newspapers so late that you might not sell them. But trust me, it's fine."

Now that the editor-in-chief has spoken like this, the people below will naturally stop persuading me.

The office is busy again.

Cooper turned his head and entered the editor's room,

At this time, Lu Shi was sitting in an armchair, holding "Beach Magazine" in his hand, reading the secret chapter of "Dancing Little People".

He heard movement, raised his head,

"Mr. Cooper, I see you are very busy."

Cooper laughed,

He closed the door to isolate the noise outside, and then said: "I am willing to be busy like this, even if I get dizzy from being busy."

With that said, he sat down across from Lu Shi,

"You, awesome!"

This is the second time Lu Shi has heard of this admiration today.

He said bluntly, "I went to visit Mr. Scott just now, and he said the same thing."

The two looked at each other and smiled.

Cooper took a sip of water, and then said: "How did you crack the code of "Dancing Little People"? I studied for hours, and my eyes were dazzled."

In Cooper's eyes, those villains ended up becoming:

Dance(((((())))))

It was simply torture.

Lu Shi spread his hands,

"I explained it very clearly in today's "Manchester Guardian". In fact, Dr. Doyle only used the simplest replacement code, but because of the form of pictures, it looks a bit novel, but it is actually the same. Zong."

"Tsk..."

Cooper was speechless: "This is only convincing if you say it."

After finishing speaking, he changed the subject: "I heard that today's "Manchester Guardian" is sold out?"

Lu Shi nodded,

He just came from Scott, so he has the most right to speak: "Yes, Mr. Scott is also facing the same dilemma as you, and needs to print a lot."

The main reason is the book review edition of the previous day,

At that time, readers didn't know that it was Lu Shi's masterpiece, but whoever drew the dancing figures on it was a positive response to Doyle's provocation.

Such an explosive and gossip matter naturally attracted the attention of the whole people.

As a result, after the "Seashore Magazine" was released today, people found that the content of the book review page turned out to be "I cracked the code. Your loyal fellow friend, Lu." It is difficult for the newspaper to sell.

Cooper pinched his fingers and muttered words,

After a while, he said: "It feels like today's Manchester Guardian may cross the 100,000 sales mark in London."

After today, the "Manchester Guardian" can finally really break up with the "Times" and "Daily Telegraph".

Cooper showed a weird smile,

When he asked Lu: "Lu, do you know what the last time The Times sold more than 100,000 in a single day in London?"

Lu Shi only knew that "The Times" was popularized from "Quality Report" after 1908, and its sales volume is hard to estimate.

He guessed: "Is the World Expo?"

Cooper scratched his head,

"Which class are you talking about? If you mean last year's class, it's not."

The World Expo in 1900 was held in Paris, France. It lasted 210 days and attracted as many as 50 million visitors. The theme was Review of the Century.

Doesn't this help the newspaper sell more than 100,000 copies?

Lu Shi asked again: "Is that 1889? That World Expo had the Eiffel Tower, or was it the 100th anniversary of the French Revolution..."

Cooper shook his head,

"Why do you always like to guess the World Expo?"

Lu Shi is gone,

"Then I can't tell."

Cooper chuckled and said in a low voice, "Prince Albert died of illness."

Lu Shi was completely dumbfounded.

"What? Wasn't that forty years ago?"

Cooper nodded.

"Although the "Times" and "Daily Telegraph" announced hundreds of times after that that their single-day sales exceeded 100,000, they were all added up across the country, not just in London. Moreover, the sum of the whole country It also has moisture."

Lu Shi understands,

It was probably Cao Cao who wrote to Sun Quan, "There are 800,000 soldiers in the water, and Fang and the general will hunt in Wu."

Of course it is impossible to have an army of 800,000,

Bragging.

Cooper lowered his voice and said, "So, Lu, you created a news comparable to the death of Prince Albert."

Lu Shi hurriedly waved his hands,

"Don't talk nonsense about this. Besides, I didn't make it alone. Without the full cooperation of Doctor Doyle, how could such a big explosion be made?"

The heat is fried little by little:

First of all, Doyle released the "Dancing Little Man" incident on Monday, which feels like challenging the heroes of the world.

The event starts to warm up;

Afterwards, Lu Shi responded with dancing figures in the "Manchester Guardian" on Tuesday,

heat upgrade;

Finally, on Wednesday, the secret chapter of "The Dancing Little Man" and Lu Shi's book review were released at the same time. The comparison between the two allowed people to decipher the content of Lu Shi's book review the day before.

The heat exploded completely.

So what Lu Shi said was right, it was indeed the result of the cooperation between him and Doyle.

I just don't know if Doyle will vomit blood when he hears this.

Cooper glanced at the "Seashore Magazine", and said: "Oh, Holmes lost in the case this time, and in reality. I don't know how the "Seashore Magazine" should deal with it later, whether to put the name of 'lost' Detective' as a selling point."

Lu Shi didn't pick up,

In fact, he only wanted to respond to the bet made by Cambridge.

Unexpectedly, Doyle ran straight into him, so he could only feel embarrassed.

Lu Shi stretched his waist,

"I'm actually a fan of Holmes myself."

Cooper couldn't help but roll his eyes,

Believe him!

With Lu Shi mercilessly attacking Doyle like this, if he is a fan of Sherlock Holmes, then there are no real fans in this world.

Lu Shi chuckled and said, "Mr. Cooper, don't you believe it?"

Cooper snorted.

"I believe it, of course I believe it."

This obviously needs to be heard in reverse.

Lu Shi couldn't help laughing and said, "That's because you don't understand me."

Cooper thought for a while, and said: "You seem to be right. I heard that you are a guest speaker in London Political Economy, and you have always encouraged students to boldly question your own articles. The more they question, the more excited you are. This seems to be your style?"

What he said was like treating Lu Shi as a masochist.

Lu Shi was slightly embarrassed,

"That... cough cough... that is actually the opinion of Mr. Xiao, the school supervisor."

Cooper wondered,

What is the difference between Mr. Xiao's point of view and Lu Shi's point of view?

Puzzled.

Lu Shi became even more embarrassed, and changed the subject: "By the way, the main purpose of my coming here to find you is to ask about the sales volume of The Scotsman. It looks like it sold very well today?"

Speaking of this, Cooper's attention was indeed attracted, and he said excitedly: "That's right! I...uh..."

As he spoke, he seemed to be stuttering.

Lu Shi was puzzled,

"what happened to you?"

Cooper stood up abruptly, bowed to Lu Shi, and said, "I'm sorry!"

Lu Shi was speechless for a while,

Why is "Sensation Your Private Marseille" contagious?

He hurriedly said: "I was able to achieve the current results, you and Mr. Scott helped a lot, so there is no need to say 'sorry', just say what you have to say."

Cooper sighed,

"Actually, I was conservative. Today's "Scotman" only sent 20,000 copies."

Lu Shi tilted his head and thought for a while, then asked, "Before, the Scotsman didn't always distribute 20,000 in the London area... Ah... I understand."

From the point of view of distribution, the number of printed and distributed works of famous authors must be progressive.

Just like the Sherlock Holmes series,

Aside from the "Study in Scarlet", which did not cause any disturbance, Doyle became famous since "The Sign of Four\

,"Afterwards, each issue of "Seaside Magazine" will be properly reprinted, ranging from three to five thousand, and as little as one or two thousand. As long as the publicity is done well, there is no reason why it cannot be sold.

This virtuous circle is also the reason why Holmes can gradually expand his influence.

Similarly, if Lu Shi became famous for "And And None Survived", then "The Scotsman" should reprint "The Hobbit\

,"Only in this way is it in line with the laws of the publishing industry and the newspaper industry.

Cooper whispered: "When I first read The Hobbit, I thought it was a great novel that would lead the way for fantasy novels. But when it came to print... alas... sorry. "

From suspense novels to fantasy adventure novels, the span between them is too great,

It's no wonder Cooper muttered, worried about sales.

It's just that the current sales have slapped Cooper in the face.

Lu Shi waved his hand,

"It's human nature."

He didn't want to be "sensationalized in your private race" by the other party anymore, so he continued the topic and said, "This time, it's also thanks to Professor James and Dr. Doyle."

It would be impossible to attract so many people's attention without the mutual sprays between the two sides in the newspapers.

Cooper chuckled,

"The main reason is that you have become famous."

Under the pen name of Lu, there are too many works under his name,

From novels to poems to dramas, it covers a wide range, but only history.

Cooper continued: "And, you may not believe it, most of the readers of your "The Hobbit" are..."

Before the words fell, the noise outside the window suddenly became louder.

The two looked at each other,

Cooper walked quickly to the window and pushed it open.

I saw that the front gate of the office was full of people, surrounded by three floors inside and three floors outside,

But the innermost layer is not the newsboys waiting to get the goods, but more than a dozen half-grown children, and even girls.

Cooper smiled wryly,

"I just wanted to say that most of the readers of "The Hobbit" are teenagers under the age of fifteen."

It can only be said that history is always surprisingly similar,

Tuo Lao's original work was originally a fairy tale, but Lu Shi changed the writing style, but the result is still the same.

Therefore, it is the content that really defines the age of the reader.

Lu Shi said: "In fact, I have already had... um... that is..."

Cooper followed his eyes when he landed,

I saw a few girls there, all dressed in uniform, which seemed to be the uniform of a girls' school.

He chuckled,

"Lu, it seems that girls also like your works."

Lu Shi didn't answer the flattery,

He locked his eyes on a girl and muttered in a low voice, "Zena?"

...

outside the office.

Zena pulled Rabar's sleeve and said in a low voice, "Can this work?"

Ball nodded firmly.

"It works! Newspaper offices always keep some newspapers that they don't sell."

Seeing her girlfriend like this, Zena couldn't help laughing, and said, "I don't know who doesn't want to read Lu's works, what's going on, you suddenly became a super fan?"

Ba'er rolled her eyes at the other party,

"Isn't it because you hid the "Scotchman" too tightly and didn't let me read it?"

Zena said: "I'm afraid that you will follow Miss West's lead and never repay."

Because the newspapers were confiscated, Zena was out of shape all day, and even felt uneasy when eating at noon.

This look of not thinking about food and drink aroused Bar's curiosity, so after Sister West returned Zena's "The Scotsman", she also leaned over to read a short section of "The Hobbit\

,"As a result, it got out of hand.

Although she only read about a thousand words, Ba'er was deeply attracted by the stories in it.

She wanted to borrow the newspaper, but of course Zena would not give it;

She wanted to buy another copy, but found that all the goods in the hands of the newsboy were sold out.

In the past, according to Ba'er's strict tutoring, she would not pursue anything,

But every time she thinks of "The Hobbit", she feels restless, wanting to finish reading the whole story today, so she makes a crazy decision——

Come directly to the newspaper to buy.

Bar squeezed Zena's palm,

"What do you mean 'if you borrow or not'? Didn't Miss West return the newspaper to you?"

Zena said: "She didn't return it until she finished reading it. If I lent it to you, you would definitely return it after reading it like her."

This cannot be refuted,

Bar said: "I can read fast~ Besides, you can still read your sister's newspaper~"

Zena gave her best friend a blank look, but Quan Zuo hadn't heard of it.

She changed the topic: "I always feel that it is unreliable to wait here. It is better to go to Professor Du Lu of London Political Economics. Our school is also in Adelphi, so it is close. Look here, there are too many people .”

The words came out, and the two looked around.

Beside them are students trying to try their luck,

Discussions came into my ears:

"Oh... I only read one chapter."

"Did you borrow it? It's the same as me. However, I finished reading the chapter and a half, and the beginning of the second chapter is about..."

"Get lost! Don't spoil me!"

"That's right, spoilers will be killed on the spot."

"Did you all borrow newspapers? Then I am much more miserable than you. I have been buying "The Scotsman" because I like "And And There Were None". It’s still exciting, but I was too absorbed in watching it, and the newspaper was confiscated.”

...

There are still people like Zena,

It's a pity that he didn't have Zena's acting skills, didn't know that crying children had milk, and couldn't get the newspaper back.

Zena couldn't help giggling.

Just then, a familiar voice sounded behind her,

"Zena? You're here to buy the Scotsman?"

Zena turned her head, her eyes widened in surprise,

"Lu... well..."

She was about to say hello, but remembered the surrounding environment, so she quickly covered her mouth.

Lu Shi chuckled, handed a bag to the other party, and said, "Okay, go home quickly, don't join in the fun here."

After speaking, he turned and walked towards the gate of the office.

Ba'er asked curiously, "Who is he?"

Zena did not answer, but opened the bag,

Inside were two copies of today's Scotsman.

Ba'er blushed excitedly, and said, "Zenna, you're so wild, you can... um... that guy just now is Asian, could it be! @* # ￥%..."

The following words became garbled characters because Zena covered her mouth.

She warned: "Don't talk nonsense, be careful of being attacked by groups."

Said, looking around.

Surrounded by students and paper boys wanting newspapers.

Ba'er nodded repeatedly, and when her best friend let go of her hand covering her mouth, she cast her eyes on Lu Shi's disappearing back, and said in a low voice, "I didn't expect to be so handsome."

Zena glared at the other party,

"Don't be a nympho!"