I am a writer in Tokyo

The question of whether or not God is blessing you is probably one that other publishing houses often consider.

They feel that they have been to the shrine many times, but why is there not such a single author who would come to them to become their disciples?

It is no exaggeration to say that if any publishing house had an author like Xiaoyuan Yishu, they would have the influence to dominate the entire literary world. But the problem is that they don't have it.

Naturally, Takao had also thought about the same question that Kashiwagi was thinking about.

But he felt that this issue should be considered later. Bungeishunju needed a victory very much, even if it was a small one. And it was obvious that the current situation was that this victory was not a small one.

As the person in charge of the editorial department, he is well aware of the importance of morale.

So he didn't tell anyone else about this matter, and forced himself to try to forget it. He would wait until the battle was over before slowly thinking about what to do next.

If we have to give a saying, it should be: A lean camel is bigger than a horse, and they must first become that camel, and whether they live or die can come later.

These thoughts hidden behind things should have grown slowly in dark places, but in places where the sun shines, the appearance of things is growing wildly.

"The Adventures of a Boatman" became an instant hit, probably because of the lists that appeared from nowhere and the way the bookstore clerks spoke eloquently about the book, which convinced readers.

It is also possible that the profession of editor arouses curiosity among others, and some literary young people who dream of becoming editors are curious. Driven by this curiosity, they become the main force in purchasing "The Book of the Boat".

Of course, the main purchasing group also includes editors. Even the trendy editors basically have a copy, and many of them bring it to the office.

Few people would focus on the editors. When someone tries to write about this group of unknown writers, their hearts are filled with boundless joy, and they have a feeling that their lives are being observed by others.

And this kind of gaze must be admiring and respectful.

Who doesn't like this feeling? Even those who are extremely socially anxious cannot refuse some well-intentioned encouragement and praise because of their social attributes.

For a time, editors including Xinchao jokingly called themselves great writers, and the people at Xinchao even put this book on their library wall to honor the profession to which they had devoted themselves and were proud.

Xinchao is not against this kind of thing. Their philosophy has always been to be inclusive and to learn and surpass others.

In short, "The Adventures of the Captain" seemed to have inadvertently surpassed "The Passion", which had been weighing heavily on the heads of the Japanese, and became a popular work in the book market.

News has always been on wings, and its speed is much faster than that of birds.

Under the influence of these news, people became migratory birds during the season change, rushing to the bookstore one after another. Unlike before, this time their target was the book that was regarded as the most worth reading: "The Compilation of the Boat".

The saying is probably true, interest determines people's attitude towards doing things. The bookstore clerks don't really like the idea of ​​selling books, it's just their job, they get paid for their work. But this time, they really like this book, so they are eager to buy books, the more the better.

The cars that shuttled through the streets and alleys transporting books did not change, but the books inside changed, becoming "The Book of the Boat".

"Are you not worried at all?"

Not only Oshima Kazuya, but everyone else in the tavern looked at Kitajima Koma curiously, trying to find some clues from his expression.

But he didn't have any flaws, or his emotions were hidden very well.

"Well... to be honest, I don't pay too much attention to these things."

"Have you read The Adventures of a Young Man?" Oshima Kazuya asked a different question.

Ju nodded and said with emotion: "It's really well written."

"..."

Oshima Kazuya was silent for a moment, then picked up the water cup in front of the board and took a big gulp in an attempt to calm himself down.

"So you don't care about these things. Didn't you say before that you hope more people will read it? Isn't this the original intention of your writing the book?"

"Yeah." Ju nodded. Oshima Kazu was not wrong in this point, but he simply thought that it was well written.

"They write really well. I don't think it's necessary to praise yourself and belittle others just to save face. Just imagine, if the Japanese literary world is really like this, would you be willing to accept it?"

Ju glanced at Ye Zi who was writing something with a pen at the side, and he spoke again very seriously: "I don't think I should be the only one recording the story. More people's stories should be seen, and isn't the story he wrote the same story you edited?"

In fact, Ju didn’t really care whether writing books would overshadow other people in the literary world. He just hoped that he would not starve to death and be warmly dressed, and he would let other things take their course.

After listening to this, Oshima Kazuya resisted the urge to slam his head on the table. After a long while, he finally uttered two words: "Beautiful."

The way of thinking of mentally ill people is rather rigid, but it must be said that his intentions are very high.

But if that were the case, it would seem that he was too narrow-minded, and he was very unhappy. If he had the chance, he would also want to be a great man.

But the good thing now is that it seems that everyone's love for "The Passion" will not bring more vicious incidents to "The Passion", and the guys at Bungeishunju did not do anything inhuman. They seemed to be immersed in the hot sales of their books and forgot the idea of ​​kicking a tree in the yard.

In this way, Mr. Miura was pushed to the forefront by Bungeishunju.

Compared to Xiaoyuan Yishu who doesn't like to show up, readers prefer to express their love in places where they can see feedback.

Bungeishunju's plan was very ordinary and timely. When they found Teacher Miura, she was squatting in the flower bed again, as if observing something.

When she learned that she was going to hold a book signing event, Ms. Miura was completely in doubt about who she was, where she was, and what she was doing. Compared with her first book, this book has brought her an unimaginable status.

“Can I hold a book signing now?”

"Can you bear to let the readers' love go to waste? Even if it is just floating in the air, it is wrong. We should not learn from that person." Teacher Takao's words were not subtle. If Neon had an ID card, then he would be short of reporting Xiaoyuan Yishu's identity.

Mr. Miura naturally would not refuse such a thing, so a grand autographing event kicked off in Tokyo.

And Oshima Kazuya, who was watching all this not far away, looked indignant.

That position should belong to Xiaoyuan Yishu. Even if he doesn't hold this kind of autograph session, it belongs to him and no one can take it away from him.

Kazuya Oshima's thinking is more domineering. Perhaps this is the charm of Mr. Oshima. He did not choose to ruin the party, but silently took out a copy of "The Shipbuilding Chronicle" from his arms and joined the queue.

"Oshima-sensei?"

"I'm not, no, you're mistaken."

In a place like this, it is very embarrassing to be recognized by acquaintances, not to mention that they must be people in the industry who would call him like that.

So Mr. Oshima quickly turned his head away and covered his face with a book. Even if he was trying to cover his ears to steal a bell, it was at least covering his ears.

After a brief silence, he suddenly realized that the voice sounded familiar, so he turned his head slightly to look over.

Ok?
Ju stood in the team next to him, looking at him with a smile, holding a copy of "The Boat Compilation Notes" in his hand.

"What are you doing here?"

"Do the same thing as Mr. Oshima."

Oshima Kazuya always felt that the way Koma looked at him was a little strange, as if he was caught in the act of having an affair, and he felt cold all over, as if he had been stripped naked.

"No, you..." Oshima Kazuya was confused. His brain was in a state of chaos for a moment and he could not quite understand what was happening.

"Do you know what the situation is now?"

Then, another voice rang in Oshima Kazuya's ears: "Teacher Oshima!"

Just as I was about to deny it, I saw Ye Zi's face coming towards me with a sly smile on her face.

"I caught it. Xiaoyuan Yishu's editor-in-chief actually..."

Before he could finish his words, Kazuya Oshima stuffed a blessing ball into his body. Teacher Oshima looked very vulnerable now.

"Why are you all here?"

He couldn't quite understand what was going on.

"The teacher said he came to see what a book signing event is like. He has never held one before." Ye Zi explained, and then she changed the subject: "I caught you, Mr. Oshima."

Seeing the big fortune being stuffed into her mouth again, Ye Zi dodged for a moment, then started to giggle.

"Okay, I came here to get an autograph. My teacher said she liked the book very much and asked me to study hard. They are both female writers, so maybe we can find some common ground."

There's no need to come over and block me at this time.

Oshima Kazuya felt that he must be very embarrassed now, just like the quail that had been stripped of its feathers, not knowing how to hide.

However, he knew one thing, that is, he would unconsciously be inferior to others in the future, and would generally be labeled as an accomplice to the enemy at some point in time.

He wanted to escape, but he couldn't.

……

Looking at the signed book in his hand and then at the teacher and student next to him, Oshima Kazu didn't know where to go next.

Seeing that Oshima Kazu was not moving, Koma and Ye Zi naturally would not move either.

The three of them were in a stalemate for a long time, and Oshima Kazuya said weakly: "Well... I think you should all be very busy from now on."

"We don't have anything to do."

"The teacher said we should go out and relax today."

"So, does Oshima-sensei have any suitable places to recommend?"

What a series of traps. After Oshima Kazuya complained in his heart, he said, "If that's the case, I'll take you to a place."

Oshima Kazuya shook his head, feeling that appearing here today was the worst decision he had ever made in his life. The more Kitajima Koma pretended not to care, the more he took it to heart.

This is a kind of guilt that comes from deep in my bones.

Maybe he felt it was time to hold onto Ju's trouser legs and cry, like an abandoned woman, telling her own grievances. Basically, I didn't want to be like this either. They said that if I didn't do this...

The three people didn't talk in the car, and Teacher Oshima, who felt like crying because of this strange atmosphere.

He drove for a long time. The road was good at the beginning, but as the mileage increased, it started to become a bit dilapidated.

After taking a look at the surroundings, Ju suddenly said, "Not really, Mr. Oshima."

"what?"

"Not really. If you were to accuse me of aiding the enemy, I wouldn't say anything. I won't kill all of us if I find out about this..." He looked at the dense vegetation around him, which clearly made it a good place to kill people and dump corpses.

Oshima Kazuya laughed evilly, then said with a sad face: "I am not aiding the enemy, it's just..."

"Alright, alright, the teacher is not blaming you. We are here to ask for an autograph, too. You need to be open-minded, Mr. Oshima. Don't be narrow-minded."

Fine, fine, it’s just that Mr. Oshima’s mind has long been blocked.

The place where Oshima brought them was on a mountain in the suburbs. There was lush vegetation, but there was an open space at the top of the mountain.

"I've given away all my most precious parts."

"Isn't it near the Torii Gate?"

“This is it.”

Ju looked around and it was indeed a good environment.

It was night time and the sky was full of stars.

"The stream flows out from the mountain, and its gurgling sound pleases my heart. A crescent moon hangs high on the mountain, and white clouds fly across the sky."

"What?" Oshima Kazuya didn't hear clearly at first.

Koma repeated it again, and Oshima Kazuya felt relieved. It seemed that he really didn't take the fact that he aided the enemy seriously.

Then he asked happily, "So you also read the poems of Kakimoto Hitomaro."

"Yeah, I like it very much."

"I like it too."

Oshima Kazuya lay down next to Koma, and Ye Zi followed suit.

The three of them just looked at the starry sky quietly.

After a long while, Ju said, "Actually, you don't need to take this kind of thing to heart."

“Like I said before, if someone writes well, it’s a very happy thing.”

"Don't we all love literature?"

Oshima Kazuya did not respond. He only grunted after feeling Koma push him gently.

"Editor-in-Chief Kashiwagi said that things might turn around after a while."

At this time, Ju nodded lightly. He really didn't care about this kind of thing.

After a period of silence, the three people felt the thin dew on their skin and then they got up from the ground. Only then did they realize that it was dark all around them.

Oshima Kazuya thought of the poem that Koma had said not long ago, and suddenly his heart was moved.

He gently wiped the dew off the car and thought of another poem by Kakinomoto Hitomaro.

"I remembered a sentence."

"I think it should be..."

The two of them laughed out loud, and the verses they recited were exactly the same.

The clear dew in the morning will dry up in the evening, and it will turn into thick fog in the morning after covering the sky at dusk.

...(End of chapter)