Chapter Fifteen: The Hardships of Fame

Just moments ago, Gou Ye had been lost in the warmth of tenderness, but now he was battling at his desk. Though it was nearly midnight, he still had to work through the night to meet his deadlines. Gou Ye couldn’t help but think, “If this goes on, I fear I might end up dying from exhaustion in this world as well.”

Looking at the towering stack of manuscripts, Gou Ye felt a surge of pride. Fortunately, he was already intimately familiar with Master Jin’s books; otherwise, he could never have worked at such a pace. Though writing with a brush was awkward, it wasn’t much slower than typing on a computer. “Master Jin, my whole future depends on you!”

Hope was beautiful, but rushing to meet deadlines was grueling. It could be said that Gou Ye lost all sense of time as he worked through the night, his hand never stopping until morning. At dawn, Yun Niang found him slumped over the desk, a writing brush still between his lips, his mouth stained with ink. She quietly draped a thin blanket over his shoulders, but Gou Ye stirred and opened his bleary, bloodshot eyes in a daze.

“Is it morning already?” Gou Ye rubbed his eyes, which were red and filled with veins, a sight that made Yun Niang’s heart ache.

“Mother has made porridge and sent me to bring it to you. Did you stay up all night again, Brother Gou Ye? You really shouldn’t do this. You’ve only just recovered from a serious illness. If you go on like this, you’ll fall sick again. Seeing you like this makes me worry so much…”

Gou Ye laughed heartily. Emboldened by last night’s progress, he seized Yun Niang’s soft hand and said, “Don’t worry, Yun Niang. Your Brother Gou Ye is like a cockroach—impossible to kill. If I earn some money from these manuscripts sooner, I can give you a better life all the earlier, can’t I?”

Blushing furiously, Yun Niang quickly pulled her hand away and turned her back so he couldn’t see her embarrassment.

“Brother Gou Ye, don’t be like that. I… I’m afraid.” After a moment to compose herself, she turned back, picked up the hot porridge from the table, and, blowing on it, said, “We’re both children from poor families. We’ve survived all these years already. I’ve long grown used to hardship and never felt it was too much. But Brother Gou Ye, your health is what matters most.”

“Alright, I’ll listen to you, Yun Niang. I’ll be more careful from now on.” Gou Ye wiped his mouth with a handkerchief and accepted the hot porridge she handed him. After a night of hard work, the scent of porridge made him realize how hungry he was, and he ate in big, hearty mouthfuls. Yun Niang watched him with a gentle, lovesick smile.

There was much to do, and Gou Ye dared not delay. After breakfast, he hurriedly washed his face and set off with Yun Niang to find an ox cart.

Strangely, there wasn’t a single ox cart to be seen that day. The two asked around and soon learned that many villagers had left early for the county town. Gou Ye immediately understood—seeing how Yun Niang’s mother had made money, these people must have rushed to the county to try their own luck. Without a cart, how were they to get to town? Yun Niang was at a loss.

Suddenly, Gou Ye spotted the donkey tied outside Old Zhao’s house and immediately had an idea. And so, along the country lane, a donkey and two people ambled leisurely toward the county seat.

To make the journey quicker, Gou Ye even tied a carrot to a stick and dangled it in front of the donkey. Motivated by the carrot, the donkey did indeed pick up the pace, and Yun Niang exclaimed in wonder, though it still took nearly two hours to reach town. The trip may have been slow, but with the girl in his arms, Gou Ye felt utterly content, grinning ear to ear in a rather indecent fashion. He was clearly delighted, but poor Yun Niang was embarrassed and uncomfortable the whole way.

In front of the bookshop, a crowd had gathered once more. Since few manuscripts had been delivered the previous day, the readers were left wanting more, and many had come early to urge for new chapters.

Mr. Hu, the shopkeeper, waited anxiously at the door, peering into the distance. Spotting Gou Ye and Yun Niang, he rushed over, exclaiming, “Young Master, you’re finally here! I was worried you wouldn’t come today—I was nearly about to send someone to fetch you.”

Gou Ye strolled leisurely into the shop and slowly drew a thick stack of manuscripts from his clothes—far more than he’d brought the first time. Mr. Hu’s eyes sparkled; he was barely able to keep himself from grabbing them outright.

“Mr. Hu, we’ve produced quite a few booklets now. Isn’t it about time we discussed my manuscript fee?”

With a beaming smile, Mr. Hu gently took the manuscripts from Gou Ye’s hands. “Of course, of course!”

He quickly set his staff to typeset and print the new installments, then pulled out his account book to settle up with Gou Ye. Though shrewd and money-minded, Mr. Hu adhered strictly to his business principles—he wouldn’t dare play tricks with these accounts. If Gou Ye caught on and the ‘God of Wealth’ left him, it would be a tremendous loss.

Gou Ye was surprised to find that, in just a few days, Mr. Hu had already sold more than six hundred pamphlets, and this was only the beginning. Each was priced at thirty copper coins, and in just a few days, Mr. Hu had made a profit of one hundred eighty taels of silver, with Gou Ye’s share at fifty-four taels. Gou Ye smacked his lips, feeling it still wasn’t quite enough.

Mr. Hu cheerfully placed fifty-four taels of gleaming silver in front of Gou Ye. Hugging the heavy silver, Gou Ye felt his heart melt—so this is what making money feels like! The thought of even more to come made his heart race with excitement.

Time was running short for his meeting with Gu Shen, and so, without further delay, Gou Ye bid farewell to Mr. Hu and made for the door. Unexpectedly, someone at the entrance shouted, “Everyone, come quickly—he’s the author of ‘Legend of the Heroic Archer!’” In an instant, the doorway was blocked by a swarm of fans.

“Young Master, is Qiu Chuji the one who teaches Guo Jing?”

“Does Guo Jing defeat Mei Chaofeng?”

“Is Hua Zheng Guo Jing’s future wife?”

And so on.

Gou Ye had never imagined “Legend of the Heroic Archer” would cause such a stir. The crowd was still small, but he could already picture a future scene of signing books for eager readers, and the thought filled him with joy. Still, he dared not reveal a single detail of the plot. No matter how many questions they asked, his only answer was, “To be continued.”

Never underestimate the power of word of mouth. Now, every reader of “Legend of the Heroic Archer” knew the author had arrived. As Gou Ye finally squeezed through the throng, he saw yet another wave of people approaching down the street. With no other choice, he grabbed Yun Niang’s arm, helped her onto the donkey, and fled toward the city gate.

“Young Master, don’t go! Please, I have questions to ask!”

The crowd of fans chased them all the way to the gate before giving up. Gou Ye, one hand on his hip and the other wiping sweat from his brow, could not help but sigh, “It’s hard to be a person, harder still to be famous, and hardest of all to be a truly great talent.”