Magic City.
Office beneath the Banyan Tree.
Li Jie was 25 this year. Just last year, she had quit what many considered a stable job at a bank.
Much to the confusion and disbelief of her family and friends, she threw herself into a job at an online literature company — as an editor. She even gave herself a pen name: Annie Baby.
A monthly salary of ten thousand yuan, a comfortable working environment, a relaxed and enjoyable atmosphere, and, best of all, her beloved world of literature… Compared to the dull and rigid life at the bank, Li Jie felt like she'd landed in paradise.
Since the second Online Literature Contest was launched, the number of submissions to "Beneath the Banyan Tree" had skyrocketed — three to four times more than before.
Now, their entire editorial department had to go through thousands of manuscripts every single day.
Despite the sudden workload surge, Li Jie was actually enjoying herself.
At the moment, she was focused intently on her computer screen, occasionally moving her mouse to scroll down the page.
She didn't notice that a tall, lean man wearing glasses had quietly walked up behind her.
That man was none other than Ning Caishen — the chief editor at "Beneath the Banyan Tree."
He tapped her shoulder and asked casually, "Li Jie, is William not in the office today?"
"Ahhh!!"
Who could've expected that one light tap would startle Li Jie so badly that she practically shot out of her chair, screaming at the top of her lungs.
"You… alright?"
Even Ning Caishen was caught off guard by her intense reaction.
Only then did Li Jie recover her senses.
Seeing that it was Ning Caishen, she clutched her chest and scolded him playfully, "Editor Ning, you nearly scared me to death!"
"Do I look that terrifying?" Ning Caishen joked with a laugh.
"No, no!"
Li Jie waved her hand and pointed to the computer screen, explaining, "I was reviewing a horror novel just now — right at a scary part — and then you patted me on the shoulder. I couldn't help myself."
"What kind of novel could get you that immersed? Let me take a look!"
Intrigued, Ning Caishen leaned in.
Don't be fooled by the fact that Li Jie had only been with them for half a year — her talent for literature was undeniable. Otherwise, she wouldn't have been able to write excellent works like Farewell, Vivian and July and Ansheng. She hadn't directly praised this new submission, but the fact that she was so absorbed in it was already a strong endorsement.
"There. This one," Li Jie said as she moved the mouse to reveal the title and synopsis.
When Ning Caishen saw the name Ghost Blows Out the Light, his expression became even more interested.
He sat down in Li Jie's chair, adjusted his glasses, and began reading in earnest.
Though it was only twenty thousand words, it took him nearly an hour to finish.
"This book is fantastic. The writing is clean and seasoned, and the story is masterfully told," Ning Caishen said with genuine admiration, not holding back his praise.
Especially that part where the paper effigy turned into a living person — it had his hair standing on end.
This book gave him a fresh, unique feeling. A perfect blend of horror and the bizarre.
After a pause, he added, "And don't you think… this book has amazing potential to be adapted into a film?"
"A movie adaptation?" Li Jie blinked. That angle hadn't occurred to her.
Ning Caishen chuckled. "Don't you think the core plot is basically Indiana Jones?"
No wonder he'd later go on to create iconic screenplays like My Own Swordsman and Longmen Escort Bureau. His instinct for film adaptations was razor-sharp — he had nailed the heart of it in one sentence.
Li Jie thought about it carefully. And sure enough, that was exactly what it was.
The heart of the story was treasure-hunting and exploration, just set in an Eastern cultural backdrop.
"So, should we send this manuscript over to the publishing house for review?" she asked.
"Of course!" Ning Caishen stood up with a grin. "I'd bet the author submitted it to our site with this very hope in mind."
"Alright, got it!" Li Jie nodded.
Soon after, the publishing house responded.
They were very interested in the novel. However, since the word count was still relatively low, they wanted to observe for a while longer.
…
10 a.m.
Fang Yi finally got out of bed, yawning groggily.
He'd been copying books again till almost 2 a.m. last night.
Rubbing his face and squinting at the blazing sun outside, he realized he couldn't keep going on like this.
He had told himself he'd start working out regularly — but it had been almost a month since his rebirth, and he still hadn't done a single push-up.
Old Fang and Old Zhuang had already left for work, and the house was completely empty.
After washing up, Fang Yi wandered into the kitchen and rummaged around a bit, only to pout in disappointment.
Brilliant. Comrade Zhuang Shufen hadn't even left him a single bun.
With no other choice, he went downstairs to the convenience store at the gate of their apartment complex and bought two packs of instant noodles and a couple of fried eggs — combining breakfast and lunch into one.
Given the time, it wasn't practical to eat two separate meals anyway.
Once he was full, Fang Yi grabbed his bicycle and headed out.
When he arrived at the hospital, he found Wang Juan and Zhao Wanqiu just finishing lunch.
"Xiao Yi, have you eaten? If not, come eat with us!" Wang Juan called out, holding her lunchbox.
"I've already eaten, Auntie Wang," Fang Yi replied with a smile, his gaze drifting over to Zhao Wanqiu on the hospital bed.
She looked much better today. The color had returned to her cheeks, and the sparkle was back in her eyes. She was sitting upright on the bed, sipping porridge in small spoonfuls.
"Qiu-ge, how are you feeling?" Fang Yi asked with concern.
"I'm okay," she answered. "The wound doesn't really hurt anymore, but I keep wanting to cough when I talk."
"Then don't talk too much," Fang Yi said gently, before turning to Wang Juan. "Auntie Wang, what did the doctor say? Does she need chemotherapy?"
Normally, cancer patients undergo chemo after surgery to make sure all the cancer cells are killed off.
"No chemo," Wang Juan replied, visibly relieved. "The doctor said traditional Chinese medicine would be enough. If the wound heals well over the next few days, she can be discharged."
Thanks to the success of the operation, Wang Juan's spirits were noticeably lifted.
Since Zhao Wanqiu couldn't talk too much, Fang Yi didn't linger long. After chatting a bit, he excused himself and left the room.
As usual, he headed to the internet café, paid for three hours of time, and got back to updating his novel.