Wenxin Manga Award

Although Tang Yao suspected her younger sister had done it on purpose, she had no proof, so she could only let it slide for now.

After Tang Xun finished taking her measurements, she poured her another glass of water. Then she told her to get to bed early and went to sleep.

Tang Yao turned off the overhead light and switched on the desk lamp, continuing to prepare to earn her first pot of gold.

Actually, situations like the one just now weren't unusual in Tang Yao's memories. Tang Xun always wore a cold expression, as if she didn't care about anything.

But it wasn't hard to guess what was on the girl's mind. She probably felt she couldn't earn money yet, so she worked hard to take care of her older sister in every other way. There was no need to mention food and clothing.

She quietly remembered all those trivial things that neither the former Tang Yao nor the current one thought mattered or had the energy to deal with. Then she put them into practice in a way that wasn't exactly affectionate, but was especially effective when it came to her older sister.

There was no helping it. Neither the current Tang Yao nor the one before her... was very good at those things.

After all, it really wasn't easy for a girl in her twenties to support herself and her younger sister alone.

In fact, making it this far without breaking down was already impressive.

She simply hadn't had time to bother with the things that could make her life more comfortable but wouldn't help improve their circumstances.

Tang Yao could feel her younger sister's kindness, and that only made her more determined to abandon anything useless... Earning money had become her strongest desire.

To some extent,

Tang Yao couldn't quite tell whether her intense desire to earn money came from who she was now or from the soul that had been here before.

"Well... it doesn't really make a difference."

Tang Yao reached out and gently rubbed the warm rim of her cup with her fingertip. Thinking of the little comedy that had just played out between the two sisters, she smiled softly.

She didn't understand what a soul really was. If it was just a collection of memories,

then the person she was now was the real Tang Yao, too.

So it didn't matter whose desire it was. Their goal was the same.

To earn money.

"I'd better draw."

Tang Yao picked up her glass and took a small sip, then began working out the storyboards for Fate Zero.

The desk lamp stayed on until two in the morning.

Tang Yao put down her pen and looked at the pages packed with storyboards. At last, she got up and stretched, slowly letting out a breath before switching off the lamp.

The room was small, but at least it had a window facing the balcony.

At that moment, moonlight streamed in through it.

Tang Yao turned around and made her way to the bed by the faint moonlight. She glanced down at the lower bunk.

The girl lay quietly in bed, her sleeping face serene.

Tang Yao smiled. Instead of climbing up to the top bunk, she crouched beside the bed, reached out to gently brush the hair from the girl's forehead, and murmured, "Don't worry. Your big sister will definitely earn money."

As Tang Yao crouched down,

the clear moonlight streaming through the window fell over her. It gave her fair, lovely face a hazy glow, like a thin veil.

The next day.

Unlike the last time she'd stayed up late, Tang Yao woke up without a headache.

She didn't even feel as if she'd stayed up late.

In high spirits, she climbed out of bed, stretching with pleasant surprise before heading outside.

As if nothing ever changed,

Tang Xun had already changed into her school uniform and made breakfast, waiting for her to come out.

"Xun, it's okay to take a break once in a while. You can eat out, and I can buy breakfast on the way."

Tang Yao looked at the hot bowl of century egg and lean pork congee on the table, then at the girl, who she had no idea when had gotten up. After hesitating for a moment, she tried to persuade her.

"..."

Tang Xun looked up at her older sister, wearing an expression that said, What kind of nonsense are you talking about?

Tang Yao saw the look on the girl's face and hesitated. In the end, she didn't press the matter.

The sisters finished breakfast and left one after the other.

They didn't speak on the way.

When Tang Yao arrived at the Editorial Department, she found that even more people were in than the day before. Even the two editors responsible for the night-owl manga artists had shown up.

But she didn't know them well, so she just greeted them briefly.

Actually, she wasn't very familiar with anyone in the Editorial Department...

You could tell from the fact that her first friend there had been Li Xue.

She wasn't the kind of person who kept everyone at arm's length.

Even on the most chaotic first day, she hadn't avoided talking to people. If anything, she was more used to dealing with men than chatting with Miss Li.

But unfortunately, perhaps she'd arrived at the wrong time.

On her very first day, she'd been assigned the incredibly difficult Ou Congquan, as well as Shao Changqing, the king of missed deadlines. Then she'd noticed the other editors looking at her sympathetically, as if they thought she wouldn't last long. When they occasionally came over to chat, they only asked for her contact information or brought up other things that had nothing to do with work.

And those first few days had been the most confusing time for Tang Yao. She'd spent her evenings sorting through her feelings, so how could she have had the energy to chat with anyone?

Even if she hadn't been confused, she wasn't interested in replying to people who had nothing to say but forced themselves to find an excuse to message her.

So she'd missed her chance to get to know the other editors.

After that, there'd been even less opportunity.

Because Editor-in-Chief Ding Yilong had yelled at her.

And Tang Yao wasn't about to put up with him. Just like yesterday, she'd pointed out the problems one by one and rebutted him point by point. The two of them had ended up on terrible terms.

After that... even the people who'd forced themselves to message her without anything to say stopped doing so.

None of the other editors had come to talk to her again. They probably thought she was trouble.

Later, Li Xue had said something to her about being an aloof beauty, the office hierarchy, and the traits of difficult women.

But Tang Yao hadn't really listened.

Anyway, the end result was that she wasn't close to anyone in the editorial office.

She hadn't even learned everyone's names.

Still, she'd remembered most of the editors' faces.

And with so many people in so early, something had obviously happened.

Sure enough.

Not long after Tang Yao sat down, Ding Yilong arrived too. He seemed to be in better shape today; at least, he wasn't obviously drunk. His expression was still sour, though, and he glared at Tang Yao as soon as he came in.

Tang Yao glared right back without yielding an inch.

What are you glaring at?

If I've done something wrong, say so.

You think you can intimidate me?

Meanwhile,

Ding, realizing Tang Yao had no intention of looking away and was instead staring straight back at him, couldn't keep up the act. He looked away first.

He went to his desk, then clapped his hands to get everyone's attention. "Everyone, come over here. I have something to say."

At his words, all the editors stood up. Tang Yao pushed back her chair and stood too.

But given their relationship, she didn't move closer. She stayed at the edge of the group. The new recruit Kang Ming was standing beside her.

"Miss Tang Yao... what's this about?"

When Kang Ming realized Tang Yao was beside him, he instinctively called her by name. But then he seemed to think that was disrespectful and added an honorific.

"You can just call me Tang Yao... It's probably about the Manga Award," Tang Yao replied quietly.

As soon as she finished speaking, Ding Yilong began. "The opening date of the Wenxin Manga Award has been set for next Monday. I need you to inform the manga artists you're responsible for and ask them to promote it on social media after the new issue of the magazine goes on sale. It's not mandatory, but to meet the targets from above, I expect you to do your best.

"Besides, the manga artists you're responsible for will be promoting their own work after the magazine goes on sale anyway. They can mention the award while they're at it."

"Also, this year's Wenxin Manga Award is different from the Newcomer Award. Aside from the judges, you should keep an eye on it too. According to the New Media Department, the website will allow open submissions after the award. You can keep an eye on the Youth Division's work, and if you see anything promising, reach out to the artists. Personally, I don't think it'll accomplish much. It'll only affect the magazine, but since the higher-ups have decided, we might as well give it a try."

As he spoke,

Ding Yilong's mouth twitched. He clearly didn't approve of online serialization.

He'd only mentioned it in passing.

With the head of the Content Department taking that stance, the other editors weren't stupid. The website was practically doomed already.

After all, no one wanted to draw trouble.

Once the Manga Award was over, the artists serializing their comics on the website in hopes of earning a chance to appear in the magazine might as well give up.

Unless... the editor-in-chief was replaced.

Thinking of this,

Tang Yao couldn't help but shake her head. The company executives' plan was good: first use the Manga Award to draw attention to the website, then open it up to submissions and give it a chance to take off. That way, they could keep online serialization as an option, perhaps even make money from it later, while also scouting talented, creative manga artists for the print magazine.

What a shame that the editor-in-chief of the company's most important youth magazine didn't care for the idea.

Once the excitement around the Manga Award faded, even if people submitted their work through the website and their comics were excellent, they wouldn't get the chance to appear in the print magazine.

Unless they were outrageously good.

But that was a tall order for a brand-new website.

Just as Tang Yao was mulling it over,

"Regarding Teacher Ou, I'll contact him myself. You're no longer needed, Tang Yao."

Ding Yilong's voice rang out again, thick with resentment and anger. "Also, has Teacher Tang really confirmed that he can't submit anything?"

Tang Yao snapped back to attention. "Yes, I've already found a replacement—"

"I'm not interested in work by some Third-rate Painter you found!"

But Tang Yao hadn't finished speaking.

Ding Yilong cut her off without the slightest courtesy. "I don't care who you found. Have them enter through the regular competition! Don't use a special contributor slot! And don't come to me with any problems!"

"Oh..."

Tang Yao nodded calmly.

The so-called special contributor slots were simply a way to ensure fairness.

After all, it would be too much to have well-known manga artists compete against people who drew purely out of love for the art.

So those special entries would go straight to the final judging round, and they'd be considered for separate awards.

As for the regular competition route, that was where the trick cooked up by Wenxin Hall's New Media Department came in: giving readers the right to vote.

In short, entries that went through the regular competition had to gather a certain number of reader votes before they could make it to the judging round.

That was another way to build up the website.

But what difference did it make to Tang Yao?

Still,

Ding Yilong clearly wasn't happy with her lukewarm response.

He looked at Tang Yao, who seemed so sure of herself, and his face filled with disgust. "You're a third-rate editor, yet you dare to guide Teacher Ou—and you've gone to him again and again! I'm looking forward to seeing how far the work you, such a third-rate editor, believe in can get. Don't tell me it can't even make it to the judging round. And I hope your poor judgment and misplaced confidence don't ruin a manga artist."

Tang Yao ignored him.

Third-rate... huh?