The Mind at Work

"All right. We've chosen the work that will fill Man Ying's vacant slot in two weeks. Next, we'll discuss how to allocate the other works that didn't make the cut..." Pang Feng said.

The serialization meeting held to fill the vacancy on Man Ying prompted many veteran manga artists to submit numerous excellent works at the same time. But no matter how many great manga were proposed for serialization, only one could ultimately be published in Man Ying.

So once they had chosen the manga to take Man Ying's vacant slot, the other excellent works would also be passed by the meeting and assigned to other magazines one by one.

Soon, the meeting room was noisy again.

Only two people didn't join in.

One was Su Ruo. The other was Song Jiayu.

Su Ruo's work had won, so there was naturally no need for her to take part in deciding what to do with the rejected works. As for Song Jiayu, there was no need for him either.

After all, this was Dong Yun's new work. Though it had lost, given Dong Yun's standing and number of fans in Luo Province's manga industry, it was inevitable that they would cut a low-performing work from Man Ying or move it to another magazine to make room for Secret Girl.

In other words, soon two new works from Ink Fish Manga Company's flagship magazine, Man Ying, would be published: Rurouni Kenshin: Reminiscence Arc and Secret Girl.

When two new works were serialized in the same magazine at the same time, competition for popularity between them was inevitable.

Both Song Jiayu and Su Ruo understood that the struggle between them in the meeting room today was only the beginning...

"Approved!"

All morning, Zhao Qinyin had been restless, constantly refreshing WeChat on her phone. When she saw this message from Su Ruo, her hand trembled.

She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. She tried to calm herself, but her racing heart wouldn't settle.

After all, she was a manga artist whose work had flopped for three years. When her work finally received recognition, even she couldn't suppress her excitement.

Although she was only an assistant on this manga, the fact that a manga she had worked on would be serialized on a platform like Man Ying made it hard for her to keep her composure.

"Let's all go out and celebrate tonight!"

Su Ruo sent another message.

Zhao Qinyin knew that by "everyone," Su Ruo meant not only the two of them but also Chu Yu.

After hesitating for a moment, Zhao Qinyin sent a reply.

"Sure!"

Over in the neighboring class, Chu Yu received Su Ruo's message at almost the same time.

"Did we get approved?" Chu Yu's usually expressionless face finally broke into a smile.

He believed Rurouni Kenshin: Reminiscence Arc was a classic that surpassed anything currently serialized in Man Ying. But as the ancients said,

even a thousand-mile horse needed to meet someone who could recognize its talent before it could put that talent to use.

There were countless examples of excellent works being buried for all sorts of reasons, so he hadn't been confident about the serialization meeting.

But it seemed his earlier worries had been unfounded.

As for Su Ruo's suggestion to celebrate, he readily agreed.

Soon, the dull school day came to an end.

It was already afternoon.

On Monday morning, the school held a Flag Raising Ceremony; on Friday afternoon, it held a Flag Lowering Ceremony.

The school sports field was packed with people, the same familiar formations in the same familiar places.

Chu Yu stood in the front row.

Not far away, Zhao Qinyin, the student council president and Class 6, Grade 12 class monitor at Fifth Middle School, as well as the school's top student, came strolling over in her blue-and-white uniform. She drew the eyes of plenty of boys.

Normally, she should have walked to the center of the formation and stood in the spot just ahead and to Chu Yu's left.

But today, she paused as she passed in front of Chu Yu and looked at him.

Her gesture drew plenty of attention.

"Congratulations on getting a chance to serialize your work!"

Zhao Qinyin's usually cold expression softened ever so slightly.

It wasn't much, but the corners of her mouth lifted just a little, making her already beautiful face even more captivating.

The boys around them stared, dumbfounded.

What was going on?

Had Zhao Qinyin just spoken to a boy from Class Three of her own accord?

And... had she smiled at him?

It was the first time in nearly two weeks of working together on their manga that Chu Yu had seen Zhao Qinyin smile.

It was only a faint smile, but it still left Chu Yu a little stunned.

After all, this past week, except when she was assisting him, the only time she showed any serious expression was when she was working on manga. The rest of the time, her gaze, expression, and tone were all calm.

And once she started working, she wouldn't rest until she had finished that day's tasks, even if she'd been at it until the middle of the night.

Now that he had an assistant, Chu Yu would draw for a while, then check his phone or roll his shoulders. This had led him to wonder more than once if Zhao Qinyin was an emotionless manga-drawing robot.

Zhao Qinyin didn't linger in front of Chu Yu. Before he could figure out how to respond, she had already gone to her usual place.

Soon, the Flag Lowering Ceremony began, and the national anthem started playing.

Luckily, Zhao Qinyin didn't faint this time. She stayed alert throughout, which came as a great relief to Chu Yu.

That evening, at a restaurant.

"So Secret Girl lost to a newcomer's work at the serialization meeting?"

A woman with delicate features frowned at the man across from her.

"It was just an accident," Song Jiayu said.

"And it doesn't matter. After discussions at the company, we've decided that a work in Man Ying will be cut in two weeks to make room for your new series..."

"Is that work really that good?" Dong Yun interrupted Song Jiayu. Her work was bound to be serialized in Man Ying; she didn't want to hear him talk about that.

"That work."

Song Jiayu fell silent for a long while before finally replying.

"Yes!"

"It's incredible!"

"How incredible?" Dong Yun asked with curiosity.

Song Jiayu considered it for a moment.

"I think... if today's meeting hadn't been about filling a vacancy in Man Ying, but had instead been a serialization meeting for the flagship magazines of the Modu Seven Great Manga Companies, that work would still have had a very good chance."

"Are you... serious?" Dong Yun asked in disbelief.

"A newcomer, with that work alone, could make the flagship magazines of the Modu Seven Greats overlook his past record and credentials and publish it?"

The top magazines under the Modu Seven Great Manga Companies were all powerhouses, with sales channels spanning the country and weekly sales of several million.

The manga artists serialized in those magazines were all renowned figures in the Dragon Kingdom's manga industry. They needed both skill and experience.

Even Dong Yun, a top manga artist in Luo Province, still lacked the status, standing, and credentials to serialize her work in one of the Modu Seven Greats' magazines.

Song Jiayu had poached Dong Yun by promising that if she submitted her work to Nirvana, the flagship magazine of Phoenix Manga Company, one of the Modu Seven Great Manga Companies, he would use his connections at the company to help her.

She had sacrificed a lot for that. At the very least, she was now not only a manga artist under Song Jiayu but also officially his new girlfriend...

Now Song Jiayu was telling her that a newcomer's work was good enough to be on that level.

It made her feel ridiculous.

"Did you say my work will be serialized in Man Ying in two weeks?" Dong Yun took a deep breath.

"If I remember correctly, the manga that climbed over my work to get ahead today will also publish its first chapter in Man Ying in two weeks, right?"

"That's right," Song Jiayu said.

"I understand," Dong Yun replied with a nod.

"So what are you going to do?" Dong Yun asked.

"I... haven't decided yet!" Song Jiayu rubbed his forehead, his eyes full of calculation.

"Let's wait and see. Although all of us editors liked that work, to be honest, its subject matter is a little problematic. The protagonist is an RB Person, and the story takes place on RB Island. The audience might not like that kind of setting, and it could flop. Stories with ethnic-minority protagonists might not go over well in Luo Province. And the story takes place during a period when RB Island hadn't yet been conquered by the Dragon Kingdom, so it might be even harder for the audience to relate. Let's see how it performs in the market first."