Wu Ning adjusted her blushing face and said, "We can't do it like this. Do we need to discuss life?"
Chen Nan lifted her chin, a smile playing on his lips. "If you truly want to go further, we can get to know each other thoroughly."
"Don't do that!"
Wu Ning quickly dodged.
She couldn't resist Chen Nan's allure.
Chen Nan chuckled and shook his head. "You're still shy, aren't you?"
"We're adults, there's nothing to be embarrassed about."
"Communication is the first bridge to enhance feelings. We can start by communicating our feelings."
"And even if we don't break that barrier,"
"There are still many interesting things we can do!" he said, giving her a meaningful smile.
"Young Master Chen, I'll go tend to my work. Please make yourself at home." Wu Ning fled in disarray, realizing Chen Nan was a fiery pit, capable of consuming her if she got too close.
Watching Wu Ning flee.
Chen Nan clenched his fist, his eyes gleaming. "One day, you'll be all clean and waiting for me."
In truth, Chen Nan wasn't inherently so vulgar.
Though a bit lustful.
And a bit of a scoundrel.
He still had his bottom line.
But the host he possessed was a simp.
A wretched fellow.
When he took over the host,
His personality had been subtly influenced by the host.
It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say he had a dual personality.
Even if you take a step back and consider it.
He made money writing books seemingly easily.
But who could imagine the author's hardship?
Especially when his books weren't exactly proper.
It was understandable that he needed to vent.
------
For the next three days, Chen Nan remained confined within the Leng family's residence, not stepping out.
Teacher Bai's story also reached its halfway point.
After these three days of recuperation, his injuries had completely healed.
At ten in the morning.
He left the Leng family and arrived at the Wu family's printing press.
The Wu family also had a book stall.
Today was the release day for his work, [Bai Yu].
He had to come and check the sales.
To see if it was as popular as he imagined.
Upon arrival, Chen Nan noticed a few people gathered around the book stall.
However.
No one was flipping through the freshly released [Bai Yu].
"This won't do. If you don't buy, how can I afford to soak in medicinal baths?"
Chen Nan felt a bit restless.
It seemed promotion was still crucial.
Especially for newcomers, breaking through was too difficult.
Without promotion, no one would even notice.
However.
The book was already published.
He should at least support his own business.
With that thought, he walked up to the book stall.
"Oh, Young Master Chen is here."
"Young Master Chen, what book are you reading lately? If you find a good one, be sure to recommend it!"
Seeing Chen Nan arrive, the few lecherous old men contemplating buying books had their eyes light up.
Heh!
This reputation!
It's truly something, grandpa!
Chen Nan was speechless, not expecting the host to have such influence.
He smiled and said, "It's been a long time since I've seen a book that I found interesting." As he spoke, he casually picked up a book with a beautifully crafted cover.
To be honest.
If this book were on Earth, it would definitely be banned.
Even online, it would be pixelated.
Extremely sensational.
He flipped through it briefly.
After a few glances, he shook his head in disappointment and put it back.
Although he wanted to recommend his own book,
If he didn't even look at it, it would be too awkward.
Seeing that Chen Nan had lost interest in that book, the others also felt a lack of enthusiasm.
Afterward, Chen Nan picked up several more books.
He appeared uninterested in all of them.
Until he picked up [Bai Yu], which he had written.
The cover was simple, only displaying the work's title and the author's pen name.
"This book is good!"
"I feel it must be interesting!"
He didn't hide his inner joy.
"Young Master Chen, you haven't even looked at this book, how can you conclude it's interesting?"
"Right, I flipped through it just now. The writing style is too direct, not scholarly enough, and there are no exquisite illustrations."
Chen Nan shook his head dismissively. "Illustrations and writing style aren't important. What matters is whether the core of the story is interesting."
"But you haven't read this book either, how can you be sure it's interesting?" a young man asked, full of confusion.
"The pen name," Chen Nan said. "From the pen name alone, I can conclude that the author of this book should be a very interesting person."
"Look, the author is called Si Shu Wu Jing."
"This pen name has two meanings."
"First, it's a homophone for the Four Books and Five Classics."
"Could someone without culture come up with such a catchy pen name?"
As he spoke,
Everyone else felt it made sense.
But Chen Nan's tone shifted. "You know, someone without culture might actually come up with such a pen name."
"This is the other meaning I mentioned."
"In fact, this pen name can be understood by breaking it down."
"Si Shu, and Wu Jing."
"However, these four characters should be understood together."
"In my opinion, this pen name is easily explained."
"Someone called Si Shu is adept at drinking, whoring, gambling, and smoking."
"So he took the pen name Si Shu Wu Jing."
"Imagine, someone who is proficient in the five vices, the stories he writes should be very interesting, shouldn't they?"
Upon hearing this,
Everyone was stunned.
They never expected these four characters to have so many implications.
For a moment,
Someone picked up [Bai Yu] and began to read it seriously.
Although it was a bit verbose at the beginning and didn't get to the point, the more they read, the more interesting it became.
Addictive!
Chen Nan continued, "As everyone knows, I've bought many books and am quite the bibliophile."
"I've always pondered one question."
"Why do we like to read books?"
"Why do we like the fictional worlds within books?"
The audience fell silent.
They had never considered this question.
At this moment, someone spoke, "To gain a sense of pleasure from books?"
"Too small! Your perspective is too small!" Chen Nan said. "Gaining pleasure is just the superficial part. The reason we love reading is mainly to enrich ourselves, to broaden our horizons, and to elevate our perspective!"
"There is gold in books, there is gold in books!"
"To put it plainly, we aspire to become excellent people."
"No, no, no, the moment we pick up a book, we are already more excellent than many others!"
Everyone else was bewildered!
They even felt a surge of emotion!
Finally, they had found someone who shared their passion!
Young Master Chen understands us!
"Therefore, the form of expression in words is merely a carrier."
"Whether it's classical Chinese or vernacular Chinese, it doesn't matter!"
"What matters is the enjoyment this book brings us!"
"Perhaps this book is expressed very directly, and it has no illustrations."
"But its story is good."
"Although this book is not yet finished."
"But to be honest, isn't its story content more than two other books combined?"
"And the most important point."
"It only costs one or two taels of silver."
As soon as he finished speaking,
Those few book lovers immediately pulled out their money: "Come, come, I'll take a copy of Bai Yu."
"I'll take one too."
Everyone chimed in, and the atmosphere became quite lively.
Chen Nan showed a gratified smile.
Buy as much as you want!
Once I earn money, I can soak in medicinal baths and become a cultivator in the underworld.
Suddenly, someone couldn't help but ask, "Young Master Chen understands this book so well, and knows the author so well, could it be that you are the author of this book?"