I Will Never Submit to Miss Grim Reaper - Chapter 18

?@Marisa’s Iron Butt, I’m up, having breakfast and getting ready to go out.?

?@Divine Pet Pipi, I messaged you my phone number, but you don’t need to call me. It won’t take more than half an hour to walk from here to Mingzhu Square.?

After skimming through the group messages and replying to two relevant topics, I sent my phone number to this “Divine Pet Pipi.”

This person is a relatively well-known author on the Yae-Do Novel website. He has a wife and children, and if I remember correctly, his book sales were the third-highest on the site before it closed. Everyone in the author group likes to call him “Pipi.” In our eyes, he has the aura of an “elder brother” and is one of the initiators of this rights protection action.

I have a relatively good relationship with “Divine Pet Pipi” and “Marisa’s Iron Butt.” It was probably about two years ago one night when Divine Pet Pipi expressed his difficulties as a father in the author group, saying that his child had been crying in the middle of the night, and he had finally managed to soothe them to sleep, but he couldn’t sleep. At the time, I happened to be suffering from insomnia as well, so I comforted him with a few words, and that’s how we got to know each other.

Since my own work wasn’t very popular, I didn’t have many friends in the group. However, Divine Pet Pipi was an exception. Since that late-night conversation, we occasionally chatted in the group, and over the years, our relationship was quite good. As a bestselling author, he often promoted and directed traffic to my works in his books. In return, I used some Photoshop skills I learned in college to help him edit pictures, like children’s everyday photos, and in our spare time, we even played video games together.

I know Pipi’s character very well, so giving him my phone number was not a problem.

?Received?

After receiving the number I sent, Divine Pet Pipi replied shortly after: ?Is there a place to rest near Mingzhu Square? Are you familiar with that area, Uncle??

?Yes, there are many restaurants around there, all of them are chain stores, a bit expensive.?

I quickly replied: ?There’s also a small park with free admission.?

?Mingzhu Park, right? I just checked this place yesterday. Seems nice. I noticed that your Shenzhen City seems to have some interesting aspects. Many intersections and buildings have very uniform naming conventions, and the road conditions… really quite complex.?

?That’s right, Shenzhen City has great urban planning, but it also faces intense competition.?

I’ve been living in this city for nearly thirty years and have witnessed all its developments.

Back when I was in the orphanage, it was located in a botanical garden quite far from the city center. The place had a beautiful environment and excellent facilities, but the only problem was that it required a long walk to encounter people.

During those times, food and snacks in the orphanage were considered very precious “connections.” Sometimes, when the almond trees near the front gate were in season and laden with light yellow almonds, a bunch of kids would gather under the trees, waiting for the fruit to fall.

All the children in the orphanage received preschool education personally overseen by the orphanage director. When they reached the appropriate age, they were sent to the city’s Hope Elementary School for boarding and study.

I clearly remember that back then, the rundown school had no convenience store, and the surroundings were desolate hills and wilderness where you wouldn’t see a house for half a day. Today, it has transformed into a city-level exemplary elementary school, with various shops, hotels, restaurants, and stationery stores sprouting up around it.

At that time, Shenzhen City was small in terms of area, with just three districts: Central District, Canjing District, and Shuiming District. These three major districts were located in the south, north, and west of Shenzhen City. As the city developed and maritime trade prospered, the port in the south of Shenzhen City was eventually carved out as a separate district, known as Nanxun District.

Soon, new leadership arrived, seemingly bringing along certain objectives. They initiated a massive development project in the woods to the east of Central District, creating a high-tech zone akin to “Silicon Valley” called the “Craftsman Zone.” This area attracted a large number of high-tech professionals. Subsequently, to cater to the cutting-edge talents coming here, they created an artificial lake, established many scenic spots, and named this area “Dadong District.” With the influx of visitors, the local economy thrived.

Furthermore, due to the increasing prosperity, Shenzhen City saw the rise of many affluent individuals. Besides Shuiming District, they expanded the western region into a “Rong District” along the southern coast, often referred to as the “Rongyao District.” To put it simply, it’s a playground for the wealthy, with coastal villas and high-end amenities everywhere.

Following the establishment of the Rong District, they introduced the so-called “Wealthy Retirement Paradise” in the northern part known as Beiyang District and the “Real Estate Special Zone” in the New West District. At this point, Shenzhen City had completed the planning of its nine major districts, covering a total area of 23,000 square kilometers, making it one of the largest and most thriving cities in the country.

In summary, it includes the bustling Central District at the very center, the power-centric Canjing District, the historical Shuiming District, the eastern Silicon Valley in the Craftsman Zone, the tourist haven of Dadong District, the vibrant port of Nanxuan District, the paradise resort of Rong District (Rongyao District), the wealthy retiree haven of Beiyang District, and the real estate-intensive New West District.

In the eyes of the locals in Shenzhen City, this city is not particularly special apart from its relatively fast development and significant differences in property prices between various regions. However, to outsiders, the city appears quite mysterious. “You need a local to show you around in Shenzhen” has become a deeply ingrained stereotype, much like “Northerners can withstand the cold” or “Southern cockroaches are bigger than mobile phones.” It’s a perception that’s difficult to explain.

Today, our group of authors is headed to “Mingzhu Square,” located between the Central District and Canjing District. According to what’s been said in the group, even though the company behind “Bayue Hall Novel Website” is located in a different city, our novel contracts were previously sent there. However, the company’s actual registration is in Mingzhu Building in Shenbin City. The major owner, “Lu Xinjian,” is also from Shenbin City. This company and the registered company of Bayue Hall Novel Website have a relationship of a parent company and wholly-owned subsidiary.

In other words… while the surface company of Yae-Do Novel Website has been deregistered and it appears to have shut down with a 404 website, its parent company is still in operation. Seeking unpaid salaries, we should be looking for the boss here.

?Sure, I’ll call you once I arrive. Brother Li, Marisa’s Iron Butt, and I should be there around 10 o’clock.?

?Alright, I’ll grab a meal and head over.?

After chatting with Pipi, I glanced at the group once again —

?Who is Uncle Loves Loli? I can’t recall.?

?I don’t know either. Ask Pipi. Pipi said this Uncle is from Shenzhen.?

?He’s an older author, right? Uncle Loves Loli, I think you’ve been writing on the website for about three years, right? How’s the income??

I hesitated for a moment in my rented room before replying: ?It’s so-so, around 1,000 yuan a month. If there’s a recommendation, it might go slightly above 2,000.?

?Uncle, this isn’t good. How do you support your family with this kind of income? Isn’t Shenzhen City a big city? You should be able to find a job paying four or five thousand, right??

?Pipi, isn’t a bestselling author??

?1,000 a month? Are you part-time or not updating regularly? Isn’t there 500 yuan for full attendance??

?It’s probably because I’m not writing about popular topics. I’ve seen quite a few authors who stick to their own stories and don’t chase trends. It’s normal.?

As I expected, even though I was considered a “senior author” on the Yae-Do Light Novel website and knew many people, talking about income inevitably brought a chorus of sighs.

Especially that comment, “Isn’t Pipi a bestselling author?” That was practically dripping with sarcasm.

In other words, when translated, it meant, “How could Pipi, a bestselling author, mix with someone who earns less than a thousand a month? What shady methods has this person used or is it some kind of dubious transaction?”

The community of light novel authors is like a small society. If you’re successful, if you’re on the income ranking, you’re the top dog.

What qualifications, connections – all of that doesn’t matter much. As long as you’re a bestselling author on the website with high income, you have a say in the author group.

Of course, for someone like me, a “low-earning author” who has been writing for years and only makes a thousand a month, being looked down upon is normal.

I’ve gotten used to it.

?It’s fine, I’m doing it part-time to earn some extra money.?

Not knowing what to say at this moment, I just responded casually, as per my usual conversational habits.

?Uncle, are you married? If you are, I suggest keeping an eye on the current trends. Making 3,000 a month really isn’t that difficult.?

?Now, even middle-aged men can’t make do with just 1,000 yuan as pocket money every month.?

?By the way, a super cute girl joined my readers’ group earlier. She’s only 14. I added her on QQ, haha, and sent a voice message. Her voice is incredibly sweet.?

?My readers’ group also has many girls, and they’re all single, hehe.?

?None of you here have girls, right? No female authors, right??

?What are you thinking? We’re in the male-oriented novel category. Female authors? Yae-Do should be careful, it’s time to demand our unpaid earnings.?

“…”

Seeing that the discussion in the group had taken a strange turn, I didn’t bother reading further and got up from my seat. I left my phone to charge and headed to the kitchen. I took out the fish from the fridge that I didn’t finish last night and then opened one of the “3 packs for 10 yuan” instant noodle packages I bought from the supermarket.

In my current state, can I be considered… a female author?