Asked you to write a book, not to confess your criminal record!

Modu, Sailing Tower.

The sunlight pierced through the sparse clouds, casting glimmers of brilliance upon the building's glass curtain wall, while freshly sprayed water droplets on the leaves of the green plants nearby sparkled with dazzling golden light under the sun.

The busy day for the working crowd had long since begun.

Youyou sat in front of the computer, her hands on the keyboard, slender fingers tapping rapidly as she typed out an advertising copy for "Arms Tycoon."

She looked at it, muttered to herself, and felt quite dissatisfied.

With no choice, she hit the 'delete' key, grabbed her head with both hands, her soft hair becoming somewhat disheveled, and her beauty intensified by her peachy cheeks—which were full of vitality early in the morning—while strands of hair dangled messily on her nose tip and cheeks, adding a touch of disarray that elicited sympathy.

"Morning, Youyou."

At that moment, Chu Wanning, Youyou's reliable partner, appeared behind her with a cup of milk in hand.

"Morning, Wanning." Youyou temporarily set aside her struggle with the ad copy and greeted Chu Wanning with a smile.

"You guys did such a great job! Here's the milk I poured for you."

Chu Wanning placed the milk on Youyou's desk and then praised her with a satisfied expression.

Youyou was somewhat puzzled by what exactly Chu Wanning was referring to, and asked in surprise, "We, what did we do?"

"You're just as low-key as Lin Chuan," Chu Wanning said with a beaming smile.

Youyou didn't quite understand what Chu Wanning was talking about, and she asked, "What does Lin Chuan have to do with this?"

"Didn't you say last night that you'd talk to Lin Chuan today about that Fries Novel piracy issue?" Chu Wanning sat down next to Youyou, speaking quite excitedly.

"Right..."

Youyou nodded absently.

Before she could finish her sentence, Chu Wanning continued, "Just a short while ago, Fries Novel proactively contacted us."

"Ah?" Youyou was bewildered.

"Guess what?"

Chu Wanning's eyebrows perked up, her tone livelier, "Fries Novel offered us compensation on their own initiative, returning all economic gains from pirating Lin Chuan's novels and proposing to pay Lin Chuan double the damages. In addition, they hope to get our legal authorization in the future, aiming to shift from a small workshop to an official force."

Youyou's eyes widened, "Sounds a bit magical."

"It's indeed quite magical."

Chu Wanning was still in the throes of excitement, "At first, when the legal team called me over to handle it, I was flabbergasted. You know, the legal team was, too. They had no idea why Fries Novel suddenly took this stance. Previously, they would either ignore our legal letters or even send back a couple to mock us."

Youyou raised her right hand, scratching her head, "Could there be some trick to this?"

Chu Wanning nodded vigorously,

"I'm feeling the same, but their actions were very decisive. The counterpart has already drawn up the electronic contract, and in two hours, the compensation and other financials will be transferred. Next month, we'll disburse this money to Lin Chuan as royalties."

Youyou hesitated for a moment, "This matter..."

"This matter you guys handled beautifully! But both you and Lin Chuan are too low-profile. Such a big thing, and you don't even tell us. Lin Chuan is really amazing. I wonder if he could similarly deal with other piracy issues. Please ask him to help us solve them."

Chu Wanning, tasting success, didn't wait for Youyou to finish and went on a rapid spiel.

"Uh."

"What's wrong, Youyou?"

It was then that Chu Wanning noticed Youyou didn't seem as excited as expected, "It seems strange to you?"

Youyou cracked a smile, "I haven't talked to Lin Chuan about it yet."

"Huh?"

Now it was Chu Wanning's turn to gaze in stupefied wonder, "Haven't said it yet?"

Youyou nodded earnestly, "Right, I haven't yet."

"This..."

Chu Wanning touched her chin, speaking curiously, "Then this is really odd. It's not likely that the folks at Fries Novel had a sudden prick of conscience."

Youyou took a sip of milk, falling into thought, "Could this have been done by Lin Chuan's readers?"

"By the readers?"

Chu Wanning muttered strangely.

"Yes."

Youyou speculated, "His readers can sometimes be very resourceful."

After pondering for a moment, Chu Wanning said with a cheerful smile, "They surely didn't storm the headquarters of Fries Novel and then force them into signing the agreement, did they?"

"You can imagine even bigger, Wanning."

Youyou laughed as well, "It might have involved a gun held to the head of Fries Novel's boss, and then they signed the agreement."

"That's just too absurd!" Chu Wanning laughed heartily.

Youyou straightened her messy strands of hair and said seriously, "I'll ask to see if Lin Chuan did this, or his readers did. There is no other possibility."

Chu Wanning agreed, "It really is a special circle you mix in—where even if you don't take action, if your readers do, the effect is still top-notch."

"What special circle?" Youyou inquired.

Chu Wanning thought for a moment, "The criminal circuit."

"The criminal circuit?"

Youyou laughed heartily, "If Lin Chuan hears about this, he'll have a proper talk with you."

Chu Wanning quickly waved her off, "Don't you dare tell the Influent Author, I'm still counting on him to write a few more books."

Youyou pursed her lips and smiled, then turned to send a message to Lin Chuan.

...

Anling City, Finance Office.

Today, Lin Chuan wasn't dressed as informally as usual but rather more formally.

He wore a gray suit; his 186 cm height coupled with his handsome face and neatly-cut short hair, made him look more like a walking clothes rack, brimming with energy and vigor.

Next to him was Shen Qianqian's father, Shen Jianhua.

Right from early morning.

Shen Jianhua had groomed the stubble on his chin and dressed in a fitting suit, joining Lin Chuan at the city's finance department to discuss grant issues for Anling Iron and Steel Factory with Anling City's financial leadership.