The Sweetness of the Seventies
Chapter 820 - 789 Mailing, Newcomer Contract

Chapter 820: Chapter 789 Mailing, Newcomer Contract

Teacher Wu’s words drew the attention of the other people in the office, who all turned to look at He Tiantian.

"Hehe, even if they are good relatives, they’re just relatives. It’s enough to maintain proper exchanges; there’s nothing special," said He Tiantian, her face showing neither pride nor a desire to show off.

"Teacher He, I heard that the TVs from Xiangjiang are not bad. When will you be able to bring one over?" Teacher Wu said. She was about to get married and wanted to buy a color TV, but they weren’t available in China yet.

He Tiantian was taken aback, then smiled and said, "I’m not going there, and besides, TVs are so heavy, who can carry one over?"

"That’s true," Teacher Wu said with a sheepish smile. "By the way, I heard the clothes there are pretty. Are all your clothes bought from there?"

"No," answered He Tiantian. "They were all sent to me by my grandmother and mother from abroad."

"Ah?" Teacher Wu was surprised again. "Your grandmother and parents are all abroad? Which country?"

"The United States," He Tiantian replied.

"Wow, Teacher He, why didn’t you go abroad too? I hear it’s all skyscrapers and luxury, with cars everywhere," Teacher Wu said enviously. If her parents were abroad, she would definitely go.

"Hehe," He Tiantian laughed. "You shouldn’t think of abroad as being too wonderful. I’ve been overseas. Apart from better material living, the moon isn’t any rounder overseas than it is here."

And so the office atmosphere was divided into two camps, some saying abroad was better, others saying home was better, while our Teacher He Tiantian was already prepared for class.

The next day, Tang Ping’an came to the office and said to He Tiantian, "Teacher He, I can’t think of a good pen name. Can you come up with one for me?"

"Oh?" He Tiantian was stunned, then smiled. "I’m afraid that a pen name I come up with might not be good."

"It’s okay, Teacher He. Whatever name you come up with, I’ll like it," said Tang Ping’an, looking at He Tiantian with hopeful eyes.

He Tiantian thought for a moment and said, "Er Yue Hong, how about that? Derived from the saying ’frost leaves are redder than February flowers.’ February blossoms may be pretty, but the maple leaves that have weathered the frost are even more beautiful, stronger."

"Er Yue Hong?" Tang Ping’an murmured, then nodded. "Thank you, Teacher. I’ll use this name."

"Then good, I’ll send it out for you tomorrow," said He Tiantian with a smile. "Study hard, write well, opportunities always come to those who are prepared."

"Teacher, how much is the postage?" asked Tang Ping’an. Teacher He had already helped him so much; he couldn’t keep spending her money.

He Tiantian responded with a smile, "The postage isn’t much. It’s going along with other things. Even if it wasn’t for the manuscript, I would still be sending things to friends. You don’t need to worry about it. When you get published, simply give me a signed copy of your book."

"Teacher He?" Tang Ping’an felt somewhat embarrassed.

"Alright, you can go back now. While working hard, also pay attention to your health. It’s best to run a bit every morning; you’re too thin," He Tiantian advised. "To go far on the road of creation, you need to have good health and habits."

"Mhm, I’ve noted it down. Thank you, Teacher He," Tang Ping’an said gratefully. Regardless of whether he would be published or not, he was thankful to Teacher He.

He Tiantian mailed the items to Xie Wanying, whose parental home owned a publishing house, in which she also had shares. At the same time, Xie Wanying also wrote and published her own works.

Rather than submitting "Wind and Cloud" to one of the big publishing houses or newspapers and waiting in a pool of numerous manuscripts for selection, it seemed there might be a better chance of getting noticed through this avenue.

He Tiantian also wrote Xie Wanying a letter, asking for her help. If the novel was good, it should be treated equally and given a chance to be published.

Tang Ping’an had great expectations for his novel, and so did He Tiantian.

She hoped her efforts weren’t in vain and also hoped that Tang Ping’an’s hard work would pay off.

The hopes of He Tiantian and the aspirations of Tang Ping’an both traveled with that little parcel to Xiangjiang.

Xie Wanying, although a math teacher, had a literary heart—otherwise, she wouldn’t have asked her parents for shares in the publishing house as part of her dowry.

After all, there were many profitable businesses in the Xie family, with the publishing house being just one of the less profitable ones.

When Xie Wanying received the letter from He Tiantian and read it, she found out it was a novel written by one of He Tiantian’s students that she recommended.

"Dear, Tiantian is so warm-hearted, submitting her student’s work," Xie Wanying smiled. She corresponded regularly with He Tiantian, and they had a good relationship.

Qian Zhigao chuckled and said, "Our collaborations with He Tiantian are increasing. Whether my career can reach new heights all depends on He Tiantian and Huo Yingjie, so please, my wife, take a good look. If it’s worthy of publication, let’s give He Tiantian’s face and publish it. It’s rare to find teachers that care about their students so much."

"You didn’t need to say it; I would have done it anyway," Xie Wanying said. "If it wasn’t good, she wouldn’t have referred it to me. It’s a martial arts novel; I’ll take a look first. If it’s good, we’ll start with serialization in our magazine underneath the publishing house."

"Alright, you decide," Qian Zhigao said. "The other day when we went to the family banquet at your parents’, your father finally looked at me properly."

"Hehe, I knew you would win my father’s approval," said Xie Wanying. "You’re so outstanding! So I’ve never been worried."

Qian Zhigao was even more delighted to hear his wife’s encouragement and affirmation.

When Xie Wanying found time to read the novel, she was utterly impressed and, after finishing it in two days, immediately requested it to be typeset for serialization in the magazine under their publishing house.

Xie Wanying wrote back to He Tiantian and also sent a generous contract for new writers.

Seventy yuan per thousand words.

Because of He Tiantian, the terms Xie Wanying offered were very lenient, but there was one condition: under the same circumstances, the next book was to give priority to signing with her publishing house.

He Tiantian was very happy when she got the contract, looking it over several times. It was lenient and fair.

Seeing that the contract that came over was in traditional characters, it was fortunate that the martial arts novels Tang Ping’an used to read were all brought over from Hong Kong, all in traditional characters. The kid also liked to study, so he had written his novel in traditional characters, sparing the need for conversion.

Although simplified characters are now promoted, many people still use traditional characters.

He Tiantian personally had Tang Ping’an come to the office, took out the contract, and said, "Tang Ping’an, there’s news already. Here’s the contract. If you think there’s no issue, you can sign it. Afterwards, for the hundred thousand words you sent, you’ll get seven thousand yuan as a manuscript fee. This is just for the serialization. If it’s published later on, there will be additional fees, but the price will be set only after serialization is finished."

"Ah?" Tang Ping’an was startled. "Teacher, my martial arts novel can really be published?"

"Mhm!" He Tiantian nodded. "You’ve seen the contract, right? Of course, it’s genuine."