I’m Really a Superstar

Translator: Legge Editor: Legge

The next day.

On the day of the book\'s launch.

In the morning, a huge crowd had gathered at the Xidan Bookstore entrance. Over 200 people joined the long line and blocked off the main entrance of the building entirely.

"Don\'t push, don\'t push."

"Please line up and don\'t cut in line."

"They\'re about to open."

"Why are they taking so long? I\'ve been here since 6 AM."

"Bro, I was here earlier than you. I heard that there were some others who came here even earlier than me."

"Ah? What time were they here since?"

"There was someone who arrived at 4:30 AM."

"Man, surely they couldn\'t have gone to such an extreme, right?"

"Why not? Who knows if we can even get hold of a copy of the book."

Everyone was chatting as they stood in line.

A passerby on his way to work was baffled at the sight. That person did not know what was going on, so he stopped in his tracks and had a look. "What are you guys lining up for? Did Hardshell Technologies release a new cell phone? Why didn\'t I hear about it? In any case, this isn\'t where the exclusive retail store is. It\'s over there. Why are you guys lining up at the entrance of the Bookstore?"

Someone in the line said, "We\'re lining up to buy a book."

That person said in surprise, "What book are you buying?"

A female student said, "Zhang Ye\'s Fortress Besieged!"

The passerby said in a startled voice, "What? Face-smacking Zhang has released a new novel?"

The girl nodded and said, "That\'s right. There\'re some rumors that this marriage-themed novel will contain some critical information about the identity of Zhang Ye\'s fiancée!"

"Damn, it\'s that interesting?" That passerby had a look of excitement in his eyes as he immediately ran to the back of the line and joined it silently.

It was finally the start of business hours.

When the main doors were unlocked and the passageway into the Bookstore was opened up, the staff were stunned by what they saw. They could only watch as shadows came rushing toward them. Some of the female staff were scared stiff and had their jaws drop. They did not know at all what was happening!

The crowd rushed straight into the Bookstore!

"Where is it?"

"Over there!"

"I can see the bookshelves!"

"I want a copy of Fortress Besieged!"

"Give me ten copies! Pack them up!"

Only then did the staff members realize what was going on. When they finally came back to their senses, the shelves where Fortress Besieged was placed were already emptied out. Only a bare promo board was left standing!

"Why are they all gone?"

"My God, I was here since 6 AM!"

"There must still be some stock left in the warehouse!"

An executive of the Bookstore was also alerted. He came downstairs dumbfounded by the happenings and quickly said, "Calm down, everyone, calm down. I\'ve already gotten someone to transfer more stock from our warehouse. The books will be here immediately!"

…

Shanghai.

At Xinhua Bookstore.

"I want a copy of Fortress Besieged!"

"Give me two copies, thank you!"

"Fortress Besieged!"

"Why did they limit the amount that we can purchase?"

"Each person can only purchase one copy? What kind of rule is that?"

…

Tianjin.

At the Liberation Bookstore.

"Do you still have a copy of Fortress Besieged?"

"There aren\'t any left."

"What\'s going on? I lined up for a very long time!"

"We only received 200 copies, and they\'ve all sold out. Why don\'t you all go down to West Street and ask around to see if they still have any stock left."

"They don\'t have anything left at West Street. I just came over from there!"

…

Throughout the morning.

Crazy scenes like these played out at major bookstores around the country.

Many of those working at the bookstores and booksellers were feeling a little dumbfounded. How was this called book buying? This was clearly book snatching! Fortress Besieged was available as a single volume book and had a very high word count. Together with Zhang Ye\'s reputation, the publishing firm had set a very high market price for the novel. But based on what they were experiencing, it seemed like everyone was buying the book as though it did not cost a thing. They did not even browse through the contents or flip through the pages and simply picked up the novel before heading straight to the cashier!

The media was dumbfounded!

Many of the onlooking passersby were also dumbfounded!

Is this what Zhang Ye\'s appeal is like? Is he really that awesome? In all of China, which author could cause such a scene on the release date of their books!

At 10 AM, Fortress Besieged was sold out at 13 bookstores across the country!

At 10:30 AM, Fortress Besieged was sold out at 35 bookstores across the country!

At 11 AM, Fortress Besieged was sold out at 57 bookstores across the country!

The stock of Fortress Besieged was decreasing!

Some of the booksellers who had gone out of stock even called Zhang Ye\'s Studio in their anxiety.

At the studio.

Little Wang was on the phone. "We don\'t carry any stock of the book here….Right, you can get in contact with the publisher and distributor….It\'s no use even if you tell me about it; we\'re not in charge of this matter." After hanging up, Little Wang didn\'t know whether to laugh or cry. She told everyone, "A bookseller just called to ask for a thousand copies of the book."

Wu Yi said excitedly, "The demand is too explosive!"

Ha Qiqi laughed out loud and said, "Looks like we absolutely need not worry about the sales!"

Zhang Zuo came back in a hurry from outside and panted, "You guys should really go out there and have a look. It\'s crazy in the bookstore across from us! It\'s packed with people!"

Even Zhang Ye got butterflies in his stomach. "Surely it can\'t be that popular, right?"

Noticing his disbelief, Zhang Zuo quickly said, "It\'s true, you can go and have a look for yourself!"

Zhang Ye said, "The promo campaigns haven\'t even fully run yet and the release was done so hurriedly, so how could we have sold that much?"

Ha Qiqi laughed and said, "That\'s because you didn\'t consider your reputation. If it were some random dude, they definitely couldn\'t achieve this. But who are you? You\'re the best writer among the celebrities and the most famous person among the authors. Moreover, this marriage-themed novel arrived just in time to coincide with your own marriage too. On top of all that, the winners of the Qilu Literature Prize will be announced today. With Fortress Besieged also nominated for the Qilu Literature Prize, the popularity of the book has been pushed to a high point."

Then, Zhang Ye\'s cell phone rang.

Zhang Ye answered the call from Yao Jiancai.

"Old Yao, what\'s up?"

"Why can\'t I get a copy of your novel?"

"Ah?"

"My daughter intended to get it, but it was already sold out at all three of the bookstores she went to!"

"Hai, I didn\'t expect it\'d sell so well on the first day."

"Don\'t say anything else, you just need to quickly get me ten copies of your novel right now."

"Whoa, I don\'t have that many copies on hand either. The publishing firm didn\'t bring over that many. I can at most spare you three copies. As for rest, we\'ll talk about it again when I get excess stock."

"Alright, three copies is fine too. I\'ll get my wife to go over to your studio and get it from you later. Mimi can\'t wait to get her hands on it."

"Alright."

Then the doorbell rang.

Little Wang, who was standing closest to the door, opened it.

Chenchen walked in. "Zhang Ye."

Zhang Ye said, "What are you doing here? I\'m busy and don\'t have time for you."

Chenchen pouted and ignored him. Her little eyes looked over to the stack of Fortress Besieged books sealed and neatly placed in a corner of the studio. She walked over and put five copies into her arms.

Zhang Ye stared at her. "What are you doing?"

Chenchen said nonchalantly, "People want a copy of your novel."

Zhang Ye chuckled, "Who?"

Chenchen pointed downstairs. "Old Sun and Old Zhou. They said they didn\'t manage to buy it."

Old Sun? Did she mean Grandpa Sun?

Old Zhou? Was she talking about Uncle Zhou?

Zhang Ye rolled his eyes. "Take the copies then."

Chenchen hurried away.

A short while later, the little kid came back again.

Zhang Ye said in a speechless manner, "What are you doing here again?"

Chenchen said, "Zhang Ye, give me another 20 copies."

However, Zhang Ye noticed an awkward bulge in her pocket and could not help but grow suspicious. "What\'s that in your pocket?"

Chenchen clutched her pocket. "It\'s none of your business."

"Hey, let me see." Zhang Ye went up to her and searched through her pocket.

"Leave me alone!" Chenchen wasn\'t having any of it, but Zhang Ye overpowered her with his strength. An item fell out from her pocket.

Everyone saw exactly 250 yuan in cash fall out!

Chenchen could only say, "I sold your books at 50 yuan each at the entrance of the neighborhood. It\'s higher than your market price. Zhang Ye, give me another 20 copies."

Zhang Ye was floored. "Your sister, are you replenishing your stock from me!"

Everyone burst into laughter!

She even knew how to markup the price?

They had never come across such a young scalper before!

But from this, it showed how popular Fortress Besieged was. It was really selling like crazy!