Chapter 123: Conversing with Wit and Ease

In the period following his interview with *Southern Weekly*, reporters from various outlets—including the *Business News*, *Yangtze Evening Post*, and *Jinling Evening Post*—began arriving one after another to interview Zhang Tan.

It was clear that Zhang Tan’s reputation had firmly established him among the ranks of mainstream literary figures.

The sales volume of *The Legend of the Condor Heroes* had set a record for mainland martial arts novels. Before Zhang Tan, due to the passage of time and the rampant piracy, no martial arts novel by a renowned Hong Kong or Taiwanese author had managed to exceed 500,000 copies in legitimate sales. Of course, if one counted pirated copies, *The Legend of the Condor Heroes*’ achievement was hardly worth mentioning.

From the 1970s through the 1990s, martial arts novels from Hong Kong and Taiwan had sparked a reading craze in the mainland, with pirated editions being printed over and over again. All the martial arts novels Zhang Tan read as a child were pirated. It could be said that while these renowned authors were famous in the mainland, they truly didn’t earn much money there.

It was only after entering the 21st century, with improved living standards, that readers who once bought pirated books began to switch to legitimate copies.

Zhang Tan had arrived at an opportune time.

The next decade would represent the final glory of the martial arts genre, as well as an era where legitimate editions began to proliferate. While it was unrealistic to eliminate piracy entirely, authors could at least earn what they were due. Behind him lay the era of pirated books, and ahead of him lay the era of electronic reading; the window of time where paper editions could command a premium existed only in the present.

A sixteen-year-old boy earning over a million in annual royalties—this naturally invited competitive reporting from major newspapers.

It wasn’t just the newspapers; the three major domestic web portals—Sina, Sohu, and NetEase—also sent reporters to interview Zhang Tan throughout October, dedicating significant space to him in their entertainment sections.

"The release of *The Legend of the Condor Heroes* leaves heroes in awe; martial arts master Tan Zhang turns out to be a high school student." — Sina.

"The martial arts journey of a sixteen-year-old boy." — Sohu.

NetEase: "How a high school student makes a million a year; the facts are actually like this."

The reporting felt like a swarm. This is the nature of news: once there is a story that can grab attention, everyone rushes to report on it, and even if they can't send a reporter, they will at least repost someone else’s coverage.

And so, accompanied by the runaway success of *The Legend of the Condor Heroes*, Zhang Tan entered the public consciousness for the first time.

Martial arts, sixteen, first-year high school, writer, annual income of a million—these all became Zhang Tan’s personal labels.

Even Shuangdun High School saw a sharp increase in its exposure.

Principal Zhang Guanghe was even interviewed by Sina, with the reporter asking him, "What kind of student is Zhang Tan at school?"

"Ah, well, Zhang Tan is a very outstanding student at our Shuangdun High School. He is diligent in his studies, respects his teachers, is friendly to his classmates, and actively participates in various extracurricular activities. He has exceptional talent in subjects like Chinese and music... In short, our school will actively cultivate Zhang Tan, creating a favorable environment for him so that he can focus on his writing without neglecting his studies... Our philosophy is to encourage students' interests and specialties while requiring them to fulfill their primary academic duties. We believe that while a student's talent is one aspect, the environment and effort are another, and Shuangdun High School has some small insights into this kind of teaching."

Zhang Guanghe spoke at great length, almost putting the reporter to sleep.

In the final report, however, the reporter only quoted one sentence from him: "According to Zhang Tan’s principal, Zhang Tan performs exceptionally well at school."

When Zhang Guanghe later refreshed the Sina page and saw the report, he couldn't find his name anywhere and became furious: "The reporter from Sina has worrisome news-gathering skills!"

Just as he was about to leave a negative comment, the phone on his desk rang.

It was the director of the County Education Bureau, speaking with a booming voice: "Guanghe, you’re really not being a good friend. Your school produced such a great genius, and you never even mentioned it to me!"

"Director Wang, look at it this way—I was caught off guard, and I haven’t even recovered yet," Zhang Guanghe replied perfunctorily. If Director Wang could see his expression, he would have noticed the disdain in his eyes.

*You’re only good at eating, drinking, and womanizing; do you even know how many high schools are in the county under your jurisdiction?* That was Zhang Guanghe’s inner monologue; he looked down on Director Wang with utter contempt.

Director Wang, unaware of Zhang Guanghe’s inner thoughts, felt quite pleased with himself: "You just don't have enough experience; you’re sitting on a genius and don’t know how to mine him. How many teenage writers like Zhang Tan can there be in the whole country? This is an excellent achievement for our Changfeng County’s education system, a calling card for our county that cannot be ignored. Here’s what we’ll do: make arrangements, and I will head to Shuangdun High School at noon to visit student Zhang Tan in person."

"Understood, I will make the proper arrangements."

…

As November approached, the annual Shuangdun High School sports meet was about to be held.

Once again, Zhang Tan signed up for the 1,000-meter, 5,000-meter, and 4x100-meter relay races. He had no choice; in his liberal arts honors class, ten of the seventeen boys were "shut-ins," and the remaining six had combat effectiveness close to zero. Fortunately, the girls in the class seemed quite strong; a girl who had won the long-distance running and long jump titles in her first year had also joined Class 4.

Overall, if the class wanted to place well in the sports meet, they would have to rely on the girls.

Zhang Tan could at best win the 1,000 and 5,000 meters, and if he were lucky, he might even break a record. After all, having exercised for over a year, his body had fully matured, and his physical condition had significantly improved since his first-year competitions. However, this time the second and third years were competing together, and with professional sports students participating, the competition would be fierce.

For the sake of pride and rankings, Zhang Tan pushed himself hard, which took up a lot of his time and forced him to squeeze in writing sessions whenever he could.

That noon, just as he was planning to go back to work on his manuscript, his homeroom teacher, Li Shengnan, stopped him: "Zhang Tan, don't go eat by yourself today. People from the County Education Bureau are here, and they want you to join them for lunch."

"The County Education Bureau wants me to join them for lunch?" Zhang Tan was momentarily stunned.

"Yes, Director Wang from the Education Bureau is visiting the school to conduct research, and he’s here specifically for you. You’ve become a celebrity in our Changfeng County." Even the often-stern and menopausal Li Shengnan spoke to Zhang Tan with a gentle expression.

Zhang Tan’s achievements had already surpassed most people.

Although he wasn't very attentive in class, he was quiet, busy with his own things, and sat in the back without bothering anyone, which made things easy for his teachers. His grades were not bad—mediocre, really—so there was no reason to reprimand him.

A genius who wasn't arrogant—how could one not like such a student?

After a second of hesitation, Zhang Tan nodded readily: "All right, where are we eating?"

"Tianyuan Restaurant. Let's go now."

"Okay."

Upon entering the Tianyuan Restaurant, he saw Principal Zhang Guanghe and the Party Secretary, Wei Dongsheng, surrounding a pot-bellied, middle-aged man, laughing and joking.

There were also several young teachers nearby, including Yu Na and Bu Xuewen, a couple who had recently married.

"Zhang Tan is here." Zhang Guanghe spotted him and immediately announced, "Director Wang, Zhang Tan is here."

Director Wang, with a belly that looked as if he were six months pregnant, walked over, his greasy face beaming with a bright smile: "Student Zhang, hello, hello! I’ve been hearing your name every day lately, and now we finally meet. You really are a talented young man, worthy of being a genius who writes books. Haha, this is the treasure of our Changfeng County!"

Seeing how Director Wang looked, Zhang Tan felt an instinctive revulsion. An official as fat as a pig—it was no wonder the government was losing credibility.

Zhang Tan was not a "keyboard warrior" and knew how to hide his thoughts, but he felt no need to offer a warm smile. He replied calmly, "Director Wang is too kind. I don't deserve such praise."

Of course, beneath his indifferent expression, there was still a hint of vanity. He had finally made it to the big stage; he was a person of status now, capable of laughing and chatting with local officials.