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

Anling City, Linjiang Mansion.

The night sky shed its deep blue, a faint fish belly white emerging on the horizon, and shortly after, a streak of orange-red glimmered with dawn.

The morning mist in August and September was thicker than usual, distant mountains looming in and out of visibility, the babbling of the riverbank blending with the sounds of passing cars, and occasionally a boat horn would drift high into the sky.

"Mmm—"

Lin Chuan woke up from his sleep, opened his eyes, and the Little Landlady was no longer at his bedside, having already gotten up.

He fumbled for his phone on the bedside table.

He checked the time, it was nearly ten o'clock.

The icon for QQ lit up, with messages from the editor Youyou, sent since eight o'clock, several in a row.

[You didn't get hurt, did you?]

[I saw the news, are you okay?]

[I guess you're still sleeping.]

[...]

Lin Chuan smiled and quickly replied, "I'm fine, just woke up."

Youyou replied to the message in an instant, "It's good that you're okay, last night must have been quite dangerous, right? The news said you caught the criminal leader all by yourself, that's too risky."

"Actually, it wasn't that dangerous, don't worry," Lin Chuan replied.

"Don't say I was worried, the chief editor and the operations manager both came to ask me right away if you were okay," Youyou replied.

"Thank them both for me. /Haha.jpg"

Lin Chuan moved his fingers and attached an emoji.

"You're now a treasure at Sailing Novel, especially the overseas operations department, they've singled you out as a key IP to develop," Youyou had a light smile on her face at Sailing Tower, knowing that Lin Chuan was alright.

"Right, you mentioned last time that the overseas operations department plans to cultivate 'Dark Empire' as an IP abroad, that means continuing to publish crime-themed stories, right?" Lin Chuan asked, seizing the opportunity.

"Yes, this genre is very popular in overseas markets," Youyou replied.

Suddenly, Youyou thought for a moment, then blinked and sent another message, "You've already written a new book, haven't you?"

"How did you know?" Lin Chuan replied.

"Do I not understand you? Every time you talk about a new book, you already have a manuscript in hand, it's so obvious!" Youyou replied with a slight tug at the corner of her mouth.

Lin Chuan laughed dryly, "Haha, I'll polish it a bit more and then send it to you to see."

"What's the theme, a crime theme?" Youyou asked curiously.

"Yeah, Mr. Lin is a toy factory owner who transitions into an arms dealer and becomes an Arms Tycoon," Lin Chuan explained with a smile.

"Arms Tycoon, you can write about that?" Youyou was surprised.

"A little," Lin Chuan replied.

"Just a little?" Youyou was somewhat skeptical.

"Well... a little more than a little."

Lin Chuan smiled and jokingly replied.

"I get it, so you're writing detailed military stuff now," Youyou playfully responded with a smirk.

"Cough, readers are pretty savvy these days, you get criticized if you don't write with a bit of expertise," Lin Chuan explained earnestly.

"I've gone through the comment section of your novels, and no one seems to question your expertise," Youyou laughed.

"Cough, web novels are too competitive now, what with writing about cars, harems, having fun, and so on. Authors have to have their own style; I can only get by with a bit more expertise in my crime professions, it's not easy," Lin Chuan said with a laugh.

"Your path in making a living is quite unique; I always suspect you're not seriously writing web novels," Youyou teased.

"How am I not seriously writing web novels, Youyou as my longtime editor, you shouldn't slander me!" Lin Chuan replied quickly, defending himself.

"Just kidding with you. /Haha.jpg"

Youyou laughed, then replied, "Alright, you're okay, now I've got to get busy with your work."

"Okay, I'm getting up too," Lin Chuan said with a smile, turning over to get out of bed.

Sailing Tower.

Chu Wanning, the manager of the overseas operations department, clothed in a body-hugging pale blue dress, approached Youyou.

"Manager Chu."

Youyou looked up, saw Chu Wanning, and greeted her with a smile.

"Youyou, is Lin Chuan okay?" Chu Wanning came over and immediately inquired about Lin Chuan's well-being.

Youyou's face bore a faint smile, "He's fine."

"That's good," Chu Wanning grinned, "Don't call me Manager Chu anymore, it's so formal, just call me by my name."

"Alright, Wanning," Youyou said with pursed lips and a smile.

"The preliminary plan we settled on last time for Lin Chuan's overseas 'Dark Empire' IP, that news about Lin Chuan last night, it also exploded overseas," Chu Wanning said with a smile.

"Oh, it exploded overseas too?" Youyou's eyebrows knitted slightly in surprise, "I've been scrolling through QuikTok videos all morning, but I didn't pay attention to the overseas situation."

"I just happened to see it, turns out the last time our Sailing Novel's overseas edition was attacked online, it was because Lin Chuan was engaged in a cyber showdown with the Morgan Group. This time Lin Chuan arresting the criminal head of Anzhou Pharmaceutical, which is also owned by the Morgan Group, so now the foreigners are all excitedly discussing it; let me show you some comments I've captured," Chu Wanning said.

Then, Chu Wanning handed over some of the comments she had captured to Youyou.

Youyou leaned in closer and looked down—

[Mr. Lin is taking on the Morgan Group, isn't he?]

[So brave! A common man actually arm-wrestling with the Morgan Group and winning twice, unbelievable!]

[How can Mr. Lin be an ordinary person?]

[Yeah, I've read his 'Hacker Kingdom' and 'Black Ice'; he's definitely a big shot!]
Experience tales with m v|l e'm,p y r

[So it's a clash between two major forces?]

[Guys, I'm already looking forward to the next showdown between the Morgan Group and Mr. Lin!]

[I'm looking forward to it too, based on the Morgan Group's usual way of doing things, they will definitely take the next step!]

[Am I the only one looking forward to Mr. Lin's next novel?]

[...]

Taking in these comments, Youyou couldn't help but take a deep breath.