349: Chapter 349 The Rats in the Wall

Lin Que sat in the ergonomic chair in his studio.

In the chat box on the computer screen, the tentative message sent by Wang De'an rested quietly at the bottom.

He looked at that line of text and couldn't help but smile.

He placed both hands on the keyboard and replied calmly in the persona of Jian Shen:

"President Wang is referring to Lin Que, right? I just happened to buy a copy of his 'folding beijing' online today. The writing is seasoned and the concept is very deep. He's a rare and promising talent."

Wang De'an, on the other end of the screen, replied almost instantly, sending a meme of high approval.

Then,

This big shot of the publishing world began to spill the beans, excitedly recounting the process of personally going to Jiangcheng No. 1 High School today to recruit Lin Que.

Between the lines, the excitement of an old publisher encountering a top-tier talent was evident.

"Teacher Jian Shen, you have no idea. When I saw that kid at Jiangcheng No. 1 High School today, I was truly stunned by his aura."

Wang De'an typed at lightning speed.

"At the time, the Director of the Jiangcheng Education Bureau and the Chairman of the Municipal Writers Association were both present.

That kind of official pressure would make even an ordinary adult break out in a sweat.

But that Lin Que, standing in the middle of a group of powerful figures, didn't show the slightest hint of intimidation.

I laid out New Tide's S-tier debut resources on the table, and even promised to build him and you into a twin-star matrix.

The eyes of the principal of Jiangcheng No. 1 High School next to him went wide; he looked like he wanted to nod and agree on his behalf."

Lin Que watched the long paragraphs constantly popping up on the screen, his fingers lightly tapping the desk.

"President Wang is indeed full of sincerity," Lin Que replied.

Wang De'an sent a message:

"Exactly! To ensure success, I didn't hesitate to throw in the condition of 'personal one-on-one guidance from you'.

I thought at the time, this is Teacher Jian Shen we're talking about; how many writers in all of China want to meet you?"

Seeing the part about "guiding himself," Lin Que really couldn't hold it in and let out a soft laugh.

He deliberately feigned ignorance and typed out a line:

"With such good conditions offered, the kid must have agreed, right?"

There was a pause of more than ten seconds on the other side of the chat box.

Wang De'an sent a bitter smile emoji and replied:

"He refused in public."

Immediately after, Wang De'an recounted Lin Que's "unwilling to be Jian Shen's shadow" speech from the meeting room with added flair.

Wang De'an began to wax poetic in long paragraphs on the other end of the screen:

"It's truly rare for a young person nowadays to have such edge and pride.

The Chinese Literary World needs this kind of sharp spirit that refuses to be a mere appendage.

I've been in publishing for over twenty years, and this is the first time I've been rejected to my face by a high schooler, but I only feel admiration in my heart.

This kind of courage to draw one's sword before a peak ensures that he is destined to be no ordinary person in the future."

Lin Que found it very amusing to see such high praise directed at his original self.

Praising oneself and having an industry titan hold him in such high esteem was indeed a strange feeling.

On the surface, he maintained the steady demeanor of a literary senior and replied:

"He is a young man with backbone; I look forward to his future."

...

Inside the office of the President of New Tide Publishing House.

Wang De'an ended his chat with Jian Shen and took a sip of the tea on his desk, which had grown somewhat cold.

The assistant, Xu Lan, walked in carrying a freshly brewed cup of coffee and placed it on the desk.

"President Wang, didn't you ask Teacher Jian Shen to step in and try to persuade him?"

Wang De'an picked up the coffee cup, glanced at Xu Lan, and shook his head slightly:

"Teacher Jian Shen just now was full of praise for Lin Que."

Xu Lan froze for a moment, looking quite surprised:

"Teacher Jian Shen praised him too?"

"That's right."

Wang De'an leaned back in his large leather chair, his gaze distant.

"My original intention was just to help this promising talent reach a larger stage.

But now he has the authorities pushing him from behind—the Municipal Education Bureau and the Writers Association are both going all out to promote him. He doesn't lack resources at all.

Moreover, given the character that kid showed today, even if Jian Shen did step in, he might not be able to persuade him."

He set the coffee cup down, his tone calm and sincere:

"A forced melon isn't sweet.

The fact that New Tide could reach a single-book cooperation contract with him is already a very good result.

As long as he's willing to choose New Tide when he publishes books in the future, our goal is achieved.

To be in publishing, one must have the breadth of mind to accommodate others; you can't keep all the good things tightly gripped in your own hands."

Xu Lan nodded, seemingly understanding yet not quite.

The scene cuts back to the SOHO Future City studio.

Lin Que closed the chat box and leaned back in his chair.

His two identities were frequently intersecting in reality, even leading to the absurd drama of him refusing to sign with himself.

New Tide Publishing House had actually used Jian Shen as bait to win over the newcomer Lin Que.

This situation of the left hand fighting the right hand did indeed make him feel a bit ridiculous.

He had indeed considered finding a suitable time to reveal his hand to the outside world.

But after careful calculation, he understood that now was far from the right time.

Lin Que's current strength and status were not yet enough to fully withstand the massive impact that would come from merging his identities.

The vast resources and profit chains gathered because of 'Jian Shen' could very likely backlash against the thin, seventeen-year-old youth he was now.

He had to wait until he truly stood firmly at the peak and possessed absolute authority,

before he could merge these two personas into one and bring a true earthquake to the entire world.

Lin Que pushed aside his cluttered thoughts and sat up straight again.

He pulled his attention back to the battlefield of web novels.

He clicked on the Writer's Assistant and brought up the outline for 'cthulhu mythos'.

After several months of serialization, this work had accumulated an extremely large fan base, with tens of thousands of comments urging for updates every day.

His gaze locked onto the final major story arc.

the rats in the walls.

This was a highly representative short story within the cthulhu mythos system from his previous life.

It not only pushed unknown fear to the extreme but also vividly displayed the fragility and madness of humanity when facing ancient horrors.

Lin Que placed his hands on the keyboard and began to organize the final plotline.

The protagonist, Delapore, returns to his ancestral estate, attempting to rebuild the family's glory.

However, the ceaseless scurrying sounds within the castle walls day and night are like a rusty saw, cutting away at his sanity bit by bit.

As his fingertips tapped rapidly on the keyboard, the dark and damp castle, the hair-raising sounds behind the walls,

and the ancient fear capable of destroying human reason gradually took shape under his pen.

[the rats in the walls are running.

Those sounds do not come from real creatures, but from a calling deep underground.

They are gnawing at the edges of my sanity, leading me toward that abyss of eternal damnation.]

Lin Que typed this text and then modified several sentence breaks to ensure a tight plot rhythm.

He described the horrific scenes of the protagonist gradually descending deep underground and discovering the family's history of cannibalism in great detail.

(Combining the original work with a bit of Lin Que's own understanding and innovation)

That sense of pressure as the truth gradually approached constantly challenged the readers' psychological defenses as the text progressed.

Lin Que knew very well that the appeal of web novels didn't just lie in the protagonist's invincible crushing of enemies.

In the suspense and horror genre, rendering the unknown to the extreme and letting readers experience that scalp-tingling thrill while reading was also a form of ultimate satisfaction.

He wanted to use this story, 'the rats in the walls', to completely pierce through the psychological defenses of the readers in this parallel world and let them witness true Cthulhu-style despair.

The only sound in the studio was the crisp tapping of the keyboard.

Lin Que was immersed in the creative state, putting those hair-raising settings into the document one by one.

The massive underground architectural complexes, the degenerated humans kept like livestock for food, and finally, the Delapore who fell completely into madness.

Every plot twist was meticulously designed.

He wanted to use this final story to bring an unprecedented psychological shock to the web novel readers of this world.

Two and a half hours later, Lin Que typed the final period.

He looked at the tens of thousands of words in the draft document and let out a long breath.

He put the finished chapters into the scheduled release box in batches.

The ultimate carnival of fear belonging to the 'Hell Dream Weaver' was about to set off its final storm on the internet.

And in reality, that highly anticipated Jiangcheng Youth Literature Public Lecture

had also entered its final countdown.

...