376: Chapter 376 Resources you can't handle are like hot potatoes

Song Yuan stood directly in front of the registration desk, flipping a page in the black folder in his hand.

The hall was so quiet that you could hear a pin drop.

Everyone's attention was focused on his stern, unsmiling face.

"I said just now, everything is back to zero."

Song Yuan pushed up the glasses on the bridge of his nose, his gaze sweeping over the twenty students who had previously seemed somewhat dejected due to the lack of recommendation qualifications.

"This is not just a slogan, but the latest directive jointly issued by the Qingbei School of Literature and the Provincial Department of Education. This year, for the Qinglan Project, the recommendation quota is no longer limited to the top ten."

This sentence landed on the marble floor, creating a silent shockwave.

"Students ranked eleventh to thirtieth, as long as they perform sufficiently well in the upcoming intensive training, will also have the opportunity to obtain the recommendation qualification for Tsinghua-Peking."

Song Yuan's voice struck the eardrums of everyone present with precision.

Su Xiaotang stood by the window, clutching the hem of her clothes tightly.

The fabric left deep red marks on her palms, but she felt no pain at all.

The despair and unwillingness of missing the top ten by just one step on the stairs yesterday were completely ignited in this second, transforming into a fanatical fighting spirit.

She lifted her head, staring intently at the folder in Song Yuan's hand.

In the camp of the last twenty students, who had originally been listless, several people couldn't help but gasp.

Some were so excited that their breathing became heavy, exchanging incredulous glances with each other.

"But don't be too happy too soon." Song Yuan poured a bucket of cold water without hesitation.

"The additional recommendation quota is not fixed. The upper limit is twenty people, but the lower limit…"

He scanned the room and paused.

"……is zero."

"It all depends on whether your final comprehensive score can reach the special admission passing line for Tsinghua-Peking. If you don't reach it, even if you are ranked eleventh, you will still have to go back and take the College Entrance Examination."

The temperature in the hall dropped a few degrees, but the rekindled desire to compete burned brighter and brighter.

Song Yuan turned to the last page of the folder.

"Next, I will announce the final point rewards for this Qinglan Project. In addition to the recommendation qualification, the ranking will directly determine the resources you can obtain."

"Tenth to thirtieth place will receive regular guidance from Tsinghua-Peking master teachers. Second to ninth place will receive provincial-level publishing resource support on top of the master teacher guidance. As for first place…"

Song Yuan paused for two seconds, his gaze sweeping over Lin Que and Xu Changge.

"They will receive lifelong binding with a master teacher, as well as special-grade publishing resources specially approved by the National Writers Association."

Class differences were laid bare on the table.

Without any concealment.

In the crowd, Zhang Yiyu from Beijing No. 4 High School lifted his chin slightly.

He turned to look at a few companions beside him, lowering his voice, but the volume was just enough for the circle of people around him to hear clearly.

"It's actually special-grade publishing resources!"

Zhang Yiyu's tone carried the certainty peculiar to children of Beijing aristocratic families.

"This is not as simple as just publishing a book for you. Special-grade resources mean you can directly utilize national-level promotional channels and have your book stocked in core display spaces across all Xinhua Bookstores. The most critical thing is that it can directly open doors to top-tier pure literature publishers like 'New Tide' and 'October', and set up a column for you."

Several students from other provinces listened with wide-eyed amazement.

For high school students like them, being able to turn their writing into lead type and print it in an ordinary magazine was already a great honor; accessing top-tier journals and national-level promotion was purely a myth.

Zhang Yiyu was very satisfied with the reaction of those around him.

He crossed his arms, his gaze passing over the crowd, intentionally or unintentionally landing on Lin Que.

"However, resources of this level are not something just anyone can handle. Things like background require circles and connections to support them. Without a background, relying solely on inspiration from a single competition to get a high score, such heaven-defying resources will only end up being a burden. Just the intricate conflicts of interest in the publishing circle alone could crush an ordinary person. Resources you can't handle are just hot potatoes."

Lin Que was the national champion and was undoubtedly the person closest to that 'special-grade publishing resource' at the moment.

But Lin Que's background had long been dug up: he came from an ordinary family in Jiangcheng, and his parents were both ordinary employees.

Guided by Zhang Yiyu's words, the gazes of the surrounding students looking at Lin Que and Xu Changge underwent a subtle change.

The previous simple awe diminished, replaced by a competitive desire full of aggression.

Since Lin Que can't handle it, why can't I be the one to snatch this position?

Chen Jiahao stood behind Lin Que, and upon hearing this, he exploded on the spot.

He stepped forward, pointing in the direction of Zhang Yiyu.

"What do you mean by that? First place is won through hard-earned, genuine strength. How does it become something 'impossible to handle' in your mouth? Does it mean only you people who know the tricks and ins-and-outs are qualified to take first place?"

Chen Jiahao's voice was loud, directly tearing through the sense of sophistication that Zhang Yiyu had created.

Zhang Yiyu's expression darkened, but he did not refute directly.

The boy with metal-rimmed glasses beside him sneered and stepped out to take over.

"This classmate, why are you so agitated? Yiyu is just popularizing industry common sense. Do you know how many departments the approval process for a special-grade book number has to go through? Do you know how the first print quota and royalty tiers are divided by distributors in actual operations? The water in the publishing industry is very deep; it's not something you can navigate just by being hot-blooded. This is just stating an objective fact."

A series of publishing industry jargon was thrown down, and Chen Jiahao opened his mouth.

His lips moved twice, but he couldn't form a complete rebuttal.

He stood there with a flushed face, his fists clenching and unclenching.

Lin Que leaned against the pillar next to the registration desk, listening to Zhang Yiyu break down the words 'special-grade publishing resources' and explain them to this group of high school students.

He had no expression.

He just felt that this term had suddenly become a bit unfamiliar.

Unfamiliar enough that he needed to think about when the last time was that he had been excited about such things.

Lin Que straightened up and reached out to pat Chen Jiahao on the shoulder twice.

The force was steady, carrying a sense of reassurance.

"Don't get excited."

Lin Que spoke, his tone extremely casual.

The gazes in the hall followed the sound and gathered on him.

Lin Que looked at Zhang Yiyu, a very faint curve appearing on his lips.

"This is just a plate for raising Gu. The resources are the bait, and we are the Gu. If you only stare at the bait, it's very easy to be bitten to death by others."

As soon as this sentence came out, the air in the entire hall stagnated.

He didn't refute the complicated publishing jargon, nor did he argue about who was qualified to take first place.

Lin Que jumped directly out of the battlefield defined by Zhang Yiyu regarding 'circles' and 'background,' and using a perspective of a superior that was almost cruel, he dissected the essence of this intensive training and laid it out bloody before everyone.

The hall was silent for two seconds.

Several students from other provinces who had been exchanging glances just now involuntarily withdrew their gazes from Lin Que and landed them on the notebooks in their hands.

A girl twisted the pen cap she had been clutching back on.

Wei Yiming's mineral water bottle was finally opened, he tilted his head and took a gulp, not wiping his mouth.

Su Xiaotang by the window lowered her eyes, and the fingers clutching the hem of her clothes slowly loosened.

Zhang Yiyu retracted his chin.

His lips moved, and some words had already lined up between his teeth, but in the end, he swallowed them back.

The boy with metal-rimmed glasses beside him glanced at him; Zhang Yiyu didn't turn his head, just slowly lowered his arms that were crossed in front of his chest.

Xu Changge stood not far away, and after hearing this, he tilted his head.

His gaze moved away from Lin Que and landed on the opaque lottery box, pausing for two seconds.

Then he lowered his head and adjusted the buttons on his cuffs again.

The movement was very light, but the curve of his lips was a little deeper than usual.

Wei Yiming screwed the cap back on the mineral water bottle, stuffed it into his pants pocket, and grinned towards Lin Que.

He didn't speak. But the angle of that smile was upward.

Song Yuan put away the folder and raised his hand to tap on the table.

The crisp sound drew everyone's attention back to him.

"Enough chatting. Take your notebooks and pens."

Song Yuan turned around and pointed to the passageway on the side of the hall.

"Go to the lecture hall on the second floor; Professor Liu is already waiting for you."