[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-literary-master-of-tokyo":3,"chapter-literary-master-of-tokyo-literary-master-of-tokyo-chapter-18":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Literary Master of Tokyo",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2354867,4607,"Chapter 18: Hurry Up While You Can","literary-master-of-tokyo-chapter-18",18,"\u003Cp>Toshihiro Yashiro made his choice and immediately took out paper and pen to start writing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He first organized the pros and cons of \"The Searching Footsteps,\" then used the \"Spring and Autumn\" technique to revise them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He changed long descriptions of scenery to \"the author depicts the scenery vividly,\" changed boring scene descriptions to \"the author's writing style is very prominent,\" and avoided the important while dwelling on the trivial in other aspects to express his views euphemistically...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In less than an hour and a half, he had integrated half a page, totaling about four thousand characters.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He proofread it briefly and tossed it aside. He then turned to a new sheet of manuscript paper, preparing to write a book review for \"Little Decor and Yoko.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This time, he did not intend to do a sloppy job.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He gripped his pen and began to ponder carefully. After a while, he started to write, pausing constantly to delete and revise the previous content as he went.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It took him a full two hours to write the piece he truly wanted to write. It could be said that this article of less than a mere five hundred characters was poured with much of his heart and soul.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But he had no regrets; he was unwilling to be a puppet manipulated by performance pressure. He wanted to convey the works he truly wished to recommend to readers through the newspaper.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The next day, the new issue of the \"Tokyo Daily News\" began distribution.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In Japan, an important channel for newspaper distribution is the delivery person.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Every day at 3 or 4 in the morning, many young men on bicycles weave through the streets and alleys of Tokyo, delivering newspapers to every household to ensure the masters of the house can read them as early as possible.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Masaaki Shimamoto, who lived in Setagaya Ward, was one of these masters.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He sat at the dining table, finished the breakfast his wife had prepared, and picked up the \"Tokyo Daily News\" to browse.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He first looked at the social and economic sections in the front, then flipped to the literary section in the back, where he saw a small headline—\"A Story from Pain to Rebirth.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was a bit curious, couldn't help but read on, and was somewhat surprised by the content. After finishing, he realized it was getting late and stood up to head to the company.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But for some reason, the content of the book review kept him distracted, to the point that he was listless at work today and almost got scolded by his boss.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When he finally made it to 9 PM, he immediately went to a nearby bookstore and bought that copy of \"New Novels.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>By the light of the street lamp, he turned to the page for \"Little Decor and Yoko\" and began to read.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Once he started, he read for a full half hour.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He didn't even realize that during the time he was reading, he was basically motionless; except for the almost instinctive turning of pages, he hadn't moved his feet a single step.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only when he reached the last page did he wake as if from a dream, suddenly realizing his legs had gone numb from standing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But his mood felt different; his whole body was trembling slightly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had never imagined that as a reader of pure orthodox mystery, he would be so shocked by such a stunning unorthodox mystery article.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Whether it was the description of the differences between mother and daughter or the twist at the end of the story, it gave him an inexplicable feeling and dealt a great shock to him, a reader who prided himself on being an orthodox mystery fan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He couldn't help but develop a great curiosity about the Akiwara teacher who wrote this work.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What kind of writer could write such a thrilling and deeply moving article!?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Akiwara Yuto was completely unaware that he had gained a new fan. He was currently sitting in a cubicle in the writers' office on the 14th floor of Mantan Publishing, staring at the ceiling in a daze.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yesterday, the first July issue of \"New Novels\" went on sale, and he was very worried about the first-week sales figures.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In fact, he also understood that knowing the numbers was useless; after all, the sales were decided by the readers, and he couldn't exactly hold a gun to the heads of everyone in Tokyo and force them to buy the book.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He looked down at the manuscript paper on the desk in front of him and couldn't help but feel a headache.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What he was doing now was turning foreign mystery films from his past life into local Japanese mystery novels.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Doing this seemed thankless, but it was very valuable to him; after all, his knowledge of Japanese works was limited, and he would be stunned if he ran out of them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Moreover, the localization of foreign works was not a new thing in the Japan of his past life.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For example, the American \"12 Angry Men\" was adapted into \"12 Gentle Japanese,\" the Colombian \"One Hundred Years of Solitude\" was adapted into \"Goodbye, Ark,\" and the Korean \"Confession of Murder\" was adapted into \"22 Years Later: A Confession.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Most of these works also achieved critical and box office success in Japan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, works that can be adapted have their own reasons for success; localization is merely making them fit the national conditions better, making it easier for the citizens of the country to accept them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even so, localization adaptation is not a simple matter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Japan is a society that highly emphasizes collectivism and discipline; the kind of personality of Western protagonists is hard to thrive here, not to mention the conflicts in many aspects such as character dialogue and environmental design.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He concentrated for another 20 minutes, but didn't write a single word. He stood up, looked at the alarm clock on the wall, and found it was already 12 o'clock.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He thought for a moment and decided to go upstairs to Asano Aiko for a meal—she had said her mother made extra bento every day.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just as he was about to leave, a voice came from the next cubicle, \"Yo, Akiwara-san, going to find your female editor for a meal again?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Akiwara Yuto turned his head and saw it was a casual friend he had recently met, a man named Yuto Imamura, who was a contracted author for \"Tokyo Literature.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This person's personality was different from the average Japanese person; he was quite outgoing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing the way the other man was wiggling his eyebrows, he knew he was being teased, so he rolled his eyes and said bluntly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Imamura-san, you can also go find your editor for a meal; there's nothing wrong with that, is there?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"No, no, no, Akiwara-san, the problem is huge.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yuto Imamura waved his hands, then stood up and gestured exaggeratedly in front of his chest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Your editor is a beauty who makes you want to eat three bowls of rice just by looking at her, while my editor is a middle-aged man with overactive sweat glands on his chest; the distance between the two is worlds apart.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Akiwara Yuto's eyelids twitched, and he felt sympathy for his editor; encountering an author like this, whipping him with a leather lash would be considered light.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But how the other man knew his editor had chest hair was terrifying to think about.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After Yuto Imamura finished this sentence, he said in the manner of a senior, \"Akiwara-san, as a married man who has been through it, I advise you to take action as soon as possible.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What action?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Don't pretend you don't understand. Ms. Asano is beautiful and has a good temper; there must be people inside the publishing house eyeing her. If you act too late, it will definitely be too late. Hurry up while you can; if it were me...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hearing this, Akiwara Yuto turned and walked away; if this continued, it would be endless.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was currently focused on making a career for himself and had no heart for romance. Besides, he only felt gratitude toward Asano Aiko.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He couldn't be bothered to talk nonsense with him, waved his hand as a goodbye, and walked out toward the door.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Akiwara, what have you been busy with lately? Why do you look so haggard every day?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Asano Aiko looked at Akiwara Yuto with suspicion; they were sitting in a small meeting room of the editorial department on the 16th floor.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After the bar incident, their relationship had become closer. Although it hadn't reached the point of calling each other by their first names, the way they addressed each other had become much more casual.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Akiwara Yuto glanced at her, not knowing how to respond for a moment, but his eyes drifted toward the bento.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This bento was made by Lady Asano herself, and it contained a wide variety of dishes, each looking very exquisite.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The hamburger steak, fried until crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, was stacked in four pieces; the thick rolled omelet, fried with eggs and milk, emitted an egg aroma after being heated in the microwave; besides that, there were bright red octopus sausages and Japanese-style stew that looked very appetizing, ensuring the intake of vitamins while guaranteeing the deliciousness of the food...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing Akiwara Yuto not speaking, the suspicion in Asano Aiko's eyes deepened.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But after all, she was not Akiwara Yuto's girlfriend, let alone his mother, so she could only advise him in a probing tone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Akiwara, I know you have manuscript fee income every issue, but it's better to go to places like Kabukicho less often. This is also for your own good.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now that their joint career was just getting on the right track, she was worried that Akiwara Yuto would go get into some soapland business. If a scandal broke out, the publishing house would probably cancel their cooperation directly, and even kneeling on the ground would be useless then.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although Japanese society is indeed tolerant of writers—even a disabled writer having more than 50 extramarital affairs didn't cause much controversy—that was for famous writers, and Akiwara Yuto was still just a newcomer...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Akiwara Yuto heard her taking the matter too far and felt that if he didn't explain, his image would be ruined. He sighed and said in a distressed tone, \"It's like this: my writing has hit a slump recently, and I feel I need help to break through.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He thought about it and decided not to tell her about his participation in the Mystery Literature Newcomer Award; after all, for one thing, he hadn't decided which work to submit, and for another, he wasn't very confident.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When he actually won the award, he would give Asano Aiko a surprise; it would be published by Mantan Publishing anyway.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The suspicion in Asano Aiko's eyes gradually disappeared, but she thought of another thing and gradually became nervous.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was not a new thing for a writer to hit a slump; some writers would run out of inspiration as they wrote, and some would even be unable to write a single word for half a month.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the current \"New Novels\" was in a weekly serialization format; if he really couldn't hand in the manuscript when the time came, it would simply cost her her life.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She put down her chopsticks and advised him solemnly, \"Akiwara, the manuscript you have submitted is already enough for 3 weeks of serialization, so why don't I help you ask for leave first, and you can find a place to rest.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After a pause, she poured a cup of oolong tea from the thermos next to her and handed it to Akiwara Yuto.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Of course, if there is anything you need my help with, just let me know, and I will try my best to help you solve it.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As the editor in charge, cleaning up after the writer is a matter of course, as long as the other party can write the manuscript, everything is easy to talk about.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even if Akiwara Yuto needed some material regarding love, she could help him get a rental girlfriend.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Akiwara Yuto took the oolong tea and looked at the pitch-black tea, wondering if this tea was lit with a lighter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He quickly cast aside this unrealistic thought and began to seriously analyze what Asano Aiko said—whether he should take leave to recharge himself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing Akiwara Yuto silent, Asano Aiko decided to cheer him up, so she went to the office outside, brought a stack of newspapers, and spread them on the table in the small meeting room.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Akiwara, your work has been praised by others; it can be considered as having done some publicity.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Akiwara Yuto was a bit surprised, took the newspaper, and looked at it, but for a moment he was a bit speechless...\u003C\u002Fp>",2155,"2026-06-21T03:58:01.347Z",1,"Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite","5050a8f5a7e6c6fc040d8685eb5f75440e60412ad5e10cc2e2d32d6855a48df5","literary-master-of-tokyo-chapter-19","literary-master-of-tokyo-chapter-17",334,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fliterary-master-of-tokyo-cover.jpg"]