[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-starting-from-stealing-the-role-in-1995-huayu":3,"chapter-starting-from-stealing-the-role-in-1995-huayu-starting-from-stealing-the-role-in-1995-huayu-chapter-23":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Starting from Stealing the Role in 1995 Huayu",{"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},2321012,4540,"Chapter 23","starting-from-stealing-the-role-in-1995-huayu-chapter-23",23,"\u003Cp>Wu Jianping looked at his son and suddenly felt he had changed a great deal in the two months since entering university—not only had he gained skill, but he seemed altogether more mature, all traces of youthful naivety completely gone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Perhaps he sensed Wu Yuchen’s determination, or perhaps he was influenced by his son’s transformation; Wu Jianping fell silent for a moment, then stopped refusing:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What kind of story do you want to tell?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yuchen’s face lit up at once—he knew his father had agreed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The War of Resistance! A story of a rough, bandit-like soldier who becomes a legendary general!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then Wu Yuchen began recounting the story of “Bright Sword” vividly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Jianping listened intently, but as he listened, he suddenly raised his hand to interrupt Wu Yuchen: “Wait, the more I hear, the more this sounds like Wang Yuanshan.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Jianping himself came from the military; he was deeply familiar with the stories of these marshals and generals.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Dad, I knew I couldn’t fool you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Literature comes from life—I based this character on him.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Do you also tell about his later life?” Wu Jianping asked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No—I’ll stop at the 1950s.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Jianping nodded after hearing this. Wang Yuanshan had later been punished over personal relationship issues; today, it wouldn’t be a big deal—just a couple who couldn’t get along—but back then, he was accused of abandoning his wife and child for another woman and forced to write a self-criticism. Better not mention that.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Wu Yuchen’s reasons were different from his father’s.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In his past life, the novel “Bright Sword” hadn’t been a big hit at first—it sold only a few hundred thousand copies in its first year, and sales only exploded after the TV drama succeeded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yuchen knew exactly why: the first half was Li Yunlong’s growth story, which readers found deeply satisfying. Though there were tragedies—like the death of Brother Wei the Monk and Xiuqin—they only heightened the drama and intensity, deepening emotional resonance and letting readers vent their rage at the Japanese and bandits as they read.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the second half took a sharp turn—the author Du Liang plunged into scar literature, weaving in plenty of his own personal grievances, making the reading experience uncomfortable, oppressive, and awkward, leaving readers with a stifled anger they couldn’t even release.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In fact, many best-selling novels chase that “satisfaction” factor—just like the wildly popular wuxia novels of Jin Yong and Gu Long, which fundamentally follow the same “feel-good” formula.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For a military novel like \"Bright Sword,\" most readers want to experience the passion and excitement of battle, the wit and strategy, the clash of wills. They can accept dying on the battlefield—but when the author starts indulging in literary pretension, everyone feels cheated. How could it ever become a hit?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the TV producer was clever—he used only the first half of “Bright Sword,” and specifically hired screenwriters to add new plotlines and characters: like the cavalry captain Sun Desheng and Xi Zi, ordinary soldiers who were humble yet deeply moving, none of whom existed in the original novel. Predictably, the TV drama exploded—massively!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So the version Wu Yuchen asked his father to write matched the TV drama’s timeframe—ending in the 1950s, entirely focused on Li Yunlong’s heroic rise, with none of the forced, pretentious literary scenes that followed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In this way, the novel “Bright Sword” would surely outsell its past-life version by a wide margin!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And the copyright would remain entirely in Wu Yuchen’s hands—he could later adapt it into a TV drama at the right moment, letting the book and show boost each other, with all profits flowing straight to him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There was another crucial point: if Wu Jianping wrote this novel, he wouldn’t face publishing obstacles.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In his past life, the author Du Liang had written “Bright Sword” as a bet with a friend, then approached a publisher. When they heard he was a businessman who had left the system—not part of the literary circle—they demanded he pay tens of thousands in publishing fees before they’d even consider printing it. Du Liang stormed off in fury.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Wu Jianping was backed by a publishing house—he’d never encounter such a problem. In fact, the publisher might even give him a higher royalty rate out of goodwill, since he was one of their own. To ignore this advantage would be a waste!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Jianping pondered carefully—he realized his son’s Li Yunlong was nothing like the “perfect, lofty, all-good” heroes of past revolutionary classics: a commoner by birth, a bit of a rogue, with a touch of banditry, yet brimming with heroism, courage, strategy, battlefield prowess, and full of human desires and emotions—vivid, flesh-and-blood, and profoundly rich.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This genuinely piqued Wu Jianping’s interest. He felt he should give it a try—after all, such men did exist in the military, but they’d rarely been portrayed in artistic works before.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Jianping paused, then said:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Here’s what we’ll do, Chenchen—you write the outline first.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’ll gather relevant materials, then help you polish the story.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Jianping planned to dig deep into records of Wang Yuanshan’s battles—not just his, but any other brilliant campaigns he could find—but he had to understand them thoroughly first, so any additions would fit naturally.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Got it, Dad! This time, father and son team up—we’ll make a bestseller!” Wu Yuchen grinned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Cough, cough—about the pen name… we’ll decide that later.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Jianping still didn’t want to take advantage of his son. The story concept was the core—he was only the editor, and besides, this was his own son!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yuchen roughly guessed his father’s thoughts, but said nothing more.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He’d first write the book with his father—then his father wouldn’t be able to back out. He had already decided: he would make his father famous.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The next Monday morning, Wu Yuchen returned to school. For the following days, he attended classes diligently, and whenever he had free time—between lectures or after—he wrote the detailed outline for “Bright Sword.” Every afternoon, he visited the Youth Film Studio to check on the film development progress.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Don’t underestimate the film developer—his light adjustments during processing directly affect the final color tone of your footage. You must clearly explain what effect you want from the start.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yuchen figured he’d be dealing with this old technician often in the future, so he came daily just to chat, building rapport.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the girls’ dormitory, Yin Qiaoqiao asked Jiang Qinqin: “Really not seeing him?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Qinqin’s face was cold, her voice crisp: “No.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Alright then, Qinqin—I’ll send him packing.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yin Qiaoqiao smiled, turned her waist, and walked toward the door. Once outside, her smile widened—seeing Jiang Qinqin flustered was rare, and it brought a sweet sense of satisfaction to Yin Qiaoqiao, who had always been a little jealous of her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When Yin Qiaoqiao reached the ground floor, she saw Wu Yuchen standing by the roadside, waiting. Every girl passing by couldn’t help stealing glances at him—she thought to herself, this junior was truly pleasing to look at.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She walked up to Wu Yuchen:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Junior, Qinqin won’t see you—she’s firm about it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hey, what exactly did you do to upset our Qinqin?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Ever since she came back last Saturday night, she’s been icy toward everyone. No one can get her to talk, and just mentioning your name makes her angry.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yin Qiaoqiao was deeply curious, so she came down on her own to find out.\u003C\u002Fp>",1234,"2026-06-20T16:09:29.273Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","e83c5e24e10d3eed328dbdf0815b3a803b36ecf3cd458edbabfc7742d7ec8e0d","starting-from-stealing-the-role-in-1995-huayu-chapter-24","starting-from-stealing-the-role-in-1995-huayu-chapter-22",335,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fstarting-from-stealing-the-role-in-1995-huayu-cover.jpg"]