The First Bookshop in Ancient Times

[Seeking readers for the contemporaneous novel My Bookshop in Ancient Times, set in the same era as The Royal Kindergarten]

[Recommending a friend's novel, Raising a Child as Cannon Fodder / Xiao Qiao Qie Zhong Lu]

About this book:

After graduating from college, Wen Zhizhuo entered a struggling, thankless industry: print publishing. Through sheer hard work and talent, she created several blockbuster books that each sold tens of millions of copies, becoming a renowned gold-medal editor in the industry.

When she woke up, she had become the third princess of the Dayin Dynasty, a brainless beauty who was plain and uneducated. Her fiance was Jun Ruyu, the young master of the Minister of Works' household, envied by everyone. As his name suggested, he was as elegant as jade and bamboo, and he wanted to break off their engagement.

She didn't care what happened to her fiance. She cared only that there were pitifully few books here: the same Four Books and Five Classics over and over, with nothing else. And yet, there were a hundred times more people here who loved books and wanted to read than there had been in her previous life.

She panicked and slapped her thigh. How could this be? How could people have nothing to read?

She returned to her old profession, determined to make books available to everyone who wanted to read.

A few months later, bookstores had sprung up all over the capital.

The top scorer in the imperial exams hauled away a cartload of practice tests, past papers, and detailed answer guides, declaring, "I owe my success today to the study guides published by the Third Princess."

A wealthy child had servants keep watch for each new picture book, exclaiming every day, "The Third Princess is such an interesting person. I only wish these picture books came out faster."

A young lady from a noble household held her freshly printed travelogue about Tengzhou close, unable to put it down. She told everyone she met, "The Third Princess is without a doubt the wisest woman in all of Dayin."

Everyone: "???" Weren't they supposed to be saying she was a fool?

A note from the author:

1. The setting is very loose, with a mishmash of dynasties. Don't worry about historical accuracy.

2. The pacing probably won't be very fast. I'm doing my best with this farming novel.

3. Updates daily at 11:59 p.m.

4. The focus is on her career, with romance coming later.

[Upcoming novel The Royal Kindergarten. Visit my author page to add it to your list.]

Lin Nuo is transported into a story of tragic romance.

The tragic romance belongs to her parents. She and her many siblings are the poor little cabbages, left to fend for themselves at the Imperial Academy, where a future chief minister eventually wipes them all out. Their fate is grim.

Thinking of how the story ends, Lin Nuo feels weak, helpless, and pitiful.

To change the story's ending, daily life at the Imperial Academy takes a turn:

Faced with her eldest brother, who is always irritable and hates studying, Lin Nuo claps her little hands and gazes up at him with sparkling eyes. "Big Brother is amazing! Nuo Nuo admires you most. Let's memorize our lessons together today, then sneak off to slurp noodles and gnaw on pig trotters. How does that sound?"

The future tyrant, her eldest brother, softens his expression. "All right. We'll do as Nuo Nuo says."

Faced with her second brother, who is always playing around and acting like a bully, little Lin Nuo blocks the people coming to punish him and stands in front of him protectively. "My second brother is the kindest, best brother in the world. He would never hit anyone."

The future wastrel, her second brother, feels his heart soften. Behind her back, he threatens the others: "Anyone who bullies Nuo Nuo is picking a fight with me."

Facing all the future princes, ministers, and noble young ladies, Lin Nuo clenches one fist and raises it beside her ear, declaring firmly, "As classmates, we should help and support each other. We must never leave anyone behind! Remember, our motto is..."

All the students answer in unison: "Never give up on anyone, never leave anyone behind!"

Gu Xingyuan, the future chief minister, realizes that the willful, spoiled little girl has changed. She's gentle, polite, and adorable, and she smiles at everyone as beautifully as moonlight. She avoids him alone.

Gu Xingyuan: ????

At last, unable to bear his thunderous heartbeat, he corners her at the door and asks the question that's been troubling him for ages.

"You smile at everyone else. What about me?"

"We're all classmates. Didn't we promise never to give up on anyone or leave anyone behind?"

Lin Nuo: ???!

[Seeking readers for the upcoming novel My Bookshop in Ancient Times]

[Set in the same dynasty as The First Bookshop of Ancient Times, several decades later]

The owner of Yunqing Bookshop passes away, leaving behind an orphan, Xu Weiyan.

Everyone: "Looks like Yunqing is finished. What a shame."

Who could have guessed that Xu Weiyan would support the vast family business with her slender frame, taking it to greater heights than it had reached when her father was alive?

Her family's competitors: "Look at her, then look at you good-for-nothings. What use are you?"

One dissolute young man among them refuses to accept this. He stews over it and blocks the entrance to her home.

Jiang Yanyue: "I want to see if she has three heads and six arms."

A slender woman approaches, her brows like distant hills, her eyes like stars.

Jiang Yanyue takes one look, and his heart skips a beat.

From then on, the name Xu Weiyan is branded on his heart, impossible to erase, impossible to forget.

Later, suitors nearly wear down the Xu family's doorstep. When he hears that she's about to get engaged, Jiang Yanyue can no longer sit still. He rushes straight to Xu Weiyan.

Jiang Yanyue: "Miss Xu, they're all after your wealth. Their intentions aren't pure."

Xu Weiyan: "Mm. Thanks."

Jiang Yanyue: "But I'm different. If you marry me, everything my family owns will be yours. And I... will be yours, too."

Xu Weiyan: "?"

Find my completed novels on my author page:

Everyone Loves to Eat

A Guide to Getting Rich Through Ancient Cuisine

I Raised a Little Tyrannosaurus

I Ascended to Immortality by Raising Pigs

The blurb was revised on May 23, 2020. A screenshot has been saved.

Theme: Stay true to your original aspirations and build the ideal publishing empire