September 8, 2015, 00:00.
"Wait for me this September 8th." This was the time Huang Yifan had agreed upon with his readers.
Having long waited in front of his computer, Huang Yifan uploaded three chapters in one go. The classic from his previous life, 'The School Belle's Bodyguard', officially appeared in this world.
Clicking refresh, the three chapters he had just uploaded appeared on Lingdian's book directory.
Worried there might be errors, Huang Yifan reread chapters one through three after uploading them.
"OK, no problems."
He nodded in satisfaction.
Although the first three chapters of 'The School Belle's Bodyguard' didn't yet showcase its ambiguous romance elements, with the highly technical "Golden Three Chapters" writing method alone, let alone a top author using a pseudonym, even the author's true account would suffer defeat.
Alright, the book was posted. He'd check the results tomorrow.
It was already a bit late. After uploading the new book and reviewing it once, it was already 00:20.
Tomorrow was the first official day of classes, and he had morning lessons.
So he didn't continue checking the book's performance. After a quick wash, Huang Yifan went to sleep.
However, what Huang Yifan didn't know was that after he released the first three chapters, countless readers found themselves unable to sleep.
The first one who couldn't sleep was the 8-star author Nanshan, the true identity behind Tianxia Weigong.
Although Nanshan had secretly opened a pseudonym account and had moderators and admins lightly promote it within his fan group, thinking it wouldn't be difficult to crush The Number One White Under Heaven, he was always cautious. What he was doing now was essentially suppressing a newcomer. If he couldn't even pull that off, how could he continue in this industry?
That night, breaking his habit, Nanshan didn't go to bed early. He stayed in front of his computer, waiting for The Number One White Under Heaven to release his new book.
At midnight on the 8th, he refreshed the page. Finally, The Number One White Under Heaven's new book was released.
A peerless master from the mountains, a mysterious jade pendant that can foresee the future… Lin Yi is an ordinary student, but he also carries another mission: to pursue the school belle! And it's under orders from her father! Although Lin Yi doesn't want to deal with this difficult young lady, he has no choice but to obey his elders and transfer to Songshan City from afar, becoming her personal attendant… Thus, the most badass follower in history is born, the school belle's personal bodyguard!
This was the synopsis.
From the synopsis, it seemed like a very cliché "peerless master in a school setting" type of story. There were thousands of such stories on Lingdian, written by countless authors, even beginners.
After glancing at it, Nanshan felt a bit amused and completely relaxed.
If this were all the story had, then his 'Starcloud Swordsman' could crush it effortlessly.
Lingdian, huh. Choosing to heavily promote The Number One White Under Heaven really shows poor judgment.
Shaking his head, he continued reading the main text.
Chapter 1: The protagonist receives a mysterious mission, namely the task of pursuing the school belle.
Chapter 2: He encounters a group running a can-lottery scam.
Chapter 3: Not only does the group fail to trick him, but he steals their money instead.
At first glance, it was a very simple and rather boring story.
At least, Nanshan didn't see anything particularly interesting in these three chapters. Compared to his 'Starcloud Swordsman', it was far inferior.
Just as Nanshan was about to go to sleep in peace, he suddenly paused, as if realizing something.
These first three chapters… didn't seem so simple.
Nanshan was no ordinary writer. On the contrary, he was an 8-star author. Rising from 1-star to 8-star meant he possessed strong writing skills and sharp analytical ability. Although he had initially found the story bland and cliché, for some reason, he now felt there was something deeper going on.
Even now, he couldn't figure out why such a simple and cliché plot had stuck so clearly in his mind. Not only that, he even felt a sense of anticipation. What would happen when the protagonist met the school belle?
Nanshan knew this feeling came from something called anticipation.
Anticipation is a key concept in storytelling.
As long as readers feel anticipation, even a poorly written story can still be highly engaging.
But the question was, where did this anticipation come from?
Previously, many believed anticipation came from elegant prose, dramatic plots, vivid characters, realistic worldbuilding, innovative ideas, or brilliant settings.
But this novel had none of those.
No striking opening, no innovative setup, no outstanding prose.
It lacked everything.
It seemed completely ordinary, without a single highlight.
So how did it create anticipation?
Nanshan grew increasingly frustrated.
In his entire writing career of over a decade, this was the first work he couldn't fully understand.
"I refuse to believe this."
He took out a cigarette, lit it, and reread the chapters while smoking.
Still couldn't find the answer. The cigarette burned out.
He lit another and read again.
Still nothing.
Back and forth, until the ashtray was filled with cigarette butts and an entire pack of twenty cigarettes was gone, Nanshan, eyes bloodshot, coughed heavily.
Finally, he discovered what made this book so powerful.
Yes, in terms of writing and plot alone, 'The School Belle's Bodyguard' had no standout qualities.
But why did it still generate such strong anticipation?
There was only one answer: the writing technique used in the first three chapters.
Take Chapter 1, for example. The writing was plain, with no special flair, but it was clear and direct. In just a few lines, it advanced the main premise, telling readers that the protagonist was going down the mountain to carry out a mission and that he was a peerless master.
Chapter 2 was originally just a cliché scam story. It would be normal for the protagonist to see through it and act cool. But the author added a female character beside him, someone who constantly worried about him. That worry created anticipation: after the protagonist exposed the scammers, how would she react? Would she be shocked, or feel her concern was unnecessary?
From this alone, Chapter 2 went beyond simply exposing a scam. It elevated the story into impressing a young woman, specifically a pretty one. Exposing the scam was already a satisfying moment, but adding the element of impressing a beauty turned it into a greater satisfaction point, a dual satisfaction point.
Then, in Chapter 3, not only does the protagonist avoid being scammed, but he even takes the scammers' money. This both shocks the girl and fully pays off the dual satisfaction setup from Chapter 2.
This is why, despite having only three chapters, the story generates overwhelming anticipation.
As he reached this conclusion, Nanshan's hands began to tremble.
Before, he had been proud of how innovative, deep, and grand 'Starcloud Swordsman' was.
But compared to these three chapters, he now realized that all that innovation, depth, and grandeur were worthless, like trash washed away in an instant.
Meanwhile, The Number One White Under Heaven's new book, even with just three chapters and crude writing, shone like starlight, making people's imaginations run wild and filling them with anticipation.
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