novelRona Chapter 1604 The Hugo Award?
Chapter 1604 The Hugo Award?
The following morning, the sky over Sydney was a clear blue, a color unique to the Southern Hemisphere.
As He Han dragged his suitcase out of the airport terminal, he was choked by the sea breeze that hit him. He subconsciously squinted; December in the Northern Hemisphere should be bitterly cold, but here the sun was blazing like the height of summer.
"Let's go, let's go to the hotel first." Lin Zhanqiao walked ahead with brisk steps, sunglasses perched on her nose, looking like she was on vacation, but He Han knew she was very anxious.
From deciding to fly to Australia last night until now, it's only been a dozen or so hours. Lin Zhanqiao booked the tickets faster than she ever made any business decision. He Han even suspected that she had already checked the flights and was just waiting for a reason to leave.
The taxi weaved through the streets of Sydney, with exotic cityscapes outside the window—Victorian old buildings interspersed with modern glass curtain walls, locals sitting leisurely in roadside cafes, and seagulls swaggering on traffic lights.
The taxi stopped in front of the hotel, He Han paid the fare, and the two went into the lobby.
Lin Zhanqiao walked to the front desk and gave Qin Hao's name and room number in English. The young woman at the front desk typed a few times, looked up, and gave a professional smile: "Sorry, that guest has already checked out."
"Checked out?" Lin Zhanqiao was taken aback. "When did you check out?"
"About a week ago. He left a forwarding address——Great Barrier Reef, Cairns."
Lin Zhanqiao and He Han exchanged a glance, both seeing helplessness in each other's eyes.
"The Great Barrier Reef?" He Han rubbed his temples. "Is he here for a vacation or to travel the world?"
Lin Zhanqiao took a deep breath, turned around and walked towards the door: "Let's go, book the tickets to Cairns."
He Han followed behind, muttering under his breath, "I knew I should have called ahead to confirm..."
"are you going?"
"Fine, I'll go, okay?" He Han muttered under his breath, "He's got a temper."
-
The flight from Sydney to Cairns took another two hours, and by the time the two finally landed and traveled to the vicinity of the Great Barrier Reef, it was already past four in the afternoon. He Han felt like his whole body was about to fall apart. The flight from China to Sydney had taken more than ten hours, and then from Sydney to Cairns, it had been almost a day and a night of travel. All he wanted to do now was find a bed to lie down in.
But Lin Zhanqiao clearly has no intention of taking a break.
“Let’s go to the beach first,” she said.
He Han resignedly dragged his luggage and followed.
The sea in Cairns was an unbelievable azure, the sunlight shimmering on its surface like golden ripples, and the sand gleamed white. A sea breeze, carrying salty, damp air, swept over He Han, instantly invigorating him and seemingly blowing away some of the fatigue from his journey.
Then he saw Lin Zhanqiao suddenly stop.
"What's wrong?" He Han followed her gaze—
On the sea, a figure is emerging from the water.
The man was wearing a black scuba diving suit, with an air tank on his back. His mask was pushed up to his forehead, revealing a smiling face reddened by the seawater. He climbed ashore on the rocks with the agility of a fish, his flippers making a splashing sound on the rocks.
Water droplets trickled down his strong arms, leaving shimmering streaks in the setting sun.
Qin Hao.
Lin Zhan's lips twitched slightly. He turned to He Han and said, "The online literature world is in an uproar over his decision to stop writing, and here he is, running around trying to find some peace and quiet."
Looking at Qin Hao's carefree demeanor, He Han's eyes were filled with envy: "Actually, I also wish I could be like him, so free and easy."
Lin Zhanqiao glanced at him sideways but didn't say anything.
Qin Hao naturally noticed the two of them as well. He took off his flippers, stepped barefoot on the beach, and waved to He Han from afar, his face showing the sincere smile of an old friend reuniting.
He Han strode up and gave Qin Hao a high five: "This place has a nice view. How long do you plan to stay?"
Qin Hao didn't answer. Instead, he looked at Lin Zhanqiao, who was walking behind He Han, and teased, "Is this what you wanted to ask yourself, or is it on behalf of Lin Zhanqiao?"
He Han was a little embarrassed and gave a dry laugh.
Lin Zhanqiao stepped closer, her expression calm: "It's what I want to know."
Qin Hao shrugged and said half-jokingly, "Then it's uncertain."
Lin Zhanqiao's brows furrowed slightly, but quickly relaxed again.
Afraid of an awkward silence, He Han quickly changed the subject: "Well, we've had such a bumpy journey, we're starving. Is there anything to eat around here?"
However, what he never expected was—
Lin Zhanqiao didn't respond to him. Instead, she turned around, looked at Qin Hao earnestly, and said, "I'm sorry, I was wrong."
These words came so suddenly that He Han was stunned.
Qin Hao was also taken aback for a moment, then laughed: "Lin Zhanqiao, what are you up to? Why are you apologizing all of a sudden?"
Lin Zhanqiao took a deep breath, looked directly into Qin Hao's eyes, and said, word by word, "Back then, I was too arrogant and limited your potential. You were right to leave Zhixing..."
The sea breeze blew, messing up the stray hairs on her forehead, but she didn't reach out to brush them away. She just stood there, as if she had finally spoken words that had been building up for a long time.
He Han stared at Lin Zhanqiao's profile, momentarily lost in thought.
In his memory, Lin Zhanqiao was an extremely strong-willed person. When she was an editor, she never admitted defeat. Later, when she started her own business, Zhixing, she gritted her teeth and persevered. At the most difficult time, she had less than five hundred yuan left in her account, but she refused to ask anyone for help. Let alone admitting her mistakes, getting her to back down was as difficult as climbing to the sky.
But now, standing in front of Qin Hao, she admitted her mistake.
Qin Hao was silent for two seconds, then suddenly smiled: "Actually, my main purpose in leaving Zhengxing was to make more money."
Lin Zhanqiao was slightly taken aback.
Qin Hao continued, his tone as casual as if he were discussing the weather: "To be honest, Zhixing's cut is too steep. Dingqi.com takes a third, and Zhixing takes half. Are they trying to kill us authors? I write a book and don't even get 40% of it. Would you do that?"
Lin Zhanqiao paused for a moment upon hearing this, her lips moved as if she wanted to say something, but she swallowed it back.
"You mean... you're not angry with me?" she asked, her voice tinged with uncertainty.
Qin Hao looked completely bewildered: "Angry? When did I say I was angry with you? Seven books banned in two years—putting myself in your shoes, I also hate authors like that."
Lin Zhanqiao stared at him blankly, her lips trembling slightly.
He Han stood to the side, watching the two of them, and the weight that had been hanging over his heart finally lifted. He was about to give a knowing smile—
"But," Lin Zhanqiao suddenly changed the subject, her tone becoming serious, "Do you understand the costs of running a company? Editors' salaries, office rent, marketing expenses, server maintenance, copyright and legal matters... every single one costs real money. Zhixing isn't doing charity; the commission is to keep it running, to provide more authors with—"
"Ahem." He Han quickly interrupted her long-winded explanation: "I'm starving! Let's find somewhere to eat something quickly."
Lin Zhanqiao glanced at him and wisely shut her mouth.
Qin Hao didn't seem to mind. He bent down to pick up his flippers from the beach, gestured towards the parking lot, and said, "Let's go, I rented a car, I'll take you guys to eat seafood."
-
Qin Hao was driving an old Toyota pickup truck, its body still covered in sand, with surfboards and diving equipment thrown into the back. He Han sat in the passenger seat, and Lin Zhanqiao sat in the back. The truck drove along the coastal road towards the hotel, with an endless expanse of azure sea and rows of coconut trees outside the window.
"How long do you plan to stay here?" He Han asked.
"About a month." Qin Hao held the steering wheel with one hand and rested the other on the car window.
He Han was incredibly envious: "It's so great to be rich."
Qin Hao chuckled: "Making money and not spending it, just letting it mold?"
Lin Zhanqiao sat in the back row without saying a word, just silently looking out the window.
The car stopped in front of a seaside hotel, and Qin Hao led them to the restaurant on the second-floor terrace. The setting sun hung just above the sea, dyeing the entire sky orange-red, with golden spots of light floating on the distant sea.
The three sat around a round table, and Qin Hao ordered a table full of seafood—Australian lobster, oysters, mussels, fish and chips, and three bottles of local beer.
He Han eagerly began eating, praising the food indistinctly as he ate. Lin Zhanqiao, on the other hand, was much more elegant, casually poking at the oysters on her plate with her fork, but actually observing Qin Hao closely.
After several rounds of drinks, Lin Zhanqiao finally spoke.
"Qin Hao." She put down her wine glass, her tone tentative: "If I change the profit-sharing ratio, can you go back to Zhixing?"
He Han paused in his lobster-eating motion and looked up at Qin Hao.
Qin Hao replied without hesitation, "No."
Decisive and efficient, without the slightest hesitation.
Lin Zhanqiao's chopsticks paused in mid-air for a moment, then she asked, "Why?"
"Because of money," Qin Hao said, taking a swig of beer. "Right now, a single book's royalties plus adaptation rights easily bring in tens of millions. Even if Zhixing only takes 10%, that's still several million. Why should they?"
Seeing that Lin Zhanqiao was about to retort, he raised his hand to interrupt her: "Don't talk to me about the operating costs of Zhixing, that's your problem. Why are you using my money to subsidize it?"
This sounds harsh, but it's logically sound.
Lin Zhanqiao gave a wry smile, not backing down: "Not every author is like you, able to easily handle a long novel. We have a mature editing team that can provide authors with outlines, discuss the subsequent plot development, control the pacing..."
"But have you noticed a problem?" Qin Hao put down his wine bottle, "Editors also have limitations in their vision. If they had the ability to consistently produce hit books, they wouldn't be working as editors and earning a salary. They could just write a few hit books and be financially independent, right?"
Lin Zhanqiao's expression changed slightly.
Qin Hao continued, "I think creation is a very personal thing, and editors can only offer so much. If an author can't produce work independently without an editor, it means they're not yet a qualified author."
After these words were spoken, the table fell silent for a few seconds.
He Han put down the lobster in his hand and said with feigned resentment, "Hey, you guys can argue all you want, but can you stop making veiled attacks in front of me?"
Pfft!
Lin Zhanqiao couldn't help but laugh, her body trembling with laughter, instantly dissipating most of the tense atmosphere from before.
Qin Hao couldn't help but chuckle, pointing at He Han and saying, "I didn't mean anything by that; you're the one who's implying it's you."
"Don't give me that!" He Han rolled his eyes. "Who couldn't understand the implication in your words?"
The three laughed for a while, and the atmosphere eased considerably. Qin Hao picked up his beer and took another sip, gazing at the setting sun in the distance: "Actually, it's not that I don't understand your difficulties. Zhixing has to support so many people; taking a cut is necessary. But you have to understand, for me, Zhixing can offer almost no help, yet they have to use my money to subsidize others. You don't deny that, do you?"
Lin Zhanqiao remained silent for a moment, then finally nodded and did not continue to argue.
She knew that Qin Hao was telling the truth.
Given his current status and wealth, returning to Zhixing would be pointless. He has the best promotional resources, the most reasonable revenue sharing, and the greatest creative freedom on Dingqi.com. Why should he return and be subject to others' control?
Moreover, he doesn't need any platform support at all.
Qin Hao himself is the biggest source of traffic.
After dinner, Qin Hao drove the two to their booked hotel. As the car stopped in front of the hotel, Qin Hao leaned against the door, arms crossed, and looked at them: "Tomorrow I'll take you diving. The underwater scenery of the Great Barrier Reef is absolutely amazing; you'll regret it if you don't see it."
He Han was somewhat tempted and turned to look at Lin Zhanqiao.
Lin Zhanqiao shook her head and said to Qin Hao, "We're going back to China tomorrow."
"So soon?" Qin Hao was somewhat surprised. "Since we're here, why not treat it as a vacation and stay a few more days? I'll cover all the expenses."
He Han's eyes lit up, and he was about to say yes when Lin Zhanqiao stopped him with a look.
"Forget it," Lin Zhanqiao said calmly. "Now that you've achieved success, you can rest. He Hande and I will take advantage of your absence to make more money. You need money to enjoy life, right?"
Qin Hao joked, "Alright, then you guys better hurry up. Who knows, I might get tired of having fun abroad one day and come back to swoop in, then you'll be stuck in second place again."
Lin Zhanqiao snorted, crossed her arms, and tilted her chin up, saying, "Don't be so arrogant. The online literature industry changes every day. Whether you can shake our position when you come back is another matter."
Qin Hao smiled and waved, climbed into the pickup truck, and sped away. The taillights gradually disappeared into the night, like two dark red stars, finally vanishing at the end of the coconut grove.
He Han stood at the hotel entrance, gazing in that direction, and suddenly felt a pang of emotion.
“Let’s go,” Lin Zhanqiao patted his shoulder. “Our flight is early tomorrow morning.”
Sigh...
-
After returning to China, Lin Zhanqiao threw herself into her work, leaving early and returning late every day, even working overtime on weekends. He Han saw this and didn't say anything, but he felt a little sorry for her.
However, he didn't stay idle either.
After Qin Hao stopped writing, the subscription data for Dingqi.com visibly declined. Uncle Fan was so anxious that blisters appeared around the corners of his mouth. He held emergency meetings for three consecutive days, and the final conclusion was only one—to push He Han forward.
He Han was already a top-tier author on Dingqi.com, consistently ranking first on both the monthly ticket and bestseller lists before Qin Hao's rise to fame. However, Qin Hao's momentum was too strong, with two of his works sweeping the entire charts one after the other, forcefully pushing him down to second place.
Now that Qin Hao has stopped writing, someone has to take over this huge flow of traffic.
Dingqi.com mobilized its entire platform to promote He Han's new book, featuring it on the homepage, across all channels, and with splash screen ads—using every available resource. He Han lived up to expectations, delivering a high-quality book with consistent updates. While he couldn't match Qin Hao's phenomenal 20,000-word daily updates, he consistently wrote 10,000 words daily without fail, resulting in high reader satisfaction.
On its first day of release, He Han's new book sold over 80,000 copies.
Although it didn't reach the staggering 92,000 first-day subscriptions of Qin Hao's "The Great Feng Night Watchman," it was still a top-tier achievement in the entire online literature world. Uncle Fan breathed a sigh of relief, finally managing to prevent the data from collapsing.
After that, He Han's new book soared to the top, ranking first on the monthly ticket chart and the bestseller list, steadily filling the traffic vacuum left by Qin Hao.
Meanwhile, Lin Zhanqiao wasn't idle either. She was helping He Han manage his Dingqi.com account while also vigorously supporting other authors under Zhixing. Zhao Lanxin had originally wanted to find fault at the meeting, but seeing Lin Zhanqiao's workaholic attitude, she had no choice but to keep quiet for the time being.
Days passed by like this.
One month, three months, six months, one year...
Qin Hao has not released any new works.
The editors at Dingqi.com went from anticipation to anxiety, from anxiety to despair, and finally to numbness. Zhou Zhengyang would send Qin Hao a message every now and then, the content of which changed from "Teacher Qin, do you have time to chat lately?" to "Teacher Qin, how are you?", and finally to a simple question mark.
Not a single reply was received.
Uncle Fan remained calm, only having the IP operation of Qin Hao's two works put on the agenda. The film and television adaptation rights for "The Great Feng Night Watchman" had already sold for an astronomical price, and animation and comics were also under development simultaneously. The adaptation rights for "My Senior Brother is Too Cautious" were equally sought after, with several film and television companies vying for them.
Qin Hao accepted every penny of the money.
But the person just won't come back.
Gradually, the online literature community began to get used to life without Qin Hao. New readers only knew that there was a great author named He Han on Dingqi.com, who was always number one on the monthly ticket list, with stable updates and high-quality content. But they didn't know that not long ago, there was a man called "General Manager" who swept the entire list by himself, leaving all other authors only able to look up to him.
Of course, longtime readers will not forget.
In Qin Hao's book review section, people are urging him to update his books every day.
"Where is the steward? Where did he go?"
"It's been two years, really two years! If you don't come back, I'll consider you dead!"
"The chief eunuch lived up to his reputation; he could stop whenever he wanted, without even giving a heads-up."
"Stop cursing, stop cursing. Maybe they're preparing something big."
"Holding back a powerful move? They're probably saving it until they're in their coffin."
The various voices—urging for updates, cursing, reminiscing, and praying—intertwine to create a unique scene in Qin Hao's book review section.
It has been two full years since Qin Hao stopped writing.
The domestic online literature circle has almost forgotten this name. Qin Hao's works are no longer recommended on the homepage of Dingqi.com, and even in Qin Hao's book review section, the posts urging updates have dropped from a few per day to just a handful.
Everything is moving in the direction that "the Qin Hao era has come to an end".
Until one day, a netizen with the ID "American Old Zhang" posted a thread on the Longkong Forum.
The title is: [Shocking!] my country's rising science fiction writer wins the Hugo Award for his new sci-fi masterpiece, *The Three-Body Problem*!
The post was very simple, consisting of only a screenshot and a short paragraph:
"Guys, I just saw the news here in the US: a Chinese writer won this year's Hugo Award!"
The comment section exploded as soon as the post was published.
"Stop joking around, does the original poster even know what the Hugo Award means? It's the Nobel Prize of science fiction! What right do those power fantasy novels in China that are just disguised as science fiction have to win it?"
"Exactly, the Hugo Award, my foot! If a domestic writer actually won, the media would have reported it already. Why would you need to post about it on the forum?"
"It's probably fake news; the poster is just trying to bait people."
"Old Zhang from America" was not convinced and immediately posted the original reports from abroad—BBC, The Guardian, The New York Times, and several other mainstream media outlets had reported the news.
Even so, some netizens still have doubts.
"It's photoshopped, absolutely photoshopped."
"Exactly, I could easily Photoshop a whole bunch of pictures like that."
"I checked, and the Hugo Award website does indeed have this award information, and the book is indeed called 'The Three-Body Problem,' which is quite a strange name."
The debate continued until noon that day.
Then, major domestic media outlets began to report on it—
CCTV News Channel devoted a full three minutes to reporting this news during its midday news broadcast. It topped the trending searches on Sina Weibo, ranked among the top three on Zhihu's hot list, and related videos on Douyin garnered over 100 million views.
"Chinese writer 'Zongguan' won the Hugo Award for his science fiction novel 'The Three-Body Problem,' marking the first time an Asian writer has received this honor."
Now, the doubts have finally subsided.
But new controversies have arisen.
"Could it be that he bought it? The manager? I've never heard of such a person in the science fiction writing circle before. There was a pen name like that in the online novel circle a couple of years ago. Are you sure it's the same person?"
"It's probably bought. And 'The Three-Body Problem'? The title itself isn't science fiction at all."
"A web novelist winning the Hugo Award? Do you believe it? I certainly don't."
"Don't embarrass yourself upstairs. Go look at what foreign media are saying about 'The Three-Body Problem' before you speak. The Guardian called it 'the greatest science fiction novel of the last decade,' and the New York Times said it's a work that showed the English-speaking world the depth of Chinese science fiction. Do you think such praise can be bought?"
The news caused an uproar in the online literature community.
Qin Hao's book review section was flooded with tens of thousands of comments within two hours, nearly crashing Dingqi.com's servers. Longtime readers were spamming the comments section.
"I knew it! I knew the manager was brewing something big!"
"Two years! Two years! Are you trying to fool us with a Hugo Award? What happened to the promised online novel?"
"I'm speechless, truly speechless. A top-tier online novelist switched to science fiction and won the Hugo Award on his first try? Are you even human?"
"From today onwards, please call me a fan of the Hugo Award-winning author. Thank you."
He Han saw the news in his studio.
He stared at the headline on his phone screen for a full minute, then slowly put down his phone, leaned back in his chair, and let out a long sigh.
"This guy..."
He shook his head, but the corners of his mouth unconsciously curved into a smile.
It would be a lie to say I'm not envious. The Hugo Award—that's the pinnacle that countless science fiction writers spend their entire lives trying to reach. Qin Hao, on the other hand, took a two-year hiatus from writing, went on a trip abroad, and casually brought back a Hugo Award.
It's like going to the supermarket to buy groceries, casually buying a lottery ticket, and then winning the jackpot.
Who the hell can I complain to?
He Han picked up his phone, intending to send a message to Qin Hao. He typed a few words, then deleted them, repeating this several times before finally putting the phone down.
Forget it, what's there to say? Congratulations? That's too bland.
-
When Lin Zhanqiao saw the news, he was in the conference room of Cheh Sing, holding a weekly meeting.
The phone screen lit up briefly, and when she looked down at it, her pupils suddenly contracted.
The news headline boldly proclaimed: "Chinese writer 'General Manager' wins Hugo Award for 'The Three-Body Problem'."
Her first thought was—could it be such a coincidence?
She immediately stood up, interrupting the editor who was giving a presentation: "You all discuss this first."
After saying that, he strode out of the conference room and dialed Qin Hao's number.
It rang several times before the call was answered.
"Hello, who is it?" Qin Hao's voice was lazy, as if he had just woken up.
"Is the news true?" Lin Zhanqiao asked bluntly.
"What news?"
"The Hugo Award, *The Three-Body Problem*."
There was a two-second silence on the other end of the phone, followed by a soft chuckle: "Oh, you mean that? It's been reported in China so quickly?"
Lin Zhanqiao gave a wry smile: "Weren't you going abroad for vacation?"
"Yeah, I'm writing while I'm having fun." Qin Hao said casually, "I've been traveling abroad for two years, I can't just live off my past achievements, I have to find something to do."
Lin Zhanqiao was speechless for a moment.
That's the Hugo Award!
Do you understand the prestige of the "Nobel Prize of science fiction literature"? It's an honor that countless science fiction writers around the world spend their entire lives without ever achieving, yet you make it sound like something insignificant.
She opened her mouth, wanting to question him about why he hadn't told her, wanting to call him a bastard, wanting to ask him what he had been through in the past two years—but in the end, all her words turned into a long sigh.
"When...are you planning to come back?" she asked, her voice unconsciously softening.
"Soon." Qin Hao thought for a moment, "I've done all the fun things to do abroad, it's not that interesting anymore, it's more convenient to do things domestically. Let's do it next week."
next week.
Lin Zhanqiao's heart skipped a beat.
She glanced instinctively at the busy editors outside the office—some were making phone calls to urge the manuscript, some were reviewing the outline, and some were communicating with the author about the plot development. Everything seemed orderly and peaceful.
But the man will be back next week.
He didn't return as an online novelist, but as a Hugo Award winner.
What would it mean if someone who won the Hugo Award went back to writing online novels?
Lin Zhanqiao dared not think about it. (End of Chapter)