Chapter 122: Unbelievable Sales!

It was not only Zhang Chu and his small circle who were keeping a close watch on the sales figures of *Sherlock Holmes*.

Within the private group for mystery writers, even the most established veterans were lurking, silently observing the conversation. None of them had forgotten who had stolen the spotlight at the end of yesterday’s Mystery Literature Summit. It was doubtful anyone would even remember the original purpose of that summit—it had begun with someone hiccuping incessantly and getting stung on the eyelid by a bee, and ended with an explosive, high-stakes international legal battle.

The veteran writers felt like venting their frustrations.

"Tell me, isn't this guy Zhang Chu just a bit too incredible? He actually dared to fly to the United States to file a lawsuit. I’m a bit worried about Old Qin; I hope he doesn't get sued back here at home."

"Damn it, life is more bizarre than fiction. Why even bother writing novels? Just reading the daily news is enough!"

"Do you think Zhang Chu is trying to go global? He writes a piece of Sherlock fan fiction, then runs off to sue the estate. Isn't that just waving at foreign publishers, saying, 'Come on, come on, here’s a book perfect for you to publish'?"

"Hahaha, Brother Li, you’re too funny. That sounds a bit like a lady of the night soliciting customers."

"Maybe he’ll create a miracle today. Does anyone want to guess how high his sales will be?"

When someone brought this up, almost every writer in the group fell silent. If such massive public exposure were converted into sales, how staggering would that number be? They had spent years writing mystery and suspense novels, only to be utterly humiliated and outperformed by a complete newcomer.

Zou Yunkai, who had a work of his own about to be released, pondered for a moment before typing: "I think it will be in the Top 50. While the topic is quite high-profile, the overall audience remains limited."

"Kaizi, you’re being way too conservative. With this much media coverage, I think hitting the top thirty shouldn't be a problem. Do you know what the most terrifying thing about him is? His digital sales are consistently outperforming his physical sales!"

Lin Ping, another active member of the group, said with a hint of exaggeration. He was green with envy; Zhang Chu was simply a child of fortune to stumble upon such a windfall. Even if it were a garbage book, after such intensive exposure and coverage by the nation's largest and most influential media outlets, it would likely make the bestseller list anyway.

"You’re all wrong! Look, he’s already on the edge of the top ten."

Li Siwei dropped a screenshot. He had been monitoring Zhang Chu’s sales figures closely. If he could still see Zhang Chu’s back a while ago, now he could only see his footprints—he was nowhere near catching up!

In the screenshot, the ranking and sales figures of *Sherlock Holmes* left the veteran writers in utter shock. They had already set their expectations high, so why was the reality still so far beyond their imagination?

"Beyond 'awesome,' I don't even know what to say..."

"This is the highest-ranked mystery novel I’ve seen in my eight years in the industry. I truly can’t believe it."

"The new generation is replacing the old. We’re about to be washed away like sand on the shore."

"Someone ask him about his digital sales! The physical sales are already too aggressive. My own flop of a book has only sold a little over a hundred thousand copies in two years."

"Don't forget, he has another new book, *Psychological Crime*, launching today. It’s bound to hit the top one hundred as well."

"Both prolific and a bestseller—you have to admire the guy."

"The digital sales definitely aren't low. I checked the Amazon weekly charts a few days ago and he was in the teens; today he’s already at number two. The sales must be explosive."

"According to information leaked by the editor Zhou Zhou, the total network-wide digital sales yesterday hit 38,000 copies. More than 3,000 of those were purchased from Amazon’s overseas sites. Surely that must be the work of overseas Chinese or students studying abroad."

It wasn't just the mystery writers; other authors and industry professionals tracking the sales charts were startled by this exaggerated growth. Could it be that the golden age of mystery and suspense novels was finally arriving? And how could one replicate this success?

...

Yesterday, the media had been reprinting foreign reports; today, domestic outlets were publishing their own interviews with Zhang Chu. Meanwhile, a few international media outlets chose to syndicate the local reports, meaning the domestic exposure was even broader.

At the Hanlinxuan Bookstore in Jiangcheng, Zhang Bowen didn't even have time to read the newspapers. A thick stack sat beside the cash register, and even his computer screen displayed page after page of articles about Zhang Chu.

Since this morning, a constant stream of people had been pouring into the shop. With elementary, middle, and high schools starting the new term, parents were bringing their children in to buy supplementary study materials, hoping that the bookstore belonging to a top-scoring college entrance exam student might impart some of that academic luck.

The neighbors had already accepted the fact that the kid next door was a top scholar, but now that little Zhang Chu had gone off to fight a transnational lawsuit and was appearing in high-profile news reports, there was no shortage of onlookers.

In the shop, the hired staff were already swamped. Zhang Bowen himself was frantically collecting payments while simultaneously having to politely thank people for their compliments.

"Looks like I need to hire another person. If I had known, I would have made that brat sign a few hundred more copies for me."

Zhang Bowen didn't even have time to drink water. He wasn't finished with one customer before he had to run off to fetch books for another. He felt like he was being pulled in every direction. For years, the Hanlinxuan Bookstore had never been this busy. Accustomed to a leisurely pace, Zhang Bowen felt as though his bones were falling apart after a full day of work, yet he was burdened with a happy kind of exhaustion.

...

After a full day of speculation, on the second day, Zhang Chu submitted yet another heaven-defying report card!

The official website of the General Administration of Press and Publication released the national book sales rankings for September 1st. There were no significant changes at the very top, but in the eighth position, the title *Sherlock Holmes* appeared in bold, striking text.

It had climbed several spots from the previous day, becoming the first mystery work in history to enter the top ten of the charts!

With a single-day sales figure of 28,000 copies, his cumulative physical sales reached 350,000, and he showed every sign of continuing his climb.

Nowadays, the book industry distinguishes between "shipments," "actual sales," and "inflated sales." Shipments refer to the number of books printed by the publisher, which may not all sell and could sit rotting in a distributor's warehouse. Actual sales refer specifically to the number of physical copies sold to readers. Inflated sales combine physical sales with digital book sales. As of now, the "inflated sales" of *Sherlock Holmes* had surged to 760,000 copies—comprising 350,000 physical copies and 420,000 digital copies.

Of course, the price of digital books was currently low, and once the growth rate slowed down later on, they could use discounts to stimulate further sales.

Aside from the debut of *Sherlock Holmes* in the top ten, Zhang Chu’s other new book, *Psychological Crime*, also lived up to expectations, landing directly at number 84 on the charts with 10,900 physical copies sold!

As a newcomer, having both his first and second works on the charts, he had created a miracle for new authors in the mystery and suspense genre!