48 Hours a Day

Chapter 1418: Not Disappointed

Shakespeare was very particular about how he ate his fruits.

Not only did he use a golden fruit plate, but he also had a special maid serving him. She fed the grapes into his mouth and used both hands to catch the fruit core that he spat out.

At first, Zhang Heng thought that it was a maid assigned to Shakespeare by the manor. It was not until the fantasy bestselling author greeted the maid-like woman that Zhang Heng realized that the latter was also the author who had been invited to the manor.

Shakespeare listened to the fantasy best-selling author introduce Zhang Heng in a respectful tone, but there was no reaction. It wasn’t until a moment later that he suddenly frowned and spat out the grape that had just been fed to his mouth, “It’s sour.”

The female author who was serving him at the side saw this and couldn’t help but panic. “I’ll ask the kitchen to bring two new skewers.”

“No need, that’s enough. I’m almost done eating.”

Shakespeare wiped his mouth elegantly with a napkin as he spoke. He then turned to look at Zhang Heng.

“You want to learn how to write from me?”

“I thought about it before, but I don’t want to anymore,”Zhang Heng said.

Shakespeare was a little surprised, as if he didn’t expect that there would still be people in this world who would reject his guidance.

As soon as Zhang Heng said this, the two female writers on the other side also changed their expressions.

“You know who I am, right?”Just to be safe, Shakespeare confirmed again. “In your era, who was the most famous writer?”

“William Shakespeare.”Zhang Heng did not deny it.

Hearing this, Shakespeare’s stern face softened slightly, “Then my works, ‘The Merchant of Venice,”King Lear,”Macbeth,’and of course, ‘Romeo and Juliet,’are still popular, right?”

“As far as I know,”Zhang Heng said.

“Interesting, then the question arises.”Shakespeare looked at Zhang Heng, “I heard Professor Mag’s introduction. She said that you want to write a popular novel. Is there anyone in this world more suitable to be your teacher than me?”

Without waiting for Zhang Heng to answer, Shakespeare continued, “Not to mention, I’m also one of the 12 judges. Every month, the winner of the story club is selected by me and the other 11 people. You have to know that those who can come to this villa may lack anything, but not talent. In other words…”

Shakespeare paused, “The competition for the story club will be very intense. Even though there are 12 judges, the final result may only be a small difference after the decimal point. You’re still young, so you probably don’t want to stay here like those old geezers.”

Zhang Heng could hear the threat in the man’s words.

However, his expression did not change. He only bowed slightly. “Goodbye.”

After saying that, Zhang Heng did not care about Shakespeare’s reaction and turned to leave.

In fact, the last time he bowed was not because of Shakespeare, who was sitting in front of him, but because of the great literary master who had left an immortal chapter in the history of literature.

When the fantasy best-selling female author who came with him saw this scene, she was so anxious that she almost jumped out of her seat. As she apologized to Shakespeare, she quickened her pace and tried to catch up with Zhang Heng.

Even though Zhang Heng looked calm, the female author did not believe that Zhang Heng’s heart would be as calm as his.

She jogged to Zhang Heng’s side and whispered, “I know that the real person might disappoint you a little, but it’s not like I’m asking you to live with him. Can’t you pretend to compliment him and get some pointers from him? If you’re lucky, you’ll be able to stay by his side for a period of time, and you’ll learn a lot more. Think of it as the tuition fee for writing your new novel.”

“I’m not disappointed.”Zhang Heng slowed down a little. He did not have a bad impression of the female author of the best-selling fantasy novel. He knew that the other party was kind enough to introduce him to Shakespeare. After all, the latter’s reputation was too big, in the later generations, almost everyone knew about him. Furthermore, he was one of the twelve judges. There were only benefits and no disadvantages to being able to connect with such a big shot.

However, Zhang Heng had no interest in serving others.

To put it bluntly, this manor was so big, and there was no lack of talented authors. No matter how good Shakespeare was, he wasn’t irreplaceable. Furthermore, Zhang Heng felt that Hemingway’s words were very good, there was no need to be scared by the fame of the people here and give up his own path just to chase after the stars.

In fact, it wasn’t just his own path. His dignity and personality were the same as well. Like the female author beside Shakespeare, Zhang Heng followed his every move closely, he was willing to give his body and soul to become a planet beside a star. Zhang Heng knew that he couldn’t do it. Furthermore, for the sake of his studies, he was willing to pay some tuition fees, but he wasn’t willing to pay others.

However, like he said, he wasn’t that disappointed.

Writing a good novel and being a good person were two different things. Zhang Heng knew this from the very beginning, not to mention that there was still a few hundred years between them, no matter what kind of person Shakespeare was, it didn’t surprise him.

As for the threat, Zhang Heng didn’t take it to heart.

He still had a mission failure exemption card with him. Even if he did not complete the main mission, there would be no loss. He came to this dungeon with only one goal, which was to finish the book he was going to write. The rest was not important.

The fantasy bestselling female writer saw that Zhang Heng was indeed not affected, so she was relieved. However, she still could not help but feel sorry for Zhang Heng.

On the other hand, Hemingway, who was holding a bottle of wine in his hand during the day, gave Zhang Heng a thumbs up when he saw the scene not far away. This American tough guy was getting more and more convinced of Zhang Heng’s temper toward him, therefore, after Zhang Heng separated from the best-selling author, he dragged a man with long sideburns and black-rimmed glasses to stand in front of Zhang Heng.

Zhang Heng initially thought that Hemingway was going to introduce Fitzgerald to him, but to his surprise, Hemingway said to his companion, “Chemist, come take a look. Are you sure he’s not a bionic man from one of your books?”

“Boxer, I think we should get someone to take a good look at the mental illness,”the man with black-rimmed glasses replied. At the same time, he extended a hand to Zhang Heng and said politely, “Zhang Heng, right? I’ve seen you before at the story party. You can call me the double hundred.”

How could Zhang Heng not know who the other party was when he heard this name? He was a little surprised. “Didn’t you go up to tell the story at the eye-opening Story Party?”

“If you ask me, he’s probably afraid of Fogg,”Hemingway said sarcastically, taking pleasure in the other party’s misfortune.

“Shut up. I’m here to stay for a while longer to learn more about the technology of the future,”the duo retorted.

“Then you’re in luck. This kid was born decades later than you. Maybe you two can talk more.”Hemingway took the opportunity to assist Zhang Heng.

“You don’t have to tell me.”The duo reported their room number and sent an invitation to Zhang Heng. “When you have time, come to my room. We can have a good chat.”

Of course, Zhang Heng wouldn’t refuse. He didn’t expect to receive another Asimov after leaving Jules Verne.