Chapter 114: Continued Surge

"Get it arranged—three shifts, 24-hour printing. We must fulfill the customer orders, especially those from Southeast Asia. We absolutely cannot delay!"

After putting down the summary sheet, Xia Yu said solemnly to Yan Wenhan.

"Boss, I've already made arrangements!" Yan Wenhan quickly replied.

Yan Wenhan had anticipated this, so he had already instructed Zhang Lei, the head of the printing department, to speed up the printing process.

The sales situation in Southeast Asia was crucial for the upcoming sales of *Jiuding Daily*, so he naturally wouldn't be careless.

To capitalize on the popularity of *The Qin Empire*, a notice was printed on the last page of each book, informing readers that the latest content beyond the two volumes would be serialized in *Jiuding Daily*, and wouldn't be released as a book. Readers who wanted to read it quickly should keep an eye on *Jiuding Daily*.

This strategy aimed to boost *Jiuding Daily*'s sales in Southeast Asia as much as possible.

"I have only one requirement: get the equipment installed as soon as possible, the faster, the better! I don't mind if the cost is higher!" Xia Yu continued, considering the current and upcoming situation. Printing equipment would remain tight, so he decided to expand further. The money would eventually be spent anyway!

"From now on, our company's publishing business will be launched. We need to establish a separate publishing department to contact other authors and sign valuable books for publication," Xia Yu instructed after some thought.

"Understood!" Yan Wenhan nodded in agreement.

"Next, we also need to print *Economic* magazine. Given the current situation, the printing equipment is still insufficient. The company will only continue to expand, so we should prepare for the future. Expand the printing factory four times from the current size. After all, the money will be spent sooner or later. It's better to spend it early, and the printing equipment isn't that expensive!"

After all, this is an investment in equipment. Even if it's not needed in the future, it can still be sold. But given Jiuding Daily's current situation, it's unlikely it won't be needed!

Xia Yu hoped that after this expansion, the printing factory could sustain for a longer time.

Oh, wait, no. Don't last too long. The sooner the expansion, the better, as it means the company's printing business will take off again.

The next morning, the sales of *The Qin Empire* were announced by *Jiuding Daily*, which also featured a special section dedicated to sales figures, filled with pride and satisfaction.

With 406,000 copies sold, how could Jiuding Daily not be proud? How could they not be boastful?

This was indeed a record-breaking achievement!

The sales set a new single-day sales record for physical books in Hong Kong!

Even the daily sales of Jin Yong's novels did not surpass the sales of Xia Yu's *The Qin Empire*.

This doesn't mean Jin Yong is inferior to Xia Yu. It's just a matter of timing. Jin Yong's last book, *The Deer and the Cauldron*, was published in 1972. At that time, Hong Kong's economic and consumption levels were not as high. Although the price of *The Deer and the Cauldron* was not high either, purchasing power was a limiting factor.

Additionally, Jin Yong was constantly creating works, and there were also other martial arts novel masters like Gu Long, Wen Rui'an, and Liang Yusheng competing for the market. Thus, readers did not lack books to read.

But now things are different. Jin Yong had long since retired, Gu Long had fallen ill and was in decline last year, Liang Yusheng's works had been completed, and only Wen Rui'an's *Four Great Constables* series was still being written.

There was no particularly outstanding martial arts novel master currently, leading to Xia Yu dominating the market alone.

Moreover, Hong Kong hadn't seen any classic martial arts novels for a long time, so readers had been waiting eagerly. Now that *The Qin Empire* was out, the suppressed desire to buy that had built up over the years exploded in this moment!

Everything was in Xia Yu's favor. The trend was with him, and the high sales of *The Qin Empire* were inevitable!

This explains why *The Qin Empire* was able to set a record!

…

When others saw this astonishing sales figure, their shock was natural. Readers of *The Qin Empire* were certainly proud, as having their favorite work recognized by many reflected their own discernment. Many people eagerly shared this data with others.

Because of this data, the craze for *The Qin Empire* surged once again. Many who hadn't bought the book flocked to bookstores, and it's easy to imagine that the sales of *The Qin Empire* would rise again, and Jiuding Daily's phone lines would be overwhelmed.

In the novel industry, *The Qin Empire*'s sales were like a deep-water bomb, shaking the industry awake.

Jin Yong of *Ming Pao* commented on this sales achievement with sentiment: "Xia Yu's *The Qin Empire*, though not yet finished, can already be concluded as a classic. Xia Yu is undoubtedly a leading figure in the new generation of martial arts novels. The masterful style has emerged, and I hope for future brilliance!"

The comment was published in *Ming Pao* the next day, naturally causing a huge sensation. After all, Jin Yong, a master of martial arts novels, highly praised Xia Yu, and said that Xia Yu's masterful style had emerged. How could this not cause a stir?

Besides Jin Yong, Liang Yusheng and Wen Rui'an also highly praised Xia Yu's *The Qin Empire* on various occasions. This further boosted Xia Yu's momentum, and the sales of *The Qin Empire* continued to expand.

Meanwhile, other lower-tier martial arts novel authors, like they had been injected with energy, believed that the martial arts novel market was rising again. Many started writing and prepared to submit to *Jiuding Daily*, hoping to gain fame through *Jiuding Daily* and Xia Yu's influence.

It can be said that the launch of *The Qin Empire* caused a broad and long-lasting sensation.

The next day, orders for *The Qin Empire* increased by 50,000 sets again, with Hong Kong contributing 30,000 sets.

Unfortunately, the printing factory could only produce 50,000 books a day, which equates to 25,000 sets. They still had 18,000 sets from the previous day's 43,000-set orders that hadn't been fulfilled. With an additional 50,000 sets, the backlog increased to 68,000 sets.

On the third day, orders for *The Qin Empire* rose again by 55,000 sets, with Hong Kong contributing 30,000 sets. Despite printing 25,000 sets, Jiuding Daily's backlog reached 98,000 sets.

On the fourth day, the new orders for *The Qin Empire* set another record high, reaching 72,000 sets. Hong Kong contributed 28,000 sets, but Southeast Asia's orders surged to 38,000 sets. It was clear that *The Qin Empire*'s influence had begun to spread, which delighted Xia Yu and Yan Wenhan.

The surge in Southeast Asian orders was mainly due to many new book merchants seizing the opportunity after seeing *The Qin Empire*'s sales. This also made it much easier for the company's distribution department to set up distribution channels, increasing efficiency several times over.