Chapter 21: Upgrading the Contract and Rules for Bonus Updates

It was only after returning home that Chen Jiang learned the final figures for his book's debut performance from his editor. Overall, the results were solid and aligned with his pre-launch estimates.

[Yuedian Editor Daxian]: "Great Jianghe, you are the first newcomer on our platform to surpass 100,000 subscriptions without any prior fan base. Congratulations!"

[Yuedian Editor Daxian]: "The platform has contacted me; they would like to offer you a new contract. Once you sign it, you will officially be a Platinum Author."

[Jianghe]: "What are the benefits of this contract?"

[Yuedian Editor Daxian]: "I'll send it over for you to review."

Chen Jiang looked over the document. The royalty split terms had been revised. His previous contract was a standard one, with a 50/50 split between the platform and the author for subscriptions, gifts, and all copyright-related earnings. Now, the split for subscriptions and gifts had shifted to 30/70 in his favor, and copyright earnings had moved to 10/90. However, the contract stipulated that if Yuedian or its subsidiaries held relevant platforms, they would have the right of first refusal or priority broadcasting rights for any copyrights Chen Jiang chose to sell. In exchange, the platform would prioritize resources for his future works, including the major recommendations every ordinary author dreams of. The restriction was that for five years, provided the platform did not breach the contract, he could not move to another platform.

The offer was incredibly sincere. Besides, if Yuedian wasn't deliberately targeting him, why would he want to leave? And if they were, that would be a breach of contract, making his departure valid anyway. Backed by the Tencent Group, Yuedian's strength was undeniable; it was the industry leader in web literature. Currently, no platform was better suited for Chen Jiang’s work. After having a professional lawyer review it to ensure everything was in order, Chen Jiang gave his response: he was willing to sign.

Once the contract was submitted and verified, Chen Jiang’s account status would be updated to Platinum Author. Editor Daxian couldn't help but sigh with emotion; Chen Jiang was only the second author in Yuedian's history to jump directly from an ordinary author to Platinum. The first was "Sweet Potato," the author of *Sky Breaking the Firmament*.

Following the launch, Chen Jiang received many tips from readers. Seeing that other authors would post extra chapters to show gratitude for tips, and looking for an excuse to release more content, he drafted a set of "bonus chapter" rules and posted them as a separate chapter. The content read: "A Silver Alliance tip earns three extra chapters; a Gold Alliance tip earns five!"

As soon as this was posted, his readers went wild. Those with the means began tipping, demanding more chapters.

...

Meanwhile, in Shanghai's Tomson Riviera, a down-to-earth young man just finished a game. "Damn it, what kind of players am I stuck with?"

"They play like trash and have the nerve to yell at me!" After blocking and deleting his teammate, he felt exhausted. "I'm done." He exited the game and opened the Yuedian Reading app as he always did. His favorite book had launched yesterday, and he had impulsively tipped a Gold Alliance, instantly becoming the top-ranked fan.

He hummed a tune as he opened the book, ready to catch up on today's chapters, only to find his fan ranking had dropped to third! He wouldn't stand for it—he wouldn't let anyone get ahead of him. Checking the two people above him, he saw their fan scores were several Silver Alliances higher than his. He clicked on the latest chapter and realized the author, Jianghe Wanli, had posted a rule for bonus chapters.

This was *Mysteries*, the best book he had ever read in his ten years as a fan of web novels. As a wealthy second-generation heir living at home, his life consisted of gaming and reading. Seeing the new rules, he finally understood why he’d been pushed down and why the top two fans had been tipping so heavily. While it was more cost-effective to tip Silver Alliances under the new rules, he didn't care about such trivial savings.

"Let's start with five Gold Alliances to test the waters," he muttered. It wasn't his limit, but he was afraid the author might collapse from overwork.

...

By evening, Chen Jiang looked at the tipping data. Counting the previous ones, he had nineteen Silver Alliances and eight Gold Alliances. "Wait, where did these extra Gold Alliances come from?" he wondered. There had only been three earlier. He checked the tipping history and realized six of the Gold Alliances were from a single user!

"Talk about rich," he muttered. Even though Silver Alliances were more cost-effective, the user had insisted on Gold Alliances. Including the previous ones, this person had tipped six in total. Anyone else might be overwhelmed, but Chen Jiang had plenty of drafts. At two thousand words per chapter, he had over two hundred chapters saved. He typed quickly, so he could replenish his stock easily.

Chen Jiang calculated that he needed to release 97 chapters. Being only three short of a hundred bothered his obsessive-compulsive nature, so he tipped himself a Silver Alliance to hit the century mark.

"Wait, this Gold Alliance user ID looks familiar," he thought, noticing one of the names. "Sweet Potato? Isn't that the author of *Sky Breaking the Firmament*?" He couldn't figure out why the author would tip him. "Is he reading my book too?"

Just then, a message arrived from Editor Daxian.

[Yuedian Editor Daxian]: "Great Jianghe, Sweet Potato, the author of *Sky Breaking the Firmament*, wants to get to know you. He couldn't find your contact info and asked his editor to get it from me. Would you like to add him on Penguin?"

Chen Jiang agreed immediately. After receiving a Gold Alliance, it would be rude to refuse. Besides, the guy was a fellow top-tier author on the platform. Soon, he received a friend request. After connecting, the author sent a greeting and explained that he wanted to exchange experiences.

Chen Jiang was stumped—he was just copying novels from his past life; he didn't know anything about the craft! He managed to bluff his way through with a few creative concepts he remembered from books he'd read.

[Sweet Potato]: "Damn, I never knew a story could be written like that."

Chen Jiang hadn't expected his casual remarks to spark a new train of thought for the other author. He had underestimated how valuable those ideas were. A basic "reveal-style" trope from his past life had the other author calling him a genius.

[Jianghe]: "Great Sweet Potato, did you tip me a Gold Alliance?"

[Sweet Potato]: "Yeah, I really like your book. Don't be polite, brother, I tipped as a reader."

The guy from the Northeast was straightforward. To return the favor, Chen Jiang tipped a Gold Alliance on the other author's book. Seeing the notification, Sweet Potato sent several messages.

[Sweet Potato]: "Oh brother, you're making me feel embarrassed! I told you not to be polite."

[Jianghe]: "It's fine, brother. I've been reading your book too, so I'm a reader of yours as well. I tipped as a fan."

[Sweet Potato]: "You're a real one, brother. If you ever come up to the Northeast, I'll treat you right!"

Chen Jiang smiled; he found the author of *Sky Breaking the Firmament* quite interesting. After uploading the hundred chapters, he went to bed, unaware that his readers were in a total frenzy.