Chapter 533.3: Twisted Fate Chu Guang

Just the thought that she wouldn’t have to live apart from her beloved anymore brought a sweet warmth to Dori’s heart.

Just then, a soft cough came from nearby. “You’re... Dori?”

Snapping out of her daze, Dori sprang up from her seat and looked toward the older employee standing beside her.

"That’s me! Hello! I’m the new reporter."

"Yang Yan, editor of the news section," he replied.

He wasn’t the least bit surprised by her overly enthusiastic reaction. Handing her a sealed parcel, he said, "This package just came from Boulder Town. Since you’re here, why don’t you open it?"

Many of the New Alliance’s workers were from Boulder Town. Some had brought their families with them, while others had left them behind for various reasons.

They would often exchange silver coins for chips and send them back home, or directly mail daily necessities. So, the New Alliance’s embassy handled some postal duties as well.

Dori took the package curiously, shaking it gently. "Is this for me?"

Yang Yan shrugged helplessly. "No, but the sender addressed it to the former editor of Boulder Town's Survivor’s Daily. You’re the only one here who ever worked there."

Survivor’s Daily in Boulder Town and the one in the New Alliance were completely separate papers. The former had been managed by Hal, while the latter was created by the administrator after admiring the Boulder Town’s version and deciding to launch a replica with his team.

They shared a name, but not ownership, management, or staff. Yang Yan was puzzled why anyone would send a package to them.

Dori opened the package with suspicion. Inside was a stack of crumpled old newspapers. But on closer inspection, it didn’t look like a return shipment, someone had scribbled crooked lines of handwriting in the margins.

She spread the papers flat on the desk and read the opening headline aloud in a low voice. "‘Awakener Bore: The story of a poor slum boy who stumbled upon an awakening serum and beat an exoframe in the final battle’... Is that for real? Are awakeners really that strong?"

Murmuring in confusion, Dori soon realized this wasn’t a news article. Her attention shifted to the name, Bore.

That looked familiar... Wait a second!

Suddenly, she remembered, wasn’t this from a serialized story in the Worker’s Daily, a branch of the Survivor’s Daily?

Someone had continued the tale!

This surprise felt like discovering one day that a seed one had casually tossed aside had grown into a towering tree.

Seeing the delight on Dori’s face, Yang Yan raised an eyebrow. "You figured it out?"

"Yeah! Just give me a minute to read more." Beaming with excitement, Dori sat down and eagerly kept reading. Yang Yan, seeing how absorbed she was, didn’t interrupt and went back to his work.

An hour passed.

Eyes sparkling, Dori jumped up from her seat and clutched the old newspaper tightly. She walked over to Yang Yan’s desk. "This is amazing!"

In her opinion, it was even better than the original!

That guy named Spielberg might not have been a master of flowery language, but he captured the emotional complexity of a working-class nobody rising through the ranks, especially that twist where he formed a union.

Brilliant!

If the original writer had told a story about making it big, the new one truly brought Bore to life, a scrappy kid clawing his way up from the slums.

She was dying to know what happened next.

While the romance in both versions had stayed on the sidelines, Dori was now deeply curious. Which girl would Bore choose?

He had snapped that precious black card...

The noble lady who liked him must have been heartbroken.

Surely she wasn’t going to end up with that villainous commander? As a devotee of pure romance, Dori couldn’t accept that!

"I think we should publish this!" she declared, shoving the old paper into Yang Yan’s hands, her eyes shining. "I could be the editor for it!"

Yang Yan was stunned by the sudden declaration. "Wait... Publish this?"

Dori patiently explained.

"This story was serialized in Boulder Town’s newspaper. The series ended when the paper was shut down. But now someone’s picked it up again!"

Yang Yan chuckled helplessly. "But... We don’t have readers in Boulder Town."

The New Alliance’s Survivor’s Daily did run serials, but only short stories, and they occupied just a tiny page corner.

They would have to launch a separate paper for it! But such a big decision wasn’t his to make, it was up to the editor-in-chief.

Dori tried persuading him.

"It doesn’t have to be in Boulder Town! We can serialize it in our own paper, launch a supplement of our own. We could run a teaser in the main issue, then serialize the full story in the side publication."

"But we haven’t read the earlier chapters." Sighing, Yang Yan glanced at the overly enthusiastic newcomer. He took the old newspaper from her hands and gave it a quick read.

"With all due respect, I feel the exact opposite. I’m completely lost. I don’t know who this Bore guy is. You think it’s great because you’ve read the beginning, haven’t you?"

Dori scratched her head sheepishly. "

Ummm

, yeah, that’s on me... But I can get in touch with my old colleagues! They probably still have the original manuscript. We moved our desks when the office was shut down."

She hadn’t cared much for the original story. But Spielberg’s continuation had really made it shine in a new way.

Still, the old editor had concerns.

"It’s not just that..." Yang Yan sighed and pointed to the newspaper. "Read that headline again."

Dori blinked and repeated it aloud.

"‘Awakener Bore: The story of a poor slum boy who stumbled upon an awakening serum and beat an exoframe in the final battle’... What’s wrong? Aren’t all story headlines this long?"

"It’s not the length, it’s the content." Yang Yan gave her a meaningful look. "Our administrator wears an exoframe too. And this Bore character’s trying to beat one down in the story’s climax... What does that imply?"

"... Huh?!" Dori stared at him, stunned and speechless. "Just because of that? But it’s..."

She hadn’t thought about that angle at all!

And it was clearly a story set in Boulder Town. What did that have to do with anything?

Yang Yan shook his head. "This could be a big deal or not. No one’s said you can’t publish it. But better to be cautious. The people here have strong feelings about our administrator. You have to consider that. If you’re set on publishing, I suggest changing the title and content a bit."

Dori looked flustered, still trying to argue her case when suddenly, a hearty voice chimed in from the side. "I think it’s fine!"

Yang Yan immediately turned toward the voice. His eyes widened in surprise, and he shot up from his chair, quickly adjusting it.

"Administrator, sir! What brings you here? Please, have a seat!"

Dori looked over, just as surprised.

It wasn’t the first time she’d seen the New Alliance’s administrator, but it was definitely the closest encounter so far.

Smiling at the two, Chu Guang replied casually, "No need. I’ll skip your fancy new chairs, haha. Don’t be nervous. I just came to speak with your director about expanding business into the Sunset Province."

It had been Hal’s request.

To keep his father from interfering with his ambitions, the dutiful son had learned from his failure in Boulder Town and now wanted to bring Chu Guang in as a shareholder at the paper.

Chu Guang found it amusing and agreed. He was, after all, a bit of a fun-seeker, just not as obvious about it.

Yang Yan asked cautiously. "Then, sir, you...?"

"I already finished my business and was passing by when I overheard you. Apologies!" Chu Guang chuckled, "But since I’ve heard it all, I won’t pretend otherwise. I think this young lady is absolutely right. If Boulder Town’s Survivor’s Daily had so many separate publications, why can’t we?"

Yang Yan gave a wry smile. "But sir... That was Boulder Town’s initiative."

Chu Guang waved off the concern. "I don’t care if it came from Boulder Town, or even from a rotting coffin. If it’s progress, then it’s progress! If they have it, we should have it too! Start up a Worker’s Daily as well. Survivor’s Daily should cover topics that concern all survivors. The Worker’s Daily should highlight what the workers care about! The night school program is doing well, don’t assume our workers are illiterate. Just because they struggle to read doesn’t mean we stop writing."

Yang Yan quickly said, "Of course, I never thought that..."

Dori looked at Chu Guang with her eyes gleaming. "Thank you for understanding! And honestly, this story really has nothing to do with you..."

Chu Guang coughed lightly. "Ahem... I don’t mind. Do what you like."

Come on, he was an awakener himself. Why would he be afraid of one?

Besides, there were plenty of exoframes on the wasteland. Who would randomly connect dots unless they had some twisted agenda?

In fact, Chu Guang was even a little tempted to sneak in a cameo role.

First-wave serials often held special significance. Who knew, they might even get turned into movies someday.

And whether it was cliche or not...

That didn’t matter at all.

The simplest stories often resonated the most. After all,

Journey to the West

was just four guys going on a road trip.

The New Alliance needed to export culture into the wasteland, not just borrowed stuff from the real world, but narratives that spoke to the survivors.

The seeds he and his adorable little players had planted in the wasteland were beginning to sprout, and that was a wonderful thing.

"Why don’t I just go myself?" Chu Guang said with a smile. "I just left his office anyway, might as well head back for some tea."

Watching the administrator walk down the hallway, Yang Yan let out a sigh and muttered, "I hope my boss has a strong heart..."