sinovels Chapter 26 Finding Money
Chapter 26 Finding Money
Back in Santa Barbara, Treger finally did something worthwhile: he found a nanny that Ernst couldn't be happier with.
Inside the kitchen, the iron wok was scorching hot on the stove. As the amber rapeseed oil rippled with fine lines, scallions and ginger slices sizzled and popped, and chunks of pheasant meat, imbued with the aroma of the mountains and forests, were added to the wok.
The dark brown edges of the meat quickly curled up to a charred brown, and the aroma rose with the steam.
The soaked hazel mushrooms, having absorbed all the water, were pushed into the pot with a spatula and tumbled and swirled with the grouse meat.
Even with the range hood blocking the way, the room was filled with the aroma of simmering food.
"How much longer until dinner is served?"
This was the third time Craig had asked. Long before the aroma of the other pot of pork ribs and green beans had dissipated, he was like a glutton who hadn't eaten for three days, wishing he could taste the delicious food right now.
"It will take another half hour."
Inside the kitchen, a woman in her forties smiled with a hint of pride.
This is Liu Huiying, the nanny Craig found for Ernst, a descendant of a royal chef who immigrated with her father when she was young.
According to her, her ancestors had been serving as imperial chefs in the palace since the time of Emperor Qianlong, making them true royal servants. Her family had served most of the Qing emperors, and their resume could practically be written into a history of imperial chefs in the Qing Dynasty.
In the 1960s, there was a severe food shortage. Fortunately, a relative in America who owned a restaurant helped bring the family to San Francisco.
Her father was a chef, and she was his assistant, thus inheriting the family business.
Unfortunately, her relative's son was unreliable and gambled away the entire restaurant, so she resigned and left.
"I swear, I've never smelled food that smells so good before, it makes me really impatient."
At first, Craig didn't think Liu Huiying could satisfy Ernst; he only chose her because of her identity as a Chinese cuisine chef.
Ernst had hired so many nannies, but each one was rejected because their tastes didn't suit him.
Upon learning that the other party's family used to cook for the emperor, Craig asked Liu Huiying to cook a couple of dishes.
Then he tried it and found that he never expected a potato could taste so good, much better than French fries.
Craig thought that was Liu Huiying's masterpiece, but little did he know that today, when he arrived at Ernst's place, Chinese cuisine once again refreshed his understanding of the world.
"Why does China insist on promoting food that uses human bodies as plates when there are so many delicious options available?"
Ernst paused for a moment, then realized what he meant and complained, "That's Japanese food, don't get them mixed up."
This time, Greg was surprised. "Isn't Japan a city in China?"
Okay, this perception is in line with Americans.
In America, most people don't care about the outside world; they only care about whether they are living well.
"Wait? You've eaten human body soup?"
"Of course," Craig said, as if to say, "Who do you think you are?"
"Back when I was a reporter, lots of important people treated me to meals, you know?"
"That shop claimed to be the most authentic, but when a pile of food was placed on a naked Black woman, something just felt off to me, though I couldn't quite put my finger on it."
Ernst immediately pictured it; it really was authentic.
Looking into the kitchen, Craig, driven crazy by the aroma, couldn't resist opening the pot lid and taking a bite right now.
Pheasant, something nobody wants, can actually be made into a delicacy with such an irresistible aroma; it's unbelievable.
What surprised Craig even more was that Ernst could actually communicate with the other party in Chinese.
"So, Aunt Liu, if I can get the ingredients, you can make authentic 'Three Treasures of the Earth'?"
There are eight major cuisines in China, but the best-tasting cuisine is not among them.
Isn't it said that half of Northeastern cuisine is in the recipe book and half is in the criminal law?
A wildlife protection law has severely damaged the vitality of Northeastern Chinese cuisine.
How impressive are traditional Northeastern Chinese dishes? Just listen to the names of the dishes being recited.
Steamed lamb, steamed bear paw, steamed deer tail – the first three dishes are all Northeastern Chinese cuisine.
Take this chicken stew with mushrooms, for example. Originally, it was also called pheasant stew with hazel mushrooms, which is hazel grouse.
Flying dragons were no longer allowed to be eaten, so it became mushroom stewed pheasant. Later, even pheasant was no longer allowed to be eaten, so it became chicken stewed with mushrooms.
Knowing that the other party was good at Northeastern cuisine, Ernst ordered braised pork ribs with green beans and braised chicken with mushrooms. To his surprise, the other party asked if he wanted to try the old-fashioned braised hazel mushrooms with pheasant.
The hazel grouse is a species that was active in Northeast China and Siberia, and then spread to Alaska.
Apart from native Alaskans, Americans don't eat this stuff at all.
It is available in the market, but it is only popular among a small number of Chinese people.
Knowing that Liu Huiying could buy it, what else is there to say?
The enticing aroma of braised hazel mushrooms with pheasant roe reminded Ernst of the dish "Three Treasures of the Earth" (a local specialty).
The earliest version of "Di San Xian" (a dish of stir-fried potatoes, green peppers, and radishes) wasn't just eggplant, potatoes, and green peppers; it was a proper meat dish made with tiger, black bear, and roe deer.
There is a phrase called "mountain delicacies and seafood delicacies," and the "mountain delicacies" refers to ingredients from Northeast China.
If given the chance, Ernst would really like to try them all.
"I can cook it, but brown bears won't do. They're too big, and their paws have too little fat, so they don't taste good."
Ernst raised an eyebrow; apparently, he had eaten it before.
That's true. Hunting is prevalent in North America, so it's quite normal to hunt a brown bear in the wilderness.
Back in the living room, Craig was carefully reading a printed manuscript, and upon seeing Ernst, he couldn't help but exclaim in admiration.
"Ernst, I must admit you are a great writer!" Craig then shook his head, contradicting himself. "No, you are the greatest writer. No other writer your age could have written such a great and globally bestselling work."
The manuscript in his hand at that moment was the fourth installment of The Hunger Games, a piece Ernst wrote while idly idling at Whitney Farm.
However, this manuscript can only be considered a semi-finished product. It is a super outline of 30,000 words that outlines the main plot and all design aspects of the entire work. As for the remaining descriptions of the environment and characters, Ernst plans to leave it to Craig to find a qualified ghostwriter to complete.
He's dirt poor and desperately short of money right now, so hopefully this fourth installment of "The Hunger Games" will bring him a satisfying fortune.
The first Hunger Games movie has sold over 260 million copies overseas, and nearly 400 million copies in North America – it's absolutely phenomenal.
Seeing this momentum, the publisher quickly seized the opportunity and released "The Hunger Games: Catching Fire" three days ago, once again igniting the book fan community.
This book was sold simultaneously worldwide, and it sold over a million copies on the first day, leading to shortages in many places.
This proves once again that the success of "The Hunger Games: Catching Fire" was not accidental, and this series will become one of the most successful book series in the world.
The publisher that signed Ernst was Simon & Schuster. Now that the first three books have been completed, Ernst has no intention of handing over the fourth book, "The Hunger Games," easily. He won't even consider it unless the publisher offers an exorbitant price.
Simon, along with Schuster, Langdon, Penguin, and Asher, is known as one of the four major English-language publishers. However, in the eyes of consumers, it always seems to lack a certain depth, and many people question its status as one of the four major English-language publishers.
why?
Compared to the other three, it has never published a globally bestselling book and lacks a representative work.
Now that Ernst has delivered "The Hunger Games" to its doorstep, this is a golden opportunity for it to solidify its position in the literary world, and Ernst certainly won't let it slip away easily.
However, getting the Hunger Games 4 won't be that easy.
The contract between the two parties was no secret. As soon as news of the creation of The Hunger Games 4 leaked, Langdon and other publishers wanted to snatch this lucrative opportunity.
"Hurry up and get it polished, then release the news as soon as possible."
Craig put down his manuscript, patted his belly fat with his big hand, and the fat swayed like it was doing a belly dance.
"Don't worry, but how should I negotiate the royalty rate?" Craig asked.
Ernst thought for a moment and said, "25%, but I want a 15% share of the profits."
Ernst's price isn't outrageous; the next step is to see who offers the higher profit share.
In North America, book publishing royalties are typically calculated by multiplying the royalty rate by the number of books sold.
The royalty rate for new authors is generally between 8% and 12%, and Ernst's first book had a royalty rate of 11%.
The royalty rate for well-known authors is between 15% and 25%, while for top-tier authors it fluctuates around 30%, rarely exceeding 35%.
However, top-tier writers also benefit from a share of the profits.
Given the current popularity of "The Hunger Games", a 25% royalty rate is really not high.
"What about the prepayment?" Craig asked again.
In traditional publishing, publishers pay authors an advance payment, which is somewhat like paying them a salary before they start working.
However, publishers aren't stupid; they generally won't pay more than one-third of the revenue from the internally estimated sales of the work.
This is also why Ernst wrote the fourth book, because he could collect a portion of the future profits before the novel was even published.
"1000 million US dollars."
The Hunger Games costs $19.9. With a royalty rate of 25%, Ernst would receive $5 for each book sold.
Publishers usually underestimate sales estimates, but 500 million copies per book is definitely achievable, and Ernst can earn at least $2500 million in royalties.
Getting a ten million dollar advance payment shouldn't be a problem.