Otaku Translation: Literary Genius: This Kid Was Born Smart C142

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Chapter 142: A Name Carries Weight

Lü Ping couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off about ’s tone. Shouldn’t he have at least pretended to worry about killing the plant?

But it didn’t matter now. The flowers were delivered, and Lü Ping headed back into the classroom just as more students began to trickle in.

Why had Gu Lu’s tone shifted so abruptly?

Because of a !

[Excessively Absurd and Bizarre][Wins Through Weirdness][Master of Outrageous Ideas] merged into Selected Short Stories of Marcel Aymé.

Details: This collection features 28 short stories by Marcel Aymé, nearly encompassing all his masterpieces. Aymé is hailed as one of France’s greatest short story writers of the 20th century, often referred to as the “Saint of Strange Tales.” His work blends wild imagination with sharp social commentary.

“Wow…” Gu Lu muttered under his breath, unable to contain his excitement. He hadn’t heard of Marcel Aymé before, but the title “France’s Greatest 20th-Century Short Story Writer” spoke volumes.

“This might be one of the most literary works I’ve triggered yet,” Gu Lu thought. Most of his previous triggered works leaned heavily on storytelling rather than literary depth.

Gu Lu sauntered back into the classroom, glancing at Lü Ping, who was testing his balance by tilting his chair backward while sitting on his hands. Twice now—first osmanthus, then roses.

“Auntie, don’t worry. Because of these two gifts, I’ll do everything in my power to help Lü Ping improve his writing!”

With that, Gu Lu made up his mind.

During the morning classes, Gu Lu appeared to be napping to outsiders, but in reality, he was devouring the book. If the literary quality proved too dense, he planned to shelve it alongside Decisive Moments in History for now.

But what he discovered instead was that Marcel Aymé was practically tailor-made for web novels!

And no, that wasn’t an insult—it was genuine praise.

New web novelists are told to nail the golden opening chapters or even the first chapter because without an established audience, they need to hook readers immediately. On this front, Aymé excelled.

Take Death Time: In lives a pitiful man named Martain, who only exists in the world every other day.

Or Under the Moonlight: The fairy Utina is punished beneath a river and emerges only once every nine hundred years.

Then there’s : A circus clown who, at the age of thirty-five, suddenly begins to grow taller.

Aymé’s genius lies in how he hooks you with absurd premises, grounds them in reality, and uses them to dissect society. For instance, in The Dwarf, no one calls the protagonist by name—they simply refer to him as “Ugly Dwarf.” But when he miraculously grows taller and becomes handsome, he finds himself out of place in the circus where his ugliness once secured his livelihood.

“That’s right, Mr. Roynard—I haven’t told you yet… Ugly Dwarf is dead.” This closing line mirrored something Gu Lu’s politics teacher had said during class, triggering the fusion list.

Aymé opens with bizarre, imaginative scenarios but ultimately explores profound questions: What happens when we disrupt the rules and balances of our world? How do individuals adapt to such changes, and what does it say about their relationship with society?

The sudden transformation of a thirty-five-year-old dwarf struck Gu Lu as eerily similar to someone experiencing midlife unemployment.

“This guy’s brilliant. How did I never know about him before? I always thought great short story writers were all like or Maupassant—dense literary figures.”

To be honest, Gu Lu knew that the short stories of the world’s three great short story writers, as well as those of Mark Twain, were excellent and possessed strong literary quality. Their techniques were unmatched—mastering endings à la Maupassant, Chekhov, or could make anyone a god-tier writer.

But Gu Lu lacked the patience to dive into those classics—they felt dry and uninspired compared to Aymé’s playful absurdity.

“Some of these stories dig too deeply into societal issues to write now, but others are perfect. Damn it, I’m going head-to-head with , Contemporary, Harvest, and People’s Literature!” These four journals represented the pinnacle of prestige in Chinese literature.

None of the earlier fused collections had reached this level of literary merit, so Gu Lu hadn’t considered aiming so high until now. But ambition was taking root—he was floating on air.

Still, Gu Lu was destined to become the “King of Short Stories.” How could he not conquer the Four Greats of literary journals?

Let Gu Lu float for a moment while we turn to .

Lu Yi’s academic success and her ability to master a dance routine within forty days of joining the dance club proved she was a woman of action.

Even though boarding school banned phones, many students smuggled them in anyway, often hiding backup devices purchased with pocket money. Lu Yi was among the sneaky ones.

Her determination led her to secretly create an account that evening. She named it “No. 8 High School Wall,” with the bio: “A student-run wall for sharing interesting stories from . Submissions welcome!”

She also set access permissions carefully. By Wednesday afternoon, Lu Yi visited the activity room to pitch her plan.

Lu Yi explained her idea to Liu Wen, the station president, and the core members.

“In principle, we don’t advertise for others,” Liu Wen said. “We’d need to discuss it further, but don’t get your hopes up. Our Friday broadcasts must comply with school regulations.”

Typical bureaucratic nonsense.

The vice president chimed in: “This concept hasn’t been tried before, so while it sounds good, success isn’t guaranteed. And if anything goes wrong, it’ll be trouble.”

Everyone liked the idea but hesitated to commit. The vice president even suggested starting their own version since there were no barriers to entry.

Naïve, inexperienced Lu Yi still believed in cooperation.

The station’s advisor remained silent throughout, clearly uninterested. Sent to this “barren land” by Chongqing Urban Channel, why should he care?

“Campus Wall? Brilliant idea! I spend so much time online—I can’t believe I never thought of that!” Zhang Liwan praised.

“It wasn’t my idea,” Lu Yi demurred. “It was Gu Lu’s. I’m just executing it.”

At the mention of Gu Lu, Liu Wen, the vice president, and Zhang Liwan exchanged knowing looks.

“You mean Gu Lu? Gu Lu?” Liu Wen asked urgently.

Lu Yi nodded. “Yes.”

“If it’s Gu Lu, then things change,” Liu Wen said. “We can promote the Campus Wall.”

He left unsaid: If anything goes wrong, Gu Lu will take the fall.

“I agree with Liu Wen,” the advisor chimed in unexpectedly. “If Gu Lu is behind this, we should support it. It’s beneficial for the students.”

The vice president abandoned any thoughts of plagiarism. Who would dare copy Gu Lu’s ideas? Not unless they wanted to invite disaster.

Here’s the kicker: This Friday, Chongqing Daily was scheduled to interview young author Gu Lu—a privilege arranged by the school—and members of Time Radio Station would observe. President Liu Wen graciously stepped aside, allowing the vice president and Zhang Liwan to attend instead. After all, they weren’t on Gu Lu’s level.

“Chameleon?” Lu Yi thought of Chekhov’s famous story.

She took a deep breath. All her preparation had been undone by a single name. A vivid lesson indeed.

Since they agreed, Lu Yi negotiated details with Time Radio Station.

Afterward, Zhang Liwan insisted on escorting Lu Yi out—even though the campus wasn’t large enough to get lost in. Still, Lu Yi couldn’t refuse.

“It’s normal they initially refused,” Zhang Liwan said as they reached the stairs. “Promoting something outside the rules risks blame if anything goes wrong.”

Lu Yi stayed silent, listening impassively.

“They agreed later because—you know how famous Gu Lu is. If something happens, the principal won’t blame him.” Zhang Liwan paused. “I’m telling you this not to offend but to ensure you don’t harbor ill feelings toward Time Radio Station. Since we’re collaborating, have you considered joining us?”

Recruitment? This development caught Lu Yi off guard.

“Our club can help promote the project early on,” Zhang Liwan continued. “We’ll benefit too. If the Campus Wall takes off, we’ll have plenty of material for our broadcasts—with permission, of course.”

After a moment’s thought, Lu Yi replied, “I need to discuss this with Gu Lu. After all, the idea came from him…”

“I understand. Take your time,” Zhang Liwan nodded.

Each student pursued their goals with vigor!

Outside the school, The Little Prince had been on shelves for two weeks, and its online buzz showed no signs of waning. Why? Because the publisher started leveraging comparisons!

Sina Portal: “Europe has Oscar Wilde’s The Happy Prince; Asia has Gu Lu’s The Little Prince.”

Baidu News: “Famous book critic breaks down the differences between The Little Prince and The Happy Prince.”

Phoenix News: “An exclusive interview with Gu Lu and the editor of The Little Prince.”

The hype machine was in full swing.

Wang Lizhi paled in comparison to Yu Xinyao, a true literary critic. Wang’s fame stemmed mostly from being an influencer on Weibo, known for shock-value statements like “The Decameron is just smut—it’s overhyped in the West” or “Lu Xun’s ideas are strong, but his writing is weak, even worse than many college students today.”

His provocative takes, divorced from historical context, earned him a massive following and made him one of Weibo’s first generation of internet influencers.

Thanks to this relentless promotion, sales hit 150,000 copies in the second week alone!

And there was still room to grow.

Meanwhile, the skyrocketing sales attracted opportunists. Chenyu Company arrived in Chongqing, eager to negotiate partnerships.

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