Pei Qian had already more or less confirmed that Tang Yishu's halo effect had not produced bugs in perfect games out of nothing. Although there seemed to be metaphysics involved and she had a special halo effect that could spread bad luck to her surroundings, such metaphysics still had limits.
For example, there would be greater chances of an unlikely event-such as stepping on one's own shoelaces and trippinghappening if one was standing next to Tang Yishu.
However, if one was not wearing shoes with shoelaces, such a thing would not be possible. In other words, Tang Yishu's halo effect was only a magnifier that would greatly increase the chances of unlucky events happening. It was the same with the bugs in the game.
There were bugs in many of Tengda's other games as well. These bugs had not appeared out of nowhere; instead, they had been there from the beginning. However, the chances of them appearing had been low, and they likely wouldn't have appeared under normal circumstances.
However, under the influence of Tang Yishu's halo effect, the bugs appeared.
On the surface, it looked like these bugs appeared out of nowhere. However, they had actually just been deeply hidden in the beginning. Tang Yishu had merely increased the chances of them being brought to the surface.
Similarly, Ye Zhizhou's demo contained many hidden bugs that probably would not have surfaced under normal circumstances.
However, because of Tang Yishu's halo effect, the demo practically became unplayable.
Pei Qian was satisfied with this result.
Every time he went to check on Shang Yang Games before, news of success kept pouring in. It had been extremely hard for him to handle.
Finally, there was a setback. This was worth celebrating!
If only he could be this happy every day from now on…
Joy put heart into man.
Pei Qian sent a message to his driver, Little Sun: "Come with me to take a look at the factory buildings in the old industrial zone after lunch today.
"I want to start planning the haunted house."
In the afternoon…
At Jingzhou City's old industrial zone…
The first thought Pei Qian had after he alighted from the car was 'this is way too far!!
It had taken them almost an hour to reach this place by car from the office.
The old industrial zone was located northeast of Jingzhou City, which typically expanded towards the west and south.
Ming Yun Villas was located southeast of Jingzhou City. There was a slight chance it would be more developed in the future. However, as for the old industrial zone… Pei Qian was not at all hopeful.
Pei Qian scanned his surroundings and realized that it looked different from what he had expected at first. Initially, Pei Qian had thought that the old industrial zone would just be more deserted and run-down than usual.
However, at that moment, he was seeing overgrown weeds all around the old industrial zone. The style of the buildings all around him looked like they belonged to the previous century, and the place was worlds apart from Jingzhou City.
Furthermore, nearly all the factory buildings were no longer in use. The remaining buildings that were still populated were only so because companies were moving out and tying up loose ends.
There were hardly any residential buildings nearby. The few residential buildings were old and run-down and looked like they were on the verge of collapse. Pei Qian guessed that a very few residents remained in those buildings now.
It was now daytime. If it had been night, Pei Qian probably would not have dared to come alone.
"Boss Pei, watch your step."
Little Sun led the way.
As Pei Qian surveyed his surroundings, he spotted a few huge factory buildings.
It was no wonder that the rent was so cheap. No matter the purpose-if one wanted to make changes to the area, it was guaranteed that the project would be huge. A large sum of money would probably be needed. If one could not recover their capital, they would have made ducks and drakes of their money. Of course, nobody would be interested in taking over these factories.
Pei Qian gazed into the distance but still could not see the end of the industrial zone.
The old industrial zone was too huge. If he rented all the buildings and turned the place into a huge haunted house, he would probably need to fork out hundreds of millions of yuan. That was not practical.
Thus, Pei Qian considered renting a few bigger factories—measuring several thousand square meters—and then turning those buildings into the haunted house.
It would not be appropriate to work on too huge a project. Many haunted houses attracted fans of horror movies and horror games from all over the world, precisely because they were large-scale and frightening
Pei Qian's only hope was that his haunted house would neither become famous nor attract huge crowds of tourists. That way, he would be able to burn as much money on it as possible.
Thus, Pei Qian had to control the scale of the haunted house well.
He could not make it so big that it became well known, and yet he had to make it frightening enough to scare Ruan Guangjian sh*tless. Only then could the hatred in Pei Qian's heart start to dissipate.
The industrial zone was deserted and inconvenient to get to. As long as the haunted house did not become too famous, Pei Qian doubted that tourists from around the country would come and visit it.
The income generated from Jingzhou's tourists alone probably would not be enough to sustain the haunted house's daily operations.
Thus, the haunted house would become Boss Pei's little black room[1]. Each time he wanted to take revenge on someone listed in his notebook, he would send them there.
Not only would he be able to incur losses, but he would also be able to take revenge. He would be killing two birds with one stone -it was perfect.
Pei Qian and Little Sun walked slightly farther in to see the current situation of the factory buildings. All in all, they were a complete mess. Neither of them saw any point in surveying the place any longer.
"Let's go."
Pei Qian had only leisurely walked around for five minutes before he turned around and prepared to head back.
Little Sun quickly caught up with him and asked, "Boss Pei, do you want to look at other places? There are many other locations available for you to start a haunted house."
Pei Qian paused. "Why would I look at other places? I've chosen this place." Little Sun, "Er…"
Little Sun had misunderstood him.
Initially, Little Sun had thought that Boss Pei had only decided to leave so quickly because he had not been satisfied with what he had seen. He had thought that Boss Pei would walk around for a little longer if he had been interested.
Thus, Little Sun wondered if he should drive Boss Pei to another possible location for the haunted house.
As it turned out, he had been mistaken.
Boss Pei had only decided to turn back because he was very satisfied with the place.
It was just that…
This was a multi-million-yuan project. It might even cost more than ten million yuan. Was Boss Pei being too rash by deciding on a place within five minutes of looking around?
Little Sun quickly threw that thought out of his head.
What kind of person was Boss Pei? Would he make rash decisions? He probably already knew a lot about the place before coming down. Perhaps that was why he only needed five minutes to confirm his understanding of the area. This was what it looked like to only take action after carefully planning everything. After all, a general planning in the seclusion of his tent could determine a distant battle's outcome.
Once he got back to the office, Pei Qian began to think about how to create the haunted house. It would be rather simple to incur losses by running a haunted house. That was especially true if the haunted house was fixed in one location.
That was because haunted houses were typically one-time expenses. Most tourists would only visit it once; most would not visit a second time.
That was unless the haunted house had as different schemes as boys had to pick up girls or underwent a complete renovation to renew its material and gameplay.
However, construction costs of haunted houses were considerable. One renovation could cost a bomb. What's more, there was no way to continue operations during the renovation process. The size of its output would hardly match its input.
Thus, there were three ways to run haunted houses:
First, Pei Qian could run it like large-scale haunted houses overseas. Those were well-known because of their size, and tourists from all around the world would flock to them as a result. With such a huge customer base, those haunted houses could earn a lot from tickets and side products. Of course, they could generate huge revenue.
Second, Pei Qian could create a moving haunted house. He could set it up in a shopping mall in a city for a while before moving to another city. That could guarantee a fresh customer base regularly. That was the model several haunted houses in the country were using. Third, Pei Qian could build the haunted house in a huge amusement park. As long as the amusement park drew in a steady flow of customers, there would be a constant flow of people into the haunted house as well.
However, Pei Qian would consider none of these models. That was because he had no intention to earn money in the first place.
He had to learn from the bulk of haunted houses that failed. He would create a haunted house in a fixed location that would be big enough to scare people sh*tless… but would not become well-known around the country.
That way, even if people around Jingzhou visited the haunted house on account of its reputation, it would only do well in the short-term. However, it would still incur losses in the long-term.
At the moment, Pei Qian was still unsure about what kind of haunted house he should create. However, there was no rush. He had to first find someone to take charge of the project. Pei Qian was way too busy. He could not possibly personally take care of everything
Furthermore, Pei Qian did not want anything to do with the haunted house.
On one hand, he found them too scary because he was quite timid. On the other hand, he worried that any haunted house that he created would not be scary enough to others. Although haunted houses that weren't scary could incur losses as well, Pei Qian would much rather his haunted house be scary than to have it lose more money.
After all, this haunted house had another special purpose. Boss Pei was counting on it to exact revenge on the list of people in his notebook. If the haunted house did not turn out to be frightening, Boss Pei would be as good as defeated by the enemies in the notebook. That would be too embarrassing.
After some thought, Pei Qian decided to deal with the mole in the company, whom he had found recently.
Chen Kangtuo, you're up! You'll be in charge of the haunted house!
That way, Pei Qian could kill two birds with one stone.
First, Chen Kangtuo was a hard worker. If Pei Qian got rid of him, he would be able to cleanse the office.
Second, Chen Kangtuo took his work very seriously. Putting him in charge of the haunted house would probably guarantee that the project would turn out well.
Apart from those, Pei Qian was considering the special purpose he had for the haunted house.
The first-place-elimination system could only get rid of the outstanding elites in the office. However, it could not help Pei Qian deal with the outstanding hard workers who liked to work overtime in secret.
Now, Pei Qian could throw them all into the haunted house project!
That was because the project was bound to fail. That meant Pei Qian did not have to worry, no matter how hard they worked.
The more Pei Qian thought about it, the more satisfied he became. He could only say that this was fate! If he had not met Tang Yishu by chance, Pei Qian would not have found out that people were working overtime in secret. Naturally, he would not have found out about Chen Kangtuo.
Fate was an amazing thing indeed.
However, would Chen Kangtuo feel lonely working on the project alone? Should Pei Qian arrange for people to help him? He could look for hard workers in Shang Yang Games to help out with the haunted house as well.
Yes, that was a good idea.
The employees of Shang Yang Games had played horror games for over a month. Perhaps they had learned some valuable lessons from that experience.
Pei Qian had to send the more professional employees to handle the haunted house. Then, they could make it scary enough to scare Ruan Guangjian sh*tless.
At that thought, Pei Qian sent a message to Lin Wan.
"Choose an ordinary employee with an excellent working attitude from within Shang Yang Games. I have a new project."
The next afternoon…
Bao Xu reached the office on time, as he always did, and sat down at his desk. He accessed Zhongdian Chinese Network, opened his document, and carefully began to make edits.
After a few minutes of editing, he realized that something was amiss.
Bao Xu quickly looked around the office to see exactly what was making him feel uncomfortable. At last, his eyes fell on an empty workspace.
Chen Kangtuo had not come to work today.
That was not it-all his personal items had been cleared from his workspace as well!
Was there a need to clear all his personal items if he was merely on sick leave?
Bao Xu suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.
What had happened to him? Had he vanished from the face of the earth?
[1] This phrase is the internet slang for 'ban list' in China.
Chapter 351 OTTO OS
Bao Xu panicked, feeling a sense of inexplicable crisis. He started sending a series of texts to Chen Kangtuo.
"Why aren't you here at work today?"
Many possibilities flashed through Bao Xu's head before Chen Kangtuo replied.
Was he fired? Impossible, Boss Pei had never fired any employee.
Did he resign? That was even more unlikely. How could they find a better company than Tengda? He couldn't possibly be kidnapped by aliens, right?
Now that all these possibilities had been denied, there would only be one possibility left…
Chen Kangtuo replied, "Brother Bao, you might not believe what I'm about to tell you.
"I… have been assigned to a new project. Boss Pei said that he wants to invest in a haunted house project and put me in charge. "Everything happened too fast, I left in a hurry as well. The farewell dinner can only be held at another time. Please let everyone know there's nothing to worry about. I had only switched departments…"
Bao Xu, "Huh? Haunted house? You have been sent there to be in charge?"
Chen Kangtuo, "Brother Bao, I'm also very confused. I was still working overtime to change the GOG design plan during weekends. Now, I'm inspecting the site of the haunted house…"
He then sent images to Bao Xu.
Bao Xu looked at the photos Chen Kangtuo sent over. It showed a rather remote and old industrial area, sparsely populated and overgrown with weeds. There was an inexplicable sense of depression and sadness.
It was not difficult to imagine Chen Kangtuo's current feelings.
Bao Xu was silent for a short while before he typed his reply. "Why did Boss Pei choose?you?"
Chen Kangtuo, "How would I know…? Boss Pei only told me that he has high hopes for my potential and hope that I can show my talent on a larger stage…"
Bao Xu fell into deep thoughts. Sure enough, it was yet another 'Boss-Pei-styled promotion'. The entire promotion process seemed to be quite random no matter whether it was for Huang Sibo, Lu Mingliang, or Li Yada previously.
He promoted not the most senior nor the strongest or the best in the project team. Most of these people were a little unknown before the promotion. However, all of them quickly adapted to the new position after being promoted and exploded with amazing potential!
Obviously, Boss Pei had a unique vision. He could see the hidden infinite possibilities and talent in the employees.
It was the same for his promotion of Chen Kangtuo this time.
Bao Xu often looked through the design documents as a member of the design team. He often discussed with Li Yada about the design team. He knew that Chen Kangtuo might be quiet on the surface, but he had a strong desire to improve.
There was a small quota for overtime last weekend. Li Yada only included the names of the more senior colleagues and those with more important positions. They were limited by the quota which meant they had to compete to do overtime.
Chen Kangtuo might not have obtained a slot, but he took the initiative to work overtime to amend his plans.
That was enough to show that he was someone who was demanding of himself.
Bao Xu was suddenly startled as he thought of this. Could it be that Boss Pei had a clear grasp of everyone's working attitude, potential, and fighting spirit?
In addition, Boss Pei could reasonably select talents based on these factors and arrange for more motivated and possessed pioneering spirit for new projects?
Combined with the tense feeling previously…
Bao Xu's heart sank and thought of something very dangerous.
Would he be doing the site survey for the haunted house with Chen Kangtuo now if he had not concealed his normal working state?
Bao Xu did not want to go to the haunted house project.
Bao Xu only wanted to be a normal designer for Tengda Games, writing documents, adjusting the details of the games, and changing the design plan. Other than that, he was only interested in playing games and was not interested in going out or to other projects.
"That was too close.
"Boss Pei might not come to the company often, but he is always watching the company. Not one who was truly capable and made outstanding contributions to the company could escape his observations!
"This kind of insight is amazing!
"I'm lucky not to be found out for the time being. I cannot take any more risks. I have to endure until the next outstanding employee selection at the very least!"
Bao Xu silently saved and then closed the modified file before immersing himself in the game.
He made up his mind to be an ultimate slacker this time!
In the afternoon…
Chang You brought a testing machine to Tengda. This test machine was the flagship phone from another brand. It was equipped with the latest product from Otto Technologies' recent development which was the customized system for cell phones.
It was named OTTO OS.
Chang You was mainly busy with two matters recently. The first was finalizing the cell phone production plan with an Original Equipment Manufacturer and securing the supply channel. The second part was leading the team to develop the OTTO OS.
In the era of smartphones, cell phones were becoming more homogenous. That was an inevitable trend.
Before smartphones, cell phones came in a variety of shapes. There were blocks, flip, slide, full keyboard, and different designs.
However, with the advent of the smartphone era, the appearance of cell phones became more homogenous. Only a few physical buttons were retained under the premise of increasing the screen-to-body ratio. There were different designs for the full screens, but they were soon unified as well.
The integration of mobile phones was getting higher; therefore, the possibilities on the external design of the phones were getting more difficult.
In such a situation-other than the design and the hardware, the operating system was the key to distinguishing different cell phone brands.
If two brands of cell phones were similar in their hardware and had not too much of a difference in their prices, the consumer would give priority to the more user-friendly system.
Chang You understood this well which was why he had been working on the development of the cell phone operating system since Otto Technologies was established. Other than ,Pineapple the other cell phone brands were mostly relying on the Android system for their optimization.
The original Android System was light and portable, but it had limited functions that were not in line with domestic mainstream user habits.
Therefore, most of the domestic cell phone manufacturers were committed to making the functions in their own systems richer and convenient, hoping to capture the hearts of the consumers.
Chang You was naturally the same.
He had tried out the basic functions of the OTTO OS system on the way here. There were no big problems. The contents that he wanted to show this time were mainly the following areas:
The style of the interface, such as system fonts, themes, etc. It was mainly to show off the beauty of the system.
Detailed optimization such as the design of the minus-one screen and the optimization effect of some system functions.
Special functions such as some small programs that came with it like the data transfer requested by Boss Pei.
It was the first version, but it could not be said to be made from scratch.
First of all, this system was customized based on the native Android System. Secondly, Chang You's team had experience in system development. Therefore, Chang You was filled with confidence in this system.
There would not be many bugs.
The development of a system was a relatively long-term process because customers' desires would never be satisfied.
There would definitely be a lot of bugs in the system every time it was updated. However, the system this time was modified from the previous system. They did things they were more familiar with so there were not many bugs. It had good stability as well. Chang You came to the door of Pei Qian's office and knocked gently. "Boss Pei, this is the first version of the OTTO OS. Come and try it out. You can let us know if there is any dissatisfaction. We'll correct it as soon as possible."
Chang You passed the cell phone to Pei Qian.
Pei Qian stretched his hand out to take it. He could not help but sigh inwardly as he looked at Chang You's confident expression.
Sigh, Vice President Chang, you're still too confident. It was likely you would not encounter many bugs when you tested it at Otto Technologies.
Here, however…
A minute of silence for Vice President Chang.
Pei Qian began testing the basic functions of the OTTO OS.
His first impression of this system was that it was very similar to that of many domestic cell phones. There might be some changes in style, but there was not much difference in the overall user experience.
Many areas of this cell phone were still lacking compared to those with more complete systems like Shenhua's cell phones.
However… it was usable.
That was enough to shock Pei Qian. Pei Qian's face was filled with confusion after playing with it for five minutes.
There were really no malicious bugs!
That was impossible!
Pei Qian was sure that Tang Yishu was still outside. The halo effect should be in effect.
There were some minor flaws, but it was understandable. There was no complete collapse like when Ye Zhizhou showed the game demo yesterday.
Pei Qian could not help but be astonished. Chang You's team was so reliable in building a cell phone system?
That should not be. Wouldn't that directly destroy the Dream team of Hongcheng Technologies?
Pei Qian quickly emerged from his confusion and understood the situation.
Chang You's team must have developed a similar cell phone system when they were in Hongcheng Technologies. They should be pretty familiar with this route having stepped through it once.
Therefore, the development of the first version of OTTO OS was naturally a walk in the park for them.
Pei Qian breathed a sigh of relief when he thought of this. It was alright, a false alarm.
It was equivalent to Chang You's team taking an exam paper that they had done before. They might have scored well on it, but that did not have much reference value.
In any case, the completion of the system had exceeded Pei Qian's expectations.
Chang You started introducing the development plan of the system to Pei Qian. "Boss Pei, rest assured. The current system is still rather rudimentary, but there is absolutely no problem with its stability!
"I always believe that the cell phone system is vital to the consumer's experience.
"Therefore, we'll follow the lead of the large cell phone manufacturers to develop faster and more convenient functions.
"For example, a one-click to open game mode, multi-screen interaction, fast data transmission, fast payment, power saving mode, etc.
"Other than that, I suggest creating a forum that allows users to put forward their opinions and suggestions on OTTO OS freely. In this way, we will be able to continuously optimize and improve OTTO OS through constant communication with the users. That would bring greater competitiveness to our cell phone!"
Chapter 352 Constantly Comparing Oneself to Others would only Make One Angrier
Chang You was very confident about his development plan.
Since Boss Pei said that Otto Technologies's eventual goal was to acquire Pineapple, then it definitely had to surpass Pineapple. The advantage of Pineapple was its integration of hardware and software. Its system was its core competitive advantage.
The system of their cell phone naturally should not hold them back if they wanted to gain a foothold in the world.
Chang You believed that they should start working on the system now since it was so important. They should start collecting user opinions and work hard to build a better system.
Pei Qian remained silent.
It sounded as though… Chang You's suggestion was pretty reliable! What should Pei Qian do?
Chang You would no doubt greatly enhance the competitiveness of this cell phone if he could successfully make a very good custom-made system.
No, Pei Qian had to do something about it.
Pei Qian lowered his head without saying a word and continued playing with the cell phone. He did a very rough test just now which didn't find any major problems.
Continue drilling into it!
Pei Qian emphatically turned out the functions of the non-original Android functions and tested them repeatedly. A problem finally appeared.
An app crashed!
Pei Qian had no expression on his face, but he was brimming inside.
What did I say? How could there be no bug! All sorts of weird bugs would come crawling out with Tang Yishu's presence! My dear Chang You, what else do you have to say?
Chang You froze instantly.
This f*cking sh*t just slapped me back in the face!
He was just talking about how the system was stable without any bugs and about his future plans. A bug appeared in the next second…
However, Chang You calmed down in no time.
"Boss Pei, don't mind it. This is just a trial version after all. It is normal to have a bug or two occasionally.
"You turned it over for quite some time before you finally found a bug. That is enough to prove the completion and stability of this version."
"The tests to come would definitely… f*ck?"
Chang You's inner thought had yet to be completed before another program in his cell phone crashed. Vulgarities exploded subconsciously from his lips.
He had nothing else to say.
Chang You regretted a little. He said it too soon!
He just boasted about the stability of the system, and it showed several bugs appeared one after another. Who was it kidding?
He didn't dare to explain anymore. Things had progressed to this state it was obvious that any more explanation would be shrinking from responsibility. He could only silently wait for Boss Pei to vent his anger.
Pei Qian worked so hard just to find three or four bugs. He heaved a sigh in his heart.
Phew, that was alright. Where should I put my old face if I couldn't find a bug? Who knows what Chang You would do if he were to become too arrogant?
It was great that there were bugs now so that he could take advantage of the problem and guide Chang You onto the wrong path.
Pei Qian coughed lightly. "I totally agree with your views on the system.
"In the future when cell phones become even more homogenous, the core competitiveness of cell phones would be their easy-to-use systems.
"However, you have to be down to earth and not try to fly before you can walk!
"A system might have many functions, but what use would they be if it isn't stable?
"Solve the stability issues first. Ensure the most basic and fundamental experiences are working well before considering the other issues you just mentioned.
"Don't create any more system functions for the OTTO OS before the cell phone comes out. Just keep the current basic function.
"Use the rest of the time to fix bugs, improve system stability, or optimize some details."
Chang You had no grounds to refute. He could only nod silently. "Yes, Boss Pei, I understand."
In Chang You's opinion, it was too wasteful to use such a long time in fixing bugs and optimizing details. He could better utilize the time to develop some system functions.
However, he could only obey since Boss Pei said so.
This demonstration was not considered a success after all. Chang You felt that he had no right to speak since the system showed so many bugs.
January 9th, Thursday…
Afternoon…
Hengtu Games…
Wu Bin just finished the work on hand and opened his mailbox habitually to see if there were any new emails. He quickly scanned the mailing list and his eyes lit up suddenly.
There was an email from Tengda!
He clicked on it hurriedly and found it to be a notice for an interview. That meant that he passed the written test!
Indescribable happiness dazzled Wu Bin instantly. He nearly jumped off his chair in excitement.
He didn't think that he would actually pass!
That was because the morning questions were simply too difficult. Wu Bin was shocked after answering the questions and almost did not take the afternoon session.
However, he was a wily old fox who worked for many years after all. He knew better. He continued his fight in the afternoon after he calmed down.
In fact, the professional questions in the afternoon were unexpectedly simple…
That puzzled Wu Bin but made him hopeless about the exam.
The morning questions were difficult so he felt that he probably would not do as well as the university students. The professional knowledge questions in the afternoon were too simple so it was difficult to bridge the gap between the university students and him.
The results of the written test were not too optimistic if he thought about it this way…
The notice for the interview finally arrived after a few days of anxious waiting!
His cell phone vibrated slightly. Wu Bin glanced at it. The text message for the interview had arrived. The content of the email and text message was the same. It was just to ensure that the job seeker would not miss the email.
Wu Bin went to Tengda's recruitment website immediately to confirm the interview schedule. He began to struggle internally again after he was done with these.
He did not harbor much hope for the written test… which was why he did not give much thought to the interview.
However, Wu Bin started worrying now instead.
Wu Bin would be very confident if it was a general interview because he had a good resume. He must have an advantage over university students.
However, it was clearly written on Tengda's recruitment website that Tengda's interview would be completely different from the interviews by other companies. There were fixed questions with standard answers. Moreover, this would be a cross-interview with the heads of various departments.
It was not a guaranteed pass!
Wu Bin really wanted to work for Tengda.
He would like to find a Tengda employee to inquire about how to prepare for this interview and the style that the interviewers would like if possible.
As the saying went, do not fight wars without the confidence that he would win. He would have a better chance of winning if he possessed more of such information.
However, Wu Bin did not know any employee from Tengda.
He finally thought of someone after giving it some thought. Wasn't Hao Qiong someone he tried to poach from Tengda?
He might be at Shang Yang Games, but he should also know some information about Tengda, right?
Wu Bin searched for Hao Qiong's contact information immediately and sent a friend request.
He was still worried if he would be rejected when the notification that the friend request was approved reached him.
Wu Bin gave a simple introduction of himself and then asked his question very sincerely.
Hao Qiong replied in no time. "…I really have no idea how the interview is conducted.
"There weren't so many processes when I joined the company. I was hired after a brief chat with the head of the department."
Wu Bin was speechless.
What a shock!
Why was this kiddo hired after a brief chat and had his salary risen all the way but so difficult when it came to him? He had to pass a panel of interviewers, a written test, and a Tengda Spirit compatibility test in the interview?
This world was simply too unfair!
However, Wu Bin knew he was asking for help so he could only quietly suppress the complaints in his heart and continue to ask for guidance.
"Bro, just help me out. We might even become colleagues in the future!
"Bro, which department are you in now? Are you still in Shang Yang Games? Perhaps you can ask the person-in-charge in your department, perhaps he might be responsible for the interview then as well.
"I'm not asking for much, just a little hint!"
Hao Qiong replied in no time.
"To be honest, I'm currently the person-in-charge of my department. However, I did not receive any task for the interview so I really cannot help you…"
Wu Bin was speechless.
He read what Hao Qiong sent twice and almost passed out from anger! He still remembered his conversation with Hao Qiong previously when he spoke about his career prospects.
Hao Qiong said that Tengda was filled with talented people, and Hao Qiong might not be able to be someone outstanding amongst them.
That wasn't too long ago, and Hao Qiong was now the person-in-charge for his department?
It was too much!
He was very angry, but he needed to maintain his cool.
Wu Bin felt as though he just had a ton of lemons. His heart was filled with sourness. "Bro, which department are you in charge of now? Shang Yang Games?" The reply took some time this time. Hao Qiong replied after about a minute, "I don't know how to explain this to you.
"My partner and I are still in a complete state of confusion. To be honest with you, I'm not at Shang Yang Games anymore. I'm now responsible for a haunted house project." "Isn't it very magical…?"
Wu Bin was taken aback, and then he heaved a sigh of relief.
And here I was thinking what great project that would be!
It was definitely worth mourning if he had now risen to the top of Shang Yang Games. However, he was just the in-charge of a haunted house project. To put it simply, he was the boss of a haunted house. What gives?
A small haunted house of 100 or 200 square feet might not even be profitable. This wasn't a promotion but obvious marginalization!
Wu Bin felt much better. However, he had to continue to be polite.
Wu Bin typed. "That sounds good, too. Where is the haunted house? How much is the investment? I'll consider going there to support you then.
"Even though the space to showcase your talents might not be like when you were in the game department previously, you have to also set your mindset right. This is a good opportunity for you to train…"
Hao Qiong had replied to him before he could finish typing his message. "The first investment is estimated to be around 10 million yuan according to Boss Pei. He would increase it based on the situation in the future.
"Sigh, I have no idea how to spend this 10 million yuan until now. This is so frustrating!"
Wu Bin was speechless.
His heart collapsed. He did not manage to obtain any information about the interview but was shown off to by someone else instead. How was he supposed to continue living?!
Chapter 353 Boss Ma is Not a Rookie, He is Just Targeted by the Game Settings
Fish-Catching Internet Cafe, Handong University branch…
Chen Kangtuo and Hao Qiong sat in the coffee area, drinking coffee in silence. They were dumbfounded. There was not too much difference in what they experienced.
They were working hard, carefully revising the design plan of GOG and Be Quiet respectively on Tuesday. They were kicked out of the company and looked at each other speechlessly at the Fish-Catching Internet Cafe today.
They were equally shocked when they heard the news of the transfer. Did they do something wrong? That did not seem like it. It was obviously a promotion. Their positions and salaries had both risen. They should be very happy about that, right?
However, both of them could not find it in themselves to rejoice.
Boss Pei only mentioned that he wanted to create a haunted house in the old industrial zones of Jingzhou City. The initial investment amount would be 10 million yuan.
There was no other information other than that!
He gave no direction on how much land they should rent, which workshops should be renovated, what kind of plan they should use, how many employees should be recruited…
ren
There was zero progress on all these.
In other words, there was nothing apart from the 10 million yuan capital, Chen Kangtuo, and Hao Qiong.
That… made them feel lost.
They decided to meet at the Fish-Catching Internet Cafe to discuss their next steps when they found out that the other was the only other colleague on this project.
Both of them thought the other party had more information or special advice from Boss Pei. They only realized that both of them were as lost when they met. Boss Pei didn't say a thing! Therefore, they could only drink coffee in silence.
Chen Kangtuo decided to break the silence after a while.
Boss Pei attached so much importance to this project, having handed over 10 million yuan to him after all. He definitely could not disappoint Boss Pei.
Chen Kangtuo thought for a while and said, "I'll post some job postings online from tomorrow. We'll recruit some people with relevant experience, contact a construction company, and come up with a design plan by hook or crook."
Hao Qiong nodded. "Okay, there are some ready-made art materials from Be Quiet and the materials we collected previously when playing the horror games. We can consider using it in the design of the haunted house…"
The two of them discussed the details of the project while drinking coffee.
You don't say. A framework emerged from the haunted house project during the discussions.
However, both of them felt that something was still missing despite coming up with all sorts of problems. They felt that their conversation was not that practical.
Chen Kangtuo frowned and thought hard. "What exactly are we missing?"
Hao Qiong thought about it for a long time before he suddenly slapped the back of his head in realization. "I know! We are missing the guidance of Boss Pei!
"We can leave out anything else, but Boss Pei's guidance is absolutely indispensable! "I don't know if you remember, but most projects in Tengda succeed because of Boss Pei's planning. Boss Pei simply pointed out a few simple directions most of the time, but we can definitely find the right path as long as we continue in his direction!
"Boss Pei has yet to issue us any guidance for the haunted house project so far. We have to first figure out Boss Pei's attitude towards this project before we can decide on a specific
plan!"
Realization dawned upon Chen Kangtuo. "That's it!"
He had never been in-charge before. Boss Pei had always issued the tasks via Li Yada which was why Chen Kangtuo had never considered such issues.
Fortunately, Hao Qiong had heard from Ye Zhizhou and Wang Xiaobin about the standard process for understanding Boss Pei. Only then was he able to keenly discover this blind spot.
"In short, let's do the preparatory work, hire more people, or request for more people from Boss Pei. After that, let's find an opportunity to ask Boss Pei his views on this project.
"The success rate of this project could be greatly improved if we can understand Boss Pei's intentions!"
The originally confusing project seemed to have a vague direction after the discussion between them.
The general direction was the guidance of Boss Pei.
Both of them firmly believed that all these problems would be solved as long as they could obtain guidance from Boss Pei!
December 10th, Friday…
Tengda Network Technology Co., Ltd…. "Brother Bao, GOG released a version. Please take a look."
Bao Xu signed silently seeing the message sent by Li Yada.
Sigh, what a difficult project.
GOG had a rough shape now even though it was still a lump of mess from all aspects. However, it could run at the very least.
There was Gods Rising, a ready-made game with a high degree of completion for reference after all. It was not difficult for GOG to have a framework up in a short time. However, they were still too far off as far as the degree of completion was concerned.
Bao Xu played GOG secretly when no one was watching and found a ton of shortcomings.
Many bugs…
Poor balance…
The gameplay was nothing new…
Too few heroes… In short, it was worlds apart from Gods Rising.
Bao Xu was in a dilemma. Li Yada would probably not be able to deal with these problems by himself if he didn't lend a hand. He could almost see the African savannah and the Sahara desert beckoning him if he were to lend a hand.
Bao Xu sighed after weighing it over and over again. He opened the game editor again and secretly started modifying it. "Forget it, there's no way I can just stand by and watch. Should I help one last time?
"However, it cannot keep going on like this. I cannot keep solving similar problems, right?"
Bao Xu was a little helpless as well. The entire design team might have been playing games to enrich their gaming experience, but game IQ was not something that could be cultivated overnight.
Bao Xu's sensitivity to games was unmatched to others as a hardcore gamer.
Therefore, some very professional taskssuch as adjusting the balance of the gamecould only be done by Bao Xu.
Of course, the systems designer could also do it, but Bao Xu often needed to be the final gate. Those standalone games that did not require much balance were still alright, but GOG was a multiplayer game. Balance was very important.
Bao Xu gave it some thought and felt that he would go on like this again.
That was too close!
He had to think of a way to distribute the work early and let others hold some responsibility as well. There wasn't anyone like that in the company. Where should he search for then?
He suddenly had an idea.
Fish-Catching Internet Cafe was Tengda's own business. Could it be utilized?
Put the trial version of GOG in the Fish-Catching Internet Cafe so that the customers of the Fish-Catching Internet Cafe could be the test players of the game. They could leave their opinions and suggestions after experiencing the game.
Of course, that could bring problems of its own. For example, information about the game might be leaked in advance, causing spoilers.
However, it was not too big of a problem for games like GOG. To put it bluntly, they would be putting a special game test server at Fish-Catching Internet Cafe to collect player data and modify the game based on this data information.
Bao Xu sent a message to Li Yada immediately.
Let the players in Fish-Catching Internet Cafe participate. Bao Xu felt that it could be of some help at the very least!
Dream Realization Ventures… Ma Yang did not come today since he had class. Moreover, Dream Realization Ventures had no more capital to invest in other projects ever since Ma Yang poured all the money into Finger Games.
The only job left for everyone to do was to accompany Boss Ma in games.
Boss Ma might have been carrying them every round, showcasing all sorts of super skills. However, too many of such 'professional rounds' were boring as well.
Ma Yang was bored by such rounds recently so he had stopped coming to Dream Realization Ventures too often.
He Desheng and the other professionals were gathered together at this point, discussing the issue very seriously.
"Boss Ma's happiness threshold is rising too much. He will probably lose interest in our rigged match[1] after a while.
"What should we do?"
He Desheng raised a very glaring question.
One very important job of these professionals was to accompany Boss Ma in playing games so that he could maintain happy, relaxed, and in the best condition to work.
In the beginning, Boss Ma could kill a dozen professions and carry them by himself. He was of course very happy about that.
However, that happiness threshold increased as time went by. Purely killing people was not enough to satisfy Boss Ma. Frequent victories became dull.
The experience of each game had become more similar to Ma Yang.
Even if the other nine had arranged a script in advance and did their best to act in accordance to the script so that it would bring different gaming experiences to Boss Ma…
It would still become boring after a while.
Everyone gathered now to discuss this problem.
"I feel that we cannot be blamed for lack of imagination; neither could we blame Boss Ma for his lower level.
"We can only blame the setting of the game! The game settings are a little complicated which is rather unfriendly to rookie gamers. Boss Ma had been targeted by the game so it was difficult for him to play to 100% of his strength.
"We can only lower ourselves to Boss Ma's level to coordinate with him. It was obviously pretty fake. It's only a matter of time before Boss Ma realizes it."
"I agree, I also feel that Boss Ma has been targeted by the game." Others nodded and agreed. "Boss Ma's strength can definitely be better unleashed if we can change the game settings!"
'What should we do then? We are not designers; we're unable to change the game settings." Someone pointed out.
Another person raised his hand and suggested. "We cannot change Gods Rising, but… we should be able to change IOI?"
He Desheng thought for a while. "That's hard to say. We only bought shares of Finger Games. We cannot interfere with their operations or research and development. We can make some suggestions to them as their shareholder and local agent. They might not necessarily listen to us.
"Let's try it out."
[1] This is a game where one celebrity was set to particularly stand out with the help of nine other actors in a 5v5 match.
Chapter 354 There Was Deep Meaning Behind Boss Pei's Process!
He Desheng and the other professionals from Dream Realization Ventures began sorting out their comments on the modification of IOI.
This process was actually rather painful.
That was because most of these professionals were very familiar with the Gods Rising game. The difficulty level of this game was the key gap between them and ordinary players.
For them to propose modifications to the difficulty of the setting was undoubtedly for them to deny their own game experiences and to weaken their advantage in certain aspects. It was very difficult for them to make a choice.
However, on second thoughts, if they did not propose modifications now; Boss Ma's gaming experience would definitely not be improved.
In that case, Boss Ma would be bored by it in no time even if it was a rigged match.
Once Boss Ma gets bored… Won't that mean that everyone's rice bowl was in jeopardy?
Therefore, they had to let Boss Ma play comfortably! The modification plan for this game had to be done!
He Desheng racked his brains for the changes while trying out the beta version of the IOI. It was not difficult to obtain the beta version of this game since they were the shareholders of Finger Games and IOI's local agent.
It was just that everyone did not play it very often. They played Gods Rising in the rigged matches most of the time.
The reason was simple. To everyoneincluding He Desheng and Ma Yang, IOI could only be considered just a lower-end version of Gods Rising.
Differences in map size, game settings, and the like were not very big. The most important difference was in the screen and hero skill design.
IOI's only advantage was that it was an independent and online game. It was very convenient to add friends and team up. However, this only advantage did not exist since it was currently in the testing phase.
Everything else—such as the various details of the game, the richness of the hero design, etc.—was still inferior to Gods Rising.
That was normal. Gods Rising had been continuously updated for several years. The current development time of the IOI was too short; these contents need to be polished up.
However, to He Desheng and the others, that meant that IOI had a higher possibility of modification.
He Desheng took notes as they discussed. "The rigging will not be able to continue much longer. We have to continue trying new challenges and try playing against strangers. We can only continue to maintain Boss Ma's interest this way.
"However, as far as the current game setting is concerned… Boss Ma will probably find it a targeted shortcoming. His gaming experience will definitely not improve."
"If that is the case, we have to consider how Boss Ma would be able to have as much gaming experience as possible when facing a real enemy.
"I think the current map is too big. We cannot get to Boss Ma immediately when he is in danger. The map has to be smaller for us to support Boss Ma at any time."
"Boss Ma's basic skills in last hit and deny[1] are generally lacking. It is unrealistic for him to practice them, considering his busy schedule. How about we just do away with deny and keep last hit? He can still earn some rewards even if the last hit is unsuccessful."
"Should there be a bounty setting to prevent Boss Ma from having a bad gaming experience if he was killed too easily? An opponent who was killed too many times would be worthless. There will be extra rewards for ending opponents' streaks. Perhaps a proper compensation mechanism if someone falls too far behind in their level?
"We have to ensure the gap between professionals and rookies is maintained while Boss Ma stays afloat. If not, would we not seem to be very useless if we cannot bring Boss Ma to victory?"
"Yes, I think so, too. This game is much simpler for Boss Ma, but the difficult techniques must be retained for people like us."
"It's good that IOI has fixed lanes. We can keep it. Other than that, can we request for some mid-lane heroes that require higher mechanics or junglers[2] to make things easier for our carry[3]?"
"I think we can enrich the map resources. It would be best if a few large monsters can be added to increase buff for the team. This way, even if Boss Ma were to die, we will be able to greatly increase our winning rates as long as we can take control of the map and use such monsters to increase the stats of our team."
"The operation mode as well. Should we provide some more convenient operation modes for rookies? Until now, Boss Ma had not learned the shortcut keys. He's still clicking the mouse in many cases…"
"They should also have some heroes that could be mixed."
Everyone participated in the brainstorm. Every suggestion was recorded by He Desheng.
All in all, the suggestions were simply to ensure that the game had a certain difficulty ladder that a professional could easily drive the rhythm of the whole game for a one-on-five while giving casual players as much space to survive as possible.
It would be alright even if one did not possess good basic skills, positioning, and awareness.
The game setting would give more gold if the last hit was done well so that the depth of the pockets would have too much gap. Players would not become extremely poor after forty minutes of gameplay.
If someone was not good at positioning, then they should choose some hero that could flesh out after a short period of development.
It would not matter even if someone had poor awareness. With the reduction in the size of the map, one could easily give support where the battle went and vice versa.
All in all—if this version was implemented, it would be an epic enhancement for Boss Ma!
He Desheng summarized everyone's opinions, compiled it into a document, and translated it into English to be sent to Finger Games. His English was definitely not poor since he was in the investment industry. It was time to knock off after everything was done.
He estimated that they would only receive a reply after three days—which would be Monday, taking into account the time difference and the weekends.
He Desheng stretched and knocked off on time.
Saturday…
At the Fish-Catching Internet Cafe's Ming Yun Villas branch…
Bao Xu peered in sneakily at the entrance while hiding his face with a baseball cap. Alright, there weren't too many people around.
It was 8:30 in the morning. Many university students would come to the popular neighborhood of Ming Yun Villas to play during weekends. Even so, Fish-Catching Internet Cafe would only be full after one in the afternoon.
There were still many vacant seats so early in the morning
Bao Xu pushed his baseball cap down and entered the Fish-Catching Internet Cafe. He quickly found Li Yada, also in a baseball cap, in the internet area in no time.
Bao Xu was still cautiously looking towards his back as though he was afraid of being followed before he sat down.
"Is the beta version of GOG updated?" Bao Xu asked in a low voice.
Li Yada nodded. "Yeah, I spoke to Zhang Yuan. The game has been updated. All the computers in the internet cafe can play it now."
"Moreover, a player can obtain some online time if they play GOG for a certain length and write a 500-word suggestion for modification.
"You don't have to be so nervous. This place is very far from the company. The probability of meeting Boss Pei and the others is very low."
Bao Xu nodded. "Um, I know, but it's always better to err on the safe side. Where are the others?"
Li Yada looked at her watch. "They should be arriving soon." "What about the office?" Bao Xu asked.
Li Yada said, "I got Liu and the others to be on top for the time being. However… is this really necessary?"
Bao Xu breathed a sigh of relief. "It is important to always be cautious.
"Okay, let's experience the game first and slowly modify it. Note down the revised plan. You'll submit it on Monday."
Li Yada was a little embarrassed. "Brother Bao, you suggested a large part of these changes. I feel bad doing this. I feel like I'm taking away your credit…"
Bao Xu waved his hand dismissively. "That's exactly what I want! You only need to do one thing if you really want to thank me. Just accept all these and don't mention my involvement in front of others!"
Li Yada couldn't help but sigh. "Brother Bao is really humble. You're becoming more and more like Boss Pei."
Bao Xu shook his head and sighed. "How can I be compared to Boss Pei? Boss Pei is truly humble. I have no choice but to be humblethat's it…"
They started playing the game. "Strange, why do I feel like there are much fewer bugs playing GOG here…?" Bao Xu murmured as he played on.
"Achoo!"
Pei Qian rubbed his nose in the rented apartment as he emerged from his slumber. He then whispered, "Strange, why am I sneezing more frequently recently.
"Is it because the weather is turning cold from the winter, or is it because there are always people talking about me?
"I feel as though I have thorns behind my back…"
Pei Qian quickly picked up his cell phone to check the list of people doing overtime today that was sent by Tang Yishu. "A guy that looks a little fierce… that should be Liu.
"Hmm? Li Yada didn't go today? It's very different from last week's overtime list. Did everyone schedule to take turns working overtime?
"They can obtain the rest they require on the one hand, and everyone would also have a share of overtime pay. Not bad, everyone's doing well."
Pei Qian nodded in satisfaction. He had yet to see any signs of the projects having gone out of control.
Originally, Pei Qian was most worried about IOI, but so much time had passed. He did not hear anything about IOI making any news.
It should be fine for this settlement cycle, right?
December 13th Monday…
The hotel venue had been set up as an interview venue. Wu Bin arrived very early, but he did not expect the interviewer to arrive even earlier than him. Several interviewers were chatting happily, supplementing relevant knowledge in the interview room.
Li Yada, chief planner of Tengda Games; Ye Zhizhou, head of Shang Yang Games; Lu Mingliang, head of Upwind Logistics; Huang Sibo, the head of Fei Huang Workspace; Zhang Yuan, head of Fish-Catching Internet Cafe; Ma Yiqun, head of Zhongdian Chinese Network…
They were basically all there.
The interview process went this way:
When the applicant was interviewing for the Tengda Games department, Li Yada would have to leave the room temporarily for the other departments to conduct a joint interview. The questions and standard answers were prepared. Everyone had a copy of it.
There was a time limit to the questions. They would have to stop when the time was up.
All the interviewers would compare the standard answers they had on hand after that and mark the answers.
They would then take the average of his scores after removing his highest and lowest score. That would be the score for this person's interview.
They would be ranked and admitted from front to back after the interview score and their written test scores were added back together. They would then start their internship.
Finally, they would be confirmed as Tengda Spirit compatibility test's official employees if they could pass the Tengda Spirit compatibility test after a month.
Interviewing was not a difficult job in theory. They needed only to free up one or two days in a year for it. However, these interviewers arrived more than an hour early…
Because of nervousness!
They might not be held accountable even if they gave random scoring, but many of these heads from Tengda knew each other. They would not be able to save their faces if they gave random scoring.
In the unlikely event that the interview was not conducted seriously and put someone useless in their friends' department, would that not let down their friends and Boss Pei?
Heads, in-charge… they were basically there to take responsibility. How could they be called heads if they could not even take on such little responsibility?
Therefore, everyone arrived early to make a surprise before the interview.
For example, the questions from the game department were given by Li Yada. Li Yada thus briefly explained the main points of these questions and what kind of person she wanted.
The same went for the other departments.
The scoring table was very detailed. It included not only real knowledge content, but other soft aspects like clarity, fluency of speech, and the like. These had quantitative scores that were not easy to fill up randomly.
The people in charge were exchanging pointers while chatting.
"Brother Huang, how's the workspace? Is the movie going on smoothly?"
"Can you help my mom get an autograph? She is a fan of Zhang Zuting."
"Boss Lu, thanks to Upwind Logistics for helping me out with the delivery of the ROF system units previously. I'll treat you to a meal soon."
"Yada, the link between the website and the game was very successful previously. Shall we do it again after a while? I'm already thinking about planning an event plan."
"Sure, Zhongdian Chinese Network can hold an essay competition with GOG as the theme, how about it?"
"No problem at all. It's just one sentence."
"By the way, Lin Wan doesn't seem to be here today? She should have contacted you, right? Have you offered solutions?"
"There's no need to rush for that. We have not even made an engineering machine yet. Let's wait until the cell phone is made."
They were more excited as they chatted away.
Many of them were confused when they heard they were going to be interviewers in cross-interviews. Zhang Yuan was a good example.
I'm in charge of an internet cafe. Isn't it a joke for me to be interviewing those who are seeking employment at Zhongdian Chinese Network and Upwind Logistics? However, everyone understood it now.
They could even regard the whole event as an experience-sharing session with the various heads of departments!
Chat to understand about the current situation of the other departments, give interviewees their scoring, and then talk about potential collaborations in a meal after the interviews.
Wasn't that just perfect?
Boss Pei's arrangement of this recruitment process was pretty meaningful!
[1] This pertains to denying the enemy from dealing the last hit to your friendlies.
[2] These are heroes whose main task is to kill neutral monsters to earn gold and EXP.
[3] This one pertains to heroes that deal the most damage.