"The department to win the Zero Overtime Competition for the first time ever is Zhongdian Chinese Network!"
The moment Assistant Xin finished speaking, everyone turned to look at Ma Yiqun who had been munching on a watermelon.
Ma Yiqun was stunned. He only regained his composure two seconds later. Then, he snatched a tissue, wiped his mouth, and walked onto the stage. Everyone immediately applauded warmly.
Pei Qian was already standing on stage, holding the trophy and waiting to give it away. In fact, Pei Qian had already expected this outcome.
This was how the winner of the Zero Overtime Competition had been selected: the department that had worked overtime the least won.
Four selections would be held each month. If more than one department managed to work overtime zero times each week, the prizes would be given out in descending order of the number of employees in each department. Those that had already won before would be given lower priority.
Pei Qian did a brief mental assessment of Tengda's current businesses.
Tengda Games, Fei Huang Workspace, Shang Yang Games, and Otto Technologies were considered the core businesses. They were all filled with hard workers who always thought about different ways to work overtime.
In fact, Pei Qian suspected that the leaders of Otto Technologies and Fei Huang Workspace had implemented a culture of working overtime. Of course, they would be disqualified from the competition.
Upwind Logistics and Fish-Catching Internet Cafe were working hard to keep to the 'no overtime' policy, but due to unforeseen circumstances, they could hardly avoid working overtime.
If they were really keen on not working overtime, they had to step up their management skills.
There was no need for employees at Dream Realization Ventures to work overtime either, but their team was smaller. Thus, they were lower in priority compared to Zhongdian Chinese Network.
Thus, Zhongdian Chinese Network, which had more than thirty employees and no record of anyone working overtime, had the privilege of becoming the first-ever department to win the Zero Overtime Competition.
Ma Yiqun received the trophy from Boss Pei, feeling overwhelmed by the latter's favor. After waving to everyone and expressing his gratitude, he stepped off-stage.
However, that segment was still not over. Boss Pei was still supposed to give a speech. Pei Qian took the microphone from Assistant Xin and cleared his throat.
"Once again, I congratulate Ma Dubiao.
"The prize has been won, but most people here obviously still don't understand why I established this competition in the first place.
"Why am I rewarding those who didn't work overtime but not those who did?
"I'm speaking to the people in charge when I say this: there are two possible reasons why people in your department are working overtime.
"First, you're not allocating the work in your department well. Some have too much work and have no choice but to work overtime to complete it all. The people in charge would have to bear the blame for that!
"Second, a few employees in your department are not working efficiently enough to finish their work within the allocated working hours. That means that as people in charge, you should offer more care and support to your employees!
"Thus, all of you must remember: At Tengda, working overtime is a disgrace!
"The people in charge of the various departments should learn from Ma Dubiao and work hard to achieve zero overtime!"
Once Pei Qian finished speaking, everyone off-stage applauded warmly. The people in charge of various other departments looked extremely guilty. Obviously, Boss Pei's words had struck a chord in their soul. They had to work hard to reduce the number of employees working overtime in Tengda in the future!
Extremely satisfied, Pei Qian gestured for Assistant Xin to move onto the next segment. It was time for the Best Employee Selection, which was held twice a year and which most found exciting.
Li Yada noticed Bao Xu, who was seated beside her, nervously munching on snacks. His face drained of all color, and beads of cold sweat dripped from his forehead.
"Brother Bao, what's the matter? Are you not feeling well?!"
Bao Xu shook his head. "I'm alright."
He had been severely traumatized by the past few Best Employee Selections. No matter what, he did not want to be forced to go overseas again.
This was an instinctive and immediate reaction that he was displaying subconsciously.
Although his heart automatically started racing and he was at a loss as to what to do, Bao Xu still thought that this Best Employee Selection would have nothing to do with him anymore... right?
Furthermore, those who had been selected as Best Employees before had been promoted and put in charge of other businesses.
Even if the best employee was to be selected from among those who had never won, Bao Xu would not be considered the most outstanding!
During this period, Bao Xu had been faithfully concealing his strengths and trying to bide his time. Not only had he been careful not to leave any record of himself working overtime, but he had also created the illusion that he was only focused on playing games.
Even if he stealthily edited documents, he would hand them to Li Yada.
No matter how he looked at it, it didn't seem like anyone had been paying attention to him!
As for the others...
Ma Yiqun had singlehandedly turned Zhongdian Chinese Network's situation around and converted its losses to profits. Even the online literature class looked quite promising
Zhang Yuan's Fish-Catching Internet Cafe had expanded to Lincheng, and ROF was developing rapidly. One could say that the business was both reputable and profitable. Over at Shang Yang Games, the mobile version of Bloody Battle Song that Lin Wan, Ye Zhizhou, and Wang Xiaobin had dominated the mobile game industry. They had also been diligently researching and developing Be Quiet.
Ma Yang and He Desheng of Dream Realization Ventures had already invested in three projects. Among those, IOI had already reaped huge profits, the shared phone booths had become Jingzhou's cultural landmarks, and 'Top Student, Come Quick' had become extremely popular. Otto Technologies had not produced a cell phone yet, but Chang You and his team had been taking the project very seriously. People had even been referring to them as the model team of hard workers. All of those people had not been selected as the best employee before! Tengda Games might have been the oldest and most experienced department, and Boss Pei might have been focusing on it the most. However, in terms of real merit, Li Yada was clearly in the first place.
One could read about all of those people's achievements on TPDb's intranet. It was clear as day whose contribution had been the largest.
That meant that Bao Xu would be safe, right?
Bao Xu tried hard to comfort himself, and the trembling in his hands visibly dissipated.
"All the departments can start voting now. Please look at the screen!"
Everyone raised their heads to see a bar chart appear on the screen. The number of votes that each person got slowly increased, and a few even surpassed others. Everyone whipped their phones out, accessed TPDb's application, and cast their precious votes.
Ordinary employees, who were not present, could also vote on their phones. Those who failed to meet the deadline or did not cast their votes would be considered to have voided their votes.
One by one, a few names rose to the top. Those who had the least number of votes were automatically disqualified.
Bao Xu looked at his own name anxiously. To his shock, he realized that more than twenty people had voted for him!
All of a sudden, he wanted to find out who those twenty-odd people were. He felt eager to have a serious conversation about life with them.
Still, everything was fine. That petty number of votes would not be enough to push him to the top two places.
When he saw his own name being overtaken by many others, Bao Xu heaved a huge sigh of relief. Now, he could eat his snacks in peace.
Toward the end, the bar chart continued to move in an unexpected pattern. Finally, the top few names were confirmed.
Zhang Yuan was the best employee.
Li Yada was in second place.
Ma Yang was in third place.
Although Dream Realization Ventures had achieved outstanding results, voting systems were not exactly the fairest or most objective. To a certain extent, they would be influenced by individual relations.
Since Dream Realization Ventures was an independent department, its employees rarely interacted with those from other departments.
On the other hand, Zhang Yuan was in charge of Fish-Catching Internet Cafe and ROF and had to work closely with the other departments. For instance, ROF had sold computers at cost price to Ma Yiqun for the online authors' class. Upwind Logistics had also been helping ROF to deliver its system units to customers' doorsteps, and so the employees from those two companies were quite familiar with one another.
In addition, Fish-Catching Take-Out, Fish-Catching Internet Cafe, and Upwind Logistics had many employees. Since Lu Mingliang had already won once, he could not be nominated again. It was only natural that Zhang Yuan would be received with the prize this time.
As for Li Yada, her main achievement was that she had taken over Repent and be Saved midway through and that the game had risen to popularity. In addition, GOG was undergoing testing, and Tengda Games had always been influential. Those were the main reasons why she had come in second place.
Zhang Yuan obviously had not expected this outcome. He was stunned for two full seconds before he realized that he had to go on stage and receive his award.
"Thank you, Boss Pei! Thank you to all my colleagues as well!
"I feel guilty about receiving this prize. I will keep working hard in the future, and I won't betray all of your trust in me!"
Zhang Yuan said he was happy, but his expression showed no hint of happiness.
Being named the best employee meant that he would get a Dream Fund to fulfill his ambitions. However, Zhang Yuan did not have any ambitions!
Working at ROF was his favorite past-time, and he liked being the CEO of the Fish-Catching Internet Cafes as well. However, winning this prize would mean that both of these businesses would have no connection to him anymore!
Although he was unwilling, he could only suppress the sorrow in his heart on an occasion like that.
On the other hand, Pei Qian was overjoyed. This is great! Once again, the first-place-elimination system has gotten rid of the person who backstabbed me in the worst way possible!
Zhang Yuan had stirred up a lot of havoc while he had been in charge of the Fish-Catching Internet Cafes and ROF. Now, Pei Qian could deal with the problem once and for all and put Zhang Yuan in charge of other businesses. He could finally be relieved!
Of course, that also meant that someone else had to be put in charge of the Fish-Catching Internet Cafes and ROF.
However, Pei Qian didn't mind. He was filled with hope.
Zhang Yuan walked off the stage disappointedly. It was Li Yada's turn next.
However, the first thing that Li Yada said when she walked onto the stage caused everyone's jaw to drop.
"Boss Pei, can I give this award up...?" Pei Qian's expression darkened. "You cannot give it up. Haven't I already said this time and time again?" Li Yada grimaced. "Boss Pei, I'm really not prepared to go overseas and live on my own. I have to get a visa, book a hotel, set my itinerary, and speak to foreigners. I can't handle all of that by myself!
"What's more, I'll have to do that for a month, and I'm a female! It's too dangerous..."
All of that did sound very difficult for a female homebody.Pei Qian remained silent for a moment and then nodded. "Yes, what you're saying makes sense. "Safety would be a huge concern for a female going overseas for a holiday on her own.
"How about this? Find someone to be your partner for the holiday. At least there would be someone taking care of you and looking out for your safety. Hmm, it has to be someone with enough experience.
"Bao Xu, that'll be you!"
Bao Xu, who had been sipping his tea nonchalantly, suddenly choked and spat his tea back out. He did not even bother cleaning his mouth before saying, "Boss Pei! I—"
Pei Qian waved his hand, obviously uninterested in listening to his excuses. "You have the most experience, and you're close to Li Yada. You're the best person for the task. This is an order—you cannot refuse!"
Bao Xu opened his mouth as if wanting to say something. However, he had no idea what to say.
No matter how hard he tried, he would not be able to escape from this!
He would never have thought that—despite not placing among the top few, he would still be forced to go overseas! What bad luck he had!
Chapter 411 Happy Chinese New Year
The selection for the outstanding employee was over. Everyone wished the other 'Happy New Year' and left, preparing to head home for the holiday.
Pei Qian was about to leave when Li Yada caught up to him.
"Boss Pei, wait! I've some questions on the vacation..."
Pei Qian stopped and smiled. "Tell me if you have any problems. If they are problems that are solvable with money, then you can just go to the finance department for reimbursement. You don't need to go through me."
Li Yada hesitated. "Boss Pei, can we postpone this trip for a bit?
"Chinese New Year will be here in a few days. The spring festival must be staggered, right? I'm now the person-in-charge of the gaming department. A lot of work cannot be on time if I were to take this one month break.
"My thinking is to wait until after the new year. I'll make some arrangements for the gaming department to go on a trip from March 1st to 31st before the end of February, is that alright?
Pei Qian gave it some thought. Li Yada was not without reason.
There would be a settlement on March 31st. The entire March was a critical period for GOG to refine game details and improve game quality.
GOG had started its testing phase, and the framework had been set up. There would not be a case of having an unfinished game development and settlement delays.
If Li Yada went on a trip after the Chinese New Year, it would be about two weeks before the settlement. When that happened, there might be some drastic changes.
It would be more advantageous to Pei Qian if they were to travel in March and come back after the settlement.
Pei Qian readily agreed when he thought of that. "Okay, postpone it to March 1st then."
"Thank you, Boss Pei, for your understanding!" Li Yada pushed her spectacle up her nose bridge and left.
Pei Qian felt a little strange immediately after. Why did she need Boss Pei's understanding to postpone the vacation? Something felt wrong...
"Brother Qian, when are you going to return home?" Ma Yang gnawed hungrily at a box of chocolate.
He had never thought he would win the third place of the selection of outstanding employee. There might not be any substantial award, but he was very happy. He felt as though his work had been unanimously recognized by everyone in Tengda.
"I'm leaving after I pack some stuff in the afternoon," Pei Qian said lightly.
His attitude towards Ma Yang was slightly cold not only because Ma Yang's investment in IOI hurt him deeply but also because Ma Yang's results in the exams crushed him completely.
Pei Qian was very angry when he thought he spent so long reviewing but did not do better than Ma Yang.
Ma Yang did not notice the subtle changes in Pei Qian's attitude. He chewed on the chocolate and said, "Okay, Brother Qian, see you next year then!
"I did not spend much effort on Dream Realization Ventures because of the exams. I'll do my best to invest in a few big profitable projects when I return next year!"
Pei Qian was speechless.
Pei Qian started keeping his stuff after returning to his place. He used to keep everything that might give his identity away when he went home previously. He would wear a set of seemingly cheap clothes home,
we
However, Pei Qian deliberately chose some newer clothes. He also changed his cell phone and computer. He should give his parents a bit of hint now.
The house he bought could be handed over by the end of February, early March. That was pretty soon.
His parents might not be able to take it all at once if he told them that he bought a house. There would definitely be a lot of questions. He would give them some hints beforehand, that their son 'was earning money and was making quite a bit' during Chinese New Year.
Pei Qian had thought of a good reason beforehand. He would say that Fei Huang Workspace was doing rather well recently; he was also now part of the management at Fei Huang Workspace. His monthly income from various sources had reached about 15,000 yuan.
The first deposit for the house had been paid up with his bonuses as well. Even though he still needed to pay every month, it was not going to be a big burden. That could not be said that it was a lie. Pei Qian only told a half-truth.
1a
The developments at Fei Huang Workspace were pretty good. That was not wrong, right?
Pei Qian was now part of the management of Fei Huang Workspace; that was not wrong as well, right?
Monthly 15,000 yuan on average was not a big problem as well. It was even under-declared.
No matter what, he would do his best not to be too high profile when he told them about the financial resources for the house. He hoped to avoid unnecessary trouble.
At the same time...
The study class at Zhongdian Chinese Network in Jingzhou started their holiday as well. The class officially started on January 17th for a month so it would end on February 17th.
However, the holiday for the Chinese New Year could not be missed.
The network would choose its second set of authors after February 17th. The two classes would be conducted seamlessly. That was because the class was just a trial phase. It had yet to be fully confirmed.
This class would become a mainstay if it was confirmed that there was a huge help to the authors. The period might extend from the current one month to three months.
It would also be axed if it went on for some time and found that it was just spending money without much use.
However, this class looked like a success from the current situation.
The authors who participated in the classes were saying goodbye.
"Brother Cui, I'm heading off. I'll wait for your new book during the new year!"
"Just post in the group chat if anything were to crop up. Big Boss, remember to send red packets in the group!"
"Ming Yuju, don't forget to write a recommendation for my book!"
Cui Geng was biding them goodbye as well. He might be a special observer in Tengda Corporation, but he was still part of the class.
Cui Geng only set out to the airport in a taxi after getting recommendations from some authors with weight for his new book.
He suddenly had an inspiration while in the taxi. He couldn't help but want to write, and so he took out his notebook from his bag and opened a new document.
Insert title: The Butterfly Game.
He had been gathering materials with the
Tengda Living fossil' Bao Xu for the past few days before the holiday. He got to know some pretty interesting facts about Tengda when it was founded.
These were things he could write into his book.
He quickly wrote the first line, breathing life into the story.
"Um, I can write a few versions of this opening for the next three days to see which the best is before I modify it a bit."
"This way, I'll be able to publish the novel on the first day of Chinese New Year as my New Year greetings to everyone!"
Cui Geng's eyes sparkled as if there was a kind of cheering-a kind of calling from the soul.
At Tengda Games...
Li Yada called the three newcomers of the gaming department over to arrange their tasks beforehand. They were Hu Xianbin, Min Jingchao, and Zhang Nan. They were the three who passed the Tengda Spirit compatibility test on their first try.
Boss Pei might not have rewarded these three, but Li Yada felt that they must have something different from the others since they could pass the Tengda Spirit compatibility test in one sitting. Talents identified by Boss Pei naturally should be given important tasks!
"I'm going on vacation in March. The gaming department would be left in your charge then."
"Xianbin, I feel that you have the best comprehension. I'll bring you to familiarize yourself with the workflow after the new year and then with the work of a chief planner. The progress of work will be pushed by you in the future."
"Jingchao, you have experience in the finance department and have a good foundation in mathematics. Get some guidance from Brother Bao on GOG's system design problem. You shall be responsible for the balance of system design."
Li Yada finally looked towards Zhang Nan, the only female of the three. "You used to do fashion design. You'll be in charge of the design of the heroes' skin in GOG."
"Big Sister Li, don't worry, I have been working on system design and should be able to be proficient in it in no time," Min Jingchao said immediately.
Zhang Nan nodded. "I've designed a few new skins recently. I've received pretty good feedback. I'll send these design manuscripts to our outsourced art team for them to make these new heroes' skin."
Only Hu Xianbin was a little hesitant. "Big Sister Li, I'm to be a chief planner only two months after I joined? Is that... okay?"
Li Yada smiled. "No problem.""How do you think the previous chief planners of Tengda Games were chosen?" Hu Xianbin, "Huh?"
Li Yada gave a long meaningful smile.
From Huang Sibo to Lu Mingliang to Li Yada... each had not much experience before they were made chief planners. The gaming department had many older employees; some of them were even more qualified than Li Yada.
However, they were all used to their own responsibilities and were not interested in being a chief planner
They did not feel that a newcomer as a chief planner was inappropriate as well. None of the chief planners of the gaming department of Tengda Games were ever experienced.
Li Yada smiled and patted Hu Xianbin's shoulders. "Don't worry. Don't give yourself too much pressure. Being a Chief Planner is much easier than you think. You'll definitely be good if you give it your all.
"Alright, go home if there's nothing else. I'll familiarize you with the work details after New Year.
"Everyone, Happy Chinese New Year!"
hapter 412 Blessing for Spring Festival
February 2nd, Chinese New Year Eve...
Pei Qian lay on the sofa, playing his cell phone like a cripple.
His parents were also staring at their cell phone screens. They were grabbing red packets and sending voice messages to wish others Happy New Year.
The technology of cell phones had improved at a vast rate in this world. It was much more advanced than what Pei Qian thought. They were still calling and sending messages a few years back, but they had all advanced to using their phones to send red packets over the past two years.
Red packets of the older generations were usually a few yuan or cents. They were seldom over 50 yuan, sending just a 'good intention'.
Pei Qian's parents did grow suspicious about the new clothes and computer that he had brought home. However, he had already prepared his reasoning.
It might not be perfect, but he had paved the way. They knew Pei Qian was working at Fei Huang Workspace previously. Fei Huang Workspace was developing at a good pace recently so he managed to muddle over.
Most people brag about their position and income anyway. They would not think that Pei Qian would have any reason to do the opposite.
ere
Therefore, they were not too caught up about money but rather... the house.
Pei Qian had repeatedly stressed that the house was bought for them, but they obviously did not have such thinking. They wanted it to be their son's new wed house.
Pei Qian, therefore, did not say anymore. Let them say what they want.
It seemed like it wasn't enough for him to buy one house. He had to buy another one for them to stay in it with ease...
Look at how things had turned out...
Forget it, i'll do my best to lose more money in this cycle then!
Pei Qian started to play his cell phone with this thought in mind. He watched the New Year program on and off.
Pei Qian had forgotten what programs were on during the 2011 Chinese New Year program. However, he was sure that he had never seen these programs before after watching a few of them. The programs had changed... the celebrities had changed; however, the boredom persisted!
As expected, everyone was grumbling that the New Year program was boring again
Pei Qian did not express much emotion. He knew that the New Year programs would get worse as the years pass by...
He was swiping his cell phone with boredom when he suddenly received a message from Chang You of Otto Technologies.
"Boss Pei, thank you for your continued support during the previous year. I hope that Tengda will achieve great success during the New Year and earn as much as possible!
"I hope that Otto Technologies's cell phone would be able to sell in large quantities and surpass Shenhua's cell phones and buy over Pineapple!"
Pei Qian's face darkened when he saw this message.
What is the meaning of this? This Chang You, cursing me during Chinese New Year? However, he heard a 'beep' from his cell phone right on the heels of the message.
Red packet!
Pei Qian's eyes lit up and clicked on it to receive it.
One thousand yuan!
"Vice-President Chang's such a sport! It was the right decision to poach Vice-President Chang then!"
Pei Qian was very happy. He immediately forgot the unhappiness he felt just now and quickly replied, "Happy Chinese New Year, Vice-President Chang!"
All sorts of red packet sounds came after he replied Chang You.
"Boss Pei, Happy New Year!"
"I hope that Boss Pei will become more handsome in the New Year!"
"Happy New Year, hope all your wishes come true!"
"Wishing fair winds in Boss Pei's business and to earn big money!"
Some blessings made him happy, and some made him not so happy. However, Boss Pei was not someone petty and would not base the performance of an employee by their wishes.
He would definitely judge them based on their red packets!
Pei Qian realized that the older employees were better after all. Chang You, Zhang Yuan, Wu Bin, and the like gave him a minimum of 500 yuan to 1,000 yuan.
The younger employees like Lu Mingliang and Ma Yiqun generally gave 188 yuan[1.'188 in Mandarin could be read as easy to prosper.] as an auspicious sign for the New Year.
Perhaps they felt that Boss Pei would not care about how much they give anyway...
He was most pissed-off about Huang Sibo's message: "Boss Pei is not in need of money so I won't be old-fashioned to give you a red packet! I'll definitely work hard next year to bring glory to Tengda!" Pei Qian nearly wanted to fire Huang Sibo on the spot for the message. Was this something a human would say?! He said things like 'Boss Pei is not in need of money' and 'work hard next year'!
Challenge! This was a blatant challenge!
However, he decided to forgive him after thinking about it. It was New Year! He was just drafting a reply when new greetings came in.
Lin Wan, "Thank you for all you have done for us, Boss Pei! The progress for the game and cell phones are not going too well, but rest assured, Boss Pei. We'll do our best to complete the mission! I hope to continue working under Boss Pei's wise guidance in the New Year!"
Beep! 8,888 yuan was sent to him.
Lin Chang's message came immediately after.
Lin Chang's message was much simpler compared to Lin Wan's. "Boss Pei, loose change!"
Beep! 18,888 yuan.
Pei Qian's mouth nearly couldn't close from laughing. What was brotherhood? What was a friend?
This was!
Boss Lin was amazing!
Pei Qian did not feel like letting Lin Wan go that instant. Would Lin Wan give such red packets during festivals if she were to return?
However, his thoughts changed. No, Lin Chang sent him more.
Pei Qian received all the red packets in no time and replied.
To Lin Wan: "Happy New Year! You've worked too hard last year. You have to rest more next year; don't be so tired! I'm giving you another 10 days of paid leave; you've to use them all!"
To Lin Chang: "Lin Chang, don't worry. I'll arrange for that to happen after New Year!"
Send red packets back?
Impossible? Red packets were heartfelt feelings. 'You send me, and I send you' back was something aunties of the older generation would do. Was it something the younger generation did?
Moreover, Boss Pei had been giving all sorts of benefits and bonuses to them. Getting a few hundred or thousand in a red packet now wasn't something unreasonable, right?
Of course, it was because the system did not approve of expenses like red packets...
Boss Pei would have been bankrupted just by giving a few people red packets if he were to follow Lin Chang's style based on his pitiful Personal Wealth.
Giving just a few hundred yuan did not fit Boss Pei's status as well.
Therefore, he would rather not give any! However, no one would feel anything wrong about Boss Pei. The other people's messages arrived in no time.
A
Assistant Xin, "Wishing Boss Pei a harmonious family that's always happy and safe. I hope that the Tengda spirit will spread to every department in the new year!" (Red packet 666 yuan) Tang Yishu, "Senior, wishing that you will be able to eat all sorts of delicious food. Hoping that you will not forget all the good dreams you had, wishing that you always feel like it's Friday afternoon and that you will forever be as pure as a child!" (Red packet 99.9 yuan)
Pei Qian was delighted.
Look at Assistant Xin's understanding!
He knew that I'm most interested in whether everyone could better understand the Tengda spirit or not, not if Tengda could earn more money! This 666 yuan red packet was very nice as well.
Little Tang's blessings were pretty neat as well. This 99.9 yuan was a huge token from her considering her situation.
Pei Qian did an exception and returned Little Tang a 999 yuan red packet. "Thank you! A small token; use it for your family!"
Pei Qian was very busy accepting all the red packets. He was elastic and moved. He did not dote on his employees for nothing!
They remembered Boss Pei's good during the New Year after being so nice to them in normal times!
Boss Pei had given so many benefits; it was finally time to see some returns!
Many others also sent their red packets like Ma Yang, Ruan Guangjian, Teacher Qiao, Zhu Xiaoce, Lin Canrong... Li Shi...
There were too many of them. The amount in the red packets also varied.
The one with the largest face value was Boss Li. He gave 10,000 yuan in one shot. Others gave tens of yuan and hundreds of yuan.
However, Boss Pei did not mind. Whoever gave him the red package were good comrades!
He calculated the red packets he received and realized that he received more than 60,000 yuan.
He managed to reply to all of them only after ten in the evening. He rubbed his slightly sore shoulders while he could not help but sigh. If only Assistant Xin could help him to reply to all these messages now!
He turned around to his parents who were still snatching red packets.
"Hurry up! Second Uncle sent me a 200 yuan red packet; I grabbed five yuan!"
"I'm sending a 50 yuan one. Watch and grab it, I'm sending it now!"
"I snatched 1.5 yuan!"
"Your luck is really bad!"
"1.5 yuan is also money, alright." Pei Qian shook his head. Sigh, the aged had their fun as well.
Pei Qian lazed around on the sofa after he collected all the red packets. He opened the Zhongdian Chinese Network app, wanting to find a random book to read so that he could kill time.
He looked around and saw Cui Geng's message to his reader after ending the book a few hours ago.
"Eh? Isn't this the 'teachable's book? Great, it should end!"
Pei Qian was delighted.
This Cui Geng gave notice that he was going to end his book after he experienced the Tengda spirit. He did end his book after one week.
In fact, this book only had 800,000 characters.
He might have been hesitating at first, but he ended it decisively after he accepted the 'special observer' appointment!
Look, how bold!
Pei Qian looked at the comments below the note.
"This lazy bum is acting up again! Ain't you a lousy author if you end the book at 800,000 words?"
"To be precise it's 830,000 words."
"It's probably 400,000 words tops if you take away all the fillers!"
"I think it's still alright. The holes are roughly all filled up. The story is rather complete."
"The one on top, it's because of readers like you who are easily pleased that there are so many authors. Trash is trash, rubbish is rubbish! I suggest boycotting this lazy bum and his new book!"
"That is, what's that new book called? The Butterfly Game'? Never going to read it!" New book?
Pei Qian immediately became cautious. There was indeed a prelude to a new book in the notes after careful reading!
It's called 'The Butterfly Game', set in an urban city.
However, not many of the readers were paying attention to the new book. They were all criticizing Cui Geng.
That was normal. Cui Geng had been writing the Xuanhuan novel so his readers were all fans of Xuanhuan. They had no interest in urban themes.
Not only did that not attract the old readers, but many of them even went to the comments section of the new book to dissuade the readers from reading. They said that the author was not reliable and cautioned everyone against falling into a trap.
Pei Qian was worried at first, but he immediately felt assured after reading the criticism.
"Maybe I'm overthinking it.
"A leopard never changes its spots. Teachable had been a well-known lazy bum in Zhongdian Chinese Network. Would he continue writing his book with stable earnings and benefits from a job?
"Impossible!
"I'll be able to lose a lot of money and become a tycoon if he could really write a book seriously!"
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Chapter 413 Boss Pei wouldn't Bear a Grudge, Would He?
At the same time, Ma Yiqun had been keeping an eye on Cui Geng's new book.
Although Ma Yiqun was already the CEO of Zhongdian Chinese Network and only editors of the Editor-in-Chief should have been closely following books, it was now the Chinese New Year. Ma Yiqun did not have much else to do while at home.
Ma Yiqun had heard about Cui Geng's name as an author a long time ago. He knew about the latter's dark history.
Still, no matter what, Cui Geng was talented.
A talented but lazy writer would beat an untalented writer who blindly worked hard any day.
After all, the online literature industry was a creative industry. Many times, it did not matter how quickly one wrote, but it mattered whether one wrote well or not.
Even if one wrote very quickly, they would only be producing rubbish quickly in the eyes of the readers if their content was bad.
The Butterfly Game had only started a while ago. Of course, Ma Yiqun could not tell much from the book's comment section.
He did not bother looking there. Instead, he began reading the book.
The pace at the beginning was quite fast. There was a brief introduction to the protagonist. Soon after, he obtained his powers. After briefly explaining how the powers could be used, the main plot began.
On New Year's Eve, Cui Geng uploaded five chapters. Within those five chapters, he had completed a minor plot point.
After the protagonist obtained the powers in The Butterfly Game, he helped the first supporting actor-an independent game designer-to fulfill his dreams.
The plot of that first segment was quite straightforward. It acted as a preview of the novel's core satisfying points.
An independent, destitute, and dejected game designer had created a standalone game. The game was created using extremely simple material, but its gameplay was quite meaningful. Still, since the game designer had no money to advertise the game, no one knew about it.
The protagonist discovered the game designer while observing the parallel world. Thus, he used his own powers to locate a UP Master in the games channel, make the UP master download the game 'coincidentally', and cause the UP Master to try the game out.
With the help of the UP Master's advertising efforts, the game suddenly became popular. Things developed outside the game designer's control, but through all of that, the game designer managed to realize his dreams.
What followed the five chapters was a notice from Cui Geng.
The notice was very simple. First, he apologized to his readers for whatever happened with his previous book. Second, he emphasized that he had thought long and hard about this new book. He promised that its contents would be exciting, and he asked for his readers' patience.
He also informed his readers that he had decided not to leave his house after the Chinese New Year, so that he could upload at least ten thousand words a day.
After reading this, Ma Yiqun fell into deep thought.
He had written online novels for a long time. He had also been keeping a close eye on the way online novels were developing recently. Until now, he had already learned a thing or two.
Were there problems with this novel? Of course.
However, it also had huge advantages!
At the moment, the novel market was still filled with books about young underdogs with unlimited potential. Most writers used simple, violent methods to invoke feelings of tension, feud, and hatred in their readers and to engage their emotions. Most novels set in cities were well-developed as well, but none of them jumped out of the same few frameworks. Many revolved around powerful soldiers, campus flowers, and rebirth. All of them used the same, traditional, satisfying point: a supporting actor trying to show off and ending up being defeated by the protagonist.
However, Ma Yiqun could tell that the basic framework of The Butterfly Game was vastly different from the novels that were trending at the moment.
If it could keep up the fast pace, it would pave an entirely new path on its own.
Most novels at the moment still made use of the so-called 'Golden Three Chapters' rule; that is, they made use of a set cycle of oppression, obtaining of powers, and victory.
One could not criticize such a plan. However, it had been used so much that writers instinctively wanted to puke when they spotted it in new novels.
On the other hand, The Butterfly Game had foregone this plan altogether. There had been no hint of oppression in the first few chapters, and the protagonist had obtained his powers right from the start. What's more, it did not seem like people would be defeated, too. Instead, the novel seemed to be crafting its own satisfactory plotline. Apart from that, the novel's way of satisfying its readers was completely different from other novels.
The way most online literature satisfied their readers now was by using pure violence. Often, it meant that the oppressed protagonist would rise to power to defeat their oppressors.
Yet, The Butterfly Game satisfied its readers subtly. Through the light ball, the protagonist could cause small changes in a parallel world, make use of the butterfly effect, and achieve interesting outcomes. What made the protagonist such an appealing character was not something as obvious as being able to defeat his oppressors. Instead, it was more reserved. Still, it could bring readers similar enjoyment and pleasure.
Furthermore, the protagonist's sense of achievement aside, a reader could still feel joy by placing himself in the shoes of other characters in the book such as the destitute game designer.
That kind of joy made the novel feel like an adult fairytale. Everyone knew that most independent game designers lacked publicity, and their games failed ninety percent of the time.
In reality, most independent game designers would indignantly give up on their own dreams. However, the independent game designer in the novel managed to fulfill his dreams thanks to the butterfly effect caused by the protagonist's actions. To the readers, that would be very satisfying.
If the currently-popular novels could be likened to red braised pork, this novel could be likened to the simpler tomato slices with
sugar.
Red braised pork was delicious. However, if different types of red braised pork filled a table, the tomato slices with sugar would stand out from the moment it was served.
On top of that, Ma Yiqun seemed to see Tengda's shadow in Cui Geng's new novel.
He could sense that Boss Pei had been the inspiration behind this novel. After all, when Boss Pei created The Lonely Desert Road, Teacher Qiao had been the one who had caused the game to become popular with a single video.
Using the profits from that game, Boss Pei had created Ghost General. That was how he had made the first bucket of gold that established Tengda Corporation.
Thus, this novel was especially close to Ma Yiqun's heart.
From this angle, Ma Yiqun thought that the book would be extremely popular on Zhongdian Chinese Network if it was well-written.
Yet, was the book perfectly written?
Ma Yiqun did not think so.
There was still room for improvement. If adequate modifications were made, the book could improve by an entire tier!
It was just as well. Since Cui Geng had not written much yet, he could easily turn around. Ma Yiqun had to make sure that he changed as much as possible, as soon as possible!
At that thought, Ma Yiqun called Cui Geng. "Boss Ma, I'm writing right now! Don't worry. I'm going to write this book very well. I won't leave it incomplete this time! I'll write at least two million words!" Before Ma Yiqun could speak, Cui Geng expressed his determination.
"Hehe, guess how many times you've said this already."
Ma Yiqun's first response made Cui Geng shut up immediately.
"Alright, I'm not calling you about that." Ma Yiqun laughed and cut straight to the chase. "I was going to talk to you about your new novel indeed, but apart from reminding you to write it well and not to leave it incomplete, there was something else."
Cui Geng was stunned. "Please go ahead, Boss Ma."
Ma Yiqun replied, "I have some suggestions. Let me explain them to you briefly. If you think they make sense, you can modify your book. Otherwise, don't worry about it. Take it that we're brainstorming and working as a team to make this novel as good as it can be.
"I think your novel has potential. That's why I want to make sure that its content is perfected."
Feeling overwhelmed by Boss Ma's favor, Cui Geng said, "Please advise me." Ma Yiqun organized his thoughts and then explained them to Cui Geng in detail.
"I can tell that the Boss Pei was your inspiration for the first mini-plot. Tengda has many interesting stories to draw from indeed. You can use them as inspiration. However, I think you've not applied enough of your artistic flair to it.
"I have two main suggestions:
"First, I think the protagonist, as a pure observer, isn't sufficiently involved in the plot. "There's nothing wrong with making the protagonist a pure tool. Some writers do that as well. However, if you can connect the protagonist with the plot, it'll be more interesting
"This is what I'm thinking: the light ball that the protagonist obtains does not concern a parallel world, but his own world.
"Everything that the protagonist does realistically changes his world and improves the world around him for the better.
"At the same time, the protagonist can benefit from his own actions as well. For example, the protagonist could end up helping a certain entrepreneur establish a multi-billion-dollar empire. However, before the empire is established, he could buy some shares in it first. Thus, he could reap from his own actions and change his own life. "Furthermore, while he works behind the scenes, the protagonist would also be able to meet the supporting characters in real life. That would add some interesting points to the plot as well.
"Apart from that, I think you could adjust the tone of the book.
"At the moment, the narrative is quite positive, and the satisfactory points stare at readers in the face.
"This is what I mean: the protagonist aims to do something, does it, and then prospers.
"I think this is a stable way of writing, but it might not be that attractive to readers.
"Instead, you could consider injecting more opposition into the narrative. That would add to the uncertain nature of the butterfly effect, a twist to the satisfactory points, and more humor to the story.
"Simply put, it'll be this: the protagonist doesn't want something to happen, an accident occurs, things don't go as he plans, and he prospers. "Let's use your first mini-plot as an example. At the moment, this is how it's written: an independent game designer wants to succeed, the protagonist uses The Butterfly Game to help him, and the independent game designer prospers. "After modifying the narrative, it could become like this: the independent game designer never wanted to prosper but only wanted to create a game to antagonize society. The protagonist finds the game interesting, uses The Butterfly Game to help him, and the independent game designer prospers.
"While writing, make sure that you use a humorous tone. That would make your novel's plot stand out among the traditional ones.
"Do you understand?"
At the other end of the line, Cui Geng remained silent. It was like he was trying hard to digest everything that Ma Yiqun had said.
After a long time, he hummed in approval and said, "Boss Ma, you make a lot of sense! I did think that I was lacking something as I wrote the first few chapters.
"It was like a dish that had all the ingredients and that had been cooked perfectly, but it still lacked some flavor!
"If I can include those two points in my novel; it will definitely be more outstanding!
"However... I have some worries, Boss Ma."
Ma Yiqun asked, "Huh? What are they?"
After some hesitation, Cui Geng answered, "Honestly, Boss Pei was my inspiration for the first mini-plot about the game designer.
"I wonder if editing it in the way that you suggested would cause Boss Pei to look bad. Boss Pei wouldn't bear a grudge, would he?"
Chapter 414 Resume Work Earlier? No Way!
Ma Yiqun laughed as if he had just heard the biggest joke in the world. "What do you take Boss Pei for?
"Boss Pei is so magnanimous and far-sighted. Until now, Upwind Logistics is still incurring losses, and yet has Boss Pei said a word about it? No! He still trusts Upwind Logistics' leader so much.
"You think Boss Pei would be so calculating over something as small as this? You're belittling him."
After some thought, Cui Geng realized that this was true.
Boss Pei was so magnanimous. How could he stack the deck against Cui Geng over a single novel? That sounded impossible.
"Alright, Boss Ma! I'll change it at once!
"It's a good thing that I hadn't written that much yet, and I won't have to change the plot too drastically. I think I can include the modifications very quickly," said Cui Geng with determination.
Ma Yiqun was very satisfied with Cui Geng's attitude. It looked like the latter was serious about writing this time.
"This is what I'm thinking: if you can consistently upload five chapters a day throughout the Chinese New Year holiday, I'll tell Zhu Xingan to give your novel a recommendation spot in advance!
"The faster you write, the better a spot you'll get. Try to make the novel the most popular one in the urban genre!"
Once again, Cui Geng felt overwhelmed by Boss Ma's favor. "Alright, no problem! I'm not going anywhere over the holiday. I'm staying at home to write!"
...
After getting Ma Yiqun's advice, Cui Geng felt more motivated.
If even the higher management of the website was recommending his novel, would he still have to worry about not getting enough recommendations?
All Cui Geng wanted to do now was to write as quickly as he could while maintaining the novel's quality. He would write ten thousand words per day and hope that those readers, who had a habit of only chasing books on the recommendation lists, would get hooked on his novel as soon as possible.
It was just as well that Cui Geng's creative juices were flowing at their peak. Before the Chinese New Year, he had gathered a lot of material from Tengda Games. He only had to process the material slightly before including them in his novel.
All he had to think about was how to write those stories more dramatically to create conflict.
Cui Geng began tapping away rapidly at his keyboard.
"Even if my family goes through ten more demolitions, it wouldn't stop me from writing this novel well and completing it!"
On the first day of the Chinese New Year, Cui Geng edited the five chapters that he had already uploaded, as well as the chapters that he had already written. After confirming that the story flowed, he continued writing subsequent chapters. To his surprise, Cui Geng found that adopting Ma Yiqun's suggestions had been extremely effective!
When he wrote before, he had felt that something was missing. It caused him to feel more sullen as he wrote. Even after finishing the first five chapters, he had found the story imperfect and had felt that something needed to be changed.
Yet, he had no idea what exactly needed to be changed.
Thus, although Cui Geng had been writing quite quickly, he had also felt unsure.
Now, things were different. After adopting Ma Yiqun's suggestions, Cui Geng realized that he could interweave interesting, transiting storylines that concerned the protagonist into the original plot. His story seemed to flow much better.
He read the chapters after writing and also felt more satisfied. The nagging feeling that something needed to be changed had disappeared completely!
The words flowed naturally to Cui Geng. As he held onto his own laptop and typed, everything else around him seemed to disappear.
As Cui Geng uploaded more and more chapters, the comments under the book changed as well.
"Huh? Did he change the first few chapters?"
"The opening was not bad before, but this opening is much more interesting!"
"I wanted to stop reading the no-show's books altogether, but I subconsciously read his newest uploads. D*mn it!"
"Ai, you can curse him all you want, but you have to admit that the no-show's books are really nice to read! This opening is really attractive; I might fall for it again!"
"I'm going to ask you if you can really write two million words this time! Forget it, I'm not going to hold too much hope. Just write as much as you can..."
"Suddenly, novels set in the city look so interesting to me!"
"That's strange. I thought most writers would lose a bunch of readers after switching to city novels from Xuanhuan novels, but many of these IDs look familiar. Are you still around? All of you keep saying that you won't read another one of this no-show's books, but you're still eating your own words..."
"This book is really interesting. It's humorous and full of tricks. Changing the world one accident at a time... that gives me a subtle, warm feeling in my heart. It's really
good!"
"I'm tired of reading Xuanhuan and Xianxia books that revolve around killing entire families. It doesn't sound like a bad idea to try something new every once in a while. You have my vote. If you dare to leave this book incomplete, I'll turn up at your doorstep and slaughter you!"
"You're uploading five chapters a day for a new novel? Aren't you afraid it won't get a recommendation spot?"
"Why should he worry about that? This new novel already has a really good recommendation spot. It looks like the website is intentionally supporting this novel!"
"It's really interesting indeed. I'm going to share it with my friends!"
February 4th, the second day of the Chinese New Year...
In the afternoon...
The cool breeze blew past. Standing at the entrance of the internet cafe not far from his home, Pei Qian held his arms open, wanting the breeze to cleanse his body of the stench of cigarettes.
"Ai, I should have opened a Fish-Catching Internet Cafe branch near my house earlier..."
Pei Qian shivered in the breeze, a sorrowful thought surfacing in his mind.
There really wasn't anything fun to do during the Chinese New Year period.
Today was the second day of the Chinese New Year. Pei Qian had gathered with a few of his close childhood friends and classmates, and they had spent an entire day out together.
Since there weren't many things to do in the small county, everyone decided to catch a movie at a cinema, have lunch, and then play games together at a nearby internet cafe. After watching the movie, Pei Qian had mixed feelings.
Of course, he mainly felt lucky!
At first, he had planned to release Tomorrow is Beautiful during the Chinese New Year period. He had thought that since the Chinese New Year provided an occasion for families to gather, more people would go to the cinemas and watch it. Then, more people would diss it and cause it to fail quickly.
What's more, many other films would premiere during this period as well. He had thought that very few slots would be given to Tomorrow is Beautiful in cinemas.
However, after watching the most anticipated movie during the Chinese New Year period that day, Pei Qian only had one thought: 'What the hell is this?!'
He had forgotten which movies had been popular during this period in 2011, but none of the ones that were showing in the cinema looked like they could become popular.
As he walked out of the cinema, he had checked his cell phone and discovered that the Chinese New Year period this year was not considered a good season for movies.
The movies during this period all had ratings of less than 7.0 on ticketing sites. Pei Qian guessed that none of the movies would manage to generate even two hundred billion yuan in revenue either. This was incredibly shocking.
After more thought, Pei Qian realized that the Chinese New Year period only became a popular season for movies because of Stephen Chow's Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons in 2013.
This world was quite different. Even the movies were completely different from what Pei Qian had remembered. Thus, although the Chinese New Year period was still considered a good season for releasing movies, there weren't many good films to begin with.
At that thought, Pei Qian began to feel strangely fearful.
What if he released Tomorrow is Beautiful during the Chinese New Year period and it failed to incur losses?
It was not that Pei Qian had no confidence in his own movie. However, the airing films were really rubbish, and he needed the help of his fellow filmmakers. Pei Qian thought, perhaps it's a good thing that they could not release Tomorrow is Beautiful in time for the Chinese New Year period.
Hopefully, one or two blockbusters would be released at the same time as Tomorrow is Beautiful so that its sales would be hurt.
As for playing online games with his friends...
There weren't many good internet cafes in the county. They had found the best one already, but smoking was not prohibited there. Pei Qian nearly choked to death while playing.
He could only say that he had not thought things through well enough in the beginning. He had only set up an Upwind Courier station in front of his parents' place, so that picking up their packages would be convenient for them. He had not even thought about opening a Fish-Catching Internet Cafe at his doorstep.
"I'll speak to Zhang Yuan about this when I get back and ask him to set up a Fish-Catching Internet Cafe near my house. It doesn't matter whether it incurs losses or makes a profit. At least, I'll be able to play there during the next Chinese New Year holiday.
"Eh? That's not right. Zhang Yuan has already been eliminated by the first-place-elimination system.
"I'll speak to the new in-charge of Fish-Catching Internet Cafe after the holiday, then..."
Pei Qian shook off the smell of cigarettes outside, said goodbye to his childhood friends and high school classmates, and then headed home.
On the way home, Pei Qian thought about his experience gaming in the internet cafe.
While thinking about what game they should play, his childhood friends and high school classmates were swinging back and forth between IOI and GOG.
Obviously, as battle games that had been released most recently, IOI and GOG were equally influential among groups of gamers.
Still, everyone decided to play IOI in the end. That was comforting to Pei Qian.
Indeed, the crowd's eyes were sharp. IOI was still a tier better than GOG!
However, after being immersed in the game for some time, Pei Qian realized that IOI was very different from LOL. The heroes in both games had nothing in common, and IOI's operations were more complicated.
What's more, for them to play IOI in China, they had to make use of an accelerator and connect to a foreign server. Thus, the lag was pretty bad.
Of course, that did not affect the game's popularity.
Fish-Catching Internet Cafe aside, many other internet cafes had installed both IOI and GOG in their computers at the moment.
Internet cafe owners were very good at observing the market. They would make sure to install games that looked most popular among gamers in the internet cafe at the
time.
Furthermore, IOI was going to be updated today. After all, the United States did not celebrate Chinese New Year.
As he approached home, Pei Qian's cell phone rang.
He had thought that it was his mother, chasing him to go home for dinner. However, as he retrieved his cell phone in the cool breeze, Pei Qian discovered that it was Li Yada.
"Eh? Why are you calling me today?
"Are you sending me a greeting? "That can't be. You've already sent me a message on the eve of Chinese New Year."Pei Qian picked up the phone, full of suspicion.
Li Yada's anxious voice immediately sounded. "Boss Pei! I think IOI just updated their game. Did you notice that?"
Pei Qian, "Oh, I know. What's up?"
Li Yada was stunned as if she had not expected Boss Pei to sound so calm. In fact, there seemed to be a bit of... joy amidst the calm tone.
"Boss Pei, once IOI is updated, GOG would be much less competitive! Finger Games is not celebrating the Chinese New Year! "A ten-day Chinese New Year holiday might not seem like much, but our game started off worse off than IOI already. If we delay this any further, the consequences would be dire. We might not be able to catch up with them!
"Can I apply to resume work earlier? I know it's wrong to work overtime, but it's an emergency..."
Pei Qian frowned.
Resume work earlier?! No way!