Pei Qian judged from He An's expression that he was really angry.
That was quite normal; who wouldn't be angry when he was being cheated?
Ruan Guangjian's 'Boss Pei' explained everything. He An must have now understood that Pei Qian tricked him into thinking that he was 'Ma Yang' during their lessons.
As to how He An himself understood this matter...
That was difficult to say.
Pei Qian felt that he would make more mistakes if he were to say anything extra. He should wait for Teacher He to ask before answering him.
Pei Qian quickly broke the ice after thinking about it. "Teacher He, would you like a cup of coffee?"
He An's sullen face looked a little better, but he was still silent.
The two of them walked into Fish-Catching Internet Cafe and found a place to sit down. The waiter came over immediately to take their orders and came back expeditiously with two cups of coffee.
He An drank his coffee. Boss Pei's 'Teacher He' made him cool down significantly.
He should be angry now, but his mood was a little complicated besides being angry.
He An would have left if it was anyone else, but to Boss Pei... he had to reconsider.
There seemed to be many suspicious points here; he had to have clarity before doing anything else.
The 'Boss Ma' who took his lectures—that actor in Boss Pei's Daily Life—was actually the real Boss Pei. Then, the problem came. Why did Boss Pei act as Boss Ma to get me to teach him?
Could he be worried that I would not teach him if he said he was Boss Pei himself/
Hmmm... that was possible. I would probably not take on this job if I knew that it was to teach Boss Pei. I would most likely meet him and discuss with him generally; neither would I have seriously prepared those lessons nor taken his money.
So Boss Pei wanted to learn from ground zero?
That did not seem possible.
Boss Pei already had his genius mind even if he did not study all these so why bother to learn it all again?
It was luck if he made one successful game, but it was not just luck if he made so many successful games...
Or was it that Boss Pei originally wanted to subvert these game design concepts? Was that why he made 'Struggle' that deliberately contradicted my theory?
Or, as a genius of game design, his ideas were too far away from common men that to complete a textbook-like work like 'Struggle', they had to accept the design concept from traditional designers?
Were the breakthrough innovations he made based on traditional ideas?
Both of them drank their coffee silently with thoughts on both their minds.
Pei Qian thought for a long time but did not think of a suitable reason.
Why did he need to learn that? Because it was a requirement from the system.
This reason was impossible to tell him!
Then, would it be possible to tell He An that he actually did not understand game design? He just wanted to learn some basic knowledge? Too many successes and wanted to learn from failure experiences as well?
He An would probably splash his coffee all over his face before he had a chance to finish then.
He An would definitely be pissed off if he heard all these.
That was too difficult!
Pei Qian did not want it to continue this cold war so he said tentatively: "Teacher He, I actually have some special reasons for doing what I did. It is just not convenient for me to tell you."
"Boss Pei, I'm guessing that you feel that the knowledge from a common man will help you better see the problems you might have overlooked before?" He An said after being silent for a short while.
"Just like some talented artists and musicians would find some ordinary artist for inspiration after they did not know how better to continue after their huge successes, right?"
Pei Qian: "?"
He An took a sip of his coffee and continued. "You did make me very angry having concealed your identity, but thinking about it carefully, I probably would not have been so serious about teaching if you told me who you were from the start.
"Moreover, you have been addressing me as 'Teacher He', and you had been listening very intently when I spoke about Tengda Games. Obviously, you wanted to re-examine your game from another angle.
"I spoke about 'The Landlord Game' in the lecture and expectations for domestically-produced standalone games. You responded very well with the game 'Struggle'; to be honest, I'm very pleased with this.
"Therefore, as a gracious person, I'll let bygones be bygones!"
Pei Qian never expected that He An would actually figure everything out by himself even though he did not say anything.
Erm...
Had the imagination supplement that happened to the employees started to happen with people around him on a large scale?
Pei Qian was silent for a moment. "Uh... Teacher He, there is some truth in what you said, but it is not all because of that."
He An was a little stunned. "Oh?"
Pei Qian thought about the wording a little. "In fact, the game 'Struggle' deliberately added some failure elements. The main reason is to experiment and see how these failure elements would affect a game...
"However, by some stroke of luck, these failure elements also succeeded..."
Pei Qian did not want to take all the success of 'Struggle' for himself. To be honest, he had always been distressed about the praise given to him by the outside world.
That was because most contents in it were not his intentions at all!
Boss Pei's persona would become higher and higher if they were to continue praising him like this. He would also fall badly if the fall came for him in the future.
Pei Qian did not really care about it. He was more worried that the people who gave him that persona could not take the difference.
Therefore, he had to set the expectations right and not let everyone expect too much of himself by keeping a low profile.
Pei Qian nearly wanted to write 'I'm just a normal person' on his face.
Pei Qian wanted to work hard to dispel the false impression that the success of 'Struggle' was strategized by Boss Pei.
Of course, it was not possible for him to tell others that he wanted to lose money. However, to put it in another way... which was to experiment for the various failures of games. It was much easier to accept and would not cause too much doubt.
He An froze for a moment. "Intentionally add some failure factors to the game and see how they impact the game?
"Boss Pei, is it possible that you have reached the stage of 'gaining whatever you want'? You can even achieve success even if you added some failure factors at will?
"Are you... challenging me?
"Boss Pei, you might have the qualification to say that, but I must still say, young man, don't be too arrogant! Pride makes the fall; how can you talk as though you are 'Dugu Qiubai[1.'Dugu Qiubai is a fictional character appearing in Jin Yong's novels, literally meaning 'Alone and Lonely, Wishing For Defeat.]'?
"It is not easy to make a successful game; isn't it easy to make a failed game?
"Think about it clearly: it is not as easy to become successful again if you were to fail."
Pei Qian found that the more he explained, the more He An misunderstood.
However, He An's words made Pei Qian's eyes shine.
It was easy to lose money by making a game?
"Why don't we do this? Teacher He, how about this? Please tell me a type of game that would definitely fail... let me challenge myself."
He could always say that he was challenging himself, not deliberately losing money to make games that fail.
Some truths could not be told. He An would not be able to believe in him anyway.
Only such a statement would be able to be accepted by He An.
Let He An think of a path that would inevitably fail. It must be a surefire way!
He An's mouth twitched slightly. "Yo, are you provoking me?
"You'll make a failed game according to what I say?"
Pei Qian nodded fiercely. "Of course!"
He An laughed. "That's easy! Make an RTS game; not too much—invest 200 million yuan. The engines were ready-made, and a large part of the development time and cost had already been saved. Doing this would definitely result in a loss!"
Pei Qian nodded. As expected, Teacher He also felt that RTS games could lose money! That was the same as what he told him in class.
However, it did not seem that reliable if it was just the game type.
"What about other aspects?" Pei Qian asked.
He An was shocked. "So confident?! In that case, invest another 300 million yuan to make a CG; it will definitely lose all your money!"
"As for the subject, I don't need to limit it since you will be investing 500 million yuan if you add CG. If you can't make a loss with this..."
"...then you are incredible."
He An panted but did not dare set any flag that was too damaging.
500 million yuan investment? Pei Qian thought.
Hmm, it would be a little troublesome to squeeze out this amount of money, but that was okay in the name of losing money.
What was more, this 500 million yuan was not to be invested all at once. Such a game would definitely need to be developed across two settlement cycles. It may take a year to develop it so it would not be a big deal to squeeze out 500 million yuan during such a long time.
Pei Qian nodded thinking about this. "Alright, Teacher He, that will be the next Tengda game!"
He An nearly spat his coffee out.
"Are you really going to make RTS games?"
He An originally thought that Boss Pei was just joking. Looking at Boss Pei's expression, it seemed like he really wanted to challenge himself?
"Boss Pei, that is 500 million yuan! Are you sure you don't need to think about it?"
Pei Qian smiled. "No need!"
His loss was set in stone, looking at He An's expression!
What else was there to think about if it was a definite loss?
He An did not know what to say after he was dumbfounded.
That 500 million yuan did not seem to mean much to Boss Pei!
Could it be possible that Boss Pei had plans once he heard about RTS games? Could there be some method I don't know about?
He An was convinced: what was this called? The courageous and daring!
He had always felt that the young should not be too arrogant and vigorous.
However, Boss Pei's heroic and vigorous appearance seemed to have made him see himself when he was a teenager.
Would he be a young man if he was not vigorous?
He An could not help but admire him from the bottom of his heart and give him a thumbs-up. "Alright, Boss He, the matter of you lying to me will be total bygones if you really do this. Not only that, but I'll also be your mouthpiece on Weibo!"
"There is no need to be my mouthpiece! If this game really makes me lose all my money, then I will ask Teacher He for more tips," Pei Qian hurriedly said.
He An: "?"
Boss Pei was really a maverick game designer; what he said was so plausible and unpredictable.
Chapter 666: The Championship would Forever Belong to DGE!
September 25th, Sunday, Final Day of the GOG International invitational tournament...
The H4 Club and EK Club had successfully reached the finals!
Amongst them, SUG was the original favorite to win the championship, but they were beaten out of the lead after suffering defeats from the EK club led by Jiang Huan in five rounds during the semi-finals.
The game was finished two days ago. SUG's overall strength was much stronger than that of EK; however, Jiang Huan was incredibly good at being the toplaner. The five rounds of games were forcefully carried through by him, relying on extremely delicate operations and calm decision-making. The audiences were high on that turn of events.
The H4 Club won against the FRY Club 3:0 without any mishaps and suspense and made it to the finals.
The two veteran clubs, the H4 Club and the FRY Club were rivals. The opening game of this International invitational tournament was played by these two teams. They were still nearly on par, which was very anxious and exciting.
FRY climbed all the way to the top four by stepping on the corpses of foreign teams. It could be said that they were the strongest foreign team at present. Therefore, many audiences did not dare to underestimate their strengths.
They thought that it would be a close match, but they didn't expect the H4 Club to end the battle with a clean 3:0.
They might have two fewer games to watch, but the audiences were equally elastic. Who wouldn't want to watch domestic teams completely slay the foreign teams?
Many people also realized during the competition that these domestic teams seemed to be able to continue growing!
The H4 Club did not seem to be very adapted to the competitive environment; some of them were fearful and missed out on many opportunities.
However, the H4 Club played more decisively in the semi-finals again. Coupled with the line-up, tactical selection, and team cooperation; FRY Club seemed to find it difficult to fight against them.
The managers of these clubs knew the inside story.
During the International competition, these domestic teams had been using various opportunities to play training games together and improve their progress together!
In short, Jiang Huan, the captain of the DGE Team One, AND Huang Wang, the captain of Team Two, had successfully met in the finals!
The popularity of the GOG International invitational tournament had exploded directly on many major live-stream platforms. Many live broadcast platforms were stuck and had to urgently purchase additional bandwidth.
It was more so for the live event. Tickets were long sold out; even the newly opened Fish-Catching Internet Cafe 3.0's live esports museum was crowded with onlookers.
In short, GOG's popularity in the international invitational tournament had reached its peak with the arrival of the finals!
Many people had speculated based on the results of three games:
EK 3:2 SUG
H4 3:0 FRY
SUG 3:1 FRY
SUG and FRY's match was played yesterday. SUG won third place. Even though from the point of view of the result, SUG's strength was also significantly higher than that of FRY; it was 3:1 after all.
Therefore, most people think that the contention of today's competition should be between EK and H4!
Moreover, Huang Wang and Jiang Huan—the former captains of DGE Club—successfully rallied forces to the finals, which had increased the popularity of the DGE Club.
...
Pei Qian sat below the stage while wearing a black mask. He only dared to push a straw underneath his mask to take a secret sip after he realized that people were not paying attention to him.
Pei Qian finally managed to convince He An without giving himself away at Fish-Catching Internet Cafe the day before yesterday.
Pei Qian had been in the Fish-Catching Internet Cafe all day during Friday and Saturday, during which about a dozen people asked him for photographs and autographs.
Everyone treated him as Boss Pei's actor so they did not trouble him anymore after they took a photo with him
Pei Qian felt that this situation was acceptable so he decided to watch the finals today.
However, considering that almost all the Tengda players were at the game, it was next to impossible not to be recognized. Pei Qian, therefore, put on a mask in a bid to significantly reduce the risk of being discovered.
Soon, the two commentators began their commentary on the analysis of the game; the warm-up and the promotional video were also being broadcasted on the big screen.
The competition had officially started!
The audiences cheered for the two teams in accordance with the previously agreed rules.
"Do your best, EK!"
"Do your best, H4!"
"Do your best, DGE!!!"
The entire audience suddenly cheered on DGE together after they cheered on the other two teams. Those voices turned out to be louder than the previous.
Pei Qian: "..."
The f*ck!
Not only that, but the camera also caringly shot the audiences in the front row, who held the banners. There were banners for EK and H4 naturally, but the most were for the DGE Club.
"Huang Wang: Boxer, fights online explosively!"
"Jiang Huan: Everything can be solved with operations and maneuvers; maneuver hard and fast!"
"Crooked? Don't C those from DGE!"
"Our DGE will never be defeated!"
"DGE, the only champion in the GOG International invitational tournament!"
"GOG Global Finals!"
Pei Qian felt utter despair looking at these lighted banners.
The DGE Club was on fire completely; it could not be stopped!
Pei Qian was very helpless and could only comfort himself constantly. No problem, the players had already been sold. The players that they newly recruited could not become as good as them. The DGE Club would no longer be famous as long as the members of the other clubs also become muscle men...
...
The finals were fought very fiercely. The cheers from the audience also followed the wave.
Zhang Yuan and Coach Yaling sat in the audience to watch the game; they were also very engaged.
Coach Yaling may not understand GOG, but the players were trained up by her and had special feelings for them so she still came to the event location.
She could not understand what was happening on the big screen, but she still felt her heart swell with pride hearing the cheers of the scene. She could fully appreciate the excitement of esports.
"I might not understand what was going on, but I still relish the situation.
"If I could understand it, then it should be particularly exciting, right?" Coach Yaling showed lingering in her expression.
Zhang Yuan nodded. "Well, they are doing very well. However, not all esports could have such a program effect. Amongst which, Boss Pei's overall arrangement was the most important!"
Coach Yaling was a little surprised. She whispered after a moment. "What? Boss Pei arranged a fake match?"
Zhang Yuan was a little dumbfounded. "How is it possible?!
"Boss Pei will never resort to fraud; he must use a high-end, more natural method!
"At the beginning, I only managed DGE Club as an ordinary club. Obviously, Boss Pei thought more long-term than me. He regarded the DGE Club as a talent-training base for the entire GOG domestic league. The benchmark and example of all clubs!
"In many cases, capital is blind and disorderly, and it is impossible to count on capital to maintain the order of the entire league. Boss Pei used this method to guide the league to get on the right track faster!
"First, we should concentrate our energy, develop two strong teams like the DGE Club, and beat all the domestic clubs to one side—make them understand that the times have changed.
"After that, all the players were separated to make up for the shortcomings of these clubs. At the same time, the awareness that the players cultivated was used to quickly improve the competitive level of all clubs in a short while.
"This way, it not only established the strength of domestic teams over foreign teams... but also made the strength of domestic teams more balanced.
"The former could ensure that domestic teams were crushing the strength of foreign teams and stimulated the pride of domestic players; the latter could ensure that the two teams in the finals were similar in strength. It was a wonderful game.
"Would the viewing performance of the game be bad if they could do this?
"It seemed like Boss Pei had considered this point when I obtained the Best Employee award and wanted to set up an esports club. Not only could it solve the profitability and publicity problems of the DGE Esports Club and Deposit Fitness Gym, but it had also established a good competitive ecology for GOG. One stone killed many birds!"
Li Yaling nodded as she listened on.
She only needed to know what Boss Pei was awesome!
...
Both sides did their best in the five rounds. Huang Wang and Jiang Huan took turns to carry, but H4 Club's overall strength was still a bit better, enabling them to successfully win the championship.
Jiang Huan might have played perfectly in all five games, but EK's running-in was still slightly worse than H4's after all so they lost in the end.
Jiang Huan's performance had now conquered international players. In the hearts of many people, Jiang Huan was the best toplaner!
The H4 Club stood up and shook hands with everyone from the EK Club.
Huang Wang and Jiang Huan hugged each other. "I have to admit that you are still better even though winning over you felt great."
Jiang Huan smiled. "No problem, it is all the same."
"The championship belongs to DGE no matter which one of us wins!"
Huang Wang nodded excitedly. "That's right!"
Brilliant sparks spurted from the bottom of the stage, golden rain falling from the sky. The members of the H4 Club rushed to the championship trophy in the center of the stage with ecstasy. They were greeted with tsunami-like applause and cheers.
H4's jungler rushed to the trophy excitedly, holding the waist of the trophy with both hands, trying to lift it.
However, an embarrassing scene happened: The trophy did not move!
Pang Ling was a little puzzled; could this trophy be welded dead to the podium? Why could it not be moved otherwise?
Huang Wang smiled. "Tch, tch."
He stretched his hand to hold the thin waist of the trophy, the muscles on his hands bulging as he raised it over his head directly single-handedly!
At this moment, countless flashes appeared from below the stage, recording this historic moment.
Huang Wang's sturdy arms held the huge and heavy trophy high, golden rain fell slowly from the sky.
Question marks floated above Pei Qian's head as he sat in the audience.
?
If he did not remember wrongly, this trophy weighed 28 kilograms, didn't it?
That was nearly 60 jin[1]!
That was for the five of you to lift it up together, you brainless muscle idiot!
Pei Qian suddenly had a very bad premonition.
The picture of Huang Wang lifting the trophy would not become the latest hot search to become publicity for the DGE Club and Deposit Fitness Gym, right?
Could a stupid trophy also stab me in the back?
[1] Jin is the measurement of weight in China. Two jin is roughly about one kilogram
Chapter 667: DGE's Talent Gap
September 26th, Monday...
Pei Qian decided to go to the DGE Club after lunch and a photo-taking session with three passionate fans.
Pei Qian left a mystery when signing his signature as he only signed one word 'Pei'.
The fans would definitely wonder if 'Pei Qian' was the actor's name or Boss Pei's name if he were to sign his full name.
If it was the actor's name, then both the actor's and Boss Pei's surnames were 'Pei'? Such a coincidence?
If that was Boss Pei's name, then... the long story could be cut short.
That was why Pei Qian only signed a 'Pei'. On the one hand, it was to prevent fans from having too many associated thoughts and to protect his identity; on the other hand, it was for a good wish.
The fans that he met at the Fish-Catching Internet Cafe obviously became lesser once the weekend passed.
That showed that Huang Sibo's method of 'I'm my own substitute' obviously worked. The number of fans interested in Boss Pei's identity had greatly reduced.
It was conceivable that Pei Qian would be less disturbed as time went by.
As for the GOG International invitational tournament, it might have ended successfully yesterday. However, the popularity might continue for some time, and it might affect many areas.
For Shang Yang Games, the GOG International invitational tournament was an important part of the promotion of the GOG to the overseas community, which had proven excellent effect!
This game had in-depth cooperation with foreign live-stream platforms. The number of new viewers had repeatedly hit record highs and had even surpassed IOI's popularity on the internet for the first time.
That marked a phased victory in GOG's overseas promotion expenditure plan!
Of course, the foundation of MOBA games was relatively deeper. It would be unlikely for GOG to fully surpass IOI which had been launched in advance overseas. However, GOG had begun to challenge IOI's first mover advantage on a global scale. That was an indisputable fact.
The GOG International invitational tournament made GOG's position as the king domestically even more stable. It had even attracted a large number of players from other games!
In the end, such success would come from several aspects:
The high bonuses and large expenditure style announcement have attracted extremely high enthusiasm.
The overseas audiences saw the overseas veteran clubs enter into the semi-finals, which ensured their attention up till the semi-finals and beyond even though they were all knocked out in the end.
Domestic audiences had gained a great sense of pride when they saw the domestic club beat the veteran overseas clubs. They had increased their recognition of GOG and had begun to deeply connect with GOG and the concept of esports.
This format was sneaky but also very effective.
In addition, various branches emerged during the competition such as the fact that Huang Wang lifted the trophy single-handedly which weighed nearly 30 kg. It was spread wildly on the internet, resulting in a 'circle-breaking' effect.
In addition to Shang Yang Games, many other industries had also benefited from this game.
There was no need to say about Deposit Fitness gym; many of the branches were now so full that people were even waiting in line on the app.
The Fish-Catching Internet Cafe 3.0 received higher attention, too.
Xiao Peng's original plan was to make the Fish-Catching Internet Cafe 3.0 part of the Great Esports Ecosystem anyway. It had been greatly advanced under the influence of the trendy GOG International invitational tournament!
Huang Wang's image of raising the trophy and the H4 Club enjoying the sky-high prize money inspired many good players. More of them now wanted to become professional players and now had two paths:
The first was to go to the major clubs (including DGE Club) to try out; these major clubs happened to be in Jingzhou.
The other route was to find excellent players themselves, form a team, and go to Fish-Catching Internet Cafe 3.0 to train together. Start with the internet cafe competitions and then work hard to enter the professional circle.
The Esports Club could absorb a very limited number of candidates. These clubs had to produce results after all. They would reject those players that were not ideal so that they would not have too many overheads.
The Fish-Catching Internet Cafe 3.0 was different. The prize money from these games in the Fish-Catching Internet Cafe competitions could just manage to feed a team and maintain a basic lifestyle. It gave those teenagers with dreams a chance.
Pei Qian had agreed that Xiao Peng should continue to expand and open Fish-Catching Internet Cafe 3.0 as densely as possible in the populated areas of Jingzhou when it showed its success. The first wave hit during the first two days.
Pei Qian could only choose to ignore these now.
He could not care about the internet cafe anymore; all he could do was to open more branches and give more bonuses. Do whatever you want except sending money to me.
Whether it would have a profound effect on GOG in the future or not was not something he could worry about in this cycle.
As to why head to the DGE Club specifically...
It was mainly because Pei Qian suddenly felt that the DGE Club could probably be rescued.
The DGE Club disappointed Pei Qian previously, but the players were all sold now!
Huang Wang was now part of the H4 Club; so what if he got the trophy? The heat generated by him also belonged to the H4 Club now.
Of course, in the short term, everyone would still link these players to the DGE Club.
However, what if three months were to pass? What about half a year later?
Previously, the DGE Club was popular probably because they were strong.
The strength was because GOG was in its infancy and embryonic stage, and the DGE Club was ahead of the other clubs with two months of extra high-intensity and professional training. It quickly opened the gap with other clubs.
However, after the 'Scattered Stars' operations, the competitive level of other clubs quickly caught up.
The 10 new internet addicts in the DGE Club would definitely be abused if they were to play against clubs like H4 or EK.
That meant that the DGE Club could no longer maintain their previous dominance.
DGE Esports Club would soon be forgotten if there were no results in Esports. They would stay in the circle without making money for Boss Pei at best.
Therefore, Pei Qian was ready to evaluate the DGE Club's situation again. He would trust them once more if it was optimistic.
To that end, Pei Qian also specifically booked a table in advance in Ming House and prepared to treat them to a big meal.
...
DGE Club...
The new Team One and Team Two of the DGE Club were having mock competitions.
The ten of them were engrossed: sounds of tapping on the keyboard and mouse sounded together, and the captains of both teams continued to command.
Zhang Yuan and Coach Yaling watched by the side, whispering.
"It seems like the finals yesterday spurred them on; they are holding themselves up well today," Coach Yaling said.
Zhang Yuan nodded. "Well, definitely. Watching their predecessors slaughter their opponents and raise the cup with one hand must have encouraged them a lot.
"However, more haste, less speed. It is not enough to simply increase the amount to improve yourself. The key is to pay attention to scientific training methods. I am a little worried that their current state is counterproductive.
"But... there is no better way."
Coach Yaling looked at the whiteboard next to her. It had the results of these two DGE Club teams' mock competition results on it. They were almost completely defeated.
These new players were selected from countless good players, but they were not regulars after all. They had yet to have the running-in like the other clubs had and had no way to fight back against the other clubs yet.
It was precisely because of this that the two teams practiced extremely hard.
However, esports was something that had to work very hard at but not necessarily be rewarded accordingly.
In many cases, talent, good mentality, and scientific training methods were more useful than inefficient efforts.
The more impatient the players, the easier it was to fall into such inefficient efforts.
Zhang Yuan was worried about it but could think of no better way.
Perhaps it was time to find a personal coach?
However, finding a personal coach meant trusting him wholeheartedly. The good ones were already at the other clubs and the remaining ones were not strong enough. Zhang Yuan would not be able to find a suitable candidate for a while.
Pei Qian walked in with a headache.
Zhang Yuan and Coach Yaling stood up hurriedly. "Boss Pei!"
Pei Qian greeted both of them and found an empty seat to sit down.
He saw the results of the mock competition on the whiteboard and showed a happy expression subconsciously.
What lousy results, eh?
These mock competitions were with those who were eliminated; that was to say that they were playing against weak teams but still lost more than they won.
That was very good news!
Pei Qian could not help but nod slightly. Yes, this opening was much better than the last batch of players!
Why could the last batch be sold everywhere? That was because they started early and won at the starting line.
This batch lost on the losing line!
That was very comfortable.
However, Pei Qian immediately saw the focused and serious-looking players in the training room. They seemed to be highly focused and training very hard.
Pei Qian frowned instinctively.
He could not be too optimistic; there were still huge hidden dangers!
This group of players tried out after the DGE Club had become popular. They were very talented and good players.
If they continued to practice like this and their abilities soared, then wouldn't it fall into the previous vicious cycle?
The DGE Club beat the others in mock competition → the myth of the DGE Club continues → sponsors continue to invest like crazy → other clubs offer high prices to buy players → the DGE Club has a better name and more better players come to try out.
It would be unstoppable then!
Moreover, people liked to try out at the DGE Club as compared to the other clubs because, in addition to the DGE Club's branding, career prospects were also important considerations.
The other clubs could find ways to lower the price when signing the contract. They were more inclined to sign a three-year-long contract with a lower salary. Many talented players had difficulty playing out their worth before proving themselves in the game.
The club would not sell the players if they proved their worth after signing the long contract so it was a loss to the players.
However, in the DGE Club, everyone knows that the players would be sold once they proved their worth, which was very suitable as a springboard.
In other words, the DGE Club did not need to bid with other clubs at all. They did not even need to offer high prices to these players for them to rush to it!
It was because the newcomers to the DGE Club were not here for the current salary, but the big contracts that the other clubs would dish out for them after they prove themselves!
The more Pei Qian thought about it, the more worried he was.
Wouldn't the DGE Club be hopeless if they were to continue to develop according to this script and monopolize talented players from the source?
No, no, this group of players had a good start; something had to be done to keep it going! Never enter this vicious circle!
Obviously, these players had watched the GOG International invitational tournament and were now anxious. He had to think of a way to change a mentality.
Pouring cold water on them would be useless and was easy to have a counterproductive effect. They still had to use good conditions to corrupt their will to fight.
Pei Qian watched silently by the side.
...
The mock competition ended at five in the afternoon.
Next would be the debrief of the competition and dinner.
Zhang Yuan's expression was more anxious now.
He knew that this could not go on!
In the past, two teams of the DGE Club were the strong against the strong, since Huang Wang and Jiang Huan's understanding of the game surpassed other club players and coaches so they became stronger as the two teams practiced each other.
However, the two teams were now rookies!
The shortcomings of the two teams without any personal coach of the DGE Club were stark now that the other clubs were on the right track now. The two teams would not be as good as other clubs no matter how much they practiced.
However, the problem was that Zhang Yuan himself was only a manager. He could see where the problems were, but he did not know how to solve them.
The two teams could only discuss the issues themselves. They seemed to be summarizing very seriously now, but they would not be able to unite their thinking quickly. It seemed like there were signs of mutual rejection on the contrary.
Zhang Yuan looked at Boss Pei subconsciously.
Boss Pei had not spoken much since he reached the club this afternoon. He only watched the two teams playing mock competition silently
Zhang Yuan felt that Boss Pei must have some special reason for coming here at such a juncture, right?
He was most likely worried about the talent gap of the DGE Club!
Zhang Yuan felt that Boss Pei would be able to see the problems that he could see himself.
He only did not know how Boss Pei would solve this issue.
Zhang Yuan waited silently for Boss Pei to enlighten him.
Pei Qian's worries grew stronger as he saw the players discussing intently.
That was because the two captains were seriously summarizing the problems. The team members were also presenting their ideas. They were having a fruitful brainstorming session.
They trained hard and were working hard on the summary. The two teams might catch up with other clubs in no time if this were to continue!
The original two teams of the DGE club were successfully trained this way so Pei Qian felt that he must not fall into the same pitfall twice.
Chapter 668: There's No Hope for the DGE Club!
At that thought, Pei Qian clapped his hands and stood up. "Alright, I think we've discussed enough. That's all for now. We'll prepare and gather for a meal tonight. It's on me!"
He had been worried that Zhang Yuan would turn him down because going out for a meal would take up the nighttime training time. However, to his surprise, Zhang Yuan was elated and all for the idea. At once, he waved over the internet addicts who were reluctant to leave.
In his heart, Zhang Yuan exclaimed that Boss Pei had noticed the problem as well!
Those team members were all too excited now. They needed time to calm down. At the same time, having a meal together would build team spirit. One could say that it would be a step in the right direction!
...
Soon, DGE's members arrived at Ming House.
Pei Qian had already reserved the biggest private room well in advance. The two huge tables inside could seat more than ten people each.
Even if Pei Qian could not fill all the seats, it did not matter. They could eat to their heart's content!
Pei Qian cut straight to the chase and chose all the most expensive dishes. He tried to use delicacies to attack the team members' willpower and cause them to forget about the mock competition earlier.
All the newbies had never been to the nameless restaurant. Just the food served at Ming House was enough to whet their appetite. One by one, they wolfed down the food in front of them.
As Zhang Yuan ate, he could not help but feel comforted and worried at the same time.
He was comforted because Boss Pei was making use of delicacies to motivate the team, and it was bound to prove very effective!
As far as he could recall, each time Boss Pei treated a department to a meal, the department would achieve a breakthrough soon after. It seemed superstitious, but Zhang Yuan preferred to see it as a special skill of Boss Pei's.
This meal would serve to motivate DGE's newest members and cause them to feel a sense of belonging in the DGE Club. At the same time, they would calm down and not feel anxious about having to improve as quickly as they could.
Yet, Zhang Yuan also felt worried because this meal would not solve the root of the problem.
At the moment, the DGE Club's training method was falling behind everyone else's. While other clubs were improving rapidly, DGE's two teams were remaining so lousy. The gap would only widen as time went by.
As for this... how was Boss Pei intending to solve the problem?
Zhang Yuan thought that the best solution would be to hire a professional coach and a team of analysts.
Yet, who could they hire? That was the biggest question.
As he was worrying about this, Zhang Yuan's cell phone vibrated.
He picked it up and found a message from Huang Wang. "Brother Zhang, why isn't there anyone at the club?"
...
At the entrance of the DGE club...
Huang Wang, Jiang Huan, and the ten other old members of DGE were gathered together. As they looked at the locked entrance to the club, they felt confused.
After H4 won the championship yesterday, Huang Wang had gone to celebrate his job well done in the afternoon. He could not escape live-streaming at night either to share his joy with his fans.
His team members had also gone back to their respective clubs to rest. They had been working and training so hard during this period, and so it was time to take a break.
This afternoon, after everyone settled down, they decided to reunite and catch up back at DGE.
However, they arrived to find the door locked.
It was supposed to be dinner time, and Fish-Catching Take-Out normally provided food for the club. That meant members would not have needed to go out.
For fear that they would interrupt the team's training, Huang Wang and the others purposely came at this time.
They had intended to give Zhang Yuan and Coach Yaling a surprise, but they were not in. Thus, he had no choice but to send a message to Zhang Yuan, asking where they were.
Soon, Huang Wang's cell phone vibrated. Zhang Yuan had replied.
Huang Wang glanced at the message from Zhang Yuan. "Ah, Boss Pei brought them out for a meal! They're at Ming House. Brother Zhang has invited us over because there are enough seats!"
Old Zhou was elated. "That's great! We haven't seen Boss Pei for a long time! Let's go!"
...
At Ming House...
Looking at the members happily wolfing food down, Pei Qian could not help but feel excited as well.
He had to say that the food Boss Li served here was getting better day by day.
After all, with the nameless restaurant as the benchmark and with Ming House being the second-best high-end restaurant in Jingzhou, it could not fall too far behind. Of course, its food had to keep getting better.
Pei Qian himself could not eat at the nameless restaurant every day. Having important gatherings at Ming House instead more than made up for it.
As they ate, Zhang Yuan kept his phone and happily announced, "Boss Pei, Huang Wang, and the others want to come over and eat with us!"
"Oh?" Pei Qian was stunned but soon nodded. "Alright, Waiter, serve more food!"
There would be more than ten more mouths to feed, and Huang Wang and the others were very well-built. They had big appetites, and so Pei Qian could expect to spend thousands of yuan more. It was quite worth it.
Although Pei Qian did not really want to see them, there was no harm in welcoming them because they would help him to spend more money.
Soon after, Huang Wang, Jiang Huan, and the others arrived.
The empty seats at the two big tables were all filled up. Once Huang Wang, Jiang Huan, and the other members sat down; they wanted to catch up and exchange pleasantries. However, Boss Pei stopped them almost immediately.
"Stop talking so much. Eat!"
For fear that the members would boast so much that the new members would become renewed with a fighting spirit, Pei Qian stopped them and hoped that they would sit down, lower their heads, eat, and not say anything more.
Huang Wang, Jiang Huan, and the others exchanged a confused look. However, since Boss Pei had spoken, they had no choice but to eat.
One by one, they began to wolf down their food as well.
The new members of the DGE Club could not help but stare at them.
It was one thing for their gaming skills to be incomparable to their seniors, but now their eating skills were proving incomparable as well!
We have to work harder!
Soon, everyone had eaten to their heart's content.
Pei Qian looked at the table covered with empty glasses, bowls, and plates and then nodded, satisfied.
Yes, there's a benefit to making these men train until they're so muscular. At least their appetite has grown considerably!
Now that their appetites were bigger, they could eat more, and the bill would be more expensive.
Others would have felt heartache upon seeing such a huge bill, but Boss Pei would be elated.
The DGE Club's new and old members leaned back on their chairs, looking like corpses. They rubbed their full bellies and began to chat.
Huang Wang burped. "Boss Pei, Brother Zhang, and Coach Yaling; Jiang Huan and I, along with the other team members, want to thank you for your support in getting us to where we are today.
"As the saying goes, we have to thank those who got us to where we are.
"We might be in other clubs now, but we will always belong to the DGE Club!
"The club is not lacking in money so I'm thinking that its biggest problem is the talent gap. The two teams are failing to grasp their main flaws and are making terribly slow progress.
"That's why we decided to conduct special training for DGE's new members, so that they can catch up with the pace of their current competitors as soon as possible!"
Pei Qian nearly spat out the mouthful of tea that he had just drunk.
What the hell?
The ten-odd of you are going to conduct special training for the teams?
Before Pei Qian could say anything, Zhang Yuan excitedly nodded. "Of course, that's a good idea!
"But... you are members of other teams now after all. Would it be appropriate for you to return to DGE and train the members?"
Huang Wang smiled. "No problem. Our clubs have all agreed to the arrangement!"
Jiang Huan sipped his tea and explained, "The DGE Club is not their competitor, but their ally.
"If this had been another club, both would be fighting for the same prizes. Naturally, we would not be allowed to help out.
"However, since the DGE Club is not allowed to take part in any competition, there's no conflict of interests.
"That's not all. The DGE Club's members' only method of succeeding is to achieve good results, become outstanding, and then be sold to other clubs. That's why helping DGE would be akin to helping all the major clubs conduct a youth training camp that everyone can benefit from.
"Then, if any team requires a certain position, they could purchase a member from the DGE Club at any time. Wouldn't that be much more worth it than conducting our own youth training camp or poaching someone from some other club?
"What's more, Boss Pei was very fair in distributing the members earlier, and so every club is willing to submit to him. All of them only have good things to say about him.
"That's why our clubs are so supportive of us coming back to help DGE!"
A realization dawned on Zhang Yuan. "I see!"
He instinctively turned to Boss Pei, inwardly exclaiming how amazing Boss Pei's plan was.
He had not expected DGE to be able to reap such benefits despite not being able to take part in competitions.
In fact, it was precisely because DGE was not able to take part in competitions that it did not have conflicting interests with other clubs. Instead, it could continuously produce talents for the other clubs, and thus cause other clubs to depend on the DGE Club to maintain its standard and skills. That would be beneficial to them as well!
Zhang Yuan did not have to expend any effort looking for coaches or choosing new members anymore. The club had already found its place in GOG's Esports Ecosystem, and it could function on its own!
Young people who wanted to enter the esports industry would have three options:
Joining DGE Club would be their best option because they would be able to hone their skills and be snatched up by other clubs...
Joining other clubs would be their second-best option...
If that failed, they could form their own team to play in internet cafes. As long as they had the skills, they would not need to fear being buried.
DGE Club did not even need to worry about training its members because other clubs would be happy to allow the DGE Club's old members to make time and train the DGE Club's newer members.
That way, Zhang Yuan and Coach Yaling could take on a supervisory role!
As time went by, a virtuous cycle would form between DGE Club's newer and older members. New batches of talents could be cultivated and replaced, and strong athletes would keep being produced by the club.
In fact, once the first batch of players couldn't play anymore and retired, they could return to the DGE Club to coach. Whether they became main coaches, analysts, or fitness trainers; they would be infinitely valuable to DGE!
Zhang Yuan could not help but gaze at Boss Pei, amazed.
The DGE Club was like the perfect chain that bound GOG, esports, various clubs, Fish-Catching Internet Cafe, and other important parts of the Esports Ecosystem tightly together.
Wise! Boss Pei was really wise!
However, the hand that Pei Qian was using to hold his teacup halted in midair as his expression became blank.
Finished. Everything is finished!
He had thought that DGE Club would be able to start afresh after the international invitational tournament.
Now, it looked like he had been completely wrong.
There was no hope for DGE Club anymore!
Chapter 669: Tengda Corporation's Slogan
September 27th, Tuesday...
Pei Qian felt like going to the office today. He checked the results of the most recent Tengda Spirit compatibility test on his computer.
Ever since the recruitment method for Tengda's various departments was changed to one common examination, two large-scale recruitment drives had already been conducted in November and May.
The most recently-hired employees had already been converted to Tengda's official employees.
Of course, the administrative and HR departments were in charge of related arrangements like expanding offices, assigning seats, shopping for office supplies, distributing salaries and various benefits, and so on. Apart from asking if the departments could spend more money, Pei Qian avoided questioning those processes.
That was because he no longer had any energy to take care of such matters, and there was no need for him to do so.
Still, Pei Qian thought of something today out of nowhere.
Why hadn't the Tengda Spirit compatibility test eliminated anyone so far?
The test did not seem that useful.
Pei Qian flipped through the records and found that the earliest batch of employees had met with some trouble during the test. In the beginning, the pass rate had been low. However, people still ended up barely passing and not getting eliminated.
For the most recent test held in May, every employee passed on their first try!
That was very ridiculous!
Pei Qian had wrecked his brains to think about the questions and set countless traps within the test before.
Any employee who had a little knowledge about the ordinary working world would find it difficult to pass the test.
What's more, the question bank was ever-changing, and only Pei Qian had the right answers. Every time a candidate finished a test—even if they passed, they would not know which questions they answered correctly and which ones they answered wrongly.
How were these new people managing to pass on their first tries now?
Assuming that none of the questions had been leaked, Pei Qian thought that there were two possible explanations:
First, all the people that they had recruited just so happened to be slackers.
That was too optimistic, and the chances of that being true were nearly zero. Pei Qian would not lie to himself.
Second, the people that they recruited had not been slackers, but the departments had influenced and nurtured them into slackers.
The chances of that being true were slightly higher.
However, therein lay the problem. Since the departments were filled with slackers now, and the new employees were being turned into slackers as well, why was Tengda Corporation still scaling new heights and achieving great successes?
Could it be that Tengda Corporation had reached a miraculous state where, even while everyone was slacking and working casually, the company could still continue to survive and improve?
That sounded ridiculous, but not completely unreasonable.
After all, that was what the Matthew Effect was about.
He had to think it through.
Pei Qian spent two hours updating the question bank, including a few questions inside. He changed a few words and ended up changing the meaning of the entire question.
Once he was done, he handed the question bank over.
He did not have many hopes of dissuading people from joining the company using the Tengda Spirit compatibility test now. However, he could not give up so easily.
Knock, knock.
There was a knock on the door, and Assistant Xin entered.
"Boss Pei, the Financial Observation segment of CCTV wants to do an episode on our company.
"The program wants to make use of Tengda Corporation's slogan as its title, and so they're asking me for permission. However, we don't seem to have a slogan.
"Why don't you think of one?"
Pei Qian, who had just finished uploading the questions for the Tengda Spirit compatibility test, turned to look at Assistant Xin. At once, his mind filled with question marks.
?
The Financial Observation segment?
Another television channel?!
It was bad enough that they had appeared on Jingzhou's television program, but a central television program?
Wouldn't that be the death of Pei Qian?
His expression darkened. "Turn them down!"
"Er..." Assistant Xin hesitated. "Boss Pei, perhaps you misunderstood me. The Financial Observation segment is an analytical program and not an interviewing program. You and Tengda's employees would not have to make an appearance. Even if we don't provide a slogan for them to use as a title, they can still give the episode their own title.
Pei Qian was stunned.
They could do that?
They could act before seeking permission?
Didn't that mean that the episode would air regardless of whether Pei Qian cooperated or not?
Pei Qian remained silent for a moment, and then asked, "Well... can we discuss with them and persuade them not to do an episode on us?"
Assistant Xin grinned. "I'm afraid not."
Pei Qian leaned back in his chair, feeling sorrowful.
This did not look like a discussion, but a notification.
Alright. You want a slogan? I'll give one to you.
I'll create a ridiculous slogan for Tengda Corporation. If you dare to use it, I'll give your program due credit.
Pei Qian pondered for a moment and then said, "Tengda Corporation's slogan is 'always believe that strange things are about to happen'."
Even Assistant Xin, who had seen all sorts of things before, subconsciously stared.
A slogan could be understood as a written or spoken one, but translating it to Mandarin would not fully encapsulate the meaning of the word.
Specifically, it would be difficult to convey the company's philosophy, emphasize the company and products' prominent features, establish the brand's characteristics, and attract customers with a short and condensed text.
If one compared this to an account on social media, a logo was akin to a profile picture, the brand's name was akin to the nickname, and a slogan was akin to a personalized signature.
A good slogan had to be closely connected to a company's and products' characteristics. At the same time, it had to be simple, easy to read, understand, and memorize and would remind customers of the brand's core value at first glance.
Its purpose was more than just marketing—it was to embody the company's core spirit.
For example, 'just do it' was an excellent slogan.
Until now, Tengda Corporation had many businesses with different unique characteristics, but it did not have a clear slogan.
Yet, Boss Pei's slogan...
'Always believe that strange things are about to happen'?
That sentence made Assistant Xin feel as weird as what it was attempting to describe.
"Boss Pei, are you sure about that?"
The slogan sounded slightly outrageous, and so Assistant Xin sought confirmation from Boss Pei although she rarely did so.
Pei Qian nodded. "That's right, I'm sure!"
Without asking further questions, Assistant Xin nodded and walked out.
She expected those from the Financial Observation segment to be as shocked as she had been when she first heard the slogan.
...
At Zhongdian Chinese Network...
Ma Yiqun welcomed Wu Bin, Cui Geng, and Lu Mingliang and then quickly closed his office door.
Then, he retrieved a couple of books from his otherwise locked drawer and distributed them to everyone.
There were a few words written on the cover: 'A Preliminary Study of the Tengda Spirit'!
Preliminary studies were normally indicative of initial explorations. Ordinarily, such words were used in theses to express one's humility.
However, the words 'preliminary study' were being used here to emphasize how vast and deep the Tengda Spirit was. The book only contained preliminary findings of the Tengda Spirit, but there was more to be discovered beyond it.
The title was a reminder to readers to take the book as a form of inspiration and not dogma.
Wu Bin reached out and took hold of it, looking elated. "It's been printed? That's quick!"
He happily stroked the cover. He had been working hard on this over the past few months! Finally, he could see a physical copy of the book!
Ma Yiqun nodded. "Yes, a lot of time was saved because it has not been published. Like we agreed earlier, I've only printed two hundred copies to be distributed to core members in the company, as well as good friends of Boss Pei's, like Boss Li.
"If we have leftover copies, I will lock them away and prevent outsiders from getting their hands on it."
The book did not contain much, and there were no violations. However, according to ordinary regulations, one needed a permit to print something in bulk. Otherwise, they would be violating management regulations.
Many people secretly printed books without getting prior approval. Even if they were the only ones reading it, they were technically still in breach.
Thus, after discussing with Wu Bin, Ma Yiqun decided that it would be best to publish the book through formal channels and at their own cost... as opposed to trying to obtain proper permits.
There were three main stages involved in producing self-financed books: compilation, publication, and distribution. The so-called 'distribution' stage was where they would sell the books to end-users and directly deal with customers through proper channels. At this stage, they needed to take care of promoting and delivering the books.
However, they were not hoping to profit from publishing 'A Preliminary Study on the Tengda Spirit'. In fact, they were not even hoping to disseminate the book to a wide audience. They were only hoping to send it to core employees of the company who could learn from it. Thus, they had only published the book without seeking to distribute it.
There were three points worth mentioning about the book:
Written very clearly on the first page was the fact that the book only contained a preliminary study on the Tengda spirit. It could only be used for inspirational purposes, and readers should avoid falling into dogmatic thinking. Instead, they should continually seek more and deeper understanding while working.
The three 'famous portraits' of Boss Pei—'Back View of the Countercurrent', 'Boss Pei's Lunch', and 'Boss Pei, Deep in Thought'—had all been printed in the book as illustrations.
On the last page of the book was a long list of Boss Pei's titles in small words. One could easily miss it if they were not paying attention.
Ma Yiqun said, "All the printed books are in Lu Mingliang's warehouse. Take as many copies as you require, but you must record to whom each book is given."
Wu Bin added, "I want to emphasize something else.
"There's a limited number of copies, not because we're afraid of leaks, but because we want to encourage everyone to think about the Tengda Spirit independently.
"One aspect of the Tengda Spirit is to think independently without following blindly. If everyone stops thinking about the Tengda Spirit after getting this book, another kind of blind obedience would be cultivated. We have to guard against that.
"The more valuable part of this book is the part about Boss Pei's behavior and anecdotes.
"As for the content on several aspects of the Tengda Spirit, we don't have to purposely keep it a secret."
The meaning of Wu Bin's words was simple. If the 'Tengda Spirit' was a secret manual, the few sentences after the general principles could only be considered the names of each move at best.
Knowing the name of the moves without understanding the mental techniques was meaningless.
On the contrary, passing the generalized content down through unofficial methods would be more helpful and would be an important part of the spread of Tengda's corporate culture.
Everyone nodded. "Understood!"