Chapter 93: Entering the Online Gaming Industry?

“It’s number one! It’s number one!”

“Two million plays!”

“The play count for this song could hit ten million…”

“Another hit song! It seems our choice was the right one!”

“Out of three songs, two are already massive hits!”

“OH MY GOD!”

“…”

Zheng Chen, the director of Huaxing Entertainment, a subsidiary of Star Entertainment Group, stared intently at the charts!

He was so excited he nearly jumped up, his fingers constantly forming delicate, feminine gestures as a look of pure fanaticism filled his eyes.

Yes!

He was Zheng Chen, the effeminate director of Huaxing Entertainment.

A few days ago…

He had received a call from Zhou Yang’s manager, Li Ziwen.

The message was that Zhang Yang seemed to want to make a deal with Zhou Yang, using a song to offset a portion of the endorsement fee. That portion was worth about one million yuan.

Furthermore, the endorsement fee was to be paid in installments: a portion upfront, and the remainder to be paid in full about a week later!

Zheng Chen’s first instinct had been to oppose it!

Zhou Yang’s endorsement fee had already surpassed ten million. How could they allow a single song to offset a portion of that?

And a one-week delay?

How could that be allowed!

Wasn’t this just a case of someone trying to get something for nothing!

This was something the company had never done before, okay?

It was a completely unequal transaction!

And how was he supposed to get approval from the higher-ups?

He would be scolded mercilessly, wouldn’t he?

One million yuan? Could a song really be worth that much?

Even if it was Zhang Yang…

Zheng Chen hadn’t even met Zhang Yang in person yet!

This fact alone left him feeling somewhat resentful!

He refused immediately. However, on the other end of the line, he heard Li Ziwen say very helplessly that Zhou Yang was willing to personally guarantee Zhang Yang’s proposal, saying he hoped the company could give it a chance…

When he heard that, Zheng Chen was finally moved. He fell into an unprecedented state of internal conflict.

Zhou Yang was currently the company’s cash cow, their golden boy. The company had high hopes for the album Common Jasmine Orange, hoping that Zhou Yang could use it to break into the global music sales charts!

He hesitated for a long time before finally choosing to nod in agreement.

As expected…

When he went to his superiors, he was reamed out. After enduring a harsh scolding and signing a written pledge¹, his boss finally gave a reluctant approval.

Coming out of the boss’s office, he felt as if a mountain of pressure was weighing on him!

If this single flopped, he would have to resign, and his future career would likely be permanently stained…

That night, he tossed and turned for a long, long time. Finally, as dawn approached, he received some news.

In just one night…

The music video for the song was finished!

Furthermore, the single was going online at noon…

Zheng Chen’s mental state underwent an indescribable shift. His face turned pale, and he didn’t even know how he managed to get out of bed or eat breakfast.

Only one thought filled his mind.

It’s over, it’s all over!

They finished recording the single so quickly. Could it actually be any good?

Besides, this MV was a mobile phone advertisement. That kind of thing…

After returning to the company, Zheng Chen felt dazed and muddled. Everything felt surreal, and he didn’t even dare to listen to the single.

As the release time approached, a sense of desolation still lingered in his heart.

At this very moment…

He still remembered his emotions at noon on the 17th, sitting in his office chair and staring blankly.

Time seemed to pass incredibly slowly, and a sense of oppression weighed on his chest. He wanted to check the charts, yet he didn’t dare to look!

And so, he remained frozen.

A knock sounded at his office door.

When he saw clearly who had entered, he instantly recognized the figure of the big boss.

His eyes widened, and he stood up straight in an instant!

Only one thought raced through his mind: the big boss had never come to his office before, let alone in person!

Could it be that the word-of-mouth online was terrible?

He was already prepared for a storm of abuse from the leadership!

However…

What followed was a round of applause!

“Not bad, not bad at all!”

Hearing the applause, his suppressed emotions suddenly began to swing wildly from low to high.

Then, he saw the charts glowing red² with success!

The single was another explosive hit, and the reviews were phenomenal…

And today, one week later…

Zheng Chen received the endorsement fees from Zhang Yang’s side exactly as promised, not a penny short!

Shortly after, he received a call from his boss.

The boss’s intent was for him to contact Zhang Yang. If possible, they wanted to discuss further musical collaborations with him.

……………………….

October 27th.

Universe Technology’s mobile phone department was officially established.

They also began recruiting talent from various major universities.

However…

Even though the department had just been formed, Zhong Chongwen, Zhao Hang, and the others felt like they didn’t know where to start.

Mobile gaming was a very trendy concept for them, and their technical expertise in porting games from computers was not yet mature.

Although the current Android OS was close to their ideals, it wasn’t perfect. it couldn’t yet support current porting technologies. Many things couldn’t be solved by technology just because a concept was proposed.

The matter temporarily hit a stalemate.

“President Zhang… though the ideal is beautiful, with our current technology, we just can’t do it…”

“Those newly recruited interns… don’t expect their Java skills to be very strong. Some of them can’t even write a simple program when they arrive…”

“University students these days, their heads are filled with nothing but women. Hardly any of them actually study their major seriously. And even if they do, it’s just the most basic knowledge, which is completely useless…”

“…”

In the office.

Zhao Hang had run over to find Zhang Yang and was venting his frustrations.

After listening to the complaints, Zhang Yang simply shrugged his shoulders.

“Well, there’s nothing I can do about that. I don’t understand that side of things either…”

“…”

When Zhao Hang saw Zhang Yang’s expression, he suddenly froze.

He wanted to say something…

But…

After struggling for a long while, he ultimately couldn’t find the words.

“Old Zhao, you and Zhong need to have a pioneering spirit. Didn’t we build Universe Technology from nothing?” Zhang Yang looked at Zhao Hang’s strained expression and finally shook his head.

“But… we… I still hope to stay in the PC department… As for the mobile department, I really don’t know where to start…” Zhao Hang shook his head, his eyes full of helplessness.

He used to be just an artist…

Zhong Chongwen used to be just a programmer.

It was fine to have them work according to Zhang Yang’s wishes, but asking them to independently establish a department and cultivate it—especially sending them to handle mobile games, a concept they barely understood—how were they supposed to do that?

Moreover, in the current Huaxia market, there weren’t even any mobile games to use as a reference. They were building a concept entirely from scratch.

“Old Zhao, I trust you guys. Besides, you’re not getting any younger. Are you content with just being a department head in a small system? A person needs vision and a sense of the big picture…” Zhang Yang began serving up some motivational chicken soup.

“But…”

“No buts. Do you still want to buy a house in Yanjing? Do you want to drive a sports car?” After the motivational speech, Zhang Yang began painting a grand vision of the future, staring intently at Zhao Hang.

“I…”

“Go on! I believe in you. Do whatever you want in the mobile department… If you don’t understand the tech, find a way to learn. If you don’t have the talent, go poach them. If they aren’t in Huaxia, go poach them from the US… Anyway, I’ve given you the budget. There’s no rush on the timeline, so take it slow…” He continued as he watched Zhao Hang.

“Alright, I’ll give it a try.” This was the first time Zhao Hang had seen Zhang Yang like this. He instinctively shrank back and finally left.

He knew that once Zhang Yang made a decision, there was no changing it.

Only…

Could he really make mobile games work?

He had no confidence.

Just as he was about to leave, Zhang Yang suddenly called out to him again.

“Old Zhao.”

“Huh?”

“You look like a headless fly. How about this? I’ll give you a task. Don’t worry about porting our PC games yet. First, create a mobile download platform. In the future, many of our mobile software programs can be downloaded from this platform… Oh, I just remembered, Mr. Andis will officially arrive in Huaxia tomorrow. When the time comes, you can go to him for some advice…”

“Oh, okay.” Zhao Hang nodded.

At this moment, his mind was filled with various technical problems. For the first time, he felt that his abilities were lacking in every aspect.

He seemed…

He really wasn’t suited for management, he was better suited to be an employee.

Moreover, he always felt that President Zhang’s pace was too fast, too urgent. He couldn’t keep up and felt like he was about to be phased out.

But President Zhang thought so highly of him, he couldn’t just be a piece of useless rotten mud that couldn’t stick to a wall, could he?

After Zhao Hang left…

Zhang Yang’s expression turned neutral as he stared at the files from various company departments, lost in thought.

Plants vs. Zombies was one plan, but the company he envisioned couldn’t just make single-player games…

Given the current state of mobile tech, the things he truly wanted to make probably couldn’t be done yet.

At most, they could make things like Snake.

Such games didn’t have much value, and Zhang Yang wasn’t interested in them.

After all, any mobile phone company could make those kinds of games.

Besides mobile games, he also needed to enter the online gaming market.

However, online games weren’t like single-player games that could be finished with a bit of overtime. They required a long process, and the programming was far more complex. The technical hurdles would only increase. Without enough technical support, the game would be riddled with bugs…

With his company’s current strength…

Zhang Yang was momentarily unsure.

Making single-player games was no problem, but for online games, they were still a bit lacking.

And the key was…

Which online games should he make?

Right now, hack-and-slash online games were everywhere. If he made another one, he definitely wouldn’t be able to compete with Legend and War of Warcraft.

Furthermore, the online games he wanted to make should be primarily free-to-play. For free-to-play games, he had to consider the issue of profitability.

Profit…

How should he make a profit?

Brand endorsements were only one part. Compared to the massive investment required for an online game, the revenue from endorsements seemed insufficient.

Charging for items?

Virtual currency?

That seemed to be one way…

But he had to find a balance.

Zhang Yang pondered for a long time, yet he still couldn’t find a starting point.

Just then…

Zhang Yang’s phone rang.

He instinctively answered.

“HELLO! President Zhang, hello! Are you free right now? This is Ar Sa³!”

“…”

Hearing that effeminate voice on the phone, Zhang Yang couldn’t help but get goosebumps. For some reason, his stomach felt uneasy…

Ar Sa!

Wasn’t that the stage name for Zheng Chen from Star Entertainment?

He had seen photos of Zheng Chen online many times!

He thought of a grown man wearing flamboyant pink glasses, wearing foundation and nail polish, and gesturing with orchid fingers…

Damn!

Zhang Yang felt like he was going to vomit right then and there…

How was this guy so persistent?

“Hello, President Zheng. I’m free for the moment. Is there something I can help you with?”

“President Zhang, can I meet you? I’d like to talk to you about something…”

“This… if there’s anything, we can just talk over the phone…”

Meet?

Even if Zhang Yang was so bored in his office that he wanted to puke, he didn’t want to meet Zheng Chen.

He really couldn’t handle that kind of visual impact.

“President Zhang, it’s like this. While I personally admire your talent, our group’s President Hong also spoke very highly of your music after hearing it. We hope to discuss future cooperation with you…”

“??”

“Exactly, President Zhang. Our company truly hopes to secure priority rights for your songs. As for the price, you can rest assured. As long as the quality is there, the price we offer will absolutely not be lower than the market rate…”

“…”

“President Zhang? President Zhang? Are you there?” When Zheng Chen didn’t hear a response from Zhang Yang, he repeated himself several times, thinking the signal had cut out.

“President Zheng! I’ve suddenly had an idea of my own…”

He had no idea that Zhang Yang was staring blankly out the window.

Outside the window…

He saw several young people holding their phones, dancing wildly with excitement.

A flash of inspiration struck him, and he stood up instinctively.

He immediately began searching for something on his computer. Once he confirmed it didn’t exist at all, his spirits soared.

“Huh?”

“President Zheng, I’m moved by your sincerity. If both sides find it suitable, I can give your company priority for my songs.”

“That’s wonderful! President Zhang, thank you!” Zheng Chen was ecstatic on the other end of the line.

“Of course, besides that, I have another idea. Compared to just commissioning songs from me, I think this would be even more beneficial for your company.”

“What is it?”

“My team is actually considering developing a game, an online game designed to promote music and dance.”

“???”

“If you want to promote your artists and give them more exposure, we could even create custom anime-style characters for them to represent themselves in the game. We could lead a whole new trend. What do you think?”

“…”

“You know the traffic our games generate. Our actual user base is second to no other game company in Huaxia. Once the game is finished, we can prioritize promoting your songs within it!”

“…”

Zheng Chen was clearly dazed on the other end of the line.

What kind of game was this?

But then…

It felt as if he had stumbled upon some kind of pleasant surprise.

(End of Chapter)

Translator’s Notes