Losing Money to Be a Tycoon c1-883

by Inebriation-seeking Blue Shirt, 青衫取醉

  “First, everyone has been cursing Zhang Zuting’s advertisement. Not only has that advertisement worsened our game’s reputation in the eyes of netizens, but it has also greatly disturbed Zhang Zuting.

  “Yesterday, he took the initiative to contact Shang Yang Games’ staff, asking if he could fly down to Jingzhou and re-film the advertisement. What’s more, he was willing to re-film the advertisement without being paid a single cent. “I know that this advertisement was done to attract traditional web-based gamers, but it has affected Zhang Zuting’s reputation. Why not let him re-film a classier advertisement to make it up to him?”

  Re-film the advertisement? No way!

  Without even thinking about it, Pei Qian shook his head. “There’s no need. I understand Old Zhang’s emotions, but re-filming the advertisement would not resolve the problem.

  “The advertisement has already been published. Everyone’s impressions have already been set. We cannot possibly brainwash everyone and erase their memories.

  “What’s more, the advertisement’s popularity has earned Old Zhang more new fans. It should not matter that he’s being cursed at by some.”

  Lin Wan still felt uncomfortable. “But many people are calling him ‘Zha Zhuti[1]’ on his Weibo profile. He’s finding it extremely difficult to accept being referred to like that.” Pei Qian smiled. “Why does Old Zhang seem so different from before? It’s because he was too well-packaged as an idol. He can’t even tell what young people like nowadays.

  “Is he still trying to stick to his old ways and think about how to make a comeback and make a name for himself? Everyone’s referring to him affectionately as Zha Zhuti. They like him. Doesn’t he understand this simple logic?” Lin Wan looked confused. “Huh?”

  Boss Pei was making sense. Yet, the person involved did not like it at all!

  Pei Qian continued. “Go back and work on Old Zhang’s mindset. Help him to change his worldview. I think ‘Zha Zhuti’ is quite a nice nickname. It sounds affectionate.

  “It even sounds appetizing. Young people would like it for sure. If you don’t believe me, look through Zhang Zuting’s Weibo. See if there have been more fans recently. Is he obviously more popular?”.

  Lin Wan looked at her phone, confused. “It looks like… he has gotten many more fans. Alright, I’ll go back and talk to him…”

  Lin Wan was confused after listening to Pei Qian’s lies. This problem was settled. “The second problem is Bloody Battle Song: The Powerful Version’s figures. You’ve seen them, right…?

  Seen

  “Although the figures are not ideal, I think it’s still too early to say we’ve failed. I’m prepared to keep an eye on the figures for a week. If they still do not improve after that, we’ll try making some changes.”

  Hmm? Try making some changes after a week? What the hell are you making changes for? Isn’t the situation now ideal?

  Don’t you dare make any changes!

  Pei Qian’s expression became very stern as he said, “Failed? Where have we failed? The rating left behind by paying customers on TPDb was 9.2. That’s an excellent rating! I’ve also browsed a couple of forums. Old players are very satisfied with the current game.

  “Tengda Games is using reputation as the main measurement of success now. This game has not failed in any sense. Instead, it’s considered quite a success. It has achieved its aim perfectly.

  “It’s not a big deal that it’s not generating any profit now. Cast your eyes further. As long as we have a good reputation, we will make profits one day.”

  Lin Wan was conflicted. “Er… that’s true, but… netizens have given the game very low ratings —we only got 4.3.”

  Pei Qian sipped his tea and grinned. “They’re just a bunch of Cloud Players who are here to join in the fun. These people have never even played the game. They’re rating the game based on the advertisement alone. Why should we be concerned about them?

  “Netizens’ rating of the game is 4.3, but that is mainly because there are very few users on

  TPDb at the moment. Many people have misconceptions about Bloody Battle Song: The Powerful Version. The ratings are not exactly accurate.

  “We need to have faith that the game will not be buried. Since paying customers are affirming it, we have to persevere. The sun will shine eventually!”

  Lin Wan nodded without saying anything.

  Hmm, Boss Pei is much more optimistic than I expected.

  The netizens’ ratings were bothering Lin Wan, but it did not seem to be a big deal at all to Boss Pei.

  Boss Pei smiled subtly. “Haven’t I said it time and time again? Cast your eyes further.

  “Bloody Battle Song: The Powerful Version is the culmination of everyone’s hard work. Since we all think that we’ve created a good game, why must we be so concerned about it incurring losses for now?

  “Don’t panic and confuse yourself. Don’t make any changes. Keep things as they are.” Lin Wan nodded. Boss Pei was the most thorough!

  Since even Boss Pei did not see the need to make any changes to the game, there was probably no need for any changes to be made.

  However… Would it be appropriate for them to sit back and wait? Couldn’t they do something more practical?

  Lin Wan pondered for a moment and said, “I’ll ask them to make some minor improvements for now then. We will keep the game’s contents as they are, but we’ll just repair bugs.”

  Pei Qian nodded, satisfied. “Mm, alright.”

  As long as you don’t make any major changes and keep things as they are, I’m fine with anything

  “But… Boss Pei, when do you expect to see a change in Bloody Battle Song: The Powerful Version’s situation?” Lin Wan asked.

  When will there be a change in the situation? You’ve stumped me. I don’t know either. If you let me decide, I would make it so that the situation never changed…

  However, looking at Lin Wan’s hopeful eyes, Pei Qian could not help but say something to appease her.

  “It depends on fate. When it’s time, the situation will change.”

  …

  After sending Lin Wan off, Pei Qian heaved a huge sigh of relief. Everything’s almost done!

  Just a while ago, Ming Yun Private Kitchen’s failure made him extremely anxious. Now, he was getting good news from Shang Yang Games. Pei Qian could finally relax.

  Lin Wan would appease Zhang Zuting. After all, they had already paid him and given him a good treat. They even made him more popular. One could not complain that Pei Qian had treated him badly.

  Old Zhang was just getting cursed at here and there. How big of a deal was that? If Old Zhang really felt disturbed, he could always look for a couple more Hong Kong celebrities to join him in filming advertisements next time. He could ask them to do so on account of their friendship.

  At the very most, Pei Qian would invite Old Zhang back to Jingzhou and treat him to another good meal.

  However, the thought that he would have to make a reservation whenever he wanted to go to Ming Yun Private Kitchen and that he would not be able to eat there whenever he pleased again made Pei Qian feel extremely down. “Oh, that’s right. I have to call Lin Canrong!”

  Pei Qian recalled a critical problem.

  Ming Yun Private Kitchen’s situation had been too optimistic before. There were too few reservations not enough to fill up all the slots.

  Although Ming Yun Private Kitchen was already fully booked until next week, Pei Qian still had time to make reservations for after that.

  Pei Qian called Lin Canrong to make several more reservations.

  Before this, he only booked the restaurant on the 20th of every even month. He also booked the biggest private room for the first and third Sunday of each month.

  Now, he was going to book the entire restaurant on the 20th of every month, and the biggest private room on the first and third Sunday and second and fourth Saturday of each month.

  Simply put, he doubled the number of reservations he made th
e last time.

  Pei Qian wanted to make more reservations, but he needed to have a legitimate reason each time he organized a gathering.

  Booking a private room once a week and the entire restaurant once a month was about all he could do.

  Once he finished making the reservations, he heaved a long sigh of relief.

  He would treat Teacher Qiao to a meal this Saturday in order to comfort his broken soul.

  On the 20th of this month, he could treat Shang Yang Games’ employees to a meal to reward them for their hard work.

  He would not have to worry about Shang Yang Games for now. He felt much more relaxed. Once again, he picked up his controller and prepared to suffer in Repent and Be Saved. At that moment, his cell phone’s screen lit up. It was a message from Lin Chang. “Boss Pei, are you Hardcore Reviews?”

  Pei Qian was confused.

  Oh? How did you find out so quickly?

  He had thought Lin Chang would not notice a minor account like Hardcore Reviews since he was such a busy person.

  Pei Qian was going to inform Lin Chang about the videos after filming all twenty episodes. He had not expected Lin Chang to find out about him so early on. Ever since he started updating Hardcore Reviews’ videos last month, he had uploaded a total of eleven episodes. He was about halfway through his initial goal of twenty. Pei Qian had planned to play around with and upload twenty episodes for fun. Then, he would be able to relax and spend the two hundred thousand yuan.

  However, the results were much better than he expected. Hardcore Reviews gained many fans, and there were now more than six hundred thousand viewers.

  The first three cell phone reviews were especially popular. Fans of all three cell phones kept fighting in the comments. Until now, the videos were still gaining popularity.

  Of course, even an account with six hundred thousand fans was considered average on Aili Island. One could say that it only had a little fame in the system.

  Naturally, Pei Qian did not expect Lin Chang to notice his videos. Could it be that Boss Lin normally browsed Aili Island when he had nothing to do as well? If other people had seen Hardcore Reviews, perhaps they would not have recognized Boss Pei.

  On one hand, Pei Qian did not show his face. He also slightly altered his voice. On the other hand, other people would not have expected the rich Boss Pei to shoot videos for fun.

  Yet, Lin Chang was different.

  He had funded this program. He also knew that Boss Pei was running a test on performance art. Looking at the video, he would probably be able to guess that the host was Boss Pei just from his figure and voice.

  There was no need for Pei Qian to hide the facts either. From the beginning, he had produced the videos for Lin Chang to see. Thus, he readily admitted it.

  “It’s me.”

  [1] This means Deep-Fried Pig Trotters in Mandarin.

  Chapter 255 - Changing from a Web-Based to a Mobile Game, In Progress!

  Lin Chang replied quickly, “Boss Pei, you’re awesome! At the time, I thought you were going to take the money to play around. I didn’t expect you to create an account in the electronics area and gain six hundred thousand fans in under two months! You even did all of these things alone!

  “It looks like you’re not just an expert in games; you’re also extremely talented in creating media.”

  Pei Qian sniggered inside.

  Initially, he only wanted to take the money and play around. He had not expected his own account to grow in popularity so quickly.

  Pei Qian said nothing in response, but Lin Chang’s next message came in almost immediately.

  Lin Chang said, “Apart from that, my older sister told me to thank you.”

  Pei Qian, “?”

  At lightning speed, Pei Qian recalled the information he had read before. Lin Chang had an older sister, Lin Yu. At the moment, she was in charge of the cell phone arm of Shenhua Corporation.

  She was also a boss.

  However, Pei Qian was confused. Lin Yu was in charge of Shenhua’s cell phone arm. One could say that it was the core of the core businesses. How was Pei Qian related to her?

  Lin Chang said, “Boss Pei, do you remember your three earliest videos?

  “Shenhua has always used solid material to create phones. However, illogical netizens and fake reviewers would try to smear anything to do with Shenhua’s cell phones.

  “Although many reviewers have reviewed Shenhua’s cell phones, they have always achieved mediocre results. People who liked the cell phones from the beginning continued to like them, but those who did not continued to dislike them. People who were prejudiced against Shenhua’s cell phones naturally thought these reviewers had been paid by Shenhua to praise their phones.

  “Yet, Boss Pei’s Hardcore Reviews is completely different. Your violent tests immediately revealed Shenhua’s cell phones’ sturdiness. They’re not worse off than foreign cell phones!

  “Although you destroyed a Shenhua cell phone, you managed to positively influence your viewers. I came across your video on the official platform for Shenhua cell phones and noticed that the host in the video looked quite familiar. It was only then that I recalled you, Boss Pei.

  “I told my older sister about it, and she became overjoyed. She expresses her deepest thanks and appreciation for your videos.

  Pei Qian, “…”

  So that’s what happened.

  He had not expected that his casual destruction of a cell phone would have caused such complicated effects.

  “Strictly speaking, the credit should go to Shenhua for creating such good cell phones. I didn’t even think that much when I was trying to destroy it.” Pei Qian replied, “You don’t have to thank me. After all, Boss Lin was the one who sponsored ‘Hardcore Reviews’.”

  Pei Qian could tell that Lin Yu’s thanks would come in the form of material rewards, but he had no intention to accept the gifts.

  On one hand, he really had not done anything. He would feel guilty taking any money offered to him. What’s more, as long as he could successfully incur losses this time, tens of thousands of yuan would be a petty sum to Boss Pei.

  He was a man with a System after all. He was not one to always receive financial assistance from others.

  Boss Pei was a prideful man.

  Lin Chang said, “You’re too polite, but whether you intentionally did it or not, Boss Pei has done us a huge favor. We have to thank you. “This is what my older sister thinks: If Shenhua manufactures new products in the future, they will send one to Boss Pei immediately. “Oh, no, they will send two to you. Boss Pei, you can use one and destroy the other.

  “Apart from that, she will give Boss Pei a hundred thousand yuan as thanks. I’ll transfer that amount to the account number you gave me the last time.

  “After all, you have been taking very good care of Ah Wan during this period as well.”

  Indeed, things were playing out just as Pei Qian had expected.

  Once he heard ‘a hundred thousand yuan’, Pei Qian wavered. However, he very quickly regained his composure.

  He could take the money, but there was no need to.

  Pei Qian replied, “Boss Lin, you are too kind. Lin Wan has worked hard. I haven’t had to take special care of her. Everything she has achieved can be credited to her own hard work. You can give this money to Lin Wan instead. After all, she has cautiously and conscientiously shared my burdens during this period.”

  Pei Qian was taking advantage of the situation and trying to pass the hundred thousand yuan, which Lin Yu had initially prepared for him, over to Lin Wan.

  Lin Wan had indeed just achieved considerable success. She single-handedly lost eight million yuan.

  This hundred thousand yuan should be dissipated within the Lin Family.

  Lin Chang only responded a while later. “Boss Pei, you know that my older sister is not on good terms with Ah Wan, don’t you? You’re trying to take advantage of the situation and help them repair their relationship? Pei Qian, “?”
>
  What the hell? You’re overthinking! I didn’t intend to do that!

  Lin Chang minded his own business and continued, “Boss Pei, you are so considerate. I can use this as a reason to try and repair the relationship between the sisters.

  “Since that’s the case, I will not turn down your good intentions. We owe you a favor. Boss Pei, if you need help in any area in the future, feel free to ask us.”

  Pei Qian, “…Alright.” Although he did not fully understand what had happened, he felt like he had triggered a series of hidden events.

  Yet, he did not pay too much attention to this. After all, the Lin Family should be left to deal with their own family problems.

  Boss Pei was only interested in how to incur losses.

  Lin Chang and Pei Qian exchanged a couple more pleasantries and then ended the conversation.

  Pei Qian thought hard about what Lin Chang said before. He felt like something was amiss, but he could not put his finger on it. “Lin Yu and Lin Wan are not on good terms? Yet, Lin Wan seems to be on good terms with her two other brothers. Does that mean that Lin Yu is more similar to Old Master Lin? Lin Yu must be hoping that Lin Wan would give up on the game industry and go home to take over the family business.

  “That means… Lin Yu and I are on the same side. We might have a chance to work together in the future.

  “Yes, I’ll take it that I’m doing her a convenient favor this time.”

  Pei Qian did not think too much about this. Instead, he went back to suffering in Repent and be Saved.

  At Shang Yang Games… Lin Wan was still reading the posts in the forum.

  Gamers seemed to be very divided on Bloody Battle Song: The Powerful Version. Some praised it to the heavens, but some dissed it mindlessly. Others even offered some suggestions for improvement.

  However, most old players seemed to support the new game. Many players had offered suggestions, but even after spending half a day reading them, Lin Wan could not find any valuable post.

  She sighed softly.

  Players were giving all sorts of suggestions, but most of them were impractical.