Chapter 29: Creating Joy with Heart
Pu Tong already had a rough idea of how Werewolf could make money.
Microtransactions.
Of course it had to be microtransactions.
The mobile gaming industry was incredibly profitable. As long as players spent money, there would be a constant stream of revenue.
Since this was the company's first game, it at least had to earn enough to fund the development of the next one.
Of course...
The gameplay of Werewolf absolutely could not be affected by spending money.
Strategy was the core of the game.
Paying money could never compromise fairness.
If whales could simply choose whatever role they wanted—or worse, get a pile of overpowered divine abilities—
Then what would everyone else even be playing?
Don't let your game's power creep spiral out of control!
If paying couldn't make players stronger...
Then where should the monetization be?
Naturally—
Cosmetics.
It was a card game, after all.
Card fronts.
Card backs.
Character illustrations.
Weren't those all perfect cosmetic purchases?
Sure, I got eliminated in the first round...
But my card back is rainbow holographic.
Do you have one?
We're both werewolves.
So why is your werewolf just a 2D image while mine has a fully animated 3D model?
Question:
How do you take advantage of players' competitive vanity?
Simple.
Design ridiculously cool cosmetics.
Whether they're powerful doesn't matter.
They just have to look awesome.
Then add limited-edition skins...
Random cosmetic gacha...
Maybe throw in a six-yuan card sleeve bundle every now and then...
It would practically print money.
"What?"
"You think I'm tricking people into spending?"
Come on.
Cosmetic purchases don't affect gameplay in the slightest.
Personalized customization is completely voluntary, dear customer!
Don't ask why Pu Tong knew so much about this.
Let's just say...
He'd absorbed plenty of experience in his previous life.
A certain company comes to mind...
Don't ask.
The answer is simply—
"Creating joy with heart."
Registering a company wasn't particularly complicated.
The hardest part was choosing a name.
On that point...
Pu Tong and his mother completely disagreed.
Ni Hui suggested calling it PuNi.
Pu Tong rejected it immediately.
The name sounded suspiciously like one of those Holy Spirit-type Pokémon.
"Maybe we should just call it Ninten..."
"...Never mind."
"Plagiarism is shameful."
In the end, Ni Hui made the executive decision.
The company would be called:
KePu Entertainment Co., Ltd.
"...What does that even mean?"
"Technology?"
"Or a pun on 'science popularization'?"
Pu Tong couldn't figure it out.
"Read it all together."
Ni Hui grinned mischievously.
"Ke... Pu... Entertainment..."
...
Shipping Pu and Yu?
Even the company name was shipping his CP?
They had gone that far?
The CP fans seriously needed to calm down.
Pu Tong felt his blood pressure rising.
Unfortunately...
He simply couldn't argue with his mother.
After all...
She was technically the boss now.
Thus...
The first step of Pu Tong's gaming empire officially began.
KePu Entertainment Co., Ltd. was formally established.
The legal representative was Ni Hui.
His father, Pu Luo, was basically just there to make up the numbers.
...
Why did that company name feel impossible to look at directly?
Pu Tong rubbed his temples.
Forcing himself to accept reality.
Don't overthink it.
Don't overthink it.
After lunch, Pu Tong followed Ni Hui to one of Huailin City's more upscale office buildings.
He planned to rent office space there.
Their home wasn't far away, so checking in occasionally would be convenient.
"We're here, President Pu."
Ni Hui teased him.
"This really burns through money..."
Just securing office space alone nearly exhausted all the savings Pu Tong had.
After paying for game development...
Office supplies...
Miscellaneous expenses...
There would barely be anything left.
If the royalty payments from his songs were delayed...
He might not even be able to pay employee salaries.
...
Well.
The boss wasn't him for now anyway.
Ni Hui walked straight to the reception desk.
Although she often seemed unreliable at
home...
Whenever it came to serious business...
She was exceptionally capable.
Pu Tong's only role was following behind like a child.
Wearing a hoodie and jeans...
He looked completely out of place among all the adults dressed in business suits.
Fortunately...
He was handsome.
After talking with the receptionist for a while...
A manager approached with a friendly smile.
"You're Pu Tong, right?"
"I'm a fan."
...
Why were there fans everywhere?
Since he was here to rent office space, refusing would be impolite.
So he politely shook hands with the manager.
The rest was entirely left to Ni Hui.
He had to admit...
His mother's professional ability was genuinely impressive.
Once business negotiations began...
He couldn't even get a word in.
Even combining both his lifetimes...
She still had far more life experience than he did.
There was simply no comparison.
In the end...
Thanks to Pu Tong's popularity and recognizable face, they negotiated a very favorable price.
Since the company was a startup...
There were also various preferential policies available.
After everything was calculated...
The monthly rent, including property management fees, came to 80,000 yuan.
After setting aside money for development...
Office equipment...
And miscellaneous expenses...
They could comfortably afford four or five months.
If that still wasn't enough...
He'd have no choice but to sell his soul and cling to Yu Wanwan's thigh.
Rich lady... I'm hungry... Please feed me...
Fortunately...
Developing a card game wouldn't take very long.
Once it launched, the revenue should be enough to keep the company alive.
As for recruiting employees...
Pu Tong left everything to his mother.
His family didn't have to contribute financially to his startup—that was understandable.
But if they refused to help at all...
That would be going too far.
By Sunday evening...
Pu Tong finally dragged his exhausted body home.
"So?"
"Not easy being President Pu, is it?"
"Yeah."
He gulped down several mouthfuls of water.
"But it's still better than being a celebrity."
"I seriously don't understand why you're so against becoming a star."
Ni Hui genuinely couldn't figure it out.
Being a celebrity required neither a degree nor professional certification.
There was hardly any mental labor.
Hardly any physical labor.
As long as you put in a little effort, people praised you for being dedicated.
The only real requirement was appearance.
And even that could be fixed with cosmetic surgery.
Wasn't it one of the easiest professions imaginable?
Most importantly...
Her son was the type who had been blessed by heaven itself.
He was so handsome.
Yet he absolutely refused to become a celebrity.
It made no sense.
"Maybe..."
"I just want to live a more relaxed life."
"Mentally."
Ni Hui opened her mouth...
But ultimately said nothing.
The way she looked at him became much gentler.
Perhaps...
That was precisely the thing she admired most about her son.
After wasting an entire day without studying...
Pu Tong felt strangely uncomfortable.
He quickly took a shower before returning to his study schedule.
Buzz...
His phone vibrated.
Glancing at the notification...
He immediately opened the chat.
Red Packet Received: 50 yuan
Yu Wanwan: So if I hadn't sent you the 50 yuan, you really would've ignored me all day?
Pu Tong: I was busy today!
Yu Wanwan: Studying, right?
Yu Wanwan: Everyone knows studying is your favorite hobby.
Pu Tong: Not this time.
Pu Tong: Today I...
Originally...
Pu Tong had wanted to brag about starting his own company.
But then he remembered the enormous business empire behind Yu Wanwan's family.
He instantly lost the courage.
Compared to hers...
His company was laughably insignificant.
Pu Tong: Never mind.
Yu Wanwan: By the way.
Yu Wanwan: Did you check Weibo today?
Pu Tong: Why?
Yu Wanwan: An official cultural newspaper commented on your poem.
Yu Wanwan: Go take a look.
That happened?
Pu Tong hurriedly opened Weibo.
Only then did he notice another trending topic.
"How should we interpret: 'The moon beneath the sea is the moon in the sky; the one before my eyes is the one within my heart'?"
The Cultural Daily hadn't analyzed all of his verses.
It had only focused on this single couplet.
Even so...
Pu Tong's scalp tingled.
Opening the article, he found an essay discussing the poem.
"The moon beneath the sea is the moon in the sky; the one before my eyes is the one within my heart."
The moon exists—beneath the sea and in the heavens—but it remains beyond reach, because whether in the sea or the sky, it is still unimaginably distant from 'me.' It is not by my side.
The person also exists—before my eyes and within my heart—but can I truly reach them?
The person is real. They stand before my eyes and live in my heart. Yet I still cannot reach them, because whether before my eyes or within my heart, they remain impossibly distant from 'me.' They are not beside me.
The greatest misunderstanding when interpreting the second line may be that we instinctively assume someone before our eyes is also by our side.
But that is not necessarily true.
The person before your eyes may not actually belong by your side.
Perhaps she has no idea that your eyes and your heart are filled with her.
Or perhaps she knows perfectly well—but has her own reasons for being unable to come to your side.
Unable to become the one beside you, yet forever remembered in your heart and seen in your eyes...
Isn't that the most helpless kind of love?
Perhaps this young poet truly has someone close enough to see every day, yet someone he can never openly confess to. Only then could he have written such sorrowful words."
The comment section was even worse.
@JustAnOrdinaryUser: And you still insist you're not secretly in love?
@JustAnOrdinaryUser: And you still insist you're not secretly in love?
@JustAnOrdinaryUser: And you still insist you're not secretly in love?
...
Pu Tong was completely dumbfounded.
Since when did official media start leading the charge in shipping CPs?
(End of Chapter)
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