After Playing the Fool and Marrying the Blind Villain [Transmigration] - Chap 79
“…….”
The figure only lingered in Pei Yi peripheral vision for a second before vanishing around the corner, smoothly hidden behind a wall.
Li Yuan took two or three steps forward, only to realize that his friend wasn’t following. “Will, what are you looking at?”
“Nothing, maybe I saw wrong?”
Pei Yi followed, thinking honestly that he shouldn’t conceal it. “Pear Garden, I thought I saw Ke Ming just now. Do you know if he came to participate in the competition?”
“Ke Ming?”
Li Yuan heard this long-unheard name and his expression unconsciously went cold. “I’m not sure. I haven’t paid attention to him and the dynamics of his studio since we got busy with The Last Fog.”
They hadn’t seen Ke Ming since the last round of GM’s bidding, and Xiang Nansheng, who used to work with him, was also hired to YWY Studios after leaving the company.
“I heard there was a server bug in Search For Another World last time, which caused Youming Studios a lot of money.”
“Other than Brother Xiang being ‘forced’ to resign, even the investment partners they found for Alien Beasts ran away.”
Li Yuan told all he knew about the situation, but also maintained a trace of vigilance. “How about I call Brother Xiang and ask him to help figure out the situation?”
Pei Yi shook his head. “Forget it, don’t bother him at this hour. We’ll know what the situation is tomorrow morning at the latest.”
Li Yuan put a stop to his thoughts. “Then let’s set it aside for now. Whether he comes or not, we still have to go through our own process.”
This wasn’t a competition where they chose “one from two,” but rather “three from twenty.” As the participating producers, they were under a lot of pressure, and at the same time, the organizers would also pursue fairness and justice.
After all, this game design competition was being held for the eighth time, and the word “original” was in the title—
If Ke Ming still used the level of plagiarism in Alien Beasts to cheat, he likely wouldn’t achieve a ranking.
With the same thought in mind, Pei Yi patted his friend on the shoulder. “Let’s go have a late-night snack. I can already smell the aroma from the restaurant.”
Li Yuan smiled back. “Okay.”
. . . . . . .
On the first night in Haishi, Pei Yi still couldn’t fall asleep quickly.
But fortunately, the jacket he brought had the familiar scent of his lover, and after falling asleep, he felt more at ease than usual in this unfamiliar environment.
The alarm clock rang at exactly eight o’clock.
Pei Yi was forced to wake up, and instinctively mumbled, “Er-ge, shut it off.”
Only as soon as he said these words while half asleep, he recognized the environment he was in—
This was not Bo Yueming’s house, and Bo Yueming was not by his side.
“…….”
Pei Yi’s heart trembled with a trace of unspeakable loss. After fumbling to turn off the alarm, he forced himself to sit up.
He rubbed his sleepy eyes, and called to his friend in the next bed who also liked to sleep under the quilt, “Pear Garden, it’s eight o’clock. Time to wake up.”
“Mm……”
Huddled under the quilt, Li Yuan responded and then went silent. It was clear that he also had trouble getting up.
The opening ceremony for the competition was scheduled for nine o’clock. They had heard that there would be media reporters and broadcasters, and as the representatives of YWY Studios, they couldn’t be late for their first appearance.
Pei Yi got down to business and got out of bed. “I’ll go wash up first. Pear Garden, you wake up too.”
Li Yuan poked half his head out from under the quilt with a drowsy look. “En.”
. . . . . . .
When Pei Yi came out after getting ready, Li Yuan had already gotten up.
Their gazes met mid-air.
Li Yuan saw that his friend had tidied up properly, and there was a trace of admiration in his sleepy eyes. “Don’t you usually sleep in at home? How can you just get up in the morning?”
Pei Yi remembered that he had “no hands and no feet” at home, and raised his eyebrows, boasting, “Yes, ah, aren’t I amazing?”
“Amazing.”
Li Yuan nodded weakly, but didn’t delay business. “Give me fifteen minutes, I’m used to getting up early. I’ll take a shower and do my hair.”
“All right.”
Pei Yi picked up the phone and glanced at the time. “I’ll call for you when the time comes. Twenty minutes to eat will be just right.”
He waited until the bathroom door was locked.
Having nothing to do, Pei Yi fell back on the bed again and touched the jacket with his fingertips. He couldn’t help but turn his head and bury his face into it childishly—
Light ebony mixed with a hint of mint. This was his scent.
“I wonder if Er-ge is awake.”
As soon as Pei Yi uttered those faint words, his cell phone vibrated. He tacitly realized something and clicked on WeChat to see—
Sure enough, Bo Yueming had sent a message: “Kitten, are you up yet?”
Pei Yi thought of his friend in the bathroom, and hid in the cloakroom while making a video call.
It took less than three seconds for the call invitation to be sent, and the other side connected.
Pei Yi looked at Bo Yueming on the screen, and the corners of his lips lifted. “Er-ge, good morning.”
When Bo Yueming saw his lover who had gotten up early at this rare hour, a smile burst over his face. “Good morning. It looks like you didn’t sleep in today?”
“I was afraid we’d be late to sign in at nine o’clock. Without you by my side, I didn’t dare sleep late.”
There was a hint of coquettishness at the end of Pei Yi’s tone, a sound that only Bo Yueming knew.
Bo Yueming asked again, “What are the arrangements for today?”
“The opening ceremony is in the morning, and it seems that there will be a live broadcast of the whole process. The exchange meeting will be in the afternoon.”
Pei Yi briefly outlined his schedule, then set the phone on the cabinet—
“Er-ge, help me choose. Which one is more suitable to wear today?”
Saying this, he picked up two sets of clothes.
Bo Yueming smiled. “How old are you? You want me to pick your clothes?”
Pei Yi was unresigned. “This is called — even if we are in different places, we have to participate in each other’s lives. Got it?”
When he first confirmed that he wanted to pursue Bo Yueming, he had read a lot of secrets to love on the internet. Some of them were ridiculous, but this one made sense.
Bo Yueming was persuaded by him, and chose an outfit. “Wear the beige jacket. I’ll find a similar color to wear later.”
When Pei Yi heard that last sentence, he immediately grinned. “Okay.”
. . . . . . . .
The video call was short and sweet.
Pei Yi hung up the phone and dressed neatly, but still wore the extra layer of the mask and peaked cap. He and Li Yuan headed out the door, planning to leave for breakfast at the last moment.
—Ding!
The elevator doors opened.
The two had just stepped inside when a familiar greeting sounded. “Hey, isn’t this Mr. Li? Long time no see.”
They hadn’t seen each other for around four or five months, but Ke Ming’s face was still so annoying.
“…….”
A trace of dislike flashed across Pei Yi’s eyes hidden under the peaked cap, and he couldn’t help but glance at his friend. Enemies met on a narrow road. How unfortunate.
This person was also in the game production circle, and his reason for showing up here was nothing more than that — Ke Ming had really brought his project to participate in the original game design competition!
Ke Ming’s eyes fell on the heavily covered Pei Yi, and he couldn’t recognize him at the moment. “Who is this?”
Li Yuan took a quick step forward and to the side to block Ke Ming’s inquiring view of his friend. “Mr. Ke, it’s been a long time. I didn’t expect to meet you here.”
“I don’t know what game Mr. Ke has developed by himself during this period of time?”
“…….”
When Pei Li heard Li Yuan’s “implication,” the corners of his mouth raised beneath his mask.
He had been working alongside his friend for so long that he had almost forgotten about his poisonous tongue. This encounter with Ke Ming had brought back that familiar feeling.
“…….”
How could Ke Ming fail to hear Li Yuan’s sarcasm?
At the GM bidding, Lou Yang had accused him on the spot of plagiarizing ‘Alien Beasts’ produced by Youming Studios. Not only did he lose his investment, but he lost face.
Ke Ming held back his temper, feigning ignorance. “Mr. Li is joking. Since he was lucky enough to be shortlisted for this year’s competition, the big guys naturally entered their works. Did your group bring that game ‘The Last Fog?’”
Before the lingering sound cut off, Ke Ming pretended to have made a mistake. “Oh, I’m sorry. I heard that Mr. Li had family trouble some time ago?”
“Dawn Games isn’t your company anymore? Just what is YWY Studios?”
Pei Yi saw the ridicule on Ke Ming’s face, and his eyes turned cold.
Li Yuan asked, “Mr. Ke, what are you trying to say?”
“I’m not trying to say anything, I just want to encourage Mr. Li.” Ke Ming approached and patted Li Yuan’s shoulder without waiting for his consent. “I firmly believe that no matter how small a studio is, it can develop into a big company under your leadership.”
Pei Yi let out a scoff.
Ke Ming’s attention shifted over. He saw Pei Yi’s eyes beneath the peaked cap and felt an indescribable sense of familiarity.
But in just an instant, those seemingly warm eyes turned a degree colder—
“From a studio to a big company.” Pei Yi’s voice was slightly lower as he asked pleasantly, “How many years has it been since Youming Studios was established? Why hasn’t it developed into a big company under your leadership?”
“…….”
Pei Yi imitated his tone from just now. “Oh, I’m sorry. Could it be that Mr. Ke didn’t get enough encouragement?”
Li Yuan curled his lip and said sarcastically, “Where does Mr. Ke have time for encouragement, ah? He devotes himself to researching the works of his peers and studies hard.”
The two spoke in concert with each other, sending the ridicule to Ke Ming’s ears.
Ke Ming’s face turned colors, and he felt the unspeakably aggrieved sense of being belittled.
Li Yuan couldn’t be bothered to continue talking nonsense with him. “Mr. Ke, excuse us first. Save your real skills for us to see during the competition.”
Pei Yi agreed with his friend’s proposal, and they tacitly left Ke Ming, walking toward the restaurant.
Ke Ming gazed after the backs of these two, and cursed, “Fuck, what are they showing off about?”
The previous Dawn Games was no longer powerful, but going back ten years, it could also be regarded as a well-ranked production company in the Chinese game circle, and its past performance could still support it.
What was left for Li Yuan now?
A little-known game studio. Did he still think he had the backing of a big company?
Wasn’t it because he knew he had no reputation right now that he wanted to use this competition to gild the studio’s name? What sort of act was he putting on here!
The assistant who had remained silent in the back came forward to remind him with a blank expression, “Mr. Ke, there are only fifteen minutes until the opening ceremony. Shall we go up now?”
Ke Ming looked at his assistant who had come from headquarters to help, and felt at ease. “En.”
No matter how powerful GM was, it was only an outside company, after all. How could it compare to the backer he had found now? That was real capital in the game circle!
They would see!
In this competition, he would get them back for all the humiliation he had suffered when he lost the bidding!
. . . . . . . .
Inside the 24-hour restaurant.
Pei Yi and Li Yuan only picked out a few simple dishes, and chose to sit in the farthest corner by the window.
Li Yuan took a sip of soy milk and asked in a low voice, “Will, do you think Ke Ming…..”
Pei Yi chewed a poached egg and butted in, “He’s really despicable.”
“I’m not talking about his character.” Li Yuan laughed, and tried to find the right way to express himself. “I felt that when he was talking to us just now, wasn’t he overtly or covertly acting superior?”
What small studio? What big company?
Pei Yi swallowed the poached egg and guessed intuitively, “He probably attracted a very good investment or partner for the studio. The other party’s influence in the game circle should at least be higher than that of Er-ge and GM. Even—”
Li Yuan was drawn into his train of thought. “Even what?”
“It’s even very likely that it will be a big shot in the industry, or the current top game group.” Pei Yi spoke his inner thoughts in detail. “What do you think?”
Li Yuan recalled the sarcasm in Ke Ming’s words. “I think we need to have someone inquire clearly. Ke Ming is definitely not a magnanimous and easy-going person.”
One should refrain from hurting others, but guard against those trying to hurt you.
Now that they had met an enemy on a narrow road again, what if the opponent made another move during this competition? It was never a bad thing to be prepared.
Pei Yi nodded in agreement.
Li Yuan took out his cell phone. “Then I’ll trouble Brother Xiang for his help?”
“You can ask him, but Brother Xiang might not be enough.”
After all, the other party had been gone from Youming Studios for a while.
Pei Yi stuffed the remaining half of the poached egg into his mouth and took out his cell phone. He quickly searched up Lin Zhong’s WeChat and typed in a line—
“Lin Zhong, are you there?”
“If you have time, find someone to help me look into Ke Ming and his studio. The more details, the better.”
Bo Yueming’s network of contacts had always been the widest. Apart from finding Xiang Nansheng, who had once worked with Ke Ming, they needed to rely on an external force to make inquiries.
Lin Zhong’s message came quickly—
“Okay, Little Sir!”
“I will make arrangements when I arrive at the company later, and give you an answer before five o’clock today at the latest.”
Pei Yi finished his brief task handover and glanced at the time at the top of the screen. There were only three minutes left.
“Pear Garden, are you full? It’s almost time to go.”
Li Yuan also sent Xiang Nansheng a WeChat message, and drank the remaining half cup of soy milk. “En, let’s go.”
. . . . . . . .
The opening ceremony would be held in the stage hall on the seventeenth floor.
When Pei Yi and Li Yuan arrived, the employee responsible for signing people in immediately greeted them. “Hello, are you Mr. Li and Mr. Will?”
“Yes.” Li Yuan took the lead. “Sorry, are we the last ones?”
The employee quickly led them to the check-in office while explaining, “No, no, you two gentlemen are just in time, and there are three others who haven’t arrived yet.”
The two speedily completed their check-in under the employee’s guidance.
Pei Yi turned around quickly and accidentally bumped into someone’s shoulder.
“Careful.”
The other party gently grabbed his arm, then released it politely. “Sorry, I was in a hurry and couldn’t stop in time.”
“It’s fine,” Pei Yi returned lightly, and looked up. The other party wore a dark blue suit and looked refined.
After the two of them nodded to each other, this little accident passed.
Under the employee’s guidance, Pei Yi and Li Yuan found their spots in the middle of the fifth row. The overall view was pretty good.
Li Yuan looked at the cameras on and off stage, as well as the reporters and media scattered on both sides, and exclaimed to his friend in a low voice, “It looks like the organizers really attach a lot of importance to this competition.”
Just the opening ceremony took a lot of manpower and financial resources.
Pei Yi replied quietly, “Think about it, as long as there is a blockbuster each session, the organizers will be able to make back money.”
Li Yuan looked down with a smile. “That’s right.”
The high-intensity exposure of each competition was accompanied by certain equivalent exchange conditions.
The game projects shortlisted for the top three would sign an advertising agreement with the sponsor. In other words—
The producer needed to hand over thirty percent of the advertising fees after the game was released within a year.
In this way, the interests of both parties were tied together.
The publicity and exposure during this opening ceremony made it seem like the organizers were working only for the benefit of others and driving the interest of the gamers in front of the screen, but they were actually considering long-term interests.
Pei Yi asked casually: “Have you seen Ke Ming?”
Li Yuan whispered to him, “The fourth from the left in the third row.”
Pei Yi looked in the direction indicated by his friend. Just then, the staff led the man in the dark blue suit whom he had seen outside the venue just now to sit in the middle of the third row.
A trace of consideration flashed in Pei Yi’s eyes. “Pear Garden, do you think this sitting arrangement has been chosen carefully?”
Li Yuan shook his head: “I’m not sure, the organizers shouldn’t be playing favorites, right?”
As soon as he spoke, the lights in the entire venue switched on.
The opening ceremony of the Eighth Original Game Design Competition had officially begun. The overall process was not too complicated—
First, they recalled the history of the previous seven competitions, the final award-winning production of each season, and the current status of those games.
In addition, they introduced the companies and studios of the twenty shortlisted producers one by one, as well as the publicity and exposure opportunities of this year’s winner.
“—Nebula Fun Tour, Traces at the Scene of the Crime.”
When Pei Yi heard the familiar name of the studio, his eyes froze slightly.
Li Yuan to the side also reacted: “Will, this company bought the game you designed before, right?”
There was a hint of a smile at the tips of Pei Yi’s eyes: “I said it was gaining exposure before the end of the year. So as for why it hadn’t been released, I suppose they were waiting for this opportunity.”
Although the name of the game had been slightly changed, from the literal meaning, it should be the “Tracking Pros and Cons” that he had created.
Li Yuan teased: “Teacher Will, do you think that The Last Fog can beat Traces?”
Pei Yi joked back: “I like both options, how can I not win?”
“So confident? Aren’t you afraid of being overheard by your peers?”
“It’s fine, you’re the first to ask.”
The two whispered for a while, and then heard the host on the stage announce—
“Chanming Studios, Destroy the Alien Beasts.”
Li Yuan frowned slightly when he heard this: “They changed the name of the studio?”
Pei Yi answered: “But it sounds like the Alien Beasts game has changed a lot.”
Li Yuan hesitated to speak.
Pei Yi saw his friend’s doubts, and signaled with his eyes for him to remain calm.
The host would introduce their studio soon. If he had any questions, they would have to wait until the opening ceremony was over.
. . . . . . . .
The opening ceremony ended.
Pei Yi and his friend returned to the hotel room and took out their phones to investigate.
Bo Yueming sent him a screenshot of the live broadcast half an hour ago. “I watched for so long, but there were only a few seconds of footage introducing your studio.”
Pei Yi took off his stuffy mask and smiled as he resumed typing. “Boss Bo, are you not concentrating on work, ah? Why are you looking at such a boring live opening ceremony?”
Not long after the text message was sent, Bo Yueming made a video call.
Pei Yi connected. “Er-ge, why are you making a video call? Are you not busy today?”
“It’s my lunch break. And didn’t you ask Lin Zhong to help you investigate something?”
Bo Yueming moved his eyes to the screen, and then walked to the office’s rest area with the computer in his arms.
Lin Zhong’s figure appeared in the video immediately. “Little Sir, some basic information has already been found. Mr. Bo was afraid that you would be anxious, so let me give you a general overview, and I will let you know when I have supplemental information.”
Pei Yi’s mind was on business, and he addressed Li Yuan, “Li Yuan, come here and hear about Youming.”
Li Yuan approached, revealing, “Brother Xiang was telling me that Youming Studios has a new investment partner, and the name was changed a while ago.”
“The Destroy the Alien Beasts that we heard of not long ago is the one they were going to release before.”
It was just unknown if the settings in the game had changed, and how much.
Pei Yi put his hands on the table and said: “Lin Zhong, what did you find?”
On the screen, Lin Zhong glanced at Bo Yueming, then said with the other party’s consent: “Little Sir, Mr. Li, you should know the top two game production companies in China right now.”
“Of course.”
“Weiyi Games and Xunya Technology. These two companies occupy more than half of the entire Chinese market.”
Especially in the past five years, various games under the two brands had gone up against each other.
A thought flashed through Pei Yi’s mind. “What, did Ke Ming get an investment sponsorship from one of them?”
“Not exactly.”
Lin Zhong didn’t beat around the bush. “I checked Youming Studios for the first time today, and the share composition of the current Chanming Studios—”
The first legal shareholder was Ke Ming, and the second shareholder had been changed to You Chang.
“You Chang?”
Hearing this name, Pei Yi looked at his friend.
Li Yuan also shook his head. “He’s a person in the gaming circle, so I should have more or less heard of him, but I’m unfamiliar with the name.”
“The shareholder’s name may be unfamiliar, but you should have heard of the game company under him.” Lin Zhong had discovered this by following the clues. “You Chang has a game company called Nan Chan.”
“…….”
Li Yuan realized in an instant, “It’s a subsidiary of Xunya Technology?”
Lin Zhong nodded. “Yes.”
From the early days of Nan Chan’s establishment, it mainly focused on single-player mini-games. It had been stagnant in the past two years, and almost all the development costs invested in it were in vain.
Later, You Chang invested in and took over the studio, and one of the stand-alone mini-games exploded.
Of course, because they were backed by Xunya Technology, they could pretty much make huge profits in the short term through the free publicity of their backer’s various channels.
Pei Yi had a vague impression of this “Nan Chan” company. “Don’t I remember that they have always seemed to have nothing to do with plagiarism?”
“Where are they different, ah? They are exactly the same, and they only pick small overseas games.” Li Yuan’s eyes showed disgust—
Change the NPC icons a bit, change the game interface, change the background music a bit, and it could be put on the shelves as a brand new mini-game.
Once the “plagiarism” had been exposed, they would be taken off the shelves directly.
It seemed that netizens had successfully resisted, but what was the use?
The short-term popularity was enough for their producers to make enough money, and after two or three months, they could make a comeback with other small games.
As for the behind-the-scenes producer Nan Chan, firstly, the netizens who liked to follow the trends to play games would rarely remember it, and secondly, it was backed by Xunya Technology and was still very stable up to now.
However, after working on small, short-term games for a long time, it was likely that they wanted to upgrade and find new paths forward through mobile games.
“One had the game prototype but lacked investment, and the other was not short of money, but lacked the game prototype.”
Li Yuan could roughly guess the reason for the cooperation between the two parties. “I suppose that is how they see each other.”
How they saw each other?
Pei Yi recalled the disgusting plagiarisation of “Alien Beasts” at the beginning, and said bluntly, “People who share common traits gravitate toward one another.”
And what were they?
They were in collusion, lowlifes of the same feather!
