Chapter 24: Zhu Xi Must Be Crazy
The game, titled Evening Collection, told the story of a writer who returned to his rural hometown for inspiration, visiting his childhood friends and hearing strange and eerie tales from the locals. The writing in Evening Collection was superb, and combined with the exquisite character art, it easily immersed Zhu Qiao in the game’s world. She felt like she had become the writer, listening to stories from the depths of darkness on rainy nights.
The game didn’t have any jump scares, so Zhu Qiao could play without any fear. Each chapter, besides its chilling supernatural elements, also explored humanistic themes. The man leading a dog with a human head, the fierce-looking forest ranger who was actually a timid and insecure child, the married woman who recklessly pursued love and fell into an endless dream, the man who sent an invitation to the ghosts and ended up being killed by them…
At the end of the game, as the writer was about to leave the village, he saw his own tombstone by an old house. He finally realized that he had died from an illness in his childhood, and now he was just a vengeful spirit lingering due to his unfulfilled desires… As the writer looked on with melancholy, the game screen gradually darkened, a beautiful lullaby played, and countless fireflies danced in the darkness. The words “Evening Collection” appeared on the screen. As Zhu Qiao savored the lingering emotions, the words “Morning Flowers” appeared before “Evening Collection,” combining to form the title “Morning Flowers, Evening Collection.”
Good works always resonated with the audience and ignited their passion. Zhu Qiao thought of her own childhood, how naive she was back then, mistaking the shadows outside her window for ghosts, believing that thunder was the sound of demons grinding their teeth. Her little head was filled with big questions, and all the unknowns in the world were like supernatural dreams to her. What was the difference between her and the writer in the game?
Evening Collection wasn’t a very long game. Zhu Qiao finished it before dinner. Her heart was still in turmoil, a strong urge to express something, to write something. She clicked on the game’s comment section, then hesitated.
She wanted to praise the development team, but she lacked the vocabulary, not knowing what to say. She was also afraid of being criticized by others if she expressed her opinions. So she chose a compromise. She clicked on the developer’s private message button, planning to express her love for the game privately.
But what should she write?
Zhu Qiao hadn’t gone to school, but she had learned to read and write from Grandma Zhu. Her understanding of praise was still limited to words like “good-looking,” “amazing,” and “beautiful.” The impact of Evening Collection was too profound for her to express in words.
In the end, Xiaoqiao decided to use the most direct method. She turned on the camera, gave a thumbs-up, and then clicked send.
Human language originated from gestures. She believed that her feelings could be conveyed through this simple gesture!
“Xiaoqiao, dinner’s ready!” Sister Zhu Xi called out to her.
“Ah~ Coming, coming!” Zhu Qiao closed the private message window, put on her slippers, and hurried out.
Lu Li had been closely monitoring the game’s sales figures for the past few days. In the first 24 hours, Evening Collection sold over 70,000 copies, far exceeding his expectations. It even started trending on major social media platforms. When he woke up the next day, the sales had surpassed 140,000, topping the new releases chart. The previous domestic indie game hit had only sold 700,000 copies in six months!
As of today, Sister Yameng’s account had received over five million yuan, and this was after deducting VAT(Value-Added Tax).
This amount might be a drop in the bucket for large game companies, as the development cost alone was usually much higher. But what was the cost of this game? He built the framework himself, with a little help from Old Chen. The music was provided by An Baili and Chu Jingyi for free, the art by Wen Hupo for free, and even the marketing was done by Chen Jianing for free… Thinking about it, the cost of this game was surprisingly low… Lu Li stroked his chin. It seemed like Eternal Joy Studio had a bright future!
He was already thinking about how to distribute the salaries. First, there were An Baili and Chu Jingyi. These two girls probably weren’t interested in his money. It would be better to convert their salaries into gifts. Then there was Chen Jianing, a money-grubber and a miser. In his past life, An Baili often said she was obsessed with money, so he would give her a bigger bonus. And Wen Hupo, she was like a refined scholar from ancient times, caring more about reputation than money. How about giving her a banner? With the words “Outstanding Young Woman Representative” written on it, a perfect match for his “Outstanding Young Man Representative”? Oh, and Sister Yameng also had a salary. The title didn’t matter, he would find a way to give his sister money.
As Lu Li was happily daydreaming about the future, he suddenly noticed a private message on the Valve platform.
Since the game’s release, his account had received hundreds of private messages. A third were from advertisers, a third from music platforms asking for licensing, and the rest were from enthusiastic fans.
The sender of this particular message had the default smiling face as their profile picture, and their ID was a random string of numbers and letters, clearly a bot account. The message contained a picture, and Lu Li hesitated to open it. In his past life, he had heard colleagues complain about strange player behavior. They would send private messages in the middle of the night, pictures of their private parts, asking for feedback. If it were from a pretty girl, it would be one thing, but the pictures were always from hairy men. It was truly indecent.
Lu Li was worried that he had encountered a pervert.
Driven by curiosity, Lu Li clicked on the picture. The next second, his hand holding the mouse trembled, his eyes widening in disbelief.
The sender wasn’t a hairy man, but a beautiful young woman. She was wearing a casual t-shirt, her features delicate, her fox-like eyes alluring, but her slightly parted lips revealed a certain innocence. The girl gave a thumbs-up, a silly grin on her face, a Chu Jingyi style grin, as if saying, “Great job~”
Zhu Xi?! Is she crazy?!
This was Lu Li’s only thought. You, the Fourteenth Princess, sent me a selfie? What’s wrong with this world?
After hesitating for a long time, Lu Li decided that he couldn’t embarrass Her Highness by ignoring her, so he carefully replied, “Hi.”
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