My Virtual Girlfriend-Chapter 36: I’m willing

People playing cards began to persuade Chen Yan’s father. "Oh, Lao Chen, the kid is grown up and has his own ideas. Don’t always impose your thoughts on him."

"Yeah, yeah. Kids, after all, have times when they don’t listen. You need to advise them more. Isn’t that our responsibility as parents?"

Chen Yan’s father got annoyed too by the nagging, and he waved his hands dismissively, "Advise, advise, what’s there to advise? He is just being rebellious."

"When he bumps his head and bleeds, then he’ll know his own weight and realize that we parents are doing this for his own good!"

"Come on, come on, let’s get back to cards! Six aces, that’s a winning hand!"

The other card-playing elders exclaimed in admiration, "Whoa, Lao Chen, you’ve got some luck there. All the good cards are in your hands."

...

Saturday, Qin Island University, Classroom 201.

Chenyu Company’s first employee representative meeting officially began.

Attendees included:

The company’s chairman, general manager, and game planner, Chen Yan,

The company’s game design assistant, Yu Qiao Qiao,

And...

Zhao Ying, who insisted on tagging along with Yu Qiao Qiao to join in the fun...

"Qiao Qiao, this is the first game our company has decided to produce. You can take a look first."

After handing over the document and design of "Hidden Guardian" to Yu Qiao Qiao to read, Chen Yan mouthed to Zhao Ying, "Why" "did" "you" "come"?

Zhao Ying mouthed back, "I" "wanted" "to."

Chen Yan: ...

Society, my Brother Ying. Gotta respect that.

Unaware of the silent exchange taking place next to her, Yu Qiao Qiao was gradually going through the project summary written by Chen Yan.

It was a proposal for a spy-themed game set during the period when China was resisting Japan.

Set against the backdrop of the "Magic Capital" during that era, the grand tides of the times drive the narrative forward.

The player would take on the role of a patriotic young man who had studied in Japan.

Infiltrating deep within Japanese military intelligence, they would carry out a series of activities including assassinations and espionage.

The player would experience the precarious life of a spy and ultimately make a major contribution to China’s revolutionary cause, a story brimming with positive energy.

The story design was clever, and the factions within were vividly portrayed.

With three main story arcs and over forty branch endings, the sheer scale of the story made Yu Qiao Qiao wonder if this could really have been written by just one person.

Was this person really that talented?

After spending an hour reading through the summary, Yu Qiao Qiao sat stunned for a full five minutes before she could pull herself away from that war-torn era.

Coming back to her senses, Yu Qiao Qiao looked up at Chen Yan.

Chen Yan sat opposite her, doodling in a small notebook. Illuminated by the light, Chen Yan’s already handsome face seemed even more attractive...

As Yu Qiao Qiao watched Chen Yan, her heartbeat skipped as though she had missed two beats: Just what kind of guy could write such a great story?

As she thought this, a blush quietly crept up her snow-white neck...

Feeling Yu Qiao Qiao’s gaze, Chen Yan looked up from his notebook.

Their eyes met.

The atmosphere turned slightly ambiguous.

Chen Yan asked, "Finished reading?"

Yu Qiao Qiao’s face turned even redder, and in a barely audible voice, she responded with a "mm-hmm," obediently saying, "Finished reading."

Chen Yan blinked: ?

What’s going on with this girl?

Why does she suddenly seem a little strange?

Meanwhile, Zhao Ying, who Chen Yan had relegated to the corner and who had been witnessing everything, couldn’t keep the proud auntie grin off her face: Hadn’t she waited an hour just for the spark between these two?

"Click!"

Quietly capturing this precious moment, Zhao Ying smirked mischievously like a cat that got the cream.

Chen Yan gave Zhao Ying a puzzled glance, but because of Zhao Ying’s quick "flash," he didn’t notice anything unusual.

He looked back at Yu Qiao Qiao and then said,

"Our company is in its startup phase."

"Even though you’re just a design assistant, you’re also one of the company’s veterans."

"So, there might be some work beyond your usual duties."

Yu Qiao Qiao timidly asked, "Like what?"

Chen Yan said, "Like... accompanying me to recruit, checking out office spaces."

"Once the company gets on track, you can be freed from these additional tasks."

Hearing it was just a couple of simple tasks, Yu Qiao Qiao nodded obediently, "Okay, Boss."

Hearing Yu Qiao Qiao obediently calling him boss, Chen Yan had an inexplicably refreshing feeling.

He hummed in contentment and then took a document from his folder and passed it to Yu Qiao Qiao, saying,

"Our company doesn’t need too many people at the beginning."

"Just now, I showed you our first project ’Hidden Guardian.’ We will recruit our first batch of employees around ’Hidden Guardian.’"

"’Hidden Guardian’ is an image puzzle game, so the technical requirements aren’t too high."

"So we would just need one or two programmers and one artist, and that should be enough."

"Besides them, we also need to hire a part-time photographer and editor."

"That way, our game production team will be more or less assembled."

Yu Qiao Qiao took the document with curiosity, looked it over, and asked, "So... how long will it take to recruit so many people?"

Chen Yan frowned slightly, "If it’s fast, a week or two. If it’s slow, maybe three or four months..."

Hearing it would take that long, Yu Qiao Qiao, who was already getting into her role, frowned slightly, "That’s a long time..."

Chen Yan added, "And even then, we might not be able to find the right candidates."

While the two were fretting over recruitment, Zhao Ying, relegated to the corner by Chen Yan, suddenly raised her right hand high.

She held it up, like the most eager student in class, afraid Chen Yan wouldn’t see her.

Chen Yan and Yu Qiao Qiao looked over and asked, "What’s up?"

Zhao Ying stood up and said generously, "If you guys are having trouble recruiting, I can help you out!"

Chen Yan blinked, "You?"

Zhao Ying patted her chest, boasting, "Yes! Trust me. Just give me the requirements, and I will take care of it in a few days!"

Chen Yan turned to Yu Qiao Qiao and mouthed, "Can" "we" "trust" "her"?

Yu Qiao Qiao replied quietly, uncertainly, "I... don’t know."

Chen Yan mulled it over, thinking there was no harm in trying. So, they might as well give it a shot.

With that thought, Chen Yan handed the file in his hands to her, saying, "Then I’ll leave it to you."

He paused and then added, "I don’t have many requirements for these people; the main thing is that they must be technically skilled. If they are up to par, it’s okay if the salary is a bit on the higher side!"

Empowered by a substantial budget and holding the "Yu Qiao Qiao card" ATM, Chen Yan had the confidence to act boldly.

Zhao Ying waved her hand over her forehead with a flourish, "Don’t worry. Consider it done."

After saying this, she pushed off the table, leapt from behind it, and waved her hand, saying, "You guys carry on. I’m off to recruit," Then she dashed off without a trace...

Watching Zhao Ying’s spirited departure, Chen Yan couldn’t help feeling like he might have entrusted the task to the wrong person...

Turning his gaze from the doorway, Chen Yan looked down at Yu Qiao Qiao, "Alright. Recruitment is in Zhao Ying’s hands for now."

"Then let’s you and I finalize the office location."

"I’ll show you how someone renting out twelve properties chooses an office space!"

Yu Qiao Qiao tilted her head, a look of bewilderment on her face: What?