Chapter 245: Qiao Liang's Doubts Dispelled
Pei Qian walked up to Qiao Liang pretending to be casual, smiling as he asked, "So, how does it feel?"
Qiao Liang was still immersed in the game and didn't react right away. After a brief daze, he stood up and replied, "It feels… uh…"
For once, after playing so many bizarre games and making so many videos, even Qiao Liang was at a loss for words.
How did it feel?
The biggest feeling was—this game's difficulty was messed up!
Maybe the stats designer accidentally added an extra zero to the monsters' attack power. Everything else was fine, but that one thing made it unbearable.
However, looking at President Pei's gentle, good-natured smile, Qiao Liang couldn't bring himself to say it out loud.
After all, President Pei was a star game producer—could he really make such a rookie mistake in balancing stats?
Miscalculating numbers or accidentally adding a zero—those are errors even a newbie stats designer rarely makes. You need decent math skills just to get hired for that position nowadays.
It's not like story designers, who can just spout some flowery sentences and get the job.
So Qiao Liang mumbled for a long while, yet couldn't come up with a proper answer.
He even felt a little guilty.
Qiao Liang, oh Qiao Liang, how could you drop the ball at such a crucial moment!
President Pei went out of his way to invite you here, treating you with good food and drink, all because he values your experience as a veteran gamer and wants your feedback—
And now, after playing for hours, you can't even give a simple answer? You've really let him down!
Qiao Liang couldn't help feeling embarrassed.
But Pei Qian didn't mind at all. In fact, he laughed heartily. "Come on, let's go eat. Tonight I'm treating you to a welcome dinner!"
Pei Qian wasn't the least bit angry—he was very satisfied with Qiao Liang's reaction.
That blank, dazed look meant the game "Turn Back Before It's Too Late" had properly fried his brain, which was exactly what Pei Qian wanted to see.
After all, among gamers, Qiao Liang's endurance was considered top-tier.
Back when "Lonely Desert Road" came out, Qiao Liang actually played through the entire thing from start to finish. Which clearly shows that he's a true madman!
Of course, part of that was for the sake of earning a living, but still—his mental fortitude couldn't be underestimated.
Now, even someone like Qiao Liang had been tortured into confusion by this new game. Didn't that prove his design direction was absolutely correct?
Seeing Qiao Liang's reaction and thinking about how average players would fare, Pei Qian felt even more confident about "Turn Back Before It's Too Late"'s future.
. . .
Mingyun Private Kitchen.
Pei Qian led Qiao Liang into the largest private dining room.
That afternoon, the place had already been redecorated. The layout, the dishes, the tableware—all had been carefully arranged to match tonight's menu. The setting felt both elegant and distinctive.
Only Pei Qian and Qiao Liang were dining—no one else accompanied them.
The other employees were still busy supporting President Pei's great "lose-money" empire, so Pei Qian himself had the free time to personally accompany Qiao Liang for dinner as a gesture of respect.
Besides, it wasn't some formal business banquet. Too many people would just make things awkward.
The atmosphere was pleasant, and the service impeccable.
Even the appetizers and small side dishes tasted better than the main courses at most restaurants.
As Qiao Liang nibbled on the snacks and chatted casually with Pei Qian, he suddenly felt a strange sense of crisis.
'President Pei's being way too nice to me, isn't he?'
As the saying goes, "If something seems too good to be true, it probably is." He was just a regular video creator—what did he do to deserve this much attention?
Could there be some kind of hidden agenda here?
Qiao Liang couldn't shake the feeling that President Pei's smile carried some deeper, unfathomable meaning.
"How far did you get in the game?" Pei Qian asked casually, picking up a small dish with his chopsticks.
Qiao Liang answered honestly, "I reached the town."
Oh? So he'd already made it out of the starting village?
Not bad—not bad at all. That was decent progress.
It seemed Qiao Liang's reflexes and game sense were as good as expected.
After all, in these kinds of "suffering" games, the beginning is always the hardest. Once you push through the early stages, things usually start to go more smoothly.
The key lies in a shift of mindset.
Without that shift, it's no surprise that someone might stay trapped in the beginner's village forever.
Just like other Souls-like games, "Turn Back Before It's Too Late" has a mechanic where all monsters respawn after death. If a reckless player only knows how to charge in headfirst, no matter how many times they try, their progress will never move forward.
But if they can discover the right approach—advancing cautiously and steadily—the game suddenly becomes much smoother.
Since this was Qiao Liang's first time playing such a game, it was perfectly normal that his initial progress was slow.
Still, when Pei Qian thought about how Qiao Liang had been suffering in the beginner's village for eight straight hours, he couldn't help but let the corners of his lips curl upward, a suppressed chuckle tugging at him.
"How would you describe the main difficulty?" Pei Qian asked again.
If Qiao Liang thought something was hard, that meant Pei Qian needed to make it even harder.
And if Qiao Liang didn't think something was hard, then clearly that part needed its difficulty raised.
Without hesitation, Qiao Liang replied, "The monsters hit way too hard."
"And?" Pei Qian ignored that point completely.
"And…" Qiao Liang fell into deep thought.
His eight-hour tragedy flashed through his mind scene by scene:
Provoking one little monster only to be swarmed by a mob; turning a corner in an alley and getting surrounded from all directions; trying to cross a cliffside only to be shoved off by an ambushing creature...
Those eight hours of struggle were soaked in blood and tears!
Qiao Liang felt like a fish laid out on the cutting board—completely at the monsters' mercy!
No, not "at people's mercy," but at monsters' mercy!
As Qiao Liang poured out his grievances, Pei Qian did his best to keep a straight face—but no matter how hard he tried, the only words written across his expression were: "Increase the difficulty!"
Hearing Qiao Liang personally recount his suffering only deepened Pei Qian's sense of satisfaction.
Why had he spent so much money making this game in the first place?
Wasn't it all for this very moment?!
Meanwhile, Qiao Liang remained oblivious to the subtle shift in Pei Qian's expression. He was still drowning in the emotions of his suffering.
"The worst part," Qiao Liang continued bitterly, "was this one kind of small monster in the town—it's like some night watchman, always coming in pairs. One bangs a gong, the other beats a clapper. Wherever they walk, all the sleeping monsters wake up, and it takes forever for them to fall back asleep again. I tried to assassinate them, but those two bastards carry lanterns and have night vision better than a hawk's! One hit and my health bar's almost gone! I tried to run away—but then they threw hidden weapons at me! I was like—"
"Pfft—"
Pei Qian couldn't hold it in anymore and burst out laughing.
Qiao Liang froze. "President Pei?"
Pei Qian immediately felt a pang of guilt. Damn it, he'd lost control!
But it wasn't entirely his fault—Qiao Liang's narration had been so vivid and emotional that Pei Qian could practically see him being chased through the streets by lantern-wielding watchmen. How could anyone keep a straight face at that?
Fortunately, the dishes began arriving just then.
"I'm just happy the food's here. Come, come—Mr. Qiao, please help yourself."
Pei Qian quickly pushed a plate of freshly served sea urchin sushi toward Qiao Liang, urging him to eat.
But that only made Qiao Liang feel more uneasy.
President Pei's expression… it was strange.
Was he actually gloating?
It felt like he was genuinely happy about seeing him die miserably in the game. He'd even laughed out loud just now!
Could it be… that President Pei had gone through all this trouble to invite him here just to watch him suffer?
And this whole table of luxurious food—was that just guilt catching up to him afterward?
Suspicion crept into Qiao Liang's mind.
Sure, he was just a regular content creator—he'd signed the contract and taken the money—but he still had dignity!
If his suspicions were true, then even with the contract signed, he'd definitely lodge a formal protest! Maybe even expose this kind of disrespectful behavior online!
As these indignant thoughts swirled in his head, Qiao Liang picked up a piece of sea urchin sushi.
"Hm? Delicious!"
The cool, creamy freshness of the sea urchin blended perfectly with the warm, fragrant rice beneath it—two contrasting sensations melting together on his tongue, like a passionate French kiss that instantly conquered his taste buds.
Qiao Liang had eaten Japanese cuisine before in Beijing, but he could clearly tell that this was no ordinary sea urchin.
Normal sea urchins were cheap enough, but auction-grade ones? A single urchin could go for several thousand yuan.
That's why, when Xue Zhebin had come by earlier that afternoon and asked about sea urchin, the waiter told him it required a reservation—because Mingyun Private Kitchen didn't serve the regular kind.
Technically speaking, the kitchen did have some sea urchins in stock, but those were already pre-ordered by Pei Qian himself, set aside specifically to entertain Qiao Liang—so, naturally, they couldn't be used for other customers.
As Qiao Liang looked at the exquisite dishes laid out before him, the doubts in his heart melted away like snow under the sun.
President Pei valued him this much—treating him to such fine food—how could it possibly be because he wanted to watch him suffer?
If all he had to do was endure a bit of pain in a game to enjoy a feast like this, then he could only say—"Please, make it harder! I can take it!"
While savoring every bite, Qiao Liang silently made up his mind:
"President Pei's treating me so well. I'll give this game my all—play it seriously, beat it fair and square, and promote it properly for him!"
. . .
"Thank you for the meal, President Pei!"
Qiao Liang was still a little unsatisfied—his taste buds were craving more—but his stomach had officially reached capacity.
So many delicious dishes… it was the ultimate satisfaction.
He even thought to himself, "Just for this meal alone, coming all the way to Jingzhou was worth it!"
Pei Qian, of course, had no idea that during dinner, Qiao Liang's entire mindset had gone through such a profound transformation.
After giving Xiao Sun a few quick instructions—to drive Qiao Liang back to his hotel and then come pick him up again—Pei Qian watched them leave.
Once Qiao Liang was gone, Pei Qian went to find Lin Canrong to ask about the restaurant's situation.
They sat in the villa's garden, where the cool night breeze made the air feel crisp and refreshing.
"How's business lately?" Pei Qian asked casually.
Ever since Zhang Zuting had posted that Weibo, Pei Qian had been feeling uneasy—he just couldn't shake the worry about how Mingyun Private Kitchen was doing.
Lin Canrong immediately understood what Pei Qian meant.
From the early days when no one even stepped through the door, to now when customers were finally trickling in—it was clear that the restaurant's promotion efforts were quietly but steadily progressing behind the scenes.
President Pei must be asking about the customer numbers to gauge the effectiveness of the marketing, right?
But… how should he answer?
Technically, to make the results sound better, he could frame things more optimistically—but that would feel like deceiving President Pei.
After all, over the past two days, fewer than ten customers had visited in total. Most of them took one look at the menu and left immediately. Only two or three had actually stayed to eat.
The only returning customer so far was that young man from earlier—Xue Zhebin.
From a numbers standpoint, there was absolutely no way to make that sound optimistic.
Seeing Lin Canrong hesitate, Pei Qian's lips curved into a faint smile.
Good.
The fact that Lin wasn't rushing to report good news was, in itself, the best news Pei Qian could have hoped for.
That meant Zhang Zuting's Weibo post hadn't caused much of a stir after all—the boost in foot traffic was minimal at best.
<+>
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