Some say mother's love is a sweater, warming a child's heart.
Some say mother's love is armor, protecting a child from all harm.
Some say mother's love is a candy, sweetening a child's mouth.
But the scene before Liu Chen told her that mother's love was something that could tear away restraint, turn one into a beast, and make one disregard everything, all for the happiness of their child.
Teacher Lai, who was usually calm and gentle, was now yelling at her husband in front of them. Mi Zhuzhu and Ren Mo lowered their heads, wishing they could dig a hole to bury themselves in and pretend they heard nothing.
Meanwhile, the worldly Liu Chen remained calm, as if Lai Jing was saying, "Children, look at the fruit I've washed for you."
Taking the grapes from Lai Jing's hand, Liu Chen still politely thanked her, "Thank you, Teacher Lai. It's getting late, so we'll be going back now."
Lian Jielun watched Sister Chen's retreating back as she stood up to leave, then glanced at his furious mother standing by the bed.
"Sister Chen, save me!"
Liu Chen heard Lian Jielun's plea but ignored it. Since her rebirth at seventeen, she realized she had made the same mistake as Lian Jielun back then.
Adult problems are for adults to solve. Children should just be responsible for their own duties.
When they got into the elevator, Mi Zhuzhu suddenly let out a long "Oh."
"Oh... so Lian Jielun wanted to learn acting, his father stopped him, and he didn't dare to resist, so he developed appendicitis out of frustration?"
"That's right!" Ren Mo also looked enlightened. "Sigh! What a fool. If he really can't make it, I can support him! I'll study IT in the future and work at my brother's company. The salary won't be bad!"
As the two chattered, neither of them pressed the floor button. The elevator slowly descended to the basement level.
"Ding..."
The elevator doors opened slowly. Outside was pitch black, with only a dimly lit corridor. The light bulb must have been broken, flickering intermittently. Mi Zhuzhu squinted for a long time before she could make out the sign hanging in the corridor.
"M-Morgue... Ah!!!! Close the doors! Close the doors!! Ren Mo, hurry and close the doors!!!"
"Ah!! Mi Zhuzhu, hurry and close the doors!!"
While the two of them screamed their lungs out, shielding their eyes with their hands, Liu Chen, who had been standing at the back of the elevator, reached out and pressed the close door button, then pressed the button for the first floor.
The elevator doors opened. Liu Chen glanced at the two standing at the elevator entrance and said, "You two, we're on the first floor. Aren't you getting out? Do you want to go back to the basement?"
By the time they reached the parking lot, they had somewhat recovered. They began to blame each other, believing that this terrifying experience was entirely due to the other person forgetting to press the floor button after entering the elevator.
Liu Chen offered no comment. As she walked in the slightly cold outdoors, she thought of the words she hadn't had time to say.
"With me here, you can chase your dreams with peace of mind!"
—
Meanwhile, another aspiring young man, Ren Yu, wearing a shirt, sat in a tea house in Beijing. Beside him was Shen Hong, wearing a red short-sleeved shirt.
Opposite them sat the person in charge of negotiating "Star Sea Farm" on behalf of Penguin. It wasn't their first meeting; this was the fifth since the summer holidays.
Both sides were playing hardball, waiting to see who would break first and mention prices.
However, judging by today's outcome, Ren Yu had succeeded in his strategy.
"Young talents are indeed impressive. My boss truly likes your game, Brother Ren Yu. I've been very sincere for the past six months, and I've relayed your requests. Yesterday, when the boss asked, he learned that I hadn't finalized the deal for 'Star Sea Farm' yet and flew into a rage.
When I told him that you, my young friend, weren't asking for a buyout but only for a revenue share, the boss agreed. However, there's just one small request."
Ren Yu looked at the Penguin representative opposite him. Shen Hong jokingly interjected, "Brother, we've dealt with each other so many times, why still play coy?"
"The boss said that we will handle the operations, and you will take a forty-six split. The game's name will be changed to 'Penguin Farm'."
The smile on Shen Hong's face froze. It was only because Ren Yu was present, and due to the grandfather's poor health in recent years, that if he had heard this a couple of years ago, Young Master Shen would have punched him!
What kind of nonsense is this? So, Penguin would just provide an operating platform and take sixty percent of the profits? And they want to change the name of their hard work to their own?
How dare they be so audacious?!
Before Shen Hong could erupt, Ren Yu, sitting beside him, spoke, "The name can be changed, but our Star Sea Technology logo and name must be displayed below it. And an upfront payment of four million is required."
Upon hearing this condition, the Penguin representative felt a sense of apprehension. This young man named Ren Yu was completely dictating terms based on the company's offer.
"Alright, I'll go back and apply with the company again. If the boss approves, I'll start preparing the contract."
"Mm."
After a quick agreement, Ren Yu glanced at the wall clock in the tea room and stood up from his chair.
"It's getting late, Brother Jiang. Please rest early."
Brother Jiang, who had just taken a sip of tea and was waiting for further arrangements, could only nod helplessly.
"Goodbye, goodbye. Congratulations on our successful cooperation!"
When Shen Hong, suppressing his temper, walked out of the tea house with Ren Yu, the outside was already a scene of ice and snow. Shen Hong, wearing a loose red down jacket, kept muttering in Ren Yu's ear, "Boss, you said 'Star Sea Farm' was our trump card before, and now you're so easily letting Penguin have a revenue share and change the name. Ever since you returned from C City after the Mid-Autumn Festival, you've been locked in your office tinkering. What could you possibly be tinkering with that's more important than our 'Star Sea Farm'?"
They had driven today, and the car was parked a bit far away. After Shen Hong complained, they finally got into the car.
Ren Yu inserted the key, started the engine, turned on the car's air conditioning, and slightly opened a crack in the car window.
The heavy snow that had been blowing outside gradually stopped, and Shen Hong took off his down jacket due to the heat from the car's air conditioning.
Ren Yu reached into his down jacket pocket and pulled out a pack of Zhonghua cigarettes, throwing one to Shen Hong. Then, he fumbled in the compartment under the car door and found a milk-flavored lollipop.
"Damn it! Boss! Are you driven crazy, or am I? How come I see you with a lollipop in your mouth?" Shen Hong picked up the lollipop wrapper from the center console and examined it closely. "It's milk flavored too!"
"Heh heh." Ren Yu took the lollipop out of his mouth. He was trying to quit smoking recently.
"I have a PC game framework, evolved from Dota. The controls are simpler, focusing more on numerical balance, with a lower entry barrier. Didn't you always say you played Dota to observe competitors?"
Shen Hong stared blankly at his boss in the driver's seat.
"This time, I'll give you a chance."