Yirui Studio

"Su, great job!"

Mike Brown couldn't help giving Su Yi a thumbs-up.

Su Yi really hadn't let him down.

Su Yi put on a professional smile and nodded at Mike Brown in acknowledgment.

Then Mike Brown continued, "Su, take an hour to rest. After that, we'll have an intrasquad 5-on-5. I want to get a good look at your three-point shooting in a real game."

Su Yi: ￣□￣｜｜

Did he think I was a workhorse or something?

Good thing I hadn't treated myself like a person during training, either!

Su Yi silently nodded, then hurried off to rest.

During the break, a bunch of his teammates came over to "bully" him.

"Rookie, tie my shoes."

Su Yi: "..."

When you're under someone else's roof, you have to bow your head.

Fine, he'd tie their shoes. But why did they have to be so damn annoying about it? Especially Donyell Marshall.

After tying Donyell Marshall's shoes, Su Yi immediately sprang three meters away, putting as much distance between them as he could.

Donyell Marshall stared at him in confusion. "Rookie, what are you doing?"

"My butt's itchy. I'm shifting around a bit."

Su Yi told a harmless little lie.

Donyell Marshall believed him, then stood up and went back to training.

During the break, Su Yi quietly watched his teammates on the court, mentally running through how he'd play if he were a member of the Cleveland Cavaliers.

What would he do? How would he play?

After running through it once, Su Yi realized he wouldn't have to exert himself much at all. He could just stand in the corner and wait for the ball.

Last season, the Cleveland Cavaliers had played a pick-and-roll offense built around drives and kick-outs.

The strategy was simple and easy to execute: let LeBron James handle the ball and make full use of his physical gifts, since he didn't have much skill, by driving to the basket.

The tactic had worked well during the regular season and helped the team achieve a strong record of 50 wins and 32 losses.

But it fell apart in the playoffs.

The opposing teams usually kept a strong interior defender on LeBron James to guard him one-on-one, making it difficult for him to drive.

At the same time, the more assists this guy racked up, the more turnovers he made.

Last season, he averaged 7.1 assists and five turnovers per game in the playoffs.

No wonder he'd become the future turnover king!

After running through it all in his head, Su Yi immediately understood how he should play. He just didn't know whether Mike Brown would put him in the starting lineup or the second unit.

Still, Su Yi guessed he'd probably be in the second unit.

In the blink of an eye, an hour had passed, and the intrasquad 5-on-5 began.

To Su Yi's utter surprise, he was assigned to the starting lineup.

"Tweet!"

The whistle blew, and the game began.

For the first few possessions, Su Yi, the newcomer, didn't even touch the ball. He just ran up and down the court with the team.

Finally, he got a chance on a fast break.

Eric Snow pushed the ball up quickly, with Su Yi trailing him on the left.

Eric Snow drove all the way to the free-throw line, drawing most of the second unit's attention. With a flick of his wrist, he passed the ball to Su Yi, who was wide open on the left wing, about 60 degrees from the basket.

Su Yi caught the ball, set himself, jumped, hung in the air, kicked out his legs, and shot!

The motion flowed seamlessly, the ball leaving his hands cleanly!

It traced a beautiful arc through the air.

"Swish."

The ball dropped right into the basket.

Three-pointer.

Su Yi had made the most of his only shot, putting points on the board.

His teammates couldn't help looking at him with new respect.

Mike Brown, watching from the sideline, was especially pleased and nodded.

Su Yi didn't get many more chances during the game—only four in total.

He made the most of every one, going 4-for-4 for a perfect 100% shooting percentage and 12 points.

Clap, clap, clap!

"Everyone played very well. Take a short break. Su, come with me."

When the 5-on-5 scrimmage ended, Mike Brown gave the players a round of enthusiastic applause.

He'd gotten what he wanted out of the scrimmage.

Then he called Su Yi over.

Su Yi hurried over to Mike Brown.

Mike Brown didn't speak right away. He looked Su Yi up and down before saying, "Su, I'm very pleased with you. I want you to keep it up. Understand?"

"Understood, Coach Mike!"

Su Yi nodded.

Until the regular season started and he got some playing time, he couldn't trust what a coach said. He'd just listen and leave it at that.

Coaches were just like bosses—they were good at making promises!

Su Yi continued training. His teammates kept "bullying" him, making him tie their shoes, run errands, and so on.

And just like that, Su Yi's first day at training camp came to an end.

Afterward, Su Yi went back to the locker room to wash up and change, then said goodbye to his teammates one by one.

He hadn't expected them to respond.

"Rookie, remember to bring doughnuts and Happy Water tomorrow."

"See you tomorrow, rookie!"

"Rookie..."

But his teammates responded one after another.

Su Yi was gradually becoming part of the team.

"One, how was your first day of training?"

When Su Yi came out of the training facility, Xu Rui was waiting for him in his Lexus.

Su Yi dropped into the passenger seat.

"Pretty good. I think I'm fitting in."

Su Yi's answer put Xu Rui at ease.

Xu Rui then took the dinner Saicang Halin had made from the back seat and handed it to Su Yi. "I figured you'd be hungry, so I had Saicang make this."

"You really know me best, Xu Rui."

Su Yi grinned as he took it and wolfed it down. He really was hungry.

"Hahahaha!"

Hearing Su Yi's praise, Xu Rui laughed as he stepped on the gas and drove away from the training facility, speeding toward home.

On the way, Xu Rui took the chance to fill Su Yi in. "One, your game's all set. It'll be released on Steam on October 15, for fifteen dollars!"

"Sounds good, A Rui. I trust you to handle things. I'll just sit back with my feet up and wait for the money to roll in."

Su Yi remembered that in his previous life, Plants vs. Zombies had been turned down by multiple gaming platforms. Sure enough, connections made all the difference in this world.

Xu Rui's family wasn't outrageously wealthy, but they were worth eight figures, at least.

"Haha, One, are you planning to make any other games?"

Xu Rui couldn't help asking.

Ever since Su Yi had made Plants vs. Zombies, Xu Rui had already started envisioning a business empire.

"I am. I've got plenty of game ideas, but I don't have that much time. The new season's about to start."

Su Yi was being honest. He couldn't lose sight of what mattered. Basketball came first!

"That's easy. We'll set up a studio and hire some programmers. You tell them what to do, and they'll do the work."

Xu Rui suggested.

"Sounds good!"

That was what Su Yi had been thinking, too. He really didn't have much time to write code.

If he didn't have the time, he could spend money to buy other people's time and have them work for him.

"But, A Rui, you should learn more about running a business from your parents."

Su Yi reminded him. After all, the business world was like a battlefield.

"I know, One."

Xu Rui nodded.

And so, Yirui Studio was officially founded.

Su Yi owned 70% of the shares, while Xu Rui owned 30%!