Showing Off Like Gentle Rain That Nourishes in Silence

"Hello, thank you for calling Silicon Oasis. Our company is dedicated to providing arcade operators with high-quality arcade cabinets, from coast to coast. If you have..."

"Mr. Meyer." Lin Lixin interrupted the introduction. Even through the distortion of the telephone, Meyer's voice was easy to recognize.

His voice carried a trace of a Hebrew accent that had yet to become fully Americanized.

Despite the grand slogan, he was even answering the phone himself. It seemed the actual scale of his operation could not be all that large.

Lin Lixin actually felt a little relieved. Facing a successful big shot directly would have put them under at least some pressure.

"Hello, may I ask who this is...?"

Meyer had only met Lin Lixin once. Although Tetris had left a deep impression on him, Lin Lixin had unfortunately had no intention of selling, and after so many days, Meyer had long since put it out of his mind.

"I was wondering whether you're still looking to buy stock anytime soon, Mr. Meyer? We have a batch of arcade cabinets with a new game that we're looking to sell."

"Hm? Sorry, I don't need any at the moment."

On the other end of the line, Meyer frowned and declined.

He thought hard for a while, but could not recall any new arcade games coming onto the market recently.

Besides, he was an arcade distributor himself. Retail outlets across nearly half of California did business with him. If a new game really was about to be released, he would definitely be the first to hear about it.

Yet none of his suppliers had contacted him, which puzzled him somewhat.

"You don't need Tetris arcade cabinets anymore, Mr. Meyer? All right, we'll get in touch another time."

Lin Lixin deliberately refrained from spelling things out. Retreating to advance, he simply hung up.

Although they did indeed need arcade cabinets to earn their startup capital, revealing too much of their urgency would only put them on the back foot in negotiations.

On the other end of the line, Meyer, who had just taken a sip of hot coffee, spat it out.

"Wait, Tetris? You found a supplier? Hello? Hello?!"

That name was etched far too deeply into his memory.

A battered machine casually set out on the street had actually drawn a large crowd of nearby university students into a long line under the blazing sun.

Leaving aside how good the game itself was, that ability to draw a crowd alone made it worth buying a batch to test the waters.

But no matter what he said, the call had already been disconnected. Only the beeping remained.

"F**K! F**K! F**K!" He cursed furiously in his anxiety. "Why are young people these days so impatient?!"

The other party knew his number, but Meyer did not know Lin Lixin's landline number.

Now that Lin Lixin had hung up, he had no way to call back.

Was he supposed to sit here waiting for another inquiry call?

Meyer slammed the receiver back into its cradle.

No, I can't just sit here and wait to die. I'm not the only supplier in California.

He had spent a week looking for a source of Tetris cabinets and had not found a second seller anywhere.

Once the supply of this new model with enormous commercial potential fell into his competitors' hands, he would be finished.

Meyer gave the clerk a few instructions, grabbed his briefcase, and rushed out of the warehouse.

He remembered the address. It was on a residential street near the University of Southern California. He had to get there before the other party contacted any other businesses!

"Sam, stay here and watch the shop. I'm going home for a bit."

After giving Sam those instructions and leaving him at the shop, Lin Lixin returned to the apartment alone, brought a stool out front, and sat in the sunshine with his legs crossed.

He was in no hurry.

If Meyer really was a shrewd businessman with a keen eye, he ought to recognize the terrifying business opportunity behind Tetris.

An hour later, a Buick stopped in front of their apartment.

The door swung open, and Meyer, sporting his trademark hooked nose, rushed out of the car.

Hearing the noise, Lin Lixin slowly opened his eyes.

[Meyer David]

[Overall rating]: A (shrewd businessman)

[Administration and finance]: 47 (growth rating: B- (adjusted to A due to skill))

[Skills]:

[Racial talent]: Business-related skills receive a boost

His car was not particularly luxurious. It seemed Lin Lixin had guessed correctly: he was merely a small business owner with fairly steady business.

"Sir..." Meyer nearly lost his hat as he ran. He hurriedly caught it and took it off, stopping in front of Lin Lixin. "About that phone call just now..."

Lin Lixin put on a surprised expression and hurriedly rose from his chair.

"Mr. Meyer? What brings you here? Didn't you say earlier that you didn't need any?"

"My apologies, Mr. Lin. I mistook you for one of those manufacturers of ancient game machines. If it's Tetris, how could I possibly not need it?"

"The sun's blazing. Let's talk inside."

Meyer nodded and followed Lin Lixin into the cluttered apartment.

His eyes quietly swept the room as he tried to form a rough assessment of Lin Lixin's personality so he could prescribe the right medicine for the ailment.

Meyer's gaze immediately locked onto the scattered electronic components and tools. Soldering irons, capacitors, resistors, even a handsaw, boards, and spray paint cans-everything was there.

"Uh, Mr. Lin, forgive me for asking, but that Tetris arcade cabinet... did you... make it yourself?"

What kind of fucking hands-on ability was this? He had seen young geeks tinker with all kinds of bizarre little gadgets.

But an arcade cabinet was hardly some little gadget!

"Hm?" Lin Lixin looked back, followed Meyer's gaze, and nodded. "You have a good eye, Mr. Meyer. That's right. I built that prototype by modifying a secondhand arcade cabinet."

Secretly astonished, Meyer followed close behind Lin Lixin into his relatively tidy bedroom.

The most conspicuous thing in the room was the Commodore 64 on the desk, a very popular home computer model. Its specifications fell short of IBM's, but it was absolutely the best value for money.

Meyer's breath caught. He spotted a little device on the desk. He recognized it: it was used to program EPROMs.

"My God..."

A frightening thought slowly began to take shape in his mind, making his heart race.

It looks like I'm... about to stumble onto an incredible bargain!

"Mr. Lin, did-did you develop Tetris yourself?!"

Almost the instant that thought appeared, the scattered clues in Meyer's head suddenly clicked into place.

Everything connected.

Why had he searched every arcade manufacturer without finding Tetris?

Why was that machine so old, with even its logo only recently painted on?

Why had Lin Lixin refused to sell him that important machine?

There was only one answer-

The corners of Lin Lixin's mouth rose into a harmless smile.

"Yes, Mr. Meyer. Yes."

"No f**king way..." Meyer murmured.

He was now immensely grateful that he had not stayed at the company waiting for Lin Lixin to contact him.

This is one monstrously thick thigh to cling to, a pearl still covered in dust!

I really made the right trip this time!