Liu Nong Fights Back, Teng Hua Seethes

[A group of post-2000s players used pixels to express their love for their country, and a burst of creative passion to build a dream of love and youth.]

The video released by CCTV featured footage of numerous architectural creations from Minecraft,

including a recreated Old Summer Palace, a bustling Along the River During the Qingming Festival, a magnificent fleet at sea, and fighter jets soaring through the sky...

Gathered together, these breathtaking works were even more astonishing than when viewed individually online.

After watching the video released by CCTV, netizens couldn't help sharing their amazement.

[This is Minecraft. Where are those guys who were still bad-mouthing it? Come out and answer for it.]

[Hahaha, Mini World must be about to shut down, right? There's not even a single update about it now.]

[Listen, brothers, I've got inside information. I heard Mini World's player count isn't even a fraction of a fraction of Minecraft's.]

[Don't make me laugh, bro. It doesn't take much to crack me up.]

[This really made us look good. I never expected even CCTV to cover it.]

With CCTV's video coverage, Minecraft's reputation kept soaring. Its player count had already passed twenty million and was charging toward thirty million.

Starfield Game Company wasn't the only one to benefit from the growing player base. Creators and ordinary players reaped the rewards as well.

Downloads of resources made by creators, including shaders, modpacks, and texture packs, saw another major surge.

The creators made money, giving them more incentive to create new game content and resources.

Players could experience a wealth of fresh gameplay for the low cost of just one or two yuan.

It was a virtuous cycle, a cycle of positive growth.

Meanwhile, compared to Starfield Game Company, Qisheng Game Company was under mounting pressure.

A week later.

A stifling atmosphere hung over Qisheng Game Company.

In just a few days, several major events had taken place within the company, dealing it a severe blow.

Teng Hua paced back and forth in his office. His mind was in turmoil, and the string of major events had left him restless.

First came a lawsuit from Starfield Game Company. Then no one played Mini World, and it earned less than it cost to operate, forcing it to shut down.

What gave him an even bigger headache was the cliff-like drop in player numbers for the company's other games.

Bicycle Simulator, which had once boasted ten million daily active users, now had fewer than a hundred thousand. Even the number of players making purchases had fallen.

His fists clenched, he kept pacing back and forth across the office.

Why? Why on earth? How had so many things happened in the past few days?

After thinking for a long time, he still had no solution. Furious, he shouted toward the door.

"Liu Nong, get in here!"

Outside the door, Liu Nong, who had just been sent out, trembled all over when he heard the shout.

As the company's game operations manager, he knew that if these matters weren't handled properly, he would definitely be packing his bags.

He nervously opened the office door and walked in, only to see President Teng's eyes, already red with anger.

He said nothing. He only watched as Teng Hua came up to him, raised a finger, and began berating him.

"Liu Nong, didn't you tell me the game's operating revenue was stable?"

"Didn't you say we could copy Minecraft however we liked?"

"Didn't you say we could manipulate public opinion however we liked?"

"Well? What do you have to say now?"

"I don't care what method you use. Keep the players in all our games from leaving."

"..."

Faced with Teng Hua's relentless tirade, Liu Nong was both bewildered and speechless.

Did I say those things? Weren't you the fucking one who told me to add charges?

Weren't you the one who told me to smear Starfield and manipulate public opinion online?

I'm already numb!

The more Liu Nong thought about it, the more wronged and aggrieved he felt. What do I owe you? Every good thing is because you directed it well, and every bad thing gets pinned on me. If the company has problems in the future, are you going to blame them all on me too?

No matter what, I worked so hard for the company, only for you to chew me out in the end.

He thought about the recent revenue from the company's games and some of the problems it was now facing. At that moment, he seemed to have figured something out.

Today, I, Liu Nong, will no longer be a pus-oozing coward!

He abruptly flung the documents in his hand, hurling them straight at Teng Hua's face.

The documents struck Teng Hua in the face and scattered through the air as Liu Nong shouted furiously.

"Fuck!"

"I fucking quit!"

Across from him, Teng Hua, who had been pointing at Liu Nong's nose and berating him, was dumbfounded. His mind went blank with a crash, and his thoughts shut down.

He... how dare he!

I'm the boss. You're just my employee. How dare you do this?

Looking at the stunned Teng Hua, Liu Nong seemed to release all the pressure he had carried over the years.

The tables had turned. He pointed at Teng Hua's nose and launched into a tirade of his own.

"Teng Hua, do you think you're so fucking great?"

"You're either copying other people's games or going after their companies. You think you can live off that for the rest of your life?"

"Fuck you."

"If it weren't for your dirty tricks back then, and if you hadn't happened to catch the right trend, you'd probably be worse off than a beggar."

"Even a beggar knows to thank people for their help. You're nothing but a complete piece of trash. All you've got are dirty tricks, and you give orders without knowing what you're doing."

"I know better than you what state Qisheng is in now. Just wait until Starfield wins its lawsuit and the other companies come after you."

When he finished, Liu Nong let out a long breath. It was as though the resentment that had built up in his heart over the years had finally been released.

Seeing that Teng Hua still hadn't recovered, he gave him no chance to respond and turned to leave.

After walking out of the office, he slammed the door hard behind him with a bang.

The thunderous slam brought Teng Hua out of his shock and stupor.

He saw that Liu Nong had already left and felt the lingering pain on his face. Furious, he grabbed a cup from the desk and smashed it against the floor.

He kept throwing things from his hands onto the floor, venting the anger in his heart.

After leaving the office, Liu Nong returned to his workstation. Leaning back in his chair, he gazed quietly at the ceiling, emptying his mind while also thinking back on what he had just done.

After venting this time, he suddenly had an indescribable feeling.

He felt that his former self had been like a servant in ancient times. Whatever the master told you to do, you had to do; if you didn't, you had no food to eat and no money to spend.

After making such a scene, he certainly wouldn't be staying here any longer.

But he also knew that Qisheng had no future either.

The company's games continued to decline in reputation. That didn't just mean the revenue generated by several games would keep falling; it also meant that players would instinctively boycott games Qisheng made in the future.

That was also the main reason he had dared to point at Teng Hua's nose and curse him out.

Qisheng had no future anymore.