Chapter 10: Spend It Like Your Life Depends On It!

You Were Told to Lose Money By Making Games, and You Actually Did It? 

Chapter 10: Spend It Like Your Life Depends On It!

“System, do you really think you can beat me?”

“In less than five months, I’m going to get rid of those last two letters, YD, once and for all!”

Leaning back in the driver’s seat of his new car, Chen Xu was filled with beautiful expectations for the future.

He was now officially a member of the “homeowner-and-car-owner” club.

Well, the apartment was only a rented 60-square-meter two-bedroom unit in a mid-range residential complex.

And the car was merely a company-registered BYD SUV.

But Chen Xu knew these were only temporary arrangements.

His future was bright.

He had already set his sights on a Bentley—another car brand that happened to start with the letter “B.”

There was also a newly launched riverfront apartment project. It would be a bit of a stretch financially, but there was no harm in planning ahead.

And right now, even though he still couldn’t freely spend the system’s money however he pleased, he could still fleece the system quite aggressively as long as everything was arranged reasonably and within the rules.

Take housing and transportation, for example.

If he openly claimed he wanted the system to pay for a more comfortable lifestyle, that definitely wouldn’t fly.

But if he framed it from a work-related perspective, that was a completely different story.

For example, moving out of the dormitory and renting an apartment so he could focus more effectively on work—that was perfectly reasonable, right?

And if the apartment happened to be a little far from the company, buying a vehicle for commuting wasn’t excessive at all, was it?

“Unfortunately, there are still very few areas where I can really milk the system.”

Chen Xu sighed regretfully.

High-end gaming and development equipment could easily be justified as work expenses, allowing him to squeeze quite a bit out of the system.

But beyond that, personal luxuries were another matter entirely.

Things like buying expensive clothes and improving his appearance?

The system wouldn’t acknowledge those expenses at all.

After all, Morning Star Games was still just a small company, and it operated in the game development industry.

Housing and transportation could be justified through productivity and work efficiency.

Luxury clothing and watches, however, clearly had nothing to do with Chen Xu’s current work.

As for visiting a massage parlor, getting a foot massage, or hiring a massage therapist to relieve stress so he could work more effectively—

The system mercilessly rejected excuses like those as well.

Apparently, the system knew perfectly well that he was already living a life a hundred times happier than before.

“But that’s fine. One day, I’ll fleece you bald, system!” Chen Xu cheered himself up.

He wasn’t in a hurry at all.

His current life was already comfortable enough.

All that remained was to make the company bigger and stronger, wait for each settlement cycle, and drain every last coin from the system.

Sitting in the driver’s seat, just as Chen Xu was imagining his bright future, the phone beside him began to vibrate.

Picking it up, he saw a text message.

It was from Gong Qi at the company.

“President Chen, the development proposal and direction for the new game have been completed. When do you have time to come over and review them?”

Chen Xu glanced at the time.

His first instinct was to reply, Tomorrow.

After all, he had spent the entire morning dealing with apartment-related matters.

But then he thought about the state of his wallet.

Without hesitation, he replied. “I’m on my way. Tell the office to save me a meal.”

There was no helping it.

He was nearly broke.

If he didn’t ask his family for money, he only had enough cash left for a seven-yuan bowl of plain noodles.

At best, he could add some shredded potatoes or pickled radish on the side.

But the company meals were different.

He had personally selected the menu, after all. Of course he knew how delicious it was.

And there was also the company lounge.

Every facility in there represented the most luxurious recreational equipment he had managed to justify through careful testing of the system’s rules.

Top-tier sofas.

Massage chairs.

Entertainment systems.

Honestly, if he hadn’t been busy arranging housing and transportation lately, he would probably spend the entire day at the company.

.. .

Morning Star Games — Afternoon

“President Chen, shall we start the meeting now?”

The office door opened as Xiao Dao knocked and stepped inside.

At the same time, his face was filled with admiration.

This wasn’t the kind of expression someone put on to flatter a superior.

It was completely genuine.

Deep in his heart, Xiao Dao sincerely respected Chen Xu.

He knew that Chen Xu was a wealthy second-generation heir who genuinely loved games and was passionate about building a business.

Recently, Xiao Dao had watched a flashy social-media video showing off the stereotypical rich-kid lifestyle:

Luxury cars.

Girls in black stockings and white stockings sitting in the passenger seat.

Frequent visits to restaurants and clubs where the average spending per person ran into the thousands.

That had been his image of rich heirs.

But now Xiao Dao felt that his previous assumptions had been incredibly shallow.

They had spent years together in university.

Living under the same roof.

Eating in the same cafeteria.

Using the same campus resources.

Learning from the same professors.

Even using the same brand of tissues.

Even after revealing his identity as a wealthy heir and becoming the company's boss, he still ate the same boxed lunches as everyone else these past few days.

Even his daily vehicle was just a BYD.

Xiao Dao even felt that if it weren't for starting a company—whether for appearances or simply to make work more convenient—Brother Xu probably wouldn't have bought a car at all.

What an incredible level of dedication to his career!

No extravagant indulgence, only relentless hard work!

Perhaps what Brother Xu loved wasn't money at all, but the sense of achievement that came with success.

Xiao Dao couldn't help but sigh inwardly.

“Alright, notify Gong Qi and the others.”

Completely unaware that someone was already constructing an elaborate image of him in their head, Chen Xu glanced at the time and nodded lightly.

Very good.

By the time the meeting ended, it would be afternoon tea time.

. . .

Inside the office, Gong Qi and Ying Gao handed the relevant project proposal over to Chen Xu for review.

At this stage, there wasn't anything particularly complicated involved.

The documents mainly contained budget evaluations and task allocations for the various teams.

After all, game development—especially for medium-sized and large-scale projects—wasn't something you could just build randomly whenever inspiration struck.

It required strict planning and management.

That's why a qualified game developer wasn't simply someone full of ideas and creativity.

More importantly, they needed to know what to cut.

They had to understand how to streamline a project and identify what truly mattered in the game.

“Also, President Chen, since we don't have much experience developing action games, I think we can outsource part of the combat system. We've shortlisted several pretty good outsourcing studios for your review.”

As he spoke, Gong Qi handed over the prepared list.

Chen Xu accepted it and gave it a quick glance.

Uh-oh.

He didn't recognize a single one of them.

Then he checked the budget.

Sure enough.

Only 6.5 million.

Chen Xu frowned deeply.

Noticing his expression, Gong Qi immediately became nervous.

Had they misunderstood President Chen's intentions?

Could it be that President Chen never meant for them to hire external contractors?

But outsourcing really seemed like the most appropriate choice.

Or perhaps he thought the cost was too high?

That was understandable.

Even after the company had been acquired and all the equipment replaced with high-end models, the expenses hadn't been anywhere near this level.

Gong Qi wanted to explain, but Chen Xu remained silent.

Unable to interrupt, he could only wait anxiously.

Looking at the proposal in his hands, Chen Xu was thoroughly dissatisfied.

6.5 million?

That was way too little!

Over the past period, he had been spending money as aggressively as possible.

Even so, there was still roughly ninety million in investment capital remaining.

Factoring in the settlement deadline, office rent, employee salaries, and other operating costs, the company would spend at most around twenty-two million over the next few months.

And that estimate already included meal allowances, transportation reimbursements for overtime, twelve-hour workdays, and no holidays.

Now, the outsourcing phase—which was supposed to be one of the major expenses—was only budgeted at 6.5 million.

How was he supposed to spend the rest of the money?

If they'd already decided to outsource, shouldn't they go all out?

After all that effort, they couldn't even spend ten million?

The more Chen Xu thought about it, the angrier he became.

“What is going on with these studios and this budget?”

Chen Xu put down the proposal and rapped heavily on the table.

Here it comes!

As expected, he thought the price was too high!

Hearing Chen Xu's sharper tone, Gong Qi, Ying Gao, and the others all felt their hearts tighten.

“President Chen, the quotes from these studios are actually quite reasonable, and—”

Gong Qi hurriedly tried to explain.

But Chen Xu cut him off.

“—I'm asking why you chose these studios and why the budget is so low!”

“...Huh?”

Gong Qi's mind went blank.

“If we're outsourcing, then why aren't we hiring the very best? Why choose these studios instead? For example, Hyakukin Studio over in Japan.”

Chen Xu directly handed the document back to Gong Qi.

He truly felt disappointed.

This budget needed to be pushed to the absolute limit!

Spend it boldly!

Spend it like your life depends on it!

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Tn: I updated the story once a day, but if you want to see more chapter of this story ahead of time, please go to my Patreon.

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