Film and Television World Life Record

He was actually a little conflicted. His relationship with Deng Jiajia had progressed to this point, and missions were no longer important. What should he do in the future when facing Yang Tao?

Sigh! I guess I'll just have to take it one step at a time. Who told me I couldn't resist the temptation and couldn't control my lower body?

Chapter 68 Mini-Game 2048

Time passed quietly, and Li Mu's life returned to peace. In addition to practicing hard at the club, he would also stay overnight at Deng Jiajia's place every few days.

The warm atmosphere also made this place a good place for him to relax and rest outside of his training.

During this time, Li Mu created another small game called 2048. Like Flappy Bird, it was simple, free, and incredibly popular.

The game Real World was released in 2014, and it is said that the creators made the game in just one weekend.

Li Mu checked and found that this game did not exist in this world, so he spent several days creating it.

The gameplay and rules of this game are extremely simple; it's purely a number game. You can choose to slide in one of the directions: up, down, left, or right. Each slide causes all the numbered blocks to move in the direction you slid, and the system will also randomly generate a numbered block in an empty space. Blocks with the same number will add up when they move together or collide. Successfully stacking blocks until you reach the number 2048 is considered a success.

It's a pretty fun little game.

After the game was released, he spent some money on a simple promotion, which worked quite well.

During this time, Li Mu also took the time to register a small technology company and registered the two mini-games, Flappy Bird and 2048, under the company's name.

There's no other reason than to legally avoid taxes.

And so, as October drew to a close, after such a long period of quiet, he finally decided to take action.

In the lobby of the Langham Hotel, Li Mu walked in wearing a sharp suit. He glanced around and spotted Yang Tao. He smiled and went over to her.

"Miss Yang, do you still remember me?"

Yang Tao was taken aback for a moment, but quickly recovered and put on a professional smile.

"Hello, Mr. Li!"

As a hotel lobby manager, recognizing people is an essential skill, especially since Li Mu had left a strong impression on her last time, and she recognized him instantly.

"Mr. Li, what brings you here today?"

Li Mu smiled and said, "Miss Yang, do you remember what I consulted you about last time?"

Yang Tao hesitated for a moment, then smiled sweetly.

"Mr. Li, are you inquiring about long-term leases for apartment units?"

Li Mu nodded: "Yes! I work nearby, and if it's suitable, I plan to stay in a hotel for the next few months."

Yang Tao, with her elegant figure and standard smile, said, "Mr. Li, please rest assured that the environment and service quality of our Langham Hotel are highly regarded in the industry."

"In terms of fees, we are at a mid-to-low level compared to others in the industry. If you stay for more than one month, we will give you a 20% discount; if you stay for more than three months, you can enjoy a discount of up to 40%."

"At Langham Hotels, we are committed to providing you with the highest quality service at the most favorable rates."

Li Mu smiled and nodded, saying, "I believe Miss Yang. I have been very impressed with Miss Yang ever since I met her last time. Whenever I need to stay in a hotel, this is the first place that comes to mind."

Yang Tao took a closer look at Li Mu and sensed that he was a bit strange. She didn't say what she was thinking, but kept a smile on her face.

"Thank you for your trust, Mr. Li. We will definitely provide you with the best service."

The two chatted for a while and got to know each other. Li Mu didn't press the matter further, knowing there would be plenty of opportunities later.

After another series of communications, Li Mu chose the hotel's deluxe executive suite, which was over 60 square meters in size and fully equipped with a bedroom, living room, bar, and bathtub.

I booked three months' worth, and after the discount, the room rate was 480 yuan per day, which is a very good price for a star-rated hotel.

Li Mu's choice to stay at the Langham Hotel was a well-thought-out decision. One reason was the convenience of meeting Yang Tao, and another was the possibility of becoming acquainted and friends with her.

This hotel is quite close to the Shangdong Club where Li Mu works, only a few hundred meters away, which is even more convenient than renting an apartment for him.

Furthermore, Li Mu, a single man renting a room, needs to clean the house, do his own laundry, and often cook for himself every day.

These may seem like small things, but they wasted a lot of his time.

Staying in a hotel makes everything much more convenient. The house is cleaned every day, clothes are taken to the dry cleaners every day, and you can eat at the hotel restaurant or have food delivered directly to your room.

He wanted to save more energy and time to use it on other things.

……

After checking into the hotel, Li Mu's life became much more convenient in all aspects. He had more time to exercise, and even on days when he was off, the hotel had enough fitness facilities and sports venues.

After a while, they met several times a day, and Li Mu and Yang Tao became familiar with each other, learning more about her.

Her contract with the hotel still had more than six months to run, and this news stunned Li Mu. He remembered that Yang Tao's contract had expired, she had been laid off from the hotel, and she was looking for work everywhere—that was the beginning of the story.

So, there are still six months until the start of the story.

They were well-prepared, and even acted in advance.

……

November 10th arrived quickly, and Pixelbird received its share of advertising revenue from domestic and international advertising networks again: 850,000 RMB domestically and 580,000 USD internationally.

The game has been downloaded 30 million times worldwide, including more than 7 million in China, making it a well-known free mobile game on the market.

2048 is also performing well, with over ten million downloads worldwide. However, it only joined the ad network at the beginning of this month and will only start receiving ad revenue next month.

Moreover, unlike Flappy Bird, 2048 is a digital game, so many ads are not suitable for placement. In order to maintain user experience, the frequency of ads should be much lower.

Based on this, Li Mu estimated that with the same number of downloads and users, 2048's advertising revenue share might only be one-quarter to one-fifth of that of Flappy Bird.

However, 2048 has a wider appeal, more potential users, and a longer lifespan, and its total user base may surpass that of Flappy Bird in the future.

Based on player feedback, Li Mu took the time to update and optimize both games again, making them more playable and fun.

This has attracted a continuous stream of new players to join.

These two free mini-games quickly attracted the attention of numerous game companies.

Especially in China, apart from a few major game companies, no other company's products have been able to conquer overseas markets at such a rapid pace.

Some game companies even contacted Li Mu, wanting to acquire the two games, but the offers were too low, only equivalent to a few months of advertising revenue for Flappy Bird, which Li Mu firmly rejected.

He doesn't oppose the acquisition, but the offer must be sincere. After all, it's one of the few domestic games that has achieved success overseas, and the publicity and symbolic significance alone can significantly boost the stock price.

Are you embarrassed to offer such a low purchase price?

……

That noon, Li Mu finished work and was about to go back to the hotel to rest when Deng Jiajia called. Her voice sounded urgent and tearful.

“Brother Mu, my brother has been calling me for money lately. I ignored him, so he went to the basement where I used to live. He couldn’t find me, so he came to our company.”

"The security guard wouldn't let him up, so he blocked the company entrance, yelling and demanding money from me. I'm scared and don't dare leave the company now, afraid he'll block my way again. What should I do?"

Li Mu said speechlessly, "Your brother is really weird. Last time he owed you money and made you drink with him to pay it off, and you were almost bullied. It hasn't been long, and now he's come to your company again asking you for money."

"This is shameless, what a scumbag."

Deng Jiajia's voice was low and tinged with despair: "Brother Mu, I'm so glad I met you last time, otherwise I might have..."

"Sigh! I don't know what sins I committed in my past life to have such a mother and such a brother. I try my best to get rid of them and escape this quagmire, but it's no use. They are always like flies and dog skin plasters, sticking to me."

“Over the years, I haven’t been able to make a single friend. As soon as they get to know my family situation, they quietly distance themselves from me. The few who persisted eventually ran into my shameless brother, who would ask them for money and harass them, eventually scaring them away.”

“I’m really scared, really scared that my whole life will be ruined by them, that I’ll be constantly exploited and dragged down to the lowest level of society, with no chance of ever changing.”

“It wasn’t until I met Brother Mu that a ray of sunshine appeared in my life, that I saw hope, and that I could look forward to a bright future like an ordinary person.”

"Brother Mu, I really don't want to go back to the past, back to that muddy home."

"For this reason, I even silently vowed that I was willing to pay any price and make any effort to change the status quo and get out of that quagmire."

"But, after a period of peace, they came back. I really don't know what to do or how to break free from this shackle."

The shadows of the past have made Deng Jiajia speak with a hysterical tone. The difficulty her mother and brother have made her feel deeply desperate.

His face showed hope, fear, resentment, and tears that would flow from time to time.

Li Mu sighed and gently comforted her, "Jiajia, don't be afraid. Wait for me at the company, I'll be right there."

Chapter 69 Lessons

When Li Mu arrived at the location, it was already noon. Almost all of Deng Jiajia's company staff had left, and there were hardly any people in front of the gate.

Only a hoodlum-looking young man was loitering in front of the door. When someone came out, he stepped forward and blocked their way, asking Deng Jiajia when she would come out.

If a girl comes out, especially if she's attractive, he'll go up and flirt with her, or even touch her inappropriately, scaring her away.

Fortunately, the security guards inside the gate were quite responsible and did not allow him to enter the company.

Li Mu parked the car, took out his phone, took a picture of the young man, and sent it to Deng Jiajia.

"I'm here. Is this your brother?"

Deng Jiajia replied instantly: "Brother Mu, you're here. It's my brother, it's him."

"Alright, don't come out yet." After sending this message, Li Mu gave a cold smile and walked towards the gate of Deng Jiajia's company.

When Deng Jiajia's brother, Deng Hui, saw someone approaching and clearly intending to enter the company, he grew impatient and decided to have someone call Deng Jiajia out.

He whistled, crookedly blocked Li Mu's path, and glanced at him sideways with his chin raised.

"Stop right there! What are you doing!"