The few days during the New Year weren’t particularly interesting, just visiting relatives or being visited by relatives.

On the third day of the New Year, Pei Qian finally had some peace, sprawled on the sofa at home watching TV.

“Son, is that short film of yours out yet?” His mother handed him a peeled apple.

Pei Qian took it, munching while saying, “Come on, short films aren’t available to watch right after filming. They need editing and post-production. You’ve asked this eight times today already.”

“Ask that director of yours again.” His mother, having completed her feeding duties, remained persistent.

Pei Qian had no choice but to send Huang Sibo a message.

Not long after, Huang Sibo replied.

“Mr. Pei, we uploaded it yesterday! You can see it on Banana Potato Network, in the ‘Comedy’ section, ‘Mr. Pei’s Daily Life.'”

So it was out.

And with high efficiency!

Pei Qian grabbed his laptop, opened the Banana Potato Network homepage, and scrolled to the “Comedy” section.

There was indeed a featured spot!

Not the most eye-catching one, but not bad either.

Previously, Zhu Xiaocai had mentioned that he had a senior classmate working at Banana Potato Network who could help secure a featured spot, and it turned out they did!

Of course, it probably wasn’t free—most likely, they paid for advertising.

Pei Qian clicked in to take a look, and his heart instantly sank halfway.

It was released yesterday, and today it already has over 200,000 views!

And this was a new account!

He glanced at the comments below.

So lively!

At a glance, the humorous netizens were very active, with dozens of pages of comments already!

It’s over, his premonition had come true!

Pei Qian stabilized his emotions, not letting his parents notice anything unusual.

Then, feigning calmness, he handed over the laptop: “It’s this one.”

The elderly couple placed the computer on the tea table and huddled together.

“‘Mr. Pei’s Daily Life’?” Old Pei looked at Pei Qian with suspicion.

“Ahem. That’s the name of the short film. I play a company boss in it,” Pei Qian explained.

The video began.

“I looked at my Rolex, not to check the time, but to casually let you know that I’m rich.”

“Today, on a whim, I wanted to make a game that would make players spend excessively.”

The dull background music, combined with the flat tone, immediately highlighted the characteristics of the entire video!

In the frame, Pei Qian wore a tailored suit, a Rolex, and was lying on the sofa in the company’s reception room. The tea table beside him was set with high-end tea sets and tea. Everything looked so natural.

Even Pei Qian’s calm expression was so vivid!

“Mr. Pei’s Daily Life,” in terms of style, was very similar to “The Boring Life of Zhu Yidan.”

Audiences’ first impression of this video might indeed be that it was boring, meaningless, puzzling, or even uncomfortable!

But the more you watched, the more you would get used to this feeling!

Videos in this style had two advantages.

One was a distinctive characteristic, and the other was many metaphors—the more you savored it repeatedly, the more profound the meaning you could taste!

Whether it was the vertical filming method, the ever-unchanging background music, or the narration that deliberately created a sense of “boredom,” everything left a deep impression!

As for the metaphors.

Though there might be some over-interpretation, the director had indeed included a wealth of information.

This kind of dark humor was a level above those earthy, vulgar contents in terms of style!

Pei Qian stood behind his parents watching himself on the screen, and couldn’t help but smile slightly.

I look so handsome on camera?!

And I have some acting skills!

Look at that expression, so natural!

Look at that face, so photogenic!

No wonder Director Zhu Xiaocai never called for a cut.

It wasn’t because I was his boss and investor; it was mainly because I’m good at acting!

Pei Qian even started to feel a bit proud.

The short one-minute video had twists and turns in the plot, witty and rhyming dialogue, and an ending that left viewers wanting more!

“Is that it? I haven’t seen enough!”

“Son, your short film is too short, isn’t it?”

In Old Pei’s opinion, he thought a short film would be at least ten minutes per episode.

But this short film was one minute per episode!

Pei Qian explained, “This kind of short content is trending now!”

His mother clicked on the video and watched it again.

“You know what, I think my son has some acting talent! Look how well he plays a boss, so natural, as if the company is his!”

Old Pei also nodded slightly: “Indeed, not bad. But our son is so young, not old enough, doesn’t seem quite right to play a big boss? Didn’t the director give you a small mustache or something? And this voice…”

Pei Qian quickly interjected: “Someone else dubbed the voice.”

Old Pei nodded: “I know, I just feel it doesn’t quite resemble a typical big boss.”

His mother dismissed Old Pei’s words: “As if you’ve seen many big bosses.”

Old Pei was momentarily speechless, only responding after five seconds: “Well, haven’t you seen them either?”

“I haven’t seen them either, but I’ve watched more TV dramas than you! Big bosses in TV dramas are all like this. I think my son acted very well, what’s wrong with that?” His mother began her illogical mode.

“Fine, fine… Anyway, this kid can now earn money by acting; he’s gained a skill, that’s a good thing.” Old Pei’s face was full of satisfaction.

Seeing that Old Pei was in a good mood, Pei Qian quickly seized the opportunity: “Dad, our short video is satirizing the gaming industry!”

“Look, the boss provides 200,000 in development funds, but after layers of skimming, only 50,000 is left for the people doing the actual work. This satirizes the chaotic internal management of many game companies!”

“With 50,000 yuan, they make a boring game, yet players still rush to buy and play it. This satirizes the chaos in the game market!”

“This is a style of dark humor, aimed at satire and exposure. The director planned all this from the beginning.”

Old Pei’s expression changed from serious to curious, then to enlightenment.

“Oh… so that’s what it’s about.”

Feeling that he had sparked Old Pei’s interest, Pei Qian quickly tried to change Old Pei’s stereotypes: “Moreover, this plot has deeper meaning. Director Zhu plans to create the image of a conscientious game company boss, distinguishing him from traditional game companies!”

“Oh? How will he create that?” Old Pei asked curiously.

Old Pei was a typical older-generation person. His stereotypical impression of games wasn’t his fault; it was mainly a problem of media portrayal.

Games were a new phenomenon—how could people of Old Pei’s age have been exposed to them?

His knowledge of games came mainly from television or other parents.

The news he saw every day was about XX student skipping classes to go to internet cafes, affecting their academic performance, or spending their parents’ hard-earned money on game top-ups, etc…

Naturally, he didn’t have a good impression of games.

In this regard, some unscrupulous game merchants and media that love to stir up trouble and create big news should bear some responsibility!

And now Pei Qian was trying to change Old Pei’s stereotypical impressions.

“This is Director Zhu’s plan.”

“He wants to show another side of this game company boss, as a designer who brings positive energy to everyone, making games that bring happiness and touching moments!”

“For example, there was a student who was maliciously hit by a thief while trying to catch him stealing a car, and ultimately died. This designer created a statue for him in his game, allowing all players to commemorate him.”

“Not only that, but this boss is also completely different from other game companies, deliberately making games with integrity, without inducing top-ups, without inciting hatred, just giving players the purest, happiest experience.”

“And guess what? It became hugely popular!”

Old Pei had never heard of such things and was more interested: “Is this the character you played?”

Pei Qian nodded: “Yes!”

“That’s not bad.” Old Pei nodded.

Pei Qian continued: “To be honest, there are indeed many chaotic situations in domestic games now. But games are also a form of entertainment; the key is how the game makers approach it.”

“If the game makers are solely focused on making money, then of course, there will be children stealing their parents’ money for top-ups. But conversely, what if game makers use games to bring people pure joy?”

“Those office workers with high pressure, playing games after work, just like watching a movie or reading a novel, it becomes a form of leisure and relaxation, isn’t that good too?”

“So, a blanket ban is not an appropriate idea. We should strive to guide people to get rest without becoming addicted to games. That’s the right direction.”

“This is the idea that Director Zhu is trying to convey, and it’s also the goal of the character I play in the film.”

Old Pei nodded frequently as he listened.

The same words, spoken through Director Zhu’s perspective, were particularly convincing!

Pei Qian could see that Old Pei’s attitude had noticeably softened!

“That director is really good, then, a director with ideas! What’s his name?”

Pei Qian answered: “Zhu Xiaocai.”

“How old is Director Zhu?”

“He’s a senior in college this year.”

“Accomplished at a young age!” Old Pei’s face showed admiration. “And at such a young age, he speaks quite reasonably. If only there were game company bosses like that.”

Pei Qian nodded vigorously: “Couldn’t agree more!”

His mother was still holding the computer, watching.

“My son’s acting is really good. Let me watch it a few more times. Son, quickly copy this to our home computer.”

There was a very old desktop computer at home, which Pei Qian had bought in high school. It was already quite slow now.

Pei Qian transferred the video to the home computer, and his mother immediately hugged the computer happily and went to watch it over and over again, with the dull background music playing repeatedly.