Qiao Liang looked at the steaming instant noodles in his hand, then at the numbers in the chat history: one 3, three 0s.

“Three thousand yuan?!”

“Are they some kind of nouveau riche company?”

Qiao Liang was dumbfounded because his usual video pricing was only around one thousand yuan.

Occasionally, there were offers for 1,500 or 2,000, but those usually came with many requirements and were rare.

This time, the sponsor was offering 3,000 yuan right off the bat???

After completing this job, he could slack off for at least half a month!

Qiao Liang immediately perked up: “No problem! What kind of video would you like me to make?”

When the money is right, everything is negotiable.

Lü Mingliang sent him a document containing the video commentary script written by Pei Qian.

“Mr. Qiao, this is the video commentary script. The requirement is to follow this script exactly for commentary and prepare materials accordingly. Showing your face would be better, but not necessary. The script cannot be modified—that’s the prerequisite. Everything else is unrestricted. I’ll send you some game footage shortly.”

Qiao Liang received the document.

After reading it, he had only one feeling.

Are you joking with me, or trying to sabotage me???

These lines that make me cringe just by looking at them, you want me to say them in a video?

And preferably show my face???

Wouldn’t that destroy my reputation?

You said this was a paid promotion, but you’re trying to ruin my career!

Qiao Liang immediately replied: “I can’t accept this. Please find someone else. Although I’m just a broke video creator, I still have my dignity!”

The other party was silent for a moment.

“How about 4,000?”

Damn…

Qiao Liang felt troubled.

Look how wealthy they were—their price increase alone was equal to what other companies would pay…

But this money wouldn’t be easy to earn.

“Can I play your game first?” Qiao Liang asked.

Lü Mingliang: “Sorry, the game is still in testing and can’t be released yet. However, we can provide plenty of video materials, enough for you to edit your video.”

Qiao Liang was speechless.

Video materials, commentary script—the sponsor had prepared everything.

It seemed like an easy job. He wouldn’t need to think about writing a script, wouldn’t need to create many video effects. He just had to hold his nose, read the script, pair it with the game footage, release it, and earn 4,000 yuan.

Everything seemed fine except for one problem—the consequences of releasing such a video.

It wouldn’t just be criticized as “earning dirty money.”

This was more like “earning shit money”!

Before Qiao Liang could decide how to respond, the other party had already sent over plenty of video materials.

They were all footage from the game “Game Producer,” without narration.

Since the video itself needed the creator’s voiceover, they couldn’t have two audio tracks running simultaneously, so Pei Qian had asked Lü Mingliang to record video materials with the narration removed.

Qiao Liang opened the first video clip—it showed running.

The second video clip—still running.

The third clip, the fourth clip…

They were all running!

The only differences were in the room details and the doors entered. Qiao Liang couldn’t understand what it all meant.

The game’s visuals looked good, refined, and had a distinctive style.

In short, it looked like a beautifully packaged piece of crap.

Qiao Liang thought for a moment and replied: “Um, may I ask, can I post this video in my ‘Trashing Garbage Games’ series?”

The temptation of 4,000 yuan was significant, enough for Qiao Liang to compromise his principles to some extent.

Of course, blatantly feeding garbage to his viewers would alienate his audience, which was not acceptable.

But if he posted it in the “Trashing Garbage Games” series, there would still be room for maneuver.

Although the video would require reading the sponsor’s script throughout, without his usual sharp criticism, as long as it was posted in the “Trashing Garbage Games” series, viewers would think it was ironic that it was for entertainment effect.

This way, he wouldn’t get criticized!

And he would earn money too—killing two birds with one stone, how perfect.

Lü Mingliang quickly replied: “Sorry, that’s not possible.”

This response was within Qiao Liang’s expectations, because many sponsors who didn’t understand the inside story would refuse to have their games featured in “Trashing Garbage Games”—after all, who would want to admit their game was garbage?

But in Qiao Liang’s view, “Trashing Garbage Games” was his bread and butter, while “This Month’s New Game Recommendations” was just a tool.

“Trashing Garbage Games” had ten times the views of “This Month’s New Game Recommendations.” Many sponsors rejected it just because of the name, completely unaware of how influential the series was.

So Qiao Liang needed an example to convince the sponsor.

“I understand your concerns, but please be assured that the influence of the ‘Trashing Garbage Games’ series is at least ten times greater than ‘This Month’s New Game Recommendations’! It would benefit your game.”

“You might not believe me, so let me give you an example.”

“A few months ago, I happened to criticize a Chinese indie game called ‘Lonely Desert Highway,’ and after my criticism, the previously unknown game suddenly became popular, selling over 200,000 copies in two weeks!”

“Oh right, what was that company called… Please wait, let me check.”

He had made so many critique videos that he couldn’t possibly remember the names of all these small indie game companies.

Qiao Liang searched on the official platform and quickly found the game.

Looking at the developer: Tenda Network Technology Co., Ltd.

“Huh?”

Qiao Liang felt something was off.

What was the name of this sponsor again?

He checked the chat history.

Wasn’t it Tenda?!

Qiao Liang looked at the company’s other games, which included “Ghost General” and “Sea Fortress.”

Qiao Liang was stunned.

Of course, he had heard of “Ghost General” and “Sea Fortress,” but his focus was mainly on single-player games, so he hadn’t researched these two games or paid attention to which company made them.

Now he discovered they were all made by Tenda!

That small company that could only make indie games a few months ago had transformed into a big sponsor!

This… this script wasn’t right!

Qiao Liang quickly tried to recall his chat message, but found it was too late—he could no longer retract it.

Qiao Liang: “…”

Awkward, extremely awkward!

He needed to salvage this somehow.

Qiao Liang continued: “Yes, that’s your company’s work! I never expected that your company and I already had a successful collaboration precedent!”

“Since that’s the case, your company should be very clear about the influence of the ‘Trashing’ series. A video posted in this series would have a great promotional effect!”

Soon, Lü Mingliang replied.

“So you’ve collaborated with our Mr. Pei before? That’s great!”

“Please wait while I consult with Mr. Pei.”

Mr. Pei?

That must be the boss of Tenda Network Technology Co., Ltd.

Could it be… he was the producer of “Lonely Desert Highway”?

Hmm… very likely!

A few months ago, Tenda was still an unknown small company, and “Lonely Desert Highway” was their first game. The producer of that game, if not the boss, must have been an important partner…

So it must be this Mr. Pei!

Then the question arose.

Could Mr. Pei… hold a grudge?

After all, I criticized his game harshly back then!

Qiao Liang panicked instantly.