After considering for a long time, Jin Yong still couldn’t think of a perfect solution, but he could ask someone else for advice.
Jin Yong called Zhao Xuming, planning to briefly explain what had happened and seek his opinion.
However, after just saying a few words, he was interrupted by Zhao Xuming: “Wait a moment, let me first apply for emergency overtime on the internal network.”
“Alright, what were you saying just now?”
Jin Yong: “…”
Goodness, even for such a small matter, he had to apply for overtime before discussing it?
Tenda Group’s regulations were certainly strict, there was no denying that.
Only then did Jin Yong briefly explain what had happened.
Zhao Xuming couldn’t help but chuckle: “Indeed, a mountain is easier to move than a person’s nature.”
“For most people, when making decisions that don’t involve their own immediate interests, they can be generous, open-minded, and wise. But once their own interests are involved, they naturally become stingy, petty, and short-sighted.”
“Everyone is like this, without exception. It’s just that as the boss, Mr. Ding can benefit the most, so he faces the greatest temptation.”
“People like Mr. Pei, who possess an iron will and can resist all temptations from beginning to end with unwavering consistency, are ultimately the rare minority.”
Jin Yong asked, “So… what should I do?”
After thinking for a moment, Zhao Xuming said, “This matter is both difficult and simple to handle.”
“It’s difficult because this issue actually exceeds your capacity. It’s not just an operational problem, but also a workplace issue. If you follow through, you’ll naturally be caught between Tenda and Longyu Group, which goes against your intentions. If you don’t follow through, the end result will just be you getting replaced, and nothing will change.”
“If you can’t break out of this circle, then this problem is unsolvable for you.”
“But if you can step out of this circle and no longer be a manipulated pawn caught in the middle, then it becomes much easier.”
Jin Yong’s spirits lifted, as if a door to a new world had opened before him: “What should I do then?”
Zhao Xuming said, “It’s simple—shift the blame! As long as you push the responsibility to Tenda, you’ll be safe, and the problem will be solved.”
Jin Yong was confused: “Shift it to Tenda? How… how would I do that?”
Zhao Xuming smiled slightly: “I’ll find the person at Tenda responsible for coordinating the ‘Bullet Mark 2’ project, then have them contact Zhou Muyan to issue a statement in the name of Tianhua Studio and Tenda Group!”
“The reasoning is sound: players online don’t trust us now, so we need to issue a statement to solidify their trust and eliminate negative public opinion.”
“The statement will say that this game is jointly developed by Tenda Games and Tianhua Studio, and throughout development and operation, it will fully adopt the Tenda model, especially in operational activities, which will strictly follow Tenda’s operational approach.”
“The three parties have reached an agreement that operational activities will strictly adhere to several principles: only price reductions and discounts are allowed, while other activities such as paid lucky draws and recharge rebates will not be involved at all. We invite all players to monitor this together!”
“By using player certification to transform previously vague content into something concrete, we directly push the boundary to Longyu Group’s side!”
“Once we completely block any room for playing word games, no one can ask you to play word games anymore.”
Jin Yong was stunned for a moment, then suddenly understood: “Brilliant! This changes the entire situation!”
Previously, the situation had Tenda Group and Longyu Group facing off one-on-one, with Jin Yong caught in the middle, belonging nowhere.
Tenda wanted operational activities to be as simple as possible, while Longyu Group hoped to run various activities to earn more money.
Although the contract had relevant provisions, it couldn’t possibly leave no room for interpretation. And these spaces had become the battleground for the tug-of-war between both sides, with Jin Yong very unwillingly becoming Longyu Group’s vanguard.
In this process, Tianhua Studio’s attitude was mostly ambiguous, because they also had monetization tendencies and were unlikely to firmly stand on either side. They would probably mediate between both parties, playing it safe. As for the players, they might not even know about all these twists and turns, so naturally, they wouldn’t play any key role.
Would Tenda really want to fall out with Longyu Group over these quibbles within the contract’s scope? Probably not, since Tenda would also get a share of the money.
Longyu Group’s boss had considered precisely this point, which was why he had this idea and asked Jin Yong to test the waters.
Jin Yong had effectively become the rope in the tug-of-war between Tenda Group and Longyu Group—how could that end well?
But Zhao Xuming’s method immediately cleared Jin Yong of all involvement.
By having Tenda Group and Tianhua Studio issue a statement making the operational plan public and letting all players bear witness.
This way, the previously vague boundaries in the contract would no longer exist. Players would naturally monitor according to the strictest standards, and any attempt to pull tricks would be exposed under their scrutiny.
At that point, players would know exactly where the problem lay—definitely with Longyu Group!
Previously, when players discovered the game operations were exploitative, they might curse Tenda, Tianhua Studio, and Longyu Group together. But now, they would only direct their anger at Longyu Group.
It was as if Jin Yong had stepped out completely. The situation was no longer Tenda Group and Longyu Group in a tug-of-war with Tianhua Studio mediating and players unaware. Instead, it had become Tenda Group, Tianhua Studio, and the players all standing together, watching Longyu Group to see if they dared to try any tricks!
Of course, throughout this process, Jin Yong couldn’t reveal himself. He couldn’t let his boss know that he had instigated this. Instead, it had to look like, while Jin Yong was diligently carrying out his boss’s instructions, Tenda Group and Tianhua Studio had somehow divinely anticipated and accidentally blocked Longyu Group’s sneaky operations.
Jin Yong was delighted: “Thank you so much! This solution is excellent! Then I’ll trouble Mr. Zhao to arrange this!”
Zhao Xuming smiled slightly: “Don’t worry, leave it to me.”
After hanging up, Jin Yong couldn’t help but marvel—indeed, when it came to shifting blame, Mr. Zhao was the expert!
Moreover, since Mr. Zhao had gone to Tenda, his business acumen and vision seemed to have improved further.
Previously, Mr. Zhao had been good at shifting blame but didn’t seem to accomplish much actual work. Now, he still shifted blame seamlessly without leaving any trace, but he could also get things done imperceptibly. This was undoubtedly a tremendous improvement.
As for why this change had occurred…
It was probably due to the different environment.
At Longyu Group, it was difficult to achieve anything significant, so the best choice was to protect oneself and focus on personal promotions and raises.
But at Tenda Group, the entire company had a positive attitude. By going with the flow, one could naturally achieve good results. Thus, Mr. Zhao could naturally get things done while still elegantly shifting blame.
Jin Yong was quite envious.
Strictly speaking, was Tenda’s compensation necessarily much higher than Longyu Group’s? Not necessarily.
For lower and middle-level employees, the salary was definitely higher, but not necessarily for upper management.
Longyu Group’s executives earned plenty, with various stock options. Tenda’s executives didn’t have stock options, only high dividends. When calculated, they might not necessarily exceed what Tenda offered.
But the key was Tenda’s unique work environment and atmosphere, where all employees felt free and their abilities were fully utilized, making them feel like they were part of the company, even its masters.
At Tenda, regardless of rank, even including Mr. Pei, everyone had a partnership relationship with different divisions of labor.
But in other companies, there was often a strict hierarchy, even trending toward personal dependence relationships, making people feel not like company owners but slaves. Even if they earned more money, they were just slightly higher-grade slaves.
Jin Yong fantasized for a while, but didn’t continue thinking, as the more he thought, the more likely he was to feel bitter.
Now he was the person in charge of the “Bullet Mark 2” project, with a substantial project bonus, and comfortable operational activities. This position was quite good, and there was no need to insist on jumping ship to Tenda.
Besides, even if he wanted to go, they might not have such a high position waiting for him.
It was better to focus on doing his current job well!
…
In the afternoon.
Jin Yong was pretending to create a new operational plan according to his boss’s requirements while keeping an eye on Tianhua Studio’s developments.
Suddenly, his eyes lit up.
The announcement was made!
This announcement was issued by Tianhua Studio but also included Tenda Group and Longyu Group.
Obviously, this announcement wasn’t something Zhou Muyan wanted to release, but rather Tenda had approached him. Zhao Xuming and Min Jingchao had worked together, persuading Zhou Muyan with reason and emotion to release this announcement.
The reasoning wasn’t hard to guess, essentially: “There are many rumors online, players don’t believe we’ll stick to the current operational plan and think we’ll definitely trick them into spending money in the future, which has had a very bad impact on ‘Bullet Mark 2.’ We must eliminate this impact promptly, while also bringing more heat and discussion to ‘Bullet Mark 2’—that’s how we can make the game more popular.”
Relatively speaking, although Zhou Muyan also liked monetization approaches, he still listened to Mr. Pei, unlike Longyu Group’s boss.
Jin Yong opened the announcement to check.
“Dear Players:”
“‘Bullet Mark 2’ is a next-generation FPS game jointly developed by Tenda Group and Tianhua Studio, operated by Longyu Group. Given the recent unfounded speculations on the internet regarding ‘Bullet Mark 2’s’ operational model, we hereby make two solemn promises to all players:”
“First, ‘Bullet Mark 2’ will strictly adhere to the price table for in-game purchases and will never exceed the marked prices under any circumstances;”
“Second, during ‘Bullet Mark 2’s’ operational period, there will be no recharge or consumption activities other than price reductions and discounts.”
“This statement is hereby announced, and we welcome supervision from all players!”