Watching a movie

"No wonder Westward Journey went back to the drawing board," Chen Yu mumbled, setting down his mouse to exit the game.

"Boss Xu, I'm sorry we didn't meet your goals."

"Boss Chen, don't worry about it. I'm personally very satisfied with your promotion efforts. Our game has some issues, so the responsibility doesn't entirely lie with you."

"The main responsibility for not reaching 100,000 concurrent players online does still rest on our end."

"Chen, your team's competence is exceptional. I believe we'll have future opportunities for collaboration. By the way, I'll apply for the remaining funds."

"Apply for them?"

"Yes, I believe you've essentially met the target, but circumstances beyond our control prevented its full attainment."

"That's very generous of you, Boss Xu, but there's no need. Let's save that money for our next collaboration."

Chen Yu declined, shaking his head.

At his computer, Xu Bo, however, chuckled to himself, "This guy has some character."

Afterward, he prepared some documents and went to Ding Lei's office.

"Boss Ding, you called me?"

"Have a seat."

Ding Lei put aside his work and addressed Xu Bo, "You've been overseeing Westward Journey for some time now, and I've reviewed the data. It's looking great—over 30,000 concurrent players from the previous 1,000."

"Thank you for your praise."

"I'm not just complimenting you; your ability is truly impressive. However, I've noticed a slight decline in player numbers these days."

"I was going to report that to you."

Xu Bo handed over some data to Ding Lei, saying, "Boss Ding, this is the list of areas in Westward Journey that need improvement."

"So many?"

"Some are longstanding issues, others are problems we've been aware of but never addressed, and some are newly discovered. With the increase in concurrent players, more bugs have appeared."

"I see. I'll take a look. Have some water."

Profits from online games were still tremendous. Even with just over 30,000 concurrent players in WJO, it brought in millions of yuan each month for NetEase. If they put in more effort and managed to get 100,000 or 200,000 concurrent players online, a single game could generate the income of a major portal website.

"Main quest bugs, side quest bugs, skill bugs, profession imbalances..."

"Xu Bo, does Westward Journey really have that many issues?"

Half an hour later, Ding Lei set aside the documents.

"Boss Ding, these are the primary issues I've compiled, and there are some I haven't organized yet."

"I understand your point. According to your suggestions, we can't make comprehensive changes to Westward Journey. At most, we can fix some minor bugs. The profession imbalance you mentioned would be quite difficult to address immediately. To completely resolve these issues, we'd need to go back to the drawing board."

"I was suggesting a return to the drawing board as well."

Xu Bo nodded as well.

"Do you also want Westward Journey to go back to the drawing board?" Ding Lei was extremely surprised. After all, Xu Bo was the last person still committed to WJO.

"You see, I was the one who insisted on continuing before. But back then, my determination was mainly about keeping the company's hold on Westward Journey."

"What about now?"

"Now I want Westward Journey to go even further."

"Even further..." Ding Lei fell silent.

...

"Hey, in the mood for a movie?"

"Well, what else would you have me do, Jian Ge?"

"Don't you regret not getting that 800,000 yuan?"

"Before, we couldn't even secure 1 million yuan from Shanda."

"True, with Shengda's 1 million, that's 1.8 million yuan."

"Alright, alright. You can't earn money that easily. Let's watch a movie and relax."

"Alright."

Although Zhang Jianming was feeling down, he had no other option.

"What movie?"

"What do you want to watch?"

"Hehe."

"Get lost..."

Chen Yu couldn't help but laugh.

What kind of perverse thoughts were hidden behind that "hehe"? One could guess with eyes closed.

"How about a Stephen Chow film? I downloaded several of them recently."

In 2001, there weren't many good movies to watch, but Stephen Chow's films were an exception.

While Chen Yu had seen most of Stephen Chow's movies from his past life, over the years, he had forgotten many. Besides, in his previous life, Stephen Chow had grown older and stopped making movies. Now, with his rebirth, he could appreciate them once again.

"Sure, let's watch a Stephen Chow film."

Zhang Jianming agreed.

"This one is good."

Chen Yu selected a movie and clicked play.

In the year 2001, despite substantial improvements in domestic internet speed, the ability to stream online videos barely existed. If you wanted to watch a movie, you had to download it. Watching movies online was almost impossible.

"What's this movie?"

"It's Stephen Chow's 'A Chinese Odyssey'."

"I know, but I didn't find it interesting."

"Not interesting?"

Chen Yu was perplexed. "Man, your taste is going downhill. This is one of Stephen Chow's most classic films."

"Classic my foot. I watched it a few years ago, and I couldn't even figure out what it was about."

"Well, take your time. This movie is meant to be savored slowly."

"A Chinese Odyssey" was released in 1995. However, it was different from other movies because there were two parts: "A Chinese Odyssey Part One: Pandora's Box" and "A Chinese Odyssey Part Two: Cinderella". The main story follows Sun Wukong (the Monkey King) escorting Tang Sanzang (Longevity Monk) on a journey to retrieve sacred scriptures, facing various challenges and adversaries. In the end, Tang Sanzang shows compassion, leading to Sun Wukong's redemption.

While it may sound simple, the movie involves time travel and intricate plot twists, especially with the use of Pandora's Box, which makes it challenging to understand without close attention. Watching both parts is essential to fully appreciate the story.

"Unimpressive."

"Not watching anymore."

"You go ahead, I'll step out for a smoke."

Although "A Chinese Odyssey" was a comedy, it was relatively long. The first part was 96 minutes, and the second part was over 100 minutes. Zhang Jianming couldn't find the energy to continue. When he saw that Chen Yu was about to play the second part, he left the office without further ado.

"Ah, this guy has really low taste."

Chen Yu wasn't bothered. Since Zhang Jianming didn't want to watch, he'd enjoy it on his own.

The second part, "A Chinese Odyssey Part Two: Cinderella", was the most classic of the two.

Over 100 minutes later, as Chen Yu watched Sun Wukong fulfilling his wish and following Tang Sanzang to Western Heaven, he wiped away a tear from the corner of his eye.

Even though this movie was quite absurd, it always managed to touch his heart.

"Once, I had one true love in front of me..."

He couldn't help but recite one of the most famous lines from A Chinese Odyssey. Chen Yu shook his head. "It's a shame that Jian Ge can't appreciate it. Well, he'll understand when the internet era becomes more widespread."

After closing the movie, Chen Yu prepared to head home. However, just as he was about to turn off his computer, a sudden inspiration flashed through his mind.