“What would you like to drink? It’s on me today.”
Ling Xi smiled graciously and gently, interrupting Shen Xingxia’s train of thought.
Having made a rough guess, Shen Xingxia didn’t think much about the topic of the parents.
He propped his chin with one hand and looked at the two people with a smile in his peach blossom eyes. “Boss, you’re quite partial.
I’ve come here so many times and still haven’t seen you treat anyone.”
Ling Xi said, “Then let me treat today.”
Sang Miao didn’t bother with any false politeness and smiled at Ling Xi, “Okay, then I won’t be polite.”
The two of them each got a cup of coffee.
After this small interaction, the awkwardness of meeting for the first time was reduced.
Shen Xingxia brought a more detailed project proposal.
In addition to the game content ideas, it also included the scale of financial investment, the estimated size of the market when the game is finished, and expected sales, all professional and comprehensive.
Sang Miao carefully read it and then took the initiative to start the conversation, “I heard your company’s first game was made during your university days?”
She had already done some research; these entrepreneurial experiences were traceable online and could easily be found if one looked carefully.
When Shen Xingxia spoke about it, his tone and expression softened, “Yes, I just graduated this year.
The game was made during my sophomore year with a senior I knew.
I was responsible for the structure and core gameplay, and my senior, who studied design, was in charge of the world-building, art, and writing.”
Sang Miao raised an eyebrow slightly.
He was even younger than her, but not only was he very capable, he was also well-planned.
Knowing what she wanted to understand, Shen Xingxia continued, discussing his partner: “After the game was released, a large company wanted to acquire the studio and develop their games.
This led to some differences between the two of us.
Later, my senior left and became a leader in the game studio of that big company.”
“But you can rest assured, we had no contractual disputes.
It was just that our ideas about game development were different.”
He explained briefly, but made the core issue clear.
The big company acquisition could offer more development funds and platform support, but it would likely interfere with the content of the game, which wasn’t as free as working independently.
Sang Miao thought for a moment.
Whether this was true or not required further investigation.
“So, you’re looking for a partner?”
Shen Xingxia slowly took a sip of his coffee.
“This project is much bigger than the previous one.
With just me leading the small team, I’m worried I might die young from overwork.”
Sang Miao: “…”
Shen Xingxia continued, “The world-building and art are key components of this game.
Rather than hiring an art director, I’m more inclined to find a partner to deeply collaborate with on this part.”
Sang Miao was straightforward and smiled slightly, acknowledging, “Hmm, if you were looking to hire employees or outsource, I don’t think I would be interested.”
Shen Xingxia curled the corner of his lips: “So, does that mean…?”
When he first reached out to her, he didn’t have high hopes for directly forming a partnership.
First, he didn’t know her primary profession, and second having her meet his expectations and wanting to collaborate was highly unlikely.
But, as they say, it’s always worth trying.
Sang Miao didn’t directly answer him. Instead, she asked another question, “Can I know more about the financial investment for this project?
Do you already have other partners?”
Financial investment involves equity distribution, which is an unavoidable topic.
The fact that she asked this question showed that she was indeed interested.
Shen Xingxia answered honestly, “Based on the current cost estimates, the development funds are around 100 million.
The studio itself is investing, plus my sister will be contributing 10 million, but there’s still a 60 million gap.”
“We are currently negotiating with investors.
The previous project had good reviews and sales, so funding shouldn’t be an issue.”
60 million.
Two months into marriage, Sang Miao currently had about 12 million in hand, plus some real estate that had already been transferred to her name, worth several million.
If she wanted, she could gather the required funds.
Moreover, the game development cycle would take over a year, so the funds didn’t need to be fully raised in the early stages.
From the current situation, her marriage with Meng Peisheng wouldn’t encounter problems in the short term, and the subsequent funds wouldn’t be an issue.
Furthermore, if she did invest this money, even if there were problems with the project, she would find a way to turn it around to get the money back.
However, this was still just a preliminary intention to cooperate.
The investment, return, and profitability of the project needed further professional evaluation.
If the profits were promising, even if Sang Miao only took a stake as a core development member, her share in the hundreds of millions of funds wouldn’t be that much.
Before meeting with Shen Xingxia, Sang Miao had learned that the investment in this project was significant.
Generally speaking, such large-scale development costs wouldn’t be shouldered by a single small studio like Xinghe Games, as the risks would be too high, and it was unlikely they had the cash flow for it.
That’s why she came to meet today.
“Mr. Shen, if we confirm the partnership, I believe I can cover the 60 million in funding.”
Shen Xingxia was momentarily stunned, his calm, serious, and professional attitude from before collapsing in that instant. “Ahem, what did you say?”
Sang Miao’s smile was sincere as she clarified, “Sixty million.”
Was that the amount of money?
It seemed like she was some rich young lady.
In comparison to his sister, a famous actress who was struggling financially, who had once made bold claims about investing but later said that one million was her limit, it was still his responsibility to earn money to support her.
Other investors also found 60 million to be a large sum, so it was no surprise that Shen Xingxia was shocked.
By this point in the conversation, both their goals and needs were clear.
Rather than looking for other investors, Shen Xingxia was naturally more inclined to work with Sang Miao.
Some investors didn’t understand game development, but he and she shared similar ideas.
However, with her providing both funding and technology, she could end up becoming a major shareholder.
Shen Xingxia still had some concerns and joked, “Well, it seems like I’ve made my studio a little too easy for you.”
Sang Miao, of course, understood this involved the studio’s operational control, but she also had her own plans.
She said slowly, “What I mean is that I won’t be joining the studio as a personal partner. Instead, I’ll be investing through my company and participating in the development of this project.
I won’t be involved in the operation of your studio.”
“Even though I’ll contribute the majority of the funds, the development of this project will still be centered around you, Mr. Shen.
We can clarify this in the contract.”
Sang Miao wouldn’t be arrogant enough to want to lead the game development herself.
She was an outsider and trusted him, the professional, to take charge of that part.
Shen Xingxia understood now.
She didn’t want to be a partner but was instead an investor who wouldn’t be involved in the management of the business.
“Alright, I’ll seriously consider it,” Shen Xingxia said, quickly thinking things over.
He was already leaning toward agreeing, but didn’t immediately commit.
He invited her, “Next time, feel free to come visit our studio.”
Sang Miao smiled lightly and agreed, “Hmm, I’ll go.”
After discussing the cooperation in detail, they switched to a more relaxed topic.
Sang Miao talked about her experience playing a game, and they exchanged ideas about new game developments.
Their table was so attractive that many people thought they might be celebrities.
Some even secretly pulled out their phones to take pictures.
Since there were too many people in line at the counter and the efficiency was low, Ling Xi decided to switch to another cashier, asking Jiang Jingxun to serve the customers instead.
From a distance, Sang Miao saw him stopping a customer from taking a photo of her and Shen Xingxia.
“Excuse me, I’m sorry, but it’s not appropriate to take pictures of other customers here.”
If the customer was just casually taking pictures of the store, Jiang Jingxun wouldn’t have interfered.
However, the person was aiming for a close-up shot of the two of them.
Jiang Jingxun was experienced in such situations.
Photos like these, when shared online, were likely to go viral.
He also remembered the parent-teacher meeting and the kindness she had shown to his mother.
Her identity… was quite special, so it was better to be cautious and stop it.
He spoke politely, his voice pleasant, and his good looks made the girl who was stopped not mind.
She even boldly and cautiously asked, “So, you’re a staff member, can I take a picture of you?”
Jiang Jingxun: “…Sure, you can take pictures of the store environment.”
Sang Miao smiled lightly upon hearing this.
Shen Xingxia was momentarily stunned, glancing out the window without making it obvious, and silently resumed drinking his coffee.
By the time it was close to dinner, the store had cleared up a bit.
After exchanging pleasantries, Shen Xingxia left. Sang Miao sat for a while longer and chatted casually with Ling Xi.
When Sang Miao was about to leave, Ling Xi asked Jiang Jingxun to pack some desserts for her to take with her.
Once everything was packed, Sang Miao didn’t hesitate to accept it, smiling with her eyes squinted.
“I’ll take them back for Xi Ci to have.”
Sang Miao had casually mentioned that she was taking them home for her younger sibling, but the other two people inadvertently thought that she was playing the role of a good stepmother.
Before she left, Sang Miao wasn’t sure when she would return home, so she had told her family she wouldn’t be having dinner at home.
It was rare for her to go out today, so she decided to have dinner on her own and stroll around before heading back.
Sang Miao arrived home around 9 PM.
Meng Peisheng was already back, wearing casual home clothes and gold-rimmed glasses.
He was sitting on the sofa with a tablet, looking at reports.
The TV was casually playing a news channel at a low volume.
Meng Xici was sitting beside him, looking at his phone, while the border collie walked around him, wagging its tail.
It wandered over to Meng Peisheng’s side, and the two of them didn’t even look at it, casually reaching out to pat its head.
Their movements were surprisingly synchronized.
Xin Ba could feel their indifference, and its tail wagged more vigorously.
When Sang Miao came in, both of them turned to look at her.
Meng Peisheng: “Did you eat dinner?”
“I’ve eaten,” Sang Miao replied casually.
Then she remembered the desserts in her hand and walked over.
She casually sat down on the empty space on the sofa, took out the cakes—three pieces, and they were different flavors.
It looked as though she had specifically bought them for herself.
She first took out a piece for Meng Xici. “I went to a café today and didn’t expect it to be owned by Jiang Jingxun’s family.
His mother asked me to bring back some cakes. Do you want a piece?”
“Jiang Jingxun?”
Meng Peisheng’s voice was relaxed and low, and he didn’t look up, as if it was just a casual question.
Meng Xici had only seen Ji Zhuoran and Xu Songyue at school, so he wasn’t familiar with the name Jiang Jingxun.
Sang Miao took out another piece of cake and casually replied, “Oh, he’s the one who ranked first in the grade at their school.”
Upon hearing this, Meng Peisheng looked up at her and nodded, “I see, it’s him.”
Meng Xici paused slightly as he reached for the cake: “…”
Sang Miao noticed Meng Xici’s expression and found it amusing.
She decided to tease him a little: “You didn’t know?
He’s quite famous at their school. Isn’t that right, Meng Xue?”
Meng Xici was silent for a few seconds, then quietly spoke, “Yeah, you even asked him if he was very handsome.”
Sang Miao: “…?”