He Xiaoyuan leaned on the sofa, petting the cat.
He had noticed before that the big cat was very affectionate—it always meowed at him and rubbed its body and upright tail against his calves.
Now cradled in his arms, the cat was even more clingy. It purred continuously, pressed its body into his chest, and nudged his neck with its head like a loyal dog.
He Xiaoyuan laughed as he stroked its fur. “Why are you so clingy? You’re too clingy.”
“Do you even remember you’re a male cat?”
“Are all Maine Coon males this affectionate?”
Lu Chen, holding a cup of water, returned and set it gently on the coffee table. Stretching his long legs, he sat on the edge of the table, facing He Xiaoyuan and the cat. He glanced from the boy to the cat and said, “Definitely spoiled. I didn’t do anything else today after coming back—just held it.”
He Xiaoyuan stroked the cat and told Lu Chen, “I looked it up. Maine Coons are naturally affectionate. Maybe other Maine Coons aren’t this clingy. Or perhaps it was abandoned, feels insecure, and now seeks affection from its new owner.”
Lu Chen looked from He Xiaoyuan to the cat, then rose from the table to sit beside him, reaching out to pet the cat.
After a few strokes, he casually asked, “Still working late every day?”
He Xiaoyuan exhaled evenly. “Don’t mention it. I thought we could finalize the contract, but we got stuck again.”
Lu Chen leaned sideways against the sofa, facing him, hand on the cat’s back, listening quietly.
When He Xiaoyuan finished, Lu Chen asked, “Couldn’t come to an agreement?”
He Xiaoyuan felt he could be completely honest with Lu Chen about his work. After all, Lu Chen was the project’s big boss—what could there be he couldn’t know?
He Xiaoyuan: “Yeah, they want twenty million.”
Lu Chen: “I remember Chang Bei initially prepared thirty million.”
He Xiaoyuan explained the difference now: “Back then, we weren’t pushing for an early signature. Chang Bei personally offered thirty million, so it was given. Now that we’ve restarted negotiations at this stage, it’s unlikely we’ll get that much.”
Lu Chen listened patiently.
He Xiaoyuan continued: “My bottom line is no upfront payment, just revenue sharing. We take the game’s full channel distribution.”
Lu Chen reminded him, “Keep in mind project timelines—time is also a cost.”
He Xiaoyuan, still stroking the cat: “I know. So now Chang Bei focuses on other projects; I’m handling progress with Balere.”
Lu Chen, calm as ever: “Balere didn’t have the confidence to push against Sipu before, Chang Bei is used to this. Sipu also has no precedent of upfront payments for small games.”
He Xiaoyuan nodded: “I know. Chang Bei was ‘forced’ to change strategy because of my intervention, but we’ve come this far. We can’t continue according to the original plan anymore.”
Lu Chen made a simple acknowledgment, saying nothing further. “As long as you’re aware.”
He Xiaoyuan lifted the Maine Coon from his shoulders, holding it under its front armpits, and pressed his face to the cat’s. “You’re lucky. No work, no money, and already a big house to live in.”
Lu Chen, amused, said, “You want to come live here as a cat too?”
He Xiaoyuan pressed his forehead to the cat’s forehead, sighing: “I’m not that lucky.”
Lu Chen smiled: “How will you know if you don’t try?”
He Xiaoyuan completely took it as a joke—just words, nothing serious.
He didn’t pursue the topic further, instead playing with the cat, softly meowing at it.
The cat responded: “Meow~”
He Xiaoyuan set the cat back on his lap and laughed at Lu Chen beside him: “It really meows so sweetly, so soft and delicate.”
Lu Chen reached out, stroking the cat, and said to it: “Your brother meows sweetly too—and he says you’re sweet.”
He Xiaoyuan gently jiggled the cat on his lap and said: “Of course we are, right? We’re both sweet—we’re the big sweet cat and the little cutie.”
Suddenly remembering something, he turned to Lu Chen: “Have you given it a proper name?”
Lu Chen replied with a question: “Aren’t you calling it Big Cat?”
He Xiaoyuan chuckled: “That was just a name I used while feeding it before.”
Lu Chen kept stroking the cat, unconcerned, as if telling it: “Big Cat sounds fine.”
He spoke to the cat: “Right? He’s Big Cat, He Xiaoyuan’s Big Cat.”
He Xiaoyuan blinked, surprised: “Wait… it has my surname?”
Lu Chen’s tone was casual, eyes lifting slightly: “You found it, didn’t you? So the name is yours to give.”
He Xiaoyuan: “But it’s your cat.”
He looked down at the cat: “Lu Big Cat?”
The cat: “Meow~”
He Xiaoyuan: “See? It answered.”
Meaning, of course, the cat’s surname was Lu, not He.
Lu Chen ignored him and continued calling the cat: “He Xiaoyuan Big Cat?”
The cat: “Meow~”
He Xiaoyuan laughed inwardly: such a perfectly indecisive little thing.
“Lu Big Cat, Lu Big Cat, Lu Big Cat.”
He Xiaoyuan gently swung his leg, continuing to call the name he felt was right.
Lu Chen reached toward the cat, beckoning with a finger: “He Xiaoyuan Big Cat, want some canned food?”
The cat meowed and jumped down from He Xiaoyuan’s lap, walking to Lu Chen.
Lu Chen: “Good kitty.”
He Xiaoyuan found it hilarious—his day’s exhaustion vanished in an instant.
When it was time to leave, Lu Chen, who had just opened a can for the cat at the table, looked up and said in a perfectly normal tone: “It’s late, let’s stay here for the night.”
He Xiaoyuan: Huh?
The next morning, He Xiaoyuan sat at the breakfast table, with the long-haired Maine Coon beside him, diligently licking its food and purring.
He glanced toward the kitchen and saw Lu Chen’s back, then returned his gaze to the cat, murmuring: “Taking up all the attention, living in a mansion together.”
Lu Chen came out of the kitchen and sat down at the table.
The two of them and the cat ate together like a little family.
Meanwhile, the back-and-forth negotiations with Balere continued for a period—not too long, not too short. He Xiaoyuan had finished his second driving test and was squeezing in practice for the third. Balere had finally lowered their demand from twenty million to five million.
This was entirely thanks to He Xiaoyuan running back and forth between the two companies, putting in endless effort.
After so much running, He Xiaoyuan himself thought five million was probably enough. Chang Bei scoffed: “They got thirty million before and didn’t even glance at us, now they want five million?”
He Xiaoyuan: …
He was so exhausted that when he met with Xu Fenghai, the creator of Meow Meow Meow, he decided not to discuss work at all—just cats.
Xu Fenghai mentioned he had fourteen cats of various breeds, each with different temperaments and preferences, even requiring different types of cat food.
He Xiaoyuan told him about a brand—the same one the Maine Coon was currently eating, one of the options Lu Chen had picked at the veterinary hospital.
Xu Fenghai: “That brand’s good, high-end, lots of meat content.”
He asked whether the cat was male or female.
He Xiaoyuan: “Male. Yours?”
Xu Fenghai: “Both, but they’ve all been neutered—otherwise mixing them together would just lead to endless kittens.”
He Xiaoyuan thought of Meow Meow Meow: “You like cats—was the game inspired by them?”
Xu Fenghai, becoming more familiar with He Xiaoyuan thanks to his frequent trips to Balere, let his guard down: “Yeah. One day I looked at all my cats and thought—if they weren’t neutered, breeding seven males and seven females… imagine all the different coat patterns. And if unrelated kittens grew up and bred again, how many variations would there be…”
He trailed off mid-sentence. He Xiaoyuan, puzzled, noticed the sudden pause and realized this was the inspiration for the game.
The inspiration came from observing how many ways kittens could be born and grow—meaning the game itself…
He Xiaoyuan went silent, raising an eyebrow at Xu Fenghai, who looked awkward and cleared his throat, changing the subject.
He Xiaoyuan: !
!!!
Back at the company, He Xiaoyuan immediately shared Xu Fenghai’s creative inspiration with Chang Bei. Chang Bei explained that the current internet game market was well-classified: most types had already been developed, though minor variations remained possible.
Chang Bei decisively said: “I’ll meet with the game department to see which type of game could fit this kind of inspiration. I don’t believe Balere can create a wholly new category—if they could, Huayu (the rival company) wouldn’t have backed out.”
So, He Xiaoyuan immediately held several consultation meetings.
Because Chang Bei was pushing for results, a few proposed game types soon appeared in He Xiaoyuan’s work email.
He Xiaoyuan reviewed them one by one, seeing one suggestion that classified the game as potentially a match-three type.
Having endured a rigorous trainee program, He Xiaoyuan now had a solid understanding of games—not a complete novice.
He Xiaoyuan was puzzled—how could the idea of cats breeding be applied to a match-three game? What connection could there possibly be between the two?
Then he saw a note from a colleague in the mini-game department, a speculation that caught his attention. The colleague explained that match-three games usually eliminated identical items, but overseas, there had been versions where different items could combine in new ways. Following the “cats breeding cats” logic, perhaps the game could work like this: different male and female cats combine to produce a new kitten, and these new kittens could continue to combine with other unrelated kittens, until cats with shared ancestry appeared. Those related cats could no longer combine.
!
He Xiaoyuan felt a spark in his intuition—could the game really work this way?
He thought it over, screenshot the speculation, and sent it to Xu Fenghai over WeChat, intending to test the waters.
As soon as the screenshot was sent, Xu Fenghai replied with a single line: “……”
He Xiaoyuan’s heart skipped a beat, his eyes widening at the computer screen.
No way—it really is like that, isn’t it!?
That same day, Chang Bei and He Xiaoyuan made another trip to Balere, this time bringing along their legal advisor.
Entering Balere’s conference room, the room was unusually silent. He Xiaoyuan held back, while Chang Bei, grinning broadly like a sly wolf with a spiked tail, went straight for Balere’s weak points: “You weren’t really expecting us to guess, were you? Oh my, really…”
Chang Bei, all smiles, sat down: “So sorry, the contract isn’t even signed yet.”
Balere: “……”
He Xiaoyuan pressed his lips tightly to keep from laughing along.
In this way, Balere lost the upper hand in the negotiations.
In the end, the advance payment was settled at five hundred thousand.
For a game company, five hundred thousand wasn’t a huge sum, but as He Xiaoyuan thought, it was far from nothing. Historically, in all of Sipu’s small-game collaborations, there had almost never been an advance payment. After all, Sipu’s background was strong, and Balere really needed Sipu to publish Meow Meow Meow.
Once the advance payment was agreed, Balere finally allowed He Xiaoyuan and his team to see the demonstration video of Meow Meow Meow. The gameplay was as follows:
In the match-three grid, there were N types of male cats and N types of female cats. Male cats all faced left, females all faced right. Only male and female cats without shared ancestry could be matched and combined. Once matched, they produced a second-generation kitten. These second-generation kittens could combine with any other unrelated cats of either gender. Initially, matches were simple, but as gameplay progressed, related cats would appear, which could no longer be matched. When two cats couldn’t combine, the game provided a hint about their shared lineage.
Furthermore, if two cats were related but more than four generations apart, they could match again. The gameplay continued: eight became four, four became two, two became one, until in the end, two unrelated cats combined to form a brand-new cat—winning the game.
The demo played on the monitor, and everyone watched intently, especially He Xiaoyuan and Chang Bei.
When the final cat, combining all ancestries, appeared at the center of the screen, licking its paw and meowing, both He Xiaoyuan and Chang Bei exchanged looks, silently affirming the brilliance of the game.
He Xiaoyuan even felt a bit of sweat on his palms—a mix of relief for the contract signing and excitement for the unpredictable future of his very first project.
After leaving Balere, He Xiaoyuan wiped his palms and immediately thought of someone he wanted to share the news with first. He grabbed his phone:
He Xiaoyuan: [The contract just got signed.]
Lu Chen: [Congratulations, well done.]
Lu Chen: [Big dinosaur pats little dinosaur.jpg]
Seeing Lu Chen’s message, and that familiar “patting head” emoji he hadn’t seen in a while, He Xiaoyuan’s emotions welled up. He had been following this project for over two months—this was only the contract stage—and he felt a sudden, inexplicable surge of emotion, eyes stinging.
Just as he was steadying himself, Chang Bei came over from behind, putting an arm around his shoulder: “He Xiaoyuan, well done!”
Really?
He Xiaoyuan looked back.
Chang Bei, unable to hide his fondness, gave a playful nudge to the back of the young man’s head: “Contract signed, little Xiaoyuan, Manager He, you were indispensable! A true hero!”
Chang Bei didn’t hold back praise: “You’re amazing!”
He Xiaoyuan ducked slightly at the gesture, then slowly smiled, both happy and a little shy.
Back at the project team, as he entered the office, he was greeted by Chang Bei’s upbeat stride and Yu Xun’s voice: “Contract signed?”
Chang Bei proudly nodded, then gestured behind him to He Xiaoyuan, indicating that the credit belonged entirely to him. Leading by example, he applauded, and the rest of the office joined in: “Congratulations, congratulations!”
He Xiaoyuan hadn’t expected such a scene—he felt both delighted and slightly embarrassed.
At that moment, Chang Bei’s assistant said: “Same as always, right? I’ll book the restaurant.”
Chang Bei sat down at his desk and snapped his fingers sharply: “Book it! The expensive one! Manager He is treating!”
He Xiaoyuan couldn’t help but laugh, accepting the playful title: “I’ll treat tonight.”
Chang Bei returned to his desk: “Just kidding. It’s the project team tradition to celebrate like this—the company covers it.”
He raised his eyebrows: “Big boss treats!”
And added: “Don’t worry, it’s just us eating—big boss won’t come.”
That evening, the department left work early. Chang Bei, He Xiaoyuan, a few available bosses, assistants, and admin staff filled a long table at a nearby music-themed restaurant.
Everyone raised their glasses, clinking them together, celebrating the contract signing and the project’s launch—lively, joyful, and full of cheer.
He Xiaoyuan was at the project team’s celebratory dinner for the first time, and he was practically a co-star, with the joy of the contract signing making him glow with happiness.
Normally, he didn’t drink much and didn’t particularly enjoy alcohol, but this time, after raising his glass, he had already drunk nearly half of it in just a few gulps—proof of his good mood.
Chang Bei sat next to him, using his gift of gab to chat endlessly about the minor details and funny anecdotes from pushing the Balere project forward. Everyone listened with rapt attention, laughing and chatting along, the atmosphere warm and lively.
Chang Bei kept praising He Xiaoyuan, calling him “Xiaoyuan” over and over, and He Xiaoyuan felt like he was about to float away from all the compliments. He wanted to downplay it a little, but the whole table refused to let him be modest. He couldn’t help but smile, enjoying the conversation with Chang Bei about little project matters, chatting with colleagues, eating, drinking beer—all with a light, unburdened heart.
It was, without exaggeration, the first time in his life that He Xiaoyuan had ever felt so relaxed and carefree—never during project rotations, never while job hunting after graduation, never even during his university years. For the first time, he felt light, completely at ease, free to enjoy the moment. He was genuinely very happy.
As the dinner progressed, Chang Bei, Yu Xun, Chang Bei’s assistant, and a few familiar administrative staff came over to chat with him individually. Topics ranged from work to life, casual and relaxed. He Xiaoyuan, completely at ease, spoke freely, not going too deep but not remaining superficial either—he said what he wanted, without reservation, and enjoyed the interactions thoroughly.
He even clinked glasses with Qin Chengfei, asking why he hadn’t joined Chang Bei’s project and how other bosses’ projects were going.
Qin Chengfei explained, “My goals were different from yours. You wanted to see the project succeed; I just wanted to understand the general situation and workflow. Success didn’t matter to me—I wanted to accumulate experience for my own projects later.”
He Xiaoyuan asked, “Do you have a project now?”
Qin Chengfei thought for a moment: “Sort of… one, but I’m still assessing it.”
He Xiaoyuan clinked glasses with him: “I wish you success.”
Qin Chengfei raised his glass: “And I wish you smooth sailing. Today’s worth celebrating, congratulations.”
Finally, He Xiaoyuan found a rare quiet moment to himself. Realizing he hadn’t touched his phone for a while, he leaned back against his chair and pulled it from the pocket of his suit.
Several messages awaited him—some work-related, and two from Lu Chen.
He replied to the work messages first, then opened Lu Chen’s chat:
Lu: [Don’t drink too much.]
Lu: [Come over after the dinner.]
He Xiaoyuan leaned against the chair, feeling his face warm, eyes slightly heavy—he knew he had drunk quite a bit.
He replied: [Caught it late, had a few bottles of beer.]
[Should I come over? The dinner’s ending pretty late.]
He let his arm rest on the back of the chair, lazily sprawled, boredom and contentment mingling as he leaned on his arm.
At that moment, Yu Xun approached and, from across the table, handed him half a glass of wine, looking exhilarated: “Xiaoyuan, what’s wrong? That’s all you’ve had so far, and you’re already done?”
He Xiaoyuan picked up the cup, clinking it with hers.
Yu Xun seized the chance: “Got time to help with my project?”
He Xiaoyuan nodded: “If there’s a chance.”
Yu Xun: “Alrighty.”
After sipping, she went off to mingle. He Xiaoyuan set his cup down and Lu Chen’s call came through.
Yu Xun stepped away, and He Xiaoyuan answered, voice lazy: “Ge.”
Lu Chen immediately said: “Looks like you’ve been drinking.”
He Xiaoyuan leaned back, smiling, eyes closed: “Yeah, I’m starting to feel a little dizzy.”
Lu teased: “Didn’t refuse any today? Who forced you—should dock their pay.”
He Xiaoyuan rested his head in his arm, chuckling: “I drank willingly today, and enjoyed every drop. Even if it were pure alcohol, I’d happily drink it.”
Lu Chen smiled: “That happy, huh?”
He Xiaoyuan’s lips curved, eyes closed, completely relaxed: “Yeah, the contract’s signed. I’m very happy.”
He corrected himself: “Especially happy.”
Lu Chen, coaxing: “Since you’re this happy, come over and share it with me, hmm?”
He Xiaoyuan laughed—of course he wanted to share the good news and mood with Lu Chen.
But he wasn’t drunk—he still had his wits. “But I’ll be pretty late finishing here.”
He opened his eyes, checking the time—already past ten.
Holding the phone back to his ear: “If I come over, it’ll be around eleven… maybe later. I bet the big cat’s already asleep.”
Lu Chen’s tone was teasing: “You’re the kid here—worried about the fur baby? He went to sleep at nine, belly up by now.”
He Xiaoyuan chuckled: “Then I really can’t go—if I come, I’ll wake him. I’d be terrible.”
Lu Chen slowed his tone, soft and patient, coaxing: “I’ll come get you, okay?”
Get him?
He Xiaoyuan hesitated for a moment, thinking it would be too much trouble for Lu Chen.
He suggested: “Don’t come. I’ll take a taxi back to the dorm.”
Then he glanced around discreetly, lowering his voice: “Everyone’s still in the office… don’t want to be seen.”
Lu Chen chuckled lightly on the other end: “So what if they’re here? Why hide?”
“We… have some kind of unspeakable relationship?”
He Xiaoyuan still had his hand near his lips, voice dropping lower, with an almost casual confidence: “Of course.”
Lu Chen snorted, asking, “What kind of relationship?”
He Xiaoyuan, clearly feeling the effects of the alcohol, paused. Normally, faced with this sort of question, he’d be unsure how to answer—if he answered, he’d have to think carefully to avoid saying the wrong thing. But now, he teased a little: “It really can’t be summed up in a few words.”
Lu Chen laughed, clearly amused.
He Xiaoyuan, noticing, asked, “What’s so funny?”
Lu Chen’s tone carried a light, teasing realization: “Ah… so it’s a relationship that can’t be explained.” There was a subtle double meaning in his voice.
If He Xiaoyuan weren’t drunk, and not answering a call in a lively restaurant, he might have picked up on the hint of flirtation. At this moment, though, his brain wouldn’t process the nuance, and he simply followed along: “Yeah… can’t explain it.”
Lu Chen’s smooth, teasing voice followed: “Where exactly can’t it be explained?”
He Xiaoyuan froze.
Where can’t it be explained?
Where?
Can’t?
?
His brain refused to work. Unable to answer, he leaned against the chair, resting his head on his arm, caught between laughter and exasperation: “Ah… I’m really drunk.”
Lu Chen ignored the previous question and decisively said, “I’ll come pick you up.”
He Xiaoyuan forgot he had already called a taxi back to his dorm, obediently replying, “Okay.”
When the dinner ended, the group walked out of the music-themed restaurant, chatting lively as colleagues discussed how they would return home—who needed a designated driver, who could catch the bus or subway in time.
Someone asked He Xiaoyuan. He replied, “I’ve got someone picking me up.”
A colleague casually asked, “Who? Your girlfriend?”
He Xiaoyuan shook his head: “My brother.”
Colleagues looked surprised: “You have a brother?”
Chang Bei, already a bit tipsy, chimed in: “His brother? I heard he’s even more accomplished at work, better looking than him. I saw him last time—driving an X7.”
A few colleagues who heard that: “Wow~~”
He Xiaoyuan, dizzy and amused, thought: You’re all impressed? You’d faint if you knew who it really was.
You’d die!
He thought mischievously but had no intention of revealing anything. At the restaurant entrance, he sent Lu Chen a message with his exact location.
Soon, a black BMW X7 with the signature logo slowly pulled up. He Xiaoyuan recognized it as Lu Chen’s car, greeted colleagues briefly, then walked around to the passenger side.
Several colleagues couldn’t help but admire the massive X7.
The tinted windows were so dark that from outside, you couldn’t see anything, only that He Xiaoyuan had gotten into his “brother’s” car.
As the car drove off, colleagues discussed: “How much does this car cost? A million?”
“At least a million.”
“Wow, so rich.”
“But Xiaoyuan is usually low-key. His clothes, shoes, bags… none are really branded.”
“Don’t focus on that—look at the cups on his desk. Do you know how much one costs?”
“How much?”
“Thousands! Each one!”
“Whoa! Using cups that expensive? Rich second generation?”
A female colleague who mentioned the cups said: “Don’t ‘whoa’ about that. The real ‘whoa’ is he just graduated and already got into the project team, closing contracts. That’s way more impressive than being born rich.”
“True, his salary isn’t low; the bonuses later will be huge.”
“Jealous! How can someone be young, handsome, talented, and have a good personality?”
“I really wonder what kind of girl can match him. Must be rich and beautiful, right?”
“Not necessarily, maybe tall, rich, and handsome.”
“Anyway, it wouldn’t be me. I don’t deserve him.”
“Neither do I… sob sob sob.”
In the X7’s passenger seat, tipsy He Xiaoyuan started chattering again.
He gestured with his fingers, thumb retracted, and said to Lu Chen: “I probably drank this much today.”
Lu Chen, driving, smiled: “13,641 plus 198,005 equals…?”
He Xiaoyuan froze.
He sheepishly lowered his hand: “I know 1 plus 1 is 2, and π is 3.14.”
Lu Chen judged: “Looks like you’re drunk. Sit properly.”
He Xiaoyuan: Okay.
He sat properly, hands neatly on his lap.
After a while, he turned to ask: “So, those two numbers you just said… how much do they add up to?”
Lu Chen, calm and collected: “211,646.”
He Xiaoyuan: .
Totally outsmarted, he became even more obedient.