Chapter 7: The Heartwarming Story Behind It

Inside Chen Xu's rented apartment, he was finishing a bowl of instant noodles, to which he had just added an egg.

There was nothing he could do; he would have to subsist on this for a while, as he was simply short on cash. He was in debt with credit cards, Zhibafu's Jiebei, and Jingdog's Jiejie.

What's more, Ruan Ningxue hadn't been paid for her illustrations, and he'd even borrowed another 1,000 Yuan from her. Most of his funds had been poured into the game, so he literally had no money for food.

Of course, the main reason was that he had specifically set aside 20,000 Yuan from all his funds.

And these 20,000 Yuan were the foundation for Mirror (Game)'s takeoff.

Chen Xu was confident in Mirror (Game)'s quality.

Especially after delving into some of the Gentleman's Games in this world, including the indescribable Doujinshi.

Chen Xu could only say that they were incredibly crude and shoddy.

Aren't Gentleman's Games still games?

It's simply outrageous!

But as the old saying goes, 'Even good wine needs a deep alley.' If you truly believe that after making an 18R game, just throwing it onto a platform will guarantee its success, then you're seriously overthinking it.

Even masterpieces like Minecraft and The Binding of Isaac, if simply dropped onto a platform without proper care, might not make a ripple in the early stages if luck isn't on their side.

Therefore, promotion is essential for any game.

Even for an 18R game!

Naturally, this requires some special methods.

………………

In a university dorm.

Yawning, Jiang Ping climbed down from the top bunk and opened the laptop on his desk.

“Nothing new to read recently.”

Muttering to himself, Jiang Ping opened a relatively well-known overseas forum. Of course, when he said ‘doujinshi’ (本子), he wasn't just referring to those purely focused on explicit content, but also included various fan-made works.

For instance, some manga plots could be extremely frustrating, like when a popular supporting female character dies, or the heroine of a hot-blooded manga dies, becoming the catalyst for the male protagonist's power-up. This felt like eating feces, but if the manga's quality was otherwise excellent, it became truly annoying.

That's where doujinshi came in handy. And, of course, occasionally taking a critical look at those indescribable ones was also a common occurrence.

However, such doujinshi were generally small-scale endeavors, given the copyright issues. There were also original doujinshi, but these were more often of the indescribable variety.

Jiang Ping was currently on a famous overseas doujinshi forum, hoping to find some new works. After all, many artists who drew these doujinshi did so largely out of interest. It was normal for them to work sporadically, and it was a blessing if they could even serialize one chapter a week, let alone release tankōbon (single volumes).

Even some special original doujinshi intended for profit weren't guaranteed to be regularly serialized.

However, upon entering the forum today, Jiang Ping noticed something unusual.

Specifically, the posts on the homepage were a bit unfathomable but awesome.

'Roommate's bed shaking non-stop in the middle of the night, is it a distortion of human nature, or a decay of morality?'

'This is simply the most fun Match-3 game I've ever played!'

'A seemingly simple Match-3 game, but the truth hidden behind it is heartwarming.'

'What kind of game is this? It's ruined me! I wanted to buy my little brother a Match-3 game, but now he's completely dejected!'

'Brave Little Cow, fearless in the face of difficulties, bros, charge!'

??????

What the heck?

Jiang Ping was dumbfounded by the string of post titles. After clicking on one of the posts and reading for a while, it finally dawned on him.

The heartwarming truth behind it, the roommate's bed shaking non-stop in the middle of the night. These guys had pushed the pedal to the metal! So, these posts were all about the Gentleman's Game that Lewd Person players loved the most!

But a Gentleman's Game is a Gentleman's Game, what the heck were these comments?

'My thoughts after playing for half an hour: Just like the game's name, we are all Mirror Gazer. After putting down the magic mirror, we face the pain and torment of reality. The more beautiful things we have seen, the more confidence we will have in life. When you are covered in scars, why not take a break and quietly recall this simple, pure, yet slightly sad emotion.'

'The dark side of human nature revealed almost exceeded my comprehension. Redemption and depravity, the questioning of morality is deeply ingrained. My thoughts lingered on the game even after closing it. Highly recommended!'

'A deeply profound game, using a seemingly unrestrained exterior to express an eternal sadness. It’s sung like a headless fly in the market, yet what it expresses is loftier than half a scroll of scripture in a temple. The several stories in the game are all vibrant, and strung together, they shine brightly, like a miniature human world. This game certainly has many flaws, but its story is first-rate: simple, powerful, and shocking.'

'The game Mirror (Game) subtly gives me a feeling of Dream of the Red Chamber. Through the magic mirror, the destinies of women unfold before our eyes. They have their own experiences in different historical contexts and are subject to various controls, such as desire, love, and fear... As for what thoughts the onlookers may have, they can only ultimately transform into a sigh after turning off the game, or simply indifference.'

'A certain great literary giant once said: There are always people who engage in explicit content where they shouldn't, but there are also people who explore philosophy where explicit content is expected; discussing life and morality, and clearly Mirror (Game) is such a game, cloaked in a wanton exterior, yet profoundly meaningful.'

'When a Gentleman's Game moves me, I know that whether to 'charge' or not is no longer important.'

'When I launched this game, within just ten minutes, my heart was struck with an unparalleled impact. I find it difficult to describe this game in words; it was like a guiding beacon appearing in the dark night. I have a premonition that because of this game, the Gentleman's Game industry will usher in a revolution!'

What the heck!?

What are you guys even talking about!

After reading through all of it, Jiang Ping felt completely numb, and an intense curiosity arose within him. Seeing these comments in the forum, and confirming the game's name was Mirror (Game).

Jiang Ping opened the official game platform and searched for it.

The extremely conspicuous elf on the game's cover, and the label marking it as 18R.

Right!

There was no doubt it was a Gentleman's Game.

But were these comments of yours really not meant for the wrong game?

Jiang Ping, already very interested in Gentleman's Game, was now even more intrigued. What kind of game was this exactly?

The price of 10 Yuan wasn't very expensive.

It was just the cost of a breakfast.

Without much thought, Jiang Ping added the game to his shopping cart, then scanned the QR code to pay.

Now, he was going to take a look and see what was so special about this Bishōjo Match-3 game.

During the new book period, there are two updates daily. If you have votes, please cast them, it's very important. (Mwah! [Cute face])

(End of Chapter) <>