"Do you feel like many of the reporters are secretly taking pictures of us?" Yan Xi whispered in Yuan Yi's ear. "Maybe I shouldn't have come here today. The reporters here aren't even interested in the game anymore; their eyes are full of gossip."
"Curiosity drives progress and makes life more interesting," Yuan Yi said, placing his hand on Yan Xi's shoulder and leaning down to speak in her ear. "Let them look, if they like. I'm handsome, you're beautiful, and we're not losing anything by being watched."
Letting the whole country know that he and Yan Xi were a couple would prevent some people from trying to be the third or fourth wheel. Anyone trying to dig under his walls wouldn't even find a way inânot a door, not a window, not even a tunnel.
His own gossip was getting more attention than the game he had developedâwhat exactly was he so proud of? Although Yuan Yi's posture and gaze remained unchanged, Yan Xi could tell that he was secretly pleased, even his mouth curling into a slight smile.
On the big screen, the promotional video for the mobile game was playing. With its magnificent robes, handsome characters, and high playability, compared to shoddily made mobile games, this game called Hua Feng Xiu Xian Jicould easily outperform them. However, Yan Xi worried that its literary style might not appeal to players.
"This game not only has a style that's different from current popular names, but the content is also based on a thorough study of history, culture, and mythology," Yuan Yi pointed to a female character on the screen. "The costumes and hairstyles of all the characters are designed according to the historical period and their living environment. If players can learn a little about our country's traditional culture while playing, that would be great."
"Making a game like this must have cost a lot of money, right?" Yan Xi looked at the detailed character designs and the stunning battle scenes, feeling that the flames burning in the game were fueled by money.
"The early investment had to be substantial to attract more players," Yuan Yi smiled. "Although the mobile game market is highly profitable, domestic players' expectations are rising. Low-quality games might make a quick profit from publicity, but players aren't fools. This not only doesn't have a positive impact on the domestic gaming industry but can also greatly damage the company's reputation."
"I didn't expect that, even though you don't play games, you're so concerned about the gaming market," Yan Xi said, admiring how charming Yuan Yi looked as he spoke seriously. Today, he was shining.
"No matter the industry, although there are some unscrupulous businesses, there are always companies with a conscience," Yuan Yi said earnestly. "I can't let people think of your man and immediately associate him with those greedy capitalists making shady money."
"So I'm that important?" Yan Xi laughed lightly. "You're so smooth with your words."
"As a qualified boyfriend, honesty and integrity are my greatest strengths."
Yan Xi felt strangely familiar with this line, as if she had said it to him not long ago. Could it be... that she had taught Yuan Yi this phrase?
The press conference was a great success. Yan Xi even saw some reporters, after the event ended, pulling out their phones to scan the QR codes on the promotional posters and downloading the game.
No wonder Hengtai not only gave red envelopes and gifts to all the reporters at the event but also sent out game gift package verification codesâso this was the intention behind it.
Yan Xi took out her phone and downloaded the game client for herself. After it was installed and opened, the game started with a beautiful opening animation, along with male and female voiceovers so captivating that she couldn't bring herself to press skip.
Just the opening alone was enough to lure voice enthusiasts into the game.
The game designed by Yuan Xiaoer was indeed well-made, but it also had big ambitions.
"Mr. Yuan, Miss Yan, please wait," a young reporter wearing glasses approached them. "Is it because your wedding is approaching that you two are appearing together in public?"
The surrounding reporters looked over, then began to open their recording devices and cameras.
Yan Xi saw that this reporter's work badge indicated they were an intern, so she stopped and said, "We often appear in public together, it's just that people don't know about it."
The intern reporter asked again, "Do you two have plans to get married?"
"I didn't expect you to be a member of the 'hurry-up-and-get-married' crowd at such a young age," Yan Xi joked, half playfully, half evasively. "That's not very good."
The surrounding reporters laughed at Yan Xi's words, and the intern's face turned red from the embarrassment. Yan Xi, being somewhat of a peer to these reporters, knew they were looking for some juicy gossip. However, most of the reporters present were smart enough not to ask such questions directly in front of Yuan Yi. The intern clearly lacked experience and was encouraged by senior reporters to ask such questions, embarrassing himself but benefiting everyone else.
"I'm with Yan Xi because of love, and of course, we have thoughts of getting married," Yuan Yi said, putting his arm around Yan Xi's shoulder and speaking calmly to the cameras. "But marriage is a serious matter. Just because I want to get married doesn't mean I should disregard my partner's feelings. If we set a wedding date, I will announce it."
"We're just an ordinary couple, so I hope everyone doesn't focus too much on our private lives. Thank you," he added, gently dismissing the gossip.
The reporters, being sharp, understood that Yuan Yi was not happy with them turning Yan Xi's life and work into fodder for gossip. Even though Yan Xi was a host, her private life was very simple. Her shows weren't connected to the entertainment industry, and even on social media, the only celebrity she interacted with was the popular Xu Qiaosheng, but everyone knew Xu was Yuan Yi's cousin, so it was all family.
If it were any other celebrity, the reporters would definitely continue to press for more questions, but with someone like Yan Xi, most of them knew when to stop, so they all smartly stopped filming.
What Yuan Yi said was already enough material for them to write a news story.
What did he mean by "I can't rush into marriage without respecting my partner's feelings"? The implied message here was that he was willing to get married, but his partner hadn't come to that conclusion yet!
A rich and powerful man, though a bit fierce-looking, but still quite handsome, wanting to marry one woman with all his heart, and this woman not wanting to marry him yetâhow deep is his love? They could easily spin this into a 200,000-word romance novel titled The Gentle CEO Fell in Love with Me.
Before leaving the reporters' line of sight, Yan Xi had been smiling gently. Once they were in the car, she raised an eyebrow, crossed her arms, and looked at Yuan Yi. "Want to get married?"
Yuan Yi, still feeling a little proud of himself, snapped back to reality. He bent down to fasten Yan Xi's seatbelt and gently tugged at her arms, which were crossed over her chest. "Take your hands off, let me fasten your seatbelt."
Yan Xi uncrossed her arms, cupped his face, and playfully pushed his lips into a pout. "Tell me, did you always have an agenda with me?"
"Not always," Yuan Yi said, fastening the seatbelt with confidence. "Think about it; it's not illegal, right? Didn't someone say that love without marriage is just playing around?"
At that moment, he completely forgot about his older brother and his brother's supposed aversion to marriage.
"By your logic, how many 'playboys' would there be in our country?" Yan Xi was defeated by his shameless logic. "What you said in front of reporters will get twisted. They'll make you out to be the tragic male lead of a drama, pining for love that he can't have."
"I'm the tragic male lead in a drama, and you look like the female lead. Doesn't that make us a perfect match?" Yuan Yi said proudly. "Isn't that great?"
"But you're the male lead in a melodrama, and someone like me would only be the cannon fodder supporting role. The female lead in these kinds of dramas always has a tragic life, and the man she ends up with is either a scumbag, a fool, or has some physical defect. If the family doesn't have a few eccentric relatives, it's not even worth calling it a melodrama," Yan Xi rolled her eyes. "We're on completely different paths, so how could we be a perfect match?"
"Nonsense. We're the innovative version of a melodrama," Yuan Yi spat a few times. "Don't say such unlucky things. If you're the cannon fodder supporting role, then I'll be the cannon fodder male lead. Anyway, we're destined to be together."
Yan Xi: ...
Who on earth turned Yuan Xiao Er into such a shameless person?
Yuan Yi still had to return to the company for a meeting. After dropping Yan Xi off at home, he hurried back to work. Yan Xi, having removed her makeup, opened her laptop and logged into her chat app to check her Weibo friends' group.
These bloggers, who were somewhat well-known on Weibo, were gossiping heatedly about Yan Xi and Yuan Yi, saying that in her past life, Yan Xi must have saved the universe, which was why someone like Yuan Yi would be so devoted to her.
As the "universe-saving" Yan Xi silently scrolled through the chat history, she discovered that a reporter had already uploaded the video of Yuan Yi answering the interview to the internet, sparking quite a bit of attention from the onlookers. Her Weibo friends also took the opportunity to join in and share some playful remarks on their feeds.
As she saw them guessing what kind of magic she had, Yan Xi couldn't help but wonderâif one day these people found out that she was actually the Yan Xi they were talking about, would they be terrified?
Little Stream: "Whether Yan Xi saved the universe or not doesn't matter. What matters is that Heng Tai has recently developed a game and is really focusing on online promotion. Would any of you be interested in taking on a full promotion campaign?"
There are many ways to do marketing on Weibo. Some are just posting short stories or dry advertisements, but a more acceptable form of online marketing is writing fanfiction or fan art, humorous articles, and full promotion campaigns are more complicated. They aren't easy to spot as ads, but of course, they also come with a higher cost.
Yan Xi's message left the dozen or so people in the group stunned. After being in the group for so long, they had never seen Yan Xi take on any advertisements, not even fan art for promotions.
Mom, hit me again: "Little Stream, do you have some life troubles? We've known each other for two or three years. Although we've never met in person, we can be considered friends in the second dimension. I may not dare to lend you a lot of money, but I can lend you the money for meals."
Rabbit Baby only eats meat: "I'm even more generous, I can lend you money to buy clothes."
Yan Xi looked at her friends' teasing concern, feeling both touched and amused, wanting to avoid any awkwardness.
Little Stream: "I'm fine, don't start imagining some inspirational life drama. Heng Tai has my people there, and they were already planning on doing some online promotion, so of course, I'll leave the chance to earn money to you guys."
Mom, hit me again: "I'll take it, I'll definitely take Heng Tai's big company's promotion. But Little Stream, you're impressive for having such good connections inside Heng Tai. No wonder you can resist the temptation of money, not taking Weibo ads, and even following the CEO of Heng Tai on Weibo. Wealthy people really are spoiled."
Yan Xi silently thought: What will they think when they find out I'm the CEO's girlfriend? Will they cry in shock?