TENGDA CORP: PLEASE LET ME GO BANKRUPT!

CHAPTER 4: Misplaced Trust

Chloe fell silent for a few seconds. She blinked her eyes, which were still a bit damp, staring at Julian in confusion over the sudden offer.

"Three hundred thousand dollars?" Chloe leaned forward, then lowered her voice so as not to become the center of attention in the cafe again. Her proud nature immediately resurfaced to mask her shock. "Are you serious? Or are you just trying to take advantage of the situation because you know my family is having a hard time?"

Julian leaned back casually in the cafe's wooden chair. He pulled out his phone, opened the Tengda Corp business banking app linked to the System Funds, and showed the screen to Chloe. There, the official balance digit was displayed: $500,000.

"I don't have time to play around, Miss Chloe," Julian said in a convincing tone. "The investor earlier rejected you because he only uses old business logic. But I am different. In my opinion, Ember Beauty is a bold concept. Simulated meteorite dust and Alpine flowers are a unique combination of ideas."

In his heart, Julian added: 'Completely bizarre to the point that no sane person would ever want to buy it. Perfect!'

Chloe stared at the phone screen, then shifted her gaze to meet Julian's eyes. All this time, everyone—including her own father—had always looked down on her and considered her someone who could only waste money. But today, at her lowest point after being publicly humiliated, a stranger had actually come and supported her idea.

Chloe's chest tightened with emotion, and her face flushed slightly. She quickly looked away while tapping her fingers on the table to hide her awkwardness.

"Y-you... actually have pretty decent taste for a casual guy," Chloe said, trying to take control of the conversation. "But remember, I don't like being micro-managed. I will manage that money myself. I want to rent an independent cosmetics laboratory, order crystal glass bottles directly from Italy, and host a luxurious product launch event. I don't want my product to look cheap."

Julian's smile instead grew wider upon hearing that. Italian crystal glass bottles? A luxurious product launch event? This girl indeed had a talent for burning budgets.

"That is exactly what I want," Julian replied, nodding in agreement without hesitation. "I won't interfere with your management at all. Our contract is simple: I provide the capital, and you are free to use the money to run your business. Tomorrow morning, my legal team will send the official documents to your address."

Julian extended his hand across the table. Chloe looked at the hand for a moment, then shook it firmly.

"The Sterling family will not forget this help, Julian Vance," Chloe said seriously. She promised herself that she would work hard to prove to her father and everyone else that she could succeed through this project.

Meanwhile, Julian shook Chloe's hand while holding back a laugh. 'No need to succeed, Miss Chloe. Please, just keep losing money like your past reputation.'

After the business at the cafe was concluded, Julian returned to his new office at Apex Tower. The atmosphere of the entire-floor office was still quiet because most of the new staff he recruited were busy enjoying the free game room and cafeteria.

Julian walked into his workspace and called Harry, the lead game designer whom he had deliberately chosen because of his track record of being frequently fired from three companies due to his ideas being considered too bizarre.

Harry entered carrying a graphics tablet with a nervous look on his face. "Boss Julian, did you call for me? Regarding the second game project, our team has just finished the initial draft for an open-world RPG game—"

"Forget the RPG," Julian cut him off while tapping his desk. "That's standard. For Tengda Corp's second project, I want us to make a game that is very simple but out of the ordinary. We are going to make a Tic-Tac-Toe game."

Harry gaped. The digital pencil in his hand almost fell. "Excuse me, Boss? Tic-Tac-Toe? The noughts-and-crosses game usually played on paper?"

"Exactly," Julian said with a serious expression. "But, we are going to use the latest version of Unreal Engine with super-realistic 3D graphics. Every time a player places an 'X' or an 'O' symbol, the ground must shake and an animation of a fighting knight with magnificent visual effects must appear. We will also hire Motion Capture technology and action actors from Hollywood for the animations."

Harry swallowed hard, confused about how to respond. "But... Boss, that's just a board game that finishes in two minutes. The cost of renting motion capture and Hollywood actors could use up hundreds of thousands of dollars. Business-wise, it doesn't make sense."

"Who said that's all?" Julian smiled mysteriously. "For the background music, I want you to fly to London next week. Recruit the best symphony orchestra there to record live in their legendary studio. And one absolute rule: this game must be completely free, with no ads, and there must not be any in-game purchase features in it."

Harry froze where he stood. His brain tried to digest the logic behind this decision. Spending all the remaining company budget just for a free, ad-free Tic-Tac-Toe game?

However, seeing Julian's face so calm and confident, Harry instead misunderstood. In his eyes, Julian did not look crazy—but rather like an eccentric genius who deliberately wanted to mock the greedy modern game industry.

"A-all right, Boss!" Harry replied with a voice trembling slightly from admiration. "We will carry out your orders to the absolute best of our ability!"

After Harry hurriedly left the room to share the idea with the team, Julian leaned his back against the luxurious massage chair. He stared at the ceiling of the room with a sense of relief.

Two large-scale money-burning projects were officially underway. On one hand, there was Chloe Sterling with her cosmetic product made of simulated meteorite dust which had a high potential to fail, and on the other hand, there was a super-expensive Tic-Tac-Toe game project that would not generate a single penny.

"Two plans are ready," Julian whispered in satisfaction. "This time, System... you will definitely lose money and I will be the one getting filthy rich."