A steaming hot pot bubbled at the center of a table in the heart of Vientiane, filling the cozy restaurant with rich, spicy aromas. Chen Xu sat across from Ruan Ningxue and Yang Xin, casually dipping slices of beef and tripe into the boiling broth. Plates of beef louver and thinly sliced rolls surrounded them, the table crowded with everything a proper hot pot demanded.
Yang Xin scrolled through her phone, unable to contain her excitement. "It's wild! The game circle has exploded—players everywhere are singing its praises!"
"Sister Xin, no need for the divine titles," Chen Xu replied, waving her off with a sheepish smile. "I'm not a legend or anything."
While the praise might've sounded over the top, Chen Xu knew the truth: the so-called explosion was largely confined to a small corner of the indie gentleman game scene. In the larger world of gaming, Magic Mirror was just a stone dropped into a vast ocean—barely a ripple.
"I shouldn't have said 50,000 sales so soon," Ruan Ningxue added, laughing lightly, though she didn't seem particularly remorseful.
"You're the one who said it, Senior Sister. I'm innocent," Chen Xu shot back playfully, setting his chopsticks down to smile at her.
Yang Xin sighed dramatically. "I was hoping to bring you into my company, but clearly I was dreaming."
"You should save your junior brother," Ruan Ningxue teased mercilessly. "His game outsold all three of yours put together."
"I had my reasons," Yang Xin protested. "I only handled the narrative structure. The rest of the game wasn't in my hands. At least the players liked the stories!"
Her mock indignation faded quickly as she turned to Chen Xu. "Speaking of which, could you take a look at those three games and tell me where we went wrong?"
Chen Xu nodded and glanced at a few videos on his phone. "The issue is your system design—it's bloated. You're trying to cram too much into each game."
Yang Xin blinked. "Huh?"
"You're making indie games, Sister Xin. Not AAA blockbusters. Even AAA titles only use most systems for flavor, not as core features. Trying to do too much spreads your resources too thin."
Yang Xin gave a nod that said she only half-understood, but she let the topic drop for now. Instead, she leaned forward with genuine interest. "So what's next for you, Chen Xu?"
"I'm starting a small game company," he said simply, as if it weren't a big deal.
Yang Xin's eyes lit up. "Really? In that case… how about hiring me? I want to join you and make games together."
Her tone was casual, but the meaning was serious. Despite her past failures, she wasn't ready to give up. She'd come to terms with the fact that maybe she wasn't destined to lead a successful game on her own. But joining forces with someone like Chen Xu? That might just be the right move.
She'd studied Magic Mirror in detail and come away convinced: this wasn't just a fluke. The game had depth, clarity of design, and a voice behind it that knew exactly what it was doing. Chen Xu wasn't just lucky—he understood the craft. Some developers stumbled upon brilliance. Others, like him, carved it out deliberately.
Chen Xu paused to consider. He had, after all, glanced through Yang Xin's previous titles. While the gameplay had clear issues, the storytelling stood out. If he wanted to build more complex projects in the future, he'd need help. Even with the support of a system, no single person could write every quest, every dialogue branch, every flavor text.
Take a game like Red Dead Redemption 2, for example. Its main script alone ran over 2,000 pages. For something on that scale, he'd need a team.
"If you're serious, Sister Xin, let's talk again when the company is up and running," he said.
"Deal," Yang Xin grinned. "I'll be waiting."
Ruan Ningxue, who had stayed quiet through their exchange, finally spoke up. "Okay, while you two are talking dreams, I'm eating all the beef."
Yang Xin laughed and turned to her. "With you on board too, Ningxue, we'd make an unstoppable team."
Ruan Ningxue raised an eyebrow and took a sip of her Want Want milk without replying. Chen Xu chuckled.
"I wonder how far Magic Mirror will go," Yang Xin mused aloud. "Do you think monthly sales will break a million?"
Chen Xu shook his head, smiling. "If we're lucky, maybe half that. But anything more? Not likely. The 18R rating is a major limiter."
The conversation mellowed after that. Laughter mixed with the bubbling broth as the three of them enjoyed the warmth of good food and quiet camaraderie. By nine, Chen Xu had seen the others safely back to their apartments and was heading home in a taxi, stomach full and mind brimming with thoughts of the future.