“R-really? It got smaller? Much smaller?” Xia Yuan panicked.

Lin Youxi pondered. “Maybe it’s the sports bra? Take it off.”

“But A-Fang’s here!”

“It’s not like he hasn’t seen—why so shy now—”

“No, no! I won’t look! Youxi, you check.” Mei Fang covered his face and flopped onto the bed.

Lin Youxi stepped over him, barefoot, and began her “inspection.”

Squish squish—

“W-well?”

“Hmm… let me confirm.”

Squish squish—

“Youxi! Stop playing with me!” Xia Yuan huffed.

“Definitely smaller. But firmer. Nice texture.”

Lin Youxi smirked. “Some people lose weight there first. Maybe that’s you. Or maybe your extra pounds all went there, so the change wasn’t obvious…”

“Then… what was the point of all that suffering?!”

Xia Yuan slumped into existential despair.

“Size doesn’t matter! Tiny is cute too! Look at me—I’m fine, right?”

Lin Youxi bumped against her from behind, their playful tussling noises making Mei Fang grin under his hands.

“Health matters most. Working out improved my stamina too—”

“Only because we were too tired to ‘train’ you at night.”

Lin Youxi nipped Xia Yuan’s ear. “Now that diet’s over… someone’s in trouble~”

Mei Fang gave a thumbs-up. “Bring it on!”

“You have to help me…” Xia Yuan pouted. “Massage them back!”

——

Rumor had it Mei Fang walked funny for days, blaming a “sprained back.”

Meanwhile, he pondered the fate of Ximilu Studio.

Officially, it existed both as a company and a school club—though lately, it was just their hangout spot.

With the school year ending, only underclassman Zhu Nainai remained. She’d done little beyond fangirling over Mei Fang, but her enthusiasm was undeniable.

“Should we keep the club?” Mei Fang asked.

Lin Youxi opposed: “Recruiting means mentoring. No time.”

Xia Yuan supported: “It’s part of our memories!”

Ultimately, Mei Fang decided to consult Zhu Nainai—only to find her embroiled in drama.

Her classmate Chen Xubo sneered: “Still obsessed with that has-been idol? His games are trash. Real art is—”

Zhu Nainai rolled her eyes. “Go win a Nobel then. I’ll stick to my ‘shallow’ joys.”

“I’ll say it one more time— G. T. F. O.—”

“?”

“Get lost!”

Zhu Nainai’s shout was a bit too loud, drawing everyone’s attention. Chen Xubo immediately felt embarrassed, rubbed his nose, and slunk back to his seat. Just then, he noticed Xu Wei drawing a small character composed of geometric shapes at her desk.

Chen Xubo exclaimed in admiration, “This little guy is so cute.”

Xu Wei replied softly, “This is Gloudy.”

“This character has a very minimalist style. With just a few strokes, it has so much charm. You named it Gloudy, right? Sounds like a variation of ‘cloudy.’ Let me think about how to interpret it…”

Before Chen Xubo could finish, Xu Wei continued drawing a few more small characters.

“This one is Crow, the fish-person Grandiose, and the beloved little cat Cathy, who helps Gloudy a lot.”

Chen Xubo pretended to be very interested as Xu Wei introduced these artistic characters he’d never heard of, making a mental note to look them up later. Once Xu Wei finished enthusiastically explaining her favorite characters, Chen Xubo quickly changed the subject.

“By the way, are you interested in watching this week’s Shakespeare play? I happen to have two tickets. They were really hard to get—I had to ask a friend to—”

“I… actually have plans this week.”

Xu Wei looked a bit apologetic. “Maybe you should invite someone else.”

“Ah, you’re busy today too? I thought you’d be interested…”

“Well… I’m not that into it, really—”

As Xu Wei and Chen Xubo were talking, the classroom suddenly grew noisy.

“Zhu Nainai, your Fangbao is here to see you! Come out!”

Hearing this, Zhu Nainai immediately perked up like a rabbit. She looked out the window and saw Mei Fangzheng smiling and waving at her. Overjoyed, she dashed out.

“You came to see me alone… Could it be that you missed your junior after not seeing her for so long?”

Zhu Nainai playfully pushed Mei Fang. “Senior, you’re getting bold. Did you get permission from Sister Yuanyuan?”

“Of course I did before coming.”

Mei Fang didn’t mind joking around with Zhu Nainai, but he soon steered the conversation back to business. “I came today to talk about the club’s future. We’re all stepping down in our third year.”

“Oh! I’ve actually been meaning to ask you about that…”

Zhu Nainai and Mei Fang chatted animatedly in the hallway about the club’s plans. Since Jiangcheng No. 1 High was so large, many first-year students rarely got to see Mei Fang and Xia Yuan up close. Now that Mei Fang was here, everyone secretly watched and whispered.

“Is that the legendary Fangbao? He looks much more delicate than I imagined. I thought he’d be more of a domineering CEO-type producer.”

“You read too many romance novels! Where do you think all these domineering CEOs come from?”

“By the way, isn’t Nainai the only first-year in Ximilu Studio? Are they only running the club for one year?”

“Hard to say. They might be discussing that today…”

Chen Xubo watched from afar as the boy Zhu Nainai idolized so much. He seemed utterly ordinary—not even better-looking or more charismatic than himself. Chen Xubo assumed he was just a rich kid using money to chase girls and make games. Just as he was about to complain to Xu Wei, he realized she was no longer at her seat.

When Chen Xubo snapped out of it, the Xu Wei he adored so much was already in the hallway. After listening for a while, she couldn’t help but interrupt Mei Fang and Zhu Nainai’s conversation.

“Um… Senior Mei Fang! I’m a huge fan of yours! I love your game Journey of Clouds—I’ve been replaying it constantly. I bought it on Steam and C-site!”

Mei Fang wasn’t sure why she was telling him this but smiled politely. “Thank you for your support.”

Zhu Nainai introduced her. “This is Xu Wei, a classmate of mine. She likes to draw, and she actually wanted to join your studio at the start of the semester, but you weren’t recruiting.”

“Ah… We didn’t plan to take on too many people back then. It’s hard to manage… Sorry about that.”

Mei Fang thought for a moment. “But our club plans have changed a bit. If you’re interested, you can apply now.”

Instead of immediately responding, Xu Wei respectfully handed him her sketchbook.

“These are some fan works I drew, including some original characters… I’d love for you to take a look.”

“Hmm… Nice! This is Gloudy in an anime style, right? It’s got a great feel. Do you play a lot of games too?”

Xu Wei nodded. “But I usually play alone… mostly single-player games. I like the feeling of connecting with the creators. For example, in Journey of Clouds, I saw a girl grow from weakness to strength—it resonated with me. I’d love to create something like that too.”

“What a coincidence! Senior was just saying he plans to reorganize the club and let us work on new projects. If you’re interested, you could try doing art!”

“Really? But I only know how to draw… I don’t have any other game-related skills. Compared to Senior Guo Yun, I’m way behind…”

“That’s fine.”

Mei Fang smiled. “When I first met Guo Yun, she didn’t know anything either. I taught her, and she learned quickly. Besides, I really like your expressive art style—it gives the characters soul…”

The lively conversation between Mei Fang, Xu Wei, and Zhu Nainai drew a crowd. With Journey of Clouds’ reputation, everyone was eager to join Ximilu Studio.

“Senior, can I apply too?”

“Of course! But we’ll still have interviews.”

“Senior, do you only recruit cute girls? Do I have to cross-dress to get in?”

Amid the laughter, Mei Fang shot the boy a disgusted look. “What are you talking about? There’s no gender discrimination here. Anyone who loves making games can join. It’s just that, for some reason, most of our members are girls.”

“It’s because you’re so handsome, Senior! If I were a girl, I’d like you too—Senior, I love you~!”

The boys’ exaggerated antics were even more dramatic than the girls’. The atmosphere was cheerful.

The usually calm and composed Xu Wei, in Chen Xubo’s eyes, had now turned into an adoring fangirl in front of Mei Fang, her eyes full of admiration.

Chen Xubo had followed Xu Wei into the hallway. Watching her expression, he clenched the play tickets in his hand, grinding his teeth in frustration.

So… she just wasn’t interested in the things I liked. Her passion was games.

Whatever… No wonder she never wanted to hang out.

But…

As he watched the girl he liked, a thought crossed his mind:

Even if Mei Fang is charming, he already has a girlfriend. Other girls don’t stand a chance.

If I join the game club too, I’ll have more chances to get close to her. Maybe she’ll see me in a new light.

Chen Xubo initially planned to brazenly sign up for the club, banking on Mei Fang not recognizing him. But he underestimated Zhu Nainai’s influence in the studio.

On the day of the interview, faced with Zhu Nainai’s mocking remark—“Why don’t you go win a literature award instead?”—Chen Xubo was utterly humiliated. Afterward, he complained to anyone who would listen that Zhu Nainai was petty and held a grudge. But since his own reputation was already poor, no one paid him any attention. Eventually, even Xu Wei couldn’t be bothered to humor him anymore.

Before summer arrived, Mei Fang recruited about ten new members for Ximilu Studio. He planned to train them over the summer, helping them quickly learn the game development process and complete a small project.

Since it was a small game, working within a familiar framework would speed things up. Mei Fang chose Reigns, a card game the studio had previously developed. It was easy to create DLCs or new expansions, making it perfect for beginners.

He figured this summer camp-like project—Reigns: Three Kingdoms—would take him only a week’s worth of effort (excluding art assets). More importantly, it would give the new team a taste of the joy and satisfaction of game development.

After that, he could happily focus on spending time with his Yuanyuan and Youxi. Every night, he had to massage Yuanyuan’s shoulders—his schedule was packed and exhausting.