Traveling back to 1977

Chapter 718 Game Over
The sky cleared after the snow.

Early in the morning, Lujiawan was shrouded in a thick fog, appearing and disappearing under the sun. It was estimated that the fog would dissipate soon.

On the 23rd, dust is swept; on the 24th, the Kitchen God is sent off; on the 25th, tofu is made; on the 26th, fish and meat are prepared…

Today is the 25th day of the twelfth lunar month. Early in the morning, smoke was billowing from the chimneys of every household, and the aroma of beans spread through the air—this is the smell of the New Year.

In the past, not every household in Lujiawan made their own tofu. Except for a very few families who would buy soybeans and painstakingly grind them into soy milk and make tofu, most families would just carry a small basket to the tofu shop in Team 10, buy a few cents or a dollar's worth of tofu, and some syrup, and take it home to prepare for the New Year.

It is only because incomes have been rising in the last two years that people have started to pay more attention to festivals, and some people have bought stone mills and soybeans to cook at home.

The oriole got up very early, made the first batch of tofu, picked the tofu into a basket, covered it with a cloth, and was about to go out.

Her mother quickly called out, "Is this enough? Don't take too little. During the New Year, many people will be visiting Teacher Chen to wish him a Happy New Year..."

Before she could finish speaking, Huang Li turned around and laughed, "Won't I come back to get it if it's missing?"

The mother swallowed the rest of her words and forced a smile, "That's true."

He then waved his hand dismissively, saying, "Then go ahead."

Huangli picked up her hat, put it on, and picked up her basket to go out.

As soon as she reached the main room, she saw her eldest sister come out of her room. She immediately smiled and said, "Sister, you're up so early, where are you going?"

Huang Ying opened her mouth and exhaled a puff of white breath, "Wherever you go, I will go."

Huang Li's eyes narrowed into slits as she chuckled, "You've already graduated, and you're still going to Teacher Chen's house?"

"You're not going back after you've finished your apprenticeship? What kind of logic is that?"

Huang Ying walked over to her, lifted the cotton cloth to take a look, and said, "This little bit of tofu probably isn't enough, is it?"

Huang Li quickly covered it with the cotton cloth, saying, "We can come back and get more if it's not enough."

Huang Ying frowned slightly, then suddenly said, "Get a few more pieces of fermented bean curd residue; the teacher likes to eat that."

Huang Li suddenly slapped her forehead, "Oh dear, I forgot about this."

He then shoved the basket into his cousin's hand and ran towards the kitchen.

When he returned, he was carrying a large bowl containing several pieces of moldy bean curd residue.

This fermented soybean residue was left over from when I helped a relative make tofu a few days ago. After a few days of fermentation, a beautiful layer of white mold has grown on the surface. At this point, I put it in a bowl and held it directly in my arms.

The two sisters then went out together.

As we walked to the middle of the village, we ran into Yang Ju, Yang Mei, Liu Dan, and Liu Lu.

Teacher Chen's six disciples from the two batches are now complete.

Oh, we're still missing Zhang Cuie from Team 5.

The group walked through the snow, talking all the way, and soon arrived at the small hill behind the village, in front of Teacher Chen's house.

Before we even got down the slope, two dogs came out to greet us, wiggling their bodies and wagging their tails.

Huang Li, Yang Mei, and Liu Lu were fine; they came over every day. But Yang Ju, Huang Ying, and Liu Dan couldn't stand it. They opened their eyes wide and greeted them with giggles, "Duo Duo, Qiu Qiu."

The dogs' barking seemed to be a signal, quickly waking up the animals one by one.

In the panda enclosure, a panda with its cub and a daughter crawled out of its enclosure. Upon seeing the snow-covered ground, it excitedly rolled around in the snow and immediately forgot about the six girls outside, having a great time.

The myna bird peeked out of its nest under the eaves, cautiously glanced at the sky, and immediately spotted the three snow-white gyrfalcons perched on the treetops. It then swiftly retreated back inside.

A few seconds later, unable to resist its curiosity, it secretly peeked out a bird's head.

The Eurasian Hobby living next door gave it a disdainful look, spread its wings and flew towards the three gyrfalcons, flapping its wings and standing beside them.

Looking at the three valiant little creatures, it snorted to itself, "So what if they're so good? They were trained by me. Without my hard work, would they even know how to catch fish and birds?"
Welcomed by the two dogs, Yang Ju and her companions climbed up the hill, holding onto the bamboo railing. Before they could greet the three ponies, they saw a mare and a foal running towards them, one after the other.

The two horses trotted around the field a few times, trampling the pristine snow into a mess.

Yang Ju stepped forward and hugged the little horse's head, patting it gently twice. "You're so big and still so naughty. Be careful the teacher doesn't spank you."

The little horse blinked its eyes, "Whose bottom are you spanking? Isn't it supposed to be a pat?"

Two large sheep ran over from behind the house. Seeing that both horses had been stopped, they dared not run wild anymore and obediently went to lie down under the eaves, bleating occasionally.

Huang Li pushed open the kitchen door, put down the tofu and fermented soybean residue, and then took out several large bamboo brooms from the corner—the kind used for sweeping the streets in the city—and distributed them to the group, saying, "Don't just sit around, get to work."

Inside the room, Zhou Yali was sleeping sprawled out on the large kang (heated brick bed), with two little monkeys curled up beside her pillow, snoring softly.

She was having a sweet dream when she suddenly heard the rustling sound of sweeping, and she groggily opened her eyes.

He was awake, but he didn't get out of bed. Instead, he wrapped the blanket tighter around himself, lay on his side, and stared at the door, waiting for someone to call him.

In the second-floor room, the portable fireplace in the corner was burning brightly, clearly having been filled with charcoal that morning.

A computer sat on the table. Chen Fan took a sip of the green tea he had brewed that morning and began typing away at the keyboard.

In the past, he would have been wearing a fur coat or wrapped in a quilt in this kind of weather. But now he was only wearing a set of not-too-thick cotton-padded clothes, and he was in good spirits, without any of the sleepiness that comes with waking up early.

He insisted on cultivating Taoism every day, without meditating or chanting scriptures, but simply practicing Taoist methods while sitting, lying down, and walking. His experience points increased rapidly, but he himself did not know what level he had reached or how deep his Taoist cultivation was.

The key issue is that there's no reference standard for this.

He can sleep whenever he wants, be sleepy whenever he wants, wake up whenever he wants, and be energetic whenever he wants. He doesn't feel hot wearing a cotton coat in the summer, and he doesn't feel cold going shirtless in the winter. He's completely carefree and extremely spontaneous.

Therefore, he pays special attention to the weather. When it snows, he makes sure to light the heater and wear cotton-padded clothes. In the summer, he turns on the fan and air conditioner, trying his best to maintain the persona of a normal person and making sure that no one notices anything amiss.

So it's perfectly reasonable for him to get up at 5 a.m., with heavy snow falling outside and the indoor temperature at 3 degrees Celsius, and casually relight the extinguished fireplace while shirtless.

Zhou Yali nestled on the kang (a heated brick bed), pulling the quilt tighter around herself. Suddenly, a thought struck her: Had the fire on the kang gone out?

I went to bed around 8 p.m. last night, what time is it now?

Looking out the window, it was already quite bright, at least 7:30. After burning for twelve hours, it should have been extinguished by now.

So, should we get out of bed or not?
This is a problem!
Just as she was filled with inner turmoil, she suddenly smelled a sweet fragrance, and her eyes lit up. She reached out from under the covers and quickly dragged the clothes laid out on the kang (a heated brick bed) into the covers.

After covering myself up for a while, I didn't feel cold anymore.

Yes, how could it be cold if it's placed on the kang (heated brick bed)?

So she didn't sit up, but just started working on herself under the covers. When she finally lifted the covers, she was dressed in her pajamas, socks, and gloves.

Zhou Yali looked at herself in the mirror, nodded in satisfaction, tidied herself up a bit to make her clothes look better, then took off her hat from the coat rack and put it on, before putting on her purple mink coat. Only then did she bravely open the door and walk out with her head held high. Opening the door, she saw a clean, tidy yard and the white snow in the distance.

The thick fog was just beginning to dissipate, and under the sunlight, the distant forests, dikes, and fields were shrouded in white mist, yet they were also bright, adding a touch of wildness to the beautiful scenery before us.

Before she could finish looking, several girls came out of the kitchen.

Yangmei: "Auntie, you're up! Did you sleep well?"

Zhou Yali turned her head to look and quickly waved her hand, saying, "I told you yesterday, don't call me 'aunt'. We're not that far apart in age. Just call me 'cousin'."

That's unbelievable! My brother is only 18 years old, yet he's already taken on several apprentices who are 15, 16, or 17. And when they call him "master," does he even dare to answer?!

Just as Yang Mei was in a dilemma, Yang Ju, Huang Ying, and Liu Dan, their faces already beaming with smiles, sweetly called out, "Cousin."

Zhou Yali then responded with a smile, "Hey, good morning everyone."

Yang Ju stepped forward and said with a smile, "Cousin, breakfast is ready. Would you like to eat first?"

Zhou Yali looked back and said, "I'll go upstairs and see if your master has gotten up yet."

After saying that, he turned and went inside.

In the past, Yang Mei and the others would have gone upstairs to wake them up long ago.

However, my cousin is here, and it's said that Master and Jiang Zhiqing have confirmed their relationship. There's a difference between men and women, so it would definitely be inappropriate to rush up to them.

Therefore, the right to call out was regrettably lost.

Zhou Yali skipped up to the second floor, reached the master bedroom door, and knocked, "Little brother, are you up yet?"

Chen Fan didn't even turn his head. "You can come in."

Zhou Yali pushed open the door and saw that the fireplace was burning brightly, so she quickly closed the door.

He then approached Chen Fan and frowned immediately, "What is this?"

She thought her younger brother was writing a book, but what she saw was a string of code.

I can't understand it at all.

Chen Fan kept working, glanced back at her, and smiled, "I made a little game."

Zhou Yali raised an eyebrow slightly. "Games? Computer games? Or console games?"

There aren't many computer games yet. The mainstream video games are divided into two types: arcade games and home console games.

Actually, the two games are quite similar; both can be played on a single machine by inserting a game cartridge.

Computer games, on the other hand, come pre-installed on personal computers and have a smaller storage capacity. Unless an expansion slot is used, they are difficult to compare with game cartridges.

Chen Fan did not answer her immediately. He calmly typed the last line of code, performed another set of operations, and finally started the test run.

On the computer screen, several oddly shaped figures made up of small squares immediately appeared and slowly fell down from the top of the screen.

He gently pressed the upward arrow key, and the falling object immediately changed direction. Then he pressed the downward arrow key, and the falling speed accelerated, and it landed at the bottom with a whoosh.

Those familiar with the game will have already guessed it. That's right, it's the game of the century, "Tetris," invented by Alexei Pajitnov in June 1984.

Previously, Chen Fan had Zhou Yali send him two American game consoles, as well as several popular game cartridges, such as Space Invaders and Canyon Bomber, a scrolling shooter game.

Chen Fan also tried playing it and felt it was okay, but the graphics were too poor and the game was rather monotonous.

He heard that making video games is quite profitable these days, and Atari, the world's number one game company, has a market value of $32 billion.

That's 32 billion in 1978 and 79, and that's just for video games!

So Chen Fan wondered, if Wanmuchun Company successfully developed its multi-protocol router and then created a few classic mini-games, wouldn't it be more popular in the capital market?
It's not really about how much the company is worth; rather, he hopes to increase Wanmuchun Company's brand awareness in the United States through game development and sales.

Americans are known for their emphasis on freedom, but plunder is also a form of freedom.

If the company is not well-known, they have plenty of ways to put pressure on Wan Muchun Company... Anyway, the two countries have already established diplomatic relations, and the use of someone like my uncle, a low-level tool, has been exhausted. If nothing happens, that's fine, and we can still give him some face from all sides.

But if the profits are too great and there are no other constraints, who will even know who he is?

Conversely, if Wanmuchun Company gains widespread fame due to its products, making more people aware of the company, then at least on the surface, they will have more leverage, making large investors hesitant to invest.

This is one of the reasons why Chen Fan suddenly thought of developing a game.

The second reason is that making video games is indeed very profitable, even more so than writing Western fantasy novels.

Since that was the case, he unceremoniously copied several classic games from later generations to help his uncle and sister.

what?
Does he own half of the company?
We're all family, so let's not be so fussy.

His three computers were located in Shanghai, Wenyi New Village in the provincial capital, and Lujiawan. During this period, he was in all three places without any delay and easily completed his goal.

This is the last game we played today.

After watching him play for a while, Zhou Yali's eyes couldn't help but light up.

Tetris is very easy to play; it doesn't even require any other buttons. You can play it using just four arrow keys, and any normal person can understand it.

So, without hesitation, he pushed someone aside with his buttocks... but couldn't get past him?

Then keep pushing!

Chen Fan's eyes twitched. He silently moved aside, stood behind her, crossed his arms, and smiled without saying a word.

Zhou Yali took control of the game and quickly got into the swing of things, yelling at the computer, "Ahhh, transform, transform, transform faster! ... Ah, why is the speed increasing? Bro, help me..."

Chen Fan said with a dark face, "This game has no other difficulty. The only way to increase the difficulty is by speeding up. If there are no levels, how can you complete the game? If you don't complete the game, where does the sense of accomplishment come from?"

Zhou Yali was struggling with the blocks, watching them fall one by one, too nervous to speak.

If you manage to pass this hurdle, the next one will follow.

This time, I wasn't so lucky. After managing to eliminate two blocks, the space quickly filled up with blocks one by one.

Finally, the computer screen displayed the phrase, "game over!"

Zhou Yali also let out a scream, "Ah... I'm dead."

(End of this chapter)