Welcome to the Misogyny Game

His 800-word essay recounted the hardships he endured over those three years. As someone who had experienced it all, he easily understood that starting a business was like playing Go: if you lose everything in one go, you lose the whole game.

On stage, he looked at the bewildered teenagers below, while the teenagers below looked at themselves on stage with a mixture of longing and confusion.

He thought to himself, "Perhaps I used to dream and long for the same thing, thinking that I would definitely accomplish something great."

He said, "If you want to start a business, you have to be bold and daring, have the courage to burn your boats, and be prepared for failure. Success is not achieved overnight. Once you choose to start a business, you have to accept that you will experience failures and setbacks time and time again. Perhaps in the end you may not even have the courage to succeed. So many people start businesses, but how many succeed? I may be one of the lucky ones, but I almost lost confidence in my repeated failures."

"If my senior had had such a profound realization back then, I might already be working in a class, and with my current qualifications, I might even be a department manager."

"Haha." Some people in the audience couldn't help but burst into laughter.

"Anyway, I won't advise you on whether to get a job or start your own business. If you want to get a job, you can consider the senior's company. Don't be afraid of not being in a job related to your major. Interviews are also an opportunity to hone your courage and eloquence. Don't complain about the fierce job market. After all, there are only a few successful entrepreneurs. Maybe you want to be one of the trendsetters like the senior. Then go ahead and start your own business with that courage. Maybe you will become the next me?"

So, young people, strive hard! You're still young. If you don't even have the courage to try and fail, how much of your life will be missing? Thank you.

Chen Qingsong glanced at the students below the stage, his gaze sweeping over their youthful faces. He spotted Liu Chaoque sitting in the corner and paused for a moment. So she was also a student in the business school.

He bent down, making a curtain call gesture, like a dancer thanking the audience for their support after a performance.

The applause of the audience was thunderous.

"Thank you, senior Chen Qingsong, for sharing your entrepreneurial experience with us. After listening to your story, you may all feel a bit moved. Would any of you like to ask your senior a question?" The host walked gracefully to Chen Qingsong's side, looking at the young people in the audience with a warm smile.

The somewhat noisy atmosphere in the audience immediately quieted down.

Liu Chaoque: What are you asking? Starting a business is so tough, have you ever regretted quitting your job? Liu Chaoque knew how awkward this question would be.

So she kept quiet. There were so many people in the lobby; they couldn't possibly call on her. There were quite a few savvy classmates who asked all sorts of questions, some really outlandish, some really creative, making her wonder what they were thinking.

Soon only one question remained. Liu Chaoque didn't know what he was thinking. Did he feel that this last question was so precious that it would be a pity not to ask it, or something else?

She raised her hand.

However, she was so far away from the stage that she probably didn't see it, and she secretly thought about putting it down again.

"That girl in the red dress, yes, she's in the middle row on the edge," Chen Qingsong quickly said.

"Wow, you have such good eyesight," Liu Chaoque thought to himself.

"What would you like to ask, classmate?" Chen Qingsong asked gently.

"I want to ask."

"Excuse me, student, I can't hear you very well here," the host said awkwardly.

"Actually, I'm a bit lost. What should I do in the future?" She raised her voice eight octaves: "After listening to your entrepreneurial experience, what impressed me most was your turning point and those noodles without shredded meat. Although the noodles lacked flavor without shredded meat, they were still edible if there were a lot of pickled vegetables. Perhaps I can adapt to such an environment well, but if you really asked me to start a business, I wouldn't have the courage."

I used to want to be a scientist, feeling that happiness came from contributing to human progress. But now, as you see, I'm a student in the School of Economics and Trade, and I'll probably become a securities analyst in the future. I'll live a conventional life, probably with no intention of quitting, and eventually, like most people, I'll get married. But I find this kind of life incredibly dull, yet I don't know what I can actually change.

"Sorry, I tend to talk a lot when I'm nervous. I'm done talking, senior." Liu Chaoque rubbed his face, which was stiff with nervousness.

"Hmm, it's nothing," Chen Qingsong said with a smile. "But I need to think about your question carefully."

"Is it difficult to answer?" Liu Chaoque said somewhat embarrassedly, "Then forget it."

“No, actually I have to answer carefully.” Chen Qingsong shook his head: “I don’t know if my advice will be useful, but if you want to hear it, I will tell you.”

Liu Chaoque nodded subconsciously.

"Actually, whether you're confused or have a clear goal, it just means you'll have more chances to try and fail. Who isn't confused during their youth? If you don't have the courage to try and fail, then so be it. Everyone is a different individual. But if that's the case, you'll have to carefully consider your future job and try to get it right the first time so you don't have to think about anything else."

“Senior…” Liu Chaoque said helplessly.

"Okay, actually I'd like to recommend my company. It's a five-day work week with two days off, overtime pay, afternoon tea, and team building activities. How about you consider it?" Chen Qingsong sincerely welcomes you to join us.

"But I'd have to be able to get in first," Liu Chaoque said, speechless. "You need to communicate in English and all sorts of certificates."

Perhaps she should try taking the bar exam or the accounting exam? Forget it, she'll stick to her old profession: writing novels. If all else fails, she could try slacking off at Mu Li's place—but she wonders if slacking off next to the boss while writing a novel would get her wages docked.

Liu Chaoque was finally able to sit down. She felt that she might have been influenced by the plot just now, otherwise why would she have asked such a question?

Speaking of which, the person on stage seems somewhat familiar. Chen Qingsong, hmm, tie his hair up, hang a "nothing to do" sign around his neck, replace the lectern with an office chair, knock, isn't this the mysterious CEO who appears much later and is currently only depicted in one illustration?

However, this person only appears after she has graduated. He is the female lead's boss at her company and seems to be a male lead. It's unexpected that the female lead met him when she was a freshman. None of the male leads seem to be more than five years older than the female lead. Could this person be a genius who skipped grades? After all, he has a double master's degree and is from a different major. He can't compare.

To be honest, the female lead is amazing; she just can't have an office romance, which is a real shame.

She recalled the otome games she used to play, where she consistently liked characters similar to bosses, whether it was a big boss of a company or a boss of an agency. But if she actually encountered one, Liu Chaoque felt that facing a boss every day would be stressful enough, let alone dating him. Would she give up her job? If they broke up, would she have to find another company?

Looking at Chen Qingsong, who strode down from the stage with his long legs, well, even if this boss is very handsome and has a refined and dashing appearance, which is her type, it's still not a good match.

As Chen Qingsong stepped off the stage, he subconsciously looked up, his eyes meeting Liu Chaoque's.

He chuckled and shook his head. This girl, does she think she won't be discovered if she sits in the corner? No, someone who's determined to find someone will be found anywhere.

The meeting lasted two hours. Liu Chaoque followed the flow of people and handed her paper, filled with her reflections, to the person in charge of collecting papers in the first row. With two credits in hand, she thought about how many more she needed to complete her credits for the semester.

Mu Li walked beside her with his hands empty and his hands in his pockets. As they walked down the corridor, looking at the greenery on both sides, Liu Chaoque asked him, "Do you want to come to class with me? I have an open class later."

"Open lectures," Mu Li said, "It's always this kind of boring stuff, I'm not going."

"Okay." Liu Chaoque handed him his own meal card. "Don't lose it. Just stay here at school. You can use this card to go to the library or to the supermarket to buy some snacks. Of course, you can go out too, but don't go too far. Or you can go see if anyone is playing basketball on the basketball court. If all else fails, you can go for a run."

"Oh, right." Liu Chaoque untied a small accessory hanging on his arm. It was a red string with a small message in a bottle attached. However, there was no envelope in the bottle, only liquid and a small blue stone.

"These are Kong Qing and Bai Jiu, a swordsman and a knife-wielder. They gave me a token so I can summon them at any time. I'm lending you this token now so they can protect you. They'll come out when they sense you're in danger. But don't get any funny ideas. The Food Spirits can distinguish right from wrong. If they find out you're not doing something righteous, I can't guarantee what will happen to you."

Liu Chaoque spoke earnestly.

"You don't trust me?" Mu Li was somewhat hurt.

"I'm just stating the facts," Liu Chaoque sighed. "I'll put on my airplane now."

The red rope was tied to Liu Chaoque's left hand, hanging right at his knuckle. Mu Li moved slightly, feeling a bit of tightness. He shook his hand, causing the glass bottle to shake. The glass bottle struck the glass wall, making a tinkling sound. The red rope seemed to flicker. When he lowered his hand, he found that there was a two-millimeter gap in the red rope.

"It's really quite amazing." Mu Li touched the string of glass bottles with her right hand. The cat had discovered a new and interesting toy and always wanted to tease it. Mu Li watched the cat playing with itself.

Liu Chaoque smiled like an aunt.

"Have fun, I'm leaving now. Come to the restaurant on the first floor at five o'clock this afternoon." After giving his instructions, Liu Chaoque headed towards the Public Teaching Building.

The next class is politics. The teacher said last time that she would highlight the key points for them. Next time around this time, there will be an exam. This semester has really gone by quickly. She has already finished many of her main exams.

To be fair, although she studied humanities in college, she was a typical science student in high school. She was toughened up by college, memorizing classical Chinese texts, modern poems, and writing articles every day. Even though she changed her major now, she has adapted well.

Liu Chaoque stuffed the book into the food contract package. As a food-themed battle game, its backpack has unlimited slots for all kinds of food, making it a very useful space, except that it cannot hold living things.

She scrolled to the last page of the backpack and clicked on "Looks a bit old, a worn-out little backpack." Next to it was "This is a sparkly cat bag, lovingly made by the cat food and alkaline fish of the continent of Greloo." It would be perfect if these descriptions weren't added.

Emerging from the restroom, Liu Chaoque, carrying a red schoolbag, walked towards the classroom.

At five o'clock in the afternoon, Liu Chaoque walked towards the cafeteria with a slightly hungry stomach. It was the time when students were getting out of school, and the road was full of people. Liu Chaoque didn't know if Mu Li had listened to her and gone to the cafeteria. After all, this young master had a temper and probably didn't want to listen to her.

Thinking about whether he would get into a conflict with someone or whether there would be any danger, Liu Chaoque's leisurely steps forward became hurried.

For some reason, an electric scooter suddenly appeared next to her, honking its horn. She shouted for it to move aside and managed to clear a space for it.

Upon hearing this, Liu Chaoque instinctively took a few steps back. As she watched the electric scooter rushing towards her, her pupils constricted, her body went cold, and she was momentarily at a loss for how to react.

"Careful." She fell into a warm embrace. Her pure white shirt was covered in mud and dust. She rolled on the ground and stopped.

"Are you alright?" Liu Chaoque looked up and realized that Chen Qingsong's eyes were actually dark blue. He hadn't noticed it from a distance.