"Director Liu—ah, I'll just call you Old Liu, makes it feel a bit closer. Don't stand, have a seat and talk."
Inside the office that once belonged to boss Qin Xiangyang, Lin Baicheng gestured for the standing Liu Yihui to sit, then looked at him and asked:
"Old Liu, I heard from Boss Qin that you've been with him since a few years ago. I know he's moving into the textile industry, so why didn't he take you along this time?"
"Don't get me wrong, I'm just curious. If it's inconvenient to say, you don't need to answer."
"President Lin, there's nothing inconvenient about it," Liu Yihui replied with a shake of his head. "Although Mr. Qin didn't say it outright, I know his new factory is going to appoint one of his relatives as the director. If I went, there'd be no position for me. That's why he didn't bring me along."
"I see," Lin said with a nod. He didn't press further and instead switched the topic.
"Old Liu, I didn't acquire this factory just to keep assembling arcade machines. I bought it to develop my own games. That's the only way to make real money."
"But, President Lin…" Liu hesitated. "This factory doesn't have the talent to develop games. Hong Kong also doesn't have many people skilled in that field, so hiring won't be easy. More importantly, developing a game takes a lot of time and capital. If it becomes a hit, that's good, but if not…"
"Seems like you know quite a bit about this industry," Lin said in some surprise. He'd thought Liu only knew how to manage the factory, not much about the arcade game market.
"I figured since I work in games—even if only assembly—I should at least understand the industry a little," Liu explained. "So I learned some things from Little Zhang." (By "Little Zhang," he meant Zhang Cheng, who was in charge of data copying and testing the machines.)
"No harm in knowing more," Lin nodded. "But don't worry, Old Liu. I'll handle the development of this new game myself. It's a simple one, doesn't require much manpower. I've already started, and in half a month at most I'll have the development finished. After that, we can move on to sound, music, and production, and then launch it to the market."
Even before acquiring the factory, Lin had spent HK$200,000 on an IBM computer. In this era, IBM machines were the best available. Luckily, they were sold in Hong Kong, so he didn't need to send someone to the U.S. to bring one over.
As for the price—there was no avoiding it. Even the cheapest IBM computer cost several thousand U.S. dollars, which translated to HK$30–40,000. Since Lin needed strong performance for game development, he had spent nearly US$50,000 on a mid-range model.
After familiarizing himself with the computers of this era, he began designing his game. However, since he also had to dictate his novels every day, the time he could devote to game-making was limited. Even so, progress remained within his expected timeline, especially since the game was relatively simple.
The factory was Lin's now, so even though Liu Yihui didn't really believe this young boss could successfully create a game, he wisely kept those thoughts to himself.
"So here's the plan," Lin said. "Fulfill the current orders for the next half-month, but don't take any new ones after that. Meanwhile, stock up on enough parts and materials to assemble at least 100 machines."
"President Lin, the factory accounts are already empty," Liu reminded him.
"I know," Lin said. Of course Qin Xiangyang would have withdrawn all the funds before selling. "Within the next couple of days, I'll bring in a new accountant for the factory. Once that's set, I'll transfer funds into the factory's account."
"Oh, and I've already registered a company—Galaxy Games Company. From now on, that's the factory's name."
He asked Liu to create a new factory sign and provided a rough sketch of the logo: an endless starry galaxy reflecting the company's name, with the solar system highlighted, eight planets orbiting the sun in vivid, distinct colors.
In this era, Hong Kong businesses didn't place much emphasis on branding, but Lin—coming from decades later—knew the importance of image, especially since he planned to sell games overseas.
After discussing further details, Lin sent Liu back to work and summoned the head of security, Wu Jianjun.
"Captain Wu, how many guards do we have here?"
"Including myself, there are four. But only me and one other are full-time. The other two also help with deliveries," Wu replied.
"The factory is going to make its own games. If a game becomes a huge success, we'll be making serious money. We can't give anyone a chance to cause trouble. So how many guards should we really have?"
Lin was planning ahead. Security couldn't be treated lightly—not something to fix after a disaster.
"For the current factory size, six guards would be enough," Wu calculated. "But we'd also need to purchase some equipment, which could cost a fair bit."
"Don't worry about money," Lin said. "Make a list of what you need, and I'll approve it, as long as it's under HK$100,000 for now."
He couldn't spare too much, since most of the funds had to go into game development.
"And four guards isn't enough. Those two who split their time with deliveries—let them focus fully on security. Then recruit six more. That'll give us ten."
"When hiring, prioritize men with families, no criminal records, and no bad reputations. They must be capable fighters, unafraid of confrontation. Retired soldiers would be best. Understand?"
"No problem. I'll get the right people, and I'll make sure you're satisfied," Wu said with excitement. He immediately thought of his old comrades, many of whom matched the criteria. Bringing them in would save them from having to scrape by as casual dock laborers.
"Good. I'll leave it to you then. Don't let me down," Lin said with a nod, dismissing him.
"I'll get right on it, President Lin," Wu said, bowing out.
Lin had already noticed that Wu Jianjun was likely from the mainland—his name and casual speech gave it away.
At this time, many Hong Kong people looked down on mainlanders because of the vast economic gap. But Lin himself had been a mainlander before his rebirth, so he held no such prejudice.
He just didn't see the need to say so. For now, making money was his top priority. Once he grew wealthy enough to invest in the mainland, then would be the time to reveal his stance.