Why the bug I wrote became a core gameplay mechanic?!
Chapter 557 - 540: Gan Di’s First Meeting

Chapter 557: Chapter 540: Gan Di’s First Meeting

Soon, Gan Di was arranged for accommodation.

In this regard, Nitiandang had provided him with two different options: first, a free single room accommodation in the villa area, as many houses were empty anyway and could be used after a bit of tidying.

If he didn’t want to stay there, it could be converted into money for him to find his own place to live. Of course, the amount wouldn’t be too much, just around the rental price of that room.

The notion of staying in a five-star hotel at public expense was impossible in a cost-saving enterprise like Nitiandang.

Gan Di’s choice was, of course, clear.

He would definitely stay here!

It was convenient and worry-free. In case of any problems, he could immediately find other Nitiandang employees by visiting them.

However, the only problem was, who would be the roommate?

Since Nitiandang currently had many employees, they had rented a lot of houses in the villa area and the nearby neighborhoods.

It was impossible for Gan Di to live in a huge villa all by himself.

Arriving at the villa entrance, Guo Zhao Sheng led him inside.

"Come here, the master bedroom on the second floor of this villa is the room arranged for you," Guo Zhao Sheng explained.

Gan Di was a bit shocked, "Wait, you’re still the one receiving me? I mean, shouldn’t someone specialized in housekeeping or something be in charge?"

Guo Zhao Sheng shook his head, "Of course not, Nitiandang doesn’t have such positions.

"Oh, strictly speaking, there are people handling finances and administration, but compared to other companies, the number is much smaller.

"So, receiving is something I can easily handle.

"After all, it’s just like arranging a place for a friend."

Gan Di scratched his head, feeling a bit incredulous.

Was this the legendary flat management?

In plain terms, wasn’t this just a ragtag team?

"No, I don’t get it, why does Nitiandang need to save money here? Hasn’t it made a lot?" Gan Di was puzzled.

Guo Zhao Sheng looked at him, "Oh, this is a collective request from all Nitiandang employees, not just decided by President Gu."

Gan Di, "You mean, all Nitiandang employees collectively requested to hire fewer people? Not to have someone specifically for managing accommodation? All together requested not to have a fancy office building?"

Guo Zhao Sheng nodded, "Yes."

Gan Di was shocked, "Why? Isn’t it the company’s money being spent? Wouldn’t these things make a lot of tasks more convenient?"

Guo Zhao Sheng explained, "What you don’t know is that in other companies, saving money on these areas doesn’t matter because no one knows where the boss would spend that saved money.

"But Nitiandang is different, the saved money is all used for bonuses.

"Hiring a department to manage accommodation and reception means that department also gets a share of the money.

"Obviously, everyone felt there was no need to let these people share the money, these tasks can be simply handled by ourselves, wouldn’t it be better to put all the bonus money in our own pockets?

"Of course, on the basis of an eight-hour workday, we honestly hire people if we really can’t handle it, because making games faster and more means better sharing of the money.

"Otherwise, why do you think, as a chief planner, you could get such a high bonus?"

Gan Di was momentarily speechless; well, it actually made quite some sense!

Why were the bonuses at Nitiandang so high?

On one hand, it was because they earned more and shared more, but another reason was that expenses were especially saved as unnecessary departments were not established.

Many companies often fell into a kind of big company illness, where after the company grew, various seemingly "necessary expenses" also increased.

Looking at a single expense might not be much, but cumulatively, it amounted to an astronomical figure.

But to cut these things, employees definitely wouldn’t agree because the saved money wouldn’t end up in the employees’ pockets; why would the employees support it?

But Nitiandang clearly wasn’t in this situation because money was distributed strictly according to rules, so employees would adjust the company structure and workload themselves.

When employees felt that current work was totally manageable, they would 100% refuse the creation of new departments and the introduction of new members, as these people might not contribute much but would take a significant share of the money.

However, employees wouldn’t completely reject new hires either because there were fixed schedules in game development, and they all earned good money and didn’t want to continue the 996 culture.

So when work seemed unmanageable, weighing the pros and cons, they would choose to hire more people to ease their burden even if it meant accepting less bonus.

This naturally formed a dynamic balance, without needing managers to rack their brains for adjustments.

Because no matter how the managers adjusted, it couldn’t compare to the employees’ own adjustments.

The only downside was that it made the company look like a ragtag team.

But Nitiandang is a game company; maintaining a corporate image isn’t very necessary, so that really doesn’t matter.

Guo Zhao Sheng pointed to a building nearby, "That building is where President Gu lives; President Li sometimes comes too, so if you’re going to visit, I suggest knocking first."

"As for the building you’re living in, it was previously occupied by another chief designer, Zhou Yang, who is the producer of ’Shadow World.’ However, he and Wei Chengjie have both moved to other cities, each taking charge of a studio, so it became vacant.

"Just cleaned it thoroughly a couple of days ago, so you can move in worry-free.

"Oh yes, you also have two roommates, the frontend programmer Feng Hui, and the backend programmer Zhao Haiquan, who are both long-time employees of Nitiandang, recruited by President Gu back when he started the company in a small coffee shop. You can ask them if you have any questions."

The two entered the villa, which was currently unoccupied.

Clearly, Feng Hui and Zhao Haiquan were at another villa working, and weren’t here.

Gan Di had a question, "Wait a second, shouldn’t this room be reserved for Zhou Yang? What if he needs to come back to the Capital City headquarters for work?"

Guo Zhao Sheng smiled slightly, "Oh, then he can just stay at a hotel or find another place to stay.

"Besides, as President Li and President Gu said, those who are sent away in principle shouldn’t come back."

Gan Di’s lips twitched slightly, not sure why but that comment really felt like they were taking the knife to the grinders.

It sounded like Zhou Yang was an extremely senior designer at Nitiandang, even the second-in-command right after President Gu in terms of producing, but just like that, he’s pushed out?

No wonder the turnover rate for producers is so high, and now it’s the turn of a nobody like me to take over.

Gan Di still found it absurd that he was here to be the producer of a new game for Nitiandang, but since he was here, he could only take it one step at a time.

"Alright, settle in for a bit, call me if you need anything, I’ll show you around the neighborhood.

"Tonight at 8 p.m., there’s a small meeting. President Gu said it’s to discuss issues with the new game. Zhou Yang, Wei Chengjie, and Su Tong, the producers before you, should be there too.

"Join in and remember to speak up, don’t be shy. At Nitiandang we encourage innovation, even when you’re not quite informed about the situation."

Gan Di hesitated a moment, "Ah? Is that appropriate?"

Normally, being new to Nitiandang, he shouldn’t have much say.

In another company, if a new employee spoke out of turn, the boss would likely have only eight words for them: "If you’re sick, get treated; if not, get fired."

But Nitiandang seemed different, even encouraging new employees to speak up without fully understanding the truth?

How impractical must those suggestions be?

Yet Gan Di thought again, if Nitiandang didn’t operate like this, they wouldn’t have done something as crazy as hiring a mere bystander as the main strategist.

Better not think too much about it, just rest for now and wait for the meeting tonight.

...

At 8 p.m.

Gan Di cautiously approached President Gu’s villa and rang the doorbell.

After a moment, the door was opened by a girl with twin ponytails, looking like a delinquent.

She sized him up and then asked, "Who are you?"

Gan Di hesitated, what was going on?

He wanted to ask, "And who are you?" But then thought better of it, as she must also be associated with President Gu or Nitiandang to attend this meeting, so he quickly explained, "My name is Jiang Gan."

Lilith frowned slightly, trying hard to pull up relevant information from her brain, and unsurprisingly recalled some data she had seen during the development of ’Destiny of the Sleeping Dragon.’

"The one tricked at the Heroic Gathering?"

Gan Di nearly spurted out blood, "Not Jiang Gan, I’m Jiang Gan! I’m UP Master, mod creator, Gan Di."

Lilith suddenly realized, "Oh! It’s you, kid! Come on in, if you had said you were Gan Di, I’d have recognized you right away."

Gan Di was speechless; there went his real name.

Since he signed a contract with Nitiandang, it obviously included his real name. If he signed as "Gan Di," wouldn’t that have been ridiculous?

So he instinctively gave his real name, not realizing no one knew it.

The nickname Gan Di was more functional.

Inside the villa, everyone had already arrived. From the seating arrangement, the young man on the left side of the main seat seemed to have a high status, probably President Gu?

As for the two men and one woman sitting around the conference table, were they the previous producers of Nitiandang?

Wait, how come that delinquent girl was sitting in the main seat; could she be President Li?

Gan Di nearly burst another blood vessel, shattering the filters of his previous daydreams.

He had thought that both President Li and President Gu, as the helmspeople of Nitiandang, would be similarly awe-inspiring.

Seeing President Gu today matched his imagination, clearly a capable man.

As for President Li... maybe a bit capable, but not much, didn’t seem too bright.

And she didn’t really look like someone who could produce a good game.

Of course, some say President Li is an investor, well, that means money talks.

Gan Di sat down in his place, his mind racing, trying to keep up with the current situation despite no one providing much of an introduction.